Сделаем Америку снова великой! Trump - Russia megathread

[93henfan]

Random notes from my little slice of the gubmint pie... Pretty comical things happening with Russian contracts of late.

Just got notice earlier in the week that Kaspersky Lab has been dropped from the two major IT vehicles: GSA Schedule 70 IT and NASA SEWP. How in the hell we even let a Russian company sit on the list of go-to quick-order IT contracts is beyond me. They also dropped Kaspersky from Schedule 67 (photographic equipment).

Did we not remember anything from the Cold War? Retaining a Moscow-based cyber security software firm? JFC.

Then just about five minutes ago I got a procurement debarment notice on a lady with a very Russian-sounding name.

JHC. It's Jesus H. Christ, not Jesus F. Christ.

Jesus Fucking Christ

[CID1990]

No no no Ivy

Jelly isn't really heavily invested in this

He's more of a disinterested bystander... who just happens to have breaking news alerts set up

It's everywhere. It just keeps coming. This morning there was a story that DOJ unexpectedly settled a fraud case with a Russian developer. The lawyer chick involved with jr's case was a part of the defense team.

None of this should be surprising. It's how deals get made. If you're right about the legality of it at least there's some sunlight being shed on the depth of corruption.

Thanks, Trump!

That's true- it literally is everywhere.

The media can't be accused of not sufficiently scrutinizing Trump's Russia connections. But they are overdoing it at the expense of lessened coverage of some pretty important things

For example, today Trump is expected to recertify Iran's compliance with the nuke deal. That won't be talked about after this week.

There's also North Korea- right now it looks like we are closer to a shooting situation with them than we have been since before the armistice. AND there is the heightened pressure on China, which is a relatively new path for the US... the next few months could see either the validation or repudiation of a strategy that has been supported in several circles for years now- I happen to be a proponent of it too. It is definitely worth more coverage than it is getting.

Trade is another one- I have been pretty vocal on this board over the years that steel is a vital strategic industry. It looks like somebody in this admin has convinced Trump of this as well. We could well be entering a trade war with the EU and China over steel. If it reopens even a few steel mills domestically, it will be a watershed moment. At least until the next guy comes along and reverses it and the industry starts shuttering again.

Finally- I think Putin is going to test Trump on NATO at some point in the near future. There is still chicanery going on in the Baltics and in Montenegro, but that is getting next to no coverage.

At this point we have major networks and papers scrambling to scoop each other on Russia - but none of it matters because Mueller is going to have the final say regardless of what CNN and the NYT report from their sources. A LOT of important things are getting back burnered over Russia, and that will be a major failure of the media if it results in changes to strategic, foreign or trade policy happening largely in the dark and unnoticed by the average Joe.


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[Skjellyfetti]

Isn't Mueller culpable?

If he ruled out collusion / coordination a month ago - he should come out and say it. By continuing this hoax of an investigation, he is perpetuating the credibility of the witch-hunt.




edit to add. Still expanding! New staff. Upgraded offices with SCIF :

Justice Department Special Counsel Robert Mueller has brought on Peter Strzok, a senior FBI official who oversaw the Hillary Clinton email investigation, to help manage his investigation into Russian election meddling, according to two US officials briefed on the matter.

Strzok helped oversee the beginnings of the Russia probe last summer at the FBI.
A spokesman for the special counsel declined to comment.

Strzok joins a team of more than 25 people. That team includes attorneys, FBI employees and support staff, according to Peter Carr, the spokesman for special counsel.

The team has now moved into new office space in southwest DC, about a mile away from Justice Department headquarters. The special counsel's initial office space lacked secure meeting rooms, known as SCIFs, for reviewing classified materials.

http://edition.cnn.com/2017/07/13/polit ... index.html

[JohnStOnge]

This thing of the Republicans parroting a talking point holding that a Democrat consultant meeting with Ukrainians is comparable to what happened with Trump's campaign going to a meeting they thought was the Russian government giving them opposition research is ridiculous. It's another example of just HOW intellectually dishonest the people on the side I've historically been on are willing to be in order to defend the indefensible when it has to do with Trump.

As far as we know, there isn't any investigation of Ukraine attempting to influence the US election going on. And, for Pete's sake, the Trump Campaign Manager, the guy responsible for Data Analytics in the Trump Campaign, and Trump's son went to a meeting under the premise that they would be meeting with a Russian government lawyer under circumstances where the Russian government was trying to assist Trump in winning the election.

Whether she was actually acting at the behest of the Russian government doesn't even matter. That's what the Trump Campaign Manager and the guy in charge of Data Analytics for the Trump Campaign THOUGHT was going on. THAT'S why they went to the meeting.

I mean come ON. And people are actually BUYING yet another Trump and Associates diversionary tactic. I don't think it's most people. But most people didn't vote for Trump either. This is just ridiculous. The Republican Party is just totally discrediting itself.

[CID1990]

Isn't Mueller culpable?

If he ruled out collusion / coordination a month ago - he should come out and say it. By continuing this hoax of an investigation, he is perpetuating the credibility of the witch-hunt.




edit to add. Still expanding! New staff. Upgraded offices with SCIF :

Justice Department Special Counsel Robert Mueller has brought on Peter Strzok, a senior FBI official who oversaw the Hillary Clinton email investigation, to help manage his investigation into Russian election meddling, according to two US officials briefed on the matter.

Strzok helped oversee the beginnings of the Russia probe last summer at the FBI.
A spokesman for the special counsel declined to comment.

Strzok joins a team of more than 25 people. That team includes attorneys, FBI employees and support staff, according to Peter Carr, the spokesman for special counsel.

The team has now moved into new office space in southwest DC, about a mile away from Justice Department headquarters. The special counsel's initial office space lacked secure meeting rooms, known as SCIFs, for reviewing classified materials.

http://edition.cnn.com/2017/07/13/polit ... index.html

Jelly- Mueller is going to make a show of it. The point is that he knows that there is no evidence pointing to collusion - THAT is what I mean when I say he has already written it off - but he can't simply come out and declare that without a perfunctory investigation

and there's plenty of chicanery on the periphery of all this to go after... which he will

I'm quite happy that all his activities are solidifying both his own and the investigation's legitimacy in your eyes as well as others- that is going to make it near impossible to impeach his investigation later when it doesn't produce the desired effect

I won't bother you anymore with things for you to pick apart. When Mueller's investigation ends I'll come back with a simple "I told you so"


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[Skjellyfetti]

Ok.

Comey has some showboat in him. Mueller has no history of "mak[ing] a show out of it." I don't see it.

But, ok. See you back here when it's over. I look forward to it. Will probably be > year.

[CID1990]

Ok.

Comey has some showboat in him. Mueller has no history of "mak[ing] a show out of it." I don't see it.

But, ok. See you back here when it's over. I look forward to it. Will probably be > year.

Jesus dude

You're like that character in Guardians of the Galaxy who takes everything literally

When I said Mueller was going to make a show of it, I mean he is going to go through all the motions so he won't be accused of not "properly" investigating the case


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[Jjoey52]

I heard this lawyer worked for the bank which gave Bill Clinton 500 k for a speech.


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[Skjellyfetti]

Did you hear this from CyberBerkut or you want to provide a link?

[Jjoey52]

Heard it on Sirius Xm so no, have no link.


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[Ivytalk]

Analjelly is becoming Anderson Cooper.

[Ibanez]

Analjelly is becoming Anderson Cooper.

The Gray Gay?

[Skjellyfetti]

To the surprise of noone, Don Jr.'s "transparent" twitter reveal left out one of the participants.

Former Soviet Counterintelligence Officer at Meeting With Donald Trump Jr. and Russian Lawyer

The Russian lawyer who met with Donald Trump Jr. and others on the Trump team after a promise of compromising material on Hillary Clinton was accompanied by a Russian-American lobbyist — a former Soviet counterintelligence officer who is suspected by some U.S. officials of having ongoing ties to Russian intelligence, NBC News has learned.

The lobbyist, Rinat Akhmetshin, denies any current ties to Russian spy agencies. He accompanied the lawyer, Natalia Veselnitskaya, to the June 2016 meeting at Trump Tower attended by Donald Trump Jr.; Jared Kushner, the president's son-in-law; and Paul Manafort, former chairman of the Trump campaign.

The Russian-born American lobbyist served in the Soviet military and emigrated to the U.S., where he holds dual citizenship.

Speaking to the Associated Press, Akhmetshin acknowledged attending the meeting, though he said it was not substantive. “I never thought this would be such a big deal, to be honest,” he told the AP.

Veselnitskaya acknowledged to NBC News that she was accompanied by at least one other man, though she declined to identify him.

The presence at the meeting of a Russian-American with suspected intelligence ties is likely to be of interest to special counsel Robert Mueller and the House and Senate panels investigating the Russian election interference campaign.

http://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/rus ... am-n782851

[Skjellyfetti]

Analjelly is becoming Anderson Cooper.

If offered a Vanderbilt inheritance - I would gladly accept.

Down with the estate tax!!

[Chizzang]

It was such a nothing meeting... He forget to mention that former KGB guy sitting there
(whatever, who cares)

Hurry, somebody say "But Hilary"

[kalm]

It was such a nothing meeting... He forget to mention that former KGB guy sitting there
(whatever, who cares)

Hurry, somebody say "But Hilary"

Still not collusion.

[GannonFan]

It was such a nothing meeting... He forget to mention that former KGB guy sitting there
(whatever, who cares)

Hurry, somebody say "But Hilary"

Well, in their defense, in our current Red Scare every Russian either is or at some point has worked for some section of Russian intelligence or the KGB or something nefarious-sounding. All Russians are evil and are out to get us, and have been ever since Lenin, that's all we need to know.

[89Hen]

To be totally honest, I avoid the news and talk radio (except sports) so I'm probably a little behind on this and I think it smells from all sides, but what I'm having a hard time understanding is that a candidate's advisor was asked if he wanted information from the Russian government on his candidate's opponent that incriminated her with Russian ties. That seems to be the heart of this, yes? If so, isn't that kind of exact information that the candidate's (now official's) opponents are trying to dig up on him?

[Skjellyfetti]

It was such a nothing meeting... He forget to mention that former KGB guy sitting there
(whatever, who cares)

Hurry, somebody say "But Hilary"

Well, in their defense, in our current Red Scare every Russian either is or at some point has worked for some section of Russian intelligence or the KGB or something nefarious-sounding. All Russians are evil and are out to get us, and have been ever since Lenin, that's all we need to know.

So, is Mueller the new McCarthy?

[Jjoey52]

What about Claire McCaskill donating to a Russian non profit, where is the MSM on this?


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[∞∞∞]

It was such a nothing meeting... He forget to mention that former KGB guy sitting there
(whatever, who cares)

Hurry, somebody say "But Hilary"

Well, in their defense, in our current Red Scare every Russian either is or at some point has worked for some section of Russian intelligence or the KGB or something nefarious-sounding. All Russians are evil and are out to get us, and have been ever since Lenin, that's all we need to know.

I know you like throwing around Red Scare every chance, but it is our duty to take this seriously and at least investigate the matter. It's just weird that basically everyone close to Trump's campaign didn't disclose any Russian contacts, straight up lying to the media and Congress about not meeting with Russians, and changing their stories every time new facts emerge (or they contradict themselves).

From Flynn to Manafort to Sessions to Trump Jr. to Kushner (among others), it's simply odd. If these meetings were nothing to worry about, all they have to do is tell the truth. But they're the ones making themselves look suspicious by "forgetting" and lying about all the contacts they've had.

[93henfan]

I know. It sucks that Republicans are doing the same stuff that Democrats did the previous eight years.

[kalm]

Skepticism is healthy on both sides.

The connections to loans, banking, development, oil exploration are the concern some people seem to be ignoring.

[Chizzang]

I know. It sucks that Republicans are doing the same stuff that Democrats did the previous eight years.

But Hilary... oh wait I mean Obama

[Ivytalk]

It was such a nothing meeting... He forget to mention that former KGB guy sitting there
(whatever, who cares)

Hurry, somebody say "But Hilary"

Still not collusion.

The term "collusion" contemplates cognition, or some sort of basic understanding of the subject matter of the nefarious conspiracy.

Don Jr. is as dumb as a post.

Ergo, no collusion.