The Trump Presidency

[Hawk]

There is no shortage of military and intel officers aghast at his behavior and judgement

No shortage? Isn't that a bit of an exaggeration?

How much credence do you really feel comfortable lending to reports from 'unnamed sources' in James Clapper's DIA, published in the wake of Flynn leaving the administration?

[Julio3000]

No shortage? Isn't that a bit of an exaggeration?

How much credence do you really feel comfortable lending to reports from 'unnamed sources' in James Clapper's DIA, published in the wake of Flynn leaving the administration?

I think if you review coverage of Flynn over the last several months, up to and including today, you will find no shortage.

You're really going to the wall for the former NSA. Do you think the Trump administration has done him wrong?

[Julio3000]

Trump just signed the legislation rolling back the requirements for energy companies to disclose payments to foreign governments.

So, busy draining that swamp, I guess.

And, just for giggles:

Spicer: "The irony of this entire situation is that the president has been incredibly tough on Russia."

[57Brave]

What is in the tax returns ?

[goldfly]

Breitbart's take, presumably straight from Bannon/Miller. WH staff busy knifing each other. This is truly a ****show of epic proportions.

Honestly find it hard to believe we have a president that thinks that is a legitimate news source and brought Bannon with him to the White House

[Julio3000]

“Carter Page is an individual whom the president-elect does not know and was put on notice months ago by the campaign,”
—Sean Spicer

Carter Page was specifically mentioned by DJT as one of five individuals advising him on foreign policy in conversation with the WaPo editorial board.

I was afraid this was going to disappear into the ether, but I'm less certain now. I thought the vehemence of that denunciation was surprising. I'll be interested to see if it crops up again.

[Julio3000]

I mean, I'm sure it's a busy day and all, but ...

[Julio3000]

Last May, after US aircraft buzzed by Russian jets:

“It just shows how low we’ve gone where they can toy with us like that,” Trump said, describing such scenarios as “terrible.” He insisted that the problem is Russia’s lack of respect for U.S. President Barack Obama.

“Normally, an Obama—let’s say a president, because you want to make at least a call or two—but normally Obama would call up Putin and say, ‘Listen, do us a favor, don’t do that, get that maniac, just stop it.’ But we don’t have that kind of a president. He’s gonna be out playing golf or something,” Trump said. “But I don’t know, at a certain point, you can’t take it.”

While U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry has condemned previous incidents and said the U.S. command would be within its rights to shoot down Russian aircraft, the White House has not directly threatened to open fire. According to Trump, the U.S. should draw a line in the sand and, if it’s crossed, should shoot down Russian aircraft.

“I mean, at a certain point, you have to do something … you just can’t take that,” Trump said. “But it should certainly start with diplomacy and it should start quickly with a phone call to Putin, wouldn’t you think?”

After the first two incidents in April, a White House spokesman said that “communication had occurred” between the U.S. and Russia. The two leaders spoke on the phone a week after the last incident, but there was no mention of the encounter on either administration’s notes from the conversation.

According to Trump, if Russia rejects calls to stop the approaches, the U.S. should open fire.

“And if that doesn’t work out, I don’t know, you know, at a certain point, when that sucker comes by you, you gotta shoot,” Trump said. “And it’s a shame. It’s a shame. It’s a total lack of respect for our country and it’s a total lack of respect for Obama. Which [sic] as you know, they don’t respect.”

Fast forward to President Trump:

Multiple Russian military aircraft came close to a U.S. Navy destroyer in the Black Sea on Feb. 10, incidents considered "unsafe and unprofessional," a U.S. official said on Tuesday.

There were three separate incidents involving Russian aircraft and the USS Porter, Captain Danny Hernandez, a spokesman for U.S. European Command, said. One involved two Russian Su-24 jets, another a separate Su-24, and the third involved a larger IL-38.

"USS Porter queried all aircraft and received no response," Hernandez said.

"Such incidents are concerning because they can result in accident or miscalculation," he added.

The incidents involving the Su-24 were considered to be unsafe and unprofessional by the commanding officer of the Porter because of their high speed and low altitude, while the IL-38 flew at an unusually low altitude, Hernandez said.

Another U.S. official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the closest incident that day involved the lone SU-24, which came within 200 yards of the Porter at an altitude of 300 feet (91 meters).

Trump was golfing on the 11th, no?

Maybe this stuff is harder than he thought.

[57Brave]

I was afraid this was going to disappear into the ether, but I'm less certain now. I thought the vehemence of that denunciation was surprising. I'll be interested to see if it crops up again.

http://www.dailykos.com/stories/2017...down#read-more

Let's see where NYT and WaPo goes.

[goldfly]

I mean, I'm sure it's a busy day and all, but ...

let's just say this is true

why the **** is a sitting president still posting from his own device on a platform that isn't secure enough for whatever the **** her job of being a liar title is?

[goldfly]

[goldfly]

got to love the same republicans saying how great wikileaks was to show us the true side of Hillary and why she shouldn't be elected getting angry about leaks to show us how awful this idea to put Donald in the office has quickly become

[Hawk]

got to love the same republicans saying how great wikileaks was to show us the true side of Hillary and why she shouldn't be elected getting angry about leaks to show us how awful this idea to put Donald in the office has quickly become

https://theintercept.com/2017/02/14/...fied-felonies/

In the spectrum of crimes involving the leaking of classified information, publicly revealing the contents of SIGINT — signals intelligence — is one of the most serious felonies. Journalists (and all other nongovernmental citizens) can be prosecuted under federal law for disclosing classified information only under the narrowest circumstances; reflecting how serious SIGINT is considered to be, one of those circumstances includes leaking the contents of intercepted communications [...]

[weso1]

This is highly entertaining. Why was Flynn fired? Seemed like a pretty minor offense. Something else has to be going on.

[Hawk]

I'm just going to stick to copy and pasting Glen Greenwald:

It’s hard to put into words how strange it is to watch the very same people — from both parties, across the ideological spectrum — who called for the heads of Edward Snowden, Chelsea Manning, Tom Drake, and so many other Obama-era leakers today heap praise on those who leaked the highly sensitive, classified SIGINT information that brought down Gen. Flynn.

It’s even more surreal to watch Democrats act as though lying to the public is some grave firing offense when President Obama’s top national security official, James Clapper, got caught red-handed not only lying to the public but also to Congress — about a domestic surveillance program that courts ruled was illegal. And despite the fact that lying to Congress is a felony, he kept his job until the very last day of the Obama presidency.

[Julio3000]

I'm just going to stick to copy and pasting Glen Greenwald:

It’s hard to put into words how strange it is to watch the very same people — from both parties, across the ideological spectrum — who called for the heads of Edward Snowden, Chelsea Manning, Tom Drake, and so many other Obama-era leakers today heap praise on those who leaked the highly sensitive, classified SIGINT information that brought down Gen. Flynn.

It’s even more surreal to watch Democrats act as though lying to the public is some grave firing offense when President Obama’s top national security official, James Clapper, got caught red-handed not only lying to the public but also to Congress — about a domestic surveillance program that courts ruled was illegal. And despite the fact that lying to Congress is a felony, he kept his job until the very last day of the Obama presidency.

Yeah, I've seen that making the rounds today. It's a valuable contribution to the conversation.

I think the Obama Admin attitude towards leaks is always germane and worth keeping in mind.

IMO most people's attitudes (and there are certainly exceptions, on this board, even) about leaks depends on kto-kogo.

And, just to get back to partisan hackery, your attempt at "But, but, OBAMA..." is noted.

[goldfly]

Patriots

i also didn't call for the heads of Edward Snowden, Chelsea Manning or Tom Drake

and labeled them patriots as well

but to echo Julio, "but Obama" i guess is the excuse now and trying to spin this into a leak story instead of the actual action is the plan from the spineless

[sturg33]

Patriots

i also didn't call for the heads of Edward Snowden, Chelsea Manning or Tom Drake

and labeled them patriots as well

but to echo Julio, "but Obama" i guess is the excuse now and trying to spin this into a leak story instead of the actual action is the plan from the spineless

The issue is you guys didn't care when it was Obama... Now we're getting every minor thing Trump does shoved down our throats... it will get to the point where people will stop paying attention... Boy who cried wolf, you know?

[thethe]

This would not have been an issue at all under Obama. Let's call a spade a spade. This was a hit job and will continue to play out this way for as long as Trump is pres. That's what happens when the outgoing president creates a shadow government.

[thethe]

The issue is you guys didn't care when it was Obama... Now we're getting every minor thing Trump does shoved down our throats... it will get to the point where people will stop paying attention... Boy who cried wolf, you know?

Its already happening. Outside of the liberal bubble the country doesn't care. So much fake news that people are not paying attention anymore to most of the negative thins about Trump anymoreml. It's actually going to help him once this rough patch war is over.