Some Trump advisers were critical of the former president’s broadside, saying he needs to be more surgical in how he engages in primaries against sitting GOP incumbents. So far, he has been largely focused on the House Republicans who supported his impeachment, including Reps. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.) and Adam Kinzinger (R-Ill.), according to people who have spoken with him.
But people close to the former president say it’s McConnell who made the bigger mistake by starting the fight, even in voting for acquittal. In poking Trump, they argue, McConnell put Republicans in a box, forcing them to choose between Trump — who maintains an iron-like grip on the party’s base — and McConnell.
So far, aides to Republicans facing reelection in 2022 say they’re making the bet that Trump’s threats will be a wash — and that, with months to go until the election season gets into full steam, it’s impossible to know whether any Trump-inspired primaries will materialize. National Republican Senatorial Committee Chair Rick Scott (R-Fla.), who opposed the certification of the election results in Pennsylvania, has been reluctant to criticize the former president, betting that his support will be needed in order for the party to reclaim the majority.
But the Senate map suggests that Republicans could face primary headaches. The GOP is focused on four Democratic-held seats — Arizona, Georgia, Nevada and New Hampshire — and could encounter contested primaries in each. Meanwhile, of the topthree seats Democrats are targeting, GOP incumbents are retiring in two of them, North Carolina and Pennsylvania.
“The only way to get through this civil war is to have everyone have command focus on ‘22,” said Scott Reed, a veteran GOP operative. “Focus on recruiting and running candidates based on good Republican policies and ideas, and not make everything a referendum on Trump.”
Darn those performances in Zoolander and Home Alone 2. Trump again shrinks in media prominence to Reagan, because failing to get the POTUS* role in the Sharknado franchise is Trump’s actual star moment.
Next week will feature a boffo performance in his impeachment trial deposition reminiscent of the 30 lies in his 2007 lawsuit. Likely it will be an adverse inference when Trump refuses to testify before Congress, SAG card or not.
“My portrayal of a businessman telling Kevin where the lobby is was a performance for the ages”
“I’m very proud of my work on movies such as Home Alone 2, Zoolander and Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps; and television shows including The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air…”
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Donald Trump has preemptively submitted his resignation from SAG-AFTRA as the union moved through a disciplinary process that could have resulted in expelling himhttps://t.co/C7eGNGyu1m
House impeachment managers are calling on former President Donald Trump to testify under oath before or during his Senate trial, which is set to begin next week. https://t.co/bH2hYKvc5d
The lawyer gave Donald Trump a note, written in Trump’s own handwriting. He asked Trump to read it aloud.
Trump may not have realized it yet, but he had walked into a trap.
“Peter, you’re a real loser,” Trump began reading.
The mogul had sent the note to a reporter, objecting to a story that said Trump owned a “small minority stake” in a Manhattan real estate project. Trump insisted that the word “small” was incorrect. Trump continued reading: “I wrote, ‘Is 50 percent small?’ ”
“This [note] was intended to indicate that you had a 50 percent stake in the project, correct?” said the lawyer.
“That’s correct,” Trump said.
For the first of many times that day, Trump was about to be caught saying something that wasn’t true.
It was a mid-December morning in 2007 — the start of an interrogation unlike anything else in the public record of Trump’s life.
Trump had brought it on himself. He had sued a reporter, accusing him of being reckless and dishonest in a book that raised questions about Trump’s net worth. The reporter’s attorneys turned the tables and brought Trump in for a deposition.
For two straight days, they asked Trump question after question that touched on the same theme: Trump’s honesty.
Just another Trump PR exercise, trying to co-opt the SAG nominations:
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#SAGAwards noms: Actor in a Motion Picture Riz Ahmed (“Sound of Metal”) Chadwick Boseman (“Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom”) Anthony Hopkins (“The Father”) Steven Yeun (“Minari”) Gary Oldman (“Mank”)https://t.co/k9nGDAeKrd
In 2017 Ivanka Trump was fast tracked trademarks by China. Including ones for coffins and voting machines.
If his puckered lips are moving, he’s lying, but the circular limit to that lie is that Ivanka has Chinese trademarks for, …. wait for it, voting machines. So this is all a delusional branding exercise,.. again. The firehose of disinformation is dribbling again, alwaystm but it dependstm on the magnitude of the desperation. Trump claims the Chinese did the Russian cyber-hack, but Pompeo says otherwise, definitely.
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….discussing the possibility that it may be China (it may!). There could also have been a hit on our ridiculous voting machines during the election, which is now obvious that I won big, making it an even more corrupted embarrassment for the USA. @DNI_Ratcliffe@SecPompeo
“Officials at the White House had been prepared to put out a statement Friday afternoon that accused Russia of being “the main actor” in the hack, but were told at the last minute to stand down” https://t.co/GGHWccoNva
WASHINGTON (AP) — Contradicting his secretary of state and other top officials, President Donald Trump on Saturday suggested without evidence that China — not Russia — may be behind thecyberattackagainst the United States and tried to minimized its impact.
In his first comments on the breach, Trump scoffed at the focus on the Kremlin and downplayed the intrusions, which the nation’s cybersecurityagency has warned poseda “grave” risk to government and private networks.
“The Cyber Hack is far greater in the Fake News Media than in actuality. I have been fully briefed and everything is well under control,” Trump tweeted. He also claimed the media are “petrified” of “discussing the possibility that it may be China (it may!).”
There is no evidence to suggest that is the case. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said late Friday that Russia was “pretty clearly” behind the cyberattack against the United States.
“This was a very significant effort and I think it’s the case that now we can say pretty clearly that it was the Russians that engaged in this activity,” Pompeo said in the interview with radio talk show host Mark Levin.
Officials at the White House had been prepared to put out a statement Friday afternoon that accused Russia of being “the main actor” in the hack, but were told at the last minute to stand down, according to one U.S. official familiar with the conversations who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss private deliberations.
It is not clear whether Pompeo got that message before his interview, but officials are now scrambling to figure out how to square the disparate accounts. The White House did not immediately respond to questions about the statement or the basis of Trump’s claims. The State Department also did not respond to questions about Pompeo’s remarks.
So, Ivanka Trump gained 23 trademarks in China including coffins plus voting machines, Jared Kushner used the White House to find debt loaners for himself, and both made $ 413 million while “working” in daddy Trump’s administration, but Joe Biden’s son Hunter is the problem? Sure.
Smartmatic—one of two voting machine manufacturers attacked by Trump and his allies (without evidence) for rigging the election—is demanding retractions and delivering legal notices to Fox, Newsmax, and OANN for promoting those baseless lies. https://t.co/dG5I0fQCko
Supporters of President Donald Trump may publicly release and discuss information they’ve collected from an analysis of voting machines and data in Antrim County. https://t.co/VlIODPuBtI
I’ve been covering Donald Trump for a while. I can’t recall hearing more intense concern from senior officials who are actually Trump people. The Sidney Powell / Michael Flynn ideas are finding an enthusiastic audience at the top. https://t.co/NxjC0sUrzI
“All gods, the pagan as well as the Christian ones, have possessed a real existence. Did not the ancient Moloch reign? Was not the Delphic Apollo a real power in the life of the Greeks?”
God regrets that he took this Zoom call from Michele Bachmann, thinking it was Marsha Blackburn.
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Former congresswoman Michele Bachmann has a personal request for God: “Lord, would you allow Donald Trump to have a second term as president of the United States.” pic.twitter.com/i7MafqysDU
(1) Trump loses. (2) Trump spreads voter fraud conspiracies and attacks election officials. (3) Trump supporters then threaten to kill the officials. (4) GOP election officials in GA literally beg Trump to stop the lies and condemn the violent threats. (5) Trump doubles down. pic.twitter.com/iZnhPjjSNA
But not all transitions have been quite so cordial. If he insists on staying away, Trump would be the fourth incumbent to refuse to attend the inauguration of his successor, Thomas Balcerski, associate history professor at Eastern Connecticut State University, toldNewsweek.
The first incumbent no-showwas John Adams in 1801, who faced a challenge from his own vice president Thomas Jefferson.
At the time, electors voted twice, with the vice presidency and presidency going to the candidates with the second-highest and highest number of votes. A tie between Jefferson and running mate Aaron Burr was followed by the House of Representatives choosing Jefferson and ending Adams’ tenure. Before the ceremony,he left Washingtonat 4 a.m. on March 4,the date for inaugurationsuntil 1933.
His son John Quincy Adams followed suit, leaving Washington before the celebrations of Andrew Jackson in 1829. Meanwhile in 1869, Andrew Jackson Johnson, who like Trump had survived an impeachment trial, refused to attend the inauguration of Gen. Ulysses S. Grant, preferring instead to stay in the White House to sign legislation.
Circumstances rather than point-blank refusals were behind the inauguration absences of three other incumbents.
In 1921, poor health prevented Woodrow Wilson from attending Warren G. Harding’s inauguration, although they did ride from the White House to the Capitol together.
On August 9, 1974, Richard Nixon resigned at noon and flew off in Marine One, after which Gerald Ford took the oath of office in the White House.
Another presidential no-show occurred on March 4, 1841 when President-elect William Henry Harrison rode to the Capitol on a white charger. Incumbent Martin Van Buren was nowhere to be seen, although his vice president, Richard Mentor Johnson, did attend Harrison’s inauguration. However, Van Buren was probably not invited by Harrison to participate so it would not be qualified as a snub, Balcerski said.
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President Trump is threatening to veto a defense policy bill unless it ends protections for internet companies that shield them from being held liable for material posted by their users. https://t.co/JTZAqBq0C2
Trump is now threatening to veto a defense funding bill over 2 political wish-items: 1) preserving Confederate names of military bases # 2) repealing section 230 protections for tech companies https://t.co/cU3coO5GoP
Who had “the far right religious cult Falun Gong and Trump team up to claim Native voters stole the election in Nevada” on their batshit settlers bingo card for 2020? No one? Weird. https://t.co/HBZBsZ3oUr
WASHINGTON, D.C.—President Trump is attempting to get to the bottom of what’s going on with Hunter Biden and Ukraine. In order to catch Hunter Biden and turn him over to the authorities, the president put out a box propped up by a stick tied to a rope. The box was labeled “Free Crack” and contained a large quantity of crack cocaine underneath.
“Any second now,” Trump muttered to himself as he waited in a nearby bush. “Here, Hunter, Hunter, Hunter. Here, boy. That’s it, nice and slow. Fantastic crack cocaine over here — extremely pure stuff. The best crack cocaine, maybe ever!”
Growing impatient, Trump resorted to more drastic measures. “What’s this over here on the lawn!?” he shouted. “Wow! That looks like crack cocaine to me! Looks like fantastic stuff! Sure would be a shame if someone were to come along and pick it up!”
Sure enough, after a few minutes, Trump saw rustling in a nearby bush. Biden fell for the trap and dove for the crack cocaine. “Got him!” cried Trump as he pulled the string. Unfortunately, Biden was too quick and managed to smoke all the crack and roll out from under the box before Trump could catch him.
Trump was last seen attempting to bait another trap labeled “Free Hookers.”
Bob Woodward acquired 27 “love letters” Trump exchanged with the North Korean dictator. Kim flattered Trump in these missives by repeatedly calling him “Your Excellency”; he also remarked that there’s a “deep and special friendship between us will work as a magical force”. Kim writes in one letter that meeting again would be “reminiscent of a scene from a fantasy film”
Killing one’s half-brother using a reality-TV pretext to deliver VX neurotoxin and killing one’s uncle with multiple anti-aircraft guns makes for graphic accounts worthy of stories for Trump. Magical Force indeed.
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump’scomments about the threat from the novel coronavirusattracted widespread attention after excerpts from journalist Bob Woodward’s book “Rage” were released. The excerpts also provide new details about the president’s thoughts on North Korea’s Kim Jong Un, racial unrest and a mysterious new weapon that Trump claims other world powers don’t know about.
Some of the other topics covered in the book, which was based on 18 interviews that Woodward conducted with Trump between December and July and with others (excerpts from the book were reported by The Washington Post, where Woodward is an editor, and CNN):
NORTH KOREA
Woodward wrote that Trump said he was impressed with Kim when he first met the North Korean leader in Singapore in 2018 and that Kim was “far beyond smart.” Trump also said that Kim “tells me everything” and even gave the president a graphic account of how Kim had his own uncle killed.
As he engaged in nuclear arms talks with Kim, Trump dismissed intelligence officials’ assessments that North Korea would never give up its nuclear weapons. Trump told Woodward that the CIA has “no idea” how to handle Pyongyang.
The 67-year-old (Jang Song-thaek) was considered the second most powerful official in North Korea and was killed immediately after a military trial in 2013 after being accused of trying to ‘destabilise the country’ after a meeting with Chinese officials in 2012.
Greg Scarlatoiu, executive director of The Committee for Human Rights in North Korea, said: ‘These people who were executed by ZPU-4 anti-aircraft guns or flame throwers are denied this fundamental right of leaving behind a body for the family.
Its title is derived froma conversation Woodward had with Trumpat Trump’s hotel in Washington on 31 March 2016, the same discussion which produced the title for Fear.
Responding to Woodward’s contention that the Republican party had become home to “a lot of angst and rage and distress”, the then candidate for the party’s presidential nomination said:
“I bring rage out. I do bring rage out. I always have. I think it was … I don’t know if that’s an asset or a liability, but whatever it is, I do.”
“I watched Liz McDonald. She’s fantastic. I watched Fox Business. I watched Lou Dobbs last night, Sean Hannity last night, Tucker last night, Laura. I watched Fox & Friends in the morning.” — Trump pic.twitter.com/ORuXQRptJf
“Why did you lie to the American people?” journalist Jon Karl just asked Trump.
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Trump suggests that his lies were so dangerous that Bob Woodward could’ve gone to “the authorities” …and yet in the same sentence, still manages to absolve himself of any wrongdoing.pic.twitter.com/MKaFSxkYDk
Some claim she resembles that famed Islamaphobe, Laura Loomer.
@NoorBinLadin “America is the greatest, least racist country in the world, despite what her enemies claim.“I have not had a single bad experience with Americans despite the name that I carry. On the contrary, I was overwhelmed by their kindness and understanding,”
