[Stormsmith]

Manafort is a "deadus duckus" and is now languishing in a jail cell. To put it mildly he doesn't like it. In a week or two it's going to sink in that this is what he can expect for the next 10 - 20 years. If he is going to break, this realization is probably what will do it.

He was in at the beginning of any "collusion" and likely provided the introductions from amongst his extensive catalog of Russian contacts. If this is so, he is uniquely positioned to implicate Trump personally. Should he do so, Trump becomes the second "deadus duckus." We can only wait and see.

How do you suppose he likes Jail food?

Zam

He really has been a twit. By getting himself sent to prison before his trial, he's screwed himself. If he is convicted, he'll want to appeal. But he won't get out of jail as so many do.

[blackjack21]

In a week or two it's going to sink in that this is what he can expect for the next 10 - 20 years.

Trump has already indicated that he thinks the way Manafort has been treated is very unfair. He has to wait for the trial to be done though. Manafort is guilty of tax evasion.

[jimjam]

Hi Gang !
Here's my copy/paste for today:

"But if it’s hard to prove anything about Russian interference, it’s equally hard to disprove anything: The interference campaign could easily have had chronic, insidious effects that could be mistaken for background noise but which in the aggregate were enough to swing the election by 0.8 percentage points toward Trump — not a high hurdle to clear because 0.8 points isn’t much at all.

You know what probably did cost Clinton the election? The letter that former FBI Director James Comey sent to Congress on Oct. 28, 2016, and the subsequent media firestorm over it. The impact is relatively easy to measure because it was the biggest news event in the final two weeks of the campaign, and we can compare polls conducted just before the Comey letter to the ones conducted just after it."

(Comey, possibly Donald's #1 twitter/hate target, is the guy who handed Donald the POTUS job. Now, HOWironic is that?)


and ……… I find it naïve in the extreme to think that Russia has neither the motivation nor the means to undertake a cyber attack on America. And, of course, we do it to them. Welcome to the 21st century. This is the latest nuance to the science of warfare. Sure as hell beats nuclear war. I'm glad the military pin heads have this to keep them occupied.

[jimjam]

Manafort is guilty of tax evasion

He is in good company. That's what put away Al Capone and Anthony (Tony Jack) Giacalone. Unfortunately for them they did not have a POTUS as BFF.

[Stormsmith]

Al Capote died in prison, for tax evasion.

[Beren]

As a matter of fact Trump was right to fire Comey, heroising Comey just because Trump fired him is bullshit. When he was deciding whether what to do with the emails the only thing he cared about was his own reputation, then he went after Trump to save his reputation again. Now he's just a former FBI director publishing his memoirs and wondering, or rather worrying, whether how he will be remembered. Anytime I see the man I wonder how he could become the director of the FBI at all. I mean you just take a look at Mueller and you understand, but Comey?

[Red_Army]

Anyone who becomes the head of the FBI (or the CIA for that matter) is a colossal scumbag and should be suspect from the word go. Its funny to me that people calling themselves Republicans are finally realizing this, but that's it. Trump is as deep in "the swamp" as anyone who has been elected president, but they find his Putin-like hatred for the ones opposed to him enough to overlook all his swamp loving. He'll complain til his face turns blue about any "overreach" that affects him and overlook it when it doesn't. He's a fat mob boss who wants things to look his way and he'll stomp like a baby until they do. Those opposed to him aren't necessarily any better, but have their bread buttered on the other side.

[jimjam]

He's a fat mob boss who wants things to look his way and he'll stomp like a baby until they do.

I grew up in NYC. The Mafia was simply a shadow government and a part of our daily lives. Sons of Mafia were my classmates in high school. I am familiar with them and I have thought how Trump and his gang mirror the Mafia to a very high degree. Trump behaves like a Capo and is a Capo with nuclear weapons. As far as "draining the swamp", what a load of crap. He is simply reshaping the swamp to his perverted personality. Arguably the best swamp America has ever had.

[skinster]

and ……… I find it naïve in the extreme to think that Russia has neither the motivation nor the means to undertake a cyber attack on America.

Nobody is denying Russia hasn't the means or motivation, but, it wasn't Russia that lost Clinton the election, that was US democracy; the electoral college. The RUSSIA DID IT story was concocted by the Clinton team to save face from losing the election and has been stated even by Clinton insiders, and years later there's no evidence because it is bullshit, but Americans are easily manipulated into dumb distractions like this, so here we are.

[Zamuel]

He is simply reshaping the swamp to his perverted personality. Arguably the best swamp America has ever had.

Trump attitude: "Yea though I walk through the gator infested swamp I shall fear no evil, cause I'm the biggest Gator here!" ...

"except maybe for that Mueller guy. The one with the 4 or 5 convictions and 13 indictments which skinster says is no evidence ... The one she say's is -just a distraction- ... Can I fire him now Rudi? Damn it stop scum sucking and answer me Rudy" ...

Zam

[One Degree]

If you are dominated by a gang and a new gang moves in to challenge them, you should see opportunity. Their war is the best thing to happen to you unless you are dumb enough to fight with one of the sides.

[Red_Army]

That makes sense if you are a third gang, but gang wars aren't particularly fun for civilians. Your analogy is wrong for other reasons, but this was the first to jump out at me.

[jimjam]

Nobody is denying Russia hasn't the means or motivation, but, it wasn't Russia that lost Clinton the election, that was US democracy; the electoral college. The RUSSIA DID IT story was concocted by the Clinton team to save face from losing the election and has been stated even by Clinton insiders, and years later there's no evidence because it is bullshit, but Americans are easily manipulated into dumb distractions like this, so here we are.

I have said more than once that I doubt the Russia thing will stick to Donald because a) he didn't collude with Russia and b) (more likely) there was some sort of quid pro quo with Russia but ….. Trump has been lying, cheating and engaging in thievery for decades and is quite adept at covering his tracks.

A really good result of the Mueller probe is that it is dredging up a nice collection of Donald's fello swamp dwellers. I've also noticed that Donald and his den of thieves are definitely not acting as if they have nothing to hide. My favorite relates to the now (in)famous meeting at Trump tower between Don jr. and a Russian operative. The original excuse/explanation was that they were discussing something about the exchange of Russian orphans ( ) a subject I am certain is near to Donald's heart.

[One Degree]

That makes sense if you are a third gang, but gang wars aren't particularly fun for civilians. Your analogy is wrong for other reasons, but this was the first to jump out at me.

The third gang is populism. Our division and support of established parties has resulted in extremist stepping forward for office. Trump’s election should have resulted in independent, centralist, non lawyer, non politicians stepping forward. Allowing ourselves to be divided and take sides lost a great opportunity we were given imo.

[Finfinder]

Nobody is denying Russia hasn't the means or motivation, but, it wasn't Russia that lost Clinton the election, that was US democracy; the electoral college. The RUSSIA DID IT story was concocted by the Clinton team to save face from losing the election and has been stated even by Clinton insiders, and years later there's no evidence because it is bullshit, but Americans are easily manipulated into dumb distractions like this, so here we are.

Yes the collusion was from the Obama administrations FBI, DOJ, Hillary Clintons state department and the DNC.

[jimjam]

Yes the collusion was from the Obama administrations FBI, DOJ, Hillary Clintons state department and the DNC.

That is SIX entities colluding. proof?

It's going up to 80 here tomorrow and people are freaking out and dusting off their window units for the heat wave

[Albert]

U.S. House Republicans shout down deputy attorney general at tense hearing



Republicans accused top U.S. federal law enforcement officials Thursday of withholding important documents from them and demanded details about surveillance tactics during the Russia investigation in a contentious congressional hearing that capped days of mounting partisan complaints.

Underscoring their frustration, Republicans briefly put the hearing on hold so they could approve a resolution on the House floor demanding that the Justice Department turn over thousands of documents by next week.

The House Judiciary Committee hearing marked deputy attorney general Rod Rosenstein's first appearance before Congress since an internal Department of Justice report criticizing the FBI's handling of the Hillary Clinton email investigation revealed new disparaging text messages among FBI officials about Donald Trump during the 2016 election. FBI director Christopher Wray also appeared before Congress on Thursday.

Republicans on the panel seized on the watchdog report to allege bias by the FBI and to discredit an investigation into potential ties between Russia and the Trump campaign that is now led by special counsel Robert Mueller. They suggested that the Justice Department had conspired against Trump by refusing to produce documents they believe would show improper FBI conduct.

"This country is being hurt by it. We are being divided," Rep. Trey Gowdy, a South Carolina Republican, said of Mueller's investigation. Gowdy led a separate two-year investigation into the deadly 2012 attacks in Benghazi, Libya, and Clinton's role in those attacks as secretary of state.

"Whatever you got," Gowdy added, "finish it the hell up because this country is being torn apart."

Rosenstein, at times raising his voice and pointing his finger, strongly defended himself and the department during the hours-long hearing, saying he was doing his best to balance congressional oversight with the need to preserve the integrity of ongoing investigations. He said despite Republican allegations, he was "not trying to hide anything."

"We are not in contempt of this Congress, and we are not going to be in contempt of this Congress," he said.

The hearing came amid Republican attacks on the Justice Department and allegations of FBI bias against Trump. On Wednesday, lawmakers spent 11 hours behind closed doors grilling Peter Strzok, the FBI agent who worked on both the Clinton and Russia investigations and traded anti-Trump text messages with an FBI lawyer. The inspector general criticized the officials for creating an appearance of impropriety but did not find evidence that bias had tainted the decisions of prosecutors in the Clinton investigation.

Strzok is expected to return to the committee early next month for an open hearing. The FBI lawyer he texted with, Lisa Page, is also expected to talk to lawmakers.

The resolution that passed along party lines Thursday demanded that the department turn over by July 6 documents on FBI investigations into Clinton's private email use and Trump campaign ties to Russia. Both investigations unfolded during the presidential election, causing the FBI — which prides itself on independence — to become entangled in presidential politics in ways that are continuing to shake out.

Republican Mark Meadows, from North Carolina, one of the sponsors of the resolution, did not deny Democratic assertions that the document requests were related to efforts to undercut Mueller's probe.

"Yes, when we get these documents, we believe that it will do away with this whole fiasco of what they call the Russian Trump collusion because there wasn't any," he said on the House floor.

The House judiciary and intelligence panels, which have subpoenaed the documents, want to use the records as part of congressional investigations into the FBI's decision to clear Clinton in the email probe and its opening of an investigation into potential co-ordination between the Trump campaign and Russia.

The Justice Department has already turned over more than 800,000 documents to congressional committees, but the subpoenas are asking for additional materials, including records about any surveillance of Trump campaign associates. Lawmakers have threatened to hold top DOJ officials in contempt or vote to impeach them if the documents aren't turned over.

Rod Rosenstein is an asshole.

[skinster]

That is SIX entities colluding. proof?

You can't seriously be asking for proof after shilling this evidence-free Russiagate allegations since they began.

[Finfinder]

That is SIX entities colluding. proof?

It's going up to 80 here tomorrow and people are freaking out and dusting off their window units for the heat wave

Jimjam I know we are both having fun with this. Technically its not six since president the doj and the fbi all are under the executive branch.

I understand this is a legacy thread issue here you are all in and at this point you have to argue that the sky isn't blue.

BTW I was reading on another thread you recently had a very interesting delivery to your house you little devil should have mentioned that when you were down here. Ill be in Limerick on Aug 25th BTW

[Sivad]