We respond…
I neither need — nor want — to say much of anything more about it.
Tonight’s SOTU led John to say that “…Democratic women are infesting the House chamber, dressed in white.…”
Of course, they are all right honorable elected officials — as contemplated by the terms of Article I. And they wore white to honor suffragettes… since Trump threatens women’s rights regularly.
But to John — they are… cockroaches.
He is therefore… officially — a knuckle-walking simp.
And 45 is a feckless dotard.
This evening (after a dawn arrest raid that netted Roger Stone, Trump’s 2016 guy for the WikiLeaks affair surrounding filched HRC and DNC emails), John Hinderaker was mostly incensed NOT that Stone allegedly trafficked in conspiracy laden felonies, against the integrity of our experiment in democracy…
But rather — he was incensed that FBI agents (working a very dangerous job for no pay — with aplomb and restraint) wore tactical gear, and came well armed to Stone’s Florida compound, pre-daylight.
John specifically saw “no reason” for this — calling it “disgraceful theatrics“… but even a quick look (by John, at Google) would have turned up multiple news reports in which Mr. Stone brags about always being “well-armed” at home. The same cursory Google searches turn up multiple accounts of Stone’s notoriously explosive — and occasionally violent — temper. He’s… mercurial, indeed. Over the top, is he.
So taking him the way the FBI did minimized any danger to the honest, hard-working FBI agents. And I laud that.
Perhaps most important, on this score, however: Mr. Mueller likely suspected Stone would try to destroy his cell phone — immediately before any self surrender date. So he was not offered one.
The way the FBI took him prevented him from destroying evidence. Again — solid law enforcement work.
Finally, John preposterously claims the Stone indictment (impliedly) clears Trump of wrongdoing. And John says Stone didn’t “do anything wrong.”
In fact, while Mueller’s filing doesn’t (yet) say that Trump personally ordered the attempts to steal DNC emails, by collusion with Wikileaks (or Russian intel connects), the speaking indictment broadly suggests Mueller will soon disclose more than a few such items of proof. But for now — Bobby Three Sticks is withholding those details, likely to scare Don Jr. into flipping — when Jr. (and likely Jared) do get indicted, a few Fridays from tonight.
John well-knows (also!) that CNN’s stakeout of the site where the grand jury meets on Thursday led the cable news organization to infer (just as it did on the night before the Manafort FBI raid) that it was Stone’s “turn in the barrel” — since Stone has widely said he expected it, each Friday since mid August 2018.
It’s called investigative reporting — staking out Stone’s home all night, John — that’s the way it happens, buddy. Talk less; smile more — man. The way you and Trump decry the arrest process looks very much like the caught red handed syndicate crime boss’s reaction. Complain about the process — because you cannot deny the substance — of the allegations.
That’s enough for tonight. Onward.
…He failed entirely… to even mention the FACT that these same boys were harassing women, on the mall, not even an hour earlier.
Specifically, there is a video of them chanting “it’s not rape if she likes it!” — which is a likely reference to one of the graduated classmates who is being tried on two counts of forcible rape and sodomy, while he was a football star for Covington Catholic.
In any event, these boys (where was the chaperone!?) were in a pack yelling at young women — and did chant to one that it wouldn’t be rape, because she would “like it”.
Of course, John omits this, and all the other damning video evidence — from his lame, ill-informed defense of the kids.
True enough, they are kids — but they are far from innocent here — and the fact that they won’t meet with the Omaha Elders is pretty strong proof of that.
So — John, spare me your libel speech. The essential truth remains: I, too attended parochial school, for a bit — and these boys are the embodiment of Kavanaugh like privilege. They’ve never had to pay a price for odious behavior in their lives. That’s why they did — and do — what they do.
Where I am from, my kids would be grounded, for a month (as I would have been). No, they would not be offered a retained RNC PR firm to handle the situation, and ghost write narratives (as Master Sandmann was, by his financier mother) — and then whisked off, by jet — to far right talking head shows, to claim a nearly entirely-false victimhood.
Grow up John, your bias is palpable. [And if you still wish to defend them — please address the kid who stripped down to his underwear, while chanting in a circle with his boys (that is no Catholic prayer circle) — I was raised partially Jesuit, too — we don’t do that. Ever.]
To be clear, I am no longer bound by those covenants. I am done with that church.
John has gone — in just over 15 years — from excoriating a journalist (and suggesting the journalist be prosecuted for crimes) — for supervising the preparation of a “fake but accurate” depiction of records from Bush 43’s Texas Air National Guard Vietnam draft dodge…
…to openly supporting (and opining favorably, on the lawfulness of) the President’s likely use of federal executive branch “slush funds,” (and military personnel time and resources), to build a wall or more feasibly a set of spikes — at the southern border. All without seeking any Congressional budget authority.
John says tonight that he “…assume[s] there is enough money rattling around the executive branch…” to allow Trump to build the wall — without Congress.
Funny thing, Mr. Hinderaker — Nixon was effectively forced to resign in disgrace in no small part, due to his use of slush funds, whilst a resident at 1600 Penn.
And I’ve seen documents suggesting John agreed that was an unlawful course of action, by Nixon. [Contrast this opinion tonight, to that older one — and, ironically, to his zealotry in simple old “Rathergate“, as he completely immodestly christened it, about 15 years ago.]
Yet here is the same old Trumpian lap poodle… named Hinderaker, suggesting the President ought to ignore the Constitution’s proscriptions. Charming.
Tougher legal standards should be applied to TV talking-head guys (though to be clear, I personally deeply respect Mr. Rather — it is John who does not), than would obtain to 45 — the elected representative, charged with MY TAX MONEY — and supposedly the steward of… US ALL?! [A guy who seriously believes he cannot lawfully be impeached because “90 percent of Republicans” favor his ideas. I guess he forgets that more than half of Americans are NOT Republicans. Whatever. I digress.]
John, John, John — what has become of… your lawyer’s mind? Are you growing… senile, old man? Sad break, that (if so)….
Or… are you just now more comfortable showing your personal hole cards — the ones that make clear that you never cared about the rule of law, in the first place? Do tell. Do tell indeed.
Onward. Your time for honoring yourself, and 45, is coming to an ugly end, and soon. Hey look — it’s… Tr-ixon (or… Ni-ump at right)!
I will make this mercifully short:
In John’s mostly incoherent December wanderings — tonight, to defend Trump’s third shutdown of 2018, he tells us (on immigration alone — for he cannot say it as to any of Trump’s campaign, or governing, moves) the GOP is the party that has “staked its future on preserving the rule of law….”
Huh. Odd. I guess John cannot read the federal Immigration and Naturalization Act rules of law: 8 USC § 1158(a)(1), specifically.
Trump’s asylum banning proclamation and the DHS “guidance” both affirmatively violate the plain meaning (every federal court has so held), and the intent of Congress, when it enacted 8 USC § 1158(a)(1), now almost 30 years ago. It has never been overturned. Even Chief Justice Roberts, a principled conservative, knows it.
John really — do you ever say… anything, anymore? I mean anything… coherent?
Or is it all just Trump-parroted lunacy, 24/7? On reflection, I do feel sorry for your extended family, at the assembled Christmas dinner — it must be… painful.
[I am assuming your wife and adult kids are largely in the tank for 45, so they are “deaf, dumb and blind” to the illogic. Especially the daughter at UMinn. — a budding author of tin-foil hatted (but still main GOP) nonsense, herself.]
Onward. Merry Christmas to all of good will.
Unfortunately, John will likely be excluded there — but so it goes.
UPDATED 12.17.18 @ 8 PM EST: We now have (courtesy the very able Judge Sullivan’s latest US DC, DC orders) the FBI’s 302 — regarding Flynn’s lies — the 302 that John (and his frothy right companions) were so tin-foil hatted over. They posited it would anger Sullivan, and likely (by dint of some dark “orange is the new red” magic!)… clear 45. Hah!
It does quite the opposite: it proves the adage “be careful what you wish for“. Just exactly the opposite of disclosing a plot to “frame” or mistreat Flynn, it outlines Flynn’s very close coordination with Mar-a-Lago, whilst setting up Russian “quid pro quos” — all prior to Mr. Trump having any actual authority to do so. That is, a coordinated, collusive Logan Act violation campaign, spear-headed by Flynn, but driven by the boss at Mar-a-Lago, to undermine the waning days of the Obama Administration (and at least begin to pay off favors Trump undoubtedly owed to the Kremlin)… This, folks, is a “smocking” gun, right here.
End, update: Smock that John.
…I ask, only because his transformation — from US patriot (though far right, at that), to apologist — for admitted convicted felons and indicted criminals (conspiring with Russians, against US interests) began during that time. [He was also a very new gun owner, and convert to the NRA, by late 2016.]
I lack any other evidence — but to be fair, I am simply treating John’s (questionable) integrity… with the same level of skepticism as he treats Mr. Mueller’s (a fine US patriot).
I surmise that John Hinderaker must have had entirely too much spiked eggnog (as he separately wrote to complain about the first trans Miss Universe contestant this morning — but I’ll not dignify that excrement, with a link), at whatever right wing (cough! — Russian funded) Christmas party he attended, last night — as he writes this morning (in true lunatic fashion!) that the able Judge Sullivan (in DC) might — might! — toss Ret. Gen. Flynn’s guilty plea, due to what John wrong-headedly sees as (Mueller’s) prosecutorial misconduct.
That is simply… ludicrous.
I guess, to reach that view, he must think it “okay” that Flynn clearly lied, and knew he lied, to the then sitting VP, and to Congressional leaders of his own party, all of whom then repeated that lie on national television — about Russian influence. John simply ignores the actual on the record three flat brick house of evidence, to reach for a single straw — in the mud. [And he must completely ignore the coming Butina guilty plea cooperation-induced…. revelations. “Gosh — it would be a real shame if John’s 501(c)(3) turned up in Butina’s cash payments lists.”]
Good luck smocking that, John — or should I say “Удачи с этим Джоном!“. Onward.
[Pigeon version: “GФФD LЦҪԞ ШЇҬӉ ҐҤДҐ JФҤЙ!”]
In this truly execrable post, Mr. Hinderaker tries to make his rubes believe that the courts are criminalizing innocent (or at least accepted) political practices. Not so.
He claims that the discovery (and correlatively prompt disclosure) of a few wholly domestic “get out the HRC vote” emails, inside the company called “Google” (wait for it!)… would be the same as Donald Trump himself, paying hush money to at least two illicit affair partners (one, an adult film star), from or through his campaign chest, via Cohen (and apparently, Pecker’s newspapers), and then affirmatively lying about it on national TV. [And then trying to coordinate the lies, among disparate parties by have some tell largely false public stories (with a few crumbs of truth dropped in), so the others could crib from them.]
Let’s just let that hang in the air a minute… [nope; there is no analogy.]
But let’s also recall here in addition, that Mr. Cohen says (swears under oath actually, and for which there are almost certainly audio recordings, and email evidence) that he was helping broker deals with Russian oligarchs (and it seems, people directly working for Vladimir Putin) — and did not tell the truth about that work — “with and for foreign agents” — at Donald Trump’s direct instruction. And he swears (again, with likely audio and email corroborating evidence) that continued long AFTER Trump had sown up the GOP nomination. Mr. Trump was using Cohen (and Manafort, and Flynn, it seems) as conduits and bagmen and fixers — to strike a real estate deal for his companies in Russia, all while the GOP was softening its stances on Russia, at the convention — again likely at Trump’s direct insistence.
And it now turns out that a Russian female spy will testify that she was helping funnel money from Russia to the NRA for distribution to GOP candidates [including Ryan, McConnell and Trump(?).]
So — we may be certain that, as a trained lawyer — John well-knows a few domestic Google emails urging fellow US citizens to go vote HRC… are just a little different, than Trump himself directing or conducting conflicted transactions — and lying about them.
No, John — this is not a case of ticky-tacky, paperwork-related civil campaign violations (late disclosure forms, or the like). And you bloody well know it.
But travel onward, buddy — just the same. Hey! Maybe you should be his new CoS — as you seem to love baby-sitting… for his endless lies, and meandering tantrums.
Onward, and नमस्ते (or, Namaste) — to all of good will.
Alternatively, the overarching theme of this post could be:
When will it be enough, John?
Will Trump need to french kiss Putin, under the moonlight, at G20?
Not that that is improbable (given the daily sh!t-show that is Trumpworld), but more seriously — it seems Paul M. (his suite-mate, for now three decades) has finally (toward the end of this one) agreed — it is very likely that Donald Trump was (at a minimum) offering a $50 million penthouse suite — in what would be Trump Hotel Moscow to Vlad Putin, in a clearly FCPA violative gambit — to get other Russian oligarchs to overpay for units in the would be project, as late as mid 2016.
Yes, that would be after Trump had effectively sown up the GOP nomination for commander in chief of the USA. And it is right at the moment when the GOP’s official convention platforms are amended — to read in a decidedly more pro-Russian interest… terms. Fascinating, that.
Whether one agrees that this is an outright felony — or wishes, as Paul does — to quibble about legal niceties… even Paul admits this should be disqualifying for his presidency — on an undisclosed (in fact affirmatively lied about!) conflict of interests — between his business goals and his role as the would-be president of the USA.
We was (and still is, apparently) “for sale” — to the highest foreign bidder. And that’s before we get to whether these Saudis and Russians (and Germans, at Deutsche Bank?) have black-mail material on him. He may already be completely… bought. It is also before we ask about Trump knowing full well, for about a YEAR, that his private lawyer affirmatively lied under oath to members of the GOP who were then chairing hearings in Congress — and he said — nothing. ZIP — NADA — Crickets. So…
Where are you, John — on his mid-2016 request for Putin to provide the HRC campaign’s emails, on national TV?
Where? That alone looks… disqualifying.
Here is his blather, yesterday, on (what were actually laudable Democratic) Florida ballot efforts.
To wit: here is what an able Florida state court judge just ordered, in contrast (per Vox):
“…But on Thursday, a Florida judge sided with Democrats, ruling that voters have until 5 pm on Saturday, November 17, to address problems with their ballots — which could affect thousands of votes….”
That is NOT “rampant fraud” — that is a court order, son. And a manual recount — as is required by local Florida law — is now underway. John thinks obeying the law is… fraud. He’s a tool.
John is a partisan (Trump lap poodle) liar.
Here endeth the rant.
Tonight, John is all in a lather about Taylor Swift’s stance against Tennessee’s Marsha Blackburn. [Well done, Ms. Swift!]
John — and his girls (he says — though I doubt that bit), will no longer listen to her music.
Precious.
Enjoy that tiny rowboat, on the deep blue ocean — son, your grip on reality is… slipping away.
Hilarious.
