Poor Putin

On the bright side, he's suffering about as much as everyone else.

Devin Nunes - No, No, Dig UP, Stupid

What's today's Daily Outrage? Republican Representative Devin Nunes. Nunes, chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, made an allegation that he had viewed dozens of intelligence reports obtained through government eavesdropping that inappropriately included details about the Trump transition team.

Reports over the weekend said that Nunes went off the grid that night to meet a source and view dozens of intelligence reports, including accounts of meetings involving President Donald Trump's advisers.

Read more ....

He keeps digging deeper and deeper, not into the investigation, but the hole that he's digging. Sure Eli Lake made a great explanation to why Representative Devin Nunes had to go to a secure location (in this case, the White House grounds) to view the documents and records that his intel source told him that he had. Information that led him to make his announcement the next day, and his visit to the President. The fact that members of the committee will also get the same access to view the same documents/records that Representative Devin Nunes had seen should temper the outcry over what has happened.

Should have.

The question remains, is Nunes supposed to be a bloodhound, or is he a lap dog... either way, he's not a good dog.

Parting thought: He's the Chairman of the House Intelligence Committee.

Pull!

The LuffaWaffe

Class Warfare in the Blizzard of 2017

Winds increase from a strengthening nor’easter, blizzard conditions will bring dangerous travel over the interior Northeast, while a wintry mix, rain and flooding continue to advance northward along the coast through Tuesday.

The storm has forced a State of Emergency to declared in multiple states.

Blizzard conditions with heavy snow, very low visibility, plus drifting snow will clog streets and highways from parts of central and eastern Pennsylvania and northwestern New Jersey and over much of Maine and New Brunswick.

But as I was digging my car out, I couldn't decide is it Class envy or Class warfare? I guess throwing that snowball at the passing SUV gives you why I made the word choice.

Obama listens in

The cartoon is taken from the film "The Lives of Others" which I recommend.


Meanwhile, the allegations that the Trump Tower was wire-tapped (how 20th century) seems to have some feet. Let's pretend that it's true, as a thought experiment.

If true (and as of this typing not a lick of evidence has been brought forth) this truly would be bigger than Watergate. Nixon's goons weren't (necessarily) spying on the DNC, but was looking to see where the leaks were in his White House - in which "the Plumbers" were much more concerned about the Brookings safe, and the evidence that Nixon's negotiations could have ended the conflict in Vietnam earlier - but yes, this would be worse.

If the sitting President, or anyone in his Administration, were wire-tapping the opposition party candidate? Okay, what could the wire taps have been legitimately been authorized for and who signs off on that?

To get a FISA warrant, first off the Executive Branch can request the order, but can't actually order anything. So that request has to come in independently. Then the Feds must demonstrate not just probable cause but that the phone lines are undermining US interests (AKA foreign powers, Boris Badenov). That's a tough one to get at Trump Tower because you might get third-party conversations. So IF those warrants were carried out, and all the requirements met the evidence that someone or people in the Trump campaign had enough ties to foreign powers...

...it's not Obama or Obama Administration officials that ought to be worried.

Either side of the aisle you look at this - it's probably the biggest scandal *since* Watergate, and we're only at the very beginning. Go to Costco and pick up some popcorn. This reality show just got a second wind.