Month: April 2021

Categories
Russia U.S. Senate

GOP Sen. Ron Johnson Forced To Admit He Knew He Was Promoting Russian Propaganda

Even though he was warned by the FBI in August of last year that he was being used as a tool of Russian disinformation activities meant to spread lies about President Joe Biden’s son, Hunter, Sen. Ron Johnson says he didn’t take that warning seriously because he thought he was being misled by federal authorities.

 

In other words, according to a new report from the Washington Post, Johnson knew he was serving as an agent of Vladimir Putin, but he chose not to listen to counterintelligence officials working for the top law-enforcement agency in the United States:

“The FBI last summer also gave what is known as a defensive briefing to Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.), who ahead of the election used his perch as chairman of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee to investigate Biden’s dealings with Ukraine while he was vice president and his son Hunter Biden held a lucrative seat on the board of a Ukrainian energy company.”

Despite that briefing from the FBI, Johnson was forced to admit that he did indeed willingly work as an asset for Russia, insisting that he didn’t see the warning from federal agents as being genuine:

“Regarding reports that I received an FBI briefing warning me that I was a target of Russian disinformation, I can confirm I received such a briefing in August of 2020. I asked the briefers what specific evidence they had regarding this warning, and they could not provide me anything other than the generalized warning. Without specific information, I felt the briefing was completely useless and unnecessary (since I was fully aware of the dangers of Russian disinformation).

“Because there was no substance to the briefing, and because it followed the production and leaking of a false intelligence product by Democrat leaders, I suspected that the briefing was being given to be used at some future date for the purpose that it is now being used: to offer the biased media an opportunity to falsely accuse me of being a tool of Russia despite warnings.”

So Johnson was warned, but he chose to ignore that warning and spread lies directly from Russian intelligence just so he could help keep Donald Trump in the White House. How’s that for loyalty to country?

Sen. Johnson, like so many in the GOP, doesn’t give a damn about the national security of the United States. They’re far too busy trying to get in good with the Russians and be a part of the Traitor’s Club.

Ron Johnson is up for reelection next year. He needs to be sent packing.

 

Categories
Social Media U.S. Senate

Ted Cruz Picked A Twitter Fight With Trevor Noah – That Was A BIG Mistake

There are few people in this country who are as widely disliked as Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX), who has also been called the most hated man in the U.S. Senate.

Despite this knowledge, Cruz seems determined to pick fights with those who can easily make him look like the moronic troglodyte that he is and reinforce his own pathetic ineptitude when it comes to debating.

For example, Ted ran across a clip of “The Daily Show” and saw host Trevor Noah commenting on some of the results from the 2020 Census. Noah zinged Cruz with this line:

“Aside from New York getting screwed, the big news out of the census is that America’s population grew at the slowest rate since the 1930s. Basically, immigration is down and the birth rate is falling, primarily due to this photo.”

Cue a photo of Ted Cruz.

Clearly, Noah is making a joke. That’s kind of his job. But Cruz got his feelings hurt and tweeted a response that came across as pure asshole:

As you’d expect, Noah was equal to the challenge, and he fired off this retort:

Cruz should have left well enough alone. But he just couldn’t:

That’s when former host Jon Stewart joined the fray:

Noah then finished off the Texas Republican:

Game, set, and match, Trevor Noah, with an assist by Jon Stewart.

At last report, Ted Cruz was seen slithering out of his Senate office and heading to the nearest international airport. He was said to be carrying a box of tissues.

 

Categories
Donald Trump The Trump Adminstration

Trump Messed Up Some Of His Pardons – And The Recipients Can Still Be Prosecuted

In the final days of his administration, Donald Trump handed out 74 pardons and commuted the sentences of 70 others who had been convicted and sentenced to federal prison.

NBC News notes that many of those who received pardons from Trump were close friends, former associates, or people he believed would somehow endear him to the rich assholes he’s known to hang out with at Mar-a-Lago:

“A list of 143 people included his former chief strategist and longtime ally Steve Bannon as well as his former top fundraiser Elliott Broidy. Then, with less than an hour to go before President-elect Joe Biden was set to be sworn in, Trump granted one last pardon: to Albert J. Pirro, Jr., the ex-husband of Fox News host and longtime ally Jeanine Pirro.”

But some of those pardons were so narrowly constructed and written that they leave the recipients open to prosecution by the Justice Department and Attorney General Merrick Garland.

Former Mueller investigation chief prosecutor Andrew Weissmann spelled out the mistakes Trump made in the pardons of two individuals, longtime Trump friend and confidant Roger Stone and Trump’s 2016 campaign manager, Paul Manafort, in an article he wrote for Just Security:

“The pardon for Paul Manafort (on Dec. 23, 2020), is illustrative. By its own terms, the pardon covers only the crimes “for his conviction” on specific charges and not any other crimes (charged or uncharged). Specifically, the pardon is solely for the crimes of conviction — eight in the Eastern District of Virginia and two in the District of Columbia. That leaves numerous crimes as to which Manafort can still be prosecuted, as in Virginia there were 10 hung counts. In Washington, the situation is even more wide open. In that district, Manafort pleaded to a superseding information containing two conspiracy charges, while the entire underlying indictment — containing numerous crimes from money laundering, to witness tampering, to violation of the Foreign Agents Registration Act — now remains open to prosecution as there was no conviction for those charges.”

And then we have Roger Stone and a rouges gallery of other criminals:

“Manafort is not the only example of narrow Trump pardons that may be rectified by the incoming Attorney General. The same narrow pardons were provided to Special Counsel Office defendants Roger Stone (Dec. 23, 2020), George Papadopoulos (Dec. 22, 2020), and Alex van den Zwaan (Dec. 22, 2020), as well as the myriad other felons who received pardons or commutations on December 22 and 23, 2020. As noted, these defendants include murderers, corrupt politicians and law enforcement officers, and Philip Esformes, the single largest health care fraudster in history. These windows of opportunity are due in significant part to a practice followed by prosecutors’ offices across the country: permitting defendants to plead to some, but not all, of their crimes. That feature of these cases should now redound to the benefit of the government, as it may now permit the Department to see that justice is done.”

All of these people can be tried and convicted once again, and this time they won’t be getting a presidential pardon, so they’ll have to serve all of their sentences without the promise of a get-out-of-jail free card waiting for them if they agree to not testify against Trump.

As with everything he does, Donald Trump failed. He wanted to provide protection to those who didn’t testify against him, but all he did was make it more likely they’ll wind up in prison for much longer than they anticipated.

 

Categories
GOP U.S. Senate

New Questions Arise About Lindsey Graham After A Trump Ally Says He ‘Knows About’ The Senator

Something very strange is going on in South Carolina, and it could well have profound implications for Sen. Lindsey Graham (R), who just so happens to be the senior senator from the Palmetto State.

Recently in Hampton County, South Carolina, the state’s GOP chairman, Drew McKissick, was accosted by attorney Lin Wood, whose claim to fame is that he filed some of the most bizarre and batshit crazy lawsuits seeking to over the 2020 election and have federal courts declare failed, one-term former President Donald Trump the victor, even though he lost by 7 million popular votes and 74 Electoral College votes to President Joe Biden.

Wood is running to unseat McKissick as head of the South Carolina Republican Party, and during his confrontation with the current chairman, he suddenly dropped the Sen. Graham’s name.

In the clip below, Wood tells McKissick:

“I know about you and Lindsey. You need to get out of the race now. Nothing can stop what’s going to come.”

McKissick responds:

“You are supporting Chinese pornography. So just get your stuff off the internet buddy.”

Wood then repeats his original statement:

“I know about you and Lindsey.”

To that, McKissick tells Wood:

“You don’t know anything.”

Later in the clip, Wood is again trying to suggest that something is about to break that will supposedly be detrimental in one way or another to Graham and McKissick:

“It’s going to come out. You need to accept that.”

But McKissick remains undaunted:

“Hey, bring it on out buddy. Come on. I’m here. I’m right here. Come on. Bring it on. Come on. Come on. Come on.”

Once more, Wood reiterates his nebulous threat:

“I don’t think you want to bring it out but it’s going to come out. You and Lindsey. It’s going to come out Drew. I’m trying to tell you.”

What’s going to come out? That remains unclear; Wood didn’t give any specifics, and he’s known to be fond of conspiracy theories.

But Wood’s ranting has set off speculation once again that there’s something Lindsey Graham is hiding. Some have suggested Russia may have kompromat (compromising material) that proves they have given payoffs to Graham. There has been no evidence of this and it’s little more than speculation.

And there’s also the longtime whispers that the 65-year-old, never married Graham is a closeted gay man who is terrified coming out would be the end of his career in a state as conservative as South Carolina.

Whatever Lin Wood is referring to, this sort of negative publicity isn’t the least bit helpful to Graham or the GOP, and if Wood does indeed have some sort of information that would implicate Graham in something unsavory, it could do serious damage to other Republicans allied with the senator.

It’s going to come out, Lin Wood insists. We’ll just have to wait and see what in the hell he’s talking about.

 

Categories
Congress Corruption Crime Social Media

Photo Of Matt Gaetz Getting The Finger From A Young Girl Goes Viral After Re-Emerging

Things are not going well for Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL), who is facing being charged with child sexual trafficking and other crimes related to his alleged sexual relationship with a 17-year-old girl.

Gaetz, who has long been an ardent supporter of failed, one-term former President Donald Trump, is also being re-humiliated online by a viral tweet that was first posted earlier in April.

The photo was taken at Shoal River Middle School in Crestview, Florida, and it’s clearly a selfie that the congressman took with some of the students. But as you can see from a look at the picture, one girl wasn’t the least bit impressed by Matty:

Gaetz even shared the photo on his social media accounts. For example, on Facebook:

The photo went viral in early April and is now going viral for a second time. That’s what you call some major internet karma.

But perhaps the only thing half as good as the middle finger selfie are the comments that were lodged about the tweet:

https://twitter.com/GrandpaGrouse/status/1377942189041389573?s=20
https://twitter.com/howcrazy/status/1377989666058743810?s=20

Matt is in a world of hurt. One day he’ll wish the worst of his problems was being flipped off. Maybe he can take selfies in prison.