Oh what a tattered web …

Disgraced ex-FBI Director James Comey , former CIA Director turned anti-Trump activist John Brennan and former Director of National Intelligence and Trump critic James Clapper are the subjects of a dispute over which top Obama administration officials advocated for the infamous Steele dossier to be utilized as evidence in the Russia collusion investigation.

The argument erupted into the open with a Brennan surrogate being quoted in the news media opposing Comey not long after Attorney General William Barr appointed a U.S. attorney to investigate the origins of the Russia collusion claims.

The fiasco was kicked into high gear after Fox News cited “ sources familiar with the records ” pointing to an email chain from late-2016 showing Comey allegedly telling FBI employees that it was Brennan who insisted that the anti-Trump dossier be included in a January 6 , 2017 U.S. Intelligence Community report, known as the ICA , assessing Russian interference efforts.

A former CIA official , clearly defending Brennan , shot back at the assertion , instead claiming that it was Brennan and Clapper who opposed a purported push by Comey to include the dossier charges in the ICA.

The dossier was also cited as evidence in three successful FISA applications signed by Comey to obtain warrants to spy on Trump campaign adviser Carter Page. The first was signed in October 2016 ; the second and third were renewal applications since a FISA warrant must be renewed every 90 days.

The dossier , authored by former British spy Christopher Steele , was produced by the controversial Fusion GPS firm. Fusion was paid for the dossier work by Trump’s main political opponents , namely Hillary Clinton’s 2016 presidential campaign and the Democratic National Committee ( DNC ) via the Perkins Coie law firm.

“ Former Director Brennan , along with former [ Director of National Intelligence ] James Clapper , are the ones who opposed James Comey’s recommendation that the Steele Dossier be included in the intelligence report ” the official told Fox News.

“ They opposed this because the dossier was in no way used to develop the ICA ” the official added. “T he intelligence analysts didn’t include it when they were doing their work because it wasn’t corroborated intelligence , therefore it wasn’t used and it wasn’t included. Brennan and Clapper prevented it from being added into the official assessment. James Comey then decided on his own to brief Trump about the document ”.

The official was addressing the reported email from Comey fingering Brennan as insisting that the dossier be utilized in the ICA report on Russian interference …

Discussing the issue during a segment on Fox News , former GOP Rep. Trey Gowdy said on “ The Story with Martha MacCallum ” that “ Comey has a better argument than Brennan , based on what I’ve seen ”.

One day earlier, Gowdey stated on Fox News “ Whoever is looking into this , tell them to look into emails ” from December 2016 concerning both Brennan and Comey.

Gowdy told Fox News , where he is now a contributor , that his comments on the matter were based on sensitive documents that he reviewed while he served as chairman of the Republican-led House Oversight Committee.

Contrary to the ex-CIA official’s assertion that the dossier was not included in the intel community’s ICA Russia report , there have been testimony and media statements involving key players saying that it was part of the overall assessment.

Last December , Comey outright contradicted Brennan’s own testimony that the anti-Trump dossier was , as Brennan put it … “ not in any way used as the basis for the intelligence community’s assessment ” that Russia interfered in the 2016 presidential election.

The swamp creatures are attacking each other …

Kavanaugh is back in the spotlight …

Kavanaugh Stands Up for Americans Against Big Tech

By Paul Bradford| May 15th, 2019

U.S. Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh ruled with the majority on Monday that iPhone users can sue Apple Inc. over its app prices. Kavanaugh rejected Apple’s argument that consumers could not challenge the company’s policy of taking a 30 percent commission from its apps and refusing to let consumers purchase iPhone apps from third parties.

Several conservative commentators lashed out at Kavanaugh for his decision … Ben Shapiro said the ruling justified his skepticism of Kavanaugh. Radio host Jesse Kelly said the vote proved Kavanaugh was “ standard Washington D.C. GOP ” and “ pathetic ”…

Daily Wire writer Josh Hammer called the justice a “ lifelong inside-the-Beltway D.C. swamp creature ” and his ruling “ an egregious endorsement of a dubious antitrust legal theory ”…

Apparently , “ true conservatives ” are supposed to support Big Tech over the average consumer.

In reality , Kavanaugh did not violate conservative principles or please the swamp. The swamp is full of lobbyists , journalists , and think tankers who receive lucrative salaries courtesy of tech giants. It’s doubtful they were pleased by Monday’s ruling.

Instead , his ruling empowers Americans to fight back against the tech giants. Apple and Google operate a duopoly on the mobile operating systems market , where over 99 percent of the market is collectively controlled by Apple and Google’s Android. Their business practices ensure they are the only ones in the game … For instance , Android makes Google Chrome its default browser , and Google pays Apple billions to have its search engine as the default on iPhones …

They want to rule the market …

Trump issues full pardon for ex-publisher Conrad Black …

U.S. President Donald Trump has granted a full pardon to former media mogul Conrad Black , with the White House calling him ” entirely deserving ” of the gesture.

Black , who once described Trump as an “ old friend ” and recently published a glowing biography of the president , served nearly 42 months in a Florida prison after he was convicted for fraud and obstruction of justice in 2007. He was also fined US$125,000.

Black said Trump called him last week to personally deliver the news.

Black also issued an exhaustive 1,698-word statementexpressing his gratitude to Trump and others who lobbied on his behalf over the years.

“ He could not have been more gracious and quickly got to his point , that he was granting me a full pardon , that would ‘ Expunge the bad wrap [sic] you got ’ ” Black wrote.

“The American criminal justice system is frequently and largely evil ; I was convicted for attempted obstruction of injustice. It was never anything but a smear job. ”

Black has long been a vocal supporter of Trump. Last year , Black published a flattering biography of Trump, ” Donald J. Trump : A President Like No Other ” in which he highlighted what he considers the president’s biggest successes.

Course , now we’ll here nothing but bullshit from the Demnuts and their Media cronies about how Trump is ” making a mockery of our laws and ‘ obstructing ‘ our justice system to help an evil fellow businessman “…

He told CTV News that he doesn’t think his book had anything to do with Trump’s decision to issue the pardon.

“ I have no reason to believe he’s read it and he’s never mentioned it to me ” Black said Wednesday. “ I take him at his word that his motive was what he said it was ”…

I would think that they are too involved in their frantic impeachment efforts to acknowledge this … But it wouldn’t surprise me to hear someone pipe in a few digs in the near future …

They’ll use any and everything they can …

 

Source: Trump issues full pardon for ex-publisher Conrad Black | CTV News

What are the odds that the Durham investigation is for real and will bring the bad actors to justice ? …

First … This from Rush Limbaugh …

Holy cow. Some of you people are on fire out there today. I checked the email during the break , and I got a bunch of people sending me notes … “ I don’t care about this guy’s resume. I’m fed up with hearing about people’s resume !”… They’re talking about the guy that Barr has appointed … “ I’m gonna wait see results. I don’t care what this guy’s done. You know , that’s all we get. We get resumes , we get past history , we get performance , we get our hopes raised , we get our expectations raised … and then nothing ever happens “…

“ So you can stuff this guy’s resume , Mr. Limbaugh , as far as I’m concerned. I’m waiting to see if anybody delivers on this ”…

I understand the sentiment , folks. I understand the sentiment. I can count as easily as you can the number of times over whatever length of time in the past you want , 30 years , 10 years , 15 , five , it doesn’t matter. The number of times we’ve been led to believe that heads are gonna roll , things are gonna happen , the bad guys are gonna get caught. I mean , for two years we’ve been “ Breaking news ! Breaking news ! “…

“ The bottom’s gonna fall out tomorrow ” and it never does. “ Breaking news ! Breaking news ! Heads are gonna roll tomorrow ” and they never do. “ Breaking news ! Breaking news ! Full operation exposed , details tomorrow morning ” whatever. Never happens. I understand that …

And then … Add this …

The great Jim Jordan of Ohio was quizzing Baker :

“So did you talk to Mr. Corn about anything that the FBI was working on,” Jordan asked, “specifically the now infamous Steele dossier?”

Suddenly , Baker’s lawyer , Dan Levin , jumped in : “ One second ” he said before he and his client had a conversation off the record.

When the microphones were back on , Levin declared he would “ not let [ Baker ] answer these questions right now. You may or may not know , he’s been the subject of a leak investigation which is still – a criminal leak investigation that’s still active at the Justice Department ”… And so Levin concluded , “ I’m sorry. I’m cutting off any discussion about conversations with reporters ”…

North Carolina Rep. Mark Meadows wanted to make clear what Baker’s lawyer was claiming : “ You’re saying he’s under criminal investigation ? That’s why you’re not letting him answer ? ”

“ Yes. ”

Levin and the lawmakers sparred a bit over whether Baker was invoking his Fifth Amendment rights , and the congressmen finally got around to asking who was leading this criminal probe :

“ There is an ongoing investigation by whom ? ” Jordan said.

“ The Justice Department ” Levin responded.

“ I mean , is the inspector general looking at this or is this—”

“ No ” said Levin “ it’s Mr. John Durham , a prosecutor ”…

The specter of Durham haunts the rest of the interview. Baker can’t talk about what he told his old friend David Corn in their conversations about the dossier because it would put Baker in legal jeopardy.

I share the hopes that these particular two men are right into making a HUUUUGE impact on this bullshit … That people … Supposed ‘ untouchable ‘ people are put in jail cells ..

For a LONG time …

One last note , before ya hopefully click on the whole article … Is that Durham here looks like he doesn’t take any shit !!! … Go get’em buddy !!! …

 

 

Source: What are the odds that the Durham investigation is for real and will bring the bad actors to justice?

From Stilton’s Place …

Owing to the fact that Stilton’s Place is a “woke” site (at least, after a couple of cups of black coffee in the morning), we like to occasionally showcase the opinions of those who self-identify as women without much clothing. Clothing, of course, being one of the worst exemplars of easily spotted income inequality.

Which is why we asked the ladies above what kind of investigation they’d like to see now that Attorney General William Barr has hired US attorney John Dunham to look into possible (ha!) corruption and illegal actions associated with the specious multi-agency “Russian investigation” of President Donald Trump.

Dunham is said to be tough, fair, and non-ideological…and a guy who believes in the rule of law. Which could translate into a lot of fun for those of us who’ve been waiting (seemingly forever) to see some of the smug, lying SOB’s on the Left forced to testify under oath and, oh yeah, get long prison sentences.

We can already see friction being generated between some of the major players (including former FBI-director James Comey, former CIA director John Brennan, and former Director of National Intelligence James Clapper) who all seem increasingly likely to turn on one another. Which isn’t surprising considering that charges are likely to range from gross malfeasance to treason.

In any event, like the strong, independent women pictured above, we look forward to seeing the investigation proceed with considerable vigor and full revelation. Or at least as much revelation as our panelists are displaying.

And from Stilt’s Monday post …

Source: Stilton’s Place

Our MPs can’t think for themselves … And our PM ducks responsibility … As usual …

Commons apologizes to Mark Norman as opposition MPs press for committee probe

Both opposition parties have alleged political meddling in Norman’s case

Those were the headlines of one of the top CBC ‘ news ‘ story yesterday morning …

Do our elected twerps have no productive thoughts of their own ? … Must we put up with their need to mimic our southern neighbour’s counterparts ? …

The House of Commons voted unanimously today to apologize to Vice-Admiral Mark Norman for his legal ordeal , just days before opposition MPs are expected to push for a full-blown House of Commons committee investigation into the handling of the controversial criminal case.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and several members of his cabinet were not in the Commons for the vote.

Conservative MP Lisa Raitt proposed the motion , which saw the Commons recognize Norman ” for his decades of loyal service to Canada , express regret for the personal and professional hardships he endured as a result of his failed prosecution and apologize to him and his family for what they experienced during their legal conflict with the government “…

Junior’s in ‘ Total Avoidance Mode ‘ at the moment … Clueless !!! …

It’s important to note that it took quite some time before the thought of picking up the tab for this cost to Norman was even considered …

Reinstatement of previous , complete rank and standing in the military hierarchy , PLUS some ‘ punitive damage ‘ award is also on the table as well … As far as I’m concerned …

The Conservatives and the NDP wrote a letter last week to the Liberal chair of the defense committee asking for an emergency meeting Thursday , during which the opposition MPs will debate a motion to call a full committee probe.

One hour has been set aside to debate the motion — but a full-blown review cannot take place unless a majority of MPs on the committee support it.

Conservative defense critic James Bezan said it’s important to get to the bottom of how the case unravelled and noted that the Liberals gave unanimous support to the apology.

Course the Liberal were in ass coverage mode with ‘ way past Expiry Date ‘ , old crony Ralph Goodale , Public Safety Minister , denied there was any political influence exerted in the case and defended the Mounties’ handling of it.

” They would make their own decisions using their own professional judgments ” he said , adding that he never had any communication with them about the Norman matter.

When in doubt … Blame one of the institutions that YOU are in total control of who runs them !!! …

Also , one would have to wonder how Jody Raybould-Wilson would have dealt with this had she still been in the job …

Her replacement , Justice Minister David Lametti has defended how the investigation unfolded and suggested it should be taken as a sign of confidence in the judicial process.

Looks and sounds a whole lot like the ‘ Steele Dossier ‘ and impeachment scam bullshit reactions happening in the States …

This is just the clueless workings of a group of unqualified elected representatives , being led by an even MORE UNQUALIFIED Prime Minister , but is by no means at the same level of institutional espionage against the will and rights of the people that is currently in this same , very intriguing reciprocal stage two underway with Attorney General William Barr’s investigations down south …

Interesting note ; The former commander of the navy was accused of leaking cabinet secrets to the Davie Shipyard in Levis, Que., which leased the federal government a supply ship for the navy. Norman was accused of leaking the results of a Liberal cabinet meeting on the $668 million leasing project to a CBC journalist.

Funny how KBec is always deeply involved in this sort of shit !!! …

 

Source: Commons apologizes to Mark Norman as opposition MPs press for committee probe | CBC News

Are Impeachment Democrats Geniuses or Idiots ? …

Now that we know that there never was any Trump Russia collusion , and now that we know that the Democrats aren’t going to let that hinder their lust for impeachment , the question in all minds is whether the Democrats have a Bismarck cunning strategy or a Baldrick cunning plan to extinguish the Trump menace …

… And then the Mueller investigation …

Impeachment ? … The Nixon impeachment worked because the 70s was still the era of gentlemanly Republicans who believed in the basic goodwill of the other side. Not now.

I thought that Rule One for a lawyer is … You never ask a question in court unless you already know the answer. So , you gin up a two-year witch-hunt without knowing whether the witches did it ? …

Suppose that your party had controlled Congress , man and boy , for about 60 years , from 1930 to 1990 , and then the music changed and Congress became pretty well balanced , shifting from one party to the other …

You’d be pretty upset.

Suppose that your guys ran the administrative state for about 100 years , and then a populist candidate with no political experience walked in and took the presidency …

You’d be beside yourself.

Suppose that you had cowed the white majority for 50 years using the bald-faced lie that anyone that spoke a word against your racial quota system was a racist. And suppose that the ordinary white racist decided that, hey, I voted for the First Black President and now I’m done …

What would the racist liberal robin do then , poor thing ?

Suppose you believe , as I do  that all political and cultural identity is “ fake tribalism ”, meaning that people identify themselves as American or educated or black or white or LGBT or “ woke ” or globalist or any other tribe according to how they were carefully taught to hate and to fear — by the teachers or the Mean Girls or the homeboys.

Then it could be that the Democrats , whether Bismarcks or Baldricks , are finding out right now that …

There are more things in heaven and earth , Horatio ,
Than are dreamt of in your philosophy …

Particularly if your philosophy worships the idols of identity politics.

Source: Are Impeachment Democrats Geniuses or Idiots?

I had to raise an eyebrow on that too Ken ! …

Fucking lightweights

Posted on 05/13/2019 by Wirecutter

My niece is getting married in June and yesterday she posted a question on her FB page , wanting to know if 2 kegs of beer will be enough for 140 guests.Well , yeah – for the wedding ceremony itself. That’s less than a quart per person at 15.5 gallons per keg. Might want to triple or even quadruple that for the reception , and that’s only if there’s a considerable amount of kids and non-drinkers that’s gonna be attending. Personally , I’d throw in at least a couple three gallons of cheap bourbon as well and maybe a bottle of wine for the women … What the fuck , Stef …

Much like Ken … With my initial thought upon seein’ the number of guests , I figured that MIGHT keep about half a dozen of my ( particular ) friends away from the trunks of their vehicles ( Now wait ! … That their wives had the keys for ! … Don’t worry folks ! ) … But really ?! … I mean just ‘ One quart ‘ ?!!! … How long ya plannin’ on the reception lastin’ ? … Half an hour ?! …

And like Ken also says … Some of the women would probably go for some vino , or possibly the fruity tropical vodka and/or gin slingy thingy’s … And some guys aren’t big beer drinkers , but would be into throwin’ a few ryes or scotches back …

2 kegs ?! …

Source: Knuckledraggin My Life Away | Where Bad Choices Make Good Stories

‘ Mother ‘ arrested for abusing baby because he couldn’t stand …

Pinellas Park , FL ( WFTS ) — A mother in Pinellas County is facing several charges after she was arrested for abusing her 10-month-old son , according to the Pinellas Park Police Department.

Investigators say 25-year-old Natalee Sesler cursed at the baby and threw him against a wooden fence because she was frustrated that he was unable to stand up. It happened around 6 p.m. on Saturday in the 5900 block of 72nd Avenue.

After that, police say Sesler threw the head of a metal rake at the baby with the intention of hitting him , but ( thankfully ) missed. She was then seen picking the hysterically crying baby up by his leg and throwing him on a beach type lawn chair , police say.

The baby had a small bruise and swelling near one of his eyes , according to police. They also say he appeared malnourished and lethargic.

When police responded , they found the baby wearing only a shirt with no pants or diaper on , they say. Sesler was also wearing only a shirt at the time police made contact with her.

Sesler was charged with one count of child abuse , one count of child neglect , aggravated assault , resisting an officer without violence and violation of probation. Police say she appeared to be under the influence of narcotics.

As I’ve stated many times , to many people and lawyers in my battle with the Family Court system  , simply being female does NOT ‘ automatically ‘ make you a reasonable / good parent … Never mind the ‘ best ‘ option every time …

Source: Mother arrested in for abusing baby because he couldn’t stand | US World News | wsmv.com

Comments from the Blogosphere …

I was reading some of the responses to The Last Rufe post that preceded this post of mine and found this blunt statement that I , and I hope MANY others , agree upon … chuckyschmucky says …

May 12, 2019 at 6:08 pm

Graham stated that he wants to look into all of these matters (the FiSA warrant, the Clinton investigation whitewash, the spying, etc) to make sure “that it never happens again.”

The ONLY way to make sure this never happens again is to make certain that ALL of those who engaged in this corruption and criminality are punished to the fullest extent of the law. We will not settle for sensitivity training, bias training, FISA training and other BS whitewashes, a la Christopher Wrat. We want to hear about indictments, convictions and life sentences. That’s the ONLY way to ensure this never happens again. Anything less is an invitation to do it again.

Source: Senator Lindsey Graham Discusses 2016 “Spygate” With Maria Bartiromo…. | The Last Refuge