Trump, May 2017: 100 days of [unintelligible]

i saw someone joke on twitter that trump had fired comey because trump was mad about this longread https://fivethirtyeight.com/features/the-comey-letter-probably-cost-clinton-the-election/

― 𝔠𝔞𝔢𝔨 (caek), Wednesday, May 10, 2017 3:46 PM (one hour ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

This is an angle I hadn't considered but which actually makes a huge amount of sense. Donnie Fucknugget wins the goddamn election via electoral votes, but that isn't enough. He obsesses over the variety of ways that he could (and SHOULD) have won the popular vote as well, and insists that the voting must have been rigged because nothing else makes sense. Now you have people making a big noise about how it's likely that Comey's interference is what ultimately swung the election...and that won't do! Ding Dong only won because of popularity! So he needs to grind this dude into the dirt, to essentially make him a nonentity, so that people stop making these slanderous FAKE! SAD! assertions.

Again, Trump's razor seems to suggest that we seek the basest, pettiest, most depraved explanation for any action he undertakes. He's purely reactive, and he's at his most reactive when his fwagile widdle ego is threatened.

Hadn't read that Roberts thing. Rings 100% true to me.

perlstein on why trump is not like nixon https://thebaffler.com/salvos/time-bandits-perlstein

This is an angle I hadn't considered but which actually makes a huge amount of sense.

Trump doesn't read.

Trump doesn't read.

he reads headlines & urls which is all that one would need.

actually I don't think he reads headlines or urls either, based on what people say about his habits

he mostly watches cable TV

He is also read to, mind.

https://2982-presscdn-29-70-pagely.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/donald-trump-reads-a-book.jpg

fatal heart attack no whammy no whammmy c'monnnnnnnnn

quick rephrase of david roberts' twitter thread:

idiot 39

Flynn's been served.

BREAKING: the Senate Intel Cmte has issued a subpoena to Michael Flynn for Docs related to their Russia Investigation: pic.twitter.com/TrNcyMJbn7

— Frank Thorp V (@frankthorp) May 10, 2017

Per a Senate historian, this is the 1st subpoena Senate Intel has issued since their 9/11 joint inquiry --> https://t.co/Zw4lVI4bfg

— Frank Thorp V (@frankthorp) May 10, 2017

LOCK HIM UP!!!!

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2017/05/10/west-virginia-journalist-arrested-after-asking-hhs-secretary-tom-price-a-question/?utm_term=.2946ce990030

Here's some weirdness

http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2017/05/10/white-house-lawyers-warned-trump-stay-away-from-michael-flynn

White House lawyers have had to warn President Donald Trump repeatedly against reaching out to his fired National Security Adviser Michael Flynn, two people familiar with the matter tell The Daily Beast.

those subpoenas went out yesterday

Ah no, read closer. This isn't Flynn's associates -- this is Flynn himself, specifically.

hmm earlier ones might've just been to "Flynn associates"

righto
xp

Meantime I noticed this earlier:

Interesting: A few GOP Senators now privately discussing what they can do, beyond mere statements. Eg, withhold votes for Trump nominees...

— Bill Kristol (@BillKristol) May 10, 2017

And shrugged it off as the usual. But:

.@BenSasse & @SenJohnMcCain just announced their opposition to Pres. Trump's nominee to be U.S. Trade Rep, Robert Lighthizer

— Phil Mattingly (@Phil_Mattingly) May 10, 2017

huh that *is* odd

Meanwhile in GOP townhallville

MacArthur after a furious question about Trump: "Folks, I didn't come here to defend the president tonight."

— Dave Weigel (@daveweigel) May 10, 2017

Oh, was this finally the uncrossable line? I won't believe it but it's welcome.

if there's one thing americans won't countenance it's backstabbing the man who stole you an election

Did Russia act independently in support of Trump or did the Trump campaign actively collude with them in attempting to win the election? pic.twitter.com/8LrHOejLgw

— Bernie Sanders (@SenSanders) May 10, 2017

White House lawyers have had to warn President Donald Trump repeatedly against reaching out to his fired National Security Adviser Michael Flynn, two people familiar with the matter tell The Daily Beast.

He's been talking with fucking Roger Stone as well, who urged him to can Comey. He's also implicated in the fucking investigation!

I love this picture that Bloomberg News ran with the story of Trump sending a "certified letter" to Lindsey Graham asserting that he's got no connections to Russia. He looks like Elvis the day before (or the day after) his death.

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/C_adw-NUMAAj7ym.jpg

David Roberts otm but sort of common knowledge? Most journalists gave up on the "mind" angle long ago and went to Bannon or the neocons for that. I feel that even the right wingers know that he's a void. They just like what he's doing for now.

xp Greil Marcus should do something with that analogy!

David Roberts otm but sort of common knowledge?

yeah Roberts' point isn't news, which is why he first made it nearly a year ago, when it was becoming increasingly obvious

Sorry, didn't catch that.

He looks like Elvis the day before (or the day after) his death.

OTM.

https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/236x/7f/f6/4c/7ff64c00578b2eac5d43f8300c41f851.jpg

It's mollifying to imagine that the GOP might eventually turn on Trump because he violated some sacrosanct moral principle and betrayed both the American people and the fundamental ideals of our great nation, but because he already does that four or five times a week at this point, I'm much more inclined to believe they might throw him under a bus because he's violated the sanctity of a cush ten-year federal-level appointment or somesuch.

Actually, E. looking too good there. More like this:

http://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/journalstar.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/8/55/85585cc9-2cb8-5d2e-b756-0ede42ce3561/85585cc9-2cb8-5d2e-b756-0ede42ce3561.preview-300.jpg

Updates from that townhall:

room just erupted in a chant of "single payer" https://t.co/WYhcCeZXIX

— noah kulwin (@nkulw) May 10, 2017

"let the congressman finish!" one constituent yells

"he's finished in 2018" another shoots back

this is how this is going

— E McMorris-Santoro (@EvanMcS) May 10, 2017

Am enjoying the twitter embed feature, btw. Thanks to Stet or whoever coded it in

How do you do it?

Just paste the URL in the post box, gets converted.

Let's see if it works for mobile with this poll:

https://mobile.twitter.com/HeerJeet/status/862444742583267328

That'd be a no.

Who should be the special prosecutor?

— Jeet Heer (@HeerJeet) May 10, 2017

instructions in "formatting help" below.

Cagily phrased, this letter.

First on CNN: In ltr to FBI staff, Comey says he's "long believed a president can fire an FBI director for any reason or no reason at all" pic.twitter.com/AxKWwyk1PZ

— Jim Sciutto (@jimsciutto) May 11, 2017

my fav Sinatra song

Meantime, the current US Ambassador to Qatar (appointed 2014)

Increasingly difficult to wake up overseas to news from home, knowing I will spend today explaining our democracy and institutions.

— Dana Shell Smith (@AmbDana) May 10, 2017

Separately, Kevin McCarthy (House Majority Leader) seems a hair confused

.@GOPLeader: In Washington, "we serve at the pleasure" of the president.."if we lose the confidence,'' then we can lose our jobs

— Carla Marinucci (@cmarinucci) May 11, 2017

Ah, turns out he's in town here tonight. I don't know what he was thinking when he asked this:

When @GOPLeader asks SF audience who else in the crowd voted for Trump -- just one or two hands go up at #PlaybookExchange

— Carla Marinucci (@cmarinucci) May 11, 2017

someone's been watching "The Apprentice" long enough to believe it

xpost re McCarthy

If you go for a walk in the park early enough, you can see the sunrise and hobos washing their balls in the drinking fountain.

— Del Freaky (@iAmDelFreaky) May 9, 2017

Strange way to describe House Leadership

Meanwhile:

Daily adventures of cocaine Rab pic.twitter.com/uaISASdS5v

— Jacob Welna (@WelnaJacob) May 10, 2017