Thursday, March 2, 2017

Are the so called Trump Russian connections a reincarnation of birtherism?

Via NYT email — President Trump said on Thursday that he had “total” confidence in Attorney General Jeff Sessions despite the revelations that he had conversations with Russia’s ambassador during the presidential campaign.

Touring the Gerald R. Ford, the newest American aircraft carrier, Mr. Trump said that he “wasn’t aware” that Mr. Sessions had spoken to the ambassador, but that he believed the attorney general had testified truthfully to the Senate during his confirmation hearing.

“I think he probably did,” Mr. Trump told reporters.

Asked whether Mr. Sessions should recuse himself in the Russia investigations, the president said, “I don’t think so.”

Congressional Republicans began breaking ranks to join Democrats in demanding that Mr. Sessions recuse himself from overseeing an investigation into contacts between the Trump campaign and the Russian government. Those calls came after the disclosure that Mr. Sessions himself spoke with the Russian ambassador last year, in seeming contradiction to his testimony at his confirmation hearing.

The partisan furor that broke out with the Justice Department’s acknowledgment of the contacts late Wednesday began to take on a bipartisan sheen as the controversy spilled into Thursday morning.

22 comments:

edutcher said...

Birtherism was, and is, real. The birth cert is a phony, it lists Daddy's race as African. This nonsense about the Russian ambassador is grabbing at straws.

Sessions met with the ambassador as part of his Senatorial duties, not as an extension of the Trump campaign, as he was asked.

"Congressional Republicans began breaking ranks to join Democrats" are the same ones that always do.

ricpic said...

Astounding. Jeff Sessions answers a very specific question about whether he was powwowing with the Russians as a surrogate for the Trump campaign with a specific answer, "No," and that's conflated by the Dems into a lie about ever meeting with any representative of the Russian government during his time as a Senator. It's way overtime for the Republicans, not just Trump, to say to the Dems "Put up or shut up."

Joe Biden, America's Putin said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Joe Biden, America's Putin said...

We note Schumer had no problem with the Loretta Lynch - Bill Clinton tarmac meeting.

Joe Biden, America's Putin said...

Sessions has already recused himself. I heard the whole press conference on the radio in the car.

This is a leftwing witch hunt. Another one. Oh and - F Chuck hypocrite Schumer. A-hole should be term limited and told to take a hike.

Joe Biden, America's Putin said...

The media won't play all of Franken's question to Sessions. Gee? I wonder why?

Joe Biden, America's Putin said...

Off with her head

Lem the artificially intelligent said...

I put out this tweet, but it hasn't feared as well as it should...

Breaking: Sessions denies operating a secret email server out of a Brighton Beach Brooklyn restaurant kitchen, according to unnamed sources.

Leland said...

I suspect this won't go well for the Democrats. It's not simple, and it is rather boring stuff.

Joe Biden, America's Putin said...

Lem - heh.

Methadras said...

Republicans show once again that their diet includes cannibalism, their environment requires self-immolation via spontaneous combustion at the mere mention of impropriety from Islamocrats, and they have the morphology of invertebrates.

The only proper response to all of this Russian bullshit is, Go fuck yourselves!!! Problem solved.

Synova said...

HE LIED UNDER OATH!

Ahem... had to get that out of my system. In one sense it's an interesting thing. The "hard" left, the sorts who frequent Facebook anyhow, the sorts who venture in to comment on the National Review or whatever, insist that Republicans have a double standard. That it's "okay when Republicans do it". But I don't think they have any notion at all what "it" is.

He answered a specific question truthfully under oath. He wasn't asked if he has *ever* spoken to anyone from Russia. He wasn't asked if he *ever* spoke to a Russian during the whole of the campaign season. He was asked if he spoke to Russians in the context of the campaign in the context of what the DoJ would do about it. And I'm not trying to explain away evasive answers either. "I did not have sex with that woman," and pretending that "oral" just doesn't count.

Common sense understanding of the question in its context.

There's a reason that "gas lighting" has become a favorite accusation. When people are dead set on seeing things in a way that doesn't reflect reality *at* *all* and you get them to question their made-up reality, it feels the same. It feels the same if someone is convincing you of something that you *know* isn't true, whether it's true or not.

Joe Biden, America's Putin said...

So true, Synova.

The leftists I talk to have all deluded themselves into thinking the Russians are behind all the hacking and that Trump was the puppet master behind all the Russians doing all the hacking.

edutcher said...

The funny part is the Lefties really believe the Russkies only handed Trump 30 states. If they were really rigging the thing, all they had to do was wipe out all the vote fraud and Trump would have beaten Reagan's landslide in '84.

Synova said...

He answered a specific question truthfully under oath

That's what the Lefties can't stand. Willie gave us his nonsense that all his answers (including what the meaning of is is) were "factually correct", but the court still found him guilty.

Smalley tried a gotcha and got caught in his own trap. As well as about 30 Democrats.

Methadras said...

Republicans show once again that their diet includes cannibalism, their environment requires self-immolation via spontaneous combustion at the mere mention of impropriety from Islamocrats, and they have the morphology of invertebrates.

No, this is just the usual Whigs doing their Arlen Specter act.

Joe Biden, America's Putin said...

Everyone met with the Russian ambassador, let’s all panic!

Leland said...

I agree Synova, which is why I don't think this will go over well for Democrats. Already, the real double standard was exposed the moment Clair McCaskill clearly lied. While I think Sessions may have been a bit too kind in recusing himself; he now has set a higher standard. So its easy to argue back; shouldn't McCaskill resign her position on the Senate Foreign Intelligence committee? Wouldn't that be an equal standard she is demanding?

Of course, the media is hiding McCaskill's lie, but that's because they think they are the ones the buy ink by the truck loads. The internet replaced ink more than a decade ago; and when you put your content behind pay walls, it doesn't matter how many servers you purchase, because you just censored yourself. So the real news will get out.

Joe Biden, America's Putin said...

Why we cannot nominate someone to beat (election wise) the holy living snot out of Claire McCatkill(D-liar) in MO is so agonizing.

Leland said...

Why we cannot nominate someone to beat (election wise) the holy living snot out of John McCain(R-rhino) in AZ is so agonizing.

Synova said...

"McCaskill lied."

"She wasn't under oath."

What blows my mind is Nancy Pelosi complaining about just about everything. If you do the least bit of sanity-check on what she says it's clear she's just spouting to see what sticks. If you take a moment to think about it you wonder just how senile she's getting in her old age.

Joe Biden, America's Putin said...

Yes... the agony. Why? It should be easy!

Joe Biden, America's Putin said...

They cannot fathom a Hillary loss. They just cannot fathom...

The party of Lois Lerner, the party of "it was the video", the party of Bill Clinton and Loretta Lynch the Attorney General of the US and their private meeting on a tarmac while Hillary was under investigation for setting up a Private Server while she headed the State Department - this party is unhinged and desperate and their media will spread any lie.

Rabel said...

The recusal is a mistake by Sessions. It may be the "proper" thing to do to the mind of an honorable man like Sessions but the time for propriety is long past and this decision will be used against him in the future.

To quote a great American:

"The only proper response to all of this Russian bullshit is, Go fuck yourselves!!!"