Flotsam and Jetsam - Trump Speaks, Zelenskyy Caves

Or the other way around, actually. Earlier in the day yesterday, it was announced the Ukrainian strongman Vlod Zelenskyy (can we at least all agree on the the second "y"?) had thought better of his defiance at the White House, and had decided to agree to the agreement with Trump giving the US half interest in certain Ukrainian mineral deposits in exchange for unspecified security arrangements. Later that evening a triumphant Trump gave the annual address to Congress that would have been a State of the Union address had it not been less than two months into his second first term. Allie Beth Stuckey@conservmillen, "This time, Trump isn’t here to make friends. He’s not here to reach across the aisle. He’s not here to be nice. He’s here to put American interests first, no matter what his enemies think. That’s exactly what I voted for." 

Live blogs of the address at Hat Hair, and TownHall, and of course, Sundance at CTH posted a link to the whole thing in case you want to see it, or re-savor it. Althouse didn't live blog it, but encouraged her commenters to. At PJM Sarah Anderson thinks The First Lady's Guest List for Tonight Is Fascinating and NewsMax, Rep. Jeffries to Dems: Be 'Strong, Dignified' at Trump Address. Nope, just couldn't do it. Scott Pinsker sees SABOTAGE: Inside the Democrats’ Plans to Disrupt Trump’s Speech. Rusty Weiss at RedState, Karoline Leavitt Rips Dems Over Report They Plan to Protest Trump's Speech With Noisemakers, Egg Cartons. And sabotage they tried. Sister Toldja at RedState, wants you to WATCH: The Boss Move JD Vance Made Before Al Green Was Escorted Out of Trump's Speech. Daily Wire @realDailyWire, Speaker Johnson orders Rep. Al Green to be escorted out from the House chamber after interrupting President Trump multiple times, angrily waving his cane. Also, booing, jeering, waving little signs, and not standing for people who were introduced.  Sundance notes “Seven Ways from Sunday” Group Select One of Their Own to Deliver State of the Union Rebuttal. Slotkin is a former CIA gal. 

From Althouse, Asked what was the "best moment" of Trump's speech, 2 of the NYT's 9 opinion writers said it was Al Green disrupting the session. "Meanwhile, at home, I was comparing the scene to January 6th. You don't like what's going on in the Capitol? Disrupt! Try to stop the proceedings!" Sarah Anderson at TownHall, Worst Moment of the Night? Democrats Disrespect a Little Boy with Cancer. Bonchie @bonchieredstate, "Nicole Wallace just went after a little kid with cancer, saying “I hope he never has to defend the United States Capitol against Donald Trump’s supporters.” Even Jen Psaki looks uncomfortable." 

OTP, Trump Declares, ‘America Is Back!’ RedWave Press @RedWave_Press "President Donald J. Trump opens his speech: “To my fellow citizens, America is back!” Insty cites ROGER KIMBALL: Trump bulldozes through joint address to Congress. "The president presented a bracing tour d’horizon in his opening sally. He ordered federal workers back to work: “They will either show up for work, in person, or be removed from their job.” As I write, the Trump administration is ending “weaponized government,” restoring free speech, underwriting English as the official language of the United States and pursuing a policy of “drill, baby, drill” to exploit America’s energy resources." From Fox, Reactions roll in after President Trump addresses Congress, polls show massive positive reception. OTP, Trump Renames Wildlife Refuge After Child Killed By Illegal Aliens. Curtis Houck@CurtisHouck, "No question, this will be one of the lasting, positive images of this year's presidential address to a joint session of Congress (#SOTU in years 2-4 of a presidency) -- President Trump honoring Jocelyn Nungaray, who was murdered by illegal immigrants (allegedly, case still in the courts), by renaming a nature preserve on the Gulf of America in her honor as an animal lover." He got in a double dig with that "Gulf of America" reference. Althouse is unhappy with "The cartels are waging war in America, and it’s time for America to wage war on the cartels, which we are doing." "Said Trump, in his speech last night.", objecting to the word "war." It's a common enough metaphor. The US hasn't been in a declared war since WWII (although IIRC, the Iranians declared war on the US without us bothering to declare it back). But the word is used for everything from Vietnam to poverty, so it doesn't seem too outré to me.

At the Wombat's In The Mailbox: 03.04.25, Twitchy: The Look On Nancy Pelosi’s Face Tells The Whole Story For Democrats, Democrats Can’t Bring Themselves To Applaud Kid Who Survived Brain Cancer, and “How Did That Work Out?” Trump Calls Out Democrats’ Failed Lawfare To Their Faces.

After the Disaster in the Oval Office: Dems lead Zelensky, Ukraine off a cliff with pressure to reject mineral deal (Michael Goodwin at NYPo), Trump Pauses Military Aid to Ukraine; UPDATE: ZELENSKYY APPEARS TO CAVE (Dave Strom at Hat Hair). Bonchie at RedState, Zelensky Does an About-Face With Glowing Statement to Trump, but It May Be Too Late. Capt. Ed at RedState hears Zelensky: Okay, Let's Make a Deal And Sorry About Last Week; UPDATE: Trump to Announce Tonight. Sundance, Hours After President Trump Cut Off Support, Zelenskyy Retreats and Says Now Willing to Work Toward Peace. Althouse, "Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky proposed a new framework for a partial ceasefire with Russia on Tuesday..." "... posting on X that Kyiv would be willing to release prisoners and agree to a truce that would ban long range attacks on civilian and energy infrastructure." Charlie Martin at Insty, REMEMBER, TRUMP DOESN’T UNDERSTAND NEGOTIATION: Zelenskyy Grovels to Trump in New Statement, Wants Deal. Ace says Zelenskyy Pulls a George Costanza, Claims He Was Just Kidding When He Quit the Peace Talks, "The headline is a reference to this Seinfeld episode. What? That? I'm a joker, you know that. I kid!"

The Unsinkable Mollie@MZHemingway, "Yesterday, Susan Rice said of the Trump-Zelensky meeting, "There is no question this was a set up." She revealed full knowledge of the mineral agreement, complained that it didn't include "concrete" security agrees (meaning, apparently, commitment of US troops on the ground if conditions merit), and then mischaracterized Trump's behavior, counting on most Americans to not have watched what transpired over the entire hour in the Oval Office. . ." Dave Strom, Konstantin Kisin Hits the Nail on the Head About Zelenskyy's Disastrous Performance (video). Sundance, Lutnick: Zelenskyy’s Not a Peacemaker, He’s a Troublemaker. Ward Clark at RedState, European Leaders Spout Weirdly Identical Social Media Posts Supporting Ukraine. Jester Politics simply says Let Europe Handle It. From Da Fetched, Bolton Melts Down on Live TV, Demands Rubio’s Resignation After Trump’s Zelenskyy Meeting. At the Pop Times, Vance Family Targeted by Pro-Ukraine Activists, Rushed to “Undisclosed Location.” The Critic notes It is not unpatriotic to question war. Insty looks at THE ROOTS OF TRUMP’S REALPOLITIK: “As often happens, Trump breaks with American presidential traditions more in style than in substance. In reality, the 45th and 47th president is in a tradition of realist presidents, going back to Theodore Roosevelt more than a century ago, who have viewed world politics as a great-power club, rather than an arena for idealism.” BRICS News @BRICSinfo, "JUST IN: Italian Prime Minister Meloni rejects offers from France and UK to send troops to Ukraine. "You can go—not with my soldiers." Richard @ricwe123, "It's astounding to see EU President Ursula von der Leyen laugh when asked if one of her own children is in the military, quickly dismissing the idea with a "No, of course not" Meanwhile, she's in London making decisions about sending other people's daughters and sons to die in Ukraine. The hypocrisy is mind-blowing."

At the Wombat's In The Mailbox: 03.04.25, EBL: Zelensky is about to learn the meaning of FAFO, Brave The Dark, Good: Europe can defend Ukraine from now on, Louder With Crowder: Should Trump Ditch Free-riding NATO After Zelensky Blowup?, L’Ombre de L’Olivier: Can Ukraine Win Now? also, Clash of Worldview and CDR Salamander: Securing Ukraine’s Future Security.

From NewsMax, Canada's Retaliatory Tariffs on US Goods to Start Tuesday, PM Trudeau Says. OTP, Canadian Leader Threatens To Turn Off Power To US After New Tariffs. ABC, 'Dumb': Canada, Mexico blast historic Trump tariffs, threaten retaliation. NewsMax again, BlackRock Buying Panama Canal Ports for $22.8 Billion. Abraham Accords Peace Institute @Peace_Accords, "Despite regional tensions, Abraham Accords ties remain strong. The Abraham Accords Peace Institute's analysis shows that in 2024, economic relations and trade continued to grow between Israel and all of its peace partners in the Arab world. . . " VodkaPundit at PJM, Egypt Wants to Curb-Stomp Trump's Gaza Plan, but Who Pays for Theirs? At Da Wire, Houthis Re-Designated As Terror Group By State Department, "Former President Joe Biden rescinded the designation in 2021." 

Breitbart reports US Manufacturing Expands For Second Month Under Trump, Driven by Stronger Demand and Policy Shifts. Matt Vespa thinks Republicans Might Have a Nuclear Option for Making the Trump Tax Cuts Permanent. 

At Althouse, "Senators Chuck Schumer, Elizabeth Warren, and Cory Booker released videos on their social media accounts simultaneously, using identical scripts..." "It's ludicrous. But that got our attention and made it viral. And yet, I think that what is viral is the fakeness — the rote performance — and not the substantive message. I watched the whole thing intently, but I didn't notice what they said, only the bizarre overlap." Mary Chastain at LI, 22 Democrat Senators Caught Making Same Video to Bash Trump, Musk, "Hive mind." Ace, Not an Op: 22 Democrat Senators Blitz X With 22 Near-Identical Messages, Now It's 23, "Do they not understand that this is creepy AF?" From NewsMax, Musk, Sen. Lee: Who's Writing Dems' 'Puppet' Script? Matt Margolis at PJM, Senate Democrats Suffer Humiliating Messaging Disaster and Democrats Seem Desperate to Prove That Republicans Are the Adults in the Room. Kurt Schlichter at TownHall asks Where Do You Go After 'Literally Hitler'? At Da Caller, Dems Fretting Over Billionaires Have Been On The Billionaire Dole For Years. Joel Kotkin at Spiked is looking forward to The Democrats’ coming civil war. "Voters are tired of failed ‘progressive’ dogmas, even in the Democrats’ urban heartlands. But will the party listen?"

George@BehizyTweets "BREAKING: Congressman Pete Sessions is introducing a bill banning universal mail-in voting and electronic voting machines and shortening the early vote period from months to THREE DAYS. This is a GAME CHANGER! . . . " Democrats with kill it in the Senate. VodkaPundit at Insty wonders WHERE IS THE GOP’S NEXT GIULIANI? GrannyKiller Cuomo Runs For Mayor. “For some reason, the egos of disgraced New York Democratic politicians are so large that they never seem to think they’re too disgraced to run for office again. Just like Anthony Weiner before him, disgraced former New York governor Andrew Cuomo thinks he can run for New York City mayor and people will forget the sex scandal that drove him out of office.”

VodkaPundit at PJM, The Government Is Paralyzed? Oh, No! Anyway… NewsMax, House Dems Consider Govt Shutdown Over DOGE. Fine, this time don't pay the Federal workers for their added "vacation" days. Peter St Onge, Ph.D. @profstonge, "The Fed's GDP estimates crash on Biden hangover and falling government spending. More is coming. Because the more DOGE cuts — and the more wars end — the richer we’ll be. But the worse GDP will look on paper." A Michele Tafoya vid at Hat Hair, Open the Books. Just DOGE it. Althouse has a vid on Fact-checking DOGE's "Wall of Receipts." NYPo, DOGE announces this government agency’s staff has been trimmed to one: ‘Statutory minimum.’ Department of Government Efficiency @DOGE, "The Inter-American Foundation, an agency whose primary action was to issue foreign grants ($60M budget), has been reduced to its statutory minimum (1 active employee). Examples of grants that were cancelled in the process:
- $903,811 for alpaca farming in Peru . . . "  Da Hill reluctantly admits Social Security Administration says it’s identified $800M+ in savings and Pentagon: $80M in savings found in initial DOGE scrutiny. Drop, bucket.  OTP, FBI HQs Among 440+ Federal Buildings Listed For Sale. NewsMax, Sen. Kennedy Introduces Bill to End Federal Funding for NPR, PBS and Can DOGE Audits Save U.S. From Debt Market Collapse? Elon Musk @elonmusk, "Taxpayer-funded propaganda!" Quote FischerKing @FischerKing64, "Tonight NPR repeated the Charlottesville hoax as fact. The federal government is still funding radio programming - repeatedly debunked - that Trump praised neo-Nazis."  Elon Musk @elonmusk. "Yet another scam stealing your tax dollars has been stopped" Quote Wall Street Apes @WallStreetApes, "The NGO receiving $18 million per month for an empty illegal migrant shelter contract started in 2021 after a “BIDEN TRANSITION TEAM MEMBER JOINED THE NON-PROFIT” These are crimes of the century. People need to go to prison."

NewsMax, Musk Calls Social Security 'Biggest Ponzi Scheme' Ever. Lifezette, Musk Drops Bomb: Calls for NATO Exit, Demands Answers on Ukraine Billions. At WokeSpy, Elon Musk Explains How Soros’ “Non-Profits” Have Been Leeching Off U.S. Taxpayers for Years. From Da Fetched, Elon Musk Sounds the Alarm on “Severe Propaganda” Behind Attempts on His Life. Dave Strom, The Open Borders Crowd Attacks Elon Musk Because He is an Immigrant. No, they use the fact that he's an immigrant to attack him for threatening their gravy train. Mia Cathell at TownHall, Guess Who Has Ties to USAID, "Ex-Biden White House press secretary Jen Psaki's sister worked for nearly a decade at a radical non-governmental organization (NGO) that has raked in millions in taxpayer funding from the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID)." Twitchy, She MAD! Maxine Waters Tries Forcing Her Way Into HUD to Deliver Anti-DOGE Letter and HOOBOY (Watch). MRCTV @mrctv, "Democrat Rep. Sydney Kamlager-Dove accidentally reveals her party's plan to fight Trump & Musk's DOGE. "We are gonna continue to speak lies to his truth, to his stealing and to his cheating."

Lifezette, DOE Launches Portal for Reporting Woke DEI Indoctrination in Schools. Stephen Kruiser at PJM, Let's Get This 'Nuke the Dept. of Education' Ball Rolling ASAP. USDOE, Secretary McMahon: Our Department's Final Mission. Get rid of the department. 

Misty Severi at JTN reports how the Head of FBI New York field office forced out after weeks of turmoil. "Dennehy reportedly upset Attorney General Pam Bondi over his office's handling of the Jeffrey Epstein files last week." Ace, Head of FBI's NY Field Office Resigns Under Pressure, "He was told to resign or be fired. He took the coward's way out. NBC "News" notes that the head of the office is a #Resistance operator."  Fox, AG Pam Bondi says FBI delivered 'truckload' of Epstein files after she put out hard deadline, "Epstein files will be dealt with 'as fast as we can,' Bondi said." See, it works. Do it some more. 

Margot Cleveland at Da Fed, Leftist Judge Creates Full-Blown Constitutional Crisis — Soon To Be Cured By SCOTUS "Judge Amy Berman Jackson, a Barack Obama appointee, entered that ruling late Saturday evening in a two-page order. Judge Berman Jackson’s order then further mandated that five executive branch officials “recognize plaintiff’s title and position as Special Counsel of the Office of Special Counsel,” and “not obstruct or interfere with his performance of his duties.” And just like that, a mere two months into the president’s second term, a solitary federal judge created a constitutional crisis." Misty Severi, House Republicans launch judicial task force that targets 'rogue, activist judges'. "The new task force, titled the "Judicial Activism Accountability Task Force," will be led by Republican Reps. Andrew Clyde of Georgia and Eli Crane of Arizona."

Guy Benson at TownHall, By the Numbers: Another Democrat Narrative Bites the Dust. InteractivePolls @IAPolls2022 "CBS Poll: 64% of Americans believe Trump's policies are reducing migrant crossings at the US-Mexico border. —— Trump Deportation program approval Approve: 59% (+18) Disapprove: 41% • White: 65-35 (+30) • Black: 48-52 (-4) • Hispanic: 50-50 (=)" Capt. Ed, Trump Has Cartels, Traffickers Running Scared, Says ... "the New York Times? Really?" At Breitbart, Trump Shutting Down Biden’s Texas-Based Soft Sided Migrant Detention Centers, Says Source. Julio Rosas at Mostly Peaceful Media, How The Far-Left Are Disrupting ICE Raids In Los Angeles.

Shelley G  @ShelleyGldschmt, "BREAKING HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., along with the Dept of Education and GSA, announced a comprehensive review of Columbia University’s federal contracts and grants in light of the university's failure to adequately respond to rampant antisemitism on campus." From Campus Reform, Department of Justice anti-Semitism task force plans visits to 10 college campuses, including Northwestern and Harvard. Capt. Ed, Trump to Campus Agitators: Get Out. Eyal Yakoby @EYakoby, "BREAKING: Yale Law has put Helyeh Doutaghi on ‘Immediate Administrative Leave’ after it was revealed she was part of a US-designated terrorist organization." Eyal Yakoby @EYakoby, "If a student on a foreign visa who supports Israel violently takes over a building, assaults university staff, and shuts down classes, then they should also have their visa revoked. But that's simply not happening." Quote Glenn Greenwald @ggreenwald "How about if foreign students in the US on a student visa participate in a campus protest in favor of Israel rather than against it, or protest in favor of Trump and against Democrats? Should they also be deported? Or is deportation only for protesting against Israeli actions? x.com/OlafOlaf2668/s… Show more." 

Ftrom Da Wire, Pam Bondi Tells American Bar Association To ‘Immediately’ Abandon Diversity Mandates. “The Department of Justice stands ready to take every action necessary to prevent further abuse.”

Althouse, Does the Democratic Party need to change? It can't. It won't. "I'm reading "Senate blocks ban on transgender athletes, as Trump pushes forward/The Senate failed to get the 60 votes needed to advance legislation banning transgender athletes from competing in female sports" (WaPo).Every single Democratic Senator voted against the bill. That is, they stuck to their principles on the #1 issue that clearly — massively — hurts them." Insty, TRUMP KEEPS GETTING THE DEMOCRATS TO TAKE THE LOSING SIDE ON THE LOPSIDED ISSUES: Scott Rasmussen @ScottWRasmussen, "In other words, Senate Democrats sided with the 13% of voters who believe biological males should be allowed to compete in women’s sports." Quote CBS News@CBSNews, "Senate Democrats on Monday blocked a measure that sought to ban transgender girls and women from competing on school sports teams that match their gender identity. https://cbsn.ws/3QP0msZ" Fox Sports reports Tennis legend has fiery response after Senate Dems fail to back bill keeping boys out of girls' sports, "Martina Navratilova has been critical of Dems in the past." Rick Moran at PJM, Female Runners Protest Against a Trans Competitor by Dropping Out of a Championship Race. Ashe Schow at Da Wire reports a Major Court Rules Parents Have No Right To Know A School Is Transitioning Their Child. "This is the first time a federal court of appeals has waded into parental rights when it comes to transgender issues."

The Wombat has FMJRA 2.0: Return to Mediocrity ready and willing at The Other McCain.

Russiagate: Bruce Ohr Slides Out the Back, Jack

 As noted yesterday, the unmasking probe is dead, Jim. Capt. Ed at Hot Air, Harbinger? DoJ’s “Unmasking” Probe Goes Nowhere and the nominally conservative anti-Trump Bulwark Boyz couldn't be happier, Trump’s Great “Unmasking” Hoax Is Finally Dead "Another “Deep State” non-scandal goes down the memory hole."

Which leaves Trump feeling less than sanguine about Bill Barr, as AllahPundit at Hot Air whines “I’m Not Happy”: Trump Won’t Commit To Bringing Back Bill Barr In Second Term and Christian Datoc at Da Caller, Trump Isn’t Ruling Out Replacing Bill Barr In A Second Term: ‘I’m Not Happy With All The Evidence I Have’. Me neither, but unless you make Ric Grenell AG, Bill's the best your likely to get. Meanwhile, Bloomberg complains Trump Presses Loyal Pompeo, Barr for Dirt to Use Against Biden. Id be more upset if the Obama administration hadn't used to full power of DOJ, FBI, CIA etc to try to torpedo Trump. 

Speaking of which, while nobody was looking, Bruce Ohr, from DOJ, deeply enmeshed in the Spygate game, snuck out of the back door of the department while nobody was looking, a day before he was going to be fired. I suspect Barr had a role in that. Chuck Ross at Da Caller, Bruce Ohr Resigns From Justice Department,  Sundance at CTH, The Laundry Operation – Bruce Ohr Left DOJ Shortly Before Being Terminated: Likely in July…  and Fox, Russia probe figure Bruce Ohr retired from DOJ as disciplinary review decision loomed, spokeswoman says

Bruce Ohr, a Justice Department official demoted in 2017 following the revelation of his meetings with anti-Trump dossier figure Christopher Steele, retired in late September while awaiting a "final decision on a disciplinary review," a department spokeswoman told Fox News on Wednesday.

Fox News first reported that Ohr was demoted from his senior position at the Justice Department following the revelation of his meetings with ex-British intelligence officer Christopher Steele, of which his superiors at the DOJ were unaware.

“Bruce Ohr retired from the Department of Justice on Sept. 30, 2020. As such, he is no longer an employee of the department,” Justice Department spokesperson Kerri Kupec said in a statement. “Mr. Ohr retired after his counsel was informed that a final decision on a disciplinary review being conducted by department senior career officials was imminent.”

SCOOP: A person familiar with the matter tells @CBSNews that Bruce Ohr is no longer working at DOJ. He resigned the day before he was going to be terminated by DOJ over his conduct cited in IG Horowitz report. Ohr was faulted for becoming a kind of backchannel linking dossier

— Catherine Herridge (@CBS_Herridge) October 14, 2020

Ace, Disgraced FusionGPS Accomplice Bruce Ohr Resigns From the Justice Department -- Just As He's About to be Fired, Following a Disciplinary Review "He was the guy who illegally back-channeled FusionGPS Russian-agent-sourced bullshit to the FBI, and then lied about that to investigators." 

Gee, I wonder if he'll just immediately start working for the Democrat-Shadow Government Complex, like all other criminal government officials wind up doing.


The Democrat Party is like the mafia -- if one of its soldiers goes down, they immediately find a no-show job for him in one of their many shell companies.

And so how did we come to find out now? Sundance provides a clue: Senate Intel Committee Releases FBI Interview Notes of Bruce Ohr – Nellie Ohr Thumb Drive Likely Connected to Circular Verification of Dossier…

First, the timing, content and sequence of the specific documents being released are interesting. Almost like someone is paying attention. The original release of the Bruce Ohr 302 interview notes was in August 2019 to Judicial Watch. The release today is of the same information in a better quality.

Secondly, in both sets of released documents the name Dan Jones has been redacted. It appears the redaction is made under the auspices of “sources and methods”; however, Jones was a former SSCI lead staffer, so the redaction appears to be one of institutional concern and self-preservation.

The last interview of Bruce Ohr (May 15th, 2017) took place two days prior to the appointment of special counsel Robert Mueller. Throughout the interviews Bruce was acting as the go-between from his both his wife Nellie at Fusion-GPS and Fusion’s contract agent Christopher Steele.

Third, The content of the December 2016 thumb-drive given to Bruce by Nellie is discussed within the interview notes but not released.

Why? Possibility/Probability:

(A) The Nellie research will align almost identically with the content of the Dossier; and (B) the Nellie research was used as verification of the dossier itself. See the recent release of verification documents. [SEE HERE] In essence the source information for the Dossier was used to validate the dossier conclusions…

….It’s the same damn material. That’s why Nellie Ohr took the Fusion-GPS header off the top of the material she provided.

And a revelation from the giant spreadsheet the FBI assembled in vainly trying to verify the contents of the Steele Dossier, from Chuck Ross at Da Caller, FBI Cited Tweet From DNC Operative’s Sister In Analysis Of The Steele Dossier’s Trump Sex Tape Claim

FBI analysts relied on a tweet from the sister of a DNC operative as part of its analysis into the Steele dossier’s most explosive allegation: that the Kremlin was blackmailing Donald Trump with a videotape of him with prostitutes in Russia.

An FBI spreadsheet declassified last week and released on Monday shows that investigators cited an allegation from author and activist Andrea Chalupa.

Chalupa’s sister, Alexandra Chalupa, was a contractor for the Democratic National Committee through at least June 2016. The two sisters have been staunch critics of President Trump, and have helped push the since-debunked allegation that the Trump campaign conspired with Russia to influence the 2016 election.

And an interesting twitter thread from Steven McIntyre at Climate Audit,  

like many readers, I'm reading and dismayed by the FBI spreadsheet purportedly summarizing their analysis of Steele dossier. scribd.com/document/47978…

if incompetence, laziness and stupidity were crimes, then Comey's "right people" would all be in jail long ago.

Jordan Davidson at Da Fed, Taking Saudi And Chinese Cash? You Won’t Be Advising Trump’s State Department Anymore. Bummer!

CNN has the story of yet another failed attempt to get Trump: Exclusive: Feds chased suspected foreign link to Trump's 2016 campaign cash for three years. Three years of investigation, with no evidence. No evidence they ever looked for foreign cash in either of Obama's campaigns or in Hillary's. 

For more than three years, federal prosecutors investigated whether money flowing through an Egyptian state-owned bank could have backed millions of dollars Donald Trump donated to his own campaign days before he won the 2016 election, multiple sources familiar with the investigation told CNN.

The investigation, which both predated and outlasted special counsel Robert Mueller's probe, examined whether there was an illegal foreign campaign contribution. It represents one of the most prolonged efforts by federal investigators to understand the President's foreign financial ties, and became a significant but hidden part of the special counsel's pursuits.

The investigation was kept so secret that at one point investigators locked down an entire floor of a federal courthouse in Washington, DC, so Mueller's team could fight for the Egyptian bank's records in closed-door court proceedings following a grand jury subpoena. The probe, which closed this summer with no charges filed, has never before been described publicly.

Prosecutors suspected there could be a link between the Egyptian bank and Trump's campaign contribution, according to several of the sources, but they could never prove a connection.

 And Jerry Lambe at Law and Crime (one of the Lawfare group) thinks that DOJ Admits to Federal Court That Trump Lied to His Supporters on Twitter About Declassifying All Russia Docs

Well, at this point on a usual day of Russiagate, I might have a couple of links regarding the Joe and Hunter Biden Burisma Ukrainian scandal, but as you may know, that blew up yesterday, and left me with more than a page of links, and is well worthy of another post. 

Proving Her Point . . .

Egyptian Singer Banned After Claiming Lack Of Free Speech

An Egyptian singer has been banned from performing in her home country after suggesting that it does not respect free speech.

A video clip circulated online shows Sherine Abdel-Wahab, during a performance in Bahrain, saying: "Here I can say whatever I want. In Egypt, anyone who talks gets imprisoned."

Egypt's Musicians Union responded late Friday by barring the singer, popularly known by her first name, from performing. It also summoned her for questioning.

Samir Sabry, a pro-government lawyer with a reputation for moral vigilantism and suing celebrities, filed a complaint against the singer accusing her of "insulting Egypt and inviting suspicious rights groups to interfere in Egypt's affairs."

Last year, Sherine was sentenced to six months in prison over a similar clip from a concert in which she joked that the Nile is polluted. The sentence was suspended upon appeal. She apologized for the remark, calling it a "bad joke."

The singer, who hosts the Arabic version of "The Voice," apologized again after the latest remarks in a TV interview aired late Friday, saying she was joking.

"I am very tired. I made a mistake. I am sorry. I appeal the president of the Arab Republic of Egypt, who is our father. I feel that I was persecuted. I did nothing. I love Egypt," she said.

Egyptian authorities have waged an unprecedented crackdown on dissent since President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi led the military overthrow of an elected but divisive Islamist president in 2013. The local media is dominated by pro-government outlets that attack anyone seen as criticizing the country or its leaders, and several people have been jailed or fined for violating vaguely written laws outlawing such criticism.

The Egyptians are such lovely allies.

The Wombat has Rule 5 Sunday: Satellite Girl and FMJRA 2.0: Let’s Dance up and collecting hits.

Friends in High Places

Or more than friends: Outrage in Egypt after Danish photographer posts a picture of himself 'having sex' with a naked woman on top of the Great Pyramid

A Danish photographer sparked outrage in Egypt after posting a picture of himself appearing to have sex with a woman atop the Great Pyramid.

Andreas Hvid posted the explicit snap on his website and it was also featured in a video he posted on YouTube.

It shows him and the unidentified woman in a sexual position at the top of the famous landmark.

Now, authorities in Egypt are investigating after the case was referred to the prosecutor general by the minister for antiquities, state news agency Ahram Online reported.

Many of his photos feature either nudity, high places, industrial scenes, or combinations thereof.

Khaled el Anany said Hvid's actions were a violation of public morality and referred the case for investigation.

The video, which was apparently taken down, was reposted on Hvid's page on Sunday.

It shows Hvid and the woman climbing to the top of the 4,500-year-old pyramid and looking out over Cairo.
Another clip shows the woman removing her top.

In the video's description box, Hvid said he and the woman climbed the pyramid late last month.

These don't offend me (obviously) but it's only polite to not to go out of your way to offend the sensibilities of the people of the country you're visiting.

The Wombat has Rule 5 Sunday: Eliza Dushku up at The Other McCain.

Model Bares Difference Between Arab and Israeli Justice

Last seen escaping Egypt by the skin of her teeth, and with the help of a little baksheesh after baring her lady parts in historical monuments (and having photos taken to document her disdain for history, activist model Marisa Papen visited Israel, with the intention to, well I don't know, raise consciousness or something, by taking her clothes off in similar places with very different official results: Belgian model raises ire with nude photo overlooking Western Wall:

A Belgian model posed naked recently for a photograph overlooking the Western Wall in the Old City of Jerusalem, prompting outrage from the holy site’s rabbi and administrators. Marisa Papen posted the provocative photograph on her website Saturday, along with others taken by photographer Mathias Lambrecht, during a visit to Israel.

In the photograph, Papen leans back on a white plastic chair above a rooftop looking out over the Western Wall and adjoining plaza.

 I wonder how much that hotel room cost!

“First of all, ‘don’t judge a book by its title’… This purely implies the shame you, dear reader, (perhaps) will project on me because I have done something so disrespectful, I should burn in hell,” Papen wrote in an NSFW blog post that included the Western Wall photo and others from her time in Israel. “I know my mailbox is about to fill up with threats and angriness [sic] again — to all the people typing down their furiosity [sic] right now, save your energy. I don’t even open them.”

“I knew that I wanted to push the boundaries of religion and politics even further,” she added, after referring to an incident in September 2017, when she spent a night in an Egyptian jail after posing naked for photographs at the Luxor archaeological site.

The angle of the photo excludes the Dome of the Rock and the Temple Mount, an area holy to both Jews and Muslims, and many of those who posted comments on her website suggested it was chosen for fear of a backlash from offended Muslims.“Breaking down the walls that have been build to keep all our wandering souls on this planet somehow under control,” she wrote. “With other words, showing my personal religion in a world where freedom is becoming a very luxurious thing.”

And Israel is a helluva lot freer than any of the states that border her.

But Papen rejected the idea that she and the photographer had purposely excluded the Muslim holy site in the final published shot. “The angle wasn’t deliberate,” she told The Times of Israel Wednesday, explaining that the pair had spent some time looking for a location from which both the Western Wall and the Temple Mount would be visible.

“It was just way better artistically,” she said of the image she and Lambrecht ended up publishing.

And besides, Islamists who would happily behead her for besmirching Allah's departure point would relish her demeaning Israeli sites.

There was no legal sanctions mentioned but:

The Western Wall Heritage Foundation, which administers the Western Wall prayer area and plaza, told the Yedioth Ahronoth daily that the shoot was “a grave incident,” while noting that the photograph was taken on “one of the rooftops overlooking the Temple Mount and the Western Wall and not, God forbid, in the Western Wall plaza.”

Western Wall Rabbi Shmuel Rabinovich said, “This is an embarrassing incident, grave and lamentable, which offends the sanctity of the site and the feelings of those who visit the holy places.”

So, in Egypt, she was arrested and had to be bailed out by somewhat illicit methods. In Israel, she made a rabbi mad, but suffered no particular official sanctions.

May I suggest St. Leonard for your next photoshoot? I'm sure we can find someone to complain.

Wombat-socho has "Late Night With Rule 5 Monday: Kaya Jones" ready for  your pleasure.

Our Egyptian "Allies"

Egypt singer jailed for 'inciting debauchery' in music video

A court in Egypt has reportedly jailed for two years a singer who appeared in a music video in her underwear while suggestively eating a banana.

Shaimaa Ahmed, a 25-year-old known professionally as Shyma, was arrested last month after the video sparked outrage in the conservative country.

On Tuesday, she was found guilty of inciting debauchery and publishing an indecent film, local media said.

The video's director was also sentenced to two years in prison in absentia.

Shyma had apologised before her arrest to people who took the video for the song, I Have Issues, "in an inappropriate way".

"I didn't imagine all this would happen and that I would be subjected to such a strong attack from everyone," she wrote on her now-deleted Facebook page.

Check it out yourself:



Rumor has it Miley Cyrus is rethinking her plans for an Egyptian tour.

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When in Rome, Do Like the Romans; When in Egypt . . .

For God's sake, don't run around naked in public: Nude model ‘thrown into JAIL like a dog’ after secretly posing for topless photoshoot at ancient Egyptian temple

A NUDE model claims she was flung in jail after she was caught posing for a secret photoshoot inside one of Egypt's ancient temples.

Marisa Papen, who describes herself as a "free-spirited and wildhearted expressionist", travelled with photographer Jesse Walker to Egypt for a spectacular photoshoot inside and outside some of the country's most famous landmarks.

Plenty more lightly pixelated examples at the link. And the internet!

In a blog post reported by various media outlets over the weekend she claimed she was put in jail an hauled before a court as a result of her nude al fresco outing.

However the Egyptian Ministry of Antiquities has disputed how accurate the images are suggesting they may have been faked or taken some time ago, reports Gulf News.

The Belgian model said: "The last two years I have walked wild and free in at least 50 countries. Rarely do I end up in precarious situations. Until April this year, in Egypt."

And what made them think that they would be well received in an ultra-religious Islamic country like Egypt?

Marisa, from the Flanders region of Belgium, met up in Cairo with photographer Walker who flew in from Australia to do the shoot.

And even though the duo said they were aware of the cultural, political and religious differences between Egypt and the West, the adventure ended differently than they both expected.

During a first photoshoot near the famous pyramids of Giza, the two got into trouble.

They reportedly bribed a security guard to start the photoshoot when suddenly two young men showed up.

Papen said: "I was suddenly completely awake, like a cold shower at 5am in the morning.

"We tried to explain them that we were making art with the highest respect for Egyptian culture, but they could not see a connection between nudity and art.

"In their eyes it was porn, or something like that."

In the end, Papen and Walker managed to stay out of trouble by bribing the young men with £15. . . 

They might have settled for a few signed posters. They should have taken the hint, and stopped. But then, they tried it again, and got arrested and taken to court.

"The first cell we encountered was packed with at least 20 men, some were passed out on the floor, some were squeezing their hands through the rails, some were bleeding and yelling.

"I had never seen something like this before in real life. Jesse kept telling me, ‘Marisa don’t look’ but there was no way not to look."

After several hours in horrendous conditions in jail Papen and Walker were brought in front of a judge.

Papen said: "We kept playing the role of stupid tourists who had no idea dancing in skin-coloured underwear - we had to change up the story a little bit because otherwise we probably would have never gotten out - on Egyptian ground it wasn’t allowed.

"Our judge was browsing with his big thumbs through these books that looked as old as the pyramids did.

"Eventually, he gave us a warning and told us never to do something so foolishly shameful ever again. We nodded simultaneously."

Back in their hotel room, Walker even managed to recover the deleted pictures off the SD card with special software.

They can probably eliminate Egypt from any future travel plans.

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Great Moments in Democracy: Egyptian Farmer Arrested for Naming Donkey After General

A farmer in southern Egypt was arrested Saturday after putting the military chief's name and an army-style cap on his donkey, and eight people were detained elsewhere in the country for spraying anti-military graffiti.

The arrests point to a long-standing taboo in Egypt against criticizing the country's powerful military, an offense magnified amid the ongoing crackdown on supporters of the country's ousted President Mohammed Morsi and his Muslim Brotherhood.

The farmer, Omar Abul-Magd, was arrested late Friday in Qena province for allegedly insulting Gen. Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi when he rode the donkey through town, reported the state MENA news agency.

Meanwhile, the U.S. Government refrains from calling the military coup in Egypt a coup so they can continue to send billions in military aid. When the military takes over from a popularly elected government, it is a coup, regardless of whatever the apologists in the administration think.

Now, honestly, I prefer the military government in Egypt over the Muslim Brotherhood directed "democracy", but we have a law.  Using the expedient of "it's not a coup until we say it's a coup" is not the way the leader of the worlds greatest republic should act.  If they don't like the law that restricts them from supporting a coup, they should work openly to repeal it.

Things Less Phony Than John Effing Kerry

Everybody knows, or should know by now, the recent mini-flap over John Kerry's visit to his yacht during the height of the Egyptian constitution crisis.  When it was reported that he was spotted on the yacht, Isabel,  the State Department reflexively lied and said that the attended the Presidents meeting on the subject.  

When confronted with pictures of him not at the meeting, but rather walking around the boat, they issued a new statement, not exactly correcting the old one but saying instead that he attended the meeting by phone.

We know it's part of the State Department's mission abroad to lie and confusticate our enemies and feckless allies, but lying to the American public, when the lie is so trivial and unnecessary is just pitiful:

The Dishonest Liar From Phonyville

Was there ever a time that honest people did not despise John Kerry? He first came to public attention more than 40 years ago, lying about his service in Vietnam, and he has been lying about everything — every single thing — ever since. So this headline kinda set me off:

Experts: John Kerry’s credibility could sink with boat flap...

But there is another side of this too, the regular media side, who shamelessly adopt the most extreme complaisance towards whatever shading of the truth the Administration and it's allies are currently excreting.