Good Riddance 2017!

Okay Rightos, take your 2017 victory lap, but let's be honest; even you know this year sucked.

You loved the idea of a COMPLETELY unqualified man as President to shake things up.  It started almost immediately when he and Sean Spicer began screaming about 'most attended and most watched Inauguration ever.'  Even you couldn't defend that outrageous lie, so you suddenly adopted your fall back position for most of the year, you said nothing.  We already know 30% of this country will always think Trump was a divine bowel movement from God himself, payback to the racist Republican right in America for having to 'endure' an African American President.

(Quick sidetone - CLEARLY most of you hated Obama for the color of his skin.  All the things you said he did either he didn't do, or Trump has already exceeded his standards [Golf outings, deficit spending, embarrassments].  Stop acting like you're nuanced; the truth is obvious.  Race was your biggest problem with President Obama!)

Crap sandwich after crap sandwich after crap sandwich was served on a daily basis from Trump, and you fools gobbled it up, solely because it seemed to outrage Democrats.  You loved that.  It was your only standard on Trump's success gauge.  You didn't care if the ship was sinking, just that the Democrats were closer to the water line, so your pathetic Christian Right asses could laugh as they drown, stupefyingly ignorant of your own impending doom.

There are SO MANY THINGS I could post, from the comedic (covfefe, giant orbs in Saudi Arabia, matching shirts with Putin, the insane 'alternative facts' defense), to the terrifying (threatening Nuclear war with North Korea, turning ICE agents into modern brown shirts, handing off our national monuments to corporations, an insane tax bill hand out to the wealthiest people/corporations).  AND Trump and the Republican party embraced an alleged SERIAL child sex abuser.

In my opinion, here are the three worst things Trump has done in 2017:

3) The Trump Russia scandal.  You may be shocked I have what will likely be the downfall of this disgusting turd at #3, but trust me, it gets worse.  I could focus on the insane amount of meetings which seemed to be happening on a weekly basis between the Russians and the Trump Campaign/Administration, meetings they never disclosed.  I could focus on how all the pieces were in place for the Trump Campaign/Administration to orchestrate the leaking of the emails.  I could focus on the potential that Trump is compromised, actually an agent of the Russians.  I could focus on how the Russians created thousands of false Americans, and manipulated the American people via our social media.

I'll focus on the irreparable damage which has been done to the US's election system.  We now know the Trump Campign knew the Russians had hacked the DNC months earlier than they implied, and yet they never contacted law enforcement to tell them a foreign country was trying to break the US.  This means Trump and the Republicans have come to the point where they will back up a foreign entity, over country, as long as it means the Democrats will lose.  That's crazy to think about.  They have used the USA itself as a poker chip to win an election.  And we have strong evidence the voting tallies in multiple states, along with the voting machines in multiple states, were attacked by the Russians on election day, but the Republicans are refusing to even address the potential the Election of 2016 could be a complete fraud.

2) Trump's undeniable racism.  The way Trump has coddled the white supremacists, the KKK the Nazis, the alt-right and all bigoted scum is unforgivable.  When the racists were beating clergy and killing a woman in Charlottesville, he said there are 'good' racists.  When racists vandalized Jewish cemeteries, he said nothing.  Trump has put forward undeniable racist immigration bills, sold to his followers in racist language.  He's also had numerous racists welcomed into the White House, who then proudly brag about their 'friend to the white race,' Trump, a title he has warmly embraced.  They just had another racist intern caught flashing the 'white power' symbol.  Reminder - MOST REPUBLICANS, POLITICIANS AND VOTERS, STILL HAVE YET TO CONDEMN TRUMP'S PRO-RACIST STANCES! Trump's actions have emboldened the worst of America.

1) Puerto Rico.  In my mind, the basic function of a operational Federal government is to help it's citizens when the local, regional, municipal, and state authorities are powerless to help.  The fact over 100 days have gone by and American citizens in Puerto Rico are still without power and clean water, the fact the medical and distributional systems are still not operating correctly, the fact the Administration only looked at Puerto Rico as an opportunity to make a few of their supporters wealthy without actually requiring the supporters to deliver promised aid to the hurricane ravaged island, the fact they lied repeatedly about the death toll of the disaster, a death toll which is not in the tens, but possibly in the thousands, the fact Puerto Rico was only a photo op for Trump, where he threw paper towel rolls at needy people, and acted like he saved them himself; all these things are proof the Federal government is incapable of functioning on a basic operations level.  That's Government, Trump style.

Nearly half of Puerto Rico will ring in the New Year without power.  Please help Puerto Rico.

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/09/22/world/americas/hurricane-maria-donate-charity.html?_r=0

So lap up my outrage as 'liberal tears,' Rightos.  I know what will happen in 2018.  You're going to watch your economy and our country get worse, as your screams of 'Crooked Hillary' don't explain your golden calf's failure.  And Republicans are going to get their asses handed to them in November.

Goodbye 2017!  You will not be missed!

The Friday Link for 12/29/17

So long 2017!  You sucked!

Hello 2018!  Let's get ready to redeem ourselves, shall we?

For a quick Friday Link, I decided to find a movie which feature a New Years slant.  I found a Charlie Chaplin classic, 'The Gold Rush'!

This is possibly the best silent movie ever made.  Most of this movie does not take place on New Year's but a pivotal scene does, one which became somewhat iconic.  One which is actually quite sad.

Movies were so new back then...



Have a wonderful New Year's.  Drive safe.  Stay warm!

MM

Tip of the Spear

With Senator Al Franken having his farewell address to his supporters last night, I've received a message from another Democrat insisting his resignation was the last straw.  "I am never voting Democrat again!"  Really?

If I didn't know this person, I'd think it was a Russian bot.  In truth, I'd met this person at a Blue State Ball a few years back.  This was a legit Democrat implying such an overdramatic, overemotional response to the Franken situation.  Don't get me wrong.  I'm upset Franken is no longer my Senator too, taken out by a plan instigated by political elements wanting to get him tossed.  Unfortunately, there were other women who came forward which couldn't be dismissed as political operatives.  The coverage around him had become a circus.  I wanted him to stay and at least have a hearing on this, but that wouldn't have made a difference.  His resigning was himself admitting even if he was able to clear his name, this scandal would stick to him and the Democrats.

Only a leftist fool would use Franken's resignation as a last straw, walking away from the only opposition left in this country to Trump and his regime.  This is why I initially thought this was a Russian.  After last year, when I hear any Democrat making asinine statements about fighting their own party, I'm going to presume they're not from this continent.  Franken is a sad loss, but for God's sake, haven't we learned our lesson?  Elections matter!  Votes matter!  Stop your freaking pity party and get involved with the Democratic Party, the ONLY chance we have at stopping Trump!

The following things are real, and have been implemented, attempted and/or suggested by Trump, his Administration and his supporters:

• The right has suggested locking up former President Obama for bad mouthing Trump.
• They have suggested locking up Hillary Clinton under numerous made up charges, with many suggesting there shouldn't even be a trial for her, just a cell.  
• Trump has suggested he's the ultimate authority in this country, and no law or system in place can legally hold him or his associates accountable, regardless of the crime
• A majority of his supporters feel as if he should be able to break the law, as long as it is to "fix" things.  No further explanation on what needs to be 'fixed,' or what 'fixing' curtails, giving Trump carte blanche to do whatever he wants by his supporters.
• Trump, with the help of Congressional Republicans, has been stocking the courts with judges which will make the Legislative and Executive Branches useless for the next 30 years; the most unqualified stooges one could possibly imagine, appointed to life time positions with one goal, to make sure Trump and his associates NEVER are held accountable, regardless of how much their rulings make a mockery of the Constitution
• Many Republicans, including Trump, knowingly supported an alleged serial child sex abuser, putting out the narrative it was still better than a 'Democrat.'
• Many of his supporters are cheering on his incredibly reckless foreign policy because they're praying it brings about Armageddon, the destruction of the planet as foretold by the 1600's Christian fiction called The Rapture.
• An outright war on the media has been waged, with Trump successfully having convinced his supporters they need to ignore the vast majority of news media, and only focus on the media outlets HE tells them are legit.  He's also repeatedly threaten violence against the media, and he and his Administration refuse to answer basic questions.
• There have been calls for purity purges in all departments of all branches of government.
• Private Republican controlled companies have been hired to monitor government emails, conversations and phone calls, with a goal of determining who is and who is not loyal to Trump.
• Government employees have been limited from engaging in their most basic right, Freedom of Speech.
• Trump has empowered the Immigration and Customs Enforcement Agents (ICE) to operate outside the realm of legal accountability, locking up whomever they want, for however long they want, for whatever they want
• The Administration has locked up a political opponent, Reality Winner, who leaked information about how the Russians were indeed targeting voting machines in the 2016 Election.  Winner has been locked up with no access to legal representation, media, family or friends.
• There have been calls for purging all employees of our law enforcement, intelligence agencies and the Department of Justice who aren't loyal to Trump, or who are registered Democrats.
• There have been calls to order public schools in more liberal communities to be more 'Trump friendly' in their classrooms.
• Some people have started suggesting rounding up anyone who is anti-Trump and 'making them learn some respect!'
• There's an all out war for the future of the internet, the last bastion of free thinking in our media, with the Right's ultimate goal of shutting down all left leaning websites by removing net neutrality rules which guaranteed access to a wide range of ideas
• Some Republicans have suggested shutting down the FBI entirely
• There have been calls for a new domestic intelligence agency/police force, run by far right conservative Erik Prince of Blackwater, to oversee all other US police, law enforcement and intelligence agencies.  This new agency would report to Trump and senior Administration officials, ONLY, no one else.  At least 20 high level Republicans have endorsed this new Trump secret police.

SWEET JESUS!  This list should scare you.  It terrifies me.  What terrifies me most of all is how 30% of this country seems incredibly eager to go along with this pseudo-dictatorship, as long as they feel Democrats are being punished first and foremost.  Like I said, the modern Republican HATES Democrats more than they love their country, their religion or their own well being.

'But Al Franken resigned so I don't care anymore!'  PLEASE...

We're on a precipice in the Untied States.  Frankly, I have no idea if we can trust the election system anymore, but we've had signs it still works (Virginia, Alabama), at least when Democrats come together and people get off her asses.  

2018 is the year we determine what happens to the United States of America.  If the Republicans win, this will be the end of Democracy as we know it.  It will be replaced by a Corporate Theocracy, with a mandatory far right Republican ideology.  I'll admit I'm concerned.  People like myself will eventually be locked up or worse, to the cheers and accolades of Trump supporters screaming how we deserved it for 'getting uppity.'

Or the Democrats win.  Then, Trump (knowing what's coming) will likely resign, begging he won't ever have to reveal his tax returns, and for any further investigation into his connections to the Russians to be stopped.  Good luck with that! 

Make sure you're registered to vote!  Make sure every freaking friend you have is registered to vote!  Make sure everyone knows where their polling place is on November 6th, 2018, and they know the hours for voting that day!  Know if you have early voting in your state and what are the requirements for early voting!  Make a donation, even a small one, to the Democratic candidates challenging Republicans in red districts!  Make sure EVERY Republican has a challenger this election!  Call every media outlet you know and demand equal time for the Democrats!  Make sure every Republican is asked the following question:  Did you vote for Trump in 2016? And ask that question before their primaries!  Hold EVERY Republican who voted to get rid of health care accountable!  Hold EVERY Republican who endorsed getting rid of net neutrality accountable!  Hold EVERY Republican who voted for that obnoxious taxpayer handout to the wealthiest Americans accountable!

Most important:  Challenge all Republicans, voters and politicians alike.  This year, instead of attacking Democrats who agree with you 95% of the time, you MUST NOT allow insanity to go unaddressed.  If they say they're outraged by Obama's golfing/vacations, IMMEDIATELY ask why they are not bothered by Trumps.  If they say they are furious at the government investigating Trump/Russia, IMMEDIATELY ask why they weren't bothered by the 5th, 6th, 7th and 8th Benghazi investigations.  When they talk about Democrats wasting tax payer dollars, IMMEDIATELY ask why they have no problem with Republicans wasting tax payer dollars at much higher levels.  When Republicans complain about Obama's deficit, IMMEDIATELY challenge them on why they're now okay with the Republicans raising the deficit.  If they then say 'I'm okay with raising the deficit for tax cuts,' then IMMEDIATELY ask why they weren't okay with it when that happened under Obama.  When they say 'I'm pro-life,' IMMEDIATELY point out, considering the Right's policies towards the poor and sick, they're really just pro-birth of the child, not 'pro-life.'  When they insist they vote their Christian principles, IMMEDIATELY point out 80 - 90% of Christian teachings are outright ignored by Trump and the Republicans!

You have to challenge these people.  You have to be the tip of the spear!  We have to start waking these fools up from their Fox News, self induced ignorance.  You'll probably make a lot of them mad, but maybe, after they storm off, they'll ask themselves why are they supporting a system working so hard against them.

I've been hesitant to make comparisons between Trump and a certain 20th Century German leader whose rise Trump's (shockingly) mimicking.  When you look at the above list of bullet points, realize the similarities to Germany in the 1930's.  I think it's appropriate to look at what it took for Hitler's most ardent supporters to realize the truth.

When the allies freed the concentration camps in WWII, they went and got all the locals from the surrounding communities, all of them, and marched them past their horrific legacy.  There were a shocking amount of Germans who still believed Hitler was their savior, that he wasn't slaughtering the Jews, and others.  That's why the allies marched them past the unspeakable display.  They wanted no denying of what had really happened; a tragedy most Germans down deep inside suspected was going on, but refused to look at the evidence, because they believed Hitler over their own common sense.

Let's make sure we never get anywhere near that historic low point again.

Engage, Challenge, Defend, Defeat, Win!

Let's be victorious in 2018.  Let's all be the tip of the spear.

Merry Christmas Everyone!

I'm Catholic.  Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!

Religious Disclaimer:  You do, or don't do, whatever it is you want to do, or not do!  Cool?

I hope you have a nice December 25th.  Here are some holiday images I particularly liked.  Enjoy

Merry Christmas Everyone!

The Friday Link for 12/22/17

Religious Disclaimer:  You do, or don't do, whatever it is you want to do, or not do!  Cool?

I'm Catholic.  Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!

For this week's installment, we shall play the ending of a Christmas classic, 'It's A Wonderful Life.'

The story of this movie was wild.  It finished as the 26th biggest movie of 1947 (although it officially opened right before Christmas in 1946), one spot ahead of another Christmas classic, 'Miracle on 34th Street.'  The movie got so so reviews, lost money, but was rewarded with 6 Academy Award nominations, including nods to Frank Capra for Directing, Jimmy Stewart for the lead, and was nominated for the Picture of the Year.  At this point, it clearly was NOT some garbage movie destined for the trash heap.  Jimmy Stewart called it his favorite film.

So how did this movie end up not copyrighted in the 1970's?  First, beginning almost immediately in the late 1940's, there was a massive campaign against 'It's A Wonderful Life' by the conservative elements of the country, as well as the FBI.  They were furious the banker was the villain.  Lionel Barrymore is the most memorable character of the movie, but capitalism wanted to be perceived as the hero, instead of the hero being community betterment for all.

Into the 50's, there was a real distancing from 'It's A Wonderful Life,' due to McCarthyism.  Anything which could be labeled 'commie,' such as a local Building & Loan, where the community's money worked for the betterment of all, was to be vilified.  Hollywood somewhat blacklisted the film.

But it was still a classic, occasionally re-opening in theaters over the holidays well into the 1960's.  What happened to the copyright wasn't that no one wanted it.  It was a clerical error which caused National Telefilm Associates, the company who gained control of the film in the 1950's, to lose the rights to broadcast of the film (somewhat), leaving the film available to be broadcast without worry of paying royalties.  But before you start to think it's time to broadcast it against your garage and make a few bucks selling tickets, they eventually got that all straightened out.

In the 1970's it wasn't like people blew dust off of a lost film canister, finding 'It's A Wonderful Life' inside, but it was marketed as a 'forgotten classic.'.  Jimmy Stewart, Donna Reed and Frank Capra were beloved, one of the reasons the movie got tremendous play, instead of something like 'It's a Bonanza Christmas.'  TV stations leaped at the idea of airing an Academy Award nominated film with real Hollywood star power over the holidays.  It was beloved when it was released in the 1940's, as well as into the 1970's, as much as it is today.

Here is the last 10 minutes from YouTube.  It is a classic.  Someone will be airing this over the holidays and so I do hope you take time to track it down.



Have a wonderful Christmas holiday and drive safe!

President Trump, Week 48

Here's this week's long list of unsurpassed buffoonery coming from President Trump and his White House for the week beginning Monday, December 11th to Sunday, December 17th.  This is likely not all of the Trump team's transgressions, but it's most of them.

(Notice the robot's throat pouch)

The point of this list is to highlight the utter failure of the Republicans at holding Trump accountable.  If the letter next to the President's name was a 'D' instead of an 'R,' all of this list would've warranted at least a mocking press conference and most of them would've sparked Congressional investigations.  A third of this list would've been used by Republicans to validate a Special Prosecutor, and some of these would've EASILY justified calls for impeachment.  Instead, every Republican yells "Bah Humbug!" and prays this is the year they're not visited by Christmas ghosts.

Not those...

That's more like it! A reminder, after this week, I'm going on my holiday break. In three weeks I'll put out a slightly less detailed, combined Trump list 49, 50 and 51.  Look for that in January.  For now, let's trim the tree!

• Women who have accused Trump of sexual assault will have a press conference on Monday, after they appear on NBC 
• Depending on what channel his TV is on when he's watching his 4 to 8 hours a day, Trump experiences wild and uncontrollable mood swings
  
• Pope Francis threw some shade at Trump when he tweeted out politicians should respect "the common good"
• Former Senior Presidential Advisor Steve Bannon is frantically trying to stop Trump from only hearing "happy talk" in regards to the Russia probe.  Trump apparently feels as if there's no major issue , even after four people have been indicted
• House Intelligence Committee is weighing the option of subpoenaing Donald Trump Jr. (Tweddle Dee) in their continuing Russian probe, to answer further questions about his honesty
• Trump likes showing off the White House bathrooms
  
• It's reported one of the reasons Trump is backing Roy Moore in Alabama is when Moore's numbers started to come back, he wanted to take credit for it
• In a "holy crap, what are you thinking" move, a Trump political group sent a 12 year old girl to interview alleged child sex abuser Roy Moore
• Special Counsel Robert Mueller is apparently focusing in on the 18 days after Former Acting Attorney General Sally Yates told Trump and the Administration former National Security Advisor Michael Flynn had lied to the FBI about his contact with the Russians
• New analysis of the Trump tax bill states it'll make the vast majority of Americans, pretty much everyone making 200K or less a year, poorer and sicker (health wise)
• Trump throws a Twitter temper tantrum about the New York Times story about his insane TV viewing habits
  
• Trump states the allegation he watches CNN is false.  Since the original New York Times story was two days old, it's quickly noted Trump made his comments minutes after CNN showed a story about the New York Times article, meaning Trump was likely bold face lying about not watching CNN
• The man who lead the lobbying for the uranium industry to dismantle Bear Ears National Monument, Andrew Wheeler, is the incoming Deputy Secretary of the EPA
  
• Trump plans on signing an initiative to send the USA back to the moon and eventually to Mars.  Considering the budgetary constraints he's putting the country through with his tax bill, how he's going to pay for this initiative remains to be seen
• Trump, when confronted by one of the women who says he sexually assaulted her on an airline flight, stated to her: "I remember you.  You were that c**t from the airplane."
  
• It's pointed out Steve Bannon will likely have to testify at some point for the Mueller probe
• Three men who are accused of trying to bomb a mosque and apartment complex that houses Somali refugees in Kansas is demanding a jury loaded with Trump voters.  They feel as if the urban location of the trial will prevent the jury from having enough Trump supporters on it, jurors who they feel would empathize with people wanting to kill other humans because they're different
• Some of Trump's sexual assault accusers took time to describe allegations agains Trump, which, as one woman described, was "a thousand times worse than what Al Franken has done"
• Former Trump Campaign Manager Paul Manafort has been told by a judge to stop communicating with the media in any way
  
• As New York City experiences a failed terrorist attack, Trump is spending his morning tweeting about 'fake news'
• Oh golly, I guess it was only a matter of time. Former NBA player Dennis Rodman is wanting to meet with Trump to talk with him about North Korea's demands to avoid a nuclear war
• Another judge rules the US Military must start accepting transgender troops on January 1.  The branches of the military have announced they too are directly disobeying a direct order from Trump and are going to start letting transgender troops into serve
• White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders lost it when asked to provide an example of someone in the media purposely misleading the public with a fake news story. They asked her to give an example, not an honest mistake that wasn't corrected.  After snapping at two reporters she fell back to ABC News' Brian Ross' story about Trump and Flynn, a story which ran a correction when it was discovered it was incorrect
  
• The man Michael Flynn texted on Inauguration Day to tell him the Middle East nuclear power project was a go has denied he received a text from Flynn on that day
• Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin is coming under a lot of criticism today for releasing a one page long analysis of the Trump tax plan, this after months of dragging their heels and telling everyone they were working on one
  
• Mnuchin's one page analysis, done by pro Trump and pro tax plan people, comes to the conclusion the Trump tax plan will need additional revenue to pay for the tax cuts for the ultra wealthy
• Congressional Democrats point our quickly Secretary Mnuchin's math on his one page report makes no sense.  The financial issues with the tax bill are far worse than described
• Strong speculation is pointing to Attorney General Jeff Sessions beginning an all out war against legal marijuana in the upcoming weeks
  
• As it's revealed Sgt. La David Johnson survived the initial ISIS ambush in Niger, and was then tortured and killed after being left behind on the battle field, due to contractor error, there's still no investigation into what happened on that mission.  Once again, I do not believe in making a tragic military death political, but the point of this list is what would the Republicans be making a big deal out of if a Democrat was in the White House.  Undeniably, there would be a major investigation going on right now if it was a Democratic President
• Apparently Trump is flipped off (given the 'F* You' middle finger) pretty much everywhere he goes
  
• Health experts are extremely concerned over what 12 Diet Cokes per day are doing to the body of 70+ year old fat ass Trump
• Trump's Ambassador to the Czech Republic, Stephen King, somehow was able to win approval from Congressional Republicans even though he was a major figure in the Watergate scandal and once beat a woman to try to keep Nixon's crimes covered up
• Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos has changed policy and will no longer offer student loan forgiveness for students who were knowingly defrauded by failed, for-profit schools
  
• Robert Mueller's team has officially interviewed Former Acting Attorney General Sally Yates
  
• Trump's apparently livid with UN Ambassador Nikki Haley for suggesting Trump's sexual assault accusers should be heard
• Senator Kirsten Gillibrand calls on Trump to resign due to his numerous sexual assault allegations
• A US District Court Judge is admonishing the Trump Administration for their excuses when asked why they were holding a US citizen 'Incommunicado' 
  
• The House Intelligence Committee wants to re-interview Presidential Advisor and Trump Son-in-law Jared Kushner over the inconsistencies in his testimony
•  If Trump thought his leaving the Paris Climate Accord would put a stop to climate change, quite the opposite has happened.  The rest of the world has taken Trump's arrogance as a rallying cry to fight climate change, according to French President Macron, leaving America behind
  
• A former Miss USA contestant, Samantha Holvey, who has accused Trump of sexual harassment, pointed our Huckabee Sanders defense of Trump, where she claimed his accusers are all liars, is itself a lie.  As Holvey mentioned, Trump has bragged about doing these things
• 50 female Democratic lawmakers are seeking a probe of Trump's sexual assault allegations
• In a case where 21 young Americans are suing the Government to force them to address climate change, the White House's argument against the case moving forward is simply that young Americans don't have a Constitutional right to a stable climate
  
• The US Ambassador insists Trump will visit Britain, supposedly one of our closest allies, after Trump seriously damaged relations with the UK, when he promoted British neo-Nazi videos
• PolitiFact, the fact checking news site, has called Trump's claim that Russian interference into the 2016 campaign is a hoax as the 2017 "Lie of the Year"
  
• Trump embraces his "Lie of the Year" award by doubling down, insisting there's no evidence of Russian interference.  He then insists the Democrats are making up all the allegations of sexual harassment/assault he's facing, allegations he himself has bragged about
• Uh-Oh!  First Daughter and White House staffer doing...something(?) Ivanka Trump has sent out season's greetings, but apparently the War on Christmas has struck close to the Trumps. Instead of wishing everyone a 'Merry Christmas,' she stated "Happy Holidays! 😘"  The internet noticed...
  
• *******Russian news website The Bell reports on audio testimony of the Russian hacker who was ordered by a leader in the Russian Intelligence service, FSB, to hack the Democratic National Committee during the 2016 election. Konstantin Kozlovsky was on trial for hacking millions from Russian bank accounts.  During testimony for that trial, he stated he'd been ordered by Dmitry Dokuchayev of the FSB to hack the DNC with the explicit purpose of manipulating the 2016 election
  
• Trump claimed to 'drain the swamp' in Washington DC, but most Americans feel the swamp is getting deeper.  58% state the White House has become more corrupt since Trump took office
• After Senator Kirsten Gillibrand demanded Trump be investigated for his sexual conduct, Trump went on the attack, calling Gillibrand a Democratic loyalist only.  He then seems to have sexually harassed Gillibrand with the line she "would come to my office 'begging' for campaign contributions not long ago (and would do anything for them)"
• Senator Kirsten Gellibrand fired back on Trump immediately:  "You can't silence me..."
• 50 World Leaders meet in Paris to discuss climate issues.  Trump was specifically not invited
  
• You know who was invited? Arnold Schwarzenegger, a vocal critic of Trump, who was biking through the streets of Paris 
• Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross is being called out in an official European Parliament Report which states he undeniably partook in insider trading, when he sold off his shares of the Bank of Ireland prior to the bank's collapse, knowing the bank had been using deceptive practices
• Sarah Huckabee Sanders insisted there were "eyewitnesses" who would validate Trump did not sexual assault or harass the 19 women who claimed he had.  What the White House produced is less than reliable.  They only deal with two of the accusations.  The first 'eyewitnesses', involving former Miss USA contestant Samantha Holvey, are two other 'contestants' Trump claims were witnesses to the 2006 Miss USA pageant.  The only problem is neither of the 'eyewitnesses' competed in the 2006 Miss USA pageant.  One competed in the 2006 Miss Teen USA pageant, a completely different event held two months earlier.  The other was a competitor in the 2005 Miss USA pageant
  
• The other Trump 'eyewitness' is Anthony Gilberthrope, who was an 18 year old on the flight Jessica Leeds said she was assaulted by Trump.  Gilberthorpe claims to have watched them like a hawk the entire flight, remembering every specific detail.  He also said Leeds, a women he'd never met before, confided in him that she planned to marry Trump.  Gilberthorpe has been caught lying outrageously multiple times over the years
• The White House has not produced any other witnesses for the remaining 17 allegations
• As much as the Administration wants to play off Trump's Twitter tweets as nothing more than personal rantings, and him 'blowing off steam,' world leaders are stating they are treating every Trump tweet as an official White House statement 
  
• Vladamir Putin, Russian dictator, has all of Trump's tweets brought to him in his daily briefings
• NBA player Dennis Rodman claims that Trump and North Korean Dictator Kim Jong-Un are pretty much the same person, so they should get along great
• *******Secretary of State Rex Tillerson apparently told US diplomats in a private meeting that Russian did indeed interfered in the 2016 election.  "Russia interfered in the Democratic process here"
  
• It's a good time to mention people are starting to get furious over the lack of action from Trump and the GOP over the slaughter in Las Vegas earlier this year.  Even country music stars are starting to band together to try to get some changes made to prevent another slaughter from happening again
• Two GOP Senators outright refused to look at the tweet Trump posted about Senator Kirsten Gillibrand, as a way to avoid from having to make a comment about it
• Trump's pick to run the White House Council on Environmental Quality, Kathleen Hartnett White, apparently plagiarized her written answers to Democratic Congressional Committee members.  She apparently copied her answers verbatim from other Trump EPA officials
  
• A Quinnipiac poll asked what word was the first word you think of when you think of Trump.  with 53%, the winner was "idiot"
  
• Trump tweeted the women who are accusing him of sexual misconduct he "doesn't know and/or have never met."  That's actually an incredibly bold faced lie, as there's ample evidence of Trump meeting and interacting with at least 17 of the 20 accusers
• Press Secretary Sanders tried to defend Trump's attack on Senator Kirsten Gillibrand by insisting his clearly sexist attack was not sexist at all.  She then accused one reporter of having their mind in the gutter to read Trump's comments in a sexual manner.  Has she met her boss?
  
• If Trump's FCC does get rid of net neutrality, a legal challenge is being prepared
• More White House "eyewitnesses" have been releases, but in truth it was a very small list.  Most of the new Trump defenders are weak defenders at best.  Most of the allegations allegations against Trump apparently don't have any Trump defenders at all
• Donald Trump Jr.'s (Tweedle Dee) legal team is demanding investigations into certain Democrats on the House Intelligence Committee
• Attorney General Jeff Sessions blamed former President Obama for the rise of the MS-13 gang, implying if we only kept every immigrant out of the country, they wouldn't be here.  1) How Republican Christian of him, and 2) That's not how gangs work
  
• House Republicans, in Trump's tax bill, plan on gutting the taxes which help pay for ObamaCare, basically starving the program so they can eventual say it didn't work
• A district Judge in California is questioning the Health and Human Services Department, and the Trump Administration's, roll out of new rules which undermine President Obama's ObamaCare, which mandated companies cover birth control for their employees.  The Administration stated they HAD TO roll this out immediately, without any public comment, which caused the judge to question that stance, stating the standard notice and comment period should've sufficed 
• Not only has Trump's Jerusalem decision caused violence to break out across the Middle East, it has caused major anxiety for Evangelicals who feel as if this is a sign of the Rapture coming, as they gleefully proclaim the end times are here.  FYI, the Rapture is nothing more than Christianity fan fiction, put forth by priests who felt it was a good way to sell Christianity.  It doesn't date back to the original church, rather it originated in the 1600's
  
• Secretary of State Rex Tillerson vows to talk with North Korea up until the first bomb drops.  He said this in a speech asking North Korea to come back to discussions...dear lord...
• Numerous media outlets are showing footage of Trump with the women who are claiming he sexually assaulted them.  They're doing this in direct response to his proclaiming he never met any of them
• Former Trump Campaign Aide Carter Page filed a friend of the Court brief to try to stop the AT&T/Time Warner deal from going through.  His argument is it would lead to "recklessness" in journalism.  You should be laughing as you think about a guy who loves Fox News trying to make this argument
  
• USA Today posted an editorial after Trump's attack on Senator Kirsten Gellibrand:  "A [man] who would all but call Senator Kirsten Gellibrand a whore is not fit to clean the toilets in the Barack Obama Presidential Library, or to shine the shoes of George W. Bush."  DDDAAAAAAAAAAAMMMMMMMMMNNNNNNNN!
• In a stunning loss, Trump's faced with how unpopular he is, as Democrat Doug Jones won the Alabama Special Election for Jeff Sessions' seat, beating alleged pervert Roy Moore in a state which Trump won by 25 points.  Trump and the Administration were fully endorsing Moore.  This is the first Democrat to represent Alabama in the Senate in 25 years
  
• Trump is enraged by First Daughter and White House staffer doing...something(?) Ivanka Trump's condemnation of Roy Moore in the aftermath of Moore's devastating loss
• With Doug Jones' victory, Trump got more bad news as Senator Rand Paul says he will not vote for the current Trump tax bill being floated, due to it adding so much to the deficit.  Rand sees the writing on the wall after Alabama
• Senator Chick Grassley, the chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, also might be seeing the writing on the wall after Alabama, as he's formally asking Trump to reconsider one of his judicial picks, Jeff Mateer, a man who proudly states transgender children are part of Satan's plan.  Other Republicans are also starting to question the selection
  
• Trump, looking for money he can use to justify his massive tax payer handout to the wealthiest Americans, is now offering to significantly reduce spending on children's education and healthcare as a 'compromise'
• Trump's responses to Doug Jones' winning are what you'd expect from the spineless coward.  He congratulated Jones, but insisted the GOP will win back the seat soon enough.  He then insisted he was never really behind Moore, saying the reason he was with his opponent in the primary was because he felt Moore was unelectable and flawed.  In the end, Trump WAS a full throated defender of Moore
  
• A Trump fan at Buena Vista University in Iowa was been busted for spray painting racist graffiti all over campus.  Don't tell me the GOP wouldn't be making an issue of this if it was a Democratic President's follower
• Humorist and host John Fuglesang was perfect the day after Jones' victory in Alabama.  Looking at the African American voter results:  "African American voters did more to help working whites than Trump did all year."
  
• A new UN report states torture is indeed still happening at Guantanamo Bay
• Republicans are outright trashing former Senior Presidential Advisor Steve Bannon, as the GOP is squarely blaming him for the loss in Alabama.  Bannon's response is he'll do everything to pour gasoline on the GOP establishment.  Merry Christmas!
• An investigation into the FBI shows some agents texting each other and calling Trump "an idiot."  If that's grounds for an investigation into the FBI, then there should be an investigation into the Administration, after what they said about him
• The EPA Inspector General is looking into Director Scott Pruitt in a second case of wasting tax payer dollars.  The first was due to airline travel expenses.  The second involves the decision to build a new privacy booth in his office, when there's a perfectly fine privacy booth one floor down from his office
  
• Two major financial institutions, The World Bank and world wide corporation Axa, both stated they'd no longer invest in (and in the case of Axa, insure) projects involved with oil/gas production.  The rest of the world in moving away from Trump's plan to re-embrace coal
• The Director of Communications for the White House Office of Public Liaison, Omarosa Manigault, will be leaving her beleaguered position, and the White House entirely, next month
• More Republicans are seeing the light in regards to the Alabama results, Republican Representative Mike Coffman is the first Republican to openly call for a delay on the vote by the FCC to end net neutrality
  
• W. Bush White House Press Secretary Ari Fleischer warns that the GOP losses will be epic unless the Republicans can figure out a way to get Trump's approval ratings up
• Reports are Omarosa Manigault's 'resignation' was far more forced than we were initially led to believe.  First, it clearly wasn't a gentle leaving of the office, rather a full fledged resignation.  Second, there are reports of some serious drama coming from Omarosa, with security being called, and her being escorted from the work campus, physically.  No reports if they gave her time to pick up her shoes, which were reported to be scattered everywhere in her department
  
• Trump's friends are quick to turn on Roy Moore after his stunning loss, with one saying "he's one dumb, weird guy."
• During a hearing in front of the House Judiciary Committee, Rod Rosenstein was grilled by Rep. Jerrold Nadler who basically pointed out his fellow committee members were doing a horrible job of holding Trump accountable for his actions.  He then went on a point by point breakdown annihilating the GOP's allegations agains Hillary Clinton and the FBI
• Former Vice President Joe Biden commented on the anti-Trump USA Today editorial.  "I've never ever in my career read an editorial like that"
• Senator Chuck Schumer had harsh words to describe his meeting with Trump on tax policy.  Schumer called the GOP's plans to get rid of the state and local tax deductions via the Trump tax bill something which will hurt Trump's home state of New York particularly hard.  When asked why Trump would allow that to happen to NY, Schumer stated Trump has "deluded" himself into thinking he understand the policy.  "He doesn't know the details and says whatever he wants to say"
  
• Donald Trump Jr. (Tweedle Dee) testified in front of the Senate Intelligence Committee on Russia/Trump
• Republicans are signifying they have reached a deal on the tax bill between the House and the Senate.  At least three GOP Senators (Corker, Paul, Collins) have said their undecided
• House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi blasted Trump, stating quite strongly he should've never become President, due to his numerous sexual assault allegations.  She's calling for a probe into his behavior, something which should've happened prior to the election
• Trump BFF Roger Stone is convinced Robert Mueller will be the end of Trump's term in office
  
• One really bad sign for the GOP is how Trump's support among independent women has plummeted.  That's a group they need to have ANY chance at winning
• Reporter April Ryan received texts from White House staffers after Omarosa was fired.  "Mission Accomplished!"
• Two of Trumps HIGHLY UNQUALIFIED Judicial nominees, Brett Talley, and Jeff Mateer, have ben informed by the Republican Senate their nominations will not be moving forward
  
• Numerous Republicans are teeing up on former Senior Presidential Advisor Steve Bannon, not only blaming him for the loss in Alabama, but describing him thusly: 'like a drunk, out of work and homeless'
• Former British Prime Minister David Cameron went after Trump's constant war against the media, pointing out vilifying the media is "bad news for the fight against corruption" 
• The FCC is ignoring the massive groundswell against them and are planning on removing the net neutrality rules tomorrow
  
• Washington Governor Jay Inslee says winning in 2018 is hard to predict as he's concerned Trump will ignore the Constitution and start an pre-emptive war with North Korea
• Senator John McCain attacked Trump's constant 'fake news' war with the media, saying it emboldens repressive regimes
• Omarosa Manigault, after being told she was being let go, attempted to storm the residence, setting off numerous alarms.  She was stopped before she got there and was forcibly removed from the White House by security
• Omarosa's personal assitant was also fired 
• Palestine has officially asked the UN to replace the US as primary negotiator of peace between the Palestinians and the Israelis
• Reports are Congressional Republicans are actively working with Fox News to lay the groundwork for Trump to fire Robert Mueller
  
• Omarosa apparently used harsh, violent language when confronted with her dismissal by Kelly.  It's also reported she repeatedly tried to get into the White House residence, even after security had ordered her to stop
• Trump thanked Omarosa for her service
• The growing impact of Trump's labeling of all news he doesn't want to hear as 'fake news' is showing.  In Kentucky, a state legislator committed suicide after it was revealed he was under investigation for fondling a 17 year old friend of his daughters at a sleep over.  Even though there seems to be evidence of his behavior, he still left a suicide post which alluded to the allegations being 'fake news'
• In a sign the collision allegations are likely real, Fox News is taking a new path on covering the issue.  They keep insisting collusion is not a crime, so it doesn't matter if Trump did it
  
• As Trump insists he'll be tough on terrorism, he's planning on slashing the funding for border security technology for the Department of Homeland Security and is planning on eliminating one counterterrorism program completely 
• Attorney General Jeff Sessions seems to be lying about crime statistics.  In a speech in Baltimore, he said violent crime is up 13%.  The report he's citing clearly states there's been no measurable change in the violent crime rate
  
• Sarah Huckabee Sanders decided to taunt the media with some pies she 'supposedly' baked for the White House Press Corp Christmas party.  Aside from the fact that clearly an assistant is making those up for her (She, in all seriousness, should not have the time) the fact she specifically called out journalist April Ryan, one of the few African American reporters in the press corp, and a journalist who was specifically not invited to the Christmas party, shows you how blind she is
  
• Presidential Advisor and Trump son-in-law Jared Kushner might be working with Saudi Arabia on a Middle East Peace deal, as it seems like the Saudi's are the only avenue left for the Administration.  Why he's not updating the State Department remains a mystery
• Trump's extremely touchy when it comes to Russian interference.  If it's mentioned at all during a press briefing, Trump goes "off the rails," according to White House staff
• Vladamir Putin is rushing to Trump's defense, stating the allegations of collusion are made up by his enemies to delegitimize Trump.  Trump doesn't need any help with that
• Omarosa is still technically employed by the White House until January, but Secret Service, having deemed her a threat, refuses to allow her back into the building
• Trump is now officially blaming his former Advisor Steve Bannon of convincing him to support Roy Moore
  
• Due to racists, neo-Nazi's, KKK and white supremacists, and due to Trump's embracing and endorsement of those people, Heather Heyer's mom has had to keep her daughter's gravesite a secret to prevent vandalism.  Heather was the woman killed in Charlottesville 
• *******Apparently both Trump and Pence were made aware in January that the CIA had definitive proof the Russian President Putin had personally ordered and directed hacking operations into the 2016 election.  Trump has repeatedly stated the Russians had nothing to do with hacking the 2016 election even after he had received the CIA briefing
• After Trump was briefed by the CIA in January, Former FBI Director James Comey gave Trump a briefing on the Steele Dossier, and the fact he FBI was finding a lot of corroborating evidence to prove the dossier was real.  Once again, Tump has repeatedly stated the dossier is a fake
• Trump's new poll number, 32% approval
  
• Michael Dourson, Trump's pick to run the EPA's Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention Office, and a chemical industry consultant, has withdrawn his nomination after it became clear even the GOP Congress was likely to turn down his nomination
  
• What an amazing jackass!  FCC Chairman Ajit Pai cracked jokes as he got ready to remove net neutrality
• Trump's Immigration and Custom Enforcement brown shirts, ICE agents, kept 92 Somali immigrants chained on an airplane for 46 hours after ICE continued to botch the process of deporting them back to Somalia
• Good news, the White House Press Secretary's dad Mike Huckabee is telling everyone to leave his daughter Sarah Huckabee Sanders alone, implying she's above criticism
  
• Mike Pence is delaying his Middle East trip.  He says it's because of the tax bill, but there are a lot of places telling him he's not welcome.  The latest is the Church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem.  Their custodian stated Pence is not welcome
• As expected, Trump's FCC has rescinded the net neutrality rules on a party line vote.  Three Republicans voted to remove net neutrality.  Two Democrats voted to save it
• Having trouble finding retailers to carry her merchandise, First Daughter and White House staffer doing...something(?) Ivanka Trump has decided to open up a signature store in Trump Tower.  Mind you, she's supposed to be working in the White House...doing something...
• Senator Lindsey Graham says there's a 70% chance Trump will attack North Korea if they test another nuclear missile.  What could possibly go wrong...
• Numerous state Attorney Generals immediately announce a legal challenge to the FCC's removing of the net neutrality rules
  
• As the final Trump tax bill comes out of conference committee, and with the shock of Alabama sinking in, suddenly multiple Republican Senators who have never questioned the final version of the bill are now saying they are having some real issues with it
• White House Spokeswoman Kellyanne Conway insists Omarosa Manigault was a valuable member of the Trump team.  When asked to explain what exactly she did for the Trump team, Conway could not explain exactly what her job was
• A majority, 53%, think Trump should immediately resign over his numerous allegation of sexual misconduct
• *******In a Stunning story, three people who claim to have had personal information stolen when the Democratic National Servers were hacked, and subsequently published on Wikileaks, have sued Trump and Trump BFF Roger Stone claiming their conspired for the information to be leaked.  An amicus brief (friend of the court) has been filed by former government officials, both Republican and Democrat, not siding with either party.  The brief outlines Russia's "active measures" to influence the US Election and undermine confidence in American Democracy.  The brief contradicts Trump directly by proving the Russian interference is real. The brief is extensive and well sourced
  
• White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders seemed to have no idea how many senior staffers in the White House were African American.  She said Trump's team was diverse but was unable to answer specifics.  For the record, Ben Carson is the only remaining African American senior staff member
• There's been almost zero hurricane aide distributed to African American victims of Hurricane Harvey
• This would be a good time to remind everyone of Puerto Rico, and Trump's massive failure there
• The Former Head of British Secret Intelligence, Sir Richard Dearlove, weighs in there's probably "credibility to the content," in regards to the Steele Dossier
  
• Trump apparently suggested selling of the two vacant Russian diplomatic compounds and pocketing the money.  The clear implication was he was talking about pocketing the money for himself, NOT for the Federal Governemtn
• Two boneheaded things from Trump's photo op with a pile of paper.  The photo op was to point out the redundancy of Washington DC regulation and how they waste taxpayer dollars.  The first mistake was his published statement "We will get rid of the redundancy and duplication that wastes your time and money."  'Redundancy' and 'duplication' are the same word, hence it is redundant to use both of them.  Secondly, "...wastes your time and money."  How much money and time did he waste putting together a huge stack of paper for a photo op?
  
• 60% of Iowans disapprove of Trump.  This will have ripple effects
• Seriously???  The town of Nazareth, in Israel, has cancelled their annual Christmas celebration as they say Trump has taken the joy out of the holiday
  
• The House Oversight and Judicial Committees are subpoenaing documents from Cambridge Analytica and Giles-Pascale, companies that ran digital operations for Trump in 2016, because they have not turned over documents requested and have failed to deny whether or not they had contacts with foreign entireties during the election
• The Kremlin and Trump had ANOTHER perviously undisclosed meeting.  The subject, allegedly, was North Korea
• Eric Trump (Tweede Dum) also decided to attack Senator Kirsten Gillibrand, and he also seemed to be implying sexual innuendo.  He said she would be at Trump's door every three days asking him for money.  "There is no one who wanted to get into his office more than Kirsten Gillibrand."
• Over 700 employees have left the EPA, most of their own accord, since Scott Pruitt took over
  
• Donald Trump Jr. (Tweddle Dee) taunts supporters of net neutrality by implying they don't know what it is.  "I'd also bet most hadn't heard of it before this week."  Is it anywhere near Nambia?
• Jr. apparently is also not aware his father appointed Ajit Pai to the FCC
• Now Robert Mueller is also requesting the same documents from Cambridge Analytica and Giles-Pascale the House has subpoenaed, for his investigation
• Democratic Senator Chris Van Hollen said he wants Trump to resign
  
• It's been revealed that at least half the comments on net neutrality submitted to the FCC originated from Russian email addresses
• In FCC Director Ajit Pai's "hip young persons," far right Daily Caller video, which attempts to show nothing will change on the internet with the removal of net neutrality (a lie), one of the extras featured in the video is a far right loon who's a pusher of conspiracy theories like Pizzagate 
• Black conservatives were called by the White House and told they could take the gloves off when it comes to Omarosa Manigault.  Most African American Conservatives didn't appreciate only being called on when the White House needed them to go on the attack, but some did convey their frustration with Omarosa completely ignoring suggestions from the African American community, often openly throwing away their recommendations for appointments
• The White House is terrified Omarosa will reveal the inner workings of the chaos which encircles Trump constantly
  
• In one of the biggest dick moves of all time, Trump gleefully welcomed the NRA into the White House on the 5th anniversary of the Newtown, Connecticut massacre, which took the lives of 20 kids and 6 teachers.  He did this knowing the message it would send to parents and family members of the victims.  He HAD TO go out of his way to be this big of a jackass.  And shame on the NRA for going along with it
• Presidential Advisor and Trump Son-in-law Jared Kushner is beige called out for purposely ignoring the request for comments on whether he used his White House position to bail out his families financially troubled company
• Regardless of how much Fox News tries to sell Trump's initiatives, his approval rating amongst Fox News viewers is plummeting.  And 'plummeting' is the right word.  In June, 90% of Fox News Viewers viewed Trump favorably.  In October is was down to 74%.  In December it was 58%
  
• The White House says it's not planning adding any additional funds to fight the US's opioid epidemic.  The Trump White House has already dramatically undercut funding for the opioid fight
• Apparently five, FIVE (?!?) of Trump's Judicial Nominees were getting reviewed by the Senate at the same time (?!?), with Senators having only five minutes to interview all five together (?!?).  The reason why seems to have been to hide at least one incredibly unqualified nominee, Matthew Petersen, who had his inexperience exposed by Republican Senator John Kennedy.  Through his testimony, Petersen admitted he had never once been part of any type of legal case, and when pressed to explain basic legal terms, he failed spectacularly, unable a basic Law Review 101 test
  
• It's revealed Matthew Petersen was nominated for a judicial position solely because he spent the last decade fighting against campaign finance rules
• MSNBC pendent Donny Deutsch shared a story of how fragile Trump's ego really is.  Apparently when Trump was working the room at Bedminster golf course, the Secret Service was ahead of him, telling everyone "When you speak to [Trump], be positive."  That is not part of the Secret Service's job description
  
• Frank Wuco, who is Trump's acting Senior Advisor to the Department of Homeland Security, is a birther loon!  He also felt former President Obama was transforming America into the African country of Zimbabwe
• Director Steven Spielberg and Actor Tom Hanks, talking about their new movie about the printing of the Pentagon Papers, stated there is little difference between Trump and Nixon. Hanks: Trump's "waging a guerrilla War on the First Amendment."
• Trump lashes out against 'chain migration,' where an established family member helps other's in their family migrate to the US.  Funny story, the Trump family's USA immigrating story is one of 'chain migration'
  
• A new e-mail from the music producer who set up Trump Jr.'s (Tweedle Dee) Trump Tower meeting shows he was actually trying to set up a meeting with then candidate Trump and Vladimir Putin, in July of 2015, a long time before the Trump Tower meeting
• The RNC asked people to send Christmas Greetings to the Trumps.  It didn't go well...
• Trump, after saying the FBI is in tatters, plans on visiting the FBI on Friday to address their latest graduating class.  This after a White House staffer says the FBI has extreme bias in regards to Trump
• Trump licked the hand of his master...err...thanked Putin for noting the "strong performance" of the US
  
• Greenwich, England has banned Trump from being able to visit their city
• Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke reprimanded David Smith, the Superintendent of Joshua Tree National Park, for climate change related tweets which were sent out.  Zinke made it clear park personal were forbidden from putting out any climate change messages
  
• Reporters stopped Trump in the White House lawn, about an hour before he was supposed to attend an FBI graduation ceremony, and got some doozies from Donny Off Script.  He ripped on the FBI, saying the are a lot of people angry with them and how they are a "sad thing to watch."  He then insisted there was no collusion between his campaign and the Russian, before going into a heap of praise for Vlad Putin.  He ended by stating he still is unsure whether he will or won't pardon Flynn
• Trump has asked Roy Moore to conceded he lost in the Alabama special Senate election
• The shooter who killed two students and then himself at Aztec High School in New Mexico last week had spent the last few years on white supremacist and pro-Trump websites, with one person stating he'd been indoctrinated 
• In the wake of the Alabama loss, and probably after a lot of time looking in the mirror, far right Evangelical leader Bob Vander Plaats states there should be an investigation into Trump's sexual misconduct allegations, even if he denies they happened
  
• Not one hour after he himself insulted and demeaned the FBI, Trump touted his Administration's policy moves which are meant to force Americans into respecting the police.  Referring to all law enforcement, including the FBI, ""[I] have your back, 100%."
• House Intelligence Committee member Rep. Dennis Heck stated if Trump pardons Flynn, it will be the beginning of the unravelling of his term
• Omarosa Manigault, in an interview with ABC, described Trump as "Racial, not racist" Wha...?
• In what is clearly a pathetic attempt to get an invite to the wedding, First Daughter and White House staffer doing...something(?) Ivanka Trump was gushing about the upcoming nuptials of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle.  The Trump's will likely not be invited
  
• The musical rapper Eminem states, on his latest album, that Trump basically hates all black people and is no better than Hitler
• The House Intelligence Committees ranking Democrat Adam Schiff is concerned the House Republicans have already finished their 'investigation' into Trump/Russia, and are planning on wrapping it up, with them insisting they didn't find anything.  Schiff then stated they'll plan on going after Robert Mueller specifically to try to end his investigation
• Senator Marco Rubio says he will now support the Trump tax bill after some changes were made to the child tax credit.  Senator Bob Corker also says he will support it
• A noted otolaryngologist thinks Trump should be tested for a degenerative brain disease
  
• A US Judge has blocked Trump's birth control rules which allowed an employer to determine health care for the people who work for them
• Putin's allies are apparently pumping millions of dollars into Trump and Republican coffers thanks to the loopholes created by Citizens United
• Trump made former weeklong Communications Director Anthony Scaramucci get a penicillin shot for a score throat
  
• Former White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer was asked why exactly did Trump originally hire Omarosa.  "I don't know"
• The Center for Disease Control (CDC) has been told to remove seven words in official documents pertaining to next year's budget:  "vulnerable, entitlement, diversity, transgender, fetus, evidence-based, science-based"
• The executives for the private company Trump's EPA has hired to help with media affairs has been spending the last year investigating EPA employees who have been critical of Trump.  The cost for the latest contract is 120K in tax payer dollars
  
• Ajit Pia, FCC Chair, is in legal hot water for using the "Harlem Shake" without seeking permission to use the song.  That would be a no-no
• Trump claims foreign countries can send us their worst citizens via the Visa Lottery Program.  That is outright false
  
• The Trump tax bill has a final version and as enough Senators have come back into the fold to pass it, the GOP is frantically trying to jam it through fast enough to avoid anyone being able to change their minds
• Somehow Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross was separated from his security detail in the Hamptons for a few minutes, leading to a frantic search for the Secretary.  The story is Ross didn't dodge his security detail, rather he was late to a meeting point.  What was he doing in the Hamptons again?
• Donald Trump Jr. (Tweedle Dee) liked a tweet from a right wing stooge Micke Cernovish, which makes a disgusting claim:  "Pedophilia: A Disorder, Not a Crime."  First, yes it is a crime.  Second, aren't this the same people who claim you can't factor in mental state of an individual when determining the judgement for a crime?  I guess if you're white, male Republican and a perv, THEN mental state matters
• White House aides, early in his term, were trying to turn Trump from the walking nightmarish buffoon he currently is into what they call a "standard President".  Nope
  
• Apparently Trump was not aware of Omarosa's firing until the next morning when he saw TV news coverage of it
• Once again mocking the idea that Trump has his sons running the family businesses in a blind trust, both Jr. (Tweedle Dee) and Eric (Tweedle Dum) posting images of themselves posing with family in the Oval Office
• The one job Omarosa was supposed to have was to help the White House relate to the Congressional Black Caucus.  Earlier this year, after a meeting with Trump, the Caucus had asked a nominal request, for a private room to discuss what they were going to relate to the press.  Omarosa's answer:  "You don't get to come into our house and demand to have f*ing privacy."  She apparently was so outraged at what was a simple, non-offensive standard request, she had to be convinced by other staffers to walk away.  The Black Caucus never returned
• Trump praised a book being released from David Bossie and former Campaign Manager Corey Lewandowski, a book which claims Trump drinks 12 Cokes a day and suffers from wild and uncontrollable mood swings
  
• Following Matthew Petersen's nightmarish Senate Committee hearing, where he admitted he didn't know basic law, the White House defended the pick stating he just "needs to understand what his role is."  It's clear he doesn't
• In more proof the fix is in, massive tax breaks for real estate developers, like Trump, have been included in the Trump tax bill
  
• Apparently the Trump Administration is thinking about rescinding the rules in place protecting miners from coal dust, making it far more likely they'll die of black lung
• It only took one year, and THOUSANDS of instances, for the White House to formally put out a condemnation of those using Trump's name to promote bigotry and violence 
• It's official, according to new polling numbers, Trump is the least popular first year President on record
  
• Trump's absentee ballot for the Mayoral election in New York City was denied because he screwed up his own birthday.  Remember, HE claims he's a 'details guy'
• First Lady Melania, First Daughter and White House staffer doing...something(?) Ivanka Trump, and Presidential Advisor and Trump Son-in-law Jared Kushner's absentee ballots also failed to qualify for the NYC mayoral race because of basic errors
• In one of the better takedowns of recent memory, Star Wars actor Mark Hamill pointed out how little like a fictional Jedi FCC Chariman Ajit Pai is.  In the Daily Caller video Ajit Pai starred in, he wielded a lightsaber, opening the door for Hamill's comments.  Hamill pointed out 1) Pai wasn't worthy of holding a lightsaber, 2) Jedi act selflessly, something Pai did not, 3) apparently there's another royalty Daily Caller and Pai failed to pay, this one to John Williams, and 4) if the video was an attempt by Pai at a "these are not the droids your looking for" defense for his failure to save net neutrality, it failed miserably
  
• After the outrage at the Trump list of forbidden words at the CDC, the FDA announced it was scrapping plans to issue their own list of forbidden words
• Even though there are rules which explicitly state Ambassadors are not to engage in official business on social media sites, three of Trump's Ambassador's (Scott Brown of New Zealand, Nikki Haley at the UN, and Callista Gingrich at the Vatican) are all guilty of violating those rules
• Trump touts his tax bill as a "great Christmas gift" to the middle class. 1) It's not, as it will raise most everyone, but the wealthiest's, taxes in the long run, 2) Even if it was great it won't affect people's holidays this year, and 3) what about the non-Christian taxpayer?  Is it a great Hanukkah gift, or do they need to convert to get the full benefit?
  
• Trump vows to campaign for all GOP candidates in 2018.  Talk about your GOP nightmare before Christmas 
• Kory Langhofer, a lawyer for Trump for America, Inc. (so he's not bias at all!) is arguing that Robert Mueller illegally obtained e-mails from the Trump transition team.  He says the e-mails were sent to Mueller from the GSA, so that would imply it's a GSA mistake, not Mueller's.  But that doesn't mean the emails were illegal in any way.  The emails in question were sent via '.gov' related accounts, meaning they're fair game, and Langhofer implying these emails were unnecessarily sent to Mueller implies he knows exactly what Mueller is investigating, which he doesn't
  
• Apparently two other agencies in the Trump Administration have received lists of words Trump is ordering not to be used in official government documentation, regardless of whether there's a justified need to use them
• The reason Trump might be getting ready to fire Mueller is because of the emails received from the Trump transition team.  There are apparently thousands of emails, including sensitive ones, coming from Presidential Advisor and Trump Son-in-law Jared Kushner, according to a White House source
  
• First Daughter and White House staffer doing...something(?) Ivanka Trump is officially being accused of breaking ethics rules with her new name brand retail store in Trump Tower New York
• The GOP's own analysis of the Trump tax bill shows even their estimate of 1.5 trillion in new debt is far too optimistic.  Factoring in unreported debt and interest, the bill will actually leave AT LEAST a $2.7 trillion crater in the nation's debt
• 63% of Americans believe Trump did indeed try to obstruct the Mueller probe
  
• ACLU is claiming the Trump Administration is specifically gone out of it's way to prevent two undocumented women from being able to get an abortion, a procedure which is supposedly legal to get in the US
• Robert Mueller's office came out guns a blazing in regards to the accusation they illegally obtained any e-mails.  "When we have obtained emails in the course of our investigation, we have secured either the account owner's consent or appropriate criminal process."  This means either they were given permission, or they got permission from a judge
  
• Jen Hatmaker, a popular Evangelical speaker, has been flooded with death threats from what she describes at the "Christian Machine," for being critical of Trump, and for supporting same sex marriage
• Even though the story of the banned words at the CDC has been a major headline for two days,  Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin insists on CNN he had no knowledge of the story
• Most of Trump's wealthy New York friends are praising his tax bill
• Congressman Eric Swalwell defends Robert Mueller's investigation and dismisses the allegations he obtained emails illegally
  
• China feels as if North Korea is a ticking time bomb due to Trump's mishandling of the region
• Republicans are refusing to name any further witnesses to their House Congressional investigation, another sign they are prematurely winding down the investigation.  Good time to remind everyone the same Republicans, after their own committees found Hillary Clinton had done nothing wrong with Benghazi, opened 8 additional investigations
• Turkey, supposedly one of the US's allies, has said they're planning on opening an embassy to Palestine in Jerusalem, a direct rebuttal to Trump's announcement the US Embassy in Israel will be moved there
• White House Spokeswoman Kellyanne Conway said "the fix was in" in regards to the Mueller probe, setting off a Fox News discussion on whether the Mueller probe is an anti-Trump coup
  
• Putin is thanking Trump for his help in foiling a supposed attack, plotted for St. Petersburg.  This is all nice and good (thanks CIA) but it does expose yet another phone conversation between Trump and Putin which was previously undisclosed
• The Trump team is demanding the return of the transition emails the Mueller probe legally obtained.  They're promising they'll return them, but only after they vetted the ones they don't want Mueller to see.  Wow...
• Trump says he has no intentions of firing Mueller
• A hilarious bit of editing from MSNBC show that Trump and Putin are using the EXACT SAME talking points 
  
• Speculation is Attorney General Jeff Sessions will be the next target of the Mueller probe
• A report out says EPA employees who criticized the Trump Administration had their emails reviewed by pro Trump Department personnel
  
• The UN Security Council is going to vote on whether or not to void the idea that Jerusalem is the capital of Israel
• It's reported that Trump's Health and Human Services Department was officially asked to extend the sign up period for ObamaCare.  They refused
• 52% of the country says the US is worse under Trump
• For week 15, at least a dozen NFL players took a knee to protest racial injustice in America, and to protest Trump himself
  

Wow, that's a sleigh full of incompetence!

Once again, I'm not trying to convert anyone with the mostly Christmas images.  It's frankly a speed thing.  I'm trying to get through this all as quickly as possible so I can get back to the three thousand other things I have to get done by Sunday.  

The Trump tax bill shows us the real fight a head of us.  I pray we wake up and vote all of these clowns out of office next November.  On the positive side, Alabama now has a Democratic Senator and Virginia's House officially flipped to the Democrats, after the final race was determined by ONE VOTE!  

#2018IsEverything!  Have a wonderful holiday!