http://www.washingtonexaminer....sion/article/2642125

Nearly a year into the Trump presidency, top aides and allies feel good about their direction and achievements, crediting the president’s “stamina” and “100 percent energy” to fight past critics, especially the media

“If media coverage was fair, unbiased, down the the middle, there would be 100 stories about the unstoppable momentum and energy of the Oval Office,” said senior adviser Stephen Miller.

Allies have felt the need to push back on stories suggesting that Trump is a part-time president, even though the media has documented his 6 a.m. tweets and 1 a.m. phone calls to aides.

White House chief of staff John Kelly expressed surprise that Trump wanted to talk about the Asia trip immediately after getting home. “After a 12-day trip to Asia, I encouraged the president to take a day off and recover. The president wouldn’t hear of it. He insisted he wanted to report back to the American people on his trip to Asia,” he said.

“Despite a huge time change and demanding schedule, the president spent the day working on and delivering a speech,” Kelly added.

It’s been noticed on Capitol Hill, especially among the lawmakers Trump calls several times a day.

Maine Sen. Susan Collins on Thursday said that she has held several meetings with the president to discuss the ongoing tax reform debate and added that he has adopted some of her ideas. Speaking at a media breakfast hosted by the Christian Science Monitor, she added that the process to win support for the tax reform bill has been much different — and better -- than the bid to repeal Obamacare. "So much more outreach. It's just night and day," Collins said.

Trump, said Sergio Gor, spokesman for Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul, “is one of the most energetic and engaging individuals in Washington. Believe me, there are plenty of low energy elected officials, President Trump is not one of them.”

“I’ve never seen anybody work harder, put effort into anything in my entire life,” Miller told Secrets, checking off achievements including slashing regulations, strangling ISIS, braking illegal immigration and working toward an historic win on tax reform and job creation.

Miller said the president has kept up the campaign pace inside the White House.

“If you get a call from the president it is not at all unusual that you get the call before you’ve even gotten up for the day. And you could be getting a call from him long after you’ve finished your work for the night. So he’s the first one working in the morning and the last one in the evening,” Miller said.

Papers dropped off at the White House residence at night, he added, are often delivered back the next morning with notes and comments written in by the president.

“His whole ethos is about success is just outworking your opponents and your opposition, and that was always something that is part of the Donald Trump manta, the Donald Trump ethos, part of the whole American success story,” he said.

And it’s impacted staff.

Cabinet secretaries say they feel compelled to work overtime pushing the president’s agenda, be it tax reform or cutting regulations.

“They will be held accountable if they don’t deliver,” said Miller, adding, “That’s a great example of how that energy and stamina at the top filters all the way down through and shakes the rust off of Washington and turns this White House into a lean, highly motivated machine of getting things done.”

“Unfortunately, we live in the era of hyper advocacy journalism and a lot of outlets that have branded themselves for a very long time as being impartial are in fact the worst offenders in the field of hyper advocacy journalism . And that’s just the plain truth,” Miller said.

‘ The tone of sarcasm or even the tone of derision, and you just think to yourself how out of touch the group of people that talk about these issues are from the people who are most affected by them ”

Report: Tillerson May Be Out As Secretary Of State, Replaced By CIA Director Pompeo

According to The New York Times, senior Trump administration officials say that Secretary of State Rex Tillerson will be replaced by CIA Director Mike Pompeo in the very near future.

The ostensible plan for the White House would be to install Pompeo as Secretary of State and replace him at the CIA with Alabama Sen. Tom Cotton. The officials said Cotton has intimated that he would accept the job if offered. The Times writes that General John F. Kelly, the White House chief of staff, created the agenda and discussed it with other officials.

The Times theorizes that because of Trump’s reluctance to fire people, the leak of Tillerson’s ouster is meant to catalyze him into leaving himself. Trump and Tillerson have had some personal contretemps; Tillerson reportedly called Trump a “moron,” while Trump slammed Tillerson for “wasting his time” when Tillerson attempted a dialogue with North Korea.

But the rift goes deeper than that; there are actual policy differences between the two men. As CNN reported in October, Tillerson thought the problem with the JCPOA (the Iran nuclear deal) was not the JCPOA, but the legislation forcing the president to certify it every 90 days, rather than to “put the nuclear deal in the corner,” according to one senior administration official. Trump has considered scrapping the deal altogether.

In October, Tillerson called a press conference to insist that he supported Trump, but did not deny that he had privately called him a “moron.” The New York Times reported, “Although he insisted he had never considered resigning, several people close to Mr. Tillerson said he has had to be talked out of drafting a letter of resignation on more than one occasion by his closest allies.”

If Cotton moves over to the CIA, Gov. Asa Hutchinson, a Republican, would appoint a replacement who would serve until the 2018 election. Caroline Rabbitt Tabler, a spokeswoman for Mr. Cotton, only said, “Sen. Cotton’s focus is on serving Arkansans in the Senate.”

Tillerson has done yeoman work in revamping and reducing the notoriously difficult and bloated State Department; he offered a $25,000 buyout to cajole roughly 2,000 career diplomats and civil servants to leave by October 2018.

http://www.dailywire.com/news/...eplaced-hank-berrien

quote:

Trump’s reluctance to fire people

Is that a real thing?

quote:

As CNN reported in October, Tillerson thought the problem with the JCPOA (the Iran nuclear deal) was not the JCPOA, but the legislation forcing the president to certify it every 90 days,

....did they just quote 'CNN'???

President Trump makes the Energizer Bunny look like a sluggard.

quote:

Originally posted by sdy:
John McCain:

After careful consideration, I have decided to support the Senate #TaxReform bill . Though not perfect, this bill will deliver much-needed reform to our tax code, grow the economy & provide long overdue tax relief for American families

But at least he pointed out that it wasn't perfect, so I don't feel let down.

Too little too late for general amnesty but thanks for showing up my tired friend.

quote:

Originally posted by chellim1:


In October, Tillerson called a press conference to insist that he supported Trump, but did not deny that he had privately called him a “moron.”

Fake news alert!


"This is what I don't understand about Washington. I'm not from this place, but the places I come from, we don't deal with that petty nonsense," Tillerson replied. "It is intended to do nothing but divide people. And I'm just not going to be part of this effort to divide this administration."

State Department press officer NAUERT: “The secretary does not use that type of language. the secretary did not use that type of language to speak about the president of the United States. He doesn't use that language to speak about anyone.”

Tillerson has been waiting for the 12/mo deadline to pass, so he will not pay cap-gains tax on divesting his XOM. This has been known for a while. He is gone. Back to the ranch.

Scott Pruitt is doing his part to MAGA. Another great Trump pick!

http://www.wdrb.com/story/3696...ce-the-agencys-power

New EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt aims to reduce the agency's power

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- The man in charge of protecting the nation's environment said Thursday the war on coal is over.

WDRB News spoke one-on-one with the new EPA administrator Scott Pruitt, who is generating controversy by rolling back regulations put in place by the agency under President Obama. Among them is the Clean Power Plan, which requires power plants to reduce emissions by cutting back the burning of coal.

“Those are decisions that should be made by utility companies, co-ops, all across the country,” Pruitt said. “What's wrong is for the EPA to engage in a process to pick winners and losers in that mix. What's right is for us to provide regulatory certainty, to do our job under the statutes and then let those decisions be made in the commonwealth of Kentucky and states across the country.”

President Donald Trump claimed cutting regulations will bring back the coal mining industry, and Pruitt said coal jobs have increased 20 percent this year.

“What's really encouraging is that there are people wanting to invest again with respect to how we generate electricity and those coal positions,” Pruitt said. “So we're doing our part to make sure that we regulate consistent with our authority, and we're letting the markets make the decisions that they will make, and I think that's what we should be about.”

Another rule Pruitt is targeting is the 2015 Waters of the United States (WOTUS) regulation that gave the federal government authority over small waterways.

Pruitt said repealing WOTUS would be good for Kentucky farmers.

“They really didn't know how to use their own land, and so we're getting rid of that deficient rule from 2015, and we're providing clarity going forward," he said. "I think that's something that farmers and ranchers across Kentucky need and want, because they want to make sure that, as they use their land, they're not facing potential fines and penalties in the future by not getting permit from the EPA.”

Pruitt, who is a native of Danville, Kentucky, said his aim is not to dismantle the EPA but to scale back what he believes is the agency’s over-reach.

Pruitt was in Louisville to address the Kentucky Farm Bureau Convention.

Are they going to pass tax reform?

quote:

Originally posted by Pipe Smoker:
President Trump makes the Energizer Bunny look like a sluggard.

https://www.cnbc.com/2017/12/0...n-at-1030-am-et.html

Michael Flynn is expected to plead guilty for lying to the FBI on Friday morning.

A plea hearing has been scheduled for 10:30 a.m. in Washington D.C. federal court, according to Special Counsel Robert Mueller office.

Flynn is expected to plead guilty to lying to the FBI.

****************

am I missing something ? okay, lying to FBI is bad. But "so what" about the 2 charges ?

Why did Flynn bother to lie?

************

adding: some reports are that this is very light "treatment" for Flynn, so did Flynn agree to testify to something involving others ?

more adding:

ABC reports that Michael Flynn promised "full cooperation to the Mueller team" and is prepared to testify that as a candidate, Donald Trump "directed him to make contact with the Russians."

so, once again, so what ?

Flynn did plead guilty in court this morning

where is Muellar going ? Is he going to roll this back to claiming obstruction of justice because of discussions between President Trump and Comey over Flynn ?

This message has been edited. Last edited by: sdy,

MSNBC is already handicapping the “Pence Transition Team”.

It is not illegal for a president elect to direct a staff member to contact a foreign nation.

This is all optics and fear mongering.
Mueller does not have the goods.

They won't get Trump and it is my understanding that a sitting president cannot be indicted until he leaves office.

Besides, Mueller is going to have his own legal issues once an investigation of Uranium One gets rolling.
That's going to be the ace in hole Trump holds.

quote:

Originally posted by Spokane228:
MSNBC is already handicapping the “Pence Transition Team”.

Pence would drive the same agenda minus the entertaining tweets. The commies need to be careful what they wish for.

Kushner might be leaving too. I won't be shedding tears if that happens.

"Secretary of State Rex Tillerson's expected exit from the Trump administration is one of many staff changes likely as President Donald Trump nears the end of his first year in office, with sources saying top economic adviser Gary Cohn and son-in-law Jared Kushner could be among those who depart.

Cohn, whose relationship with Trump became tense earlier this year, has considered leaving once the Republican effort to overhaul the U.S. tax system is completed in Congress, according to the sources with ties to the White House who spoke on condition of anonymity.

Kushner, who has seen his influence in the White House shrink, may receive a 'face-saving' exit as he deals with legal challenges related to a special counsel's investigation of Trump's 2016 presidential campaign's potential ties to Russia, one of the sources said…"

www.dailymail.co.uk/news/artic...s-close-sources.html

The allegation (and I'm emphasizing that it is an allegation), is that Trump directed Flynn to contact and coordinate with the Russians DURING the election.

And the issue isn't so much direct legality. If this plays out it would be as an impeachment. That means the result will be strictly political. Legal issues are almost beside the point. The question is would these charges be enough to convince enough Republicans that Trump is a liability to them, to side with what we know will be all the Democrats in getting rid of him.

quote:

Originally posted by lbj:
It is not illegal for a president elect to direct a staff member to contact a foreign nation.

This is all optics and fear mongering.
Mueller does not have the goods.

They won't get Trump and it is my understanding that a sitting president cannot be indicted until he leaves office.

Besides, Mueller is going to have his own legal issues once an investigation of Uranium One gets rolling.
That's going to be the ace in hole Trump holds.

BBMW, I think your assessment above is correct.

Flynn's plea agreement is here:

https://www.scribd.com/documen...ullscreen&from_embed

10 pages long, but worth a read

under the guidelines in the agreement, the sentence would be zero to 6 months imprisonment and a fine from $500 to $9500.

(The judge does not have to abide by the guidelines)

at this point it appears they gave Flynn quite a deal

quote:

It is not illegal for a president elect to direct a staff member to contact a foreign nation.

It happens every single day. At times on an hourly basis, or less.

What most don't seem to understand (or care to understand) is that the authority granted to a Special Counsel always includes at the end, "and anything else that might show up on the radar screen". Meaning, authorities to investigate and prosecute well-defined allegations and... illegal dumping by the next-door neighbor's dog should such activity be discovered.

Until now, we see a lot of illegal dumping---meaning, "we have to justify to the American people all these expenditures by our office".

ETA: By now it is clear, Flynn has the credibility of a dung beetle. Straightforward, sideways, wherever it leads.