American Politics

[Jerichi]

Originally Posted by Talon87

Republicans Vote To Silence Sen. Elizabeth Warren In Confirmation Debate

It's like the GOP wants Secession, Part II -- damn the geopolitical obstacles.

I hope this forms part of the tinder that fuels the fire for a Democratic resurgence in 2018.

[SoS]

And yet they didn't object when Sherrod Brown read it.

HMMMMMMM.

[deoxys]

Right after Sessions is confirmed as AG... Donald Trump signs executive order giving police more authority

12.) Obsession with Crime and Punishment - Under fascist regimes, the police are given almost limitless power to enforce laws. The people are often willing to overlook police abuses and even forego civil liberties in the name of patriotism. There is often a national police force with virtually unlimited power in fascist nations.

[Jerichi]

Please read Ms. Scott-King's letter.

[Miror]

The stay on the travel ban has been upheld in a unanimous decision from the 9th Circuit. Off to the SCOTUS we go!

[Jerichi]

This is gonna be fuuuuuun.

[Mozz]

Originally Posted by Jerichi

This is gonna be fuuuuuun.

Yes, the 9th will overturn the ban during the actual cause appeal, then it'll go to SCOTUS, IIRC the process. The current ruling just states that the stay can uh... stay in place, as there's no immediate need for the ban. Next is whether the ban is legal. Wheeeeeee

[phoopes]

https://twitter.com/genebsperling/st...81563735121920

Lol

[Blastoise]

http://observer.com/2017/02/donald-t...ssian-embassy/

There is more consequential IC pushback happening, too. Our spies have never liked Trump’s lackadaisical attitude toward the President’s Daily Brief, the most sensitive of all IC documents, which the new commander-in-chief has received haphazardly. The president has frequently blown off the PDB altogether, tasking Flynn with condensing it into a one-page summary with no more than nine bullet-points. Some in the IC are relieved by this, but there are pervasive concerns that the president simply isn’t paying attention to intelligence.

In light of this, and out of worries about the White House’s ability to keep secrets, some of our spy agencies have begun withholding intelligence from the Oval Office. Why risk your most sensitive information if the president may ignore it anyway? A senior National Security Agency official explained that NSA was systematically holding back some of the “good stuff” from the White House, in an unprecedented move. For decades, NSA has prepared special reports for the president’s eyes only, containing enormously sensitive intelligence. In the last three weeks, however, NSA has ceased doing this, fearing Trump and his staff cannot keep their best SIGINT secrets.

Since NSA provides something like 80 percent of the actionable intelligence in our government, what’s being kept from the White House may be very significant indeed. However, such concerns are widely shared across the IC, and NSA doesn’t appear to be the only agency withholding intelligence from the administration out of security fears.

What’s going on was explained lucidly by a senior Pentagon intelligence official, who stated that “since January 20, we’ve assumed that the Kremlin has ears inside the SITROOM,” meaning the White House Situation Room, the 5,500 square-foot conference room in the West Wing where the president and his top staffers get intelligence briefings. “There’s not much the Russians don’t know at this point,” the official added in wry frustration.

[Doppleganger]

On the other hand, treason.

[Connor]

Not sure it stands to be legitimate treason. There's an argument in there that what they're doing is something they believe to be in the best interests of the security of their country.

Which, with Bannon now sitting on the NSC, is not entirely unfounded nor unwarranted.

[Heather]

Crossposting this from Discord. Four years of this shit? Really?

[Jerichi]

Here's something a little lighter.
http://mobile.abc.net.au/news/2017-0...76?pfmredir=sm

[Stealthy]

Flynn's gone and embarrassed the variety of Trump Admin officials who defended/lied for him on the way out, though that meant something more for some than others. Also apparently groveled his ass off this weekend trying to keep his job. gg.

So far people are thinking that Petraeus is at the top of the shortlist. He was vetted/considered for SecState and Trump likes him... and they've got a meeting tomorrow.

Also, Trump's Labor pick is facing trouble. See, while DeVos is incompetent, Puzder went and hired an illegal. So that's that. But he did get his Treasury pick and Vet Affairs (who was approved unanimously).

[deoxys]

Flynn's resigned. See ya, Flynn. Don't let the door hit you on the way out you motherfucker.

Roses are red
Violets are blue
If Flynn has ties to Russia
Trump must have them too

(stolen via reddit)


edit: worth noting he resigned a half hour after this article dropped

[deoxys]

Trump is reportedly considering Petraeus as a replacement for Flynn.

No. Fucking. Way.

Holy shit.

[Crys]

wat

[Princess Ana]

Deo explain I have no idea what this means.

[Doppleganger]

Petraeus is incredibly competent, and given his baggage there isn't really a better pick for Trump. The fact that he is willing to be considered is a sign of how far he's fallen.

Originally Posted by deoxys

Roses are red
Violets are blue
If Flynn has ties to Russia
Trump must have them too

Not likely. But if I were to make a bet at Russian infiltration, it was going to be for one of Trump's cabinet and not Trump himself. Flynn made a major gaffe that no military person should make.

[Princess Ana]

Okay I read up on it just make sure Petraeus never hooks up with anyone Russian and we're probably good to go.

(No that aside lol at Trump for even considering someone who was convicted for mishandling classified information considering his fucking run at Clinton for her emails)

[Blastoise]

Originally Posted by Emi

(No that aside lol at Trump for even considering someone who was convicted for mishandling classified information considering his fucking run at Clinton for her emails)

lol at you for thinking that Trump holds any internally consistent beliefs beyond FYGM

[Blastoise]

"I'm a shit-for-brains vulgarian who made it through life pissing off literally everyone I come into contact with by using my dad's money to bludgeon them into submission. How are all these leaks possible when I made enemies of the entire federal bureaucracy and my staff are involved in palace intrigue that makes Game of Thrones look like the Teletubbies?"

[Doppleganger]

Originally Posted by Emi

(No that aside lol at Trump for even considering someone who was convicted for mishandling classified information considering his fucking run at Clinton for her emails)

It was pillow talk to a woman he was having an affair with - Trump can relate, so I think the two will get along just fine. All told probably an upgrade, IMV.

[deoxys]

Originally Posted by Doppleganger

It was pillow talk to a woman he was having an affair with - Trump can relate, so I think the two will get along just fine. All told probably an upgrade, IMV.

How can you say that leaking classified information over pillow talk is ok, but Hillary using an unsecured server isn't? Petraeus actually leaked classified intel. To someone he was sleeping with. And then lied about it. And is now on probation, still.

The man is incompetent and was careless with classified information while cheating on his wife.

[Doppleganger]

Originally Posted by deoxys

How can you say that leaking classified information over pillow talk is ok, but Hillary using an unsecured server isn't? Petraeus actually leaked classified intel. To someone he was sleeping with. And then lied about it. And is now on probation, still.

The man is incompetent and was careless with classified information while cheating on his wife.

You used the generic "you" here but just for the record, I have said in the past that the Hillary email thing was a stupid controversy.

Regarding incompetence...well, there's a bottom line for it. I tend to approach things from the baseball perspective. Baseball player contributions can be grouped as such:

On-field
Off-field
Clubhouse

Like most sports, the "on-field" performance tends to overpower everything. Someone could be an awful personality who is a wife beater...but still be the greatest hitter in baseball history (Barry Bonds).

You could be a great clubhouse guy who sucks at baseball and has severe problems in your personal life (Pablo Sandoval).

Or, you could be a bad baseball player who is hated by your teammates, but you are a devoted husband/father and boon to your community (A.J. Pierzynski).

Petraeus is closer to Barry Bonds in this example, although the leak crosses from "on-field" to "off-field". I can tell you leaks happen all the time in the federal government, but the issue is who leaked the info, who squealed about it, and how valuable was it (tied to the "who"). So, Petraeus was one part unlucky he leaked to an untrustworthy person, or rather a Harvard graduate who didn't understand technology, and one part dumb for leaking in the first place given he's the Director of the CIA.

Still. That one incident, in my view, does not invalidate his career of competent work. Nor did I think the Brian Williams helicopter story was worth sacrificing his entire career, although that's an apples/oranges example.