You know what I was thinking about yesterday, shortly before Hope Hicks announced her resignation? I was thinking about Donald Trump calling countries like Haiti “sh-tholes” and I couldn’t remember how long it had been since that story came out. Time doesn’t matter anymore, and time folds in on itself, expands and balloons and becomes unrecognizable. But surely, it has been worse before. It was worse last year, many times, when it felt like 20 massive scandals or controversies would break all at once on a Friday afternoon. The fact that Hope Hicks is packing up her sh-tty highlights and her Caboodle Makeup Organizer is not the worst thing to happen to the Bigly Administration in even the past week. And yet… it feels different. Axios says that the administration is in chaos like never before, and that Trump is “in a bad place.” Spoiler: every day in Trump’s America is the Bad Place.
After a crazy 24 hours, sources close to President Trump say he is in a bad place — mad as hell about the internal chaos and the sense that things are unraveling. The big picture: Hope Hicks leaving is obviously a huge blow to him. Every time he reads about Attorney General Jeff Sessions, his head explodes. The staff is just trying to ride out the storm.
Everywhere you look inside this White House, top officials are fighting, fomenting, feuding or fleeing, insiders say in conversations with us. Hope Hicks — without question, the aide (family aside) with whom Trump is closest — resigned one day after she admitted in closed-door Hill testimony that she told white lies for the president.
White House Chief of Staff John Kelly cracked down on Jared Kushner, stripping his top security clearance, and watching anonymous aides leak about and trash him, while offering no public defense of the president’s son-in-law. Jared, Ivanka and Don Jr. let it be known to friends they are furious with Kelly and his allies. Jared loses his internal P.R. guru, Josh Raffel, when he needs him most.
Economic adviser Gary Cohn is at war with trade policy adviser Peter Navarro. Trump is at war with Attorney General Sessions. N.Y. Times lead story: “Trump Tears Into Sessions Over Russia Investigation.” … WashPost: “Behind the scenes, Trump has derisively referred to Sessions as ‘Mr. Magoo,’ a cartoon character who is elderly, myopic and bumbling.”
Intelligence chiefs use every chance possible to contradict the commander-in-chief on Russia.
Trump reportedly “berated” Hope Hicks for her “white lies” admission during her testimony to the House Intelligence Committee. He reportedly called her stupid too, and this all came to a head this week following weeks – if not months – of people gunning for her within the White House. New York Magazine has a good rundown of what is often deemed the “palace intrigue” of the Trump administration. Palace intrigue in that everyone in this administration seems stupid, petty, arrogant, nasty, and like they would throw their mothers off a cliff to get in good with a treasonous, senile old racist.
Photos courtesy of Getty.
Mueller more than likely already has proof that this bum colluded. Nothing is a coincidence with him. He has been systematically dismantling Dumps little mafia since last year with Hope Hicks quitting Dump is pretty much toast.
While I am impatient to getting to the next phase, it has been a pure joy to watch a racist bastard like Dump get exactly what he deserves. I hope more humiliation is in store for him and any other piece of trash like him.
What the Freaking F—?!
I just read a headline that Donald Trump has been nominated FOR THE FREAKING NOBEL PEACE PRIZE??
sorry. fake news. the papers were forged.lol.
The Nobel officials say the nomination was forged.
Probably it’s from the same printer as Dump’s Time Magazine covers. And just as legitimate lol 😂
He probably nominated himself.
@Aiobhan: Thank you for the update! And yes Imqrious2 and rrabbit, very likely. His Toolness and his minions never quit…
It was forged. And it happened TWICE.
Yeah, but he won’t make the shortlist. Adolf Hitler is nominated constantly for the Peace Prize by some racist idiot somewhere, but thankfully he never makes it past the first round.
Come on, don’t fall for that dreck.
Mueller is smart. He is going after trump like its a crime org. Dismantling each piece to get to the big fish.
Yup. He’s done all of this before with the Gambino family, so he’s playing it by the book. And Donald’s so stupid he doesn’t even really see it coming. Although, it may just now be dawning on him.
He does watch TV though, and several people seem more convinced the layers of the onion are peeling one by one, until the slimy, rotten core is finally exposed.
Maybe it’s wishful thinking, but I sense a demeanor change in some of the routine evening cable show guests (especially with legal/Watergate backgrounds). They seem lighter and more jovial, as if they know the nightmare is closer to conclusion. The two veteran Watergate reporters were at times giddy last night, and the movie clip of Deep Throat summed it up —
FOLLOW THE MONEY.
DOTARd and his family ARE a crime organization. I’ve watched him in NYC since the early 80s and he is as crooked as any mafia gang. Just stupider.
Mueller is closing the noose. Trump
Is going down for conspiracy against the US, money laundering and obstruction. Trump is playing hopscotch and Mueller is a world class chess player. And if Dotard or Pence pull out the pardon pen, NY’s Atty General is standing on the sidelines, waiting impatiently. And Federal Prison will be a lot easier on Trump, Donny Jr, Jared, IvanKKKa and Miss Hope Hicks than Rikers would be.
Hope may very well be in the same prison as Trump, working together again as he said. Making license plates.
The thing is, the Trump organization really IS a crime organization.
ETA: I hadn’t seen Trixie’s comment and she said it all better than I could!
This just never gets old. In fact, I enjoy it more with each passing day:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0IuZCUXujsk
A crime montage featuring tRump et al. Delicious.
That’s because it IS a crime family. These guys (NY Real Estate) are basically mafiosi. The veneer of civilization is a millimeter thick. I wonder when they’ll announce the Hope Hicks plea deal. My guess would be about two weeks post exit.
Trixie, not to be too technical here but most prisons are either for men or women, there are very few gender-mixed prisons.
Which means he’d be stuck in prison with Jared and (fingers crossed) Stephen Miller…which means he’d still lose Ivanka and Hope, his “most trusted inner circle” – i.e. women he’d like to you know what (let’s be serious, Ivanka isn’t excluded from that.) I sort of enjoy the idea of Trump having to spend some unspecified amount of time in jail with no ladies, that would be torture for him.
Oh to dream….
There is no way on God’s green Earth that all of this ridiculous, nonstop bullsh*t from these clowns is not jeopardizing our security. No one is minding the store.
This is great news!
Those boots in a business professional setting. Tsk tsk…
No one likes a boss calling you “stupid”, but if you’ve already let him call you a “piece of a**” then I guess there’s not much of a line to draw in the sand. I do genuinely wonder what she’ll do next though.
The dress she wore to her congressional hearing barely covered her bits. There does seem to be a disconnect with the Hopes, Ivankas, even the Kellyannes as to what consists of professional business attire for a presidential adviser. I’m not including Melania in that because First Lady is a different thing with a little more leeway.
I had a law school professor who told us not to dress in such a way that your apparel distracts from your work. It should be about what you’re presenting, not what you’re wearing. That doesn’t mean you have to dress like you’re going to a funeral or be devoid of style but to some extent, business attire should be a bit uniform.
That jacket dress was halfway up her thigh when standing. What a choice for sitting all day in a hearing. It would be like a man showing up with his shirt half-unbuttoned, or in Bermuda shorts. Unprofessional and distracting.
Part of me wonders if dressing that way for the hearing was on purpose. She was the White House communications director, so she must know how messaging works (both in words, actions, and dress). She’s also a comparatively young, conventionally attractive woman who works with mostly men who likely hired her based on her looks. I wouldn’t be surprised if she thought dressing in a certain way for the hearing would get her out of trouble.
(I personally don’t care how she dresses, but a lot of the commentary about her resigning have emphasized her comparative youth and assumed naivety.)
@Christin, right? And I don’t think all the hearing tables in Congress have modesty panels so that committee probably got quite an eyeful.
They dress to please Donald, he prefers his women in boots and short skirts, it’s like a cultist uniform.
Christen, perhaps that was the point: to distract those dirty old “family values” (sure, Jan!!) buzzards in the hearing.
OG OhDear, Before Hope was comms director she sold shoes for Ivanka. She has no communications training or background. She was winging it for $170K a year.
Those boots caught my eye too, and not in a good way.
But Michelle Obama once wore a sleeveless dress. SCANDAL.
I think she was rather upset about his “piece of…” remark. His tirade against her after her testimony may simply have been the last straw and she finally realized he would throw her under the bus without a second thought.
“Jared, Ivanka and Don Jr. let it be known to friends they are furious with Kelly and his allies”
I noticed something very amusing this morning. The Mooch was all over CNN badmouthing Kelly. So this doesn’t surprise me as I think he is in cahoots with Javanka. And i will not be surprised if we are treated to a Mooch sequel. The Mooch is back, Moochier than ever!
Yes, Mooch has revived sense of confidence and vulgar bravado. Wouldn’t be surprised if drump allows him back in the WH, against Kelly’s advice.
Stephen Colbert should be thrilled. It seemed so unfair that Colbert’s imitation of The Mooch was just getting good and then poof, the guy was gone. What a waste.
Who is Mooch?
Anthony Scaramucci, do you remember? HE worked as the press sect for a hot minute? Then Kelly fired him for spewing off to a Newsweek reporter (prob coked out of his mind) and giving him that memorable, graphic quote about Steve Bannon?
The outfit Hope is wearing in that last picture seems like perfectly normal attire for the Trump WH.
Anyway, anything that makes Trump miserable makes me happy. Also, I love when Jeff Sessions get berated by Trump. Both of those dudes are flaming, racist turds–only Trump bluntly says what Sessions is thinking. So I also love “Mr. Magoo” being miserable.
Finally, I was thinking about how many leaks are coming from the Mueller investigation this week, which is odd because he Mueller keeps his stuff locked down pretty tight. But, given how leaky the WH is, it makes me think that the investigation has in fact reached the WH and the sharks are starting circle. I honestly believe nothing will happen to Trump because the GOP will protect him at all cost, but I got my eye on Kushner…
Not sure the leaks are coming from Mueller’s team as much as they are coming from those being questioned.
My original post is a little confusing, but that it the point I was trying to make. White House “sources” love to talk, so if there are leaks regarding the questioning, then that means WH “sources” are being questioned.
A la Sam Nunberg.
I read an article this morning about Sessions and Rosenstein having a very public dinner together the other night in a busy upscale Washington restaurant, but now I can’t find the article anywhere.
Lady D, I saw that headline as well. The three top Justice officials put on a united front last night, after the tweet earlier in the day. Axios has photos.
I don’t want Mr. Magoo, er, Jeff Sessions to resign. That would allow Trump to put somebody not recused from the Russia investigation into the top spot in the DoJ. I want the second in command to stay in charge of that investigation — he’s the one who appointed Mueller and has said that he has no intention of getting rid of him without cause.
Going to float a theory here – and just a theory: What if Kelly is really working with Pence to force Trump out and then Pence will be able to put his agenda through? To all he is stable compared to Trump and more may be willing to pass what he wants passed. What I want to know and has been mentioned else where, what constitutes a “white lie”? A white lie to me is telling my grandchildren I don’t have any candy around when it is really hidden in the back of a cabinet where I only know where it is. There is more to this than is being let on and there is a HUGE smoke screen being put in place over her resignation. You can’t be running the country (or any company for that matter) if: “Everywhere you look inside this White House, top officials are fighting, fomenting, feuding or fleeing, insiders say in conversations with us.” Waiting for the next sh!t show to begin.
I don’t understand “white lie”. A lie is a lie, similar to how one is either pregnant or not.
I think a white lie is designed to save someone’s feelings. It doesn’t have the malicious undertones of a ‘black’ lie.
White lies for “civilians” are fine. I will lie so as not to say someone looks heavier.
And lol no pregnancy is not really a binary state at the beginning.
Forbes has a good opinion piece about how white lies (considered trivial) are not good lies, for business or elsewhere. I just don’t believe in purposely fibbing, and the Forbes piece goes into ways to be polite without outright lying (a co-worker’s fruitcake is their example).
Hope may think her little lies were no biggie, but her legal team apparently realized otherwise. They held up the meeting for 20 minutes to talk to her, after her honesty(?) about lying.
If Trump goes down, I don’t see Pence lasting. No way is he not hiding the truth about this administration, so he’s guilty as well.
I don’t believe Pence is clean, either.
Ditto.
Pence was the head of the transition team. The same one that was colluding with Russians. He is as dirty as the rest.
Which leaves us with…Paul Ryan.
You guys…seriously…we are screwed. The line of succession is…not great.
Pence frightens me more than Trump.
There’s such a bounteous harvest of crazy stuff going on that the story about the Trump Tower in Panama – which was one of the early projects Two Scoops gave Ivanka and turned into money laundering front – being stormed by police, with all the Trump Organisation employees barricading themselves in their office, barely gets a mention.
So. Much. Winning.
And don’t forget the Belarussian escort in a Thai Prison who says she has the goods to bring down Trump. The winning never stops.
Yes, but she wants to be *freed* so sing, so I don’t put much stock into that claim.
Last night, I could not keep up with all the stories being discussed on cable news shows. I remember a panelist mentioning one of the properties, so I guess this was what they were referencing.
Son-in-law is supposedly upset over how much dragging he’s receiving (I’d say “earning”), with no one defending his little blank-eyed self. That entire family saw dollar signs, and their disappointment is rich.
They are stunningly clueless. “Dragging.” That’s rich. “Dragging” is saying he’s an incompetent brown-nosed idiot.
His actions are being framed as espionage! Do they really not understand just how serious this is getting? There’s a reason Mueller is apparently focused on Kushner, and it’s not Kushner’s incompetence.
All I can say is I’m glad their greed is matched by their sense of entitlement and its accompanying obliviousness.
Yes!!! I read about the Panama business and when I didn’t see it on the news, I thought it was a wishful dream. There is so much crap going on, that all of these other news are being buried.
Also, after barricading themselves in the office, they were allegedly shoving documents through a shredder like it was the Fargo woodchipper being used to dispose of a dead body.
So scummy, so unsurprising.
Allegedly the money laundering is the tip of the iceberg at Trump Panama. Human trafficking is the big crime.
Wait what??? I thought money laundering was the the tip…
Where are you reading this?
No ,Pence is even more dangerous,he has to go down with Trump.
Check out Kazakhstan and Trump….
I was just listening to Maddow’s fascinating roundup on that one.
I was thinking that in my country the government is a chaos but looking at US I don’t feel like we are a mess after all
Gee. Thanks.
I’ll probably go to hell for saying this, but it couldn’t happen to a nicer guy, and I hope the reckoning is soon.
You know he’s going to cry — and rage — like a stunned baby when it all falls down. The disbelief may kill him, quite literally. Humpty Dumpfy doesn’t understand how far he is going to crash and shatter.
*rubs hands in anticipatory glee*
I like how you think. I’d like to subscribe to your newsletter.
Eh. If they’re able to get him on Russia, then yeah, I can see things unraveling. Otherwise though, I don’t see it. We’ve been saying, “That’s it, things will unravel for him now” since he entered office, and it hasn’t happened. My guess is he’s going to pass some strong gun control legislation. He won’t be doing it out of the goodness of his heart. He just wants a “never been done before” win, as always. He knows people aren’t expecting it, so I think he’ll do it. This, combined with his tax overhaul, continued good economy/stock market, N. Korea saying they’re open to talks, etc… I’m seeing a re-election in 2020 as highly possible. It makes me so sick, I can barely think about it, but we thought it was completely out of the question in 2016, and it happened. Despite being a volatile, unhinged, dangerous human of despicable character, the Republicans are going to have some major concrete wins to hold up, while the Dems are a mess. I think we should be very worried about 2020.
You’re wrong about the gun control legislation. His base/voters want no gun control period. He’ll lose his base over this. Plus his “tax overhaul” is a disaster waiting to happen and will crash the economy.
Well, I really do hope I’m wrong and you’re right. I cannot stand the man. But I’m consistently shocked and disgusted, so we’ll see. I mean, he may lose the alt-right, but what about the middle-of-the-road voters who voted Trump just because they hated Hilary. If he does this, he could pull (or keep) more people like that onto his side.
You really think Trump is going to stand up to the NRA. Also the middle of the road people who voted for him are very much pro gun/anti gun control.
Republicans are opposed to strong gun control legislation. He can’t just pass bills on his own, it has to go through congress.
Isn’t that what executive directives are for? When congress says no, he signs a piece of paper and then holds it up like a proud 5-year-old for all of us to see, and the bill passes?
GOP is already pushing back on gun control. Whiny Marco Rubio has accused Democrats of plotting to gun violence for political gain and the Parkland kids of smearing him. This from a man who took $3 million from the NRA & has two major mass shootings: Pulse and Parkland happen to his constituents
Rubio is such an NRA stooge. He’s a weak, horrible, callous human being.
JoJo, what Trump says one day is not what he will espouse the next day. Unless I see action from anyone, it is just words.
Bingo.
I totally agree. We all know about Tuesday Trump and Thursday Trump. But the fact is, he’s looking for a big win (and the majority of the country is in favor of certain controls at this point), and he’s unpredictable, so you really never know with him. As for needing Congress, he’s already said he’s going to sign an executive order banning bump stocks if he has to.
1) Trump finally noticed the polls giving him a 35% approval rating and decided to say something to add a few points.
1) Stephen Miller was in the bathroom. When he gets back, he’ll convince Trump to back off again.
We’ve been this way before with Trump.
Repeatedly.
His tax overhaul is a ticking time bomb for most Americans. The economy is showing signs of instability. North Korea has frequently been open for talks over the years. And he won’t do any more on guns than he would on anything important. He just wants his ego stroked and he thought the world would do it.
I’m more concerned about exhaustion-induced apathy. Even I’m beginning to feel it. He’s SO corrupt ALL the time that it’s easy to let it become the new norm. It’s exhausting to realize it’s only been a year since he took office. It’s exhausting to realize we’ve got three more to slog through.
@Veronica, ITA, but I truly don’t believe he will make it through his first term. At the rate things are going, I would be surprised if he makes it to 2019.
WINS like the “tax cut” that screws the little guy?
Keep those “wins” coming!!
I conpletely agree. I don’t think the tax cut was a win at all, but he’s going to get support from big corporations, and polls show voters warming up to it (at nearly 50% approval). Lots of people only care about their pocketbook today vs. the long term consequences.
JoJo, you’re right. I’m surprised no one else can see it. I guess we haven’t pulled our heads out of the sand since the election. Just because his policies are obviously a disaster to us and the rest of the world doesn’t mean that other American voters will see it. While the tax cuts threaten the economy, there’s no guarantee their impact will be felt before 2020, and in the meantime people will look at the bumps in their paycheck and will think that Trump made a positive difference.
I wish I hadn’t become so cynical, but a Trump presidency has changed me. Keep an eye out for 2020. 🙁
Well I hope they get on with it and self destruct while everything is still fixable. So far, nothing has been damaged that can’t be put right, but the longer this administration is allowed to do anything, the closer we get to irreparable harm. This is reminding me of the death throes of a severely corrupt and mismanaged company; workers quitting left and right, rumors abounding, law enforcement closing in, the guys at the very top spluttering about how everything is fine, and the investors obviously torn between propping up their egos/investments or washing their hands and letting it fail. What I’m waiting for is how the GOP is going to try to have their cake and eat it too over this.
What a great analogy. I think that’s what his billionaire’s welfare tax plan was all about. Too big to fail, indeed.
Thanks for the Caboodle reference. I had an aqua one, filled with frosty lip and eye colors. I definitely think she has one.
I chuckled at that also. One of my daughters had the aqua one also. May still be in my basement!
I started using a tackle box (cheaper) or just a small, clear organizer. The 1980s-90s required too much makeup!
Ha! That is the best reference.
Also, I had one that was glittery light pink.
He’s in a bad place?
We all know the answer: Thoughts and prayers!
That ought to fix everything, right?
🙂
Now he knows how the rest of us felt when he was elected.
“Welcome to My World” comes to mind, doesn’t it?
The thing that i’m most afraid of is that while the Democrats possibly win the midterm election. The economy might take a shit dump and the Repubs will find a way to blame everything on the Dems. Because they can’t take responsibility for the mess they’ve created.
Their constituents are dumb. They don’t care about facts. They believe anything barfed out of the mouth of president Poophead.
What I’m afraid of the democrats will continue to attack their base. What are they thinkiing??
https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/democrats-banks-racial-discrimination_us_5a96e489e4b0e6a523042fc8
Who are the most likely candidates for 2020 (aside from Trump who will be in jail by then hopefully)?
It’s so crazy. The Dow fell 380 points yesterday, 500 points today. Normally that would get attention, but there is so much chaos it is overlooked.
“The fact that Hope Hicks is packing up her sh-tty highlights and her Caboodle Makeup Organizer..”
Oh the SHADE! 😂 it’s delicious. Well done.
Quote of the day, I agree, love the shade!
his wife hates him, his colleagues hate him, half of america not to mention planet earth hates him, people only do business with him because they HAVE to, his so called friends rat him out to the press every chance they get.
He must know on a intellectual level that he has NO one that LOVES him in his life with the exception of Donnie Jr. I don’t even think Ivanka loves him.
He must know deep down inside he is completely alone. how does he sleep at night?
A 72 year old lifelong narcissist now exhibiting various signs and symptoms of dementia likely does not sleep well at all. But these same conditions usually result in an altered perception of reality, so I wouldn’t worry too much about The Donald.
A thought that crossed my mind today: Supposedly Melania urged him to go ahead and run for president. Did she know what she was doing?
You’re all fooling yourselves.