TGIF, 3 Chics Family & Friends!
Even though 3Chics Politico is written and curated by three women: Ametia, Rikyrah, and SouthernGirl2, I must nominate this as one of the most engaging blogs I've found. Devoted to politics and culture, these three shine a light on contemporary life with humor and spirit.
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The pictures are AMAZING!!!
https://twitter.com/voguemagazine/status/931698603395112962
Roy Moore Claims Giving Blacks Voting Rights Has Created A ‘Problem’ For This Country https://t.co/NEavVq5SYf @MooreSenate said this LAST NIGHT?!?! Sweet Jesus What.The.Fuck. pic.twitter.com/OZHy2kCIhe
— 🖕🏻Aunt Crabby 🖕🏻 (@DearAuntCrabby) November 17, 2017
Moore (and his belief) is the “problem.”
GOP tax bill would spike Obamacare premiums nearly $2,000 for families, trigger Medicare cuts https://t.co/9E52QxbCjZ
— CNBC (@CNBC) November 16, 2017
BREAKING: attorney general jeff sessions says justice department will no longer issue guidance memos (ala loretta lynch’s 2016 transgender bathroom guidance or sessions’ october religious liberty guidance), and adds DOJ is reviewing all previously issued memos.
— kelly cohen (@politiCOHEN_) November 17, 2017
When I was a PhD student, my stipend was just $18,000 and my waived tuition was $55,000.
Taxing someone who only receives $18,000 the same amount as someone who earns $73,000 in order to give billionaires a huge cut is the height of Republican insanity.https://t.co/zkTt5cQ7oG
— Nick Kapur (@nick_kapur) November 16, 2017
This is an abomination:
Gov analysis shows House tax bill would increase college costs by $71 billion over decade https://t.co/zT1k7zyxlW
— David Axelrod (@davidaxelrod) November 17, 2017
Why Trump’s Elephant Trophy Policy Is all About Hillary
by Nancy LeTourneau November 17, 2017
Do you remember last year when the killing of Cecil the lion became a gigantic meme on social media? Even a lot of my conservative friends on Facebook were outraged. It has often struck me that cruelty to animals might be the one thing that crosses the boundaries in our polarized political climate. Perhaps that is because, unlike humans, it is impossible to demonize animals as the “other.”
That’s why I wonder if the Trump administration made a big mistake when they decided to do this:
…………………………………
But there is another possible explanation for why the Trump administration would overturn a policy that was designed to protect elephants from possible extinction. Not many people are aware of the fact that as Secretary of State as well as in subsequent years, Hillary Clinton made the preservation of elephants in Africa a major issue.
Flynn and Papadopoulos Were Questioned by the FBI at the Same Time
by Martin Longman
November 17, 2017
When Donald Trump met with the Washington Post editorial board on March 21st, 2016, he named five people as his foreign policy advisers.
Of the five, only Keith Kellogg landed a job with the administration. He briefly served as interim National Security Adviser after Michael Flynn resigned, and now he serves as the Executive Secretary and Chief of Staff of the National Security Council.
…………………………………
But it’s now clear that he never got the chance, because of something that looks a bit curious when put on a timeline:
January 25th, 2017: FBI interviews Michael Flynn at the White House
January 26th, 2017: Acting attorney general Sally Yates briefs White House Counsel Don McGahn on Flynn’s conversation with Amb. Kislyak.
January 27th, 2017: FBI interviews George Papadopoulos for first time.
February 16th, 2017: FBI interviews George Papadopoulos for second time.
Michael Flynn had been under suspicion for a long time, ever since he dined with Vladimir Putin in 2015. He was already informed that the Justice Department was looking into his lobbying for the Turkish government. But it looks like the counterintelligence investigation was looking very closely at both Flynn and Papadopolous at the very same point in time. I suppose it’s possible that two different investigative teams conducted these interviews and that this is a great big coincidence, but it seems like Papadopolous was one of the hottest leads the FBI had very early on, which tells us that he’d aroused a lot of suspicion despite the fact that none of it had surfaced in the newspapers.
Karma always comes a knockin’.
Anti-Gay Republican Resigns After Allegedly Being Caught Having Gay Sex In His Office https://t.co/HeFp5MWIjl pic.twitter.com/OnbYwEky6K
— Law & Crime (@lawcrimenews) November 16, 2017
A senatorial clash that explains what’s wrong with the tax fight
11/17/17 02:18 PM
By Steve Benen
If you’ve spent any time on social media today, you’ve probably come across the clip of Senate Finance Committee Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) clashing with Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) ahead of a vote on the Republican tax plan last night. That’s probably a good thing: the quarrel helps define the terms of the broader policy fight.
If you missed it, Brown explained, accurately, that the Senate GOP tax plan isn’t intended to help the middle class; it’s written to benefit the richest Americans. Hatch, visibly angry, appeared to take great personal offense.
Republicans are apparently under the impression that Hatch’s fiery harangue bested the Ohio Democrat, and it’s worth taking a moment to understand why that’s ridiculous.
Brown’s argument was, at its core, substantive: non-partisan analyses of the Senate Republican tax plan make clear that it would disproportionately benefit the wealthiest Americans, and raise taxes on millions of middle-class families. That’s not some lazy “political play”; it’s an argument backed up by evidence.
Hatch had an opportunity to defend his proposal on the merits and/or explain why he disagreed with the non-partisan assessments, but he chose instead to make this personal. The Utah Republican is apparently under the impression that his upbringing matters, and factual descriptions of his legislation don’t.
Hatch is “tired” of Democrats criticizing tax breaks for the rich? I suspect Democrats are equally tired of Hatch and his Republican brethren demanding tax breaks for the rich.
NBC News: Rob Goldstone, the British publicist who helped set up the June 2016 Trump Tower meeting is ready to meet with Mueller’s office, according to several people familiar with the matter. https://t.co/UOtQbOBzLr
— Kyle Griffin (@kylegriffin1) November 17, 2017
NBC News confirms WSJ scoop: Mueller’s team has issued a subpoena to the Trump campaign asking multiple campaign officials to produce Russia-related documents. https://t.co/mcP7ATtFDz
— Kyle Griffin (@kylegriffin1) November 17, 2017
Mother’s heartwarming video captures the moment 3-year-old girl and her older brother are reunited after a long day of kindergarten. https://t.co/8m83zcyWZx pic.twitter.com/CY6dpPMrmD
— ABC News (@ABC) November 17, 2017
“I am the result of a girl that’s loved, and nurtured, and invested in. This is what you get.” – Michelle Obama, noting that she was not abused by the men in her young life.
— Heather Brandon (@heddahfeddah) November 17, 2017
Obama says she’s more interested in cultivating capable young leaders now than in running for office. She indicates a short sightedness in thinking political answers come from finding just one “right person.”
— Heather Brandon (@heddahfeddah) November 17, 2017
Michelle Obama makes a personal appearance in the overflow room and addresses all the screaming, ecstatic young people in the audience. “Go home and do your homework,” she says, and be OK with failure. She urges them to find mentors. “Find that positivity. Stay off social media.”
— Heather Brandon (@heddahfeddah) November 17, 2017
Obama says every minute she wasn’t visible as First Lady, she was busy managing and parenting her teenagers. “It’s exhausting!” she says.
— Heather Brandon (@heddahfeddah) November 17, 2017
Kids are your 1st joint project with your spouse. Until then, “you haven’t really tested that equality stuff,” Michelle Obama says about family/work balance.
— Arielle Levin Becker (@ariellelb) November 17, 2017
Think about how many people were beaten and arrested just for saying that this would happen. https://t.co/o3Xiwne5eC
— Jessie Singer (@jessiesingernyc) November 16, 2017
BREAKING: Keystone pipeline shut down after oil leak discovered in South Dakota.
— Ari Natter (@AriNatter) November 16, 2017
The Republican tax bill contains a sneaky break for private jet owners
Bob Bryan
They are trying to kill American citizens.
THE RACHEL MADDOW SHOW 11/16/17
Inept recovery keeps most of Puerto Rico still with no power
Rachel Maddow repots on the continuing botched recovery effort in Puerto Rico where progress in bringing electricity back is regularly countered by backslides in areas that are supposed to have already been repaired.
Two months….
THE RACHEL MADDOW SHOW 11/16/17
Senate asks Kushner for info about ‘Russian backdoor overture’
Rachel Maddow reports on a letter from the Senate Judiciary Committee to Jared Kushner asking for him to submit a more complete set of documents, including one about a “Russian backdoor overture and dinner invite” – whatever that is!
Civil rights activist Jesse Jackson says he has Parkinson’s disease
The Rev. Jesse L. Jackson said in a statement that he and his family began to notice changes about three years ago and he will dedicate himself to physical therapy.
“Recognition of the effects of this disease on me has been painful, and I have been slow to grasp the gravity of it,” he said.
The 76-year-old waged one of the first serious campaigns for president by an African American in the 1980s.
Read more https://s2.washingtonpost.com/1161e9/5a0f2276fe1ff6361c7ad756/YXdhcmVvZjQxMUBnbWFpbC5jb20%3D/2/10/3a569220054ddfca9b49a25bb24a75b5
I am so sorry to learn that Jesse Jackson has Parkinson’s. Amazing how he wants to continue supporting important issues:
#45: THE PUSSY-GRABBING POS AMERICANS VOTED INTO THE HIGHEST OFFICE IN THE LAND.
THE RACHEL MADDOW SHOW 11/16/17
Newly flipped witness may have info on Turkey’s and Mike Flynn
Tom Winter, NBC News investigative reporter, talks with Rachel Maddow about new reporting that Reza Zarrab, a Turkish-Iranian national wanted by Turkey and charged in the U.S. for sanctions violations is talking with prosecutors and may have information about Mike Flynn.
Trump’s DHS community outreach director quits over racist record
11/17/17 09:20 AM
By Steve Benen
Marc Short, the White House’s legislative affairs director, recently told NBC News, “I think the president believes it is his role to improve race relations.” If so, Donald Trump has his team have quite a bit of work to do.
The Washington Post reported late yesterday, for example:
And what a report it was. Johnson, who was appointed to lead the DHS’s outreach office by John Kelly, now the White House chief of staff, established quite a record of ugly rhetoric towards minority groups.
CNN’s piece highlighted one particularly striking instance in which Johnson explained his belief that black people were anti-Semitic out of jealousy of the success of Jewish people.
Should be noted that, throughout this process, Democrats have recommended many amendments which Republicans rejected. https://t.co/nCLWUU7gfl
— Kyle Griffin (@kylegriffin1) November 17, 2017
Dems, get a spine like Congressman Lieu
Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me. Fool us 127 times all of which conveniently relates to omitting incriminating information about Russia, and you just might get prosecuted. https://t.co/dGTYpJYpTF
— Ted Lieu (@tedlieu) November 17, 2017
I think what bothers me most about Hatch is his self-righteousness on process when he’s held no hearings and wrote an intentionally partisan RECONCILIATION bill behind closed doors. https://t.co/4uHsEIJB0B
— Topher Spiro (@TopherSpiro) November 17, 2017
The Hill: The latest version of the Senate Republican tax bill includes a break for companies that manage private jets. https://t.co/WPiFyRbWxa
— Kyle Griffin (@kylegriffin1) November 17, 2017
It’s 11:21pm. Most Americans are asleep. But the GOP members of the Senate Finance Committee just rammed through their tax bill on a partisan vote, under cover of darkness. This process is an embarrassment.
— Tim Kaine (@timkaine) November 17, 2017
Ohio seniors have paid into Medicare their entire lives. That $25 billion is your money. And this tax bill steals it to pay for tax cuts for corporations that send jobs overseas. Shameful. https://t.co/zOrDIO9PWI
— Sherrod Brown (@SenSherrodBrown) November 17, 2017
Medicare and other spending cuts could be triggered by the congressional tax package https://t.co/Ztc3MLNZwg
— SteveKoff (@SteveKoff) November 16, 2017
Senate GOP pushes tax hike on families making less than $75,000
11/17/17 10:00 AM—UPDATED 11/17/17 10:17 AM
By Steve Benen
…………………………….
It’s worth emphasizing that the Joint Committee on Taxation is basically the Congressional Budget Office for tax bills. This isn’t a think tank or an advocacy organization; this is the congressional office responsible for scrutinizing tax bills for federal lawmakers.
And right now, that scrutiny is telling senators that the current Republican legislation would raise taxes on American households earning less than $75,000. If the GOP’s goal is “tax cuts for middle-class families,” the Senate Republican’s proposal does the exact opposite.
Trump’s faux-billionaire cabinet secretary faces new troubles
11/17/17 10:42 AM—UPDATED 11/17/17 10:49 AM
By Steve Benen
When it comes to Donald Trump’s beleaguered cabinet, there’s no shortage of controversies, and one high-profile member has already been forced to resign. But of all the competing stories, the mess surrounding Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross’ finances might be the most entertaining.
Two weeks ago, Forbes magazine reported that Ross, one of the president’s billionaire cabinet members, appears to have been lying about being a billionaire. The article explained, in striking candor, that “Ross lied” to the magazine, and the “fibs, exaggerations, omissions, fabrications and whoppers” have been ongoing for over a decade.
This led the Bloomberg Billionaires Index to lower its net worth calculation for Ross to $860 million from $3 billion.
And while $860 million is the kind of extraordinary wealth most of us will never see, there’s a whole round of new questions about the scope and consequences of Ross’ alleged dishonesty. Forbes reported this week:
Among other things, these Senate Dems suspect Ross may not have been truthful with Congress during his cabinet confirmation process. Their letter asked the Commerce Department’s inspector general to examine “whether Secretary Ross has provided fabrications about other assets or shielded the existence of assets, and the extent to which false representations impacted the evaluation of and implementation of the ethics agreements he must now follow.”
BREAKING: Murkowski is a no on the tax bill unless Alexander-Murray passes first. (NARRATOR: It won’t.)https://t.co/XARx2GLNNR
— Topher Spiro (@TopherSpiro) November 17, 2017
Banana in the tailpipe – EVERY DAMN TIME!!!
Roger Stone appears to have known about the Al Franken allegations before they went public, CBS reports. https://t.co/OsqWYAhLUL
— Kyle Griffin (@kylegriffin1) November 17, 2017
BUT RUSSIA THO!
Why the White House’s ‘welfare reform’ focus matters
11/17/17 11:20 AM
By Steve Benen
………………………………
The Hill had a related report, quoting unnamed House GOP members who said Trump specifically brought up welfare reform as of one his priorities. The article added, “The welfare line got a big applause, with one lawmaker describing it as an ‘off-the-charts’ reception.”
And while I’m sure the president was delighted by the applause, the political world needs to understand what the White House means by “welfare reform” – because it may not mean what everyone thinks it means.
The phrase immediately conjures up memories of 1996 and Bill Clinton’s compromise with a Republican Congress that overhauled the nation’s safety net, but in Trump World, “welfare reform” doesn’t appear to be focused on initiatives such as Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, and related policies. Indeed, there’s not much more to reform on this front.
So what do Trump and his team mean when they use the phrase? As we discussed last week, Gary Cohn, the director of the National Economic Council at Trump’s White House, shed some light on the subject when he sat down with CNBC’s John Harwood.
HARWOOD: Are you thinking that you’ll deal with that Social Security/Medicare/baby boomer retirement issue later by entitlement reform that reduces benefits?
COHN: Look, the president on the economic front laid out three core principles. Number one was [regulatory] reform, number two was taxes and number three was infrastructure. We’re working our way methodically through [regulatory] reform, taxes and infrastructure. I think when he gets done with those, I think welfare is going to come up. That’s our near-term economic agenda right now.
Note how “welfare” came in response to a question about social-insurance programs like Social Security and Medicare.
These fights don’t appear to be imminent – the GOP’s tax plan is clearly the party’s front-burner issue – but it looks like Trump World is laying the groundwork now. And given the increasing frequency with which the president brings up this priority, the fight is likely to be a doozy.
On taxes, GOP leader has some bad advice: ‘Just look at history’
11/16/17 11:20 AM
By Steve Benen
House Majority Whip Steve Scalise (R-La.) is back on Capitol Hill, and he’s doing his part to ensure his party’s tax plan clears the chamber this afternoon. As ThinkProgress noted, the Louisiana Republican’s pitch includes a straightforward suggestion: “Just look at history.”
Wouldn’t it be great if this were true? Wouldn’t it be amazing if policymakers knew with certainty, whenever economic growth disappointed, that they could simply cut taxes and turn things around?
Alas, reality is stubborn. Indeed, if we take Scalise’s advice and “look at history,” it points in a direction he and his caucus probably won’t like.
Serena Williams marries millionaire Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian in a Beauty and the Beast themed wedding with an all-star guest list including Beyonce, Kim Kardashian and Anna Wintour
Kim Kardashian, Venus Williams, Beyonce and the members of New Edition were spotted arriving at the celebrity wedding of the decade
Sources say Serena chose a Beauty and the Beast theme for her nuptials to Reddit founder Alexis Ohanian
The tennis star’s best friends Ciara, La La Anthony and Kelly Rowland all arrived in the same car to the wedding venue, the Contemporary Arts Center in New Orleans
Editor-in-chief of Vogue Anna Wintour was seen spotted at the bar for the cocktail reception in a street, closed to the public, next to the venue
Serena was not spotted but sources said she wore two dresses for the occasion – one for the ceremony and one for the reception which was due to last until 3am
By Chris Spargo and Hannah Parry and Jose Lambiet In New Orleans For Dailymail.com
PUBLISHED: 19:33 EST, 16 November 2017 | UPDATED: 09:51 EST, 17 November 2017
FYI; Anti-feminists and jerks recirculating news about Brian Banks who was falsely accused and convicted of rape in 2002 and released in 2011, then had brief NFL career and now works for NFL. Recirculated instagram story has no dates, sources or good news after rape was disproved. I suppose it was pushed out to “defend” Moore and others as being “falsely” accused. As if one false imprisonment story means thousands of rapes and assaults could all be based on false accusations.
Four Republican senators are in private talks that could kill tax bill https://t.co/3U9Vv44Oso— Topher Spiro (@TopherSpiro) November 17, 2017
Tell it:
https://twitter.com/TheRoot/status/931542491521830913
BUILD OUR OWN TECH COMPANIES!!!
https://twitter.com/samswey/status/931321373821227008
https://twitter.com/kylegriffin1/status/931253089679609856
https://twitter.com/TheRoot/status/931537181574868992
Well..well….well….
Ivanka and the fugitive from Panama
Exclusive: How an alleged fraudster in Panama, working with Donald Trump’s daughter, helped make Trump’s first international hotel venture a success. The broker was in business with a money-launderer and two criminals from the former Soviet Union. Then he fled.
By NED PARKER, STEPHEN GREY, STEFANIE ESCHENBACHER, ROMAN ANIN, BRAD BROOKS and CHRISTINE MURRAY
Filed Nov. 17, 2017, noon GMT
……………………………………..
Ivanka was so taken with his sales skills, Nogueira said, that she helped him become a leading broker for the development and he appeared in a video with her promoting the project.
A Reuters investigation into the financing of the Trump Ocean Club, in conjunction with the American broadcaster NBC News, found Nogueira was responsible for between one-third and one-half of advance sales for the project. It also found he did business with a Colombian who was later convicted of money laundering and is now in detention in the United States; a Russian investor in the Trump project who was jailed in Israel in the 1990s for kidnap and threats to kill; and a Ukrainian investor who was arrested for alleged people-smuggling while working with Nogueira and later convicted by a Kiev court.
Three years after getting involved in the Trump Ocean Club, Nogueira was arrested by Panamanian authorities on charges of fraud and forgery, unrelated to the Trump project. Released on $1.4 million bail, he later fled the country.
He left behind a trail of people who claim he cheated them, including over apartments in the Trump project, resulting in at least four criminal cases that eight years later have still to be judged.
Ya think someone in the MSM would bring this up. From BJ:
AP PoliticsVerified account
@AP_Politics
1h1 hour ago
More
Trump, who once bragged to Access Hollywood’s Billy Bush about grabbing women’s crotches without their consent, says allegations against Al Franken are “real bad.”
Bannon called Hannity and urged him to dial back the criticism of Roy Moore, @rebeccagberg reports (https://t.co/9ist6IlfgB) pic.twitter.com/ZuNJv7pPxA— Brian Stelter (@brianstelter) November 17, 2017
Sherrod Brown really takes the fight to Orrin Hatch here. No Trumpian namecalling or low blows. Instead focusing on the GOP helping only the ultra-rich. Judging by how mad Hatch got, Brown hit a soft spot. pic.twitter.com/WxDFb8ipHB
— Adam Best (@adamcbest) November 17, 2017
Can Hatch really be this delusional? If so, it’s sad & alarming. Accuses Brown of lying & grandstanding “right at the end of this,” “this” being a hearing that’s shamefully, purposefully breakneck pace is designed to jam thru a wet kiss to the rich. He’s either a liar or unwell https://t.co/Tslno9N5yL— Andy Richter (@AndyRichter) November 17, 2017
Orrin Hatch has been in the Senate too damn long. Period.
Finally saw Queen Sugar. Ralph Angel explaining Blue’s name?
Just dust…just dust…
sob sob sob
I know, right. I really appreciate what Ava D’s to develop all the characters, especially Ralph Angel’s.
Did you watch the Queen Sugar after show with Oprah, Ava, cast & audience?
No, I didn’t get to watch it.
Uh huh
Uh huh
Good Morning, Everyone 😄😄😄
Good morning, everyone.
Good Morning, SG2, Rikyrah and Everyone :)
https://i.pinimg.com/736x/b0/94/9c/b0949c6055fceddf96222b8d63dc9bdc–the-peanuts-snoopy-peanuts.jpg