Liberal Forum

Huey » 17 Feb 2017 12:24 pm » wrote: He didn't do anything legally wrong. Being dishonest about the conversation is why he was fired. Allegedly.

Cannonpointer » 17 Feb 2017 12:37 pm » wrote: If he had no reason to lie, there'd have been no lying - so the allegation is a snake eating it's own tail.

That's what I'M pointing out. I GET their argument. I'm just smudging into the glass.

December 29: President Obama announced measures, including sanctions, on Russia for its interference in the U.S. election.
Flynn and Kislyak speak that day, The Washington Post reports, citing a Trump transition official.
The official says sanctions weren’t discussed.

December 30: Russian President Vladimir Putin says Moscow will not retaliate.
The Post says that prompted U.S. intelligence analysts to look for reasons why Putin declined to impose his own measures against the U.S.
They found, the newspaper reported, Kislyak’s communications, including the phone call, with Flynn.
Sally Yates, then the deputy attorney general, found Flynn’s comments in the call “highly significant,” the Post reported.

January 13: Sean Spicer, the White House spokesman, told reporters in a conference call that Flynn and Kislyak only discussed a post-inauguration call between Trump and Putin.
“That was it, plain and simple,” he said.

January 15: Pence, on CBS’s Face the Nation, said Flynn “did not discuss anything having to do with the United States’ decision to expel diplomats or impose censure against Russia.”

January 23: Spicer told reporters he spoke with Flynn about the issue the previous night (January 22).
He said Flynn and the Russian envoy spoke once.
They discussed, he said, the Russian plane crash, the Syrian civil war, Christmas, and a call between their two leaders.

January 26: Yates briefed Donald McGahn, the White House counsel, about the conversation, Spicer said Tuesday.
(The FBI interviewed Flynn immediately prior to this briefing, the Times reported Tuesday, but it’s unclear what date that interview occurred.
The Times added the bureau believes Flynn wasn’t completely forthcoming during the interview.)

The Post reported earlier Tuesday that Yates told McGahn that Flynn had misled Pence and others about the content of his conversations with Kislyak.
Flynn, Yates reportedly said, was consequently vulnerable to Russian blackmail.
Spicer said McGahn immediately briefed Trump and other senior officials.

February 7 and 8: Flynn told the Post he did not discuss the sanctions with Kislyak.
A day later, his spokesman told the Post the national security adviser “couldn’t be certain that the topic never came up.”

February 9: NBC News reportedTuesday Pence was only informed of the Justice Department’s warning about Flynn 15 days after Trump and others were told.

February 10: An unnamed Trump administration official told the Post Pence either misspoke or was misled by Flynn.
Further, The New York Times reported that transcripts existed of the conversation.
While the alleged content of the conversations was a likely breach of protocol during a presidential transition—and could be a breach of the law—it’s unlikely to lead to any charges against Flynn.

February 13: Kellyanne Conway, Trump’s counselor, said on MSNBC Flynn enjoyed the president’s confidence.
Hours later, Flynn resigned.

https://www.theatlantic.com/news/archiv ... ne/516594/

#ShePersisted » 17 Feb 2017 12:48 pm » wrote:Flynn told Pence, Spicer and Priebus that he did not discuss the sanctions with the Russians and all three of them repeated that lie on TV.
45 was briefed on January 26th that Flynn had lied to them yet he kept it to himself for 15 days.
I don't see how any of them can trust 45 to tell them the truth again.

Huey » 17 Feb 2017 12:58 pm » wrote:I have no problem with Trump not saying anything, if in fact he didn't.

Vice President Pence first learned that former national security adviser Michael Flynn had misled him about the nature of his contact with a Russian official on Feb. 9, a full two weeks after other White House officials were briefed on the matter, an aide to Pence said on Tuesday.

The timing indicates that Pence would have become aware of the controversy around the same time that a Washington Post report was published, detailing the degree to which Flynn had been in contact with the Russian ambassador to the United States on the issue of sanctions, Pence spokesman Marc Lotter said

“What I would tell you is that the vice president became aware of incomplete information that he had received on Feb. 9, last Thursday night, based on media accounts,” Lotter said.

“He did an inquiry based on those media accounts.”

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/pos ... 86a23f8ad5

Huey » 17 Feb 2017 12:58 pm » wrote:I am much more troubled by the fact that transcripts were leaked by the intelligence community and the fact that Obama in his last weeks in office expanded the amount of allowable agencies that could receive the raw transcripts. Does any of that trouble you?

#ShePersisted » 17 Feb 2017 1:19 pm » wrote: Pence found out that Flynn lied to him by reading it in the Washington Post.
It looks like 45 would never have told him if not for the leaks. You have no problem with 45 allowing his VP to sit with that false information and continue to make statements in public that were not true?
Really?
I'm much more troubled by the fact that if not for the leaks we would not know what these clowns are up to.
45 seems to be more than willing to lie to his own VP, Chief Of Staff and Press Secretary.

You have no problem with 45 allowing his VP to sit with that false information and continue to make statements in public that were not true?
Really?

I'm much more troubled by the fact that if not for the leaks we would not know what these clowns are up to.
45 seems to be more than willing to lie to his own VP, Chief Of Staff and Press Secretary.

Trump family’s elaborate lifestyle is a ‘logistical nightmare’ — at taxpayer expense.

On Friday, President Trump and his entourage will jet for the third straight weekend to a working getaway at his oceanfront Mar-a-Lago Club in Palm Beach, Fla.

On Saturday, Trump’s sons Eric and Don Jr., with their Secret Service details in tow, will be nearly 8,000 miles away in the United Arab Emirates, attending the grand opening of a Trump-brand golf resort in the “Beverly Hills of Dubai.”

Meanwhile, New York police will keep watch outside Trump Tower in Manhattan, the chosen home of first lady Melania Trump and son Barron.

And the tiny township of Bedminster, N.J., is preparing for the daunting prospect that the local Trump golf course will serve as a sort of northern White House for as many as 10 weekends a year.

Barely a month into the Trump presidency, the unusually elaborate lifestyle of America’s new first family is straining the Secret Service and security officials, stirring financial and logistical concerns in several local communities, and costing far beyond what has been typical for past presidents — a price tag that, based on past assessments of presidential travel and security costs, could balloon into the hundreds of millions of dollars over the course of a four-year term.

Adding to the costs and complications is Trump’s inclination to conduct official business surrounded by crowds of people, such as his decision last weekend to host Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe for a working dinner while Mar-a-Lago members dined nearby.

The handful of government agencies that bear the brunt of the expenses, including the Defense and Homeland Security departments, have not responded to Washington Post requests for data laying out the costs since Trump took office.

But some figures have dribbled out, while others can be gleaned from government documents.

Trump’s three Mar-a-Lago trips since the inauguration have probably cost the federal treasury about $10 million, based on figures used in an October government report analyzing White House travel, including money for Coast Guard units to patrol the exposed shoreline and other military, security and staffing expenses associated with moving the apparatus of the presidency.

Palm Beach County officials plan to ask Washington to reimburse tens of thousands of dollars a day in expenses for deputies handling added security and traffic issues around the cramped Florida island whenever Trump is in town.

In New York, the city is paying $500,000 a day to guard Trump Tower, according to police officials’ estimates, an amount that could reach $183 million a year.

This month, The Post reported that Secret Service and U.S. Embassy staffers paid nearly $100,000 in hotel-room bills to support Eric Trump’s trip to promote a Trump-brand condo tower in Uruguay.

“This is an expensive way to conduct business, and the president should recognize that,” said Tom Fitton, president of the conservative group Judicial Watch, which closely tracked President Barack Obama’s family vacation costs and said that it intends to continue the effort for the Trump administration.

“The unique thing about President Trump is that he knows what it costs to run a plane,” Fitton added, noting that Trump should consider using the presidential retreat of Camp David, a short helicopter ride from the White House, or even his golf course in Northern Virginia.

Of Mar-a-Lago, Fitton said, “Going down there ain’t free.”

For Trump, the costs come with an additional perk: Some of the money flows into his own pocket.

While Trump has removed himself from managing his company, he has refused to divest his ownership, meaning that he benefits from corporate successes such as government contracts.

The Defense Department and Secret Service, for instance, have sought to rent space in Trump Tower, where leasing a floor can cost $1.5 million a year — though neither agency has disclosed any details.

In addition, Trump’s travel to his signature properties while trailed by a press corps beaming images to the world allows the official business of the presidency to double as marketing opportunities for his brand.

The White House did not address broader concerns of the costs and potential conflicts inherent in Trump’s early travels.

But White House spokeswoman Stephanie Grisham told The Post this week that Trump is always working, even when he has left Washington behind.

“He is not vacationing when he goes to Mar-a-Lago,” Grisham said.

“The president works nonstop every day of the week, no matter where he is.”

Trump’s frequent travel belies his repeated criticism of Obama as a “habitual vacationer” enjoying taxpayer-funded golf getaways.

It also comes after his own promises: He told the Hill newspaper in 2015, “I would rarely leave the White House because there’s so much work to be done.”

Huey » 17 Feb 2017 1:31 pm » wrote:These "clowns" were not up to anything. There was NOTHING illegal going on. This is a nothing story. Pence is gone. Additionally, there was an ongoing investigation.

Huey » 17 Feb 2017 1:31 pm » wrote:I guess leaks are ok if they support your political agenda.

Ex-SEAL turns down job as Trump’s national security adviser.

President Trump’s choice for national security adviser has turned down the job offer, according to a report.

Trump asked Vice Adm. Robert Harward earlier in the week to take the post, but he declined, the Financial Times reported (paywall).

The paper said the president is trying to convince him to change his mind.

#ShePersisted » 17 Feb 2017 1:48 pm » wrote: How can you declare that there was nothing going on if there is an ongoing investigation?
Flynn was undercutting Obama who was still the POTUS when he put the sanctions into effect.
One president at a time.

Why would Flynn tell Russia not to sweat the sanctions that were put into place because they meddled in our election?
That makes it sound like:
A. They were okay with Russia meddling in our election, or
B. They were colluding with Russia to meddle in our election.
I guess so.

How can you declare that there was nothing going on if there is an ongoing investigation?

Additionally, there was an ongoing investigation.

Flynn was undercutting Obama who was still the POTUS when he put the sanctions into effect.

A. They were okay with Russia meddling in our election, or
B. They were colluding with Russia to meddle in our election.

#ShePersisted » 17 Feb 2017 10:23 am » wrote: And you got that from that link from 2011 that has nothing to do with Bill Clinton how?

Huey » 17 Feb 2017 12:58 pm » wrote:I am much more troubled by the fact that transcripts were leaked

Reverend Al Sharpton » 17 Feb 2017 4:02 pm » wrote:I cane remembah yo pink crackah *** bein' "troubled" by the leaks around hilldog, nuckle.

Huey » 17 Feb 2017 4:28 pm » wrote:
1. I am not a crackah, I'm a yankee. I know all about you, street thug. We hail from the same area.

2. The hill dog leaks were not done by the US intelligence community, thug.

Huey » 17 Feb 2017 1:58 pm » wrote: Nothing illegal happened.

Huey » 17 Feb 2017 1:58 pm » wrote: Plus, Obama ran around the world as a candidate meeting with world leaders in 2008. What do you think he was doing?

Huey » 17 Feb 2017 1:58 pm » wrote: Now you are doing what the media is doing. Conflating two separate issues. The conversation had nothing to do with the elections.

Reverend Al Sharpton » 17 Feb 2017 4:52 pm » wrote:Dey was FAILYAHS of de intebigence comoonity to perteck her from hersef - SAME THANG, honkey.

#ShePersisted » 17 Feb 2017 5:54 pm » wrote: And you know this for sure, how? I don't know, was he talking to one of our adversaries who was interfering in our election? I don't think I said that it did.
Have you heard the conversation?

Do you really not see the difference between talking to any old country and talking to a country that was meddling in our election on 45's behalf?

Inglorious Bastards » 17 Feb 2017 6:06 pm » wrote:Misty.........why do you hate me so much now??????.............................

Huey » 17 Feb 2017 6:07 pm » wrote:
Shrug.