We used to really enjoy going to the banquets during the Pete Carroll years. Do they still have them?

Trump descends into visible confusion on stage during rally

In his latest gaffe-laden speech, the disgraced ex-president served up a self-own for the ages, warning that "cognitively impaired" President Joe Biden could lead the country into "World War TWO" if he wins re-election. "Just think of it. We would be in World War TWO very quickly if we’re going to be relying on this man, and far more devastating than any war," Trump said out loud with his own mouth into a microphone in front of people and rolling cameras.

Directly after rewriting perhaps the largest chapter in world history from the last 100 years, Trump then appeared to suggest he was polling far better than Barack Obama — who is definitely not running for a third term, because, well you know, he legally cannot do so — in his quest to retake the White House next year. A very stable and in no way cognitively impaired genius!

LOL!!!

Trump turns to Putin for validation (yes, again)​

First, Donald Trump celebrated Vladimir Putin's embrace of his election messaging. Now the two have linked arms on Trump's rhetoric about Ukraine, too.


Sept. 18, 2023, 7:41 AM CDT
By Steve Benen

Given the circumstances, it’s tempting to think Donald Trump would at least try to maintain some rhetorical distance from Russia’s Vladimir Putin. After all, the former American president has been dogged by serious allegations for many years about his benefactor in Moscow, including the fact that the Republican sought, received, benefited from, and lied about Russian assistance that helped elevate him to the White House.

And yet, for reasons he hasn’t explained, Trump just can’t seem to help himself.

Last week, for example, the former American president celebrated the fact that Putin was echoing his talking points about the 2024 election and Trump’s multiple criminal indictments. As we discussed soon after, given the atrocities and alleged war crimes Russia is committing in Ukraine, the Republican might’ve even considered a stay-off-my-side posture. But Trump instead thought the smart move would be to highlight Putin’s condemnations of the United States and willingness to endorse his conspiratorial nonsense.

As part of Trump’s “Meet the Press” interview with NBC News’ Kristen Welker, Trump went even further down the same road.

Former President Donald Trump said Thursday that he appreciated recent praise from Russian leader Vladimir Putin. In an exclusive interview with NBC “Meet the Press” moderator Kristen Welker, Trump said it meant “what I’m saying is right,” referring to his positions on the war in Ukraine.

Click to expand...

In case anyone’s forgotten, in February 2022, as Putin faced international condemnations, the former American president offered rather enthusiastic praise for the Russian leader, touting Putin’s aggressive moves against Ukraine as “genius” and “very savvy.”

In the months that followed, Trump repeatedly claimed he had a secret plan to negotiate a peace deal between Russia and Ukraine “within 24 hours,” going so far as to boast that it’d be “easy” to end the crisis.

It was against this backdrop that the former president told Welker that he still won’t divulge the details of his secret plan — which almost certainly does not exist in reality — except to say that there are “certain things” he would tell Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

Asked if he would push for a deal that allowed Putin to keep Ukrainian territory, Trump replied, “No, no, no, no.” (Trump said largely the opposite in March.)

Russia’s authoritarian leader recently said, “We surely hear that Mr. Trump says he will resolve all burning issues within several days, including the Ukrainian crisis. We cannot help but feel happy about it.” Evidently, Trump was delighted by the comments.

“Well, I like that he said that,” he said on “Meet the Press,” adding, “Because that means what I’m saying is right.”
No, actually it doesn’t. Putin’s validation of Trump’s absurd boasts does not mean Trump is “right”; what it means is that he and his Russian ally have linked arms — yet again. To see an endorsement from the Kremlin as evidence of merit is to abandon any sense of propriety.

“If you are on the same side as Putin, you might want to rethink your position,” former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie said last week. He wasn’t referring to U.S. policy in Ukraine, but it’s an observation with broad applicability.

The latest on a lot of top names:

Oil prices in the US jumped back above $90 a barrel for the first time since November 2022, sending worrying signals to The Fed and The White House.

The surge in WTI has dragged gasoline prices at the pump dramatically higher and worse still, given the lag in the supply chain, pump prices look set to go higher...

US businessman is wannabe "warlord" of secretive far-right men’s network

The founder and sponsor of a far-right network of secretive, men-only, invitation-only fraternal lodges in the US is a former industrialist who has frequently speculated about his future as a warlord after the collapse of America, a new investigation has found. Federal and state tax and company filings show that the Society for American Civic Renewal (SACR) and its creator, Charles Haywood, also have financial ties to the hardcore pro-Trump Claremont Institute think tank.

It is now abundantly clear as bad as the American conservative movement is in public, it's a thousand times worse behind closed doors.

In Rosh Hashanah message, Trump says US Jews voted "to destroy America and Israel"

The disgraced ex-president didn't even bother to hide his naked white supremacy in a High Holy Days message, accusing American Jews who support President Biden — meaning the overwhelming majority of them — of wanting to "destroy the country." The message was accompanied by a crude flyer that slammed liberal Jews for being "sheep" and believing "false narratives." It cannot be understated how dangerous this kind of rhetoric can be, especially in a time when American neo-Nazis openly march in the streets and commit anti-Semitic massacres inspired by Trump's rhetoric.

‘He identified himself as a member of my security detail,’ the Democratic candidate wrote about the armed man​

Kelly Rissman
Saturday 16 September 2023 21:50

Robert F Kennedy Jr grumbled that the White House hasn’t granted him Secret Service protection after a heavily-armed man was arrested while posing as a member of his security detail.

Mr Kennedy recalled the incident on X, writing on Saturday: “I’m very grateful that alert and fast-acting protectors from Gavin de Becker and Associates (GDBA) spotted and detained an armed man who attempted to approach me at my Hispanic Heritage speech at the Wilshire Ebell Theatre in Los Angeles tonight.”

He claimed the man was wearing “two shoulder holsters with loaded pistols and spare ammunition magazines” and was carrying a US Marshal badge on a lanyard and belt clip federal ID.

“He identified himself as a member of my security detail,” Mr Kennedy wrote, adding that his team isolated and detained the man until the Los Angeles Police Department arrived.

He added, “I’m still entertaining a hope that President Biden will allow me Secret Service protection. I am the first presidential candidate in history to whom the White House has denied a request for protection.”

The Secret Service website outlines who they are able to protect, which includes, “major presidential and vice presidential candidates, and their spouses within 120 days of a general presidential election.” Saturday marked 415 days until the general election in 2024.

The Daily Beast spoke to the LAPD, and identified the armed man as a “Trump-loving internet conspiracy theorist” named Adrian Paul Aispuro. The police reportedly arrested the 44-year-old on Friday and are holding him on federal charges — and $35,000 bail.

"If I don’t make it back, call the f***ing president, your commander in chief, Donald J. Trump.”

A TikTok video’s caption includes Mr Aispuro’s full name. The video captures a man with a pistol and a badge hanging from his hips. He is wearing the same Emergency Medical Service shirt and is boasting the same tattoos and facial hair as in Mr Kennedy’s photo, while saying nonsensical statements.

The outlet confirmed with Mr Aispuro’s brother that he was being held in custody. Raymond Aispuro called Mr Kennedy’s claim “bulls***.”

He said that his brother is an unemployed emergency medical technician. Since he doesn’t have a car, he asked his brother for a ride to a one-time security job. This description also aligns with what Mr Kennedy wrote — that the man had “identified himself as a member of my security detail.”

“He told me that he was in communication with someone about a gig, like a private contract gig, a one-time deal, and he had to go that day to work it,” Raymond Aispuro said. “I don’t know who he talks to or what, I just get whatever vague information he gives me.”

“I really do think this is a situation where he got wrong information or he trusted someone he shouldn’t have,” he added, in defence of his brother.

According to The Daily Beast, Raymond Aispuro called his brother a “loner” who spends a lot of time watching online videos about aliens. Although the brothers rarely discuss politics, he said, the arrested Aispuro is a strong Trump supporter and acknowledged that neither of them have taken the Covid-19 vaccine.

RELATED​

They done made it PERSONAL…..

ARSB touchdown! First NFL TD of the season. Fight on!

Prosecutors Slam Trump’s Demand for D.C. Judge’s Recusal​

CHERRY-PICKED

Isabella Ramirez​

Breaking News Intern
Published Sep. 15, 2023 11:58AM EDT

Scott Olson/Getty Images​

Special counsel Jack Smith’s office filed a 20-page motion Thursday strongly opposing former President Donald Trump’s attempts to have a U.S. District judge recuse herself from his federal election interference case.

While Trump has claimed Judge Tanya Chutkan’s previous harsh statements about Jan. 6 rioters in other D.C. cases proves bias against him, prosecutors said there was absolutely “no valid basis” to have Chutkan disqualify herself. Instead, prosecutors said Trump “cherry-picks” from Chutkan’s quotes and failed to show “the deep-seated antagonism required for recusal.” Trump had cited two sentencing hearings for Capitol rioters in which the defendants had tried to argue they were just following Trump’s lead, which led Chutkan to allude to the ex-president not yet being held accountable.

However, prosecutors said Chutkun never said Trump was was “legally or morally culpable” for Jan. 6 or that he “deserved punishment.” They added, “Tellingly, [Trump] does not cite a single case in which recusal has been warranted on remotely similar facts.”

This is pretty extensive, hope you enjoy. I'll have the defense done Monday.

Devon Archer’s Full Biden Story​

VP Biden mixed the family business with his Ukraine diplomacy.​

The WSJ Editorial Board

Mr. Archer is a former business partner of Hunter Biden and served with him on the board of Ukrainian energy giant Burisma. Mr. Archer described the value-added that Hunter brought to the business as the “brand,” which was the Biden name. When Hunter put his father on speakerphone with his business clients, “there was [a] brand being delivered.”

He further clarified that it was Joe Biden “that brought the most value to the brand.” In other words, Hunter was selling his father’s power in Washington.

That is what Burisma was paying for, and it looks like it got its money’s worth. “Burisma would have gone out of business if it didn’t have the brand attached to it,” Mr. Archer said.​

Joe Biden famously bragged of his role in using $1 billion in U.S. aid to get Ukrainian prosecutor Viktor Shokin fired during his December 2015 visit to Kyiv. Mr. Archer says Mr. Shokin, who was investigating Burisma, was not “specifically on my radar,” and that he was spun a tale how of Mr. Shokin was actually “good for Burisma.” But he also said he wasn’t on the phone with Hunter, Burisma owner Mykola Zlochevsky and Burisma exec Vadym Pozharski when they “called D.C.” after a meeting in Dubai to discuss how Washington might alleviate the pressure on them.

All of this underscores Joe Biden’s horrendous judgment in blending his son’s business with his duties as Vice President. Mr. Biden was the Obama Administration’s point man for Ukraine, which was fighting Russia’s first invasion, and he can’t claim ignorance about his son’s dealings.

Amos Hochstein, a senior energy official in the Obama Administration, warned the Vice President in 2015 that Russia-backed media were using Hunter’s presence on the Burisma board to “undermine” the U.S. anti-corruption message. The following year a top diplomat in Kyiv, George Kent, was even more blunt in a message to State.

“Ukrainians,” Mr. Kent said, “heard one message from us and then saw another set of behavior, with the family association with a known corrupt figure whose company was known for not playing by the rules in the oil/gas sector.”

Mr. Archer also explained how Hunter received $142,300 from Kazakh oligarch Kenes Rakishevto buy an “expensive car”—either a Fisker or a Porsche. Mr. Rakishev attended a spring 2014 business dinner at Washington’s Cafe Milano with the Vice President and his son. Also in attendance was Elena Baturina, the wife of Moscow’s mayor, who wired $3.5 million to a company linked to Mr. Archer. The House Committee says it will provide more details when it releases its next tranche of related financial documents.


When the public first learned of Hunter’s sleazy deals, Joe Biden denied ever discussing his son’s business with him. But Mr. Archer has also released a letter from Mr. Biden—on official vice presidential stationery—saying how “happy” he was that Mr. Archer was in business with his son. The letter was written right after a lunch he and Mr. Archer attended with visiting Chinese President Hu Jintao.

***​

It’s one thing to develop relationships in office that turn into business opportunities later, the way Jared Kushner, Donald Trump’s son-in-law, did in the Middle East. It’s another to leverage the office while in office to promote the family business. As Mr. Archer said, the advantage of the Biden brand is that legally “people would be intimidated to mess with them.”

Whether or not Joe Biden took a dime from these dealings, this is a form of political corruption. Covered up by the press in 2020, it will be an issue in 2024. Democrats should worry that as more facts emerge about the Biden mix of politics and business, it could help Mr. Trump neutralize his many legal vulnerabilities.​

College football Power Rankings: Did Florida State fall after close call?

ESPN writers rank the best teams in college football after Week 3 of the 2023 season.

www.espn.com

​

No. 1 Georgia Bulldogs (3-0)​

The Bulldogs' first real test of the season (sorry UT Martin and Ball State, but it's true) was a little dicey. South Carolina jumped out to a lead thanks to the strong play of Spencer Rattler, throwing and running the football. And the Georgia offense couldn't get anything going in the passing or the running game. Then came the second half. It was as if Kirby Smart's squad remembered they're the defending national champions. Suddenly the defense was stifling, and the offense was owning the line of scrimmage. Twenty-one unanswered points later and Georgia cruised to victory. Quarterback Carson Beck was once again solid, but you have to wonder if he'll have a breakout game at some point, whether it's at home against UAB next week or the week after when the Bulldogs go on the road for the first time this season at Auburn. -- Alex Scarborough

Up next: vs. UAB (7:30 p.m. ET, ESPN2)

---

No. 2 Michigan Wolverines (3-0)​

The team's third and final game without coach Jim Harbaugh on the sideline was messier than the others. Quarterback J.J. McCarthy, who had not thrown an interception in the first two contests and had just three outside of last season's CFP loss to TCU, was picked off three times by Bowling Green. McCarthy finished with only 143 passing yards. Michigan committed four turnovers and converted only 1 of 5 third-down chances. The Wolverines will need to be sharper against an improved Rutgers team next week. Their defense remained stellar, holding Bowling Green to 205 yards and collecting a season-best three takeaways, three sacks and 10 tackles for loss. Defensive tackle Kris Jenkins had an interception and a tackle for loss, and cornerback Mike Sainristil had a sack and two tackles for loss as Michigan did not allow a touchdown. -- Adam Rittenberg

Up next: vs. Rutgers (noon ET, Big Ten Network)

---

No. 3 Florida State Seminoles (3-0)​

A win is a win, but the truth is the Seminoles are lucky to have left Boston College with a victory. Boston College outplayed Florida State for wide stretches -- controlling the ball and the clock on offense, while quarterback Thomas Castellanos gave the FSU defense fits. Though Florida State built a 31-10 lead in the third quarter, two costly fumbles -- including a scoop and score, kept the Eagles in the game until the final minute. BC ended up outgaining Florida State 457 to 340 in yards in the 31-29 loss. The Seminoles dropped a spot in the power rankings. There will be plenty for the Seminoles to clean up before a huge ACC showdown next week at Clemson. -- Andrea Adelson

Up next: at Clemson (noon ET, ABC)

---

No. 4 USC Trojans (3-0)​

Having played in Week 0, the Trojans got an early bye week before they head to Arizona State for their first road game of the season and the start of the true test of their schedule. The Sun Devils could present a trap game of sorts for USC, but even if Lincoln Riley's team steps over ASU with ease, what awaits them is a daunting set of matchups against Colorado, Utah, Notre Dame, Washington and Oregon. The first three games of the season showed USC has one of the best offenses in the nation and improved defense. The rest of the season will show if that will be enough to take them to the playoff and beyond. -- Paolo Uggetti

Up next: at Arizona State (9:30 p.m. ET)

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No. 5 Texas Longhorns (3-0)​

Texas has a history of showing up for big games, then suffering letdowns. When Wyoming tied the Longhorns after a 17-play, 10-minute field goal drive in the third quarter, it looked like another lull was well underway. Instead, Texas responded brilliantly. Xavier Worthy scored on a 44-yard catch-and-run, kick-starting a 21-0 run over four minutes early in the fourth quarter, and the Horns cruised 31-10. Quinn Ewers had a quiet day (11-for-21 for 131 yards and two scores), but Jonathon Brooks rushed for 164 yards on 21 carries, and despite a major time-of-possession disadvantage -- Wyoming had the ball for 38:47 -- this one ended up comfortable. It's on to Big 12 play for the Horns. -- Bill Connelly

Up next: at Baylor (7:30 p.m. ET, ABC)

---

No. 6 Ohio State Buckeyes (3-0)​

The Buckeyes are still a bit of a mystery as they gear up for a Week 4 clash at Notre Dame, but they should feel better about their offense and quarterback Kyle McCord after a 63-point performance against Western Kentucky. McCord, officially named the starter on Tuesday, completed 19 of 23 pass attempts for 318 yards and three touchdowns with no interceptions, finding Marvin Harrison Jr. for a 75-yard score. Ohio State's 35-point second quarter marked its highest since 2019 and its second-highest in the past 20 seasons. "We needed to take the next step," coach Ryan Day said of his offense. The defense overcame a leaky first half to shut out Austin Reed and Western Kentucky in the final 30 minutes and hold the Hilltoppers to 284 total yards. Linebackers Tommy Eichenberg and Steele Chambers led the defense, but Ohio State still needs much more from a talent-stocked line going forward, beginning next week against Sam Hartman and the Irish. -- Rittenberg

Up next: at Notre Dame (7:30 p.m. ET, NBC)

​

But SC has the #1 defense...hahaha

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Lol.

All the Biggest Revelations From Sen. Mitt Romney’s New Book Extract​

The Utah senator, who announced his retirement this week, has spent two years working with a biographer to unravel exactly how he became “the turd in the punch bowl” of the GOP.

AJ McDougall​

Breaking News Reporter
Updated Sep. 13, 2023 7:41PM EDT / Published Sep. 13, 2023 7:23PM EDT

​

Sen. Mitt Romney (R-UT) began telling his inner circle that he was weighing retirement earlier this year. On Wednesday, he told the rest of the world, saying he would not run for re-election and calling for both Joe Biden and Donald Trump to make way for a “new generation of leaders.”

Hours after Romney’s announcement, The Atlantic dropped a bombshell of its own: One of the magazine’s journalists, McKay Coppins, has been working with the Utah senator to chronicle his political life for the last two years. Romney gave Coppins superlative access to both his public and private life, turning over hundreds of pages’ worth of emails, texts, and personal journals. In one case, Romney literally took a crowbar to a locked filing cabinet to get at records for the reporter’s use.

The result is his forthcoming biography, Romney: A Reckoning, a portion of which was published in The Atlantic on Wednesday afternoon. The nearly 10,000-word extract reveals how Romney’s high hopes for his time in the Senate turned into disillusionment and eventual ostracizing from his own party.

It also paints a portrait of a deeply isolated, existentially drained lawmaker who watched with disgust as his colleagues groveled to Trump’s face while laughing behind his back—before Jan. 6, 2021 changed everything.

And, as it turns out, Romney is as good at brutally calling out two-faced legislators as he is at bearing witness. Here are all the most revelatory—and juiciest—tidbits from the excerpted story of a man who, in his own estimation, became “the turd in the punchbowl” of the Republican Party.

‘Almost without exception,’ Senate Republicans rolled their eyes at Trump ahead of the 2020 election​

So many Republican senators privately expressed their support for Romney’s public criticism of Trump that the Utahn began keeping count, telling staffers he’d had more than a dozen nearly identical exchanges. He recalled one senior lawmaker complaining to him: “[Trump] has none of the qualities you would want in a president, and all of the qualities you wouldn’t

“Almost without exception,” Romney told Coppins, “they shared my view of the president.”

In March 2019, Trump descended on the GOP senators’ weekly caucus lunch to wax lyrical about his recent victories.
The senators broke into “a standing ovation fit for a conquering hero,” Coppins writes, before settling in to listen politely as the then-president jabbered almost incoherently. The minute Trump left the room, according to Romney, the entire caucus burst into laughter.

That includes Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell​

Some of Romney’s most withering observations in the extract are reserved for Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY), who served as Senate Majority Leader until 2021. The McConnell that Romney saw behind the scenes was very different from the one who played Trump’s toady in public. In private conversations, McConnell called Trump an “idiot” and told Romney he was “lucky” for being able “say the things that we all think” about him. (A McConnell spokesperson disputed this.)

McConnell’s alleged distaste for Trump came out in full force during the first impeachment trial. After the trial’s impeachment managers had finished their presentation, Romney walked past McConnell. “They nailed him,” McConnell remarked, according to Romney.

Romney, taken aback, said that Trump’s team could spin his misconduct to make it appear as though he was just investigating the Biden family’s corruption.

“If you believe that,” McConnell reportedly replied, “I’ve got a bridge I can sell you.” The Senate leader told Coppins that he did not recall this exchange, and it did not match his thinking at the time.

Romney messaged McConnell to warn him about the Jan. 6 attacks. McConnell didn’t reply​

On Jan. 2, 2021, Romney got a heads-up from another senator who’d spoken to a senior Pentagon official, warning him about extremist threats that law enforcement had been tracking in connection to protests planned for Jan. 6.

Romney passed on the concerns to McConnell, texting him, “There are calls to burn down your home, Mitch; to smuggle guns into DC, and to storm the Capitol. I hope that sufficient security plans are in place, but I am concerned that the instigator—the President—is the one who commands the reinforcements the DC and Capitol police might require.”

McConnell never wrote back, according to Coppins.

Romney really, really hates Josh Hawley and J.D. Vance​

Over his four years in the Senate, Romney accrued a special kind of loathing for Sen. Josh Hawley (R-MO) and Sen. J.D. Vance (R-OH). During the Capitol riots, while huddled in the Senate chamber with his colleagues, Romney recalled whirling on Hawley to yell at him that this was his fault.

“They know better!” he told Coppins of his far-right colleagues. Granting that Hawley was “one of the smartest people in the Senate, if not the smartest,” Romney speculated that the Missouri lawmaker had made “a calculation” that ended up putting “politics above the interests of liberal democracy and the Constitution.”

Having lost the stomach for collaborating with his more Machiavellian counterparts, Romney at one point over the last two years outright told Coppins that he doubted he would ever “work with Josh Hawley on anything.”

Last year, Vance similarly stoked Romney’s ire. Initially a fan of Vance’s memoir Hillbilly Elegy, Romney turned on Vance after his “MAGA makeover,” as Coppins put it. Watching Vance rail against Biden and the woke left on the campaign trail, Romney said, he wanted to grab the younger man and scream in his face that debasing himself like this wasn’t worth it.

“It’s not like you’re going to be famous and powerful because you became a United States senator,” Romney said. “It’s like, really? You sell yourself so cheap?”

Romney approached Joe Manchin about forming a new party​

In April 2023, Romney went to Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV), one of his few allies, with a pitch to form a more centrist party. He didn’t have a name yet, but he did have a slogan: “Stop the stupid.” His idea wasn’t to run a candidate themselves, but to endorse the least objectionable of the candidates already shooting for the White House.

“We’d say, ‘This party’s going to endorse whichever party’s nominee isn’t stupid,’ ” Romney told Coppins.

It was not immediately clear from the extract how far they got; Coppins writes that the last time he spoke to the Utah senator about the idea, he was “still in the brainstorming stage.”

​

Big win for FLA and esp. Billy Napier….

Democrats signal support to auto workers after Biden says carmakers must improve offers

President Biden came out in strong support of the striking auto workers, declaring that "auto companies have seen record profits, including the last few years, because of the extraordinary skill and sacrifices of the UAW workers. Those record profits have not been shared fairly!" He was joined en masse by other Democrats expressing their support for the strike, which hopefully should send a message to the auto companies that the writing is on the wall and their years of rampant exploitation are soon to be over.

With the commencement of an impeachment inquiry this week, the House of Representatives is moving the Biden corruption scandal into the highest level of constitutional inquiry. After stonewalling by the Bidens and federal agencies investigating various allegations, the move for a House inquiry was expected if not inevitable.

An impeachment inquiry does not mean that an impeachment itself is inevitable. But it dramatically increases the chances of finally forcing answers to troubling questions of influence-peddling and corruption.

As expected, many House Democrats — who impeached Donald Trump after only one hearing in the House Judiciary Committee, based on his phone call to Ukraine’s president — oppose any such inquiry into President Biden. House Republicans could have chosen to forego any hearings and use what I called a “snap impeachment,” as then-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) did with the second Trump impeachment in January 2021.

Instead, they have methodically investigated the corruption scandal for months and only now are moving to a heightened inquiry. The House has established a labyrinth of dozens of shell companies and accounts allegedly used to transfer millions of dollars to Biden family members. There is now undeniable evidence to support influence-peddling by Hunter Biden and some of his associates — with Joe Biden, to quote Hunter’s business partner Devon Archer, being “the brand” they were selling.

The suggestion that this evidence does not meet the standard for an inquiry into impeachable offenses is an example of willful blindness. It also is starkly different from the standard applied by congressional Democrats during the Trump and Nixon impeachment efforts.

The Nixon impeachment began on Oct. 30, 1973, just after President Nixon fired Archibald Cox, the special prosecutor looking into the Watergate allegations. The vote in the judiciary committee was along party lines. The House was correct to start that impeachment inquiry, although House leaders stressed that they were not prejudging the existence of impeachable offenses. The inquiry started roughly eight months before any indictments of defendants linked to the Watergate break-in. It was many months before clear evidence established connections to Nixon, who denied any wrongdoing or involvement.

Every impeachment inquiry is different, of course. In this case, there is a considerable amount of evidence gathered over months of methodical investigations by three different committees.

It’s always the ones who insist that marriage is “a special, God-given union between one man and one woman” that forget how to count.

The Daily Mail has published an explosive report that South Dakota governor Kristi Noem and Corey Lewandowski, a former Donald Trump aide, have been having a secret affair “for years”—at least since 2019. Noem’s spokesperson told the tabloid, “This is so predictable that you would attack Governor Noem less than a week after she endorsed Donald J. Trump as the 47th President of the United States.” Neither have denied the Daily Mail’s reporting, and Vanity Fair has reached out to both of them for further comment.

A “family values” Republican, Noem has three children with her husband, Bryon. They’ve been married for over 30 years. Lewandowski married his wife, Alison, in 2005, and they have four children.

Lewandowski has a reputation of being just one of the many characters that Trump can’t quit. Trump’s original campaign manager, Lewandowski was fired in June 2016 after “a series of incidents that the Trump family worried had cast the candidate in a negative light.” These may have included, but were not limited to, aggressively handling a reporter and protester, reportedly calling a coworker a “****ing bitch,” and reportedly calling a staffer to yell at him as the staffer’s grandmother was having her Last Rites read. Soon, though, Trump brought Lewandowski back in the fold.

Noem stoked speculation that she’s angling to be Trump’s running mate for 2024 with an early endorsement of the indicted man for president. Trump received her endorsement onstage in North Dakota last week, where a Trump-Noem 2024 graphic reportedly appeared on a screen behind them. “I will do everything I can to help him win and save this country,” Noem said when introducing the former president.

The Daily Mail claimed it has a long list of receipts including “stays at luxury resorts where their intimacy was observed and noted.” They allegedly took private planes on donors’ dimes, and would disappear frequently. Rumors of their alleged affair surfaced briefly in 2021, via far-right conservative website American Greatness, but Noem issued a strong rebuke of the story. She said it was “total garbage and a disgusting lie,” and she was “proud of the God-fearing family” that she raised with her husband. Lawyers for Lewandowski dismissed the allegations as “rumors.”

Lewandowski became a key adviser to Noem by 2019, and they would travel frequently together. Per the Daily Mail, “In the months leading up to the 2020 election, Noem and Lewandowski became virtually inseparable companions on the Trump campaign trail. By then, their relationship was an open secret at the White House and among high-level GOP lobbyists and political consultants.”

However, after a scandal in which Lewandowski allegedly propositioned a donor’s wife at a Benihana, he was supposedly cut loose from Noem’s team. “Corey was always a volunteer, never paid a dime (campaign or official),” Ian Fury, Noem’s communications director, said in a statement at the time. “He will not be advising the governor in regard to the campaign or official office.” The Daily Mail claimed this was not true. Lewandowski continued working for Noem, and she would, according to a source, “make excuses for his behavior and apologize to staffers for him.”

WTF!!!

Louisiana Republican Party endorses candidate charged with criminal cruelty to children

John Raymond was arrested twice on juvenile cruelty charges for abusing kids at a school he was the headmaster at — including whipping a 4-year-old on his buttocks — but that hasn't stopped the children-obsessed GOP from giving him a glowing endorsement. The hypocrisy BURNS like the mouth of a thirteen-year-old after having duct tape ripped off of it, like John Raymond did to his students.

Russian President Vladimir Putin recently said he was "happy" to hear Trump's promise to "resolve all burning issues within several days" — including the war in Ukraine.

Sept. 15, 2023, 3:00 PM CDT
By Phil McCausland

Former President Donald Trump said Thursday that he appreciated recent praise from Russian leader Vladimir Putin. In an exclusive interview with NBC “Meet the Press” moderator Kristen Welker, Trump said it meant "what I'm saying is right," referring to his positions on the war in Ukraine.

Trump readily claimed in the interview that if re-elected president, he would resolve the war within 24 hours, though he provided few details about how he would end a conflict that has dragged on for more than 18 months. The former president has asserted several times that he could quickly end the war.

"If I tell you exactly, I lose all my bargaining chips. I mean, you can’t really say exactly what you’re going to do. But I would say certain things to Putin. I would say certain things to Zelenskyy," he said, referring to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

Putin, Russia's longtime leader, said at the Eastern Economic Forum in Vladivostok, Russia, last week that he had heard "that Mr. Trump says he will resolve all burning issues within several days, including the Ukrainian crisis. We cannot help but feel happy about it."

Then-President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin on the sidelines of the G20 Summit in 2017.Saul Loeb / AFP - Getty Images file

Trump said he was pleased by Putin's comments.

"I like that he said that," he told Welker. "Because that means what I’m saying is right. I would get him into a room. I’d get Zelenskyy into a room. Then I’d bring them together. And I’d have a deal worked out."

This is Welker’s first interview as moderator of “Meet the Press,” and it will air in full Sunday on NBC stations nationwide. Welker, who covered Trump in the White House, pressed the former president several times to clearly explain how he would end the war.
Tune into “Meet the Press with Kristen Welker” this Sunday for more from Welker’s exclusive interview with former President Donald Trump. Check local listings.

Trump continued to avoid an explanation of what his plan would entail, though he claimed he would "make a fair deal for everybody" when asked if he would allow the Kremlin to keep Ukrainian territory that Russian forces had illegally seized by force.

Trump remains the front-runner in the polls for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination. Some of his competitors have criticized him for de-emphasizing the war in Ukraine as a U.S. national security interest, while others — such as Vivek Ramaswamy and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis — have adopted his denunciations of the contributions made by American allies, especially compared to those by NATO.

Though Trump did not make clear what he would do in office regarding the conflict, he frequently argued during the interview that there would not have been a war if he had remained president.


Former President Donald Trump speaks with Kristen Welker in Bedminster, N.J., on Thursday.William B. Plowman / Meet The Press


"There was nobody tougher than me with Russia," he said. "And yet I got along with Putin. Let me tell you, I got along with him really well. And that’s a good thing, not a bad thing. He’s got 1,700 nuclear missiles. And so do we."

The former president did not have much to add when Welker pressed him about the Kremlin’s brutality in Ukraine, however. She noted that Russian forces had bombed maternity wards, buried Ukrainian civilians in mass graves and kidnapped children in the occupied territory.

“It’s all terrible,” Trump said in response.

It is not the first time that he has declined to be overly critical of Putin, whom most American allies and members of the U.S. national security community consider an antagonist.

And Trump's track record in supporting Ukraine, a U.S. partner, has been spotty.

When Russia first invaded Ukraine in February 2022, Trump praised Putin as “a guy who is very savvy” and the invasion of Ukraine as “genius” in an interview with a conservative podcaster.

Trump’s first impeachment in December 2019 came after a daylong debate in Congress about whether the then-president had violated his oath by pressuring Ukraine to damage a political opponent — Joe Biden — by withholding nearly $400 million in U.S. aid to Ukraine.

He also said he took the Russian president at his word at a summit in Helsinki in 2018 and dismissed U.S. intelligence agencies' conclusions that Russia had interfered in the 2016 election.

“President Putin says it’s not Russia,” Trump said at the time. “I don’t see any reason why it would be.”

Days later, the former president claimed he had misspoken.