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Edited by Mrph1 on Nov 30th 2023 at 11:03:59 AM

M84 Oh, bother. from Our little blue planet Since: Jun, 2010 Relationship Status: Chocolate!
Oh, bother.
#237676: Apr 6th 2018 at 7:46:20 AM

Yeah, a porn star would make them uncomfortable, since she's a woman who more or less owns her own sexuality.

Disgusted, but not surprised
Silasw A procrastination in of itself from A handcart to hell (4 Score & 7 Years Ago) Relationship Status: And they all lived happily ever after <3
A procrastination in of itself
#237677: Apr 6th 2018 at 7:51:58 AM

For the evangelical leadership it didn’t matter, they’re republicans first, sex negative second and Christians a distant third.

For some of the voters, they voted for Trump because they wanted Pence and to be able to appoint evangelicals to the supremacy court, neither of those things are at risk at the midterms so they may well stay home.

“And the Bunny nails it!” ~ Gabrael “If the UN can get through a day without everyone strangling everyone else so can we.” ~ Cyran
Rationalinsanity from Halifax, Canada Since: Aug, 2010 Relationship Status: It's complicated
#237678: Apr 6th 2018 at 7:52:55 AM

Nah, this is probably just them putting up a show. The data is there, the religious right doesn't give a damn about principles, as long as Trump follows their policy objectives they'll just pray for him and all is forgiven.

Politics is the skilled use of blunt objects.
Parable Since: Aug, 2009
#237679: Apr 6th 2018 at 7:53:25 AM

They're White first, actually. Notice the emphasis on white evangelicals in the article.

DingoWalley1 Asgore Adopts Noelle Since: Feb, 2014 Relationship Status: Can't buy me love
Asgore Adopts Noelle
#237680: Apr 6th 2018 at 7:59:19 AM

[up]x3 Actually, there is a chance of Trump/Pence putting Evangelicals to the Supreme Court being ruined if the Blue Wave takes the Senate this year. It's not impossible they do, too, what with Republicans backing terrible Candidates in almost every State and Democrats picking a lot of good people (like in Tennessee, where the Dem has a 10% lead over the Republican in the latest polling).

Swanpride Since: Jun, 2013
#237681: Apr 6th 2018 at 9:18:13 AM

It's a few days old, but Shawn did a great video about the events in Charlottesville.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zcoYKuoiUrY

I think it is mostly relevant because there are still people buying in the notion that the Alt-right "aren't Nazis".

megaeliz Since: Mar, 2017
#237682: Apr 6th 2018 at 9:33:46 AM

Some recent developments in immigration from our Resident Immigration Law expert @ALT_uscis. A lot of this has gone under the radar, because of everything else going on. (He also does not like ICE) note 

1-ICE ended policy of presuming release for pregnant detainees: ICE detention centers (and the for profit ones) are ill-equipped to treat medical issues pregnant women face. Ice stating fear of flight. We tax payers pay for ankle monitors-Cheaper

This is the previous policy

  • Absent Extraordinary circumstances or the requirement of mandatory detention, Pregnant woman will generally not be detained by ICE. While detained in ICE Custody, pregnant woman will be re-evaluated regularly to determine if continued detention is warranted, receive appropriate prenatal care, and be appropriately monitored by ICE for general health and well being.

2. Considering a policy to deny legal residency-deport legal immigrants who rely on Earned Income tax credit &health insurance subsidies (Tax paying immigrants) not to mention undocumented immigrants leave $10 billion in taxes they never file to collect. [1]

3-Terminated Deferred Enforced Departure (DED) for Liberians affecting thousands, and ended TPS for Salvadorans, Haitians, Nicaraguans, and Sudanese, effectively creating tens of thousands of new $150/day bodies for the private prison industry donors. [2]

4-Added a new citizenship question to the 2020 Census to screw with the power of diversity.

5-Blaming immigrants for crimes related to:

  • Sanctuary cities
  • Opioids
  • Chicago (whatever the fuck that means)
and bunch of facts-free slander to make the case for more $$ to expand deportation apparatus

6-Mentioning they are deporting people with criminal record.

Arrests deportation of people without a criminal record increased by almost 200%. Why? Because these people are easy to find keeping regular jobs, stables homes, participating in their community. Lazy @IC Egov

After this it sort of becomes a rant against ICE and to a lesser extent CBP.

7-These @IC Egov goons are effectively becoming the Political Enforcers for Trump nativism, not protecting you and defending LAW & Order. They are especially targeting immigration activists. They target families they can tear apart on purpose to kiss the dear leader's ass.

9-Separating children from parents caught crossing the border including those asylum seekers FLEEING VIOLENCE AND MURDER, as a punitive means of deterring others who might follow. ( Gen Kelly's words)

10-Allow a @CBP border agent with elementary legal education to decide who qualifies for asylum and who doesn't at the border. Effectively turning them into judges.

11-Lazy ass brown shirts have been nabbing immigrants who show up to ICE check-ins as part of their release conditions. Why go out to the field to catch them when they walk right up to you. If you are after criminals, someone voluntarily checking in every week isn't one.

12-They have deported business owners with 40-50 years in this country, people who positively affect their communities, FFS they even deported Syrian/Iraqi Christians back to Syria knowing damn well they are likely to be targeted and killed.

13-ICE and CBP have turned into an Army operating within our borders. With a lie detector failure rate of 60% (not a typo), these two have been handed a lot of power that we should RECONSIDER.

14-All these fringe policy nuts who were always ridiculed/rejected by other administrations BECAUSE THEY ARE CRAZY found refuge in this admin. just fluff the dear leader a bit, contribute $, talk about genes & BOOM: they are everywhere in our immigration system affecting POLICY

Immi is a bit of a Kebob loving weirdo, but he's still a good source of information about immigration law.

edited 6th Apr '18 9:38:56 AM by megaeliz

TheWanderer Student of Story from Somewhere in New England (Time Abyss) Relationship Status: Wishfully thinking
Student of Story
#237683: Apr 6th 2018 at 9:58:38 AM

~Grafite (and it's probably useful for many others to be aware of)

Well, at least Cambridge Analytica's influence will be gone in the next election. That should sway things in the Democrats' favor a little. Plus, voters have seen Trump's failed policies in action now.

Sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but all the ownership/management and money players behind Cambridge Analytica were quick to start up a new data analysis company (Emerdata) and will attempt to continue to influence elections and public perception in shady ways. Unless major things happen on the legal front, this may be an eternal game of whack a mole, and go similar to the way the Iraq war mercenary group Blackwater has changed its name several times in an attempt to escape the infamy it got after slaughtering Iraqi civilians.

Rebekah and Jennifer Mercer, daughters of hedge fund tycoon Robert Mercer, have just joined the board of a mysterious new company set up by executives at scandal-hit political research firm Cambridge Analytica.

According to public filings at Britain's Companies House, Emerdata was incorporated in August 2017 and the Mercers were appointed to its board on March 16 this year.

Cambridge Analytica's now-suspended chief executive, Alexander Nix, is also listed as a director, as is Julian Wheatland, chairman of Cambridge Analytica parent firm SCL Group.

The filings show Wheatland set up Emerdata along with Cambridge Analytica's chief data officer, Alexander Tayler.

Nix's role in Emerdata is unclear given he has been suspended from Cambridge Analytica. A spokesman did not respond to a request for comment.

It isn't clear what Emerdata does, though the company is listed under "data processing, hosting, and related activities." It shares an address in Canary Wharf with Cambridge Analytica's parent, SCL Group.

Another notable company director is Johnson Chun Shun Ko, the deputy chairman of Frontier Services Group.

Frontier is a private security firm which mostly operates in Africa and is currently chaired by US businessman and prominent Trump supporter Erik Prince. Prince is best known for founding private military group Blackwater US and is the brother of US education secretary Betsy De Vos.

Prince also donated to the Make America Number 1 PAC, a Mercer-funded group that supported Donald Trump's presidential campaign.

Make America Number 1 paid Cambridge Analytica $1.5 million in 2015 and 2016. During undercover filming by Britain's Channel 4 News, CA executives revealed how Make America Number 1 was used to seed online attack ads against Hillary Clinton.

The appointments indicate the strong ties between the Mercer family and Cambridge Analytica.

Robert Mercer is the primary funder for Cambridge Analytica, and was also a major backer of Donald Trump's presidential campaign through the Make America Number 1 PAC.

He's also the major funder behind controversial right-wing news site Breitbart. Breitbart's former executive chairman and former White House advisor, Steve Bannon, once sat on the board of Cambridge Analytica.

Trump's team once appointed Cambridge Analytica to run its digital campaign — something the firm boasted about in secret recordings taken by Channel 4.

The fact that the Mercer family runs Breitbart, and the revelation I saw recently that he paid millions to push Islamophobic ads in swing states means this is very likely a personal/ideological ax the Mercers and others like them are grinding.

Stopping one of their fronts isn't going to stop them from getting involved, and who knows how much of their crap will go unnoticed by the majority of the public that don't keep up with news and politics. We just have to be vigilant and spread the word when possible.

| Wandering, but not lost. | If people bring so much courage to this world...◊ |
Snipertoaster from Mind Your Business (Ten years in the joint) Relationship Status: If it's you, it's okay
#237684: Apr 6th 2018 at 10:12:57 AM

Unrelated, but sanctions have been slapped on Putin's allies, including a number of oligarchs.

...do you suppose that whenever stuff like this happens, Trump immediately calls Putin to grovel about it?

We can choose to be better.
Fourthspartan56 from Georgia, US Since: Oct, 2016 Relationship Status: THIS CONCEPT OF 'WUV' CONFUSES AND INFURIATES US!
#237685: Apr 6th 2018 at 10:53:17 AM

[up][up]While it's almost certainly bad I don't think it should be seen as an existential threat, even with their and the Russians interference Trump still barely won. I see no reason to assume that they can stop a wave or Trump getting trounced come 2020.

edited 6th Apr '18 10:53:58 AM by Fourthspartan56

"Einstein would turn over in his grave. Not only does God play dice, the dice are loaded." -Chairman Sheng-Ji Yang
megaeliz Since: Mar, 2017
#237686: Apr 6th 2018 at 11:04:20 AM

[up] And the best part about that, is that it's easier to charge a private citizen then a President, and I can't imagine the Mueller investigation will be over by then, just from the shear amount of crap they have to investigate.

[up][up] He can't be happy about this.

edited 6th Apr '18 11:10:33 AM by megaeliz

megaeliz Since: Mar, 2017
#237687: Apr 6th 2018 at 11:12:53 AM

Double post but new, and very stupid new topic.

White House has aides go on Pirro's show every week knowing Trump watches: report

The White House communications staff regularly sends officials to appear on Fox News host Jeanine Pirro's show because they know President Trump will watch, The Washington Post reported Thursday.

Pirro's Saturday night show, "Justice with Judge Jeanine," is a favorite of Trump's, and he tunes in or records the program every week.

The aides also appear on the show to stop Trump from calling in, according to The Post.

"Someone has to be on the show every week," one official told the newspaper.

Aides also said that Pirro and Trump talk regularly, including about special counsel Robert Mueller's probe into Russia's election interference and his frustrations with Attorney General Jeff Sessions.

The staffers added that they sometimes schedule officials to discuss policies on Fox News shows because Trump "will listen more when it is on TV."

Pirro often uses her show to praise and defend Trump. She is also working on a book about Trump's presidency and interviewed both Trump and chief of staff John Kelly for it, according to the Post.

Trump regularly watches Fox News and often tweets about segments that air on the channel.

Fighteer Lost in Space from The Time Vortex (Time Abyss) Relationship Status: TV Tropes ruined my love life
M84 Oh, bother. from Our little blue planet Since: Jun, 2010 Relationship Status: Chocolate!
Oh, bother.
#237689: Apr 6th 2018 at 11:33:04 AM

[up][up] Y'all know my reaction to this sort of news by now. Still, this is really friggin' pathetic.

Disgusted, but not surprised
megaeliz Since: Mar, 2017
#237690: Apr 6th 2018 at 11:35:05 AM

And he's been making good use of his "Executive time today. Pay attention to the third one in particular.

Despite the Aluminum Tariffs, Aluminum prices are DOWN 4%. People are surprised, I’m not! Lots of money coming into U.S. coffers and Jobs, Jobs, Jobs!

China, which is a great economic power, is considered a Developing Nation within the World Trade Organization. They therefore get tremendous perks and advantages, especially over the U.S. Does anybody think this is fair. We were badly represented. The WTO is unfair to U.S.

Do you believe that the Fake News Media is pushing hard on a story that I am going to replace A.G. Jeff Sessions with EPA Chief Scott Pruitt, who is doing a great job but is TOTALLY under siege? Do people really believe this stuff? So much of the media is dishonest and corrupt!

CaptainCapsase from Orbiting Sagittarius A* Since: Jan, 2015
#237691: Apr 6th 2018 at 11:55:01 AM

[up][up][up] If you were truly numb to it you wouldn't bother to follow this sort of news; you clearly do care enough to post about it.

Fighteer Lost in Space from The Time Vortex (Time Abyss) Relationship Status: TV Tropes ruined my love life
Lost in Space
#237692: Apr 6th 2018 at 11:56:02 AM

You misread me. I said I'm not surprised. There's no sense of shock or astonishment, only an ever-escalating level of disgust.

"It's Occam's Shuriken! If the answer is elusive, never rule out ninjas!"
megaeliz Since: Mar, 2017
#237693: Apr 6th 2018 at 11:58:58 AM

Facebook to Require Verified Identities for Future Political Ads

SAN FRANCISCO — Facebook on Friday announced a series of moves meant to improve the transparency of political ads and pages on its social media service. The changes came just days before Mark Zuckerberg, the company’s chief executive, is to testify before Congress.

Mr. Zuckerberg said in a post that the company has started requiring advertisers to verify their identity and location before they can run political ads on Facebook. That verification is meant to prevent foreign interference in elections, like the paid posts by so-called Russian trolls ahead of the 2016 presidential election.

Mr. Zuckerberg added that he supported a proposed Senate bill, the Honest Ads Act, that would require such disclosures.

Facebook will also soon start verifying the identify and location of people who run large Facebook pages, Mr. Zuckerberg said. Officials say Russian agents used pages to pose as Americans on different sides of the political spectrum in an attempt to spread misinformation before the election.

“These steps by themselves won’t stop all people trying to game the system. But they will make it a lot harder for anyone to do what the Russians did during the 2016 election and use fake accounts and pages to run ads,” Mr. Zuckerberg said in his post.

This is something that should have been done a long time ago.

M84 Oh, bother. from Our little blue planet Since: Jun, 2010 Relationship Status: Chocolate!
Oh, bother.
#237694: Apr 6th 2018 at 12:00:04 PM

[up] Too little too late, IMHO. I'm certainly not going to give props to Facebook for doing something that is long overdue after the damage has been done.

Disgusted, but not surprised
Fourthspartan56 from Georgia, US Since: Oct, 2016 Relationship Status: THIS CONCEPT OF 'WUV' CONFUSES AND INFURIATES US!
#237695: Apr 6th 2018 at 12:00:49 PM

Yes Facebook is well overdue to be hit with the regulatory stick, they need to feel real pain beyond mere bad press.

"Einstein would turn over in his grave. Not only does God play dice, the dice are loaded." -Chairman Sheng-Ji Yang
CaptainCapsase from Orbiting Sagittarius A* Since: Jan, 2015
#237696: Apr 6th 2018 at 12:05:14 PM

[up][up][up][up] Either way, this sort of news isn't not particularly healthy; it offers that odd sort of emotional catharsis that comes from seeing your preconceptions vindicated, but not much else. This certainly doesn't really tell us or anyone who has paid even the slightest bit of attention to politics anything particularly new or useful about the Trump administration.

[up][up] Political advertising in general needs major overhauls, though the Citizen's United SC decision obviously makes that somewhat difficult. As far as I can tell, and I am no legal scholar, it wouldn't prevent laws capping the amount of money that could be spent on a given election by political campaigns, but you'd still have tons of dark money flowing in any major electoral campaign, and there's no good way around that short of amending the constitution or overruling the decision with a future court.

edited 6th Apr '18 12:09:18 PM by CaptainCapsase

megaeliz Since: Mar, 2017
#237697: Apr 6th 2018 at 12:08:39 PM

'Trump supporter, Putin ally meeting may not have been by chance: Sources

Special Counsel Robert Mueller has obtained evidence that calls into question Congressional testimony given by Trump supporter and Blackwater founder Erik Prince last year, when he described a meeting in Seychelles with a Russian financier close to Vladimir Putin as a casual chance encounter “over a beer,” sources told ABC News.

Well-connected Lebanese-American businessman George Nader, a key witness given limited immunity by Mueller, has been interviewed seven times by prosecutors on a wide range of subjects. He told investigators that he set up a meeting in the Seychelles between Prince and Russian sovereign wealth fund CEO Kirill Dmitriev, mere days before Trump was inaugurated, sources familiar with the investigation said this week.

Nader has submitted to three interviews with special counsel investigators and four appearances before a federal grand jury in Washington since agents stopped him at Dulles International Airport in January, served him with a grand jury subpoena and seized his electronic devices, including his cell phone. Documents obtained by Mueller suggest that before and after Prince met Nader in New York a week before the trip to the Seychelles, Nader shared information with Prince about Dmitriev, sources familiar with the investigation told ABC News, which appears to be inconsistent with Prince’s sworn testimony before a U.S. House of Representatives investigative panel.

"I didn't fly there to meet any Russian guy," Prince told the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence in November. He testified that he travelled to the Seychelles for a meeting with United Arab Emirates officials about possible business opportunities, and they introduced him – unexpectedly – to Dmitriev.

The special counsel's office declined to comment on this story when reached by ABC News. note 

As of late March, Mueller’s team has not asked Prince – whose sister Betsy De Vos serves as Trump’s Secretary of Education – to appear before the grand jury being used to investigate whether Trump campaign officials or transition aides colluded with Russian government operatives, according to one of Prince’s friends.

Prince told the House Intelligence Committee that his meeting with Dmitriev was a chance encounter “down in the bar” at the suggestion of "one of the brothers" of the United Arab Emirates' leader Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Zayed al-Nayhan.

Eric Prince of Darkness lied to congress about his meetings with Russians? Shocking!

edited 6th Apr '18 12:30:59 PM by megaeliz

Rationalinsanity from Halifax, Canada Since: Aug, 2010 Relationship Status: It's complicated
#237698: Apr 6th 2018 at 12:15:11 PM

Man, if Prince ends up going down, this was all worth it.

Politics is the skilled use of blunt objects.
archonspeaks Since: Jun, 2013
#237699: Apr 6th 2018 at 12:20:31 PM

Yeah, Prince is a scumbag among scumbags. Couldn't happen to a nicer guy.

They should have sent a poet.
rikalous World's Cutest Direwolf from Upscale Mordor (Before Recorded History) Relationship Status: Showing feelings of an almost human nature
World's Cutest Direwolf
#237700: Apr 6th 2018 at 12:26:26 PM

why do they even bother at this point, the answer is always going to be the same
Because they're professionals and they're going to do their due diligence.


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