Pelosi: REMINDER: "McConnell ran interference for Trump during the [2016] campaign to stop Obama fro

[riversedge]

Nancy Pelosi Verified account @TeamPelosi
56m56 minutes ago

REMINDER: "McConnell ran interference for Trump during the [2016] campaign to stop Obama from warning the country about things Trump was lying publicly about." #FlashbackFriday

Link to tweet

The Rachel Maddow Show / The MaddowBlog

Does McConnell regret doing nothing about the Russian attack?


http://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show/does-mcconnell-regret-doing-nothing-about-the-russian-attack
07/12/17 10:01 AM


By Steve Benen

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) appears principally focused on passing a regressive health care plan this summer, but with the Russia scandal intensifying, NBC News’ Kasie Hunt asked the Kentucky Republican a good question yesterday.

HUNT: Mr. Leader, you were briefed on this intelligence report surrounding Russian meddling back in the fall before the election. And there was a decision not to put that out in public. Now there are emails that show that Donald Trump Jr. was aware that this may have been damaging information from the Russian government. Do you regret your course of action?

MCCONNELL: What I have a lot of confidence in is the Intelligence Committee handling this whole investigation. Senator Burr and Senator Warner have ball control, and we’ll hear from them later.

There is no meaningful relationship between the question and the answer – the Intelligence Committee’s investigation is unrelated to McConnell’s personal culpability – but I’m glad Kasie asked anyway because I continue to believe this angle to the story is underappreciated.

As The New Republic’s Brian Beutler noted yesterday, “McConnell ran interference for Trump during the campaign to stop Obama from warning the country about things Trump was lying publicly about.”

That’s true. As we discussed last month, the Obama White House, swayed by the evidence compiled by U.S. intelligence agencies, wanted bipartisan support to pushback against Russian intrusion, and in mid-September, the then-president dispatched counterterrorism adviser Lisa Monaco, then-FBI Director James Comey, and then-Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson to brief top members of Congress.............................................

McConnell seems reluctant to reflect on this now, but he still owes the public an explanation.

[spanone]

1. Thank you Speaker Pelosi

[PeeJ52]

2. Whoa!!! Bring it out Nancy!!! Hardball!!!

[riversedge]

32. Wish she would speak out more but she also has to try to work with the jerk!

[elleng]

3. He owes the public more than an 'explanation,'

he owes us his JOB.

[malaise]

4. Remind them Sister Nancy - What a Bam Bam!

[Blecht]

5. She is SO on top of things

I never knew how good Pelosi was until recently.

How she has handled things since becoming Speaker has been amazing in January.

[pangaia]

16. You know what I find to be true, is that she shouldn't HAVE to be looked at

and complimented for being so good.
That is her job. And maybe it is not so much that she is so good (although she is), but that so many others are so bad at what they SHOULD be doing.

There are just so many pussy footers, ALL republicans and some dems, of course, that it makes anybody who does the right thing look like a hero.

EVERY democrat should be out doing, in their own way, what she and not enough others are doing.

In other words HELP HER......... and US!!!!!!!!

[JudyM]

22. Yep, content to suck at the public teat and become more "important" by doling out benefits to those

they choose... that’s what they do, they don’t help “the people” they help themselves.

Good for Nancy to call it out but all this needs to be broadcast as the corrupt travesty that it is. “For the people” has become an afterthought for too many congresscritters.

[uponit7771]

6. K&R,

[Miigwech]

7. Kick his bony ass around the ring

of trump's circus. mitch is so guilty of "internationalist politics." These folks don't care about America. Old ass has been around to long.

[DeminPennswoods]

8. Think this might be a coordinated strategy

Heard Schiff on MSNBC also putting the onus on Rs to be Americans before partisans.

[pangaia]

17. Well, as I've been saying for so long (Heh Heh, smart me, eh)

It's the fucking traitorous republicans fault !!!!!!!!!


Why is this so complicated to understand???

[BSdetect]

9. Why was he not interviewed by Mueller? He blocked Garland because he was in on the election fraud.

[JAD]

10. Would the Press PLEASE.....

write about and play the recording of Kevin McCarthy, Paul Ryan, and other Repub. members of the House discussing the fact trump was being paid by Putin.. This discussion occurred before the Republican convention.

NOW IS THE TIME!!!!!!!!!!!!

[deurbano]

11. I know! Memories are so short!

[bluecollar2]

24. Maybe Ryan should be called to testify....n/t

[JAD]

31. Absolutely Ryan should be called to testify

Ryan didn't go to the FBI when he found out trump was being paid by Putin.

[bluecollar2]

41. Suspicious how he walked away ...

Or should I say slunk away...

[Pepsidog]

12. My 22 year old idiot son told me Obama was at fault for not doing anything about Russian

election interference. This must be the latest Republican propaganda spreading on FB. I should say my son isn’t a total idiot because he voted for Andy Kim to help unseat Tom MacArthur in my congressional district. But like many his age this Trump is a macho, great business man who speaks his mind and Dems are wimps is prevalent bullshit the see all day on FB. I told him Obama tried to do something and took some action but McConnell threatened to scream foul ball if he did. Obama should have done more but who in the world would think this piece of shit Trump would win.

[DeminPennswoods]

19. As President, Obama had a big microphone

He didn't use it. Once his effort at a bi-partisan statement was rebuffed by McConnell, he had every right to ask for national broadcast time for an Oval Office address telling Americans that Russia was attacking our democracy.

[Pepsidog]

21. Yes he did. Shame he didn't use that microphone

[stopdiggin]

30. blaming Obama?

So now we're blaming Obama here on DU?

Read the damned piece! Obama went to Congress asking for a bi-partisan front against the Russian efforts. Something that one would expect the flag waving GOP would be able to support even during an election season. After being rejected in those bi-partisan efforts (read here MCCONNEL !!), Obama was hesitant to push a purely partisan message out during a presidential campaign. (That incidentally everyone thought would go to a Democrat)

This has all been thoroughly explained. And Obama's rationale and political instincts were entirely correct. Anything other is purely Monday morning quarterbacking, plain and simple.

Many things look different now. But remember, Donald Trump as president of the United States was virtually unthinkable in 2016. That's the simple truth. And now ...

But for God's sake. Obama should have done this, and should have done that? Come on!

[DeminPennswoods]

35. No, just pointing out there were other

hard-nosed options that Obama had, but didn't exercise probably because his nature is concilliatory.

[red dog 1]

37. + 1

[Pepsidog]

43. I love Obama and we at DU know why Obama didn't call out Russian interference in the election.

But let the past guide us. A panelist of AM Joy brought up Merrick Garland and how we Dems play by the rules. No more. We fight the battle in front of us like the panelist said.

[dustyscamp]

42. A lot of young adults want to see the world burn

[Kurt V.]

13. Imagine a world where pols can't be touched

[Honeycombe8]

14. Yep. I'm seeing snippets that Repubs are trying to blame Obama for the Russia interference.

They love to blame Obama for everything.

Obama had a private talk w/Putin. Did no good. Tried to make a bipartisan announcement to the public, to put us on notice. Democrats were on board, but not McConnell. Finally, Obama expelled Russia's diplomats from the U.S., and instituted some sanctions.

Also, our intel notified states that Russia was trying to hack their election systems, and if they wanted assistance in countering those hacks, the fed would help. Not one of those states asked for any help or, that I know of, did anything to protect their election systems. Those are STATE election systems. The fed doesn't have authority over state election systems.

And come on...is it Obama's fault that there were thousands of Russian trolls on FB and Twitter, and that Repubs were stupid enough to fall for them? Our intel has been working with the social media sites for some time to identify and pull those trollsters, but there are thousands of them. And new ones keep appearing.

[pangaia]

18. Good post...

Letter to the editor time.

[Honeycombe8]

20. Thanks....

[Mr. Evil]

15. "... but he still owes the public an explanation."

An explanation that we'll never get. He's complicit and compromised. I've never known any criminal that was in much of a hurry to convict himself in the court of public opinion much less in a court of law. He's a Russian now.

[MadDAsHell]

23. I for one WAS extremely disappointed that President Obama's administration let this happen.

Last edited Sat Apr 20, 2019, 10:32 AM - Edit history (1)

He is the greatest President of my lifetime, but politicizing the Russia issue in 2012 and the entire party at that time making fun of the idea that Russia was some kind of a threat, then meant that President Obama's hands were completely tied in 2016 to stop the election interference. He couldn't possibly call out Russia's actions just a short time after telling the world it was backwards thinking to care about Russia. It won us the election, but 2012 was extremely shortsighted in my opinion. I get that for political reasons we had to deny Romney's assertions, but once the election was over we should have been all over this.

[Eliot Rosewater]

26. Belongs in prison but he will never go, the kid down the street with a joint, that is a different

story

[RVN VET71]

34. The black kid down the street, you mean.

[Eliot Rosewater]

40. usually

[kozar]

27. it kind of

throws a whole new light on McTurtle's answer now that we know of senator Burr today,,,doesn't it?


Koz

[empedocles]

28. If the investigations and indictments get deep enough for Rico, conspiracy law,

then aiding, abetting, etc. suffice to be caught in the web.

[Irishxs]

29. Greed and power are powerful motivation, mr mcconnell.

[BigmanPigman]

33. I see from these posts that the Russian bots are all over

social media as expected (of course they never left). This is what they do...try to divide and conquer us. DON'T FALL FOR IT. Stay away from social media's pro-Russian bait.

[lastlib]

36. Sure, MConnell "regrets" it--all the way to the bank......!

So, tell us, Mitch--what's the going exchange rate for rubles to dollars??

[red dog 1]

38. McConnell has to go....period!

The only way to replace him as Senate Majority Leader is for the Democrats to win back the Senate next year.

[cstanleytech]

39. Well no shit, tell us something we did not know 2+ years ago.

Hopefully if there is an afterlife Mitch will be held accountable and maybe be reincarnated as a toad as he has plenty of experience at being one currently.

[myohmy2]

44. the whole...

...stinkin' republican party is nothing but scum...traitors, each and every one...

...how can any self-respecting thinking American vote republican?...I have a daughter that married and turned republican...I thought I knew her...I thought I knew republicans and the republican mindset...I don't

...the entire lot are destructive evil son's of bitches...

...I give up...