Tracker

Sounds like Putin is distancing himself from Trump and trying to build goodwill with the incoming administration so as to minimize blowback from all his dealings with Trump. Bombshell report: Jared Kushner's shell company diverted campaign cash to the Trump family. Jared Kushner helped set up a shell company that secretly paid President Donald Trump's family members and spent nearly half of his 2020 campaign's funds. The president's son-in-law and White House senior adviser directed his sister-in-law Lara Trump, Vice President Mike Pence's nephew John Pence and Trump campaign CFO Sean Dollman to sit on the shell company's board, a source familiar with the operation told Business Insider. The company, which was incorporated as American Made Media Consultants Corporation and American Made Media Consultants LLC, spent $617 million of the campaign's $1.26 billion war chest, according to campaign finance records. Trump's top advisers and campaign staff told Insider they were unaware of how the shell company operated, and campaign officials even conducted an internal audit of its operations under former campaign manager Brad Parscale but never reported those findings, and the next campaign manager Bill Stepien had little involvement with AMMC. "Nothing was done without Jared's approval," said a former advisor to Trump's 2016 campaign. "What Stepien doesn't know is because Jared doesn't want him to know." The nonpartisan Campaign Legal Center filed a civil complaint in July with the Federal Election Commission accusing the campaign of disguising" about $170 million in spending "by laundering the funds" through AMMC. "[It's a] scheme to evade telling voters even the basics on where its money is really going [and a] shield to disguise the ultimate recipients of its spending," said Brendan Fischer, the center's director of federal reform. The Department of Justice may open a criminal investigation if the government suspects the payments were a "knowing and willful" violation of election law. Bombshell report: Jared Kushner's shell company diverted campaign cash to the Trump family - Alternet.org

Damndamndamn. I had gotten my hopes up that we had turned a bit of a corner on this, but it looks like not.

A criminal prosecution will be different from congressional hearings and are a lot less partisan. Ignoring all the laws that have been broken is much more dangerous to the democracy in the US than allowing the legal proceedings go forward.

All the GOP has is empty threats and innuendo. It has worked well enough for Reagan and Bush junior as well as Trump, so what incentive do they have to change? Only if the DOJ actively pursues investigations and charges where appropriate will things change. If Biden wusses out, the Democrats will get what they deserve- yet another corrupt GOP reign. Only it will be worse, because they have seen that they can do whatever they want and suffer no consequences.

If only Trump could be sedated into a vegetative state, the country would be much much better for it.

Sweden made the mistake of assuming that this was just another influenza, contrary to WHO statements. Other European countries took the WHO advice at face value- Norway had only 10% of the fatalities per capita, for example, did much better. Economics should not be the determinant in assessing responses to a looming pandemic.

There is rarely a need for personal attacks- we all have family for that. But the concept of "herd immunity" was so transparently wrong that it needed to be challenged. As with Sweden, it leads to the preventable deaths of hundreds of thousands, and is still alive and kicking.

This California Representative Survived Jonestown and Says Trumpers Have Definitely Drunk the Kool Aid A few years ago, Jackie Speier resisted comparisons between Jim Jones and Donald Trump. But now, she sees them clearly. Jackie Speier was a legislative counsel working for a California congressman when she was left for dead on an airport runway in Guyana, South America, in 1978. She was investigating Jim Jones, a charismatic religious leader whose Peoples Temple had come under scrutiny from parents alarmed at his hold over their young adult children. Speier was shot five times by Jones loyalists and played dead in order to survive. Her boss, Rep. Leo Ryan, was killed, together with two members of an NBC crew following the story and countless others attempting to leave, including several defectors. That was only part of the massacre. Back at the commune Jones had established, 909 of his ardent followers followed him in a murder-suicide pact, downing a cyanide-infused flavored drink, an act of true believership that has since become known as “drinking the Kool-Aid.” Parents got some 300 children to consume the poison, behavior that four decades later can only be understood in the context of a cult. It took Speier multiple surgeries and years to recover. Today, at age 70, she is a seven-term member of Congress representing the Bay Area of California. She spoke with The Daily Beast about her reflections on the Jonestown cult and the parallels she sees in the blind loyalty that followers of President Trump exhibit on a daily basis. Tom Williams/Getty

Trump campaign attorney shares dangerous claim about SCOTUS Justice in bizarre Twitterstorm Lin Wood, a QAnon backing attorney for the Trump campaign, tweeted a firestorm of tall allegations attacking U.S. Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts for allegedly conspiring to have President Donald Trump voted out of office. On Thursday, Dec. 18, Wood took to Twitter with details about an alleged call that took place sometime in August. According to Wood, Roberts and Justice Stephen Breyer discussed ways to have Trump voted out, reports Law & Crime. "In discussing @realDonaldTrump in phone conversation in 8/19, Justice John Roberts stated that he would make sure 'the mother f#*ker would never be re-elected," the tweet said. "Roberts engaged in phone conversations with Justice Stephen Breyer discussing how to work to get Trump voted out." To make matters worse, Wood's allegations are no different than any of the Trump campaign's other post-election claims and conspiracy theories as he had no evidence or proof to back the tweet. However, he did attempt to do damage control by claiming that there is documentation "in the hands of several third parties" to support his claim even though he did not attempt to provide the information. "The documentation of my claims about Justices Roberts & Breyer has been placed in hands of several third parties," Wood claimed. "When one cannot attack message, all too often messenger is attacked," Wood said. "But TRUTH cannot be denied. It cannot be destroyed. I have made sure of that TRUTH." At one point during his rant, Wood even attempted to accuse Roberts of being involved in Jeffrey Epstein's entanglements although the chief justice has already addressed this allegation. Trump campaign attorney shares dangerous claim about SCOTUS Justice in bizarre Twitterstorm - Alternet.org

They have taken a solemn vow of silence.

Swedish King: Our Wingnut-Approved COVID Strategy Was Deadly. It wasn’t so long ago that U.S. Republican commentators were lauding the so-called Swedish model—but now it’s increasingly unpopular in the country it was created. -Reuters Remember in the early days of the pandemic, when people like Tucker Carlson and Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) advocated that the U.S. follow the Swedish model of avoiding strict lockdowns and letting life carry on largely as normal amid the highly contagious virus? Well, as the year ends, Sweden is coming to terms with a death toll that is approximately 10 times higher than neighboring Norway and Finland, and now its king has condemned political leaders for their experiment, branding the light-touch strategy a miserable and deadly failure. “The people of Sweden have suffered tremendously in difficult conditions,” King Carl XVI Gustaf, who is traditionally tight-lipped on political matters, told the Swedish state broadcaster SVT. He added, “I think we have failed. We have a large number who have died, and that is terrible.” Although it’s remarkable for a king to comment on policy, his actual comments were a statement of the obvious. Anders Tegnell, the country’s top epidemiologist who designed its anti-lockdown strategy, has himself admitted that too many people have died and the country should have done more to prevent the spread of the disease from the outset.

But its all they have. The mortality lags about three-four weeks behind the casefinding, so we have to wait until after New Years to see that stat fall.

I expect Nichols will be sidelined due to injury by game 5. Fajardo's O-line was barely good enough in 2019 and hasn't gotten any younger. Fajardo had better practice his sprinting and falling,

How a GOP Operative Got Caught Funneling Untraceable Campaign Cash THE MONEY TRAIL : An email revealed how a campaign vendor was using a dark money group to move cash around for a candidate he supported. REUTERS/Darryl Smith When federal prosecutors leveled corruption charges against a North Carolina insurance executive this year, they submitted reams of evidence showing how the executive tried to bribe regulators for more favorable treatment of his companies. And while not central to the case, one little-noticed email filed with the court pulls back the curtain on a totally unrelated scheme to funnel undisclosed money into American elections. The email was between Greg Lindberg, who is now serving seven years in prison on bribery and wire fraud charges, and an executive at one of his companies, Global Bankers. In it, they discussed various potential political contributions that Lindberg might make, and how those contributions could be structured. One potential beneficiary of their political largesse was former Rep. Scott Taylor, a Republican from Virginia who lost his reelection bid in 2018 and lost again last month after running to represent his old seat. (There seems to be no bottom to the depths of GOP conduct)

'The ultimate flashpoint': Former officials address fears Trump will refuse to leave the White House The presidential election is over and the Electoral College has affirmed President-elect Joe Biden's win. However, President Donald Trump still refuses to acknowledge the results of the election and, to make matters worse, the latest reports suggest that he is even considering refusing to leave the White House on Inauguration Day. So how might the Biden administration proceed if this happens? According to Business Insider, it is a gray area that former Secret Service agents have been discussing. Since no United States president has ever had to be escorted out of the White Hous, there are many questions about how this might be done if the situation presents itself. According to a former DHS official who served under the Obama administration, this particular discussion has been a hot topic among former officials for the U.S. Secret Service and Department of Homeland Security. While Biden's transition team has made it clear that trespassers would be removed, how does that work when the former president of the United States is the trespasser? The seemingly bizarre encounter would, no doubt, place many agents in a very awkward position. "That's when you really get to the ultimate flashpoint," said a former senior official for DHS. "I can't imagine it ever getting to that point, but in this environment, there's a lot of firsts." Since the government agency typically focuses on the protection of the president, there is also a strong possibility the agents may not want to be involved in the uncomfortable transfer of power. One former Secret Service agent, who worked during previous presidential transitions, spoke from the perspective of agents. He also mulled over how such an encounter might happen as he raised questions about whether or not the president would be physically removed from the White House. "We're not there to evict people; we're there to protect people," the former serviceman said. "I don't see the Secret Service going in there and knocking on the door and saying, 'Time to leave, sir. Checkout is at 11 o'clock.' Are they going to physically pick him up and do it?" Douglas Smith, former Department of Homeland Security assistant secretary under the Obama administration, also touched on the role of the Secret Service with an example of how evictions work. "If you're renting your apartment in DC, and you don't pay your rent, don't pay your rent, don't pay your rent, and they finally get a judgment against you, you're evicted," Smith said. "It won't be the Secret Service's responsibility to prevent him from being evicted. That's not their job." 'The ultimate flashpoint': Former officials address fears Trump will refuse to leave the White House - Alternet.org

Saves the cost of Botox injections, though.

Judge Tosses GOP Lawsuit Challenging Ballot Drop Boxes in Georgia - Getty A federal judge in Georgia struck down a lawsuit from state Republicans seeking to prohibit the use of ballot drop boxes for voting in Jan. 5’s runoff elections. The lawsuit contended that the process of “signature matching,” as well as the ballot drop boxes, facilitated widespread electoral fraud. “The court finds that those claims are simply based on speculation, highly speculative issues,” Judge J. Randal Hall, a George W. Bush appointee, said Thursday. Allegations of widespread ballot fraud in the 2020 presidential election have been repeatedly rejected in federal court, as well as by departing Attorney General William Barr, a close ally of the president. (Do you think that the Trumpers are tired of winning yet?)

Pence Plans to Confirm Trump’s Defeat Then Flee the Country, Says Report Reuters/Jonathan Drake Mike Pence is in a tricky spot—as vice president, he has to oversee the session of Congress that will formalize Biden’s Electoral College victory on Jan. 6, which will likely make Trumpworld extremely angry. But, according to Politico, he’s hatched an ingenious plan. The very same day that he affirms Trump’s defeat, he’s reportedly going to flee the country. Politico states that the vice president is planning to leave Washington immediately after the session for the Middle East and Europe, and he’ll stay overseas for nearly a week while Trump’s allies unload their wrath. A document seen by Politico shows Pence is expected in Bahrain, Israel, and Poland. “I suspect the timing is anything but coincidental,” one Pence ally said. But one Trump administration official said the trip isn’t confirmed yet, and is only planned for that date as it’s the first gap in his schedule. (Could it be that the courageous VP is leaving because he fears what his party members will do to him for "betraying" Trump?)

After Positive COVID-19 Diagnosis, GOP Lawmaker Deletes Post Mocking Precautions Rep. Joe Wilson (R-S.C.) boasted on Facebook Wednesday that he was back in Washington and looking forward to voting in person on the House floor. He also mocked Democrats for being overly cautious during the pandemic. A few hours later, Wilson, 73, announced he had tested positive for COVID-19. That Facebook post has since been deleted. In a statement Wednesday night, Wilson promised to take “all necessary precautions, as directed by the House Physician” and said he would quarantine “through the Christmas holiday.” “Thankfully I feel fine and do not have any symptoms. It is so important that we all do our part to help prevent the spread of this virus,” he added. After Positive COVID-19 Diagnosis, GOP Lawmaker Deletes Post Mocking Precautions | HuffPost Canada (huffingtonpost.ca)

New Alabama GOP senator implies he will challenge the Electoral College results on the Senate floor After President Donald Trump lost so overwhelmingly at the ballot box, some members of Congress are ready to wage an internal government war to fight for him. One such Republican is newly elected Alabama Republican Tommy Tuberville. Speaking at a campaign rally in Georgia, Tuberville told supporters that because Trump lost it was time to act. "Folks, we got to grab a hold and hold on. We have no choice. Listen to me now. We have no choice but to win this election. They're going to try to steal it. They're going to try to buy it. They're going to do everything they can to lie, cheat, and steal to win this election. Like they did in the presidential election. It's impossible. It is impossible what happened. But we're going to get that all corrected. I'm gonna tell you: don't give up on [President Trump]. Don't give up on him." Outside the rally, Lauren Windsor asked Tuberville what he was going to do to "fix" what he said was wrong. "We're going to fight hard," he said. A staffer quickly tried to rush him away and keep him from answering any questions. "Just wait," he told the staffer. "Just — well, you see what's coming. You've been reading about it in the House [of Representatives]. We're gonna have to, we're gonna have to do it in the Senate." New Alabama GOP senator implies he will challenge the Electoral College results on the Senate floor - Alternet.org

I would bet not. Dominion Voting Systems fires back with legal action against Sidney Powell Dominion Voting Systems is now taking steps toward legal action against Sidney Powell. Dominion and its voting machines have been at the center of several conspiracy theories and falsehoods surrounding the 2020 presidential election. Although President Donald Trump initially spread misinformation about mail-in voting, he and his allies began circulating falsehoods targeting Dominion voting machines as election results proved favorable for Biden. Since then, Dominion Voting Systems claims it has been subjected to a "'relentless and reckless disinformation' campaign, led by Powell, Rudy Giuliani, other allies of President Donald Trump, and Trump himself," according to Law & Crime. The election technology company Smartmatic has also released a similar demand letter seeking a retraction from Powell. On multiple occasions, she has insisted the company has ties to Dominion. Powell also claimed conspiracy insisting a ploy to rig the election was funded by "communist money." "The Dominion Voting Systems, the Smartmatic technology software, and the software that goes in other computerized voting systems here as well, not just Dominion, were created in Venezuela at the direction of Hugo Chavez to make sure he never lost an election after one constitutional referendum came out the way he did not want it to come out," Powell claimed. Dominion Voting Systems fires back with legal action against Sidney Powell - Alternet.org ( This ought to be one helluva juicy award for the plaintiff, and its about time someone held these weasels to account)

Ok, but beyond that, what are your concerns?

Meet the Dangerous QAnon Figure Doing Whatever It Takes to Win Trump's Approval On Monday night, President Donald Trump retweeted a message posted by Ron Watkins. Watkins, who for years has been running the site where QAnon lives, has been indirectly boosted by Trump before, but Monday night’s retweet marks the culmination of a rapid ascent for a man who has become the right wing’s go-to conspiracy theorist in the wake of President-elect Joe Biden’s election victory last month. As the administrator of 8kun — previously known as 8chan — Watkins is seen by many experts as being instrumental in the perpetuation of the QAnon cult, a movement that has destroyed families and led to real-world violence, including murder. But in the last month, Watkins has sought to step out of the shadow of QAnon and forge his own identity as a star witness willing to say whatever it takes to win the approval of Trumpworld. On Election Day last month, Q, the anonymous persona behind the QAnon cult, posted a generic update including a quote from Abraham Lincoln and a short message: “Together we win.” On the same day, Watkins announced that he was stepping down as administrator of 8kun, the fringe message board when Q posts their updates. When asked why he was stepping down, Watkins at the time told VICE News that he “fell in love with woodworking and plan on focusing all my efforts into mastering it. Also want to finish a book I’m writing about constitutional law.” And while Watkins has made some references to woodworking in his public tweets since the election, the vast majority of his posts show him positioning himself as something of a conspiracy whisperer to the growing ranks of right-wing figures and groups that have aligned themselves with Trump and his outlandish and baseless claims of election fraud. Watkins, who now lives in Japan, has tweeted incessantly during the last six weeks, jumping from one conspiracy theory to the next. Meet Ron Watkins, The Dangerous QAnon Figure Doing Whatever It Takes to Win Trump's Approval (vice.com)