BRUTAL NY Times Op-Ed "The Plot Against America"

[underpants]

By Michelle Goldberg

Despite Trump’s hysterical denials and attempts at diversion, the question is no longer whether there was cooperation between Trump’s campaign and Russia, but how extensive it was.

In truth, that’s been clear for a while. If it’s sometimes hard to grasp the Trump campaign’s conspiracy against our democracy, it’s due less to lack of proof than to the impudent improbability of its B-movie plotline. Monday’s indictments offer evidence of things that Washington already knows but pretends to forget. Trump, more gangster than entrepreneur, has long surrounded himself with bottom-feeding scum, and for all his nationalist bluster, his campaign was a vehicle for Russian subversion.

So here’s where we are. Trump put Manafort, an accused money-launderer and unregistered foreign agent, in charge of his campaign. Under Manafort’s watch, the campaign made at least two attempts to get compromising information about Clinton from Russia. Russia, in turn, provided hacked Democratic emails to WikiLeaks.

We’ve had a year of recriminations over the Clinton campaign’s failings, but Trump clawed out his minority victory only with the aid of a foreign intelligence service. On Monday we finally got indictments, but it’s been obvious for a year that this presidency is a crime.

https://mobile.nytimes.com/2017/10/30/opinion/mueller-manafort-indictment.html

[eppur_se_muova]

1. "This presidency is a crime" is the most succinct summary I've heard yet.

Repeat it. Spread it around. It's simple, it's easy to remember, and it's true.

[dchill]

17. +1000!

So exact.

[iluvtennis]

44. +10,000

[flibbitygiblets]

45. + One hundred BILLION!

[L. Coyote]

51. Obviously, more like a 1.5 TRILLION $$$$ crime, the amount they want to steal each year and then

loan back with interest to cover the deficit!!

Trump's personal cut is ONE BILLION!

[pbmus]

52. I believe the figure the Big Con is getting is between 3-5 bn

[olegramps]

29. I have contended that the entire Republican Party is a criminal enterprise.

Its sole purpose is to pass laws to enrich themselves. Their constituency exists of two polar opposite factions. Those who will profit from their program and an the underclass of brain dead zombies consisting of homophobes, religious fanatics, racists, gun nuts, and all other classes of scum.

[central scrutinizer]

31. Its a Ponzi scheme

“Give us your vote and we will make you prosperous and safe. Those tax cuts didn’t help you? Well, they weren’t big enough. Vote for us again...?

[hay rick]

47. The truth of our times in one sentence.

Thank you NYT.

[fleabiscuit]

57. Im more than there. nt

[Botany]

2. "this presidency is a crime"

And the election was fraudulent too.

[StevieM]

4. Congratulations on 45,000 posts.

I agree that the election was fraudulent. But our own FBI was even more complicit than the Russians.

[Botany]

7. PBS tonight Frontline ..... Putin's attack on our elections

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/frontline/

Russia had to have help for their hacking of our elections to work.

[Grins]

18. YES!!!!!

I don't know if this is a repeat of the episode I saw a few days ago, but if you want to know why Putin HATES Hillary Clinton - this is the one! It's not apparent at first, and then - it is!

[Botany]

19. this is part two

BTW the Russians couldn't not have done that w/out republican help

[onetexan]

20. Thanks so much for posting the PBS special

i will need to stay up to watch it.

[roscoeroscoe]

3. Guilty!

No more.

[StevieM]

5. He got more help from corrupt officials at the FBI than he did from the Russians.

This election was totally rigged.

[Ukapau]

9. I sure hope there is a good investigation of the FBI and of what led to Comey's harmful

revelation to the press about Clinton.

Root them out!

[underpants]

11. Actually Comey sent a letter to Chaffetz

Chaffetz released to the press. Just trying to be accurate.

[Ukapau]

12. Yes -- and apparently some of the FBI in New York demanded Comey investigate Clinton. Guliani is

thought to have had a hand in it as well.

Devastating were the statements that Comey released to the American public shortly before the election.

[StevieM]

33. Chaffetz is a criminal and an evil man, no doubt. I don't know what kind of sick twist of fate

would put a bastard like him in the same family as a great guy like Michael Dukakis.

But let's not let Comey off the hook. There was no reason for him to send the letter. He knew it would leak. That action was illegitimate.

Also, he had no right to hold that bogus press conference back in July.

[brush]

34. Comey sent the letter to Chaffetz without even a preliminary investigation of alleged new emails.

And he's no dummy, knew that Chaffetz would leak it to the press — if ya don't think that was his intention I've got a bridge to sell you.

[underpants]

40. I didn't mean that as an excuse

I was just striving for accuracy

[Me.]

6. Stunning Indictment

[Nitram]

8. All right, NYT! Tell it like it is!

[malchickiwick]

10. And don't forget those who were complicit: Pence, the turtle, Ryan, RNC, Liddle Donnie Jr., Jared

etc. etc. etc.

[Moostache]

13. I want a perp walk out of 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. !!!

Donnie Jr.
Jared
The half-wit other kid
And Ivanka, resplendent in ravishing heels, available on QVS for a mere $495!

[MLAA]

30. Correction: the heels are $79.99 because they are the ones she manufactures in

China having stolen the designs from a high end Italian brand ($495 and up). Yes, she really did this.

[forgotmylogin]

35. Add Kellyanne, just for the heck of it.

She would not stop talking till they pushed her head down to get in the car.

[the_sly_pig]

14. CT

Weird how many supporting trump in the comments were from CT.

[Loge23]

16. Yes, looks like an organized response

The gist of the traitorous responses is: "Who cares?! We did it and will do it again."
One actually gleefully anticipates the 2020 election.
After the deluge, what?

[LiberalLovinLug]

43. It can get despondent to read comment sections.

It sometimes seems that there are just as many, or more, deplorables out there than decent sane people, and ones that are smart enough to know how to use a computer even!

I think other than Trumps and the GOPs own cyber army, there are still plenty of Russian trolls still working hard for Putin. And it makes sense that they would target the NYT especially.

[PdxSean]

15. Excellent!! Doesnt make up for the . . .

hit-piece at https://www.nytimes.com/2015/03/03/us/politics/hillary-clintons-use-of-private-email-at-state-department-raises-flags.html
but it’s a helluva nice start.

[pandr32]

21. The only question of collusion with Russia is how extensive.

This needs to be shouted loud and long by every pundit out there, and repeated by all Dem members of Congress.
Frame this!

[onetexan]

22. FINALLY SOME DAMNING WORDS: "its been obvious for a year that this presidency is a crime"

extremely well written article. Kudos to the writer.

[mnhtnbb]

23. And what are we going to do about it? HRC should be President.

How do we get her there?

No legal way, as far as I can tell.

So, we muddle through? Attempting to impeach? Putting in Pence? You know he's part of the crime. Why should Ryan
be promoted? You know Republicans colluded up one side and down the other with all of this.

What a fine mess.

The Electoral College--in theory--was supposed to prevent this mess because we knew enough about it to suspect the popular vote
should have decided the election.

What a mess.

[lagomorph777]

26. The Electoral College was only supposed to prevent abolition of slavery...

which, so far, it is pretty much doing.

[SunSeeker]

24. I am so sick of newscasters saying "there is no smoking gun yet."

What the fuck else could you call that June 2016 "love it" email from Don Jr. in reponse to the Russians" Hillary dirt offer? That subsequent June 2016 meeting in Trump Tower with Russian agents, Manafort, Jared and Don Jr.? Roger Stone's subsequent "It will soon be Podesta's turn in the barrel" tweet?

There was literally nothing on Hillary, yet the media convicted her for her emails, even though she violated no law nor State Dept policy.

[lagomorph777]

27. There is a smoking gun with multiple fingerprints on the grip.

Turd, Turd Jr. Ivanka Turd, Turd-In-Law, Manafart, Papa George, etc etc...

[lagomorph777]

25. Now that's stating it clearly.

Chuck? Nancy? Are you paying attention? Do you see how that's done?

[defacto7]

28. K&R

What else is there to say?

[Eyeball_Kid]

32. Both Trumpy and Bannon are phony nationalists.

Neither could give a damn about the "nationalist" movement. Both are funded by a raging internationalist hedge fund boss, Robert Mercer, who only wants more power and money no matter how he gets it. That Bannon and Trump use white nationalism as a hook for their active base only shows how good they are at their con game. Their "base" is a running joke, fooled into believing that Trumpy and Bannon are really out for the base's best interests. They're suckers starving for any red meat that's flung their way. So Bannon and Trumpy give them morsels with regularity, just to keep them focused.

[KY_EnviroGuy]

38. K&R +1 n/t

[Duppers]

58. E-Kid, you're good.

👍

[niyad]

36. and they just touched the tip of the iceberg.

[Gothmog]

37. Great editorial

[BlancheSplanchnik]

39. Excellent article---I can't believe they didn't also call out fux spews, Limbaugh, Jones and hate ra

The Reich wing blogosphere.

But most of all fux and Limbaugh, the gateway fascists.

[cloudbase]

41. More than a few of the pro-Trump comments

use the word "commentariat."

I'm guessing that's the word now being touted by the RW.
Anybody who pops in for a listen care to confirm?

[underpants]

42. It's actually a word. News to me. Nice catch.

http://www.dictionary.com/browse/commentariat

[red dog 1]

46. Kick for exposure!

"Trump, more gangster than entrepreneur,.."

That says it all.

Tony Soprano as POTUS!

[underpants]

49. Tony would wipe the floor with Trump

as Vlad has

[onlyadream]

48. The sad thing is the comments

So many are so brain washed and blind.

[dhol82]

54. Truly sad and bizarre. Nt

[bucolic_frolic]

50. Trump is playing a game of credibility

Labeling everything you don't like as FAKE NEWS while creating your own fake news reality is a game of credibility.

This is Big Brother and Niccolo Machiavelli and Leviathan all rolled into one!

Faux News is the public face of news for the average Joe, Breitbart is the hard edge strategy for implementing FAKE NEWS.

Bob Mueller is up against all this. Rule of Law vs. unrepentent liars.

[dhol82]

53. I am fascinated by the comments section

Does the NYT have Russian trolls or are there American citizens who are so deluded?

[american_ideals]

55. The NYT FINALLY hired a real progressive. Thank you Michelle Goldberg.

[McCamy Taylor]

56. Trumps base is made up of criminals that do not care.

His supporters commit insurance fraud, tax fraud, they lied to evade the draft in the 60s, they sell their prescription drugs and would not hesitate to turn in a neighbor if there was a reward to be gained. They are grifters. This is the only reason Trump is still in office. We have achieved a country ruled by its criminals. Scary.

[FailureToCommunicate]

59. "(Trump's) campaign was a vehicle for Russian subversion."

Duh.