Trump, June 2017: From [Covfefe] with Love

That Coates story is something else

https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/top-intelligence-official-told-associates-trump-asked-him-if-he-could-intervene-with-comey-to-get-fbi-to-back-off-flynn/2017/06/06/cc879f14-4ace-11e7-9669-250d0b15f83b_story.html?pushid=593743cd2e12651d0000003c&sw_bypass=true&tid=notifi_push_breaking-news&utm_term=.6d65b5f6c2df

The nation’s top intelligence official told associates in March that President Trump asked him if he could intervene with then-FBI Director James B. Comey to get the bureau to back off its focus on former national security adviser Michael Flynn in its Russia probe, according to officials.

On March 22, less than a week after being confirmed by the Senate, Director of National Intelligence Daniel Coats attended a briefing at the White House together with officials from several government agencies. As the briefing was wrapping up, Trump asked everyone to leave the room except for Coats and CIA Director Mike Pompeo.

The president then started complaining about the FBI investigation and Comey’s handling of it, said officials familiar with the account Coats gave to associates. Two days earlier, Comey had confirmed in a congressional hearing that the bureau was probing whether Trump’s campaign coordinated with Russia during the 2016 race.

After the encounter, Coats discussed the conversation with other officials and decided that intervening with Comey as Trump had suggested would be inappropriate, according to officials who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive internal matters.

"don't leave me alone with Trump" - I guess Comey is not the first to beg this of someone

Oh Thursday will be fun.

Trump won't let Comey "smear him without punching him as hard as he can.” My latest w/ @philiprucker @ashleyrparker https://t.co/yD2dDBwIMa

— Robert Costa (@costareports) June 7, 2017

Alone in the White House in recent days, President Trump — frustrated and defiant — has been spoiling for a fight, according to his confidants and associates.

Glued even more than usual to the cable news shows that blare from the televisions in his private living quarters, or from the 60-inch flat screen he had installed in his cramped study off the Oval Office, he has fumed about “fake news.” Trump has seethed as his agenda has stalled in Congress and the courts. He has chafed against the pleas for caution from his lawyers and political advisers, tweeting whatever he wants, whenever he wants.

I want to know more about this 60 inch TV Trump is hunched in front of.

And I'm sure this isn't helping:

The West Wing, meanwhile, has taken on an atmosphere of legal uncertainty. White House counsel Donald F. McGahn has told staff to hold onto emails, documents and phone records, officials said, a move of caution designed to prepare the staff for future legal requests, should they come. McGahn has specifically advised staffers to avoid what are known as the “burn bags” in the executive branch that are often used to discard papers.

POTUS thinks sick burns via twitter is going to save his ass? What a time to be alive..

The Republican National Committee has lined up a roster of surrogates to appear on conservative news stations nationwide to defend Trump. But a list the RNC distributed on Tuesday could hardly be described as star-studded: The names include Bob Paduchik, an RNC co-chair who worked on Trump’s Ohio campaign; Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi (R); and Arkansas Attorney General Leslie Rutledge (R).

Tons of anecdotes in this story. Two of my favorites:

The White House recently approached Geoff Morrell — who served as the Pentagon press secretary for more than four years under former defense secretary Robert Gates — about coming inside the administration and overhauling the communications operation, according to three people with knowledge of the overture.

Morrell declined to comment, but BP announced last month that Morrell would be moving to London this summer to run government relations and communications for the company globally.

Some Trump loyalists outside the White House who are preparing to go on television news shows Thursday to defend the president and undermine Comey’s testimony said they have been given no talking points, nor seen any evidence of a strategy taking shape. One such loyalist said external supporters are afraid to coordinate too closely with the White House because they fear they could be accused of obstructing justice.

I pity them so.

holy shit at Comey telling sessions not to leave him alone, and coates being told to intervene.

I really hope he live-tweets the Comey hearing. So much scope for "I never mentioned Israel" style accidental confessions

and this Eric Trump charity Story, how Despicable are these people

The names include Bob Paduchik, an RNC co-chair who worked on Trump’s Ohio campaign; Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi (R); and Arkansas Attorney General Leslie Rutledge (R).

So it's probably fair to assume that Trump has also funneled money to Bob Paduchik and Leslie Rutledge.

It's almost 9pm and WH still cannot say whether POTUS has confidence in his Attorney General. "No updates," a WH official said.

— Jim Acosta (@Acosta) June 7, 2017

POTUS thinks sick burns via twitter is going to save his ass? What a time to be alive..

― officer sonny bonds, lytton pd (mayor jingleberries), Tuesday, June 6, 2017 7:47 PM (twenty-five minutes ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

Saving one's ass is of secondary importance compared to impotent displays of one's dominance.

Ah, the silver tongue of Pam Bondi.

Suspect "don't leave me alone with him" is also on Melania and Barron's wish lists.

blare from the televisions

it's like fox controls the volume from their end nationwide somehow

Trump also randomly quipped that "Jared's actually become more famous than me" -- on heels of son-in-law's TIME cover

— Justin Sink (@justinsink) June 6, 2017

Ooh jared's dead

He'll be calling him a showboat next

Curiously, Comey never got a Time cover, AFAIK. He did get high praise from McCain prior to his firing.

Amusing tweet thread, even for a comics hater like me.

"I'm glad you could both make it. I'd like to talk to you about... The Avengers Initiative" pic.twitter.com/dUsaiwkSrG

— Oliver Willis (@owillis) June 7, 2017

I believe that's referring to something from a series of Hollywood motion pictures.

Great news for once: Sam Brownback's experiment of turning Kansas into an abattoir has been halted:

The Kansas House garners enough votes for lawmakers to override the governor's veto of the tax bill to balance the state's budget. would raise $1.2 billion over two years by increasing income tax rates and ending an exemption for 330,000 plus farmers and business owners.

The House vote passed 88-31.

http://www.kwch.com/content/news/Bill-raising-taxes-delivered-to-Kansas-governor-426826281.html

Has he even vaguely said anything about how he fucked up?

https://robertnielsen21.files.wordpress.com/2012/09/laffer_curve_3.png

Clapper, giving a speech just now in Australia:

Ooooh. Clapper: "I have to say I think you compare the two that Watergate pales really in my view compared to what we're confronting now"

— Mark Di Stefano 🤙🏻 (@MarkDiStef) June 7, 2017

Clapper says on his only trip to Trump Tower, Trump asked him: "Wouldn't it be a good thing if we could get along with the Russians?"

— Mark Di Stefano 🤙🏻 (@MarkDiStef) June 7, 2017

And some more detail

Clapper is absolutely shirtfronting Trump at #NPC #auspol pic.twitter.com/avN2VxKlOR

— Paul Karp (@Paul_Karp) June 7, 2017

Whats that on, National Press Club? I think they have that on repeats online on ABC, might have to watch later.

Had to google shirtfront.

What did you learn

they used to make them with celluloid

It's an Australian rules football term for charging at a dude's chest. Also learned that Paul Karp is Australian.

We're all Australians.

Well maybe not.

I understand there may be a few New Zealanders lurking in the ILX stairwell, smoking.

ossoff's opponent for the GA seat made a bit of a gaffe during the debate tonight, apparently

"Someone working full time should earn a decent standard of living." - Jon Ossoff pic.twitter.com/hf1yO7YfLX

— Team Ossoff (@TeamOssoff) June 7, 2017

During Tuesday night’s debate for an open U.S. House seat in Georgia, Republican candidate Karen Handel said that she does not support a “livable wage.”

“This is an example of the fundamental difference between a liberal and a conservative: I do not support a livable wage,” she said on Atlanta’s WSB-TV in response to a viewer question about raising the minimum wage. “What I support is making sure that we have an economy that is robust with low taxes and less regulation.”

http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/karen-handel-i-dont-support-livable-wage

“This is an example of the fundamental difference between a liberal and a conservative: I do not support a livable wage,”

gotta admit this is refreshing honesty from a republican though

"I do not support living."

'How much money do you have, ma'am?... Okay, I sincerely don't care whether you live of die. Next?'

I do not support a livable wage

WOW. I am ... wow.

I mean does she realise that without a livable wage people dont spend money and buy houses and the economy grinds to a halt, right? Not to mention the increase in crime it causes which pearlclutchers like her would hate.

It's a true reflection of her party's thoughts on the matter.

if you surprised trump with the question, as a non sequitur, "do you support a living wage like the typical democrat, or do you oppose it like republican house candidate karen handel?", i wonder what he'd say

xpost yeah she just accidentally blurted out something honest, i love when that happens

if you surprised trump with the question, as a non sequitur, "do you support a living wage like the typical democrat, or do you oppose it like republican house candidate karen handel?", i wonder what he'd say

Shit man, put it up as an instapoll or something on Breibart/Fox News/etc. and learn how quickly how party labels outweigh everything else.

I've been reading the Hari Seldon-esque Peter Turchin of late. From his Ultrasociety:

There is a pattern that we see recurring throughout history, when a successful empire expands its borders so far that it becomes the biggest kid on the block. When survival is no longer at stake, selfish elites and other special interest groups capture the political agenda. The spirit that "we are all in the same boat" disappears and is replaced by a "winner take all" mentality. As the elites enrich themselves, the rest of the population is increasingly impoverished. Rampant inequality of wealth further corrodes cooperation. Beyond a certain point a formerly great empire becomes so dysfunctional that smaller, more cohesive neighbors begin tearing it apart. Eventually the capacity for cooperation declines to such a low level that barbarians can strike at the very heart of the empire without encountering significant resistance. But barbarians at the gate are not the real cause of imperial collapse. They are a consequence of the failure to sustain social cooperation. As the British historian Arnold Toynbee said, great civilizations are not murdered - they die by suicide.

This accords with my reading in history, more or less. In the U.S., we haven't seen political arguments to reduce income inequality to preserve social and civilizational stability since the 1930s. I think its a worthy justification.

"I support a gruel diet, unless they want some more"