Happy Halloween

Trump Flunky Starts to Sing; Two Others Indicted

The Trump administration is a metaphorical Jenga tower, and Special Prosecutor Robert Mueller is pulling out pieces one at a time.

Today, we got our first glimpse at documents filed earlier this month, when former Trump campaign policy advisor George Papadopoulos pleaded guilty to making false statements to FBI agents relating to contacts he had with agents of the Russian government while working for the Trump campaign. 

Former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort and onetime business associate Rick Gates were also indicted on charges of conspiracy against the United States and money laundering.   Manafort and Gates have a history of business dealings and lobbying for pro-Russia groups.  The pair generated tens of millions of dollars in income as a result of their Ukraine work, and In order to hide Ukraine payments from United States authorities, from approximately 2006 through at least 2016, Manafort and Gates laundered the money through scores of United States and foreign corporations, partnerships, and bank accounts.

Paul Manafort  lived in Trump Tower since 2006 and chaired Trump’s campaign through most of the primaries and into the convention.  Manafort’s 2006 all-cash purchase of his Trump Tower apartment coincided with his firm’s signing a $10 million contract with a pro-Putin Russian oligarch, Oleg Deripaska.

Gates, the longtime lobbying partner of Manafort, lingered around Trumpworld in a number of capacities after Manafort was forced to resign in August of last year.  Gates visited the White House numerous times, including as recently as the summer fo 2017. Gates was one of six former Trump campaign aides who helped start the nonprofit group America First Policies to support the president’s agenda shortly after his inauguration and stayed with the group for two months.

Over the weekend, the White House began distancing itself from Manafort and after Gates' indictment today, another official with the organization, Katrina Pierson, tried to claim that Gates was never formally involved with the nonprofit.

NFL Owner Reveals His True Colors

At a closed-door meeting of NFL owners earlier this month, Houston Texans owner Bob McNair said of players protesting racial inequality, “We can’t have the inmates running the prison.”

McNair’s comments stunned many in the room.  Troy Vincent, a retired NFL player who is now a league executive, told those in the meeting he’d been called all manner of slurs when he was a player, but he never felt like an “inmate.”

For many veteran NFL players, the incident calls to mind the infamous exchange between Dallas Cowboys president Tex Schramm and Gene Upshaw during an early NFL labor battle, in which Schramm said "You guys are cattle, and we're the ranchers.  And ranchers can always get more cattle."

The NFL Players Coalition released a statement , saying in part:

Many players have been deeply troubled by the disturbing comments made by Texans' owner Bob McNair.  It is ironic that such a quote would lemerge in the midst of an ongoing struggle to highlight injustices suffered by people of color, including our nation's deeply flawed approach to criminal justice and inhumane treatment of imprisoned people.

As long as the prevailing reality of our league includes a culture where owners feel such behavior and language is permissible, our cause will continue to be stifled and progress will remain elusive.  This isn't about being a player or a club owner-- but basic human decency.

After the comments began stirring controversy on social media, the  team released a statement in which McNair said his comments were 'a figure of a speech.'  “I never meant to offend anyone and I was not referring to our players,” the statement reads. “I could never characterize our players or our league that way and I apologize to anyone who was offended by it.”

The controversy continues to grow, however.  Houston wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins walked out of practice on Friday in protest.   Offensive lineman Duane Brown, who was 'sickened' by the 'horrible' comments but was not surprised, according to the Houston Chronicle.

On Twitter, Brown's wife Devo added: 'My husband has put his BODY & MIND on the line for your team for 10 YRS & to you he is an “inmate”. You owe these players RESPECT & support.'

'I don’t believe he is the only owner that feel that way,' added Texans rookie Treston Decoud.

Richard Sherman,of the Seattle Seahawks. added: "Don’t apologize! You meant what you said. Showing true colors allows ppl to see you for who you are."

PR Conract With Energy Secy Pal Starts to Stink

Whitefish Energy, the two-person, office-free company that landed a $300 million contract to repair the 2,400 miles of Puerto Rico’s electric lines, got more than just a big check, they got a very nice clause in their contract. A leaked copy of the contract includes a section on just who has access to the records kept by Whitefish in carrying out the work. That list includes the Puerto Rico Power Authority, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the FEMA Administrator, the comptroller general of the United States, or any of their authorized agents.

Which seems like a reasonable enough list. Except that tucked in a couple of sentences below is something that unwinds most of that authority:

 "In no event shall PREPA, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the FEMA Administrator, the comprtoller general of the United States, or any of their authorized representatives have the right to audit or review the cost and profit elements of the labor rates specified herein."

Since Whitefish doesn’t exist as a physical company, everything it’s doing is in the form of billing for subcontractors at rates that often exceeds $400 an hour along with daily charges for food and lodging. The contract makes those rates beyond review.

That clause makes it impossible for anyone to tell how much Whitefish is actually paying its workers and how much it is pocketing. It makes almost every line item under the contract proof against review.

What we do know is that Whitefish bills Puerto Rico $332.41 per person per day for lodging, and  $79.82 per person per day for meals.  Keep in mind that the average American spends $17 per day on food.

Whitefish is a small Montana energy company located in Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke's hometown.  Sounds fishy?  Well the White House is now disavowing any involvement in the deal.  Furthermore, Sarah Huckabee Sander said Donald Trump had asked Zinke about the contract and that the cabinet secretary said he had nothing to do with it, either.  This is beginning to look like a stinky mess that everybody is backing away from . . . stay tuned.

Speaking Ill of the Dead, Part 1

Trump Finally Addreses the Opioid Crisis

After promising two months ago to do something about the opioid crisis, Trump finally declared it a public health emergency .  The declaration allows the executive branch to dip into the Public Health Emergency Fund-- which unfortunately holds only $57,000.  No other funding was made available by the declaration.   Trump also promised to waive some regulations and give states more flexibility in how they use federal funds- but he stopped short of declaring a more sweeping  national state of emergency that would have given states access to funding from the federal Disaster Relief Fund.  The event was characterized by many as too little, too late.

A few excerpts from Trump's speech:

"I learned myself, I had a brother Fred, great guy, best looking guy, best personality, much better than mine, but he had a problem. He had a problem with alcohol. And he would tell me don't drink. Don't drink.  He was substantially older, and I listened to him and respected. But I would constantly tell me don't drink. He would also add don't smoke. But he would say it over and over and over again. And to this day I've never had a drink. And I have no longing for it. I have no interest in it. To this day I've never had a cigarette. Don't worry, those are only two of my good things." 

Naturally, Trump can't avoid bragging about himself!

"The fact is if we can teach young people, and people generally, not to start, it's really, really easy not to take them. And I think that's going to end up being our most important thing. Really tough, really big, really great advertising. So we get to people before they start so they don't have to go through the problems of what people are going through."

Just great-- a return to Nancy Reagan's failed "Just say no" program!

For too long dangerous criminal cartels have been allowed to infiltrate and spread throughout our nation. An astonishing 90% comes from across the border which we are building a wall which will help in this problem. We'll have a great impact. My administration is dedicated to enforcing our immigration laws, defending our maritime security, and securing our borders. 

 And of course, we have to plug the idiotic border wall!

Texting Exes, Part 2

 

 

 

 

Texting Exes, Part 1

 

 

 

 

Safety, Retirement, Families Long Gone in Caracas

Every time you think living in Venezuela can't get worse, there comes another heartbreaking story like this one from the BBC. 

87-year-old isabel Dubuc used to sing in a choir, but she doesn't feel safe going out now.  "Every day we are more and more like prisoners," she says.  With the economic crisis, crime has soared. Caracas is now considered one of the most dangerous cities in the world.

While the government has stopped publishing crime statistics, the Venezuelan Violence Observatory put the number of violent deaths in the country in 2016 at 28,479. That's 92 per 100,000 people.  Big highways that in other capitals would be buzzing at 8pm or 9pm are deserted. Street lighting is intermittent.  People finish work and want to get home.  "We don't go anywhere," says Caris, the eldest of Isabel's four children.   "We only go out to shop, to go to the doctor or to go to work, but there's nothing fun to do," she says.

Caris herself is 66 years old. For 31 years, she worked as an air-traffic controller. She retired a decade ago but realised she had to keep earning money. She studied to become an English teacher and now she works 52 hours a week.  Even with a pension, the money didn't stretch. She enjoys teaching but it's not the retirement she had hoped for.

Two of Caris's children have gone to live in Argentina and Chile. She has one son here in Venezuela who lives at home. Caris's siblings also live abroad - the last one left just a few months ago. They are in the UK and the US.

"We used to have everything - a united family, that has slowly disintegrated."

Trump Caught Lying About His Treatment of Gold Star Families

Trump, in a personal phone call to a grieving military father, offered him $25,000 and said he would direct his staff to establish an online fundraiser for the family, but neither happened, the father has said.

Chris Baldridge, the father of Army Sgt. Dillon Baldridge, said that Trump called him at his home in Zebulon, NC a few weeks after his 22-year-old son and two fellow soldiers were fatally shot by an Afghan police officer in June.  Their phone conversation lasted about 15 minutes, and centered for a time on the father's struggle with the manner in which his son was killed-- shot by someone he was training.

"I said, "Me and my wife would rather our son died in trench warfare,' " Baldridge said.  "I feel like he got murdered over there."

Trump's officer of money to salve the wounds of the family, adds a dimension to the way he is (or is not) about to empathize and relate to the families of fallen troops.   The disclosure follows questions about how often Trump has called or written to the parents or spouses of those killed.

In a response to press queries regarding the incident, White House spokeswoman Lindsay Walters said, "The check has been sent.  It's disgusting that the media is taking something that should be recognized as a generous and since gesture, made privately by the President, and using it to advance the media's biased agenda."  Sounds like the bitter words of something cold busted for not following through on their promises.

At least 20 Americans have been killed in action since Trump became commander in chief in January.  In defense against accusations of insensitivity to Gold Star families, Trump said this week that he has "called every family of somebody that's died, and it's the hardest call to make.". 

However, the Washington Post has been able to contact the families of 13 of the 20 killed, and only about half had received phone calls.  They others said they had not heard or received letters from the president. 

Trump has been on the defensive since details emerged of his shocking comments to the widow of Sgt. La David Johnson, who was killed along with three other soldiers in Niger.  After ignoring the incident for twelve days, Trump lied about previous presidents, saying they never or rarely called the families of fallen service members.  In fact, they did so regularly.

In that phone cal to Sgt. Johnson's widow, Trump told her that her husband "knew what he was signing up for, but I guess it hurts anyway."  FL Representative Frederica Wilson (a friend of the Johnson family) was invited by the widow to listen in via the speakerphone and was aghast at Trump's lack of empathy.

Trump denied the allegations of Mrs. Johnson and Rep. Wilson, saying that Wilson had "totally fabricated" what happened and that he had "proof."   The soldier's childhood guardian, Cowanda Jones-Johnson, later confirmed that she was also in the car during the conversation and said that Trump "did disrespect my son and my daughter and also me and my husband."  Trump later doube-downed on his denial, saying that he did not say what Wilson had alleged and that "she knows it."

White House Huckster

Trumpsicle

Miltary Family Labels Trump a "Fat, Fucking Liar"

The sister of a slain solider has lashed out at Donald Trump calling him a 'fat fucking liar' after he said that past presidents had never called families of fallen troops.

Delilia O'Malley revealed that former President George W. Bush had listened to her scream before hugging her after she was told her brother had been killed while serving in the Iraq War. 

Her anger at Trump was echoed by thousands of other Gold Star families who say they were insulted by Trump's comments. A number of ex-staffers who worked with past presidents have also since publicly slammed Trump for blatantly lying.

Trump made the controversial remarks when he was asked why he hadn't yet commented on the deaths of four elite US special forces soldiers in Niger who were killed in an ambush by ISIS.   Trump claimed he had written to the families and planned to call them at some point before saying that Obama and other past presidents had failed to phone the loved ones of slain soldiers.

"If you look at president Obama and other presidents - most of them didn't' make calls. A lot of them didn't make calls," he said.  "I like to call when it's appropriate, when I think I'm able to do it. They have made the ultimate sacrifice, so generally I would say that I like to call."

When asked during the press conference to back up his claims about Obama, Trump appeared to try and backpedal.  "I don't know if he did. I was told that he didn't often. A lot of presidents don't, they write letters. I do a combination of both. Sometimes it's a very difficult thing to do but I do a combination of both," he said.  "President Obama I think probably did sometimes and maybe sometimes he didn't. I don't know that's what I was told," Trump clumsily added.

Trump Press Secretary Sarah Sanders later attempted to buttress Trump's comments when responding to the criticism, saying that "the president wasn't criticizing predecessors, but stating a fact."

Alyssa Mastromonaco, who served as a deputy chief of staff under former Obama, was among those to immediately lash out at Trump.  "That's a fucking lie," she tweeted. "To say President Obama (or past presidents) didn't call the family members of soldiers [killed in action] – he's a deranged animal."

Ben Rhodes, Obama's foreign policy advisor, said: "This is an outrageous and disrespectful lie even by Trump standards."

Trump had previously taken his cues from rightwing media when criticizing Obama back in 2012, saying that Obama didn't really sign letters to the families of slain soldiers.  "Too busy playing golf? Barack Obama sends form letters with an electronic signature to the parents of fallen SEALs," Trump tweeted at the time.

At the time, the Obama White House hit back saying Obama personally signed every letter sent out to military families.

Ironically, Trump himself  was playing golf  over the weekend when the dead body of 25-year-old Johnson was returned to Dover Air Force Base from Niger.  Try lying your way out of that one, Mr. Trump.

Say Your Prayers

Can Things Get Any More Desparate In Venezuela?

Venezuelans have been told expired passports are valid for another two years because they have run out of paper and ink to print new ones.

President Maduro has signed an emergency decree to extend their validity because of chronic shortages at the national passport agency.

At least a million Venezuelans have been waiting months for new documents and cannot travel in the interim.  Demand for travel documents is at a record high as Venezuelans seek to escape from political crisis and deep recession.  Critics had claimed that  delays in replacing passports stemmed from Maduro's desire to keep people from leaving the beleaguered nation

Since global oil prices plunged in 2015, Venezuela hasn’t had the funds to import basic goods such as food and medicine, creating acute shortages and stirring anger toward Maduro.   Inflation is at about 700 per cent.

Adding to the overall misery are a drastic rise in violent crime – especially in the capital city of Caracas – rolling blackouts and widespread and often times bloody protests against the government.

There have been casualties and deaths on both sides of the protests and accusations from the international community of human rights abuses and political oppression.

Puerto Rican Savior

One-Sided Battle of Wits

Trump Legacy: Punishing Innocent Children

Just 30 days ago, the White House announced it would phase out an Obama-era initiative known as Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA), which grants work authorization and deportation relief in two-year increments for certain undocumented applicants who pass background checks and pay a fee.  It set an October 5 deadline for anyone whose work permits expire by March 5 to apply for a two-year extension.

The advocacy group Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights (CHIRLA), the largest immigrant rights organization in California, said that the tight October 5 deadline was “unrealistic and punishing.”

The Trump administration did nothing to tell people who thought they had more time that the timeline had changed.  Some DACA recipients got letters from USCIS before September 5 reminding them that they had 180 more days to reapply — and recommending they reapply in the next three months. But USCIS didn’t send out any corrections to warn those immigrants that if they followed the instructions from the earlier letter, they’d find themselves locked out.

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) later clarified that  the October 5 deadline referred to applications physically received, not simply applications postmarked by that date, narrowing the 30-day window set by the White House.

The Trump administration has so far refused to grant any extensions for those affected by California wildfires, or the Texas and Florida hurricane areas-- three areas particularly rich in DACA individuals.

Even if the administration wasn’t willing to extend the deadline, advocates had other suggestions.   USCIS could have sent letters out to DACA recipients who were eligible to renew w in the next few months.  it could have set up stations at USCIS processing offices where applicants could turn in their applications, guaranteeing that they would be received in time.  The government did none of these things.

At a court hearing in New York in mid-September, government lawyers initially said that extending the deadline was under “active consideration” — only to say, in late September, that after review “at the highest levels,” they were going to keep the October 5 deadline.  Judge Nicholas Garaufis was livid, calling the decision “heartless.”

Acting DHS Secretary Elaine Duke was closely questioned during a hearing by Sen. Kamala Harris (D-CA) about why there hadn’t been an extension of the renewal deadline — and played ignorant. “We have had no requests,” she said.

It is estimated that 20-30,000 have missed the deadline and will be eligible for deportation.  Do you have any doubts that the Trump administration won't take advantage of that?

Blow Against Democracy in Spain

Police have been filmed violently tackling voters as they try to prevent a banned vote in Catalonia, Spain.  The footage appears to show people being thrown and a women being pulled by her hair.

One voter, Júlia Graell, told the BBC that "police started to kick people, young and old", adding: "Today, I have seen the worst actions that a government can do to the people of its own country."

Catalan emergency officials say over 800 people have been injured as police used force to try to block voting in Catalonia's independence referendum.  In Barcelona, police used batons and fired rubber bullets during pro-referendum protests.  TV footage showed riot police using batons to beat a group of firefighters who were protecting crowds in Girona.

Ahead of the vote, Spain's central government sent in large numbers of national police and paramilitary forces to prevent the vote from taking place.  Barcelona Mayor Ada Colau condemned  the excessive violence directed against what she called the region's "defenseless" population.

Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy refused to take any responsibility for the violence, saying instead that Catalonians were "fooled into taking part in an illegal vote."