Favre4Ever+ 4,476 Posted June 7, 2017 Direct of National Intelligence (Dan Coats) as well as other Intelligence heads are testifying right now. Live streaming on ABC News facebook page if anyone is interested. 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Omerta+ 1,206 Posted June 7, 2017 He's already instructed prosecutors to fight for much harsher sentences on drug crimes though. Nothing needs to pass for that. And the racial implications of that are obvious but we've already had that discussion in another thread. Do you think that works though. I mean I guess Oochy is the only one who really knows, but isn't it up to the DA's of ever county or prosecutor in each individual case to make that call? Not saying he isnt a douche but it does not seem as though his word is enough to really get things done. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Omerta+ 1,206 Posted June 7, 2017 Wyden is such a douche bag. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
blotsfan 2,112 Posted June 7, 2017 Wyden is such a douche bag. What happened? I'm not watching. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Omerta+ 1,206 Posted June 7, 2017 What happened? I'm not watching. He kept asking people for classified information that he thought he was entitled to which he was not. He kept grilling the panel on menial issues instead of going after them for things that were pertinent. It was just a poor hearing all the way around to this point. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Favre4Ever+ 4,476 Posted June 7, 2017 (edited) Comey's testimony has been leaked a day early https://www.intelligence.senate.gov/sites/default/files/documents/os-jcomey-060817.pdf EDIT: Leaked was the wrong word in the context, lol. It was just released by the committee. Edited June 7, 2017 by Banned4Ever Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
SteVo+ 3,702 Posted June 7, 2017 Based on his opening statement, I don't think this is going to be a bombshell testimony that sets off a chain of events culminating in Trump's impeachment, but it paints a very unflattering picture of the Trump presidency and will continue mounting pressure on the administration. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Thanatos 2,847 Posted June 7, 2017 Agreed. You're not going to get definitive obstruction of justice evidence from this that would force a Republican controlled congress to impeach him. However, Trump comes off looking like a complete twat. Demanding loyalty from the director of the FBI is dictator-esque, as is "hoping" that he could clear Flynn of an ongoing investigation. But then, we already knew he was a complete twat. So nothing really has changed. Did you guys see him taking Sadiq Khan's, (mayor of London) quote completely out of context to make it seem like Khan was saying terror attacks were no big deal? Khan's actual statement was: "Londoners will see an increased police presence today and over the course of the next few days. There's no reason to be alarmed." Trump responded with this: "At least 7 dead and 48 wounded in terror attack and Mayor of London says there is "no reason to be alarmed!" Khan is clearly talking about the increased police presence. And when Trump was called out on his BS, he doubled down and then accused the mainstream media of "spinning" the story to exonerate Khan. The man is attacking the mayor of a major city- in an allied country- right after a terror attack. It would be like Theresa May calling out the Orlando mayor after the Pulse shooting last year. Trump is an utterly vile and reprehensible little man. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
blotsfan 2,112 Posted June 8, 2017 Oh yeah. That awfulness kinda got buried but yes, Trump is a terrible person and truly unfit to be president. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
SteVo+ 3,702 Posted June 8, 2017 (edited) A lot of the talking heads on Anderson Cooper 360 are saying this is obvious obstruction of justice. I vehemently disagree. It certainly looks bad for Trump, but it's not a clear path to impeachment. CNN just showed a clip of a press conference that went something like... REPORTER: Did you in any way urge Director Comey to back off the Flynn investigation? TRUMP: No. No. Next question. Ya kinda did, Donald, ya kinda did. Edited June 8, 2017 by SteVo Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
blotsfan 2,112 Posted June 8, 2017 A lot of the talking heads on Anderson Cooper 360 are saying this is obvious obstruction of justice. I vehemently disagree. It certainly looks bad for Trump, but it's not a clear path to impeachment. Obvious obstruction of justice and a path to impeachment are two separate things. One involves knowing what obstruction of justice is and having the slightest bit of common sense. The other involves having a democrat controlled house and senate. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
SteVo+ 3,702 Posted June 8, 2017 (edited) And neither one of those are present currently. Edit for clarity: meaning right now there's not enough evidence for clear obstruction of justice, and there's not a Democratic controlled Congress. Edited June 8, 2017 by SteVo Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BwareDWare94 723 Posted June 8, 2017 He's already instructed prosecutors to fight for much harsher sentences on drug crimes though. Nothing needs to pass for that. And the racial implications of that are obvious but we've already had that discussion in another thread. We need extremely harsh punishment for dealing hard drugs that allow users to self harm. Other than that I'm on the decriminalize wagon. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
blotsfan 2,112 Posted June 8, 2017 We need extremely harsh punishment for dealing hard drugs that allow users to self harm. Other than that I'm on the decriminalize wagon. That sounds good but what do you do about an addict who just sells on the side to pay for his addiction? Because that definitely happens. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Favre4Ever+ 4,476 Posted June 8, 2017 (edited) I honestly don't think Comey's testimony makes Comey look very good either. He's a sleaze who is doing and saying whatever he can to save himself -- both before and after his firing. I mean, he admits that Trump wasn't personally being investigated, and that he told Trump this -- while we all laughed at Trump who asserted this very thing in his letter firing Comey... It does make Trump look terrible, as well, as.. three other people have already stated, ftr. And as Stevo mentioned, I really don't think there is anything there to move forward with obstruction. Even with a Democratic Congress, I think it would be a stretch. Trump's time will come, but it doesn't seem like it will be now.We will also see how Comey responds to questions. Maybe that will shed more light on the situation, or further move the scales towards obstruction. However, reports suggest Comey has no intention of accusing or even leading the committee int he direction of obstruction. So... I am not really expecting much. Edited June 8, 2017 by Banned4Ever Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BwareDWare94 723 Posted June 8, 2017 That sounds good but what do you do about an addict who just sells on the side to pay for his addiction? Because that definitely happens. Fuck them too. Lock em up. They realize what they're doing. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
SteVo+ 3,702 Posted June 8, 2017 Things from the hearing I found most interesting: Comey said Trump's public explanation that the FBI was in disarray was "a total lie, plain and simple." Comey said there is "no doubt" officials within the Russian government conspired to affect the presidential election, but he is also supremely confident that no American votes were directly affected. Comey documented his meetings with Trump because he was concerned Trump would lie about the substance of their meetings. So yeah, no obstruction of justice, but this paints a very poor picture of the President. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Favre4Ever+ 4,476 Posted June 8, 2017 (edited) He also admitted multiple times that he didn't take steps to tell the President or the WH Counsel that what was being said was not appropriate. His justification for this was because he was just so stunned by the conversation that he didn't do the right thing... lol. He also admitted to asking a good friend of his (a professor from Columbia U.) to leak contents of his memos after he got fired. And he didn't do it himself "for a variety of reasons". Right. FTR, I do appreciate him doing this. And he told both sides of the story when it came to answering the questions. He characterized himself as cowardly and "not as strong" as he probably could have been on different occasions. I appreciate that as well. Edited June 8, 2017 by Banned4Ever 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
blotsfan 2,112 Posted June 8, 2017 So yeah, no obstruction of justice, but this paints a very poor picture of the President. He basically said he'd be very surprised if the FBI isn't investigating him for obstruction by now. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Omerta+ 1,206 Posted June 8, 2017 So out of all this hullbaloo the past two days let me see if I can sum up what we were supposed to learn. Trump is trash.... Is that the new things we learned ? Or was it that he is scheisty bastard ? Or Russia had "something to do with the elections" but it was not enough to get hilldog elected ? So basically, we learned nothing? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Favre4Ever+ 4,476 Posted June 8, 2017 Yeah... Pretty much, in my mind.. Character wise... Trump Loses.Legally.. Trump doesn't lose. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Thanatos 2,847 Posted June 8, 2017 He also admitted multiple times that he didn't take steps to tell the President or the WH Counsel that what was being said was not appropriate. His justification for this was because he was just so stunned by the conversation that he didn't do the right thing... lol. He also admitted to asking a good friend of his (a professor from Columbia U.) to leak contents of his memos after he got fired. And he didn't do it himself "for a variety of reasons". Right. FTR, I do appreciate him doing this. And he told both sides of the story when it came to answering the questions. He characterized himself as cowardly and "not as strong" as he probably could have been on different occasions. I appreciate that as well. Don't really see how its on Comey to tell Trump its not appropriate. Anyone with any modicum of sense should know its not appropriate to do what he was doing. Love that he didn't mince words, and just flat out called Trump and his team liars. It's way past time someone does this in a high profile position, (or ex, in this case). People love to dance around the bush on it and call it everything but lying. Trump is a pathological liar. If you knew absolutely nothing about him, and assumed that every word that came out of his mouth was false, you'd be right more often than you'd be wrong. That's insane. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Omerta+ 1,206 Posted June 8, 2017 (edited) Trump is a pathological liar. If you knew absolutely nothing about him, and assumed that every word that came out of his mouth was false, you'd be right more often than you'd be wrong. That's insane. And the problem is, in that respect this election, and current political climate would be accurately characterized that way. Hillary is just as much a compulsive liar so we were screwed either way. I think that is why people were so enamored/mortified by this election, either outcome was not good for us, and a guy with no political experience (some would argue that is a strength) had a legitimate shot of beating someone who is a lifelong politician. Think about that, a reality tv show host and exploitative real estate developer was viewed as equally qualified to run this country as a lifelong politician. That should tell everyone everything you need to know about how much disdain people have for politicians. Edited June 8, 2017 by Omerta 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Favre4Ever+ 4,476 Posted June 8, 2017 Don't really see how its on Comey to tell Trump its not appropriate. Anyone with any modicum of sense should know its not appropriate to do what he was doing. Love that he didn't mince words, and just flat out called Trump and his team liars. It's way past time someone does this in a high profile position, (or ex, in this case). People love to dance around the bush on it and call it everything but lying. Trump is a pathological liar. If you knew absolutely nothing about him, and assumed that every word that came out of his mouth was false, you'd be right more often than you'd be wrong. That's insane. Because it takes two people to have inappropriate meetings or conversations. As I mentioned, Comey said he himself was cowardly and not strong enough and also admitted to having his friend leak memo contents in order to procure a particular result. Trump is / was wrong. he is / was lying.. but Comey has culpability as well -- he isn't completely innocent and that's all I am saying. I believe most, if not all of his testimony to be truth... But that doesn't make him a good person and I won't put him on a pedestal. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Thanatos 2,847 Posted June 8, 2017 (edited) And the problem is, in that respect this election, and current political climate would be accurately characterized that way. Hillary is just as much a compulsive liar so we were screwed either way. I think that is why people were so enamored/mortified by this election, either outcome was not good for us, and a guy with no political experience (some would argue that is a strength) had a legitimate shot of beating someone who is a lifelong politician. Think about that, a reality tv show host and exploitative real estate developer was viewed as equally qualified to run this country as a lifelong politician. That should tell everyone everything you need to know about how much disdain people have for politicians. While I do think Hillary was an awful choice to run against him, in no way shape or form is she anywhere near as much of a liar as Trump, at least if we're talking sheer quantity of lies. Trump is leagues ahead of any of his counterparts. 70% of the statements that come out of his mouth are mostly or wholly untrue. The previous high for a president was Barack Obama- at 25%. You might make an argument that all politicians are pathological liars, but you'd then need to invent a new word for whatever Trump is. On his 100th day in office, the Washington Post looked at all of his statements made since coming into office- via twitter, counsels, w/e- and found 492 mostly or entirely false statements. The man lies 5 times A DAY, either flat out or by omission. So while I agree with you that Hillary lies a lot, and so do the vast majority of politicians, it pales in comparison to Trump. Edited June 8, 2017 by Thanatos 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites