NEW: Blackburn, NRA, Russian Agent, Trump, her Lawyer aka Family Friend

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Tuesday March 20, 2018 · 10:29 AM PDT

2018/03/20 · 10:29

It seems the long reach of Russia has no bounds. This morning two reporters (Anita Wadhwani and Joel Ebert ) for the Tennessean (a Nashville publication) broke a story involving all those mentioned above.

The report involves known agent, alleged crime boss, politician and friend of Putin Alexander Torshin and his friendship with G. Kline Preston a Nashville attorney. It seems he is the individual who hooked up Russia to the NRA in 2011 and were chummy enough to attend the NRA convention of 2015 in Nashville together. This is the same NRA convention that Trump attended. While there is no confirmation the two met at this convention it does not take a huge leap of faith to believe a Russian agent and Trump may have used the convention as a backdrop for a quick chat.

G. Kline Preston, IV, a graduate of the Nashville School of Law, has authored books about Russian regulations, and has represented clients in Russia, Ukraine, Canada, Cuba and England.

Among Preston's Russian clients and longtime friends is Alexander Torshin, a prominent Russian politician who has close ties to President Vladimir Putin. Torshin is under scrutiny for illegally channeling Russian funds to the National Rifle Association in an effort to influence the 2016 U.S. presidential election.

The story goes on to say Preston was invited as an international observer of the Russian election by Torshin and Preston returned the favor and had Torshin observe our general election. Yes, a Russian with a criminal history, Russian Agent and Putin pal was an international observer in Nashville, TN.

So how does Blackburn get drug into this????? Well Preston is a lawyer for Blackburn and a self described family friend. Back in 2005 Blackburn was under investigation for campaign finance violations. Preston represented her and she even employed his wife.

"We're family friends," he said Friday. "Long time. My spouse is friends with the Congresswoman and her daughter."

The NRA connection to Torshin has been written about. For a quick refresher these are two good links

In 2011 handwritten letter, NRA President offered help to Alexander Torshin for his “endeavors”

What’s the Truth About the NRA’s Man in Moscow?

So the NRA has potential dirty money, Trump has potential dirty money, it is possible the NRA used some of the potential dirty money to prop up congressional campaigns across the country. If the NRA was doing this then who else knew?

Now we all are left wondering if Blackburn herself has any financial ties back to Moscow as one of her family friends, former employee, and former lawyer have direct connections to a Russian agent who is under investigation for funneling money into the NRA and said agent just happens to be pals with Putin who is suspected of interfering with the 2016 election. Her Senate race was already expected to be a competitive one, is this the tip of the iceberg involving Blackburn and Russia? An unfortunate coincidence? Time will tell, regardless today is not a good day for the Blackburn campaign, NRA, Torshin, Preston, Trump and Putin as this slowly begins to unravel.

FLYNN is still talking to Trump - Yahoo News

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Thursday May 18, 2017 · 9:54 AM PDT

2017/05/18 · 09:54

Michael Isikoff from Yahoo News is reporting that Flynn had contact and claimed multiple contacts with Trump after he was fired as late as April 25, 2017. My first reaction upon reading this was… Yahoo still has a news group?????? Then, what a dumb ass!

Saddled with steep legal bills, Flynn wanted to reconnect with old friends and talk about potential future business opportunities. But one overriding question among those present were his views on the president who had fired him from his national security advisor post.

Flynn left little doubt about the answer. Not only did he remain loyal to President Trump; he indicated that he and the president were still in communication. “I just got a message from the president to stay strong,” Flynn said after the meal was over, according to two sources who are close to Flynn and are familiar with the conversation, which took place on April 25.

Flynn knows he is under investigation, Trump knows he is under investigation, Flynn a former member of the intelligence community has to know dollars to donuts people are listening. Wait…. Still listening as I doubt it stopped. This piece of information alone is yet another blow to the Trump crew. Just last week it was revealed Trumps team had advised him against contacting Flynn. How much have these two been talking? Questions will be raised, were these secret communications part of the decision to fire Comey?

The Flynn news is coming fast and furious today. Is it still a leak if it has turned into a river?

YATES is finally speaking to the press!!!!

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Tuesday May 16, 2017 · 9:53 AM PDT

2017/05/16 · 09:53

Lost in today’s disaster that is the Trump Administration is a headline that would on any other day be front page news…… Sally Yates is talking. For the first time since being fired she has now spoken with CNN and The New Yorker. Only a small piece of the CNN interview has been revealed online as CNN will play the full thing during Anderson Cooper 360. The New Yorker Piece is just a preview of the full interview due out in a week. From reading through both pieces I have a suggestion for all Committee members….. Employ a journalist to craft all question and follow up questions you wish to ask an individual. The New Yorker piece was way more informative then her testimony and this is just a small piece of her interview. I’m awaiting the full CNN piece. (block quotes from The New Yorker Piece)

The parts that caught my eye were the parts about unmasking which the GOP is obsessed with along with a few others.

Yates declined to talk about any classified information, including underlying evidence in the Flynn case, but it seems clear that Flynn’s name was not masked in the reports on the phone call that she saw. She said, “I oftentimes would get intel reports that included the name of the U.S. person. Not because I or anybody else had asked for it to be unmasked, but because that intelligence only made sense if you knew who the identity of the U.S. person was, and that’s an exception to the minimization requirements.” In other words, the authors of these intelligence reports included the names, because the reports could not be understood without them. She noted that there was one other common instance in which an American’s name would be included: “If it’s evidence of a crime.”

And about that blackmail stuff…..

That meant that Flynn was now “compromised” by the Russians, who knew that he had lied to the Vice-President and others and could use that to blackmail him. Yates went on, “Flynn is interviewed on the 24th. We get the readout on the 25th and have consult about impact on investigation, and I call first thing on the 26th.” That day, she had the first of two meetings with the White House counsel, Don McGahn, where she told him her concerns about Flynn.

Yates said that it appeared that McGahn did not know that the F.B.I. had interviewed Flynn until Yates told him, in their meeting the day after the interview.

So Flynn’s blackmail-ability was the fact that he had lied to the VP and others in the administration about sanctions and the Russians knew about it? Is there any more? What if the White House had instructed him to talk sanctions? This was still early in the investigation so who asked who or went rouge is still unknown as we are not given the answer in this interview. Is there any more to the “real leverage,” she references in the CNN interview? She noted in The New Yorker that she had to work with the FBI on her briefing so that not to compromise the already ongoing investigation so there appears to be more to this.

It appears Flynn did feel the need to hide his interview from the White House or at least from the White House council. It was reported elsewhere that Flynn had spoken to the FBI without a lawyer and the FBI had caught him lying. Is this the interview he decided he didn’t need to lawyer up?

So what did Yates expect to happen?

Yates said, “We had just gone and told them that the national-security adviser, of all people, was compromised with the Russians and that their Vice-President and others had been lying to the American people about it. We expected them to act.” She added, “We expected them to do something immediately.”

What did happen? Yates was canned and Flynn stayed on 18 days later. Turns out the FBI interview and the lying to the Administration didn’t phase them. Perhaps this is because they knew about the sanctions and he didn’t lie to Mike Pence and others. Perhaps they knew about his trip to the FBI and told him to lie. It isn’t too far of a stretch to believe the administration was lying to the public and IC and not each other now is it?

DADS, SHE IS COMING FOR YOU: New Clinton National Ad buy targets Dads tonight.

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Sunday November 06, 2016 · 2:46 PM PST

2016/11/06 · 14:46

We have all read about how Clinton’s Coalition is the 2.0 version of President Obama's. As the race winds down candidates are able to spend in areas they had been reluctant before since well.... if you have the money spend it. Networks made a big deal about Clinton's ad buys in safe 'lean democrat," states but what they failed to mention is that that is what campaigns do. If you have the money to spend (and she does) spend it. Since ad buys were already purchased for the big states might as well move back to the firewall. Well today is another example of this last minute “spend it if you got it” mentality. Tonight Clinton is looking at a new target audience with a pricey national ad buy on the one network that has all the eyeballs on Sunday night, NBC. After building a coalition of Suburban Women, Hispanic/Latinos, AA, Asians, College Educated, and Young Voters, she is looking to add Dads to her group. Per CBS News

Clinton’s camp was surprised to learn that fathers were reacting strongly to Trump’s comments. To experiment with their finding, they sent out four different family-related messages to voters in target areas. They called it their “divisiveness track,” targeting voters who might be moved by hearing Donald Trump’s words. What they had seen in surveys and focus groups was reaffirmed in the field: fathers were moved away from Trump by the message. The Clinton campaign even saw movement among the voting bloc that Clinton has had the most trouble reaching ― the white non-college-educated voters.

Because of this the campaign has purchased two ad spots in tonight's Sunday Night Football game targeting Dads. Personally I feel it is about time and on top of the late news today of an All Clear from the FBI, I feel it can help move a few suburban dads out there that were on the fence or had moved off the fence.

YouTube Video

This is how a campaign goes out. This is how one ends. THIS IS HOW YOU CLOSE THE DEAL. The past few days we have seen the brilliant ads one would expect from a team that is winning. Trump on the other hand is running gutter ads and trying to swing states that have no chance of moving. It appears team Trump has been building their final push by playing on 270towin.com. Seriously, they have been clicking away turning solid 2012 Obama states Red convincing themselves they got this despite having no advertising or ground game in those states. One campaign has a clear plan with resources to implement it. The other is a JV team being run by a student coach.

The Dad vote is a movable vote IMO. A last minute run at them is a brilliant move. I know a lot of Christian Conservatives that just can't get over the hump of what Trump has done and said. I bet there are a lot of Independents out there that feel the same way. Their excuse has been the email and trust issue. Well after the FBI letter today that argument is off the table. I'm not saying you will move a lot of those, but you may move a few or reinforce a voters intention of casting a ballot for her . We have built a solid coalition but why not go for the blowout.

P.S. To all fellow Hispanics/Latinos out there don’t sit idle, don’t make excuses, don’t wish on November 9th that you had voted. Send a message to Trump and the GOP that we will not be their political football any longer. GO VOTE!

YouTube Video

Looking at you FL, TX, AZ, NM, NC, NV, CO

Bernie needs to move fast... Faster then most think.

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Wednesday June 08, 2016 · 9:33 AM PDT

2016/06/08 · 09:33

Hillary Clinton has something few Presumptive Nominees ever enjoy… A popular sitting President. President Obama wants to get out on the trail. He wants to endorse. He wants to do what he can to secure his legacy. He wants the ability to go all out - open season - kung fu on Trump. So where does that leave Sanders? It leaves him with a quick decision. The President will not wait until Bernie concedes at the convention if he chooses to go nuclear. He will not wait a few weeks for the Bernie team to wind down. He may not even wait till the end of next week by all accounts.

The President WANTS to get out of the house as he is getting cabin fever. He has wanted to be on the trail since early May and was hoping to be out there no later then this week. Because of Sanders requesting a Thursday meeting that wont happen. This is not a photo-op for Clinton that is to be wasted on a Friday news dump so this week is now out of the question.

So what happens when the President hits the trail if Sanders has not conceded? A lot. The one person in the party that can out draw Sanders is The President. The one person who can give Hilary 20-50k rallies is the President. The one person in the party that can recapture the young vote is the President. The one person who can talk sense to those voters is the President. The one person who can bridge the gap between progressives and traditional democrats is the President. The one person Sanders did not want out on the trail before California was the President.

If Sanders does not cash in his chips soon the value will continue to decrease as he holds out. Make no mistake Sanders had a lot of support, but the majority are not “Bernie or Bust folks.” Most supporters are democrats who will unite with or without him telling them. Sanders holing out will not keep them from getting to work to defeat Trump. This is something Clinton knew of her group in 2008. The PUMAS is where Obama had to do the most work to gain support. This is not a problem Clinton has to deal with on her own regarding Berners. The President will be able to bring a lot of these folks on board. Young voters and first time voters will not be a huge challenge for team Clinton once the President hits the trail. Rebuilding his coalition is what he wants to get out and do. A lot of his coalition is the Bernie coalition. I would argue that the President is still the best campaigner the party has and this is not just about Clinton for him. This is personal, this is his legacy.

So if most of Bernie supporters will migrate on their own and The President can peel away most of the rest where does that leave Bernie if he holds out? Those chips suddenly don't look so valuable. Bernie has to move fast to get what he can out of the Hillary Camp. No time for long negotiations. No time (and the party has no stomach) to wait till the convention. He needs to move fast before the President makes his move. I suspect that is why he asked to meet with the President on Thursday when the President called on Tuesday night. Sanders was buying time and wanted to delay the President making his move this week to decide his best path. I think by Monday or Tuesday the President will endorse regardless, if for no other reason than to push things along. We will get the President and Hillary photo-op at a White House Presser. A good media day will come of it. By mid to late week we get the President at his first event and more good media coverage. Democrats and Clinton will get a good media week out of all of it.

Bernie needs to move fast before this starts to take shape. All this talk of not pushing Bernie along or pushing too hard is nonsense. This is not a normal end to a primary season as we have a popular sitting President who will not relinquish the party until he has to at the convention. His power in the party and on the trail is something that can’t be argued. The Presidency, Senate, House and Supreme Court are all at stake. The party will not wait. Cash in Bernie and get what you earned before it goes away.

Cool rec list! Been a few years... maybe should have proofed it for grammar :)

Big Guns Stepping Up... Obama and Biden ready to play!

ourhispanicvoices

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Thursday March 17, 2016 · 2:51 PM PDT

2016/03/17 · 14:51

As I expected the POTUS and VP will not be sitting on the sidelines this election. There is too much at stake and there is a sleeping coalition to wake up.

The Washington Post released an article today that spells out the POTUS’s and Democrats plans. President Obama has always loved the campaign trail, even made the comment in the past that he will miss it…… Well he forgot about 2016. It seems that he doesn’t intend to have just a handful of campaign activities neither.

“Obama is poised to be the most active sitting president on the campaign trail in decades.”

I believe you have to go back to Reagan stumping for Bush Sr. when we last saw a sitting President hit state after state. I believe this is more then legacy for President Obama.… This is personal, a final jab at the GOP and their obstructionist mentality. We have seen the President almost giddy to jab at the GOP while Sanders and Clinton battled it out, but it seems the President is ready to make it official and hit the trail for who he assumes will be Clinton.

“Clearly, once there is a Democratic nominee, which Obama advisers say they expect will be Clinton, the president will hit the campaign trail on her behalf.”

The President sees his mission as collecting checks and waking up his coalition from 2008 and 2012. I myself am one of those who has just woken up. In both elections I was an active supporter doing all I could. I admit I was asleep this cycle. I voted, but neither candidate moved me to get my lazy butt off the sofa. If the President calls on us to mobilize I am ready to work. So what is the plan? When do we start?

Seems Biden will be put to work in his bread and butter zone of the Rust Belt while Obama gets the African American, Latino Communities and Young voters in shape. Personally I believe Biden will do very well working for our nominee in the Rust Belt as he has always had the talent of connecting with people. I truly believe Obama can help unify the party and most importantly get young voters even more enthused then they are now. Some may object to that comment but I do believe Obama can connect with young voters that way Clinton can’t and better then Sanders can. Republicans for their part don’t believe he can help or are just kidding themselves.

Republican National Committee spokeswoman Lindsay Walters said in an email that Obama will be “a huge liability” in swing states because he has “job approval numbers that continue to struggle.”

But that won’t be his duty Others can tackle the swing states where he is weakest. (and to be noted there are certainly swing states where he is not weak) This is what they have to be worried about. These are the folks that Obama will get mobilized and enthused.

“In the latest Washington Post-ABC News poll, Obama had an overall approval rating of 51 percent, but it was 87 percent among Democrats, 67 percent among voters under 30 and 75 percent among Hispanics. He regularly polls at 90 percent among African Americans.”

The enthusiasm gap will shrink in no time once he hits the trail. Between the Clinton’s, Sanders, Obama and Biden and hopefully Warren. I believe Trump, Cruz or X has no chance because the President will be campaigning as if he were running for a third term and as much as Clinton has married herself to his policies…. he is.

“Comes within the margin of error”

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Monday September 24, 2012 · 8:00 AM PDT

2012/09/24 · 08:00

Seriously, that is how CNN refers to a new poll released on Sunday regarding Ohio.
The poll was conducted by the University of Cincinnati's Institute for Policy Research for a collection of Newspapers across the state. The poll found the POTUS leading Willard by 5%

Obama 51%
Romney 46%

More below the squiq

ourhispanicvoices

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Friday September 14, 2012 · 12:55 PM PDT

2012/09/14 · 12:55

The ABC interview was an utter disaster for Romney, and it was more than just his response to the protest and it was more than just his middle class earning expectations.

By now we have all read that Romney thinks $200,000 - $250,000 is middle class and we have all heard his argument about tax cuts, only someone did the MATH, (this math thing keeps biting him in the butt in more ways then one.) Perhaps the full story first, before we see how he would have to raise taxes on anyone making $100,000 or more(yes for the rich too) just for this pesky MATH thing to work.

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Thursday September 13, 2012 · 11:58 AM PDT

2012/09/13 · 11:58

As most things that come out of his mouth the “Shiny Objects,” comment has got to rank up there with the stupidest s%!t Romney has said in his bid for the White House. A few days ago before our embassies were attacked and we lost American lives, Romney, feeling the pressure of poor polling, poor convention, and poor substance tried to turn the race back to the issue he believes will win him the election.

Here is a quick recap...

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Wednesday September 12, 2012 · 10:40 AM PDT

2012/09/12 · 10:40

I was surprised to visit Yahoo this morning and see this headline, “If Romney loses Ohio, Obama wins big."

(Full Video via the link above)

So we all know that the road to 270 is an uphill climb for Romney. We know that the Obama campaign is well aware of this and we know that the Romney campaign is aware of this. National Polls are nice, like today's Gallup which has the President gaining a point advantage over the challenger

Gallup National Tracking
Obama 50 (unchanged)
Romney 43 (-1)

And today's "Lehman" moment that has been so well documented all over the meida will not help Mr. Romney's cause, but the polls that matter are the key battleground states and man is it hard to see a path for Romney.

ourhispanicvoices

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Monday September 10, 2012 · 11:09 PM PDT

2012/09/10 · 23:09

I am getting whiplash. GOPers must be banging their heads against the wall.

Tonight (or last night, depending when you are reading this) Monday September 10, 2012, the flip, or is it the flop, took place. No surprise, Romney is again for repealing healthcare.... the dude is a joke.

This is just mind numbing. The ultimate flip-flop-flip-flop-flip-flop-flip-flop is taking place and the main stream media is not covering it.

Timeline below the orange squig... Link to new flip or flop below too. These words come from his own mouth, not a news release to conservative outlets.

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Wednesday September 08, 2010 · 1:22 PM PDT

2010/09/08 · 13:22

UPDATE: I believe we might be full.

Right now we are 1 short in our DKos Fantasy Football League Here is the diary I posted yesterday explaining the league.

Back with my annual recruit for a couple of DKos leagues. I've already got one full and looking to fill the rest of the spots in our second league. I am looking for casual players who will keep up with their teams through think and thin. Settings allow for good chance to make playoffs and still have fun and play spoiler if you don't.

We use ESPN FF. It requires you to create a username and password if you don't already have one. Playing is FREEEEEE, first come first serve when it comes to open slots

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NEW: Blackburn, NRA, Russian Agent, Trump, her Lawyer aka Family Friend

FLYNN is still talking to Trump - Yahoo News

YATES is finally speaking to the press!!!!

DADS, SHE IS COMING FOR YOU: New Clinton National Ad buy targets Dads tonight.

Bernie needs to move fast... Faster then most think.

Big Guns Stepping Up... Obama and Biden ready to play!

“Comes within the margin of error”

Romney Tax Studies Destroy his Tax Plan

When Shiny Objects Blind You, Blame the Media

ABC/Yahoo News: Romney Ohio loss = Obama wins big

AGAIN, New Flip-Flop On Healthcare

Need 1 more player for DKOS Fantasy Football