Legion of Republican Rat Bastards - Election 2016 Edition
Well, someone had to start it, but I will update it as people provide links so we can establish a firm resource bank. I will also consider better wordsmithing contributions:
I'll try to go in chronological order:
#1 - Mitch McConnell: The Republican Majority Leader threatened to accuse the Obama Administration of partisan motivations when President Obama asked for support to inform the public that our intelligence agencies had discovered that Russia was hacking our election. (Allegedly, Russian hackers obtained Democratic emails and the data was forwarded to Wikileaks, who then went public with the information). Russia's purpose was to influence a win for Donald Trump. But another strong Russian motivation could have been to deny Hillary Clinton from winning the presidency, because, as the previous Secretary of State, she represented conventional US policy, which was tough on Putin's policies.
Because of McConnell's obstruction, the information in those emails provided several opportunities for the GOP prior to the election and none of them were counter-balanced with information that Russia was behind the hacking.
Quid Pro Quo for McConnell appears to be a cushy appointment for his wife, Elaine Choe who Trump selected for the Secretary of Transportation.
http://www.businessinsider.com/mitch-mcconnell-cia-russia-trump-election-2016-12
- - - - - - - -
#2 - James Comey: The Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation goes rogue and plays the dirtiest card in the political dirty trick bag. As Salon describes it: "Less than two weeks before the election, Comey sent a letter to Congress vaguely announcing the discovery of emails related to a prior investigation into Hillary Clinton’s use of a private email server while secretary of state." This was a classic move, because it gave the GOP the opportunity to air television commercials that planted a simple message in the minds of the voters: "Would you elect a Presidential candidate who was under FBI investigation?"
Comey's motivations aren't hard to see. He has been on the Clinton's trail since the mid-1990s. At that time he was on the Senate Whitewater Committee as a deputy special counsel. But, what makes Comey's latest move particularly troubling was that he was in on the intelligence meetings that revealed that Russia was behind the hacking of the emails. So, his move to be a tool for Putin is particularly curious.
Quid Pro Quo for Comey will probably be late in coming because his behavior is still under fire.
Criticized by Candidates, Comey Has Tense Days Ahead After Election
http://www.nytimes.com/2016/11/06/us/politics/james-comey-fbi-hillary-clinton.html?_r=0
FBI clears Clinton -- again
http://www.cnn.com/2016/11/06/politics/comey-tells-congress-fbi-has-not-changed-conclusions/
- - - - - - - - -
#3 and #4 - Retired Army Gen. Michael Flynn, incoming national security adviser and his alleged spawn, Michael Flynn. The young Flynn is the one who helped spread a right-wing internet conspiracy meme that came directly from emails from the Clinton camp. Frequent talk of pizza and a venue for a legit Democratic campaign donor event at a Pizza restaurant led to fake news connecting that restaurant with the ultimate libel of a child sex ring. It was an incendiary, unfounded allegation that would have influenced the minds of right-wing voters and would later attract a gun man to the Pizza restaurant.
Quid Pro Quo: I'm not sure of the chronological order, but it seems that the fake news helped defame Clinton, resulting in a win for Trump. After Trump was elected, Retired Army Gen. Michael Flynn was offered the job as national security adviser; and his son almost squeaked through with security clearance before the entire ruse was uncovered. Young Flynn lost his automatic membership into the Trump inner circles, and Retired Army Gen. Michael Flynn's sanity is now being questioned by the Right-wing elite.
McCaffrey Changes Opinion On Flynn After Reading 'Nearly Demented' Tweets (VIDEO)
http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/barry-mccaffrey-michael-flynn-demented-tweets
- - - - - -
#5 The Tea Party -- I throw this in because it may be another clue. The Tea Party website may provide some clue to the changing interests on the conservative side, that their own voters may not be aware of. In sum, the Hard-Right have suddenly become besties with Russia. This was happening even prior to the election. The Tea Party has two articles on their website. One indicates a concern that Clinton had declared war with Russia prior to the election; and, afterwards, they continue to insist that she would have started a war if she had been elected.
I thought it was peculiar because I was under the belief that the conservatives always used anti-Russian sentiments as a galvanizing, unifying platform. Suddenly, their entire belief system had changed. Suddenly, they seemed to be in support of Russian interest. How did that happen, I wondered. Where did the seeds of that alliance begin?
Hillary Threatens War with Russia
http://www.teaparty.org/hillary-threatens-war-russia-185549/
Kremlin: Clinton Victory Would Have Led to World War 3 Between Russia and the US
http://www.teaparty.org/kremlin-clinton-victory-led-world-war-3-russia-us-198498/
- - - - - - - - - -
#6 Bob Dole and the Taiwan Phone Call: This, more than any other event demonstrates why I do not trust partnerships between government and the private sector. Simply put, they can go too far; they can override conventional wisdom and undermine government policy, foreign and domestic. Government requires an adherence to protocols in order to protect trust in its authority. And nothing requires more diplomacy than foreign policy where the ultimate failure leads to war. Businesses, on the other hand can operate far more recklessly, seeking and breaking alliances to improve the financial bottom line. The ultimate failure is bankruptcy. So, nothing spells more imminent danger to this country, than leaders who cross between the two without any concern about the potential consequences to our young men and women in the military, unless they are only thinking that our military is just another inducement factor in negotiations. 'Nuff said.
Bob Dole Worked Behind the Scenes on Trump-Taiwan Call
http://www.nytimes.com/2016/12/06/us/politics/bob-dole-taiwan-lobby-trump.html
Bob Dole's role in Trump's Taiwan call
http://www.cnn.com/2016/12/07/politics/bob-dole-donald-trump-taiwan-lobbying/
