Another Month down, and what a Month it
was.
Before the summary of the Events, I'd
like to briefly discuss some events that didn't make the list. As
previously mentioned, the list is supposed to include events from the
Trump Administration that are relevant.
As the List continues, the Events can
be by supplied by people not from the Trump Administration, because
the President previously stuck his nose into a mess. For example,
further reporting by the NYT about Prince Mohammad bin Salman,
indicates that he “authorized
a secret campaign to crack down on dissidents, with at least a dozen
of the operations carried out by members of the same team that
murdered journalist Jamal Khashoggi”. Of course, Trump
wouldn't be responsible for this, and it wouldn't make the list,
except that the President previously sided with the Saudi government
over numerous reports from American Intelligence agencies, and
European allies. Because he failed to condemn MBS, and the
atrocities continue, it makes the list.
But there are many events that don't
make the list (though I have to say them here to prove a point).
These include:
The President signing Bibles while
visiting tornado survivors in Alabama.
A conspiracy theory on the Left about
Melania's body double visiting graves in Alabama.
The President calling Tim Cook, Tim
Apple, then lying about it, then admitting he lied, but supplementing
another lie.
Informally inviting Brazil to be a NATO
member.
A book declaring Trump is the ‘world’s
worst cheat at golf'.
The President's bold face lie about his
Father being born in Germany, even though he was actually born in New
York.
These aren't hurtful. They don't alter
anything. They don't add anything the public doesn't already know
about the President's behavior. And some are conspiratorial.
Onto the real events of March 2019.
The link is here.
North Korea retained its newsworthiness
after the failed summit of February. Numerous reports indicated that
North Korea was expanding its arsenal.
They restored a
missile site and threatened
to end talks. But while some in the administration were openly
taking a
hard line, the President tweeted out his intent to scrap
"additional
large scale Sanctions" on the Hermit Kingdom.
An addition to the Stormy Daniels saga
presented itself (and no, I'm not talking about the indictment of
Michael Avenatti), but the news that Fox News
did not report on the Stormy affair, which they knew about prior
to the 2016 election. As a result, the DNC
will allow Fox News to host zero debates, and therefore, prevent
Democratic candidates from reaching Fox News viewers.
As happens every month, corruption
reared its slimy head, at Mar-A-Lago. In one case, a friend of the
President's, wrote a policy and gave it to the President at the Club,
asking him to send it along to the Veterans Affair Chief. The
President wrote on the note,“Send
to the David S at the V.A.” and initialed it! In another
situation, the prior owner of the Florida massage parlors at which
Robert Kraft was found (and has been indicted for prostitution) sold
access to the President to Chinese Executives. Further
corruption included T-Mobile
spending $195,000 at a Trump Hotel to receive government approval
for a merger, even though the CEO was an outspoken critic of Trump,
and had never stayed at the hotel previously. Most dangerous for the
American consumer was the Boeing incident. With
two crashes of the new Boeing 737 Max, nearly all countries world
wide grounded the model, but the Trump Administration delayed.
It could be, because the current, temporary, unconfirmed Secretary of
Defense left his 30
year career at Boeing to work in the White House. But most
deadly for the President might be the ongoing investigation into the
President's
Fundraiser's Office for money laundering. Federal agents raided
Elliot Broidy's office for documents in March.
Another continuing event was the fight
over the border wall. In his 2020 Budget the President asked for 8.6
billion in funding. Twelve
Senate Republicans joined Democrats to cancel the National
Emergency, but the President used his first
veto to keep his Emergency alive. Then, as the month waned, the
President declared his intent
to close the border. Chief of Staff, Mick
Mulvaney said only 'something dramatic' would convince the
President not to close the border, while Kellyanne Conway said, “It
certainly isn't a bluff.” Surprise! It was a bluff (though that
might be an early April event).
Further information about the
President's proposed budgets included, significant
cuts to Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security. This
despite, his declaration he would never slash these programs. At
the same time, the President asked for the largest Department of War
budget in the history of the United States. Meanwhile, the deficit
grew by 77%
between October 1st and February 1st.
February earned the dubious accolade of the largest
monthly deficit in the history of the United States. This was
despite the booming economy, low unemployment, and continuous
economic development since the recovery began in 2010. Between 2014
to 2016, the deficit began to shrink. It was only the Republican Tax
Cut and President's desire for absurdly expensive war budgets, that
reopened the nearly healed wound of the Recession. During the bad
years, debt is incurred and the deficit increases, but it is an
egregious mistake to continue to run up the tab during the golden
times. When the downturn happens, how can the spendthrift pay for
his overextension? The Federal Reserve should be increasing interest
rates, so when the situation turns, it has something to reduce. But
the President and his allies, so terrified of a 2020 election with a
sour economy, are
blaming the Reserve for wanting to increase rates which are
already historically low. The
Fed is caving to political pressure. The President's new choice
for the Federal Reserve Board has already run into trouble, because
he is a hack
and has
unpaid
taxes.
In addition to the Khashoggi
information, the United States Senate, in a bill co-sponsored by
Bernie Sanders, Mike Lee, and Chris Murphy, voted to end the US
support for Saudi Arabia's brutal war in Yemen. Simultaneously,
the President announced that he would rescind an Obama era
requirement to report all drone strike deaths. While it wasn't
the most transparent process, it was better than nothing, and now it
is gone.
Sometimes news comes from far flung
locations. New Zealand experienced a mass schooling at two mosques
in March. The
shooter called immigrants invaders, and hours later the President
agreed with the statement. He also dismissed the idea that White
Nationalism was a growing threat, and failed to call the attack an
act of terrorism. Only four days earlier the President claimed
that "The
Democrats hate Jewish people". And later in the month of
March the President officially
recognized the Golan Heights, as much a part of Syria as Crimea is a
part of Ukraine.
Also, the White House
declared they will never hand over documents related to how Jared
Kushner received his security clearance, which was relevant
because the New York Times reported in February that the President
gave it to his son-in-law over the objections of his chief of staff
and intelligence officials.
Finally, the bit everyone has been
anticipating. In the month of March, the Russia Investigation rolled
on, until it ran out of fuel and started coasting. To begin, Roger
Stone found himself in trouble when he may
have violated his gag order. Cohen popped up here
and there.
Manafort, after violating his plea deal, found himself saved by the
inexplicable mercy of Judge T.S. Ellis III, who claimed that
Manafort had led “an otherwise blameless life” aside from the
casual $30 million he hid from the IRS which he earned while
servicing some of the cruelest foreign despots. Instead of the
twenty plus years recommended by the sentencing guidelines,
the judge punished him with 3.5 years. A second judge, who could
have added another ten years, rebuked Manafort for his crimes, and
added only 3.5 years, for a total of seven.
But the biggest news was the release of
the Mueller Report. No, scratch that. The release of Attorney
General Willaim Barr's
four page summary of a Report written over three hundred pages.
In short, which is what the letter is, Barr
claimed:
"[T]he investigation did not
establish that members of the Trump campaign conspired or coordinated
with the Russian government in its election interference activities."
and
'While this report does not conclude
that the President committed a crime, it also does not exonerate
him.'
Specifically, Mueller did not make a
legal decision regarding obstruction of justice, but Barr, and DAG Rod Rosenstein made the decision for him, that there was not enough evidence for this
crime either.
All sides immediately claimed either
vindication or skulduggery. The President said, in spite of the
exact wording of the Report, "No
Collusion, No Obstruction, Complete and Total EXONERATION.”
Glenn Greenwald (who I've recently had
a disagreement
with, though he doesn't know it), and his left wing,
anti-establishment allies declared the Russia investigation a
complete hoax, and fell to war with pro-Russia Investigation Twitter
Denizens, like Marcy
Wheeler.
Some called it the greatest Media
mistake since the Invasion of Iraq. This seemed an egregious
comparison. Those people are the same who keep saying Donald Trump
isn't as bad as George W. Bush (and
it is difficult to decide which is worse), because Trump hasn't
begun a massive, country destabilizing, civilian murdering war. The
public still hasn't seen the report, and there are a few details to
remember. First, it was overseen by a Republican appointee, of the
very President it was investigating. It was harassed at every turn.
And the summary of the report was written by William Barr, who
composed an unsolicited memo in the summer of 2018 condemning the
Russia Investigation, didn't commit to releasing the report, and also
experienced a similar scandal as AG for George H.W. Bush, while
pardoning
a whole gang of Republican politicians indicted during the Iran
Contra crime.
In spite of this, the Russia
Investigation found seven
guilty Republicans, including the President's Campaign Chairman,
Personal Lawyer, National Security Adviser, and charged 13 Russian
Nationals, along with 12 Russian Military personnel. Whether they
are guilt or not, will never be known because Russia will not allow
them to be tried by a US court. The
public learned that the Russia interfered to support Trump over
Clinton. Trump and his associates were involved in negotiating a
deal with the Russian government to build a Trump Tower in Moscow up
until November 2016, and Trump denied it. Manafort shared polling
data with a man believed to be a Russian intelligence agent. And a
campaign which began by claiming
never to have talked to a Russian agent, was repeatedly shown to
have lied, including the Trump Tower meeting between Don Jr. and
Russians. I am not crazy enough to believe 100% that the Trump
campaign colluded with Russia to elect him. But neither am I insane
enough to claim nothing untoward occurred. If I had to put it into
percentages, and use non-legal definitions, I would estimate a 10%
collusion, 20% attempted collusion, 50% bumbling ineptitude, and 20%
the Russians tried to help, but Trump didn't accept their assistance.
All those declaring the report proves
their already predetermined opinion are charlatans and idiots. The
Report seems unlikely to offer complete vindication but somewhere
between mostly vindicated, to
grossly unethical and questionable
entanglements, but nothing technically illegal. There is
a mile between those two statements, and when and if, Barr releases
the final report (which he needs to do), people can return to sharing
their definitive opinions what they already decided, (and where to go
next, and who overreacted, and who is to blame).
In closing can I recommend the Trump
2020 campaign adopt Mick Mulvaney's dissembling
as their tag: "The
issue here is not whether it's ethical".
P.S. Twitter needs to leave Barron
alone. That includes assuming he is a of captive, or suffering. The
President's kids (not the grown up ones who insert themselves into
politics) need to be left alone. If you didn't like it when
Republican's harassed President Obama's children, don't make an ass,
and a hypocrite, of yourself.
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