Stephanie Leary

Writer, WordPress consultant, recent MLIS grad

Fascism Watch, January 11

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Trump

BBC News says there’s audio and video of Trump’s Russian misadventures, and more than one source.

Based on the dossier released yesterday, “James Comey’s intervention in the election last October — controversial at the time — looks completely indefensible now.”

Lots going on in Trump’s press conference. First off, he had it packed with staff applauding him. Not normal. Every two-part question let him dodge the more uncomfortable half.

Then he ranted about Buzzfeed’s “fake news,” said they would “suffer the consequences,” immediately compared and conflated CNN with Buzzfeed, and refused to answer a CNN reporter’s question. (CNN’s statement afterward.)

After the press conference, Sean Spicer told the reporter in question that he’d be thrown out if he continued to “harass” Trump.

For context, here’s Trump Organization lawyer Michael Cohen threatening the Daily Beast last year for reporting Ivana Trump’s claim that her then-husband raped her in a rage. (Trigger warning: the article discusses her claims in graphic detail.)

I will come after your Daily Beast and everybody else that you possibly know,” Cohen said. “So I’m warning you, tread very fucking lightly, because what I’m going to do to you is going to be fucking disgusting. You understand me?”

“You write a story that has Mr. Trump’s name in it, with the word ‘rape,’ and I’m going to mess your life up… for as long as you’re on this frickin’ planet… you’re going to have judgments against you, so much money, you’ll never know how to get out from underneath it,” he added.

Trump said today that he had no relationship with Russia. In this interview four years ago, he said, “I do have a relationship [with Putin], and I can tell you he’s very interested in what we’re doing here today.”

Trump admitted during the press conference that Russia interfered in the election. He said the RNC wasn’t hacked by Russia though they tried. It was.

Trump’s lawyers were just awarded Russia Law Firm of the Year.

Trump says he’s going to donate the profits from foreign governments’ hotel stays to the US Treasury. If you’re familiar with Hollywood accounting practices, you know how that’s going to work.

Trump’s plan to resolve his conflicts of interest does nothing of the sort. The Director of the Office of Government Ethics gave an extraordinary statement saying that Trump’s plans to avoid conflicts of interest did not even come close to meeting the standard.

Elizabeth Warren has introduced a bill that would require the President of the United States to sell his or her assets before taking office.

Peter Thiel is still using some batshit logic to support Trump, in case you were wondering.

When I remark that President Obama had eight years without any ethical shadiness, Mr. Thiel flips it, noting: “But there’s a point where no corruption can be a bad thing. It can mean that things are too boring.”

Transition Team & Cabinet Appointees

We need some subheadings up in here…

Jeff Sessions, day 2

Sen. Cory Booker: “The arc of the universe does not just curve toward justice; we must bend it.”

Rep. John Lewis: “We need someone as AG who’s going to look out for all of us. Not just for some of us.”

NAACP President Cornell Brooks: “The NAACP firmly believes that Senator Sessions is unfit to serve as attorney general.”

Rex Tillerson

On climate change: “I don’t see it as an imminent national security threat but perhaps others do.” Like maybe the Department of Defense? And John Kerry, on Monday?

Tillerson contradicted Trump’s positions on climate change.

Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.) asked Tillerson about reporting from the Los Angeles Times and Inside Climate News that Exxon Mobil had internally acknowledged climate science while publicly waging a campaign to undermine it. Tillerson demurred. “Since I’m no longer CEO of Exxon Mobil, I can’t speak on their behalf,” he said. “You’ll have to ask them.” Asked if he was refusing to answer or simply lacked the knowledge to do so, Tillerson quipped, “A little of both.”

Exxon Mobil was ordered today to hand over documents related to a state investigation into whether it misled the public about the impact of fossil fuels on the climate.

Tillerson may have lied under oath when he said, “To my knowledge, Exxon never directly lobbied against sanctions.”

Tillerson refused to blame Putin for the murders of his political opponents, saying, “These things happen.” He also refused to condemn the Philippine president’s murderous war on drugs, despite being grilled on it by Marco Rubio, of all people.

“I’m not familiar with that program,” he said about NSEERS.

Others

James Mattis canceled his hearing with the House Armed Services Committee scheduled for Thursday. House Representatives are not happy.

Unlike other nominees, Mattis needs a waiver approved by both the House and Senate before he can proceed to a confirmation vote.

Following the cancellation news, House Minority Whip Steny Hoyer, D-Md., said Democrats in his chamber may oppose the waiver if Mattis doesn’t testify before their lawmakers to answer questions about his views on civilian control of the military.

Pudzer (labor secretary nominee) had his confirmation postponed to next month. Apparently his ex-wife once appeared on Oprah (?) in disguise (???) as a victim of domestic violence.

“Dina H. Powell, who runs many of Goldman Sachs’s philanthropic initiatives, will soon leave the company for a new role as adviser in the Trump White House” working with both Kushner and Ivanka Trump (who supposedly will have no official role).

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