Republicans: From The Party Of Lincoln; To The Party Of Putin, Trump, And David Duke

Republicans like to refer to themselves as, “The Party of Lincoln.” This typically comes in response to questions about racism in an attempt to deflect any charges of discrimination today by referring to their long-ago stance. When the Republican Party formed, their first platform resisted the expansion of slavery into new states and territories. The Party’s initial founders were abolitionists, an anti-slavery faction of the Whig Party, and the Free-Soil wing of the Democrat Party. Say what you will about Republicans now, they once stood for something positive, not so much today.

Lincoln himself gets all the credit for ending slavery but given his way, he’d have allowed slavery to continue where it already existed. At his first Inauguration Address, he said, “I have no purpose, directly or indirectly, to interfere with the institution of slavery in the States where it exists. I believe I have no lawful right to do so, and I have no inclination to do so.” He also supported the return of slaves to Africa. The Emancipation Proclamation was less about granting freedom to the slaves than it was about hurting the South’s economy and keeping France and Britain from siding with the South whom economically they were inclined to.

Despite Lincoln’s personal ambivalence, the Republican Party was a major factor in the ending of slavery and the environment that led to Reconstruction. Unfortunately, they gave away their claim of moral superiority when in the Compromise of 1877, in trade for winning a disputed Presidential election. They agreed to remove Federal troops from the South which directly let to the end of Reconstruction and the imposition of Jim Crow. The Republican Party’s last claim to be the Party of Lincoln died in 1877.

Fast-forward to the present. The most recent Republican platform includes language changing the previous Republican position favorably to Russia. There has never been a satisfactory explanation as to who, how, and why. The Republicans who controlled oversight in Congress in the House and the Senate have looked away. Their response to a President and Administration who has had multiple secret meetings with Russians and Russian intelligence has been either muted, standing by watching, or a full-throated defense. The more information that becomes public about Trump and associates ties to Russia and private communications, the more the Party that tied itself to national security, at best looks the other way.

Republican legislators have foresworn any priorities other than getting re-elected. This means looking away as he separates children from families, shuts down the government, and destroys the economy with his trade wars and dramatic increase of the national debt. They perhaps console themselves with the tax cuts which benefit them personally and court appointments which protect the class they are part of.

Republicans rage at being portrayed as racist. They don’t mind their Party being racist in their policies but find being called racist offensive. I’m not saying all or even most Republicans are racist. I’m saying they have created an environment where racists are welcome and in fact, pander to them to ensure their continued support at the polls. To avoid the appearance of promoting racism, the Republican House leadership just stripped Rep. Steve King (IA) from his committee assignments after wondering how white nationalism and white supremacy got a bad name? They were shocked, shocked, to find out King harbored racist sentiments, though he’d been expressing them openly for decades. The President makes racist statements all the time, where is the outrage?

Whatever you think of the Republican Party, they have long ceased to be the Party of Lincoln. Depending on the need they now are meeting the needs of Vladimir Putin, Donald J Trump, and David Duke. Parties can and do change. A look at the past of the Democrat Party shows a history of racism, more violent than Republicans have engaged in. When Republicans allowed Jim Crow in 1877, Democrats instituted it. The Democrats changed dramatically in the 1960s when dissatisfaction with the Voting Rights Act and Civil Rights Act caused many (Dixiecrats) to flee to the Republican Party. The “Southern Strategy,” ensured they remained Republicans.

I’d like to believe Republicans can do better. I’m less sure they will. Mitch McConnel is racing to fill the Federal Courts with young, conservative Judges. He and other Republicans hope that they will exert control of the Judiciary for generations, long after demographics have lessened their power to legislate. Outside the Courts, Republicans are using Gerrymandering and Voter Suppression to impose the will of a minority on the rest of us. They have gotten a partisan Supreme Court to support unlimited, undisclosed financial contributions, courtesy of Citizens United. They just experienced historic losses of House seats in the 2018 elections and are facing tough sledding in the Senate in 2020 based on who is up for reelection. When they lose, it will be because they sacrificed the principals they once held as a Party. Telling us, “collusion is not a crime,” is not the cry of an ethical Party. Putin, Trump, and Duke couldn’t be more thrilled.

Trump: Surrounded By Rats!

Instead of the rats deserting the sinking ship, they appear to be circling the President, waiting to bite a vulnerable spot. It was ironic that Trump recently tweeted about Richard Nixon’s lawyer John Dean being “a rat” for his Watergate testimony that brought Nixon down. It was recently revealed that Don McGahn who serves in the same position John Dean did, White House Counsel, has given 30 hours of testimony to lawyers representing Special Counsel Robert Mueller.

Michael Cohen, Trump’s former personal attorney of almost two decades is at this moment entering a guilty plea a plea deal on charges of tax and bank fraud which will result in him cooperating with Federal investigators. This is the man who was negotiating with Russians to build Trump Tower Moscow, during the 2016 Presidential election campaign. He also was found to have made tapes of the President and others without their consent, some describing events like arranging to pay off a Playboy Playmate who accused Trump of having a year-long affair with her.

Reality star Omarosa has written a book making multiple claims about Trump, for which she has provided receipts in the form of audio tapes with as many as 200 more possibly to come including some with video. It’s hard to imagine her skulking around the White House with spy gear taping people but she’s already successfully taped John Kelly in the situation room so all bets are off.

Others who have already testified before one of the Special Counsel’s grand juries or FBI investigators include former communications directors Hope Hicks and Sean Spicer. Former NSA Director Michael Flynn, Steve Bannon, George Papadoupolos, Carter Page, and more. The biggest rats might be those who have not yet been before the grand jury because they themselves are targets; Donald Trump Jr, Jared Kushner, Ivanka Trump, Mike Pence and Roger Stone. Who among them is willing to go to jail and sacrifice themselves for this President?

During Watergate, the question of the day was, “Who is Deep Throat?” The whistleblower who pointed the press in the right direction. In the Trump era, one needs a scorecard to keep track of all the people ratting out Trump both publicly and privately. Trump himself is in a panic and truly looks like a man with no way out. In reality, he actually has two… resignation or jail. If he waits too long, it may only be jail, we will see!

5 Questions To Ask Trump’s Accountant: Allen Weisselberg

He was almost unknown a week ago. A longtime accountant for a family firm, Allen Weisselberg will be 71-years-old next month and had to have at least considered a quiet retirement in the near future. Suddenly, after being mentioned twice in the leaked Michael Cohen/Donald Trump audio tapes describing how they paid $150,000 to squelch a story about Trump’s alleged affair with Playboy Playmate Karen MacDougal. Within a few days, Weisselberg was subpoenaed to testify to a Federal Grand Jury in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York in the investigation of Michael Cohen.

Given his long ties to the Trump Organization, dating back to the 1970’s. There are a few questions I hope Weisselberg is asked while under oath on the witness stand:

1. HOW MARRIED IS TRUMP TO THE MOB? Allen began working while Fred Trump was in charge and he once had a partner, Willie Tomasello, who was a Genovese mob family associate. S & A Concrete, owned by a joint venture of the Genovese and Gambino families, built Trump Tower and Trump Plaza. Trump worked with Nicky Scarfo and the Cleveland Wrecking Company and multiple other mob front operations. The mob settled Trump’s labor disputes. Following the money; how much money in the past and is currently going to mob operations including, of course, the Russian mob?
2. HOW MANY WOMEN? Just how many women has Trump paid off and more importantly, what is it he’s trying to keep silent? Besides the multiple affairs, how many women are being paid to hush-up allegations of sexual harassment, assault, and even rape? How many abortions has he paid for?
3. HOW MUCH RUSSIAN MONEY? Eric Trump and Donald Jr have both bragged about the vast amount of Russian money they had access to in building golf courses worldwide. There are multiple real estate transactions providing hundreds of millions of profits for Donald Trump and where the Russians seemed to have little use for the properties. How much money has Russia provided to Trump and what did they get in return?
4. HOW MUCH DOES TRUMP GIVE TO CHARITABLE CAUSES? To be more specific, how much of Trump’s personal money has he given away that wasn’t actually a payoff of some kind? Inquiring minds want to know.
5. WHAT’S IN TRUMP’S TAX RETURNS? It’s obvious Trump never intended to release his tax returns. What’s in them he doesn’t want anyone to see? Money laundering? Tax evasion? We can assume Special Counsel Robert Mueller has Trump’s taxes and some of that information may come out in his report, but can you give us a few tidbits in the meantime?

Looking out for Allen Weisselberg, I’d get immunity if I were you before I started spilling information. Once you’ve received it, tell all you know and set yourself free. Then you can go ahead and enjoy that retirement without having to look over your shoulder.

Update: 8/24/2018  Allen Weisselberg has been granted immunity by Federal prosecutors. Watch out now!

Trump Word For The Day: Collusion!

Definition – Secret or illegal cooperation or conspiracy, especially in order to cheat or deceive others.

Donald Trump says it in almost every public conversation. “No Collusion!” “There was no collusion!” “No Collusion!” We now learn that Trump’s former personal attorney is willing to testify that Donald Trump knew about the infamous “Trump Tower” meeting in June 2016 where Russians came to Trump Tower to meet with Donald Jr., Paul Manafort, and Jared Kushner to allegedly provide dirt on Hillary Clinton.

All of the attendees of the meeting originally denied the purpose of the meeting and that Donald Trump was aware it was taking place. When news of the meeting broke when the President and Donald Jr were returning from an overseas trip on Air Force One. Donald Trump dictated a letter downplaying the meeting and making a claim it was merely about Russian adoptions.

We now know Donald Trump knew in advance and approved of the Russian meeting, being approached about it by Donald Jr. Donald Trump approved the meeting and is more likely than ever to have been the source of a call Donald Jr took during the meeting from a number marked “Private” which calls from Trump’s cell phone are.

The legal and criminal implications of Trump’s knowledge, approval, and subsequent denials of the meeting are staggering. Donald Jr and Kushner have perjured themselves in testimony before Congressional committees. Manafort, Kushner and Don Jr will have given false testimony in interviews with the FBI. Trump himself will have done the one thing he constantly denied, conspired (colluded) with Russians to get information about Hillary Clinton, and of course, Russia knew.

Russia has always known about Trump’s culpability in at least this instance. They know about his financial ties to Russian oligarchs. His dependence on Russian funding over the years and even his relationship with the Russian mob in New York. This is why Trump bends over everytime Putin is near, and the information is coming out a piece at a time on a daily basis. One claim Trump won’t be able to credibly make any longer is “No collusion!” Because he’s corrupt as hell!

Rudy Guiliani, came out after the story broke calling Michael Cohen “unbelievable” and “a liar.” He never said the story wasn’t true!

“Pay No Attention To The Man Behind The Curtain,” It Was Just Me!

President Trump read some words to the press this afternoon. It can’t be called a press conference as no questions were allowed. He read from a script, probably written by someone else to keep his own words from the public.

Trump gave a glowing summary of the last week during which he claimed he raised “hundreds of millions” for NATO and everyone was pleased. He didn’t insult anyone like he did Angela Merkel when she was out of the room. He met with the Prime Minister of Great Britain and they got along famously (Trump tried his best to oust her from the government in a newspaper interview with one of Rupert Murdoch’s papers). The closest he came to telling the truth was when he mentioned he and the Queen of England walked in front of her honor guard. More accurately he stepped in front of the 92-year-old Queen, showing he has no respect for anyone or anything.

He finally came to his closed-door meeting in Helsinki with Russian President Vladimir Putin, claiming they resolved most of the problems of the world. They jointly stepped in front of press microphones and Trump claimed the Mueller investigation is “a witch hunt,” and of course, “there is no collusion.” Trump let us know Putin “strongly denied” meddling in the US Elections. And that Trump, “didn’t know why they would.”

In today’s “clarification,” Trump tried to say after reviewing the transcript and watching the video, he meant to say he “didn’t know why they wouldn’t.” And added for effect, it’s what you call a double-negative. To believe his new version, we would have to disregard everything he’s both said and failed to say about Putin and Russia since his campaign began. Even when he grudgingly acknowledged Russia did “attempt to meddle” in our elections. He couldn’t help but add, “it could have been others as well.”

When the statement ended, someone shouted three times, “Will you publicly condemn Putin?” Trump thanked everyone for coming and slinked away. It’s increasingly clear, that while Trump is publicly the President, Putin is the man behind the curtain pulling the strings.

Donald Trump And The Harry T. Upshaw Defense

Harry T. Upshaw (the T is for Tyrone) is a long time friend of mine. From time to time he would have the occasion to make the following statement, “If you didn’t put your hand on my shoulder while I was doing it… it wasn’t me!” His theory was that no matter the allegation, however strong the proof. If you weren’t an actual eyewitness that got his confirmation at the time that you saw him doing what he was doing, he would deny it. Donald Trump is doing his best imitation of Harry T. Upshaw after his meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Trump is still unable to admit that Russians, under the direction of Putin, interfered in the 2016 Presidential Election. Last Friday, his own Justice Department issued 12 more indictments against Russian military officers containing extraordinary detail. It listed the twelve Russian officers by name, down to the level of which computer they used while transmitting funds or creating personas or coordinating with unnamed Americans to influence the results. Trump was briefed in advance about the pending indictments and still went out of his way to call the ongoing Special Counsel Investigation, “a witch hunt.”

Immediately after the press conference in Helsinki where Trump threw his own Intelligence Agencies under the bus, saying he had no reason not to believe Putin’s denials. He also managed to say the words, “No Collusion” several times as if each subsequent repetition made it more believable. Not long afterward, a Russian woman, Maria Butina, was arrested in the United States with a new indictment spelling out her attempts to influence Republicans and funneling money through the National Rifle Association (NRA). The indictment refers to several unnamed Americans and represents the definition of collusion.

Trump’s lies were never credible before, they were just something someone who believed in his agenda could hang their hat on as they ignored his words and deeds. We are now witnessing treason right before our eyes. Back to Harry Upshaw, that defense of his only worked if someone was willing to let it go. The question is, will the American public and in particular, the Republican Congress who thus far has been aiding and abetting, finally put their collective hand on Trump’s shoulder and remove him from office. The other option is to let Russia continue to call the shots.

 

Why The Open Supreme Court Seat Gives Democrats A Better Chance At The Senate

In a bombshell announcement, Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy said he was retiring from the Supreme Court. There had long been speculation he’d retire, his wife allegedly wanted him to retire. He will turn 82-years-old in July. Without meaning to disparage, he was old and tired and that was reflected in this last session where he seemingly rolled over and let the partisan right-wingers have their way. Even his concurring opinion in support of Trump’s “Travel Ban,” a meager 1 and 1/2 pages indicated his effort was gone. Kennedy had apparently retired long before his announcement.

Immediately, Trump, McConnell, and many top Republicans started drooling at the thought of what they could do with an untouchable partisan majority once they inserted another like-minded Justice to serve 30-40 years or more on the bench. They could undo Roe v. Wade, outlaw gay marriage and eliminate Affirmative Action. Planned Parenthood… gone! This most recent session gave us a glimpse as to what the new SCOTUS would look like. They approved a “Travel Ban” which was an ill-disguised Muslim Ban in its third iteration, they severely wounded public unions by eliminating their ability to collect dues from all workers they were required to represent. They looked the other way on “Partisan Gerrymandering” which in most cases is “Racial Gerrymandering” by another name. Out of the other side of their mouth, they said; “Racial Gerrymandering” is bad and rejected the Texas version of it, The new Court, not much different than the current one, will take away rights from women, gays, minorities, workers, and students. We don’t have to guess at their intentions, they are happy to tell us who they are and what they plan. And that will be their undoing.

While the Democrat Party has mostly been a pushover in times like these. Even the initial comments from the elected leaders are focusing on Republicans not “being fair” when not applying the same standard about holding confirmation hearings so close to an important election. Frankly, they sound like they’re whining and when Mitch McConnell points out that “Mid-Terms are different than a Presidential election,” he’s right. The same President will be in place before and after the election and would be in no way compelled to consider any result of the election when making his appointment and sending him/her to the Senate for confirmation. A far more compelling argument is that the current President is a target of an investigation and has a conflict of interest in appointing a Justice that might ultimately hear his case. Another possibility is that he’s demonstrated an unusual deference to the Russians he may or may not have conspired with, we should wait for the investigation to be concluded before possibly letting Vladimir Putin select our next Supreme Court Justice.

But it won’t be Democrat leaders who carry the fray, it will be the people. It will be the women, even many of the 53% of white women who voted for the serial sexual harasser, pussy grabbing adulterer that didn’t give them pause earlier. They will recognize that killing Planned Parenthood not only limits options for abortion but takes away the only source of Healthcare for an astonishing number of women, particularly in rural areas. The LGBTQ community will be reinforced in the knowledge that their hard-fought rights, many decided on the swing vote of Anthony Kennedy, are in jeopardy. Any Black people who hadn’t yet decided what it was they had to lose under a Trump administration will have noticed Trump and Jeff Sessions bringing back mass incarceration and expanding voter suppression. Hispanic voters will have noticed people that look like them having their children separated from their parents, some likely to never see them again. Muslim voters are now more than an ocean away from friends and relatives, they are separated by laws no less racially based that those that interred the Japanese during World War II while Germans and Italians with whom we were also at war, were affected in much smaller percentages. Young people will see that individual rights have been pushed aside for corporate rights and that they are doing worse than their parents as a result.

At Planned Parenthood, phones are already ringing off the hook because the man who promised he’d make overturning Roe v. Wade a litmus test when selecting a Justice, is preparing to do it again. He lived up to his promise on his first choice, Neil Gorsuch, and will no doubt do the same on his second. Hispanics who have traditionally not turned out at the polls in representative numbers will be there, perhaps remembering the cries of the children, calling for their mothers. Reliable Black people will be there again, hoping to get in line next to someone wearing a MAGA hat. Muslims will turn out, Native-Americans who don’t see the humor in “Pocahontas” being used to ridicule Elizabeth Warren about her lineage. And then the women, some of whom stood by while Republicans came for all the other groups, now see that Trump, and the Republican Party, have come for them.

While Democrat leaders are calling on deaf ears for “fairness.” Americans are mobilizing against a Court and a Republican Party gone too far. These will be votes against the Republicans as opposed to for Democrats and Democrats would do well to start standing for something as opposed to only being against Trump. Democrats and even the people may not be able to stave off the confirmation of the type of Justice many of us fear. They can take back control of the House and Senate and begin to legislate fixes instead of not doing their job which has been true for the past two decades.

The Democrat Party has an excellent chance to re-take the House of Representatives and in what originally looked like dire straits, have a better chance than before of controlling the Senate as well. In a new day without the filibuster. They can perhaps pay less heed to civility and more to the people. It will require less whining and more organizing. The upcoming elections will be won by getting out the vote and the people have been energized to a level not seen before. The leaders of the Democrat Party need to lead or get out of the way because the people are coming.

How “Shithole Countries” Organized A Trade War And Brought Trump To His Knees

Their covert communications were never intercepted because the CIA, FBI, NSA et. al., were never looking in their direction. The target date was September 1st, late enough in the United States growing season that they’d have no chance to respond. They gave no notice, sending out a tweet on August 31st announcing their 100% export tariffs/duties on all goods from their countries going to the US. Half of America was confused, not recognizing that America even bought goods from those countries, some the same names as those whose children we were separating children from their parents at the border. Guatemala and Honduras were on the list. Peru, Chile, and Mexico participating as well. Costa Rica had joined in along with several African countries. Trump immediately responded with a tweet, “Shithole countrees think they can mess with the US? We don’t need their goods or there people! MAGA!” The countries raised the export taxes to 200%… it was on.

August 31st was a Friday and the announcement came after most in the White House has gone home. Chief of Staff John Kelly was still there, working on the same plan he’d been refining for a year. How to quit and retain his honor if Trump did just “one more thing.” The problem was his honor was lost long ago. He still dreamed though. An aide showed him the tweet and he ignored it to go home for the weekend. He told the aide, “Let someone else worry about it.”

Grocery stores were the first to understand the significance of the export taxes. They were at the end of the US growing season. Much of their fruits and produce was already coming from those countries; cantaloupe, honeydew, watermelons, bananas, grapes, peppers, and more. Jewelers recognized how much of their diamond and gold supply came from Africa. Egyptian Cotton had long been branded as the world’s best, now all these things had tripled in price. The stores all raised their prices at least double while simutaneously cutting their profit margins. They called their trade groups, Congressmen and lobbyists. They demanded action, this cannot stand!

No one in the Administration even knew who to talk to on the other side? Most of their embassies were unstaffed. John Bolton wanted to bomb someone and Mike Pompeo had no contacts. The countries hadn’t even issued any demands or contact information. Their only line of communication was through Twitter where any negotiations would have to be conducted in public. Finally, they picked Jared Kushner to respond with a reply, “What do you want?”

The response came a few hours later, “What is your plan to reunite the families you separated?” This set off some scrambling in the White House and three hours later a meeting with Trump in the Oval Office was held. Trump asked, “So what is our plan?” Sarah Huckabee Sanders said, “Don’t you think it’s a little late to be asking that? This was your idea. You’ve had me saying for three months we know where every child and parent is, do we?” Trump looked at Jeff Sessions, “Do we?” Sessions said, “I think HHS has control of the lists?”  Trump asked, “Where’s Alex Azar?” John Kelly said, “He quit twenty minutes ago, matter of fact, I’m out the door too. I can’t think of a better time.” Kelly turned and left the room, slamming the door behind. Sarah Sanders said, “How am I supposed to explain this to the press?” Trump said, “Just make something up… you always do.”

Across America, grocery prices had gone up an average of 30%, stores which operated on thin margins anyway were now losing money because of their increased shrinkage from throwing away out of date product they miscalculated people would buy at higher prices. Mexican Restaurants were shutting down which got the attention of Homeland Security chief Kirstjen Nielsen and Sr. Advisor Stephen Miller who frequently dined at Mexican restraunts on days they’d been especially cruel to Mexicans and those who looked like them. Unexpectedly, the NRA was hearing from its members that gun sales were way down. It seems even the drug cartels and gangs south of the border had stopped buying guns at gun shows, utilizing the loopholes Congress would never close. Even the drug lords were upset at the way the children were treated at the border and agreed to stop their purchased until this matter was concluded.

The NRA applied pressure to all the members of Congress they owned which was basically all of them, they demanded an immediate end to the export taxes, but no one knew what the countries wanted yet? Mid-terms were approaching and all the backlash was accruing to the Republicans who supported Trump or said nothing when the children started being taken away. The menu at Mar-a-Lago had been decimated, most of the fruit and vegetable dishes were no longer offered along with the some of the steaks. Trophy wives were upset about the lack of diamonds and gold suddenly, they didn’t sign on to be team players, their expectation was they’d get paid, so they cut off their husbands, adding more pressure to the situation.

Trump’s approval rating was down to 18% among all Americans yet surprisingly still hovering at 77% among Republicans. That figure was misleading because over half the party had now left and become Independents or Democrats but the remaining ones were still loyal. Trump himself finally tweeted, “What du you want?” The reply came immediately, “1. Reunification of all the children taken from their parents 2. Removal of any tariffs introduced since you’ve been President 3. Fire Stephen Miller 4. Resign or be Impeached?

All of Congress had read the exchange and internal huddling indicated Impeachment would be no problem, the NRA had given them the green light. Mitch McConnell made the trip to the Oval Office to tell Trump he couldn’t survive an Impeachment vote. Trump… broken and bowed, acknowledged he had no choice and agreed to all the demands. He fired Miller first whom he blamed for all his racist policies, although he’d harbored them himself all his life. The tariffs were renounced by tweet, the process of reuniting children began although the ultimate success was unclear as they had no idea how to connect several of the families. Further negotiations indicated the demand would be considered met after 90% of the families were reunited with clearly outlined plans to keep working on the rest. Talks almost broke down when Trump admitted “a few children had died while in custody.” An agreement was made that no pardons would be issued for the rest of Trump’s term and no future President could pardon Trump or his staff or the export taxes would resume. Also, because Trump often lied, Impeachment proceedings began in the House of Representatives, giving Trump some impetus so he could quit rather than be dragged out.

A month later, people were eating their fruit salads, bananas and the East Coast had pineapple again. Mar-a-Lago was closed and up for sale. It seems for the first time in a while, no Russians were lining up to buy a Trump property. The entire Cabinet resigned along with Trump, Gary Pruitt, and Wilbur Ross were both arrested on the White House steps on a variety of charges. Indictments came down for Erik Prince, Donald Trump Jr, Jared Kushner, Jeff Sessions and since he was no longer President, Donald Trump as well. Contracts were signed with Court TV and The Comedy Channel to televise all the trials. Most of the families were reunited and the US had agreed to provide counseling as needed which was in every case. Because the countries south of the border had learned to utilize each other’s goods and services and not depend on the United States, their economies improved and the US started experiencing negative immigration as people returned to their countries. The cartels and gangs had engaged in discussions with their countries leaders and stopped persecuting the people The cartels went into agribusiness of legal crops. The gangs became the primary work force and took up agriculture somewhat grudgingly. The pay was much less but they had a higher life expectancy so there’s that.

As for Trump himself, he was convicted of multiple financial crimes including money laundering, fraud, insider trading, and FEC violations. Charges were still pending related to Conspiracy but the list of people that have flipped on him included his sons (including Barron), Melania (who revealed her marriage to Trump was fake because she was already married at the time). After Melania testified, she told reporters, “I told you I reaqlly dont care!”  Ivanka and Jared testified against Trump for reduced sentences, it seems she was complicit in everything after all. Trump was sent to a Federal Prison in New Jersey which had a golf course, but part of his sentence was that he not be allowed to play. Mike Pence was also found guilty of gross negligence and conspiracy and forced to resign. Republicans lost both the House and Senate in the mid-terms. Democrats promised to keep a strict rein on new President Mike Pompeo who was a lame duck from the beginning having promised not to run. Paul Ryan had declined to accept the Presidency as he was next in line after Pence, probably because he knew of pending charges against himself. A final tweet was issued from the Twitter account registered to the shithole countries, “Don’t start none won’t be none!”

 

I Beg Your Pardon… Dad

“So Dad, if I get indicted for some of the stuff I did for you, will pardon me?”

“It’s not as simple as that Junior. If I pardon you, my lawyers tell me it will almost certainly lead to impeachment against me? It will look like obstruction.”

“But I was doing what you told me to do?”

“I know son… it’s complicated. Just believe I know what’s best.”

“I’ve heard you say the same things to Paul and now he’s in jail?”

“You’re different, you’re my son, I’d never let you down.”

“You once practically disowned me, you didn’t speak to me for a few years.”

“You started it.”

“I was a kid, and you were blasting my mother in the tabloids during your divorce.”

“That was just tough negotiating, I had to get the alimony down.”

“Because your kids might have too much stuff?”

“No, because your mother doesn’t have the head to manage so much money.”

“So it was for her own good?”

“Right”

“So what about my pardon?”

“I told you it’s complicated.”

“You pardoned fucking Joe Arpaio and won’t pardon your own son?”

“Did you do it?”

“I didn’t write that letter you dictated on Air Force One. I just stuck to the story you made up. Now I’m about to be charged with lying to the FBI.”

“You should never lie to the FBI. You should have just done like me and refused to talk to them.”

“All of us don’t have that option.”

“I’ve screwed up my life trying to support you.”

“I didn’t tell you to mess up your marriage by having an affair with that woman from The Apprentice. I told you to ‘cut it out’ as a matter of fact.”

“Oh, do as I say and not as I do! Your whole life has been an example to me.”

“I think you’d better watch your tone, son.”

“Or what? You won’t pardon me?

“Pretty much.”

“Good talk dad.”

 

Paul Manafort Goes To Jail

Paul Manafort has a certain sense of style, his fashion sense might not be for everyone, but records show he paid $849,215 to a men’s clothing store in New York. He paid New York tailor Eugene Venanzi almost $100,000 on items including two sports coats made of silk and custom cashmere at $8,500 each, along with several $7,000 suits. Over six years he paid $520,440 to a Beverly Hills clothing store. In his several court visits, he was always well-groomed and properly accessorized. As of today, he’s forsaking his tailored suits for a prison uniform as a Federal Judge ordered him jailed while awaiting trial based on his attempts to contact and influence witnesses. At 69-years-old, Manafort likely hadn’t anticipated going to jail at this point in his career for even a brief time. He may now never see another day of freedom, based on the average sentences for the crimes he has been charged with by Special Counsel Robert Mueller.

The additional charges against Manafort, which led to his jailing. Have no doubt sent shock waves through the remaining uncooperating witnesses, not yet giving Mueller what he needs? Michael Cohen must be feeling increased pressure to sell out the President. Manafort may decide that real jail wields far more influence than a potential pardon. Until now Manafort has been inconvenienced, house arrest and occasional trips to court… two ankle bracelets. Now he has to worry about dropping the soap in the shower? That’s a whole different scenario.

Michael Cohen has told friends he feels like he’ll be arrested in the near future. Rumors are circulating that Mueller will announce a new round of indictments so as not to be too close to the mid-term elections. Donald Trump Jr… are you ready? Jared Kushner? For all those for whom potential charges were just a mental exercise, shit just got real!