July 19, 2017


THIS CBS HEADLINE SAYS THAT “STRICT ENFORCEMENT” IS BEING ALLOWED, BUT THERE ARE ACTUALLY SIGNIFICANT EXCEPTIONS, AND THE DECISION IS ONLY IN EFFECT “UNTIL A FEDERAL APPEALS COURT” LOOKS AT THE CASE. APPARENTLY, HALF THE PIE ISN’T ENOUGH FOR CAMP TRUMP.

http://www.cbsnews.com/news/supreme-court-permits-strict-enforcement-of-trumps-travel-ban/
CBS/AP July 19, 2017, 2:30 PM
Supreme Court permits strict enforcement of Trump's refugee ban

Photograph -- A police officer stands guard on the steps of the US Supreme Court in Washington, DC, June 15, 2017. / JIM WATSON / AFP/GETTY IMAGES

The Supreme Court is granting the Trump administration's request to more strictly enforce its ban on refugees, at least until a federal appeals court weighs in.

But the justices are leaving in place a lower court order that makes it easier for travelers from six mostly Muslim countries to enter the United States.

The administration had appealed last week's ruling by U.S. District Judge Derrick Watson that required the government to allow in refugees formally working with a resettlement agency in the United States. Watson also vastly expanded the family relations that refugees and visitors can use to get into the country.

The high court on Wednesday blocked Watson's order as it applies to refugees, but not the expanded list of relatives. The justices said the federal appeals court in San Francisco should now consider the appeal. It's not clear how quickly that will happen.

In the meantime, though, up to 24,000 refugees who already have been assigned to a charity or religious organization in the U.S. will not be able to use that connection to get into the country.

The Supreme Court also denied the administration's request to clarify its ruling last month that allowed the administration to partially reinstate a 90-day ban on visitors from Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen and a 120-day ban on refugees from anywhere in the world.

President Trump's travel ban expected to affect tourism industry
Play VIDEO
President Trump's travel ban expected to affect tourism industry

The court's ruling exempted a large swath of refugees and travelers with a "bona fide relationship" with a person or an entity in the U.S. The justices did not define those relationships but said they could include a close relative, a job offer or admission to a college or university.

Watson's order added grandparents, grandchildren, brothers-in-law, sisters-in-law, aunts, uncles, nieces, nephews and cousins to a list that already included a parent, spouse, fiance, son, daughter, son-in-law, daughter-in-law or sibling already in the U.S. The expanded list of relatives remains in effect. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson has sent a cable to all U.S. consular and diplomatic posts saying people from the six banned countries who are grandparents and grandchildren of people living in the U.S. are now eligible for a visa.

Justices Samuel Alito, Neil Gorsuch and Clarence Thomas would have blocked Watson's order in its entirety. Those same three justices said last month they would have allowed the Trump travel ban to take full effect.

The Supreme Court is set to hear arguments in the travel ban case on October 10th.



I DO LOVE MSNBC. RED MEAT IN EVERY BITE. “WE’VE GONE FROM DENIALS OF CONTACTS TO DENIALS OF COLLUSION TO A BOGUS NARRATIVE ABOUT ADOPTION POLICY TO AN ARGUMENT THAT COLLUDING WITH FOREIGN NATIONALS TO WIN AN ELECTION IS JUST “POLITICS.”

http://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show/infamous-russia-meeting-trumps-story-keeps-evolving?cid=eml_mra_20170717
On infamous Russia meeting, Trump’s story keeps evolving
07/17/17 12:35 PM—UPDATED 07/17/17 03:20 PM
By Steve Benen

Photograph -- U.S. President Donald Trump casts shadows on the wall as he walks with Poland's President Andrzej Duda at the end of a joint press conference, in Warsaw,... Czarek Sokolowski

In June 2016, Donald Trump Jr., Jared Kushner, and Paul Manafort had a private meeting with, among others, a Kremlin-liked [sic] Russian attorney and a former Soviet counterintelligence officer. The controversy surrounding the meeting has taken the president’s Russia scandal to a new level, and Donald Trump Sr. has done his best to downplay the significance of the campaign discussion.

This morning, for example, the president argued via Twitter:

“Most politicians would have gone to a meeting like the one Don jr attended in order to get info on an opponent. That’s politics!”

At a certain level, this is a continuation of the argument the president started pushing last week, insisting that opposition research is a routine part of any national political campaign, so there’s no need to make a fuss about the June 2016 meeting. If you have an opportunity to quietly obtain damaging information about your opponent, the argument goes, you take advantage of it.

According to actual “oppo” professionals, this argument is completely wrong, at least in the context of the Russia scandal. It’s one thing for campaign officials to pursue a possible lead; it’s something else entirely to meet with representatives of a foreign adversary that’s launched an espionage operation against the United States.

What’s more, the “anyone would have done the same thing” line is belied by recent history: in 2000, someone leaked the Bush campaign’s debate-prep materials to the Gore campaign. Gore’s aides promptly called the FBI – which is what Trump’s inner circle should’ve done, but didn’t.

But what stands out as especially notable about Trump’s latest pitch is the degree to which it contradicts the old pitches.

Let’s not forget the written statement Trump Jr. issued last week, when the New York Times first reported on the Trump Tower discussion: “It was a short introductory meeting. I asked Jared and Paul to stop by. We primarily discussed a program about the adoption of Russian children that was active and popular with American families years ago and was since ended by the Russian government, but it was not a campaign issue at the time and there was no follow up. I was asked to attend the meeting by an acquaintance, but was not told the name of the person I would be meeting with beforehand.”

This statement, which conveniently omitted any reference to the Russian government trying to help Team Trump by providing dirt on Hillary Clinton, was reportedly crafted by White House aides and personally approved by the president. In other words, confronted with a damaging story, Trump World got together and decided to cover up key details, misleading reporters and the public.

Now, however, the president is effectively admitting that the original story he approved wasn’t true. We’ve gone from denials of contacts to denials of collusion to a bogus narrative about adoption policy to an argument that colluding with foreign nationals to win an election is just “politics.”

When politicians argue, more than once, that we should disregard their previous claims and only focus on their new claims, there’s a problem.

Postscript: If you haven’t already seen it, I’d recommend this Washington Post piece from Friday from Rolf Mowatt-Larssen, a former CIA counterintelligence officer, in which he makes the case that the June 2016 meeting “bears all the hallmarks of a professionally planned, carefully orchestrated intelligence soft pitch designed to gauge receptivity, while leaving room for plausible deniability in case the approach is rejected.”



WHAT IS A CYBER DIPLOMAT? CHRISTOPHER PAINTER IS – BUT WON’T BE FOR LONG, NOW, BECAUSE THE TRUMP POLICE ARE COVERTLY ATTACKING OUR NON-PARTISAN AND INDEPENDENT STRUCTURES THAT HAVE THE POWER OF ENFORCEMENT, OR FORMING LINKS US WITH OTHER COUNTRIES ON KEY ISSUES LIKE INTERNET COMMUNICATIONS, HACK ATTACKS, AND MOST DANGEROUS OF ALL, ARE IN A POSITION TO DETECT THE SOURCES OF MALFEASANCE AND PROVIDE INFORMATION TO THE PUBLIC AND THE LEGISLATURE. THEY ARE TOO POWERFUL, AND NOT SUFFICIENTLY “LOYAL.”

IT HAS SEEMED TO ME FROM THE FIRST THAT TRUMP’S GOAL IN ATTACKING OUR GOVERNMENTAL INFRASTRUCTURE, ONE KEY POSITION AT A TIME, IS TO KILL THEIR EFFECTIVENESS AS A WATCHDOG FOR CHALLENGES TO DEMOCRACY. HE IS CUTTING DOWN THE UNDERBRUSH SO THAT HE CAN CONQUER THE POWERFUL UNELECTED AND NON-PARTISAN UNITS, SUCH AS DOJ, IRS, CIA, ETC. WHO HAVE BEEN USING THEIR MUSCLE AGAINST HIM SINCE HE CAME IN LAST JANUARY. THAT PLAN INCLUDES THE SMALLER GROUPS WHICH HANDLE THINGS LIKE RENDERING AID TO THE PUBLIC IN THE SHOCKINGLY LARGE NUMBER OF SUPPOSEDLY MINOR VOTING PROBLEMS AROUND THE COUNTRY, SEEM TO SMALL-GOVERNMENT MINDS TO BE NON-ESSENTIAL – SMALL POTATOES. WELL, AS MANY A POOR PERSON KNOWS, ENOUGH SMALL POTATOES WITH SOME CARROTS, TOMATOES, ONIONS AND CELERY WILL BE A DELICIOUS, HEALTHFUL AND FILLING LUNCH.

TRUMP IS GOING AFTER ALL WHO CAN DISCOVER HIS SPECIAL OPERATIONS AND REPORT THEM OPENLY TO THE NEWS, SO THAT SOMETHING CAN BE DONE TO SAVE ANOTHER LITTLE BIT OF DEMOCRACY. SOMETIMES THAT MEANS INDIVIDUALS IN KEY POSITIONS, AND OTHER TIMES IT MEANS THAT GREAT ENEMY, THE NEWS MEDIA. EVENTUALLY IT ALSO MEANS US, THE CITIZENS.

ALSO, SOMETHING SUSPICIOUS HAS BEEN OCCURRING JUST LATELY. I AM SORRY TO SAY THAT SOME SIX OR EIGHT PARTICULARLY CONCERNING STORIES THAT I WANTED TO LOOK INTO FURTHER ON MSNBC’S RACHEL MADDOW AND CHRIS MATTHEWS DAILY SPOTS, AND A FEW OTHERS AS WELL, HAVE MYSTERIOUSLY GONE MISSING. NO, THEY WEREN’T ABOUT TROOP MOVEMENTS, BUT ABOUT TANTALIZING BREAKING NEWS ON THE TRUMP AFFAIRS. WHAT HAPPENS IS THAT I GO TO A SITE AND A FIND THAT A STORY OR VIDEO HAS BECOME “UNAVAILABLE,” THOUGH I JUST FOUND IT ON GOOGLE. THE VIDEOS AND STORIES JUST WOULDN’T COME UP, AND AN APOLOGETIC ANNOUNCEMENT SAYING THAT THERE IS A TECHNICAL PROBLEM, OR NO EXPLANATION AT ALL, APPEARED INSTEAD. CYBER BLOCKING? MSNBC SELF-CENSORING? OF COURSE, HOW BETTER TO CENSOR, THAN BY THIS METHOD OF SIMPLY PREVENTING ACCESS TO INFORMATION? I HAVE FOUND THAT IF I DIG PERSISTENTLY ENOUGH, I’M LIKELY TO FIND THE STORY SOMEWHERE OTHER THAN MY FAVORITE MAINSTREAM NEWS SITES. IF I CARE ENOUGH, I MAY THEN DIG SOME MORE TO TRY AND VALIDATE THE STORY BY A FACT-CHECKER SITE. IN THE OLD DAYS BEFORE THE INTERNET, THE LOCAL NEWSPAPER OFFICE WAS THE FIRST TO BE CLOSED, AND THEN CAME THE GOVERNMENT AGENCIES. YES, I’M GETTING DRAMATIC HERE, BUT TO STIFLE THE ACCESS TO INFORMATION IS KEY IF THE BAD GUYS WANT TO SUCCEED IN AN ATTACK.

THE MANY BRANCHES, EXCEPTIONS OF SPECIFIC COVERAGE, AND OVERLAPS WITHIN THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT SERVE AS A BAFFLE TO CONTROL A PARTIALLY DICTATORIAL ASSAULT LIKE WHAT I BELIEVE IS GOING ON UNDER TRUMP. IT IS INDEED A “SWAMP,” AND IN COASTAL PLACES LIKE NEW ORLEANS, “THE SWAMP” CONTROLS CATASTROPHIC FLOODING BY ACTING AS A KIND OF SPONGE; AND THAT IS WHAT I SEE OUR VAST BUREAUCRACY ACCOMPLISHING NOW FOR US. UNTIL THIS MAN CAME INTO OFFICE, I HAD NEVER TRULY UNDERSTOOD THE POWER OF THE MANY INDIVIDUAL, BUT RELATED, GROUPS. HAVING “OVERLAP” IN FUNCTION AND AUTHORITY MAY SEEM “INEFFICIENT,” BUT IT DOES TEND TO ENSURE COVERAGE OF MOST ISSUES, AND A POTENTIAL FOR MOUNTING AN ORGANIZED RESPONSE.

WOULDN’T IT BE INTERESTING IF WE LIBS FORMED MANY INTERLINKED “COMMITTEES OF CORRESPONDENCE” LIKE THE FOUNDING FATHERS DID, SO THAT WE COULD SHOW UP IN FORCE WHERE THE BRITS HAVE JUST STARTED TO INVADE? YOU KNOW. LIKE A “RAVE.” IN FACT, THAT HAPPENED ON THE NIGHT OF THE ELECTION WHEN TRUMP’S WIN WAS ANNOUNCED. THE GENUINE SORROW WAS SO INTENSE THAT LOTS OF PEOPLE SNAPPED. WE HAVE SOMETHING MORE EFFECTIVE NOW THAN PAUL REVERE. IT’S THE FREE INTERNET, AT LEAST AS IT EXISTS AT THIS TIME. NOVEMBER 16, 1:00 AM -- HARDLY HAD THE NEWS BEEN ANNOUNCED BY OUR EVER-VIGILANT FREE PRESS, BUT THOUSANDS OF CITIZENS SPILLED OUT INTO THE NIGHT AND BEGAN MARCHING, AND DOING WORSE THINGS. THERE IS A STORY ON THIS SUBJECT CLAIMING TO SHOW HILLARY CLINTON ON CAMERA THROWING THINGS AND SWEARING. SEE THIS IF YOU’D LIKE TO THINK BACK. IF NOT, THAT’S UNDERSTANDABLE. MARCH ON.

OF COURSE, TRUMP’S FEAR OF THE PEOPLE, WHEN AROUSED, EXPLAINS THIS FIRING OF AN HONEST – TOO HONEST – CIVIL SERVANT, CHRISTOPHER PAINTER, FROM HIS STATE DEPARTMENT/DOJ POST AS A CYBER DIPLOMAT. HE FORGES LINKS WITH OUR ALLIES OVER HACK ATTACKS AND SUCH THINGS ON OUR MODERN DAY BATTLEFIELD.

BY THE WAY, “MC” IS “POLITICO'S MORNING CYBERSECURITY, A DAILY BRIEFING ON POLITICS AND CYBERSECURITY.” THE SITE DESCRIPTION SUGGESTS ITS’ DAILY NEWSLETTER BY THE SAME NAME, FOR THOSE WHO WANT TO DIG INTO THAT SUBJECT DEEPLY. OPINION CAN BE GOOD, BUT INFORMATION IS EVEN BETTER, AND THESE SEVERAL SHORT ARTICLES ARE FULL OF INFO. NO PADDING, NO WEASEL WORDS.

http://www.politico.com/tipsheets/morning-cybersecurity/2017/07/18/top-state-cyber-official-to-exit-leaving-myriad-questions-221386
Top State cyber official to exit, leaving myriad questions
By Tim Starks | 07/18/2017 10:00 AM EDT
With help from Eric Geller and Martin Matishak

STATE DEPARTMENT LOSES TOP CYBER OFFICIAL — The global cybersecurity community is still struggling to process the news that Christopher Painter, the Trump administration’s top cyber diplomat, will leave his State Department job at the end of the month, as Eric first reported on Monday. Painter, the coordinator for cyber issues at State, has been leading American delegations to international cyber meetings since 2011, negotiating joint agreements with other countries on issues like protecting critical infrastructure and developing cyber norms. “Chris has been a tireless defender of American interests in cyberspace,” Jason Healey, a senior cyber researcher at Columbia University, told MC, “flying hundreds of thousands of miles a year to push our views of freedom online, conduct countless bilateral meetings with allies and friends and [champion] international engagement in multilateral settings.”
.
“The U.S. government didn’t have many like Chris,” Healey said, “and his departure will be a major loss.” Painter previously served in top cyber roles at the National Security Council, the FBI and the Justice Department. He may return to DOJ, where he is technically an employee on detail to State. DOJ did not respond to a request for comment on his status. “Chris will be hard to replace,” said James Lewis, a cyber expert at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. “This will be an easy one to mess up.” Michael Sulmeyer, a former senior Pentagon cyber policy official, told MC that Painter accumulated invaluable experience in his previous jobs. “You weren’t just ‘working with State,’” he said of interagency meetings with Painter. “He and his colleagues understood the broader concerns and priorities of everyone else in the room.”

— WHAT’S NEXT AT STATE: Painter’s departure may complicate the State Department’s task of delivering an international cyber strategy to President Donald Trump by late September as part of his cyber executive order. Tim Maurer, co-director of the Cyber Policy Initiative at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, said the tight deadline made appointing a successor “an important and urgent task.” More generally, he said, the world needs U.S. cyber leadership: “The security environment continues to deteriorate while geopolitical tensions remain high and diplomatic efforts to tackle cyber threats are stalling or making only slow progress.” A State Department official said the agency “will continue to address and prioritize these important cyber issues.”

But Secretary of State Rex Tillerson is considering closing the cyber office or merging it with another office and downgrading the cyber coordinator’s rank, according to a source familiar with internal planning. “It’s a step back from everything done over the last ten years,” said the source, who added that Tillerson was also considering “limiting the number of people who work on cybersecurity” at State. “They basically gave [Painter] two weeks notice,” the source told MC. “It’s clear they’re thinking about reorganizing it. … Clearly they don’t think it’s that important.” A State Department spokesman did not provide a comment on the fate of the cyber office. Painter’s deputy, Michele Markoff, is also an experienced cyber diplomat. When MC reached her by phone, she declined to comment on her status. “If she leaves as well,” Healey said, “it might take State years to rebuild.”

Cyber policy experts urged Tillerson not to eliminate State’s dedicated cyber mission. Doing so “would mean the United States would be the only major country without a lead diplomat to discuss cyber norms and trying to reduce the ever-escalating cyberattacks we see around the world,” Healey said. The U.S. was the first country to create a high-level cyber diplomat role, and since then dozens of other countries have followed suit. “It is not just a shame if the U.S. were to surrender that leadership, but would mean the future internet will have more Russian and Chinese characteristics.”

TOP DEM WEIGHS IN ON NSA-CYBERCOM SPLIT — The Trump administration should proceed cautiously with a reported plan to split the “dual-hat” leadership structure that governs the National Security Agency and U.S. Cyber Command, according to Rep. Adam Smith. If the organizations are broken up “we need to ensure it is done the right way. We must avoid leaving either organization with diminished capabilities or creating institutional gaps that could endanger national security,” Smith, the top Democrat on the House Armed Services Committee, told POLITICO in an email statement.

Smith noted that while the fiscal 2017 defense policy bill called for the elevation of Cyber Command to a unified combatant command, lawmakers directed the GAO to study the risks and benefits of breaking up the two organizations. That assessment is still underway. Smith also emphasized a provision prohibiting the Defense secretary from ending the leadership arrangement unless he and the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff jointly determine and certify to Congress that doing so won’t impact the military effectiveness of the much-younger Cyber Command.



THE 8TH PERSON AT THE DON JR MEETING IN JANUARY IS ONE WHO HAS A LONG HISTORY OF MONEY LAUNDERING (HOW UNSURPRISING) THROUGH THE IBC, IKE KAVALADZE, WHOSE NAME WAS NOT LEAKED UNTIL NOW. ALSO, SEE THE SEGMENT ON ANDREW GOLDSTEIN, HIRED BY MUELLER. WHO IS HE? – SEE THE FOLLOWING SITES:


VIDEO ONLY http://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow/watch/another-russian-id-d-at-trump-jr-collusion-meeting-of-now-eight-1003053123857
THE RACHEL MADDOW SHOW 7/18/17
Another person ID'd at Trump Jr collusion meeting of, now, eight
Rachel Maddow reports on the revelation of the identity of an eighth attendee at the meeting where Donald Trump Jr was told he'd receive anti-Hillary Clinton intel from the Russian government. This new person has an uncomfortably close history with money laundering. Duration: 17:42



THIS STORY ISN’T NEW, IT’S FROM JULY 1, BUT I DON’T THINK I CLIPPED IT BEFORE, OR AT ANY RATE, NOT BY THIS WRITER, SO I’M PRESENTING IT NOW. I PICKED THE INFORMATION UP FROM RACHEL MADDOW, WHO HAS BECOME MY BEDTIME VIEWING IN PLACE OF PERRY MASON. SHE IS BOTH ENTERTAINING, AND HIGHLY INFORMATIVE. I LIKE FOR LEARNING TO BE FUN. SHE HAS THAT UNDERSTATED BUT INCISIVE MANNER THAT POLITICAL COMMENTATORS LIKE DICK CAVETT AND, THESE DAYS, MICHAEL MOORE, HAVE PERFECTED. FOR THOSE OF YOU WHO ARE TOO YOUNG TO REMEMBER CAVETT, HERE IS SOME BACKGROUND INFORMATION ON CAVETT AND FILM CLIPS OF HIS CHARMINGLY DEADLY STYLE.

GO TO HTTP://WWW.PBS.ORG/WNET/SECRETS/DICK-CAVETTS-WATERGATE-FULL-EPISODE/1880/. BEFORE HE HAD HIS OWN SHOW, HE WAS A WRITER FOR JOHNNY CARSON. WHO’S JOHNNY CARSON? FAGGEDDABOUTIT!


https://3chicspolitico.com/2017/07/01/andrew-goldstein-public-corruption-chief-is-joining-muellers-team/
Andrew Goldstein—public corruption chief is joining Mueller’s team
Posted on July 1, 2017
by SouthernGirl2

A top New York federal prosecutor is joining the team of Special Counsel Robert Mueller, the former FBI director leading an investigation into alleged Russian interference in the presidential election, a senior Justice Department official with knowledge of the matter confirmed to NBC News.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Andrew Goldstein of the Southern District of New York will join Mueller’s team, the official said.

The New York Times first reported the move Friday.

Goldstein was former U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara’s top public corruption prosecutor and kept the same role under Acting U.S Attorney Joon Kim.

He’s known for multiple successful prosecutions of New York lawmakers on corruption charges. He’s also highly regarded in the Southern District and across Justice for those prosecutions, his thoroughness in investigations, and high level of success.

Separately, a person with direct knowledge of the matter says that all cases previously handled in New York, which includes the probe of former Trump campaign manager Paul Manafort, have been transferred to Mueller.

Mueller was appointed as special counsel by Deputy U.S. Attorney General Rod Rosenstein in May, amid public and Congressional pressure after President Donald Trump fired FBI director James Comey.

Mueller led the FBI for 12 years under presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama.



A STORY WAS HIDING IN PLAIN SIGHT AT THE RECENT INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE. TRUMP LEAVES HIS PLACE AT TABLE AND MOVES OVER TO WHERE TRUMP IS SITTING AND THEY HAVE ANOTHER “MEETING” WITH ONLY ONE WITNESS, PUTIN’S TRANSLATOR. THIS LASTED ABOUT AN HOUR. TRUMP’S RUSSIAN TRANSLATOR WAS NOT THERE, SO TRUMP USED PUTIN’S. HE TRUSTS PUTIN AND THE RUSSIAN OLIGARCHY/MAFIA A LOT, APPARENTLY. TRUMP TELLS NOBODY ABOUT IT AT THE TIME, BUT SOMEHOW OVERHEAD SECURITY CAM VIDEO IN THE BANQUET ROOM WAS CAPTURED, THEN WAS GIVEN TO NBC BY “A WHITE HOUSE OFFICIAL.” I BELIEVE TRUMP THINKS HE HAS EVERYBODY ON HIS STAFF BUFFALOED, BUT HE DOESN’T. IT ISN’T JUST THAT PEOPLE ARE LEAKING, BUT THEY ARE THE CRYING OUT FOR THE PRESERVATION OF THE BASIC VALUES OF OUR NATION, THOSE THAT ONLY TRUE PATRIOTS HAVE. TRUE PATRIOTS BELIEVE IN FAIR ELECTIONS, HONEST LEADERSHIP, AND UNTAINTED POSTS OF TRUST, SUCH AS THE PRESIDENCY.

SO, NOT MANY DAYS LATER, OUR TRUSTY FREE PRESS DISCOVERED IT VIA THE AID OF A WHITE HOUSE STAFFER, AND PUBLISHED THE UNEXPLAINED VIDEO OF AN ODD MOVEMENT AT THE BANQUET TABLE. LAST NIGHT TRUMP FINALLY ACKNOWLEDGED IT AS BEING TRUE. IT’S JUST LIKE THOSE POLICE SHOOTINGS. THERE’S NOTHING LIKE VIDEO. FOR THIS STORY, SEE BLOOMBERG AND WASHINGTON POST’S PHILLIP RUCKER. THIS TRUMP TECHNIQUE OF DEALING WITH SECRETS IS BEING CALLED “ROLLING DISCLOSURE.” IT AMOUNTS TO WAITING SILENTLY UNTIL THERE IS NO LONGER ANY ROOM FOR DENIAL, AND THEN CONFESSING. ON THE SURFACE, IT HAS THE LOOK OF HONESTY ABOUT IT, AND IT MAY WORK, TEMPORARILY; BUT IT IS REMOVING WHATEVER TRUST THE PUBLIC HAS HAD IN THE TRUMP CAMP. SEE THE TWO MSNBC VIDEO COMMENTARIES BELOW.

http://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow/watch/trump-putin-had-second-undisclosed-hour-long-encounter-at-g20-1003025475985
THE RACHEL MADDOW SHOW 7/18/17
Trump, Putin had second, undisclosed, hour-long encounter at G20
Ian Bremmer, political scientist and president of The Eurasia Group, talks with Rachel Maddow about the revelation of an undisclosed second encounter between Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin that left US allies concerned and no official record. Duration: 11:04


http://www.msnbc.com/hardball/watch/nbc-news-trump-putin-had-second-conversation-at-g20-1002909763626
HARDBALL WITH CHRIS MATTHEWS 7/18/17
NBC News: Trump, Putin had second conversation at G20
A White House official tells NBC News there was a social dinner for world leaders, and that "toward the end, the President spoke to Putin at the dinner. No staff or cabinet were there.” Duration: 17:40



HALL IS SPECTACULARLY WELL QUALIFIED ACADEMICALLY, WITH UNIVERSITY AND FBI CREDENTIALS. DALLAS DA FAITH JOHNSON SPEAKS OF A GROWING NUMBER OF WOMEN ON THE LOCAL CHAIN OF COMMAND, WITH HOPE FOR BUILDING AN INCREASED UNITY AND TRUST BETWEEN OFFICERS AND THE COMMUNITY. I HATE TO SAY THIS, BUT I DO FULLY BELIEVE THAT WHILE WOMEN CAN BE RACIST AND VIOLENT, MOST CASES INVOLVE MEN. THE REAL KEY HERE IS NOT AN OFFICER “RESTRAINING HIMSELF” PROPERLY, BUT BEING INTELLECTUALLY AND EMOTIONALLY CAPABLE OF THE FENCE MENDING THAT JOHNSON MENTIONS.

WOMEN ARE LESS LIKELY TO SEE THEMSELVES AS SOLDIERS IN A WAR WITH SOME SUBGROUP OF SOCIETY THAN ARE MEN. WHAT DO WE GIVE GIRLS FOR CHRISTMAS? DOLLS, BOOKS AND TEA SETS. BOYS? TOY GUNS, SOLDIERS (SO THEY CAN STAGE THEIR VERY OWN WARS) THINGS FOR BUILDING STUFF, LIKE TINKER TOYS. WE NEED TO GIVE ALL CHILDREN BOTH KINDS OF TOYS, SO THAT THEY WILL START YOUNG WITH PHYSICAL AND TACTICAL THINKING AND ALSO NURTURING INSTINCTS. A CIVILIZED SOCIETY NEEDS BOTH.

http://www.cbsnews.com/news/ulysha-renee-hall-first-female-chief-dallas-police-department/
CBS NEWS July 19, 2017, 4:48 PM
Ulysha Hall makes history as Dallas Police Department's first female chief

DALLAS -- Detroit Deputy Chief Ulysha Renee Hall has been chosen as the new police chief of the Dallas Police Department, sources tell CBS DFW.

"I am honored to be chosen to lead the Dallas Police Department at this critical time in its history," Hall said in a statement. "I look forward to building on the successes of the past, preserving community trust and ensuring the safety of our officers and the entire Dallas community."

Hall is the first woman to serve as police chief in the department's history.

Dallas Mayor Mike Rawlings celebrated the news with a post on Twitter saying, "Pleased to welcome our new @DallasPD Chief of Police U. Renee Hall."

View image on Twitter
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Follow
Mayor Mike Rawlings ✔ @Mike_Rawlings
Pleased to welcome our new @DallasPD Chief of Police U. Renee Hall. She will be the first female police chief in @CityOfDallas history.
1:33 PM - 19 Jul 2017
554 554 Retweets 1,108 1,108 likes


There were seven candidates vying for the position and interviews just wrapped up, CBS DFW reports. City manager T.C. Broadnax had said he was happy to get input from residents during a public meeting with the candidates, but ultimately the decision was his.

Hall has a bachelor's degree in criminal justice from Grambling State University and master's degrees in security administration and intelligence analysis from the University of Detroit Mercy. She is also a graduate of the FBI National Academy.

She was one of two women under consideration to be the next Dallas police chief, along with Seattle Deputy Chief Carmen Best. Under Hall's leadership in Michigan, the city of Detroit experienced a 40-year low in homicides and double-digit reductions in violent crime for three consecutive years.

Hall is expected to begin her job as the new Dallas police chief on September 5.

Dallas District Attorney Faith Johnson released a statement to CBS DFW saying Hall has an impressive resume and is proud that she is joining her and the Dallas County sheriff.

"I want to welcome our new Chief of Police, Ulysha Renee Hall to Dallas. She has an impressive resume and it's exciting that she will serve as the first female chief at the Dallas Police Department. I am proud that she is joining me and Dallas County Sheriff Lupe Valdez on the growing list of females in top law enforcement positions in Dallas County," Johnson wrote. "There is much work to be done building bridges between law enforcement and our communities, and I am looking forward to all of us working together to ensure success."

Former Police Chief David O. Brown took to Twitter to congratulate Hall.

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Chief David O. Brown ✔ @ChiefDavidBrown
Congratulations to Chief Hall as she becomes the next Chief of Police for the Dallas Police Department. http://fb.me/1YqtWK5mp
3:36 PM - 19 Jul 2017
59 59 Retweets 201 201 likes

Hall is replacing Brown, who retired in October, The Associated Press reports. The former chief's leadership was lauded after four Dallas officers and one transit officer were killed in July 2016. However, he drew criticism from unions for not doing enough to retain officers.