December 5, 2016

Joe Scarborough: Mika and I Personally Speak With Trump a Few Times a Week

by Justin Baragona | 12:05 pm, December 5th, 2016

In a Politico piece detailing the on-again, off-again relationship between President-elect Donald Trump and the hosts of MSNBC’s Morning Joe, Joe Scarborough revealed that he and co-host Mika Brzezinski speak to Trump on a personal basis a few times a week now.

This revelation comes after CNN’s Chris Cuomo called out the pair on Twitter last month, accusing them of being “boosters” and “transition spokesmen” for Trump. It also shows that the Trump relationship has come full circle for Joe and Mika, who were accused of being overly friendly with him during the GOP primary — he even called them supporters in February — but were then regularly attacked by Trump through the general election for being unfair to him. But, while Trump hasn’t appeared on the program in months — he used to a be a regular guest — the MJ duo now appear to be part of Trump’s trusted media sources and gain access few in the press enjoy.

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http://www.mediaite.com/tv/joe-scarborough-mika-and-i-personally-speak-with-trump-a-few-times-a-week/

December 5, 2016

Top House GOPer Won't Back Trump's Idea To Tax Businesses That Move Abroad

Source: Talking Points Memo

By LAUREN FOX Published DECEMBER 5, 2016, 1:51 PM EDT

House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) refused Monday to outright endorse Donald Trump's proposal to tax U.S. companies that move jobs overseas.

McCarthy tried to avoid answering the question in a meeting with reporters, according to multiple accounts, but eventually warned that the U.S. should be careful not to get into a trade war over tariffs.

"I think the point the president-elect was trying to make was he wants to create jobs in America,” McCarthy said, according to a report in Politico. “Today, the best way to make that change is through tax reform. … I think there are other ways to achieve what the president elect is talking about, but the only way you can do any of this is you’ve got to have tax reform.”

McCarthy's unease over Trump's trade policy is one of the many expected fault lines between the President-elect and leaders in the Republican-controlled House of Representatives. Trump campaigned against U.S. trade policy whereas Ryan spent the better half of 2015 fighting to pass a free trade deal in his chamber.

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Read more: http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/top-republican-won-t-back-trump-s-idea-to-tax-businesses-that-move-abroad

December 5, 2016

Sen. Collins Signals GOP Wall On Obamacare and Medicare Is Cracking

Source: Talking Points Memo

By LAUREN FOX Published DECEMBER 5, 2016, 11:44 AM EDT

Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME) has "reservations" about privatizing Medicare, she told the Portland Press Herald. “Suffice it to say I have a number of reservations,” Collins told the newspaper. “A complete upending of a program (Medicare) that by and large serves seniors well is not something that appeals to me.”

Collins' comments signals an early and significant departure from GOP unity on the issue, which will be needed to overhaul something like Medicare and will be essential to repealing and replacing Obamacare. If Republicans lose too many lawmakers on these topics, they won't be able to follow through with promises to gut Obamacare.

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In the interview, Collins also revealed she was uneasy about repealing Obamacare if Republicans hadn't drafted legislation to replace it. That's significant because every Republican member matters a lot when it comes to repealing Obamacare. One of the strategies up for discussion right now among Senate Republicans is to repeal Obamacare in January using budget reconciliation, a special process that only requires 51 votes in the Senate, and then give senators up to three years to replace it.

Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-TN) has warned that could be problematic. He's urged a bit of patience among his colleagues to ensure individuals covered by Obamacare now aren't hurt in the process.

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Read more: http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/susan-collins-has-reservations-about-privatizing-medicare

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December 5, 2016

Al Gore Meeting With Ivanka Trump At Trump Tower: Climate Change On Agenda

Source: Talking Points Memo

Al Gore was seen arriving at Trump Tower in New York on Monday for a scheduled meeting with future first daughter Ivanka Trump to discuss climate change, the former Democratic presidential candidate's signature cause.

Jonathan Lemire
?@JonLemire

Former Vice President Al Gore walks through Trump Tower lobby to meet with Ivanka Trump on climate change


RETWEETS 295 LIKES 252

8:26 AM - 5 Dec 2016

Transition spokesman Jason Miller told reporters on a conference call Monday that President-elect Donald Trump is not scheduled to meet with Gore.

The President-elect claimed in 2012 that climate change was a hoax perpetuated by the Chinese government in order to undercut the American economy. He later called this claim a "joke."

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Read more: http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/al-gore-meeting-ivanka-trump-climate-change

December 5, 2016

Why Carson Is the Perfect HUD Secretary for Trump

Jonathan Chait: “HUD is traditionally a magnet for scandal under Republican administrations, for two reasons. First, its mission of providing affordable housing for the urban poor is marginal, at best, to the core Republican agenda… Second, the agency’s program structure lends itself naturally to profiteering. HUD works closely with private developers to build affordable housing. Without careful oversight, the agency can easily become a slush fund to distribute sweetheart contracts to the administration’s buddies.”

“There is an additional risk factor in Trump’s administration. The president is planning to continue to run his business empire in office, without disclosing his income. And so Carson, a man with no experience in government but extensive experience in the field of bilking, and a proven loyalist of Donald Trump, will apparently oversee an agency whose mission lends itself to corruption. If Trump’s priority was to ensure the most effective and efficient use of every housing dollar, Carson would make a very strange choice. But that may not be Trump’s priority at all.”

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https://politicalwire.com/2016/12/05/carson-perfect-hud-secretary-trump/

December 5, 2016

North Dakota Democrat cautions #NoDAPL protesters that their cause isn't winnable

Source: RawStory

SARAH K. BURRIS
05 DEC 2016 AT 10:26 ET

The protectors at the Standing Rock reservation are still fighting to prevent the Dakota Access Pipeline, but they are wasting their time, according to the states Democratic Senator.

While the Army Corps of Engineers denied approval of the permit to complete the $3.7 billion pipeline, Sen. Heidi Heitkamp (D-ND) says itll ultimately be approved.

When you look at it, we know one thing for sure: When the administration changes, the easement is going to be approved, Heitkamp said on CNBCs Squawk Box, about the pipeline. I understand the frustration of the protesters, I just think that this fight is not winnable, she continued, noting she still hopes to improve living conditions for Native America communities.

Heitkamp was rumored to be under consideration for a Trump administration post after she met with the president-elect last week.

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Read more: http://www.rawstory.com/2016/12/north-dakota-democrat-cautions-nodapl-protesters-that-their-cause-isnt-winnable/

December 5, 2016

Furious Morning Joe demands apology from Michael Flynn over trail of crap he left on Twitter

TRAVIS GETTYS
05 DEC 2016 AT 10:44 ET

"Morning Joe” host Joe Scarborough called on Donald Trump’s choice for national security advisor to apologize for all the anti-Semitic conspiracy theories and other “crap” he’s posted on his personal Twitter account.

Gen. Michael Flynn’s social media activity has turned into a major story after a gunman inspired by “pizzagate” conspiracy theories promoted by Trump ally Alex Jones’ InfoWars fired gunshots inside a Washington, D.C., pizzeria. Those bogus reports, which Flynn’s son referred to in tweets, accused Hillary Clinton and a top campaign aide of running a child sex ring out of the back room at Comet Ping Pong.

“He has left a trail of crap behind him with retweets, retweeting something about Jews, retweeting something about Muslims, retweeting fake news,” Scarborough said. “He needs to clean this up. He needs to step up and clean this up.”

Scarborough, his voice rising and pounding his fist for emphasis, demanded an apology from Flynn, although he didn’t call on Trump to withdraw his nomination.

more
http://www.rawstory.com/2016/12/furious-morning-joe-demands-apology-from-michael-flynn-over-trail-of-crap-he-left-on-twitter/

December 5, 2016

Never Trump conservative: Authoritarian Trump lies to smash reality so he is all that matters

TRAVIS GETTYS
05 DEC 2016 AT 09:20 ET

Evan McMullin, the former CIA officer who ran for president as a “never Trump” conservative, warned that the Republican president-elect posed an existential threat to the U.S. Constitution.

In a New York Times column published Monday, McMullin warned that Donald Trump displayed “authoritarian tendencies” he had examined among other world leaders who elevate themselves above the law and even truth through their provocations and inconsistencies.

“Their profound appetite for absolute power drives their intolerance for any restraint — whether by people, organizations, the law, cultural norms, principles or even the expectation of consistency,” McMullin said. “For a despot, all of these checks on power must be ignored, undermined or destroyed so that he is all that matters.”

McMullin was particularly troubled by Trump’s inflation of his popular vote performance by questioning the votes of “millions” as illegal. “Authoritarians often exaggerate their popular support to increase the perception of their legitimacy,” he said. “But the deeper objective is to weaken the democratic institutions that limit their power. Eroding confidence in voting, elections and representative bodies gives them a freer hand to wield more power.”

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http://www.rawstory.com/2016/12/never-trump-conservative-authoritarian-trump-lies-to-smash-reality-so-he-is-all-that-matters/

December 5, 2016

Eric Trump claims Wisconsin recount killed at least 5,000 children and gets pounded on Twitter

DAVID EDWARDS
05 DEC 2016 AT 09:58 ET

Eric Trump, the son of President-elect Donald Trump, asserted over the weekend that “at least 5,000 children” had died due to an effort to verify the election outcome in Wisconsin.

In a tweet on Sunday, Eric Trump said that the “sad truth” was that “the cost Of Stein/Clinton’s #Wisconsin vote recount could have saved at least 5,000 children’s lives.”

Eric Trump ✔
@EricTrump

The Sad Truth: The Cost Of Stein/Clinton's #Wisconsin Vote Recount Could Have Saved At Least 5,000 Children's Lives https://www.google.com/amp/www.forbes.com/sites/theapothecary/2016/12/02/the-cost-of-steinclintons-wisconsin-vote-recount-could-have-saved-at-least-5000-childrens-lives/ …

4:01 PM - 4 Dec 2016 · New Rochelle, NY
5,845 Retweets 9,696 likes

The tweet included a link to a Forbes column by conservative writer Chris Conover, who argues that Green Party candidate Jill Stein should have redirected the $3.5 million spent on the recount to malaria prevention for children.

Many commenters on Twitter fired back at Trump, noting that thousands of children could also be saved with the millions of dollars the U.S. government is paying for Donald Trump’s security in New York.

WendyBrandes ✔
@WendyBrandes

@EricTrump @Forbes how many lives would your father's security costs in NY save? How about his big tax writeoffs? You should be ashamed.

7:32 PM - 4 Dec 2016
129 Retweets 677 likes

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Nick Bilton ✔
@nickbilton

@EricTrump So could the 24-karat gold-plated seatbelt buckles on your dad's plane. But, Democracy.

4:56 PM - 4 Dec 2016
141 Retweets 1,018 likes

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Julie Laumann
@Zegota42

@EricTrump Your dad's $25 million fraud settlement for Trump U could have saved 36,000 children.His sham charity saves none,unlike Clinton's

8:27 PM - 4 Dec 2016
6 Retweets 21 likes

full article:
http://www.rawstory.com/2016/12/eric-trump-claims-wisconsin-recount-killed-at-least-5000-children-and-gets-pounded-on-twitter/

December 5, 2016

Could Racial Profiler Sheriff Joe Arpaio Be Trump's First Pardon? Why It Might Happen.

by Susan Seager | 8:29 am, December 5th, 2016

President-elect President Donald Trump may soon receive his first presidential pardon request from an incendiary Arizona sheriff facing criminal charges for targeting Latinos for illegal arrests and deportations in violation of a court order.

No pardon application has been submitted yet by Trump loyalist and outgoing Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio, who says he is innocent of the federal charge of contempt of court, but Arpaio succeeded in postponing his upcoming Phoenix trial, which was set to begin Dec. 6, until April 4, 2017. The sheriff’s trial is now well after President-elect Trump takes office on Jan. 20, giving him plenty of time to submit a possible pardon request.

Arpaio’s criminal defense attorney, Melvin McDonald of Jones, Skelton & Hochuli in Phoenix, said “I don’t want to comment on that point” when asked if he plans to submit a pardon application to President-elect Trump. McDonald said he is looking at all options for his client.

Paul K. Charlton, U.S. Attorney for Arizona under President George W. Bush, thinks the 84-year-old Arpaio is likely to seek a pardon and the new president would be tempted to grant it. “If President-elect Trump wants to, he could pardon Arpaio for the charge he currently faces and any other charges he faces for crimes that he may have committed,” Charlton said in an interview with LawNewz.com.

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http://lawnewz.com/uncategorized/could-racial-profiler-sheriff-joe-arpaio-be-trumps-first-pardon-why-it-might-happen/