A.M. Links: State of the Union Address Tonight, CIA Director Has 'Every Expectation' Russia Will Try to Interfere in U.S 2018 Elections, Democratic National Committee CEO Stepping Down

• 

  Gage Skidmore / Flickr.com

  President Donald Trump will give his State of the Union address before Congress tonight.

• "The day after he fired James Comey as director of the FBI, a furious President Donald Trump called the bureau's acting director, Andrew McCabe, demanding to know why Comey had been allowed to fly on an FBI plane from Los Angeles back to Washington after he was dismissed, according to multiple people familiar with the phone call."
• CIA Director Mike Pompeo said he has "every expectation" that Russia will try to interfere in the 2018 U.S mid-term elections.
• Jess O'Connell is stepping down as the CEO of the Democratic National Committee after less than one year at the job.
• Amazon, Berkshire Hathaway, and JPMorgan Chase will reportedly join forces to create a new health care venture.
• Kenyan opposition leader Raila Odinga has sworn himself in as "people's president" in protest of Kenyan leader Uhuru Kenyatta.

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Comments

[Fist of Etiquette]

President Donald Trump will give his State of the Union address before Congress tonight.

The state of the union is great again.

[Bee Tagger]

SOTUGA!

[Rufus The Monocled]

Hello.

Re Comey on a plane. Seriously. Wtf?

[Bee Tagger]

Comey Comey Comey Comey Comey De-plane-ing-now. He comes and goes. He comes and goes?

[Rufus The Monocled]

Boooo! Booooo!

/Snoopy.

[Rhywun]

Do you really wanna make me cry?

[Sometimes a Great Notion]

I have had it with this motherfucking snake on this motherfucking plane!!!!

[Rufus The Monocled]

That and Hobo with a Shotgun. Good, old-fashioned fun.

[Fist of Etiquette]

...why Comey had been allowed to fly on an FBI plane from Los Angeles back to Washington after he was dismissed, according to multiple people familiar with the phone call.

Saving tax dollars is the duty of everyone in government.

[Cyto]

True.

And one would suppose that sifting "news" from "gossip" would be the job of every editor in journalism.

But apparently one would be completely wrong on that point.

The dichotomy between the Obama administration and their image-making and consistent messaging and the current administration is really hard to grasp. As is the schism between Obama era journalism's sycophantic coverage and today's panicked derangement that has them so eager to be the propaganda arm of "the resistance" that they miss 80% of the real stories because they are so busy hyperventilating about non-stories.

[Rufus The Monocled]

That's why I expect (if not demand) Reason to toe that rational line.

[Mickey Rat]

Don't bet the farm on that.

[Kivlor]

Oh boy are you in for a lot of disappointment

[Griffin3]

Maybe they reported it ironically.

[Tony]

Imagine Obama had been credibly accused of paying off a porn star with whom he had an awkward sexual encounter.

Whine some more about bias, fuck.

[damikesc]

Imagine if Trump's people DID use the IRS to harrass and attack foes and then had that same IRS destroy evidence under subpoena.

Tell me about bias, please.

Then let me know what would happen if the FBI changed reporting of an issue to protect Trump as they did with Obama in regards to Hillary's emails.

[Don't look at me.]

You will all be so much happier in life when you realize that each and every single one of them in DC are rotten to the core. No exceptions.

[Tony]

Everything you believe is a lie fed to you by a fat person.

[Bacon-Magic glib reasonoid]

You're a fat liar.

[Rufus The Monocled]

I love how EVERYTHING is a lie when it's not suited to your narrative.

Have some sense of integrity FFS, Tony.

We DO know that's exactly what Obama did. Just look at what happened in Wisconsin a few years back. Conservatives were indeed targeted.

So rather than play 'I know you are but what am I?' could you for once argue in good faith?

[damikesc]

Name one untrue thing said.

Did the IRS harass Obama's opponents? They've admitted to it, so yes.

Did they destroy multiple hard drives that were under subpoena? Yes, they did that also. Without even attempting to get data off the devices.

Did the FBI change reporting on Hillary's email from Obama writing to her to a "senior government official" doing so? We know that answer as well, son.

[lap83]

If that was his worst attribute I might've actually voted for him

[Cyto]

That's a really good point about Trump and the porn star.

It underscores where the outrage comes from. Apparently, very few people are actually prudes. But they hate hypocrisy and they hate other team.

So when Bill Clinton was credibly accused of sexual harassment and rape by several women, there was outrage on team R, both on hypocrisy and team fronts. Team D doubled down on the cognitive dissonance to avoid even thinking about just how far reality might be diverging from their belief.

But what are our expectations of Trump? He's made it clear that he's a womanizer, and he doesn't care. So all you have left is Team. Doubly interesting for the reversal of prudish attitudes.

If Obama had done something like that, there isn't a word for the explosion that would ensue. But he is way to careful about his image to do something like that (and get caught, anyway). But I have no doubt that his team would rally. That's what team does.

[damikesc]

So when Bill Clinton was credibly accused of sexual harassment and rape by several women, there was outrage on team R, both on hypocrisy and team fronts. Team D doubled down on the cognitive dissonance to avoid even thinking about just how far reality might be diverging from their belief.

As one of the outraged, I was beyond livid that I saw somebody like Clarence Thomas raked over the coals by a woman who, even if ALL of her accusations were true (which there is zero evidence that any of them were), it would amount to "Thomas told off-color jokes" while Clinton was given a pass on that nonsense.

I don't expect a non-believer to abide by beliefs they do not hold. But I do expect a true believer to do so. I turned my back on feminism as being anything serious with this.

[MarkLastname]

Imagine Donald Trump got his picture taken while smiling and shaking hands with David Duke at an event where the latter was hosted by congressional Republicans.

Now apply that ire to Obama, because that's what he did (with Louis Farrakhan in particular).

[loveconstitution1789]

Black people cannot be racist.

/every racist lefty ever.

[Fist of Etiquette]

CIA Director Mike Pompeo said he has "every expectation" that Russia will try to interfere in the 2018 U.S mid-term elections.

Giving the losers are ready excuse for no introspection whatsoever.

[Bee Tagger]

Introspection is just another word for meddling with your brain. We've had enough election meddling, Fist.

[Fist of Etiquette]

I typed "are" instead of "a".

Just thought you should know that.

[Fist of Etiquette]

Jess O'Connell is stepping down as the CEO of the Democratic National Committee after less than one year at the job.

On the eve of their greatest comeback ever? Or are they doing a Sliders reboot?

[Rhywun]

Or are they doing a Sliders reboot?

In your dreams. And mine.

[Bee Tagger]

Amazon, Berkshire Hathaway, and JPMorgan Chase will reportedly join forces to create a new health care venture.

Yeah right, like I'm going to let a drone foreclose on my body like some kind of subprime asset.

[Bee Tagger]

CIA Director Mike Pompeo said he has "every expectation" that Russia will try to interfere in the 2018 U.S mid-term elections.

Interfere should probably get quotes, too, since I just assume every one who uses the word has a unique definition for it.

[Conchfritters]

Did anyone think to ask which elections the CIA plans to rig in the next few years? We've already done so more than 80 times between 1946-2000, not counting the military coups and regime changes we've engineered over that same time. That's like a serial killer telling the public that another serial killer will likely kill again.

[The_Hoser]

It'd be nice to get the head's up. "What was that, John Wayne Gacy? Dahmer is out looking for a snack? Thanks for the tip!"

[Fist of Etiquette]

Amazon, Berkshire Hathaway, and JPMorgan Chase will reportedly join forces to create a new health care venture.

A drone will deliver your Dockers, put them on you, remove your wallet from them, pull them down and give you a prostate exam from the comfort of your own home that's in foreclosure.

[Scarecrow Repair & Chippering]

That order of events is pretty inefficient. I think they could do better.

[Griffin3]

They will do better. Because capitalism.

[Fist of Etiquette]

Kenyan opposition leader Raila Odinga has sworn himself in as "people's president" in protest of Kenyan leader Uhuru Kenyatta.

Why didn't Hillary think of that? Her predecessor's homeland is even the inspiration.

[Cyto]

Excellent sarcasm, well constructed and with detailed asides adding depth. Would read again.

[Bee Tagger]

"The day after he fired James Comey as director of the FBI, a furious President Donald Trump called the bureau's acting director, Andrew McCabe, demanding to know why Comey had been allowed to fly on an FBI plane from Los Angeles back to Washington after he was dismissed, according to multiple people familiar with the phone call."

There is no excuse for Trump stories to be boring at this point. This is boring.

[Rhywun]

Wait 24 hours.

[Unlabelable MJGreen]

Really? It's one of the funnier ones, I think. I mean, it's been months since the Stormy Daniels hilarity.

[Crusty Juggler]

'Black Panther' first reactions: It's 'astonishing,' 'iconic' and 'will save blockbusters'

After the credits ran, social media's cup runneth over, with early reaction praising the Marvel film for celebrating black excellence at a level never seen before in the genre, and predicting Black Panther will render audiences speechless.

[Bee Tagger]

The let-down industry will have no choice but to produce record numbers this quarter.

[Bee Tagger]

IT MAY BE A PERFECTLY CROMULENT MOVIE, I'M JUST SAYING.

[Cyto]

I read the same sentence. Tried to go further but they had two embedded links to twitter quotes from people I never heard of that were slow to load and kept moving the page around on me, so I gave up.

But I probably should have punted because of the content of that sentence. Anyone who thinks "celebrating black excellence" is somehow groundbreaking in 2018 is not someone I really should be listening to.

[Rufus The Monocled]

It's an explosion of DIVERSITY!

[DJF]

Does it have explosions?

It can't be a blockbuster unless it has explosions in every scene.

[Rufus The Monocled]

It's CGI. How can it not?

[Mike Laursen]

Here's a fresh new idea: IMplosions!

Are you listening, Hollywood?

[Chinny Chin Chin]

Patience, Mike. A sequel to Deep Blue Sea is on the way.

[Troglodyte Rex]

A rich black guy with no mutant powers in a mask...might as well call it Black Batman.

[BestUsedCarSales]

Fans do call him that sometimes.

Though there is actually a Black Batman as well.

[Michael Ejercito]

Yes, Marvel calls him Night Thrasher.

[Sometimes a Great Notion]

"The first superhero movie to star a black lead character"

Did white people claim Will Smith in the last racial draft?

[Rhywun]

Blacks have now officially done everything.

#postracialmoment

[Kivlor]

Now that we are properly celebrating the excellence of the negro it is critical we recognize Smith is not truly black due to the obvious white taint of his chocolate milk skin-color. Plus, he acts like a white man.

[Griffin3]

And he's successful? Because of his white privilege?

[Kivlor]

Exactly. He was successful in a time when white oppression locked all negroes out of success. How could he possibly be successful unless he was white (or part white) and thus allowed to enjoy the privilege of whites.

[Rhywun]

You found that on The Root didn't you?

[Kivlor]

Nah, I'm just imagining what my opponents on the left would say. But I would expect The Root to publish that kind of insanity.

[Rat on a train]

He was claimed back in the 90s and sent to Bel Air.

[The_Hoser]

Uhhh, helloooo, BLANKMAN!

[loveconstitution1789]

Thank you! Classic superhero in the hood.

[Rebel Scum]

black excellenc

Something tells me that this phrase would not fly if "black" was changed to "white".

[Kivlor]

That's because there is no such thing as "white". Race is a social construct and you can't even really define white. I mean, are Irish and Italians white?

[Griffin3]

Yes. Except for the wops and the dagos.

[MarkLastname]

I guess they're just conceding that white people are pretty much all excellent?

[Mickey Rat]

This does not put to rest that it is terrible and insults the audience's intelligence.

[Unlabelable MJGreen]

Uh-huh.

I'm guessing it will be as mediocre-to-good as all of the Marvel movies.

[I am the 0.000000013%]

Shut yo mouth...

Can ya diggit?

[Crusty Juggler]

U.S. News is wrong about what constitutes the best diet

[Griffin3]

Oh no! Someone on the internet is wrong!

[Domestic Dissident]

CIA Director Mike Pompeo said he has "every expectation" that Russia will try to interfere in the 2018 U.S mid-term elections.

Give it up, asswipes. This cockamamie cover story is falling apart at the seams and the actual truth of what really happened at he behest of Chocolate Nixon is finally starting to be revealed to the world now.

[OpenBordersLiberal-tarian]

Another Drumpf supporter is overcompensating because he's nervous about what Mueller's investigation will reveal. Mueller is going to uncover evidence of Russian collusion that's so ironclad, even Putin himself will be unable to prevent this November's #BlueWave. Knowing the truth about 2016 will help voters make the right choice in 2018.

MAGA = Mueller Ain't Going Away

[Rebel Scum]

#ReleaseTheMemo

[Aloysious]

Do you have any good Borscht recipes? I'm jonesing for some soup.

[Kivlor]

OBL, you've been getting better, but this particular response was really a step back for you. And last night's comment about Tara McCarthy... Name dropping someone that no normie could possibly know of really breaks the suspension of disbelief. She's a YouTuber from Britain with whose typical video gets ~10,000 views.

[Jerryskids]

CIA Director Mike Pompeo said he has "every expectation" that Russia will try to interfere in the 2018 U.S mid-term elections.

Outrageous that anyone would call into question the legitimacy of the election, stir up mistrust amongst the electorate, undermine the most sacred of our democratic institutions. Anyone who isn't prepared to say right now that they will accept the results of the election as being free and fair and untainted is the worst kind of traitorous monster.

[Cyto]

That is like a mobius strip of sarcasm. I twists around so far, the left meets the right.

[Bee Tagger]

What's the best kind of traitorous monster?

[Crusty Juggler]

Lieutenant Commander Tom Farrell?

[Fist of Etiquette]

Spoiler alert.

[Sometimes a Great Notion]

Wernher von Braun?

[Sometimes a Great Notion]

Wernher von Braun?

[Scarecrow Repair & Chippering]

Wernher von Squirrel, more like it.

[Crusty Juggler]

Amazon, Berkshire Hathaway, and JPMorgan Chase will reportedly join forces to create a new health care venture.

A hyper-competitive industry ripe for crony capitalists to influence the system to their advantage.

Kudos!

[Crusty Juggler]

5 creative bathroom sex tips and positions

3. The water fountain

If you're looking for a great oral sex position, the sink is basically the dream furniture. The receiver sits in the bowl with her legs spread wide apart while the other partner kneels on the bathroom tiles (you can pop a towel or mat down if they're cold/hurting your knees!) and goes to town with their tongue, fingers (if she's into that - always ask first!) and maybe even a cute little vibrator.

[Cyto]

"always ask first"

Makes one wonder what kind and quantity of sexual encounters does the woke cosmo writer have? Presumably the kind where you are not terribly familiar with your partner when endeavoring to have bathroom sex, but in a world where one need not ask if she's into oral sex in a sink bowl, or vibrators, but fingers are potentially over the line and must be vetted. That's a pretty odd combination.

[Crusty Juggler]

That was my first thought as well.

[Griffin3]

Fingers are little hand penises, so, patriarchy. I mean, do you even feminist, bro?

[Mickey Rat]

The water faucet in the small of the back is a turn on, I suppose ?

[Rich]

"The small of the back", eh?

[Mickey Rat]

I don't think the angles work out otherwise if the point is access for oral, just saying.

[BestUsedCarSales]

I prefer to be kissed on the large of my back, personally.

[Griffin3]

Yeah, 35 degree porcelain is such a turn-on, even in the winter. I'm beginning to suspect Cosmo is making this stuff up.

[Zeb]

Most people keep their bathroom sinks inside the house.

[I am the 0.000000013%]

You need to pull the drain actuator at *just* the right moment...

[Unlabelable MJGreen]

I expected babe.net

Also, does the vibrator have to be cute?

[BestUsedCarSales]

I prefer either monstrous, or nothing at all as the observer sits in shocked silence.

[Crusty Juggler]

Donald Trump's Presidency Is the Libertarian Moment

The latest development in the relationship between the Kochs (right-wing heirs to a business fortune) and Trump (also the right-wing heir to a business fortune) is that the former have thrown the weight of their massive organization unhesitatingly behind the latter. Largely satisfied with Trump's conservative judicial appointments, lax regulation of business, and regressive tax cutting, the Kochs are spending several hundred millions of dollars to protect the Republican majority. Whatever points of contention remain between the two have been reduced to squabbles between friends.

If anyone has his finger on the plus of libertarian politics, its Jon Chait.

[OpenBordersLiberal-tarian]

I don't know who Jon Chait is, but he has no idea what he's talking about. Libertarians stand for two things above all others: unlimited immigration (for the US only), and unrestricted abortion access even in the third trimester (for all countries). The Drumpf regime opposes both, making them about as anti-libertarian as it gets!

[DJF]

You left out

Chinese Communists are the best Capitalists!

[Crusty Juggler]

It's like I'm in a Utah Jacuzzi with Harvey Weinstein's cum on my chest.

[Cyto]

Why Utah?

[Kivlor]

D+

OBL, you really keep making simple slip-ups. "for the US only" was a bad one. If you'd removed that, this would have been a much better post and would have seemed less openly dishonest.

[OpenBordersLiberal-tarian]

I appreciate the concern, but stressing that my open borders advocacy only applies to the United States was a conscious decision. I have recently been doing more research into the alt-right (that's how I learned about more obscure names like Tara McCarthy, BTW) and I found that some of them support what they call "Open Borders for Israel." I wanted to clarify I have no part in such blatant anti-Semitism. I don't support "Open Borders for Israel," and no serious libertarian should either.

Indeed, I'd change my name to OpenBorders(4USA)Liberal-tarian, but it's too many characters.

[Mickey Rat]

The Libertarian Moment (tm) is everywhere and everywhen.

[Rebel Scum]

regressive tax cutting

Private property rights via the gov't not taking as much from you is "regressive". 'Freedom' means being tax cattle, I guess.

[Unlabelable MJGreen]

It's wrong and hypocritical of them to buy influence with the Trump administration. If they were good and pure, they'd be buying influence from Democrats.

[Rebel Scum]

Tyrannical EU is tyrannical

European ministers meeting in Brussels on Monday have rubber-stamped the EU-27's negotiating position for the Brexit period. The instructions for Michel Barnier, the block's chief negotiator with Britain, set a deadline for December 31, 2020, for the end of the transition, but with the caveat that this period can last longer if necessary.

That's highly problematic because the EU demands that Britain accepts all EU laws and the supremacy of the European Court of Justice during this transition. Britain must even abide by the EU's trade policy. This means that while Britain can negotiate trade deals with other countries during the transition period, they can only come into force after Britain has officially left the EU.

In other words, European ministers have agreed to let Brussels dictate the law to Britain during the transition period. The Brits get little to nothing in return for it, except that after those 21 months, they could have their sovereignty back. Even that is not guaranteed, however, because if the EU thinks it necessary, the transition period can be prolonged.

This also means that new EU rules will have to be accepted by Britain during that period. Note that Britain will not have a say about the implementation and acceptance of those new laws. Brussels will be London's master.

[Rebel Scum]

Something something "Britannia rule the waves" something something "Britons never will be slaves"...

[Rufus The Monocled]

This is how wars start.

Just saying.

The EU's theme song is 'Hotel California' with the tag:

You can check out anytime you like but you can never leave.

[Conchfritters]

You can check out any time you like, but you can never leave.

Does queen Elizabeth still appear on Canadian money?

[Mickey Rat]

Canadians are descended largely from the 13 colonies Tories. They started as a bunch of kneelers, they remain a bunch of kneelers.

[BestUsedCarSales]

If it ever goes off without war it's actually pretty impressive compared to almost every other separation in history.

[Mickey Rat]

Where does the EU get the idea they ate negotiating from a position of strength to dictate terms?

This also amply demonstrates that whatever thel advantages of membership in the EU are, putting up with Eurocrat arrogance is not worrth it.

[Crusty Juggler]

Where does the EU get the idea they ate negotiating from a position of strength to dictate terms?

How are they not in a position of strength?

[Mickey Rat]

They have a member state that never was all-in on the project wanting to bug out completely.

[Leader Desslok]

And just how many divisions does the EU have?

[Rhywun]

Here's hoping this display of rank arrogance will be noticed by a few other members.

[Rebel Scum]

I hope they start dropping like flies. But they may need some encouragement. Trump should tweet support for the independent sovereignty of all nation-states. He could start with Britain. That would send a message.

[Griffin3]

How many divisions does the EU have?

[Citizen X - #6]

CIA Director Mike Pompeo said he has "every expectation" that Russia will try to interfere in the 2018 U.S mid-term elections.

Looks like somebody just figured out what Russia is and does.

[Scarecrow Repair & Chippering]

A piss-poor US imitator. We've got the smarts to interfere in shithole elections where there's not only every chance of success, but very little chance of being noticed, little credibility to those who do notice, and no one ultimately gives a shit.

[Leader Desslok]

That's because the great game never ends, only the major players change.

[Rebel Scum]

President Donald Trump will give his State of the Union address before Congress tonight.

I hope he opts to not show and instead tweet it out.

[Rich]

I hope he shows and waits for RBG before starting.

[I am the 0.000000013%]

I hope all the Democrats kneel in what they think is protest.

[The_Hoser]

I hope he just reads excerpts from "No One Left To Lie To."

[Rebel Scum]

CIA Director Mike Pompeo said he has "every expectation" that Russia will try to interfere in the 2018 U.S mid-term elections.

In what way? I assume everyone is trying to "interfere" in everyone else's gov't at all times. And is not the CIA kindof the master of interfering in foreign governments? Such disingenuous pieces of shit.

[Mickey Rat]

"...and, of course we will continue to interfere in their future elections as well. It is what great power espionage services do."

[Tony]

As long as your team is benefiting, who cares right?

[Don't look at me.]

It's ok when the Koch brothers do it.

[I am the 0.000000013%]

It's a free market....

[MarkLastname]

Succinct description of your philosophy of life, right?

[Rich]

Florida Humanzee

[Cyto]

I worked at the Yerkes Primate Center for several years and knew all of the researchers who worked there. I sat in on lab meetings, shot the breeze while they transported an ape or waited while we installed or repaired some tech, designed lab space for them..... and I never heard that rumor. Not even as a joke.

So Imma call bullshit on that one, even as a "he told me this one time" FOAF.

[Cyto]

And to be sure, I heard some great stories..... true stories.... about the unbelievable strength of this monkey, or that ape.. or the dangers of working with the animals.

We even had one sweet and beautiful young coed die from a fluke accident while I was there. A little speck of sawdust from a transport cage flew up and got in her eye.... and she died of a viral infection.

So lots of stories. Lots and lots of talk. And I can almost guarantee, if there was a "dude banged a chimp" angle to be had on a story, it would have been repeated quite frequently.

[Crusty Juggler]

Ryan challenger to stare at him from gallery at State of the Union

Alpha move.

[Rich]

Two hours without blinking? SAD.

[Rhywun]

No report from the "People's State of the Union"? Sad!

[Rebel Scum]

Kenyan opposition leader Raila Odinga has sworn himself in as "people's president" in protest of Kenyan leader Uhuru Kenyatta.

Hilldawg takes note.

[Mickey Rat]

Is Kenyatta's People's VP Zendatta Monyatta?

[Incomprehensible Bitching]

Dow slumps yesterday.

Now THAT is the real economy of the Drumpswagon.

[Sevo]

"CIA Director Mike Pompeo said he has "every expectation" that Russia will try to interfere in the 2018 U.S mid-term elections."

Uh, and it gets cold in the winter, too.

[I am the 0.000000013%]

Denialist!