Tag: GOP

COHEN MET WITH SCHIFF STAFF FOR OVER 10 HOURS BEFORE HEARING – REPORT

Schiff team traveled to NY at least 4 times for Cohen meetings

By Gregg Re, Catherine Herridge

President Trump’s former personal attorney Michael Cohen told House investigators this week that staff for Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff, D-Calif., traveled to New York at least four times to meet with him for over 10 hours immediately before last month’s high-profile public testimony, according to two sources familiar with the matter — as Republicans question whether the meetings amounted to coaching a witness.

The sources said the sessions covered a slew of topics addressed during the public hearing before the oversight committee — including the National Enquirer’s “Catch and Kill” policy, American Media CEO David Pecker and the alleged undervaluing of President Trump’s assets.

COHEN DOCS UNDERCUT CLAIMS TRUMP LAWYERS MADE EDITS TO ALTER CRUCIAL TIMELINE 

But, Republicans have raised concerns with the sessions, with Ohio Rep. Mike Turner sending a letter to Cohen’s team on Wednesday demanding answers.

Nunes reacts to reports of Cohen's private meetings with Schiff before his House testimony

Nunes reacts to reports of Cohen’s private meetings with Schiff before his House testimony

‘No matter how much witness tampering you do, you’re not going to find collusion,’ the Republican tells ‘Fox & Friends’ after sources say President Trump’s former personal attorney met with the Intelligence Committee chairman for hours before testifying.

Turner specifically asked for confirmation of Cohen’s contacts, if any, “with Democratic Members or Democratic staff of SSCI [Senate Select Committee on Intelligence], COR [House Committee on Oversight and Reform], or HPSCI [House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence] prior to his appearances before House and Senate committees last week” — as well as the lengths of such contacts, their locations and who exactly was involved.

“These questions are important for the public to understand whether or not they were watching witness testimony, a public hearing, or well-rehearsed theater,” he wrote.

During last month’s seven-hour public hearing before the House Oversight Committee, Cohen hesitantly acknowledged, under questioning from Ohio GOP Rep. Jim Jordan, that he had spoken with Schiff “about topics that were going to be raised at the upcoming hearing.”

But, he did not elaborate on the discussions, which Fox News is told extended significantly longer than the seven hours that the public hearing itself lasted.

One by one, during the dramatic hearing, Cohen fielded questions on precisely the same topics that the sources told Fox News he discussed with Schiff’s staff during the sit-downs in New York.

For example, in response to questioning from Rep. Carolyn Maloney, D-N.Y., Cohen discussed the purported practice of paying for the rights to news stories harmful to Trump, only to bury them.

“I was involved in several of these catch-and-kill episodes,” Cohen told Maloney, “but these catch-and-kill scenarios existed between David Pecker and Mr. Trump long before I started working in 2007.”

Cohen docs undercut claims Trump lawyers altered timeline of Moscow tower talks

Cohen docs undercut claims Trump lawyers altered timeline of Moscow tower talks

Records provided by President Trump’s former personal lawyer Michael Cohen on his false 2017 congressional testimony undercut allegations that Trump attorneys made critical edits to alter the timeline of the Trump Tower negotiations in Moscow; Catherine Herridge reports.

Cohen went on to testify that Pecker, whose company publishes the National Enquirer, had paid $30,000 to a former Trump World Tower doorman who alleged he had information about a supposed love child fathered by Trump. The former Trump fixer asserted that Trump was concerned also about the “treasure trove of documents” Pecker had that could implicate him.

Further, Cohen was asked by Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., “To your knowledge, did the president ever provide inflated assets to an insurance company?”

Cohen replied: “Yes.”

COHEN SUES TRUMP ORGANIZATION FOR MILLIONS IN LEGAL FEES

“Who else knows that the president did this?” Ocasio-Cortez pressed.

“Allen Weisselberg, Ron Lieberman and Matthew Calamari,” Cohen said, referring to the Trump Organization’s chief financial officer and other key Trump associates. “You deflate the value of the asset and then you put in a request to the tax department for a deduction.”

Cohen also brought documents that he claimed proved Trump “inflated” his assets in order to obtain loans from Deutsche Bank.

Michael Cohen, President Donald Trump's former personal lawyer, testified last month before the House Oversight Committee on Capitol Hill. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, File)

Michael Cohen, President Donald Trump’s former personal lawyer, testified last month before the House Oversight Committee on Capitol Hill. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, File)

Asked about the revelations by email, a House Intelligence Committee spokesman defended the Schiff staff’s pre-hearing discussions with Cohen.

“We are running a professional investigation in search of the facts, and we welcome the opportunity to meet with potential witnesses in advance of any testimony to determine relevant topics to cover in order to make productive use of their time before the Committee,” spokesman Patrick Boland told Fox News.

“Despite this professed outrage by Republicans, it’s completely appropriate to conduct proffer sessions and allow witnesses to review their prior testimony before the Committee interviews them — such sessions are a routine part of every serious investigation around the country, including congressional investigations.”

Schiff was asked about the frequency of his contacts with Cohen on CBS News’ “Face the Nation” this weekend, and gave the number “seven” — but Schiff did not distinguish between the number of his own contacts with Cohen and the committee staff’s interactions with him.

Schiff asserted, “The extent of my contact was just inviting him to testify and also trying to allay his concerns about the president’s threats against him and his family … but our staff certainly sat down to interview him, and that’s what you do in any credible investigation.”

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A source close to Schiff claimed some details about the staff meetings were “not accurate” but did not point to specifics.

On Cohen, a source familiar with his closed-door testimony before the House Intelligence Committee would not comment directly on the number and substance of the meetings between Cohen and the Schiff staff, but said more broadly that Schiff “pledged to release the full transcript of Mr. Cohen’s eight hour testimony, at which point Mr. Cohen will be vindicated and others will be implicated.”

 

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FORMER KKK GRAND WIZARD DAVID DUKE ENDORSES ILHAN OMAR: SHE’S ‘NOW THE MOST IMPORTANT MEMBER OF THE US CONGRESS!’

Former KKK Grand Wizard David Duke Endorses Ilhan Omar: She's 'NOW the most important Member of the US Congress!'

When will Rep. Omar disavow?

Infowars.com – MARCH 7, 2019

In a recent radio broadcast, former Ku Klux Klan Grand Wizard David Duke praised Minnesota Congresswoman Ilhan Omar for her recent statements against Israel.

In a description of Duke’s podcast Thursday, Omar was credited for defying what he referred to as “Z.O.G.”

“By Defiance to Z.O.G. Ilhan Omar is NOW the most important Member of the US Congress!” screamed a headline at Duke’s website.

A Thursday show description reads:

“Today Dr. Duke and Eric Striker of the Public Space had the kind of fun and informative show we have come to expect from our Thunder and Lightning Thor’s Day broadcasts. In particular, they heaped praise on Ilhan Omar (D-New Somalia) for being the one person in Congress willing to notice AIPAC and the “dual” loyalty of many (((members of Congresss))).”

The headline was accompanied by an image featuring a heart eyes emoji and Rep. Omar (D-Minn.), which was also shared on Twitter.

CAP

Duke’s endorsement comes as Dems, including fellow freshmen congresswomen Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) and Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich), have come to Omar’s defense after recent comments criticizing Israel were largely deemed anti-Semitic.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Thursday also dismissed the controversy over Omar’s comments, saying “I do not believe that she understood the full weight of the words.”

NPR lays out Omar’s troubles which stem from a tweet made last month.

In February, Omar responded to a tweet from journalist Glenn Greenwald, who posted about House GOP Leader Kevin McCarthy threatening to punish Omar and another congresswoman for being critical of Israel.

Omar wrote back, “It’s all about the Benjamins baby,” a line about $100 bills from a Puff Daddy song. Critics jumped on the tweet and said Omar was calling up a negative and harmful stereotype of Jewish Americans.

In another tweet soon after, Omar named the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, or AIPAC, saying it was funding Republican support for Israel.

President Donald Trump on Monday added to the pressure on Dems to address Omar’s remarks in a tweet calling their inaction a “dark day for Israel.”

CAP

During the 2016 presidential campaign, mainstream media outlets incessantly demonized then candidate Trump for his loose affiliation with Duke during his flirt with a presidential bid in 2000 when he was part of the Reform party.

It is doubtful Omar will receive the same treatment.

H/t: TheGatewayPundit.com

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Pelosi Gives Omar A Pass As “Anti-Semitism” Resolution Morphs Into Indictment Of Trump Supporters

By Tyler Durden

After a contentious closed-door session on Wednesday among House Democrats who are deeply divided over a resolution to indirectly condemn Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) over anti-Israel comments, Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) almost got whiplash from pivoting 180-degrees; excusing Omar, while dramatically altering resolution’s language from condemning anti-Semitism, to Democratic talking points commonly used against Trump supporters.

CAP

When asked if Omar should apologize for saying that supporters of Israel have an “allegiance to a foreign country,” Pelosi gave a pass to the freshman Rep, telling reporters: “I do not believe she understood the full weight” of her words, adding that Omar’s comments “were not based on any anti-Semitic attitude.” 

If true, some have suggested that Omar is tone-deaf and not fit to serve on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, which has jurisdiction of the relationship between the United States and Israel.

CAP

Meanwhile, House Majority Whip Steny Hoyer (D-MD) said that the House hopes to vote on Thursday on a resolution condemning all forms of hate, saying the message would be “we are against bigotry, we are against prejudice and against hate.” – which just happens to echo commonly used Democrat talking points about conservatives. 

CAP

***

As we noted on Wednesday, Pelosi’s 180 comes after chaos broke out Wednesday during a closed-door meeting of House Democrats.

Inside the meeting, according to multiple people present, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) tried to keep her caucus focused on a planned Friday vote on a sweeping campaign and elections reform bill. She acknowledged “internal issues,” according to notes taken by a Democratic aide present, and urged members not to “question the motivations of our colleagues.”

…

But moments later, multiple House members stood up to challenge the decision — endorsed by Pelosi and the rest of the House Democratic leadership — to move forward with a resolution condemning religious hatred. Initially the measure targeted only anti-Semitism, with some Democrats pushing for a direct rebuke of Omar, but by Tuesday night — facing backlash from members not on board with the plan — leaders decided to expand it to include anti-Muslim bias. –Washington Post

Several Democrats those who took issue with the measure were members of the Congressional Black Caucus, who opposed even an indirect rebuke of Rep. Omar when they should be focusing on how to attack President Trump.

“I think there’s a big rise in anti-Semitism and racism, and that’s a bigger conversation we need to be having.” said Rep. Cedric L. Richmond (D-LA). “But it starts at 1600 Pennsylvania. It doesn’t start with one member out of 435 members of Congress.”

“Why are we doing this?” asked Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman (D-NJ), who said that a resolution would be “redundant and unnecessary,” likely referring to the January 11 rebuke of Omar after she accused the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) of contributing to pro-Israel politicians.

In the end, Rep. Omar seems to have won the day.

CAP

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Democrat James Clyburn Utters Most INSANE Defense Yet Of Ilhan Omar

House Majority Whip James Clyburn (D-SC), speaks during a news conference to introduce H.R. 4, Voting Rights Advancement Act, on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC, on Tuesday, Feb. 26, 2019.

By ASHE SCHOW

Democrats have been falling over themselves to try and defend Rep. Ilhan Omar’s (D-MN) anti-Semitism, but House Minority Whip James Clyburn (D-SC) might have just taken the cake.

Clyburn, in an interview with the Hill’s Mike Ellis, basically told descendants of Holocaust survivors and those who were put in Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s Japanese internment camps to “check their privilege” (h/t Seth Mandel).

The Hill described Clyburn’s comments thusly:

Clyburn came to Omar’s defense Wednesday, lamenting that many of the media reports surrounding the recent controversy have omitted mentioning that Omar, who was born in Somalia, had to flee the country to escape violence and spent four years in a Kenyan refugee camp before coming to the United States.

Her experience, Clyburn argued, is much more empirical — and powerful — than that of people who are generations removed from the Holocaust, Japanese internment camps during World War II and the other violent episodes that have marked history.

In case one suspects this is an uncharitable paraphrase, here’s what Clyburn said right after:

“I’m serious about that. There are people who tell me, ‘Well, my parents are Holocaust survivors.’ ‘My parents did this.’ It’s more personal with her,” Clyburn said. “I’ve talked to her, and I can tell you she is living through a lot of pain.”

But Clyburn wasn’t done. The Hill reports that Clyburn claimed to have a special appreciation for Omar’s experience after talking with Rep. Norman Mineta (D-CA), who was in an internment camp during World War II. Basically, he has a formerly interned friend, so he totally can’t be a bigot.

Further, Clyburn suggested Omar is the real victim in all this and that he would try to target a digital billboard in Pennsylvania he claimed is racist.

“She won’t be targeted. We’re going to target those people who had her picture on the Twin Towers,” Clyburn told the Hill. “This resolution is going to be inclusive; it’s going to be expansive; and I might just try to add something to deal with that billboard that’s up in Pennsylvania this morning calling John Lewis and other members of the Congressional Black Caucus racists.”

So, Omar won’t be targeted for anti-Semitic remarks, but a random guy in Pennsylvania who put up billboards will be? The billboards take shots at “Empire” actor Jussie Smollett’s alleged hate crime hoax, and calls multiple black Democrats, including Lewis and Omar, “racists.” Another billboard says “whites have rights.” The man who put up the billboards denied he was trying to be racist, saying he was trying to start a conversation that it’s not just whites who can be racist.

“Racism is misunderstood in America and I want to have the conversation,” the man told WPXI. “We need to get over: I’m black. You’re white. You’re Hispanic. Who cares? I don’t care about that. I do care about how you act and how you stand for my flag, our flag.”

Clyburn’s comments may be the most outrageous, but he is not the only one now defending Omar and anti-Semitism. Those vying for the 2020 Democrat presidential nomination have rushed to defend Omar as well.

READ MORE: ANTI-SEMITISM  DEMOCRATIC PARTY  ILHAN OMAR  RACISM

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‘We were way too aggressive’: Twitter CEO admits conservatives were targeted

CAP

Twitter co-founder and CEO Jack Dorsey addressed claims his social media platform had targeted conservatives, admitted they had likely acted too swiftly in banning some right-wing users, and failed to explain their reasons.

In conversation with podcast host Joe Rogan, Dorsey and his chief legal officer Vijaya Gadde fielded questions and criticisms regarding widespread accusations of the company catering to liberal viewpoints.

“Probably our team having a lack of context into actually what’s happening” Dorsey explained. “We would fully admit we probably were way too aggressive when we first saw this as well, and made mistakes.”

The controversy surrounding the social media giant came after conservatives and those expressing conservative viewpoints complained their accounts had been suspended for ideological reasons. Columbia University researcher Richard Hanania recently published an analysis showing that, of the 22 public figures banned by Twitter in the last few years, 21 were Trump supporters.

Conspiracy theory talk show host and Trump supporter Alex Jones (who, ironically, was on Rogan’s show just a few days ago) had his account suspended last year, alongside other figures like right wing activist Laura Loomer and GOP congressional candidate Jesse Kelly. In Kelly’s case, the company failed to explain the ban, even after Kelly’s account was later reinstated.

ALSO ON RT.COMIraq War vet who called out social media censorship booted from Twitter

“A lot of where we have failed is explaining the ‘why’ behind our policy and reasons,” Dorsey admitted, promising to look into alleged excesses.

As a case example of the kind of bias in question, Rogan and his fellow guest journalist Tim Pool brought up the company’s policy against “misgenderding,” a term for referring to or addressing Transgender people as something other than the gender they identify with. Canadian Feminist Megan Murphy was recent booted from Twitter over accusations she had “misgendered” her opponent in a debate.

Gadde explained that the rule in question was only enforced if a specific person is repeatedly targeted in a way that could be considered harassment. Tim Pool was unconvinced.

“You’re biased, and you’re targeting specific individuals because your rules support this perspective,” he argued, suggesting that the rule itself reflected a liberal viewpoint.

“You have essentially created a protected class,” Rogan chimed in, highlighting how the company’s claims to political neutrality are undermined by the one-sided way it has enforced its policy against “targeted harassment.”

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Trump vows to boycott ‘Fake News’ networks after Democrats bar Fox from hosting 2020 debates

CAP

US President Donald Trump is threatening to boycott mainstream media by refusing to appear on their airwaves during the 2020 debates, after Democrats said they’d bar Fox News from hosting its own debates.

Trump declared he wouldn’t participate in debates hosted by “Fake News Networks” during the 2020 campaign season, in retaliation for Democrats’ announcement they would refuse to allow Fox News to moderate any of their party’s debates.

CAP

The Democratic National Committee declared Fox News would not “serve as a media partner” for any of its candidates’ debates in 2020 following a New Yorker report detailing an “inappropriate relationship” between the Trump administration and Fox.

“The network is not in a position to host a fair and neutral debate for our candidates,” DNC chairman Tom Perez said in a statement released to media on Wednesday.

While this show of defiance is not new – the DNC made the same choice in 2016, claiming Fox’s conservative bias would prevent them from getting a fair shake – the New Yorker report goes one step further, claiming Fox is “the closest we’ve come to having state TV,” quoting an “expert on presidential studies”…whatever that is.

According to the New Yorker, the late Fox News founder Roger Ailes had tipped Trump off to debate questions; the president’s frequent Fox News appearances and his hiring of multiple former Fox News personalities (including Heather Nauert as State Department spokesperson and Bill Shine as White House communications director) are held up as proof of – you guessed it – still more collusion.

Even his detractors know Trump is ratings gold, and if he actually follows through on his tweet and refuses to appear in debates moderated by non-Fox networks, the executives will most likely be howling with outrage, even (especially) those who hate him.

CAP

Then again, Trump needs attention at least as badly as CNN needs ratings, some pointed out.

Trump’s supporters reliably cheered the move,

 

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