The Doomsday Appointment

Posted by TomCat at 1:59 pm Politics

Mar 232018

When Resident Donald Trump, Fuhrer of the Republican Reich, appointed Mike Pompeo as Secretary of State, I called him a warmonger. Now, the Fuhrer is appointing a Republican to the post of National Security Advisor, John Bolton, that makes Pompeo seem like a flower child in comparison. Combined, the two of them could give Trump the foreign policy he craves. That makes Bolton the doomsday appointment.

The good thing about John Bolton, President Trump’s new national security adviser, is that he says what he thinks.

The bad thing is what he thinks.

There are few people more likely than Mr. Bolton is to lead the country into war. His selection is a decision that is as alarming as any Mr. Trump has made so far.

Coupled with his nomination of the hard-line C.I.A. director, Mike Pompeo, as secretary of state, Mr. Trump is indulging his worst nationalistic instincts. Mr. Bolton, in particular, believes the United States can do what it wants without regard to international law, treaties or the political commitments of previous administrations.

He has argued for attacking North Korea to neutralize the threat of its nuclear weapons, which could set off a horrific war costing thousands of lives. At the same time, he has disparaged diplomatic efforts, including the talks planned in late May between Mr. Trump and the North Korean leader, Kim Jong-un. He not only wants to abrogate the six-party deal that, since 2015, has significantly limited Iran’s nuclear program, he called for bombing Iran instead. He has also maligned the United Nations and other multilateral conventions, as Mr. Trump has done, favoring unilateral solutions… [emphasis added]

Inserted from <NY Times>

In 2010, I covered Bolton’s call for Israel to attack Iran. In 2011, I covered Bolton’s call for the Us to bomb Libya and Iran simultaneously. In 2013, I covered Bolton’s call for the US to strike Iran. In 2016, I covered Bolton’s call for the Trump Residency to scrap the Iran Nuclear Treaty. Bolton is a monster, but the post of National Security Advisor does not require confirmation of any kind. Not even Republicans can stop him.

Senator Chris Murphy said he could not imagine a more dangerous pick.

And Jonathan Swan said Bolton will give Trump the foreign policy that he wants.

Pray for the world, and…

RESIST THE REPUBLICAN REICH!!

Open Thread – 3/23/2018

Posted by TomCat at 1:59 pm Open Thread, Personal, Politics

Mar 232018

It’s a cooler day here at the CatBox, so it should be far less muggy tonight. I’m waiting for the locksmith again. He was here this morning, but had the wrong parts. Apparently my desk has a very rare lock, and finding a replacement is difficult. I’m running behind. Update: the lock is finally fixed.

Jig Zone Puzzle:

Today’s took me 3:05 (average 4:33). To do it, click here. Hoe did you do?

Short Takes:

From Daily Kos: ABC News is reporting that before Attorney General Jeff Sessions fired senior FBI official Andrew McCabe for “lack of candor,” McCabe had been leading an investigation into Attorney General Jeff Sessions.

Democratic lawmakers have repeatedly accused Sessions of misleading them in congressional testimony and called on federal authorities to investigate, but McCabe’s previously-unreported decision to actually put the attorney general in the crosshairs of an FBI probe was an exceptional move.

One source told ABC News that Sessions was not aware of the investigation when he decided to fire McCabe last Friday less than 48 hours before McCabe, a former FBI deputy director, was due to retire from government and obtain a full pension, but an attorney representing Sessions declined to confirm that.

The irony that McCabe was investigating KKK Beauregard for lack of candor is extreme. RESIST!!

From NY Daily News: The hacker Guccifer 2.0, who claimed responsibility for providing WikiLeaks with the stolen Democratic National Committee emails, has been identified as an officer of Russia’s main intelligence directorate, or GRU, according to a new report.

Guccifer’s identity was uncovered after he failed on one occasion to activate a virtual private network, or VPN, to disguise his IP address — which appeared on the server logs of an American social media company, a source told the Daily Beast.

Investigators pinpointed Guccifer’s identity, and U.S. special counsel Robert Mueller has enlisted the help of the FBI agents who traced the persona back to a GRU officer who works out of the Moscow headquarters, according to the report.

We always presumed Guccifer (R-RU) was Russian, but now we know which Russian he is. RESIST!!

From Think Progress: Student activists across the country are ready to fight for solutions to gun violence during the March for Our Lives on Saturday, which was organized by students who survived the school shooting in Parkland, Florida. One of the ways students are preparing for the march is by making sure that marchers can also vote — or are at least ready to vote when the time comes.

Marlena Tyldesley, a 17-year-old high school junior at Montgomery Blair High School in Silver Spring, Maryland, is sending politicians a message and mobilizing young people to be politically active by raising money to make and distribute stickers that display the year young people can vote. When students come to the Washington, D.C. March for Our Lives event, many of them may be wearing her stickers.

She began organizing after she had a conversation with her family about the student-led movement to end gun violence. A family friend sent the family a check in the hopes that she would use it to fight for gun control and they started throwing around some ideas.

“The idea came up that we need a way to show politicians that we’re coming and my dad said, ‘Why don’t you just get a sticker with the year you can vote. That’s pretty simple,’” Tyldesley said. “And it’s not self explanatory, so it forces someone to come up and say what is that? And you can say well this is the year I can vote. Watch out.”

Kudos to the kids for seeking a long-term solution. RESIST!!

Cartoon:

Friday Fun – Trump Faces LOTS of “Stormy” Weather

Posted by SoINeedAName at 7:44 am Politics

Mar 232018

Boy, oh, boy – am I late to this party, or what? Stephanie Clifford is going to have to start sharing the legal spotlight with at least two other Trump survivors.

First, the judge has ruled that the lawsuit brought by Summer Zervos, a former contestant on The Apprentice who says Trump sexually assaulted her in 2007, is allowed to move forward.

And now we learn that Karen McDougal, the former Playboy model who also had an affair with Trump, has filed a lawsuit seeking to allow her to talk.

So I decided we should enjoy some “Stormy” weather before her story is blown off the map.

Very believable, given his own words …

And not only his words, but his actions, too …

Oh, just in case there was any doubt …

Kind of creeps you out, doesn’t it?

I guess that at least we can be thankful it appears that his youngest daughter, Tiffany, is well aware of his … hmm … inclinations.

Samantha Bee from 3/21

Posted by TomCat at 12:58 pm Politics

Mar 222018

It’s that time of week again, so here are four excellent video clips from Sam’s show last night. Enjoy!

Firings, Facebook, and (Not-So-Fond) Farewells

Sam has described the epitome of corruption.

All You Get Is Birth Control

Damn! We ought to be subsiding women’s health research!

The History Of Women’s Pain

This is just shameful!

Iraq War: 15 Years Later

Drumpfenfarten must be furious that Putin hasn’t allowed him to start his own war yet.

Dang! Sam is turning into a real tiger!

RESIST THE REPUBLICAN REICH!!

Open Thread – 3/22/2018

Posted by TomCat at 12:57 pm Open Thread, Personal, Politics

Mar 222018

It’s another muggy day here at the CatBox. I keep my desk locked, because that’s where I store my wallet, credit card and cash. I often have several hundred dollars, so I can pay WWWendy for several weeks without having to go to the bank. The lock on the desk is getting almost impossible to open, and it’s that way with both keys so the lock needs repair. I have a locksmith coming ion the next hour to repair it.

Jig Zone Puzzle:

Today’s tool me 5:08 (average 7:24). To do it, click here. How did you do?

Short Takes:

From YouTube (Funny or Die Channel): How To Overcome Your Fighting Instincts

Barf Bag Alert!!

Trump: he is what he grabs. RESIST!!

From IB Times: Thursday is World Water Day, an annual celebration initiated by the United Nations to raise awareness about water scarcity and how to preserve and use it safely. Even though water covers almost three-fourths of the Earth’s surface, there are many regions that are severely deprived of it…

…This year, World Water Day turns 25 and to celebrate the occasion, here are some facts and quotes about water, courtesy of Water.org.

Facts:

1. Today, 844 million people are living without access to safe water, while 2.3 billion people are living without access to improved sanitation.

2. Each year, 1 million people are killed by water, sanitation and hygiene-related diseases.

3. Ninety-five percent of the water used daily is wasted.

I shared three facts. Click through for the other seven. RESIST!!

From NY Times: John O. Brennan, the former director of the Central Intelligence Agency, said Wednesday that he thought Russia may have some kind of compromising information on President Trump, setting off furious speculation about whether the former spy chief was basing that assertion on inside information.

In an appearance on Wednesday on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe,” Mr. Brennan, who served as C.I.A. director from 2013 to 2017, speculated that Russians “may have something on him personally” when he was asked if he thought Mr. Trump was afraid of President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia.

“The Russians, I think, have had long experience with Mr. Trump, and may have things that they could expose,” he added.

Mr. Brennan was running the C.I.A. when a salacious dossier surfaced in 2016 that claimed the Russians had compromising information on Mr. Trump. If there were any current or former American officials who might know if there was truth behind the allegations in the dossier, Mr. Brennan would most likely be one of them. And his comments came the day after a phone call Mr. Trump made to Mr. Putin congratulating him for winning an election raised new questions about the president’s relationship with Russia.

That’s exactly what I said yesterday. RESIST!!

Cartoon:

DO NOT CONGRATULATE!

Posted by TomCat at 12:57 pm Politics

Mar 212018

American Presidents do not praise the sham elections of foreign dictators. Fuhrer Drumpfenfarten, aka Putin’s Piddle Puppet did, but the Fuhrer is a Resident, not a President. I think I know why he did so, and ignored the Russian murder of two people in Great Britain, even though his own national security staff warned hum, "DO NOT CONGRATULATE!"

President Trump did not follow specific warnings from his national security advisers Tuesday when he congratulated Russian President Vladimir Putin on his reelection — including a section in his briefing materials in all-capital letters stating “DO NOT CONGRATULATE,” according to officials familiar with the call.

Trump also chose not to heed talking points from aides instructing him to condemn the recent poisoning of a former Russian spy in Britain with a powerful nerve agent, a case that both the British and U.S. governments have blamed on Moscow.

The president’s conversation with Putin, which Trump described as a “very good call,” prompted fresh criticism of his muted tone toward one of the United States’ biggest geopolitical rivals amid the special counsel investigation into Russia’s election interference and the Trump campaign’s contacts with Russian officials… [emphasis added]

Inserted from <Washington Post>

As usual, Rachel Maddow employed a lengthy lead-in, but in her 22 minute clip, she covers it in detail.

I understand the Fuhrer is furious that a patriotic whistle blower, exposed his willful incompetence ane subservience to Putin (R-RU) to the press.

Rachel asked what is driving his behavior? I think she knows. I think I know too. Putin must have the pee-pee tape, and lots of other evidence that is far more damning than that.

RESIST THE REPUBLICAN REICH!!

Open Thread – 3/21/2018

Posted by TomCat at 12:56 pm Open Thread, Personal, Politics, Religion

Mar 212018

It’s another busy day here at the CatBox. Store to Door delivered my groceries, and I have put them away. It was warm and not raining last night, so the homeless in the street below partied noisily until after 3:00 AM. WWWendy is coming this evening to de-stink the TomCat, so I really need a nap this afternoon.

Jig Zone Puzzle:

Today’s took me 3:44 (average 5:21). To do it, click here. How did you do?

Short Takes:

From YouTube (RWW Channel): Lance Wallnau Says Students Protesting For Gun Control Are As Dangerous As The Hitler Youth

Barf Bag Alert!!

Like most Republican Supply-side pseudo-Christians, the opposite of authentic (Real) Christians, Wallnau wants Ammosexual Republican deplorables to grab an AR-15 and kill a Black, Latino, LGBT, Muslim or librul to earn the favor of Republican Supply-side Jesus. RESIST!!

From NPR: A man whom police had identified as their top suspect in a string of deadly bombings in the Austin, Texas, area this month killed himself early Wednesday by triggering an explosion in his car as officers approached the vehicle to make an arrest, police said Wednesday.

The dead suspect is Mark Anthony Conditt, a federal law enforcement source has confirmed to member station KUT.

There are only two things I know about this horrid bombing spree. The bomber was Caucasian. He won’t be making any more bombs. RESIST!!

From CNN: Rep. Dan Lipinski, a centrist [reactionary right], anti-abortion rights Democrat, survived a progressive primary challenge from Marie Newman on Tuesday for his Chicago-area House seat, CNN projects.

Lipinski was ahead of Newman 51% to 49% with 98% of precincts’ tallies reported, according to Edison Research. That puts his lead at about 2,124 votes.

His win comes despite an intense effort by pro-abortion rights and women’s groups — including Planned Parenthood, NARAL Pro-Choice America and EMILY’s List — to purge the party of the anti-abortion lawmaker in a reliably Democratic district.

Sad news. As much as I hate everything Lipinski stands for, I would hate it even more if Republicans hold their majority in the House because Lipinski loses. RESIST!!

Cartoon:

How Cambridge Analytica Republicans Screwed YOU!

Posted by TomCat at 1:23 pm Politics

Mar 202018

When it became clear that Ted ‘Uranus’ Cruz could not win, Nazi Billionaire Robert Mercer flipped to Trump. Trump inherited three things, in addition to a bottomless pants load of money. He got Smellyanne Conway, Steve ‘Breitfart’ Bannon, and propaganda firm Cambridge Analytica, who partnered with Facebook to steal data on the most intimate personal habits of fifty million Americans for Trump and the Republican Party.

Sitting in a hotel bar, Alexander Nix, who runs the political data firm Cambridge Analytica, had a few ideas for a prospective client looking for help in a foreign election. The firm could send an attractive woman to seduce a rival candidate and secretly videotape the encounter, Mr. Nix said, or send someone posing as a wealthy land developer to pass a bribe.

“We have a long history of working behind the scenes,” Mr. Nix said.

The prospective client, though, was actually a reporter from Channel 4 News in Britain, and the encounter was secretly filmed as part of a monthslong investigation into Cambridge Analytica, the data firm with ties to President Trump’s 2016 campaign.

The results of Channel 4’s work were broadcast in Britain on Monday, days after reports in The New York Times and The Observer of London that the firm had harvested the data from more than 50 million Facebook profiles in its bid to develop techniques for predicting the behavior of individual American voters.

The weekend’s reports about the data misuse have prompted calls from lawmakers in Britain and the United States for renewed scrutiny of Facebook, and at least two American state prosecutors have said they are looking into the misuse of data by Cambridge Analytica.

Inserted from <NY Times>
Photo credit: Daily Banter

I wonder if Putin got a Honey Trap from Cambridge Analytica to entrap Trump?

Rachel Maddow laid out this story with extreme, albeit lengthily precision.

NO COLLUSION!! NO COLLUSION!! NO COLLUSION!! = BULLSHIT!! BULLSHIT!! BULLSHIT!!

RESIST THE REPUBLICAN REICH!!

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