***Official Political Discussion Thread***

[youngogjosh]

aepps20 IT'S LIT!!!

 

[KHUFU]

Literal people need stuff explained to them in a fashion that is painful. Call literal people like that an idiot, he then likes that. He feels that he has won. Post something he doesn't understand, he'll suggest that you are all over the place. Put the truth right in front of him, he'll try and find a way to reinterpret it in order to fit his agenda. In other words, being literal keeps people like that safe within their bubble. It's pathetic actually, because being that stupid takes too much effort.

 

[IATT]

 

[elpablo21]

 

[aepps20]

#SMASHMOUTHPOLITICS at its. BEST.

 

[boris]

 

[whywesteppin]

#SMASHMOUTHPOLITICS at its. BEST.

let them fight.

 

[elpablo21]

GOP really has no shame man

 

[Belgium]

The House Intel committee is voting tomorrow on sharing all transcripts from their committee's Russia probe with Mueller. It was reported that Mueller's prosecutors already possess some informal copies but they need an official one to file an indictment for lying to Congress. Mueller requested Stone's official transcript in late December and the indictments came roughly a month later.

If Don Jr's testimony to the Senate Judiciary committee is any indication, there's a number of fronts that could expose him to false statement charges depending on the questioning in the House Intel committee. I imagine he was asked many of the same questions by Democrats on the committee.

Aside from the more obvious exposure he has with his answers on the Trump Tower Moscow project, Don Jr was also asked in his Senate Judicary testimony about whether or not any other foreign governments or foreign nationals ever provided or offered assistance to the Trump campaign. Regarding the foreign governments other than Russia, Jr testified "none that I'm aware of."
When asked the same about non-Russian foreign nationals, Jr testified "no."
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/05/19/us/politics/trump-jr-saudi-uae-nader-prince-zamel.html

Don Jr's attorney confirmed this August 3rd meeting with Joel Zamel, Erik Prince and UAE Emissary George Nader. The attorney did dispute the reporting on what was discussed at that meeting.
Mueller has interviewed Joel Zamel, numerous employees at Zamel's Psy-Group company and George Nader has been cooperating and testified before the grand jury.
In later reports, Rick Gates was also reportedly key to the Middle East aspect of Mueller's inquiry, including interactions between the Trump campaign and the Israeli social media manipulation expert Joel Zamel, as well as UAE Emissary George Nader.
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/05/19/us/politics/trump-jr-saudi-uae-nader-prince-zamel.html May 19 2018
Trump Jr. and Other Aides Met With Gulf Emissary Offering Help to Win Election
Three months before the 2016 election, a small group gathered at Trump Tower to meet with Donald Trump Jr., the president’s eldest son. One was an Israeli specialist in social media manipulation. Another was an emissary for two wealthy Arab princes. The third was a Republican donor with a controversial past in the Middle East as a private security contractor.

The meeting was convened primarily to offer help to the Trump team, and it forged relationships between the men and Trump insiders that would develop over the coming months — past the election and well into President Trump’s first year in office, according to several people with knowledge of their encounters.

Erik Prince, the private security contractor and the former head of Blackwater, arranged the meeting, which took place on Aug. 3, 2016. The emissary, George Nader, told Donald Trump Jr. that the princes who led Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates were eager to help his father win election as president. The social media specialist, Joel Zamel, extolled his company’s ability to give an edge to a political campaign; by that time, the firm had already drawn up a multimillion-dollar proposal for a social media manipulation effort to help elect Mr. Trump.
_____________________________



Excerpt:

https://www.thedailybeast.com/rick-...teams-dealings-with-israeli-intelligence-firm January 16 2019
Rick Gates Tells Mueller About Trump Team’s Dealings With Israeli Intelligence Firm
Psy Group delivered plans for ‘social media manipulation’ in 2016 and the special counsel is digging in as part of his probe into Mideast influence.

Rick Gates, the former campaign aide to Donald Trump, is cooperating with Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s probe into whether individuals from the Middle East worked with the Trump campaign to influence the election, according to two individuals with first-hand knowledge of the investigation.

Gates has answered questions specifically about Psy Group, an Israeli firm that ex-employees say drew up social media manipulation plans to help the Trump campaign, according to sources familiar with the questions. Mueller’s team also asked Gates about interactions with Psy Group’s owner, Joel Zamel, and Lebanese-American businessman George Nader, who worked as an emissary for Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, the sources said.
______________________



The interactions with Joel Zamel and George Nader also put Erik Prince's testimony in question. Prince also attended the August 2016 meeting with Trump Jr, Joel Zamel and UAE Emissary George Nader. Prince's testimony came before the public reporting on that August meeting. He made no mention of the meeting and testified that his involvement in the Trump campaign was limited to donating money, fundraising, and authoring papers on foreign policy for Trump's advisers. Prince added that he had no other formal contact with the campaign.
https://docs.house.gov/meetings/IG/IG00/20171130/106661/HHRG-115-IG00-Transcript-20171130.pdf

During Prince's testimony he was also asked about a different meeting between the Trump campaign and representatives of the UAE. That meeting was in December 2016.
Note how Prince again makes no mention of the August 3rd meeting in which he was present, which also included UAE Emissary George Nader.
Mueller also questioned George Nader about yet another meeting where both Nader and Prince were present, this time in a January 2017 meeting in the Seychelles. Nader also worked as a consultant for Prince's Blackwater firm at one point.
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/03/06/...l-counsel-mueller-cooperating-seychelles.html
Adviser to Emirates With Ties to Trump Aides Is Cooperating With Special Counsel

Continued from the above excerpt:
Note the phrasing of the questions, specifically the emphasis on "meeting in New York with any Emirati officials."
The August 3rd meeting with Trump Jr, Erik Prince, Joel Zamel and UAE Emissary George Nader also took place in Trump Tower, which is obviously in New York.
Prince again made no mention of that meeting and acts like he had no discussions about a meeting in New York between Trump campaign or Transition officials and representatives of the UAE. While Schiff is referring to the December meeting in this line of questioning, the phrasing of the question also covers the August 3rd meeting where Prince participated.

 

[dacomeup]

So Prince is in line for perjury charges too?

 

[boris]

 

[Belgium]

Trump Org CFO Allan Weisselberg was already granted some type of immunity deal in the SDNY campaign finance investigation, though the type of immunity was not specified.
It's unclear what exactly the prosecutors are seeking to question the executives about. The Cohen guilty plea and sentencing showed that the Trump Org falsely disguised Cohen's reimbursement for the hush money deals as retainer fees, despite there not being such a retainer agreement.

Excerpt:

https://edition.cnn.com/2019/02/05/...tors-trump-organization-executives/index.html
First on CNN: New York federal prosecutors seek interviews with Trump Organization executives
Federal prosecutors in New York have requested interviews in recent weeks with executives at the Trump Organization, according to people familiar with the matter, signaling a growing potential threat to President Donald Trump and those in his orbit from criminal investigations by the Manhattan US Attorney's office.

Trump and his legal team have long harbored concerns that investigations by New York federal prosecutors -- which could last throughout his presidency -- may ultimately pose more danger to him, his family and his allies than the inquiry by special counsel Robert Mueller, according to people close to Trump. Prosecutors' recent interest in executives at Trump's family company may intensify those fears.
The specific inquiry or topics of interest by prosecutors in any interviews with Trump Organization executives wasn't immediately clear. The sources were not authorized to speak on the record. A spokesperson for the company didn't respond to a request for comment.

New York federal prosecutors in recent months have undertaken at least two investigations into Trump-related entities. The first one, which CNN has reported stemmed from the office's case against Trump's former personal attorney, Michael Cohen, is examining possible campaign-finance violations by executives at the Trump Organization during the company's effort to reimburse Cohen for hush-money payments he made or orchestrated to silence women who claimed affairs with Trump. Trump has denied those affairs.

In the Cohen probe, one Trump Organization executive, chief financial officer Allen Weisselberg, was granted immunity by federal prosecutors to provide information concerning Cohen, CNN has reported.

The second investigation concerns the Trump inaugural committee and possible financial abuses related to the more than $100 million in donations raised for his inauguration, CNN has reported.

On Monday, prosecutors issued a sweeping subpoena to the committee, requesting documents related to virtually every donor or donation, attendee at a committee event, piece of paperwork related to the legal requirements attached to donations and even "the possibility of" donations made by foreign nationals.

The subpoena, a copy of which was reviewed by CNN, also disclosed that prosecutors are investigating an array of potential crimes, including conspiracy against the US, false statements, mail fraud, wire fraud, money laundering, inaugural committee disclosure violations, and violations of laws prohibiting contributions by foreign nations and contributions in the name of another person, also known as straw donors.

A spokeswoman for the committee said Monday that it would cooperate with the inquiry. Trump's attorney Rudy Giuliani said Tuesday that Trump "had little to no involvement in the inaugural committee."

While prosecutors in New York haven't charged any Trump-linked officials aside from Cohen, who pleaded guilty in August and is set to begin his prison sentence in March, they have undertaken various investigative steps in addition to the subpoena.

Prosecutors have questioned at least two former Trump campaign officials, according to people familiar with the matter. One official who was questioned last summer was asked about coordination between the Trump Organization and the campaign, one of these people said.

Investigators asked this official how the Trump Organization was structured and which accounts were used to pay campaign staffers and other campaign-related bills, this person said.

Despite the flurry of recent activity from the Manhattan US Attorney's office, however, it's not clear that any of its ongoing inquiries will result in charges. The investigation into possible campaign-finance violations at the company appears to be in its final stages, according to one person involved in it.

 

[nawghtyhare]

i dont get why we should tax the rich more
the more money they make
the more jobs they will create
thats real trickle down economics if u ask me

 

[Nike Jordan]

 

[Belgium]

So Prince is in line for perjury charges too?

Based on public evidence and reporting, it appears that way. Intent is always a tricky issue so it depends on what Mueller has gathered from the cooperation of George Nader and Rick Gates, as well as all the interviews with employees from Joel Zamel's Psy-Group firm.

While the House Intel committee didn't realize it at the time because the August 3rd meeting had not become public until much later, the scope of the questions clearly covered that meeting as it was also in New York and included UAE Emissary George Nader, who has been cooperating with Mueller. Don Jr's attorney already confirmed that August meeting took place, he only disputed that Joel Zamel and Nader offered to provide assistance to the Trump campaign.

Given Prince's involvement in that August 3rd meeting and his connection to George Nader, not even mentioning that meeting seems very deliberate. Especially taking in mind what was reportedly discussed at that meeting.
Prince's testimony that he can't recall having any discussions about a meeting in New York between Trump campaign officials and representatives of the UAE makes even less sense when he in fact took part in exactly that kind of meeting and declined to even mention it throughout his whole testimony.

 

[IATT]

 

[RustyShackleford]

God's Plan

 

[boris]

i dont get why we should tax the rich more
the more money they make
the more jobs they will create
thats real trickle down economics if u ask me

We need taxes to fund things like education, healthcare, and infrastructure. I think wealthy individuals should be paying their fair share.

Taxing the wealthy at a higher rate would bring more tax revenue, and it would hopefully help reduce income inequality.

Even if the wealthy are creating jobs, are they creating well paying jobs? Wages have been stagnant.

 

[dwalk31]

Words matter......lol post their definitions and let's see how literally they same they are

Fence is synonymous with wall. And it is literally defined as a barrier. Here is the definition for reference, with synonyms listed beneath. I hope this helps.

fence
Dictionary result for fence
/fens/
noun

1. 1.
   a barrier, railing, or other upright structure, typically of wood or wire, enclosing an area of ground to mark a boundary, control access, or prevent escape.
   synonyms: barrier, paling, railing, rail, bar, hurdle, enclosure;
   wall, hedge, hedgerow, windbreak, groin, partition;
   barricade, stockade, palisade, rampart, protection, defense;
   rarecircumvallation

 

[dwalk31]

We need taxes to fund things like education, healthcare, and infrastructure. I think wealthy individuals should be paying their fair share.

Taxing the wealthy at a higher rate would bring more tax revenue, and it would hopefully help reduce income inequality.

Even if the wealthy are creating jobs, are they creating well paying jobs? Wages have been stagnant.

Key word: hopefully

 

[Belgium]

Note that when the WSJ first reported on the criminal investigation of the Trump inaugural committee, the report stated that the investigation was the result of seized material from the Cohen raids.
Amongst other things, the seized material reportedly contained communications between Cohen and a top inaugural planner expressing concern about the way the inaugural committee was spending its money.
https://www.propublica.org/article/...paid-trumps-company-with-ivanka-in-the-middle December 14 2018
Trump’s Inauguration Paid Trump’s Company — With Ivanka in the Middle
As the inaugural committee planned the landmark celebration, internal concerns were raised about whether Trump’s Washington hotel was overcharging for event space. The spending could be a violation of the law.

Excerpts:

 

[boris]

The internet suggests that his net worth if over $15M. I'm not sure you need that much money if you have god, and the Bible is also pretty clear on how it views rich people.

As always, these conservative *******s invoke god when it's convenient. As always, they are ******* hypocrites.

 

[cubanref]

The physical barrier for sure getting erected. What a waste of time the shutdown was.

When trump says jump, do you say how high?

 

[dwalk31]

The internet suggests that his net worth if over $15M. I'm not sure you need that much money if you have god, and the Bible is also pretty clear on how it views rich people.

As always, these conservative *******s invoke god when it's convenient. As always, they are ****ing hypocrites.

Sweeping generalizations

 

[fargin]

I don't condone violence, but I consider this to be more of a marketplace of ideas situation.