Trump Casts Off His Economic Advisor With Remarks that are Both Antisemitic and Racist

Posted by on March 8, 2018 at 2:03 pm. 2 Comments :

On Thursday afternoon, Donald Trump held another of his Apprentice-style boardroom cabinet meetings. These are made-for-TV stunts that emulate his old TV game show with him in the center of a bunch of sycophants obediently awaiting his magic glance and, if they’re lucky, a rare compliment. There is also a faint hint of danger that Trump’s brain might glitch and he’ll accidentally fire somebody.

Donald Trump

On this occasion Trump actually did discuss the termination of one his administration’s top aides, Gary Cohn. the chief economic advisor, announced earlier this week that he was leaving his White House post following a disagreement with Trump on imposing tariffs on steel and aluminum. Trump noted that this cabinet meeting would be Cohn’s last. And then he jovially unleashed this noxious comment (video below):

“This is Gary Cohn’s last cabinet meeting. He’s been terrific. He may be a globalist, but I still like him. He’s seriously a globalist, there is no question. But he’s also a nationalist because he loves our country.”

Holy Schomley. Donald Trump may be trying to set a record for bigoted insults in a single sentence. Without any hist of shame, Trump rattled off two rancid, ethnically-charged invectives aimed at his departing Jewish staffer. The conspicuous prejudice in his remarks cannot be overstated. Nor should the egregious laughter from his cabinet be dismissed. For the record:

Glabalism is a longtime anti-Semitic trope based on the the idea that Jews are not loyal citizens. Their allegience is only to worldwide financial markets and cooperatives. It has been adopted as the rhetoric of alt-right groups who oppose immigration and diversity, and advocate maintaining an anglo-European majority in the United States. It’s been used disparagingly against everyone from George Soros to Chuck Schumer, and now Gary Cohn. And of course, to rightists like Trump the media and banks are crawling with them.

White nationalism is a modern re-labeling of white supremacists. Advocates include the usual racist organizations such as the Ku Klux Klan, Aryan Nations, and the American Nazi Party. They openly support racial discrimination and oppose immigration from non-European countries. The adherents of this brand of nationalism include David Duke, Richard Spencer, and Trump aide Steven Miller. And most of the nation’s organized white nationalist groups endorsed Trump for president.

For Trump to use both of these heinous terms in such close proximity, and directed at a Jewish member of his staff, is nothing but reprehensible. It affirms his commitment to the hateful ideology of cretins like Steve Bannon that got him elected. And sadly, the media will likely gloss over these epithets. Which is too bad, because it’s just another example of Trump getting away with advancing a hateful agenda.

How Fox News Deceives and Controls Their Flock:
Fox Nation vs. Reality: The Fox News Cult of Ignorance.
Available now at Amazon.

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LOL: Trump’s Press Secretary Says the White House is ‘a Very Functioning Place of Business’

Posted by on March 7, 2018 at 2:12 pm. 3 Comments :

The morning after Donald Trump’s chief economic advisor, Gary Cohn, resigned, the White House PR machine went to work pretending that there is nothing the least bit wrong in Trumpland. Never mind that there has been a higher rate of turnover than any presidency in history, or that competent, qualified people are rejecting offers to work in Trump’s administration. Even current staff are delaying departure because they can’t find new employers who will hire them. That’s how toxic the association with Trump is.

trump-departures

The Wednesday press briefing at the White House was a typically shallow affair where press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders spent much of the time replying to questions with non-answers. For instance, she would repeatedly say something like “the President has made his feelings clear on that matter and I have nothing further to add.” So what the heck are you doing there?

Today’s briefing included a couple of questions (videos below) related to White House staffing problems which, according to Sanders, don’t exist. She is parroting Trump’s obviously false contention that he has his choice of “the 10 top people” for any open position because “everybody wants to be there.” That is contradicted by the very fact that he keeps having so many openings. Clearly people don’t want to be there. And this deficit of talent has even Trump supporters worried:

Q: Republican senator Cornyn said today “I’m concerned who the President will turn to for advice.” Should he be concerned?
A: No. The President’s got a number of very accomplished, smart, capable people around him. And he is going to continue to lean on a lot of those people. But at the end of the day the American people voted overwhelmingly for President Donald J. Trump. They voted for his policies, his agenda, and for him to be the ultimate decision maker.

Sanders is right. There is indeed a number of “very accomplished, smart, capable people” around the President. Zero is a number, isn’t it? However, Sanders is totally wrong about Trump being elected overwhelmingly. In fact, Hillary Clinton got three million more votes than Trump. And his policies and agenda have only gotten less popular in the past year. He still has the lowest approval rating of any president on record. And his popularity doesn’t seem to be any higher within his administration than it does with voters.

Q:Why are so many people people leaving this administration?
A: Look, this administration has had a historic first year. We’re gonna continue to do great things. This is an intense place, as is every White House, and it’s not abnormal that you would have people come and go.
Q: But it is actually abnormal. No administration in recent history has had this rate of turnover.
A: But it’s not abnormal to have turnover.
Q: If this is not the definition of chaotic, how would you describe what’s happening in these recent weeks?
A: If it was then I don’t think we’d have been able to accomplish everything that we’ve done. The economy is stronger than it’s been in ages. ISIS is on the run. The remaking of the judiciary. Jobs are coming in at record numbers. There are historic things that have taken place in the first year. Sounds like a very functioning place of business.

So Sanders is reduced to asserting that losing staff is not abnormal, even though the turnover rate in Trump’s White House is historically high. That’s like your doctor saying that losing blood isn’t abnormal while you’ve got an open vein gushing like a fire hose. Everything will be just fine. And her rundown of Trump’s achievements is really a list of the successes that President Obama handed down to Trump. But nothing that has transpired in the past year reflects a functioning workplace. Sanders – and Trump – have an impressive capacity for self-delusion.

The people populating Trump’s administration have never been especially well regarded. Those still remaining include Ben Carson, Rick Perry, Scott Pruitt, and Betsy DeVos. That makes the prospect of Trump selecting new staffers extremely troubling. One name already being floated for Cohn’s job is Larry Kudlow, currently a Fox Business Network contributor. Also being mentioned as a replacement for National Security Advisor H.R. McMaster, is another Fox News pundit, John Bolton. It seems that Trump’s only recruiting pool is from those people he sees on TV. And if that’s true, get ready for Secretary of State Sean Hannity, and Attorney General Jeanine Pirro. These are indeed scary times.

How Fox News Deceives and Controls Their Flock:
Fox Nation vs. Reality: The Fox News Cult of Ignorance.
Available now at Amazon.


If Trump Refuses to Hold Kellyanne Conway Accountable, the Media Must Refuse to Book Her

Posted by on March 6, 2018 at 6:40 pm. 3 Comments :

If anyone needed more evidence of the Trump administration’s flagrant criminality, it came Tuesday morning when it responded to allegations against senior advisor Kellyanne Conway. She was just found by the Office of the Special Counsel (not related to Robert Mueller) to have violated the Hatch Act that prohibits White House personnel from engaging in political advocacy. Twice.

Kellyanne Conway

What makes this such a great example of the administration’s casual relationship to crime is not just the illegal behavior, but the official response to it. Disregarding the OSC’s findings and referral for disciplinary action, Donald Trump’s White House chose to let Conway slide with no consequences for her actions whatsoever. Even though this is at least her third violation and she has supposedly been counseled. The White House said that:

“Kellyanne Conway did not advocate for or against the election of any particular candidate. She simply expressed the president’s obvious position that he have people in the House and Senate who support his agenda.”

That, of course, was totally untrue. Given her repeated breaches of federal law, and her absence of remorse, it is inconceivable that she would avoid punishment. Had an aide to President Obama done this, Republicans would be calling for his impeachment. Well, if Obama were caught jaywalking they’d call for his impeachment. But an unrepentant, recidivist federal law breaker like Conway doesn’t even get the proverbial slap on the wrist.

Consequently, Conway’s punishment should be meted out in the only other venue that matters to her: the media.

There is absolutely no justification for any responsible news enterprise to book this lawbreaker. It is on the news that Conway commits her crimes. So why provide her the opportunity to repeat her offenses? The victims of the Hatch Act are not just citizens who are deceived, but also news outlets that are exploited. So it is entirely appropriate for them to protect themselves and their audience from further harm.

What’s more, Conway has never respected the journalists with whom she associated. Her record of brazenly lying to reporters is well documented. She is, after all, the woman who coined the term “alternative facts.” Or as Chuck Todd observed, “falsehoods.”

Considering the frequency with which Conway has lied to the press, they would have been justified in banning her even before these legal judgments. In fact, that’s just what the hosts of Morning Joe did last year. Now that banishment needs to be extended to the rest of the media.

Since the criminals in the Trump administration believe that the law doesn’t apply to them, justice needs another outlet. Let Trump find someone else to lie to America. He has plenty of Deplorables around him who have no problem wallowing in that swamp. And leave them and Conway to Fox News where lying is a job requirement.

In the meantime, enjoy Michelle Wolf’s deconstruction of the Conway Method from the Daily Daily Show, where she notes that “For decades politicians have blown bullshit on TV. But Kellyanne Conway has changed the game.”

How Fox News Deceives and Controls Their Flock:
Fox Nation vs. Reality: The Fox News Cult of Ignorance.
Available now at Amazon.


Trump Hypes Fox News Ratings While Ignoring the Success of Rachel Maddow and MSNBC

Posted by on March 6, 2018 at 11:58 am. NO Comments :

There is something deeply disturbing about a president who obsesses about television ratings. Especially when it’s focused so narrowly on one particular network that serves as his biggest media booster. Donald Trump has spent more time on Twitter fawning over Fox News than almost any other single subject. He frequently tweets or retweets things he just watched on Fox and Friends or Hannity as if they were his closest advisors.

Rachel Maddow

On Tuesday morning Trump retweeted a post by his son Eric that celebrated Fox’s ratings performance in February. Why on Earth was this so important to someone who is currently burdened with a nuclear standoff with North Korea, Russian interference in American elections, a trade war that he instigated, children being massacred in schools, undocumented residents who have spent nearly their whole lives in the U.S. facing deportation, and so many other serious matters? It’s almost as if his only experience for running the country came from being a TV personality.

Okay, so Fox had a pretty good month. They lost January, so it must be a relief to them – and to Trump. However, their February win wasn’t exactly a runaway. While Trump slams his arch-enemy CNN in this tweet, he neglects to mention MSNBC and Rachel Maddow. As News Corpse reported last week, Maddow had another impressive month, falling just short of beating Sean Hannity again in the key demographic of 25-54 year olds. And although her average audience was shy of an outright victory, she did win more days during the month than Hannity did.

What’s more, in January Fox News dropped fourteen percent in primetime. Now February has topped that with an additional fifteen percent decline. Meanwhile, MSNBC gained significantly in both months of this new year. February’s percentage gains were over twenty percent. Funny, Trump never mentioned any of that. But he did tweet about the ratings for the Oscar telecast on Sunday. And for some reason he took delight in the numbers having declined. Apparently our President is happy when the film industry, a major national employer and contributor to America’s domestic and export economy, is doing poorly.

Trump’s tweets on behalf of Fox News are more evidence that the network is a wholly owned and operated division of the Trump administration. Or is it the other way around? Or are both Trump and Fox News divisions of Russia’s Putin Enterprises Worldwide. All three scenarios are way too plausible. But most Americans would agree that the President has more important things to do than analyzing TV ratings and promoting programs that unfailingly exalt their Dear Leader. Jake Tapper of CNN had a pithy commentary himself on Twitter saying…

And conversely, if you’re a news organization and the folks in power are constantly maligning you, you’re doing it right. By definition. There’s a reason that Trump is relentlessly attacking CNN, the New York Times, the Washington Post, etc. He’s afraid because actual journalists are revealing his criminal activities and those of his associates. His only recourse is a campaign of smear tactics. But that is only making him look even more guilty. So keep it up, Donnie. And remember, no matter how bad the ratings are for CNN, yours are still worse.

How Fox News Deceives and Controls Their Flock:
Fox Nation vs. Reality: The Fox News Cult of Ignorance.
Available now at Amazon.


This Fox News Trump-Fluffer is Right: ‘The American People Are Sick and Tired’ of Russia Probe

Posted by on March 5, 2018 at 1:47 pm. 1 Comments :

Longtime Donald Trump sycophant and Citizens United honcho, David Bossie, visited State-Run TV (aka Fox News) on Monday to further disseminate the absurdity that special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation “doesn’t seem like it is going anywhere near the White House.” That’s an obvious falsehood that is easily refuted by widely available facts.

Donald Trump

Everyone knows that there have already been nineteen indictments and five guilty pleas. Among the guilty are Trump’s National Security Advisor, and his assistant campaign manage. It’s hard to get much closer to the White House than that. And yet it does. Breaking news on Monday morning reveals that Mueller’s team has issued subpoenas for numerous documents and communications with Trump insiders including Corey Lewandowski, Hope Hicks, Keith Schiller, and his personal attorney Michael Cohen.

Which may explain why the Trump surrogate army has been deployed to flood the airwaves with deceitful propaganda. Bossie is taking the lead with an interview on the Fox News program Outnumbered OT (video below). and his dishonesty and obfuscation is so apparent it must be humiliating. He said that…

“The American people are sick and tired of this two year investigation. We are getting into this scandal fatigue area where the American people are tired of it. They see the shifting around and they don’t see any evidence whatsoever that this president or the campaign did anything wrong, let alone collude with the Russians.”

First of all, Bossie is brazenly lying about the duration of the investigation. Mueller was appointed to his position in May of 2017, so it hasn’t even been in progress for one year yet. However, Bossie did inadvertently stumble over a truth with regard to the American people’s fatigue. They are surely tired of how long this scandal is being drawn out and would appreciate a swift conclusion. However, it isn’t because they think Trump and Russia are innocent, as Bossie implies. To the contrary, The American people overwhelming believe that that the investigation is warranted and that Trump is likely guilty of something. A new CNN poll found that sixty-one percent of Americans say the Russia investigation is a serious matter. Seventy-two percent are very/somewhat concerned about foreign interference in U.S. elections.

No matter how many times people like Bossie or Sean Hannity or Sarah Huckabee Sanders say there is no evidence of collusion or other wrongdoing, they cannot make it true. The known evidence is piling up, and the evidence that is known only to Mueller and his team is surely far more damning than what has been made public. And the same is true with regard to the false right-wing assertions that the people don’t care about this issue. Trump’s defenders are only exposing their desperation by distorting reality to fit their yearning for all of this to be over. And Trump himself is dong the same thing on Twitter:

Trump’s anxiety could not be more apparent. It shows who is really “sick and tired.” He’s scared and likely knows that he is in deep trouble. This tweet displays a serious cognitive collapse. He is simultaneously saying that there was no Russian election meddling, and also that President Obama did nothing about the Russian election meddling that didn’t happen. Never mind that every U.S. intelligence agency with jurisdiction has stated unequivocally that there was Russian meddling. What’s more, Obama punished Russia with sanctions and ejections of Russian operatives. He also tried to put together a bipartisan response, but Republican Senate Leader Mitch McConnell refused to cooperate.

The tantrums thrown by Trump and his surrogates like Bossie aren’t helping their cause. They are only making them appear guilty and frantic as they scramble for cover. And the American people see right through this pathetic charade. It’s only a matter of time before Mueller’s investigation is complete and the truth revealed. And that’s when the American people’s fatigue will be relieved. But it will be just the beginning for Trump et al.

How Fox News Deceives and Controls Their Flock:
Fox Nation vs. Reality: The Fox News Cult of Ignorance.
Available now at Amazon.


The Trump Era Logical Dissonance Wrapped Up in One Unbelievably Incoherent Sentence

Posted by on March 5, 2018 at 11:36 am. NO Comments :

OK, this comment by Donald Trump’s Secretary of Commerce, Wilbur Ross, perfectly encapsulates the entirety of the Trump Era logical dissonance. It’s an indicator of just how toxic the effect of Trump’s idiocy is on all of those around him.

Donald Trump Effect

In an interview with Chuck Todd on Meet the Press, Ross makes this statement that is saying absolutely nothing coherent, and then denies that he even said what he just said. The subject was Trump’s asinine proposal to impose tariffs on steel and aluminum products, mostly from our allies.

“Whatever his final decision is, is what will happen. What he has said, he has said. If he says something different, it’ll be something different.”

Well, thanks for clearing that up. I have nothing to add.

See it for yourself:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xKCf9-oL9Y8

How Fox News Deceives and Controls Their Flock:
Fox Nation vs. Reality: The Fox News Cult of Ignorance.
Available now at Amazon.

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Devin Nunes To Fox News: Stephen Colbert is ‘The Danger That We Have in This Country’

Posted by on March 4, 2018 at 1:07 pm. 1 Comments :

The first year of Donald Trump’s presidency has seen innumerable crises develop domestically and throughout the world. There have been several shootings on school campuses. Our elections have been tampered with by Russia, and they’re still doing it. Trump is threatening nuclear war with North Korea. And his proposal to impose tariffs (mostly on our allies) sent the stock market into a tailspin.

Stephen Colbert & Trump Baby

So what does Devin Nunes, the Republican chairman of the House Select Intelligence Committee, consider to be one of the most serious hazards facing America? Well, of course, it’s late night television comedy, and specifically Stephen Colbert. Nunes was interviewed on Fox News by their resident Financial Distortion Anchor, Neil Cavuto (video below). The segment had nothing to do with the economy, but it did get to the bottom of the frightening assault on America by radical satirists. It began withe this probing exchange:

Cavuto: You mention that the media doesn’t present a fair case of [Trump/Russia]. Maybe the indication of that is that you’ve recently become the butt of late night comic jokes. Particularly Stephen Colbert was up on Capitol Hill. I think making you the butt of some jokes. What did you think of that? Did Colbert make any effort to talk to you?”
Nunes: Well, I think that this is the danger that we have in this country. The left controls not only the universities in this country, but they also control Hollywood in this country, and the mainstream media. So conservatives in this country are under attack and I think this is a great example of it.

Exactly. Stephen Colbert absolutely is “the danger” that America faces. And kudos to Cavuto for bringing up this looming peril. Where else but on Fox News could this travesty be exposed? Nunes points out that the reason the nation is undergoing such unprecedented turmoil is that leftists have seized control of the most powerful institutions in the country – universities and Hollywood – and are using them to enslave the minds of decent citizens. However, he doesn’t explain why these scurrilous lefties allowed Republicans to control the Congress, the Supreme Court, and the White House.

Also unexplained is how the special counsel, Robert Mueller, managed to get (so far) nineteen indictments and five guilty pleas connected to his investigation of Trump’s unsavory connections to Russia. But rest assured, somehow it’s the fault of universities, Hollywood, and Colbert. And Nunes isn’t taking it laying down. He doesn’t intend to be the butt of anyone’s joke, no matter how much he deserves it. In fact, he likes it:

Nunes: So I hope they continue to do it. Because on the one hand you’ll see the left and the media running out there saying “OMG, this is the end of the world. The Russians attacked our democracy. And we have evidence of collusion between the Trump campaign and the Russians.” However, they can’t show it. They have no proof […] they resort to going to their friends in Hollywood to make fun of people and attack people who are trying to get to the truth. I enjoy the attacks. If they want to continue to attack me, that’s fine.”

Well, we certainly wouldn’t want to disappoint him, would we? Although it’s puzzling that he says he enjoys it while simultaneously complaining that it’s an unfair attack and a danger to the country. Is he an unpatriotic masochist?

Nunes’ remarks were rife with allegations as to the identity of the real colluders – naturally, Hillary Clinton and the Democrats. And when Cavuto asked him about allegations that he was “doing the President’s bidding,” he curiously replied “I don’t know.” Then quickly stammering to add “I mean, we don’t get any orders from the White House.” Which makes perfect sense. They are probably coming from Mar-A-Lago, where the President spends most of his time.

Nunes went on to praise his committee’s work and insisted that he “follows the facts where they lead.” So long as they lead to Clinton and the Democrats. He refused to allow his Democratic committee colleagues to call witnesses. And he wouldn’t hold White House witnesses accountable when they refused to answer questions. Nunes falsely claimed that “no one would know … that Fusion GPS was paid by the Hillary Clinton campaign and the Democratic Party’ but for his efforts. In fact, it was reported by the (fake?) media long before he ever got around to it.

Once again, Fox News uncovers the atrocities in Washington that are neglected by the “mainstream” media (which, for some reason doesn’t include Fox News). And heroes like Devin Nunes are permitted time to inform the American people about what is really going on in this gawd-awful country. With journalism like this we will hopefully soon be rid of fake reporters like Colbert who are working tirelessly to destroy America.

How Fox News Deceives and Controls Their Flock:
Fox Nation vs. Reality: The Fox News Cult of Ignorance.
Available now at Amazon.

Here is the Fox News segment with Cavuto and Nunes:

And here is video of Colbert’s trip to Washington, D.C.:


Trump Salivates Over China’s Xi Becoming President for Life: ‘Maybe We’ll Give That a Shot Some Day’

Posted by on March 3, 2018 at 5:46 pm. 6 Comments :

File this one under “HOLY SH*T” – if there’s still any room in that file. At a Republican fundraiser at his Mar-A-Lago resort, Donald Trump gave a speech that firmly establishes his not-so-thinly-veiled aspirations to be become America’s dictator. This was an event where the press was locked out, but a recording of Trump’s remarks manged to make its way to CNN. Here’s part of what he said per CNN (video below):

Donald Trump Tyrant Dictator

“Trump also praised China’s President Xi Jinping for recently consolidating power and extending his potential tenure, musing he wouldn’t mind making such a maneuver himself.

“‘He’s now president for life. President for life. And he’s great,’ Trump said. ‘And look, he was able to do that. I think it’s great. Maybe we’ll give that a shot some day.'”

No, we f**king won’t! And if that weren’t horrendous enough, the audience of GOP fat cats cheered wildly. They actually think it would be a good idea. At the very least they weren’t offended by the wholly inappropriate humor (if that’s what the White House tries to excuse it as tomorrow).

Trump also ran through his “greatest hits,” with complaints that Hillary Clinton hasn’t been locked up for whatever imaginary crimes Trump thinks she committed. He whined about the “rigged system” that sent him to the White House. And he lashed out again at his Attorney General, Jeff Sessions for not obeying his tyrannical whims and prosecuting whoever he regards as an enemy. He may want to be careful about that because it might just come back to chew off a chunk of his fat ass.

For someone who has been repeatedly castigated for behavior that emulates tyrants like Xi, Vladimir Putin, Rodrigo Duterte, and even Hitler, it is astonishing and disgusting that he would say anything like this, even in jest. But it nevertheless fits his reprehensible character (or lack thereof) and affirms that he has no sense of decency. However, the reaction from his comrades in the ballroom may be even worse. Their positive response is the sort of thing that results in narcissistic bullies transforming into full fledged dictators. They are the forward flank of the Trump cult, and are enabling his deranged, power hungry, madness.

How Fox News Deceives and Controls Their Flock:
Fox Nation vs. Reality: The Fox News Cult of Ignorance.
Available now at Amazon.


Could Trump’s Persistent Attacks Drive Jeff Sessions Right Into Robert Mueller’s Arms?

Posted by on March 3, 2018 at 12:52 pm. 2 Comments :

Let’s be clear from the outset, Attorney General Jeff Sessions is a repugnant, racist individual who should never have a role in public service. He rose from the Klan-infested South where he fit right in with the bigots of Alabama. He was rejected by the Senate for a federal judgeship due to reports of his prejudice and use of the “N” word. He was the first senator to endorse Donald Trump for president. During the campaign he he met twice with Russians and lied about it to congress. It’s a resume that ought to disqualify him from any position of respect or power.

Donald Trump Jeff Sessions

That said, Sessions is in a unique position. In one of his first appointments, Trump made him the Attorney General of the United States. But ever since then the President has lambasted him in an embarrassingly public way. The insults have flown from Twitter, as well as deliberate leaks from within the White House’s inner circle. Most recently Trump has been referring to Sessions as the blind and bumbling cartoon character, Mr. Magoo. But that’s just the latest humiliation that Sessions has had to suffer. Some of Trump’s attacks on Twitter include:

In addition to these, Trump’s state-run TV division (aka Fox News) has predictably adopted his animosity toward Sessions and piled on with fierce denunciations. Anchors like Sean Hannity and Lou Dobbs have called for the Attorney General to resign or be fired. They regard his recusal from the special counsel’s investigation as treason. Consequently, Fox News and right-wing Republicans are demanding that Sessions appoint a second special counsel to look into bogus claims of FISA abuses and FBI violations of law.

There has to be a point at which a normal human being will cease to take such constant and demeaning abuse. The question is whether Sessions has reached that point already.

It’s notable that, despite Trump’s persecution, Sessions has failed to bend to his will, at least with regard to Robert Mueller. In fact, Sessions has taken several opportunities to support Mueller and the Deputy Attorney General, Rod Rosenstein. The pressure from the White House and the pro-Trump media has been intense, but Sessions has not been moved. To the contrary, it was just announced that the FBI has begun an investigation into Ivanka Trump’s business deals.

The legal action against the President’s daughter cannot be dismissed as routine. Particularly from an administration that has been so criminally partisan. Along with Sessions’ firm support for the special counsel and refusal to resign under pressure, there is reason to believe that he may have some form revenge in mind. He has been in politics a long time and may be tougher than he looks.

If Sessions retains any semblance of humanity he may be building up some resentment and smoldering rage. He might want to show Trump that he won’t tolerate such abuse. And if that’s true it would be disastrous for Trump. Sessions has the whole weight of the Justice Department to throw around. That includes the FBI and some oversight (handled discreetly) of the special counsel. He could even switch sides and start spilling what he knows about Trump to Mueller’s team. And with all of the potential legal vulnerabilities hovering over Trump’s head there’s plenty of fuel to burn the Trump Crime Family to a crisp. In other words, Trump better watch his step or he’ll piss off the one person in his administration that can do him the most harm.

How Fox News Deceives and Controls Their Flock:
Fox Nation vs. Reality: The Fox News Cult of Ignorance.
Available now at Amazon.

To be sure, there is a lot speculation in this theory. Sessions’ reprehensible past and demonstrated loyalty might make him reluctant to move against his boss. But his ego and aspirations for a halfway decent legacy might take precedence. Especially if he sees Trump’s downfall as inevitable and doesn’t want to go down with the ship.

UPDATE: The Washington Post is reporting that there is “Pure Madness” and “Dark days inside the White House.” And this excerpt is particularly relevant:

“Aides tell WaPo ‘Trump seethed with anger’ over the photo of Sessions at dinner with Rosenstein and the Solicitor General. The next morning, Trump was still raging about the photo, venting to friends and allies it was an intentional show of disloyalty.”


Rachel Maddow Guides MSNBC to a Strong February 2018 – Fox News and Hannity are Scared

Posted by on March 2, 2018 at 10:40 am. 3 Comments :

In another embarrassingly weak performance, Fox News has suffered a ratings fall-off in February 2018 that signals more trouble ahead. Fox’s declining fortunes are becoming a regular event. In January the network dropped fourteen percent in primetime. Now February has topped that with an additional fifteen percent decline. Meanwhile, MSNBC gained significantly in both months of this new year.

Fox News Sad

In January Rachel Maddow outperformed Hannity, and all other cable news programs, in the key audience demographic of 25-54 year olds. She came just short of repeating that performance in February with an average of 635,000 viewers per night. Hannity edged her out with 643,000. However, of the twenty days in February, Maddow won a majority (eleven) of them.

Maddow’s practice of covering breaking news and the unfolding scandals of the scandal-ridden Trump administration has proven to be an unqualified success. Her deep dive into research and expert analysis continues to draw devoted viewers. Two years ago no one would have predicted that Fox would be a second place news network. Fox actually moved Hannity into a direct time period competition with Maddow in an attempt to blow her out with his top rated program. That didn’t go exactly according to plan and must be gnawing at Hannity and his Fox bosses.

Consequently, Hannity’s program is sinking into ever more ludicrous conspiracy theory territory. He is challenging Alex Jones as the right-wing’s most unhinged crackpot. On almost every show Hannity ignores actual news of Trump’s daily failures. Instead, he features topics exploring Hillary Clinton’s ancient and baseless controversies, or some version of the alleged “deep state” takeover of America. And of course, Hannity is serving his master in the White House with constant attempts to slander special counsel Robert Mueller and the FBI.

These subjects are also spread across the Fox News schedule. It’s why Fox viewers are so often shown to be more uninformed (or ill informed) than viewers of any other news network. And it is probably contributing to the overall audience decline at Fox as people seek out actual news and information relevant to their lives. But it is consistent with the Fox News commitment to defend Trump at all costs.

How Fox News Deceives and Controls Their Flock:
Fox Nation vs. Reality: The Fox News Cult of Ignorance.
Available now at Amazon.

The Fox News mission has always been to prop up the conservative, Republican agenda. But it’s more immediate objective is to discredit the investigations into Trump’s unsavory connections to Russia (and other financial corruption). And flagrant propagandists like Hannity, Tucker Carlson (who just called Democrats anti-American), and the “Curvy Couch” potatoes of Fox and Friends, are focused intently on smearing America’s law enforcement and intelligence institutions. They are putting their rancid partisanship before the interests of the country. And America’s television viewers are reacting with disgust and seeking out more credible reporting. Which is good news for Maddow and MSNBC.