Ivanka Trump was instrumental in Michael Flynn becoming national security advisor, report says

Friday brought another reminder that Ivanka Trump has massively downplayed her role in her father’s presidential campaign, transition and White House administration.

While Ivanka famously said she didn’t like to get involved much in politics, she and her husband Jared Kushner have been major influences in some of President Donald Trump’s most controversial hiring and firing decisions. That includes the decision to fire former FBI Director James Comey, which led to the appointment of special counsel Robert Mueller.

Now it turns out that Ivanka Trump was instrumental in bringing Michael T. Flynn into her father’s administration to serve as national security advisor, according to a report in the New Yorker.

This report, from late October, is worth revisiting after Flynn on Friday pleaded guilty to lying to the F.B.I. about conversations he had with the Russian ambassador last December.



http://www.mercurynews.com/2017/12/01/ivanka-trump-was-instrumental-in-michael-flynn-becoming-national-security-advisor-report-says/?utm_term=Autofeed&utm_campaign=Echobox&utm_medium=Social&utm_source=Twitter#link_time=1512178146

Sen. Toomey inserts college endowment exemption exclusively to benefit Betsy DeVoss

Who among these names will Mueller snag before it's over?

Trump
Pence
Trump, Jr.
Kushner
Ivanka
Lewandowski
Priebus
Cohen
Page
Hicks
Conway
Bannon

The White House just threw Flynn under the bus.

he White House said on Friday that it was the Obama administration that authorized former national security adviser Michael Flynn's contacts with Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak during President Trump's transition, according to CNN.

Flynn pleaded guilty on Friday to lying to the FBI about his contacts with Kislyak in the month before Trump took office, the first current or former Trump White House official brought down by special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation into Russia's election meddling.

Court records indicate that his communications with Kislyak were directed by a Trump transition official, with multiple news outlets reporting that official was Trump's son-in-law and senior adviser Jared Kushner.

“They are saying here at the White House that Flynn’s conversations with Sergey Kisylak were quote ‘authorized’ by the Obama administration,” CNN correspondent Jim Acosta said.

“We should point out, that is something that we have not heard before in terms of a defense from this White House,” he said.


http://thehill.com/homenews/administration/362856-cnn-white-house-claims-obama-admin-approved-flynn-calls-with-russian

Gowdy, Benghazi panel settled wrongful firing suit with $150,000 in public funds

As chairman of the House Select Committee on Benghazi, Rep. Trey Gowdy (R-S.C.) used $150,000 in taxpayer dollars to settle with a former aide who alleged he was fired in part because he was not willing to focus his investigative work on Hillary Clinton.

The Post confirmed the confidential settlement reached between Gowdy and the Benghazi panel and Bradley Podliska after it appeared in a list of settlements released Friday by the congressional Office of Compliance. Gowdy is now the chairman of the House Oversight Committee.

In a list provided to the House Committee on Administration, the OOC disclosed it oversaw one $150,000 settlement involving a claim of veteran status discrimination and retaliation in the last five years. Podliska, in addition to claiming he was fired for his refusal to focus on Clinton, alleged retaliation by his supervisors because he took leave to fulfill his obligations as an Air Force reservist. His December 2016 settlement, which covered the veterans status and retaliation claims, was reported by The Washington Post at the time without the settlement amount.

Podliska’s lawyer, Peter Romer-Friedman, declined in a phone interview to discuss the details of his client’s settlement, citing a confidentiality agreement. However, he said he was not aware of any other such case brought against Congress and settled in the past five years.


https://www.washingtonpost.com/powerpost/gowdy-benghazi-panel-settled-wrongful-firing-suit-with-150000-in-public-funds/2017/12/01/d7c49dac-d6db-11e7-a986-d0a9770d9a3e_story.html?utm_term=.8304638bd276

Flynn to plead guilty to making false statements

ROLLING ROLLING ROLLING!!!!

TRUMP SEXUAL MISCONDUCT ALLEGATIONS SHOULD BE TREATED SERIOUSLY, SEAN SPICER SAYS

Allegations of sexual assault made against President Donald Trump should be “treated seriously” and his accusers heard, according to his former White House press secretary.

Amid a slew of sexual misconduct allegations in Congress, Sean Spicer suggested the president should not escape scrutiny over the allegations from multiple women that emerged during the 2016 election campaign.

Allegations have been made against Republican and Democrat politicians alike, following revelations of widespread alleged misconduct in the entertainment and media industries, prompting questions as to why the allegations made against the president have not been pursued.

Asked about the allegations against Trump, Spicer told Fox Business Network on Wednesday: “I would say that all allegations should be treated seriously. I think we can’t dismiss people who make those.”

"But I also believe that we need to make sure that we do give people—we are a country of due process," he added.

The former press secretary also suggested that there were “appropriate venues” in which to discuss the allegations against Trump.


http://www.newsweek.com/trump-sexual-misconduct-allegations-should-be-treated-seriously-sean-spicer-726561?utm_campaign=NewsweekTwitter&utm_source=Twitter&utm_medium=Social

"YUGE" crowd turns out for Trump's tree lightning ceremony