quote:

Originally posted by SapperSteel:
Regarding Mueller's grand jury: How do we know about it? Aren't grand juries -- their composition, location, subject matter, et al -- supposed to be secret? Who is the deep throat in Mueller's operation, and what is his/her objective?

The objective is favorable mention in the books about how the Evil Trump was brought down, maybe the role in the subsequent movie played by Tom Hanks or equivalent, envy, book deals, "A" list party invites, upgraded wife, wealth, the usual stuff.

quote:

Originally posted by Gustofer:

quote:

Originally posted by Deqlyn:
I thought everyone hated pence and thought he was worse than trump. So I am not sure what they are trying to accomplish.

Sadly, many of them believe that if Trump is booted Hillary will be President.

Paul Ryan is crossing his fingers.

Another unemployed EPA official.

http://www.breitbart.com/big-g...-resignation-letter/

KEN KLUKOWSKI
3 Aug 2017
Washington, DC23

Democrats are trying to resurrect their unprecedented filibuster of judicial nominees through the blue slip tradition, but Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-IA) has the power to stop this obstruction.

Filibustering is when senators continue debating a measure as a stalling tactic to prevent it from coming to a final vote, often because they know the measure would pass. Under Senate rules, for any “debatable question”—which for most of the Senate’s history was thought to mean legislation—any senator can keep debate going until the Senate invokes cloture to limit debate.


A cloture motion requires three-fifths approval, which means 60 senators in the 100-member Senate. If 41 senators stick together to vote against cloture, debate on the matter before the Senate can continue indefinitely, preventing an up-or-down vote.

The first partisan filibuster of a judicial nominee occurred in 2003, when Senate Democrats blocked several of President George W. Bush’s picks for the federal appeals courts. Previously, the filibuster had on rare occasions been used to block nominees that had bipartisan opposition and would have been voted down if brought to the Senate floor for a final vote, with President Lyndon Johnson’s nomination in 1968 of Abe Fortas for chief justice being the clearest example. But in over 200 years of American history, a partisan group of senators in the minority had never blocked a nominee that a majority of senators was ready to confirm.

When Republicans decided in 2013 to try this same tactic on a select few of President Barack Obama’s nominees, Senate Democrats voted to reinterpret Senate rules to abolish the filibuster for all federal courts below the Supreme Court. They also invoked this “nuclear option” to abolish the filibuster for all executive branch nominees.

But in 2017 roles were reversed, with a Republican in the White House and Republican control of the Senate, meaning that Democrats lacked the numbers to defeat judicial nominees unless the opposition were bipartisan. Senate Democrats decided to take their tactic to its ultimate conclusion, by attempting to filibuster the nomination of Neil Gorsuch to the Supreme Court.

Gorsuch was so supremely well-qualified for the High Court that it became clear that Senate Democrats would filibuster any Supreme Court nominee that President Trump would put forward. Senate Republicans therefore invoked the nuclear option, extending the Democrats’ procedural rule to cover the Supreme Court in the same manner that it covers every other court. Justice Gorsuch was confirmed.

But Senate Democrats are not returning to a collegial working dynamic on judges. Instead, they are claiming additional rights under the blue slip process.

As a matter of senatorial courtesy, when the president nominates a person for a federal judgeship, the chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee will send a paper form called a blue slip to that nominee’s two home state senators, asking if those senators approve of the Judiciary Committee considering the nominee. The blue slip is offered as a courtesy, and typically those blue slips are promptly returned, informing the chairman that regardless of whether that senator will ultimately vote to confirm the nominee, the senator consents to the committee’s moving forward on the nomination.

Until now.

Three of President Trump’s nominees to the federal courts of appeals are from states with one or two Democratic senators. Joan Larsen is a justice on the Michigan Supreme Court and a former law clerk to Justice Antonin Scalia, and has been nominated to a seat on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit. Allison Eid is a justice on the Colorado Supreme Court and a former law clerk to Justice Clarence Thomas, and has been nominated to the Tenth Circuit. And David Stras is a justice on the Minnesota Supreme Court and also a former law clerk to Justice Thomas, and has been nominated to the Eighth Circuit.

The five Democratic senators from those states—Michigan’s Debbie Stabenow and Gary Peters, Colorado’s Michael Bennet, and Minnesota’s Al Franken and Amy Klobuchar—have all refused to return on the blue slips on their home-state nominees.

However, blue slips are only a tradition; they are not required by federal law or by Senate rules. Chairman Grassley therefore has the option to decide that he will move forward on a nomination regardless of whether he received two blue slips from the home-state senators.

No one has alleged any concerns or problems with the qualifications of Larsen, Eid, or Stras. It is clear that the blue slips have not been returned solely because those senators do not want those judicial nominees to receive a final vote. This is the same kind of obstruction that was used against Justice Gorsuch. Any senator who will not support these appellate nominees would not support any Trump nominees.

Blue slips are thus being used to resurrect filibustering judicial nominees, except that instead of 41 senators, it takes only one.

But the solution is also about one senator. Just as Chairman Grassley voted as a member of the full Senate to end the judicial filibuster, he can also decide now that as committee chairman he will discontinue a tradition that started as a courtesy to colleagues, but has now become a tactic of uncompromising and unprecedented obstruction.

It is imperative that the many vacancies on the federal courts be filled. Chairman Grassley’s discontinuing the blue slip tradition may be the only way to confirm well-qualified nominees to the federal bench.

Link

DEMs would attempt to use a charge of obstruction to impeach President Trump.

I don't think that would stand a chance unless the McCain / Collins / Murkowski / Flake / Graham etc crowd grew big enough to supplement the DEMs. Holding on to the House is vital too.

I hope we hurt the DEMs again in the 2018 elections. That would be the only thing to make them move back to reason. Maybe not even then.

Perhaps the Democrat Party has truly jumped the shark and moved out of the sphere of acceptance of most Americans.

The reason for the grand jury is so the democrats can get an indictment. Regardless of any evidence, or any trial, they will use that word to derail legislation and any other thing Trump tries to do until the 2020 election.

They, along with their republican can co-conspirators, want to crush any resistance to the uniparty so that they may keep this country on the path do socialism. Where only the elite have a say in how this country is run.

In the end, it will serve only to further damage the leftists, and to further strengthen support for the President.

quote:

Originally posted by sdy:
DEMs would attempt to use a charge of obstruction to impeach President Trump.

I don't think that would stand a chance unless the McCain / Collins / Murkowski / Flake / Graham etc crowd grew big enough to supplement the DEMs. Holding on to the House is vital too.

I hope we hurt the DEMs again in the 2018 elections. That would be the only thing to make them move back to reason. Maybe not even then.

Perhaps the Democrat Party has truly jumped the shark and moved out of the sphere of acceptance of most Americans.

He is safe as long as he has the votes. There are at least two very flexible concepts there, "obstruction" and "justice."

A swing of ~20 votes in the House could be dangerous. It takes 67 votes in the Senate, 48 Dems and 19 others.

This is why the constant criticism, bad mouthing, attacking present Senators has downsides. There are a handful of Never Trumpers as it is; a few who have felt the Trump sting can make "Hail to the Chief" Mike Pence's favorite song.

I am just as astonished and gratified by Trump's successes as anyone, but he has to be careful who he disses and how often.

Nothing will come of this, except that the leftists are making some of you guys nervous, which is precisely what they want.

Don't be worried. Instead, be resolute.

quote:

Originally posted by Gustofer:

quote:

Originally posted by Deqlyn:
I thought everyone hated pence and thought he was worse than trump. So I am not sure what they are trying to accomplish.

Sadly, many of them believe that if Trump is booted Hillary will be President.

I forget the celeb that tweeted it, but I think they said "get the military on their side, kick trump out, hold a special election, hillary is president"

this sounds very positive

https://www.wsj.com/articles/k...pointment-1501867375

In the Oval Office earlier this week, a small group of senior officials talked with President Donald Trump about plans to take on Beijing over intellectual-property theft. When a side debate broke out between two top aides, the new White House chief of staff ordered the pair out of the room.

Return, John Kelly told them, once your differences are resolved, according to a person familiar with the exchange.

The move kept the meeting on track. It also signaled to top staff that Mr. Kelly, a retired four-star general, planned to bring new order and discipline to a West Wing that has been riven for six months with division and disorganization.

The new rules extend to Mr. Trump’s family. Son-in-law Jared Kushner and daughter Ivanka Trump, who serve as official advisers in the White House and have their own staffs, now report to Mr. Kelly instead of directly to the president, as does chief strategist Steve Bannon.

quote:

Originally posted by parabellum:
Nothing will come of this, except that the leftists are making some of you guys nervous, which is precisely what they want.

Don't be worried. Instead, be resolute.

It's not making me nervous, or worried, even though that is what I do best.

I try to understand the rules and figure out what might lay ahead, and how.

One possibility is that at some point when the drama is peaking in the 24 hour a day reality soap opera formerly known as Washington, D.C., there will be a small group of well dressed men meeting for breakfast, maybe in a private dining room at the Mayflower. One group will have a list all the top GOP officials/key aides about to be indicted by the Special Prosecutor. The other group will show a list of Commie office holders/key aides and DNC big shots about to be indicted by the AG. After due consideration, it will be understood that no one will be indicted by anyone. Everyone will live happily ever after. The swamp will be lowered but not drained. America will be awfully good, but not entirely great.

Compromise! It's the American way!

Newsweeks new "get me looks" cover, Trump should charge them a fee LOL

"Zero pieces of major legislation" huh? I guess they don't count the VA legislation. And everything else is the fault of the American hating congress.

remember the post that DEMs would move on approving appointments if REPs didn't repeal obamacare ?

well,

https://www.theatlantic.com/po...ump-nominees/535884/

In the span of a few minutes on Thursday afternoon, the Senate confirmed dozens of the president’s stalled nominees to key posts in several departments. The departments of Justice, Homeland Security, Veterans Affairs, and Commerce got long-awaited deputy, under, and assistant secretaries. NATO, the United Kingdom, and a bevy of other countries received U.S. ambassadors. And three districts got federal prosecutors months after the president fired nearly all of the U.S. attorneys who served under Barack Obama.

The flurry of approvals marked the Senate’s biggest step yet toward filling out an administration that had sat historically empty nearly 200 days into Trump’s term. As of July 31, the Senate had confirmed nominees to just 51 out of the more than 1,100 positions that require the chamber’s consent, according to a tally kept by the Partnership for Public Service. Each of the previous four presidents had more than 200 nominees confirmed at around the same juncture.

For Democrats, the confirmations were an easy trade to make: They gave Trump his government and got to keep the Affordable Care Act in return. The party had been stalling nominees for months in protest of the GOP’s effort to repeal and replace Democrats’ prized health law without their input. Having eliminated the 60-vote threshold for executive nominees a few years ago, Democrats in the Senate minority could not block Trump’s picks outright. But under the direction of Minority Leader Charles Schumer, they used their power to draw out the process, forcing McConnell to take multiple days to advance a single nominee.

As the GOP’s health-care bill floundered, Schumer hinted that Democrats would relent on their obstruction once Republicans abandoned the budget-reconciliation process they were using to repeal Obamacare and return to what legislators refer to as “regular order.”

The deal came together so quickly on Thursday that aides could not immediately say exactly how many nominees were confirmed. Senator John Cornyn of Texas, the second-ranking Republican, said in a floor speech the total was “roughly 65” and that the Senate might confirm even more before the day was done. Because no roll-call votes are being taken, senators would not necessarily need to be present for more confirmations to occur as long as none planned to object.

None of the initial batch was particularly controversial, and Democrats all but acknowledged they were holding them up as a procedural protest, and not on substantive grounds

The Senate still has dozens more nominees to consider, including judicial vacancies and most federal-prosecutor posts. And Trump has hundreds more to nominate, including a pick to replace John Kelly as secretary of homeland security after the retired Marine general took over as White House chief of staff on Monday. According to the Partnership for Public Service, the president has nominated people to fewer than 300 positions—about one-quarter of those he needs to fill. But after the Senate’s busy Thursday, Trump’s administration is at least not quite so bare.

quote:

Originally posted by sdy:
remember the post that DEMs would move on approving appointments if REPs didn't repeal obamacare ?

well,

https://www.theatlantic.com/po...ump-nominees/535884/

In the span of a few minutes on Thursday afternoon, the Senate confirmed dozens of the president’s stalled nominees to key posts in several departments. The departments of Justice, Homeland Security, Veterans Affairs, and Commerce got long-awaited deputy, under, and assistant secretaries. NATO, the United Kingdom, and a bevy of other countries received U.S. ambassadors. And three districts got federal prosecutors months after the president fired nearly all of the U.S. attorneys who served under Barack Obama.

The flurry of approvals marked the Senate’s biggest step yet toward filling out an administration that had sat historically empty nearly 200 days into Trump’s term. As of July 31, the Senate had confirmed nominees to just 51 out of the more than 1,100 positions that require the chamber’s consent, according to a tally kept by the Partnership for Public Service. Each of the previous four presidents had more than 200 nominees confirmed at around the same juncture.

For Democrats, the confirmations were an easy trade to make: They gave Trump his government and got to keep the Affordable Care Act in return. The party had been stalling nominees for months in protest of the GOP’s effort to repeal and replace Democrats’ prized health law without their input. Having eliminated the 60-vote threshold for executive nominees a few years ago, Democrats in the Senate minority could not block Trump’s picks outright. But under the direction of Minority Leader Charles Schumer, they used their power to draw out the process, forcing McConnell to take multiple days to advance a single nominee.

As the GOP’s health-care bill floundered, Schumer hinted that Democrats would relent on their obstruction once Republicans abandoned the budget-reconciliation process they were using to repeal Obamacare and return to what legislators refer to as “regular order.”

The deal came together so quickly on Thursday that aides could not immediately say exactly how many nominees were confirmed. Senator John Cornyn of Texas, the second-ranking Republican, said in a floor speech the total was “roughly 65” and that the Senate might confirm even more before the day was done. Because no roll-call votes are being taken, senators would not necessarily need to be present for more confirmations to occur as long as none planned to object.

None of the initial batch was particularly controversial, and Democrats all but acknowledged they were holding them up as a procedural protest, and not on substantive grounds

The Senate still has dozens more nominees to consider, including judicial vacancies and most federal-prosecutor posts. And Trump has hundreds more to nominate, including a pick to replace John Kelly as secretary of homeland security after the retired Marine general took over as White House chief of staff on Monday. According to the Partnership for Public Service, the president has nominated people to fewer than 300 positions—about one-quarter of those he needs to fill. But after the Senate’s busy Thursday, Trump’s administration is at least not quite so bare.

That's the good news. The Republicans also threw in a road block.


The bad news means Trump will have to wait until September if he plans to replace Attorney General Jeff Sessions or special counsel Robert Mueller.

That’s because the Senate scheduled nine “pro forma” sessions, or short meetings, every three business days during its recess, the Hill reported.

The move is designed to keep the Senate technically open for business, so any new Trump personnel moves would have to get the Senate’s OK.


http://www.foxnews.com/politic...ation-staffs-up.html

For each document provided under subpoena to the Grand Jury, will the Administration require a signature acknowledging the penalty for unauthorized disclosure?

I don't think anything will come from this Grand Jury, but I do believe it will be used as a source for leaking information to hurt the Presidency.

Good News...Chief of Staff John Kelly...

Aug. 04, 2017 - 7:18 - Sebastian Gorka, deputy assistant to President Trump, on Chief of Staff John Kelly’s new rules for White House staffers, the July jobs report and the White House leaks.

http://video.foxbusiness.com/v...0001/?#sp=show-clips

Trump needs to take this opportunity, while the Senate is on vacation, to finish filling all of his positions with recess appointments.

quote:

Originally posted by kimber1911:
I don't think anything will come from this Grand Jury, but I do believe it will be used as a source for leaking information to hurt the Presidency.

Astute. I think you nailed this.