Month: June 2017

COVFEFE Act Would Make Trump’s Tweets Official Presidential Communications

Buck Banks

trump-tweetRep. Mike Quigley (D-IL) has introduced a bill called the Communications Over Various Feeds Electronically for Engagement (COVFEFE) Act, reports The Hill. The bill has the same acronym as a Trump Twitter typo that went viral last month, would amend the Presidential Records Act to include “social media.”

Quigley’s office issued a statement:

“President Trump’s frequent, unfiltered use of his personal Twitter account as a means of official communication is unprecedented. If the President is going to take to social media to make sudden public policy proclamations, we must ensure that these statements are documented and preserved for future reference. Tweets are powerful, and the President must be held accountable for every post.”

GOP Healthcare Bill Is Not Getting Better with Time

Buck Banks

“The Republicans have spent eight years insisting that they could produce a better health-care-reform plan if they had the chance. They have come to realize that this promise was false. The only thing they can do is rip away the benefits Obamacare has given millions of Americans. Their sole objective now is to do so with the minimum level of transparency or accountability.”

— Jonathan Chait

Trump’s Lawyer Has Russian Ties

Buck Banks

“The hard-charging New York lawyer President Trump chose to represent him in the Russia investigation has prominent clients with ties to the Kremlin, a striking pick for a president trying to escape the persistent cloud that has trailed his administration. … Marc Kasowitz’s clients include Oleg Deripaska, a Russian oligarch who is close to President Vladimir Putin and has done business with Trump’s former campaign manager. Kasowitz also represents Sberbank, Russia’s largest state-owned bank, U.S. court records show.”

— Washington Post

White House Provided Oversight, Distractions for Trump During Comey Testimony

Buck Banks

45

New York Times: “In all, Mr. Trump watched only about 45 minutes of Mr. Comey’s testimony, the people close to the president said. Much of that time was spent under the eye of his take-charge personal lawyer, Marc E. Kasowitz, and Defense Secretary Jim Mattis, one of the cabinet members he trusts most. This was by design, with the president’s tacit consent. His aides packed the day with meetings and speechwriting session.”

Breitbart Has Lost 90 Percent of Its Advertisers

Buck Banks

90%

Washington Post: “The number of advertisers on the alt-right site Breitbart.com has dropped 90 percent in recent months, from 242 in March to 26 in May, according to data from MediaRadar, a New York firm that tracks online advertising. Among those that continue to advertise on the site include a gentleman’s club in Northern Virginia, a golf resort near the coast of Spain and the conservative foundation Judicial Watch.”

GOP Lawmaker Says Trump Is Hurting Her Re-Election Prospects

Buck Banks

“It’s basically being taken out on me. Any Republican member of Congress, you are going down with the ship. And we’re going to hand the gavel to Pelosi in 2018, they only need 28 seats and the path to that gavel being handed over is through my seat. And right now, it doesn’t matter that it’s me, it doesn’t matter what I’ve done. I have an ‘R’ next to my name and right now, this environment would have me not prevail.”

— Rep. Martha McSally (R-AZ), expressing some concerns about re-election in a secret recording, the Tucson Weekly reports. “Team McSally has been poo-pooing recent polls showing that more than half of the voters in her district disapprove of her job performance, while her approval has fallen down to the mid-30s, percentage-wise, and that she was losing to a generic Democrat by 7 percentage points. But last week, in a private talk to the Arizona Bankers Association, McSally conceded that in the current political environment, she has some real challenges in next year’s election.”

In Comey Trump Created a Smart, Fearless Enemy

Buck Banks

“He accused the president and his top aides of lying. He suggested that the president wanted special treatment in exchange for loyalty. He said he thinks he lost his job because of how he handled the Russia investigation. … James Comey served notice that if President Donald Trump operates like a bully, there are powerful people who know how to punch back. The ex-FBI director’s powerful, riveting testimony — delivered under oath before the Senate Intelligence Committee — overflowed with headlines and revelations that will resonate for months or longer. … Among the big takeaways: In Comey, Trump has made an enemy who knows the levers of Washington power and has already put in motion forces that are beyond the president’s ability to control.”

— Rick Klein