There has been a lot of talk recently about Trump’s uptick in poll numbers (which is a real thing, albeit a very small real thing). However, just asking people if they approve of the job he is doing doesn’t really get at how they *feel* about him. People may look at the economy and the lack of a new war and figure, “yah, he is doing fine” but still not *like* him.
And why is that important? Well, for one, he is banking on people liking him to be the factor that gets people to the polls in November. The congress can’t run on cut cut cut and they literally have not been able to have any other big “accomplishments” so they are stuck with trump using the force of his “personality” and arguing that Democrats will be really really mean to him if they take over!
So, do people actually like him? Will they want to protect him?
Well not if liking involves thinking he is honest and trustworthy (spoiler alert: that is a big part of liking). Check out this poll: Just 13 percent of Americans consider Trump honest and trustworthy Even as the “do you approve of how he is doing as president” number has risen a couple of points, the number who think he is honest and trustworthy has actually gone *down*.
Similarly, the number of people who think that trump shares their values has gone down to 16% and those who think he cares about us has gone down to 19%.
Y’all, despite what trump will tell you, the vast majority of Americans do not like this man. They don’t think he is honest. They don’t think he cares about them. they don’t think he shares their values.
Why the slight uptick in people saying he is doing a good job? Well, one reason is that the economy has continued to do well (thanks Obama!) and the other is an uptick in people thinking he “can get things done”. Thus 42% of people may think the country is doing ok under him (and thus he is doing an OK job) but even 2/3 of *those* people don’t like him.
And as much as I hate to say it, because I want what is best for our country, he is only going to be able to coast on Obama’s economy for so long and the things he is so good at “getting done” (pulling us out of every reasonable and useful international agreement) are going to bite us in the butt before 2020. Thus he will not be able to get re-elected (not that a high of 42% would get anyone re-elected). And this isn’t even factoring in the hammering that is coming from Mueller, Avenatti, and every other lawsuit coming his way (see below).
In summary: the vast majority of Americans hate trump. trump is not on any kind of path that would lead to re-election in 2020. the republicans main tool to keep power in November is the force of personality of a man hated by 87% of Americans. Good luck with that! This is all good news.
On to more good news!
Russia/Cohen/Stormy News
This has been a HUGE week for revelations in the Russia case, which are now tied in with the Cohen and Stormy Daniels stuff.
Most of it has been covered by other writers. Here is a good summary of some of it.
This is all very good news because it shows more and more links are out there and Mueller has all this info (and more). The Truth coming out is GREAT news.
And y’all, I think Roger Stone is going down. We can’t know for sure, but in my opinion, he is going to be the next one indited.
First, we found out just a couple of days ago that Mueller sent subpoenas to consultant for Roger Stone super PAC
Special counsel Robert Mueller has issued a pair of subpoenas to a social media consultant who worked on Roger Stone’s pro-Donald Trump super PAC during the 2016 presidential campaign.
Sullivan said in an interview that he worked for Stone’s Committee to Restore America’s Greatness during the final four months of the 2016 White House race, assisting the pro-Trump group with social media strategy namely around Twitter.
and this isn’t the first attempt to get info on Stone:
Mueller’s office, which declined to comment about the grand jury subpoenas to Sullivan, has signaled interest in Stone through its questioning of several of his longtime associates. Two former Trump campaign aides, Michael Caputo and Sam Nunberg, have said they were asked about Stone during their interviews with the special counsel’s team.
And just yesterday it came out that Mueller Subpoenaed Another Roger Stone Aide
Special Counsel Robert Mueller has subpoenaed one of Roger Stone’s key aides, 30-year-old John Kakanis, Reuters reported Friday. Kakanis has served as a “driver, accountant, and operative” for Stone, who is a longtime advisor of President Donald Trump, the outlet reported. He has been briefly questioned by the feds about Russian interference in the 2016 election, WikiLeaks, and the hacker known as Guccifer 2.0, sources told Reuters.
And there is a lot of reason to think Stone is knee deep in conspiracy
Stone has been under suspicion by Democrats in Congress because of proclamations he made about his connections to WikiLeaks and vague predictions he made that coincided with the release of hacked Democratic emails
Honestly, I don’t think they were that vague.
And remember this story in the Atlantic → Roger Stone's Secret Messages with WikiLeaks
WikiLeaks tweeted that it had never communicated with Roger Stone, a longtime confidante and informal adviser to President Donald Trump. In his interview with the House Intelligence Committee last September, Stone, who testified under oath, told lawmakers that he had communicated with WikiLeaks via an “intermediary,” whom he identified only as a “journalist.” He declined to reveal that person’s identity to the committee, he told reporters later.
Private Twitter messages obtained by The Atlantic show that Stone and WikiLeaks, a radical-transparency group, communicated directly on October 13, 2016—and that WikiLeaks sought to keep its channel to Stone open after Trump won the election. The existence of the secret correspondence marks yet another strange twist in the White House’s rapidly swelling Russia scandal. Stone and Trump have been friends for decades, which raises key questions about what the president knew about Stone’s interactions with Wikileaks during the campaign. The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Not only was he communicating with them (and seemingly lied to congress about it) but he sure seemed to know about the stuff they were doing with the Russians to help trump
check out this timeline from the great Atlantic story. Sure seems suspicious to me!
That timeline doesn’t include how on the August 4, 2016, InfoWars show, Stone described the soon-to-appear WikiLeaks disclosures. He also mentioned that he spoke with then-Republican nominee Donald Trump on August 3 -- the day before the interview.
Also on August 4th he sent an email claiming he dined with WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange the day before (the day he told Jones he had communicated with Trump). hmmm…...
and for some reason, Trump has treated Stone with kid gloves.
President Donald Trump has never seemed to hesitate to attack someone who draws his ire.
But Roger Stone, who has served as Trump's longtime political adviser, is one aide who appears to be immune from any public attacks from the president.
What does this all mean? I think it means that Mueller is closing in on Roger Stone and is getting all his ducks in a line before he indites him. And I would not be surprised it Stone knows a little something about what Trump knew and when he knew it.
And that isn’t the only bit of Mueller/Russia news.
This one is not substantiated yet, but this person has no reason to lie about it and if this is true it would be super damning: Tantalizing Testimony From a Top Trump Aide Sets Off a Search for Proof
The White House official had a startling assertion: He thought he had received an email in the first half of 2016 alerting the Trump campaign that Russia had damaging information about Hillary Clinton.
Testifying behind closed doors on Capitol Hill in late March, the official, John K. Mashburn, said he remembered the email coming from George Papadopoulos, a foreign policy adviser to the campaign who was approached by a Russian agent, sometime before the party conventions — and well before WikiLeaks began publishing messages stolen in hackings from Democrats.
Such an email could have proved explosive, providing evidence that at least one high-ranking Trump campaign official was alerted to Russia’s meddling, raising questions about which advisers knew and undercutting President Trump’s denials of collusion.
You know who would have that email? Mueller.
The Michael Cohen Bribery Scandal Is Now a Trump Bribery Scandal
the Daily Mail reported a development in the Michael Cohen saga of seismic scale. In a December 2016 meeting in Trump Tower, the British tabloid reports, Cohen asked Ahmed Al-Rumaihi, who runs a $100 billion Qatari investment fund, to send him “millions” which, the story claims, would go “through him to Trump family members.”
The story’s publication did not reverberate with the explosive force proportional to the scale of the allegation. The reason is that the Daily Mail lacks the familiarity and credibility of major American legacy media firms. Its occasional bombshell scoops reside in a never-never land between rumor and accepted fact.
And yet there is plenty of contextual evidence to support the charge. One is that, after Stormy Daniels’s lawyer Michael Avenatti published Trump Tower surveillance video of Al-Rumaihi, he suspiciously denied attending the meeting, only for his firm to admit it later. Another reason is that, multiple reports have linked both Qatar as a source of players in the broader web of shady Trump financial dealings with Russia, and Cohen as a key conduit. So it would fit the pattern for Cohen to be soliciting a bribe from Qatar on behalf of the Trump family. And yet another reason is Trump’s notorious resentment of other people making money off of him. If Cohen used Trump’s election to solicit bribes, it seems highly likely Trump would demand a taste.
You know who would very interested in this and likely knows way more about this than we do? Mueller.
It’s increasingly hard to believe that the Trump Tower meeting wasn’t common knowledge
We’re asked to believe, then, that only Trump Jr. knew what had been promised by Goldstone before the June 9 meeting at Trump Tower and that the following things are unexplained coincidences:
- That Trump Jr. and Agalarov left each other long voice-mail messages on June 6 and June 7 but may never have spoken.
- That Trump Jr. called Agalarov back on June 6 right after participating in a call with someone at a blocked number, but that he doesn’t remember who he spoke with in that call.
- That Trump Jr. was asked to finalize a time for the meeting, spoke with Manafort and Kushner, replied to Goldstone with a time — but that he might not have raised the meeting with Manafort and Kushner.
- That Trump referred to dirt on Clinton hours after the meeting was arranged but that the candidate may not have been aware of it, despite his son, son-in-law and campaign chairman having likely discussed it.
We are also asked to believe in another bit of his testimony that Trump Jr. didn’t really “love” the idea of the dirt offered by Goldstone. Saying he “loved it” was “simply a colloquial way of saying that I appreciated Rob’ s gesture,” Trump Jr. said.
You may assess these claims as you see fit.
You know who would very interested in this and likely knows way more about this than we do? Mueller.
As Mueller probes Seychelles meetings, details emerge about Russian plane: exclusive
A Russian plane linked to the country's government flew into the Seychelles the day prior to a 2017 meeting now under review by Special Counsel Robert Mueller, according to the airport flight data obtained by NJ Advance Media.
Two individuals familiar with the aircraft's purchasing history said the aircraft is owned by Andrei Skoch, a Russian billionaire who made his fortune in the mining business and is now a deputy in the Russian State Duma, the country's legislative body.
What makes Skoch a particularly interesting figure in the ongoing drama? The U.S. Treasury Department in April placed him on the Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons list, a list that blocks an individual's assets and prohibits people from the U.S. from doing business with them.
But if Skoch participated in the Seychelles meetings that week in January 2017, it would raise the possibility state business, including sanctions, was discussed.
The sanctions issue sits at the center of the conversation about Russian meddling in the 2016 election.
You know who would very interested in this and likely knows way more about this than we do? Mueller.
“I’M NOT GOING TO JUST ROLL OVER”: BEHIND THE SCENES, AFTER ANOTHER WEEK IN THE SPOTLIGHT, MICHAEL COHEN OSCILLATES BETWEEN FIGHTING BACK AND FRUSTRATION
Friends continued to tell him that, at this point, no one in Washington was looking out for him, so he had to be the one to look out for himself and his family. As he watched the news unfold in his hotel room in Philadelphia over the weekend, he evidenced some exasperation. He has confided in friends, “I just can’t take this anymore.”
Flip! Flip! Flip!
Giuliani says Mueller ‘can’t indict.’ It might go better for Trump if he does.
“They can’t indict. Because if they did, it would be dismissed quickly. There’s no precedent for a president being indicted.”
So declared President Trump’s lawyer, former New York mayor Rudolph Giuliani, who eagerly recounted this week how special counsel Robert S. Mueller III’s team has assured Trump’s legal team that Mueller won’t try to indict the president while he remains in office — a decision based, presumably, on a long-standing Department of Justice policy that holds that a sitting president can’t be indicted.
Plenty of legal scholars, including me, disagree with the basis of that policy: Nothing in the Constitution bars indictment of a sitting president.
But even if Mueller opts to follow that questionable policy, it may not be the legal victory Giuliani seems to think it is. Trump might fare better if he’s indicted, and not impeached. Indeed, for Mueller, the question might only come down to the order, not the merits, of these actions. In other words, Trump could find himself both impeached and indicted. An impeachment can even make such an indictment more likely.
From a defense lawyer’s point of view, an impeachment, followed by indictment, is potentially worse.
One final thing on Mueller:
When you listen to the naysayers talk about how nothing will change if and when Mueller comes out with his report, keep in mind that we don’t know what that report will be. We don’t know how many people will be indited. We don’t know what recommendations he will make.
We *do* know that he will have a ton of data and evidence behind anything he does. He will have multiple witnesses and multiple accounts of everything and documents and phone records and emails and text messages and other evidence.
It is easy for people to say that they have doubts about his investigation without seeing the output of said investigation (like many republicans are now).
Sure, there are republicans who are ignoring the signs of bad doings and doubting the investigation, but they are only hearing one side right now (trump’s side).
When Mueller’s report comes out and all that is behind it, some of those people will believe it. Remember, only 13% of Americans think the president is honest and trustworthy. That number means that when they see the data and all the evidence, 87% of people will already be predisposed to not believe Trump’s side.
Keep faith. Don’t call this a losing matter when our side hasn’t even been up to bat yet.
Once Mueller plays his cards, there is likely to be A LOT of evidence of wrong doing by Trump and those around him. And more people will listen than are listening now.
Other Legal Battles on the Horizon
And that is only a small part of the trouble for Trump. Turns out that being an ethically challenged kind of guy can catch up to you!!
Obama ethics chief accuses Trump of violating emoluments clause: 'See you in court Mr. Trump'
Norm Eisen, the top ethics official under former President Obama, is accusing President Trump of violating the Constitution's emoluments clause.
Eisen on Monday tweeted in response to a recent report that a major development project linked to Trump in Indonesia is expected to be supported by $500 million from the Chinese government.
“This is a violation of the Emoluments Clause,” Eisen tweeted. “A big one. See you in court Mr. Trump.”
Norm Eisen is awesome. And it is great news that we have people on our side fighting Trump in court and we still have a legal system where we can take on someone as powerful as the president. Our system is not broken yet.
And there is also this:
Trump’s new Stormy Daniels money disclosure may have gotten him in even more legal trouble
President Donald Trump has now admitted repaying Michael Cohen more than $100,000 for the Stormy Daniels hush money on his new financial disclosure form — but the admission may have gotten him into even more legal trouble.
That’s because David Apol, the acting director of the Office of Government Ethics (OGE), is disputing Trump’s assertion that he wasn’t required to report the debt — and has sent along the matter for Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein to look into.
And there is also THIS:
Donald Trump Can't Stop Discovery in 'Apprentice' Alum's Defamation Lawsuit
Zervos' attorneys also have subpoenaed records from the Beverly Hills Hotel, where Zervos says Trump made unwelcome advances in 2007.
The appellate decision today also could be meaningful to third parties, in particular MGM, which is facing a demand for Apprentice footage and documents showing any inappropriate comments from Trump toward women. It's possible that MGM may look to quash the subpoena or attempt to limit it in scope.
If she gets the Apprentice tapes that would be gold! And deposing Trump? Given that he can’t speak without lying… that would also be gold.
but no worries, Trump has great legal representation in his new star Giuliani! What is that you say? Giuliani is actually a train wreck? Oh yah: Former FBI Assistant Director: Giuliani Harms Trump ‘Virtually Every Time He’s Gone on Air’
Former FBI assistant director Frank Figliuzzi says Rudy Giuliani has endangered President Trump‘s legal position with Robert Mueller at every step of his ongoing media blitz.
A new example of his brilliance → Rudy Giuliani makes a big, new concession: A president can commit obstruction of justice
Rudy Giuliani just made a big two-word concession: “He can.”
That's what Giuliani said Friday morning when asked by CNN's Chris Cuomo about whether a president can obstruct justice. And it contradicts the case that President Trump's now-former lawyer John Dowd had made.
Thanks Rudy! Keep talking buddy! Keep talking!
Great Election News
Democrats run on GOP health care 'sabotage'
Democrats are confidently running on Obamacare for the first time in a decade.
They’ve got a unified message blaming Republicans for “sabotaging” the health care law, leading to a cascade of sky-high insurance premiums that will come just before the November midterm elections. They’re rolling out ads featuring people helped by the law.
Democrats see Obamacare as a political advantage. The Affordable Care Act has grown significantly more popular. And as Republicans learned last year when they failed to repeal it, the public had scant interest in taking away coverage from millions of Americans, including low-income and vulnerable people on Medicaid. Democrats are also seizing the issue of rising prescription drug prices — another health care cost problem for which the public holds the GOP responsible, according to polls.
They knew this would be a winner from the moment those a-holes voted to take away healthcare. Remember this moment?
Just over a year ago, Democrats sang "Na Na Hey Hey Goodbye" on the House floor at House Republicans after the GOP passed the American Health Care Act, which would repeal major portions of Obamacare. Revenge: best served in the cold of November
In 2018, the Tea Party is all in for Trump And it’s making mainstream Republicans nervous.
With control of Congress in the balance, mainstream candidates are concerned that, like Roy Moore in Alabama last year, Tea Party-supported Trumpian contenders will force Republican frontrunners into a battle royal to prove who can hew closest to Trump’s political vision, putting them at major risk in November’s general elections.
Senate Democrats Win Vote on Net Neutrality, a Centerpiece of 2018 Strategy
Senate Democrats narrowly won a vote on Wednesday to save so-called net neutrality rules that ensure unobstructed access to the internet.
The rare victory for Democrats is sure to be short-lived, with a similar resolution expected to die in the House, where Republicans have a larger majority. Only three Republican senators voted in support of the resolution.
But that’s beyond the point. The effort to stop the repeal of net neutrality rules is part of a broader political strategy by Democrats to rally young voters in the November elections.
“Contact your Republican senator,” Senator Chuck Schumer, the Senate minority leader, said in a speech before the vote. “See who votes for net neutrality and who votes against. And let them know how you feel about the way they voted.”
For Democrats, net neutrality is part of a three-legged stool — internet access, gun control and marijuana legalization — they are leaning on to entice young voters to engage in the midterm elections. Such voters broadly side with Democrats, even though they are notoriously complacent in nonpresidential election years.
“So the Democratic position is very simple: Let’s treat the internet like the public good that it is,” Mr. Schumer said.
Not just Chuck getting it done, but also Nancy wins twitter:
I know we aren’t supposed to run on impeaching him. But running on makings sure that he and his criminal cabinet are held accountable is a winner. remember: not an honest guy say 87% of Americans. And election after election have shown that people want checks and balances! Plus, I LOVE Nancy Pelosi
Other Good News
Farm bill goes down as Freedom Caucus votes against it
The House Freedom Caucus on Friday sank a partisan farm bill over an immigration dispute with GOP leadership, delaying a bill that included President Donald Trump's push to impose stricter work requirements on food stamp recipients.
The bill went down, 198-213, after leaders feverishly tried to flip conservative votes on the floor, even leaving the vote open for a time to try to change opponents' minds. It is a huge setback to the farm lobby and House Speaker Paul Ryan's welfare reform agenda.
House GOP leadership seemed confident as they walked into the vote, believing they had enough support. Democrats, who opposed the bill, cheered when the results were announced.
This is a big loss for them (and a win for America) and they are very unhappy about it. Honestly, these people can’t govern which is, frankly, the best thing about this.
You know who *can* govern? Nancy f-ing Pelosi. They got zero democratic votes for this monstrous stealing of food from poor children. Even though it was tied to a farm bill that could have helped some rural Dems politically, not one Dem voted for it. Want to know why? I’ll tell you: because NANCY F-ING PELOSI IS A F-ING BOSS! That woman can whip a vote like no one’s business. That is why 😄 Boom!
Meanwhile, Ryan can’t get his members to do anything he wants.
The outgoing Speaker had hoped to use his final months in office raising money for his party and campaigning to defend the House majority in a critical midterm election year.
Instead, he’s facing increasing intraparty divisions on several fronts largely due to a power vacuum he created once he publicly announced his retirement on April 11, according to several Hill GOP sources.
Members of the far-right Freedom Caucus teamed with moderate Republicans on Friday to sink the farm bill, a major legislative priority and legacy item for the lame-duck Speaker.
In a related development, a band of 20 centrist Republicans are revolting against Ryan, circumventing leadership by using a rare procedural tactic to force a series of immigration votes.
Ryan reinstated Father Patrick Conroy as the House chaplain last month after Catholic Republicans and Democrats publicly ripped his decision to force the chaplain to step down.
Mike Pompeo lifts State Department hiring freeze
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is lifting the State Department's hiring freeze, reports CBS News' Kylie Atwood. Pompeo said the move will allow "domestic bureaus and missions overseas the flexibility to fill positions that are essential to promoting the Department's mission."
Why it matters: This is a major shift from the department's policy under former Secretary Rex Tillerson
There is still plenty to hate about Pompeo, but diplomacy is super important and so this is very good news.
McConnell not yet ready to change rules for Trump nominees
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) signaled on Tuesday that he isn't ready, yet, to change the rules to speed up votes on President Trump's nominees.
And for fun, here is Seth Meyers reacting to this crazy week:
That is it for today. Lots of good news. Lots of reasons for hope. We are not alone and we will not let these criminals destroy what has taken years to build.
Remember, this all comes down to November! Can you do something to help with the effort to save our democracy? Here are some ideas:
Donate to ActBlue
Donate to Swing Left
Send postcards to voters in other districts
Sign up to go door to door in your district
Sign up to drive people to the polls
Find your local Democratic Party and volunteer!
Do something this week! It will make you feel better and it will make you feel GREAT when we WIN and you know you were a part of it! One day we can all tell our grandkids, grandnieces and nephews etc that we played a role in saving our democracy ❤️
As always, I am so proud and so fortunate to be in this with all of you!! We’ve got this! ❤️ ✊ ❤️