On Wednesday, Donald Trump proudly tweeted that he had walked out of a brief meeting with Congressional leaders because he didn’t get all of what he wants (his beloved border wall) in order to open the federal government.
Today, the Donald tweeted that “Democrats should come back” and work to end the Trump Shutdown.
He now says “I am in the White House waiting” for the Dems “ready to sign!”
#BiPolar
By the way – Senate Majority Leader can bring up the new bills passed in the House at any time to open the government.
The new bills should be passed and sent to Trump to sign or veto.
In the days after President Trump fired James B. Comey as F.B.I. director, law enforcement officials became so concerned by the president’s behavior that they began investigating whether he had been working on behalf of Russia against American interests, according to former law enforcement officials and others familiar with the investigation.
The inquiry carried explosive implications. Counterintelligence investigators had to consider whether the president’s own actions constituted a possible threat to national security. Agents also sought to determine whether Mr. Trump was knowingly working for Russia or had unwittingly fallen under Moscow’s influence.
The investigation the F.B.I. opened into Mr. Trump also had a criminal aspect, which has long been publicly known: whether his firing of Mr. Comey constituted obstruction of justice.
I’m also going to make a point to include this from the Times report:
No evidence has emerged publicly that Mr. Trump was secretly in contact with or took direction from Russian government officials. An F.B.I. spokeswoman and a spokesman for the special counsel’s office both declined to comment.
Clearly, I don’t have the evidence that the FBI has gathered but we do know that Trump frequently praised Russian President Putin, taking his word over that of the US intelligence community regarding Russian interference in the 2016 election.
That alone that should give pause to any American.
The Donald’s short little fingers flew across his iPhone’s keyboard this morning in a Twitter rage complete with ‘the Failing New York Times,’ ‘Lyin James Comey,’ ‘Crooked Hillary,’ and a boast of being ‘FAR tougher on Russia than Obama.’
Wow, just learned in the Failing New York Times that the corrupt former leaders of the FBI, almost all fired or forced to leave the agency for some very bad reasons, opened up an investigation on me, for no reason & with no proof, after I fired Lyin’ James Comey, a total sleaze!
…Funny thing about James Comey. Everybody wanted him fired, Republican and Democrat alike. After the rigged & botched Crooked Hillary investigation, where she was interviewed on July 4th Weekend, not recorded or sworn in, and where she said she didn’t know anything (a lie),….
….the FBI was in complete turmoil (see N.Y. Post) because of Comey’s poor leadership and the way he handled the Clinton mess (not to mention his usurpation of powers from the Justice Department). My firing of James Comey was a great day for America. He was a Crooked Cop……
…..who is being totally protected by his best friend, Bob Mueller, & the 13 Angry Democrats – leaking machines who have NO interest in going after the Real Collusion (and much more) by Crooked Hillary Clinton, her Campaign, and the Democratic National Committee. Just Watch!
I have been FAR tougher on Russia than Obama, Bush or Clinton. Maybe tougher than any other President. At the same time, & as I have often said, getting along with Russia is a good thing, not a bad thing. I fully expect that someday we will have good relations with Russia again!
Lyin’ James Comey, Andrew McCabe, Peter S and his lover, agent Lisa Page, & more, all disgraced and/or fired and caught in the act. These are just some of the losers that tried to do a number on your President. Part of the Witch Hunt. Remember the “insurance policy?” This is it!
You bowed to Putin, praised him throughout the campaign — as you secretly pursued Tower Moscow — and believed him over American intelligence in Helsinki.
You appear to be completely owned by him — this tweet shows it too.We now know why FBI was rightly very concerned.
President Trump now presides over largest deficit in our history, the longest shutdown in our history, the biggest drop in International trust of America in our history, etc. Making history as opposed to making america great which is why at this point has historic low approval.
As the shutdown becomes the longest in US history, remember what Trump said Dec. 11.
Trump: If we don’t get what we want … I will shut down the government … I will take the mantle. I will be the one to shut it down. I’m not going to blame you for it. pic.twitter.com/z1ptWR6woK
• Did you hear about the United Airlines pilot and copilot having sex in the cockpit during a flight? Me neither. But fools who came across the fake story on the fake news site World News Daily Report swallowed the bogus story hook, line and sinker.
• After reviewing recent HIV research, experts at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) say they agree with over 300 health agencies around the world: HIV positive people with an undetectable viral load cannot sexually transmit HIV.
• Check out this promo video for the upcoming WorldPride Main Event on Saturday, June 29, 2019, which will bring the entire LGBTQ community and its allies together on one ginormous dance floor at New York City’s largest venue, the Jacob Javitz Center.
Out singer/songwriter Sam Smith drops his latest, “Dancing With a Stranger,” an R&B mid tempo pop duet with former Fifth Harmony member, Normani.
Speaking to Billboard, Smith says the new song, “Bottles everything I was feeling whilst juggling my personal life and touring.”
”It is also such a beautiful moment for me as I’m a huge, huge fan of Normani and everything she is,” said the 4-time Grammy Award winner. “I’m so excited to watch her light shine.”
Normani returned the mutual love telling Billboard, “I never thought in a trillion years that I would be able to state that I have a record with this extremely gifted being.”
A post shared by Sam Smith (@samsmith) on Jan 4, 2019 at 12:00am PST
You have to imagine there are echoes from his breakup last summer with 13 Reasons Why star Brandon Flynn mixed into the recording as he sings: “I don’t want to be alone tonight, It’s pretty clear that I’m not over you, I’m still thinking ‘bout the things you do, So I don’t want to be alone tonight.”
In September, Smith shared with The Times, “I’m still trying to figure out what I took from that relationship and what it meant to me.”
He added, “It’s still quite raw.”
Listen to Sam Smith & Normani’s “Dancing With a Stranger” below.
Check out this sweet short film, Straight A, from actor/writer Todd Lien.
Lien wrote, produced and starred in the short as his thesis film for the New York Film Academy’s MFA program.
The handsome actor says the movie is based on the true story of his own coming out to his father.
In the eight minute movie, Lien plays a version of himself struggling to maintain a long-term relationship with his boyfriend Kyle (Zach Cramblit) while keeping up the image of the perfect son to his father (Nathan Chen).
In the film, it appears being an over-achiever who gets straight A’s in school and is elected president of the student body isn’t enough for the father.
Or is it?
Todd shares this note on the YouTube page:
I am grateful for the supporting father I have, but I want to be clear that I know this is not how many people’s experiences are like. I just want to share some happy ending story like mine out there for more positivity and hope! The message is that sometimes we need to give our parents a little more credit for acceptance. Hope this video does that for as many people out there as possible!
Lien’s film credits include The Choice (2017), Alpha Delta Zatan (2017) and the TV miniseries Bob’s New Roommates (2017).
But wait – there’s more!
He’s also a part of the Asian Magic Mike troupe! Whoo-hoo!
The hottie is not only talented but way photogenic, as his 20K Instagram followers have discovered.
Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg has been declared cancer-free by her doctors and is recovering well from her recent surgery, according to a Supreme Court spokesman.
“Her recovery from surgery is on track,” the spokeswoman, Kathleen Arberg, said in a statement. “Post-surgery evaluation indicates no evidence of remaining disease, and no further treatment is required.”
Justice Ginsburg, 85, underwent surgery in late December to remove two nodules from her left lung. She missed this week’s arguments, and will be absent from the bench next week, too, Ms. Arberg said.
“Justice Ginsburg will continue to work from home next week and will participate in the consideration and decision of the cases on the basis of the briefs and the transcripts of oral arguments,” Ms. Arberg said.
Earlier this week, Politicoreported aides to Donald Trump were “reaching out to political allies and conservative activist groups to prepare for an ailing Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s possible death or departure from the Supreme Court.”
But our girl is just fine, folks. No worries.
Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is expected to be back in the Supreme Court with her normal work schedule by early next month.
Notorious RBG is a badass. Period. Powers that be, keep our hero safe.— Ricky Davila (@TheRickyDavila) January 11, 2019
According to S&P Global Ratings, in just two more weeks the Trump shutdown will cost the U.S. economy more than $6 billion.
That’s more than the $5.7 billion Donald Trump is demanding for his infamous border wall.
As of today, S&P estimates the economy has lost over $3.6 billion.
The 2013 shutdown was estimated to have cost the U.S. economy in the neighborhood of $20 billion.
MSNBC’s Craig Melvin breaks down how the ongoing shutdown affects many aspects of daily life in America including air travel, food safety, food stamps, and business deals requiring federal approval as well as 800,000 federal employees who won’t be paid today.
In the entire United States, there’s only one state that doesn’t allow people in same-sex dating relationships to get a restraining order should the romance turn violent.
Anyone who becomes a victim of domestic violence can go to the police and file criminal charges in North Carolina.
But criminal cases can take time, and when there’s a greater sense of urgency, many opt for a restraining order – also known as a 50(B) protective order.
A restraining order can prohibit the alleged abuser from coming near the victim, force them to give up their guns or lose custody of their children.
Married people, straight or gay, can file for a restraining order. Divorced couples, as well as parents and children, have the legal option as well.
But in the Tar Heel state, when it comes to folks who are living together or just dating, the state law on restraining orders only applies to “persons of the opposite sex.”
According to the NewsObserver, the loophole became news after a Wake County woman attempted to get a protective order against her ex-girlfriend last May.
At the time, the judge denied her request. The woman filed again a month later, and was rebuffed again thanks to the language of the law.
Now, the state Attorney General, Josh Stein, is working through the courts to have the law overturned.
Stein, a Democrat, filed a legal brief earlier this week saying the law is unconstitutional because it singles out LGBTQ people and denies them equal protection and due process under the law.
Gov. Roy Cooper, also a Democrat, agrees and has asked to join Stein’s efforts.
In their ‘friend of the court’ filing, Equality NC writes that since “the threat of intimate partner violence does not discriminate on the basis of sexual orientation, neither should the State in protecting individuals from such violence.”
“Otherwise, there is no constitutionally guaranteed ‘equal dignity in the eyes of the law’ for same-sex relationships,” the brief continues.
Stein has support from the ACLU of North Carolina as well as the North Carolina Association of Chiefs of Police.
The NewsObserver notes there are other legal options available to same-sex victims of abuse.
The woman who originally filed her request in May was eventually granted a 50(C) no-contact order. However, that kind of restraining order doesn’t give a judge the authority to revoke an alleged abuser’s right to own guns.
The woman’s primary concern for protection was predicated on threats of physical violence from her former girlfriend as well as her access to guns.
