emptywheel

Open thread for you folks to talk about the latest developments in the Trump-Russia investigation, including Manafort's rejected bail package and fresh charges filed today.

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2016 Presidential Election, Mueller Probe

Speaking of Manafort's Efforts to Make Bail Doing Him In

70 Comments

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February 21, 2018

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emptywheel

Paul Manafort's futile attempt to make bail may be about to get him in a heap of trouble.

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2016 Presidential Election, Financial Fraud, Mueller Probe

Jared's Clearance and the Foreign Policy Version of Conspiracy to Defraud America

125 Comments

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February 21, 2018

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emptywheel

Applying my understanding of the way Robert Mueller is using conspiracy to defraud the United States charges to prosecute influence peddling no longer covered by our regulatory system, Jared Kushner's futile attempt to get a security clearance has probably sunk him the way Paul Manafort's attempt to post bail has.

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Left Theory

Beneficiaries of Trumpian Motion

4 Comments

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February 20, 2018

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Ed Walker

Crackpots love Trumpian Motion.

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Mueller Probe, Trump Administration

Open Thread: All in the Families?

127 Comments

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February 20, 2018

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Rayne

This is an open thread dedicated to this morning's news -- Team Mueller's charged Alex van der Zwaan with false statements, a 17th name pops up, and look, a father-in-law in the mix, too!

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2016 Presidential Election, Blogs Internet and New Media, Mueller Probe

In Two So-Called Fact Checks of Facebook, NYT Forgets Everything It Knows about Indictments

62 Comments

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February 19, 2018

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emptywheel

NYT twice tried to fact check Facebook VP for ad sales Rob Goldman. Both times they confused what Mueller put in the Internet Research Agency indictment for the whole universe of IRA Facebook trolling.

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Sanctions, State Department

Meanwhile, Over In Turkey . . .

31 Comments

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February 19, 2018

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Peterr

Well isn't this interesting? From Diplopundit last Friday comes a post with this title: Tillerson Meets Erdoğan in Ankara With Turkish Foreign Minister as Interpreter. Notice anyone missing?

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Culture, Gender Equity, Racism

Illiberal Hollywood: Kicked in its Pants by a Panther

10 Comments

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February 18, 2018

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Rayne

Though conservatives love to disparage the American entertainment industry as liberal, Hollywood's business practices have been anything but, evident in its continued racism. Disney/Marvel Studios' Black Panther gives Hollywood a solid kick in its racist ass.

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2016 Presidential Election, emptywheel, Mueller Probe

The Conspiracy to Defraud the United States Backbone of the Internet Research Agency and Manafort Indictments

97 Comments

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February 17, 2018

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emptywheel

The Manafort indictment is so solidly within the scope of Mueller's authority because the larger project is to demonstrate that, by bypassing the agencies mandated with preventing foreign sabotage of our democratic process, the Russian-backed efforts broke a more fundamental law.

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2016 Presidential Election, Mueller Probe

Updated Mueller Docket Census: We Still Don't Know What 6 Prosecutors Are Doing

16 Comments

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February 17, 2018

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emptywheel

We still don't know what 6 of Robert Mueller's 17 prosecutors have been up to.

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2016 Presidential Election, emptywheel, Mueller Probe

What Did Mueller Achieve with the Internet Research Agency Indictment?

73 Comments

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February 17, 2018

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emptywheel

The most interesting aspect of the Mueller indictment of 13 Russian trolls and their managers is how it parallels the conspiracy to defraud the US charge against Paul Manafort and Rick Gates.

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Left Theory

Economic Elites Drive Trumpian Motion

8 Comments

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February 16, 2018

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Ed Walker

The rich allow Trumpian Motion to rattle us because it benefits them personally.

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Culture, Domestic Policy, Guns

Open Thread: Guns, Guns, and More Bloody Guns

112 Comments

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February 16, 2018

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Rayne

Bring your discussions about guns here. Keep them out of other threads so that others can have uninterrupted discussions on topic.

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FISA

Rosemary Collyer Moves to Lock Down the FISA Court

10 Comments

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February 16, 2018

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emptywheel

Presiding FISC Judge Rosemary Collyer's continued subservience to the Executive is, in my opinion, a far graver challenge to FISA Court legitimacy than the Carter Page approvals are.

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2016 Presidential Election, Mueller Probe

The Gates Flip and the 404(b) Delay

101 Comments

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February 15, 2018

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emptywheel

Everything is on hold in the Rick Gates plea, including the details on what other crimes he has committed.

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2016 Presidential Election, emptywheel, Mueller Probe

New Right Hook: Mike Flynn Lied When He Admitted to a Judge He Lied to the FBI

72 Comments

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February 14, 2018

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emptywheel

Republicans are inventing a new conspiracy theory. Based on the claim that FBI Agents didn't believe Mike Flynn was lying in January 2017, they're arguing that Mike Flynn lied to a judge when he admitted he lied to the FBI.

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Foreign Policy, Trump Administration

Nothing Happens in a Vacuum: Diplomatic Scuffles and Academic Speeches in Moscow

45 Comments

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February 14, 2018

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Rayne

A 2016 scuffle in Moscow between an American diplomat and a FSB guard didn't occur in complete isolation. Rather, an academic speech by an erstwhile foreign policy adviser to the Trump campaign didn't happen completely independent of other political events in Russia.

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Cybersecurity, FISA, Mueller Probe, Russian hacks

2018 Senate Intelligence Global Threat Hearing Takeaways

10 Comments

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February 13, 2018

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emptywheel

Today was the annual Senate Intelligence Committee Global Threat Hearing, traditionally the hearing where Ron Wyden gets an Agency head to lie on the record. That didn't happen this time. Instead, Wyden gave FBI Director Christopher…

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Konstantin Kilimnik’s PRISM-Accessible Communications

Government Won’t Be Able to Hide Its Informant in MalwareTech Case

So — What’s New, Rick? Paul? Fresh Indictments Today on Bank, Tax Fraud

Speaking of Manafort’s Efforts to Make Bail Doing Him In

Jared’s Clearance and the Foreign Policy Version of Conspiracy to Defraud America

Konstantin Kilimnik's PRISM-Accessible Communications

Government Won't Be Able to Hide Its Informant in MalwareTech Case

So — What's New, Rick? Paul? Fresh Indictments Today on Bank, Tax Fraud

Speaking of Manafort's Efforts to Make Bail Doing Him In

Jared's Clearance and the Foreign Policy Version of Conspiracy to Defraud America

Beneficiaries of Trumpian Motion

Open Thread: All in the Families?

In Two So-Called Fact Checks of Facebook, NYT Forgets Everything It Knows about Indictments

Meanwhile, Over In Turkey . . .

Illiberal Hollywood: Kicked in its Pants by a Panther

The Conspiracy to Defraud the United States Backbone of the Internet Research Agency and Manafort Indictments

Updated Mueller Docket Census: We Still Don't Know What 6 Prosecutors Are Doing

What Did Mueller Achieve with the Internet Research Agency Indictment?

Economic Elites Drive Trumpian Motion

Open Thread: Guns, Guns, and More Bloody Guns

Rosemary Collyer Moves to Lock Down the FISA Court

The Gates Flip and the 404(b) Delay

New Right Hook: Mike Flynn Lied When He Admitted to a Judge He Lied to the FBI

Nothing Happens in a Vacuum: Diplomatic Scuffles and Academic Speeches in Moscow

2018 Senate Intelligence Global Threat Hearing Takeaways

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