Straight Dope Message Board

[JohnT]

Attention: FOR THE LOVE OF GOD, DO NOT GO THERE!

[Monty]

Originally Posted by Sitnam

When this is all over Trump will get a library, they all do. I suggest bolting shelves to the wall and stocking it with Dr. Suess books only in Spanish.

The Berlin Wall had some great graffiti, but it will be nothing compared to hundreds of miles of painted Trump Tweets. People from all over the world will come and hike The Trail of Laughs. It'll stimulate the economy and bring us closer together with out neighbors to the south.

Isn't that what that twerp in the White House wants? "Without our neighbors to the south"?

Actually, I'd dearly love to see the graffiti on such a wall. But only that put up by the non-trumpeters.

[ThelmaLou]

Originally Posted by Sitnam

When this is all over Trump will get a library, they all do. I suggest bolting shelves to the wall and stocking it with Dr. Suess books only in Spanish.
....

Originally Posted by Sage Rat

My hope is that he establishes a prison library...in his prison.

I said somewhere on this board that thump's library will consist of all his tweets on a flash drive, which is kept in an Altoids tin in the janitor's closet at Trump Tower.

[Happy Lendervedder]

Randy Rainbow channels Madge in his latest on Trumpy-Wumpy's National Not-So-Emergency.

[slumtrimpet]

Originally Posted by Aspenglow

Do you not understand that but for McCabe, there would have been no Mueller?

Andrew McCabe is our version of Christopher Steele in the FBI. He's a 20-year veteran of counter intelligence operations, an expert in Russia, a former Republican (not that his political affiliation should matter one whit). He was the one who opened the counter intelligence investigation into Trump and his campaign, then took every step he could think of to ensure what they were finding would not be disappeared.

McCabe lost his job -- and his retirement pension -- owing to the fact that he threw himself on the grenade to protect the investigation. As a former civil servant who collects a pension myself, I can tell you this is a big-ass deal to both McCabe and his family. I am quite sure he did not envision his post-FBI career as an author, but you know, a guy's gotta eat.

His book was scrubbed for accuracy by Mueller's team and to make certain it did not reveal anything Mueller wasn't ready to reveal. For all you know, Mueller is glad to have someone speaking up in defense of the FBI, the actions it took after Comey was fired and most importantly, why.

My guess is, the FBI has no problem with McCabe writing a book to recoup some measure of financial security in his retirement years after a long, distinguished career in service, to make up for was taken from him by Trump. If he is able to say some of the things that Mueller can't yet say, so much the better.

Thank you for this.

[Sherrerd]

Originally Posted by jsc1953

Lindsey Graham's response to McCabe's book is a threat to hold hearings, to get to the bottom of the whole 25th Amendment discussion. To which I say: is that a promise? I'd love to give McCabe an opportunity to discuss just what he thinks of Trump.
And Graham describes it as an "administrative coup". Well, isn't that what the 25A is for? There are 2 possible explanations for what happened:

1 - a cabal in the Justice Dept/FBI is discussing the (extremely long-shot) possibility of using the 25A to get rid of a president they don't like; or
2 - a group of patriots is horrified at the thought that the President is a Russian spy, and are looking for a way out.
For some reason Graham thinks option 1 is the problem that needs to be investigated.

Whatever Graham thinks, the Trumpist talking point that McCabe and Rosenstein were participating in an "administrative coup" is exploded as fiction by the fact that Congressional Republicans* were informed that the investigation was taking place. This happened nearly two years ago:

Former FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe said Tuesday that no congressional leaders voiced objections when he told them in May 2017 that the bureau had opened a counterintelligence investigation into President Donald Trump.

... Pressed by NBC's Savannah Guthrie on whether any member of the group objected, McCabe said that none of them had.

"That's the important part here, Savannah. No one objected. Not on legal grounds, not on constitutional grounds, and not based on the facts," McCabe said.

On the Senate side, the group of lawmakers at the time were Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., Intelligence Committee Chairman Richard Burr, R-N.C., and ranking member Mark Warner, D-Va.

The House members were then-Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wis., and then-Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., as well as former House Intelligence Chairman Devin Nunes, R-Calif., and then-ranking member Adam Schiff, D-Calif.

https://www.cnbc.com/2019/02/19/andr...-of-trump.html


*Democrats, too. But the point is: if the Republicans felt anything "coup"-like was happening, they had every opportunity to do something about it. They were in full charge of both houses of Congress at the time.


(All emphasis is mine.)

[enipla]

Originally Posted by Sherrerd

Whatever Graham thinks, the Trumpist talking point that McCabe and Rosenstein were participating in an "administrative coup" is exploded as fiction by the fact that Congressional Republicans* were informed that the investigation was taking place. This happened nearly two years ago:

https://www.cnbc.com/2019/02/19/andr...-of-trump.html


*Democrats, too. But the point is: if the Republicans felt anything "coup"-like was happening, they had every opportunity to do something about it. They were in full charge of both houses of Congress at the time.


(All emphasis is mine.)

Wonder why they weren't concerned about the investigation before, but they are now. Look at Lindsey Grahm, new Trump boot licker.

I think, it comes down to - Oh, shit... me too.

[ThelmaLou]

Putin: Russia will target US if it deploys missiles in Europe

MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russia will respond to any U.S. deployment of short or intermediate-range nuclear weapons in Europe by targeting not only the countries where they are stationed, but the United States itself, President Vladimir Putin said on Wednesday.

In his toughest remarks yet on a potential new arms race, Putin said Russia was not seeking confrontation and would not take the first step to deploy missiles in response to Washington's decision this month to quit a landmark Cold War-era arms control treaty.

But he said that Russia's reaction to any deployment would be resolute and that U.S. policy-makers, some of whom he said were obsessed with U.S. exceptionalism, should calculate the risks before taking any steps.
....

To which thump will probably reply, "Ah, no...Vlad and I are buds! We're bros. He'd never do that. He likes me. We've even kissed on the mouth. At least I think that was him."

[Just Asking Questions]

Originally Posted by Happy Lendervedder

Randy Rainbow channels Madge in his latest on Trumpy-Wumpy's National Not-So-Emergency.

Mike Pence loves Madonna!