Open Thread | Follow the Money šŸ’°šŸ’°šŸ’°

Posted on October 23, 2019 by rikyrah

This article would NEVER have been written during the Administration of 44. It wouldnā€™t even have been a consideration.

But, this THIS group of crooks.
OF COURSE, ITā€™S A STRONG POSSIBILITY.
Folks have been saying for awhile that they suspected that folks close to Dolt45 were using him to get rich off of shorting the market.

ā€œTHERE IS DEFINITE HANKY-PANKY GOING ONā€: THE FANTASTICALLY PROFITABLE MYSTERY OF THE TRUMP CHAOS TRADES
The presidentā€™s talk can move marketsā€”and itā€™s made some futures traders billions. Did they know what he was going to say before he said it?
BY WILLIAM D. COHAN
OCTOBER 16, 2019

In the last 10 minutes of trading at the Chicago Mercantile Exchange on Friday, September 13, someone got very lucky. Thatā€™s when he or she, or a group of people, sold short 120,000 ā€œS&P e-minisā€ā€”electronically traded futures contracts linked to the Standard & Poorā€™s 500 stock indexā€”when the index was trading around 3010. The time was 3:50 p.m. in New York; it was nearing midnight in Tehran. A few hours later, drones attacked a large swath of Saudi Arabiaā€™s oil infrastructure, choking off production in the country and sending oil prices soaring. By the time the CME next opened, for pretrading on Sunday night, the S&P index had fallen 30 points, giving that very fortunate trader, or traders, a quick $180 million profit.

It was not an isolated occurrence. Three days earlier, in the last 10 minutes of trading, someone bought 82,000 S&P e-minis when the index was trading at 2969. That was nearly 4 a.m. on September 11 in Beijing, where a few hours later, the Chinese government announced that it would lift tariffs on a range of American-made products. As has been the typical reaction in the U.S. stock markets as the trade war with China chugs on without any perceptible logic, when the news about a potential resolution of it seems positive, stock markets go up, and when the news about the trade war appears negative, they go down.

The news was viewed positively. The S&P index moved swiftly on September 11 to 2996, up nearly 30 points. That same day, President Donald Trump said he would postpone tariffs on some Chinese goods, and the S&P index moved to 3016, or up 47 points since the fortunate person bought the 82,000 e-minis just before the market closed on September 10. Since a one-point movement, up or down, in an e-mini contract is worth $50, a 47-point movement up in a day was worth $2,350 per contract. If you were the lucky one who bought the 82,000 e-mini contracts, well, then you were sitting on a one-day profit of roughly $190 million.

A week earlier, three minutes before the CME closed on September 3, someone bought 55,000 e-mini contracts, with the index at about 2906. At around 9 p.m. in New Yorkā€”9 a.m. in Hong Kongā€”the market started moving and kept rallying for the next six hours or so, reaching 2936. Around 2 p.m. in Hong Kongā€”2 a.m. in New Yorkā€”Carrie Lam, the Hong Kong leader, announced that she would be withdrawing the controversial extradition bill that had been roiling the city in protest for months. Whoever bought those e-mini contracts a few hours earlier made a killing: a cool $82.5 million profit.

But these wins were peanuts compared to the money made by a trader, or group of traders, who bought 420,000 September e-minis in the last 30 minutes of trading on June 28. That was some 40% of the dayā€™s trading volume in September e-minisā€”making it a trade that could not easily be ignored. By then, President Trump was already in Osaka, Japanā€”14 hours ahead of Chicagoā€”and on his way to a roughly hour-long meeting with Chinaā€™s President Xi Jinping as part of the G20 summit. On Saturday in Osaka, after the market had closed in Chicago, Trump emerged from his meeting with Xi and announced that the intermittent trade talks were ā€œback on track.ā€ The following week was a good one in the stock market, thanks to the Trump announcement. On Thursday, June 27, the S&P 500 index stood at about 2915; a week or so later, it was just below 3000, a gain of 84 points, or $4,200 per e-mini contract. Whoever bought the 420,000 e-minis on June 28 had made a handsome profit of nearly $1.8 billion.

Traders in the Chicago pits have been watching these kinds of wagers with an increasing mixture of shock and awe since the start of the Trump presidency. They are used to rapid fluctuations in the S&P 500 index; volatility is common, of course. But the precision and timing of these trades, and the vast amount of money being made as a result of them, make the traders wonder if all this is on the level.

HELL NO, they are not on the level. I swear, the leeway given to White folks.
You think that if this had been happening during 44ā€™s Administration, that they wouldnā€™t have called both the Chicago Tribune and Sun Times to report this? That they would have sat back and watched it, time and time again happen?

Um, no.
Something is rotten here. Someone is making money off of this, and of course, itā€™s illegal.
STOP giving anyone associated with this Administration or ANYTHING that happens with this Administration ā€“ the benefit of the doubt. They havenā€™t earned it. Just the opposite. This is an Administration stocked with crooks and thieves that donā€™t think laws apply to them. If there is a way for them to scam and steal and profit from illegality ā€“ THEY WILL DO IT.

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141 Responses to Open Thread | Follow the Money šŸ’°šŸ’°šŸ’°

  6. eliihass says:
    October 24, 2019 at 7:55 pm

    Most people donā€™t know that Trump tech buddy, Peter Thiel, is on FaceBook board..

    https://twitter.com/RMac18/status/1187086896284852224?s=20

    Reply
    • eliihass says:
      October 24, 2019 at 8:37 pm

      Really wish sheā€™d stop giving a damn..

      Even though she no longer has or needs to, she continues to go out of her way to help all these disrespectful ingrates – whoā€™ll be the beneficiary of her efforts …but who only remember to acknowledge her when they need her to help prop them up.. and when they need to put her to work to shore-up support for the political ambitions of flailing/mediocre folk – who believe themselves somehow worthy..

      Reply
  13. eliihass says:
    October 24, 2019 at 6:46 pm

    https://twitter.com/BY1959/status/1187514422429962240?s=20

    ā€œ…A senior government official appointed by Education Secretary Betsy DeVos resigned Thursday, saying the current student loan system is “fundamentally broken” and calling for billions of dollars in debt to be forgiven.

    A. Wayne Johnson was hired as the chief operating officer of the Office of Federal Student Aid, which manages the country’s $1.6 trillion outstanding student loan portfolio. He later worked in a strategic role, directing how student loans are serviced for borrowers.

    Johnson told The Wall Street Journal he reached his conclusion after watching climbing defaults and realizing that a majority of student debt will never be repaid.
    Indeed, five years into repayment, half of student loan borrowers haven’t paid even $1 toward their debt’s principal, according to the Education Department’s own data. And 40% of student loan borrowers could default by 2023, according to an analysis by the Brookings Institution.

    “We run through the process of putting this debt burden on somebody ā€¦ but it rides on their credit files ā€” it rides on their back ā€” for decades,” Johnson, who wrote his dissertation at Mercer University on student debt, told the Journal.

    “The time has come for us to end and stop the insanity,” he added..ā€

    https://www.cnbc.com/amp/2019/10/24/student-loan-official-resigns-calling-for-massive-debt-cancellation.html?__twitter_impression=true

    Reply
  15. eliihass says:
    October 24, 2019 at 6:38 pm

    ā€œ..Rep. Katie Hill (D-Santa Clarita) is under investigation by the House Ethics Committee after allegations that she engaged in an affair with a congressional aide were made public last week.

    In a statement, committee Chairman Rep. Ted Deutch (D-Fla.) and ranking member Rep. Kenny Marchant (R-Texas) said the committee was aware that Hill ā€œmay have engaged in a sexual relationship with an individual on her congressional staff,ā€ an allegation Hill has denied. House rules were changed last year to prohibit such relationships between members and their employees.

    In a letter to constituents Wednesday, Hill again denied the alleged relationship with a House staffer, but acknowledged she was involved in a separate relationship with a member of her campaign staff ā€œduring the final tumultuous years of my abusive marriage.ā€

    ā€œI know that even a consensual relationship with a subordinate is inappropriate, but I still allowed it to happen despite my better judgment,ā€ the letter read.

    Over the weekend, the conservative website RedState published a series of articles alleging that Hill had engaged in relationships with a member of her campaign staff and a House staffer.

    Hill is one of seven California Democrats who helped flip Republican-held congressional seats and secure the House majority for Democrats. She is a member of House leadership and, as vice chair of the Committee on Oversight and Reform, is among the most powerful House freshmen..ā€

    https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2019-10-23/rep-katie-hill-letter-house-ethics-committee-investigation

    Reply
  17. eliihass says:
    October 24, 2019 at 5:43 pm

    This is a transcript of the telephone conversation between Kellyanne Conway, counselor to the president of the United States, and Caitlin Yilek, breaking news reporter at the Washington Examiner. The conversation took place after Yilek returned a phone call from Tom Joannou, special assistant to the president and special assistant to the senior counselor:

    Conway: Hey, Caitlin. Kellyanne Conway. So I just am wondering why in Godā€™s earth you would need to mention anything about George Conwayā€™s tweets in an article that talks about me as possibly being chief of staff. Other than it looks to me like thereā€™s no original reporting here, you just read Twitter and other peopleā€™s stuff, which I guess is why you donā€™t pick up the phone when people call from the White House because if itā€™s not on Twitter or itā€™s not on cable TV, itā€™s not real. Iā€™m just wondering why you would have, A ā€” why or what ever would give you the idea that Iā€™m, quote, caught in the middle of some of these Twitter feeds and the president of the United States, B ā€” who would be able to tell you that except for me? Weā€™ve never talked, as far as I know.

    Yilek: We have never talked. I did cite the Bloomberg News article. And the reason I didnā€™t pick up the call was because it said it was from Egypt, and I called it right back. In terms of mentioning George Conway, itā€™s relevant context.

    Conway: Um, yes, so, always, right, exactly. Youā€™re really going places. Let me tell you something, from a powerful woman. Donā€™t pull the crap where youā€™re trying to undercut another woman based on who sheā€™s married to. He gets his power through me, if you havenā€™t noticed. Not the other way around. And if these are the, quote, standards, unquote, at the Washington Examiner, then yes, Iā€™d be happy to talk to your editor. But Iā€™ve known your editor since before you were born. So, I can call your editor either way. Iā€™m just trying to give you a chance to explain why you think what you wrote qualifies as breaking news or reporting.

    Yilek: I donā€™t know that I have to explain that to you.

    Conway: When I was young and starting in my career, I was in the friend-making business. And Iā€™ve worked super hard. You could have put that in paragraph two also. But Iā€™m not caught in the middle of anything except trying to understand somebody whose title is breaking news reporter, what that means.

    Yilek: Look, Iā€™ve got to go. Iā€™ve got a meeting to run to.

    Conway: Iā€™m sure.

    Yilek: Like I said, Iā€™d be happy to pass you on to my editor, if you would like to speak with him.

    Conway: Iā€™d be [inaudible] to tell him you have no answer when asked why you were characterizing somebodyā€™s feelings, having never talked to that person. If you have some psychology degree [inaudible].

    Yilek: I donā€™t know that that is characterizing your feelings to say you are put in the middle if your husband and your boss are attacking each other.

    Conway: When are they attacking each other? When did the president even mention his name?

    Yilek: All right, like I said, I have got to go. Iā€™d be happy ā€”

    Conway: So, listen, if youā€™re going to cover my personal life, if youā€™re going to cover my personal life, then weā€™re welcome to do the same around here. If it has nothing to do with my job, which it doesnā€™t, thatā€™s obvious, then weā€™re either going to expect you to cover everybodyā€™s personal life or weā€™re going to start covering them over here.

    https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/transcript-of-telephone-call-between-kellyanne-conway-and-caitlin-yilek?_amp=true&__twitter_impression=true

    Reply
  19. rikyrah says:
    October 24, 2019 at 2:58 pm

    An office formed by Trump to protect whistleblowers in the Department of Veterans Affairs was instead used to stifle claims and retaliate against those trying to expose problems at the agency, according to an inspector general report. https://t.co/4Ap3S7IjHTā€” Kyle Griffin (@kylegriffin1) 24 October 2019

    Reply
  20. Liza says:
    October 24, 2019 at 2:47 pm

    Just saw this on PBS. Highly recommended. The insurgents are Bannon, Sessions, and Miller.

    Zero Tolerance
    OCTOBER 22, 2019 // 54:18
    SEASON 2019: EPISODE 3
    FRONTLINE investigates how President Trump turned immigration into a powerful political weapon that fueled division and violence. The documentary goes inside the efforts of three political insurgents to tap into populist anger, transform the Republican Party and crack down on immigration.

    https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/frontline/film/zero-tolerance/

    Reply
  21. rikyrah says:
    October 24, 2019 at 2:24 pm

    House Republicans try and fail to prevent deposition to impeachment committees

    Republicans tried to interrupt the deposition of Pentagon official Laura Cooper, potentially comprising the secure room in which the testimony was being held. They did not succeed in stopping it from going forward.
    Oct. 23, 2019

    Reply
  22. rikyrah says:
    October 24, 2019 at 12:59 pm

    Court order to State Dept sets up potential constitutional crisis

    Rachel Maddow alerts viewers to a court’s order to the State Department to turn over documents related to the Trump administration’s dealings with Ukraine, noting that for all of the obstruction the Trump administration has committed so far, it has not yet defied a court order, and doing so would be a true constitutional crisis.

    Reply
  23. rikyrah says:
    October 24, 2019 at 12:56 pm

    Trump lawyers argue the absurd to protect Trump from tax probe

    Chuck Rosenberg, former senior FBI official, talks with Rachel Maddow about the assertion by Donald Trump’s legal team that Trump can’t be the subject of any criminal investigation or prosecution while he holds the office of the president.

    Reply
  24. rikyrah says:
    October 24, 2019 at 12:52 pm

    I keep on telling you….Dolt45 ain’t Nixon….He’s not a Team Player…he doesn’t give two shyts about the Republican Party. If he’s going down…

    HE’S TAKING EEEEERRRRRBBOOODDYYYY WITH HIM.

    Rachel is the only one who keeps pointing this out about Pence and the bus…

    Trump lawyers keep musing about a Mike Pence indictment

    Rachel Maddow wonders at Donald Trump’s lawyers repeatedly, and without prompting, arguing that vice presidents are non-essential and totally subject to criminal investigation and prosecution without protection from their status. Mike Pence might also wonder why they keep doing that.

    Reply
  25. rikyrah says:
    October 24, 2019 at 12:48 pm

    House Republican SCIF stunt warrants admonition: Rep. Speier

    Rachel Maddow talks with Rep. Jackie Speier, member of the House Oversight Committee, about how the testimony of Pentagon official Laura Cooper contributed to the Trump impeachment inquiry, and how the disruptive stunt by House Republicans should be addressed.

    Reply
  26. rikyrah says:
    October 24, 2019 at 12:46 pm

    Despite twists, Trump saga actually just one, big scandal

    Rachel Maddow rewinds the Trump presidency from its beginnings with Trump as a candidate with an odd deference for Russia, through the Mueller investigation and into the impeachment inquiry and its adjacent criminal cases and investigations, and points out that it’s all the same scandal.

    Reply
  27. rikyrah says:
    October 24, 2019 at 12:41 pm

    Oliver Darcy
    @oliverdarcy
    Ā· 40m
    Hereā€™s video of @jimsciutto asking Peter Navarro if political investigations about the Bidens have come up during China trade talks, and Navarro declining to answer.

    Reply
  28. Liza says:
    October 24, 2019 at 12:37 pm

    Sen Schumer’s speech was quite moving.
    https://twitter.com/SenSchumer/status/1187391527062048770

    Reply
  30. rikyrah says:
    October 24, 2019 at 12:23 pm

    Trump lawyers argue his crimes can’t be investigated, prosecuted

    Rachel Maddow looks at arguments made in federal court in which Donald Trump’s lawyers claimed that as long as Trump is in office, no one may investigate him, or prosecute him, or even stop in the process committing any crime, including murder on 5th Avenue.

    Reply
  31. rikyrah says:
    October 24, 2019 at 12:21 pm

    Despite Trump’s disruption efforts, impeachment inquiry persists

    Rachel Maddow reports on the ridiculous lengths to which Donald Trump and his supporters went today to disrupt impeachment inquiry proceedings ahead of testimony from Laura Cooper, the top Pentagon official overseeing U.S. policy regarding Ukraine, including violating national security protocols by crashing the congressional SCIF.

    Reply
  33. rikyrah says:
    October 24, 2019 at 11:06 am

    ‘Our country has lost a giant.’ Elijah Cummings is first African-American lawmaker to lie in state at the U.S. Capitol as Congress bids farewell to sharecropper’s son who went head to head with Donald Trump

    Elijah Cummings’ body is lying lie in state at the Capitol – the first time an African-American lawmaker has been given the honor
    Congressional leaders including Speaker Nancy Pelosi spoke at a service in celebration of his life
    Senate minority leader Chuck Schumer said: ‘Our country has lost a giant.’
    Cummings was the son of sharecroppers. He earned a law degree and became a powerful committee leader and longtime Baltimore Congressman
    He used his Oversight post to investigate the Trump administration
    Trump attacked Cummings and his district, which he called ‘rat-infested,’ when he was alive
    At a funeral in Baltimore Friday former presidents Barack Obama and Bill Clinton will speak
    By GEOFF EARLE, DEPUTY U.S. POLITICAL EDITOR FOR DAILYMAIL.COM and WIRES

    PUBLISHED: 00:33 EDT, 24 October 2019 | UPDATED: 11:59 EDT, 24 October 2019

    Reply
  34. rikyrah says:
    October 24, 2019 at 11:03 am

    According to this, Giuliani and indicted goons Parnas and Fruman were flying to Vienna for an interview with the disgraced Ukrainian prosecutor and SEAN HANNITY. šŸ¤£

    How two businessmen hustled to profit from access to Giuliani and the Trump administrationhttps://t.co/BquzTMFWG2

    ā€” Betty Cracker šŸŠ (@bettycrackerfl) October 23, 2019

    Reply
  35. rikyrah says:
    October 24, 2019 at 10:44 am

    Freeborn Black Woman First of Her Name šŸ–¤ (@TheWayWithAnoa) Tweeted:
    Why am I pushing for folks to donate to @JulianCastro? Julian and team didnā€™t bat an eye at spending an hour with a group of undocumented students and giving them the same attention and honest engagement as anyone able to cast a ballot. https://twitter.com/TheWayWithAnoa/status/1187152662187433984?s=17

    Reply
  38. rikyrah says:
    October 24, 2019 at 10:31 am

    YepšŸ˜’šŸ˜’šŸ˜’šŸ˜’šŸ™„šŸ™„

    https://twitter.com/dfsparks/status/1187140248519593984

    Reply
  40. rikyrah says:
    October 24, 2019 at 10:21 am

    ICYMI:

    Geoff Bennett (@GeoffRBennett) Tweeted:
    ā€œPresident Obama will attend the funeral service for Rep. Elijah Cummings on Friday, where, at the request of Mrs. Cummings, he will deliver remarks about the remarkable life and legacy of one of this countryā€™s finest public servants.ā€ – Katie Hill, Obama spokesperson https://twitter.com/GeoffRBennett/status/1187180881909354497?s=17

    Reply
  41. SouthernGirl2 says:
    October 24, 2019 at 10:14 am

    My heart goes out to Rep Elijah Cummings family. My deepest sympathy. šŸ˜¢

    https://twitter.com/ABCPolitics/status/1187382262377013248?s=20

    Reply
    • eliihass says:
      October 24, 2019 at 9:33 am

      J McDaniel #impeachThePredator
      @janattheocean
      Ā·
      16h
      Replying to
      @soledadobrien

      If that was my daughter he would not be able to do that to a child again..

      Reply
  45. SouthernGirl2 says:
    October 24, 2019 at 9:24 am

    Joyce Beatty gutting Mark Zuckerberg! It’s a thing of beauty.

    https://twitter.com/TheAuracl3/status/1187063606283833350?s=20

    Reply
  47. rikyrah says:
    October 24, 2019 at 5:54 am

    Well šŸ˜’ šŸ˜’

    Denise Oliver-Velez (@Deoliver47) Tweeted:
    @ibellamurray Hope the brothers ask her why she was a Republican till she was 47 and voted for anti-black Presidents. Why she never lifted a finger for us till she wants votes? Why she saw Kamala go to a barbershop and became xerox? https://twitter.com/Deoliver47/status/1186731540065243141?s=17

    Reply
  51. rikyrah says:
    October 24, 2019 at 5:49 am

    Brian Tyler Cohen (@briantylercohen) Tweeted:
    Just a reminder that every single Republican who claims that Trump isnā€™t getting due process knows that this ISNā€™T A TRIAL (not until itā€™s in the Senate) and are just parroting bullshit White House talking points because theyā€™re partisan hacks. https://twitter.com/briantylercohen/status/1186842616509255680?s=17

    Reply
  52. rikyrah says:
    October 24, 2019 at 5:49 am

    Jon Favreau (@jonfavs) Tweeted:
    Trump directed Republicans to physically obstruct the impeachment inquiry https://twitter.com/jonfavs/status/1187064761671925760?s=17

    Reply
  64. eliihass says:
    October 23, 2019 at 5:48 pm

    Beware the ever-shifting ā€˜allegiancesā€™ of former so-called ā€˜insidersā€™, in the fickle, narcissistic, opportunistic landscape/bubble that is politics..

    Todayā€™s ā€˜insiderā€™, effusive stan/influencer, is next cycleā€™s Judas, shameless tattletale, backstabber, snitch, contemptuous former ā€˜admirerā€™ now filled with disdain..

    As my historic FLOTUS always reminds us, politics injects all manner of destructive, negatively life-altering forces, poisonous rats, dubious folks into oneā€™s orbit that one otherwise would never ever tango with.. some of whom dig their claws in, park themselves in your orbit for the long haul ā€¦they hitch their wagons to yours whether you like it or not, cling on and never let go.. and forever wield your name and their access to you to line their pockets.. doesnā€™t make them any any less dangerous than those who jump ship/publicly turn on you/sell you out.. As my beloved historic FLOTUS also reminds us, politics, and the quest for power/access, will make folks do some really ugly stuff..

    Who can ever forget that most important of truisms (my guiding favorite of all time) ā€¦familiarity breeds contempt..

    https://twitter.com/Yaldabaoth616/status/1187026101417185282?s=20

    Reply
  65. rikyrah says:
    October 23, 2019 at 4:05 pm

    ICYMI,

    Japan had the coronation for a new Emperor. It’s a big deal. If we had a functioning State Department…they might have taken care of it.

    So, Dolt45 nor the Birther Trophy Wife went
    Nor, Race Bannon and Mother
    Not even The Pseudo First Lady/Daughter…
    Not the Secretary of State…..

    Who went?
    Elaine Chao…..

    Cause…you know….they all look alike….

    The Banzai banquet: Japan’s newly enthroned Emperor Naruhito and his wife attend glittering reception for international royalty, including Queen Letizia and the striking Queen of Bhutan, after traditional cheers rang out at centuries-old ceremony

    Emperor Naruhito formally ascended to Japan’s throne Tuesday in a ceremony at the Imperial Palace in Tokyo
    Prime Minister Shinzo Abe led cheers of ‘banzai’, which has a similar meaning to the phrase ‘long live the king’
    Naruhito and his wife, Empress Masako, then attended a white tie dinner in Tokyo to mark the occasion
    Royals and heads of state from around the world gathered to honour them, including Britain’s Prince Charles
    By CHRIS PLEASANCE FOR MAILONLINE

    PUBLISHED: 11:14 EDT, 22 October 2019 | UPDATED: 17:02 EDT, 22 October 2019

    https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-7601137/Japans-newly-enthroned-Emperor-Naruhito-wife-attend-glittering-reception-Tokyo.html

    Reply
  66. rikyrah says:
    October 23, 2019 at 3:50 pm

    Fmr. Undersecretary of State: Gordon Sondland ā€˜in great jeopardyā€™ after Taylor deposition

    Wendy Sherman tells Lawrence Oā€™Donnell that “listening to the detailed accounting that Bill Taylor gave, it’s very hard to not believe him and very easy to question Sondland.” Lawrence also discusses with Jeremy Bash and Evelyn Farkas.

    Reply
  67. rikyrah says:
    October 23, 2019 at 3:48 pm

    Dem Rep on Taylor deposition: ā€˜If you’re a patriotic American, it has to be a sad dayā€™

    Rep. Andy Levin tells Lawrence Oā€™Donnell that the deposition of Bill Taylor, the acting U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine, added “many bricks” “to the edifice for the case of impeachment against Donald Trump.” Lawrence also discusses with Rep. Peter Welch and Evelyn Farkas.

    Reply
  68. rikyrah says:
    October 23, 2019 at 3:43 pm

    Amb. Taylor: ā€˜More Ukrainians would undoubtedly dieā€™ because of Trump’s decisions

    The top U.S. diplomat to Ukraine told Congress that the president’s choice to withhold security assistance to Ukraine until it agreed to dig up dirt on the Bidens would endanger the lives of Ukrainians.
    Oct. 22, 2019

    Reply
  70. rikyrah says:
    October 23, 2019 at 3:25 pm

    Trump reaches end of legal rope on ‘executive immunity’ excuse

    Rachel Maddow alerts viewers that Wednesday at 10 a.m. ET, Donald Trump’s lawyers will appeal federal ruling that Trump’s claims of executive immunity are “repugnant to the nation’s governmental structure,” in a case that could not only expose Trump’s taxes, but could expose Trump himself to criminal scrutiny.

    Reply
  71. rikyrah says:
    October 23, 2019 at 3:22 pm

    Chicago prosecutors reveal new thread in Giuliani associates case

    Rachel Maddow relays breaking news from the Washington Post that Chicago prosecutors are working with SDNY after recognizing indicted Rudy Giuliani associates Lev Parnas and Igor Fruman from their own investigation of Ukrainian oligarch Dmytro Firtash.

    Reply
  72. rikyrah says:
    October 23, 2019 at 3:06 pm

    Demings wants Sondland to ‘clear up’ contradictions with Taylor

    Rep. Val Demings, member of the House Intelligence Committee, talks about hearing the testimony of former Ambassador Bill Taylor in the Trump impeachment inquiry, and her interest in hearing again from Ambassador Sondland on the parts of his testimony that conflict with what Taylor told the impeachment committees today.

    Reply
  73. rikyrah says:
    October 23, 2019 at 3:00 pm

    Trump increasingly exposed as walls close in on Ukraine scheme

    Rachel Maddow looks at the accumulation of damning testimony in the Trump impeachment inquiry, and the criminal legal woes of everyone involved in Rudy Giuliani’s “outside channel” on Donald Trump’s Ukraine scheme.

    Reply
  74. rikyrah says:
    October 23, 2019 at 2:40 pm

    Diplomat worried Trump would stiff Ukraine after leveraging favor

    Rachel Maddow reads highlights from the opening statement of former Ambassador Bill Taylor to the House impeachment inquiry in which he describes Donald Trump’s scheme to put Ukrainian President Zelenskyy “in a public box,” which he worried still might not move Trump to release aid to Ukraine to fight Russia.

    Reply
  75. rikyrah says:
    October 23, 2019 at 2:17 pm

    Why the House GOP is pretending to care about the impeachment process
    10/23/19 02:58 PMā€”UPDATED 10/23/19 03:03 PM
    By Steve Benen

    ……………………………………………….

    A group of House Republicans stormed a secure room where testimony is being heard in the impeachment inquiry on Wednesday, delaying the start of closed-door testimony by Laura Cooper, the top Pentagon official overseeing U.S. policy regarding Ukraine.

    Led by Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., the GOP members ā€“ who donā€™t sit on the committees that are questioning witnesses in the impeachment inquiry ā€“ entered the secure room, known as a SCIF, in the basement of the Capitol Visitorā€™s Center.

    These House Republicans know the rules, but they broke them anyway as part of a little stunt.

    According to Bloomberg News, Donald Trump knew in advance about these far-right membersā€™ plan to barge into a secure hearing room ā€“ and the president supported the scheme. In fact, The Daily Beast reported that Trump effectively encouraged them to obstruct the impeachment inquiry.

    To hear the White Houseā€™s more ridiculous congressional allies tell it, theyā€™re justified in launching stunts like these because hearings related to the impeachment inquiry are being held in secret. At first blush, I imagine some Americans might even think guys like Matt Gaetz and his cohorts have a point: given the importance of the process and the outcome, why is so much work being done behind closed doors?

    The truth is, even the most unhinged members of Congress know the answer. Theyā€™re only pretending to be dumb. The New York Times recently explained why witnesses are testifying in private:

    The Democrats are trying to collect as much information as possible as quickly as possible. Big made-for-TV hearings are a chaotic and clunky way to try to build a body of evidence. They allow witnesses to line up their stories in advance and could easily backfire on Democrats trying to build a public narrative in real time.

    Most congressional veterans would tell you that from a fact-finding point of view, you are better off following the Watergate model: Investigate in private first, then choreograph a series of public hearings that recreate for the public what the investigation found.

    Reply
  76. rikyrah says:
    October 23, 2019 at 1:52 pm

    But, of course…it’s Barr…

    New Evidence Hints at Another Justice Department Coverup

    Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) released evidence on Tuesday that the Justice Department buried the whistleblower complaint about President Donald Trumpā€™s call with the Ukrainian president by failing to refer the matter to the Federal Election Commission (FEC). Klobuchar suggested the Justice Department violated a longstanding agreement between the agencies to share information about possible campaign finance violations for potential enforcement actionā€¦

    Reply
  77. rikyrah says:
    October 23, 2019 at 1:45 pm

    Well well well

    Nunes protƩgƩ fed Ukraine info to Trump
    By NATASHA BERTRAND

    10/23/2019 02:05 PM EDT

    A protĆ©gĆ© of Republican Rep. Devin Nunes was among those passing negative information about Ukraine to President Donald Trump earlier this year, fueling the presidentā€™s belief that Ukraine was brimming with corruption and interfered in the 2016 election on behalf of Democrats.

    Kashyap Patel, a longtime Nunes staffer who joined the White House in February, was so involved in the issue that at one point Trump thought he was in charge of Ukraine policy for the National Security Council, according to congressional testimony by Fiona Hill, the former senior director for European and Russian Affairs whose portfolio included Ukraine.

    ……………………..

    The official who replaced Hill in early September, Tim Morrison, formally held the Ukraine portfolio at the NSC. Testimony before House lawmakers has depicted Morrison, a Bolton acolyte, as similarly unnerved by Trumpā€™s desire to withhold all assistance from Ukraine. Morrison also kept the acting U.S. ambassador to Ukraine, Bill Taylor, abreast of developments inside the White House.

    But Patelā€™s involvement demonstrates that the president had at least some support for the scheme from within the NSC, and has given House impeachment investigators yet another name to add to their witness listā€”a name they are already familiar with, given Patelā€™s previous work in Congress to discredit the Russia investigation.

    Reply
  80. rikyrah says:
    October 23, 2019 at 12:23 pm

    In courtroom gang trials, a common witness intimidation tactic is for gang members to line the back of the courtroom as a silent threat. https://t.co/VhG4cwiMWBā€” Maya Wiley (@mayawiley) 23 October 2019

    Reply
  81. rikyrah says:
    October 23, 2019 at 10:40 am

    I said from the beginning that they were trying to kill these American Citizens.

    Team Trump admits holding back billions for Puerto Rico disaster recovery
    Published 2 hours ago
    October 23, 2019
    By Mc Nelly Torres, DCReport @ RawStory

    Trump administration officials have admitted that last summer they knowingly withheld billions of dollars Congress appropriated to help Puerto Rico recover from Hurricane Maria. House Democrats say withholding the relief money violates the law.

    Federal law requires that our government help Americans hit by natural disasters. But two Housing and Urban Development officials acknowledged at a House Appropriations subcommittee hearing on Oct. 17 that HUD blocked the Puerto Rico relief funds.

    The HUD delay meant the island missed a deadline to apply for billions of dollars in disaster relief funds, raising doubts about when, if ever, the money will flow to the island devasted in September 2017 by the Category 5 hurricane.

    The federal money is part of a $19 billion supplemental disaster relief bill that Congress passed in June. It came with stipulations requiring HUD to provide funding notices to nine states and two American territories, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

    The agency published the required guidance in the federal register for 9 states and the U.S. Virgin Islands on Aug. 30, 2019. But HUD intentionally left Puerto Rico out of the notices, the HUD officials admitted.

    Reply
  82. rikyrah says:
    October 23, 2019 at 10:36 am

    Follow the fiscal year: Diplomatā€™s testimony reveals why Trump is so mad at the whistleblower

    ……………………

    One thing I have not seen covered, however, is an aspect of the damning evidence which demonstrates that Trump wasnā€™t bluffing. He wasnā€™t just using the alure of the aid and a White House meeting to coax or persuade – or even coerce – Zelenskyy into committing to launch phony investigations into conspiracy theories and political opponents. Donald Trump was serious about getting his ā€œfavorā€ and was fully planned to zero out Ukraineā€™s aid if he did not. Trump, Giuliani, Pompeo and cult would have pulled it off, too, had the whistleblower not rudely interrupted.

    Doing damage control after his open bragging about the Ukrainian quid pro quo, Donald Trumpā€™s Budget Director (the person who actually held up the money at Trumpā€™s behest) and Acting Chief of Staff Mick Mulvaney said this weekend on Fox News Sunday that the fact that the aid was eventually released by the White House should serve as evidence that Trump did not condition the aid on phony Ukrainian dirt on Biden. That was kind of a ā€œwell our blackmail didnā€™t work, so weā€™re good, right?ā€ argument to begin with, but now we have proof that it was also a lie.

    To explain, letā€™s back up a little bit and consider the timeline of the whistleblower complaint, the subsequent public reveal of the plot, and the ensuing impeachment inquiry.

    Reply
  83. rikyrah says:
    October 23, 2019 at 10:32 am

    Once again, I go back to the Founding Fathers. They actually saw Dolt45 coming. What they never anticipated was an entire political party betraying its oath of office, the Constitution and this country. THAT, they didnā€™t anticipate. And, I still believe itā€™s the problem that a lot of Democratic Party office holders have yet to grapple with and accept the consequences of that realization.

    Reply
  84. SouthernGirl2 says:
    October 23, 2019 at 10:08 am

    Maxine Waters dragging Mark Zuckerberg……

    Rep. Waters to Zuckerberg: “It appears you want to aggressively increase the size of your company and are willing to step on or over anyone, including your competitors, women, people of color, your own users and even our democracy to get what you want.”

    https://twitter.com/NBCNewsTech/status/1187008376275902465?s=20

    Reply
    • rikyrah says:
      October 23, 2019 at 10:34 am

      YESSSS!!!!

      Reply
    • majiir says:
      October 23, 2019 at 7:45 pm

      I remember when Sen. Warren mentioned breaking Facebook up, Zuckerberg went nuts. Shortly after that, he began meeting with Republicans in Congress. Rep. Waters is right: Zuckerberg will do whatever he has to do to not only increase the size of his corporation but to kill off any other corporation that wants to or tries to compete with his company.

      Reply
  85. rikyrah says:
    October 23, 2019 at 9:31 am

    CNN Poll: Half of Americans say President Trump should be impeached and removed from office. It’s a new high in CNN polling on the topic. https://t.co/aF8d8Stp60 pic.twitter.com/FR8Ji9nKoZ

    ā€” CNN Breaking News (@cnnbrk) October 22, 2019

    Reply
  87. rikyrah says:
    October 23, 2019 at 9:14 am

    Latest polling:

    WASHINGTON (CNN)Former Vice President Joe Bidenā€™s lead in the race for the Democratic nomination for president has rebounded, and now stands at its widest margin since April, according to a new CNN poll conducted by SSRS.

    Biden has the support of 34% of Democratic and Democratic-leaning registered voters, his best showing in CNN polling since just after his campaignā€™s formal launch on April 25.

    Sens. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts and Bernie Sanders of Vermont are about even for second, with 19% and 16%, respectively. Behind them, South Bend, Indiana, Mayor Pete Buttigieg and Sen. Kamala Harris of California each have 6% support, with Sen. Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota and former Texas Congressman Beto Oā€™Rourke each at 3%.

    Bidenā€™s rise comes largely from a consolidation of support among his core backers, and doesnā€™t appear to harm any individual opponent. Warren and Sanders hold about even with their standing in the last CNN poll in September, and no other candidate has seen a shift of more than 2 points in that time.

    But Biden has seen big spikes in support among moderate and conservative Democrats (43% support him now, up from 29% in the September poll), racial and ethnic minorities (from 28% among all nonwhites in September to 42% now) and older voters (up 13 points since September among those 45 and older) that outpace those among younger potential Democratic voters (up 5 points among those younger than 45).

    Reply
  88. rikyrah says:
    October 23, 2019 at 7:19 am

    The responses to this thread šŸ˜‚šŸ˜‚šŸ˜‚
    https://twitter.com/Lathescorpion/status/1186486253052547072

    Reply
  96. rikyrah says:
    October 23, 2019 at 6:45 am

    šŸ¤ØšŸ¤ØšŸ¤Ø

    White savior candidates can’t beat Trump šŸ¤¬ (@Needle_of_Arya) Tweeted:
    @Ms_MMMJ “Gain a little humility” is whitewomanese/Standard Caucasian for:

    ~she (Kamala) needs to ‘stay in her lane’
    ~Kamala is too “arrogant/uppity for my taste”
    ~AAs need to remember who really runs this Democratic Party (non-Latino whites), despite them presently being a plurality https://twitter.com/Needle_of_Arya/status/1186831100078804994?s=17

    Reply
  97. rikyrah says:
    October 23, 2019 at 6:37 am

    šŸ˜‚šŸ˜‚šŸ˜‚
    Elie Honig (@eliehonig) Tweeted:
    When a trial witness gives testimony like Bill Taylor gave today, that’s usually when the defense lawyer sidles over at a break and asks if there’s any plea offer still on the table. https://twitter.com/eliehonig/status/1186761149020327943?s=17

    Reply
  102. rikyrah says:
    October 23, 2019 at 6:26 am

    This is when being slick can come back and bite you in the azzšŸ¤”šŸ¤”šŸ¤ØšŸ¤Ø

    Laurence Tribe (@tribelaw) Tweeted:
    Poetic justice: By declining to investigate as a crime what Taylor is now reporting, Barr thought he was protecting his boss. In fact, he gave up the chance to say Congress canā€™t look into this stuff because DOJ is doing so! If he had half a brain, Trump would be pissed! https://twitter.com/tribelaw/status/1186768385696243718?s=17

    Reply
  105. rikyrah says:
    October 23, 2019 at 4:06 am

    Good Morning, Everyone šŸ˜ŠšŸ˜ŠšŸ˜Š

    Reply

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