ALL THE PRESIDENT'S MEN (and WOMEN)

                                      "AN AMERICAN TRAGEDY"

STARRING:

SEAN SPICER:White House Press Secretary and Communications Director

Sean Spicer was communications director of the RNC from 2011 to 2017 and it's chief strategist from 2015-2017 until he accepted the job in #45's administration. During his tenure at RNC  Spicer was critical of candidate Trump's comments regarding Mexican immigrants being involved in crimes as wells comments made about John McCain.

Things did NOT go well on Day 1 of his new gig when he was criticized for making false claims regarding the crowd numbers at the inauguration. He has gotten better in front of the press corps but is best represented in a SNL skit where he is portrayed by Melissa McCarthey.

KellyAnne (Fitzpatrick) Conway: CHIEF ADVISOR to the President

Formerly the President/CEO of THE POLLING COMPANY,Inc, Ms. Conway served as a GOP strategist, pollster and campaign manager who endorsed Ted Cruz in the GOP primaries and was critical of candidate Donald Trump. When Cruz dropped out Conway jumped ship being named Trump's senior campaign advisor before being named campaign manager a few weeks later. Her distinction is being the first woman to successfully run a presidential campaign. In December of 2016, President-Elect Trump appointed Conway as Counselor to the President.

"ALTERNATIVE FACTS?"  Alternative facts" is a phrase used by U.S. Counselor to the President Kellyanne Conway during a Meet the Press interview on January 22, 2017, in which she defended White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer's false statement about the attendance at Donald Trump's inauguration as President of the United States. When pressed during the interview with Chuck Todd to explain why Spicer "utter[ed] a provable falsehood", Conway stated that Spicer was giving "alternative facts." Todd responded, "Look, alternative facts are not facts. They're falsehoods."

Mike Pompeo- CIA Director-On January 23, 2017, the Senate confirmed Rep. Mike Pompeo, a Republican (Tea Party) congressman from Kansas, as director of the Central Intelligence Agency. Pompeo, 53, has served in the House of Representatives since 2011. He succeeds a 25-year veteran of the CIA, John Brennan, who's served as the agency's chief since 2013.

Pompeo is a graduate (#1 of his class ) at The U.S. Military Academy at West Point (Mechanical Engineering,) served in the Regular Army 1986-1991, received his J.D. from Harvard Law where he was editor of Harvard Law Review.

James Comey- (Retained as )FBI Director (only for me to ask the question "WHY?")

NEWSWEEK Nov 7,2016James Comey should not simply be fired as director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. He must be barred forever from any form of public service. There's a stinging comment from NEWSWEEK, not a good endorsement by any means.Yet, after screwing up the e-mail investigations a few moments before the electorate hit the polls may or may not have swayed public opinion of Hillary Clinton but needless to say this guy should have stepped down BUT NO, he is retained by #45, probably for a job well done.

Rex Tillerson  Secretary of State. U.S. senators grilled former Exxon CEO Rex Tillerson about his past dealings with Russia at his recent confirmation hearing. One was about his receiving Putin's (Russia's) ORDER OF FRIENDSHIP to which even Senator LINDSEY GRAHAN (R-SC) called "unnerving".Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., asked Tillerson whether he thought Vladimir Putin was a war criminal (Tillerson's answer: "I would not use that term"), while Sen. Bob Menendez, D-N.J., pressed him on Exxon opposing sanctions against Russia.    At his confirmation hearing on Jan. 11, 2017, Tillerson rejected the assertion that he ever tried to scuttle sanctions."I have never lobbied against sanctions personally," Tillerson said. "To my knowledge, Exxon never directly lobbied against sanctions."That’s an artfully crafted answer that’s pretty misleading and raises my suspicions.

So that leads us to:

Michael Flynn National Security Advisor. National security adviser Michael Flynn privately discussed U.S. sanctions against Russia with that country's ambassador to the United States during the month before President Trump took office, contrary to public assertions by Trump officials. Flynn's communications with Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak were interpreted by some senior U.S. officials as an inappropriate and potentially illegal signal to the Kremlin that it could expect a reprieve from sanctions that were being imposed by the Obama administration in late December to punish Russia for its alleged interference in the 2016 election. Vice President Mike Pence did not know that National Security Adviser Michael Flynn may have spoken about sanctions with the Russian Ambassador in January pre-inauguration, and believes "it's a problem," a senior White House adviser told CNN Friday.  Three administration officials said Pence only knew what Flynn told him -- that he had not talked about sanctions -- before Pence stood before cameras last month and vouched for Flynn. One official said Pence was trying to "get to the bottom of it."Flynn cannot rule out that he spoke to Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak about sanctions, an aide close to the National Security Adviser said Friday.Flynn, the aide said, has "no recollection of discussing sanctions," but added that the National Security Adviser "couldn't be certain that the topic never came up."Flynn has avoided making firm commitments about maintaining US sanctions on Russia, according to US and European officials familiar with his meetings in recent weeks.

Officials said ­Flynn’s references to the election-related sanctions were explicit. Two of those officials went further, saying that Flynn urged Russia not to overreact to the penalties being imposed by President Barack Obama, making clear that the two sides would be in position to review the matter after Trump was sworn in as president.

“Kislyak was left with the impression that the sanctions would be revisited at a later time,” said a former official.

JEFF SESSIONS: ATTORNEY GENERAL

This was a bitter and racially charged nomination battle to which Senator Elizabeth Warren (D- Mass) was silenced.In a party-line vote, 49 to 43, senators  forced Ms. Warren into silence, at least on the Senate floor, until the showdown over Mr. Sessions’s nomination is complete. 

Mr. Sessions, an Alabama Republican, survived a near-party-line vote, 52 to 47, in the latest sign of the extreme partisanship at play as Mr. Trump strains to install his cabinet. No Republicans broke ranks in their support of a colleague who will become the nation’s top law enforcement official after two decades in the Senate.

TOM PRICE: Dept of Health and Services  Mr. Price is the first doctor to lead the department since Dr. Louis W. Sullivan stepped down at the end of the first Bush administration in January 1993.

Tom Price will lead President Trump’s efforts to dismantle the Affordable Care Act. 

Steven T. Mnuchin- Treasury Secretary has vowed that “there would be no absolute tax cut for the upper class.” 

But under the tax overhaul that House Republicans are pushing, or under similar proposals that Mr. Trump has offered, the guarantee looks impossible to fulfill.

And Featuring:

Mick Mulvaney as BUDGET DIRECTOR

Wilbur Ross as COMMERCE SECRETARY

and Linda E. McMahon as DIRECTOR OF SMALL BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION

What The Hell Did They Do Today? #45....Our Tweeter In-Chief

And the hits just keep on coming. How do you spell IMPEACHMENT?

President Trump’s official counselor, Kellyanne Conway, was“counseled” after she told TV audiences to “go buy Ivanka’s stuff,” the White House said Thursday. Legal experts said Conway had broken a "key ethics law" banning federal employees from using their public office to endorse products. White House press secretary Sean Spicer said Thursday that Conway “has been counseled,” but offered no other comment. What did you expect?

President Trump's own Supreme Court nominee rebuking him Wednesday, calling his comments attacking judges and the judicial system “disheartening” and “demoralizing.” So it's no surprise Trump would hit back at Democratic Sen. Richard Blumenthal (Conn.) for publicizing Gorsuch's comments on the matter. But Trump's complaint simply doesn't make much sense — nor does White House press secretary Sean Spicer's attempt to explain it.

Here's what the TWEETER IN CHIEF had to tweet...."Sen.Richard Blumenthal, who never fought in Vietnam when he said for years he had (major lie),now misrepresents what Judge Gorsuch told him?"
WTF is he referring to, misrepresents what?

Senator Jeff Sessions was confirmed on Wednesday as President Trump’s attorney general, capping a bitter and racially charged nomination battle that crested with the procedural silencing of a leading Democrat, Senator Elizabeth Warren. Mr. Sessions, an Alabama Republican, survived a near-party-line vote, 52 to 47, in the latest sign of the extreme partisanship at play as Mr. Trump strains to install his cabinet. No Republicans broke ranks in their support of a colleague who will become the nation’s top law enforcement official after two decades in the Senate.
While #45 did NOT actually do any grave error here, the fact that his candidate is a racist, well.

Can't wait for tomorrow.

#45: TEACHES HISTORY

Recently, I heard a young gentleman state, "I should have paid better attention in my History 101 class. What's with all these terms?". Well young man you are in luck.

In just the few short months since the primaries and caucuses, the Nominating Conventions, the Presidential Election of 2016, followed by the Inauguration of #45 , all those terms from History 101 have come alive.  Each news cycle the vocabulary and terms of 101 are used, sometimes to the confusion of not only the constituents but the actual politicians and the press reporting.So here's a review of 101.

Let's start with the GENERAL ELECTION. This year, as we do every four (4) years the major and minor political parties nominate candidates who best represent the ideals and principles of their party for PRESIDENT and for the office of Vice President of The UNITED STATES. This planned change  of leadership every four years seemed like a good idea to our forefathers.It was not a number of years randomly selected but rather hotly debated during the drafting of The Constitution.
The Framers determined the number of years a given term could be, anywhere from3 to 20 were debated, before deciding on the number four. It was best thought that that period of time (4 years) was NOT long enough to risk any HARM to the public safety, yet gives the President  enough time to accomplish goals.

[The President] shall hold his Office during the Term of four Years....
ARTICLE II, SECTION 1, CLAUSE 1

Our first President, #1, George Washington, set precedence after serving two consecutive terms, by NOT seeking re-election. All subsequent presidents up to FDR followed that unwritten custom.The 22nd Amendment, enacted after Franklin D. Roosevelt was elected president for the fourth time, imposes a two-term limit on presidential candidates and was established to formalize a tradition George Washington started by refusing to run for a third term in 1796.

So, #44 was destined to leave office, January 2017. In his last few months (Election Day to Inauguration) he is, as others serving out their days in office, given the designation of a LAME DUCK.

ELECTORAL COLLEGE: We all heard that term almost every single night on the news. So what is this ELECTORAL COLLEGE?.
Seems our forefathers didn't necessarily trust the electorate, US, the citizens, to actually elect our Supreme Leader  and others didn't want the Legislative branch to choose our leaders so a compromise was devised.They invented something called the ELECTORAL COLLEGE to actually elect the President.The Electoral College is a process, not a place. The founding fathers established it in the Constitution as a compromise between election of the President by a vote in Congress and election of the President by a popular vote of qualified citizens.
Using todays numbers regarding the Electoral College: 538 electors, corresponding to the 435 representatives and 100 senators, plus the three electors the District of Columbia. 
A candidate must receive an absolute majority of electoral votes (currently 270) to win the presidency or the vice presidency. If no candidate receives a majority in the election for president or vice president, the election is determined via a contingency procedure established by the Twelfth Amendment. In such a situation, the House chooses one of the top three presidential electoral vote-winners as the president, while the Senate chooses one of the top two vice presidential electoral vote-winners as vice president.

POPULAR VOTE: Or, DOES IT REALLY MATTER? Last election,NO, the majority of the popular vote was  won by the candidate who did NOT win the majority of 270 electoral votes. Hence, that candidate lost the Election of 2016.

So now you are elected President. 
THE EXECUTIVE BRANCH: (Taken directly from WhiteHouse.gov)

The power of the Executive Branch is vested in the President of the United States, who also acts as head of state and Commander-in-Chief of the armed forces. The President is responsible for implementing and enforcing the laws written by Congress and, to that end, appoints the heads of the federal agencies, including the Cabinet. The Vice President is also part of the Executive Branch, ready to assume the Presidency should the need arise.

The Cabinet and independent federal agencies are responsible for the day-to-day enforcement and administration of federal laws. These departments and agencies have missions and responsibilities as widely divergent as those of the Department of Defense and the Environmental Protection Agency, the Social Security Administration and the Securities and Exchange Commission.Including members of the armed forces, the Executive Branch employs more than 4 million Americans.

The PresidentThe President is both the head of state and head of government of the United States of America, and Commander-in-Chief of the armed forces.

Under Article II of the Constitution, the President is responsible for the execution and enforcement of the laws created by Congress. Fifteen executive departments — each led by an appointed member of the President's Cabinet — carry out the day-to-day administration of the federal government. They are joined in this by other executive agencies such as the CIA and Environmental Protection Agency, the heads of which are not part of the Cabinet, but who are under the full authority of the President. The President also appoints the heads of more than 50 independent federal commissions, such as the Federal Reserve Board or the Securities and Exchange Commission, as well as federal judges, ambassadors, and other federal offices. The Executive Office of the President (EOP) consists of the immediate staff to the President, along with entities such as the Office of Management and Budget and the Office of the United States Trade Representative.

The President has the power either to sign legislation into law or to veto bills enacted by Congress, although Congress may override a veto with a two-thirds vote of both houses. The Executive Branch conducts diplomacy with other nations, and the President has the power to negotiate and sign treaties, which also must be ratified by two-thirds of the Senate. The President can issue executive orders, which direct executive officers or clarify and further existing laws. The President also has unlimited power to extend pardons and clemencies for federal crimes, except in cases of impeachment.

TWO HOUSES: Aka THE LEGISLATIVE BRANCH: I probably should have started with ARTICLE 1 of The Constitution. Live and learn:

ARTICLE 1:

Section 1 : Two Houses:

All legislative Powers are vested in a CONGRESS which consists of two bodies, The SENATE and THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES.

Section 2: The House of Representatives:

Chosen every two years, (even numbered years plus 0) The House is considered the LOWER chamber of The United States Congress. It consists of 435 members, a number fixed by law. Each member is elected by POPULAR vote chosen by the electors of their Congressional Districts. These 435 seats are allocated to each of the 50 states on a basis of population measured by the U.S. Census.

 The House is charged with the passage of federal legislation, known as bills, which, after concurrence by the Senate, are sent to the President for consideration. In addition to this basic power, the House has certain exclusive powers of which include the power to initiate all bills related to revenue, the impeachment of federal officers, who are sent to trial in the Senate, and in cases wherein no candidate receives a majority of electors for President, the duty falls upon the House to elect one of the top three recipients of electors for that office, with one vote given to each state for that purpose.

The presiding officer is the Speaker of the House traditionally the leader of the controlling party. He or she and other floor leaders are chosen by the Democratic Caucus or the Republican Conferences, depending on whichever party has more voting members.

The House of Representatives  have the sole Power of Impeachment.

Section 3: THE SENATE

The SENATE of the United States , considered the UPPER chamber of Congress, consists of 100 members, two from each state, serving for six year terms. The seats are vacated and up for reelection on  a rotation so that 1/3 of the body is chosen every two years. The VICE PRESIDENT of the United States is the PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE and shall have NO vote, except to break a 50/50 tie.

THE JUDICIAL BRANCH:
The Supreme Court consists of the Chief Justice of the United States and such number of Associate Justices as may be fixed by Congress. The number of Associate Justices is currently fixed at eight (28 U. S. C. §1). Power to nominate the Justices is vested in the President of the United States, and appointments are made with the advice and consent of the Senate. Article III, §1, of the Constitution further provides that "[t]he Judges, both of the supreme and inferior Courts, shall hold their Offices during good Behaviour, and shall, at stated Times, receive for their Services, a Compensation, which shall not be diminished during their Continuance in Office."

We'll be back...

#45: Heading in to Week 2

Geez, what a two weeks it has been. Some days it seems like I've awaken from a bad dream. What did HE do while I was asleep? The claims by the press today include that #45 is leaving the public and his party in the dark while his advisors try out different ideas and tactics.

First there are the Executive Orders (EO) which are not really executive orders. Then those executive orders that are not executive orders are dismissed by a judge. then those dismissed orders which are not orders are reinstated  by #45 only to be declared void by another judge in Federal Court. AND that's only one issue at hand. Visa, illegals, green carders and refugees are all lumped together in a huge pot with no defining who by the grace of our illustrious #45 will be allowed to enter the Pearly Gates of the United States of America. Heaven forbid you were a fringe candidate with a bit of question on your resume and you left the USA , Visa intact, for a long weekend in the Middle East. You are possible stranded in a state of limbo.

Then there is the Cabinet and various post which are still to be filled being delayed by those damn Democrats, cursed out by the GOP for using the same tactics the GOP used to stop #44 from getting the Supreme Court position filled. How dare those Democrats!

To date only 6 nominees have been approved. More than 2 dozen are filled with interims or left vacant . These include the vitally important  Dept of Energy, Dept. of Education, Dept. of Health and Welfare Services, etc. etc. The Democrats vow to continue their foot dragging in the proposed appointments so this could go on for quite some time.Or new guy, #45 has 4100 administrative positions to fill including 1240 that REQUIRE Senate confirmation. Only 3 dozen have been ANNOUNCED.

Now the GOP wants to REPAIR not Repeal OBAMACARE.I question my memory. Wasn't this one of his key running points? To immediately REPEAL the disaster known as OBAMACARE, oh yeah, and build the Wall Day 1. Funny how there in NO talk of the WALL this week.

The other morn #45 had a meeting with some of the "swamp" folks who he was ridding us of. They all got nice recognition as the "Best and Brightest". Now they are his economic advisors. The same folks who bankrupted us in 2007. Who can forget Jaime Dimon and the others for what they did to the economy and the young folks holding mortgages. Thanks guys for a job well done. Let's see how well they will protect the little man again in 2017. First item discussed was taking steps to undo banking restraints. Yippee. Dump DODD-FRANK Regulations. We are screwed.

New Sanctions on IRAN. Last Friday the Iranians fired a few missiles.We threw out a few words of caution. Iran didn't like that or our ban on their travel here so the Iraians banned us from going there. Hence, #45 issues mote sanctions.And now they know the "true" face of The United States.

Israel, his buddy, the country he vowed to protect is now on the back burner for attempting to build 2100 homes in an occupied area. #45 like it, was advised against liking it so he re-upped Obama's plan following UN Sanctions.

What a week!

Take A Knee

The big news about town is that two teachers at our local high school took a knee last Friday morning during the Pledge of Allegiance, this being on the morn of #45's inauguration. The rumor of the alleged incident spread quickly on social media and at times viciously, with some community members calling for "their heads", wishing them ill will, and/or that they should lose their jobs.Very few thought this to be a good idea or teaching tool.

I thought about the incident long and hard. The quandary was, Why would two respected  history teachers get together and "protest" #45 by taking a knee in front of students? Was it there attempt to make a political statement? OR Might it have been a teaching moment to display to their students that they, the students, have Freedom of Speech according to the First Amendment?

One would need to ask: What was their motivation? Was it in their lesson plans? How would this lesson be evaluated? And if it was to be a teaching experience AKA a lesson, Who approved this?

Then it was discovered that these two "history" did NOT do this as a teaching experience. Nor did they do this in their own classroom in the presence of their own students. Rather then pulling this stunt in the safety and comfort of their own classroom with their students who understand them they choose the classroom of a "non-tenured" teacher, a possible future colleague, in unfamiliar grounds with students basically unknown to them and they to them.

The TWO, as I will refer to them, did not have a class scheduled at that time and as a matter of fact it was determined by reviewing their teaching assignments both have a rather cushy schedule of Advanced Placement classes. The best of the best. To make this situation even stranger, one of the TWO is CHAIRPERSON of the department, that is, a supervisor of the other member of the TWO, and potential boss of the non tenured teacher.

Investigation has shown that the TWO have been previously quite outspoken in opposition to the election of #45 while praising the graces and accomplishments of President #44. They also had planned to attend the inauguration if their chosen candidate had won. It was also learned that during the last two inaugurations these TWO hosted students in classrooms and the cafeteria to view #44 taking the Oath of Office. However, on Friday these same TV's were nowhere to be found for #45. Confusing? You bet. It gets better.

My thought are with the principal, blindsided by all this, as he must sift through what actually occurred and with the aid of Central Office, The Board of Education, as well as The Constitution of The United States, determine his next step as well as making a statement to the community. Being thrust into an ill light is never taught in Administration 101.

Legally there is little he/they can do as the First Amendment guarantees FREE SPEECH, even in the work place. I say little legally can be done however...payback can be a bitch. You might be able to slip a few days suspension with pay out but...ACLU will be on that in a second.So what to do?

A "counseling memo" could be offered, instructing the TWO about your respecting their rights to protest but your utter disappointment on "where" they did it (not their classroom) and their jeopardizing the non-tenured teachers reputation in the community by choosing to do it in his classroom. Also that their place of protest (not their room, not their students, why not the main hallway, faculty room,outside in the rain) could have (did) jeopardize those student who might have been conflicted. "Should I continue to stand or join in?" These TWO put the students, again NOT theirs, in a precarious situation. Their otherwise good judgement displayed in years past was today clouded by their desire to make a political statement.Or was it?

Geez, that poor principal probably spent his weekend on the phone or in the school working with the powers that be sorting through this situation, determining their response, and preparing for the Board of Education meeting scheduled (regularly) for Monday night, but I am sure by that time a few more questions will be asked by the community who are expected to pack said meeting.

Due to a N'easter the meeting was postponed until the following Friday. The brouhaha in the community calmed a bit yet those who started to post in the latter days leading up to the rescheduled meeting came out in favor of the teachers and their RIGHT to freedom of speech. The teachers were named by some and more jumped on the bandwagon defending The Two, restating over and over again as to their teaching abilities and love for there students and subject matter. An apology was offered to the community and Board of Education by the Two during the interim to the meeting.

I did not attend the meeting but from the TV coverage and my conversations with those there cooler heads prevailed. As with all personnel matters nothing was or could be revealed to the community to the dismay of some. But life goes on.

And it will as more information was revealed as to "how" the two were brought to notoriety. Could it have been another teacher? One who proudly states "LET'S MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN"? Could it be the same teacher in the same department as the two, who has a huge TRUMP/PENCE banner hanging over his desk?

Think it's time for a change....