Wednesday Open Thread | Michael Cohen’s Business Partner Agrees to Cooperate as Part of Plea Deal

Posted on May 23, 2018 by rikyrah

Michael Cohen’s Business Partner Agrees to Cooperate as Part of Plea Deal
By Danny Hakim, William K. Rashbaum and Vivian Wang
May 22, 2018

A significant business partner of Michael D. Cohen, President Trump’s personal lawyer, has quietly agreed to cooperate with the government as a potential witness, a development that could be used as leverage to pressure Mr. Cohen to work with the special counsel examining Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election.

Under the agreement, the partner, Evgeny A. Freidman, a Russian immigrant who is known as the Taxi King, will avoid jail time, and will assist government prosecutors in state or federal investigations, according to a person briefed on the matter.

Mr. Cohen’s conduct was initially examined by Robert S. Mueller III, the special counsel investigating the 2016 election that led to Mr. Trump’s victory, and then referred to the United States attorney’s office in Manhattan. Last month, federal agents carried out search warrants at Mr. Cohen’s home, his office and a hotel room where he was staying, seeking documents related to his business associates and accountants.

Mr. Trump’s lawyers have been resigned to the strong possibility that the investigation of Mr. Cohen’s businesses could lead him to cooperate with federal prosecutors.

That likelihood could become greater with a business partner of Mr. Cohen’s cooperating with law enforcement.

Where’s that bus gif?

BWA HA HA H AH HA HA HA

HOW many arias has this dude been singing?

100 years to ZERO prison time?

He was singing like the Three Tenors.

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99 Responses to Wednesday Open Thread | Michael Cohen’s Business Partner Agrees to Cooperate as Part of Plea Deal

  2. eliihass says:
    May 23, 2018 at 7:25 pm

    The longer it takes, the more comfortable they get, the more emboldened they become, and the harder it’ll be to get them out.. And the more irreversible the grievous damage..

    And the firmer the grip and control over the overall awesome infrastructure of the formerly greatest democracy in the world …the more blatant flouting of long-held laws and norms, and the replacing of non-partisan federal government employees with sleazy, dubious, below subpar, compromised, sycophants in highly sensitive posts to not only do their bidding, but to cover up their various iniquities …and further decimate our democratic institutions, democracy and fragile union.. while plundering to their hearts content, and colluding with hostile foreign entities and formerly impotent but wealthy foreign faux-allies who were once reliant on us for protection.. but now call the (money)shots brazenly buying their way in with pre-paid favor requests …

    Soon the treasonous buffoon will be demanding that Secret Service provide him advance detailed daily schedules of the Obamas.. And daily briefings of their every cough, sneeze, meal..

    Meanwhile the thoroughly shamelessly, enabling and complicit media alternately grovels, reverentially defers, sings praises, legitimizes and normalizes the buffoon and the insanity, with the occasional fleeting faux-hand-wringing which quickly gives way to straight-faced, awe-filled ‘reports’ and touting of the buffoon’s ‘wins’, plans, Mavericks-ness, interspersed with solemn updates on 3rd wife etc…and all with the endlessly breathless prefacing with and reverential wielding of the honorifics ‘president’, ‘first lady’, ‘first daughter’, ‘first son’, ‘first family’…

    Kinda hard to argue against a treasonous buffoon when you’re actively shining and fluffing him and his family up, and eagerly helping firm them up in the psyche of Americans and the world, as the legitimate occupants and holders of the sacred honorifics you repeatedly and reverentially assign to them..

    The playing along with, and the brazen complicity, enabling, legitimization, normalization, boosting and providing of cover and encouragement of the in-your-face artifice and gaslighting of a seriously basic sociopathic conman motivated entirely by greed, delusions of grandeur, self-preservation.. and of course dollops of juvenile-grade envy and vindictiveness..

    And of course, can’t forget the chorus of hollow, greedy, megalomaniac cohort of ‘insiders and outsiders’ – some even previously touted as ‘patriots’… motivated entirely by their own self-serving, greed and gluttonous addiction to unimaginable power..

    If it weren’t all so crazy, dangerously, treasonously, destructively white supremacist-Orwellian, it’d be actually quite hilarious..

    Reply
    • eliihass says:
      May 23, 2018 at 8:25 pm

      Hate to share Maureen Dowd, but I think I shared this at the time, but sharing again… Illuminating.. and incredibly disheartening.. In the end, white supremacy, (sub)conscious racism, and an entitled sense of white grievance trumps all…and has no party or class it seems.. Come hell or treasonous high water, in the end, petty slights are held onto, while a blind eye is turned to the most grievous, and all is quickly forgiven the blatantly treasonous, as they all bind together..

      Shame on Jimmy Carter who I quite respected .. he’s quite a selectively petty and vindictive one.. who knew..

      “…PLAINS, Ga. — Most people would run away screaming at the thought of working for a boss who humiliates subordinates in public, throttles them in private, demands constant flattery, spends all day watching cable TV and behaves in a wildly unpredictable way.

      And yet, there is someone who is eager to work for President Trump.

      Curious, but it’s a Democrat. And even curiouser, it’s a fellow member of the presidents club. And curiousest, it’s someone whom Trump has disparaged on Twitter as one of the worst presidents in history.

      He said he has talked to Lt. Gen. H. R. McMaster, Trump’s national security adviser, who is a good friend, including at Zbigniew Brzezinski’s funeral when McMaster asked to sit next to Carter, but has so far gotten a negative response.

      “I told him that I was available if they ever need me,” he said.

      When I asked about Trump’s souring our image in the world, Carter defended his successor.

      “Well, he might be escalating it but I think that precedes Trump,” he said. “The United States has been the dominant character in the whole world and now we’re not anymore. And we’re not going to be. Russia’s coming back and India and China are coming forward.”

      Holy malaise.

      He also said he liked Trump’s initiative reaching out to Saudi Arabia. He doesn’t know Jared Kushner but is not totally dismissive of the idea that the son-in-law could succeed where others have failed.

      “I’ve seen in the Arab world, including the Palestinian world,” he said, “the high esteem that they pay to a member of one’s own family.”

      Indeed, Carter was harder on Obama during the interview than he was on Trump. Both Carter and Trump had stern, demanding fathers. “Daddy expected me to be perfect,” Carter told me. “So I obeyed his orders and his wishes.”

      I asked if he had Obama’s email address.

      “No,” he said flatly.

      I wondered about his relationship with other presidents, given his body language in the famous picture where he stood off to the side, which he told Brian Williams was deliberate because “I feel that my role as a former president is probably superior to that of other presidents.”

      “I had my best relationship, when he was in office, with George H. W. Bush,” he said.

      Carter is also not as bothered as some by Trump’s Putin bromance. “At the Carter Center,” he said, “we deal with Putin and the Russians quite frequently concerning Syria.”

      Carter noted that in the primary, “We voted for Sanders.”

      I asked the famously ethical Carter what he made of Obama’s post-presidential string of $400,000 speeches.

      “I don’t care if he gets rich or Clinton gets rich or whatever,” he said. “I don’t want to get into a bragging position; I’m not trying to do that. But I announced when I was defeated I was not going to be on corporate boards, I was not going to try to enrich myself with speeches. I was patterning my policy after Harry Truman.”

      When I compared the Clinton Foundation with the Carter Center, Carter noted: “Rosie and I put money in the Carter Center. We never take any out.”

      I wondered how the starchy Carter, who put out a White House edict that nobody could fly first class, felt about the louche Trump White House, where conflict of interest has been replaced by confluence of interest.

      “I think the media have been harder on Trump than any other president certainly that I’ve known about,” Carter replied.

      Since Rosalynn’s focus as first lady was mental health, I asked her if we should break the last taboo and let presidents have a White House shrink.

      “I think it might help them,” she said with a smile.

      She told me that she was left out of a first ladies lunch held by Michelle Obama on the issue of mental health, making it clear that she was still hurt.

      On the issue of tearing down Confederate statues, the former president mused: “That’s a hard one for me. My great-grandfather was at Gettysburg on the Southern side and his two brothers were with him in the Sumter artillery. One of them was wounded but none of them were killed. I never have looked on the carvings on Stone Mountain or the statues as being racist in their intent. But I can understand African-Americans’ aversion to them, and I sympathize with them. But I don’t have any objection to them being labeled with explanatory labels or that sort of thing.”

      On the issue of N.F.L. players kneeling, Carter was less sympathetic: “I think they ought to find a different way to object, to demonstrate. I would rather see all the players stand during the American anthem.”

      I asked if he thought the president was deepening racial divisions. “Yes, I think he is exacerbating it,” he said. “But maybe not deliberately.”

      As a genuinely pious man, how does he feel about the Two Corinthians president bonding with evangelical voters, who do not desert Trump no matter how coarse his language or how upsetting the “Access Hollywood” tape was. Don’t the evangelicals seem cynical to stick?

      “Apparently not,” he replied.

      In “The Art of the Deal,” Trump wrote that Carter came to his office to ask for $5 million for his presidential library…”

      https://www.nytimes.com/2017/10/21/opinion/sunday/jimmy-carter-lusts-trump-posting.html

      Reply
  28. rikyrah says:
    May 23, 2018 at 2:22 pm

    Giuliani now says he would prefer the president grant an interview with Mueller, even though “truth is relative.” He says he does not expect Trump to make any changes at DOJ and POTUS is optimistic. “He feels the public opinion is turning in his favor.” https://t.co/HV2movrfd1— Josh Dawsey (@jdawsey1) May 23, 2018

    Reply
  29. rikyrah says:
    May 23, 2018 at 2:20 pm

    Women – including lots of women of color – are taking center stage in the coming midterms. This will be a huge test for a resistance that has been driven by women’s shock, outrage and organizing post-2016 election. https://t.co/GH74J7OAeA

    — Joy Reid (@JoyAnnReid) May 23, 2018

    Reply
  30. rikyrah says:
    May 23, 2018 at 2:20 pm

    The DEMS who voted for the Dodd-Frank roll back should know that the GOPers will only vote for you if you have a (R) after your name…they will not be voting for GOP-LITE… #JusSayin https://t.co/CfSNSROSSx

    — Pretty Foot (@PrettyFootWoman) May 23, 2018

    Reply
    • Liza says:
      May 23, 2018 at 4:52 pm

      This. Looking at Chuck Schumer.

      Adam Jentleson Verified account
      @AJentleson

      And when I say Senate Democratic leadership made a conscious decision to let the bank deregulation bill pass, I mean that you don’t lose a third of the caucus on a bill like that unless you want to.

      8:43 PM – 22 May 2018

      Reply
  31. rikyrah says:
    May 23, 2018 at 2:18 pm

    I’m standing at EPA’s chemicals summit, where I’m told by security that I can’t enter and can’t stand inside because it is invite only and no press. They were polite but refused to call public affairs staff, even if I gave them the number (which they said they didn’t have).— Emily Holden (@emilyhholden) May 23, 2018

    Reply
  32. SouthernGirl2 says:
    May 23, 2018 at 1:28 pm

    Imagine if Black people didn’t stand strong with Dr King in the fight for Civil Rights after being beaten by cops, arrested, attacked by dogs? Black athletes need to stand with #Kaepernick. This is bigger than football. #TakeAKnee til free. #TheNFL

    Reply
  33. rikyrah says:
    May 23, 2018 at 1:22 pm

    Angela Bassett and Thandie Newton Discuss Being Black and What’s Considered Sexy in Hollywood

    Yesha Callahan
    Today 11:23am

    Angela Bassett and Thandie Newton are gracing the cover of the Hollywood Reporter’s June issue, along with Claire Foy (The Crown), Maggie Gyllenhaal (The Deuce), Elisabeth Moss (The Handmaid’s Tale) and Sandra Oh (Killing Eve). The actresses participated in THR’s annual Drama Actress Roundtable and discussed everything from on-screen nudity (male and female), learning to say no and Hollywood’s better-late-than-never push for gender pay parity.

    Bassett, who is currently appearing on Fox’s 9-1-1, made some particularly interesting comments when it came to being sexualized on television and movies. Gyllenhaal had mentioned how sexiness seems to be a prerequisite when it comes to women, and made mention of her role on The Deuce as a porn actress and sex worker.

    “I don’t know if you all feel this way, but it has felt like a prerequisite that, yes, you can be smart and powerful and all these things, but you also have to throw a little sexiness in there. And I don’t know if it’s going to stay that way, but it certainly has been that way for most of my career,” Gyllenhaal said.

    As most of the women on the panel agreed with her, Bassett had a different take when Gyllenhaal asked haven’t all women been asked to use their sexuality: “Mmmm, no, not really.” (There was laughter.) “I’ve not been asked to use my sexuality in my career.”

    Gyllenhaal seemed shocked as she asked, “Really?”

    “Not as a black woman, no,” Bassett said.

    Reply
    • Ametia says:
      May 23, 2018 at 2:15 pm

      Gyllenhaal probably doesn’t have a clue about black women being taken from the shacks they lived in with their husband and children during slavery and forcibly beaten and raped, so NO as Bassett said “Not as a Black woman, no.” Dem MULLATO BABIES!

      JUST SAYIN’

      Reply
    • Ametia says:
      May 23, 2018 at 2:29 pm

      Plus, Angerla’s complexion…….ALSO TOO..

      Reply
  34. rikyrah says:
    May 23, 2018 at 1:20 pm

    BWA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA

    Trump cannot block Twitter critics without violating 1st Amendment, judge rules
    Posted 12:59 PM, May 23, 2018, by Associated Press

    NEW YORK — A federal judge in New York says President Donald Trump violates the First Amendment by blocking critics on Twitter for political speech.

    Judge Naomi Reice Buchwald in Manhattan issued the written decision Wednesday.

    In ruling, she said no government official — including the president — is above the law.

    The case was brought last July by the Knight First Amendment Institute at Columbia University and seven individuals blocked by Trump after criticizing the Republican president.

    After a hearing this year, the judge had suggested that Trump mute rather than block some of his critics. At the time, a Justice Department attorney agreed that muting would enable Trump to avoid a tweet he doesn’t want to read.

    Reply
  36. rikyrah says:
    May 23, 2018 at 12:30 pm

    I hope the NFL decides to completely stop all concession stand sales during the anthem as well. We wouldn’t want people buying a $10 beer and an $8 hot dog during our sacred anthem. All TV camera crews must stop filming and direct attention at the flag too.Just seems fair.— Sage Rosenfels (@SageRosenfels18) May 23, 2018

    Next step:Force everyone to put their right hand over heart and sing along, making sure every American knows every word. I bet anyone $1000 the President of the United States couldn’t write down the exact words to the National Anthem.— Sage Rosenfels (@SageRosenfels18) May 23, 2018

    It looks like the owners sided with the guy who called its players sons a bitches.— Sage Rosenfels (@SageRosenfels18) May 23, 2018

    Reply
  37. rikyrah says:
    May 23, 2018 at 11:57 am

    BWA HA HA HA HAH A AH HA

    Pete Souza, the former Obama W.H. photographer, has announced that he’s publishing a new book called “SHADE: A Tale of Two Presidents.” pic.twitter.com/wF0oHVEebZ

    — Kyle Griffin (@kylegriffin1) May 23, 2018

    Reply
  38. rikyrah says:
    May 23, 2018 at 11:56 am

    Obama center plan approved by Chicago City Council
    POSTED 6:45 AM, MAY 23, 2018,
    BY ASSOCIATED PRESS, UPDATED AT 11:52AM, MAY 23, 2018

    CHICAGO — The Chicago City Council has approved the Obama Presidential Center in a park on the city’s South Side.

    The council voted overwhelmingly to approve the $500 million project.

    The project remains under federal review because the site, Jackson Park, is on the National Register of Historic Places. However, City Council is a major step forward.

    Last week, the Chicago Plan Commission approved the proposal to build on the site selected by former President Barack Obama and former first lady Michelle Obama. The council’s zoning committee did the same on Tuesday.

    The proposal has won widespread support in Chicago, but it has also been met with resistance from critics who oppose putting the center into a historic and popular park.

    Reply
  39. Ametia says:
    May 23, 2018 at 11:35 am

    HERE WE GO!

    NFL won’t require players to be on field for national anthem, a move the league hopes will end protests before games
    In hopes of ending enduring protests during the national anthem, NFL owners approved a new policy that would remove the league-wide requirement for players to be on the field for its playing. The decision also gives individual teams the ability to set their own anthem policies and grants teams the ability to discipline their own players for any on-field protest during the anthem. It would not give teams the ability to force players to be on the field for the anthem.

    President Trump and some fans were sharply critical of the NFL last season when some players chose to kneel during the national anthem to bring attention to racial inequality and police treatment of African Americans.

    The new policy would take effect this fall.

    Read more »
    https://s2.washingtonpost.com/6a5fbd/5b0593a0fe1ff63b797325b2/YXdhcmVvZjQxMUBnbWFpbC5jb20%3D/2/10/3a569220054ddfca9b49a25bb24a75b5

    Reply
  40. rikyrah says:
    May 23, 2018 at 11:33 am

    NFL’s national anthem policy: Players on field must stand, show ‘respect’
    Lorenzo Reyes, USA TODAY Published 12:25 p.m. ET May 23, 2018

    Amid repeated protests during the playing of the national anthem over the past two seasons, the NFL on Wednesday passed a revised policy that mandates players and team personnel present on the sideline “shall stand and show respect for the flag and the Anthem.”

    The revision allows players who would not wish to stand to remain in the locker room. Also under the revision, each franchise will have the power to issue their own policies, which could include fines for players protesting the anthem, under the conduct detrimental provision of the league’s personal conduct policy.

    The league also now has the power to fine any franchise that has personnel that does not stand or “show respect” while present on the sideline for the anthem.

    Reply
  44. rikyrah says:
    May 23, 2018 at 10:33 am

    Missing an opportunity to lead, Ryan enables the GOP’s worst instincts
    05/23/18 10:55 AM—UPDATED 05/23/18 11:02 AM
    By Steve Benen

    At a Capitol Hill press event yesterday, a reporter asked House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) if he has any concerns about Donald Trump’s efforts to politicize the Justice Department. The congressman’s answer left little doubt that Ryan is siding with the president.

    “What matters to us, as the Article I branch of government conducting oversight of the executive branch, is that we do get these document requests honored.

    “Look, FISA abuse is a serious issue. We the people – the Congress – have given the executive branch a lot of power in this very important law. And it’s really important that we conduct the proper oversight of the executive branch to make sure that that power is not or has not or will not be abused. That’s ultimately the big picture, what’s going on here.”

    ……………………………..

    If House Republicans were serious about “conducting oversight of the executive branch,” they wouldn’t be ignoring dozens of serious scandals surrounding the Trump White House. As Jon Chait explained yesterday, “[O]versight of the Executive branch is not an activity that interests Ryan. His goal is closer to the opposite. Ryan and [House Intelligence Committee Chairman Devin] Nunes are conducting oversight over the Department of Justice precisely because, while part of the Executive branch, it is independent of it. The independence is precisely the thing that troubles Ryan and Nunes, and which they aim to quash, thereby increasing the power of the president.”

    Reply
  45. rikyrah says:
    May 23, 2018 at 10:31 am

    Giuliani says Russia’s stolen materials were ‘like a gift’ to Trump
    05/23/18 09:20 AM—UPDATED 05/23/18 09:23 AM
    By Steve Benen

    ………………………

    All of which brings us to the latest HuffPost report on the former mayor’s evolving defense.

    In a recent interview with HuffPost, Giuliani initially disputed the notion that Trump’s daily citing, in the final month of his campaign, of Russian-aligned WikiLeaks and its release of Russian-stolen emails constituted “colluding” with Russia.

    “It is not,” Giuliani said.

    Then he switched tacks.

    “OK, and if it is, it isn’t illegal… It was sort of like a gift,” he said. “And you’re not involved in the illegality of getting it.”

    So let me get this straight. Russia stole Democratic materials to put Trump in power; Trump solicited and welcomed the Russian assistance, and according to Giuliani, this may or may not be evidence of collusion.

    Either way, we’re not supposed to care, because according to the president’s lawyer, the president merely took advantage of “a gift” from a foreign adversary that attacked our election.

    The Washington Post’s Aaron Blake did a nice job documenting the ever-changing nature of the Trump World argument, from the initial bogus talking point – the campaign never had any communications with Russian officials – to the latest rhetoric from Giuliani.

    Reply
  46. rikyrah says:
    May 23, 2018 at 10:29 am

    For Trump, electing GOP candidates is less important than electing him
    05/23/18 08:40 AM—UPDATED 05/23/18 08:54 AM
    By Steve Benen

    ……………………………….

    One of the president’s political goals, therefore, is to make the case to Republican voters that turning out in 2018 matters just as much as it did two years ago. Indeed, that was the message the president’s speechwriters explicitly included in Trump’s pitch to social conservatives last night.

    Imagine their disappointment when the president rejected the argument moments after making it.

    In a speech before the annual gala hosted by Susan B. Anthony List, an influential group that opposes abortion rights, Trump ramped up his campaigner-in-chief persona to try to energize conservatives who were vital to his victory in 2016 and will be critical again to keeping Congress in GOP hands this year.

    Even if he did muddle his message – at least, for a moment.

    “Your vote in 2018 is every bit as important as your vote in 2016,” Trump said, adding: “Although I’m not sure I really believe that. I don’t know who the hell wrote that line.”

    Reply
  47. rikyrah says:
    May 23, 2018 at 10:27 am

    White House excludes Democrats from key intelligence briefing
    05/23/18 08:00 AM—UPDATED 05/23/18 08:06 AM
    By Steve Benen

    For many years, Congress has had something called the “Gang of Eight,” which receives highly sensitive intelligence briefings. As the name implies, the “gang” is a pretty small club, featuring the bipartisan leadership of the House, the bipartisan leadership of the Senate, the top two members of the House Intelligence Committee, and the top two members of the Senate Intelligence Committee.

    These eight lawmakers have a unique responsibility to learn about some of the nation’s most important intelligence secrets, and because the gang is split evenly – four Republicans and four Democrats – everyone is assured that both parties have equal access to the same information.

    With this in mind, when Donald Trump’s White House organized a new briefing for Congress on issues related to the Russia investigation, it stood to reason that the “Gang of Eight” would receive the highly classified information related to intelligence sources.

    Those assumptions, we now know, were mistaken. Politico reported:

    The White House has invited two senior House Republicans – and no Democrats – to a Thursday briefing to facilitate access for lawmakers to information about an FBI informant involved in the investigation of Russian contacts with President Donald Trump’s campaign.

    The briefing, coordinated by White House chief of staff John Kelly, was agreed to Monday when Trump met with FBI Director Christopher Wray and Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein to discuss Congress’ demands for these classified documents.

    Reply
  48. rikyrah says:
    May 23, 2018 at 10:26 am

    Clapper: Dossier was not used for Intelligence assessment of 2016

    Former DNI James Clapper, author of “Facts and Fears,” talks with Rachel Maddow about how the Intelligence Community regarded the Christopher Steele dossier and how to make Donald Trump aware of its existence even as part of it were verified.

    Reply
  49. rikyrah says:
    May 23, 2018 at 10:25 am

    Clapper: Americans pay for Trump damage to society, institutions

    Former DNI James Clapper talks with Rachel Maddow about how Donald Trump’s weak morals and willingness to inflict damage on American society and institutions have strained his respect for the Trump presidency and his role as commander in chief.

    Reply
  50. rikyrah says:
    May 23, 2018 at 10:24 am

    Clapper: Russia eminently successful in the election of 2016

    Former DNI James Clapper talks with Rachel Maddow about why he believes, given the closeness of the outcome and the targets Russia chose, that Russia was ultimately successful in its efforts to undermine the 2016 U.S. election.

    Reply
  51. rikyrah says:
    May 23, 2018 at 10:21 am

    I think that Clapper would lay hands on Dolt45 if they were in the same room.

    ……………..

    James Clapper on Russia: ‘They swung the election to a Trump win’

    Rachel Maddow shares a passage from former DNI James Clapper’s new book, “Facts and Fears,” in which he describes the effect of the massive Russian propaganda campaign in support of Donald Trump in the 2016 election.

    Reply
  52. rikyrah says:
    May 23, 2018 at 10:09 am

    Cohen business partner’s plea deal seen as likely falling domino

    Rachel Maddow reports on the plea deal by Michael Cohen’s business partner, Evgeny Freidman, in a case involving his taxi business that makes it likely he’ll help prosecutors in Cohen’s case, making him, in turn, more likely to make a deal to aid the investigation of Donald Trump.

    Reply
  54. rikyrah says:
    May 23, 2018 at 10:08 am

    Roseanne Has Completely Changed TV, Again. God Help Us.
    As the ‘Roseanne’ revival airs a season finale tackling Trump-era issues, rival networks go into overdrive to copycat its success. The future is political, and frighteningly messy.
    Kevin Fallon
    KEVIN FALLON
    05.22.18 8:30 PM ET
    It’s been over 20 years and, for better or worse, Roseanne Barr is once again the most influential person in TV.

    In the years since Roseanne was the top-rated comedy series of the ’90s, the comedian has evolved from pop culture provocateur to political menace. Once known for using the relatable Conner clan as a vehicle for pushing progressive boundaries on her show, Barr’s public persona in recent years has been defined by her peddling of alt-right conspiracy theories, her baiting and inflammatory social media presence, and a laundry list of offensive controversies.

    That is, her public persona in recent years had been defined by that, until she traded in her tinfoil hat for a cultural lightning rod when ABC’s revival of Roseanne not only premiered to a media frenzy over how Barr’s politics would or wouldn’t be represented, but also became the most-watched new TV series in years.

    The think-piece war waging over the responsibility (or lack thereof) of giving Barr a network TV platform, what the revival is tapping into in the zeitgeist, just how pro-Trump or political it is or isn’t, and Barr’s continued social media terrorizing has yet to reach a ceasefire. That makes this past week in the long Roseanne and Roseanne national nightmare—or, let’s face it, harsh reality—a particularly interesting one. The revival’s season is coming to a close as other networks officially announce their bids to capitalize on its success.

    Reply
  56. rikyrah says:
    May 23, 2018 at 10:06 am

    Exclusive: U.S. Government Can’t Get Controversial Kaspersky Lab Software Off Its Networks
    The law says American agencies must eliminate the use of Kaspersky Lab software by October. U.S. officials say that’s impossible—it’s embedded too deep in our infrastructure.
    ANDREW DESIDERIO
    KEVIN POULSEN
    05.23.18 10:05 AM ET

    Federal agencies are so far unable to comply with a law banning Kaspersky Lab software from U.S. government networks by October, The Daily Beast has learned. Multiple divisions of the U.S. government are confronting the reality that code written by the Moscow-based security company is embedded deep within American infrastructure, in routers, firewalls, and other hardware—and nobody is certain how to get rid of it.

    “It’s messy, and it’s going to take way longer than a year,” said one U.S. official. “Congress didn’t give anyone money to replace these devices, and the budget had no wiggle-room to begin with.”

    At issue is a provision of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) enacted last December that requires the government to fully purge itself of “any hardware, software, or services developed or provided, in whole or in part,” by Kaspersky Lab. The law was a dramatic expansion of an earlier DHS directive that only outlawed “Kaspersky-branded” products. Both measures came after months of saber rattling by the U.S., which has grown increasingly anxious about Kaspersky’s presence in federal networks in the wake of Russia’s 2016 election interference campaign.

    Reply
  57. rikyrah says:
    May 23, 2018 at 10:04 am

    DA PHUQ?

    Embattled Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens (R) “has purchased at least $185,000 in television ads — set to begin airing this week — in a year when he is not on the ballot,” the Kansas City Star reports.

    Those of you from Missouri forgot to add that the prosecutor is a Black woman…..
    Yeah….it matters….

    Reply
  58. rikyrah says:
    May 23, 2018 at 9:50 am

    What Happens If Republicans Keep Control Of The House And Senate?
    By Perry Bacon Jr.

    Imagine this scenario: In November’s elections for the U.S. House, Democrats win the national House vote by a few percentage points and gain nearly 20 additional House seats,1 by both winning open seats and defeating some longtime GOP incumbents. In the Senate, Democrats pick up Nevada; win races in states President Trump carried in 2016, including in Arizona, Florida, Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin and West Virginia; and only narrowly lose in the GOP strongholds of Indiana, Missouri and Tennessee.

    That sounds like a pretty good night for Democrats. But it wouldn’t be. That scenario would leave Republicans with a majority of, say, 222-213 in the House and a 51-49 advantage in the Senate.

    Don’t get me wrong — I share the view of other analysts that Democrats are favorites to win the House this fall, and that an accompanying Democratic win in the Senate is somewhat less likely.2 But based on the data we have now, the scenario above is certainly possible — just as possible as, say, Trump being elected president and Republicans winning both houses of Congress on Nov. 8, 2016.

    That potential outcome didn’t get enough coverage in the run-up to the 2016 election. So let’s avoid repeating that mistake in 2018. How would the political world react if Republicans maintained control of Congress in November? I can’t say for sure, but here are four likely responses.

    Reply
  59. rikyrah says:
    May 23, 2018 at 9:44 am

    Another Sister who came outta nowhere to win the 10th Congressional Democratic Nomination in Georgia:

    Georgia’s 10th Congressional District: Democratic candidate Tabitha Johnson-Green
    Ashlyn Webb | Senior Staff Writer Apr 12, 2018

    Tabitha Johnson-Green, a registered nurse in Washington County, said she wants to represent the the common “lifestyle and struggles of the everyday citizen” of the people in Georgia’s 10th Congressional District.

    Johnson-Green qualified last month as a moderate Democratic candidate for the district.

    Johnson-Green has been a registered nurse for the past 20 years and owns Green Team Non-Emergency Medical Transport company based out of Washington County.

    On weekends, Johnson-Green works part-time at PruittHealth-Old Capitol, a nursing and rehabilitation center in Louisville.

    Being in the medical field, Johnson-Green said she has seen the structural problems of the healthcare system on a daily basis, such as seeing patients, who are living in poverty, barely making co-pays to rural hospitals closing their doors at “alarming rates.”

    “Every American deserves access to quality healthcare. As it stands now, healthcare insurance coverage and co-pays are outrageously priced,” Johnson-Green said. “As a nurse of 20 years, I’ve seen people who cannot afford quality access to healthcare.”

    Reply
  60. rikyrah says:
    May 23, 2018 at 9:42 am

    Stacey Abrams fought for civil rights and criminal justice reform when she was only 19 years old. New she might become the first Black woman governor #IWD2018 pic.twitter.com/4MmnD8BDxl— NowThis (@nowthisnews) March 8, 2018

    Reply
  61. rikyrah says:
    May 23, 2018 at 9:27 am

    First-time candidate, gun violence champion and survivor @LucyWins2018 just made her way into a runoff! Here’s how you can help https://t.co/rC8veOkyXf pic.twitter.com/wKKMqGt47k— Khary Penebaker (@kharyp) May 23, 2018

    Reply
  62. rikyrah says:
    May 23, 2018 at 9:18 am

    I will repeat:

    EVERY Democrat needs the attitude of either..

    Ted Lieu

    or
    Maxine Waters…

    In the Kentucky House primary in the 6th CD tonight, there were 100,418 Democrats who voted and only 48,373 Republicans. Do folks still think the national generic ballot means anything? It’s the individual districts that matter. And in those districts, Democrats are crushing it. https://t.co/oSr5hhA6Ka
    — Ted Lieu (@tedlieu) May 23, 2018

    Reply
  63. rikyrah says:
    May 23, 2018 at 9:14 am

    True Colors: Bernie Sanders, Our Revolution, and the Racist Left

    …………………………………………

    Board members and Sanders presidential delegates from 2016 have raised questions about whether the group’s president, Nina Turner, is using her position to prepare for a presidential run of her own, and to settle scores with the Democratic National Committee from 2016.
    Two weeks ago, the group’s board of directors nixed Turner’s attempt to install her personal political consultant and friend as her chief of staff, even though the person had no experience in political organizing and had praised President Donald Drumpf repeatedly and attacked immigrants on Fox News.

    ………………………………..
    A founding board member resigned last month, saying Our Revolution wasn’t paying adequate attention to Latino candidates and issues of importance to Latinos.

    In addition, former Our Revolution staffer and DACA recipient Erika Andiola offered a scathing Facebook post in which she verified a lot of what Politico reported. Andiola described being forced out of her work due to her advocacy on the DREAM Act and described how Turner replaced her with Tezlyn Figaro, a personal friend of Turner’s, who immediately came onboard and began spouting racist and xenophobic language in favor of Donald Trump’s policies. In response to these allegations, Turner published a press release late Tuesday afternoon in what can only be described as a non-denial denial. In her statement, Turner said that Figaro’s comments were “under advisement” by herself and her Board and that she was unable to comment further on Andiola’s charges “given the sensitivity of the matter.” Oddly enough, Turner seemed to take the most umbrage with Politico’s reporting on her potential run for higher office claiming that charge was “categorically false.”

    ……………………………….
    The truth is that Our Revolution is progressive in name only. It exists to serve itself and to ratfuck the Democratic Party. Why else would you support Fox News toadie Dennis Kucinich rather than former Consumer Financial Protect Bureau head Richard Cordray? Why wouldn’t you want to help elect Doug Jones in Alabama? Why wouldn’t you campaign for Connor Lamb in Pennsylvania? Why wouldn’t you advocate for Ralph Northam as governor for Virginia? If you don’t support these Democrats in these must-win races, what exactly do you stand for?

    The answer is that Our Revolution stands for itself only. They are not our friends. Like Bernie Sanders, they are borrowing the Democratic Party in name and using that name to promote themselves and their brand. They are the mirror image of the Trump Administration in that they see government as a way to enrich themselves and their friends. Don’t believe me? Look at who has come to the aid of Our Revolution since the Politico article broke. The Young Turks’ Cenk Uygur called it a “hit piece” on Twitter. Both Nomiki Konst and James Zogby immediately came to Cenk’s aid. Walker Bragman immediately retweeted Konst. Common Dreams published an article by Michael Sainato attempting to discredit Politico’s reporting. The damage control by the usual suspects and the lack of any purported factual errors seem to indicate the original article was grounded in sound reporting.

    Reply
  64. rikyrah says:
    May 23, 2018 at 8:55 am

    update from yesterday:

    A judge sides with parents and rules their 30-year-old son must move out
    By Amanda Jackson, CNN

    Updated 7:19 AM ET, Wed May 23, 2018

    (CNN)A 30-year-old man didn’t get the message that it was time to move out of his parents’ home, even after they left him five notices and an offer of cash to help find new digs.

    The New York family drama eventually rolled into the court system, where a judge on Tuesday ruled in the parents’ favor and ordered Michael Rotondo to leave after having a room for eight years.

    But Rotondo contends he is owed a six-month notice.

    “I just wanted a reasonable amount of time to vacate, with consideration to the fact that I was not really prepared to support myself at the time of the notices,” he told CNN affiliate WSTM.

    Reply
  65. rikyrah says:
    May 23, 2018 at 8:47 am

    Stacey Abrams makes history winning Georgia Democratic primary in bid to become first black female governor
    Nicole Gaudiano, USA TODAY
    Published 8:57 p.m. ET May 22, 201

    WASHINGTON — Georgia gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams won the Democratic primary Tuesday, bringing her a step closer to becoming the nation’s first African-American woman governor.

    In one of the night’s closely watched primaries, the former state House minority leader beat former state Rep. Stacey Evans, the Associated Press announced.

    “We are writing the next chapter of Georgia’s future where no one is unseen, no one is unheard and no one is uninspired,” Abrams said during a rousing speech at her post-election party. “We are writing a history of a Georgia where we prosper together.”

    Reply
  66. rikyrah says:
    May 23, 2018 at 8:45 am

    Votes cast in the respective primaries has broken down to 55% GOP, 45% Dem. This is a stark improvement from 2014, where it was 65% GOP to 35% DEM. Dems did well around the black-belt of Georgia and made gains in Atlanta suburbs #gagov #GAPrimary pic.twitter.com/8gOd5QUisY

    — Matthew Isbell (@mcimaps) May 23, 2018

    Reply
    • Liza says:
      May 23, 2018 at 10:42 am

      Schlossberg says the person ranting in the video is “not the person I am.” Then who the hell was it.

      He did say one thing that is true. Seeing himself rant and rave in a video must have been an eye-opener.

      Reply
    • Ametia says:
      May 23, 2018 at 11:41 am

      The moment you have to defend NOT being RACIST… Guess what?

      YOU ARE

      Reply
  78. rikyrah says:
    May 23, 2018 at 4:50 am

    Good Morning,Everyone 😄😄😄

    Reply

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