Idiocracy

The Hill reports: President Trump late Saturday escalated his rhetoric in urging supporters to support Republicans in the midterm elections, warning that Democrats have become “too extreme and too dangerous to govern.” The president’s tweet was roughly the same quote he delivered to cheers at the rally in Kansas. During the rally, Trump painted a dystopian view of the fallout …

Raw Story reports: Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin cited a nearly decade-old joke at her expense to warn fellow Alaskan Lisa Murkowski about her chances at re-election after the GOP senator came out against confirming Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh. “I can see 2022 from my house,” the one-time vice presidential candidate tweeted, referencing Tina Fey’s Saturday Night Live impersonation …

The Washington Post reports: “I’m always intrigued by the desire to figure out why somebody acts the way they do in public life,” Graham said, leaning back in his chair behind a large desk that made him look even smaller than his 5-foot-7 frame. Graham had just returned from reading the FBI’s written report on Kavanaugh. He’d holed himself up …

Mashable reports: Now, this can happen to even the best of us, but there are still some lingering questions about this particular incident. Perhaps the biggest one is: how did no one tell him about it? That is not just a small piece stuck to a shoe. That’s a solid few sheets he’s walking around with and someone had to …

The Hill reports: President Trump’s reelection campaign sent an email to supporters Thursday night mistakenly urging for Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh to be confirmed to the U.S. Senate. The email asks supporters to pledge their support to Kavanaugh but makes a significant typo in just what they want to happen. “NO MORE GAMES,” the email reads. “NO MORE EXCUSES.” …

The Hill reports: Most Americans say they tune out President Trump’s tweets, according to a new survey from the nonpartisan Public Affairs Council and Morning Consult. Nearly 6 in 10 respondents – 59 percent – said that they rarely or never read the president’s tweets, with only 15 percent of people saying they read them very often. Democrats tend to …

“If you look at the president’s tweet after Judge Kavanaugh testified he got over 300,000 likes within 24 hours. That’s a lot of likes for a presidential tweet and your own prime timeline-up on that same night Thursday following the historic testimony, you had 5.3 million viewers in your prime timeline-up. But it tells me that the president focusing on …

The Washington Post reports: Two senators considered crucial to the confirmation prospects of Judge Brett M. Kavanaugh criticized President Trump on Wednesday for mocking the account of a woman who has accused his Supreme Court nominee of sexual assault decades ago. “There’s no time and no place for remarks like that,” Sen. Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.) said on NBC’s “Today” show. …

ABC News reports: The New York Times is standing by its bombshell investigation into the Trump family’s real estate empire, reporting Tuesday that President Donald Trump “engaged in suspect tax schemes as he reaped riches from his father.” The president’s lawyer signaled in a statement the possibility of a defamation lawsuit “should the Times state or imply” that he engaged …

The Associated Press reports: The Trump administration is quietly moving to weaken U.S. radiation regulations, turning to scientific outliers who argue that a bit of radiation damage is actually good for you — like a little bit of sunlight. The government’s current, decades-old guidance says that any exposure to harmful radiation is a cancer risk. And critics say the proposed …

The Wall Street Journal reports: President Trump personally directed an effort in February to stop Stormy Daniels from publicly describing an alleged sexual encounter with Mr. Trump, people familiar with the events say. In a phone call, Mr. Trump instructed his then-lawyer Michael Cohen to seek a restraining order against the former adult-film actress, whose real name is Stephanie Clifford, …

The Wrap reports: Fox News has fired contributor Kevin Jackson over his tweet referring to the women accusing Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh of sexual assault as “lying skanks,” the network announced Thursday. “Kevin Jackson has been terminated as a contributor. His comments on today’s hearings were reprehensible and do not reflect the values of FOX News,” a spokesperson for …

“I was surprised at how vocal he was about the fact that he likes beer, and he’s had a little bit of difficulty, I mean he talked about things that happened when he drinks. This is not a man that said that he was perfect with respect to alcohol. I’m not a drinker and I can honestly say I never …

Fortune Magazine reports: In light of the sexual assault allegations leveled against Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh and his subsequent hearing, Donald Trump Jr. fears more for his sons than his daughters. Trump Jr., who has five children, told DailyMailTV in an interview published Monday, “I’ve got boys, and I’ve got girls. And when I see what’s going on right …

CNN reports: The Washington Times on Monday issued a lengthy retraction and apology for an editorial it published in March about Aaron Rich, the brother of the slain Democratic National Committee staffer Seth Rich whose unsolved murder became the basis for conspiracy theories on the far-right. “The Column included statements about Aaron Rich, the brother of former Democratic National Committee …

Deadline Hollywood reports: President Donald Trump says he didn’t watch last night’s season premiere of Saturday Night Live, but he felt the need to weigh about it on Twitter anyway. POTUS trashed the late-night NBC staple — “even though I past hosted it” — as being “no longer funny, no talent or charm. It’s just a political ad for the …

The New York Times reports: The Environmental Protection Agency plans to dissolve its Office of the Science Advisor, a senior post that was created to counsel the E.P.A. administrator on the scientific research underpinning health and environmental regulations, according to a person familiar with the agency’s plans. The person spoke anonymously because the decision had not yet been made public. …

Moments after Brett Kavanaugh’s testimony concluded, Glorious Leader paused Fox News to shower the “powerful, honest” nominee with praise and to demand that the Senate vote on his confirmation. The Senate Judiciary Committee is scheduled to vote tomorrow morning and at this writing it seems the only possible GOP “no” vote would be Sen. Jeff Flake. But don’t hold your …

The Hill reports: Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) grew visibly angry and yelled at Sen. Dick Durbin (Ill.) and other committee Democrats in a fiery exchange during Thursday’s hearing, accusing them of trying to destroy Brett Kavanaugh’s life. “If you wanted a FBI investigation into Brett Kavanaugh, you could have come to us,” Graham said after asking Kavanaugh if he knew …

The Huffington Post reports: U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley on Wednesday claimed President Donald Trump’s speech at the United Nations General Assembly a day earlier drew laughs because world leaders “loved his honesty” and “respect” him. Trump’s boastful comment describing his administration as one of the most accomplished in U.S. history sparked laughter not because attendees of …