On the day 45 announces the leader of ISIS is dead, he is loudly booed at the Nats game. Pretty telling
"I call it a dog." Genius. True genius. The best words.
PH
Am I the only one offended by Downstream Wine’s Philippe Melka and his partners offering me 3-750ml bottles and one magnum of Zinfandel blend in a wood box for $995? No disrespect to Zinfandel but in what universe is a 750 ml bottle of Zinfandel blend worth the equivalent of $200 a bottle? Post-apocalypse? In 100 years when average daytime winter temperatures in Canada are 35C? Needless to say, you can have my wood box.
Guitarguy_1963 posted:Am I the only one offended by Downstream Wine’s Philippe Melka and his partners offering me 3-750ml bottles and one magnum of Zinfandel blend in a wood box for $995? No disrespect to Zinfandel but in what universe is a 750 ml bottle of Zinfandel blend worth the equivalent of $200 a bottle? Post-apocalypse? In 100 years when average daytime winter temperatures in Canada are 35C? Needless to say, you can have my wood box.
I would be too busy laughing at the offer to be offended by it!
patespo1 posted:On the day 45 announces the leader of ISIS is dead, he is loudly booed at the Nats game. Pretty telling
Fox didn't acknowledge the boos. They acknowledge every other Bronx cheer. There was also a Impeach Trump banner that was rolled out in the right field stands. Awesome. It was taken down eventually.
doubled posted:patespo1 posted:On the day 45 announces the leader of ISIS is dead, he is loudly booed at the Nats game. Pretty telling
Fox didn't acknowledge the boos. They acknowledge every other Bronx cheer. There was also a Impeach Trump banner that was rolled out in the right field stands. Awesome. It was taken down eventually.
Also chants of lock him up.
Good riddance to al Baghdadi. Nice to see the successful operation take out this thug and coward
thistlintom posted:Good riddance to al Baghdadi. Nice to see the successful operation take out this thug and coward
Bravo! Guess we'll find out who the next thug will be and can't call on the Kurds to find him.
Reminds me of the tax cut victory two years ago. Yay DEFICIT and higher taxes for me.
thistlintom posted:Good riddance to al Baghdadi. Nice to see the successful operation take out this thug and coward
A draft-dodging coward, who mocks prisoner of war heroes, calling out another coward. Quite a guy!
The Old Man posted:thistlintom posted:Good riddance to al Baghdadi. Nice to see the successful operation take out this thug and coward
A draft-dodging coward, who mocks prisoner of war heroes, calling out another coward. Quite a guy!
The Pentagon today said they had no information on the report by the president of Baghdadi’s temperament at the time of his death.
The habitual lying POS coward in the White House literally shits hyperbole on a daily basis.
Hailing winetarelli:
W+A asked if I would reach out to you and offer an olive branch. I agreed and also am here to apologize. During these sickening times we need to all join together with once purpose in mind: To Make America Normal Again. Just as with our nominees, there should be as little in-fighting as possible.
W+A also told me that we actually share many views and experiences not just at the political level. The only thing you are lacking is my cynical misanthropy. My advice is to stay away from that and you'll probably be happier in life.
vincentric posted:
+27
Excellent clip. The editor who put this together did a great job of showing the difference between Presidential and pompous in short order. Bravo/Brava.
PH
That's hysterical...Kimmel is the best of the late night hosts. Could have been Conan, but no idea what he is wearing these days.
The Old Man posted:Hailing winetarelli:
W+A asked if I would reach out to you and offer an olive branch. I agreed and also am here to apologize. During these sickening times we need to all join together with once purpose in mind: To Make America Normal Again. Just as with our nominees, there should be as little in-fighting as possible.
W+A also told me that we actually share many views and experiences not just at the political level. The only thing you are lacking is my cynical misanthropy. My advice is to stay away from that and you'll probably be happier in life.
Well...
I haven’t checked in for a couple of days, but I absolutely accept your apology and olives. I fucking love olives.
It certainly seemed as though our values align.
Sadly, I have a little cynical misanthropy in me, as well. I don’t see how one could not, these days.
We sane ones must stick together. 
Democrats are making a mockery of the impeachment process. Instead of following protocol from previous impeachment processes, they are continuing to have private testimonies and control the entire process, including the information that they wish to divulge to the public. If they want to go forward with the impeachment process, it should be done in the public and Republicans should have equal rights for testimonies. This is setting new protocols for impeachments, which will become more likely to occur in the future.
thistlintom posted:Democrats are making a mockery of the impeachment process. Instead of following protocol from previous impeachment processes, they are continuing to have private testimonies and control the entire process, including the information that they wish to divulge to the public. If they want to go forward with the impeachment process, it should be done in the public and Republicans should have equal rights for testimonies. This is setting new protocols for impeachments, which will become more likely to occur in the future.
Wrong, House Democrats are following the very rules and protocol established by Republicans. Get your facts straight. This is an impeachment inquiry, which is the normal buildup towards the actual impeachment process.
Impeachment inquiries will only happen when there’s a reason for them to occur (the proverbial “where there’s smoke, there’s fire”). Putin’s Bitch and his band of dummies have provided ample proof that his actions (not just the phone call with Zelensky) towards the Ukraine require thorough investigation.
If Putin’s Bitch did nothing wrong, then he should shut his KFChole and let the process play out. Some chucklehead named Lindsey Graham has gone on record and said that during a prior impeachment inquiry/process........
thistlintom posted:Democrats are making a mockery of the impeachment process. Instead of following protocol from previous impeachment processes, they are continuing to have private testimonies and control the entire process, including the information that they wish to divulge to the public. If they want to go forward with the impeachment process, it should be done in the public and Republicans should have equal rights for testimonies. This is setting new protocols for impeachments, which will become more likely to occur in the future.
Oh, the pearl clutching.
thistlintom posted:Democrats are making a mockery of the impeachment process. Instead of following protocol from previous impeachment processes, they are continuing to have private testimonies and control the entire process, including the information that they wish to divulge to the public. If they want to go forward with the impeachment process, it should be done in the public and Republicans should have equal rights for testimonies. This is setting new protocols for impeachments, which will become more likely to occur in the future.
Sorry, Tom, but some of your statements above are disingenuous at best, as the current process seems to following protocol from previous impeachments, given that closed door hearings were held in both Clinton and Nixon impeachments, the former of course run and controlled by Republicans. And the hearings will become public once the initial information is gathered. Do you really think the members of the committees would not/not turn the hearings into a circus of over-the-top statements and performances if the hearings were public?
Also, both sides are leaking info from the hearings, as we saw yesterday with Republicans trumpeting Morrison's statement that he heard nothing worthy of impeachment on the call. But most of the so-called leaks came in fact from publicly-released opening statements of those appearing before the committees.
If you want to talk of some making a mockery of the process, how about those Republicans storming the hearings, and the fact that many of them were in fact members of the committees and so entitled to attend every one? And if you want to talk breaking protocol, how about those Republicans bringing cell phones into a secure hearing room and taking recordings there?
I respect your efforts to keep your posts civil and constructive in discussions here but you are way off the mark pointing the finger at the Democrats for doing pretty much exactly what has been done in the Clinton impeachment process. If I am missing something please let me know.
thistlintom posted:Democrats are making a mockery of the impeachment process. Instead of following protocol from previous impeachment processes, they are continuing to have private testimonies and control the entire process, including the information that they wish to divulge to the public. If they want to go forward with the impeachment process, it should be done in the public and Republicans should have equal rights for testimonies. This is setting new protocols for impeachments, which will become more likely to occur in the future.
What? The protocol has been followed, period. The committee taking depositions has members from both parties with 48% being republicans. These hearings are always closed and members only. Always have been. Where in the world are you getting your wrong information?
If the vote of the committee is to proceed, then the process moves forward as it is now doing.
Please get your facts right.
I see that lots of familiar names are still posting. Cheers, y'all!
I find it amusing every time an attempt is made here to argue a point taken from Faux News, it is always refuted with facts.
lentini posted:I see that lots of familiar names are still posting. Cheers, y'all!
Cheers!
First of all, the impeachment process is given to the House, not the Speaker. Therefore the impeachment inquiry prior to the formal vote was improper. The inquiry is supposed to be done by the Judiciary committee, not the Intelligence committee, which would have provided more due process for the Republicans.
In prior impeachment inquiries, both sides met and agreed to the process, this did not happen this time. During the secretive meetings, the Republicans will continue to be limited in its rights. During the open process, in past impeachments, both sides have the right to subpoena and question witnesses. In this process, the Republicans are not guaranteed these rights and are not given the same procedural rights as with previous impeachment inquiries.
There is also no guarantee that previous transcripts and information from the secret hearings would be made fully available to the public The resolution empowers Schiff to disclose information but it is up to the discretion of Schiff of what will be made available. Why should anyone trust Schiff when he has lied about meeting with the whistleblower and made up the conversation between Trump and Zelensky?
thistlintom posted:First of all, the impeachment process is given to the House, not the Speaker. Therefore the impeachment inquiry prior to the formal vote was improper. The inquiry is supposed to be done by the Judiciary committee, not the Intelligence committee, which would have provided more due process for the Republicans.
In prior impeachment inquiries, both sides met and agreed to the process, this did not happen this time. During the secretive meetings, the Republicans will continue to be limited in its rights. During the open process, in past impeachments, both sides have the right to subpoena and question witnesses. In this process, the Republicans are not guaranteed these rights and are not given the same procedural rights as with previous impeachment inquiries.
There is also no guarantee that previous transcripts and information from the secret hearings would be made fully available to the public The resolution empowers Schiff to disclose information but it is up to the discretion of Schiff of what will be made available. Why should anyone trust Schiff when he has lied about meeting with the whistleblower and made up the conversation between Trump and Zelensky?
Tom, the process you just described above is almost exactly the process used for Clinton. The Dems had the right to subpoena witnesses but only with the agreement of the Republican committee chair, just like now, in reverse. No guarantees then, none now. And while in previous impeachments both sides met and "agreed", the dominant party still controlled the process, just like today. In any case, do you really think the Republicans would have agreed to anything that facilitated an impeachment process? Really??!! The Republicans have been questioning the witnesses in the hearings to date and will no doubt do so in the open hearings to come. As for the hearings being "secretive", again, the reason for this has been explained and it is exactly what happened in previous impeachment processes.
And what difference does it make which committees undertake the hearings? As it happens there are currently three doing so, combined they include 48 Republicans? If you are making a technical point, fine, but your original point was that the Dems were making a mockery of the process. If that's all you got it's a pretty thin argument.
As for Schiff lying and making stuff up, well, given the daily dozen lies Trump tells, it's hard to get too worked up about that. Especially now that several witnesses, highly respected career public servants all, several personally recruited by Pompeo, including a Purple Heart winner have testified that key information was left out of the so-called "perfect transcript, every comma, etc. etc." which proves the infamous quid pro quo,
I'm surprised and disappointed that someone like you, whose posts here. as I said above, I appreciate and respect, would get so worked up about the points you are making about the process when it is clear to everyone not a Republican that Trump endangered not just Ukraine's security but America's as well by further empowering Russia and Putin by holding back sales of military equipment. And, of course, breaching his oath to uphold the constitution by putting his personal interests ahead of the country's.
I am so tired.
PH
Kitchens are expensive AF.
Well said bman.
billhike posted:Kitchens are expensive AF.
Well said, billhike. Food is expensive too!
PH
Tool’s guitar player did their entire set last night dressed and disguised (full makeup) as Dwight Schrute from The Office.
purplehaze posted:I am so tired.
PH
Never argue with Trumpanzies. They exist in a separate universe.
billhike posted:Dwight Schrute from The Office.
Was there ever a more complete Tool than he? 😀
seaquam posted:billhike posted:Dwight Schrute from The Office.
Was there ever a more complete Tool than he? 😀
I bet it took you less than 3 seconds to come up with that one! 
thistlintom posted:First of all, the impeachment process is given to the House, not the Speaker. Therefore the impeachment inquiry prior to the formal vote was improper. The inquiry is supposed to be done by the Judiciary committee, not the Intelligence committee, which would have provided more due process for the Republicans.
In prior impeachment inquiries, both sides met and agreed to the process, this did not happen this time. During the secretive meetings, the Republicans will continue to be limited in its rights. During the open process, in past impeachments, both sides have the right to subpoena and question witnesses. In this process, the Republicans are not guaranteed these rights and are not given the same procedural rights as with previous impeachment inquiries.
There is also no guarantee that previous transcripts and information from the secret hearings would be made fully available to the public The resolution empowers Schiff to disclose information but it is up to the discretion of Schiff of what will be made available. Why should anyone trust Schiff when he has lied about meeting with the whistleblower and made up the conversation between Trump and Zelensky?
Forgot to address another incorrect point you apparently made above. Not sure what exactly you are referring to when you say that Schiff lied about meeting with the whistleblower but that fact is that he didn't. Here are the facts from the factcheck.org website. The first para is the committee staffer explaining what happened when the whistleblower contacted the committee, the second is the website's response to that statement:
"Like other whistleblowers have done before and since under Republican and Democratic-controlled Committees, the whistleblower contacted the Committee for guidance on how to report possible wrongdoing within the jurisdiction of the Intelligence Community. This is a regular occurrence, given the Committee’s unique oversight role and responsibilities. Consistent with the Committee’s longstanding procedures, Committee staff appropriately advised the whistleblower to contact an Inspector General and to seek legal counsel."
There’s support for the statement that it’s “a regular occurrence” for whistleblowers to contact congressional committees. A May 2019 Government Accountability Office report said “whistleblowers who contact the Congress typically reach out to oversight committees, the offices of their own representatives or senators, or authorizing committees.” In a 2016 story in The Intercept, a spokesman for Republican Rep. Devin Nunes, then the chair of the House intelligence committee, said the committee received whistleblower complaints in the “dozens” each year from both the intelligence community inspector general “and via individuals who approach the committee directly.”
So no, despite the insistence of Fox News and other right-wing so-called news sources, Schiff was never contacted by the whistleblower, nor did he help write the complaint, etc. etc.
Adam Schiff: “We have not spoken directly with the whistleblower,” when the whistleblower had in fact reached out to a committee aide before filing a complaint. Hmm, sounds like there was contact.
How about addressing the other Schiff issue, that he fabricated the conversation between Trump and Zelensky?
Trump may be an asshole, but Schiff is a weasel.
thistlintom posted:Adam Schiff: “We have not spoken directly with the whistleblower,” when the whistleblower had in fact reached out to a committee aide before filing a complaint. Hmm, sounds like there was contact.
How about addressing the other Schiff issue, that he fabricated the conversation between Trump and Zelensky?
Trump may be an asshole, but Schiff is a weasel.
Tom, you are proving my point! You said above that Schiff lied about meeting with the whistleblower. He didn't, you are wrong. The whistleblower contacted a committee staffer, as dozens of whistleblowers before him have done (according to Nunes!!) and was advised to bring it up with the IG, which he did. So yes, there was contact, but not with Schiff or any other committee member, as you alleged. Nothing sinister or nefarious going on there.
As for addressing Schiff's of Trump's conversation with Zelensky, I am happy to do so. Here is what the non-partisan website Politifacts had to say about it:
"Schiff explicitly said that he was trying to describe "the essence" of Trump’s message "shorn of its rambling character and in not so many words." He never tried to read the president’s remarks in full, nor did he pretend to offer Trump’s words.
Schiff also introduced the remarks as "the essence of what the president communicates" and described them as "in sum and character, what the president was trying to communicate."
So, again, with this important context provided by a non-partisan website that exists to resolve issues such as this, it is clear that Schiff did not "lie" but was in fact probably mocking Trump the way Trump mocks dozens of people via Twitter and elsewhere. Giving him a dose of his own medicine, so to speak.
Finally, Trump is indeed an asshole, but he's much worse than that, as I've noted above. As President he has the power to destroy pretty much everything that is good and right in the world, and seems determined to do so. My fear that that his destruction of America's respect for institutions critical to the country's well-being, the constitution first and foremost but also the Fed, as well as the environment, the press (I could go on and on -- "no, really"??!! 
) is only the beginning.
bman posted:thistlintom posted:Adam Schiff: “We have not spoken directly with the whistleblower,” when the whistleblower had in fact reached out to a committee aide before filing a complaint. Hmm, sounds like there was contact.
How about addressing the other Schiff issue, that he fabricated the conversation between Trump and Zelensky?
Trump may be an asshole, but Schiff is a weasel.
Tom, you are proving my point! You said above that Schiff lied about meeting with the whistleblower. He didn't, you are wrong. The whistleblower contacted a committee staffer, as dozens of whistleblowers before him have done (according to Nunes!!) and was advised to bring it up with the IG, which he did. So yes, there was contact, but not with Schiff or any other committee member, as you alleged. Nothing sinister or nefarious going on there.
As for addressing Schiff's of Trump's conversation with Zelensky, I am happy to do so. Here is what the non-partisan website Politifacts had to say about it:
"Schiff explicitly said that he was trying to describe "the essence" of Trump’s message "shorn of its rambling character and in not so many words." He never tried to read the president’s remarks in full, nor did he pretend to offer Trump’s words.
Schiff also introduced the remarks as "the essence of what the president communicates" and described them as "in sum and character, what the president was trying to communicate."
So, again, with this important context provided by a non-partisan website that exists to resolve issues such as this, it is clear that Schiff did not "lie" but was in fact probably mocking Trump the way Trump mocks dozens of people via Twitter and elsewhere. Giving him a dose of his own medicine, so to speak.
Finally, Trump is indeed an asshole, but he's much worse than that, as I've noted above. As President he has the power to destroy pretty much everything that is good and right in the world, and seems determined to do so. My fear that that his destruction of America's respect for institutions critical to the country's well-being, the constitution first and foremost but also the Fed, as well as the environment, the press (I could go on and on -- "no, really"??!!
It amazes me how one can produce fact after fact after fact, yet truth bounces off of the willfully obtuse and willfully ignorant with such ease.
It is also amazing to me how that now 14 republican Senators have been asked a very simple question; can any president withhold appropriated monies or delay such to a foreign government by requesting investigation of a political opponent, demanding a public statement of such of an investigation by a foreign country or any other “ favor first though “ request? Oh John McCain, we could use the voice of an American patriot in the senate more than ever. Your dear friend Graham has proven to be weak and spineless without you.
The point is that Schiff lied about not having contact with the whistleblower. We don't know whether Schiff in fact did communicate directly with the whistleblower as he suddenly doesn't want the whistleblower to testify. I wonder why? I may or not be correct about whether Schiff directly talked with the whistleblower, but I do know that Schiff lied about any contact with the whistleblower. The Washington Post gave Schiff four Pinocchios on Schiff's statement
In regards to Schiff tried to explain the essence of the discussion, that is a crock of shit. He made no mention of his "explaining the essence" and made it sound like he was directly quoting the transcript. He said that Trump asked Zelensky to manufacture dirt on Biden. Trump had only asked that Zelensky look into reports of improper dealings involving the Bidens, and he did this as part of his concerns about corruption in Ukraine. Schiff later said this was a parody of the transcript. Well according to Webster the definition of a parody is a feeble or ridiculous imitation. If that is what he meant then he is correct. That he did this in as Chairman of the Judicial committee is pathetic.
During the Mueller investigation, Schiff repeatedly said that he had evidence of Trump's collusion with Russia but NEVER produced any evidence of it. Mueller exonerated Trump of collusion.
Schiff is a weasel and a political animal. That he is the one leading the impeachment proceedings against Trump is pathetic.
Bman, I know we are of different political perspectives and have divergent views, but impeachment is a serious issue and will have future ramifications that we don't understand. This should be a serious process done by serious people. Schiff is not a serious person and has shown himself to be purely political. Impeachment should be totally above board and handled properly. I do not think that is currently happening.
thistlintom posted:The point is that Schiff lied about not having contact with the whistleblower. We don't know whether Schiff in fact did communicate directly with the whistleblower as he suddenly doesn't want the whistleblower to testify. I wonder why? I may or not be correct about whether Schiff directly talked with the whistleblower, but I do know that Schiff lied about any contact with the whistleblower. The Washington Post gave Schiff four Pinocchios on Schiff's statement
In regards to Schiff tried to explain the essence of the discussion, that is a crock of shit. He made no mention of his "explaining the essence" and made it sound like he was directly quoting the transcript. He said that Trump asked Zelensky to manufacture dirt on Biden. Trump had only asked that Zelensky look into reports of improper dealings involving the Bidens, and he did this as part of his concerns about corruption in Ukraine. Schiff later said this was a parody of the transcript. Well according to Webster the definition of a parody is a feeble or ridiculous imitation. If that is what he meant then he is correct. That he did this in as Chairman of the Judicial committee is pathetic.
During the Mueller investigation, Schiff repeatedly said that he had evidence of Trump's collusion with Russia but NEVER produced any evidence of it. Mueller exonerated Trump of collusion.
Schiff is a weasel and a political animal. That he is the one leading the impeachment proceedings against Trump is pathetic.
Bman, I know we are of different political perspectives and have divergent views, but impeachment is a serious issue and will have future ramifications that we don't understand. This should be a serious process done by serious people. Schiff is not a serious person and has shown himself to be purely political. Impeachment should be totally above board and handled properly. I do not think that is currently happening.
Tom, but you continue to say things that aren't true and dispute facts that are on the record.
Schiff didn't lie about having contact with the whistleblower, comments to the contrary have been debunked repeatedly by credible sources. He had no contact, period.
You say he made no mention of "explaining the essence" but those were the exact words he used to preface his subsequent remarks which so concern you. Here is a link to a video that proves that, if you don't want to watch it all 9 minutes of it, fast forward to 4 minutes and 10 seconds in: Schiff opening comments
Mueller never exonerated Trump of collusion, he said he did not find sufficient evidence of it to charge him with a crime, which is very different from exonerating him. He did however document over 100 contacts between the Trump campaign and persons affiliated with the Russia Government. And Mueller specifically said that he was not/not exonerating Trump of obstruction of justice, FWIW.
I get that you have a hate on for Schiff but I am again surprised and disappointed that this is what seems to have gotten under your skin rather than the fact that Trump is an embarrassment, a disgrace and a danger to the world. You are so upset about what you think are Schiff's lies while saying nothing about Trump's daily dozen of lies, some of which you seem to have accepted at truth since you repeat them above.
In any case, this has become very circular. If you continue to post easily provable untruths I will probably take the time to debunk them tomorrow, because I actually enjoy that (don't judge me!) and it usually takes only a few minutes of googling to do so. But for now I'm finishing my TV show and going to bed. Nighty night! 
