Trump's Twitter targets for today, the WHCD and Michelle Wolf.

The White House Correspondents’ Dinner was a failure last year, but this year was an embarrassment to everyone associated with it. The filthy “comedian” totally bombed (couldn’t even deliver her lines-much like the Seth Meyers weak performance). Put Dinner to rest, or start over!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 30, 2018

The White House Correspondents’ Dinner is DEAD as we know it. This was a total disaster and an embarrassment to our great Country and all that it stands for. FAKE NEWS is alive and well and beautifully represented on Saturday night!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 30, 2018

I would just first like to point out that if Trump thinks he is hurting Michelle Wolf's career in any way by going after her on Twitter he is dead wrong.

She is launching a new show on Netflix, and she has just gone from a comedian that only a few people know about, to a national figure who is the subject of tweets by the president of the United States.

There is no way this hurts her professionally.

And that goes for the attacks by the conservatives, and some self identified "liberals," as well.

Which by the way are completely without merit.

Courtesy of Vulture:

As soon as Michelle Wolf finished delivering her blistering White House Correspondents’ Dinner roast of the Trump administration and the members of the press that cover it, she was, not surprisingly, criticized for much of what she said. Oddly, however, a lot of that criticism zeroed in on something that Michelle Wolf did not actually say: a joke about Sarah Huckabee Sanders’s appearance.

The two jokes that seemed to irk critics were her Handmaid’s Tale dig — “I have to say I’m a little starstruck. I love you as Aunt Lydia in The Handmaid’s Tale” — and the aforementioned line about Sanders’s smoky eye, which went like this: “I actually really like Sarah. I think she’s very resourceful. She burns facts, and then she uses the ash to create a perfect smoky eye. Maybe she’s born with it, maybe it’s lies. It’s probably lies.”

Somehow this was misconstrued to be an attack on Huckabee Sander's appearance, which it clearly was not.

In stead it was an attack on her honesty, which, let's face it, was more than appropriate.

However both conservatives and some in the media spouted their faux outrage all over Twitter.

That @PressSec sat and absorbed intense criticism of her physical appearance, her job performance, and so forth, instead of walking out, on national television, was impressive.

— Maggie Haberman (@maggieNYT) April 29, 2018

And of course Mika Brzezinski also had to give her two cents.

Women who use their government positions to spread lies and misinformation deserve to face the same withering criticism as men. But leave our looks out of it. Watching from home, I hurt for Sarah, her husband and her children.

— Mika Brzezinski (@morningmika) April 29, 2018

All of this seemed to puzzle Michelle Wolf who responded with this:

Why are you guys making this about Sarah’s looks? I said she burns facts and uses the ash to create a *perfect* smoky eye. I complimented her eye makeup and her ingenuity of materials. https://t.co/slII9TYdYx

— Michelle Wolf (@michelleisawolf) April 29, 2018

Exactly.

Look if you are a conservative then misrepresenting the facts and participating in faux outrage is kinda what you do.

But if you are supposed to be a "journalist" of some kind you are expected to adhere to the facts, and there were several media types who failed to meet that expectation.

And like I said all of this does nothing but help Michelle Wolf's career, and ensure that when her Netflix show drops on May 27 that it will have a lot more folks tuned in.

So keep it up conservatives (And Mika Brzezinski) cause all it does is put money in her pockets.

So while Michelle Wolf was pissing off conservatives yesterday, in Michigan Donald Trump was driving them into a frenzy.

Crowd chants "NOBEL, NOBEL, NOBEL" at President @realDonaldTrump rally. pic.twitter.com/zyPHp0gZqL

— Fox News (@FoxNews) April 28, 2018

So yes that is Trump taking FULL credit for the North and South Korea peace deal, while his people chant "Nobel" at him.

I think it's pretty clear why he would rather be there, than to sit and listen to Michelle Wolf rip him  a new one.

After all it is the coward's way.

I of course did not watch hardly ANY of this rally (I was still bummed about the furnace.), but I did do some catching up online.

For instance Trump also said that if the Republicans failed to hold on to the House that he was probably going to be impeached.

President @realDonaldTrump: "We have to keep the House, because if you listen to @MaxineWaters, she goes around saying, 'We will impeach him, we will impeach him.'" pic.twitter.com/OQHcME4i16

— Fox News (@FoxNews) April 29, 2018

Which proves that once in a while, Donald Trump CAN tell the truth.

But just when you might have been willing to give him a little credit for that, he turns around and suggests that the Russian lawyer only said she was working with the Kremlin to  "make life in the United States more chaotic."

Trump now claims that Natalia Veselnitskaya is only saying she's an "informant" with ties to the Kremlin because Putin realized how hard Trump has been on Russia and he wants to make the U.S. more chaotic. (via Fox) pic.twitter.com/NiZKeigPpO

— Kyle Griffin (@kylegriffin1) April 28, 2018

That of course is completely illogical, but his crowd ate it right up.

In fact Trump got them so worked up that at least one of them verbally attacked the press.

This Trump supporter repeatedly yelled at the press, calling media “degenerate filth” and to get out of his country after the Michigan rally concluded pic.twitter.com/hbd8vhpVYc

— Brianna Sacks (@bri_sacks) April 29, 2018

Gee, forced to miss the WHCD and now covered in Trump supporter spittle, it really sucks to have to report on a Trump rally.

Apparently this is how Trump supporters take their college graduation photos.

I don’t take normal college graduation photos... pic.twitter.com/eI1NvLFYHs

— Brenna Spencer (@BrennaSpencer) April 7, 2018

Courtesy of the New York Post:  

A Tennessee college senior is sticking to her guns after posting a graduation photo in which she stares wistfully off-camera while lifting her “Women for Trump” T-shirt to expose a firearm in her waistband. 

Despite receiving what she called a surprising “amount of hate” on social media, Brenna Spencer, 22, says she has no regrets. 

“I know the Tennessee state gun codes …. I carry everywhere that I’m allowed to carry,” the University of Tennessee, Chattanooga student told ABC News. 

On Twitter, where Spencer’s profile states that “political correctness offends me,” she posted the provocative photo with the caption: “I don’t take normal college graduation photos…”

Well, she should be joining the Trump Administration any day now. 

So is this shoving a gun into your cootchie the new hot thing among conservative females?

Because I really don't get it.

Chairman of Sinclair Broadcasting met with Donald Trump during the election, promising that "We are here to deliver your message."

David D. Smith

Courtesy of The Guardian:  

The chairman of Sinclair Broadcast Group met Donald Trump at the White House during a visit to pitch a potentially lucrative new product to administration officials, the Guardian has learned. 

David D Smith, whose company has been criticised for making its anchors read a script echoing Trump’s attacks on the media, said he briefed officials last year on a system that would enable authorities to broadcast direct to any American’s phone. 

“I just wanted them to be aware of the technology,” Smith said in an interview. He also recalled an earlier meeting with Trump during the 2016 election campaign, where he told the future president: “We are here to deliver your message.” 

Sinclair is the biggest owner of local TV in the US, and may soon reach 72% of American households if a proposed $4bn takeover of a rival is approved by federal regulators. It is accused by critics of having a conservative bias, which it denies.

The company has been a driving force in the development of a new broadcasting standard known as Next Gen TV, and is one of the first involved in making chips for televisions, cellphones and other devices to receive the new transmissions. 

Gee I wonder if those chips can also report back information, such as viewing habits, news sources, and possible political affiliations?

Because I kind of bet they can.

The CEO of Sinclair recently apologized to their employees for all of attacks they are receiving from "extremists."

Courtesy of Politico:  

Sinclair Broadcast Group CEO Chris Ripley apologized to employees Tuesday for having to endure what he called “politically motivated attacks” over the right-leaning media company’s recent promos, which drew widespread criticism for echoing President Trump’s attacks on the “fake” news media. 

In a memo sent to staff, Ripley defended the scripts that anchors at more than 60 Sinclair stations were compelled to read, telling staff that the practice “is not unique to Sinclair, however, the blowback we received for doing so certainly is.” 

“For having to field nasty calls, threats, personal confrontations and trolling on social media, I am truly sorry you had to endure such an experience,” Ripley wrote. “However, as an organization it is important that we do not let extremists on any side of the political fence bully us because they do not like what they hear or see.”

Oh yeah Sinclair is being attacked for doing what EVERY other news outlet does.

Once again, which news outlets force their reporters to do this?

It is not an "extremist" point of view to point out that this is atrocious, nor is it extremist to be very uncomfortable with a "news" agency that meets with a presidential candidate and promises to deliver their message.

That is not news reporting, that is propaganda.

Former Sinclair news director speaks out.

Courtesy of CNN: 

A morning TV producer at a Sinclair-owned station in Nebraska has resigned in protest of what he calls the company's "obvious bias." 

Justin Simmons gave notice at KHGI TV on March 26. This was after Sinclair's corporate headquarters mandated that local anchors read the controversial promos warning of "fake" and biased news, but before the promos went viral and became a national topic of discussion. 

Simmons told CNNMoney that he had been concerned about Sinclair's corporate mandates for the past year and a half, and that the promos were just the final straw. 

"This is almost forcing local news anchors to lie to their viewers," he said. He said his feelings are shared by others at his station, but didn't want to say anything that would imperil his colleagues.

Huffington Post actually got their hands on the Sinclair Broadcasting Group employee handbook.

Here is just a portion:   

The handbook states that the company “may monitor, intercept, and review, without further notice, every employee’s activities using Company’s electronic resources and communications systems.”

Well that's chilling.

But if you think that all of this attention has changed Sinclair's practices, you would be sorely mistaken.

Courtesy of Think Progress:  

Sinclair-owned news stations promoted a pre-taped segment praising President Trump’s decision to impose tariffs on foreign nations this week, amid controversy over a leaked “must-run” script. 

The canned clip, a recurring “commentary” segment called “Bottom Line with Boris,” features former Trump campaign adviser Boris Epshteyn delivering administration-friendly talking points on the president’s proposed tariffs, which target countries like China. 

“The newly negotiated trade deal between the United States and South Korea shows the new tariffs on steel and aluminum, which went into effect last week, are already paying dividends,” Epshteyn said, citing a March 25 pact between the two countries that forces South Korea to slash its steel exports to the United States by 30 percent, while exempting it from a regular 25 percent tariff. 

“Here’s the bottom line,” he said. “This new deal with South Korea is a win for American businesses and our economy. Instead of causing trade wars, as critics have feared, the new tariffs…are pushing our trading partners to engage in fair trade with the United States.”

You would think that Boris Epshteyn might shed a few of those ugly pounds of fat by carrying all of this water for Donald Trump.

Or in this case instead of water I think he is more accurately carrying buckets filled with bullshit.

Donald Trump tweeted in defense of Sinclair Broadcasting. Yep, time to act surprised again.

So funny to watch Fake News Networks, among the most dishonest groups of people I have ever dealt with, criticize Sinclair Broadcasting for being biased. Sinclair is far superior to CNN and even more Fake NBC, which is a total joke.

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 2, 2018

I am sure that you all remember Sinclair Broadcasting from my post just yesterday.

Yep, that's them.

For those of you with a longer memory you might remember late last year when Jared Kushner said this: 

Donald Trump's campaign struck a deal with Sinclair Broadcast Group during the campaign to try and secure better media coverage, his son-in-law Jared Kushner told business executives Friday in Manhattan. 

Kushner said the agreement with Sinclair, which owns television stations across the country in many swing states and often packages news for their affiliates to run, gave them more access to Trump and the campaign, according to six people who heard his remarks. 

In exchange, Sinclair would broadcast their Trump interviews across the country without commentary, Kushner said. Kushner highlighted that Sinclair, in states like Ohio, reaches a much wider audience — around 250,000 listeners — than networks like CNN, which reach somewhere around 30,000. 

“It’s math,” Kushner said according to multiple attendees.

Dammit! I have always worried that at some point the conservatives might figure out math. 

You almost have to admire how openly Donald Trump and his people discuss, and even brag, about their new propaganda machine.

They are not even trying to keep this a secret.

That might be the most troubling thing of all.

Dammit! I did not even get a chance to make fun of her yet.

By my count, that’s 2 races.
https://t.co/Vy6nYW6QxV

— amber ruffin (@ambermruffin) March 30, 2018

Courtesy of CNN:

"Clueless" star and former Fox News commentator Stacey Dash is withdrawing her congressional bid, a representative for the actress confirmed to CNN Friday. 

"After much prayer, introspection and discussions with my family, I am withdrawing my candidacy for California's 44th Congressional District," Dash said in an email statement to CNN. 

The news comes one month after the actress and outspoken Republican filed paperwork to run in California's 44th district, which is currently represented by Democrat Nanette Barragán. 

Her campaign slogan was "Dash to D.C."

Look. There is a lot going on right no, so I would appreciate it if these conservatives morons trying to run for office during what will likely be one of the largest progressive turnovers in American history, would stay in the race long enough for me to get around to mocking them BEFORE they come to their senses and run back to the safety of their Right Wing bubble.

I mean I am only one man here.

And there is SO MUCH to mock right now.

After getting walloped by the Parkland students Laura Ingraham decides to take a vacation. Might as well, it's not like she has any advertisers left.

David Hogg Rejected By Four Colleges To Which He Applied and whines about it. (Dinged by UCLA with a 4.1 GPA...totally predictable given acceptance rates.) https://t.co/wflA4hWHXY

— Laura Ingraham (@IngrahamAngle) March 28, 2018

 Courtesy of Variety:  

Laura Ingraham is taking avacation next week. Now the question is whether a controversy swirling around the host will go on hiatus as well. 

The popular Fox News Channel host – her “Ingraham Angle” was the fourth most-watched cable-news program in February – told viewers Friday night she would not appear on air next week as she took what she described as a pre-planned break around the Easter holiday with her children. Substitute hosts are expected to fill in for her on the program. 

She leaves in the midst of heightened scrutiny. Ingraham set off an imbroglio Wednesday with a Twitter post mocking Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School student David Hogg, one of the students who has spoken out about gun control prominently since a February 14th shooting incident at the Parkland, Florida school left 17 people dead. Her tweet linked to a report noting Hogg had been rejected from four California colleges. Her tweet also said Hogg “whines about” the rejections. 

That extremely immature attack resulted in a call for a boycott of Ingraham's advertisers and as of right now these are the businesses that have turned their backs on her:

Atlantis Bahamas 

Expedia 

Hulu 

Jenny Craig 

Johnson & Johnson

Liberty Mutual 

Nestle 

Nutrish 

Stitch Fix 

TripAdvisor 

and Wayfair. 

Okay THAT'S a hell of a list.  And there will likely be even more by the end of the day.

Keep in mind that Ingraham is not the ONLY conservative who has been brought to their knees after attacking these Parkland students, and if I were a Right Wing asshole I would be thinking twice about getting on the wrong side of these kids.

They are moving us to the future, and woe be to those that try to stand in their way.

Sarah Palin with the only two black women in America that can stand her.

This is what the two women wrote on their original post:

Had a wonderful time at Mar-a-Lago with the fabulous Governor Sarah Palin along with her beautiful daughter Ms. Piper. She did a magnificent job as the keynote speaker at The Republican Party of Palm Beach County Lincoln Day Dinner. Such a phenomenal woman. 

Actually this Diamond and Silk duo has appeared on Fox News, and other Right Wing outlets, bad mouthing the BLM movement, speaking out against Barack Obama, and spouting conservative talking points which the racists eat up with a spoon.

So of course they love them some Sarah Palin.

Oh well, there is no accounting for taste.

Or integrity.

Or common sense.

Sinclair Broadcasting, Donald Trump's favorite broadcasting company, to air conservative attacks on the media on local stations around the country.

Courtesy of CNN: 

As scripted, the promos decry "fake stories" from national news outlets -- echoing President Trump's inflammatory rhetoric about "fake news.

"The promos are supposed to start airing on local stations later this month. The instructions sent to station news directors say that the 60- and 75-second spots should run frequently "to create maximum reach and frequency." 

The promo requirements are the latest reason why some Sinclair journalists are upset with the company's Maryland-based management. In recent years Sinclair's owners, the Smith family, have made several programming decisions that reflect a right-wing agenda. 

Most noticeably, pro-Trump commentaries by former Trump aide Boris Epshteyn have cut into local news time. Local journalists have also bristled at so-called "must run" packages about subjects that aren't relevant to local audiences -- but are hot-button stories for conservatives. The "Terrorism Alert Desk" is a regular segment about security threats around the world.

The instructions to local stations say that the promos "should play using news time, not commercial time." Like the Epshteyn commentaries, this takes away from local news time. 

"Please produce the attached scripts exactly as they are written," the instructions say. "This copy has been thoroughly tested and speaks to our Journalistic Responsibility as advocates to seek the truth on behalf of the audience." 

The promos begin with one or two anchors introducing themselves and saying "I'm [we are] extremely proud of the quality, balanced journalism that [proper news brand name of local station] produces. But I'm [we are] concerned about the troubling trend of irresponsible, one sided news stories plaguing our country." 

Then the media bashing begins.

"The sharing of biased and false news has become all too common on social media," the script says. "More alarming, national media outlets are publishing these same fake stories without checking facts first. Unfortunately, some members of the national media are using their platforms to push their own personal bias and agenda to control 'exactly what people think' ... This is extremely dangerous to our democracy." 

Then the anchors are supposed to strike a more positive tone and say that their local station pursues the truth. "We understand Truth is neither politically 'left or right.' Our commitment to factual reporting is the foundation of our credibility, now more than ever."

If all of that sounds familiar it is because those are the talking points espoused by Fox News for decades now.

"All other news is false, and the truth can only be found here."

It used to be that you could avoif this kind of conservative propaganda simply by avoiding Fox News, and similar Right Wing news outlets.

But with his agenda now coming into your homes on your local stations, that now becomes almost impossible.

Sinclair is now in the process of trying to acquire Tribune Media which will expand its reach even further.

The FCC is yet to sign off on the deal, but with Trump's man Ajit Pai now in charge, it is likely going to go through with only minimal resistance.

Conservatives freakout as Twitter purges Russian bots and they suddenly lose hundreds, and even thousands of followers.

I've lost close to 1,000 followers offer the past few hours.

Major purge underway.

— Richard 🐉 Spencer (@RichardBSpencer) February 21, 2018

Courtesy of Metro: 

Today, our thoughts and prayers are with the #MAGA brigade, as they howl in despair after half their Twitter followers vanished overnight. 

The reason? Those ‘cruel leftist libs’ at Twitter just purged a load of Russian bots, it seems – leading (hilariously) to right-wing Tweeters losing their sh*t. 

They think it’s some kind of left-wing conspiracy, whereas in fact, Twitter appears to have just deleted a bunch of non-existent fascists controlled from St Petersburg. 

Not seeming to realise the irony, many are sharing their agony online with the hashtag #TwitterLockout.

Just LOST over 3500 followers in the past hour. Thanks #TwitterPurge. 🤮 pic.twitter.com/YeHJ7lYzv4

— Janna Deplorable (@JannaWilkinso69) February 21, 2018

Twitter Locked me out tonight. Lost 2,000 followers simply because I’m a conservative voice exposing Liberal hypocrisy! #TwitterLockOut

— 🇺🇸CHIZ 👌🏻 (@CHIZMAGA) February 21, 2018

It's not polite to point and laugh at the stupid, but come on this is almost too good to be true.

However as we LOL at their expense, let's also take a moment to realize just how big this Russian operation truly was.

I mean some of these are just regular idiots on Twitter, NOT celebrities or big name politicians.

If they lost hundreds and even thousands of Twitter followers, what does that tell us about just how many fake accounts the Russians actually created, not just on Twitter, but on ALL social media platforms?

Here was how one Trump supporter reacted to learning that she had been manipulated by the Russians.

A Florida woman who ran a Trump supporters page that unwittingly promoted a Russian-coordinated event on Facebook says she doesn’t believe that she was influenced by Kremlin-linked trolls https://t.co/fhcT0MyxUA pic.twitter.com/dOG3xXFpTw

— CNN (@CNN) February 21, 2018

Can you say "cognitive dissonance?"

Conservatives attack credibility of students who survived the school shooting in Florida. Seriously? Update!

As of this morning, the teenaged Florida mass-shooting survivors have variously been criticized as:
-Soros plants
-The biased children of FBI agents
-Too traumatized to have worthwhile opinions about an event that directly involved them https://t.co/YbZmsBGsuL

— Matt Pearce 🦅 (@mattdpearce) February 20, 2018

Courtesy of Think Progress:

David Hogg, a senior at the school, was one of the first to appear on national television and demand action. “We’re children. You guys are the adults. You need to take some action and play a role. Work together. Come over your politics and get something done,” Hogg said, looking directly into the camera. 

Hogg is now being targeted by Gateway Pundit, a far-right blog that has press credentials from the Trump White House. A post published on Monday by the site’s White House correspondent, Lucian Wintrich, features Hogg’s photo with the word “EXPOSED” stamped in red.

Wintrich says Hogg and other students throw up some “red flags.” The first “red flag” is that Hogg’s father is a retired FBI agent. (Hogg freely admitted this on national television.) The insinuation is that Hogg’s father, who does not even work for the FBI, has tasked his son with talking about gun control to take the heat off the agency. 

Wintrich also uses an edited YouTube video of Hogg having some difficulty answering questions for a taped interview as evidence that Hogg is “heavily coached on lines and is merely reciting a script.” There is no evidence, in the video or elsewhere in the article, supporting this claim. 

Wintrich then drops all pretenses and fully embraces the conspiracy: 

Why would the child of an FBI agent be used as a pawn for anti-Trump rhetoric and anti-gun legislation? Because the FBI is only looking to curb YOUR Constitutional rights and INCREASE their power. We’ve seen similar moves by them many times over. This is just another disgusting example of it.

Is anybody else having a Sandy Hook deja vu?

Some version of this conspiracy theory has now spread across social media.

Pro-Trump media really reaching for attacks on Fla. shooting survivor David Hogg. The latest: True Pundit says Hogg going on a tour of CNN HQ, apparently years ago, is proof that he's up to something. pic.twitter.com/rMi114quJf

— Will Sommer (@willsommer) February 20, 2018

It has even been embraced by Donald Trump Jr.:

Don Jr. has liked at least two tweets pushing content that attempts to discredit one of the most vocal student survivors of the Parkland school shooting. pic.twitter.com/YI9ANh5dlL

— Kyle Griffin (@kylegriffin1) February 20, 2018

And Hogg is not their only target.

Writer for Jim Hoft's The Gateway Pundit now saying student survivors of the Parkland school shooting are "are milking the deaths of their peers for careers" and "only care about their SJW agenda" pic.twitter.com/YAIgguU8tO

— Timothy Johnson (@timothywjohnson) February 20, 2018

Trust me when I say that I have seen the conservatives go low before, but to attack these kids, or suggest that they are "milking the deaths of their peers for careers," is so incredibly disgusting that it literally makes me sick to my stomach.

I understand the fear that the Right is feeling right now, if I saw these kids coming after me and my party I might be wetting my tighty whiteys as well, but all that attacking them accomplishes is to make them even more determined and erase ANY hope of convincing them that the conservatives and Republican party are not their enemies.

To use perhaps too apt of a metaphor the conservatives are essentially shooting themselves in the foot right now.

And while all this is going on a critically clueless conservative journalist is suggesting that the gun control debate needs to wait until people start showing respect to gun owners:

So if you want to stop school shootings it’s not enough just to vent and march. It’s necessary to let people from Red America lead the way, and to show respect to gun owners at all points. There has to be trust and respect first. Then we can strike a compromise on guns as guns, and not some sacred cross in the culture war. 

You know I have heard of "tone deaf" before, but this David Brooks guy is just "deaf deaf."

(Buzzfeed by the way has a rather expansive article on the student's grass roots activism, that essentially drives a stake through the heart of the whole "manipulated by the Left Wing" narrative.)

Update: People are starting to lose their jobs over these smear campaigns.

JUST IN: Aide to Florida GOP lawmaker fired for spreading false claim that shooting survivors are "actors" https://t.co/uY4WGB7IQX pic.twitter.com/revhfMj8aN

— The Hill (@thehill) February 21, 2018

Nice to see a little justice served. 

Conservative media has now launched an all out attack on Robert Mueller in order to undermine his investigation.

(Sorry for the abrupt ending, it was the only version I could find.)

Courtesy of CNN: 

What's President Trump hearing when he watches Fox News? 

He's hearing that special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation is "illegitimate and corrupt." That it's led by a "band of merry Trump-haters" who are trying to reverse the results of the election. And that it must be stopped. 

He's also hearing that the FBI is becoming "America's secret police," akin to the KGB in Russia, full of "sickness" and "corruption." 

These are all actual quotes from some of the president's favorite pro-Trump talk shows. 

The overarching message from "Fox & Friends" and "Hannity" is unmistakable: Mr. President, you're the victim of a "deep state" plot to take you down. Don't let it happen. 

Sean Hannity, the highest-rated host on Fox, has renewed his calls for Mueller to resign. And Fox's other pro-Trump shows reinforce this message on a daily basis. 

In recent weeks, there's been a big increase in reporting about Mueller's probe and how it could affect Trump's inner circle. At the same time, there's also been a sharp escalation in the anti-Mueller rhetoric coming from right wing media sources.

We have seen some of these attacks before, but now it appears that things are ramping up to a rather hysterical level.

In looking for more information about this I Googled "conservative attacks on Robert Mueller" and what I found makes these attacks from Fox News look like child's play.

Other conservative outlets are not even trying to appear reasonable, and some of what they are charging is so unhinged that it almost seems to be a parody of itself.

I think that it is beyond obvious that the Right Wing media is conditioning their listeners, Trump's base, to accept that the firing of Robert Mueller as not only reasonable, but necessary.

That is why Robert Mueller must be protected at all cost.

So the wife of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas gave James O'Keefe an award. I didn't know they gave awards for being a douchebag.

Proud to receive the Impact award from Ginni Thomas on behalf of the @project_veritas team. Congrats to the other attendees and award winners Sean Hannity, Larry Arnn, Dan Bongino, Tom Fitton, Frank Gaffney, Charlie Kirk, Rick Manning, Star Parker, Chris Plante, Leonard Leo. These guys are all fighters.

A post shared by James O'Keefe (@jamesokeefeiii) on Dec 6, 2017 at 12:09pm PST

Courtesy of The Hill: 

James O'Keefe, the conservative activist who attempted to plant a false story in The Washington Post this month about GOP Senate candidate Roy Moore, was presented Wednesday with an Impact Award, handed to him by Ginni Thomas, wife of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas. 

O'Keefe accepted the award on behalf of his organization, Project Veritas, at an event hosted by the conservative group United for Purpose at the Trump International Hotel in Washington, D.C.. 

"Proud to receive the Impact award from Ginni Thomas on behalf of the @project_veritas team," O'Keefe wrote on Instagram, before praising other 2017 award recipients such as Fox New host Sean Hannity and Judicial Watch president Tom Fitton as "fighters." 

Thomas is a tea party activist and president of Liberty Consulting.

I have no idea what they are rewarding O'Keefe for doing, since most of his childish stings only reveal that he is a rank amateur and embarrassment to the conservative movement.

His last "expose" blew up in his face so spectacularly they he ended up reinforcing the integrate of his target and exposing one of his pathetic little operatives to ridicule.

And by the way how is it okay for the wife of a sitting Supreme Court Justice to participate in this kind of partisan bomb throwing?

“Look, I'm a heterosexual. I have a wife, I love my wife, I don't like men." Pennsylvania state representative loses it when male peer touches his forearm.

Courtesy of WaPo: 

While debating a land-use bill at a committee meeting on Tuesday night, Pennsylvania state Rep. Matt Bradford laid his hand — for just a moment — on the left forearm of the colleague sitting next to him. 

That colleague was conservative Rep. Daryl Metcalfe, who interrupted Bradford mid-sentence with a personal bit of information. 

“Look, I'm a heterosexual. I have a wife, I love my wife, I don't like men — as you might. But stop touching me all the time,” Metcalfe told Bradford, who then began laughing. 

Several other members of the committee, which Metcalfe chairs, giggled and smirked. 

“Keep your hands to yourself,” said Metcalfe, a Republican from Butler County. “If you want to touch somebody, you have people on your side of the aisle who might like it. 

“I don't.” 

Bradford, a Democrat, appeared to be stunned by the comments. 

“Okay, chairman, chairman,” he said, widely grinning as committee members laughed. 

One member appeared to conceal her face from the camera with her hand. “We're officially off the rails. ... My intent was just to beg for your permission for about 30 seconds.” 

“Then beg, don't touch,” responded Metcalfe, who is serving his 10th term in office. Bradford continued to laugh.

I have seen some rather stunning examples of homophobia in my time, but I think this one easily makes the top of the list. 

You know what they say about those who freak out the most about homosexuality don't you?

Right Wing flips out as illegal immigrant accused of killing the young woman who inspired "Kate's Law" is found innocent of both murder and manslaughter.

Courtesy of CNN: 

A jury on Thursday found an undocumented immigrant not guilty in the July 2015 death of Kate Steinle, a decision that reignited the debate over immigration policy. 

Jose Ines Garcia Zarate, 45, was acquitted of murder and involuntary manslaughter charges, as well as assault with a deadly weapon. Jurors convicted the Mexican citizen of being a felon in possession of a firearm, which could bring a three-year sentence. 

Prosecutors had argued Garcia Zarate intentionally shot Steinle, 32, with a Sig Sauer .40-caliber handgun as she and her father walked on San Francisco's Pier 14. But Garcia Zarate's defense attorney said the shooting was accidental and the bullet ricocheted off the ground and traveled about 80 feet before hitting Steinle. 

Federal immigration officials said they will try to deport Garcia Zarate. He had been deported from the United States five times prior to Steinle's death.

This woman's death became a rallying cry for conservatives, and a tool for Donald Trump to make his argument that we needed to build a "big, beautiful border wall."

She also was the inspiration for Kate's Law, which suggests harsher penalties for illegal immigrants who have repeatedly broken the law.

Of course as soon as Trump heard about this he was all over Twitter.

A disgraceful verdict in the Kate Steinle case! No wonder the people of our Country are so angry with Illegal Immigration.

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 1, 2017

The Kate Steinle killer came back and back over the weakly protected Obama border, always committing crimes and being violent, and yet this info was not used in court. His exoneration is a complete travesty of justice. BUILD THE WALL!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 1, 2017

The jury was not told the killer of Kate was a 7 time felon. The Schumer/Pelosi Democrats are so weak on Crime that they will pay a big price in the 2018 and 2020 Elections.

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 1, 2017

I'm not sure what Nancy Pelosi and Chuck Schumer have to do with this, but as usual Trump needs to attack someone.

Trump was certainly not the only one to take to Twitter over this.

Jury convinced that illegal alien killed Kate Steinle accidentally. She would still be alive if we had a wall.

— Ann Coulter (@AnnCoulter) December 1, 2017

Oh yeah, if only there had been a wall. Simple minded moron.

Even the Wasilla Wendigo contributed her two cents.

Such an insane recent news cycle, and now this?? Outrageous “not guilty” verdict in murder case of Kate Steinle. The illegal alien who shot her was just given more rights, grace and favor than the devastated Steinle family. San Francisco is NOT a safe place. - SP

— Sarah Palin (@SarahPalinUSA) December 1, 2017

Actually they were given the same rights, as both sides were represented and the jury delivered its verdict based on the evidence.

That is how justice works in this country.

It is indeed a tragedy that this young woman lost her life, but it is also just another among the thousands of deaths each year caused by gun violence.

The only reason the conservatives give two shits about this incident is that it involved an undocumented immigrant.

Period.

The Koch brothers may have gained some editorial control over Time Magazine, and that cannot be good news.

Courtesy of the New York Times:  

Charles Koch, the chief executive of Koch Industries, and David Koch have long sought to shape political discourse through their support of nonprofit organizations, universities and think tanks. But in its announcement of the deal, Meredith said that the private equity fund, Koch Equity Development, would not have a seat on Meredith’s board of directors and would “have no influence on Meredith’s editorial or managerial operations.” 

Steve Lombardo, a spokesman for Koch Industries, also said that the Kochs had no plans to take an active role in the expanded company. “This is a passive financial investment made through our equity development arm,” Mr. Lombardo said. The company’s role in the transaction, he said, was similar to that of a bank.

However that is just the official position. It may not reflect that actual long term goal:

Some Koch allies have suggested that the brothers would view their investment purely as a moneymaking opportunity. But others familiar with the Kochs’ thinking speculated that they could nonetheless use the media properties — which reach millions of online and print readers — to promote their brand of conservatism. The investment would also give the Kochs a way to combine the arsenal of voter information held by a data analytics company controlled by their network, i360, with the publishers’ consumer data. 

Remember that one of goals for these conservative money men is to somehow take over the mainstream media and start making sure that they print a version of reality that supports their political ideology.

Strictly speaking facts simply do not often lend themselves to such support.

Red states preach family values, but blue states are better at putting that into practice.

Courtesy of the New York Times: 

According to the Youth Risk Behavior Survey of 32 states, those with the highest percentage of high school students who say they have had sex are Mississippi, Delaware, West Virginia, Alabama and Arkansas. All but Delaware voted Republican in the last presidential election. 

Meanwhile, the five states with the lowest proportion of high school students who have had sex were New York, California, Maryland, Nebraska and Connecticut. All but Nebraska voted Democratic. 

When evangelical kids have sex, they’re less likely to use birth control — and that may be a reason (along with lower abortion rates) that red states have high teen birthrates.

Nine of the 10 states with the highest teen birthrates voted Republican in 2016. And nine of the 10 states with the lowest teen birthrates voted Democratic. 

“Red regions of the country have higher teen pregnancy rates, more shotgun marriages and lower average ages at marriage and first birth,” Naomi Cahn and June Carbone wrote in their important 2010 book, “Red Families v. Blue Families.” 

The liberal impulse may be to gloat: Those conservatives thunder about “family values” but don’t practice them. But there’s also perhaps a measure of hypocrisy in the blue states. As Cahn and Carbone put it: “Blue family values bristle at restrictions on sexuality, insistence on marriage or the stigmatization of single parents. Their secret, however, is that they encourage their children to simultaneously combine public tolerance with private discipline, and their children then overwhelmingly choose to raise their own children within two-parent families.

”Liberals, in other words, may be wary of strict moral codes, but they want to make damn sure that their own kids don’t have babies while in high school. It helps that they believe in comprehensive sex education and reliable birth control.

If this surprises anybody then you simply have not been paying attention. 

These same conclusions have been reached by a variety of studies over the years.

Preaching at kids that sex is wrong and that they should never partake of the forbidden fruit, did not work in the Garden of Eden and it does not work in modern times.

And demonstrating the family values of love, respect for others, and personal responsibility, is far more effective than calling somebody a sinner for engaging in normal human interactions.

Progressive states are just better, that is why I am working to turn mine into one.

I will just leave this here. Update!

WYD, @donnabrazile?! pic.twitter.com/DCXcgjocgj

— leah mcelrath 🗽 (@leahmcelrath) November 8, 2017

We shall know them by the company that they keep.

In her book Brazile also accused President Obama of having a "Titanic ego," and referred to the Clinton campaign as a "cult." 

When you become a darling of the Right, and they make up the largest audience for your book, you really have to evaluate your priorities as a self described progressive.

I'm just saying.

Update: Now complaining about the Clinton Campaign on Fox News. 

Donna Brazile to Tucker Carlson: Hillary Campaign Bigs Were 'Condescending and Dismissive’ https://t.co/Sa0Nn6RT74 pic.twitter.com/UmeZm9XSDK

— Mediaite (@Mediaite) November 9, 2017

Robert Mercer, huge supporter of Donald Trump, and the man who bankrolls Breitbart, taps out.

Courtesy of Buzzfeed: 

Robert Mercer, the hedge fund billionaire who has come under media scrutiny for his role in helping elect Donald Trump, announced today he would step down from his role as co-CEO of Renaissance Technologies. The decision, announced in a memo to Renaissance employees, followed a BuzzFeed News exposé revealing the connections of Breitbart — partially owned by Mercer — to white nationalists and neo-Nazis. 

Sources familiar with Renaissance informed BuzzFeed News in recent days of significant anger within the company about the report, which revealed that former Breitbart tech editor Milo Yiannopoulos had cultivated white nationalists and used them to generate ideas and help edit stories on the site. 

Mercer's statement specifically denounces Yiannopoulos and states that "I was mistaken to have supported him, and for several weeks have been in the process of severing all ties with him." He also announced his intention to sell his stake in Breitbart to his daughters. 

Mercer was a major funder of Donald Trump's presidential effort.

That BuzzFeed expose was a huge hit, but there may be other contributing factors as well.

Another old story that gained little traction at the time Nazi-lover, Trump funder, Bannon buddy Robert Mercer owes IRS 7 BILLION DOLLARS. https://t.co/BHedMWfwXP

— Candy A Liberal (@candyasslib) November 2, 2017

Damn! I cannot even imagine HAVING seven billion dollars much less OWING seven billion dollars.

Bob Mercer selling stake in Breitbart won't reduce his legal exposure over owning Cambridge Analytica, likely central to the Mueller probe

— Adam Blickstein (@AdamBlickstein) November 2, 2017

That's right, there is an ever increasing possibility that Robert Mercer will be called in to testify before the Mueller investigation, assuming that it has not already happened.

So to be clear, with Mercer's daughter taking over there will still be money flowing to Steven Bannon and Breitbart, but this is still a huge hit to the conservative media, and certainly sends a signal to Donald Trump that NOBODY is safe regardless of their wealth and power. 

(H/T to Crooks and Liars.)