So um, this is not going well so far

The BBQ Pit
141

You keep going back and forth on this - very difficult to pin down.

First the Corps is not the final authority. Some other agencies get to comment. OK. But then the Corps doesn’t have to listen to those comments. So we’re back to where we started. That’s by definition the final authority.

So maybe you mean the courts are the final authority. OK, let’s see what the courts say. But you’ve dismissed the courts, because you say there’s enough ambiguity such that the courts tend to go along with the Corps. That would seem to leave the Corps back as the final authority, as a practical matter. Unless you mean the president? OK, yeah, the president is the final authority over the entire executive branch, if you want to go there. But since the president has delegated this authority to the Corps, he needs to own their decisions. If the president wants to change the way the Corps does things, then he needs to do this for projects that have not been done yet, not for projects that have followed what’s been SOP and have spent $3.8B on that basis.

Assuming these claims (which are contested and are self-serving by the tribes) are true, then the courts should recognize it. Let’s see.

That’s because the SBA has no authority over tax law. If the ACOE is the agency that’s been given responsibility over making final decisions over grave sites, then that’s different.

If there are laws of this sort that are outside the purview of the ACOE, then that’s presumably another matter. But based on the court cases to this point it doesn’t seem to be the case.

142

Nunes: “Washington, D.C. can be a rough town for honorable people.”

It’s also a rough town for lunatic nutcases who might be helping out the other side.

And Flynn may have been the nuttiest nutcase in the entire Trump Administration, which is saying a lot, considering the competition: Bannon, Sebastian Gorka, and Ben Carson, among others, and we can’t forget Trump himself.

ETA: Not to mention, as National Security Advisor, the nutcase (other than Trump himself) in the position to do the most harm.

143

Courtesy of Atrios, just saw this:

It goes on to say that while the Federal Register version is the official version, people have to initially rely on the whitehouse.gov version because it takes several days to get material published in the Federal Register.

They even fuck up publication of their own Executive Orders. It’s mindboggling. “I alone can fix it” - what a joke.

144

Even if no particular act rises to the level of “high crimes and misdemeanors”, it would be nice if the House gets to the point that they launch impeachment proceedings just to declare a National Do-Over.

“You guys have a had a month and have done nothing but step on your dick, shoot yourself in the foot, cozy up to our adversaries, place self-enrichment as the highest priority, embarrass the Republic in front of the world and bring disgrace upon our once great nation. The whole lot o’ ya, out. Pence, step up.”

145

Either that, or a reference to a branch of witchcraft known as stitchcraft.

OK, I just made that up. But when I was growing up in Ohio there was a sewing supply store named Stitch Witches.

146

I would like the question to be asked:
“What did the president know, and when did he know it?”

147

It’s already been asked.

I just watched the House Democrats’ press announcements on the issue, and at least two of them asked exactly that.

The whole thing was, to be quite frank, an embarrassment. I watched four Democratic congressmen in a row get up and say basically exactly the same thing as one another. There was absolutely no need for any of them to speak after Adam Schiff made his remarks, because none of the three guys who came after him said anything new. Apparently Nancy Pelosi was also going to speak, but i was watching at the gym, and it was time for me to leave, so i didn’t see what she said. I’ll bet it wasn’t much different from the four guys who went before her.

I know that these people feel like they need to be visible, but for fuck’s sake, just have one person up there, and don’t treat all of us as if we’re as dumb as Trump supporters.

148

They’re doing it *for the benefit *of the Trump supporters, who indeed need to be told something at least 4 times.

149

And now they know that.

150

He clearly knows nothing of wise practices in wetlands management; it’s just as clear that his supporters also don’t.

Or perhaps they do, and are hostile to the concept of wise practices, on general principle.

151

It’s really a good idea to be able to tell the difference between snowflakes and nuclear fallout.

152

What did the president know and when did he know it?
Apparently he knew Flynn lied, and he knew it weeks ago.

Eta how did Nixon’s voters feel when it started to become obvious that he was in fact a crook?

153

But that’s not the real question being asked. No big deal if he knew about it weeks ago. Big deal if he knew about it at the time, IOW that Flynn was acting on his behalf or at least with his knowledge.

154

So if this never got out and they just covered it up rather than have him resign, all good in your mind? No problem there at all? So you agree with Trump then, that the real problem is the leakers that are letting the truth get out of the White House, and not the actual misdeeds that have taken place?

155

…I’m not weaseling at all. I forthrightly addressed your words. You once again point out incorrectly what I “expressed shock” over. (#96) Your response (# 88) was irrelevant to my response (#92). I didn’t raise a different issue (#92) because I was addressing the very words that you said (# 63).

I hope that clears everything up. (# 155)

156

I don’t know if it’s “all good” but I don’t think it’s a big deal.

(Especially as, from what I’ve read, there’s apparently some ambiguity in what exactly Flynn told the guy.)

It would clear things up if there was anything unclear about it. But there isn’t, so it doesn’t add anything further.

Your post #92 does not address anything I said in #63, so you were weaseling then and weaseling now. IOW, nothing new.

157

Personally, I don’t buy for a second that Flynn lied to Trump; I think he was on orders from Trump.

Track that shit back to the president and they’ll have him by his little orange testicles.

158

Sadly, probably the latter. A lot of the Republicans in Congress are hostile to wise practices simply on principle.

159

Get a room!

160

They apparently recorded the call. We might not know exactly what was said, but they do.