Thursday, January 11, 2018

January 5-11, 2018

January 5-11, 2018

Well, the few days since the last blog post have not disappointed.  So much time and so little to do. Wait a minute. Strike that. Reverse it. Thank you.

General Politics

But Her Emails!!!

 The Justice Department has launched a new investigation into all things Hillary.  They will undoubtedly find plenty to rile up the base about, and I really hope she goes down for any number of corrupt activities.  The constant WhatAboutism in defense of the Trump administration is deeply tiresome.  What will the right have to scream about if she actually is in jail?

Drill, Baby, Drill

The Trump administration's plan, under Secretary of the Interior Ryan Zinke, has been in the news quite a lot lately.  Sen. Susan Collins (R - MA) joined Sen. Marco Rubio (R - FL) in publicly opposing the opening of offshore drilling off the coast of much of the US.  It's always significant when two GOP Senators oppose an action by the administration as this represents a loss of majority now that Session's Alabama seat has flipped to the Democrats.

Things got more interesting this morning when it was announced that Florida would be exempted from the plan.  Many were quick to point out that Florida is the home of Trump's "Winter White House" at his Mar-A-Lago resort.

Expect to hear more about this issue in the coming weeks as opposition is nearly universal among governors of states with coastline along the Atlantic and Pacific.

The Wall

The day after President Trump signaled that he wants $18 billion from Congress in funding for his wall as part of the DACA deal, he assured the American people that Mexico would pay for it.
“I believe Mexico will pay for the wall. I have a very good relationship with Mexico,” Trump said at a press conference at Camp David on Saturday.
For those joining us late, I will refer you to the transcript of President Trump's January 27th, 2017 conversation with Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto.  It's highly cringe-worthy reading.

Net Neutrality

It's been a very exciting few days on the Net Neutrality front.

First was the news that a bill aiming to reverse the FCC's decision to repeal Net Neutrality has achieved 30 sponsors.  This is an important achievement because it forces a vote on the Senate floor.  While the chance of passage is remote, it gives Democrats a strong campaign cry for the 2018 mid-terms.  They can make Net Neutrality a platform issue and attack any Republican who voted against it.

A single day later, the bill gained its 40th co-sponsor.  Still little chance of success, but a definite sign of a cohesive front from the Democrats.

Then on Tuesday, Sen. Susan Collins (R - MA) announced her support.  What was once an impossible long-shot serving only long-term political goals is now a single Republican defection from passing the Senate.  Passing the House would be another battle entirely (to say nothing of being signed into law by the President), but this is very significant progress for a very important and popular piece of legislation.

Gerrymandering

Yes!  More Gerrymandering news!  On Tuesday, the North Carolina Supreme Court struck down the GOP-drawn congressional district map on the grounds of political gerrymandering.  Previously this year, the NC courts twice struck down district maps over racial gerrymandering.

The Voter Fraud Commission

Quick follow-up to the previous news regarding the disbanding of the President's Voter Fraud Commission:

One of the primary catalysts in the administration's decision to disband the commission was an order by a federal judge forcing the commission to share the data they had acquired with the Democrat members of the commission.  The administration is now refusing to hand over the documents, claiming that since the commission no longer exists, the order is no longer valid.

A few days later, the administration announced its intention to destroy the data, rather than turn it over to the Department of Homeland Security, as claimed by Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders.

Kushner vs. the SEC

The SEC (Securities and Exchange Commission) has launched an investigation into the Kushner family's use of the EB-5 program, which grants green cards to immigrants who invest more than $500,000 in certain businesses.  See this article from the time of the presentation for more information.

The 2018 Mid-terms

At latest count, 31 House Republicans will not be seeking re-election in 2018.  This exceeds the 1994 record of 28 Democrats fleeing Congress.  Overwhelmingly, they represent districts in which Clinton received more votes than Trump in the 2016 election.

Science!

I wish there was more exciting science to share this week.  But this science is good news, at least.  Or would be if, as a country, we allowed scientific evidence to inform policy.

Colorado LARCs

A report was recently released summarizing the results of Colorado's Family Planning Initiative and they are very positive.  The program provided LARCs (long-acting, reversible contraceptives) to more than 30,000 women for free or at a reduced rate leading to significant reductions in teen birth and abortion rates.  They estimate that every dollar spent as part of the initiative saved $5.85 from the state's Medicaid program.

If you're against abortions, and not just against women's rights, the solution has never been more clear.  To reduce abortions, you must reduce unwanted pregnancies.  And to reduce unwanted pregnancies, you must provide comprehensive sex education and affordable contraception.

Shit Trump Says

It occurred to me that limiting this segment to Trump's tweets would deprive you, beloved readers, of much entertainment.  So, I'm widening the net to include live interviews and non-Twitter statements, rare though they may be.

Live Tweeting Fox News

To set the stage, an article confirming what many have long assumed or suspected.  There is no strategy behind Trump's tweets.  They are not clever distractions to draw focus away from unpopular policy decisions or news of the Russia investigation.  No, sadly, Trump just live tweets Fox and Friends while eating cheeseburgers.

Very Stable Genius

Some things just speak for themselves.



When asked about these tweets at a Camp David press conference, he produced this gem:



That's right.  At 9:18 in the video (which auto-starts at 7:50, so don't panic), Trump calls for stricter libel laws so that people can't "say whatever comes to your head."  Irony has achieved a new high.

Next up, we have Trump getting confused during a live, filmed meeting in which he agrees with Senator Feinstein to pass a 'clean' DACA bill and tackle immigration second and separately.  The Republicans scramble to stop him and inform him of his mistake, but it's not easy.



To wrap things up, Trump this morning, while live-tweeting Fox & Friends, tweeted opposition to passage of an expanded surveillance bill that his administration has lobbied for strongly.

Later, he was informed that he actually supports the bill, and sent a follow up tweet, brilliantly and eloquently covering his mistake.  Truly a very stable genius.

Whoops!  I spoke too soon!  Trump doesn't want protection for immigrants from "shit-hole" countries.  Yep.  He really said it.

Red Dawn

At long last we come to the Russia investigation.

The Transcript

It started off innocently enough, with the GOP Senators Graham (R - SC) and Grassley (R - IA) recommending to the Department of Justice a criminal investigation of Christopher Steele, the former British intelligence agent who compiled the eponymous Steele Dossier.

What everyone reasonably thought was a predictable hand-waving distraction effort turned out to have a more sinister purpose as selective leaks from the recent closed-room interview of Fusion GPS CEO Glenn Simpson by the Senate Intelligence Committee began to appear in the press.  A minor shit-storm ensued with Simpson publicly calling for the transcript of hearing to be released.  Grassley refused, using the excuse that it was evidence in an ongoing DoJ investigation.  It's not, but he's referring to the investigation which he personally had just recommended.

Senator Feinstein (D - CA) put an end to the squabble by releasing the transcripts herself.  This move was legal, but undoubtedly violated certain rules of decorum. 

The transcript contains a number of important revelations.  I highly recommend reading a summary of them if you don't have it in you to consume the entire ~300 page transcript.  Bullet points include:

  • Christopher Steele insisted on contacting the FBI because he believed Donald Trump was being blackmailed.

  • The belief that Trump was being blackmailed stemmed in part from Steele's findings that a number of Trump properties didn't make money and the "valuations of the properties are questionable."

  • The FBI took the information seriously because a source inside the Trump Organization had expressed similar concerns about Trump's connections to Russia.

  • Christopher Steele cut ties with the FBI after a New York Times report in October suggesting the FBI did not believe there were credible connections between Trump and Russia.

  • Someone – perhaps one of Steele's sources – was apparently killed after the dossier was published.

    • Bannon's Turn

    Steve Bannon has reportedly lawyered-up in preparations for his turn in the hot seat before the House Intelligence Committee next week.

    This will be a closed hearing, so it's impossible to speculate about how much we will hear about it, but there have been some indications that Bannon will be forthcoming with information and he undoubtedly has many stories to tell.  In light of his recent 'betrayal' of Trump and his loss of financial support by the Mercers and his job as editor of Breitbart, it will be fascinating to see where his loyalty now lies.

    Trump's Turn

    The holy grail of the Russia Investigation looms on the horizon.  A possible interview of President Trump by Mueller's investigative team.  Obviously, Trump's attorneys will do everything possible to prevent such a meeting as their client has a history of being utterly unable to tell the truth under oath.

    If he refuses the interview, as seems likely, he could be compelled to testify by a grand jury subpoena.  And then things get seriously interesting.  Don't expect this bit of drama to play out quickly, but it's sure to deliver.

    We live in interesting times!


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