Daily Archives: October 20, 2019

Former Defense Secretary James Mattis roasted his former boss at the Alfred E. Smith dinner in New York City on Thursday night.

Mattis took the stage at the annual dinner -- an opportunity to crack jokes about local and national politics -- with an introduction from comic legend Martin Short.

"According to the president hes the 'most overrated general,'" Short cracked in his intro. "I think hes an American hero."

"I'm not just an overrated general. Im the worlds greatest overrated general," joked Mattis, who received a standing ovation as he stepped to the dais. "I'm honored to be called that by Donald Trump, because he also called Meryl Streep an overrated actor. So I guess Im the Meryl Streep of generals."

The rebuttal came a day after President Donald Trump called Mattis the worlds most overrated general during a meeting with lawmakers about the situation in Syria.

Mattis had said in an interview in August that his silence about Trump was "not going to be forever.

One of the general's most biting jokes came in relation to Trump's infamous deferment of military service in Vietnam over alleged bone spurs in his feet.

"I earned my spurs on the battlefield; Donald Trump earned his spurs in a letter from a doctor," Mattis said.

Mattis, a retired Marine Corps four-star general, served as Trump's first defense secretary, but resigned in December 2018 over policy differences, particularly Trump's plans to pull out American troops from Syria, writing in his resignation letter that Trump should have a defense secretary "whose views are better aligned" with his own.

He joked on Thursday that his work in combat zones overseas was easier than being in Trumps Washington.

I tried to bring some peace and order to the places with no organized government, chaotic and warring factions, irrational fears, and toxic hatred. It was hard work, but it wasnt until I started working in Washington, D.C., that I realized how easy I had it overseas in the combat zone.

He also knocked Trump for his many hours of executive time:

Its been a year since Ive left the administration, the recovery process is going well," he joked. "The counselor says Ill graduate soon. A year according to White House time is about 9,000 hours of executive time or 1,800 holes of golf."

Mattis, who has been critical of many of Trump's foreign policy decisions since leaving office, also got serious for a moment Thursday, mentioning the U.S.'s Kurdish allies in Syria. He called for the U.S. to again back the population, which has been attacked by Turkey.

"Let us restore trust in one another," Mattis said.

The president was onstage in Dallas at the same time as Mattis' keynote, delivering a campaign speech to a packed crowd at American Airlines Center.

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Former defense secretary roasts Donald Trump: 'I earned my spurs on the battlefield' - ABC News

Being Presidential is easy, Donald Trump, who seems, in fact, to find it very hard, said to the crowd at a rally for his relection campaign in Dallas on Thursday night. All you have to do is act like a stifflook! Trump stepped to the side of the rostrum, buttoned his suit jacket, and, like a mannequin in motion, returned to the microphone. Adopting a theatrically stentorian tone, he said, Ladies and gentlemen of Texas, it is a great honor to be with you this evening. The ladies and gentlemen in the crowd cheered. Trump continued, in his own self-amazed voice, And the media would love it! And everybody would be out of here so fastyou wouldnt have come out here tonight, when it gets right down to it.

Questions about Trumps mental and emotional stability have been raised, with good cause, during the past week. Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi described him as having a meltdown in a meeting in which he berated her as a third-rate politician; a letter he wrote to President Recep Tayyip Erdoan, of Turkey, in which he wrote as if the two of them were either fifth graders or black-hatted cowboys (or fifth graders playing cowboys) was released; and every revelation in the Ukraine scandal seemed to underscore that Trump is deploying wild conspiracy theories not only because they make for good campaign rhetoric but because he really believes some of themand expects others to do the same. Doubts about whether he is entirely steady are not new, and Trump has long proffered various rationales for his troubling outbursts. One is that his erratic actions are tactical moves: unconventional behavior that shakes up the political and diplomatic stiffs, and makes things happen. Another is that he is just being authentic, which raises the question of what he authentically is. But perhaps the most troubling rationale is one that he emphasized in Texas: hes not crazy; anyone who doubts him is. His supporters just need to recognize the madness of his enemies, and then everything he says will make sense.

Nervous Nancy, his previous moniker for Pelosi, was replaced by Crazy Nancy, who was leading a party that, in his telling, had lost touch with reality. I really dont believe anymore that they love this country, he said. In the impeachment hearings, Democrats had engaged in outright fraud. Speaking of the field of Democrats running to replace him, he said, These people are crazy! The evidence, he suggested, was in plain sight, even if only Trump and those who listened closely to him could see it. Describing Representative Beto ORourke, of El Paso, he said, Remember the flailing arms? He offered what was meant to be an imitation of ORourke gesticulating as he spoke, retooling the movement as a symptom of some undefined disorderNo one noticed; I noticed itthe flailer!

Members of the media were trying to hide the truth, but, he told the crowd, they had failed because they had stupid people saying horrible things about us. Stupid. Stupid people. They are stupid people. Perhaps no one could be trusted. Wasnt it easy, after all, for Trump to strike a pose as a serious politician? Who was to say that every politician wasnt pretending in exactly the same way?

It helps, in making this argument, to pretend that your opponents have said things that they havent. Every major Democrat running for President wants to abolish all production of oil and natural gas, Trump said. This is not true, but he continued, I think they want to go to windmillswindmills, you knowhe leaned back and twirled his hand in the air, as if there was a relation between wind power and disco, and adopted another set of fake voices. Darling, I want to watch Trump speak tonight; We cant, darling, the wind isnt blowing! That is not how it works with wind powerthe energy that wind turbines generate can be stored. Its also a standard Trump line. At his rally in Lake Charles, Louisiana, last week, the problem was that the wind-addicted couple couldnt watch L.S.U. and Florida. (Louisiana States football team was set to play the Florida Gators that Saturday. L.S.U. won, 42-28; in a gubernatorial election in Louisiana on the same day as the game, the states Democratic governor had received less than fifty per cent of the vote, forcing a runoff. Trump had invited the top two Republican contenders to come on stage with him at the rally.) But the default, in Trumps mind, is that people will always want to watch Trump speak.

Trump urged the crowd to join him in merging the many storylines into one: The same people pushing us to fight endless wars overseas want us to open our borders to mass migration from these war-torn and terror-afflicted regions. Their policies would import terrorism right on to our shores with American-issued visasoh, isnt that wonderful! he said. And, by the way, the Democrats want open borders; they want everybody to flow inthey want those caravans to flow in. It would all make sense if voters thought about things his way: Use your heads: theyre not sending their finest.

Recent events in Syria are a stark reminder of why none of this is funny, and of the wild harm done by the Presidents misperceptions of the world. The day of the Dallas rally, Vice-President Mike Pence had met with Erdoan; in the video of the meeting, Pences posture and expression are, as it happens, much like those in Trumps imitation of political seriousness. That is not to say that Pence actually comes across as Presidential; he, too, appears to be playing a role that is beyond his abilities to truly inhabit. Afterward, Pence announced that Turkey had agreed to a ceasefire in Syria; it mostly involved giving the Kurds near the Turkish border a chance to abandon their positions and flee, and, as of Friday, did not appear to be holding. No matter; a few hours before the Texas rally, Trump tweeted, This is a great day for civilization. I am proud of the United States for sticking by me in following a necessary, but somewhat unconventional, path. People have been trying to make this Deal for many years. Millions of lives will be saved. Congratulations to ALL!

Had Trump really thought that, absent this deal, millions of lives would have been lostand proceeded with his previous course of action, which included walking away from the Kurds, anyway? What on earth is his definition of civilization? When he said that he was proud of the United States for sticking by me, did he forget that many members of Congress and senators from his own party had turned on him regarding Syriaor was he just proud that, despite their dismay at the abandonment of the Kurds, he made it to Thursday without any of them also calling for his impeachment? And who is he ever really congratulating, other than himself?

Trump, in Dallas, didnt quite answer those questions. Speaking of Turkey and the Kurds, he again argued that he was just being unconventional and engaging in tough love. Sometimes, he said, you have to let them fightlike two kids in a lot. He added, Now all of a sudden theyre fighting, and its not fun having bullets go all over the place. People in Syria were already well aware that having bullets fly is not fun. They have reason to fear a President whose understanding of their lives appears to be rooted in a boyish fantasy. And so do the American people.

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Trumps Message: His Critics Are the Crazy Ones - The New Yorker

President Donald Trumps reelection campaign has capitalized on the investigations into the presidents conduct, new campaign finance reports show.

Seven of the reelection campaign committees 10 days with the most unique donors this year came at the end of September, on the days immediately following House Speaker Nancy Pelosi announcing a formal impeachment inquiry into the president. One of the other top days came in April, when news broke that former special counsel Robert Mueller objected to Attorney General Bill Barrs characterization of his report on Russian interference in the 2016 election, according to FEC data.

In the hours after Pelosis Sept. 24 press conference, the Trump campaign had emailed supporters and posted ads on Facebook asking for donations to the Impeachment Defense Task Force. The emails reviewed by BuzzFeed News sent supporters to a fundraising page for a joint fundraising committee between the Republican National Committee and the Trump campaign while Facebook ads BuzzFeed News reviewed prompted supporters to directly support the Trump campaign.

As a member of the Official Impeachment Defense Task Force, you will be a leader in defending me, the President, against these baseless and disgusting attacks, one of the ads reads. You will be responsible for defending American Greatness.

In other Facebook ads, the campaign revived Trumps total witch hunt slogan to characterize the impeachment inquiry. Don't let Democrats and the Fake News Media silence YOU! the ad reads, encouraging supporters to donate to the impeachment defense fund.

The Democrats know they have no chance of winning in 2020, so now they are crying, Impeachment!, one fundraising email from Trumps campaign said on the day Pelosi announced the inquiry. The Democrats thrive on silencing and intimidating his supporters, like YOU, Friend. They want to take YOUR VOTE away.

The email told supporters that the campaign was launching an Official Impeachment Defense Task Force that would be made up of President Trumps most LOYAL supporters, the ones committed to fighting for him, re-electing him, and taking back the House.

Pelosi and House Democrats reached a consensus on launching the impeachment inquiry amid reports that Trump had pressured the president of Ukraine to open an investigation into former vice president Joe Biden and his son and withheld aid from the country.

Campaigns often have bursts of donations at the end of September its the final days of the quarter, and campaigns typically try to end strong with a concerted fundraising push.

But the campaigns ads in the days after Pelosis announcements focused closely on impeachment. The initial ads centered on downplaying the significance of the presidents call with the Ukrainian president, after the White House released a non-verbatim transcript showing Trump asking for a favor. Another ad posted to Facebook features Trump saying my conversation with the new president of Ukraine was perfect, there was no quid-pro-quo; there was nothing. It was a perfect conversation.

The Trump campaign raised over $14.2 million in the third quarter from individual donors, not including money raised from affiliated committees or the Republican National Committee. Altogether, those groups raised $125 million, Trumps campaign manager said.

The top Democratic fundraisers are well behind that overall total: Sen. Elizabeth Warren raised $24.6 million and Sen. Bernie Sanders raised $25.2 million. Trumps campaign alone still has over $83 million in cash on hand.

The donors factored in by the FEC include only donors who gave more than $200, as reporting requirements do not mandate campaigns disclose donors who give smaller amounts.

Some Democrats have worried that pushing to impeach Trump could just solidify and energize his base. Sanders, one of the leading candidates in the Democratic primary who does support impeachment, told reporters last month that he feared that if Trump is impeached in the House but not convicted in the Republican-controlled Senate, I know and you know what [Trump] will do: I am vindicated! I am vindicated!

Their goal has always been to silence YOU, they want to steal YOUR voice and YOUR vote, another Trump fundraising email, sent with a Call Transcript subject line, read. This is only the beginning of yet ANOTHER nasty Witch Hunt against me, and we need to fight back BIGGER and STRONGER than ever before.

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Donald Trump's Campaign Is Cashing In On Impeachment - BuzzFeed News

In the Pantheon of American state politics, there are three iconic dynastic names:Keanin New Jersey, Kennedy in Massachusetts, and LaFollette in Wisconsin. TheKeanname, however is without question presently the most revered of the three.

The Kennedy dynasty has been affected by personal scandal, and the LaFollette name has been haunted, perhaps unjustifiably, by the image of radicalism. By contrast, theKeanname has been uniquely hallowed by the greatest Republican member of the New Jersey delegation in the US House of Representatives in the 20thcentury, RobertKean, and the greatest 20th century New Jersey Republican governor,TomKean.

Most importantly, BobKeanandTomKeanwere models of goodness, as well as greatness.

BobKeanwill always have a revered place in the Steinberg family and other New Jersey Jewish families for his role in being the first New Jersey Congressman calling attention to Hitlers Holocaust and advocating the opening of Americas doors to Jewish refugees from Nazi-dominated Europe.TomKeans gubernatorial achievements in education and economic development were unsurpassed by those of any other of the then state governors, and his Politics of Inclusion set a standard of racial and ethnic understanding and tolerance for the entire nation to follow.

State SenatorTomKean, Jr. is a most worthy heir to theKeanlegacy of public service. As Senate Republican Leader, he has performed superbly, displaying his gifts of intellectualism, people skills, collegiality, concern for his fellow Republican senators, and issue incisiveness which make him an outstanding voice of the Republican opposition. As Eleanor Roosevelt described the young Hubert Humphrey,TomKean, Jr. carries the spark of greatness within him.

TomKean, Jr. is running for the US House of Representatives seat in New Jerseys 7th Congressional District against first term Democratic incumbentTomMalinowski. It will be a campaign of national interest, given the fact that due to Trump toxicity, 2020 will be a year of catastrophe for the Republican Party nationally, withTomKean, Jr. being one of the few Republican candidates for either the US House of Representatives or the Senate with any realistic chance of ousting a Democratic incumbent.

AndTomMalinowski will not be a pushover opponent. He is articulate, well-financed, knowledgeable on the issues, particularly foreign policy, and a darling of national cable media, particularly MSNBC, where he appears so often that I am starting to think that the M stands for Malinowski. Furthermore, he has cleverly inoculated himself against any charges of being a left-wing Progressive Democrat by proclaiming himself to be a capitalist and emphasizing his opposition to Medicare for All.

First, however,Kean, Jr. must win a primary over Rosemary Becchi in June, 2020. Becchi is an amiable, articulate, and quite competent federal public policy service veteran. But she is politically noTomKean, Jr., and he has wisely chosen to ignore her. He will not lose a primary to her.

In fact, the only concernKean, Jr.needs to have about Becchi is a politically stupid, embarrassing, and amateurishanti-Becchi clown show being orchestrated by National Republican Committeeman Bill Palatucci, whose style of political bullying and political intimidation distinguishes himself as the New Jersey Republican political version of Sonny Liston. His anti-Becchi debacle is described in this InsiderNJ article, Palatucci Cautions GOP about Wasting Money onCD7ContenderBecchi(https://www.insidernj.com/palatucci-cautions-wasting-money-becchi/).

Palatucci is one of the ineffectual Three Stooges of the New Jersey GOP establishment. The other two are 1)Chris Christie, who left the New Jersey governorship as the Beachchair-gate object of ridicule and now in his post-governmental career is distinguishing himself as an avatar of gluttonous greed(seethe Politico article by Sam Sutton,HowChristies influence on opioid panel landed him an $800K consulting contract

https://www.politico.com/states/new-jersey/story/2019/09/26/how-christies-influence-on-opioid-panel-landed-him-an-800k-consulting-contract-1209421); and 2) pharmaceutical executive Bob Hugin, whose US Senate candidacy against incumbent Senator Bob Menendez last November qualified him for the Marv Throneberry award for political candidacy ineptitude. The famous reference to Throneberrys pathetic play at first base took place on his birthday in 1962 at the late, lamented Polo Grounds, when his fellow players on the then hapless New York Mets told him, We would have given you a birthday cake, but we were afraid you would drop it.

Basically, the NJGOP Three Stooges are attempting to use the Kean, Jr. for Congress campaign as a life raft in order to prove their relevancy after their past sycophantic support of Donald Trump, which followed their involvement in the laughable fiasco of the 2016 Christie for President campaign.

Christies efforts to reinvent himself have reached a new low level of credibility with his avowed effort to promote political civility through hisChristie Institute of Public Policy. Given his past record of abusive treatment of his political opponents and critics, Chris Christie as a promoter of political civility has all the credibility of Donald Trump promoting marital monogamy or the late Yankee manager Billy Martin promoting alcohol abstinence, safe driving, and nonviolence.

The irony of the Three Stooges attempted alliance with Tom Kean, Jr. is that it follows a treacherous and abortive effort by Christie and Palatucci to remove Kean, Jr. as Senate Republican leader after Christies 2013 gubernatorial reelection victory. This attempt was made all the more egregious by the fact that Tom Kean, Sr. had been the political mentor of both Christie and Palatucci, qualifying them both in the latest production of Shakespeares Julius Caesar for the roles of Christie as Brutus and Palatucci as Cassius (Chris Christie cannot be said to have a lean and hungry look).

Tom Kean, Jr. has a long memory, and he doubtless remembers the Christie-Palatucci attempted Senate putsch. I am confident that while he will accept the fundraising efforts of the Three Stooges, he will prevent them from becoming the face of his campaign, thus removing from his shoulders the huge burden of the Chris Christie albatross.

The problem of the Donald Trump albatross for Tom Kean, Jr., however is not so simple.

In my view, which is indeed contrary to the consensus of most Washington pundits, the denouement of the Trump administration is now in sight, namely, Donald Trumps resignation from the Presidency between late February and early March, 2020resulting from what will then be the likelihood of the Senate voting to remove him from office. Removal of a president from office requires 67 votes, and this total will be achieved with over 20 Republican senators declaring their willingness to join with the 47 senators who caucus with the Democrats to oust the president.

The forthcoming Articles of Impeachment against Donald Trump will constitute the strongest such case in the history of the American presidency. They will consist basically of the following three groups of charges: 1) the ten acts of obstruction of justice described in the Mueller Report; 2) the Presidents flagrantviolations of the Constitutional Domestic Emoluments Clause and the Foreign Emoluments Clause, and 3) Trumps solicitation of an illegal campaign contribution fromUkraine President Volodymyr Zelensky, to wit, the assistance of the Ukraine government in digging up dirt against Joe Biden, the front runner for the Democratic 2020 presidential nomination, and his son, Hunter. These acts regarding Ukraine also give rise to federal charges against the president of bribery and extortion.

Yet it is not the grave nature and massive evidence in support of these charges that will, in my view, result in the defection of at least 20 GOP senators to vote for Trumps ouster. Rather, it is Trumps withdrawal of assistance to our Kurdish allies, who played a vital role in our war against ISIS.

Trump Know-Nothings contend that his despicable abandonment of the Kurds is simply an act on his part to end our involvement inendless foreign wars. I would invite these uncritical supporters of Trump to tell the families of those Americans killed, indeed beheaded by ISIS terrorists that the war against ISIS is a foreign war.

There are those opponents of removal of the president who will concede that Trumps abandonment of the Kurds, leaving them to their slaughter by both the Turks and ISIS, is an act of grossincompetence andhorrendous foreign policy. They contend, however, that such foreign policy malfeasance does not per se constitute an impeachable offense. This is irrelevant, however, as this act demonstrates conclusively Trumps gross unfitness for office.

Added to this unfitness is the fact that Trumps green light to Turkish slaughter of the Kurds appears conclusively to be motivated by his financial interest in the Trump Twin Towers combined office and hotelin Istanbul. The blood of Americans and Kurds to be killed by ISIS will now be on the hands of Donald Trump.

Ultimately, Trumps unfitness for office is driving upwards the independent vote for impeachment and removal. This will compel Republican Senators in late 2019 and early 2020 to cease defending the president and switch to advocating the presidents ouster.

And the Gallup Poll released on Thursday, October 16, 2019 provided most ominous news to Donald Trump in this regard:Currently, 52% say Trump should be impeached and removed from office, while 46% say he should not be. This is roughly the opposite of what Gallup found in June when asked in the context of special counselor Robert Muellers investigation.

Finally, the article by Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnellFridayin the Washington Post entitled Withdrawing from Syria is a grave mistake(https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/mitch-mcconnell-withdrawing-from-syria-is-a-grave-mistake/2019/10/18/c0a811a8-f1cd-11e9-89eb-ec56cd414732_story.html) appears to be the beginning of the end of shameless Senate GOP submission to the Autocrat-in-Chief and Grifter-in-Chief in the White House.

By Election Day 2020, Donald Trump will either have resigned from office or be headed for a certain landslide defeat, regardless of whom the Democrats nominate for president.

My view is that he will leave the presidency sooner thanthat,aspredicted byformer close Trump business associate BarbaraRes. Trumpwill avoid the disgrace of impeachment and removalby resigning and making a deal for his non-prosecution, encompassing all prospective federal and state charges. This will also make moot subpoenas for Trump tax returns.

The Wall Street firm of Raymond James has done an analysis of scenarios that could ensue after an early Trump departure from the White House. They posit a farewell address by the president as follows:

I have done everything I set out to do as President. America is great again. We have record low unemployment, the market is doing amazing, we have exited endless foreign wars, and Ive stopped other countries like China from taking advantage of us in trade deals. We passed massive tax cuts and drug prices are down for the first time ever. Im not one of these lifetime politicians. Im ready to return to my business and spend more time with my family. This harassment of me by Democrats has really hurt Melania and my kids.

I agree with this scenario, and I take it one step further. Trump hasalways found his rallies to be self-intoxicating, and he will continue them after he leaves office, inveighing against the deep state and the fake news media. He will become the 21st century version of a Father Charles Coughlin or a Gerald L.K. Smith.

The GOP hard core supporters of Donald Trump will be very much present at these rallies. They will not go gently into the night after The Donald departs from 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.

Trump acolytes describe fervent Never-Trump center-right advocates like myself as being afflicted with TDS (Trump Derangement Syndrome). Assuming, but not conceding that such an acronym is accurate, Never Trumpers can at least with equal validity describe Trump activists as being afflicted with TSDS Trump SelfDelusion Syndrome. This description is supported by the words of The Donald himself, who said that he could shoot somebodyinplain sight on Fifth Avenue in Manhattan, and his supporters wouldnt care.

Conventional wisdom is that after the 2020 primary, Kean, Jr. should focus on 1) how to obtain the votes of Right-of-Center victims of both TDS andTSDS;and 2) still have the possibility of getting enough support from Independents to obtain a plurality against Tom Malinowski.

Unfortunately, such an approach will not work in this 7th Congressional District, where Trump toxicity is overpowering. Malinowskisfive-pointvictoryin 2018over then five term incumbent Republican Representative Leonard Lance illustrated howvirulentlyanti-Trump that 7th District is. Any effort by Kean,Jr.to placate Trump supporters will result in a defection of independent voters he must have in order to achieve victory.

Given the anti-Trump demographics of the 7th District and the difficulty in portraying Tom Malinowski as aleft-wingextremist Progressive Democrat, what is the best way for Tom Kean, Jr.to position himself?

My response is not likely to please Republican consultants who may become involved in this race. They will view it as a lame strategy, like bringing a water pistol to a gun fight.

If one views the entire context of the impeachment battle, however, by November, 2020, Americans will have grown weary of the partisanship displayed by both Democrats and Republicans on this issue, regardless of the outcome. Tom Malinowski will clearly be identified as one of the lead fiery partisans.

This will make it possible for Tom Kean, Jr. to frame a message for himself as an agent of healing in the Congress, as opposed to the narrow partisanship of Tom Malinowski. He should stay out of the impeachment issue as much as possible and make the case for himself as a person who, like his father, seeks bipartisan healing and inclusiveness in order to move on beyond the bitterness of the Trump era.

The politics of healing and inclusiveness worked well for Tom Kean. It can be a winner for Tom Kean, Jr. as well.

Alan J. Steinberg served as Regional Administrator of Region 2 EPA during the administration of former President George W. Bush and as Executive Director of the New Jersey Meadowlands Commission.

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Tom Kean, Jr. and the Albatrosses of Chris Christie and Donald Trump - InsiderNJ

On Friday afternoon, James Baker, the former general counsel of the F.B.I., felt a tinge of optimism. Almost two years ago, he was ousted from his position as the Bureaus top legal official, after President Trump fired the F.B.I.s director, James Comey. Baker, a career Justice Department official and a longtime Comey ally, had approved the F.B.I.s Trump-Russia investigation and the monitoring of a former Trump campaign advisers communications. Trump welcomed the news of Bakers removal in a tweet: Wow, FBIlawyer James Baker reassigned. In subsequent tweets and retweets, the President accused Baker of lying to Congress and being part of an Unconstitutional Hoax and an attempted coup.

Baker considered Trumps claims about him to be completely false, but he said nothing publicly at the time. (The Republican-controlled Senate Intelligence Committee investigated the origins of the F.B.I.s Trump-Russia investigation and found no wrongdoing.) I believed that, once I was out of the F.B.I., I could resume a normal life and avoid the spotlight, he told me last week, in his office at the R Street Institute, a conservative and libertarian think tank, where he directs the national-security program. But that was inaccurate, because the damage had already been done by the Presidents tweets and stories about me on Fox News and other outlets. Baker, once considered one of the governments most trusted national-security officials, found that Trumps attacks impacted his ability to find a job. Certain corporations and law firms thought that I was too controversial and didnt want to hire me, Baker recalled. It surprised me and was dispiriting. Over time, he became convinced that Trump was improperly using his powers as President to maintain his hold on power. Baker decided to push back. At a certain point, I became unafraid of Donald Trump, he said. I felt, O.K., I can speak out. And also, I have an obligation to speak out. In May, Baker began publicly attacking what he called Trumps false narrative that there was a coup, and a conspiracy, and treason.

On Friday, Baker lauded Marie Yovanovitch, a career foreign-service officer and the former U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine, who also decided to push back against Trump. During nearly nine hours of closed-door testimony before the House Intelligence, Foreign Affairs, and Oversight committees, Yovanovitch responded to months of attacks from Trump and his allies. In a blistering opening statement that was released to the press, she said that Trump had pressured State Department officials to remove her from her ambassadorship based on made-up allegations. Although I understand that I served at the pleasure of the president, her statement read,I was nevertheless incredulous that the U.S. government chose to remove an ambassador based, as best as I can tell, on unfounded and false claims by people with clearly questionable motives.Sean Maloney, a Democratic congressman from New York, said that, during the hearings, Yovanovitch grew visibly upset as she gave a gripping and emotional account of abuse of power by the President.

More potentially damaging testimony is expected this week, as House Democrats continue the impeachment inquiry that they launched after a U.S. intelligence official filed a whistle-blowers complaint regarding Trumps dealings with Ukraine. On Monday, Fiona Hill, who served as the top Russia expert in Trumps National Security Council, is expected to testify that Trumps personal lawyer, Rudy Giuliani, circumvented the normal White House process to pursue a shadow foreign policy in Ukraine. On Thursday, Gordon Sondland, a donor to Trumps Inauguration committee who was named U.S. Ambassador to the European Union, is expected to testify that he does not know if Trump was telling the truth when he denied withholding U.S. military aid to pressure Ukraines President to investigate Joe Biden.

Baker told me that Trumps failure so far to discredit the whistle-blower had weakened his power to silence current and former officials. He tried to smash the whistle-blower, and it didnt work, Baker said. One of the things that Donald Trump has trafficked in is fear. And, once people are no longer afraid of him, I think more people will come forward.

According to Chuck Rosenberga career federal prosecutor who served as a senior adviser to Comey and Robert Mueller at the F.B.Ithe Presidents public attacks are a calculated effort to pressure government officials. Rosenberg, who served as the acting director of the D.E.A. in the Trump Administration but resigned, in 2017, told me that the Presidents repeated denunciations of Mueller and his team were designed to hamper the investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election. Rosenberg said that Trumps smears did not impact the probes findings, but didincrease the pressure on Mueller. Trump may lack a sophisticated understanding of the federal government, Rosenberg warned, but the effectiveness of his public diatribes should not be underestimated. I think its very intentional, he said. You can be not well read in a classic sense but very cunning and successful as a street fighter.

Trump seems likely to continue to declare any current and former officials who criticize him part of a secret cabal trying to remove him from office. After the Times reported that Giuliani was under criminal investigation for possibly breaking lobbying laws in his dealings with Ukraine, Trump tweeted, Such a one sided Witch Hunt going on in USA. Deep State. Shameful! A former National Security Council aide, who asked not to be named, scoffed at Trumps claim of a plot. The aide described the vast majority of State Department officials as loathe to publicly criticize a President and as risk-averse. It has to be really bad for people to speak out, the former aide said. Its a mentalitydont break anything.

The likelihood that the testimony of Yovanovitch or other government officials will significantly undermine Trumps messaging is low. The Presidents willingness to traffic in conspiracy theories, and to play on Americans long-running suspicions of government, together with his vast social-media following give him far more power to sway public opinion. Baker, though, believes that it is worth trying to counter Trumps narrative. As part of his personal effort, he published an essay, in May, on the Lawfare Web site: Why I Do Not Hate Donald Trump. In it, he argues that deriding the President and his supporters is the wrong tactic. Instead, citing Martin Luther King, Jr.,s Letter from a Birmingham Jail, Baker suggests responding with grace, decency, and fact. He concedes that this approach may strike many as foolish or nave. All I know is that I have a small grain of sand that I can contribute to the effort, and I want to put it on the right side of the scale, he told me. If many people do that, then it can make a difference. He commended Yovanovitch, saying, Shes taking a risk and putting her grain of sand on the scale. It sounds like she is pursuing the truth with the goal of helping protect the American people and upholding the Constitution.

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Public Servants Are Starting to Respond to Donald Trumps False Attacks - The New Yorker

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This week was busier than most for the Trump administration. Trevor Noah and Jimmy Kimmel take a look.

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OPINION

This week was busier than most for the Trump administration. Trevor Noah and Jimmy Kimmel take a look. Eileen Rivers, USA TODAY Opinion

This was a busy week for President Donald Trump or, as late-night comic Trevor Noah points out, a busy 24 hours. In that time, he and his administration racked up about half-a-dozen scandalous moments (a potential record).

Among them: Energy Secretary Rick Perry resigned (causing Jimmy Kimmel to wonder how one of the longest-standing members of Trump's Cabinet willreact); House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Trump got into an "I know you are but what am I" contest (Noah explains, above); and an ambassador drops a bomb during his testimony about the Ukraine scandal.

Trevor Noah(Photo: Todd Plitt/USA TODAY)

And all of this somehow contributes to Trump's genius. How? Noah reveals allin today's Best of Late Night, above.

After you watch our favorite jokes from last night's late-night lineup, vote for yours in the poll below.

Follow Eileen Rivers on Twitter @msdc14.

Want more laughs? Check out these cartoon galleries:

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Noah reveals the genius of Donald Trump in Best of Late Night - USA TODAY

Impeaching a U.S. president might not be the be-all-end-allfor their career. We explain why this is the case. Just the FAQs, USA TODAY

We've never had a president like Donald Trump. He falls into every single sleaze category, from women to profiteering to attacking the Bill of Rights.

Weve had presidents who were used by members of their own family for personal gain, likeUlysses S. Grant.

Weve had presidents who stocked their Cabinet with greedy, self-serving mediocrities who took advantage of the public trust, like Warren G. Harding.

Weve had presidents who swore to preserve, protect and defend the Constitution, only to then abuse it, like Richard Nixon.

And weve had presidents who, thanks to a presumptive sense of entitlement, lived slimy private lives, using countless women before tossing them aside Harding again, plus John F. Kennedy and Bill Clinton.

President Donald Trump fallsinto every single sleazy category, squarely and shamelessly. Just Thursday, we learned that he'll hold next year'sGroup of Seven meeting (with leaders of Canada,France,Germany,Italy,Japan and theUnited Kingdom)at his own Doral golf resort in Miami.

Trump National Doral golf resort in Miami(Photo: Michele Eve Sandberg/AFP/Getty Images)

Its the latest example of how Trump, who never divested from his businesses,continues to make millions from them. Its also the latest reminder that he constantly violates the Constitutions emoluments clause, which is supposed to ban presidents from accepting money fromforeign governments. This whilethe House is in the middle of an impeachment inquiry and there are two lawsuits pending over the emoluments clause.

"This is unbelievable," said Noah Bookbinder, executive director of Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, which filed one of those suits, speaking for much of America.

Grant was an honest man, yet under his nose, his own brother-in-law and two other grifters tried to corner the gold market. The financial panic that followed was called Black Friday.Then there was the Whiskey Ring Scandal,in which the presidents own secretary played a role in attempting to defraud the government of millions.

And Trump? Unlike other presidents, he never bothered to place his assets in a blind trust. Instead he allowshis family to run his trust, and heremains its one and only beneficiary.

Unconstitutional: G-7 at Trump's Doral resort? The original sin of this presidency is failure to divest

Andthe emoluments clausehasnt stopped diplomats, representatives of government-owned businesses and other foreign visitors from buying his properties andrunning up big tabs at his resorts and hotels. That's stuffing cash, albeit indirectly, into Trump's pocket.

Meantime, finger-pointingat Hunter Biden diverts mediaattention a time-honored Trump tactic from his own children'sbrazen exploitation of their fathers office. As Bloomberg'sStephanie Baker notes, they"have continued working with foreign business partners from Dubai to Indonesia and India while theirfather sits in the White House." First daughter Ivanka and hubby Jared Kushner raked in an estimated $82 million in 2017 alone, records show.

Time and again, notes the Los Angeles Times,Trumps children have blurred the lines of family, nation and business essentially the charge the president makes against the Bidens.

Perhaps youve heard of Teapot Dome, a huge oil reserve scandal involving Warren G. Hardings Interior secretary, Albert Fall.Fall was convicted of accepting a bribeand went to prison.Meanwhile, Hardings Veterans secretary, Charles Forbes, looted the 2019 equivalent of $2.8 billion in a string of shady deals; he, too, was convicted ofbribery and went to prison.

No one in Trumps revolving-door Cabinet has ripped off taxpayers on that scale, but many have fleeced we the people for everything from private air travel (former Health and Human Services Secretary Tom Price and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin), running up big tabs in Europe for spouses (former Veterans Affairs Secretary David Shulkin), and ripoffs for everything from new office doors (ex-Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke), dining room furniture (Housing Secretary Ben Carson)and more. Then there is fellow swamp monster Scott Pruitt, whose list of grifting while he headed the Environmental Protection Agencywas almost as long as the list of clean water and clean air regulations he helped the president gut.

And need I mention that Trumps campaign chief (Paul Manafort) and first national security adviser (Michael Flynn) are now convicted felons?And thatone of his top Oval Office aides (Rob Porter) had to leave after it became known that not one but both of his former spouses accused Porter of physical and verbal abuse.

Even a president as shameless as Trump has had to ditch many of theselet-them-eat-cake mediocrities to appease critics. Isn't this the guy who bragged that he hires only the very best? And his base still buys this claptrap.

We all know what Nixon did. AndTrump? It goes well beyond ignoring the emoluments clauseto monetize the presidency.

Trump took an oath to preserve, protect and defendthe Constitution of the United States. But just this month he publicly invitedan adversary,China, to interfere in the 2020 presidential election. Hehas attacked the First Amendmentby tryingto ban reporters whoask unpleasant questions from the White House and suggestingthat TV networks he dislikes lose their broadcast licenses.He has suggested cutting corners on due process for illegal immigrants,aviolationof the Fifth Amendment. He has suggested ending birthright citizenship, a violationof the Fourteenth Amendment.

Preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States? Rubbish.Trump only wants to bother with the parts that are convenient to him.

Harding was so sleazy that as president he once had sex with one of his mistresses in Central Park.He had an illegitimate daughter with one woman, a long affair with another who was suspected of being a German agent during World War I, and trysts in the Oval Office itself.Kennedy'svoluminous affairs were beyond sleazy. One with the girlfriend of a Mafia kingpin,and another with a woman believed to be an East German spy, even exposed him to potential blackmail.

Then there is our most recent philanderer in chief, Bill Clinton, whose lies about an affair with a White House intern got him impeached. Clintons liaisons showed him to be impulsive and sexually reckless in way that left a stain (literally and figuratively) on the presidency.

Making Nixon look good: Donald Trump is much worse than Richard Nixon. He may even have committed treason.

Trumps infidelities fall short of Harding and Kennedy. But sleaze is sleaze: He has cheated on all three wivesand, in the case of porn star Stormy Daniels, did it right after his third wife, Melania, gave birth to their son, Barron.And at last count, no fewerthan 25 women accuse him of either misconduct or flat-out assault.It's certainly obvious why evangelicals continue to call Trump a good, God-fearing Christian, isn't it?

Trump, who even lies about the weather, says every single one of these women is making it all up.Trump, as you know, is a Boy Scout and would never lay so much as an orange finger on anyone. And that Access Hollywood tapethat surfaced in 2016, in which he bragged about assaulting women? Fake. Sure.

A grifting family. A sleazy whats-in-it-for-me Cabinet. Trampling on our beloved Constitution. And all these women. All the boxes, checked.

Paul Brandus, founder and White House bureau chief of West Wing Reports, is the author of "Under This Roof: The White House and the Presidency" and is a member of USA TODAY's Board of Contributors. Follow him on Twitter: @WestWingReport

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Trump's unmatched sleaze: Grifters, women, trampling Constitution and now G-7 at Doral - USA TODAY

Tech entrepreneur, author and Democratic presidential candidate Andrew Yang says the impeachment inquiry being conducted by House Democrats "is the right way to go."

But he also cautions that those who support impeachment should be realistic about the chances of a GOP-controlled Senate voting to remove President Trump from office.

"I think impeachment is the right way to go, but I do not think that we should have any illusions that it's necessarily going to be successful," Yang told NPR's Noel King on Saturday as part of NPR's Off Script series of interviews with 2020 presidential candidates.

"When we are talking about Donald Trump, we are losing to Donald Trump, even if it's in the context of talking about impeaching him," Yang said.

Instead, Yang said, Democrats should be articulating a new vision for the United States.

"That's how we move the country forward. That's how we'll win in 2020," Yang said.

Entrepreneur and presidential hopeful Andrew Yang prepares for a meeting with undecided voters in Manhattan. A.J. Chavar for NPR hide caption

Entrepreneur and presidential hopeful Andrew Yang prepares for a meeting with undecided voters in Manhattan.

On the subject of winning, King pushed Yang on whether he can actually secure the Democratic nomination.

"Are you running for president to win?" King asked. "Or are you running for president to introduce ideas into the conversation?"

In response, Yang struck a confident tone.

"I 100% can win," he said. "I'm running to solve the biggest problems of our time."

Yang has never run for public office and was a relative unknown before he launched his Oval Office bid. He has managed to break through a crowded Democratic field with a sobering message that new technologies are already responsible for killing millions of American jobs.

His signature proposal of a universal basic income, which his campaign calls a "freedom dividend," would give every American adult $1,000 a month, no strings attached. Yang says he would pay for it by consolidating certain welfare programs and implementing a 10% tax on the goods and services that businesses produce.

A universal basic income is necessary, Yang argues, to mitigate "an unprecedented crisis" of wide-scale job losses due to automation.

King pointed to the fact that Yang is garnering single digits in presidential preference surveys.

Presidential hopeful Andrew Yang, NPR host and correspondent Noel King (center, right), and undecided voters Hetal Jani and John Zeitler talk politics over fried soup dumplings at Baodega in Manhattan. A.J. Chavar for NPR hide caption

Presidential hopeful Andrew Yang, NPR host and correspondent Noel King (center, right), and undecided voters Hetal Jani and John Zeitler talk politics over fried soup dumplings at Baodega in Manhattan.

According to RealClearPolitics, Yang is polling at roughly 2%, putting him slightly ahead of other presidential hopefuls, such as New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker and former Housing and Urban Development Secretary Julin Castro and about even with former Texas congressman Beto O'Rourke.

But he lags far behind top-tier candidates like former Vice President Joe Biden, Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont and Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts.

King floated the possibility of Yang serving in different ways commerce secretary, perhaps. He was noncommittal but left the door open.

"I'm open to contributing in any of a range of roles," Yang said.

The interview took place in New York City's Flatiron District, roughly 2 miles away from Trump Tower, at a dim sum restaurant Yang selected called Baodega.

As the American-born son of Taiwanese immigrants, Yang's Asian heritage is central to his campaign, something he reflected on during the interview.

"It's given me a lot of joy and pride to think about an Asian child turning on the Democratic debates and seeing me up on that stage," Yang said. "Hopefully, it gives them a sense that we're just as American as anyone else."

On the campaign trial, Yang has received criticism for playing up Asian stereotypes, which has produced mixed reactions from Asian Americans, as a recent Vox report detailed. In one debate, he said, "The opposite of Donald Trump is an Asian man who likes math."

Yang has taken a jaunty approach to campaigning, including at times donning a blue and white hat with "MATH" on it an acronym for "Make America Think Harder." It's a tongue-in-cheek play on Trump's slogan "Make America Great Again," and it has been a hit with his followers.

His most devoted supporters even have a moniker the Yang Gang.

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Andrew Yang Says There Is No Guarantee Impeaching Trump Will Be Successful - NPR

Donald Trump warned his counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdoan dont be a fool and said history risked branding him a devil in an extraordinary letter sent the day Turkey launched its incursion into north-eastern Syria.

The letter, first obtained by a Fox Business reporter, was shorn of diplomatic niceties and began with an outright threat.

Lets work out a good deal! Trump wrote in the letter dated 9 October, whose authenticity was confirmed to various news outlets by the White House.

Days after appearing to greenlight an invasion by pulling US troops from the Kurdish-dominated region, Trump told the Turkish president he would wreck Ankaras economy if the invasion went too far.

You dont want to be responsible for slaughtering thousands of people, and I dont want to be responsible for destroying the Turkish economy and I will, he wrote.

History will look upon you favorably if you get this done the right and humane way, Trump continued. It will look upon you forever as the devil if good things dont happen.

Dont be a tough guy. Dont be a fool! he finished, adding: I will call you later.

International and domestic reaction was for the most part incredulous.

Erdoan received the letter, thoroughly rejected it and put it in the bin, Turkish presidential sources told the BBC on Thursday. There was no immediate comment from Turkish officials on the BBC report.

The Kremlin questioned the letters tone. You dont often encounter such language in correspondence between heads of state. Its a highly unusual letter, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on a conference call.

In the US, many at first questioned the letters legitimacy. Some called it a joke and an embarrassment.

I actually thought it was a prank, a joke, that it couldnt possibly come from the Oval Office, the Democratic congressman Mike Quigley said to CNN. It sounds all the world like the president of the United States, in some sort of momentary lapse, just dictated angrily whatever was on the top of his head.

Quigley, a member of the House intelligence committee, continued: For him to write this and to also say that it doesnt affect us is ignorance at the highest level.

The release of the letter came on the heels of an overwhelming House vote to condemn Trumps troop withdrawal from Syria.

Today in the House, we voted 354-60 to condemn Trumps actions with regard to Syria, the Democratic congressman Mike Levin said on Twitter. Also, this letter is an embarrassment to the office.

It also came out on the day of a heated White House meeting that ended with Trump allegedly calling the House speaker, Nancy Pelosi, a third-rate politician and Pelosi saying: I pray for the president all the time I think now we have to pray for his health this was a very serious meltdown on the part of the president.

Trump reportedly handed out copies of the letter at the meeting.

The letter was quickly parodied.

On Wednesday, Trump also hailed his own decision to withdraw US troops from Syria as strategically brilliant and declared the Kurds were much safer now, contradicting the official assessment of both the state and defense departments that the Turkish offensive was a disaster for regional stability and the fight against Isis.

Former officials said the most significant point about the letter was Trumps readiness to share a supposedly confidential letter from the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) leader, Mazloum Kobani, with Erdoan, whose forces were launching an attack on the SDF.

General Mazloum is willing to negotiate with you, and he is willing to make concessions that they would never have made in the past. I am confidentially enclosing a copy of his letter to me, just received, Trump wrote.

These words on White House stationary [sic] should embarrass all Americans, but Trumps confidential enclosure of the SDF commanders letter will give our allies even less reason to trust America, said Ned Price, a former CIA officer and National Security Council spokesman. How much Nato correspondence has been forwarded to Putin?

Julian Borger contributed reporting

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Donald Trumps bizarre, threatening letter to Erdoan: Dont be a fool - The Guardian

Renowned entertainer Barbra Streisand tweeted a gruesome cartoon on Saturday in an apparent attempt to express her displeasure with President Trump during his ongoing feud with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif.

The cartoon showed massive high heels, including one labeled "Pelosi." Impaled on the black heel was a tiny Trump with what looked like blood flowing from his chest.

Streisand'stweet came afterTrump and Pelosi faced off over a number of issues, with the latter leading an official impeachment inquiry in the House of Representatives. Tensions seemed to flare on Wednesday when she stood during a White House meeting and appeared to scold President Trump.

The two were set to discuss administration's position on Syria after her chamber had voted to oppose his decision to pull U.S. troops out of the war-torn nation.

PELOSI USES IMAGE IN TRUMP TWEET AS TWITTER COVER PHOTO

Both attempted to use the incident to their advantage. While Trump tweeted the photo as proof Pelosi had a meltdown, Pelosi owned the photo by placing it in her Twitter profile.

Streisand's tweet was just the latest attack on Trump, whoshe also called a "moron-in-chief" on Saturday morning. In another tweet on Thursday, the singer claimed that Trump continually showed he was unfit to serve as president.

Also on Saturday, Streisand tweeted out an article arguing for Trump's impeachment. The featured image showed a giant peach crushing the president.

Streisand previously claimed Trump made her "gain weight," said she was thinking about moving to Canada if Republicans won the House, and released a song expressing her frustration with the administration.

PELOSI-TRUMP FEUD AT BOILING POINT AFTER 'MELTDOWN' AT WHITE HOUSE

On Saturday, Donald Trump Jr., Trump's son, joined others in calling out Streisand's tweet.

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"These undercover threats that echo innuendos of harming the POTUS will not and should not be tolerated!" commentators Diamond and Silk tweeted.

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Barbra Streisand tweets cartoon of Nancy Pelosi impaling Trump with giant high heel - Fox News