It’s Friday, April 19, 2019. Even though we’re all suffering from a Mueller hangover, it’s still time for the LMLOS news round-up.
I did post a diary last night on health insurance companies after I read how a $20 insurance company charge prevented a man’s son from being able to purchase his depression medication. The son later killed himself. This is just one more story highlighting why Single Payer is my pet issue. That diary goes into fuller detail on that background, but I cannot support a candidate who does not support Single Payer. Too many lives, including those I am personally involved with, are at stake.
And, it is Game day again. I have to bake MORE BREAD because my kids love it, and sit here and smell delicious pulled pork in the crockpot while I get the house tidied up. We go to a local butcher for our meat, and we were lucky that our house came with a chest freezer the previous owners didn’t want to move out of the basement. Boychild has finished his schoolwork for the week, so he’ll help me clean, do his chores, and then have a free day. Currently, he’s doing dishes while listening to a WWII podcast. I imagine at some point, a battle between toy soldiers and Lego characters will ensue.
I’ve been having difficulty gathering the news articles today because more and more news just kept coming. They need to stop making drama because I have things to do!
If you like having your news gathered for you from various sources, please continue to recommend these Round-Ups and consider buying me a coffee on Ko-fi.com. It helps me continue to write, homeschool, and run the political news aggregate page.
As always, there will be a thread below for new or breaking news. And please, share any thoughts you have below.
NEWS STORIES
Mueller Confirms: Don Jr. Was Too Stupid to Collude -- (Vanity Fair) And Junior tried to celebrate his idiocy on Twitter. It really highlighted how ignorant he truly is.
North Korea demands removal of US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo from talks -- (BBC) A few months ago, there was an article pointing out that EITHER NK was restarting its space program (positive) OR it was restarting its nuclear weapon program (bad). At the time, Trump swore up and down that Kim wouldn't do that because they had a beautiful relationship. This article glosses over it, but GUESS WHAT OPTION WAS TRUE.
See How Much Of The Mueller Report Is Redacted -- (NPR) The visual representation helps, but it also drives me insane. It's very interesting to see where the most redactions occurred, and what's behind those black lines?
TSA Agents Say They’re Not Discriminating Against Black Women, But Their Body Scanners Might Be -- (Mother Jones) A couple months ago, there was the report that self-driving cars were having trouble identifying darker skinned people, and now this. If the algorithims are not working properly with obvious discrimination before their launch, they SHOULD NOT BE LAUNCHED. This just entrenches systemic racism further.
Joe Biden Is Running for President -- (The Atlantic) The title is a bit misleading since it's not an official announcement. He's supposed to announce next Wednesday, but, if there is anything I have learned over the years, it's not to count anything as official until it actually happens.
Journalist killed in Derry 'terrorist incident', say Northern Ireland police -- (Guardian) This is entirely on the back of May and the Brexit crowd. How many people warned them that the Irish problem wasn't going to be ignored and that any violation of the GFA would lead to a resumption of violence. Instead, May chose to side with the DUP and radical Unionists. We see the results here.
U.S. Nuclear Power Plants Weren’t Built for Climate Change -- (Bloomberg) This is chilling when you consider the possible meltdown damage scattered across the US. More than ever, it is an indication that we need to be focused on long-term sustainable energy, cut out the fossil fuels, and phase out nuclear power.
Sarah Sanders Denies She Admitted to Mueller That She Lied -- (Daily Beast) So now she's lying about admitting that she lied and it's the Democrats fault? Oh, Sarah.
ACLU Demands Investigation Into Pro-Trump 'Fascist Militia' Unlawfully Detaining Migrants at Gunpoint -- (Common Dreams) Vigilantes are now taking the law into their own hands, emboldened and encouraged by an administration who encourages racism. This is the outcome of allowing 2A nutjobs free rein over their bigotry. It will not be long before someone gets killed, if it hasn't already happened. This must stop.
Trump launches expletive-laden tirade over Mueller report -- (Independent) Apparently he's mad that no one took him at his word for the whole "exoneration" and "no collusion or obstruction" claims. And, it looks like someone took away his phone.
Mueller Hints at a National-Security Nightmare -- (New York Times) We are living in tumultuous times. We must be more aware than ever of what is going on electorally and fight to maintain our free elections. Our government is more than willing to allow hostile foreign powers to affect the information we give in an effort to maintain their power. The opposition seems inclined to push their own candidate who will keep the status quo rather than improve our current situation. No one with any sort of power in that system is actually thinking about the people.
Actually, the Mueller report showed that Russia did affect the vote -- (Washington Post) Russia didn't hack machines, no. But Obama was aware of informational interference, attempted to curtail it, and met a blockade in the form of Mitch McConnell. McConnell knew that there was manipulation going on, wanted the WH and Supreme Court in Republican hands, and allowed it. Nothing that has happened in the past two years is legitimate.
A top progressive pundit says mainstream Democrats are worried about Bernie Sanders winning the White House in 2020 -- (CNBC) If anything, the 2016 scandal and the news that has broken thus far on DNC operatives moving to minimize Sanders indicate that, in 2020, if the DNC is NOT above board, they run the risk of having the same issues again. Only this time, Russia won't be to blame. They need to keep their fingers off the scale because people are watching.
Robert Mueller Told Congress They Can Prosecute the President. Now It Gets Ugly -- (Time) Despite what Barr said, Mueller explicitly left that decision up to Congress. “Congress may apply the obstruction laws to the President’s corrupt exercise of the powers of office,” Mueller wrote. What we are about to see is a civil war within the halls of our own government. The Republicans want to hold on to their power at all costs, and Democrats are fighting against the corruption currently flowing through those halls.
QAnon Believers Crushed After Mueller Report Fails to Lead to Hillary Clinton’s Arrest -- (Daily Beast) This is fantastic and some hilariously great news. Did QAnon believers really think that the Mueller Report was going to reveal Trump as a golden god? They need to adjust those tinfoil hats because that reception is TERRIBLE. Now they're being mocked on the Right as well.