Monthly Archives: September 2019

John Bolton Begins Airing Grievances With Trump

Politico reports: Ousted national security adviser John Bolton put on display the deep schisms between himself and President Donald Trump on North Korea, publicly breaking with his former boss on Monday about how best to get Kim Jong Un’s regime to wind down its nuclear weapons program. At one of his first public appearances since his abrupt and rocky departure …

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Kremlin Warns US Against Releasing Call Transcripts

Reuters reports: The Kremlin said on Monday that Washington would need Russian consent to publish transcripts of phone calls between U.S. President Donald Trump and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin. Congress is determined to get access to Trump’s calls with Putin and other world leaders, the U.S. House Intelligence Committee’s chairman said on Sunday, citing concerns that the Republican president …

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GOP Rep. Chris Collins To Plead Guilty To Insider Trading

The Buffalo News reports: Rep. Chris Collins plans to change his not guilty plea in the criminal insider trading case against him, federal court records showed Monday morning. U.S. District Court Judge Vernon S. Broderick scheduled a court hearing in the case for Tuesday. Moments after that docket entry was filed, a second appeared, indicating that Collins’ co-defendants – his …

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17th House Republican Won’t Seek 2020 Reelection

Just in via press release: U.S. Congressman Mac Thornberry (TX-13) released the following statement: “It has been a great honor to serve the people of the 13th District of Texas as their congressman for the last 25 years. They have given me opportunities to serve the nation in ways I could have never imagined, including as Chairman of the House …

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Teen Boy Takes Own Life After Anti-Gay Cyberbullying

The Washington Post reports: Channing Smith’s final Instagram post was a terse message to his followers. “I’m gonna get off social media for awhile,” the 16-year-old from Manchester, Tenn., wrote last week. “I really hate how I can’t trust anyone because those I did were so fake. Bye.” Hours later, Channing was dead, his older brother, Joshua Smith, wrote on …

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NC GOP State Chairman Pleads Guilty Of Lying To FBI

The Charlotte Observer reports: Former North Carolina Republican Party Chairman Robin Hayes faces up to six months in prison after agreeing to plead guilty to lying to the FBI in a sweeping federal bribery case. Hayes, a former member of Congress, is scheduled to formally enter his guilty plea Wednesday in federal court. Hayes, 74, is one of four men …

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Trump Escalates Attacks On Whistleblower’s “Fraud”

The Hill reports: President Trump on Monday escalated his attacks on the anonymous whistleblower who filed a complaint raising concerns about his conduct on a call with Ukraine, which has greatly increased the chances he could be impeached by the House. The president began the week with a torrent of tweets lashing out at the whistleblower in a continuation of …

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Dem Rep Calls On White House “Patriots” To Come Out

From an op-ed by Democratic Rep. Gregory Meeks: Those of you who are still there, it is time to come out of the shadows. Our nation does not need covert agents of democracy. It needs intrepid whistleblowers willing to step forward and defend the institutions this president has dragged into the dirt with him. The pattern is always the same. …

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New Bernie Plan: Tax Companies With Highly-Paid CEOs

Politico reports: Bernie Sanders has a new plan to reduce the widening gap between the rich and poor. The presidential candidate and decades-long crusader against income inequality unveiled a proposal Monday to raise taxes on businesses whose CEOs make at least 50 times more than their median workers. The boost in corporate taxes would be imposed on companies that bring …

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Trump Calls For Arresting Rep. Adam Schiff For Treason

CNBC reports: President Donald Trump on Monday suggested that House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff could face “arrest for treason” over his recent statement about Trump’s call with Ukraine’s president. “Rep. Adam Schiff illegally made up a FAKE & terrible statement, pretended it to be mine as the most important part of my call to the Ukrainian President, and read …

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Ukraine President: We Won’t Release Transcript Of Call

Reuters reports: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Monday that Kiev was unlikely to publish its version of a transcript of a July 25 phone call with U.S. President Donald Trump, at the heart of an impeachment inquiry in Washington. The White House published its summary of the call last week. It showed Trump, a Republican, asking Zelenskiy to investigate …

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Axios: Fake “Trumpcare” Insurance Offers Are Growing

Axios reports: Do a quick search for health insurance, and you’ll find plenty of ads for “Trumpcare” plans that cost $59 or less per month. But there’s a catch: Trumpcare doesn’t exist, and many of these advertised plans offer bare-bones coverage. Why it matters: For people who buy health insurance on their own instead of receiving it through an employer, …

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New Poll Shows Majority Now Support Impeachment

Mother Jones reports: A majority of Americans approve of House Democrats’ pursuit of a formal impeachment inquiry, according to a new CBS poll conducted by YouGov. The poll, which was published on Sunday night, found that 55 percent of the survey participants supported an impeachment inquiry. Of those, 35 percent said they strongly support it and 20 percent said they …

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GOP Rep Blasts Trump’s “Repugnant” Civil War Threat

Newsweek reports: Republican congressman Adam Kinzinger condemned President Donald Trump on Sunday for quoting Pastor Robert Jeffress’ warning that impeachment might cause a “Civil War-like” fracture in the U.S. In response, Kinzinger tweeted: “I have visited nations ravaged by civil war.@realDonaldTrump. I have never imagined such a quote to be repeated by a President. This is beyond repugnant.” The president’s …

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Schiff To Subpoena Giuliani For Ukraine Documents

The Daily Beast reports: House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff said on 60 Minutes on Sunday night that he plans to subpoena Rudy Giuliani for documents tied to President Trump’s Ukraine call as early as this week. “We’re going to need evidence from Rudy Giuliani,” Schiff told CBS correspondent Scott Pelley. “And it’s our intention as soon as first thing …

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Trump Quotes Warning Of Civil War If Impeached

The Independent reports: Donald Trump has raised the spectre of divisions akin to a civil war in the US in the event that he is impeached, in a series of incendiary posts on Twitter. The president appeared to approvingly quote Robert Jeffress, a pastor and Fox News contributor, in a stream of late-night tweets. “If the Democrats are successful in …

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CHATTER AWAY: Overnight Open Thread

Billboard Magazine reports: A Manhattan federal judge has approved the National Music Publishers’ Association’s (NMPA) request to double damages to $300 million in a lawsuit against Peloton, for the exercise startup’s alleged use of more than 2,000 songs in its workout videos without the proper licenses. U.S. District Judge Denise L. Cote approved the NMPA’s amendment on Friday, roughly two …

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Glorious Leader Demands Treason Charges For Schiff

Mediaite reports: President Donald Trump lashed out at the whistleblower tonight and accused Democratic Rep. Adam Schiff of treason. Trump also demanded to learn who else in the White House had provided information to the whistleblower in the thread. The whistleblower is expected to meet with Congress later this week. Trump had earlier suggested that the whistleblower should be punished …

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Biden Campaign To Networks: Stop Booking Giuliani

The New York Times reports: Joseph R. Biden Jr.’s presidential campaign contacted top television anchors and networks on Sunday to “demand” that Rudolph W. Giuliani, President Trump’s personal lawyer, be kept off the air because of what they called his misleading comments about the Biden family and Ukraine. “We are writing today with grave concern that you continue to book …

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Guiliani: Mike Pompeo Knew I Was Talking To Ukraine

CBS News reports: President Trump’s personal attorney, Rudy Giuliani, said on Sunday that Secretary of State Mike Pompeo had told him he was aware of his unorthodox diplomatic campaign to pressure Ukraine’s government to dig up political dirt on former Vice President Joe Biden and his son, Hunter. “I did not do this on my own. I did it at …

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