The Presidency of Donald J. Trump: No smocking guns. - Page 1027 - Politics and Economics

The FBI obtained a secret court order last summer to monitor the communications of an adviser to presidential candidate Donald Trump, part of an investigation into possible links between Russia and the campaign, law enforcement and other U.S. officials said.

The FBI and the Justice Department obtained the warrant targeting Carter Page’s communications after convincing a Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court judge that there was probable cause to believe Page was acting as an agent of a foreign power, in this case Russia, according to the officials.

This is the clearest evidence so far that the FBI had reason to believe during the 2016 presidential campaign that a Trump campaign adviser was in touch with Russian agents. Such contacts are now at the center of an investigation into whether the campaign coordinated with the Russian government to swing the election in Trump’s favor.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/world...=.7695f0f39ea0

04-11-2017 , 07:29 PM

#25653

einbert

Carpal \'Tunnel

Join Date: Jan 2005 Posts: 14,911

If Spicer is a holocaust denier, he should be fired.

If Spicer's communication skills are just so poor that he comes across as a holocaust denier, he should be fired for gross incompetence. His entire job is to communicate things effectively.

04-11-2017 , 07:47 PM

#25654

JPantz

veteran

Join Date: May 2007 Posts: 2,144

So Spicer obvv with the distraction from the wapo article right?

I ****ing hate Spicer so much. I can't believe that sorry **** is a field grade officer in the military, even if it is the navy reserves.

04-11-2017 , 07:48 PM

#25655

Rex Ingram

journeyman

Join Date: Sep 2013 Posts: 339

Quote:

Originally Posted by ScreaminAsian

https://twitter.com/washingtonpost/s...36422751870977
the washington post called him for comment, and he compared himself to martin luther king jr

wasn't there a story not too long ago, how russian spies tried to recruit him and he didn't bite? This doesn't seem surprising at all. It also seems lke no one else was targeted by the FBI for a warrant.

04-11-2017 , 08:01 PM

#25656

Our House

Carpal \'Tunnel

Join Date: Sep 2005 Posts: 28,109

But LEAKS and SURVEILLANCE and ILLEGAL UNMASKING!! Also, Russia Russia Russia. Same narrative for a year now and not one solid link to Putin! Just 112 random coincidences.

EDIT: SUSAN RICE

04-11-2017 , 08:06 PM

#25657

Sighsalot

adept

Join Date: Jan 2013 Posts: 1,055

Washington (CNN)After a review of the same intelligence reports brought to light by House Intelligence Chairman Devin Nunes, both Republican and Democratic lawmakers and aides have so far found no evidence that Obama administration officials did anything unusual or illegal, multiple sources in both parties tell CNN.

Their private assessment contradicts President Donald Trump's allegations that former Obama national security adviser Susan Rice broke the law by requesting the "unmasking" of US individuals' identities. Trump had claimed the matter was a "massive story."

http://www.cnn.com/2017/04/11/politi...ims/index.html

ggwpuletc

04-11-2017 , 08:26 PM

#25658

m_reed05

Carpal \'Tunnel

Join Date: Oct 2006 Posts: 8,611

Anyone sweating the Kansas special election? Looks like a close race in a district Trump demolished in November. Good sign for Dem's win or lose.

04-11-2017 , 08:27 PM

#25659

einbert

Carpal \'Tunnel

Join Date: Jan 2005 Posts: 14,911

I did Nazi that coming.

Jeff Sessions Announces a New Crackdown on Immigrants and "Filth"
http://www.motherjones.com/politics/...ns-immigration

Quote:

This morning, Attorney General Jeff Sessions visited the US-Mexico border in Nogales, Arizona, to announce a new get-tough approach to immigration enforcement, directing federal prosecutors to pursue harsher charges against undocumented immigrants. "For those that continue to seek improper and illegal entry into this country," Sessions said, "be forewarned: This is a new era. This is the Trump era."

In his remarks, Sessions said nonviolent immigrants who enter the country illegally for a second time will no longer be charged with a misdemeanor—they'll be charged with a felony. He also recommended that prosecutors charge "criminal aliens" with document fraud and aggravated identity theft, which carries a two-year minimum sentence. In January, President Donald Trump expanded the definition of which immigrants can be considered "criminal" to include anyone who has committed "a chargeable criminal offense," which could include sneaking across the border.

As he proposed stiffer penalties for nonviolent immigrants, Sessions also targeted gangs and cartels "that turn cities and suburbs into war zones, that rape and kill innocent citizens and who profit by smuggling poison and other human beings across our borders." Invoking unusually severe language in the written version of his announcement, Sessions proclaimed, "It is here, on this sliver of land, where we first take our stand against this filth."

04-11-2017 , 08:30 PM

#25660

Clovis8

Carpal \'Tunnel

Join Date: Mar 2006 Posts: 16,503

These people must be stopped by any means necessary, including violence.

04-11-2017 , 08:44 PM

#25661

uDevil

Carpal \'Tunnel

Join Date: Jul 2003 Posts: 6,941

I saw a clip of Sessions speaking. He really seemed to be enjoying himself.

04-11-2017 , 08:52 PM

#25662

cuserounder

Carpal \'Tunnel

Join Date: Oct 2005 Posts: 8,218

Quote:

Originally Posted by m_reed05

Anyone sweating the Kansas special election? Looks like a close race in a district Trump demolished in November. Good sign for Dem's win or lose.

I am now... Would be huge to even compete in this, Ossoff's race was considered the first real shot to flip something, and even that was considered a long shot.

04-11-2017 , 08:53 PM

#25663

BroadwaySushy

banned

Join Date: Nov 2015 Posts: 3,237

Quote:

Originally Posted by Clovis8

These people must be stopped by any means necessary, including violence.

Isn't inciting violence against forum rules?

04-11-2017 , 08:55 PM

#25664

fxwacgesvrhdtf

Guest

Posts: n/a

Quote:

Originally Posted by microbet

Is it possible that our best hope for avoiding nuclear war is the influence on Trump of Brietbart?

Breitbart may be full of white supremacists, but they're not stupid, and they don't want to die in a nuclear firestorm, so there's that at least.

04-11-2017 , 08:59 PM

#25665

fxwacgesvrhdtf

Guest

Posts: n/a

Quote:

Originally Posted by champstark

Spicer just said (regarding Syria) even Hitler didn't use chemical weapons.

.................................................

Holy **** that guy.

04-11-2017 , 09:00 PM

#25666

fxwacgesvrhdtf

Guest

Posts: n/a

Quote:

Originally Posted by champstark

Gotta think that's it for Spicer, especially if Kushner has absolutely any pull whatsoever (and actually gives a **** about his family's history, which is not a given).

Apparently Adelson's top guy reached out to the White House. That is Adelson's one issue. He has to be done.

04-11-2017 , 09:02 PM

#25667

kerowo

lolcat

Join Date: Nov 2005 Posts: 37,190

Quote:

Originally Posted by einbert

Welcome to the Republican Talk Radio wing of the Democratic party.

04-11-2017 , 09:03 PM

#25668

FlyWf

It's the other way

Join Date: Apr 2004 Posts: 58,097

Quote:

Originally Posted by BroadwaySushy

Isn't inciting violence against forum rules?

Tattling and snitching to a better tomorrow: The white dudes on the internet story

04-11-2017 , 09:10 PM

#25669

ScreaminAsian

For President

Join Date: Oct 2008 Posts: 33,333

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rex Ingram

The judges who rule on Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) requests oversee the nation’s most sensitive national security cases, and their warrants are some of the most closely guarded secrets in the world of U.S. law enforcement and intelligence gathering. Any FISA application has to be approved at the highest levels of the Justice Department and the FBI.

Applications for FISA warrants, Comey said, are often thicker than his wrists, and that thickness represents all the work Justice Department attorneys and FBI agents have to do to convince a judge that such surveillance is appropriate in an investigation.

The government’s application for the surveillance order targeting Page included a lengthy declaration that laid out investigators’ basis for believing that Page was an agent of the Russian government and knowingly engaged in clandestine intelligence activities on behalf of Moscow, officials said.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/world...a7_story.html?

04-11-2017 , 09:11 PM

#25670

cuserounder

Carpal \'Tunnel

Join Date: Oct 2005 Posts: 8,218

I'm not sure if we should even want Spicer to be done... The odds Trump replaces him with someone worse for the country seem pretty high. Whoever has that job will be tasked with defending the indefensible and supporting Trump's ideas and policies... So we want someone who can be a running joke and who does a pretty poor job of lying and dressing up their racism/bigotry/etc.

04-11-2017 , 09:12 PM

#25671

microbet

Solar Powered

Join Date: Jan 2005 Posts: 57,077

Quote:

Originally Posted by yeSpiff

This is the day Sean Spicer became Press Secretary.

Very good

04-11-2017 , 09:13 PM

#25672

Trolly McTrollson

Carpal \'Tunnel

Join Date: Oct 2010 Posts: 37,768

Quote:

Originally Posted by m_reed05

Anyone sweating the Kansas special election? Looks like a close race in a district Trump demolished in November. Good sign for Dem's win or lose.

I'm surprised we don't have a sweat thread; this will be a good sweat.

04-11-2017 , 09:15 PM

#25673

JonnyA

veteran

Join Date: Sep 2009 Posts: 2,664

Quote:

Originally Posted by cuserounder

I am now... Would be huge to even compete in this, Ossoff's race was considered the first real shot to flip something, and even that was considered a long shot.

It's going to be close. At this point, I think the D is going to win:

Look at the two counties 100% in - Pawnee 44/18 vs. 117/18 in 2016 for Price; Comanche 282/90 vs. 686/88. So D's vote total about the same, while R vote total about 40% in both counties. Apply that to total 2016 results and you get a D victory.

Of course it's the two smallest counties, but given that the results in both are consistent, it's a good sign.