To serve under Donald Trump is to be a disposable commodity whose value fluctuates with the master’s moods. This was true on “The Apprentice” and it’s true in the administration, where personnel matters have taken on a gameshow quality. Turnover has been especially rapid among those responsible for heading up the investigation into ties between Trump’s circle and the Russian government. This week, FBI Director James Comey joined Mary McCord, Sally Yates, and Preet Bharara as senior law enforcement officials who either resigned under Trump or were fired outright. As new officials are appointed to take their places, it’s getting hard to keep track of who is responsible for the Trump-Russia investigation. Two of these key officials (Dana Boente and Rod Rosenstein) are Trump appointees; the third (Andrew McCabe) will likely be replaced by a Trump pick soon.
Dana Boente
Dana Boente leaves federal court in Alexandria, Va., on Jan. 26, 2012.
Photo: Evan Vucci/AP
Current Jobs: U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia; acting assistant attorney general for the National Security Division, Department of Justice
Former Jobs: Acting attorney general (after the firing of Sally Yates in February 2017 and before the confirmation of Jeff Sessions as attorney general in April 2017); U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Louisiana
Why He Matters: Both of Boente’s current roles involve supervising the ongoing investigation into the Russian government’s ties to Trump’s campaign. As discussed by former FBI Director Comey in congressional testimony last week, and reported by CNN, a grand jury is now gathering evidence in the Eastern District of Virginia as part of its investigation of Michael Flynn, Trump’s former national security adviser, for his ties to the Russian government. Comey also described the broader Russia probe as a “counterintelligence investigation,” a category of inquiry overseen by the National Security Division, which Boente headed after the resignation of Mary McCord last month.
Age: 63
Bio: Boente is a career prosecutor who has been with the Department of Justice since 1984, serving under administrations from both parties. Boente oversaw the prosecution of former Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell for corruption before the Supreme Court threw out the conviction in 2016, a decision that effectively narrowed the definition of political corruption. In 2015, Boente was nominated by President Obama to serve as the U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia — a post that handles a lot of national security cases due to its proximity to the Beltway. After acting Attorney General Sally Yates was fired for refusing to defend Trump’s Muslim ban, Boente was appointed acting attorney general and promptly reversed course, unsuccessfully defending it in court. (The Department of Justice has appealed.) Former colleagues told the New York Times that Boente wasn’t playing politics — he probably believes that a ban is legal. In April, Boente was tapped by Jeff Sessions to lead the department’s National Security Division, which, along with the FBI, is responsible for the Russia investigation. In that role, Boente is also at the center of the Justice Department’s efforts to arrest and prosecute WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, a move that could set a precedent that severely restricts press freedom.
Rod J. Rosenstein
U.S. Attorney for the District of Maryland Rod J. Rosenstein gives testimony before the Senate Committee on the Judiciary in Washington on March 7, 2017.
Photo: Rex Features/AP
Current Job: Deputy attorney general, Department of Justice
Former Job: U.S. attorney for Maryland
Why He Matters: Sessions promised not to weigh in on the Trump-Russia investigation; nevertheless, he appears to have been instrumental in Trump’s decision to fire Comey, who was leading the FBI’s work on the investigation. If one can still take Sessions at his word, it is Rosenstein who is supposed to be supervising all Trump-Russia matters at the Department of Justice. Rosenstein also wrote the lengthy memo that comes the closest to providing a justification for Comey’s firing.
Age: 52
Bio: In his 12 years working as a prosecutor in Maryland, Rosenstein took on matters ranging from municipal corruption to white-collar crime to firearms and gangs. He investigated leaks relating to U.S. cyber efforts against Iran under President Obama and investigated Bill and Hillary Clinton’s real estate investments as a Justice Department lawyer working for Kenneth Starr, the independent counsel whose investigations led to the most recent impeachment of an American president. This profile by CNN suggests that Rosenstein is a careful and thorough professional. It records the surprise of colleagues that he would be the one to wind up providing Trump and Sessions with the basis for getting rid of Comey. In an earlier profile by the Washington Post, Philip Heymann, who served as deputy attorney general under Bill Clinton, praises Rosenstein’s trustworthiness and ethics. It notes that Rosenstein is rarely home in time for dinner and often picks up where he left off at home, working late into the night. During his confirmation hearings earlier this year, Rosenstein refused to say whether he would appoint a special counsel to investigate Trump’s Russia ties and promised to be independent. The Washington Post has reported that Rosenstein threatened to resign upon realizing that the White House was using his memo to justify Comey’s dismissal. “If the president has committed a crime and I believe the president is culpable, then I wouldn’t follow the president’s advice,” he said. On Thursday morning, the New York Times editorial board published an open letter to Rosenstein, charging Trump with “exploiting the integrity you have earned over nearly three decades in public service” and calling on Rosenstein to appoint a special counsel to “get to the bottom of whether and how Russia helped steal the presidency for Mr. Trump.”
Andrew G. McCabe
Acting FBI Director Andrew McCabe prepares to testify during the Senate Intelligence Committee hearing on “World Wide Threats” on May 11, 2017.
Photo: Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call/AP
Current Job: Acting director, FBI
Former Job: Deputy director, FBI
Why He Matters: Until Trump nominates a replacement for Comey and maneuvers him or her through Senate confirmation (there’s likely to be a fight no matter who the candidate is), McCabe will be in charge of the bureau’s end of the Trump-Russia investigation. He’s politically vulnerable. Unlike Rosenstein and Boente, he wasn’t picked by Trump for his current job and he could be next in line for firing. According to a source who spoke with ABC News, McCabe has talked by phone with FBI field offices around the country and asked them to carry on “business as usual.”
Bio: McCabe spent 20 years in the FBI’s New York field office before Comey promoted him to deputy director last year. He had significant responsibilities in the investigation of Hillary Clinton’s emails and is currently being investigated by the Department of Justice’s inspector general for not recusing himself from that matter: Republican senators and others have complained that McCabe should have taken himself out of investigation because his wife, Jill McCabe, made a run for the Virginia state Senate in 2015 and accepted nearly half a million dollars in contributions from a political action committee connected to Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe. McAuliffe chaired Clinton presidential campaigns in 1996 and 2008. McCabe also figures into a second controversy surrounding contacts between Comey and the Trump White House. The Atlantic and others have reported that the White House asked Comey and McCabe to dispute reports of contacts between the Trump campaign and Russian officials. If those reports are true, Comey and McCabe appear to have refused, but the contacts themselves could violate guidelines designed to shield the bureau from political pressure.
Top photo: From left to right: Rod J. Rosenstein, Andrew G. McCabe, and Dana Boente.
Comey was a corrupt compromised likely blackmailed obama leftover.
The Clinton Bermuda Triangle was his demise, not Trump. Trump was the fulcrum.
You never showed criminal id thief so much criticism.
You saved it all for Trump or any opposition to the demo-Communists.
The USA is free – not communists. Relocate to Venezuela if you can’t handle Trump.
Obama disappeared into his mancave above the Oval Office, watching espn all day.
Trumo stays in the iCal office repairing our country.
Obama destroyed the patriotic all American USA.
A greedy evil psychopath criminal enriching himself with perks from hard working taxpayer money.
Trump is drawing no salary.
These reporters here have no shame. Unfair & biased.
Comey self-destructed because he enriched himself with the wrong bribes.
So “Rod” is tainted by Whitewater, eh?
No more than Bart is tainted by Holmer.
Lock Trump Up! Lock Trump Up!
Ignoramus.
Get back into obamas underwear/ jockstrap. He needs some affection.
Meanwhile, Comey says that there’s more “undisclosed information” that will be coming out soon. Such as what? If the FBI Director is fired, is that a “classified” process? How could Trump possibly keep it secret? If Comey wasn’t fired for cause, will he sue for wrongful termination? Set aside all of the “he’s a standup guy” stuff. If he did sue, how could he do that without revealing classified information?
Is there no end to this thin gruel of partisanship? First it dripped, then it dribbled. And now it pours from the virtual pages of The Intercept.
If Omidyar decides to merge this increasingly-embarrassing experiment with, say, The Washington Post, you guys will fit right in.
Amen. The Intercept is on a course to being completely unreliable if it insists on being partisan.
There is simply no such thing as an honest partisan.
The Intercept is growing to be more and more like Slate, which is also a propaganda property owned by The Washington Post.
The FBI WAS NOT AND HAS NEVER INVESTIGATED Donald Trump for Russian Collusion either while he was a Private Citizen,or as a Candidate, or as a PEOTUS currently as POTUS. While the same cannot be said for Senator now AG Jeff Sessions who advises the POTUS the President himself remained well within his constitutional rights to fire the FBIs “Director of Parallel Construction.”
http://circa.com/politics/accountability/james-comey-told-congressional-officials-that-trump-wasnt-a-russian-probe-target
If Louise Mensch is right, watch out America…..
https://patribotics.blog/2017/05/11/sources-russia-probe-means-president-hatch-rico-case-against-gop/
You have a bright career as an Intercept columnist ahead of you.
Hahahaha…i don’t necessarily believe this nonsense, but I won’t discount it. There are raids being conducted as we speak.
http://www.wbaltv.com/article/fbi-searching-annapolis-fundraiserconsulting-firm/9639787
its one thing to ask for evidence….thats legit and i agree. but why are commentors here so hell bent on refuting any possibility of a problem? where does that mentality come from? i understand the allure of ‘deep state’ scapegoating, but sometimes the writings on the wall. its not always the most complex possible explanation.
“why are commentors here so hell bent on refuting any possibility of a problem?”
Because people are tired of being taken for absolute fools by cold-war type propaganda. Where does the mentality come from that credulously laps it all up, even while acknowledging there’s no evidence? Wtf is THAT about!?!
I do understand and agree with that. But there appears to be some evidence of problems of money, conflict and possibly conflicting international alliances for which there is some evidence. the ‘conclusions’ are unfounded at this point but is not worth investigating? i would say that it appears its likely not isolated to this administration. But does it not warrant some investigating? Or is that perceived as completely contrived ( I’m really asking here…as there seems to be ‘hysteria’ equally on both sides)
And i don’t think a request to investigate and learn what is or is not should be considered ‘lapping it up’ (e.g. the anti-Russia hysteria seems to say any investigation at all is ‘lapping it up’ hook line and sinker)
Apologies, i was not clear…by ‘anti-Russia’ in above comment, i mean to say a perspective on the right wholly against the perceived Russian hysteria on the left
Look, if there was a shred of truth to these endless allegations of Russia manipulating the last election and compromising the present government evidence would have been presented by now.
But what sticks in the craw even more is the failure of any of these new cold warriors to concede, even once, that the undisputed biggest culprit of this particular crime for the last 70 years is their own country.
And they don’t even acknowledge that it is a crime when the US subverts the internal politics of other countries. The hypocrisy is of monumental proportions.
i agree the US has committed egregious crimes in name of security and sometimes without a name at all. I can’t argue with your points on cold or on the ground warfare and espionage. i don’t know how long it takes to make these cases or to uncover/level evidence (seeing as we are not privy to classified info) and I don’t agree with the hysteria (on either side).
But i also can’t help thinking that just because the truth is often subverted, doesn’t mean there isn’t something dark in the truth. And Trump seems terribly erratic and irrational.
thanks.
Yes, there would be something definite. There is no problem with suspicions to be investigated, but when the discovery leads tonothing, that iswhat you have. When the SecofState Clinton has directly received moneys thru her Potus husband, in return for political favors, that is more obvious. In global business deals, countries wll interact. But what? How could anyone have such power and control over the world superpower?
Don’t be so sure- according to this article, it’s a Republican-linked firm- but known for bilking their clients (spending small factions of sums raised for the candidates*, and using candidates’ names without permission**).
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-05-11/republican-fundraising-firm-in-maryland-raided-by-fbi-reports
* Shades of Clinton’s coordinating with the state parties!
** Including Donald Trump, whose campaign team told them to stop in 2015.
I read that link.
That “article” made the right-wing Obama-Is-a-Kenyan stories of yore sound downright measured and rational.
Allow me to go out on a limb with a prediction: Not one single syllable of that dungheap will prove to be true.
How do you even find crap like that, much less believe it?
9/11 Truthers and Birthers make more sense (not much) than Mensch. She has the Washington Post (no friend of Putin or Trump) awarding her four Pinocchios for her statements. She accuses people who write anti-Trump books of not writing them. I’m not sure if she’s crazy (from past drug use, which she admitted) or mendacious (like other anti-Russian conspiracy theorists like Ion Pacepa and Alexander Litvinenko.)
She’s no “mensch” & she’s no american.
She’s a dingbat grandstander & very dumb.
15 min that’s it.
Even Maher got rid of her.
If she was a man, her name would be “meathead”.
What a silly story.
Maybe the authors can explain to readers how one can proof something that did not happen, happened in a subsequent article.
Or write about something that really matters, like the drone papers, would be even more appreciated.
NEW CBS LIVE||REPLAY: Trey Gowdy Finds Out FBI Director James Comey Won’t Obey The Law -Sits On Actionable Evidence For Years At A Time.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=p-GAPRj273Q
It’s sad howThe Intercept has decided to throw its lot in with MSDNC and the rest of the Lamestream media by jumping on a fake scandal. As much as I loathe Drumpf, I detest even more the vacuous obsession with phony charges of Russian hacking/interference/ties. Absolutely NO evidence whatsoever has been presented proving Russia intervened to throw last year’s election to the Great Orange Dope. NONE. But, like Rachel Maddow, the Intercept writers apparently no longer have anything better to do than go hunting for unicorns while real, provable scandals fly under their radar. Glenn Greenwald is conspicuously seldom around anymore, which seems a bit too coincidental given he is one of the biggest skeptics of the Democrats’ insane McCarthy-like rantings and ravings since November. Hell, aside from the articles on the death penalty and Greenwald, The Intercept is no longer even worth visiting anymore.
sorry Mike, ‘lamestream’ and ‘fake’ are the signifying rhetorical flourishes of unserious buffoonery.
RMD: An ad-hominem attack on Michael Wilk due to his chosen “rhetorical flourishes” is worse than fallacious. It’s a waste of time. He made points. Refute them if you can. By attacking him, not his points, you are signifying that you are the unserious buffoon.
I principally attacked the use of ‘lamestream’ and ‘fake’ as unserious… and yes, a signifier of buffoonery.
I’m sure he’s quite capable of making a case for the claim that an unspecified bit of news is ‘fake’…. and can provide a working definition of whatever is meant by ‘lamestream’
….I’ll wait.
Matt, I am struck by your ready acceptance of a bogus assertion that some unspecified ‘scandal’ is ‘fake’…and instead of objecting to this groundless, uncorroborated claim, deign to lecture me about how I ought to ‘refute them’?
what, exactly, am I to refute, Matt?
should I start with the reference to unicorns?
You are incapable of intelligently addressing the unicorn matter, which is:
For you are Exhibit A of the “discerning reader” attracted to the bullshit that criticizes.
nice try.
That was pretty funny.
I would love to see you refute unicorns, by the way, that would be awesome.
I was not lecturing you. I was pointing out something I’m sure you already know: An ad-hominem attack on a person rather than his/her argument is fallacious and meaningless. You’re very opinionated, and very capable of arguing points, so do so.
As to my acceptance of the assertion that the scandal is fake: Collusion with Russia by Trump has been asserted, alluded to, claimed, accused, whined about, and repeated thousands of times by the news media in the past several months. Like any good conspiracy theory, it is totally impervious to its own lack of evidence. It is fueled wholly by the ardent belief of those who wish it to be true, see every Marushka Doll on Earth as “evidence”, and refuse to stop repeating the nonsense. Glenn Greenwald has written some excellent pieces about it on this site.
My point is this: The one who asserts the conspiracy is the one who must prove it is true. No such proof has been found, despite months and months of very well-funded efforts by our Intelligence Services with the frightening tools at their disposal.
I accept the assertion that The Russian Conspiracy is a fake scandal because no evidence exists to indicate that it is real. It is nothing but repetition, emotion, and innuendo– the tools of propagandists. At this point, anyone who continues arguing that it is real is speaking from faith, wishes, and dogma, not from reason.
If a photo surfaces of Trump and Putin riding a Unicorn together while trading keys to the White House and Kremlin, I will reconsider.
Matt, you’ve got it all figured out, except for one thing: the term “conspiracy theory” was coined by the CIA in the mid 1960s as a way to discourage investigative journalism.
Is that an inerrant fact? [smirk]
it certainly is
So where’s the evidence of Russian hacking or other interference in the election last year? If it’s not a fake scandal, like Pizzagate, then you should be able to offer up evidence.
“The Intercept is no longer even worth visiting anymore.”
There is comic validity in the comment section.
Nearly 20-year old revelations from the Snowden files brings back memories, too.
But lets not forget whistle-blowers can safely release information to this site. I’m sure Betsy goes to great lengths to protect the identity of any leaker of government malfeasance. I mean, after the Snowden release, it is going to be more difficult to release material because the spies will be watching. We need Betsy to make sure only the bestest journalists here get to see the secrets. Democracy depends on it.
Ditto. Glenn and the criminal justice stuff — as well as some of the environmental stories — are the only reason to read here. My strong sense is that Glenn has moved to a life dominated by matters both personal and professional in Brazil.
This site is dissolving into trash.
Sadly, that is true. I still come here because it’s a place I can discuss ideas with people who like to discuss ideas.
Unlike many of you, I am a recent denizen of these boards. I wish I had discovered The Intercept in its heyday.
In terms of the commenting community, there was a vibrant and wonderful one that began when Greenwald founded his blog in ’05. We followed him to Salon, the Guardian, and then to here. But neglect of this space, including the bullshit software, and several years of virtually no moderation to prevent flooding with crap — when I was told it was a “free-for-all” — destroyed that community.
Some 95% of that community is either now entirely gone, or posts only very seldom. As the articles move ever farther toward shit, the place attracts fewer and fewer worth discussing anything with. I’m masochistic, so I’m still here.
You two should get a room. Invite Communette to join you since you’re a masochist (or sadist?).
Uh, eeeuw.
Haaaaaa!!!
This fish wrap had a hey day?
“My strong sense is that Glenn has moved to a life dominated by matters both personal and professional in Brazil.”
As well he should. America does not want to be fixed; horse, water.
America is losing some of its best people–Glenn Greenwald, Edward Snowden…
Barrett Brown recently said in an interview that he’ll be leaving as soon as he is permitted.
May their adopted countries benefit. America loses for sure.
D’ accordo!
Re: Michael Wilk @ 10:44 AM; May 11th
However, if you’re actually unfamiliar with Glenn Greenwald’s current thoughts on such topics as Trump’s latest antics, the relationship between the U.S.A. and Russia, or several other serious concerns, you simply have not tried to inform yourself.
Your silly screed is of no consequence sir; that could actually be why THE INTERCEPT “no longer” appeals to your interests.
As Usual,
EA
Glenn Greenwald is not The Intercept. When he still bothers to write about matters in the United States his columns are great. But he writes less and less, while shit such as that above appears more and more.
He still proudly announces himself as a co-founder of the place, which is becoming puzzling. (I don’t read the Brazilian Intercept; it’s possible that’s worthwhile.)
What, didn’t you see Robert Mackey’s article today that was accompanied by photos of Trump meeting with Russia’s top diplomat Lavrov? Trump was grinning and shaking his hand! And the photos were provided by the Russians!
What more could you possibly need to prove the Trump/Russia conspiracy?
Sometimes finding a justification for a legal argument is more of an academic exercise. Were I the legal mind behind the justification, it would have been such for myself.
Its up to those who can use the work to decide what to do with it. Support of your appointer, or his administration would have nothing to do with it.
Welcome to the MSM club, yours faithfully, CNN.
What a foolish McCarthyite rant, considering Hillary received millions in bribes to approve the transfer of 20% of our uranium assets to Russia:
https://www.nytimes.com/2015/04/24/us/cash-flowed-to-clinton-foundation-as-russians-pressed-for-control-of-uranium-company.html?_r=0
She will be investigated! Get ready for that deep-state Intercept.
Our country is in a dire situation, our political system, our freedoms, our economy, and our health, are at risk. We have no checks and balances right now. We have no faith in the people who hold an appointed office, they have demonstrated a total lack of integrity. Our elected officials, for the most part, have quit representing American citizens years ago.
In order for the trump investigations to have any chance of being honest, and complete, a special prosecuter has to be appointed. I know nothing about the three men mentioned in this article, and they work under AJ sessions, the validity of their investigation will be very suspect.
There are two well qualified persons to fill the position of special prosecuter, Sally Yates, or Preet Bharara, both are well respected, and there integrity us unquestionable.
If we find any collusion between trump and his organization with Russia , it is by definition an act of treason.
If we find any financial dealings with Russia this is an impeachable offense and should be pursued.
Our constitution has already been diluted to the status that of toilet paper. We must incest on a firm and positive investigation in order to regain control of our government.
Democracy only works when the government fears the power of the people.
“If we find any financial dealings with Russia this is an impeachable offense and should be pursued.”
And if nothing is found, our darlings Neera, et al, have a whole lot of ‘splaining to do. DNC seppuku, anyone?
As Matt Taibbi recently opined in an article published several days prior to the media’s distraction on the firing of James Comey – http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/features/taibbi-the-war-in-the-white-house-w480238 – , the Trump’s administrative process seems based on some bizarre “flushing-toilet-bowl” modus operandi.
As Usual,
EA
Repeat, repeat, repeat, repeat…. Say it so often, in so many contexts, with no proof at all but with incessant and sinister innuendo… Then, be sure you refer to each other’s articles and ideas, which will constantly reinforce the legitimacy of the other propagandists… Do it until the Message becomes a societally accepted fact and common knowledge. Spin off so many loose ends that disaffected people (read:Democrats) will gleefully spend countless hours tying all those meaningless loose ends into a beautiful, colorful Conspiracy Tapestry. This is how you create a Conspiracy culture. This is how you propagandize a population.
There are dozens of Conspiracy Theories on the internet with a rich ecosystem, theories that have sprung up and come to be accepted by millions of people around the world, many of whom are otherwise very intelligent. Chemtrails, Shapeshifting Reptilians, Subterranean Alien Civilizations, DUMB’s, the Moon Hoax, UFO’s, it goes on and on. The people who create videos, articles, “documentaries”, and books in support of these theories all do “research” by reading each other’s books and articles, and watching each other’s videos. They feed on each other’s fear, paranoia, sense of self-importance, fetishistic fascination with destruction, and above all their “important” role of informer and savior to the vast uninitiated public.
This propaganda feedback loop has flourished on the internet, even without any support from mainstream news sources. But now, the mainstream news media has used the exact same tactics to promote this asinine, idiotic, vapid, vacuous, baseless, factless Russian Scare. The media has. Econe nothing but despicable propagandists. Maybe they always were, but now it’s just more obvious because they’re so desperate to bring down Trump.
No lack of evidence is great enough to convince a mainstream journalist, bitter Democrat, or bitter leftist academic that their pet belief is nonsense. You may as well try to convince a prepper that there is NOT a DUMB (Deep Underground Military Base) beneath Denver Airport. They have no evidence for it, but they have a beautiful Conspiracy Tapestry of loose ends they have constructed!! And it keeps them warm, wrapping themselves in it daily. It makes them feel important, showing people their Conspiracy Tapestry, adding to it bit by bit when a fellow conspiracy theorist offers up another loose end to incorporate.
Pathetic how The Intercept has been willingly co-opted into the Propaganda Tapestry Weaving Machine. Any writer participating in this is a worthless douche.
There are plenty of things to criticize Trump for. When you keep spinning these ridiculous yarns, weaving this insane Conspiracy Tapestry, you deligitimize yourself. No one will listen to you when you have something valid to say. This is precisely why the public distrusts the media.
The media thinks they are going to wrap Trump up in their stupid Tapestry. Instead they are going to smother themselves.
Move on. Save yourself.
Ah, like this:
_”Elevated silver, barium and strontium in antlers, vegetation and soils sourced from CWD cluster areas: do Ag/Ba/Sr piezoelectric crystals represent the transmissible pathogenic agent in TSEs?”_
“High levels of Silver (Ag), Barium (Ba) and Strontium (Sr) and low levels of copper (Cu) have been measured in the antlers, soils and pastures of the deer that are thriving in the chronic wasting disease (CWD) cluster zones in North America in relation to the areas where CWD and other transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (TSEs) have not been reported. The elevations of Ag, Ba and Sr were thought to originate from both natural geochemical and artificial pollutant sources–stemming from the common practise of aerial spraying with ‘cloud seeding’ Ag or Ba crystal nuclei for rain making in these drought prone areas of North America, the atmospheric spraying with Ba based aerosols for enhancing/refracting radar and radio signal communications….”
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15236778
Move on.
Communete! I was wondering if you might chime in.
I am intrigued by the Chemtrail theories… But then I am intrigued (if not convinced) by many conspiracy theories.
A legitimate, peer-reviewed article that references barium aerosol spraying– without documenting the existence of barium aerosol spraying– does not live barium aerosol spraying. It is more like a loose end (like I mentioned above), a thread to weave into a Conspiracy Tapestry.
Re: Matt Whisnant @ 9:39 AM; May 11
As a recovering CONservative one must be patient when making the transition from magical beliefs to factual reasoning; commonly experienced as simply ‘growing up’. While the healthy process of human reason often leads to better founded beliefs and understanding, the ritual practice of dogmatic belief systems seldom, if ever, contribute to the general health and welfare of the common good writ large.
You say, in pertinent part:
I agree!
Likewise, by subjectively compressing all whose opinions disagree – in your opinion – with your own into a negative construct of your own imagination, you alienate anyone who may be adverse to getting absorbed into a mindless pissing contest with a probable ideological zealot.
You also conclude:
As Usual,
EA
I must confess I could not follow your point at all.
By “negative construct of [my] own imagination”, do you mean journalists-as-propagandists?
If that is what you meant: I think it is quite fair to say that all who relentlessly push a factless narrative (one that they ardently wish was true) using the well-worn techniques of propagandists, are indeed propagandists. And it is I deed my opinion that propagandists are douchebags.
As for the ideological zealotry that (I think?) you accused me of, you need to meet some real zealots. They are not interested in logical consistency.
I am a recovering liberal and a recovering conservative. I find both sides equally repulsive and shockingly similar when it comes to what they actually DO, as opposed to what they SAY.
“get to the bottom of whether and how Russia helped steal the presidency for Mr. Trump.”
So the NYT is telegraphing to the investigators the desired outcome of the investigation?
Rod J. Rosenstein threatened to resign after his “letter” was used as justification for firing Comey.
I’m a Chiquita Banana and I’m here to stay.
Bob Woodward cited “many, many inconsistencies” in the Trump team’s rationale for firing Comey.
Woodward also said journalists need to ‘Quadruple’ scrutiny after President fired FBI director.
Too bad we don’t have journalism today the way we did when Woodard and Bernstein were doing investigative journalism.
Curse you (thank you) Mattathias and thank you Alex.
A coup in real time? Historian Timothy Snyder says the Comey firing is Trump’s “open admission of collusion with Russia”
http://www.salon.com/2017/05/11/a-coup-in-real-time-historian-timothy-snyder-says-the-comey-firing-is-trumps-open-admission-of-collusion-with-russia/
PropOrNot? Snyder has Trump dead to rights, so when will he testify to Congress?
This reminds me of John McCain’s claim in early 2000’s that he knew where Osama bin Laden was hiding (presumably within the Tora Bora bunker constructed by CIA and destroyed by MOAB) when no one else did. Pray, tell!
What happens now historian Timothy Snyder’s said that ?
Really?
I thought that yesterday’s Trump Lavrov Oval Office (in advance of the Trump Putin G 20 summit) which only allowed Russian Press outlets was now the best evidence of clear “Collusion” between the Trump and Putin Administrations…and their future and former campaign staffs…or Russian backed Syrian government forces or American backedforces…or something.
If They Had Any Hard Evidence of Trump Collusion with Russia to feed Wikileaks Pre Convention Clinton Files
Their case is all hearsay about hearsay about hearsay. A regular grand jury would not indict this unsourced press account heavy ham sandwich employing SCORES of “anonymous Government sources” to weave an MSM wide Russophobic Neo McCarthyist conspiracy theoy.
I highly recommend seeing Amy Goodman’s interview with Ruth Ben-Ghiat, a professor of history and Italian studies at New York University. She wrote a recent piece for CNN, headlined “Trump at his most dangerous,”
https://www.democracynow.org/2017/5/11/historian_of_fascism_why_trump_firing
Thanks for the profiles on the next batch of officials to be fired. Mr. Trump knows how to keep the research people busy, doing background profiles. The other advantage to his approach is allowing government employees to move quickly up the ranks at the agencies, at least until they reach the top and get lopped off.
Mr. Trump is a disrupter, which should be useful for getting the blood of government recirculating.
Those damn Russians!
They MUST be the problem!
How else would the TRUTH about the democrats corrupt manipulations
have been allowed to surface and possibly influence an election?
There is NO place for TRUTH in the “exceptional” corruption of
the faking U$A!
The votes? The voters couldn’t have elected TRUMP!
Poor murderous Hillary should have won. Her corruption is
SO much prettier than Trump’s.
How did “the Russians” cast those votes?!!!!!
Someone didn’t read the actual article but wanted to be heard!! Yeah Clark, we indeed see you. Our eyes may glaze over at your rantings, but we see you buddy.
On a relevant note, Mattathias and Alex provide a great synopsis of these three individuals. Now that the WH and DOJ officials have weakened (Rosenstein) or wrecked (Trump and Sessions) their own credibility, there will always be a cloud over the DOJ’s investigation unless Rosenstein also recuses himself and an independent special prosecutor is appointed.
Like the election the Hillary investigation is over. Get over it. We need to concentrate on the corruption of the Trump policies.
You either missed his point, or you’re re-directing. I’m all for concentrating on Trump’s corrupt policies, but this whole “The Russians did it” fantasy is a huge and deadly distraction.
All of you idiots who think this article doesn’t
REPEATEDLY
focus on the “Russians”
need to learn to see the obvious.
“Russia” or the “Russians” are mentioned as a primary concern
at least 12 times in this lousy manipulating piece of crap article.