Tuesday, July 25, 2017

Congratulations, America--Republicans value stealing your money to give to the rich more than they value your votes or your puny lives

BREAKING N00Z--

HOLY FUCKING SHIT!!!!!

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-40750071?ns_mchannel=social&ns_campaign=bbc_breaking&ns_source=twitter&ns_linkname=news_central

US Senate healthcare repeal bill fails

  • 11 minutes ago
  • From the section US & Canada       
Breaking News image

The latest attempt to repeal the Obama-era healthcare act has failed after a dramatic night in the US Senate.
 
At least three Republicans - John McCain, Susan Collins and Lisa Murkowski - voted against the bill, which needed a simple majority to pass.

It was voted down by 51 votes to 49.

The so-called "skinny" repeal, which would have scaled back some of the more controversial provisions, is the third attempt to repeal Obamacare.

JESUS FUCKING HAPLOID CHRIST...

Thank FSM we dodged THAT bullet...FOR NOW.

Now I can finally go to bed...and sleep...perchance to dream...and perhaps, maybe just this once, NOT have a fucking nightmare about the WAR that PEWtin, tRump, and the Republicans have declared on us!!!!!

...I need a fucking Fireball.
Think I'll make it a double...*hic*

-- Dot Calm's shadow
(relieved as all holy hell)

*****

27 July 2017 update:

Greetings, fellow Dot Calm Readers, Freedom Fighters, and Truth Crusaders!

Walp, here we are again, just two days since my original post, and we're already inundated with yet another light-speed dump of n00z cycles and blather to get into a lather over...

So. Where to begin?

Here's a charming story--one for the kiddies.

tRump decided to make the Boy Scouts of America Jamboree into a political campaign rally in which he not only used profanity in front of the children--won't someone think of the children?!??--but also began but stopped short of finishing a story about an orgy on a rich man's yacht.

Alas for orange twatler, it's against the rules for Boy Scouts events to be politicized. Boy Scouts of America has apologized, but, of course, tRump hasn't and won't. I don't think he even knows that the word "apologize" exists except when he wants to bully someone into apologizing to him, the fuck.

But I digress.

The thing to remember with this little cluster of offensiveness is that Randall Stephenson, the president of the Boy Scouts of America, is ALSO the CEO of AT&T, and he needs tRump's approval to merge with TIME-Warner.

Yeesh.

Needless to say, the Boy Scouts' response to the whole torrid affair has been both tepid and tardy.

Also needless to say, plenty of families are pulling their sons out of scouting--sad to lose a tradition that's been in many of these families across multiple generations but unwilling to continue after such a disgrace.

*sigh*

Sad, frustrating...but I always knew that Girl Scouts are simply a better organization than Boy Scouts--far more inclusive, modern, and even avant-garde.

Who knows--maybe they'll start taking boys!

But before we'd even caught our breaFF after tRump's Boy Scouts speech fiasco, there was tRump's fiat to jack-boot all the trans people out of the military.

That, dear ones, was tRump's desperate hail mary to the evangelicals to beg their support if-when he boots Sessions out on his pasty white KKKeebler elf ass. You see, tRump's southern-bigot and Senate Republican old boys base is up in arms, rallying behind Sessions, and they're going to be mighty pissed if-when tRump kicks him to the curb so he can install or cajole or blackmail someone to fire Mueller.

A lot people wanted to dismiss this cluster from the fucker as a typical tRumpian distraction, but tell that to the people on the receiving end of the bigoted bastard's bullshit. Turns out that people hate being referred to and treated as "distractions."

Can't imagine why.

Thing is, tRump can't change policy with just a tweet, and the Pentagon is vowing not to act on the twat's tweet--at least for now.

So there is that.

My own take?

There's an awful lot I'd like to change about the military.

In a perfect world, we wouldn't need one.

But, since we do, it should take far better care of its people than it does today--especially with respect to mental health care and support. But our military is still--believe it or not--a leading employer when it comes to inclusion. The military included women before most other employers did. The military opened its doors to people of color before other employers did. And it supported LGBTQ+ long before marriage equality became the law of the land.

Of course, when you need warm bodies to do your mission, it doesn't behoove you to reject perfectly good ones...so there is that.

And the military does provide pay, veterans' benefits, training, education (but only when Democrats run the government), and opportunities that vulnerable populations--like trans people--are hard pressed to get anywhere else in this country.

Now, all of that said, my own personal take is that, while I'd rather keep everyone in one piece by NOT having them serve in the military, I realize that it's not up to me to decide for everyone else. So my take is that anyone who wants to serve in the military and who passes all the physical and mental examinations should be allowed to serve.

Period.

As one Tweep said, the only difference between a cis-gendered heterosexual and everyone else is who you hook up with after your shift is over--and that doesn't matter worth squat.

Whew.

And then, there are cute little glimmerings of potentially positive n00z that I almost refuse to acknowledge for fear of "jinxing" it...

Like, Republicans in Congress almost seem ready to clip tRump's wings just a skoshe.

For example, measures to keep the Russian sanctions in place are winning widespread support on both sides of the aisle--I gno, shocking, right? Democrat Sheldon Whitehouse is working to close a loophole in the Magnitsky Act, which would really piss off tRump's puppetmaster, PEWtin.

Good.

Heck, Senate Republicans are even frowning and sassing about how tRump had better not replace Sessions in a recess appointment--and how tRump had better not fire Mueller. Some in Congress are already working to make Mueller fire-proof.

Of course, since it's coming from Republicans, I'll believe it when I see it.

Why such a cynic?

I'll tell you...

It's because of the whole gawd-awful Obamacare repeal...urk.

First, McCain flew in from Arizona--still recovering from the brain cancer surgery that you and I paid for with our taxes--to save the day by VOTING TO REPEAL OUR HEALTH CARE by voting FOR the motion to proceed.

Then, something like seven Republicans voted NO to repeal Obamacare outright with no replacement. And if you think we dodged a bullet, think again--the next candidate is the "skinny" repeal, which seems to be the worst bill yet.

Of course, while speaking "against" it, McCain was his usual mush-mouthed self when asked point-blank whether he'd vote for or against it--which, of course, means that McCain will vote FOR stealing OUR health care...a system my disabled Navy vet dad paid into his whole life and now needs to stay alive and well...since McCain has his own first-rate health care that WE pay for.

Like I said last time--John McCain is one sick fucking Republican bastard. They're all sick fucking Republican bastards.

But wait--there's moar!

tRump actually threatened Alaskan Senator Lisa Murkowski for voting against repeal. tRump saves his most vicious attacks for women, as we know, but he's also attacking the entire state by threatening to withhold the federal funding that poverty-stricken Alaskans depend on to survive.

Yep, you heard that right--tRump is blackmailing a Republican Senator by threatening the continued survival of her constituents.

Now, tell me that's NOT illegal because I'm sure it is.

When Israel does it to the Palestinians, we call it "collective punishment," and it's AGAINST the Geneva Conventions and, last time I checked, international law...

Only tRump wants to use collective punishment on HIS FELLOW AMERICANS simply because one of their Senators chooses to represent THEM rather than his sorry orange ass.

But wait--there's still moar!

I keep reading that Senate Republicans DON'T want to repeal Obamacare--like, they are all planning to vote TO repeal while hoping and praying that the House DOESN'T repeal.

Which is beyond crazy because the House is full of teabag Republicans champing at the bit to repeal...which means that the Senate Republicans will have put themselves in the insane position of having passed a bill they hate and would much rather NOT have passed...which begs the question: why vote FOR the fucking bill if you're AGAINST it?!??

But, hey, there's Republican Logic 101 for you.

And if all that doesn't chap your chops...

Wanna know why tRump is so determined to dismantle our health care?

It's because the Russians--that's right, the goddamned fucking everlovin' ever-present FUCKING RUSSIANS--want to buy it!

You heard me right--the Russians want to buy OUR health care system.

And tRump, of course, wants to pleasure his master by making sure that PEWtin's crony oligarchs don't pay one ruble more than they absolutely have to.

I shit you not--the story is right there in todaze choo choo time headlines.

And then, just for comic relief, there's Little Ricky Perry, who not only let himself be pwned for a twenty-minute phone call with Russian pranksters but who also is doing a TERRIFYING job of "running" DOE...right into the ground.

Like sending a chunk of plutonium to a medical facility for research when they only asked for a speck--that level of not-just-st00pit-but-holy-fuck-that's-fucking-dangerous crap.

Heckuvajob, Ricky.

GRRRRRRRR!

Friends, just typing all that for you has driven my blood pressure from its normally cool 90/58 straight up through the top of my head, where it is now pounding like a jackhammer.

Anuddawoids, there's moar to tell, but I'm going to let the headlines and videos take it from here.

Always remember...never forget...I lurves ya madleh!

- Dot Calm's shadow

*****

Choo choo time headlines

NY Magazine: Senate Judiciary Committee to Drop Subpoena of Paul Manafort

The Atlantic: Read the Full Text of Bill Browder's Testimony to Congress

WSJ: Trump's Sessions Abuse
...This article lists all the red lines that tRump has crossed.

Democratic Underground: Feinstein statement details Benczkowskis representation of Alfa Bank
...Holy crap. No words minced here!! As Chris Geidner, who tweeted these comments, remarks, "Wow."

Take Care law blog: A New Front in the Emolument Wars
...We The People are apparently taking on tRump's countless emoluments--yay, us!

The Correspondent: How Trump fulfilled a 30-year fantasy of becoming president, with a little help from the Kremlin
...tRump's predisency is NO accident. He's been at this for 30 years--no lie!!

Bloomberg: Russian Oil Billionaires' Next Big Investment - American Health Care
...And you thot tRump only wanted to steal our health care because he's a fucking sadist--and he is!

Take Care blog: New White Paper on Trump and the Domestic Emoluments Clause
...Holy fuck. The name "Take Care" comes from the Constitution: the President "shall take care that the Laws be faithfully executed".... If you ever want to make sure orange twAtler won't find something, just hide it in the Constitution--he'll never look there!

Business Insider: It looks like another Trump adviser has significantly changed his story about the GOP's dramatic shift on Ukraine
...Because duh!

POLITICO: Russian bank owners sue BuzzFeed over Trump dossier publication
...And the lawyer who represented these oligarchs in other cases is currently a nominee for tRump's Justice Department. D'oh!!! Need moar "urk"? These are the SAME oligarchs who want to buy our health care system. DOUBLE URK!!!!!

Bill Moyers: How Our Intel Agencies Screwed Us
...Our intel agencies COULD have warned us about PEWtin's interference in our election SOONER. So, yeah--instead of squarely placing ALL the blame on Hillary, please let's not forget that she lost for a number of reasons, including failures in our intel agencies' reporting to us, TURDleman McConnell's blackmailing Obama into not mentioning PEWtin's interference in a timely manner, 20+ years' worth of RWNJ media hit pieces and hating on Hillary and fabricating fake scandals, Republican voter suppression and gerrymandering, media during the election normalizing tRump and giving him millions of dollars' worth of free PR and doggedly covering tRump's empty podium instead of Hillary or Bernie actually speaking.... Urk.

NBC News: DOJ: Ex-Manafort Associate Firtash Is Top-Tier Comrade of Russian Mobsters

WaPo: State Department head of diplomatic security resigns

Share Blue: Watergate prosecutor on Russia coverup: "It's all being orchestrated by the president"

The Nation: Trump's Allies Are Taking Over the Media and Creating Their Own Reality
...Ever heard of Sinclair Broadcasting? It is to the tRump junta what Clear Channel was to the bush junta.

Texas Tribune: Texas Republican congressman calls on Trump to keep his kids out of White House
...Thank FSM for little glimmers of integrity in all the tRumpian hate, lies, destruction, and bullshit.

POLITICO: Scaramucci still stands to profit from SkyBridge from the White House
...Is every everlovin' slob in tRump's orbit corrupt? Yes, and orange twAtler considers that to be a feature, not a bug. Oh, and mooch has Russian connections, too. I won't go into the lunatic, revisionist, clusterfuck that is Anthony Scaramucci as White House communications director at the moment because, hey, I need to hit the hay sometime before...next Fall!

Reuters: Exclusive: Russia used Facebook to try to spy on Macron campaign - sources

MoJo: How the Senate's Two Russia Probes Are Dueling Over Key Witnesses

Business Insider: Inside the battle between an anti-Putin banker and the firm that produced the Trump-Russia dossier

The Hill: DOJ indicts Russian in alleged $4B bitcoin laundering operation

NBC News: Hillary Clinton's New Book 'What Happened' Examines The 2016 Campaign
...Hillary gives a frank cautionary tale that we'd better heed if we really want to keep our democracy.

MoJo: Someone Is Selling More Than 40 Million Voter Records on the Dark Web
...and, naturally, tRump does bupkes about it! GRRRRR!!!!!

WaPo: An appeals court just pressed pause on the much-watched youth climate lawsuit against Trump
...GRRRRRRR!!!!!!!

Vanity Fair: Why the Scariest Nuclear Threat May Be Coming from Inside the White House
...Remember what I mentioned about Perry SNAFUing DOE? Well, here's the rest of the story. Obama had Nobel-laureate physicists running DOE; tRump has C- super-moron Rick "...Oops!" Perry.... *blerch*
 
*****

Links you can use

Change.org: Petition to The Congress of the United States Requesting that Trump be Censured

Sign the Daily Kos petition: Denounce Trump for banning transgender people from military service.

Sign the petition

The irony is that the military spends orders of magnitude more on boner pills than on health care for trans people--including reassignment surgeries!
    
*****  
 
DKos, ANet, DN! headlines

Daily Kos Liberation League Special Coverage

On Wednesday, July 26, Donald Trump declared a ban on transgender military service. This special coverage of the Daily Kos Liberation League features highly recommended posts relating to the announcement.

Daily Kos Recommended



Daily Kos Recommended


  
*** 

By Steven Rosenfeld, AlterNet
Senate health care debate pits some of the best and worst in American politics with the outcome still unclear. READ MORE»



By Jefferson Morley, AlterNet
White House turmoil as Trump trashes Sessions on a daily basis. READ MORE»



By Don Hazen, Kali Holloway, AlterNet
Expert Terry Real explains how hyper-masculinity presents a danger to us all. READ MORE»

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A Tennessee judge says he wants to give inmates a chance "not to be burdened with children." READ MORE»



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Government agencies protect big agriculture at the expense of our health.  READ MORE»



By Medea Benjamin, AlterNet
It's time to universalize resistance. READ MORE»



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He uses the rhetorical bludgeon of “human rights” as an arbitrary tool to push for war and demonize U.S. enemies. READ MORE»



By Lucia Graves, Salon
Despite his patriotic bluster, Trump's words and deeds threaten to make America an outcast among nations. READ MORE»



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Anthony Scaramucci perfectly embodies the Trump administration.  READ MORE»



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The president is very mercurial, and like Steve Bannon, Sessions could rise again.  READ MORE»



By Teesta Setalvad, AlterNet
Seven people died, but the fallout could have been much worse in a country tense with religious violence. READ MORE»



By Matthew Rozsa, Salon
Donald Trump uses his speech in front of the Boy Scouts to score political points at a decidedly nonpolitical event. READ MORE»



By Elizabeth Preza, Raw Story
He was refused a visa under harsh American immigration laws. Will Trump help? READ MORE»



By Marcia Kramer, AlterNet
Billions of taxpayer dollars are spent on animal medical experiments, with little accountability to the public. READ MORE»



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"Birthright: A War Story" follows two unlikely victims in the war on reproductive choice. READ MORE»

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"On my honor, I will do my best to make a tremendous amount of money" and "keep myself physically strong with golf and steak."  READ MORE»



By Celisa Calacal, AlterNet
A reversal of Obama's decision to allow transgender people in the military. READ MORE»



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Now that Trump is tormenting his most loyal follower on a daily basis, others around him can only wonder who's next. READ MORE»

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The president of the BSA is seeking approval from the Trump administration to sign off on a proposed $85 billion media acquisition. READ MORE»



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Promoting one's business while black is apparently now a crime. READ MORE»



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Protest is a part of today's daily routine. READ MORE»



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A campaign has drawn national attention to the harrowing effects of public education cuts.  READ MORE»



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His communications strategy is evade, evade, evade. READ MORE»

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Gingrich smears the DOJ's mission as a leftist vendetta. READ MORE»



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Add a dose of raw fear to the president's usual bluster and you have a very scary situation. READ MORE»



By Jeff Bryant, AlterNet
The Trump/DeVos education agenda is extraordinarily unpopular—and gives Democrats a big opening. READ MORE»

By Celisa Calacal, AlterNet
Donald Trump announced a ban on transgender people serving in the U.S. military Wednesday morning, saying their participation is costly and disruptive. READ MORE»



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Some crimes matter, while some lives do not.  READ MORE»



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In government terms, make no mistake about it, the Pentagon & Co. are the 1 percent. READ MORE»



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The toxic legacy of the Love Canal means we must protect the power of communities to hold polluters accountable. READ MORE»



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That sounds about right for this White House.  READ MORE»



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***

Stories


As protesters shouted "Kill the bill! Kill the bill!" Senate Republicans voted Tuesday, by the narrowest of margins, to open debate on repealing Obamacare. Vice ... Read More →

President Trump is continuing to publicly humiliate his own attorney general, Jeff Sessions, who was the first senator to endorse Trump during the 2016 race. On ... Read More →

We turn now to look at the man many credit with helping Donald Trump become president: Steve Bannon, the former head of Breitbart News. During the early days of ... Read More →

Journalist Joshua Green talks about two men who influenced Steve Bannon's philosophy: the Italian philosopher Julius Evola, whose ideas became the basis ... Read More →

Journalist Joshua Green talks about how Steve Bannon used his experience in the video game industry to use Breitbart News to mobilize young, largely white men. ... Read More →

Headlines →


Stories


In a move that shocked even the Pentagon, President Donald Trump has barred transgender people from serving in the military. He made the announcement via ... Read More →

While President Trump's ban on transgender people from military service has been widely criticized even by fellow Republicans, it has reignited a debate within the ... Read More →

Disability activists across the nation are staging historic protests in Washington, D.C., and other cities to fight the Republican effort to strip healthcare from tens of ... Read More →

Headlines →

           
*****
 
Moar m00bies!

Remember, they can Vote-o-Rama all they want, but that won't stop TURDleman McConnell from substituting out every single amendment at the last minute with his own amendment to nullify them all, thus passing the tRumpcare bill as it stood before Vote-o-Rama began. In other words, the only thing you can be sure you're gaining from Vote-o-Rama is that you're delaying the vote--assuming that TURDleman allows you to. I wouldn't bet money that he will at this point.




 



Tuesday's post included the video for Bill Browder's interview with Randi Rhodes; here is his testimony to Congress...wowzers.

     
***** ***** ***** ***** ***** *****
   
25 July 2017 post:

Greetings, fellow Dot Calm Readers, Freedom Fighters, and Truth Crusaders!

I am so angry I could start smashing Republican heads together...

The fuckers just voted "yes" on the motion to proceed to repeal Obamacare--which is essentially a vote to repeal Obamacare.

These fuckers need to give up their health insurance and salaries that WE pay for and live on the minimum wage and lack o' health care they want for US.

THEN they can talk.

I'm not shitting around here, friends.

You know as well as I do that today's vote was essentially the vote on whether or not to repeal...there were two Republican defectors with at least a modicum of decency--Collins and Murkowski--so mike penis pence was called in to break the tie, bringing the final count to 51-50.

Sick.
Fucking.
Bastards.

No fucking way in hell should these bastards--who include the traitorous coward John McCain--be allowed to live in the lap of luxury, with everything taken care of for them, at OUR expense.

What a legacy for John McCain...

Diagnosed with brain cancer thanks to the first class taxpayer-funded health care that WE pay for, he heroically braved his way back from Arizona to D.C. so he could vote to steal our health care from us taxpayers.

That's right, folks...

People like my dad, who paid into the system his whole life, are about to have their health care stolen from them so that John McCain can give that money to the rich people...the ones who, unlike my dad, DON'T need it to survive...and who, unlike my dad, DON'T pay their fair share in taxes.

And that, dear ones, will be John McCain's legacy--ripping health care away from those who need it to survive to enrich the already fat and rich.

Sick fucking bastard.

I already tweeted to McCain that I will bring my disabled Navy vet dad to his office so he can explain personally--to my dad's face--why stealing my dad's only means of survival and giving it to the rich is more important than my beloved dad's life.

Friends, I use my dad as an example because he's white, male, and a veteran--someone these sick fucking Republican bastards can at least pretend to respect and at least identify with on the basis of appearances (having a white penis). The other example of someone imminently to suffer from this evil shit is my bestie, who's Black, highly educated, extremely intelligent, non-binary gendered, and non-Christian.

Gawd forbid I tell these sick fucking Republican bastards that repealing Obamacare will imminently harm my precious bestie of nearly 40 years--these sick fucking bastards will be cheering...

"Good riddance!"

But wait, there are even moar sick, sad implications to this tragedy--this travesty of democracy.

This is the wealthiest nation in the world--we HAVE the money to give EVERYONE decent health care...and excellent public education...and scientific advancement...and world-class infrastructure.

All we have to do is go back to the good old days--like Republicans want to--back in the 1950s (their favorite period in history) and reinstitute President Eisenhower's 90% top tax rate.

tRump and McCain are both old enough to remember life with Ike's 90% top tax rate.

Lightning didn't strike, babies didn't die, and businesses were booming--not going bust.

Going back to Ike's 90% top tax rate would solve a shit-ton of problems, friends.

I mean, if the sick fucking Republican bastards want to go back to the Bad Old Days of keeping people of color from voting and forbidding women from deciding what happens to their own bodies, then the least they could do is reinstitute Ike's 90% top-earner tax rate.

Go big or go home.

But that's not what the sick fucking Republican bastards want--every year, they figure out how to work us for more hours and pay us less.

No more unions.

No more pensions.

No more overtime.

Soon, there will be no more employer-provided health insurance per tRumpcare--and the junk we'll be offered instead that calls itself "insurance" won't cover shit...it will be nothing more than a sick fucking Republican bastard joke on us...like visiting the roach motel, our money will go in but never come out.

Pretty soon, the sick fucking Republican bastards won't even give us weekends or holidays off any more.

Then, they'll lift the limits on the 8-hour workday, extending the number of hours in the day we will have to work for ever-dwindling pay.

Then, they'll kick our kids out of school and put them to work, too.

And forget about OSHA or workman's comp.

So, yeah. that's one big problem--the rich will keep working us more and paying us less...if we let them by not voting their sorry fat asses out this November.

But that leads me to another implication--one that's really scary AF.

Let me explain...

How many American voters approve of tRumpcare?

Do you know?

It was under 17%, last time I checked.

Think about that, friends.

Only 17% of the American public approve of tRumpcare.

Only.
17%.

For reference...

More Americans want to impeach tRump than want tRumpcare.

Obamacare is far and away more popular than tRump himself.

But Republicans basically just agreed to repeal Obamacare and foist junk insurance tRumpcare on us, gutting Medicaid as a first step toward kicking us off Medicare and Social Security.

Let that sink in, friends.

Why would Senate Republicans vote "yes" on something that even their own base hates?

Brace yourselves...

Because they're convinced they have all future elections sewn up--in the bag--thanks to Putin, gerrymandering, and voter suppression.

That's right, friends--the sick fucking Republican bastards are convinced that American democracy is dead and that the USSA is now a fully authoritarian dictatorship.

Yeah, try to sleep tonight after thinking about THIS nightmare.

Macron, Merkel, Trudeau, May, Pena Nieto--all of the United States' TRUE allies--if you're listening, NOW IS THE TIME to start hacking into our voter rolls and registering every Democratic voter you can lay hands on.

NOW IS THE TIME to hack into tRump's and his family's computers and leak all their incriminating e-mails to discredit them into leaving office and entering the criminal justice system.

NOW IS THE TIME to hack into all Republicans' computers and leak all their incriminating e-mails to discredit them into leaving office and entering the criminal justice system.

And don't worry--it-snot like you'd be breaking any laws because tRump invited Russia to do the same exact thing, and he insists that nothing he or his "team" did to coordinate with Russia to hijack the 2016 presidential election was against the law.

So, since it's ok for tRump, it's ok with tRump if YOU do this for us.

Go balls to the wall--free us from tRumPEWtin.

Remember, you'd be defending the American public from a violent dictator intent on murdering us by depriving us of health care and exposing us to the dangers of global warming. You'd be freeing an innocent people suffering under an American Saddam Hussein.

We'd greet you as liberators.

And you'd be defending yourselves from the threat the violent dictator in our White House poses to you and the continued wellbeing of the entire world.

Just think about the safer, more peaceful, less violent, less hateful, more rational world you'll be helping create...

One that values human life and the well-being of the planet over padding the already-overfat pockets of Putin and the Koch brothers.

SO, DO IT!!!!!

You know you want to!

As for my American brothers and sisters:

GENERAL STRIKE NOW
NEW ELECTION NOW!!!!!

Friends, this is not the end of the fight to save our health care--this is the time to step it up and KICK REPUBLICAN ASS!!!!!

I gots two ways you can do it...

CALL the Senate switchboard and ask to speak to every Republican Senator by state like my dad started doing Monday (because he's teh awesome):

202-224-3121

Or use this handy list:

Republican Senators

This is a list of all current Republican U.S. Senators (52 total):
It's time to let these sick fucking Republican bastards know that all they've done is piss us the hell off, and we're coming after them like a swarm of angry bees because, no matter how much these sick fucking Republican bastards love money, we love our families more!

- Dot Calm's shadow

*****
Jeff Sessions's new federal asset forfeiture
is stateism:
you don't even have to be charged with a crime
for the government to confiscate your assets
***
Look, just because Sessions hasn't actually been convicted of a crime is no reason we can't start seizing his property now.
-- Matthew Yglesias,
Twitter
*****

Choo choo time headlines

POLITICO: Trump goes off-script and fumes about Sessions and Russia

TIME: Read the Previously Undisclosed Plan to Counter Russian Hacking on Election Day

Bloomberg: Mueller Expands Probe to Trump Business Transactions

TruthOut: Trump Team, ALEC, Koch Industries Debate Gerrymandering the US Senate
...Scary AF.

POLITICO: Why Trump's Solo Meeting With Putin Was a Big No-No

LawfareBlog: The Impeachable Offense

Newsweek: Did Trump Attack Assad to End the Russian Collusion Story
...There's also this: Russia Views US Plan to Arm Syrian Rebels as Hostile Act

NPR: Exxon Mobil Sues After Treasury Fines It $2 Million For Alleged Sanctions Violations
..."Exxon Mobil says it has filed a lawsuit against the U.S. Treasury's Office of Foreign Asset Control, after the office said the oil and gas giant must pay a $2 million penalty for allegedly violating sanctions on Russia." Hm. $2M is chump change for Exxon, so why are they fighting this? Hm.

NY Times: Trump Aides, Seeking Leverage, Investigate Mueller's Investigators

Foreign Policy: Connecting the Dots Between Trump and Russian Lawyer Veselnitskaya

The Times: Why do conservatives fall for Putin's lies? | Comment

Reuters: Exclusive: Moscow lawyer who met Trump Jr. had Russian spy agency as client

The Daily Beast: Putin's Hackers Now Under Attack—From Microsoft
...instead of the government! Hm! Hope what they produce is more successful than Clippy.

Wired: Trump's 2020 Campaign Has Already Paid Out $600K—to Trump

Business Insider: 2 senators say they'll push for an investigation into whether Trump adviser Scaramucci violated Russia sanctions

The Hill: Intercepts suggest Sessions discussed Trump campaign matters with envoy: report

WSJ: Jared Kushner Discloses Dozens More Assets in Revised Financial Filing
...Trying to get the truth out of him or the rest of the filth now running the White House is harder than pulling teeth. Cheez. How much you wanna bet Kushie "revises" his Congressional testimony?

WaPo: Opinion | No, Trump can't pardon himself. The Constitution tells us so
...Courtesy of Lawrence Tribe and Richard Painter--some of the best legal minds their generation has to offer. I've also read that that tRump can't pardon his co-conspirators, either. That should make things interesting. Personally, I want to see every perpetrator, co-conspirator, and accomplice in the GOP die in prison for treason. And terrorism against the American people.

WaPo: In revised filing, Kushner reveals dozens of previously undisclosed financial holdings

Foreign Policy: SitRep: Trump Pulls CIA From Syria; Russia Cheers
...tRump handed our asses over to PEWtin so PEWtin can haz his coveted warm water port. Phuque.

Foreign Policy: Trump Assigns White House Team to Target Iran Nuclear Deal
...Funny thing...everything Obama put into motion is working quite well. That includes Obamacare...and it includes the Iran nuclear deal. But, hey, Obama's Black, so all his wonderful progress has to get flushed down the shitter, right along with the lives and welfare of the American public.

The Hill: Obama intel chief wonders if Trump is trying to make 'Russia great again'
...Brennan and Clapper mince no words in trashing tRump--they're not afraid of man nor beast.

NY Times: Can the President Be Indicted? A Long-Hidden Legal Memo Says Yes
...Bill Clinton-era witch hunter Ken Starr wrote a memo that says yes, a sitting president CAN be indicted. Karma's a bitch, ain't it, Republicans?

MSNBC: Former Government Ethics Director Shaub: Trump setting wrong tone
...Ya think?

Biz Journals: Anthony Scaramucci of Skybridge Capital faces steep tax bill should White House job fall through
...Ah, so that's why they call him "mooch"!

ABC News: In midst of Russia probe, NSA chief vows: 'I will not violate' my oath to Americans

NPR: Conservative Political Blogger Confirmed For Seat On Federal Appeals Court
...Per Nina Totenberg on Twitter: "GOP senators confirm controversial Trump judicial pick. Using fake name, he blogged conspiracy theories & false info."

Newsweek: Russian Military Could Force The U.S. Out of Syria, Army Official Says

New Republic: Trump's Russian Laundromat
...Please read this, friends--this is serious shit.

Scientific American: How Skeptics Can Break the Cycle of False Beliefs

MoJo: Scaramucci May Have a Russia Problem of His Own

Portland Press Herald: Luxury hotels, fine dining for LePage on taxpayers' dime

Politicus USA: Trump's New Communications Director Just Shot Off His Mouth And Gotten Trump Impeached

The Guardian: Jared Kushner sealed real estate deal with oligarch's firm cited in money-laundering case
  
MoJo: A Lucrative Moscow Deal Approved for Family Who Set Up Trump Jr Meeting

Blue Dot Daily: Jeff Sessions Gets Outed by US Spies for Meetings with Russian Spy; He Perjured Himself

The Atlantic: What Jared Kushner's Statement Reveals About Russian Collusion

MoJo: Firm of Oligarch Behind Trump Jr. Meeting Was "Primary Client" of Company Probed for Money Laundering

NY Times: Justice Dept. Nominee Says He Once Represented Russian Bank
...Yeah, BTW, while we were all focused on NOT losing our health care, tRump and the sick fucking Republican bastards pushed through a right-wing conspiracy theorist blogger for a seat on the federal appeals court. Holy kangaroo court, Batman!!
...There's also this from Business Insider: Top Democrat: Trump's DOJ nominee helped Russian Bank sue over Trump-Russia Dossier

New Yorker: The Senate Health-Care Vote Is A Travesty
...the sick fucking Republican bastards literally voted "yes" without even knowing what exactly the bill said. All they DO know is that the bill was frankensteined together by 13 men, behind closed doors in complete secrecy, because the sick fucking Republican bastards knew that they'd get hung, drawn, and quartered if anyone ever got to SEE the bill because it is just so Evil and Hateful.

New Yorker: How Jared Kushner Helped the Russians Get Inside Access to the Trump Campaign

*****
tRump the chump
obsessing about pardoning himself
 is a clear admission of guilt,
as is his obsessing
about pardoning his co-conspirators
***
tRump the chump's
obsession with Hillary
is a clear admission
that SHE won the election
and that his "presidency"
is illegitimate
*****

Links you can use

Cotton Bureau: “Rogue NASA” graphic tee and tank by Rogue NASA

Google Docs: Trump Dossier Analysis: Corroborating Evidence in the Trump/Russia Dossier

Earth Justice: Resist Trump's dirty energy agenda!

Emergency--SAVE SNOPES!!!!! Fundraiser by David Mikkelson : Help save Snopes.com! - GoFundMe

Democratic Coalition: https://www.democraticcoalition.org/billboard
...Send in your buck o' five to post this billboard calling out TURDleman McConnell right outside his Kentucky office. He wants to murder innocent hardworking Americans! Sick fucking Republican bastard. Ever notice how all the pro-fetus sick fucking Republican bastards want to murder the incubators? That's not very pro-fetus, now is it?
 
*****
Trump's entire agenda
can be summed up in two words:
treason and revenge.
-- John Avarosis,
Twitter
*****
  
DKos, ANet, DN! headlines
    
Daily Kos Recommended


   
Daily Kos Recommended

   
***
By AlterNet Staff, AlterNet
Positive views and a good sense of progressive history will help us fight the Trump disasters. READ MORE»


By Vijay Prashad, AlterNet
The United States is fueling a conflict that has resulted in war crimes and famine. READ MORE»


By Alison Flood, The Guardian
A defender of Dawkins said the cancellation "hands a precious gift to the political right." READ MORE»

By Chris Hedges, Truthdig
If the alliance between these zealots and our current administration succeeds, it will snuff out the last vestiges of American democracy.  READ MORE»



By Robin Scher, AlterNet
It could be game over for humanity, much sooner than we think. READ MORE»



By Paul Buchheit, AlterNet
Even the non-profit watchdogs are on Big Pharma's payroll.  READ MORE»



By Jessica Juarez Scruggs, OurFuture.org
From payday loan sharks to Wall Street bottom-feeders, financial predators of all shapes and sizes are  READ MORE»



By Alexandra Rosenmann, AlterNet
These guys seem willing to swallow any scandal. READ MORE»



By Randi Weingarten, The Huffington Post
The movement to privatize public education was started by white politicians who resisted school integration. READ MORE»



By Jonathan Meador, Salon
A bizarre encounter with an angry, paranoid border agent gives us a taste of what we missed living abroad. READ MORE»



By Jonathan Cook, AlterNet
The government hurts families whose only crime is being related to someone Israel defines as a terrorist.  READ MORE»



By Rosalind Rosenberg, Oxford University Press
Pauli Murray bridged the intersections between race, gender and color. READ MORE»



By Terry Hacienda, The Fresh Toast
Mounting evidence shows that marijuana represents "a new class of anticancer drugs." READ MORE»
 
***

Stories


Ten immigrants have died and 29 remain hospitalized in San Antonio, Texas, where dozens of undocumented immigrants were discovered packed in the back of a ... Read More →

With 10 people dead in San Antonio, Texas, following a human smuggling attempt, we look at how the U.S. border crackdown is contributing to human trafficking ... Read More →

Fifty years ago this month, rebellions broke out in the cities of Newark and Detroit. It all began in Newark on July 12, 1967, when two white police officers detained ... Read More →

Headlines →


Stories


Minneapolis Police Chief Janee Harteau has resigned amid growing protests over the police killing of unarmed Australian woman Justine Ruszczyk. Many residents ... Read More →

As outrage grows in Minneapolis over the killing of an unarmed white Australian woman, we look at the staggering number of fatal police shootings in the ... Read More →

"An absolute shame on humanity." That's how the international aid organization CARE is describing the deepening humanitarian crisis in Yemen. The number of ... Read More →

The State Department has announced new sanctions against Iran over alleged support for terrorism and Iran's ballistic missile program. The move will blacklist 18 ... Read More →

Headlines →

   
*****
DON'T let your congress critters
pass tRumpcare!!!!!
DON'T let your congress critters
repeal Obamacare!!!!!
DON'T let your congress critters
repeal Net Neutrality!!!!!
DON'T let your congress critters
confirm Christopher Wray!!!!!
DON'T let your congress critters
act like business as usual!!!!!
*****

M00bies


Ooh--Stephanie Miller was one of Dot Calm's absolute favorites! Smart AND funneh!


And here's just the Bill Browder interview, which explains the origins of the Magnitsky Act...aka the sanctions PEWtin wants tRump to lift that are costing PEWtin and the Russian oligarchs untold millions of dollars because they're fucking terrorist torturers and human rights violators who are prohibited from coming here to launder their money in crap like tRump real estate. Friends, be sure to bookmark this video and watch it early and often!


Argh.


Bahahahahaha! And how much nicer looking is he than orange twAtler?



Yummy!

***** 
Don't be fooled by the "drama"
between tRump and KKKeebler elf Jeff Sessions
They are only pretending to fight
They both know
tRump needs someone who isn't recused
to fire Mueller
so they're both just play-acting
to make Sessions's "firing" look good...
to pretend tRump isn't PEWtin's puppet
*****
 
 
*****
 
Well, friends, that's it for today. Until we meet again, don't forget to RESIST with Resistbot:

text "Resist" to 50409

And check out the Electronic Frontier Foundation's website so you can protect your online privacy:
https://www.eff.org/

Remember to boycott all the tRump shills on the boycott list below and tell them why.

And don't forget to read Dot Calm's shadow's favorite independent sources of news and information:
  
Randi Rhodes's Homework page
DCReport.org
Open Secrets
Democratic Coalition Against Trump
MaddowBlog
Daily Kos
AlterNet
Democracy Now!
Democratic Underground
Boing Boing
Vox
Conservatives are Destroying our Future
Conservative Clown Car
God, the Good Lord Above
...skip the media outlets in the boycott list below unless you want trump propaganda. And TELL their advertisers WHY you are boycotting those media outlets!

On the lighter side:
McSweeney's Internet Tendency
      
And check out these great YouTube channels:
...or, if you just want something mindless and fun, try Tested

Also, don't forget to add these to your Twitter feed if you haven't already:
@joyannreid
@georgetakei
@malcolmnance

And now you can add me, too!

@dotcalmsshadow

And don't forget to follow

@AlexJonescopy

unless, as he says, you're a total globalist. "It's not a parody account--it's performance art!" He also urges us to retweet everything he says unless we want the globalists to win. (Srsly, friends--he's a riot. Don't drink coffee while reading his tweets.)

Peas, friends. Take care of yourselves for me. Trust me--you're worth it! And go have a Fireball and some chocolate while you still can, will ya? Time is short now that the mouth of trump hell has opened...
  
- Dot Calm's shadow

Consider the preemptive Blogger phuqued-up phormatting disclaimer to be in effect. Grrr.
-- Dot Calm's shadow
      

*****


*****
     
Boycott List

Boycott media!

Don't bother with these media outlets any more unless you want trump propaganda--these media outlets have whored themselves out to trump for access for the low, low price of "fancy" cocktails and a "fancy" dinner, consisting of Donald's shriveled orange acorn dick, at chump's "fancy" (aka FAKE PLASTIC, just like everything else about trump and his FAKE PLASTIC family) "resort" in Florida. What an upstanding, responsible response to trump's denying press conferences since 27 July 2016...retch. So much for comforting the afflicted, afflicting the comfortable, and speaking truth to power to keep that power reined in and in check...!
  • Axios
  • Bloomberg
  • Breitbart because duh--according to AlterNet, Howard Dean Lends Voice to Consumer Activist Group Hitting Breitbart in the Wallet—And It's Working
  • CNN
  • FOX because of course
  • MSNBC (includes Joe Scarborough, but Rachel Maddow and Chris Hayes may still be OK as long as their corporate overlords allow it)
  • NBC (they also have the reality TV show conflict of interest--and they just hired a couple of FUX Noise escapees, so beware a hard swing to the far, far right)
  • POLITICO--their top editor(s) went and paid to party with trump, so now more and more trump propaganda has been showing up there, to my infinite disgust
Don't forget to contact these media outlets and their ADVERTISERS and TELL them all why you're boycotting them! So what if we spend a little less money overall? The money we save now may give us enough breathing room to jump ship before trump crashes the economy.

Boycott vendors that support trump, sell trump shit, and otherwise pander to hate!

Boycott Victoria's Secret--they kick out shoppers who are guilty of shopping while Black!
    
Here's a twofer: let's save our money for when dump tanks the economy and grab the trumpussy grabber-in-thief where it hurts most--by his wallet!

Want to boycott trump? There's an app for that!

And here's a list of trump companies.

There's also a spreadsheet of trump supporters and vendors that carry trump merch that includes the vendors below.
Don't forget New Balance, who praised and supported trump: 1 (800) 595-9138.

Here's the list from Mindy Fischer, featuring 28 vendors that sell trump merchandise. BOYCOTT them all and TELL them why!

6pm
Contact info: (888) 676-2660, HQ- (702) 943-7777
cs@6pm.com

Amazon--pressure them to DUMP BREITBART, while you're at it!
Contact info: (888) 280-4331 HQ- (206) 266-1000
https://www.amazon.com/gp/help/contact-us/general-questions.html?skip=true

Belk
Contact info: (866) 235-5443 HQ- (704) 357-1000
http://www.belkfeedback.com/(X(1)S(sbbxm3z11e1guxbtctk2wdkc))/Index.aspx?AspxAutoDetectCookieSupport=1

Bloomingdale's
Contact info: (800) 777-0000 HQ- (212) 705-2000
http://survey.medallia.com/?blm-tuwyt-com

Bluefly
Contact info: (877) 258-3359 HQ- (212) 944-8000
flyrep@bluefly.com

The Bon-Ton
Contact info: (800) 233-7626 HQ- (800) 937-5449
http://investors.bonton.com/contactus.cfm

Bed Bath and Beyond
Contact info: (800) 462-3966 HQ- (908) 688-0888
https://www.bedbathandbeyond.com/store/selfservice/ContactUs?…

Burlington Coat Factory
Contact info: (855) 355-2875 HQ- (609) 387-7800
http://www.burlingtoncoatfactory.com/contactus.aspx

Carson's 
Contact info: (800) 945-4438 HQ- (317) 971-6200
http://investors.bonton.com/contactus.cfm

Century 21 department store
Contact info: (877) 350-2121 HQ- (888) 221-2551
https://www.c21stores.com/contact

Dillard's
Contact info: (800) 345-5273 HQ- (501) 376-5200
http://www.dillards.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ContactUs

DSW Shoes
Contact info: (866) 379-7463 HQ- (614) 237-7100
http://www.dsw.com/dsw_shoes/customer_service/send_email.jsp

Hudson’s Bay
Contact info: (800) 521-2364 HQ- (800) 521-2364
https://www.thebay.com/webapp/wcs/stores…

HSN
Contact info: (800) 284-3900 HQ- (727) 872-1000
https://www.hsn.com/cs/email_us/default.aspx

Jet
Contact Info: (855) 538-4323 HQ- (844) 538-2255
help@jet.com

Joss & Main
Contact info: (866) 263-8325 HQ- (617) 532-6100
https://www.wayfair.com/help/faq.php

Lord & Taylor
Contact info: (800) 223-7440 HQ- (212) 391-3344
https://www.lordandtaylor.com/webapp/wcs/stores…

Macy’s
Contact info: (800) 289-6229 HQ- (513) 579-7000
http://survey.medallia.com/?mcy-tuwyt-com

Marshalls and TJ Maxx
Contact info: (888) 627-7425 HQ- (508) 390-1000
https://www.marshallsonline.com/contact-us

Neiman Marcus WE WON! Needless Mark-up DUMPED TRUMP, w00t!
Contact info: (888) 888-4757 HQ- (562) 463-9333
https://www.neimanmarcus.com/assistance/contactUs.jsp

Nordstrom WE WON! Nordstrom DUMPED TRUMP, w00t!
Contact info: (888) 282-6060 HQ- (206) 628-2111
https://nordstrom.custhelp.com/app/ask/incidents.c$sent_queueid/12

Overstock.com
Contact info: (800) 843-2446 HQ- (801) 947-3100
https://help.overstock.com/app/ask

Perfumania
Contact info: (866) 557-2368 HQ- (800) 228-3489
http://perfumaniaholdings.com/contact

Saks Off Fifth
Contact info: (877) 551-7257 HQ- (212) 320-4700
https://www.saksoff5th.com/contactus

Stein Mart
Contact info: (888) 783-4662 HQ- (904) 346-1500
http://ir.steinmart.com/contactus.cfm

Wayfair
Contact info: (866) 263-8325 HQ- (617) 532-6100
https://www.wayfair.com/help/faq.php

Winners
Contact info: (514) 788 4949 HQ- (905) 405-8000
https://www.winners.ca/en/contact

Zappos
Contact info: (800) 927-7671 HQ- (702) 943-7777
https://secure-www.zappos.com/contact

Zulily
Contact info: (877) 779-5615 HQ- (206) 724-0500
http://www.zulily.com/contacts

OK, friends--let's get busy!