Board 8 > Politics Containment Topic 184: Torn NATO

(+) Yeah! (+)

Yeah. Trust me, it feels weird to defend Joe Walsh

But he was basically saying "Despite the tea party supporting Trump, I do not"
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what a coincidence

https://twitter.com/Isikoff/status/1018991836629815302

tl;dr: The woman arrested by the DOJ/FBI today met with Trump during the campaign and was the first to ask him about sanctions and got him to say that he "doesn't think we'll need the sanctions." Later, Priebus and Bannon both watch the video of it and wonder both what she was doing there and how/why Trump had an answer.
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So what's the likelihood that Republicans, after seeing Trump's behavior in this press conference, decide that they should post-pone the hearings for Kavanaugh until the Special Counsel finishes it's investigation?

Zero percent?
Negative zero percent?
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negative zero percent times infinity
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81*0%
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But speaking of Congress, a meeting between Trump and them suddenly appeared on the schedule for tomorrow where it hadn't been before today.

McConnell, Ryan, Pelosi, and Schumer don't know what it's about.
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xp1337 posted...

But speaking of Congress, a meeting between Trump and them suddenly appeared on the schedule for tomorrow where it hadn't been before today.

McConnell, Ryan, Pelosi, and Schumer don't know what it's about.

In Soviet Russia, inviting the leader to a meeting of a high level committee with de jure power when he didn't know the purpose of the meeting was a way of firing the leader. But that would only be applicable here if Trump was the one who didn't know the purpose of the meeting.
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xp1337 posted...

But speaking of Congress, a meeting between Trump and them suddenly appeared on the schedule for tomorrow where it hadn't been before today.

McConnell, Ryan, Pelosi, and Schumer don't know what it's about.

Very odd.
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Kasich could maybe primary Trump if he got enough dems/independents to vote in the primaries. That was a strategy some people took in 2016 - could be named as "the real presidential election" in 2020.
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Kasich isn't beating Trump. He's a Democrat's Republican, not a Republican's Republican.

It's a shame too -- Kasich seems more sincere and grounded in reality than most of the GOP. He might run, and I wish him well with that in 2020...but that dream isn't happening.
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Wasnt Kasich SephGs favorite?
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https://twitter.com/willsommer/status/1019237302466379776?s=21

Thread of Congressmen asking stuff to social media company reps today

GOOGLE DOESNT WANT YOU TO KNOW ABOUT JESUS
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7/17/2018
NEW YORK TIMES - I.R.S. Will No Longer Force Kochs and Other Groups to Disclose Donors

The Trump administration will end a longstanding requirement that certain nonprofit organizations disclose the names of their large donors to the Internal Revenue Service, a move that will allow some political groups to shield their sources of funding from government scrutiny.

The change, which has been long sought by conservatives and Republicans in Congress, will affect labor unions, social clubs and, most notably, many political groups like the National Rifle Association and the Koch networks Americans for Prosperity, which collect what is known as dark money.

Treasury officials said the reporting change would protect privacy and reduce compliance costs for nonprofits, and that the I.R.S. could still request donor information from groups in the rare event that it was needed for tax scrutiny.

Americans shouldnt be required to send the I.R.S. information that it doesnt need to effectively enforce our tax laws, and the I.R.S. simply does not need tax returns with donor names and addresses to do its job in this area, Steven Mnuchin, the Treasury secretary, said in a statement on Monday evening.

https://www.nytimes.com/2018/07/17/us/politics/irs-will-no-longer-force-kochs-and-other-groups-to-disclose-donors.html?partner=rss&emc=rss

Citizens United continues to damage America.
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7/17/2018
VICE - Top Voting Machine Vendor Admits It Installed Remote-Access Software on Systems Sold to States

Wyden told Motherboard that installing remote-access software and modems on election equipment is the worst decision for security short of leaving ballot boxes on a Moscow street corner.

https://motherboard.vice.com/en_us/article/mb4ezy/top-voting-machine-vendor-admits-it-installed-remote-access-software-on-systems-sold-to-states

Sigh. Votes were altered, weren't they?
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HaRRicH posted...

NEW YORK TIMES - I.R.S. Will No Longer Force Kochs and Other Groups to Disclose Donors

The change, which has been long sought by conservatives and Republicans in Congress, will affect labor unions, social clubs and, most notably, many political groups like the National Rifle Association and the Koch networks Americans for Prosperity, which collect what is known as dark money.

Convenient this happens just as that arrest occurs with links to the NRA!

HaRRicH posted...

Sigh. Votes were altered, weren't they?

I don't think we'll ever really know. That feels like something that can't be admitted to even if it were true. The damage to the faith and credibility of elections would be too catastrophic.
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HaRRicH posted...

Sigh. Votes were altered, weren't they?

I thought for a while that actually altering votes was a bridge too far, and that the efforts were more focused on voter rolls, suppression, etc.

But the more I see, the more I think of 80,000 or so votes in three states being manipulated as a legitimate possibility.
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lmao

so the spin is that Trump meant to say "wouldn't" instead of "would" in the "I don't see any reason why it would be" line.

well case closed everyone
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Yeah it's really sad how many people are going to believe that as well

Like, that is maybe the biggest slip of the tongue of all time and it took 24 hours to correct it? Come on
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xp1337 posted...

lmao

so the spin is that Trump meant to say "wouldn't" instead of "would" in the "I don't see any reason why it would be" line.

well case closed everyone

I feel like I'm playing a game of mafia where I have a scum scan of Trump and everyone else is openly scumbuddying him

Paratroopa1 posted...

I feel like I'm playing a game of mafia where I have a scum scan of Trump and everyone else is openly scumbuddying him

see jakyl i'm not the only one
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there are just too many levels to all this i can't

https://twitter.com/nycsouthpaw/status/1019311114734260224

tl;dr: Images of Trump's typed statement he had with him during his spin/walkback/whatever that was are out. Highlights: He added in marker "THERE WAS NO COLUSION [sic]." He also crossed out a line that looks like it's trying to say they will bring the ones responsible of meddling to justice.
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^ *laughs like Muttley*
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https://twitter.com/sahilkapur/status/1019285652104531971?s=21

Mitch McConnell says Russia should be aware that the U.S. knows it interfered in the 2016 election and it better not happen again in 2018.

Putin is shaking
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I think Americans are so deathly afraid of Russia that they're fine with just laying down and surrendering.

Especially considering guess who wanted to take a zero-tolerance stance towards Russia in the event of becoming President.
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LinkMarioSamus posted...

I think Americans are so deathly afraid of Russia that they're fine with just laying down and surrendering.

Especially considering guess who wanted to take a zero-tolerance stance towards Russia in the event of becoming President.

>.> There isn't any actual reason for the US to be afraid of Russia. They just want to keep power as long as they can.
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No-fly zone over Russia leading to WWIII hmmm?
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~~~and the oceans are full of plastic~~~

https://www.bloomberg.com/view/articles/2018-06-07/plastic-straws-aren-t-the-problem

Intense media interest in the so-called Great Pacific Garbage Patch -- a floating, France-sized gyre of oceanic plastic -- only heightened the concern.

...

Using surface samples and aerial surveys, the group determined that at least 46 percent of the plastic in the garbage patch by weight comes from a single product: fishing nets. Other fishing gear makes up a good chunk of the rest.

The impact of this junk goes well beyond pollution. Ghost gear, as it's sometimes called, goes on fishing long after it's been abandoned, to the great detriment of marine habitats. In 2013, the Virginia Institute of Marine Science estimated that lost and abandoned crab pots take in 1.25 million blue crabs each year.

This is a complicated problem. But since the early 1990s, there's been widespread agreement on at least one solution: a system to mark commercial fishing gear, so that the person or company that bought it can be held accountable when its abandoned. Combined with better onshore facilities to dispose of such gear -- ideally by recycling -- and penalties for dumping at sea, such a system could go a long way toward reducing marine waste. Countries belonging to the United Nation's Food and Agriculture Organization have even agreed on guidelines for the process.

But while rich countries should be able to meet such standards with ease, in the developing world -- where waste management is largely informal -- the problem is much harder. In Indonesia, for example, one study concluded that fishermen have little incentive to bring someone else's net to a disposal point unless they're getting paid to do so.

That's where all that anti-straw energy could really help. In 1990, after years of consumer pressure, the world's three largest tuna companies agreed to stop intentionally netting dolphins. Soon after, they introduced a "dolphin safe" certification label and tuna-related dolphin deaths declined precipitously. A similar campaign to pressure global seafood companies to adopt gear-marking practices -- and to help developing regions pay for them -- could have an even more profound impact. Energized consumers and activists in rich countries could play a crucial role in such a movement.

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LinkMarioSamus posted...

No-fly zone over Russia leading to WWIII hmmm?

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https://twitter.com/realdonaldtrump/status/1019520574371123200?s=21

So many people at the higher ends of intelligence loved my press conference performance in Helsinki. Putin and I discussed many important subjects at our earlier meeting. We got along well which truly bothered many haters who wanted to see a boxing match. Big results will come!

You have to be SMART to understand Trumps moves. Hes like Rick and Morty
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He heard so at his most recent super smart guy group meeting!
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I also love the use of haters

Yeah, Don, a lot of us are Putin haters! Sorry haters dont like your friendship with a brutal dictator
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SupremeZero posted...

LinkMarioSamus posted...

I think Americans are so deathly afraid of Russia that they're fine with just laying down and surrendering.

Especially considering guess who wanted to take a zero-tolerance stance towards Russia in the event of becoming President.

>.> There isn't any actual reason for the US to be afraid of Russia. They just want to keep power as long as they can.

Russia is a declining power just trying to hang on - that's why they're taking so many risks.
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Jakyl25 posted...

https://twitter.com/realdonaldtrump/status/1019520574371123200?s=21

So many people at the higher ends of intelligence loved my press conference performance in Helsinki. Putin and I discussed many important subjects at our earlier meeting. We got along well which truly bothered many haters who wanted to see a boxing match. Big results will come!

You have to be SMART to understand Trumps moves. Hes like Rick and Morty

so much for red sox's "trump never calls people from other countries dumb" claim. unless we're to assume that he's exclusively calling americans who disliked the press conference dumb here.
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It's amazing that in the year 2018, this administration is managing to fall for spy tricks the KGB were using in fucking 1960
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Mr Lasastryke posted...

so much for red sox's "trump never calls people from other countries dumb" claim. unless we're to assume that he's exclusively calling americans who disliked the press conference dumb here.

<redsoxmode>
Trump never called anyone dumb. All he said was that people from the higher end of the intelligence spectrum loved his press conference. He never said that people who didn't like it are dumb.
</redsoxmode>
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https://twitter.com/willrahn/status/1019605788329988096
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kevwaffles posted...

LinkMarioSamus posted...

No-fly zone over Russia leading to WWIII hmmm?

I've literally run into people on YouTube who decided primarily on this basis to vote for Trump.

Like, some of the reasons I've heard are ridiculous - oh, someone else on YouTube said they voted for Trump because he accepts criticism better apparently. Sure.
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You know who else makes judgments based off of YouTube comment sections?
Ulti.
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I actually heard someone (far left based on the rest of his conversation) bring up that argument at a restaurant a few months after the election and couldn't help calling him out on it

It's literally a talking point that Russia pushed as propaganda
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Ashethan posted...

Mr Lasastryke posted...

so much for red sox's "trump never calls people from other countries dumb" claim. unless we're to assume that he's exclusively calling americans who disliked the press conference dumb here.

<redsoxmode>
Trump never called anyone dumb. All he said was that people from the higher end of the intelligence spectrum loved his press conference. He never said that people who didn't like it are dumb.
</redsoxmode>

This is pretty much standard Trump. To anyone that supports him, they get reassurance that they are smart. If they see someone disagree with Trump, they are immediately discredited for not being intelligent.

If you don't support Trump on this statement? He doesn't care because hes not talking to you anyway, hes just shoring up his base.
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Peace___Frog posted...

You know who else makes judgments based off of YouTube comment sections?
Ulti.

Figures.

*Seinfeld Bass riff*
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SHS says that Trump is actually considering Putin's ludicrous "offer" to let the US question the 12 KGB agents in exchange for letting the Russians question Americans, including former US Ambassador Michael McFaul (and, I assume, Bill Browder, who exposed a lot of Putin's shit):

https://twitter.com/KatyTurNBC/status/1019661925850984448

If Trump actually does this, he will literally be selling out American citizens to a murderous dictator.
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More on Kavanaugh being against independent counsel.

https://twitter.com/NateSilver538/status/1019591484226621441

Actual link to the story: https://www.cnn.com/2018/07/18/politics/brett-kavanaugh-independent-counsel-comments/index.html

Including Silver's tweet because of the point he makes about the story.

tl;dr: In 2016, Kavanaugh said he wanted to "put the final nail" in Morrison v Olson (1988 SCOTUS decision that upheld the constitutionality of the independent counsel law.) Silver points out the fact that Kavanaugh wasn't specifically asked about that decision, but rather was given the question of if he could think of any case that deserved to be overturned and this is the one he picked.

Granted, this doesn't necessarily relate directly to Mueller (the independent counsel law expired in 1999 if you recall a previous discussion on it in this topic), but as the article points out this may provide insight into how he might view any legislation passed to protect Mueller's investigation or how he might rule if it ever came down to a subpoena legal fight.
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Ok....yeah I am afraid I have to officially come out against Kavanaugh.

I respect Trumps right to appoint a justice and moreover respect his right to nominate the next Antonin Scalia if he so desires.

But this smacks so badly of trying to stack his own jury for upcoming fights that I have to come out and say no.
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https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/josephbernstein/lane-davis-ralph-retort-seattle4truth-alt-right

This is a FANTASTIC piece about a man who got so caught up in the online culture wars that he stabbed his father to death for being a leftist, and about the intellectual disconnect between the purveyors of conspiracy and their audience.
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only leftists are super violent though
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The people who peddle alt-right propaganda for money claim their audience just wants an outlet to be entertained by absurdist claims against leftists that channel their baser thoughts on culture to a safe catharsis.

They dont (or refuse to) realize that in fact, their audience sees their content as validation and identity-building. Actionable
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i heard that stefan molyneux acted very surprised when heather heyer got killed.

wow, it's almost as if when you're absolutely demonizing leftists every single day for over 10 fucking years, someone might snap and do something drastic to a leftist.
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Quite a bit OT but interesting
https://twitter.com/f_edits/status/1019580643095740416?s=21

So this guy's friend posted an "official FIFA team of the world cup". One twitter account posted it - one - but because it "looked official" a bunch of notable football websites and even a national newspaper picked it up. For a while it was accepted as fact that this was the FIFA team of the World Cup. Just based on one twitter account tweeting it once.

Easy to see why people believe fake news!
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Jakyl25 posted...

https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/josephbernstein/lane-davis-ralph-retort-seattle4truth-alt-right

This is a FANTASTIC piece about a man who got so caught up in the online culture wars that he stabbed his father to death for being a leftist, and about the intellectual disconnect between the purveyors of conspiracy and their audience.

Need to finish reading this later. These online communities are pretty fucking scary.
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