Topic: Typhoid Trump: the not-smart, corrupt, coward, loser, thread

[Red Beret]

Well Kelly is an idiot

http://www.cnn.com/2017/10/18/politics/donald-trump-john-kelly-obama-phone-call/index.html

Trump is that one person who will blurt out whatever you tell them to the first person they meet.

And don't you just love how Huckabee blasts the media for "politicising" the death of Kelly's son, when it was the fucking President who brought the lad into the discussion in the first place?? 

May as well say "It's only a fight if you choose to hit me back".

[Chakan]

Trump is that one person who will blurt out whatever you tell them to the first person they meet.

And don't you just love how Huckabee blasts the media for "politicising" the death of Kelly's son, when it was the fucking President who brought the lad into the discussion in the first place?? 

May as well say "It's only a fight if you choose to hit me back".

Huckabee in another one that can get to fuck. How she sleeps at night is beyond me. Calls herself a Christian as well.

[Trada]

So it seems Trump has restarted the nuclear arms race with Russia.

Putin just said they will develop new missile systems in response to Trump

[Chakan]

One day History will point to 2017 and say "This is where it all went wrong"

[J_Kopite]

One day History will point to 2017 and say "This is where it all went wrong"

2016

[stoa]

One day History will point to 2017 and say "This is where it all went wrong"

Or as John Oliver (I think) put it: "2016. The silver lining for everyone who died in 2015"

[Alan_X]

"When an American is laying on the ground and in danger and Americans are being shot at and threatened with death, it is the absolute duty of America to come to their aid," Huckabee said. "We don't leave people in the battlefield being shot at. We left four Americans for dead that night. God help us for that."

Quite...

Mike Huckabee on Benghazi in 2015...

[Gnurglan]

The GOP senators are worse by a mile imo. Its fairly obvious by now he's mentally ill/dementure. They don't have that excuse.

True. Sad perhaps, but true.

[Gnurglan]

Well Kelly is an idiot

http://www.cnn.com/2017/10/18/politics/donald-trump-john-kelly-obama-phone-call/index.html

Kelly didn't know Trump was who he is, or perhaps didn't think he was that bad.

Trump works on anything he can find. It can be anything from fact to the words of a drunk man. And then he will try and spin things his way.

[Chakan]

Kelly didn't know Trump was who he is, or perhaps didn't think he was that bad.

Trump works on anything he can find. It can be anything from fact to the words of a drunk man. And then he will try and spin things his way.

If Kelly doesn't know who Trump is by now then there is something wrong with Kelly.

[Gnurglan]

If Kelly doesn't know who Trump is by now then there is something wrong with Kelly.

Agree. Would be interesting to hear Kelly’s take on this. Not that I would expect him to comment, but it would be interesting to hear how he would express himself. I don't think he would back Trump 100%.

[Red Beret]

Agree. Would be interesting to hear Kelly’s take on this. Not that I would expect him to comment, but it would be interesting to hear how he would express himself. I don't think he would back Trump 100%.

I imagine Kelly invoked his son as he tried to explain the need for a President to be compassionate towards the families of fallen soldiers.  But Trump heard only the words, and heard words he knew he could use to defend himself.

On a different track, apologies if already shared:

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/democracy-post/wp/2017/10/17/how-the-russians-pretended-to-be-texans-and-texans-believed-them/?undefined&utm_term=.8b6b1930c854&wpisrc=nl_most&wpmm=1

[ShakaHislop]

Agree. Would be interesting to hear Kelly’s take on this. Not that I would expect him to comment, but it would be interesting to hear how he would express himself. I don't think he would back Trump 100%.

Top aide defends Trump over widow remarks

The White House chief of staff has launched an impassioned attack on a congresswoman who said President Trump made a war widow cry.

General John Kelly said he was "broken-hearted" that the Democrat had listened to the president's condolence call to Sgt La David Johnson's wife.

Gen Kelly also said he did not receive a call from President Barack Obama when his son died in Afghanistan in 2010.

Sgt Johnson was one of four killed in Niger by Islamist militants this month.

The chief of staff, a former Marine Corp general, said in the White House briefing room that Florida congresswoman Frederica Wilson was "an empty barrel".

She said on Wednesday that Mr Trump had told bereaved Myeshia Johnson of her slain husband: "He knew what he was signing up for, but I guess it hurts anyway."

Gen Kelly said he was so "stunned" by the representative's attack that he spent more than an hour walking among soldiers' graves at Arlington National Cemetery, just outside Washington.

The chief of staff said he had advised the president not to call the loved ones of the four American servicemen killed in Niger, telling him: "There's nothing you can do to lighten the burden on these families."

Gen Kelly described such a task as "the most difficult thing you can imagine".

"There is no perfect way to make that phone call," he added.

He also discussed the death of his own son, Robert Kelly, a 29-year-old first lieutenant in the Marines who died when he stepped on an Afghan landmine.

Gen Kelly said: "He [President Trump] asked me about previous presidents. And I said, 'I can tell you that President Obama, who was my commander-in-chief when I was on active duty, did not call my family.'

"That was not a criticism. That was just to simply say, I don't believe that President Obama called. That's not a negative thing.

"I don't believe President Bush called in all cases. I don't believe any president, particularly when the casualty rates are very, very high, that presidents call."

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-41688684

[Alan_X]

...The chief of staff said he had advised the president not to call the loved ones of the four American servicemen killed in Niger, telling him: "There's nothing you can do to lighten the burden on these families..."

That's a strange thing to say...

[Chakan]

That's a strange thing to say...

Very odd. Kelly the next one to shield Trump.

[Red Beret]

Gen Kelly said: "He [President Trump] asked me about previous presidents. And I said, 'I can tell you that President Obama, who was my commander-in-chief when I was on active duty, did not call my family.'

"That was not a criticism. That was just to simply say, I don't believe that President Obama called. That's not a negative thing.

That's the key.  Gen Kelly explained something matter of factly and Trump turned it into a criticism of Obama.

Kelly's obviously spent a good few hours trying to figure out how to respond to this; he's sought to attack the Democrat Congresswoman, but at the same time keep her separate from the Johnson's wife and family.

I mean obviously there's little love lost between Frederica Wilson and Trump - she's been a bit of a firebrand towards him by all accounts - but really Kelly has no clue who put the damned speaker phone on.  Maybe Johnson's wife did it so she could hear Trump better, or so the whole family could hear?  There's nothing to suggest Wilson urged her to do it so there would be witnesses to whatever Trump said - although that seems a common sense thing to do.

You could argue that Wilson should have kept it to herself and not asked permission to speak out, but apparently she knows the family well.  Trump has struggled to even remember their names.

[Red Beret]

That's a strange thing to say...

Not really.  Reminds me of when Martin Shkreli's lawyer told him to take the Fifth.  Kelly probably knew Trump would stuff both feet in his gob if he opened it.

Very odd. Kelly the next one to shield Trump.

tbf to Kelly, it IS part of his job to protect his president politically.

[Chakan]

tbf to Kelly, it IS part of his job to protect his president politically.

Using his dead son as a shield. Nice. Fuck Kelly.

[Elmo!]

That's a strange thing to say...

Kelly was just looking out for the families. I wouldn't want a call from Trump if I lost a family member.

[RedRabbit]

Using his dead son as a shield. Nice. Fuck Kelly.

Its his son.

And it doesn't look like a shield, just a way of explaining something about presidents and their responsibilities to a toddler.

[Chakan]

Its his son.

And it doesn't look like a shield, just a way of explaining something about presidents and their responsibilities to a toddler.

Fuck him. Another Trump scum to add to the list.

[Red Beret]

Using his dead son as a shield. Nice. Fuck Kelly.

That's not what he did.  He protected his president by blasting Congresswoman Wilson's behaviour.  He related the story of his son as he tried to explain to Trump why you don't always call families.  If you see it differently then that's up to you.

[Jiminy Cricket]

I don't understand why there is so much criticism of Kelly from various commenters. It seems pretty clear that he is in an impossible position. Yeah, he could have blasted Trump for politicising his son's death (and who would have blamed him). But given the highly volatile situation of the US President being an absolute fucking idiot, there are greater problems, dangers and responsibilities. If Kelly had gone on the offense over Trump's remarks, he would have had to resign (or would have been sacked). Kelly is likely one of the few people people with enough intelligence, integrity and gumption to make sure that Trump does not start a nuclear war. There are no limits to the potential insanity of this President. I expect that for as long as Trump remains as President, Kelly (and a few others) will keep their powder dry. After Trump has gone, I'm sure Kelly and a few other serious people will have plenty to say. Because of the abject failure of the GOP to keep the US and World safe, Kelly must stay.

[PaulF]

I'm about a week late to this one and have skipped a few pages but I think he was right to say the press can't just say what they want. I don't advocate censorship or a reigning in on the free press but they should be accountable. Just because we agree with what the press say , in this case negative stuff about trump. I'm sure I feel some of the stuff printed in the gutter press here should not be allowed.

[goalrushatgoodison]

I don't understand why there is so much criticism of Kelly from various commenters. It seems pretty clear that he is in an impossible position. Yeah, he could have blasted Trump for politicising his son's death (and who would have blamed him). But given the highly volatile situation of the US President being an absolute fucking idiot, there are greater problems, dangers and responsibilities. If Kelly had gone on the offense over Trump's remarks, he would have had to resign (or would have been sacked). Kelly is likely one of the few people people with enough intelligence, integrity and gumption to make sure that Trump does not start a nuclear war. There are no limits to the potential insanity of this President. I expect that for as long as Trump remains as President, Kelly (and a few others) will keep their powder dry. After Trump has gone, I'm sure Kelly and a few other serious people will have plenty to say. Because of the abject failure of the GOP to keep the US and World safe, Kelly must stay.

No offence mate but I find this position bissare. I think there is a strong possibility Kelly is up to his neck in this whole Obama didn't call him thing but either way he's allowed his son to be used as a political football by a man who he's turned up to work for the next day. Also I've no idea why people here would have anything good to say about a man who would take a job in a Trump administration in the first place. All this duty and honour is a load of nonsense from where I'm standing. Walking among the graves of Arlington because the congresswomen listened in on the phone call? While his sons memory is being sullied by a slimeball?  Pull the other one.

[Jiminy Cricket]

I'm about a week late to this one and have skipped a few pages but I think he was right to say the press can't just say what they want. I don't advocate censorship or a reigning in on the free press but they should be accountable. Just because we agree with what the press say , in this case negative stuff about trump. I'm sure I feel some of the stuff printed in the gutter press here should not be allowed.

I think those kind of problems are best remedied by creating more equitable access to legal recourse (and consequent financial penalties for publishers and journalists who (knowingly) engage in liable or are negligent).

[killer-heels]

Probably not a popular opinion but Kelly comes across quite impressively when he speaks.

[Gnurglan]

Top aide defends Trump over widow remarks

The White House chief of staff has launched an impassioned attack on a congresswoman who said President Trump made a war widow cry.

General John Kelly said he was "broken-hearted" that the Democrat had listened to the president's condolence call to Sgt La David Johnson's wife.

Gen Kelly also said he did not receive a call from President Barack Obama when his son died in Afghanistan in 2010.

Sgt Johnson was one of four killed in Niger by Islamist militants this month.

The chief of staff, a former Marine Corp general, said in the White House briefing room that Florida congresswoman Frederica Wilson was "an empty barrel".

She said on Wednesday that Mr Trump had told bereaved Myeshia Johnson of her slain husband: "He knew what he was signing up for, but I guess it hurts anyway."

Gen Kelly said he was so "stunned" by the representative's attack that he spent more than an hour walking among soldiers' graves at Arlington National Cemetery, just outside Washington.

The chief of staff said he had advised the president not to call the loved ones of the four American servicemen killed in Niger, telling him: "There's nothing you can do to lighten the burden on these families."

Gen Kelly described such a task as "the most difficult thing you can imagine".

"There is no perfect way to make that phone call," he added.

He also discussed the death of his own son, Robert Kelly, a 29-year-old first lieutenant in the Marines who died when he stepped on an Afghan landmine.

Gen Kelly said: "He [President Trump] asked me about previous presidents. And I said, 'I can tell you that President Obama, who was my commander-in-chief when I was on active duty, did not call my family.'

"That was not a criticism. That was just to simply say, I don't believe that President Obama called. That's not a negative thing.

"I don't believe President Bush called in all cases. I don't believe any president, particularly when the casualty rates are very, very high, that presidents call."

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-41688684

Kind of what I expected. Kelly does not go all in to back Trump. Instead he tries to cool things down. And he did not make a big deal of Obama's decision. It's respectful and we can only hope that Kelly remains in his role for a while.

Trump naturally didn't get the message. He saw an opportunity to attack Obama and at the same time he could boost himself. Even by exploiting what Kelly, someone close to him, said in private. Trump can literally do anything to protect himself and his ego. It's scary when such a person is in position of power, it's very scary when he has nuclear weapons at his disposal.

[SP]

I'm about a week late to this one and have skipped a few pages but I think he was right to say the press can't just say what they want. I don't advocate censorship or a reigning in on the free press but they should be accountable. Just because we agree with what the press say , in this case negative stuff about trump. I'm sure I feel some of the stuff printed in the gutter press here should not be allowed.

Equally he should not be allowed to say what he wants. Much of the press reporting is factual unlike his rantings.

[coolbyrne]

That's not what he did.  He protected his president by blasting Congresswoman Wilson's behaviour.  He related the story of his son as he tried to explain to Trump why you don't always call families.  If you see it differently then that's up to you.

Obama wouldn't have called Kelly. Robert Kelly was married. Obama would have called his wife.

[rafathegaffa83]

The places these people look to cut corners

The chairman of a panel charged with protecting workers at nuclear weapons facilities as well as nearby communities has told the White House he favors downsizing or abolishing the group, despite recent radiation and workplace safety problems that injured or endangered people at the sites it helps oversee.

Sean Sullivan, a Republican appointee and former Navy submarine officer, told the director of the Office of Management and Budget in a private letter that closing or shrinking the Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board he chairs is consistent with President Trump’s ambition to cut the size of the federal workforce, according to a copy of Sullivan’s letter. It was written in June and obtained recently by the Center for Public Integrity.
https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/2017/10/19/chairman-nuclear-safety-board-secretly-proposes-abolish/775319001/

[Alan_X]

I'm about a week late to this one and have skipped a few pages but I think he was right to say the press can't just say what they want. I don't advocate censorship or a reigning in on the free press but they should be accountable. Just because we agree with what the press say , in this case negative stuff about trump. I'm sure I feel some of the stuff printed in the gutter press here should not be allowed.

It’s the First Amendment. The people who drafted the Bill of Rights understood that the press are critical in calling the government to account.

And the press in this country are far more constrained than the US by our libel laws. The important thing is to limit the number of papers or news outlets and individual can own not to try and limit what can be printed.

[Alan_X]

Kind of what I expected. Kelly does not go all in to back Trump. Instead he tries to cool things down. And he did not make a big deal of Obama's decision. It's respectful and we can only hope that Kelly remains in his role for a while.

Trump naturally didn't get the message. He saw an opportunity to attack Obama and at the same time he could boost himself. Even by exploiting what Kelly, someone close to him, said in private. Trump can literally do anything to protect himself and his ego. It's scary when such a person is in position of power, it's very scary when he has nuclear weapons at his disposal.

And that’s it really. The behaviour of Kelly, the Democratic politician who reported Trump’s words, previous presidents and their spokesmen, the media and the relatives of dead soldiers are all drawn into the cesspit that Trump creates around them.

He’s like a chimp at the zoo flinging shit. No one understands why he’s actually doing it but all you know is he’ll keep doing it and everyone around him gets covered in shit.

[rafathegaffa83]

IndyKalia Trump is now alleging that the FBI paid for the Steele dossier, along with the Democrats, and/or Russia (??!). That's the major law enforcement arm of the United States.

@realDonaldTrump
Workers of firm involved with the discredited and Fake Dossier take the 5th. Who paid for it, Russia, the FBI or the Dems (or all)?

He's batshit fucking crazy. He'll drop a nuke on North Korea the second that Mueller issues his arrest warrants.

And where perhaps did he get this batshit idea: from his friend Andrew Napolitano at Fox and Friends. The President of the United States alleging the FBI as rogue agency that has colluded with a political party and engaged in treason with a foreign power. It's an insane level of paranoia.  Even Nixon was wise enough to let his paranoia remain in relatively privacy via his tapes.

[rafathegaffa83]

This should be a far bigger scandal than it is. Renato Mariotti and Preet Bharara made mention of  it last night

Trump personally interviewed U.S. attorney candidates

One potential nominee would have jurisdiction over Trump Tower and be in a position to investigate the Trump administration.

 By SEUNG MIN KIM and JOHN BRESNAHAN

10/19/2017 05:50 PM EDT

President Donald Drumpf has personally interviewed at least two potential candidates for U.S. attorney positions in New York, according to two sources familiar with the matter — a move that critics say raises questions about whether they can be sufficiently independent from the president.

Trump has interviewed Geoffrey Berman, who is currently at the law firm Greenberg Traurig for the job of U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York, and Ed McNally of the firm Kasowitz Benson Torres for the Eastern District post, according to the sources.

It was unclear when the discussions took place. Trump has not announced nominees for those positions. Neither Berman nor McNally responded to calls or emails requesting comment.

The White House did not deny that Trump had personally conducted the interviews with those two candidates. A White House official noted: “These are individuals that the president nominates and the Senate confirms under Article II of the Constitution.”

“We realize Senate Democrats would like to reduce this President’s constitutional powers,” the White House official said. “But he and other presidents before him and after may talk to individuals nominated to positions within the executive branch.”

The Southern District of New York is an especially notable position since it has jurisdiction over Trump Tower. Preet Bharara, the former U.S. attorney there, has asserted he was conducting an investigation into the Trump administration when Trump fired him along with all other U.S. attorneys — as is standard when an administration switches — earlier this year.

“It is neither normal nor advisable for Trump to personally interview candidates for US Attorney positions, especially the one in Manhattan,” Bharara tweeted Wednesday.

It is rare for a president to interview candidates for the 93 U.S. attorney jobs. Former President Barack Obama never interviewed a U.S. attorney candidate during his two terms, according to Matthew Miller, who served as Justice Department spokesman under the Obama administration.

But documents submitted to the Senate Judiciary Committee earlier this year showed Trump met with Jessie Liu, the candidate for U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia, earlier this spring as she was being interviewed for the federal prosecutor post.

Liu has since been confirmed, but not without questions from Democrats. California Sen. Dianne Feinstein raised concerns that she had personally met with Trump before she was nominated to the position that would be in charge of investigating the Trump administration.

 "To be very blunt, these three jurisdictions will have authority to bring indictments over the ongoing special counsel investigation into Trump campaign collusion with the Russians and potential obstruction of justice by the president of the United States,” Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) said in an interview Thursday. “For him to be interviewing candidates for that prosecutor who may in turn consider whether to bring indictments involving him and his administration seems to smack of political interference."

Blumenthal asserted during an oversight hearing with Attorney General Jeff Sessions earlier this week that Trump had interviewed candidates in New York, although he did not go into details. During the hearing, the Connecticut senator noted that it would be “quite unusual” for the president to get involved.

Sessions did not say whether Trump had personally talked to candidates for the New York position.

"I’m not sure I remember whether he had interviewed for New York, but if you say so, I assume so," Sessions told Blumenthal. "And he has the right to, for sure, because he has to make an appointment, and I assume that everybody would understand that."

 Berman, a partner at the law firm at which Trump ally Rudy Giuliani works, is considered by some in the administration to be a favorite for the job. Trump hasn't commented on whom he prefers.

But Trump, who has shown a keen interest in the position, has asked for updates on the post in recent weeks that would signify he hasn't made up his mind, one administration official said. And Trump's relationship with Marc Kasowitz at McNally’s firm has proved uneven since this summer, when Kasowitz left his job leading the president's legal team.

White House Counsel Don McGahn has led the process for the U.S. attorney jobs, one of these people said, and has huddled with Trump at least once every week to talk about openings.

Other U.S. attorneys who have been nominated to posts around the country do not appear to have had similar interviews with Trump, according to Democrats who have been asking that of all nominees.

“The U.S. attorney for the Eastern and Southern Districts of New York — like the U.S. attorney for Washington D.C. — would have jurisdiction over many important cases, including those involving President Trump’s personal and family business interests,” Feinstein said in a statement Thursday.

She added: “There’s no reason for President Trump to be meeting with candidates for these positions, which create the appearance that he may be trying to influence or elicit inappropriate commitments from potential U.S. attorneys. U.S. attorneys must be loyal to the Constitution — not the president.”

U.S. attorneys are also subject to the “blue-slip process,” meaning home-state senators could try to unilaterally block a nominee moving forward. For the New York position, Democratic Sens. Chuck Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand would be the ones giving the green light for the nominee to advance.
http://www.politico.com/story/2017/10/19/trump-us-attorney-interviews-243962

[Chakan]

That's not what he did.  He protected his president by blasting Congresswoman Wilson's behaviour.  He related the story of his son as he tried to explain to Trump why you don't always call families.  If you see it differently then that's up to you.

My problem is that instead of being pissed off with Trump he’s gone after the Democrat woman. His excuse of “oh I didn’t think trump would say that about my son” is fucking bullshit, if it’s not then the man is cerifiable idiot. And since he didn’t actually stand up to Trump he’s then with Trump and in turn can go fuck himself.

Im fucking tired of Trump getting away with shit. He’s like the c*nt who starts a fight with someone and then runs away when punches are thrown and expects his friends to take care of it. That’s what I see Kelly doing by going after the democratic woman.

[cptrios]

Kelly's press conference was absolutely painful. It's torture to watch a man who still has a shred of dignity (not that he's a particularly good man - he just happens to be one of the less-terrible of the bunch) toss it into the flames in defense of someone as loathsome as Trump. What he said was, at times, heartfelt, and it's terrible to see someone struggle emotionally with the death of his son and its current politicization. But his speech was calculated bullshit.

Simply by giving it, he'll allow Trump and his supporters to say that he's vindicated Trump's behavior and claims. However, what he actually said does nothing of the sort. Trump is on video saying that Wilson "completely fabricated" his words, but Kelly basically said today that she had the quotes right, but misread the intent. My favorite quote is "He expressed his condolences in the best way he could." There was something else like "He said it in his way," but I can't find it. He's essentially admitting that Trump is shit at this, but then attempting to say that's irrelevant because Wilson's a shitty person.

[Mumm-Ra]

Obama wouldn't have called Kelly. Robert Kelly was married. Obama would have called his wife.

I mean, if Obama had called his wife I think Kelly would have mentioned it. Come on now

[cptrios]

I mean, if Obama had called his wife I think Kelly would have mentioned it. Come on now

Who cares? Nobody ever said the president had to call every single family of every single dead soldier. Don't let Trump define the narrative by this one example. It's obvious that Kelly didn't even think anything of the fact that Obama didn't call him, and probably regrets mentioning it to Trump, as he should have known Trump would seize on that.

Plus, as if there were every any doubt at all about this, it turns out Trump hasn't made a lot of those calls he said he has.

[Alan_X]

Who cares? Nobody ever said the president had to call every single family of every single dead soldier. Don't let Trump define the narrative by this one example. It's obvious that Kelly didn't even think anything of the fact that Obama didn't call him, and probably regrets mentioning it to Trump, as he should have known Trump would seize on that.

Plus, as if there were every any doubt at all about this, it turns out Trump hasn't made a lot of those calls he said he has.

Exactly. Trump was caught in a lie he told because he hadn’t mentioned the four soldiers who died. That’s the story.