Quinnipiac Poll: Support for witnesses in Senate trial at 75 percent / McConnell doesn’t have the votes

Mod: These aren't the kinds of things we were hearing two weeks ago. Trump has got to be losing his Ritalin riddled mind.

Support for witnesses in Senate trial at 75 percent: poll (The Hill link): A large majority of voters say the Senate should allow witnesses to testify during President Trump's impeachment trial, according to a poll from Quinnipiac University. Of those surveyed, 75 percent said they think that witnesses should be allowed to testify in the trial. Along party lines, 49 percent of respondents who identified as Republicans said that they thought there should be witness testimony while 95 percent of Democrats and 75 percent of independents said the same.

The growing call for witnesses from Democrats has hit a fever pitch following a New York Times report on former national security adviser John Bolton's book manuscript in which he says the president told him not to release military aid to Ukraine unless Kyiv investigated his political rivals.

McConnell Says GOP Doesn’t Yet Have Votes to Block New Evidence From Trump Trial (US News & World Report link): Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell told his party during a private conference meeting Tuesday that he didn't yet have the votes to block new witnesses and documents from the Senate impeachment trial of President Trump, according to multiple reports.

The disclosure capped a meeting in which Senate Republicans emerged with no apparent resolution on whether to allow additional evidence during the trial after Trump's legal team urged lawmakers to move toward a speedy acquittal. The Kentucky Republican needs 51 senators to block Democrats' request for new witnesses and documents. Republicans remain hopeful they'll secure the votes especially since no GOP member has committed to supporting such a measure, though a few have hinted that they are open to it.

sierrramadretattler.blogspot.com

Clowns Shoot Self: 'Bolton book leaked after the White House made copies of the single manuscript they were given'

Mod: The clown show that is the Trump administration did it to themselves. 

Bolton book leaked after the White House made copies of the single manuscript they were given: report (Raw Story link): More details are emerging as to how The New York Times obtained a manuscript of John Bolton’s upcoming book The Room Where it Happened. NBC News correspondent Carol Lee reported Monday that one copy of Bolton’s manuscript was given to the White House — where copies were made.

Bolton reportedly believes that “the process was corrupted” by the administration.

“So it suggests that there are multiple copies floating around, and from the Bolton team’s perspective, they’re saying we gave them one copy — what they did with it, we don’t know, but clearly it’s gotten out there and it’s not coming from us,” Lee reported. “They really want to distance themselves from the idea that he is somehow behind leaking this.”

Also on Monday, Bolton, his literary agent and publisher put out a joint statement denying any involvement in the media obtaining the manuscript. “There was absolutely no coordination with The New York Times or anyone else regarding the appearance of information about his book, ‘The Room Where It Happened,’ at online booksellers,” the statement read. “Any assertion to the contrary is unfounded speculation.”

Dean Baquet, the executive editor of The New York Times also put out a statement. He noted that, “The Times does not discuss its sources, but I should point out that no one has questioned the accuracy of our report.”

Mitch McConnell is angry at White House over John Bolton manuscript, report says (Louisville Courier Journal link): Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell did not know that President Donald Trump's administration had a copy of an explosive manuscript by ex-national security adviser John Bolton, a spokesman said. And Kentucky's longtime senator, who has said he's in "total coordination" with the White House on the impeachment trial, reportedly isn't happy.

The New York Times reported Sunday that in his upcoming book, Bolton says Trump told him he did not want to release military aid to Ukraine until that country helped with investigations that could damage Democrats, including former Vice President Joe Biden.

Bolton's lawyer, Charles J. Cooper, told The Times he provided a copy of the book to the Trump administration on Dec. 30 to be reviewed for classified information.

A McConnell spokesman told The Courier Journal on Monday that the Senate majority leader "did not have any advance notice" that the National Security Council reportedly had a copy of Bolton's manuscript for weeks. McConnell was among the Senate Republicans who were "angry at the White House" over the revelations about Bolton's manuscript, according to The Times.

sierramadretattler.blogspot.com

Fox News poll delivers devastating news to Trump on impeachment

Mod: Remember, this Fox poll was done before John Bolton dropped his two ton dime on the Tangerine Traitor. Perfectly timed, things are now only going to get worse for Donny.

Fox News poll delivers devastating news to Trump on impeachment (Raw Story link): According to a new Fox News poll released on Sunday morning, a clear majority of respondents — beyond the margin of error — believe Donald Trump should be convicted by the U.S. Senate for impeachable crimes and removed from office.

According to the poll, “On impeachment, by a 50-44 percent margin, voters think the Senate should vote to convict Trump and remove him from office. Most Democrats say remove (81 percent) and most Republicans disagree (84 percent). Among independents, more say Trump should be removed by a 19-point margin (53-34 percent).”

Most Republicans rate the economy positively (85 percent excellent or good) and are satisfied with the direction of the country (75 percent),” Fox reports. “Most Democrats (82 percent) are unhappy with the way things are going and give the economy negative ratings (68 percent fair or poor). Smaller majorities of independents are dissatisfied (60 percent) and say the economy is in negative shape (52 percent).”

According to Democratic pollster Chris Anderson, who worked with his re Republican counterpart on the poll, ““Trump’s approval on the economy is up, but this is tenuous ground on which to stake his re-election, because even though most think economic conditions are good, a majority also believes the economy is unfair. Outside the Republican base, voters think the economy under Trump doesn’t work for most people.”

Trump Tied Ukraine Aid to Inquiries He Sought, Bolton Book Says (The New York Times link): President Trump told his national security adviser in August that he wanted to continue freezing $391 million in security assistance to Ukraine until officials there helped with investigations into Democrats including the Bidens, according to an unpublished manuscript by the former adviser, John R. Bolton.

The president’s statement as described by Mr. Bolton could undercut a key element of his impeachment defense: that the holdup in aid was separate from Mr. Trump’s requests that Ukraine announce investigations into his perceived enemies, including former Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr. and his son Hunter Biden, who had worked for a Ukrainian energy firm while his father was in office.

Mr. Bolton’s explosive account of the matter at the center of Mr. Trump’s impeachment trial, the third in American history, was included in drafts of a manuscript he has circulated in recent weeks to close associates. He also sent a draft to the White House for a standard review process for some current and former administration officials who write books.

sierramadretattler.blogspot.com

Ivanka Trump Whines in Davos: ‘I Gave Up My Life to Move to Washington DC to Help Americans’

Mod: Please, Ivanka. You can take your stupid life back and leave America alone. It is the best thing you can do.

Ivanka Trump Whines in Davos: ‘I Gave Up My Life to Move to Washington DC to Help Americans’ (Political Flare link): This is stunning, even for her, who is always stunning in her vaporous way. Ivanka, who has never sacrificed a thing in her life, earning an estimated $80 million last year, based upon half her genome and proximity to power, wants you to know she gave up her life for you, the American people. The New York Times reports:

"I gave up my life to move to Washington to try to help Americans, and I’m proud of what we’ve been able to accomplish.”

Jesus Christ throwing chairs and tables at Davos, this woman is more impressed with herself than the rest of the world (including Dad) is impressed with her, combined.

I could write a dissertation on all that’s wrong with Ivanka having a White House position, attending Davos on the government dime, with her believing she’s qualified to discuss anything, or actively engage in any policy position, but I wouldn’t come up with anything that you either don’t already know, or recognize as obvious the moment you read it. Therefore, we’ll just leave it at this: The only thing Ivanka has given up in her life is her conscience, her empathy, and all but about 50 dangling IQ points.

Senate To Be Replaced With Room Full Of Monkeys Throwing Feces (Babylon Bee link): In an emergency, overnight referendum, the American people voted on Thursday to replace the United States Senate with a room full of monkeys throwing feces. The measure passed with 57% of the vote. 22% of voters thought the Senate should be replaced by barking seals, while 17% voted that the replacement should be the pit of venomous snakes from Indiana Jones.

3.97% voted that Senate members be replaced by screaming goats. "About 100 people" voted for the current Senators to keep their jobs, with this tiny voting bloc centered in Washington, D.C.

sierramadretattler.blogspot.com

Putin's Poodles: Trump’s Lawyer Pushes Russian Propaganda As Impeachment Defense

Mod: It is obvious that Putin and the Russian mob control the majority party in the United States Senate. 

Trump’s Lawyer Pushes Russian Propaganda As Impeachment Defense (PoliticusUSA link): Trump lawyer Mike Purpura argued, “President Trump then turned to corruption in the form of foreign interference in the 2016 presidential election. There is absolutely nothing wrong with asking a foreign leader to help get to the bottom of all forms of foreign interference in an American presidential election.”

Purpura was pushing the Crowdstrike conspiracy theory that was widely debunked by witnesses at the House impeachment investigation. The president’s own lawyer is admitting that the basis for extorting Ukraine was a Russian conspiracy theory that it was Ukraine who really interfered in the 2016 election to help Hillary Clinton.

Sen. Mark Warner warned that Trump and Giuliani are potentially being manipulated by Russian propaganda, and that same propaganda has found its way into Trump’s impeachment defense. Trump and his legal team are using the impeachment trial to push Russian misinformation to the American people. Even when he is defending himself at an impeachment trial, Donald Trump continues to push Putin’s agenda.

sierramadretattler.blogspot.com

"Take Her Out" - Was Donald Trump ordering that Marie Yovanovitch be fired? Or was he calling for a hit?

Mod: What is described in the CNBC article here is being interpreted throughout the media as Trump ordering Yovanovitch be fired. But as you can clearly see by Kaivan Shroff's tweet below, there is another, and far deadlier, interpretation of what the Orange Don might have actually preferred. Her death.

‘Take her out’ — Trump reportedly caught on tape ordering the removal of Ukraine ambassador (CNBC link): A newly surfaced recording contains audio of President Donald Trump demanding that former U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine Marie Yovanovitch be fired, ABC News reported Friday.

“Get rid of her!” Trump reportedly said of Yovanovitch, during a small dinner in April 2018 that was attended by Lev Parnas and Igor Fruman, two associates of Trump’s personal lawyer, Rudy Giuliani, who were deeply involved in the covert campaign to remove the ambassador from her post.

“Get her out tomorrow. I don’t care. Get her out tomorrow. Take her out. Okay? Do it,” Trump can reportedly be heard saying on the tape.  

But Parnas’ lawyer told The Daily Beast on Friday that Fruman made the recording on April 30, 2018, and that Parnas had heard it, but never had possession of it. Parnas and Fruman were both arrested in October of last year and charged with campaign finance violations.

A copy of the recording is in the custody of federal prosecutors in the Southern District of New York, where Fruman and Parnas were charged, ABC reported. A spokesman for the Southern District declined CNBC’s request for comment. A lawyer for Fruman did not respond to a request for comment, and Parnas’ lawyer, Joe Bondy, confirmed that the tape did not come from Parnas.

The two Giuliani associates had spent part of the dinner repeating a rumor to Trump, that Yovanovitch had been bad-mouthing him, ABC reported. In the past, the president has responded sharply when he feels people have betrayed him, and his response here, according to the ABC report, would seem to fit with this pattern.

Mod: Trump, of course, never met Parnas or Fruman. Or so he says.

sierramadretattler.blogspot.com

What percentage of Trump's senior supporters will die after he terminates their Medicare?

Mod: An unhappy situation that supplies the phrase "too stupid to live" with an entirely new level of meaning.

A more traditonal provider

Trump now says he's open to entitlement cuts, including Medicare (CNN link): President Donald Trump signaled this week that he's open to cutting federal entitlements to reduce the federal deficit, despite previously campaigning on protecting Medicare and Social Security.

Asked by CNBC at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, whether entitlements would ever be on his plate, Trump responded, "At some point they will be."

"We have tremendous growth. We're going to have tremendous growth. This next year I -- it'll be toward the end of the year. The growth is going to be incredible. And at the right time, we will take a look at that," he added.

Asked by CNBC whether he was willing "to do some of the things that you said you wouldn't do in the past, though, in terms of Medicare," Trump said: "We're going look. I mean we've never had growth like this. We never had a consumer that was taking in, through -- different means, over $10,000 a family."

During the 2016 campaign, Trump said he wouldn't have to touch Social Security because his plan to boost economic growth to at least 4% would take care of the entitlement's long-term problems.

Social Security is one of the most popular government programs across party lines, along with Medicare. The issue is sure to be a top political issue in the 2020 general election campaign -- and it's even emerging as a heated talking point in the Democratic primary.

sierramadretattler.blogspot.com

71% of Republicans Want Mitch McConnell to Call Witnesses at Trump Impeachment Trial

Mod: Of course, that 71% are just your regular man in the street GOPs. Those Republican gentlemen seated upon vast golden asses in the Senate sold out their manhood for a bag of rubles years ago and don't vote American. 

71% of Republicans Want Mitch McConnell to Call Witnesses at Trump Impeachment Trial, New Poll Shows (Newsweek link): About 71 percent of Republicans believe that Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell should call witnesses during President Donald Trump's impeachment trial, a new survey showed.

SurveyUSA asked 4,096 registered voters whether witnesses with firsthand knowledge should be allowed to testify, with 71 percent of Republicans, 93 percent of Democrats, and 81 percent of Independents saying witnesses should be allowed to testify.

Only 15 percent of Republicans said that they should not be allowed to testify, while 4 percent of Democrats, and 7 percent of Independents said they shouldn't. Only 3 percent of Democrats were unsure, with 12 percent of Independents and 14 percent of Republicans answering not sure.

McConnell released a resolution outlining a plan for Trump's impeachment trial late Monday night that did not guarantee witness testimony. Earlier in January, McConnell said he planned to follow a similar model to that of President Bill Clinton's impeachment trial.

"What was good enough for President Clinton is good enough for President Trump," McConnell said, according to The New York Times. McConnell's office did not immediately respond to Newsweek's request for comment.  

sierramadretattler.blogspot.com

#GOPCoverup trends on Twitter as Senate Republicans are blasted for ‘sham’ impeachment trial

Mod: Apparently the GOP Senate majority lives in a different reality. Here on the planet floor people are saying very different things about what  is going on in Washington.

#GOPCoverup trends on Twitter as Senate Republicans are blasted for ‘sham’ impeachment trial (Raw Story link): Senate Republicans were blasted for repeatedly voting against documents and witnesses in President Donald Trump’s impeachment trial.

Multiple vulnerable Senate Republicans will face voters in 2020, including Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) himself, Sen. Joni Ernst (R-IA), Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME), Sen. Martha McSally (R-AZ), Sen. Cory Gardner (R-CO), Sen. Thom Tillis (R-NC), Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX), Sen. Steve Daines (R-MT) and Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC).

The hashtag #GOPCoverup trended nationally on Twitter on Tuesday. Here’s some of what people were saying:

David Leavitt ✔ @David_Leavitt
 Every single @GOP senator who is complicit with the #GOPCoverup in this #ImpeachmentTrial needs to be voted out of public office. @realDonaldTrump is not above the law.

Lesley Abravanel🆘@lesleyabravanel
They're practically harboring a fugitive. #GOPCoverup

BrooklynDad_Defiant!@mmpadellan
Imagine being so *innocent* you:
- Block all the witnesses
- Block all the documents
- Refuse to testify
- Try to get the trial dismissed
- LIE about knowing a guy you're in DOZENS of pictures with
- Force GOP Senators to hold a #coverup trial
... Just imagine.

Glenn Kirschner@glennkirschner2
Every Senator knows in his or her heart that the president is guilty of both articles of impeachment, is entirely unfit to serve and should be removed from office. Let’s hope that enough senators can muster the courage, decency and patriotism to do right by the American people.

Rob Reiner @robreiner
There is no question: This President has committed Constitutional Crimes. And 53 Republican Senators are more than happy to Aid & Abet those Crimes.

Jennifer Rubin@JRubinBlogger
Trump and McConnell can rig an acquittal but it will deny him exoneration in the eyes of those 69% who expect witnesses. And Sens who vote for hiding witnesses will be laughingstocks.

Rick Wilson@TheRickWilson
I'll summarize this for the slow learners in the Senate one last time:
- Your protestations of independence, integrity, and honor will mean nothing to the voters this Fall. Nothing.
- You're going to moo and walk into the chute like cattle, terrified of Trump and Mitch.

Mod: There is a lot more like this at the link.

sierramadretattler.blogspot.com

More people want Trump gone: 'CNN poll: 51% say Senate should remove Trump from office'

Mod: The big day has arrived. And while the Screaming Orange, Moscow Mitch, Leningrad Lindsay and the rest of the turncoats might wish impeachment would somehow just go away, out in the real world folks see things differently.

CNN poll: 51% say Senate should remove Trump from office (CNN Politics link): About half of Americans say the Senate should vote to convict President Donald Trump and remove him from office in the upcoming impeachment trial (51%), according to a new CNN poll conducted by SSRS, while 45% say the Senate should vote against conviction and removal.

Nearly seven in 10 (69%) say that upcoming trial should feature testimony from new witnesses who did not testify in the House impeachment inquiry. And as Democrats in the Senate seek to persuade at least four Republican senators to join them on votes over allowing witnesses in the trial, the Republican rank and file are divided on the question: 48% say they want new witnesses, while 44% say they do not.

The poll is the first major national telephone poll since the articles of impeachment were sent to the Senate, formally launching Trump's trial there. They are also the first such poll results since Soviet-born businessman Lev Parnas, an associate of Trump's attorney Rudy Giuliani, publicly implicated the President in the Ukrainian pressure campaign during a series of television interviews.

The new poll also finds majorities of Americans view each of the charges on which Trump will face trial as true: 58% say Trump abused the power of the presidency to obtain an improper personal political benefit and 57% say it is true that he obstructed the House of Representatives in its impeachment inquiry.

The poll finds a decline in the share who say the ongoing impeachment proceedings will help Trump's chances in his coming reelection bid (from 32% saying so in December to 28% now). That change comes largely from Republicans shifting to say impeachment won't make a difference for Trump's chances. In December, 54% of Republicans thought it would help him, now that figure is 46%, and the share who say it won't matter has risen to 45% from 32%.

sierramadretattler.blogspot.com

Is this what Putin has on Moscow Mitch? 'The Strange and Possibly Sordid Story of Mitch McConnell's Military Service'

Mod: Does Russian intelligence know something about Mitch McConnell that he would prefer you don't? Three articles from a number of years back could shed some light on this unpleasant matter.

McConnell's military discharge once again an election issue (McClatchy DC link): A prominent Democrat questioned Republican U.S. Sen. Mitch McConnell's military service — specifically his discharge from the Army Reserve — as McConnell launched his latest commercial Tuesday criticizing veterans' health clinics with ties to his Democratic opponent.

Democratic state Rep. Greg Stumbo, the former Kentucky attorney general, called on McConnell to release his military discharge records.

"Elections should be about informed choices. He's obviously not proud of his record, Sen. McConnell isn't, or he would have shown it by now," Stumbo said. "Something isn't correct about it that might cause a lot of people, including veterans, to take a second look at him."

What is Mitch McConnell Hiding? (Huffington Post link): Whispers about Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell’s (R-KY) military service during the Vietnam War have been floating around Washington for years and were reported in print at least as far back as two campaigns ago.

From the Kentucky Kernel of November 1, 1996, Senator’s Discharged Questioned:

A letter found in the [University of Kentucky] Library Department of Special Collections of a request from a former U.S. Senator to the then commanding general of Fort Knox created conflicting stories Thursday about the military record of Republican U. S. Sen. Mitch McConnell.

The letter was found in the personal letters of U.S. Sen. John Sherman Cooper, a Republican from Kentucky. It was written to Maj. Gen. A. D. Surles, commanding general of Fort Knox. McConnell served as an intern in Cooper’s Washington, D.C. office in summer of 1964. He was in boot camp at Ft. Knox and a member of the 100th Division of the U.S. Army Reserve.

McConnell enlisted in March of 1967 and was abruptly discharged four months later for a minor medical condition, optic neurosis. During a time of war, one might appropriately presume the armed forces would want to minimize the number of departing soldiers. Again, from the Kernel:

Dr. Mike Minix, with the department of ophthalmology at the UK Med Center, explained that optic neuritis usually affects individuals 15-45 years of age. According to Minix, the condition can usually be treated with steroids. “Within three-four weeks of having the condition, individuals will usually have their eyesight return to 20-20 vision or normal vision.” This same type of treatment would have been prescribed in 1967, although advancements have been made in the treatment of this eye condition, he said.

McConnell’s discharge was expedited by Cooper’s claim that the enlistee needed to be released quickly to attend New York University. NYU records, however, indicate that McConnell never applied to the school, and at the time of his discharge he had already earned a law degree from the University of Kentucky. Why exactly would a United States Senator write to the Commanding  General of one of the nation’s most important military installations with false information about a member of the US armed forces?

From 2008

The Strange and Possibly Sordid Story of Mitch McConnell's Military Service (Daily Kos link): I saw a tweet today that startled me:

Ohio Citizen ‏@OhioCitizen - I don't know if Judd is running but McConnell is going to have a hard time. His court martial for sodomy in 67 will be huge.

Naturally, I asked for clarification, and got this. Before seeing this tweet, I had had no idea that McConnell had ever served in the military.

The OP's speculations were summarily dismissed, but I was sufficiently intrigued to dig a little deeper. Most of the information that I found is from 2007/2008. I'm really surprised that it didn't get more press. But as a result, the information that I did find was fairly thin.

Here are the basic, very skimpy facts: Mitch McConnell was classified 2-S ("Registrant deferred due to activity in study") on August 8th, 1962, and remained as such until May 4th, 1967. Source, through HillBilly Report.

He enlisted in either March 1967 or in July 1967 and served at Fort Knox in the 100th Division (Training) of the U.S. Army Reserve until  August 15, 1967. He was assigned Selective Service number 15-131-42-44.

Hillbilly Report tried to dig into McConnell's military record as best they could. They requested his Selective Service records, and basically ran into a brick wall.

December, 2007 we submitted a request for the Selective Service Classification Records for Senator Saxby Chambliss,  Rep Tom Tancredo and Senator Mitch McConnell. When we received the Selective Service Classification Records from the Selective Service System all of the records were included with the exception of Senator Mitch McConnell's and his was an extract put together by Richard Flahavan, Associate Director for Intergovernmental Affairs. When Richard Flahavan was questioned about sending us an extract of Senator Mitch McConnell's Selective Service Classification Record, he responded in writing that " Selective Service no longer has access to Selective Service records for men born prior to 1960."  Knowing that we had already received the full Selective Service Classification Records for Senator Saxby Chambliss, Rep Tom Tancredo born in 1943 and 1945 respectively we felt that Richard Flahavan was possibly covering for Senator Mitch McConnell. In Richard Flahavan's extract he writes "the U.S. Army ordered him to undergo an Armed Forces Physical Examination which he did July 9, 1967. Apparently, he did not pass because he was released from the U.S. Army Reserve August 15, 1967." I just love that word apparently!

But as they reported, Mitch McConnell "apparently" never HAD an Armed Forces Physical Examination. According to Wikipedia,

In 1967, to gain experience on Capitol Hill, during his final semester of law school, McConnell was an intern for Senator John Sherman Cooper (R-KY).

Not coincidentally, Senator Cooper possibly created or was used as a diversion regarding any McConnell military service.

Hillbilly Report
Feb. 13, 2007
Kentucky Kernel Article, dated November 1, 1996.
Senator’s Discharge Questioned

A letter found in the UK Library Department of Special Collections of a request from a former U.S. Senator to the then commanding general of Fort Knox created conflicting stories Thursday about the military record of Republican U. S. Sen. Mitch McConnell.

The letter was found in the personal letters of U. S. Sen. John Sherman Cooper, a Republican from Kentucky. it was written to Maj. Gen. A. D. Surles, commanding general of Fort Knox. McConnell served as an intern in Coopers Washington, DC. office in summer of 1964. He was in boot camp at Ft. Knox and a member of the 100th Division of the U.S. Army Reserve.

The letter was dated August 10, 1967, during a time when U.S. troops were being sent to Vietnam for combat duty. In the letter, Cooper advises the major general that ‘Mitchell anxious to clear post in order to enroll NYU. Please advise when final action can he expected.”

According to the Registrar’s Office at New York University, no record exists that McConnell ever applied or enrolled for classes at that university. McConnell attended UK and earned a law degree in 1967 before he enlisted in the Army reserve. Senator Cooper died in 1991, at the age of 89.

Mod: All kind of speculative and even murky, but given McConnell's decidedly unpatriotic and pro-Putin actions these days, worthy of at least some further investigation. You'll just have to get around the entitled rich boy fix. There is more to be found at all three links.

sierramadretattler.blogspot.com

Trump Fan Gangsta: Kanye West-Kardashian To Headline Anti-Gay Conservative Christian Prayer Rally

Mod: Former gangsta rapper and now worshipful Trump acolyte and reality TV star Kanye West is going full MAGA. That includes publicly supporting hate groups that target minorities.

Kanye West To Headline Anti-Gay Conservative Christian Prayer Rally (Patheos link): Former rap superstar Kanye West will join prominent anti-gay, conservative Christian hate preachers as a featured headliner at “Awaken 2020” a prayer rally to be held in Arizona this weekend.

In what’s being billed as the “first epic evangelical stadium event of the decade,” West will join a collection of controversial Christian leaders who preach a message of hate and intolerance.

Complex (link) reports on the lineup of Christian hate preachers Kanye will be supporting:

The Christian gathering features a lineup of controversial religious leaders who’ve expressed anti-gay views. These figures include Cindy Jacobs, a self-proclaimed prophet who encouraged Christians to “rise up” and stop the Equality Act; Guillermo Maldonado, a Miami-based pastor who believes homosexuality is a result of “a generational curse, or even a demonic attack while in the womb;" Ché Ahn, the president of Harvest International Ministry who once compared gay rights to racist laws: “just because it’s legal does not mean that it’s right, at one time we had a law saying blacks were not citizens, that didn’t make that right”; and Lou Engle, a senior leader of the International House of Prayer who was a vocal proponent of Uganda’s “Kill the Gays” bill, and who once claimed Nazism was fueled by homosexuality. 

Kanye’s bizarre transformation from rap superstar to a hateful conservative Christian has been a disappointing and bizarre spectacle. Last October West made the ridiculous claim that God gave him a $68 million tax refund because he is now “in service to Christ.”

Previously Kanye made headlines after defending Trump and white supremacy. Last year, in a bizarre interview with TMZ, an intellectually unhinged Kanye West went on a bizarre rant, trying to justify his support for Trump, while claiming that being a slave was actually a choice. In the bizarre interview West said:

When you hear about slavery for 400 years – for 400 years? That sounds like a choice! Like, you was there for 400 years and it’s all of y’all? It’s like we’re mentally in prison. I like the word ‘prison’ because slavery goes too direct to the idea of blacks. It’s like slavery, Holocaust. Holocaust, Jews. Slavery is blacks. So, prison is something that unites us as one race. Blacks and whites being one race. We’re the human race.

As one might imagine, many people found Kanye’s remarks supporting Trump’s white supremacy, as well as his claim that slavery was a choice, to be disappointing, appalling, and profoundly ignorant.

Bottom line: Kanye West, a broken human being, and a moral failure, wants you to hate gays for Jesus. Sad!

Watch if you need a good laugh ..

link

sierramadretattler.blogspot.com

Trump Hires the Jeffrey Epstein Dream Team for His Senate Impeachment Trial Defense

Mod: I am beginning to believe that perhaps Putin has now ordered Trump to destroy the Republican Party. 

Trump Just Hired Jeffrey Epstein’s Lawyers (Daily Beast link): Donald Trump is lawyering up for his impeachment trial with a team that looks surprisingly similar to that of billionaire pedophile Jeffrey Epstein. The president bolstered his legal team Friday with attorneys Alan Dershowitz and Kenneth Starr, who helped Epstein evade prison time in a now infamously lenient plea deal with Palm Beach prosecutors.

Epstein originally faced multiple charges of soliciting and trafficking underage girls, but escaped with just 13 months of house arrest in a deal that caused Trump’s Labor Secretary Alex Acosta to resign under pressure last year.

A suit unveiled by Virgin Islands prosecutors this week alleges Epstein continued to traffic and abuse girls as young as 12 on his private islands until 2018, a decade after Starr and Dershowitz helped him walk free. Epstein died of suicide before facing trafficking charges in New York last year.

Dershowitz, who has also represented controversial celebrities like O.J. Simpson and Patty Hearst, will present oral arguments at Trump’s Senate trial, a spokesperson for the president's legal team told CNN. He previously helped negotiate the non-prosecution deal for Epstein and continued to represent him until at least December 2018. He was also accused of sexually abusing one of Epstein’s victims, Virginia Roberts Giuffre. Dershowtiz has denied the allegation.

Starr is known for leading the investigation into former President Bill Clinton, a man with his own Epstein ties, that ultimately ended in the president’s impeachment. Starr joined Epstein’s defense team in 2007, as the disgraced billionaire was facing possible federal charges. He has since defended the actions of Acosta, the Palm Beach prosecutor at the time, saying he “play[ed] tough” with the defense team in negotiations.

Trump also added Robert Ray, Starr's successor at the Office of Independent Counsel, to his legal team Friday. His defense is currently being led by White House counsel Pat Cipollone and his personal attorney Jay Sekulow.

The president has his own ties to Epstein, who was seen partying and socializing with Trump at Mar-a-Lago as recently as 2000. Trump previously called Epstein a “terrific guy,” but has since claimed he “wasn’t a fan” of the convicted sex offender. His attorney general, William Barr— whose own father was Epstein’s boss at Dalton—is now investigating the circumstances around Epstein’s suicide.

sierramadretattler.blogspot.com

Friday Day Off

Back tomorrow.