Day 560

matt · August 2, 2018, 6:00pm

Updated 8/2/2018 10:53 AM PDT

1/ Robert Mueller offered to reduce the number of obstruction of justice-related questions his team would ask Trump during a sit-down interview. Mueller's team would also allow some answers to be provided in written form. Negotiations over a potential presidential interview have been on-going since March, and Mueller still plans to press Trump on topics related to obstruction, including questions about the firing of then-FBI Director James Comey. In response to the proposal Mueller sent Monday, Rudy Giuliani told reporters that it's time for the special counsel to "put up or shut up." (Washington Post / ABC News / CNN)

This is a companion discussion topic for the original entry at https://whatthefuckjusthappenedtoday.com/2018/08/02/day-560/

dragonfly9 · August 2, 2018, 8:50pm

News about when the National Archives can release Kavanaugh 's files. Oct 2018 (909’k pages)
1/@kyleGriffin1 (nbc)

Schumer: "The National Archives has confirmed that Senate Republicans are keeping a large majority of Judge Kavanaugh’s W.H. records hidden from the public. This unprecedented suppression … leads unavoidably to the question: What are Pres. Trump and Senate Republicans hiding?”

2/@scotusreporter

National Archives says it can’t complete review of even Grassley’s request for Kavanaugh records until sometime in October. Looks like serious delay in this confirmation process. #scotus

https://t.co/Z2mGLz1Hh4

dragonfly9 · August 2, 2018, 9:23pm

This was abhorrent…Sarah H Sanders does not answer directly Jim Acosta (CNN embattled reporter) who asked if the WH thinks the press is the enemy of the people. She instead does a rant about how she is being attacked by the press.

#EvadeQuestion #RevertToWhataboutism

dragonfly9 · August 2, 2018, 9:35pm

Another attempt to call T out on his wholesale use of Government perks - tour or trip on Air Force One…and 4 Dems are confronting this issue about an emoluments clause. It is another example of selling access to the WH for to add as a perk to memberships at his clubs.

Four Democratic senators are calling for an investigation into who has received Air Force One tours under the Trump administration, following reporting by BuzzFeed News that found that some members of the president’s private Florida clubs appeared to have received those tours.

In a letter to the inspectors general of the Air Force and Department of Defense, Sens. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, Tom Carper of Delaware, Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut, and Sheldon Whitehouse of Rhode Island cite the BuzzFeed News report as "particularly troubling."

“If true, these reports could mean that the President or his family have used government property for private gain — giving tours of Air Force One as a perk for club membership — or that some citizens have potentially been able to buy access to Air Force One via their personal payments to the President’s private club,” the letter states.

“This use of Air Force One would not only raise questions about readiness, security, and taxpayer cost, but it also violates the basic principle against using public office for private gain, and could constitute a violation of federal ethics rules.… Moreover, federal ethics law prohibits the use of government property, including Air Force One, ‘for other than authorized purposes.’”

The letter asks that the investigation include four priorities: a review of individuals who have had access to the presidential aircraft for tours or other nonofficial travel since January 2017; an analysis of the policies and procedures for how the tours are provided and how people are vetted for them; a “determination of whether any of the individuals who received tours of or access to Air Force One had a business relationship with President Trump and his family”; and findings on “whether any Air Force, federal ethics or other rules and regulations may have been violated as a result of these Air Force One tours.”

The senators also ask for a copy of the Air Force’s policies on the “authorized purposes” of federal government property.

Keaton_James · August 3, 2018, 8:27am

Good News Department: Democrats are putting their money where their mouth is!

Keaton_James · August 3, 2018, 8:49am

And this is the guy with our nuclear codes?

BTW, you can check Trump’s tweets here (as in “know thy enemy”):
Trump Twitter Archive

Using this site has several advantages over visiting Trump’s actual Twitter feed:

You won’t contribute to traffic statistics. Trump loves to brag about his “ratings” and it doesn’t seem fair for him to count visits from the opposition.
This is a comprehensive and easily searchable database – it includes Trump’s deleted tweets as well.
You don’t have to look at his face.

anon95374541 · August 3, 2018, 5:22pm

This is interesting.

The Department of Energy is planning an unprecedented, “hands-on” test of the grid’s ability to bounce back from a blackout caused by hackers, E&E News has learned.

The “Liberty Eclipse” exercise will simulate the painstaking process of re-energizing the power grid while squaring off against a simultaneous cyberattack on electric, oil and natural gas infrastructure.

The weeklong stress test is scheduled to take place this November on Plum Island, a restricted site off the coast of New York that houses a Department of Homeland Security animal disease center.