July 2017

Go through any literature course, even the sort you get in middle school, and you’ll be introduced to the idea that stories go up and down. There’s the rising action that moves like mountaneers ascending the Matterhorn, the climax somewhere up there on the snowy peak, and then things get wrapped up quickly as the surviving characters come gratefully back to earth.

But with many stories, and Game of Thrones is definitely one of them, the course of the work is better described in terms of scope, or space—of moving out and coming in. Of entropy. For the first five seasons of the show, and for essentially the whole of the work as it exists on paper, the story has been one of characters spreading out. The distance between the people we knew at the opening of the work—those still attached to their heads—has both literally and figuratively grown farther apart. They’ve not only scattered around the globe, they’ve each gone on their own version of the hero’s journey, even though it would take a fair degree of cynicism to describe many of them as heroes.

The narrative has gone out, and out, and out … if the stories told around that point, in both mediums, started to seem like they were running out of air, it’s because they were. The fuel that made things burn in earlier seasons—friendships, conflicts, family—had become so rarefied that it simply couldn’t sustain a nice blaze. In the books, Martin made an attempt to patch over this period of near-vacuum by introducing new characters and plot lines. Most of which, thankfully, we’ve been spared when it comes to the video version.

The separation of characters and the extreme differences between their various experiences also made it more difficult for the multi-viewpoint story to stay in sync. This led to experiences such as that of poor Sam Tarly, who spent the better part of a season crossing a stretch of water—a plot line so devoid of action that the show runners lifted a character death from another section of the story and dropped it onto the boat, just so something would happen. It was painful (and I say this as an author who once purposely got a character lost in a department store, just to kill time).

But, somewhere in the first third of season six, the wind shifted. That long, long outflow began to move inward. Characters who had been apart began rushing toward each other. Consequences of events that had seemed to happen without notice, became obvious. The dead hand of entropy was replaced by the driving force of plot. And now the only problem is that the inrush threatens to become a implosion.

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15 Remarks Trump Found Less Offensive Than Scaramucci's Meltdown

johan brown 22:18 The Huffington Post No Comments

Warning: Some of these comments are NSFW (unless you're the president).

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Kate Hudson Responds To Scaramucci's Resignation With Perfect Meme

johan brown 22:18 The Huffington Post No Comments

How to Lose a Communications Director in 10 Days.

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The heat is really on

johan brown 22:08 Daily Kos No Comments

Every June some friend of mine here in Texas can be heard stating “it’s gonna be a hot summer!” At which point everyone in earshot will look at the dude, probably wondering if he thinks that’s funny, or if it’s possible Captain Obvious here really doesn’t understand what latitude and hemisphere Texas occupies. Summers in the southwest are always hot, but August is usually the most brutal month of them all. Back-to-back triple digit days are the norm. And don’t give us any of that “dry heat” nonsense either (I’m looking at you, Florida!). When it’s over 100 degrees for hours on end, it can kill in record time, no matter how dry it is.

As if the desert southwest needed more heat at this time of year, here’s a cheery observation:

This year’s scorching summer events, like heat waves rolling through southern Europe and temperatures nearing 130 degrees Fahrenheit in Pakistan, are part of this broader trend. The chart above, based on data from James Hansen, a retired NASA climate scientist and professor at Columbia University, shows how summer temperatures have shifted toward more extreme heat over the past several decades. … Practically, that means most summers are now either hot or extremely hot compared with the mid-20th century.

Well, maybe we don’t have it quite that bad in Texas, yet. It’s not likely to hit 130. But the first crisp cool front, usually in mid to late September, sure seems a longs ways off right about now.

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Dozens Of Texas Businesses Tell Governor To Ditch 'Bathroom Bill'

johan brown 21:48 The Huffington Post No Comments

Discriminating against the transgender community is simply bad for business, they say.

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15 Remarks Trump Found Less Offensive Than Scaramucci's Meltdown

johan brown 21:48 The Huffington Post No Comments

Warning: Some of these comments are NSFW (unless you're the president).

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After blocking the GOP's repeal of the ACA, senator describes the 'extraordinary' greeting back home

johan brown 21:39 Daily Kos No Comments

Sen. Susan Collins returned home to Maine on Friday and was greeted with great enthusiasm by travelers inside the Bangor International Airport. As she walked off the plane, travelers in the gate area recognized her and broke into a hearty round of applause that continued to get louder as word spread she was in the area. Twitter user @BLCKDGRD grabbed a photo of a surprised and smiling Sen. Collins making her way through the gate area:

This is true: Susan Collins on our plane to Bangor, gets applause as she passes through Bangor airport waiting area. http://pic.twitter.com/a1s2QTpldd
Ã¢Â€Â” BLCKDGRD (@BLCKDGRD) July 28, 2017

She described the scene to Jake Tapper on CNN’s State of the Union show:

“It really was so extraordinary, heartwarming and affirming. I got off the plane and there was a large group of outbound passengers, none of whom I happen to know, and spontaneously some of them started applauding and then virtually all of them started to applaud,” Collins told CNN’s Jake Tapper on “State of the Union” on Sunday.

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Tesla Model 3 is Here | Autoblog Minute

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Tesla Model 3s have arrived. Starting at 35k, making it Tesla's most affordable model. There are alot of options that can get consumers up there in price.

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Jeff Flake tries to go maverick, we're not buying it

johan brown 21:08 Daily Kos No Comments

Sen. Jeff Flake must have felt like he had to get in on some of the adulation that his senior colleague from Arizona, Sen. John McCain has received since casting the third Republican vote to kill Trumpcare in the Senate (for now). He's decided that he needs to distance himself from his president a bit. That he's running for re-election in 2018 probably had something to do with it, too.

“I do think so,” Flake told CBS’s “Face the Nation” when asked if GOP leaders are complicit if they fail to call out Trump.
“I think that you know, obviously the last thing you want to do is wake up every morning and see a tweet and think, ‘I just' — you know, it’s tough not to just say, ‘I’m not going to respond.’ And we can’t respond to everything. But there are times when you have to stand up and say, ‘I’m sorry. This is wrong.’” […]

“There are truths that are self-evident. And you’ve got to stand up and call, whether it’s the White House or other elected officials, to task when they’re not doing what they should,” he said.

Very well said, Senator. Boy, are you the new maverick or what? Yeah, or what.

Flake: Republicans who don't call out Trump are complicit https://t.co/YQxTbXZ4TA http://pic.twitter.com/pyzcvol6J0
— ChrisInParis (@ChrisInParis) July 31, 2017

You’re going to have to do a lot better than that, Senator.

Please give $1 to each of our Senate funds so that Republican senators—especially Jeff Flake—know there'll be a price to pay for his vote to repeal health care.

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Trump Cranks Out Baffling Statement After Another Day Of White House Chaos

johan brown 21:03 The Huffington Post No Comments

This is a "great day."

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GOP Strategist Steve Schmidt Calls Out 'Little Child' Trump's Impulse Control

johan brown 21:03 The Huffington Post No Comments

Steve Schmidt also says the White House is a "latter-day zoo."

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Trump Dictated His Son's Account Of Meeting With Russian Lawyer, Post Reports

johan brown 20:48 The Huffington Post No Comments

"A great day at the White House!"

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House Republican Chris Collins: 'This has been a great week' for Trump!

johan brown 20:48 Daily Kos No Comments

Let's check in with House Republicans to see if Donald Trump's Bud Light Lime Hold My Beer And Watch This Worst Week Ever, Poochie Plus One Edition is making any of them rethink their unwavering support for a barely functioning idiot manchild with a moon-sized ego and the management skills of a rabid squirrel duct-taped to a Roomba and set loose in the Roosevelt Room.

How do you rate Trump's week, stalwart Trump supporter Rep. Chris Collins?

“This has been a great week for the President,” Rep. Chris Collins (R-NY), a staunch Trump ally, said on CNN Monday morning.
“I was at the jamboree, you know, 40,000 Boy Scouts shouting ‘We love Trump, we love Trump.’ Banning transgenders, which is probably supported by the vast majority of Americans,” he said. [...]

“On Friday we were in New York City talking about ms-13 (gangs), something that is the scourge of America, he’s taking the fight to the criminal element, dealing with North Korea, dealing with Russia, and now he has solidified the inner circle of the West Wing with John Kelly, Anthony Scaramucci, two great individuals,” he said. “I think it’s all coming together extremely well as we move into tax reform.”

To be fair to Rep. Collins, this was mere hours before one of those two "great individuals" was escorted off the White House grounds after a tenure as White House communications guru that expired sooner than the milk in the White House fridge. Tune in tomorrow, when he will return to television to explain how the removal of that individual after only a week-ish on the job similarly shows Donald Trump's management and governmental prowess.

So the answer is no. No, House Republicans are not any closer to distancing themselves from the imploding presidency. Not over Russia, not over his use of the presidency as mere advertising backdrop for his own brand, not over the man's obvious incompetence and stability, not for anything.

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Washington Post: Trump 'personally dictated' false statement about son's meeting with Russian lawyer

johan brown 20:28 Daily Kos No Comments

On the very same day that Trump's new chief of staff takes on the job, he gets his first crisis. The Washington Post is reporting that the false characterization of the meeting between Russian government-sent individuals and the Donald Trump campaign, including Donald Trump Jr. and son-in-law Jared Kushner, was crafted by Donald Trump himself.

Flying home from Germany on July 8 aboard Air Force One, Trump personally dictated a statement in which Trump Jr. said he and the Russian lawyer had “primarily discussed a program about the adoption of Russian children” when they met in June 2016, according to multiple people with knowledge of the deliberations. The statement, issued to the New York Times as it prepared a story, emphasized that the subject of the meeting was “not a campaign issue at the time.”

We quickly learned that first characterization was entirely false; the meeting was arranged after an email promising damaging information about Trump opponent Hillary Clinton—and specifically highlighting the effort as "part" of Russian government "support" for Trump. "Adoption" was only mentioned because the Russians meeting with the Trump team sought Trump assistance in lifting sanctions against Russia; Putin had halted "adoptions" of Russian children by American parents in retaliation for those sanctions.

The news that the original effort to mislead the public about the contents of the meeting came from the sitting president paints the effort in a new light. Lying to the public about the meeting may not be illegal, but:

“This was ... unnecessary,” said one of the president’s advisers, who like most other people interviewed for this story spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive internal deliberations. “Now someone can claim he’s the one who attempted to mislead. Somebody can argue the president is saying he doesn’t want you to say the whole truth.”

It's not a question of whether someone could "argue" it; according to the Post's sources, the original "strategy" was for Donald Trump Jr. to release a statement more truthfully recounting the meeting, but Trump himself blocked that effort and dictated a Trump Jr. statement to the contrary.

Have fun with that, former military general turned White House Chief of Staff John Kelly. Your president attempted to cover up a meeting between his campaign and Russian government-sent individuals seeking to manipulate the United States presidential election.

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CBP may fast-track a three-mile chunk of wall straight through a Texas wildlife refuge

johan brown 20:08 Daily Kos No Comments

Donald Trump’s border wall that Mexico will never pay for won’t do shit to stop the illegal border crossings that are actually already at a record low thanks in large part to the work of his predecessor, but according to a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service official, Customs and Border Protection “has been quietly preparing a site to build a nearly 3-mile border barrier through the Santa Ana National Wildlife Refuge,” a plan that stands to cut straight through a wildcat refuge and “some of the last surviving stands of sabal palm trees in South Texas”:

A wall cutting through the refuge could do serious environmental damage, Chapman said, undermining the reason Congress appropriated money to buy the land in the first place. But under a 2005 law, the Department of Homeland Security can waive any environmental regulations that would normally impede construction in a sensitive wildlife area.

[...]

Customs and Border Protection spokesman Carlos Diaz said it “would be premature to speak about specific locations.” The only South Texas projects authorized under the current budget are the installation of 35 gates at gaps the agency left in the existing border fence, he said.

And who is paying for this nearly three mile section of useless wall along a 2,000 mile border, exactly? You may have noticed Trump no longer mentions anything about Mexico when it comes to payment, and the $1.6 billion that the House passed faces an “uncertain” future in getting through the Senate, according to the Mother Jones. “However, CBP recently told a senior Fish and Wildlife Service official in Texas that the agency would shift funds to pay for the new segment out of its current budget.” I guess “Who’s gonna pay for the wall?” “U.S. taxpayers through the Customs and Border Protection agency will!” just doesn’t have the same ring at a rally.

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Here are 10 highlights from the Mooch’s 10 days as W.H. communications director.

johan brown 19:38 The Huffington Post No Comments

10 highlights from the Mooch’s 10 days as White House communications director.

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Who's Out, Who's In Amid Trump White House Shake-Up

johan brown 19:38 The Huffington Post No Comments

A guide to the chaos inside the West Wing.

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Senate leader Mitch McConnell goes to war—against fellow Republicans

johan brown 19:38 Daily Kos No Comments

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell didn't fire the first shot in his war with hardline Alabama conservatives, but he's going to make damn sure he gives ten times as much pain as he receives. McConnell has tasked himself with defending newly appointed Alabama Sen. Luther Strange, who may or may not be crooked, against Strange's even harder-right Republican primary opponents, Alabama Rep. Mo Brooks and the Talibanesque yet-again-former Alabama Supreme Court Justice Roy Moore. If that means emptying his super PAC's coffers against the pair and sabotaging whatever existing base of power they have, so be it.

[I]n a highly unusual step, one of McConnell’s top political lieutenants has begun quietly advising a long-shot Republican primary candidate running for Brooks’ House seat. The move is designed to get in the congressman’s head and dissuade him from emptying his campaign war chest in the race for Attorney General Jeff Sessions' old Senate seat.

McConnell has been targeting Brooks as a more likely danger to Strange than Moore, and helping to launch a credible challenge against Brooks’ own seat may count as the only "quiet" part of McConnell's anti-Brooks operation. His "Senate Leadership Fund" has been running negative ads against Brooks—hilariously, ads targeting Brooks as being insufficiently pro-Trump, which apparently is still a thing that works among the Alabama conservative base—to an extent rarely seen in an intra-party fight.

Senate Leadership Fund has spent $3.5 million on the race, by far the largest expenditure of any outside group. Yet that figure is expected to grow significantly, especially if no candidate receives a majority of the vote in the Aug. 15 primary and the contest is forced into a September runoff, as is widely expected. The group has pledged to drop $6 million to $8 million.

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Democratic redistricting effort brings in nearly $11 million in six months

johan brown 19:08 Daily Kos No Comments

The group formed by President Obama and former Attorney General Eric Holder to make a major legal and legislative redistricting push to undo GOP gerrymandering brought in about $10.8 million since its formation late last year. The strong start for the National Democratic Redistricting Committee fueled by big and small donors alike will be aimed at a top-to-bottom strategy for reformulating electoral districts across the nation to be more fair, writes Politico:

Democrats are hoping that the group will be able to coordinate efforts between activists and interest groups in prioritized state legislative and governor’s races for the next round of redistricting after the 2020 census, as well as being the home of legal challenges on the state level and at the Supreme Court. That’s an enormous array of ambitious activities, in which they’ll be going up against well-funded interests across the country. In most states, it is expected to be a major uphill battle to change the balance of power that could change the maps.

But people involved say their start has them feeling confident.

"The NDRC's significant fundraising in its first six months will allow us to take on gerrymandering and reform our electoral system,” Holder said. “This will be done through our courts, at the ballot box, and through support of ballot initiatives that create non-partisan commissions and other electoral reforms.”

With any luck, Republicans will continue sputtering along just in time to depress their base for the 2018 and 2020 elections. And maybe Donald Trump will succeed in completely tearing apart the GOP too.

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Black Women's Equal Pay Day shows how far from equality we are and how slow progress is

johan brown 18:38 Daily Kos No Comments

July 31 is Black Women’s Equal Pay Day. That means that this is the day in 2017 when black women have finally caught up with what white men were paid in 2016. Thanks, wage gap! While we often hear the (accurate as far as it goes) statistic that women are paid 80 cents on the dollar compared with white men, the gap gets a lot worse when you break it out by race, and black women are paid just 63 cents on the white man’s dollar.

Here are a few more facts from the National Women's Law Center. Education doesn’t make it go away:

Pursuing higher education does little close to the wage gap. Black women with a bachelor’s degree are typically paid $46,694—just under what white, non-Hispanic men with only a high school degree are paid ($46,729).

Black women have to earn a Master’s degree to make slightly more ($56,072) than white, non-Hispanic men with just an Associate’s degree ($54,620).

High wage jobs, low wage jobs … the gap persists.

Among workers in low wage jobs, Black women make just 60 cents for every dollar paid to white, non-Hispanic men. Black women who work full time, year round in these occupations are typically paid about $21,700 annually, compared to the $36,000 typically paid to white, non-Hispanic men in these occupations. This gap translates to a loss of $14,300 each year to the wage gap—more than enough to pay for an entire year’s worth of rent or more than a year and a half of childcare costs.

Among workers in high wage occupations—such as lawyers, engineers, and physicians or surgeons—Black women are paid 64 cents for every dollar paid to white, non-Hispanic men in the same occupations. Black women who work full time, year round in these occupations are typically paid about $70,000, compared to the $110,000 typically paid to white, non-Hispanic men in these same jobs. This amounts to a staggering annual loss of $40,000 each year, or $1.6 million dollars over a 40-year career.

Over 48 years, the entire time for which data is available, the situation has only improved by 20 cents, from black women making 43 cents for every dollar a white man made to making 63 cents in 2015, and “In Louisiana, the worst state for Black women’s wage equality, Black women typically are paid slightly less than half of what white, non-Hispanic men are paid.”

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Chelsea Handler Calls Out Tomi Lahren’s Glaring Health Care Hypocrisy

johan brown 18:28 The Huffington Post No Comments

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Latest mid-engine Chevy Corvette spy shots show more than ever

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This car appears to be wearing production bodywork.

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Latest mid-engine Chevy Corvette spy shots show more than ever originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 31 Jul 2017 17:48:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Immigrant congregants vanish from New York church: 'They’re afraid to step out'

johan brown 18:03 Daily Kos No Comments

It’s safe to assume that in any other circumstance, dozens of congregants vanishing from a Christian church would probably merit some attention from the so-called “most evangelical cabinet in history,” of whom at least a dozen members attend a weekly Bible study, according to Christian outlet CBN News. But these missing congregants in New York’s Fort Edward are brown, and they’re vanishing because they live in such fear of Donald Trump’s deportation force, that they are too afraid to leave their homes and worship:

Until three undocumented immigrants were rounded up and processed by ICE agents in March, St. Joseph’s Church in Fort Edward on Sundays was a melting pot of faces.

Members of up to 12 Mexican immigrant families, about 50 people in total, could be seen in the pews and at the altar, where Mexican immigrant children served as altar boys and girls.

“No more,” the Rev. Tom Babiuch said solemnly in a recent interview. “They don’t come here anymore. They’re afraid to step out and have a normal life.”

“This country has been built on Christian values and Christian messages,” said Rev. Babiuch. “To do this to these people is totally unChristian.”

Houses of worship across the nation have especially been in tune to the crisis facing America’s immigrant families, responding to mass deportation fears by vowing to offer sanctuary to undocumented immigrants facing deportation:

Most recently, Jeanette Vizguerra, another undocumented mom with no criminal record, won a two-year stay of deportation after spending nearly 90 days in a Denver church. While she was in sanctuary, Vizguerra was named one of Time’s 100 most influential people in the world for becoming a national face of the 21st-century sanctuary movement, one that stands to have an important role in keeping families together during Donald Trump’s anti-immigrant crackdown.

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White House Says Trump Was 'Making A Joke' When He Endorsed Police Brutality

johan brown 18:03 The Huffington Post No Comments

Last week he urged officers not to be “too nice.”

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Jokes On Twitter About ‘The Mooch’ Getting Fired In 10 Days Are Total 10s

johan brown 18:03 The Huffington Post No Comments

“Gotta add ‘Scaramucci’ to the dictionary as a measure of time.”

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In Texas, Republicans are undeterred in their attempts to prevent women from accessing abortions

johan brown 17:38 Daily Kos No Comments

Texas has been on a roll in its efforts to restrict women’s access to reproductive rights for the last forty-plus years. It is the metaphorical ground zero in the fight for abortion rights—as Roe v. Wade was first filed there back in 1970. And since conservative politicians there have always used religious doctrine combined with power and influence to try to legislate what a woman can do with her body, it comes as no surprise that at this very moment they are still trying to pass a number of bills designed to limit women’s access to abortion.

Texas’s Republican Lt. Governor Dan Patrick forced a 30-day special session of the state Legislature starting July 17. It was, he said, to pass the state’s infamous bathroom legislation that would prohibit transgender people from using the bathroom that best aligns with their gender. But, considering it is Texas, and conservative lawmakers in the state are infamous for their efforts to curb abortion access, it’s no surprise that the special session includes multiple bills aimed at limiting women’s reproductive rights.

In some ways, it really doesn’t matter whether or not the special session is to pass the bathroom bill or restrict abortion. Both of these things are utterly cruel and unnecessary—designed to further marginalize vulnerable populations. But the tenacity of these Republicans who simply refuse to give up their ridiculous, decades-long obsessive crusade against a woman’s right to privacy and to choose what she does with her body (which remains a constitutionally protected right) is both bizarre and frightening. There are multiple abortion bills up for consideration in this special session. Among them are:

Senate Bill 4 would ban state agencies from signing contracts with health care groups that provide abortions; Senate Bill 8, would require a separate premium for insurance coverage for non-emergency abortions (with no exception for rape or incest survivors); Senate Bill 10 would require abortion providers to submit detailed reports on any abortion complication directly to the state within 72 hours.

House Bill 86, which would revoke the medical licenses of any doctor who performs an abortion in Texas with narrow exceptions for the life of the mother and the fetus, is also up for debate during the special session, but it is largely considered symbolic because it could not withstand a constitutional challenge.

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Jay Leno checks out custom Porsche 911s from an ex-Singer employee

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A look at two Porsches with two different styles.

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White House press secretary: John Kelly has 'full authority ... all staff will report to him'

johan brown 17:09 Daily Kos No Comments

Donald Trump's new chief of staff John Kelly is clamping down on the White House with the full force of a former Marine general.

"General Kelly has the full authority to operate within the White House and all staff will report to him," Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said from the White House podium late Monday afternoon.

Sanders reiterated several times that everyone—including Jared and Ivanka, supposedly—will be reporting to Kelly, who swiftly gave short-lived communications director Anthony Scaramucci the boot Monday.

So apparently, it's the John Kelly show now. Good luck!

Perhaps, the only other notable news—or non-news—from the briefing was that we still don't have a date certain for Trump's big signing of the Russian sanctions bill sitting on his desk.

When asked about the West Wing's striking silence on Vladimir Putin ordering some 750 U.S. diplomats expelled from Russia, Sanders again declined to take a stand.

"Right now, we're reviewing our options," she said.

Meanwhile, the U.S. State Department has said only that Putin's actions are "regrettable and uncalled for."

Regrettable—that's the most the administration can muster in response to Putin. Sad.

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Anthony Scaramucci, We Hardly Knew Ye

johan brown 16:43 The Huffington Post No Comments

10 highlights from the Mooch's 10 days as White House communications director.

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Sources: Trump's new chief of staff talked about resigning over Comey firing

johan brown 16:38 Daily Kos No Comments

Boy, Donald Trump’s new chief of staff sure is a man of (very little) integrity. John Kelly was homeland security secretary back in May when Trump fired FBI head James Comey, and Kelly was so upset that sources say he told Comey he was thinking of resigning.

Both sources cautioned that it was unclear how serious Kelly, then the secretary of homeland security, was about resigning himself.

"John was angry and hurt by what he saw and the way (Comey) was treated," one of the sources said. [...]

Comey, who took Kelly's call while traveling back from Los Angeles to Washington, responded to Kelly by telling him not to resign, one of the sources said.

There are two obvious possibilities here. One is that Kelly called Comey and said he was thinking of resigning, but he didn’t mean it at all and was just posturing. The other is that John Kelly is the kind of man who sees behavior from his boss that shakes him to his core, but gets over it so fast that three months later he takes a job working even closer to the same boss whose behavior so disturbed him. It’s a lot harder to come up with a serious read of this news that portrays Kelly in a good light. Because if anyone’s thinking of trying to claim Kelly feels a duty to get the Trump White House functioning smoothly, we just have to turn from questioning his integrity to questioning his intelligence.

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Misty Copeland Is The New Modern Muse For This Major Brand

johan brown 16:33 The Huffington Post No Comments

This casting is on pointe.

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Airport Worker Suspended After Punching Passenger Holding Baby

johan brown 16:28 The Huffington Post No Comments

The traveler, upset by EasyJet's half-day delay, was hit in the face by a smirking worker, a witness said.

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Simone Manuel Sets New Record And Takes Home The Gold AGAIN

johan brown 16:28 The Huffington Post No Comments

Black girl magic FTW.

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Sam Shepard’s Death Is A Reminder There’s Still No Cure For ALS

johan brown 16:28 The Huffington Post No Comments

Most people only live three to five years following an ALS diagnosis.

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Tesla Model 3: Drive impressions roundup

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Filed under: Green,Tesla,Green Automakers,Sedan,Electric

What's it like to drive?

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Tesla Model 3: Drive impressions roundup originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 31 Jul 2017 16:01:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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No rest for the so-far victorious: Republicans trying to revive the Zombie of Zombie Trumpcare

johan brown 16:08 Daily Kos No Comments

Campaign Action

We've had a weekend to celebrate, to rub popular vote loser Trump's nose in the defeat of Trumpcare, but the party's over. The fight continues because Republicans are assholes and won't stop until only the people who can afford to pay directly for medical care can get it. Obamacare repeal can, and very well might, still come back.

Despite a reddit post to the contrary that's been getting an awful lot of attention, the repeal bill is still on the Senate calendar with the threat of once again crawling out of its coffin. That doesn't mean Majority Leader Mitch McConnell is ready to bring it back—his last words on the issue were "It’s time to move on" directly following last week's dramatic failure. That failure was on the Better Care Reconciliation Act which was just an amendment to the actual bill on the floor—the House-passed American Health Care Act. Which hasn't been defeated and still exists, even though it also doesn't have the votes to pass. Which is why McConnell was trying to pass these substitutes—the BRCA and the repeal-only bill.

The possibility for the Senate to pass a repeal bill under reconciliation, which only takes 50 senators' (plus Vice President Mike Pence's ) yes votes, still exists as long as they come up with something that meets strict budget rules and can get 50 votes. The possibility to pass something exists until the House and Senate both pass the FY2018 budget resolution conference report. It's the getting to 50 that's the problem, but the efforts are still happening.

Trump, increasingly impatient with the long-stalled repeal effort, met with three Senate Republicans about a new plan to roll back the health care law on Friday, signaling some lawmakers—as well as the president—are not ready to ditch their seven-year campaign promise.
The group is trying to write legislation that could get 50 Republican votes, according to multiple administration and Capitol Hill sources. The proposal from Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) would block grant federal health care funding to the states and keep much of Obamacare’s tax regime. White House officials also met with House Freedom Caucus chairman Mark Meadows (R-N.C.) to brainstorm how to make the idea palatable to conservatives, according to two sources familiar with the meeting.

from Daily Kos http://ift.tt/2udnYLe

Maxine Waters’ ‘Reclaiming My Time’ Moment Inspires A Gospel Song

johan brown 16:03 The Huffington Post No Comments

“Our beloved ‘Auntie’ Maxine Waters laid this sermon down so good that I had to sing about it!”

from HuffPost - Breaking News, U.S. and World News http://ift.tt/2hh7OiF

Sheriff Joe Arpaio found guilty: maybe he can get his own pink jumpsuit now

johan brown 15:53 Daily Kos No Comments

This is just coming down. Taco trucks and fruterias on every corner of Maricopa County!

Breaking: Former Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio found guilty of criminal contempt of court.@azfamily azfamily
Ã¢Â€Â” Morgan Loew (@morganloewcbs5) July 31, 2017

Arizona Central reports:

On Monday, U.S. District Judge Susan Bolton found Arpaio guilty of criminal contempt of court, finding that he willfully violated a federal judge's order. [...]

Bolton’s ruling follows a five-day June and July trial, in which Department of Justice prosecutors argued that the 85-year-old had intentionally flouted a federal judge’s orders halting Arpaio’s signature immigration round-ups.

Sheriff Joe’s criminal behavior extends far beyond what this case could handle, but, not unlike other famed gangsters like Al Capone, sometimes you’d rather get the bad guys on something rather than nothing. Arpaio’s infamous “Tent City” has already been closed down, as time marches forward, Sheriff Joe and his “legacy” will turn to dust.

Sentencing won’t happen until October 5. Realistically, Joe will get six months max, and at 85 he'll never be sentenced to slam time.

from Daily Kos http://ift.tt/2vbCZBG

After 10 Bizarre Days, Scaramucci Makes Astoundingly Abrupt Exit

johan brown 15:48 The Huffington Post No Comments

The White House Communications director Anthony Scaramucci is out after just ten days on the job.

from HuffPost - Breaking News, U.S. and World News http://ift.tt/2f1zYh9

‘Insecure’ Nailed The Unfortunate Narrative Around The Black Women’s Pay Gap

johan brown 15:48 The Huffington Post No Comments

Molly's storyline will hit close to home for many black female viewers.

from HuffPost - Breaking News, U.S. and World News http://ift.tt/2hhAacC

These are the automakers that owners say they like the most

johan brown 15:43 Auto No Comments

J.D. Power releases its findings regarding the cars and brands owners most enjoy after 90 days of owning or leasing a manufacturer's vehicle.

Continue reading These are the automakers that owners say they like the most

These are the automakers that owners say they like the most originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 31 Jul 2017 15:30:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Police car makes dramatic entrance to break up a bar fight

johan brown 15:33 Auto No Comments

Filed under: Etc.,Humor,Videos,Weird Car News

Arriving in style.

Continue reading Police car makes dramatic entrance to break up a bar fight

Police car makes dramatic entrance to break up a bar fight originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 31 Jul 2017 15:01:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Midday open thread: Nachos, justice and RIP Sam Shepard

johan brown 15:28 Daily Kos No Comments

Serena Williams: Black Women Deserve Better Pay

johan brown 15:13 The Huffington Post No Comments

“Black women: Speak out for equal pay. Every time you do, you’re making it a little easier for a woman behind you.”

from HuffPost - Breaking News, U.S. and World News http://ift.tt/2vm8M3I

NAACP Warns Minorities, Women Heading To Missouri: ‘They May Not Be Safe’

johan brown 15:13 The Huffington Post No Comments

The organization wants people to know their civil rights may be violated in the Show Me State.

from HuffPost - Breaking News, U.S. and World News http://ift.tt/2wewNFZ

Harrowing Images Take Us Inside Venezuela’s Deadly Protests

johan brown 15:08 The Huffington Post No Comments

The country's political and economic crisis has caused thousands to take to the streets.

from HuffPost - Breaking News, U.S. and World News http://ift.tt/2tXD3Fy

You're fired: The 'Mooch' gets the scooch from Trump chief of staff John Kelly

johan brown 15:08 Daily Kos No Comments

Foul-mouthed bluster bag Anthony Scaramucci was no match for former Marine General John Kelly. Sorry, "Mooch!”

President Trump has decided to remove Anthony Scaramucci from his position as communications director, three people close to the decision said Monday, relieving him just days after Mr. Scaramucci unloaded a crude verbal tirade against other senior members of the president’s senior staff.

Mr. Scaramucci’s abrupt removal came just 10 days after the wealthy New York financier was brought on to the West Wing staff, a move that convulsed an already chaotic White House and led to the departures of Sean Spicer, the former press secretary, and Reince Priebus, the president’s first chief of staff.

The decision to remove Mr. Scaramucci, who had boasted about reporting directly to the president not the chief of staff, John F. Kelly, came at Mr. Kelly’s request, the people said. Mr. Kelly made clear to members of the White House staff at a meeting Monday morning that he is in charge.

The Mooch endeared himself to White House staffers and Capitol Hill Republicans alike after delivering an on the record expletive-laden tirade in which he lovingly labeled Reince Priebus a “paranoid schizophrenic” and assured us that he doesn’t “suck” like Steve Bannon—both of whom exceeded his time in the West Wing by some 170 days. Needless to say he will be missed.

OVERHEARD: Collective gasps followed by a smattering of laughter in the Senate press gallery as the Mooch news broke.
— Sahil Kapur (@sahilkapur) July 31, 2017

Oh, and everything is right on track at the White House, per the chief.

Highest Stock Market EVER, best economic numbers in years, unemployment lowest in 17 years, wages raising, border secure, S.C.: No WH chaos!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 31, 2017

from Daily Kos http://ift.tt/2vg6cva

That F-22 inspired, 454 horsepower Ford F-150 Raptor sold for $300k

johan brown 14:48 Auto No Comments

Filed under: Ford,Auctions,Truck,Off-Road,Performance

There's more here than just a big bump in power.

Continue reading That F-22 inspired, 454 horsepower Ford F-150 Raptor sold for $300k

That F-22 inspired, 454 horsepower Ford F-150 Raptor sold for $300k originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 31 Jul 2017 14:35:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Anthony Scaramucci’s tenure as White House Communications Director ends.

johan brown 14:48 The Huffington Post No Comments

from HuffPost - Breaking News, U.S. and World News http://ift.tt/2vbrgDk

Relations between Trump and Sessions sink to new lows

johan brown 14:38 Daily Kos No Comments

An alliance rooted in the hatred and demonization of vulnerable minorities has come unglued and it couldn't be happening to a more deserving pair: Donald Trump and his early booster turned attorney general, Jeff Sessions. Though they had met over a decade ago, the real Trump-Sessions bromance began about two years ago on the campaign trail, writes the Washington Post:

Trump’s adviser at the time, Sam Nunberg, said Trump saw Sessions as a similar type: a hard-liner on immigration who was far from beloved by the elites and wealthy donors within the Republican Party.

“He saw Sessions as someone he could develop a natural rapport with,” Nunberg said in an interview.

The kindred spirit between the two men continued straight through election night.

“The first senator, first major, major politician, and let me tell you, he is highly respected in Washington because he’s as smart as you get: Senator Jeff Sessions. Where is Jeff?”

As the crowd applauded, Trump added, “Great man.”

That was then, before Sessions miffed Trump by recusing himself from the Russia investigation. Sure, anyone with a rational bone in their body saw the move as inescapable—but for Trump, who lacks any semblance of post-adolescent objective reasoning, it was the slight he couldn't get over. Here was Trump on March 2, just hours before Sessions announced his recusal at Justice Department press conference.

Trump was touring the new supercarrier the USS Gerald R. Ford in Newport News, Va., when a reporter shouted a question about an event unfolding 130 miles away that would indelibly change the president’s relationship with his attorney general.

“Should Sessions have recused himself from investigations into your campaign and Russia?” the reporter asked Trump, who was wearing a Navy jacket and baseball cap inscribed with the carrier’s name.

“I don’t think so at all,” Trump answered flatly, a flash of irritation on his face as he brushed past reporters. “I don’t think he should do that at all.”

from Daily Kos http://ift.tt/2vbpBO6

Democratic Party Leaders Will Continue To Welcome Anti-Choice Candidates

johan brown 14:33 The Huffington Post No Comments

“There is not a litmus test for Democratic candidates,” said DCCC chair Rep. Ben Ray Luján.

from HuffPost - Breaking News, U.S. and World News http://ift.tt/2tSaeGg

‘Game of Thrones’ content leaks online after HBO is hacked.

johan brown 14:23 The Huffington Post No Comments

from HuffPost - Breaking News, U.S. and World News http://ift.tt/2weCALP

Sanders To Propose New Rule Requiring Fair Prices For Taxpayer-Funded Drugs

johan brown 14:23 The Huffington Post No Comments

The bill is the latest move in the Vermont senator's fight with Big Pharma over the patent for a Zika vaccine.

from HuffPost - Breaking News, U.S. and World News http://ift.tt/2vmfdnh

Asked About CTE, NFL Rookie Calls Football Field The ‘Perfect Place To Die’

johan brown 14:13 The Huffington Post No Comments

No. 6 overall pick Jamal Adams was sitting next to commissioner Roger Goodell when he made the comments Monday.

from HuffPost - Breaking News, U.S. and World News http://ift.tt/2uRzv4I

Ivanka Trump is not happy that people expect her to do anything good with her position and power

johan brown 14:08 Daily Kos No Comments

Here’s a new measure of how bad a train wreck Donald Trump’s presidency is: stories about First Daughter Ivanka used to be about how much influence she had on her father and all the issues where she would keep him from being a right-wing extremist. Just over six months after Donald’s inauguration, though, Ivanka puff pieces have a new tone. Call it “leave Ivanka aloooone.” And so it goes in the latest from Politico: She’s doing the best she can! Judge her not on her past publicity but on her current expectation-lowering!

Okay, Annie Karni and Eliana Johnson report, so Ivanka and husband, Jared Kushner, helped push out former chief of staff Reince Priebus, and they supported the hiring of Anthony “not trying to suck my own cock” Scaramucci, but on policy? Forget about it. Ivanka has no say, so don’t blame her!

Last week they were blindsided by the president’s tweet saying he planned to ban transgender people from serving in the military, according to several White House aides, a major coup for conservatives who had been quietly lobbying the administration on the issue for months.

Remember when Ivanka and Jared were going to be the most important people in the White House? Now they’re practically irrelevant—or at least that’s what they want us to believe.

She has told allies that she wants to be held accountable solely on those issues she is actively working on — uphill battles that will count as major victories if she is successful — and the success of a World Bank fund she helped start, geared at helping female entrepreneurs gain access to capital. She has also said she wants to make ending human trafficking a White House priority. [...]

Meanwhile, she desperately wants to lower expectations of what she can achieve in an administration where she views herself as one person on a large team — even though other White House officials said she still has access to the president whenever she desires it. Allies have bucked up her spirits by telling her that her legacy will look better in hindsight if she is successful in moving the needle on her stated issues. And as she navigates the unique role of working-daughter-in-the-White House, she is reading Eleanor Roosevelt’s biography for guidance and inspiration.

Being a rich, pretty socialite may mean getting the credit when you want it and never facing blame for your failures, but Ivanka is coming up against the limits of that no-accountability lifestyle. And like her father, it sounds like she’s responding by surrounding herself with people telling her what she wants to hear. It sure would be interesting to watch her try to emulate Eleanor Roosevelt, though.

from Daily Kos http://ift.tt/2vg8CKb

PBS CEO Will Be ‘Vigilant’ Against Trump’s Proposed Budget Cuts

johan brown 14:03 The Huffington Post No Comments

“I have to assume, as I think all of us in public media assume, that anything can happen.”

from HuffPost - Breaking News, U.S. and World News http://ift.tt/2tS7Tv6

Forget 'plain-spoken disciplinarian,' John Kelly has been a mass deportation accomplice

johan brown 13:39 Daily Kos No Comments

New White House Chief of Staff John Kelly’s six-month-long reign of terror at the Department of Homeland Security felt like a lifetime for America’s undocumented immigrant families. Ignore the media anointing of Kelly as some sort of “beacon of discipline” or “plain-spoken disciplinarian” because of his military rank. Instead, Kelly’s DHS appointment saw him falling in line as a “yes man” and enabler of Donald Trump, Steve Bannon, and Stephen Miller’s white nationalist agenda, presiding over a chaotic, “unprecedented crackdown” against undocumented immigrants. Under Kelly, immigrants who walked into once-routine ICE checkins didn’t walk back out. Under Kelly, immigrant communities have been living under so much fear that they are no longer reporting when they’ve been the victims of violent crime. And under Kelly, the arrest of moms and dads with no criminal record surged over 150 percent compared to this time last year:

In a sweeping February memo, Kelly did away with the Obama-era policy of prioritizing the deportation of those who’d been convicted of serious crimes. On paper (if not always in practice), the Obama administration directed immigration agents to focus their energy on those who’d been convicted of serious crimes and to largely leave alone those who’d been convicted of no crimes. In February, Kelly wrote: “Unless otherwise directed, Department personnel may initiate enforcement actions against removable aliens encountered during the performance of their official duties.”

Gone are the tiers of enforcement that the Obama administration put forth. Even as Trump himself says that he wants to rid the country of the “rapists” and “murderers” among the immigrant population, Kelly has pursued a policy that targets all undocumented immigrants. Kelly’s policy effectively blurs the line between who is an “immigrant” and who is a “criminal”—despite what Trump says. On a practical level, immigration agents no longer have to think carefully about whether an undocumented immigrant they come across is a priority, because anyone who’s undocumented can go. As a result, those with no criminal records or those with the most minor of infractions are as much at risk as those with serious convictions.

“In just six months, Kelly turned DHS into a deportation machine,” declared the Nation.

from Daily Kos http://ift.tt/2tRiQgA

‘GoT’ Is Bringing Back A Dagger That May Serve A Dark Purpose

johan brown 13:38 The Huffington Post No Comments

Episode 4 is looking pretty tense.

from HuffPost - Breaking News, U.S. and World News http://ift.tt/2f2aBf7

McLaren F1 team sets deadline for engine decision amid Renault speculation

johan brown 13:33 Auto No Comments

Filed under: Motorsports,Honda,McLaren,Renault,Technology,Racing

"Everybody is talking to everybody."

Continue reading McLaren F1 team sets deadline for engine decision amid Renault speculation

McLaren F1 team sets deadline for engine decision amid Renault speculation originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 31 Jul 2017 13:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Los Angeles Agrees To Host 2028 Summer Olympics: Report

johan brown 13:29 The Huffington Post No Comments

Paris will host the 2024 Olympics.

from HuffPost - Breaking News, U.S. and World News http://ift.tt/2uObBZu

Are Republicans learning from their Trumpcare failure? Of course not

johan brown 13:08 Daily Kos No Comments

Campaign Action

It's just possible that the Republican party will move on from the finger-pointing and circular firing squad over Trumpcare failure, but not likely. House Republicans are blaming Senate Republicans. Senate Republicans have been blaming the ignorant and unhelpful occupant of the White House. And popular vote loser Donald Trump is lashing out at all the Republicans. So much for the big blame the Democrats strategy. In all the finger-pointing, there's little hope that Republicans will land on the actual problem: they can win elections, with a bit of cheating, voter suppression, and gerrymandering, but they are incapable of governing.

Now that Republicans have failed to repeal former President Barack Obama's signature domestic policy achievement, the GOP faces an existential Obamacare problem with no immediate answer. Do they keep trying to undermine it, as they've promised for seven years? Or do they try to make it work better—even if that means compromise with Democrats?
Trump pressed the GOP all weekend to keep at it. "Unless the Republican Senators are total quitters, Repeal & Replace is not dead!" he tweeted. "Demand another vote before voting on any other bill!" He even taunted lawmakers by threatening to take away their health care benefits if they don't deliver. On Sunday, his health secretary, Tom Price, refused to rule out a move to stop enforcing the requirement that people get covered.

But if these six months have taught Republicans anything, it's that their party's divisions over how to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act are deep and systemic.

The Obamacare failure is just the tip of the iceberg of the internecine problems the GOP is facing. Seven years. Seven years they've been talking about—working their base up—over repeal. It was easy for those seven years because they knew it wouldn't happen. They didn't have to try to be a responsible governing party because there was a grown-up in the White House that would save them from their outlandish, destructive promises to the base.

Remember how the bill got this far—the House only got it finally passed with the promise that the Senate would fix it. The Senate leadership then tried to convince members that the worst parts would be fixed by some future congress and that in the meantime, the Senate could either just dump it back to the House or rewrite it in conference with the House, a promise that in the end John McCain just couldn't buy.

The buck just never stops in the GOP, which is a pretty piss-poor way to try to govern. A nihilistic burn-it-all down and then drown it in a bathtub approach to government is fine for winning elections with people who are incapable of thinking beyond this week or recognizing that government does stuff that matters to them. Oh, you mean my friends and/or family could also be deported? Oh, you mean my health insurance could also go away?

There's a limit to what can be achieved in governing when you don't actually believe that governing matters. The GOP has hit that limit.

from Daily Kos http://ift.tt/2wegcCv

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7/31/17

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