Trump Live Blogged Biden’s State of the Union – And it Was Just as Schizoid as You’d Expect

The State of the Union address that President Biden delivered on Tuesday night was remarkable in several respects. Most importantly because it affirmed that Biden is a vigorous advocate for the principles that most Americans hold dear. From the economy and fair taxation, to climate change, to reproductive rights, to foreign policy, to Social Security, and more, the President was eloquent, effective, and passionately patriotic.

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Donald Trump, Insane, Straight Jacket

Republicans in the audience, however, were a different story. They behaved like incontinent toddlers howling in frustration, unable to comport themselves courteously, or even coherently. Even while a huge majority of Speech viewers reacted positively (72%, including 43% of Republicans), characters like Marjorie Taylor Greene shouted rudely with the contemptuousness that has made Republicans political pariahs.

RELATED: Americans are Unsatisfied with Politics in General, But Specifically Despise Trump and the GOP

Never one to be left out of any media frenzy, Donald Trump shoved his way into this event by live-blogging the speech on his pitifully failing social media site, Truth Social. But his petulant and self-serving outbursts only remind people of just how deranged and consumed with rage he is. His commentary was nothing more than a threaded temper tantrum. He began by dragging down America and, of course, lying.

“We are truly a Nation In Decline, and for that reason I want Joe Biden to do well tonight!”

Yeah, sure he does. Let’s see how that worked out.

“Too much use of the word ‘folks!'”

This coming from the guy who repeats himself like a manic Tourette’s sufferer (i.e. fake news, witch hunt, MAGA, and the unrelenting whine of Russia, Russia, Russia).

“He seems to be very angry, shouting into the mic, when he’s trying to come across as conciliatory. Perhaps somebody should walk up to the dais, tap him on the shoulder, and say, ‘Be cool!'”

What speech was Trump watching? Nevertheless, It’s good advice from someone who knows what being persistently angry is all about.

“On Unemployment, far fewer people are working now—a false figure, because the workforce is smaller, at 3.4%, is virtually meaningless!”

WRONG! There are millions more Americans working today than when Biden took office. The labor force participation rate declined during Trump’s term, and recovered during Biden’s.

“We wouldn’t have had the War with Russia and Ukraine if I were President. I could also end it in 24 hours—which is what should happen!”

Trump has previously claimed that he has magic words that would end the war, but he refuses to tell anyone.

“Just showed Swalwell, a man who spent a lot of time in Spy Fang Fang’s ‘honey net,’ and wasn’t removed from our most important Committee. Only in America!”

Trump is disseminating this slanderous lie because he’s afraid of Rep. Swalwell, and also because he’s a big baby.

“He’s absolutely screaming, ‘Infrastructure, Infrastructure,’ then he shouldn’t be wasting all of our money on China-produced windmills and the Green New Deal!”

Biden’s infrastructure bill got bipartisan support, and even the Republicans who voted against it have tried to take credit for it. Also, majorities support the “Green New Deal.”

“Just showed Racist Maxine Waters with a big smile on her face, but this is a woman that truly hates America!”

Every Black person is a racist in Trump’s eyes. He says the same thing about Leticia James, the Attorney General of New York.

“If I ever made a Speech like this, they’d run me out of Washington, D.C. But there’s time left, maybe he can save it.”

Who wants to remind Trump that the American people did run him out of Washington?

“Pocahontas is really going wild tonight—She almost has to be constrained, the only thing that will do it is the straight jacket!”

Trump is referring to Sen. Elizabeth Warren, who committed the sin of applauding. Did Trump see his bestie Marjorie Taylor Greene?

“He’s lying so much about Social Security, Medicare, and so many other things!”

For the record, GOP Sen. Rick Scott actually put his plan to “sunset” Social Security and other programs into writing. And he just doubled down on it on Twitter. Meanwhile, Biden got Republicans to join Democrats in a standing ovation for his comment that “We all apparently agree, Social Security and Medicare is off the books now, right?”

In addition to Trump’s live blogging, he finished his evening rant by posting a video of what he called “the real State of the Union.” However, it was just more of his dystopian, “American Carnage” rhetoric about how awful the country is. For instance…

“Over the past two years under Biden millions and millions of illegal aliens from 160 different countries have stormed across our Southern border […] Savage killers, rapists, and violent criminals are being released from jail to continue their crime. […] Real wages are down 20 months in a row. Gas prices have soared and are now going up much higher than even before (both false). […] Joe Biden’s weaponized Justice Department — and I’m a victim of it — is persecuting his political opponents. […] They’re trying to indoctrinate and mutilate our children. […] He’s leading us to the brink of World War III.”

That compendium of pessimism and horror is typical of the GOP’s current public positions. It was affirmed in Sarah Huckabee Sanders’ response to the State of the Union, wherein she contrasted Biden’s optimism with the nightmarish future envisioned by Republicans. Although she did mange to squeeze out one true statement…

“The dividing line in America is no longer between right or left. The choice is between normal or crazy.”

Exactly! Unfortunately, she doesn’t understand how most people will interpret that. It’s also sad that the craziness on the right is already leading to violent incidents by Trump cultists. And Trump is actually egging them on.

SEE THIS: Trump Post Urges His Cult Followers to Take Up Arms and ‘Physically Fight’ for the Presidency

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Revolving Bore: Former Trump Secretary of State Mike Pompeo Joins Fox News

The relationship between Fox News and the Republican Party is an incestuous mess that repeatedly violates all standards of journalistic ethics. And now the revolving door between Fox and the defunct Donald Trump administration is spinning faster than a Hunter Biden laptop lie.

Donald Trump, Fox News, White House

Fox News has just announced Trump’s former Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo has been hired as a contributor. According to the Hollywood Reporter

“Pompeo, who will make his first appearance in his new role on the channel on Friday’s Fox & Friends, will appear across Fox News and Fox Business programming.

“In a statement Thursday, Pompeo said he intends ‘to give viewers a candid, no-nonsense look at geopolitics, international relations and the America First policies that helped chart the course for unprecedented American prosperity and security.'”

It is entirely fitting that Pompeo will debut as a talking head with the “Curvy Couch” potatoes on Trump’s favorite morning show, Fox and Friends. And his statement that Trump’s policies charted “a course for unprecedented American prosperity and security,” strikes just right tone of flagrant dishonesty to launch a budding career in nakedly biased media and propaganda. If Trump’s policies were so successful he wouldn’t have been evicted form the White House by an unprecedented majority of the American people.

However, nowhere in the announcement was it acknowledged that Pompeo is actively exploring a run for president in 2024. He has already made the requisite appearances in in the first primary state of Iowa. This hire is just another example of Fox News boosting Republican politicians. At the very least, Fox is proving to be the GOP’s jobs program for failed pols with nowhere else to go. He is joining Trump castoffs…

  • Kayleigh McEnany, the former press secretary who is now a co-host of Fox’s Outnumbered.
  • Larry Kudlow, the former economic advisor who has replaced Fox’s Lou Dobbs, who was fired in connection with the billion dollar lawsuit filed by Dominion Voting Systems.
  • Lara Trump, who, for the moment, is the wife of Eric Trump – her only qualification for the job.

Pompeo shares the distinction of being a prospective candidate with Lara Trump. She has been talking about running for the Senate in North Carolina for weeks. And another former Trump press secretary, Sarah Huckabee Sanders, has already gone from Trump’s White House to Fox News to a candidacy for governor of Arkansas.

There is no bottom to the ethical breaches by Fox News and the Republican shills they support. It is a brazenly biased confederacy of shameless dishonesty operating as a mutual benefit society for personal and political gain. Look for it to continue with other Trump/GOP fortune seekers who have been unable to find jobs anywhere else.

NOTE: Twitter recently suspended the News Corpse account after 11 years without giving a reason. So if anyone wants to tweet articles from my website, please feel free to do so often and repeatedly. Also, Be sure to visit and follow News Corpse on Instagram. Thanks for your support.

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

According to Trump and Fox News MOST Americans are Dumb, Terrorist Lovers

It has been clear since his inauguration that Donald Trump was not a popular figure in American politics. He has never reached 50% in approval polls, and his policies have been universally disfavored by voters. What’s more, despite his frequent and desperate denials, support for his impeachment is growing.

Donald Trump TV Set

In the aftermath of Trump’s assassination of Iranian General Qasem Soleimani, the divisive rhetoric emanating from the White House has intensified. There has been a noxious effort on the part of Trump and his sycophants to portray anyone who disagrees with him as a traitor who supports the terrorists. That’s a tactic used unsuccessfully by the Bush administration to malign opponents of his invasion of Iraq. And now the StormTrumpers are employing it to attack his critics. GOP Congressman Doug Collins went so far as to say that Democrats are in love with terrorists.”

That sort of ugliness has not been the exception from Republicans in recent days. They are desperately trying to claw their way out of the hole that Trump has dug for them. Trump’s reckless venture into international assassinations is not being met with approval by Americans or the world. And things aren’t getting any better for them as House Speaker Nancy Pelosi introduces a resolution to prohibit Trump from taking further rogue actions. That legislative move has triggered the Trump-fluffers on Fox News (video below):

Ainsley Earhardt: The president yesterday said the U.S. is ready to embrace peace. He’s calling for more economic sanctions on Iran’s already struggling economy. He did say that Iran is standing down, so why is the House putting up this resolution to try to limit the president’s powers?
Sarah Sanders: I can’t think of anything dumber than allowing Congress to take over our foreign policy. They can’t seem to manage to get anything done. I think the last thing we want to do is push powers into Congress’ hands and take them away from the president. Any Democrat that doesn’t understand that America is safer now that one of the most dangerous terrorists in the world is rotting in hell is completely naive and completely misses what we need to have in foreign policy.

First of all, Earhardt’s question was loaded with contradictions. She asserted that Trump was embracing peace while simultaneously imposing sanctions, which is a form of economic warfare. And that should be unnecessary if her claim that Iran is standing down is true.

While the question was a jumble of flagrantly biased presumptions, Sanders’ answer was downright demented. Apparently Sanders “can’t think of anything dumber” than the Constitution, which provides Congress with the sole authority to declare war. Congress also has the authority, under the doctrine of checks and balances, to impose limits on the executive branch’s aspirations to tyranny.

Furthermore, Sanders is among the Trump apologists who is suffering from the wishful thinking that the American people support Trump’s unlawful international adventurism. According to a new USA TODAY/Ipsos poll

  • An 18 point majority (52%-34%), called Trump’s behavior with Iran “reckless.”
  • A 44 point majority (52%-8%), said the attack made it more likely that Iran would develop nuclear weapons.
  • By far, most Americans (55%-24%) believe the assassination made the United States less safe. Including nearly a third of Republicans.
  • By 47%-39%, those surveyed said Trump ordered the killing of Soleimani in an attempt to divert the focus from his impeachment.
  • And specifically addressing Pelosi’s resolution, a big majority (53%-33%) endorsed congressional action that would limit Trump’s ability to order military strikes or declare war without legislative approval.

So Trump, along with his surrogates and cult followers, are severely disengaged from the will of the public at large. This has been a common flaw in the thinking at the White House and their Ministry of Propaganda, Fox News. They persist in trying to convince the people that they believe what they plainly do not believe. And the Trumpies may be succeeding in convincing themselves that the fantasy they imagine is actually reality. That might make them feel a little better today, but it won’t help them in November.

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

Fox News Marches Lock-Step with ‘Impeaching Trump Will Hurt Democrats’ Talking Point

This week just keeps getting worse for Donald Trump. First it was revealed that a whistleblower charged him with serious breaches of national security in a conversation with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. Then he was forced to release the memo containing an account of that phone call that was disturbing and incriminating. And on Thursday the text of the whistleblower’s complaint was also released after the White House could no longer persist in suppressing it. Simultaneous to this, his Director of National Intelligence, Joseph Maguire, was grilled about his conduct with regard to the whistleblower complaint in a pair of congressional hearings.

Fox News, Impeach Trump

In addition to that, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi announced that the House or Representatives would be formally conducting an impeachment inquiry. Much of the work on that had already begun, but this made it official. Trump’s response to these events was to panic-tweet dozens of bootlicking testimonials by worshipful disciples in politics and the press. It was a barrage of sycophantic adoration and utterly dishonest rationalizations for his flagrantly unlawful acts. It was most assuredly not the behavior of an innocent man.

Not surprisingly, Fox News was prominently featured among these tributes to Trump’s treason. Their mission to shield Trump from any and all harm continues as the news gets ever more precarious for his dangling presidency. And what appears to be a coordinated offensive by Fox news is taking shape. Thursday’s messaging was strikingly aligned across many of its programs. What they are pitching is that, regardless of how terrible this all looks for Trump, it’s really much worse for Democrats. For instance:

  • Karl Rove on Fox’s Daily Briefing told host Dana Perino that “Impeachment is a losing issue for Democrats.”
  • Rush Limbaugh warned Democrats that “They’re not thinking about blowback.”
  • Newt Gingrich offered his stale analysis that “When [Pelosi] starts an investigation the person who’s gonna get clobbered is Joe Biden.”
  • Tucker Carlson turned to frightening Democrats, saying that they “have just become so obsessed with destroying Donald Trump, that they’re destroying themselves.”
  • Sarah Huckabee Sanders summed it all up by asserting that “All this is doing is helping [Trump] get reelected.”

WOW! That sounds pretty darn awful for Democrats. And by extension, it sounds like Trump and his Republican Nationalist Party should be celebrating. In fact, they ought to be thanking Democrats and promoting their efforts to impeach Trump at every opportunity. After all, it’s only going to help Trump get reelected and crush the Democrats’ hopes for majorities in Congress. If Republicans really believe what they are saying, then all of this drama over impeachment should be putting them in good mood.

However, for some reason that isn’t the case. Even after insisting that the Democrats are destroying themselves, and that Trump will be the beneficiary, they are still whining incessantly and demanding that all efforts to impeach Trump be halted. Trump himself is threatening legal action, which is not an option with regard to impeachment. And his Twitter feed is blowing up with more tweets and retweets than ever, almost all which are nasty reactions to his pending impeachment.

Apparently, Trump and his minions are not really as happy about him being impeached as they are trying to pretend. The reality is that his violations of law, ethics, and his oath of office, are more than sufficient to warrant impeachment and removal from office. And no one knows that better than Trump. He is aware of what he’s done and what the consequences are. And that is why he – and the Cult of Deplorables he leads – have been scared into incoherence. It’s almost pathetic enough to feel sorry for them. Nah, not really.

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

Why the Press Needs to Quit Being Pawns in Trump’s Lie-Riddled ‘Chopper Talk’ Reality Show

It has been 166 days since the last White House press briefing. This is an unprecedented and deliberate strategy by the Trump regime to deprive the press – and by extension the American people – of critical information regarding the affairs of the government that is supposed to be serving them.

Donald Trump

The last press briefing was held by former press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders, who is now working for Fox News. The new press secretary is a two-time drunk driver with a shady resume, Stephanie Grisham, who has not held a single press briefing. You have to wonder why Trump even bothers to have a communications staff when they aren’t doing their job.

The argument from the White House is that Trump is his own best spokesperson and that he provides more frequent access to the media than they would have with conventional press briefings. There is some truth that. Trump does address the press whenever he’s traveling to or from the White House. It’s generally an informal gathering on the West Wing lawn with the whirring of a helicopter in the background. Hence “Chopper Talk.” However, it might be more accurate to call it “Whopper Talk,” because all he does is lie and and obstruct any kind of substantive dialog or dissemination of useful info.

These media scrums are not substitutes for real press briefings. They are lame versions of a reality show that Trump seems to think he’s still on. Reporters are not permitted to ask follow up questions, and often aren’t even allowed to get their initial questions out without Trump interrupting them. In many instances Trump will call on a reporter, but when he gets the gist of the question will stop it and complain that he doesn’t like the question or the reporter asking it. Then he moves on to his next victim. The whole thing is a complete waste of time. Trump himself said that it’s “ridiculous” that the media always covers him live.

During this charade it is usually impossible to hear the actual questions. So Trump’s answers are often disassociated from any intelligible topic. Not that his answers aren’t always incoherent, but without the questions it makes it even worse. And when there is an exchange that is audible, Trump’s replies are littered with flagrant falsehoods. But the press isn’t able to point that out and require Trump to validate his often ludicrous assertions (like “China pays the tariffs” or that there is no recession, or his being “the Chosen One“). Jesse Watters of Fox News offered a helpful explanation for why Trump favors this method of dealing with the media (video below):

“What he does is this walk to Marine One. This is the way he kind of conducts the orchestra. He’s saying “No. Shut up. Stop with the asinine questions. And he kind of glides down the row and kind of conducts the press like a maestro. And it’s a brilliant performance.

Watters is actually complimenting Trump here. He thinks it’s good thing when the President “orchestrates” his media avails so that only his spin is delivered, rather than truths the public can rely on. He praises the President’s “performance” as if this were all just playacting, rather than serious discussions that impact people’s lives. Watters also approves of Trump telling reporters to “shut up.” But it’s downright bizarre for someone on an alleged “news” network to celebrate a political leader for violating the First Amendment rights of the press. Watters continued saying that…

The other thing it does is, it removes the faces of the preening media reporters from the television. They shoot them from behind so they don’t get to stand up and really get their face on camera, and that shuts them down so they can’t pose.”

This is another example of Fox News applauding Trump for diminishing reporters and suppressing the value of their work and the importance of their contribution to democracy. At Fox the only priority is propping up Dear Leader and maligning his critics. They have no respect for the media or the Constitution’s protection for it.

The same thing is true for Trump, who’s dismantling of the White House facility for communicating with the people is undemocratic and dangerous. And for that reason, the press should refrain from participating in the sham that Trump has concocted to replace real press briefings.

His predictable ranting is pretty much the same every time. He calls the media “the enemy of the people,” lies about what he said the day before, and brags about achievements that don’t exist in real life. Why should the press bother to show up for those sorts of soap opera thatrics? Just let him get on his helicopter and fly off to his next cult rally and tell those lies to his Deplorables.

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

https://www.foxnews.com/media/trump-media-watters-news-nbc-cnn

To Sarah Sanders: If Congress is Too Dumb to Understand Trump’s Taxes, Releasing Them Can’t Hurt

Donald Trump’s media relations have been a case study in both a totalitarian hostility toward the free press and a narcissist’s obsession for attention and adulation. He has repeatedly referred to the media in Stalinist terms as “the enemy of the people,” while lashing out personally at journalists and networks that he doesn’t think are sufficiently adoring.

Donald Trump

Trump’s White House has all but abandoned the daily press briefings that every other president in modern times has held. But he continues to send his press Secretary, Sarah Huckabee Sanders, out to the same TV news networks that he maligns. While there she does nothing but disseminate flagrant lies, packaged propaganda, and irrational defenses of her bosses many offensive utterances. Case in point: Sanders went on Fox News Sunday with Chris Wallace to try to shore another bad week for Trump. When the subject turned to the President’s stubborn refusal to release his tax returns, Sanders let this bull fly (video below):

“Frankly, Chris, I don’t think Congress – particularly not this group of congressmen and women – are smart enough to look through the thousands of pages that I would assume that President Trump’s taxes will be.”

Seriously? Trump’s first responses to this question were promises that he would release his taxes and would be happy and proud to do so. That later shifted to a lie about being audited, which he said prevented him from releasing his returns. It doesn’t. Most recently he has just declared that he isn’t going to do it under any circumstances. Which should cause any thoughtful citizen to wonder why he’s lied for so long and what terrible things he is trying to hide?

But for Sanders to make such a vicious ad hominem attack on the entire institution of Congress only escalates the suspicions that Americans should have. After all, it is the job of Congress to conduct oversight on matters like this, and many members have professional experience and training in economics. The insult by Sanders is just a lame attempt to avoid the real issues that concern Trump’s corruption and nefarious business relations that may include Russians.

If Sanders thinks Congress is too dumb to comprehend Trump’s taxes, why does the White House she represents think they are capable of developing a new healthcare plan; or ratifying international treaties; or passing Trump’s Tax Scam; or regulating everything from energy to banks to defense policy? Her scattershot slander only reinforces this administration’s aversion to the American ideal of democratic self-rule. According to Trump World, we’re all too stupid to be allowed any such privilege.

However, if Sanders really believes what she’s saying, then why would she have any objection to Trump’s taxes being released right now? After all, Congress won’t be able to understand them, so what’s the harm? In reality, this is just another example of projection by Trump and company. This is a man so inept that he bankrupted four casinos. He is the one who is so painfully idiotic that he can’t comprehend even simple matters, particularly about the economy. Take for instance his Sunday morning tweet about the Federal Reserve Board:

None of that is true. It’s pure fantasy to suggest that the Dow would be 10,000 points higher, even if the Fed did what Trump wants. But they can’t do it because lowering interests rates when the economy is already overheated would result in inflation and a massive stock selloff as investors sell equities and shift into bonds. What’s more, if a recession should result (a real probability), there would be no way to mitigate its harm by lowering interest rates further. It’s a recipe for a depression. But that’s where this administration is determined to take us. They just hope it occurs after a Democrat is elected next year so they have someone else to blame.

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

Trump is STILL Colluding With Russia (and Fox News) to Deny Putin’s Election Interference

It’s been four days since the Mueller Report has NOT been released – only the four page cover up by Trump’s plant in the Justice Department, Attorney General William Barr. In that short span of time the right-wing media has been furiously crafting a brazenly false narrative that imagines that Donald Trump was exonerated even though Barr’s letter explicitly denies it and the American people don’t buy it.

Donald Trump Vladimir Putin

Included in the campaign to vindicate from Trump are demands that the media apologize for accurately reporting about Trump’s crime-riddled administration. Which is ironic since it’s Trump who should be apologizing to special counsel Robert Mueller. For more than two years Trump has engaged in reckless character assassination, accusing Mueller of being a corrupt, dishonest partisan on an illegal witch hunt.

What’s more, the media’s MAGA Martinets are also calling for the President to actually escalate his war against the First Amendment. And perhaps the new king of anti-free press hysterics is the Fox News host of their alleged business channel, Stuart Varney went on an extended rant (video below) that proved nothing except for how valuable psychoactive pharmaceuticals could be if certain unhinged TV yakkers were taking them. Varney began his tirade by saying that:

“Now is the time for a presidential counterpunch. President Trump is good at this. Have a go at him and he’ll come right back at you, big time. Now is the time to counterpunch the media. For two years they’ve let their hatred show. I used to soften that word and say they have contempt for the President. No no, they hate him.”

Isn’t “contempt” actually strong than “hate”? And does Varney really believe that Trump hasn’t already been punching at the press with his Stalinist-inspired denunciations of it as “the enemy of the people” and “the opposition party”? He continued:

“For two years they’ve indulged in a orgy of hatred that colored absolutely everything. For two years they preened themselves, assuming the moral high ground. They’re the elite. They’re above the rest of us. They told us the President of the United States was a Russian agent. They told us he was a traitor. They breathlessly reported the most outrageous statements. They gave themselves prizes. Listen to this. It’s from the Pulitzer Prize awarded jointly to the New York Times and the Washington Post. I’ll read it.”

“For deeply sourced, relentlessly reported coverage in the public interest that dramatically furthered the nation’s understanding of Russian interference in the 2016 Presidential election.”

Varney then mocked this tribute as referring to leaks to the press by former FBI director James Comey, and the false allegations against Hillary Clinton for allegedly funding the infamous Steele dossier. What’s peculiar about this is that Varney is attacking the Pulitzer awards for their recognition of reporting on the “Russian interference in the 2016 Presidential election,” not the accusations that Trump and his criminal associates conspired with Russia.

Russia’s efforts to illegally influence our election have been documented and affirmed by everyone from the U.S. Intelligence community to the Mueller report, according to Attorney General Barr. But this rabid rundown by Varney is denying that the election interference ever occurred. And Trump posted this video on his Twitter feed. Which can only mean that he is, once again, denying Russia’s involvement in tampering with the election. In that way Trump is still colluding with Russia by taking their side, absolving them of guilt, and making it easier for them repeat their crimes in 2020. Vladimir Putin must be ecstatic.

And Varney wasn’t through. He wrapped up this atrocious gift to our enemies in the Kremlin by lavishing adoring praise on Trump and lashing out again at the media:

“The counterpunch has already started. Good! The Trump campaign has sent a letter to news outlets telling them to employ quote ‘basic journalistic standards’ when booking guests who have made outlandish and false claims. Way to go Mr. President.”

For the record, that letter to TV news outlets was pretty funny. It called on them to refuse to book any guests who had proven themselves to be repeated and unrepentant liars. It singled out politicians like like Democratic Sen. Richard Blumenthal and Rep. Adam Schiff. But it more accurately described people like Trump advisor Kellyanne Conway and press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders, whose absence from the airwaves would make them decidedly more trustworthy.

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

HAH! Trump Campaign Memo Makes Strong Case for Banning Lying Trump Surrogates from TV

It’s was just two days ago that special counsel Robert Mueller completed his investigation of Donald Trump and the nefarious connections to Russia by the President and his close associates. And it’s been less than twenty-four hours since Attorney General William Barr released his deliberately distorted letter that misrepresented even the few sentence fragments from Mueller’s report that Barr bothered to cite.

Donald Trump

However, that was plenty of time for the Republican Political Machine to contrive their propaganda offensive and to craft a brazenly false narrative that Trump has been exonerated and that his critics are witch hunting liars. The project they rushed to implement included a bizarre memo from Tim Murtaugh, the Director of Communications for Trump’s 2020 campaign. Murtaugh’s memo echoed what most of the GOP Surrogate Squad has been saying: Barr’s letter is “a total and complete vindication of President Donald Trump.” Of course, Mueller’s actually words dispute that. He literally wrote that his report “does not exonerate” Trump, at least with regard to obstruction of justice.

The rest of the memo consisted primarily of a list of Democrats who made truthful statements about Trump and Russia. They included Sen. Richard Blumenthal, Rep. Adam Schiff, Rep. Jerrold Nadler, Rep. Eric Swalwell, DNC Chair Tom Perez, and former CIA Director John Brennan. Each of them correctly noted that there is abundant evidence that Trump did in fact conspire with Russians to advance his election prospects. Murtaugh sent the memo to TV producers in an effort to poison the media trough by baselessly accusing the Democrats of lying.

Notice that the only argument that Murtaugh makes to support his allegations is what Barr wrote in his highly partisan interpretation of the Mueller report, which he has so far refused to make public. And on the basis of that he asks TV bookers to reconsider inviting Democratic guests for interviews. It’s a familiar dictators’ ploy to silence their opponents by starving them of media exposure. But perhaps the most ludicrous paragraph in the Murtaugh memo was the question that he proposed for TV bookers to ask themselves:

“Does this guest warrant further appearances in our programming, given the outrageous and unsupported claims made in the past.”

That’s a darn good question. The only problem for Trump’s whiny comms director is that if the media takes his advice, and uses that criteria for future bookings, it would be the end of all television appearances for Trump’s senior counsel Kellyanne Conway, his press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders, his acting chief of staff Mick Mulvaney, his campaign spokeswoman Kayleigh McEnany, his son Don Jr., and pretty much anyone else who works for Trump. They are a team of recidivist liars who, when they aren’t mangling the truth, are feverishly trying to deflect and divert from the topic at hand. And of course, Trump’s record breaking 9,000+ lies would make him off limits for TV bookings.

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

So, come to think of it, this is a pretty good idea. Television news would be far better off without these tale-spinners butchering what should be an informative public discourse. Most of the time their interviews devolve into shouting fits wherein they cravenly try to filibuster the limited time available for their segment and avoid giving any substantive answers. So while Murtaugh meant to impose a thinly disguised demand for censorship, he ended up offering a solution to the pollution on the airwaves by dishonest Trump-fluffers and sycophants. We owe him our thanks.

Lying Trump Shill Sarah Sanders Gives Solace to Domestic Terrorists and Russian Conspirators

It has been several days since the arrest of Christopher Hasson, a domestic terrorist who compiled a cache of weapons and ammunition with the intention of murdering Democrats and journalists. But Donald Trump has still said nothing about it, even though he has commented on the Jussie Smollett case, 6G communications technology (which doesn’t exist), and a remorseful “ISIS wife” who wants to return to her home in the U.S.

Sarah Huckabee-Sanders

In the absence of any comments from the President, reporters asked his press secretary, Sarah Huckabee Sanders, if she could provide any insight into Trump’s feelings on the matter. This lead to an exchange that was purely pablum for Deplorables:

Reporter: Is there any plan for the President to maybe tone down his rhetoric, and do you think this contributes to these sorts of extremists getting these ideas?
Sanders: I certainly don’t think that the president at any point has done anything but condemn violence against journalists or anyone else. In fact, every single time something like this happens, the president is typically one of the first people to condemn the violence and the media is the first people to blame the president. We should all join together and start condemning the violence whether it’s against members of the media, whether it’s against Democrats, Republicans, any person in this country. That is unacceptable, and that is why every time it comes up we have been consistent and repeatedly said that we condemn violence in all forms.

The first notable part of this robo-reply is that it didn’t mention Hasson or his plot to commit mass murder. Sanders pointedly did not condemn him or make any statement to deter others from conspiring to commit the same atrocities. She simply generalized the horror and pretended that it’s a problem for both sides of the political aisle, although the data shows that right-wing domestic terrorism is far more prevalent and on the rise.

What’s more, Sanders’ claim that Trump hasn’t “done anything but condemn violence” is provably false. In fact, Trump has encouraged violence at his cult rallies, telling people to “knock the crap out of” protesters, and not to worry about it because “I promise you I will pay for the legal fees.” Trump also praised Rep. Greg Gianforte, who was convicted of assaulting a reporter, saying that “Any guy that can do a body slam, he is my type.” And of course, Trump’s repeated assertions that the media is “the enemy of the people” are unambiguously incitements to violence, particularly of the sort aspired to by Hasson and committed against the Capital Gazette of Maryland.

During the same press avail, Sanders was asked about the media reports that special counsel Robert Mueller might be wrapping up his investigation and what Trump’s thoughts were about the pending report. Here is the question and Sanders’ response:

Reporter: You were saying a minute ago that there was no need for the campaign to collude with the Russians, but there have been so many indictments. There have been convictions. And there were so many contacts with the Russians. How do you balance that?
Sanders: It’s real simple to me. The President was far and away the better candidate. He had a better message and he outworked Hillary Clinton. And that’s why he’s president. He didn’t need to, nor did he, collude with the Russians. Pretty simple.

Notice what’s missing in Sanders’ reply? Pretty everything that was asked about in the question. Sanders said nothing about the indictments, convictions and numerous contacts with Russians by many of Trump’s closest associates and family, all of whom lied about their activities before being confronted with evidence that forced the truth out of them.

The result of Sanders’ remarks are not inconsequential. By failing to specifically condemn Hasson and anyone else who would seek to emulate him, Sanders is implicitly condoning those actions. Why does she find it so easy to universally condemn innocent refugees seeking asylum in the U.S. as criminals, rapists, and drug traffickers, but cannot denounce actual right-wing terrorism? And by refusing to address the facts surrounding Trump and his nefarious relationships with Russia, she is giving permission for our foreign adversaries to continue to undermine our democracy.

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

What both of these failures to stand up for American principles and sovereignty demonstrate is the tendency by the Trump administration to act against the interests of the United States. In some circles that is referred to as treasonous. At the very least it reveals a suspicious leaning toward some self-interest on Trump’s part that benefits our enemies. And that’s about as solid a justification for impeachment that you’re ever going to see.

This Just In: Trump finally addressed the Hasson matter, but only after he was asked by Hallie Jackson of NBC News. His answer is unbelievably disgusting. He called it “a shame.” WTF? It’s a shame when your kid cheats on a math test. A terrorist plotting mass murder is an atrocity. And Trump’s assertion that he hasn’t been fully briefed a week after the arrest is undoubtedly another lie.

Trump Freaks Out Over Cliff Sims: Nothing Screams ‘GUILTY’ Like Threatening a ‘Low Level Gofer’

The walls are closing in around Donald Trump. And they aren’t the walls that he is obsessed with building on the southern border. More of the criminal associates that comprise Trump’s inner circle are being swept up by the long arm of justice every day. And with each new arrest and indictment the evidence of Trump’s culpability becomes more apparent.

Donald Trump, Cliff Sims

The latest accomplice to Trump’s treason to face the music is Roger Stone. He has been a close friend and associate of Trump’s for decades. Now he has been charged with lying to Congress, witness tampering, and obstruction of justice. Trump’s defenders celebrate the fact that the word “collusion” isn’t spelled out in the indictment. But what do they think Stone was lying about? What do think he was threatening other witnesses about? What unlawful activity do they think he was endeavoring to obstruct?

As a result of this devastating blow to Trump World, the President is behaving typically frightened by another event that puts him at great risk. And consistent with his pattern of behavior, he is lashing out in desperation and hoping it takes some of the heat off. But his actions expose his abject fear.

Cliff Sims was Trump’s White House Communications Director for Message Strategy. That’s a post within the White House Press Office where Sims worked closely with Sarah Huckabee Sanders, Kellyanne Conway, and Bill Shine. He held the position for about a year and a half, which is a lifetime in the Trump Administration. Sims just published a book about his experience (Team of Vipers) that is not sufficiently adoring of Trump. Consequently, on Tuesday morning Trump posted a tweet attacking and threatening Sims, who Trump now pretends he hardly knew:

This raises a couple of obvious questions. First, precisely how many gofers and “coffee boys” work for Trump? It seems like everyone who has written a tell-all book has turned out to be a nobody who Trump never met, despite all the photos of them together. And second, how does Trump know the book is boring since he surely hasn’t read it. He hasn’t even read the three dozen books he endorsed in his Book Club for Dummies.

More importantly, Trump’s tweet contains an overt threat. His reference to a “non-disclosure agreement” can only be interpreted as Trump’s intention of filing a lawsuit against Sims for speaking out. And that isn’t an idle threat. There is already a notice posted by Michael Glassner, the Chief Operating Officer of Donald J. Trump for President, announcing that “The Trump campaign is preparing to file suit against Cliff Sims for violating our NDA.”

There are some obvious flaws to that legal strategy. First of all, how can they sue for a violation of a non-disclosure agreement if the the President himself is asserting that the book consists of “made up stories and fiction”? There is no violation if no truthful information is revealed. So either what’s in the book is actually true, or the lawsuit is null and void.

What’s more, non-disclosure agreements are not permitted for White House staff. That’s because they do not work for the President. They work for the United States government. So the government would have to be the plaintiff in the lawsuit. But the First Amendment prohibits the government from “abridging the freedom of speech.” The government can’t sue someone for exercising their constitutional rights.

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

So Trump is acting out in precisely the manner you might expect from anyone who is flagrantly guilty of serious crimes. He is trying to deflect blame to other less powerful subordinates. He is hoping that the public and the press can be distracted by his frantic gesturing toward some other shiny object. And he is pretending that he has no relationship with those who are implicating him, despite the fact that that relationship is public knowledge and well documented. It’s a sad and pathetic display of desperation that only makes Trump look more guilty. However, Sims should send Trump a “Thank You” note for helping to sell a few thousand more of his books.