Patterico's Pontifications

4/5/2017

Quick Hits

Filed under: General — Dana @ 7:04 am



[guest post by Dana]

First, Susan Rice leaked “nothing to nobody”:

Second, Neil Gorsuch accused of plagiarism, or as Ed Whelan puts it,

“Another desperate 11th-hour smear, something that appears to have become a rite of passage for Republican Supreme Court nominees.”

Third, a 23 word response from Secretary of State Tillerson:

“North Korea launched yet another intermediate range ballistic missile. The United States has spoken enough about North Korea. We have no further comment.”

This comes just days before President Trump is scheduled to meet with China’s President Xi Jinping at the Southern White House.

(Cross-posted at The Jury Talks Back.)

–Dana

365 Responses to “Quick Hits”

  1. Good morning.

    Dana (023079)

  2. Follow the unmasking.

    –Deep Throat

    AZ Bob (f7a491)

  3. And Hillary is still not our President.

    Jim (a0d3dd)

  4. The chemical weapons deal that lurch negotiated dudnt work out, quelled surprise

    narciso (d1f714)

  5. “North Korea launched yet another intermediate range ballistic missile. The United States has spoken enough about North Korea. We have no further comment.”

    That’s very ominous sounding. (they don’t want to tip off North Korea to a possible attack. It must
    be at least in the advanced stages of planning for this to be something that could tip them off.)

    It might be being accelerated because of the upcoming election in South Korea, which might elect a president who might veto that. Also, North Korea might come up with a military defense to any plan..

    It’s not definite that there will be an attack. China will be given a chance to handle it. They’re not in the mood yet, with the Chinese government saying North Korea is ony doing this to giarantee the survival of the regime. Trump wants China to squash at least the intercontinental missile threat from North Korea..

    The Trump Administration will not take no for an answer, and it will not take yes for an answer. Itwill only take success for an answer.

    Otherwise they go ahead. Trump is not going to rely on Star Wars, or on deterrence. Kim Jong Un seems too darn serious about attacking the United States.

    Sammy Finkelman (ca4c0f)

  6. hatTillerson said about North Korea is not like the semi-silence about Syria, where the United States did not point out it was NOT saying Assad must go.

    By the way, people are losing sight of the most important thing about that attack in Idlib , Syria with nerve gas: The target. An enemy hospital.

    They don’t want the injured to be killed.

    This reverses the very first limitation on war that dates back to the Crimean War.

    Arrests and attacks on doctors and hospitals has been a feature of the Arab Spring.

    If the government shoots demonstrators, well, they don’t want them to be treated – the shooting isn’t ust to disperse them, it’s to kill a few accidentally on purpose to deter the others. Doctors and hospitals undermine that strategy.

    It was actually first used in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia, and Assad probably got the idea from the Saudis, at a time when they were trying to help him (but he wouldn’t listen – he wouldn’t offer amnesties, as they counseled)

    It’s probably now being pushed by Russia.

    Now, North Korea is a worse regime than that of Syria.

    Sammy Finkelman (ca4c0f)

  7. It is very easy to give nobody nothing. In fact,it is quite hard to give nobody something, since nobody can not receive anything.

    But did she give something to somebody? And if so, who was somebody and what was something? She evaded answering those questions.

    kishnevi (a9a964)

  8. and i need u today oh mandy

    happyfeet (930eb8)

  9. Trump should retract and apologize for statements made by U.S. officials saying things like that the status of Assad will be decided by the Syrian people.

    It’s good that he’s not saying empty words, but that is worse than empty words. Maybe it has stopped.

    Sammy Finkelman (ca4c0f)

  10. Greetings:

    Admittedly, I’m still in recovery from 13 years of Catholic school education (with no do-overs) but, somewhere along those lines, I was taught about “double negatives” and that a statement like “I leaked nothing to nobody” didn’t at all preclude that “you leaked something to somebody” unless the listener really, really wanted it to.

    11B40 (6abb5c)

  11. When I rule the world, that level of pedantry will be “remediated” by five years of “rehabilitation” as a spittoon-emptier in a Jacksonville roadhouse. The lady made her point to any fair-minded person: “I leaked nothing!” “To nobody!”

    And grammatical or not, it is infinitely classier than “alternative facts”. And so is she compared to the other lady.

    nk (dbc370)

  12. Funny how folks are now upset Trump has not started nuclear was in Syria and North Korea.

    OMG OMG OMG Assad and Kim did bad things and Trump has nothing to say!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

    These #nevertrumpers are mental.

    24 years of hand wringing about Kim but now Trump must solve this ASAP!

    Syria is another ball of wax. Sasse and McCain should go their to fight and take their entire families with them also.

    Blah Blah (44eaa0)

  13. 11B40:

    You never experienced a “To Whom” treatment? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ehgfdZeigFI
    And the young padre in the clip could totally be Sean Spicer.

    urbanleftbehind (5eecdb)

  14. We should take note that the prior thread on Susan Rice garnered 354 posts.

    AZ Bob (f7a491)

  15. Quick Hits:

    Bannon removed from NSC.

    “Pity. I shaved very close this morning in preparation for getting smacked by you.” – Gen. Patton [ George C. Scott] ‘Patton’ 1970

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  16. ‘Or as Ed Whealan put it…’ a non-denial denial.

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  17. Greetings, AZ Bob: ( @ 15 (f7a491) — 4/5/2017 @ 8:54 am )

    I didn’t post nothing to nobody.

    11B40 (6abb5c)

  18. He Ha

    AZ Bob (f7a491)

  19. “I leaked nothing to nobody no how.”

    — Susan Rice

    Colonel Haiku (be4c6e)

  20. Anybody w/experience in media and publishing reading the Politico piece can see the examples noted indicate Gorsuch’s veiled plagiarism- particularly w/o citations when a simple, ‘Per XYZ’ or such would have smoothed this out. Honest professionals would have flagged this and suggested a rewording. Won’t stop the nomination but speaks to a character flaw of obtuse judgment and questionable temperament. Yes, a perfect replacement for Scalia.

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  21. Who will ‘leave’ first? Check Vegas…

    [ ] Bannon

    [ ] Tillerson

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  22. @15. We should take note that alt.right nut job Mike Cernovich has not received proper credit for breaking that story, too.

    That’s M-I-K-E C-E-R-N-O-V-I-C-H.

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  23. In point of fact, leaving Kim oil Sung’s camarilla in power was the key mistake, they have provided nuclear research as far as Syria, remember that reactor near dear oz sour.

    narciso (d1f714)

  24. And remember it was albrights deal, negotiated by Wendy Sherman ( where have i heard that name)

    narciso (d1f714)

  25. Was that mire carrying the rizzotto tray

    https://mobile.twitter.com/dmartosko?p=s

    narciso (d1f714)

  26. Greetings, urbanleftbehind: ( @ 14 (5eecdb) — 4/5/2017 @ 8:51 am )

    By high school, we were mostly (except for the Eye-ties) fine broths of lads so corporal punishment was kind of downplayed. Detentions ruled our days. Grammar school though, not so much. The good Sisters of Mercy in the lower grades were huggers and tsk-tsk-ers, but 7th grade involved the largest nun in the free world and her 4×18 inch strip of neo-lite (shoe soling material) but she never called it “Patience”. Our 8th grade sister was a “lefty” (biologically) which was a continuing problem for some guys, but not me.

    On a somewhat lighter note, our grammar school principal mentioned to me a number of times that she was going to have may name permanently engraved on that ridiculously small chair she had in her office for her “after school visitors”. I used to charm her by using my contribution to Catholic school discipline which went, “Is this a one-parent problem or a two-parent problem, Sister?”

    11B40 (6abb5c)

  27. Rice don’t know nothin’ ’bout birthing no babies…

    Horatio (f653bf)

  28. That sounds like Pointy, Horatio!

    Colonel Haiku (be4c6e)

  29. “Ain’t nobody got no time to leak nothing to nobody!”

    Colonel Haiku (be4c6e)

  30. So now the cover is that they did spy on Trump and his team, but didn’t leak the information? Do I have that correct?

    They just changed the rules to allow thousands of government officials to see these documents and one of them released it instead.

    Plausible deniability.

    NJRob (43d957)

  31. “The world is a mess; I inherited a mess. We’re gonna fix it.” – President Donald J. Trump

    Sounds familiar. Strawberries, for dessert, tonight, Donald?

    “I assumed command of a badly-handled ship. I tried to bring in into line.” – Captain Queeg [Humphrey Bogart] ‘The Caine Mutiny’ 1954

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  32. There’s paperwork showing Rice as being the one, or one of the ones, ordering/requesting the unredacting of names. Which is legal for her to do in her position with her clearance.

    It’s who she gave it to that’s the problem.

    Ingot (e5bf64)

  33. Your use of The Caine Mutiny is hilarious DCSCA. As they say, if the noose fits…

    Now it looks like our new squirrel! is no less than a new war – or two! Way To Go Trump.

    Tillman (a95660)

  34. @27 That’s a solid theory. I won’t be surprised to learn it goes back much farther.

    crazy (d3b449)

  35. It’s probably now being pushed by Russia.
    Now, North Korea is a worse regime than that of Syria.
    Sammy Finkelman (ca4c0f) — 4/5/2017 @ 7:48 am

    ************

    Now, North Korea has more potential to harm–more capability, and is in a location to cause more possible unrest.

    Syria has already almost maxed out in it’s potential for unrest in the area.

    Conversely North Korea is a ticking time bomb in a fresh box of tinder.

    Rae (2fd998)

  36. edit:its potential

    Ack–I need coffee.

    Rae (2fd998)

  37. Now it looks like our new squirrel! is no less than a new war – or two! Way To Go Trump.
    Tillman (a95660) — 4/5/2017 @ 11:11 am

    So if Syria attacks Israel and North Korea attacks South Korea it’s Trump’s fault? Wow. That’s why I was against Trump letting those two rogue nations develop the bomb. He should have stopped them when he had the chance.

    Rev. Hoagie® (785e38)

  38. Lefties never want to acknowledge the devastation they leave behind when the country has tired of their experimentation with nitwit policies and the sober,responsible folks have regained control.

    It never fails.

    Colonel Haiku (be4c6e)

  39. The word games that lefties play are not accidents. “is” is not “was”, for example.

    Rice’s words very cleverly leave the question of who is the somebody she gave something to unanswered. She relies on the bias of the MSM and other lefties to overlook this, since she is a black woman. She knows they expect slang, and they will instinctively translate this to mean what they’d like it to mean. For what it’s worth, Rice is a graduate of Stanford and holds a PhD from Oxford.

    We know Willy lied because Monica preserved the seamen stained blue dress. I hope that Rice will be undone by a similarly unexpected source.

    BobStewartatHome (448c1e)

  40. there’s no such thing as squirrell

    happyfeet (a037ad)

  41. *squirrel* i mean

    no such thing

    happyfeet (a037ad)

  42. Two months if office, on the verge of two wars, but of course it’s all Obama’s fault. Got it.

    Tillman (a95660)

  43. narciso (d1f714) — 4/5/2017 @ 9:34 am

    In point of fact, leaving Kim oil Sung’s camarilla in power was the key mistake,

    President Eisenhower and Secretary of State John Foster dulles did that – and they stopped the war by secretly (nobody knew this for decades, so it hasn’t sunk in, into how we think about nuclear weapons) threatening to use nuclear weapons, not as explosivess, but to put radiation along the border or something like that. Of course, Truman had earlier stopped MacArthur, because he didn’t want to get into a war with Mao’s China.

    It could be argued that maybe Truman stopped him too late for that purpose because Chinese troops poured in and drove United Nations forces from almost at the Yalu River two thirds of the way down the Korean peninsula. (they eventually got back to approximately the 38th parallel, but it was not exactly the original division line.)

    The situation has remained absolutely frozen since 1953, in a virtual time warp, with regular meetings in Panmunjon with the Red Chinese on the North Korean side regurgitating harsh propaganda, and occasional outbursts of murderous violence by North Korea.

    North Korea, all this time, has been planning to invade the South, but was always deterred. I think sometimes the plans got quite advanced but the invasion was always called off. This kind of situation can eventually become dangerous if the standoff lasts a long time, and the basic politics doesn’t change, and then new people get in charge and have different ideas. (cf Germany 1871-1914. The most significant fact of the 19th centry, Bismarck said, wa sthe England and America spoke the same language. I think this meant the U.S. would side with England, and since England wouldn’t permit Germany to conquer France, Germany had to not only stop its conquests, but withdraw from France in 1871. But eventually this got forgotten by the german General Staff, who manuvered Germany into a war in August, 1914. War had been averted several times before, but finally it wasn’t averted.)

    Nuclear weapons were part of a North Korean strategy to win this war (I think the idea was the U.S. would not expose its troops to radiation and so would not be able to reinforce and supply its army in South Korea, which wasn’t strong enough by itself to defeat an invasion but acted as a tripwire.)

    North Korea knew, at a minimum, that they would get boycotted for years if they conquered South Korea, so the policy was always to make North Korea as independent as possible from all other countries, and to stockpile food for the army.

    But the invasion was always called off, however close it got, and it maybe got to within a year or so of D-day and holding.

    Sammy Finkelman (ca4c0f)

  44. Tillman, your snark is so incompetent that it only rebounds upon you.

    SPQR (a3a747)

  45. North Korea is a deeply ideological regime that sees the south as a puppet of western powers, the park impeachment seemingly has given an opportunity.

    narciso (d1f714)

  46. Get the lot of them testifying under oath. See what happens.

    Kevin M (25bbee)

  47. Sammy Finkleman, the reality has been that starting in the late ’60’s, South Korea was probably strong enough to defeat North Korea in a rematch. For many decades, the US Army was in South Korea and nominally in command of South Korean forces, specifically to prevent South Korea from restarting festivities. Today the North Korean army is very large, very poorly maintained and there is good reason to believe it is a very fragile force. North Korea’s main threat is the use of nuclear and chemical weapons against the South Korean population, the bulk of which is within conventional artillery range of the DMZ in the greater Seoul metropolitan area.

    SPQR (a3a747)

  48. Rae (2fd998) — 4/5/2017 @ 11:21 am

    Syria has already almost maxed out in it’s potential for unrest in the area.

    Syria is in no condition to do anything right nww, but can become a virtual puppet of Iran/Hezbollah, and Iran seems to be interested in starting a war with Israel – jointly with Hamas in Gaza – at the earliest opportunity, something that assad probably doesn’t actually want – but he might not be in charge in that case.

    Iran has had its military buildup in Syria near the Israeli border frustrated several times by Israel, including killing commanders. (By the way, Iran likes rockets that attack civilians.) Israel never announces any military activity it engages in in the territory of Syria except retaliatory fire right by the Golan ceasefire lines, but they keep on knocking down its military buildup and not allowing rockets and other things to be transferred from Syrian units to Hezbollah units. (Iran has now been trying to set something under the auspices of the Syrian army so that maybe Israel won’t bomb it.)

    Not so in Lebanon or Gaza, where the policy is quiet for quiet with some advantage taken of periods of non-quiet to degrade their capabilities.

    Syria has no army that means anything – its army is Hezbollah and other members of the Iranian “foreign legion” (they’e got Pakistanis there, and Afghans, too) plus the Russian Air Force, and some troops.

    I mean Syria has an army, but it’s full of unwilling draftees, and not well trained, and they;ll cut and run if they get a chance. Syria has an Air Force, but it’s small and cannot stand up to any good, or even a basic, air defense system. It can only drop horrible bombs on undefended targets. This is just my general impression.

    Netanyahu has somehow managed to deter Putin from any kind of clash, with Israel deciding what they absolutely cannot tolerate, which is mainly transferring of arms to better run units under Iranian control. They will bomb it, Russians or no Russians, so there are no Russians interfering. ISIS is not ready to fight Israel (and Jordan, which is under Israeli protection, in the sense that an invasion by an real enemy will not be tolerated) either, or even Lebanon.

    Sammy Finkelman (ca4c0f)

  49. Two months if office, on the verge of two war

    Yes, it is Obama’s fault for kicking the can down the road. If Hillary was in office, you’d say it was Bush’s fault, disregarding all reason.

    North Korea is such a bad actor they get elected to play the role of “Stupid fu*ks who thought they could build nuclear missiles and no one would care.” The movie will then be dubbed into Farsi for the Iranians.

    Kevin M (25bbee)

  50. If you love you some war SPQR, Trump’s your man.

    If Trump wasn’t flagrantly playing footsie with Russia, I don’t believe that Syria would have pulled this stunt. So I don’t think that Trump can shirk responsibility on this one. It’s of his own making.

    Tillman (a95660)

  51. 44.Two months if office, on the verge of two wars, but of course it’s all Obama’s fault. Got it.
    Tillman (a95660) — 4/5/2017 @ 12:08 pm

    We’re on the verge of two wars? Really? That’s nonsense Tillman and you know it. Or maybe you wish we were so you could blame it on Trump. BTW, exactly what has Trump done or not done to bring us to the verge of war? Did he blow up something or invade somebody we don’t know about? Has he blockaded some country or sent an ultimatum of war? Please fill us in.

    You’re a typical leftist, Tillman. You’d love to see a war with all the death and destruction so you could pin it on Trump. Your leftist “compassion” is showing. #FakeAmerican

    Rev. Hoagie® (785e38)

  52. Sammy

    Agree with pretty much all of that, kind of knew I was being too simplistic.

    One interesting thing is that the Sauds traveled to Russia during all of this contre temps.

    I just think given the situation of some sort of “balance” with China and the economic power houses of Taiwan and South Korea–that economically–North Korea has the power to disrupt and disturb on a much larger level than a Syrian collapse.

    Syria is much better kept in check by the strength of Israel, Operation Orchard comes to mind –especially after seeing narcisco’s comment.

    Hopefully China is interested in global economic stability also.

    I think there is a divide in China that most don’t talk about. There is the globalist doves–that hope the economic environment keeps China and the world “interested” in global economic stability–and then there is the China hawks that want an excuse to build up China’s military. I’m not sure who in the China internal conflict is winning the debate.

    Maybe–we are about to find out.

    (as an aside I was reading an article about Atta’s time in Aleppo–and he was bitching about the damn globalists(hence why they targeted the World Trade Center) he had that in common with Hitler who hated the globalists that flitted from Paris, to Brussels and then Berlin–the problem is that mutual interests in global economic stability often has the side benefit of–not losing blood and treasure in war. Some of the most dangerous times rise out of great depressions.)

    Rae (2fd998)

  53. No Hoagie, I am absolutely against war. I’m warnings against it. Trump likes his secrets, especially for troop movements and plans: we could be gearing up for war right now and not know about it until after it has begun, and of course by then it’s too late.

    Tillman (a95660)

  54. Tillman, are you that ignorant or just think we are? It was Obama that allowed the Russians to pretend to remove Syria’s chemical weapons three years ago (with evidence a year ago of Syrian deception reported ) but you blame Trump?

    You are simply the most incompetent of hacks.

    SPQR (a3a747)

  55. Yikes forgot to add Japan into the mix.

    Rae (2fd998)

  56. SPQR, the timing sure is suspicious. It’s only after Trump got into office that they decided to use those chemical weapons. Why’s that?

    Tillman (a95660)

  57. Tillman, I find it “suspicious” that you came up with this brilliant piece of detective work.

    SPQR (a3a747)

  58. Tillman, are you that ignorant or just think we are? It was Obama that allowed the Russians to pretend to remove Syria’s chemical weapons three years ago (with evidence a year ago of Syrian deception reported ) but you blame Trump?
    You are simply the most incompetent of hacks.
    SPQR (a3a747) — 4/5/2017 @ 1:20 pm

    *********

    Unfortunately it works because the media does not report when a Democrat president is in power.

    Syria is probably dangerously close to a genocide and the liberal media is only just starting to show it now.

    Rae (2fd998)

  59. You’re a typical leftist, Tillman. You’d love to see a war with all the death and destruction so you could pin it on Trump.

    Tillman would be OK with the sun going nova, so long as he could blame Trump.

    Kevin M (25bbee)

  60. It’s only after Trump got into office that they decided to use those chemical weapons. Why’s that?

    They used them while Obama was in office, too. And I suspect they used them more recently, but Obama’s folks kept it secret so they wouldn’t have to react.

    As for the Norks, they’ve been building nukes for 20 years and all the people who don’t want war have been saying “Not yet! Not yet!”. Then when the Norks nuke San Francisco, it’ll be “Why didn’t anyone do something?!”

    Kevin M (25bbee)

  61. The good old Sergeant Schultz defense for Susan Rice, “I saw nozzing, I did nozzing.”

    Skeptical Voter (1d5c8b)

  62. PBS NewsHour’s Judy Woodruff asked Rice about Nunes’ disclosure two weeks ago (March 22) [YouTube] that Trump “and the people around him may have been caught up in surveillance of foreign individuals and that their identities may have been disclosed. Do you know anything about this?” Woodruff asked.

    I know nothing about this. I was surprised to see reports from Chairman Nunes on that count today,” Rice answered.

    Compare and contrast. Rice moved from “didn’t unmask nobody” in March to “routinely unmasking Americans as part of her duties” and “unmasking accelerated in Dec and Jan” and “didn’t leak nuthin to nobody” in April.

    But “didn’t leak nuthin” is the only part people want to talk about.
    Bull[edit].

    papertiger (c8116c)

  63. As for the Norks, they’ve been building nukes for 20 years and all the people who don’t want war have been saying “Not yet! Not yet!”. Then when the Norks nuke San Francisco, it’ll be “Why didn’t anyone do something?!”
    Kevin M (25bbee) — 4/5/2017 @ 1:33 pm

    **********

    You could give San Fran a three hour warning to evacuate and they still wouldn’t get it done because the highway building has been blocked to save the wetlands in Sonoma, etc.

    So thousands of people dead–but the wet water newt–lives on! Winning!

    Rae (2fd998)

  64. @9 happyfeet

    It’s raining men. Hallelujah.

    “That’s a shame when folks be throwing away a perfectly good white boy like that.” Better Off Dead

    Pinandpuller (ba5ff1)

  65. @33 DCSCA

    Aren’t you one of the people here always breaking The President’s balls over what he inherited?

    And not for nuthin’, nobody’s ever gonna’ not get you for not citing nothin’never.

    Pinandpuller (ba5ff1)

  66. About those Nork’s and their nuclear ambitions.

    North Korea is a small country that google maps has satellite covered every inch.

    Funny part of that is there’s a road between the bomb plant and the bomb test area. The only thing it’s used for is bomb makings testings. No civilian traffic at all. Some gulag to gulag traffic of political prisoners.

    They hide it by calling it something clever like “Nuclear Test Highway”. I don’t know if that’s the exact name, but it’s close.
    https://www.buzzfeed.com/andrewkaczynski/how-not-to-disguise-a-nuclear-test-nuclear-test-road?utm_term=.kmN81l11l#.avQ9dMddM

    papertiger (c8116c)

  67. narciso (d1f714) — 4/5/2017 @ 12:34 pm

    North Korea is a deeply ideological regime that sees the south as a puppet of western powers,

    No, it doesn’t see it that way. That;s the accusation it makes. It’s an obvious lie. They would like, if possible, to make adeal with United States.

    the park impeachment seemingly has given an opportunity.

    Not so seemingly. The person most likely to be elected has a base that has been taught to favor appeasement. It’s really contradictory – to be against mild misrule in the south and want to treat what’s going on in the Borth as tolerable, without ecen saying the fact it is armed is the reason.

    Sammy Finkelman (ca4c0f)

  68. Still a surfeit of nuts but some good comments.

    North Korea’s main threat is the use of nuclear and chemical weapons against the South Korean population, the bulk of which is within conventional artillery range of the DMZ in the greater Seoul metropolitan area.

    Yes. The Seoul population has been the Nork’s hostages for decades. Too bad McArthur did not stop at Pyongyang but that is long ago.

    South Korea seems to be on the verge of another leftist takeover, which will be followed by a “Unite with the North” delusion. It’s happened before. It may be happening again.

    If so, we should get out and rely on Japan as an ally.

    We’ll see what happens with Trump and Xi. China should be concerned but they may be lulled by Obama’s incompetence.,

    Mike K (f469ea)

  69. Finally, a post where people aren’t being so mean to Donald Trump. Leave Donald alone!

    Leviticus (efada1)

  70. @44 Tillman

    When the plane has plummeted 20k feet and you hand the yoke over to a new pilot to whom do you assign the blame of the plane crashing?

    At least lawyers are proficient at divvying up blame between parties.

    For instance, Henry John Deutchendorf Jr built his plane, put the fuel tank switch in a bad spot and didn’t fill up his main tank before flying off to his death. He’s 100% responsible.

    President Donald J Trump-he didn’t build that.

    He could put US into a flat spin. He could put US into the ground with some loss of life. He could Sulley US. He could land the plane on the tarmac.

    We’re still flying.

    If he does land the plane will you give him all of the credit?

    Pinandpuller (ba5ff1)

  71. @65 Rae

    Kim Jon Null could go Old Testament and spare San Francisco if they could name 10 righteous men.

    All I can think of are Michael Savage and Brian Sussman.

    Pinandpuller (ba5ff1)

  72. There was a time when it would have been possible to convince the American public to support a war to prevent a rogue state from getting chemical, nuclear, or biological weapons. That time ended during the Bush administration, when the war waged for that ostensible reason resulted in the widespread conviction that there never had been any such weapons. That belief persists, in spite of the fact that chemical weapons were used by Saddam on the Kurds, a fact which is not disputed by anyone.
    Now we have a state, North Korea, which could in the near future pose an existential threat to the USA, which is openly threatening to annihilate us on a regular basis, and which periodically launches a few missiles toward Japan to prove the point. A sound argument could be made that this would be a good time to take out the North Korean leadership and missile sites, but I doubt public opinion would permit it.
    Particularly with a rabid Trump hating press that will oppose any action taken by him, no matter whether or not it is in the best interests of the USA.

    orcadrvr (54410e)

  73. https://www.commentarymagazine.com/foreign-policy/middle-east/syria/the-new-york-times-takes-trumps-bait-on-syria

    In a statement condemning the slaughter of civilians in what appears to be the worst regime-ordered chemical attack since 2013, the president observed that Obama had drawn a “red line” over this same sort of thing but “did nothing.” Instantly, partisan battle lines were etched into the sand. The New York Times editorial board was one of many liberal outlets that felt compelled to defend Barack Obama’s Syria policy. In the process, they water down their criticisms of Trump’s approach to the nightmare in the Levant. That serves Donald Trump’s interests just fine.

    Sammy Finkelman (6f9f42)

  74. Pinandpuller, I’m sure that if the foot was on the other shoe, and it was Obama’s first two months in office when all this hit the fan, that you’d be defending Obama too. Not.

    I will say this: at this point I won’t blame Trump for our problems with North Korea. That’s been an ongoing problem for a while now. I just hope that he handles it wisely, we’ll see.

    Tillman (a95660)

  75. @65 Rae
    Kim Jon Null could go Old Testament and spare San Francisco if they could name 10 righteous men.
    All I can think of are Michael Savage and Brian Sussman.
    Pinandpuller (ba5ff1) — 4/5/2017 @ 2:37 pm

    *********

    Heh. Ya–I can’t add to that.

    Oy.

    Rae (2fd998)

  76. Reading between the lines, it sounds like Rice thinks the leaks are originating in the Trump administration.

    Barry Jacobs (a1ee42)

  77. 73, cmon, THor’s from out that way unless your talking City/County of SF proper.. At least the Tiburones will be well fed the couple of hours before they get mutated.

    urbanleftbehind (847a06)

  78. Who was it that just tossed out a totally made up nothing burger, which morphed into a former national security adviser not knowing nothing about it, then into “well we do that all the time” and finally into “I didn’t leak it, I promise. Trust me.”?

    That’s M-I-K-E C-E-R-N-O-V-I-C-H. – said DCSCA.

    How do you like that short cake with your strawberries? Huh Pal?

    papertiger (c8116c)

  79. I think someone should give another look into that Hillary Clinton pre-school prostitution ring.

    A real close look.

    papertiger (c8116c)

  80. @67. Nyet.

    “Gotham City. Always brings a smile to my face.” – The Joker [Jack Nicholson] ‘Batman’ 1989

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  81. @81. Ice cream, PT. Two portions.

    “…And I had four.” – Captain Queeg [Humphrey Bogart] ‘The Caine Mutiny’ 1954

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  82. I think it’s time that San Francisco started providing more for its own defense. The American taxpayers have been bearing the cost long enough. Maybe it should also get its own nuclear weapons to defend itself from such threats as North Korea and China. We can’t carry them under our nuclear umbrella forever.

    Donald J. Trump @ the real nk (dbc370)

  83. Now we have a state, North Korea, which could in the near future pose an existential threat to the USA, which is openly threatening to annihilate us on a regular basis, and which periodically launches a few missiles toward Japan to prove the point.

    Here’s an illustration of how orcadrvr thinks that war will go. [YouTube]

    papertiger (c8116c)

  84. Now the President of the United States suggests, without citing evidence, Susan Rice might have committed a crime.

    http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/trump-suggests-citing-evidence-susan-rice-committed-crime/story?id=46598432

    Looks like his fourth portion of squirrel stew.
    Smells like a boiling pot of borscht.
    Tastes like… strawberries.

    “I don’t know what lies have been sworn to here, but a duplicate key definitely DID exist!” – Captain Queeg [Humphrey Bogart] ‘The Caine Mutiny’ 1954

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  85. Actually, Marin county is a national leader in suborning military desertion, so the case can be made, nk. Fewest military volunteers per county – with minus -6.

    papertiger (c8116c)

  86. Show the EVIDENCE, you orange-skinned badgerheaded New York pansy! It’s your “White House lawyers” and your “multiple sources” supposedly. Bring them out with the proof. But there isn’t any proof, is there, Shortfinger? Just a fake story your toadies planted.

    nk @ the real nk (dbc370)

  87. @81. Pshaw, PT. Do you mean alt.right wackjob, pizzagate and related fake news guru Mike Cernovich?

    That M-I-K-E C-E-R-N-O-V-I-C-H??? The nut that feeds the squirrel?

    “D’oh!” – Homer Simpson, every episode, “The Simpsons” Fox TV

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  88. I’m told that we could lose San Francisco without losing a single Sequoia. I’m fine with that.

    nk (dbc370)

  89. Now the President of the United States suggests, without citing evidence, Susan Rice might have committed a crime.

    If, as is entirely likely, the increasingly frequent post election unmasking of Trump transition team figures was unrelated to any sort of incidental national security investigations (like bomb makings per Susan Rice’s example), then President Trump is likely to be right.

    I’m willing to bet there will be exactly zero conversations about selling Russia bomb making plans.

    What about you?

    papertiger (c8116c)

  90. Show the EVIDENCE, you orange-skinned badgerheaded New York pansy! It’s your “White House lawyers” and your “multiple sources” supposedly. Bring them out with the proof. But there isn’t any proof, is there, Shortfinger? Just a fake story your toadies planted.
    nk @ the real nk (dbc370) — 4/5/2017 @ 3:27 pm

    *************

    Hopefully the Senate Intel investigation will end–shortly.

    I don’t think Eli Lake is a stooge. He says he has his own sources.

    Rae (2fd998)

  91. nk @ the real nk (dbc370) [I got a YouTube for that]

    Are we suffering a plethora of nk’s?

    papertiger (c8116c)

  92. @92. I’m willing to bet there will be exactly zero conversations about selling Russia bomb making plans.

    PT will take 1950s Espionage for $500. And the answer is: why the Rosenbergs were were caught, convicted and executed.

    =ding,ding,ding,ding,ding=

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  93. @93. I don’t think Eli Lake is a stooge.

    Have you seen him? He’d give Jerry Howard a run for the money.

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  94. If Trump had texted “nothing to nobody”, they’d be demanding mental evaluation from every corner of Lib Central (aka the msm).

    harkin (dde7a8)

  95. Trump pushing this fake story without evidence so hard tells me there’s some serious stuff that’s worrying him. Much more serious than Flynn being in the pockets of Putin and Erdogan.

    nk (dbc370)

  96. Ahh yes San Francisco – the loyal American city whose residents find battleships offensive.

    harkin (dde7a8)

  97. Trump pushing this fake story without evidence so hard tells me there’s some serious stuff that’s worrying him. Much more serious than Flynn being in the pockets of Putin and Erdogan.
    nk (dbc370) — 4/5/2017 @ 3:52 pm

    **********

    Possible. I cannot wait for it to get resolved in a more official–real way. The continued trial via the Court of the Public Opinion –if that goes on much longer– not only does it hurt Trump but it might send our external enemies the wrong message. It needs to get resolved.

    Rae (2fd998)

  98. His track record has been. Very good on balance:

    http://www.thedailybeast.com/contributors/eli-lake.html

    narciso (d1f714)

  99. PT will take 1950s Espionage for $500. And the answer is: why the Rosenbergs were were caught, convicted and executed.

    =ding,ding,ding,ding,ding=

    DCSCA (797bc0)

    Now he’s even bad mouthing Ike. Unless your mention of $500 is meant to signal a wager. I’ll take that bet.

    $500 there’s no mention of bomb making in any of the Trump conversations Susan Rice unmasked.
    Done.

    the future WSJ editorial be judge. Agreed?

    papertiger (c8116c)

  100. His track record has been. Very good on balance:
    http://www.thedailybeast.com/contributors/eli-lake.html
    narciso (d1f714) — 4/5/2017 @ 4:07 pm

    *****************

    He’s always been one of my favorites. Smart guys are sexy–DCSCA

    Rae (2fd998)

  101. “We know Willy lied because Monica preserved the seamen stained blue dress. I hope that Rice will be undone by a similarly unexpected source.”

    BobStewartatHome (448c1e) — 4/5/2017 @ 11:55 am

    ==========================================

    So Clinton staining the dress wasn’t enough!?!? So now I know teh rest of the story!

    Colonel Haiku (be4c6e)

  102. Maybe not bomb-making but with the Trump Family definitely money-making.

    “You asked about opening another brothel in Toka-machi the other day.” Zatoichi’s Revenge, 1965

    nk (dbc370)

  103. @103. Smart guys are sexy–DCSCA

    Yes. We are. But alt.right Trump backer and nut feeder to squirrels Mike Cernovich, deserves the credit as the original ‘source’ who released this shiny object… not Lake.

    In fact, DJT,Jr., says he deserves a Pulitzer: ‘The president’s son says the man who promoted the lie that a child-sex ring operated underneath a Washington, D.C. pizza parlor deserves a Pulitzer Prize for “breaking” a story about Susan Rice.Donald Trump Jr. tweeted, “Congrats to @Cernovich for breaking the #SusanRice story. In a long gone time of unbiased journalism he’d win the Pulitzer, but not today!”‘

    http://www.sfgate.com/politics/article/Trump-Jr-Pizzagate-blogger-deserves-Pulitzer-11049765.php

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  104. Yes. We are.

    *************

    Oh gawd–I walked right into that. Touche.

    Rae (2fd998)

  105. the freedom filth are doing God’s work keeping the cash flowing to planned parenthood

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  106. In a long gone time of unbiased journalism he’d win the Pulitzer

    i wonder if New York Times propaganda slut Maggie Haberman will get a pullitzer for trying to suppress the story

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  107. *pulitzer* i mean

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  108. @98. Trump pushing this fake story without evidence so hard tells me there’s some serious stuff that’s worrying him. Much more serious than Flynn being in the pockets of Putin and Erdogan.

    Think less about the politics and more about his business- that’s really where his head’s at when it’s not up in his other warm place. Russian financing has likely been the laundering service and go-to deep well for many Trump projects which is why the tax returns won’t see the light of day. U.S. banks got wise to him long ago– and burned in the 80s. A U.S. president w/a family business w/financing by the Rooskies would be a nyet-nyet. The stink of borscht is all over him.

    But WOW, what a show Season 1 has been so far! ‘Cause Americans don’t want to be governed; they wish to be entertained.

    “There’s an old saying in England; where there’s smoke, there’s fire.” – James bod, 007 [Sean Connery] ‘From Ru$$ia, With Love’ 1963

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  109. @107. 😉 We all need a laugh through this comedy of errors.

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  110. “Did Obama Illegally Divert Money From Fannie and Freddie Mae to Prop Up Obamacare?
    —Ace

    Might be another scandal from the Scandal-Free Administration (TM).

    Note that this story started with allegations from Jerome Corsi, Alex Jones, and InfoWars — however, it seems to be snowballing into a genuine story, not just a speculation or rumor.”

    http://ace.mu.nu/archives/369161.php

    Colonel Haiku (2601c0)

  111. His mouth says one thing, but his wallet and common sense (keeping the former to himself) say another.

    papertiger (c8116c)

  112. “At some point, the administration weaponized the NSA’s legitimate monitoring of communications of foreign officials to stay one step ahead of domestic political opponents,” says a pro-Israel political operative who was deeply involved in the day-to-day fight over the Iran Deal. “The NSA’s collections of foreigners became a means of gathering real-time intelligence on Americans engaged in perfectly legitimate political activism–activism, due to the nature of the issue, that naturally involved conversations with foreigners. We began to notice the White House was responding immediately, sometimes within 24 hours, to specific conversations we were having. At first, we thought it was a coincidence being amplified by our own paranoia. After a while, it simply became our working assumption that we were being spied on.”

    http://www.tabletmag.com/jewish-news-and-politics/229062/did-the-obama-administrations-abuse-of-foreign-intelligence-collection-start-before-trump

    Colonel Haiku (2601c0)

  113. Enough of Canucks channeling Roger Ebert and squirrelly lawyers fantasizing about a successful, married old man.

    Colonel Haiku (2601c0)

  114. @109. not w/those legs.

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  115. i haven’t seen her legs i just hate her nyt propaganda slut guts cause she’s such a liar

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  116. is it even possible for us to have a more ineffective speaker of the house than perverted Mitt Romney’s rode-hard-and-put-up-wet obamacare-loving sex toy Paul Ryan?

    it’s hard to imagine huh

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  117. 119… yep. Could’ve been a lawyer.

    Colonel Haiku (2601c0)

  118. It’s smart for the administration to put Ivanka Trump out there to speak to the media. She has a likable, sincere quality about her and they’d be smart to recognize that.

    Colonel Haiku (2601c0)

  119. Don know nuffin.

    The Hugh Hewitt interview with Andy McCarthy is required reading,.

    Yeah, the question, Hugh, is for example, why did the NSC around the beginning of the Obama administration have, you know, a few dozen people, and now they have a staff of 400? Why do you need 400 people at the NSC? Why did they become so intrusive, and not just on this, but on many of the functions of the executive branch? And we’ll be discussing more of that. But the one thing I would add to what Haass said, which I agree with, is that you know, you have to remember that it’s not just the privacy of Americans they’re concerned with. They’re concerned with the preservation of the ability to do their own jobs.

    400 ? Holy shit !

    Mike K (309f6b)

  120. i never tasted squirrel my whole life

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  121. Consider all the dating you’ve done in your past, feets. Still feel confident about that?

    Colonel Haiku (2601c0)

  122. @122. And yummy eye-candy, too! No one listens but everyone watches.

    “I’ve said if she wasn’t my daughter, perhaps I’d be dating her.” — Donald J. Trump, President of the United States

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  123. Does she report those 1,000 ruble notes Putin stuffs down her G-string on her taxes, I wonder.

    nk (dbc370)

  124. Greetings, DCSCA: ( @ 125 (797bc0) — 4/5/2017 @ 5:57 pm )

    You sure that that wasn’t Joe Biden, exVice President of the United States ???

    11B40 (6abb5c)

  125. 126… sounds like someone’s jealous. Your murmurings about “Vlad the Impaler” not working now?

    Colonel Haiku (2601c0)

  126. Lawyers Guild gathers in front of Ivanka Trump’s place… https://youtu.be/nl53YL9ZES0

    Colonel Haiku (2601c0)

  127. We’re told by a source who has seen the unmasked documents that they included political information about the Trump transition team’s meetings and policy intentions. We are also told that none of these documents had anything to do with Russia or the FBI investigation into ties between Russia and the Trump campaign. While we don’t know if Ms. Rice requested these dozens of reports, we are told that they were only distributed to a select group of recipients—conveniently including Ms. Rice.

    Wall Street Journal editorial 4/3/17

    Swear to God I did not know they had already put Rice’s lie to bed, and settled our bet yesterday.

    If you still want to send me $500 that will be between you and your God.

    papertiger (c8116c)

  128. Herridge? Take it to the bank, it’s gold!

    Colonel Haiku (2601c0)

  129. Thanks for the “Dance Party” Colonel. I was going to look for it but got sidetracked. Now I have it to send to all my liberal friends. They have such class!

    Rev. Hoagie® (785e38)

  130. If I were anywhere close to the neighborhood @ “Dance Party for climate justice” pepper spray by the gallon.

    Enough to serve a steakhouse.

    papertiger (c8116c)

  131. Let’s hear the Trump haters continue to defend the Obama administration.

    This should be hysterical

    NJRob (9f5253)

  132. There are people saying Susan Rice didn’t commit a crime. Here’s the relevant statute you need to review.

    The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.

    papertiger (c8116c)

  133. 134… those lawyers are flamin’ crazy, Hoagie!

    Colonel Haiku (2601c0)

  134. nicely said monsieur tigre de papier

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  135. Here’s the FISA Reauthorization act of 2012:
    https://www.govtrack.us/congress/bills/112/hr5949

    Here’s who voted for it in the House and Senate:
    https://www.govtrack.us/congress/votes/112-2012/h569
    https://www.govtrack.us/congress/votes/112-2012/s236

    If you don’t like it, one of the parties is significantly more in agreement with you than the other.

    Davethulhu (c75fb7)

  136. @76 Tillman

    I can honestly say I wasn’t all up in BHO’s beeswax for quite some time after he was elected.

    I think that anyone could see that W handed him a fair ration of sh*t. It’s also fair to say he spent a great deal of time pointing the elevators and ailerons in the wrong direction. But he made damn good time.

    Pinandpuller (4cd42d)

  137. Retired lawyer hears from dissatisfied client… https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0veiTgUQLKw

    Colonel Haiku (2601c0)

  138. laughing so hard my staples are coming out, Col.

    mg (31009b)

  139. Hell of an arm, mg

    Colonel Haiku (2601c0)

  140. @136 papertiger

    Nick Nack! Tabasco!

    Christopher Lee The Man with the Golden Gun

    Pinandpuller (4cd42d)

  141. The Founding Fathers did not forsee gay men twerking when they wrote The First Amendment.

    Nobody saw gay men twerking.

    Nobody should ever see gay men twerking.

    Pinandpuller (4cd42d)

  142. WSJ @133

    We’re told by a source who has seen the unmasked documents that they included political information about the Trump transition team’s meetings and policy intentions

    But did the parts about the Trump transition’s plans come from eavesdropping, the media, or personal communications between the Trump people and the spy agencies?

    Sammy Finkelman (ca4c0f)

  143. I don’t see it as violating anyone’s right to twerk down the middle of the street (although the case could be made it was lewd behavior in violation of community standards).

    What I’m thinking is they would be violating my celebration of national pepper sauce day. We like to broadcast it with high pressure hose. It’s traditional.

    papertiger (c8116c)

  144. 113.

    Note that this story started with allegations from Jerome Corsi, Alex Jones, and InfoWars — however, it seems to be snowballing into a genuine story, not just a speculation

    The story apparently is true, but it’s not new, and the Obama Adminsitration never hid it, although they didn’t issue press releases about it maybe, and claimed it was legal, but they are being sued by the House of Representatives, and now by stockholders in Fannie and Freddie. (Trump, and/or his people, have decided to continue doing this, because it would lead to an immediate health insurance crisis.)

    And it wasn’t exactly a diversion of money from Fannie and Freddie but that could be one interpretation of the manuever they tried.

    ….which I wish someone making this accusation would explain, except of course they don’t want to, so that it could sound stranger, and sound worse, than it is.

    Sammy Finkelman (ca4c0f)

  145. 106/ Well, the child-sex ring was probably created by Putin’s people – does that measn they also tried to get people to focus on Susan Rice as the villain?

    What’s surprising in all this is how rarely the consumers of intelligence see the raw intelligence> If they don’t, how can they judge the quality of their work? Or improve it?

    Sammy Finkelman (ca4c0f)

  146. So Clinton staining the dress wasn’t enough!?!?

    Among other things, Monica Lewinsky had to hold onto the dress, and not wash it, and had to be put into a situation where she wanted to prove the truth of the allegations – in fact had to make them in the first place to someone who wanted to tell someone else about them. (if only to put Monica Lewinsky out of her misery.)

    Bill Clinton’s big tactical mistake was exiling both Linda Tripp and Monica Lewinsky, two people whom he wanted to keep quiet about totally different matters, to the same office!

    He compartmentalized a little bit too much.

    Sammy Finkelman (ca4c0f)

  147. Wall Street Journal editorial.
    “We don’t know”.
    “We are told”.
    “We are told”.
    “We are told”.

    That and five rubles will get you a bowl of borscht. How do you say asspull in Russian?

    nk (dbc370)

  148. rubles? didn’t pedestal receive a million of them?

    mg (31009b)

  149. pedesta

    mg (31009b)

  150. podesta.

    mg (31009b)

  151. “Wall Street Journal editorial.
    “We don’t know”.
    “We are told”.
    “We are told”.
    “We are told”.

    That and five rubles”…yada yada…

    Reads like a typical closing argument in court… why the feigned consternation?

    Colonel Haiku (49aad2)

  152. Sounds like nk is proposing a wager.

    How much is a ruble anyhow? 1.80 pennies

    Not too confident of your position, are you nk.

    If your bowl of borscht costs only five rubles you better not eat it.

    papertiger (c8116c)

  153. I was just thinking, General Flynn has standing to take the FISA court, secret surveillance by government traitors, and scum like the former President down altogether.

    Might be able to take away Barry’s lunch money in a civil suit even.

    papertiger (c8116c)

  154. @159. There’s no reason to fear “they” said because no President would ever use the mind-boggling capabilities of worldwide technical collection for nefarious or political purposes and if one tried the professionals would never allow it and yet here we are. Anyone expecting jail time for offenders should consider the challenge of prosecution for officials operating “IAW” the rules.

    crazy (d3b449)

  155. Yeah, a guy with a money trail from Putin and Erdogan who is asking for immunity from prosecution has standing to sue Obama. But why shouldn’t he give it a shot? What other ways will he have to pass the time in prison?

    nk (dbc370)

  156. So whatpt, Obama has actually performed services for volidya and the sultan, is the textbook definition of a subversive target but as maverick reminded us ‘there is nothing to fear from obama’

    narciso (d1f714)

  157. The Rhodes road show was something volodya wanted as much as uranium one’s stake, or a new banya

    narciso (d1f714)

  158. Lemme tell you what I suspect. Obama left little landmines for Trump with Deep State. Some of them may be conversations caught by NSA “tapps”, that show Trump and/or his people in a bad light, but that cannot be legally revealed. Until Nunes and Gowdy get them as part of the Russia investigation and then it can be legal to reveal them.

    But by all means let’s go after Rice and let’s find out “what she knew”. (“When did she know it” optional.)

    nk (dbc370)

  159. They went after IntEl ‘for being a wicked animal’ and trying to prevent the Iran deal.

    narciso (d1f714)

  160. Hard to argue he wasn’t damaged by Obama’s FISA court fishing trip.

    Hell, hard to argue the whole country isn’t damaged by secret surveillance directed by the CIA, NSA, rogue White House (read any Democrat in charge).

    It’s an unconstitutional abomination in direct conflict with the 4th amendment.

    (That’s the one Ruth, Sonya and Elana, pretend gives you the right to kill millions of children a year in Planned Parenthood death mills – for any Democrat lurkers)

    Let’s ask Neil Goresucks. He’ll tell ya.

    papertiger (c8116c)

  161. So far they have been lying abiut the contents of said intercepts as resolutely as they blamed nakoulah.

    narciso (d1f714)

  162. Finally the republicans have a fighter in Nunes and they replace him with a proven loser in gowdy. I fricken give up. where my meds at?

    mg (31009b)

  163. Numbskull Nunes under ethic investigation for mishandling classified info; forced recusal from Intel committee chair on Russia matter by Ryan. Slinks off Hill in borscht stained civies amidst driving rainstorm.

    “It just isn’t your day, is it.” – James Bond, 007 [Sean Connery] ‘From Russia, With Love’ 1963

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  164. nk is Switzerland in all of this. Neutral… dispassionate (except for the current administration)… no, on second thought, he’s Gump… and in for a surprise when what he thinks is a box of fine Swiss chocolates turns out to be something far less tasty.

    Colonel Haiku (49aad2)

  165. Yes. DCSCA, lefties have never pulled this ethics charges horsestuff before, have they.

    Mince on…

    Colonel Haiku (49aad2)

  166. Nunes is from the “grower” part of CA, I would be afraid to ask the price of his loyalty, though yes, Gowdy seems to be a, appearance-wise more so than ideologically, a Miss Lindsay protege.

    urbanleftbehind (5eecdb)

  167. No hump would invariably come to the right conclusion, except possibly with jenny, but you can’t blame him for that

    The huntress was deluged

    narciso (d1f714)

  168. “Reads like a typical closing argument in court… why the feigned consternation?

    – Colonel Haiku

    You mean a court where people testify openly, in their own names? You may be Colonel of the Haiku, but you’re still King of the Asspull.

    Leviticus (efada1)

  169. nnearly 30 baseless complaints, which cost her 500 k to dismiss, and there was no end in sight ‘the process is the punishment’ as mark stein has pointed out.

    narciso (d1f714)

  170. We’ve has six months of ouvno looking for that pony, leviticus.

    narciso (d1f714)

  171. North Korea’ Kim Jong-Un hasn’t actually played a nuclear card.

    Kentucky’s Mitch McConnell has.

    “We have met the enemy and he is us.” – Pogo [Walt Kelly] 1970

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  172. @174. Colonel, the House ethics committee is 50/50- a GOP member had concerns but it was Lyin’ Ryan told him to jump w/o a parachute. Nunes was Bannonized; a drop-forged, Channel Lock tool.

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  173. @ 180. You mean the Harry Reid card. Which if the Republicans had been willing to play first (e.g. Bolton), we might not have had an angry mob electing Trump.

    nk (dbc370)

  174. Bannon was on the NSC to watch Flynn??

    Bwahbwahbwahbwah!

    Like Abbott watched Costello and Dean watched Jerry over at Moe, Larry and Curly’s house.

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  175. At least two members of that committee, Clarke and Deutsche employed the awan bros,

    narciso (d1f714)

  176. Speaking of nuclear … McConnell DOES SOMETHING.

    http://www.latimes.com/politics/la-na-pol-senate-gorsuch-showdown-20170406-story.html

    Kevin M (25bbee)

  177. I’ll tell you, narciso, some “ethics complaints” can put a smile on a person’s face. Like this one.http://fortune.com/2017/03/27/jeff-sessions-criminal-inquiry-justice-department/ If all these guys could get to sign on are 23 people from five states, it means the U.S. population has not gone totally bananas.

    nk (dbc370)

  178. @182. Nope. The fallout from this nuclear blast came from a bomb dropped from a B-29 named name ‘McConnell’s Baby.’ Conservatism is as radioactive to Americans as Kryptonite is to Superman.

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  179. in new mexico
    unshaven gal walks down Main
    chased by whelp lawyer

    Colonel Haiku (49aad2)

  180. Yes they are usually that ridiculous, but that isnt the point its to keep the unicorn chase, and there is always a shadow after you

    narciso (d1f714)

  181. Sail goodman does get tedious.

    narciso (d1f714)

  182. @182. Bolton’s out of another job title on Friday: Fox News cancelled ‘Red Eye.’

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  183. gutfeld did a Mclean stevenson,

    narciso (d1f714)

  184. You mean a court where people testify openly, in their own names?

    Yeah. Exactly not like Obama’s FISA court.

    papertiger (c8116c)

  185. Yeah. Exactly not like Obama’s FISA court.

    papertiger (c8116c) — 4/6/2017 @ 10:16 am

    Gonna quote myself:

    Here’s the FISA Reauthorization act of 2012:
    https://www.govtrack.us/congress/bills/112/hr5949

    Here’s who voted for it in the House and Senate:
    https://www.govtrack.us/congress/votes/112-2012/h569
    https://www.govtrack.us/congress/votes/112-2012/s236

    If you don’t like it, one of the parties is significantly more in agreement with you than the other.

    Davethulhu (fab944)

  186. All the more reason for General Flynn to take it to the courts.

    The real courts. Not the phony balogna, hidden away, secret court.

    papertiger (c8116c)

  187. That was supposedly to track terrorist, the last administration funded groups allied with al queda.

    narciso (6e008d)

  188. Err, you do know that that was what Flynn was doing the whole time he was working for the government, right? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_T._Flynn#Military_career Spying. Some for Reagan, some for Bush I, some for Clinton, some for Bush II, and some … you’ll never guess … for Obama.

    nk (dbc370)

  189. Is this the first thing Mcconnell has accomplished as head nit-wit?

    mg (31009b)

  190. “SO DEVIN NUNES’ RECUSAL WAS A BAD IDEA. My 1997 book (written with bigshot DC lawyer Peter Morgan), The Appearance of Impropriety: How the Ethics Wars Have Undermined American Government, Business, and Society, deals with how appearance ethics are manipulated — often by wrongdoers to punish those looking into wrongdoing. It is as timely now as it was 20 years ago, and pundits, attorneys, and members of the Administration would be well-advised to give it a read.”

    https://pjmedia.com/instapundit/261873/

    Colonel Haiku (49aad2)

  191. @198- Love to see him in a flaming red turtleneck.

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  192. time loves a hero
    won’t be mouthpiece from Hell but
    only time will tell

    Colonel Haiku (49aad2)

  193. @198- Love to see him in a flaming red turtleneck.

    DCSCA (797bc0) — 4/6/2017 @ 11:04 am

    I bet you would rather it be nekkid on a bearskin rug.

    Colonel Haiku (49aad2)

  194. Spying. Some for Reagan, some for Bush I, some for Clinton, some for Bush II, and some … you’ll never guess … for Obama.

    And Obama, in service to his Islamic allies, spied on Flynn illegally, then leaked bogus material through Colin Powell illegally forcing Flynn into early retirement (the universal “reward” bestowed by Democrats upon patriots for competent national service).
    Then Obama spied on General Flynn some more, illegally.

    We all up to speed now?

    papertiger (c8116c)

  195. R.I.P. Don Rickles

    Icy (0be6a1)

  196. Gosh, he should totally go to court and reveal all of these illegal acts.

    But he won’t, because none of that is actually true.

    Davethulhu (fab944)

  197. @204. Tiger skin.

    “Mmmmmm. Kinky.” – Hedley Lamarr [Harvey Korman] ‘Blazing Saddles’ 1974

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  198. You can tell the difference between say local boy David headley,* and a public official can’t you nk

    *He hit no 1 with mumbai

    narciso (12c204)

  199. R.I.P. CPO Sharkey, eh.

    No tears for a hockey puck.

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  200. go-go chicago
    that toddlin’ windy city
    and windy lawyers

    Colonel Haiku (49aad2)

  201. Gonna go watch Kelly’s Heroes again.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kqw0Gz9GahM

    Davethulhu (fab944)

  202. “Square knees was asking for a reason
    How can I go sleeping in a car
    I got red hot tires my tires are smokin’
    I’m so broke I don’t want to stop
    My gears are crying
    My gears are crying
    I got the ha hamburger
    ha hamburger
    I got the ha hamburger midnight blues
    Got a grease mother she’s a holder finder
    Keeper of the scooter gas
    You gotta lift your tail and seal your fate
    Snort the crank your old man stashed
    And ride a tin can
    Ride a tin can street machine
    Square knees was asking for a reason
    How can I go sleeping in a car
    I got red hot tires my tires are smokin’
    I’m so broke I don’t want to stop
    My gears are crying
    My gears are crying
    I got the ha hamburger
    I got the ha hamburger
    I got the ha hamburger midnight blues”

    Colonel Haiku (49aad2)

  203. Gosh, he should totally go to court and reveal all of these illegal acts.

    YES. Now you’re getting it.

    Barack Obama‘s CIA Director John O. Brennan targeted Trump supporters for enhanced surveillance, intelligence sources confirm to GotNews’ Charles C. Johnson.

    The surveillance took place between Trump’s election on November 8 and the inauguration in January, according to White House and House intelligence sources.

    The focus was on General Mike Flynn, billionaire Erik Prince, and Fox News host Sean Hannity — all of whom had close ties to Trump before and after the November election and had helped the future president with managing his new diplomatic responsibilities.

    Hannity was targeted because of his perceived ties to Julian Assange, say our intelligence sources. Hannity was reportedly unmasked by Susan Rice at Brennan’s behest thanks to his close relationship with Trump and Julian Assange.

    from BREAKING: @ gotnews BarackObama’s CIA Director John Brennan and His Allies Were Targeting Trump Supporters For Surveillance

    Sean Hannity on Allegations Obama Admin Spied on Him: “I Will Sue All Involved!”

    Oh. Good enough. Never mind about General Flynn then.

    papertiger (c8116c)

  204. 180. DCSCA (797bc0) — 4/6/2017 @ 9:47 am

    North Korea’ Kim Jong-Un hasn’t actually played a nuclear card.

    Kentucky’s Mitch McConnell has.

    That’s using a different meaning of the wword nuclear.

    The change in the Senate rules is called nuclear because it is something that is never done.

    What’s never done is NOT the particular change in the rules here – with nominations the Senate just goes back to the way it was de facto before – a simple majority is all that’s needed to confirm. This is how the Senate de facto functioned. The best proof is the Clarence Thomas (and also Samuel Alito) nominations, both of whom were confirmed with a vote total of between 51 and 59 votes in favor of confirmation. Going back to that is not “nuclear.”

    What’s “nuclear” is overturning the Senate rules, especially outside the rules for changing the rules, which is the key point.

    It’s doing that without a two thirds majority for changing the rules because then any rule could be overturned by a simple majority, and maybe they could get rid of the legislative filibster also, and restrict possible amendments to a bill, and the Senate could become like the House. With nominees, of course, it’s a binary choice – up or down, yes or no, so not much is lost.

    There is a question as to whether there really are, or can be, any rules for changing the rules. And some say they can adopt any rules at the start of new Congress, but there was a counterargument for that – that the Senate is a “continuing body” because no more about one third of its members turn over at any time. There were these three positions.

    Few Senators wanted to change the rules outside of the rules for changing the rules.

    That’s “going nuclear.”

    Sammy Finkelman (ca4c0f)

  205. @212. Appropriate.

    “A DEAL, deal! Maybe the guy’s a Republican. “Business is business,” right?”- Crapgame [Don Rickles] ‘Kelly’s Heroes’ 1970

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  206. About Nunes: Rush Limbaugh said the Republicans take members of their team off the field, but the democrats never do.

    On the other hand, Nunes was showing signs of incompetence.

    Sammy Finkelman (ca4c0f)

  207. Nunes got too close to the truth.

    crazy (d3b449)

  208. Charles C. Johnson.

    Ahahahahahaha

    Davethulhu (fab944)

  209. And now, the Sports Report:

    Melania was looking VERY ‘Jackie-O’ as she deplaned in Palm Beach.

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  210. Now, in spite of the existence of the filibuster, the Senate functioned almost always on the premise that only a majority was needed to confirm presidential nominations, like the constitution says.

    The reason it functioned that way, even though there could always be a filibuster, is because first of all, the general belief that they cannot just vote down a president’s nominees you disagree with because then, in certain circumstances, (like when the Senate and the president are of different parties oe ideologies) almost nobody could be nominated to fill a position, and the government wouldn’t function. So Senators in general don’t, or didn’t tend to vote against nominations, and
    nominations rarely got less than 80 or 90 votes in favor.

    Senators figured that when they got aa president they liked, his nominees would be confirmed rathewer easily, and it was better for all concerned if things worked that way.

    Starting around 1969, following the lead of Senator Proxmire (D-Wis) the Senate got very tough on nomiees, but this was always on politially neutral “conflict of interest” grounds. Many nominations would be withdrawn well before a vote, and it happened this year with the Secretary of Labor, and the Secretary of the Army, and a few other nominations.

    A withdrawal also happens when someone might lose a confirmation vote for other reasons, but usually I think a filibuster (getting 51 votes but not 60) was not a factor.

    There was a filibuster of Abe Fortas’ nomination to tbe Chief Justice of the United states supreme Court in 1968, but it was bipartisan, and if they didn’t have somewhat good grounds, other Senators would have invoked cloture, even though you the needed two thirds, or 67 Senators, because in general they didn’t want to vote against nominees because if you do that, you could get into a situation where it would be practically impossible to fill Executive branch jobs, even if you only needed a majority, a situation well over a majorty agreed was very undesirable.

    And they also didn’t filibuster nominations because they didn’t want to overuse the filibuster.

    It used to be also that a filibuster actually required speaking, but then they gave people shortcuts – the way baseball for instance now is going to allow an intentional walk without actually having the throw four pitches.

    So the minority party, or any group of 41 Senators, could just announce they were doing a filibuster and everybody woud agree they needed 60 votes in order to vote. And filbusters were getting more and more common, to the point where they say a bill needs 60 votes for anything to happen.

    Now what also happened, and happens, with nominations was that individual Senators would place a “hold” on nominations. This was based on the idea they could filibuster. It was always just one or a few Senators. The nominations were delayed. The nominations were not usually stopped, nor was that the intention. It usually was over secondary issues and not opposition to the nomination itself.

    A single Senator filibuster could only delay things but they didn’t like to see the Senate tied up, so this was respected. It worked because other Senators also wanted that power, but had it been overused, or done to completely stop a nomination, they would have stopped honoring these holds.

    Sammy Finkelman (ca4c0f)

  211. Got anything from Elizabeth O’Bagy, papertiger?

    Charles C. Johnson.

    Ahahahahahaha

    (Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, Davethulhu.)

    nk (dbc370)

  212. That Brennan’s a real piece of work. Face caught fire, rescuer put it out with an ice pick and he’s never recovered.

    Colonel Haiku (49aad2)

  213. 183. DCSCA (797bc0) — 4/6/2017 @ 9:55 am

    Bannon was on the NSC to watch Flynn??

    The CBS Evening News (and also NBC apaprently) reported it that way last night, but according to the New York Times, that’s only Bannon’s version of the story.

    Sammy Finkelman (ca4c0f)

  214. Don Rickles Roasts Clint Eastwood
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v-oItsU_l4c

    papertiger (c8116c)

  215. you are teh greatest
    no it is you who am great
    Looks like 🐙 🐑 love

    Colonel Haiku (49aad2)

  216. The CBS Evening News (and also NBC apaprently) reported it that way last night, but according to the New York Times, that’s only Bannon’s version of the story.

    Sammy Finkelman (ca4c0f) — 4/6/2017 @ 12:08 pm

    CBS still covering the Rice story… with a blanket… until it stops breathing, Sammeh?

    Colonel Haiku (49aad2)

  217. 171. mg (31009b) — 4/6/2017 @ 9:21 am

    Finally the republicans have a fighter in Nunes and they replace him with a proven loser in gowdy.

    Actually, it’s the Senate
    intelligence committee that looks bad.

    They took testimony last week on the existence of 1,000 paid Russian trolls, who were trying to swing votes in Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin last October, except that there’s probably no evidence for that.

    Trolls maybe. Paid trolls, maybe. But restricted to swing states (that woud only matter if the election was close and Trump won other states but lost New Hampshire and Nevada and Virginia) or having very much effect on public opinion at large, maybe another thing.

    senator Mark Warner on he senate sdie

    Sammy Finkelman (ca4c0f)

  218. @225. Eastwood gets last laugh: Clint’s alive; Don’s dead.

    “Ya hockey puck.” – Don Rickles, almost any Tonight Show

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  219. R.I.P. Don Rickles?

    Good.

    What a loser.

    Who write his jokes? Helen Keller?

    Kevin M (25bbee)

  220. Don Rickles final speech at tribute to Don Rickles (sub Ita)

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MOcWkUxbP8s

    Fit for the occasion.

    papertiger (c8116c)

  221. Colonel Haiku (49aad2) — 4/6/2017 @ 12:14 pm

    CBS still covering the Rice story… with a blanket… until it stops breathing, Sammeh?

    They did cover it earlier this week, when NBC and ABC didn’t. although they did open the newscast with the claim that Trump had been revealed to be doing something wrong – he was getting money from his trust, instead of, presumbably, treating it like a time deposit.

    Sammy Finkelman (ca4c0f)

  222. @233- The story was stillborn, Sammy. GOP blames ‘Russian’ healthcare.

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  223. There’s other things going on, and other interesting news or magazsine articles. The New York Times magazine had astory this sunday about medical billing. It is completely irrational and unfair, and some of the information is condidered to be trade secrets. In some other cases information is withheld in vioation of law. And leaves people with loss of savings.

    https://www.nytimes.com/2017/03/29/magazine/those-indecipherable-medical-bills-theyre-one-reason-health-care-costs-so-much.html

    Sammy Finkelman (ca4c0f)

  224. Bannons tells you exactly why he does things, he wouldn’t tell an unnamed official, as the basilisk suggests.

    Rhodes, rice, Brennan and co, have been shoveling ouvno for months now.

    narciso (6ac269)

  225. jared kushner texting joe scarborough. Trump has to fire this democrat punk.

    mg (31009b)

  226. It really is striking how every paper sans martosko’s mail got the bannon story wrong. Like every paper got the sanford, benghazi, fast and furious, or iran deal wrong.

    narciso (6ac269)

  227. Footnote to history.

    American legend, former Ohio senator, the last of the ‘Original Mercury Seven’ and the first American astronaut to orbit the Earth, John Glenn, was buried today, April 6, 2017, in a gentle rain at Arlington on what would have been he and his wife Annie’s 75th wedding anniversary.

    Since Glenn died nearly four months ago on December 8, 2016– he rightly gets the last laugh– truly “The Ripe Stuff.”

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  228. @232. Rickles was fit for no occasion.

    He probably won’t be invited to his own funeral.

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  229. But Jared Kushner has a certain card to play, if Bannon gets out of pocket. Bannon should goad Miller into that particular fight.

    urbanleftbehind (5eecdb)

  230. Its like the ethics committee is not serious

    https://spectator.org/the-invisible-awan-brothers-scandal/

    narciso (d1f714)

  231. Across the :www.familysecuritymatters.org/publications/detail/french-presidential-campaign-part-2

    narciso (d1f714)

  232. Anything from Elizabeth O’Bagy…

    Isn’t it interesting, a Democrat operative lying about her credential, lobbying the Obama admin to arm ISIS before O declared them the JV team.

    General Flynn was surveilled, called a crank, and pushed out for lobbying the other way.

    papertiger (c8116c)

  233. And maverick hir

    narciso (d1f714)

  234. lol looks like failmerica wants to get oodles more of its tatted up semi-literate soldiers slaughtered in syria

    good luck with that, losers

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  235. i have a question for Mr. Nunes

    what does “temporarily recused” mean?

    is that kinda like the temporarily pregnant hoochies running to enjoy the Planned Parenthood services Justin Amash and the rest of the freedom filth refuse to de-fund?

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  236. mark meadows is holy hell on them goalposts

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  237. Its only till they’ve rounded up all the unicorns:
    https://mobile.twitter.com/MPPregent/status/850069632883068928

    narciso (d1f714)

  238. yay! i clickered on that one and it worked

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  239. what moron other than Meghan McCain’s useless cowardly geriatric p.o.s. daddy thinks removing assad to the tune of god knows how many borrowed chineser dollars and to the tune of god knows how many luckless failmerican lives is gonna make things more better in syria

    hello?

    let’s put our thinking caps on and chaw on this one a bit

    we have some recent data points on this scenarios

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  240. happyfeet (28a91b) — 4/6/2017 @ 1:23 pm

    what does “temporarily recused” mean?

    Till the House Ethics Committee finishes its inquiry into the accusations of his having made unauthorized disclosures of classified information, which he hopes will end with a dismissal, soon, of all claims of havinbg violated House rules or any other standard of conduct.

    Sammy Finkelman (6f9f42)

  241. Hanging does not concentrate the mind, in retrospect:

    http://ww.familysecuritymatters.org/publications/detail/french-presidential-campaign-part-2

    narciso (d1f714)

  242. the national soros radio propaganda sluts are already running hit pieces on the guy “temporarily” taking over from our boy devin

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  243. 252. Well, they want to remove Assad without putting any worse guys in power. They were even willing to have Assad approve his immediate successor (an orderly succession.) Assad is near the bottom of the list of bad guys in Syria. There is an argument that some not bad people are relying on him for protection.

    They didn’t make any provision as to how Assad was going to stay out of jail or avoid getting killed. Russia I think indicated they didn’t want him.

    Sammy Finkelman (6f9f42)

  244. 254. The webpage cannot be found

    Sammy Finkelman (6f9f42)

  245. Yes pointing out the emperor’s new clothes is frowned upon.

    narciso (d1f714)

  246. https://www.nytimes.com/2017/03/29/magazine/those-indecipherable-medical-bills-theyre-one-reason-health-care-costs-so-much.html?_r=0

    . Only in America do medical treatment and recovery coexist with a peculiar national dread: the struggle to figure out from the mounting pile of bills what portion of the fantastical charges you actually must pay. It is the sickness that eventually afflicts most every American.

    What’s less understood is the extent to which our current medical-billing system itself is responsible for the high prices patients are charged…But all of those individual price increases have been enabled — indeed, aided and abetted — by the complex system of billing and coding that underlies bills like those sent to Wickizer. That system, with its lines of alphanumeric codes and arcane medical abbreviations, has given birth to a gigantic new industry of consultants, armies of back-room experts whom medical providers and insurance companies deploy against each other in an endless war over which medical procedures were undertaken and how much to pay for them. ..

    Seemingly subtle choices about which code to use can have large financial consequences. If after reviewing a hospital chart of, say, a patient who has just had a problem with his heart, a hospital coder indicates the diagnosis code for “heart failure” (ICD-9-CM Code 428) instead of the one for “acute systolic heart failure” (Code 428.21), the difference could mean thousands of dollars. “In order to code for the more lucrative code, you have to know how it is defined and make sure the care described in the chart meets the criterion, the definition, for that higher number,” says one experienced coder in Florida, who helped with Wickizer’s case and declined to be identified because she works for another major hospital. In order to code for “acute systolic heart failure,” the patient’s chart ought to include supporting documentation, for example, that the heart was pumping out less than 25 percent of its blood with each beat and that he was given an echocardiogram and a diuretic to lower blood pressure. Submitting a bill using the higher code without meeting criteria could constitute fraud.

    Each billing decision, then, can be seen as a battle of coder versus coder. The coders who work for hospitals and doctors strive to bring in as much revenue as possible from each service, while coders employed by insurers try to deny claims as overreaching. Coders who audit Medicare charts look for abuse to reclaim money or fraud that needs to be punished with fines. Hospital coders teach doctors — and doctors pay to take courses — to learn how they can “upcode” their charts to a more lucrative level with minimal effort. In a doctor’s office, a Level 3 visit (paid, say, at $175) might be legally transformed into a Level 4 (say, $225) by performing one extra maneuver, like weighing the patient or listening to the lungs, whether the patient’s illness required that or not.

    While most hospitals and insurers set their own rates for each level of care, adding a step when interacting with a patient can also bring windfalls. E.R. doctors, for example, learned that insurers might accept a higher-reimbursed code for the examination and treatment of a patient with a finger fracture (usually 99282) if — in addition to needed interventions — a narcotic painkiller was also prescribed (a plausible bump up to 99283), indicating a more serious condition.

    Sammy Finkelman (6f9f42)

  247. Toward the end of the 20th century and into the next, as strategic coding increased, a new industry thrived. For-profit colleges offered medical-coding degrees, and internships soon followed. Because alphanumeric coding languages are as distinct from one another as Chinese is from Russian, different degree tracks are necessary, along with distinct professional organizations that offer their own particular professional exams, certifications and licensing. Hospital systems and insurers — which have become huge, Hydra-like enterprises — now all employ roomfuls of coding-program graduates to perform these tasks. Membership in the American Academy of Professional Coders has risen to more than 170,000 today from roughly 70,000 in 2008.

    Individual doctors have complained bitterly about the increasing complexity of coding and the expensive necessity of hiring their own professional coders and billers — or paying a billing consultant. But they have received little support from the medical establishment, which has largely ignored the protests. And perhaps for good reason: The American Medical Association owns the copyright to CPT, the code used by doctors. It publishes coding books and dictionaries. It also creates new codes when doctors want to charge for a new procedure. It levies a licensing fee on billing companies for using CPT codes on bills. Royalties for CPT codes, along with revenues from other products, are the association’s biggest single source of income…

    …Studies have shown that hospitals charge patients who are uninsured or self-pay 2.5 times more than they charge those covered by health insurance (who are billed negotiated rates) and three times more than the amount allowed by Medicare. That gap has grown considerably since the 1980s….

    …Hospitals tend to treat their billing strategies — codes and their master price list, called a charge master — as trade secrets vital to their business. State laws and judges tend to respect that as proprietary information…..

    …For years, creative coding has been winning over what the government calls “correct coding,” meaning coding that gives providers their due, but without exaggeration. Indeed, each attempt by the government to control questionable coding to enhance providers’ revenue has seemed to only fuel more attempts. In 1996, for example, Medicare’s National Correct Coding Initiative made it clear that certain codes couldn’t appear on the same bill because they were inherently part of the same procedure. As a rule, an anesthesiologist could not, for example, separately bill for anesthesia and checking your oxygen level during your surgery. But the government created Modifier 59 — a code that could be appended to other codes to allow doctors to take exceptions to that rule in unusual cases. Modifier 59 could be used to allow for two payments in certain situations, such as when an oncology nurse needed to insert two separate IVs for two different purposes — one to administer chemotherapy, say, and another hours later because the patient seemed dehydrated. Such cases were expected to be exceedingly rare.

    But just as entrepreneurial corporate tax lawyers search each new tax code for economic advantage, entrepreneurial coders and billers find loopholes to exploit at the edge of the law. An investigation by the Health and Human Services Office of the Inspector General in 2005 found many instances of Modifier 59 abuse. Forty percent of code pairs billed with Modifier 59 in 2003 were not legitimate, resulting in $59 million in overpayment. Similarly, when Medicare announced that it would pay only a set fee for the first hour and a half of a chemotherapy infusion — and a bonus for time thereafter — a raft of infusions clocked in at 91 minutes.

    Like nearly every area of medicine, coding science has advanced — though not to the patient’s benefit. Commercial computer “encoder” programs maximize income from coding and make helpful suggestions (“That could be billed for Level 3,” or “Did you forget Code 54150,” indicating a circumcision on a bill for a male newborn). Today many medical centers have coders specializing in particular disciplines — joint replacement or ophthalmology or interventional radiology, for example. Advanced coding consultants advise lesser coders. The Business of Spine, a Texas-based consulting firm with a partner office in Long Island, advises spine surgeons’ billers about what coding Medicare and commercial insurers will tolerate, what’s legal and not, to maximize revenue. The evolution of this mammoth growth enterprise means bigger bills for everyone — whether through increasing premiums and deductibles on insurance policies or, as in Wickizer’s situation, depleting the savings earmarked for children’s college.

    Like many medical centers, the University of Virginia Health System has turned at least some of its billing and debt collection over to professionals, third-party contractors who have no pretense of the charitable mission espoused by the University of Virginia, founded by Thomas Jefferson in 1819 to educate leaders in public service. The collectors are often paid a percentage of the money they recover. They tend not to care whether a procedure was coded well or poorly. Their task is usually to go after the total sum the hospital says it is owed.

    Sammy Finkelman (6f9f42)

  248. A previous New York times series:

    https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2014/health/paying-till-it-hurts.html

    While things are impossible for the uninsured, insurance companies probably take on only teh easuest cases but pass on thje res.

    Prices have become disconnected from reality. The first thing that has to be done is this whole system has to come to an end. There are probably people who have thought hwo to do this.

    Sammy Finkelman (6f9f42)

  249. the fish rots from the top

    you can’t have a corrupt fbi cia nsa irs epa fcc

    a completely trashy joke of a secret service

    and a bunch of sleazy corrupt unethical douchebags in your congress

    and have an ethical efficient healthcare system

    failmerica’s a deeply embedded cultural thang anymore

    sucky loser-assed country gonna suck

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  250. 262.

    you can’t have a corrupt fbi cia nsa irs epa fcc

    a completely trashy joke of a secret service

    and a bunch of sleazy corrupt unethical douchebags in your congress

    and have an ethical efficient healthcare system

    This system was largely created by Congress, and maybe some presidents, not the FBI, CIA, IRS or EPA or NSA.

    From the article:

    ….In 1979, the government decided to use what by then were called ICD-9 codes — which specify the patient’s diagnosis — in adjudicating Medicare and Medicaid claims, with some modifications added specifically for that purpose; the United States version was called ICD-9-CM. (The country has recently moved to a new iteration, ICD-10-CM.) For its beneficiaries, Medicare pays a fixed fee for inpatient hospitalization based primarily on the ICD-CM code, which is translated into a DRG (diagnosis-related group) code — which is the immediate basis for reimbursement.

    Other insurers followed in making codes the basis for billing. Coding systems begot new coding systems, because few hospitals wanted to be paid according to Medicare’s relatively low DRG standards. And because strategic coding meant increased payment, that begot coding specialists and coding courses and coding degrees. There are now different increasingly complex coding languages that define payment for different kinds of services: CPT codes, for office visits delivered by doctors, as well as HCPCS, ICD-PCS-CM and DRG, for charges that are incurred in the hospital. There are tens of thousands of codes in each lexicon that have become increasingly specific. For example, there are different codes for in-office earwax removal depending on the method used (irrigation or instruments), different codes for delivering different vaccinations and a code for each injection delivered in the hospital. Different insurers also use different coding systems.

    One thing: it’sot malpractice lawsuits that cause unnecessary medical tests (or at least claims of having done them) when medical providers get money for each one. Or for a lot of things. The codes are supposed to prevent charging extra.

    Sammy Finkelman (6f9f42)

  251. http://www.nytimes.com/2013/12/05/health/think-the-er-was-expensive-look-at-the-ambulance-bill.html

    Thirty years ago ambulance rides were generally provided free of charge, underwritten by taxpayers as a municipal service or provided by volunteers. Today, like the rest of the health care system in the United States, most ambulance services operate as businesses and contribute to America’s escalating medical bills. ..

    …Although ambulances are often requested by a bystander or summoned by 911 dispatchers, they are almost always billed to the patient involved. And the charges, as well as insurance coverage, range widely, from zero to tens of thousands of dollars…

    …What is more, since ambulances companies typically collect only 30 to 40 percent of the amount they bill, they often try to charge more for patients with insurance and those who can pay, Mr. Fitch said…

    ,..But Medicare, the insurance program for the elderly, does tabulate its numbers and has become alarmed at its fast-rising expenditures for ambulance rides: nearly $6 billion a year, up from just $2 billion in 2002…

    …The Affordable Care Act requires policies to include some coverage for emergency care as an essential benefit, including ambulance transport. But the ambulance ride and the care are billed separately. Many Silver plans — a lower-tier plan — require patients to pay an initial copay of $250 for the emergency room and $250 more for the transport, for example.

    Every insurance plan evaluates ambulance rides differently for coverage, with many seeking to determine if the service was really needed — a true “emergency.”

    That determination can be highly subjective. Some will grant coverage if the destination was an emergency room, regardless of the patient’s status, but others may require admittance to the hospital as evidence that the condition was serious…
    …Most ambulance companies bill according to the level of skill of the team on board, rather than the medical needs of the patients they collect. A team capable of administering Advanced Cardiac Life Support costs more than one with only basic first aid training.

    Distance rarely counts for much, although a small mileage charge is added to the fee. Some companies even charge hundreds of dollars extra if a friend or relative rides along with an injured patients….

    Sammy Finkelman (6f9f42)

  252. https://www.nytimes.com/2014/10/26/us/as-insurers-try-to-limit-costs-providers-hit-patients-with-more-separate-fees.html

    As insurers ratchet down payments to physicians and hospitals, these providers are pushing back with a host of new charges: Ophthalmologists are increasingly levying separate “refraction fees” to assess vision acuity. Orthopedic clinics impose fees to put an arm in a cast or provide a splint, in addition to the usual bill for the office visit. On maternity wards, new mothers pay for a lactation consultant. An emergency room charges an “activation fee” in addition to its facility charges. Psychologists who have agreed to an insurer’s negotiated rate for neuropsychological testing bill patients an additional $2,000 for an “administration charge.”

    …. if they do not write a check for the refraction fee, for example, many doctors will not dispense a prescription for the glasses…

    Cindy Weston of the American Medical Billing Association, an industry group, said it was up to physicians to decide what to include in their principal payment and what merited an extra charge. She said they now “may be forced to charge” for new services because the Affordable Care Act “has shifted so much responsibility for payment from insurers to patients” and patients do not pay as reliably as insurers.

    Sammy Finkelman (6f9f42)

  253. yes yes but the fish still rots from the top

    this is obvious to anyone who is willing to do the analysis

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  254. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diagnosis-related_group

    This system of classification was developed as a collaborative project by Robert B Fetter, PhD, of the Yale School of Management, and John D. Thompson, MPH, of the Yale School of Public Health.[2] The system is also referred to as “the DRGs”, and its intent was to identify the “products” that a hospital provides. One example of a “product” is an appendectomy. The system was developed in anticipation of convincing Congress to use it for reimbursement, to replace “cost based” reimbursement that had been used up to that point. DRGs are assigned by a “grouper” program based on ICD (International Classification of Diseases) diagnoses, procedures, age, sex, discharge status, and the presence of complications or comorbidities. DRGs have been used in the US since 1982 to determine how much Medicare pays the hospital for each “product”, since patients within each category are clinically similar and are expected to use the same level of hospital resources..

    …The prospective payment system implemented as DRGs had been designed to limit the share of hospital revenues derived from the Medicare program budget,[7] and in spite of doubtful results in New Jersey, it was decided in 1983 to impose DRGs on hospitals nationwide.[citation needed]

    In that year, HCFA assumed responsibility for the maintenance and modifications of these DRG definitions. Since that time, the focus of all Medicare DRG modifications instituted by HCFA/CMS has been on problems relating primarily to the elderly population.[citation needed]

    ,,,In 2007, author Rick Mayes described DRGs as:

    “ …the single most influential postwar innovation in medical financing: Medicare’s prospective payment system (PPS). Inexorably rising medical inflation and deep economic deterioration forced policymakers in the late 1970s to pursue radical reform of Medicare to keep the program from insolvency. Congress and the Reagan administration eventually turned to the one alternative reimbursement system that analysts and academics had studied more than any other and had even tested with apparent success in New Jersey: prospective payment with diagnosis-related groups (DRGs). Rather than simply reimbursing hospitals whatever costs they charged to treat Medicare patients, the new model paid hospitals a predetermined, set rate based on the patient’s diagnosis. The most significant change in health policy since Medicare and Medicaid’s passage in 1965 went virtually unnoticed by the general public. Nevertheless, the change was nothing short of revolutionary. For the first time, the federal government gained the upper hand in its financial relationship with the hospital industry. Medicare’s new prospective payment system with DRGs triggered a shift in the balance of political and economic power between the providers of medical care (hospitals and physicians) and those who paid for it – power that providers had successfully accumulated for more than half a century.”[13]

    Thqt book says the upper hand, but prices kept on rising.

    Sammy Finkelman (6f9f42)

  255. Mike “Pizzagate” Cernovich says the Syrian gas attack was a false flag.

    Davethulhu (fab944)

  256. Mr. Cernovich is probably right but who cares whose flag it was

    it’s in Syria!

    hello?

    nobody gives a crap about the rubble and misery in syria except pedophile putin and meghan’s cowardly and disgustingly bloodthirsty weirdo daddy

    everyone else has real lives

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  257. there’s no one train what will get me to hyde park from here where i live i have to transfer downtown

    it’s springtime and i never been to hyde park my whole life you know

    i heard they have pork chop sammiches there

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  258. Not worth it, happy, if you are still North of Roosevelt Rd, turn back.

    urbanleftbehind (39dadd)

  259. oh no i was thinking next weekend

    but yeah it definitely looks like kind of a hassle

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  260. or is that easter

    i have people coming for easter

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  261. Mike “Pizzagate” Cerovich says what the Russians want him to say like a good little Yugoslavian Trumpkin.

    nk (dbc370)

  262. @175 urbanleftbehind

    The difference between Devin Nunes and Paul Reubens:

    The first one’s a grower and the second one’s a shower.

    Pinandpuller (16b0b5)

  263. Yeah, I “prepped” in the area and not at the place that costs 20k per annum (i went where the Obama girls should have been exiled to in January 2013). Hype Dark is not a typo.

    urbanleftbehind (39dadd)

  264. oh.

    i just wanted to mosey through the park and maybe go see the frank lloyd house

    and then eat something

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  265. there’s a frank lloyd in gold coast i go by sometimes

    it’s very very difficult to photograph I’ve deleted every attempt so far

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  266. Mike “Pizzagate” Cerovich says what the Russians want him to say like a good little Yugoslavian Trumpkin.
    nk (dbc370) — 4/6/2017 @ 3:13 pm

    *********

    Probably Serbian.

    Rae (2fd998)

  267. Goulash

    mg (31009b)

  268. far out and outa site, happyfeet

    mg (31009b)

  269. Was fortunate to see Rickles a few times. Extremely talented he could sing, dance, act and tell jokes. In my Vegas top 5.
    Jonathon Winters, George Burns, Buddy Hacket, Steve Allen

    mg (31009b)

  270. He was 90. We should all live so long.

    nk (dbc370)

  271. Sending Nunes to the Ethics Committee for allegedly disclosing classified info is a clever move by his critics. How does he prove his innocence without bringing the Ethics Committee and staff into the Russia/Rice investigations? How many members and staff are even eligible for access? Why does the Speaker want him sidelined?

    crazy (d3b449)

  272. This situation in Syria is the result of the catastrophic policy failure of the Obama administration. Those nitwits had ignored what was going on for years, had convinced many Americans they’d prosecuted a super successful policy and were bragging as recently as January that this policy had caused Assad to “voluntarily and verifiably give up its chemical weapon stockpile.”

    But you shouldn’t base policy on gut wrenching photos. Hell, the NoKos only have to send one nuke over the border and it would kill 250k or more South Koreans. Maintain perspective and make sober assessments.

    Colonel Haiku (49aad2)

  273. Is there a more Soviet (read Communist) friendly country in the “West” than Greece? They cozied up to the Russkies for decades. Hell, if there not sucking up to Russia, they’re renting krypsonas on islands, browning their bodies under the sun, eating roasted goat, swilling wine and entreating each other to perform shinshi-shinshi (before it was outlawed… in Greece, amazingly enough!!!… as being “unclean”).

    Colonel Haiku (49aad2)

  274. The fierce moral urgency of “if not US, who?” hasn’t solved too many of the problems it was hoped it would.

    crazy (d3b449)

  275. @283. Saw Rickles in Vegas as well.

    Unimpressed. An hour of gutter jokes and racist insults capped with a closer using a microphone as a penis. A frat boy .

    Winters was gifted magic; Burns a total bore but made better use of a stogie than Clinton; Hackett too blue for school yet marble-mouth was at his best in ‘It’s A Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World’ but Steve Allen was absolutely, positively the most talented of the lot– w/Winters a close second. But Rickles?? Wheel him to the curb; Friday’s are trash day in Beverly Hills.

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  276. I bet we do,

    http://thedailybeast.com/articles/2017/04/05/think-you-know-everything-httabout-obama-guess-again-says-david-garrow.html

    Yes the syriza/right alliance is an odd duck, yet they paying the NATO danegeld

    narciso (d1f714)

  277. when i heard he died it remindered me of that scene in OA where they talk about Don Knotts

    when these people die it’s a lot like this

    it was totally on my list to go and i never got around to it

    and now i’ll never get to

    and i only have myself to blame

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  278. stupid stupid stupid

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  279. The fierce moral urgency of “if not US, who?” hasn’t solved too many of the problems it was hoped it would.

    preach it brother

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  280. Khan sheikhoun,like easT ghouta, are Islamic stronghold:

    http:thehill.com/blogs/pundits-blog/media/327665-with-susan-rice-reporters-forgot-the-facts

    narciso (d1f714)

  281. Today is the 100th annniversary of the enrry of the United States into World War I.

    There was some ceremony at the world war I memorial, which is in Kansas City. (Because Truman was World War I veteran?)

    Sammy Finkelman (ca4c0f)

  282. @286. Not just Obama- Congress was of little help– they refused to vote authorization for military action but hr does bear responsibility for the red line crap. And Trump tweeted repeatedly back in the day not to get into it a well.

    Now he sees a little disturbing TV. It’s sucker bait.

    The West lets itself get weaseled by video a hundred dead from a gas attack– some of them kids. Yeah, it sucks; it’s reprehensible– a war crime for all to see on the TeeVee. But the United States ain’t the world’s policeman (unless Syria has secret oil reserves, of course.) But if you think pictures of 100 dead civilians in 2017 phase anybody in the Kremlin you’re in for a surprise. Bear in mind Soviet Russia lost 25 million people in WW2. A few dead Syrians are nothing. Chump change at best – the cost of doing business to them, especially when the goal is to maintain a regime w/access to the Mediterranean.

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  283. @295. Yeah, let’s remind Americans that they invaded the Soviet Union for a time back in that era, too. Americans hardly remember that. Russians never forget it.

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  284. Sammy @ 295. Because Senator Jim Talent and Rep. Karen McCarthy were from Missouri in 2004. The National WWI Memorial is in Washington DC. The Liberty Memorial in Kansas was one of several local ones that pre-existed it, and was re-labeled the National WWI Museum in 2004 as a little bit of pork thrown to Missouri by Bush 43. And the official WWI holiday is Armistice Day on November 11.

    nk (dbc370)

  285. WWI was ridiculously stupid i blame germany

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  286. We were playing both sides,the gulf states and erdogan armed the Syrian rebels to the tune of 500 million, yet Syria was Iran and Russia’s ptoxy

    narciso (d1f714)

  287. maybe we should just build some nice infrastructure and call it a day

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  288. Syria is Russia’s base in the Middle East. Literally. The insurgency is a headache for Putin. Alleviated to some degree by now having a U.S. President who is not going to help the rebels or encourage U.S. allies to help them.

    And, no, dead Syrian babies will not bother the Kremlin. But dead Russian soldiers and pilots will. Like they did in Afghanistan and Chechnya. Less likely to happen without Stinger missiles supplied to the rebels.

    nk (dbc370)

  289. And all roads lead back to Iran. Another Obama success story.

    Colonel Haiku (2601c0)

  290. You forgot Bosnia, how many times do we need to see this film, now some Chechen and Libyans went to Syria, and some are coming back.

    narciso (d1f714)

  291. This was six months before the Samuel’s piece:
    https://mosaicmagazine.com/essay/2015/02/obamas-secret-iran-strategy/

    narciso (d1f714)

  292. america’s done more than its share for middle east peace

    arranging for the nuclear holocaust of israel was a particularly brilliant move

    god bless america land that i love

    genocidal

    suicidal

    while the Lord smiles in glee from above

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  293. He’s gonna call Putin on the QT w/a head’s up then fire off a flurry of cruise missiles costing taxpayers $1.7 million to make more rubble out of the rubble in places w/o any Rooskies and crow how tough he is.

    Oh wait- breaking news– sure enough– 50 Tomahawks fired at Syria. your tax dollars at work.

    Told ‘ya.

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  294. And all roads lead back to Iran. Another Obama success story.

    I still can’t believe that he invaded.

    Davethulhu (c75fb7)

  295. I suspect there will be a response–and it isn’t so much about “the children”–it’s about the use of WMD.

    Rae (2fd998)

  296. Oh wait- breaking news– sure enough– 50 Tomahawks fired at Syria. your tax dollars at work.
    Told ‘ya.
    DCSCA (797bc0) — 4/6/2017 @ 6:13 pm

    ***********

    Do you have a source for that?

    then how do you know that is all there is?

    Rae (2fd998)

  297. where’s the link about the tomahawks (sp?)

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  298. Looks like this broke six minutes ago

    Hillary Clinton Calls For Strike On Syrian Airfields
    The Huffington Post · 6 minutes ago
    Clinton, the 2016 Democratic nominee, said at the Women in the World summit in New York City that a retaliatory strike would prevent Assad from carrying out similar attacks in the future. “Assad has …

    Rae (2fd998)

  299. @310– Put your TV on. NBC News is reporting this live now. 50 tomahawks at $1.7 million each fired off into Syria.

    Sleep well America.

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  300. @31- its LIVE on TV now.

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  301. @313- It’s live on television now. NBC News.

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  302. @31- its LIVE on TV now.
    DCSCA (797bc0) — 4/6/2017 @ 6:20 pm

    *********

    Oh gawd–well I guess I’ll have to tune on the boob tube–yikes!

    Rae (2fd998)

  303. 43 missiles fired at 2 air bases.

    Colonel Haiku (2601c0)

  304. if it’s true then the tatted-up failmerican military was super tardy to go along with that i think

    President Trump must’ve promised them espresso machines or free facial peels or something

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  305. nk, the original groundbreaking of the Kansas City Liberty memorial was actually attended by flag officers of five allied nations, including Adm Beatty, Marshal Foch and Gen Pershing. So I’d not necessarily denigrate it as a “local” memorial.

    SPQR (a3a747)

  306. @312- It’s live on television now. Been so for about 15 minutes. It’s a pinprick response.

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  307. Now its upped to 60 tomahawks.

    60 X $1.7 million. Ka-ching!

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  308. 43 to 47

    Colonel Haiku (2601c0)

  309. Now 60 reported by Pentagon.

    I sure hope Brian Williams is safe!

    Colonel Haiku (2601c0)

  310. Trump lost my support with this idiotic intrusion in Syria.

    Babies die all the time and I care more about Chicago Babies than I care about 1MM Syria babies.

    Why are we starting armed conflict with Russia when they are busy killing each other?

    When my enemy is killing my enemy, let them.

    I am 100% disgusted in the Neo-Cons and Democrats (who goaded this response from Trump with all the Russia BS hysteria)

    Blah Blah (44eaa0)

  311. Nuts. 100% nucking futs.

    Sunnis killing Shia is a good thing. Let it roll.

    Blah Blah (44eaa0)

  312. having sprinkled a hundred million borrowed chineser dollars worth of tommywhatevers on syria, the failmerican military must be feeling pretty good about itself right now

    and isn’t that what really makes it all worth it

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  313. contrary to early reports, ivanka did *not* drop her top and do a sultry shimmy for daddy upon learning of the failmerican military’s bold and decisive attack on syria (sp?)

    **DEVELOPING**

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  314. @327. So was firing off 60 tomahawks to make more holes and rubble on top of more holes and rubble.

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  315. Eli was pretty sharp even then

    http:www.nysun.com/foreign/bush-weighs-reaching-out-to-brothers/56899

    narciso (d1f714)

  316. #327 Sadly Happfeet this is 100% Trumps fault.

    To me, this is about him wanting to have push back on the Russia issue with the Press and Democrats. This has ZERO to do with dead babies or Sarin or whatever.

    Democrats and the Media are complicit in pushing war for N Fing reason. McCain, Rubio and the rest of these war mongers in the GOP are simply disgusting vile humans. And WTF is the CIA doing? Didn’t they love the fact Obama did a deal to remove WMD in Syria? And Obola?

    Yikes, we have gone mad as a Nation.

    Blah Blah (44eaa0)

  317. Now its upped to 60 tomahawks.

    60 X $1.7 million. Ka-ching!

    DCSCA (797bc0) — 4/6/2017 @ 6:23 pm

    ************

    Eh–they might have been close to their expiration dates and due for demolition anyways.

    Rae (2fd998)

  318. Is good. Even if Trump did get Putin’s permission first like DCSCA says (which even I think is taking this “Manchurian” thing too far). Is positive message to King Abdullah who was just here, and message to Chairman Xi who will be here (not necessarily positive).

    nk (dbc370)

  319. Be nice if the Captain interrupted his strawberries and ice cream dessert w/t Top Chinaman and let ‘We the People’ know what the hell he did and who the hell he’s killed.

    Don’t worry, Donald, we’ll keep an eye on the mess boys.

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  320. The thing I hate to most about our Wars is we refuse to kill enough people to actually win them.

    Blah Blah (44eaa0)

  321. If it is limited to this – what amounts to a warning – may not be a terrible move. He has four others bases. We’ll see if he wants to lose it all. If

    Colonel Haiku (2601c0)

  322. @333- There was likely Rooskie personnel on that airfield so giving a head’s up to Putie Bird at 4 AM Moscow time might have been a wise gesture– or at least irritated Vlad by waking him up so early.

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  323. this is vile but worse than that it’s silly

    i wonder if that freakshow mattis goofball tried to stop it or if he was all pumped up and eager to sprinkle these fancy rubble-bouncers on the syrian (sp?) … rubble

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  324. #337 And what if he just killed a few hundred Russian soldiers. You think Putin is going to allow that?

    This is nuts.

    When Sunnis are killing Shia and Shia are killing Sunnis … let them. In fact help them.

    Blah Blah (44eaa0)

  325. Now its upped to 60 tomahawks.

    60 X $1.7 million. Ka-ching!

    DCSCA (797bc0) — 4/6/2017 @ 6:23 pm

    Meh… whole operation is much cheaper than Obama vacations taken during the first term.

    Colonel Haiku (2601c0)

  326. Save the Christians in Syria, the Muzzies, let them kill each other.

    Sad day for USA.

    Reminds me of Clinton dropping some missiles on a milk factory in Somalia to deflect from blue stained dresses.

    Blah Blah (44eaa0)

  327. @336. So, kill a hundred more next week, fire off 60 more tomahawks. It’s a waste of assets. It’s a feel good move; literally a knee-jerk reaction. And in the end, useless. There are smarter and more fiscally clever ways to squeeze Vlad’s nuts.

    But then, he’s a friend of the Captain.

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  328. you can bet you whole paycheck Meghan’s ex-military weirdo coward daddy’s gonna want us to add some extra to the budget to compensate for this burning and itchy discharge of tommywhatevers

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  329. @341. Blah, blah, blah….

    Look on the bright side, Trump’s going to crow about how tough he is now for the next 5 months and not a Russian boot licker.

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  330. #43 Winning a “just” war means killing enough of the other side till you get total surrender. Whether the number is 10 or 10,000,000 is irrelevant.

    And sure, I am sure Putin is a great ally. (* You are part of the deranged problem in the Nation. No matter the facts contradicting you, you press on.)

    Blah Blah (44eaa0)

  331. Is good. Even if Trump did get Putin’s permission first like DCSCA says (which even I think is taking this “Manchurian” thing too far). Is positive message to King Abdullah who was just here, and message to Chairman Xi who will be here (not necessarily positive).

    nk (dbc370) — 4/6/2017 @ 6:38 pm

    *******

    There was a message out there today from the Russians saying essentially that they do not give blanket approval to everything Assad does.

    The King of Jordan is a very impressive man.

    I’m glad to find out that Trump doesn’t buy into cockamamie screwballs like that Cernovich–or whatever the hell his name is.

    This is about WMD and other war crime violations–such as the bombing of the hospital –I was almost willing to bet that Mattis would respond rapidly so that even Assad could figure out the connection.

    Rae (2fd998)

  332. Putin loves a guy who wants lower energy price policy and confronts them militarily …. yeah. Makes sense.

    Blah Blah (44eaa0)

  333. So if Putin goes out and bombs our Troops and kills 200-300, then what?

    Blah Blah (44eaa0)

  334. Will McCain and Rubio strap up and go into the shooting war?

    Blah Blah (44eaa0)

  335. @341. Blah, blah, blah….

    Look on the bright side, Trump’s going to crow about how tough he is now for the next 5 months and not a Russian boot licker.

    DCSCA (797bc0) — 4/6/2017 @ 6:46 pm

    ********

    Sometimes when you don’t have much leverage on a man because you’ve left him little to lose that frees him up to do what he wants, as rapidly as he can.

    Trump tried to give a pass to Assad–Assad was emboldened in the wrong way–and embarrassed Trump and now Trump has to clue him in by other means.

    Rae (2fd998)

  336. We shattered an airfield.

    “We’ve sunk a truck!” – Lt. Cmdr. Sherman [Cary Grant] ‘Operation Petticoat’ 1959

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  337. Well, we now know where this president’s red line is…

    Colonel Haiku (2601c0)

  338. oh my goodness we shattered an airfield everybody gets a medal (and a new tattoo!)

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  339. 5 more to go. Assad’s move.

    Colonel Haiku (2601c0)

  340. Mattis and McMaster got it covered.

    Colonel Haiku (2601c0)

  341. Brian Williams is a bevy of fake news tonight.

    He keeps low-balling the cost of those tomahawk missiles and he’s off by a million bucks a piece.

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  342. So if Putin goes out and bombs our Troops and kills 200-300, then what?

    Blah Blah (44eaa0) — 4/6/2017 @ 6:50 pm

    ***************

    If Assad used WMD on them–then what?

    Or–do you pre-empt that?

    Rae (2fd998)

  343. mattis is such an unbelievable dork

    who can take him remotely seriously after this gay-assed rubble-bouncing clown show

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  344. Or Iran retaliates through hezbollah in Lebanon, the houthis in Yemen, or sympathetic militia in Iraq? Leaving the Russians out of the picture

    narciso (d1f714)

  345. Mattis and McMaster got it covered.

    Colonel Haiku (2601c0) — 4/6/2017 @ 6:53 pm

    ***********

    Oh yes. WMD near our troops is not to be tolerated. Assad tested Trump–and now he has an answer.

    Rae (2fd998)

  346. “Goodnight, Xi, you might want to watch a little TV… we’ll talk in the morning.”

    Colonel Haiku (2601c0)

  347. @357- What did Reagan do in Beruit when nearly 300 Marines were killed in that barracks bombing?

    Hint- the USS Missouri is a museum.

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  348. @361. LOL Yes, he should know how his borrowed money is being spent.

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  349. Syrian response:

    “Ouch.”

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  350. “Brian Williams is a bevy of fake news tonight.

    He keeps low-balling the cost of those tomahawk missiles and he’s off by a million bucks a piece.”

    You question Brian Williams’ veracity at your own peril. The man is a fount of facts and on-the-ground/in-teh-sh*t experience.

    Colonel Haiku (2601c0)


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