THE TRUMP DISASTER AREA

The old section being somewhat top-heavy, this is the new one. LL

Trump's certainly putting on quite a show, LL. I suppose he does know he's not on reality TV now?

bb1 wrote:Trump's certainly putting on quite a show, LL. I suppose he does know he's not on reality TV now?

I don't think he does. He has the 'You're fired' syndrome going into overdrive. LL

He could have been a good President if he'd done nothing more than make inspiring speeches, look at if he knew what he was doing, and let the US civil service run the boring stuff.

Oh, and stayed away from Saudi orbs. Instead, we've got this on-going car crash.

Donald Trump launches new 'real news' show with his daughter-in-law to list his achievements.

Apparently sick of what he refers to as the 'Fake News' media, Donald Trump has set up as a 'real news' show to list his achievements as president.

The show, hosted on Facebook, is fronted by Mr Trump's daughter-in-law, Lara Trump.

As the rest of the media spoke about the recent turmoil in the White House, this programme attempted to draw attention to what the Trumps see as the president's achievements of the week.

The first segment shows his son Eric Trump's pregnant wife listing these achievements.

She begins this by saying: "I bet you haven't heard about all the accomplishments the president had this week because there's so much fake news out there".

In the video, which has over two million views, Mrs Trump said she is "proud" of the fact her father-in-law donated this quarter's salary to the Department of Education, after giving it to the Parks Department in the previous quarter.

She said: "This is a president who is putting America before himself".

She also pointed out that unemployment is at its lowest since 2001, saying it was an "incredible fact" and that the "economy is booming".

However, she did not put this in context as she did not point out unemployment has been falling every month for six years.

Praising the president, she pointed out his visits to "incredible veterans" and claimed that Mr Trump had created 800,000 jobs.

She also highlighted that he had visited a hospital treating wounded soldiers and helped to "crack down" on gangs by going to see officials from the Department of Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

Mrs Trump then ends the show by saying "Thanks for joining us everybody, I'm Lara Trump and that is the real news."
She made no mention of Scaramucci's rant....

The video was posted after his strange and profane rant, but before he was fired.
...or anything about the tumultuous time the White House has faced recently
Including McCain's shock vote....

https://www.yahoo.com/news/donald-trump-launches-apos-real-113807847.html

A Former White House lawyer has said Donald Trump could face legal repercussions for helping his son write a statement responding to revelations of a Trump Campaign meeting with a Russian lawyer ahead of the 2016 presidential election.

Richard Painter, the former chief White House ethics lawyer, said Mr Trump’s intervention, revealed over the weekend, meant the President could face legal charges including obstruction of justice and witness tampering.

When news of Donald Trump Jr’s meeting with the Russian lawyer was reported last month, the President reportedly dismissed the advice of his advisers, who wished to put out a comprehensive statement about what had happened at the meeting.

According to The Washington Post, Mr Trump instead “personally dictated” a statement in which Mr Trump Jr said that in the meeting with the Russian lawyer, they had “primarily discussed a programme about the adoption of Russian children”.

But Mr Trump Jr released emails two days after the revelations, showing he had been keen to meet the Russian lawyer after learning that she may have compromising information about Hillary Clinton, and was acting on behalf of the Russian government who supported his father’s presidential bid.

In response to the offer of damaging information about Ms Clinton, the emails show Mr Trump Jr replied: “I love it.”

The White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said this week Mr Trump “certainly didn’t dictate” his son’s statement in the wake of the revelations.

“The President weighed in as any father would, based on the limited information he had,” she said.

This is refuted by sources close to the President, which the Washington Post based its article on.

Speaking to US website Salon, Mr Painter said if the President did draft the response statement for his son, it could trigger criminal charges. He said: “The biggest exposure is obstruction of justice.

“He is already in hot water for that because of the [former FBI director James] Comey firing and his admission that it was about Russia.”

“A misleading statement, even a lie, told to the press or to the public is not itself a crime,” Mr Painter said. “But he must have known that his son and others would be called to give evidence in the criminal proceedings. Once he drafts a public statement that he knows is false, he is boxing them in when they talk to [special prosecutor Robert] Mueller, testify before Congress and at trial, or at least he is attempting to do so. That is obstruction of justice, witness tampering.”

Speaking to the Washington Post, one of the President Trump’s advisers, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said of Mr Trump dictating a statement for his son: “This was … unnecessary.”

“Now someone can claim he’s the one who attempted to mislead. Somebody can argue the President is saying he doesn’t want you to say the whole truth.”

In addition, David Sklansky, a professor of criminal law at Stanford Law School, told Reuters a misleading public statement could later be used as evidence of corrupt intent.

He said: “Lying usually isn't a crime… but it could be relevant in determining whether something else the President did, like firing Comey, was done corruptly.”

In the US a conviction for obstruction of justice can be an imprisonable offence.

https://www.yahoo.com/news/donald-trump-could-face-legal-101500145.html

Donald Trump has achieved the impossible: he has made Theresa May’s operation look strong and stable. While Trump lurches from one daily crisis to the next, a Downing Street ship that seemed to be heading for the rocks only a few weeks ago has been stabilised by a new team.

I had never seen such a dysfunctional government as May’s after the June election. But Trump has lived up to his name and beaten it. I’m currently watching the latest series of House of Cards, in which Kevin Spacey’s chillingly ruthless US President uses every trick, legal or otherwise, to cling on to power. It’s great fun but somehow less potent now that we have a real life Trump; life has overtaken art.

Anthony Scaramucci, the White House communications director for 10 days, spoke approvingly of “front-stabbing” as he knifed the chief of staff Reince Preibus, only to find himself front-stabbed by Preibus’s successor John Kelly. To see such a Shakespearean bloodbath in a governing administration, as opposed to Michael Gove’s assassination of Boris Johnson in the heat of a party leadership battle, is incredible. Even Nick Timothy and Fiona Hill, the two all-powerful May aides sacked after the election debacle, went in for backstabbing rather than frontstabbing, according to their victims – Cabinet ministers included.

There are some parallels between May and Trump. Both have lost about 12 key aides in a few months – including two joint chiefs of staff (May), a chief of staff and deputy (Trump), a communications director and press secretary. Despite nominally holding power, both must wonder how on earth they will get their measures through both houses of their legislature.

But of course there are differences too. Trump was a good campaigner even if he has turned into an incompetent governor and seems to have encouraged all the infighting. May was such a terrible campaigner that her party will not allow her to lead it into another election. It looked like her government would be equally shambolic.

But something has changed in the past two weeks. A dysfunctional No 10 operation after the election is now functioning normally. Policies have been rolled out on issues including air quality, leasehold reform, transgender rights and mental health. Crucially, ministers have shown there is more to life than Brexit (even though the very real Cabinet tensions over that have shared the headlines with the policy announcements). Ministers have been given their head, after being kept firmly in their box during the dictatorial Timothy-Hill regime. Statements still have to be cleared with Downing Street to prevent the chaos seen at the White House. But, as one insider told me, “the default option is now to say yes to ministers rather than no.” By accident rather than design, May has ended up with a better way of governing.

Ministers who predicted that May could “not survive without Nick and Fi” have been proved wrong. The huge vacuum has been filled by Gavin Barwell, the new chief of staff; Damian Green, May’s unofficial deputy and her Cabinet fixer and Robbie Gibb, the new director of communications, while Gavin Williamson, the Government Chief Whip, mounted a strong operation to head off a coup. May was resilient, all the more remarkable given her exhaustion after the election. She fully intends to see Brexit through, staying on until March 2019 at the very least. There is now a good chance that Conservative MPs will let her, having looked at the alternatives on offer and seen the clock ticking on the negotiations.

Does May’s recovery give Trump any grounds for hope? A lot will depend on Kelly, the new chief of staff. The retired general is widely respected but will he really be allowed to rein in members of Trump’s own family? I doubt it. At the start of his presidency, I discounted the speculation that he would never last his four-year term. Now I don’t think he will. The links between his election campaign and Russia, and his attacks on the special counsel Robert Mueller who is investigating them, will probably get him. I suspect Trump will jump before he is pushed or impeached. On Twitter (of course), he will blame it all on Washington’s “deep state” establishment and the fake news of the liberal media. While adding that it has been a “great presidency”.

Could May, who would clock up almost three years in Downing Street if she “does Brexit”, serve longer as PM than Trump does as president after his turbulent first six months? I should have put money on that on 9 June.

https://uk.news.yahoo.com/donald-trump-presidency-going-badly-133900851.html

Donald Trump's border wall to be exempted from laws and environmental reviews so it can be built.

Donald Trump's border wall could break numerous laws and fail various environmental reviews. But that isn't going to matter.

The Trump administration has said that it will waive the wall through those laws and allow the president to keep to his campaign pledge.

Studies have suggested that the border wall is a threat to the environment. As well as the huge amount of unclean resources and energy required to build the wall, it will also disrupt the life of the animals and plants that occur around the area it will be built, environmentalists have warned.

The Department for Homeland Security said it will soon published in the Federal Register a notice that allows the government to be exempted from the National Environmental Protection Act, as well as a whole host of other laws. Ordinarily, that act requires that such a building would have to be extensively examined to work out whether it will damage the environment.

The exemption hasn't been used since 2008, and it's only the sixth time since 2005. It was first passed that year, as an attempt to get border walls exempted from repeated and unsuccessful court challenges that tried to stop a border wall being built in San Diego on environmental grounds.

Congress passed the law to try and stop similar challenges when government came to build walls elsewhere. It allowed George W Bush to build hundreds of miles of fencing across the US-Mexico border.

Last week, the House of Representatives approved the administration's request for $1.6 billion to start building Trump's border wall, which would include replacing 14 miles (22 kilometers) in San Diego covered by the latest waiver and building 60 miles (96 kilometers) of new barriers in Texas' Rio Grande Valley. It was unclear if or when Homeland Security would issue waivers for Texas, which is currently the busiest corridor for illegal crossings.

The Center for Biological Diversity will challenge the San Diego waiver by arguing that the 2005 law does not apply to replacing barriers, said Brian Segee, an attorney for the environmental advocacy group based in Tucson, Arizona.

The group has already sued the administration over replacement of the San Diego wall and plans to build prototypes in San Diego for Trump's effort, which he has called a "big, beautiful wall."

The case is before U.S. District Judge Gonzalo Curiel, a target of Trump's enduring scorn over lawsuits that alleged fraud at the president's now-defunct Trump University and were settled last year shortly before trial. Curiel presided over that case.

"The waiver has already been called the broadest waiver in U.S. history," Segee said. "Any attempt to enlarge it further beyond the scope is something we're going to challenge."

Homeland Security said the San Diego waiver falls within the scope of the 2005 law and that the area is a high priority for new security measures including construction of border barriers and roads.

The Border Patrol's San Diego sector logged nearly 32,000 arrests last year — 8 percent of the total on the U.S. border with Mexico — and seized more than 4 tons of marijuana and more than a half-ton of cocaine.

"The sector remains an area of high illegal entry for which there is an immediate need to improve current infrastructure and construct additional border barriers and roads," the department said in its statement.

https://www.yahoo.com/news/donald-trump-apos-border-wall-131300834.html

Trump joining with GOP senators to push immigration changes.

WASHINGTON (AP) -- President Donald Trump plans to join with two Republican senators to unveil legislation that would place new limits on legal immigration. It would seek an immigration system based on merit and jobs skills instead of family connections.

Trump was appearing with Republican Sens. David Perdue of Georgia and Tom Cotton of Arkansas at the White House on Wednesday to discuss the bill. The president said at an Ohio rally last month that he was working with the conservative senators to "create a new immigration system for America."

Trump has made cracking down on illegal immigration a hallmark of his administration and has tried to slash federal grants for cities that refuse to comply with federal efforts to detain and deport those living in the country illegally.

His involvement will put him at the center of efforts to make changes to the legal immigration system. Previewing the event, White House officials said the bill would aim to create a skills-based immigration system to make the U.S. more competitive, raise wages and create jobs.

The White House said that only 1 in 15 immigrants comes to the U.S. because of their skills, and the current system fails to place a priority on highly skilled immigrants.

Perdue and Cotton introduced the legislation in February that would change the 1965 law to reduce the number of legal immigrants, limiting the number of people able to obtain green cards to join families already in the United States.

The bill would also aim to slash the number of refugees in half and eliminate a program that provides visas to countries with low rates of immigration.

Trump's appearance was aimed at bringing attention to the bill, which has been largely ignored in the Senate, with no other lawmaker signing on as a co-sponsor. GOP leaders have showed no inclination to vote on immigration this year.

Some immigrant advocates have criticized the proposal, saying that slashing legal immigration would hurt industries like agriculture and harm the economy.

"Our system is broken, but the response should be to modernize it, not take a sledgehammer to it," said Jeremy Robbins, executive director of New American Economy, a group of business leaders, mayors and others backed by former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg that advocates for comprehensive immigration reform.

https://finance.yahoo.com/news/trump-joining-gop-senators-push-immigration-changes-141425957--politics.html

Donald Trump Is Actually Trying Hard As President to Impress General Kelly (Kind Of).

President Donald Trump isn't one for particulars—he prefers bullet points over in-depth analysis and sweeping, misleading statements on Twitter to, well, telling the American people the truth.

That's what made a new report from Wednesday from scoop-heavy website Axios all the more surprising. Trump appears to be actually trying hard—as much as he can—to do presidenty things to impress his new Chief of Staff, General John Kelly. Axios' Mike Allen and Jonathan Swan noted in a news bulletin that Kelly had brought a bit of order to a White House that has been defined by chaos and that the general was clearly running the show, whereas there seemed to be more confusion under former Chief of Staff Reince Priebus.

Kelly "has taken control in dramatic fashion, and is already imposing unmistakable signs of order," Axios noted, while suggesting everyone is attempting to get in line under the new chief of staff.

"Even POTUS appears to be trying to impress his four-star handler, picking up his game by acting sharper in meetings and even rattling off stats," Allen and Swan wrote.

Normally, a president remembering stats or acting "sharp" wouldn't be news, but with Trump that's a (albeit very) modest improvement. His attention span is so limited, NATO officials were reportedly "freaking out" in May, cutting presentations down to just two-four minutes so the president of the United States might stand some chance at retaining critical information. Trump really only likes things in short bursts with plenty of simple maps, graphs and charts to spell it out for him so he doesn't have to read anything more than one page.

As Newsweek's Alexander Nazaryan wrote about in-depth this week—in a piece titled "Trump, America's Boy King: Golf and Television Won't Make America Great Again"—Trump spends much of his time watching television and raging at what he sees (often on Twitter). The White House, for its part, said he was "focused on creating jobs, securing the border, protecting Americans and growing our economy, and has been working on those issues every day" but Trump largely seems to be easily distracted and focused on winning PR battles that he has continually lost.

So all that goes to say that Trump doing something as simple as remembering a stat or two in an attempt to impress a general (the president's affection for military higher-ups is a subject for another time) is a leap forward of some sort for the former reality TV star.

https://uk.news.yahoo.com/donald-trump-actually-trying-hard-152836663.html

Well, the US undeniably have a problem with illegal immigrants - who themselves are being exploited by human traffickers, and just like in Europe, there's little awaiting them but crime, prostitution and virtual slavery. There's rarely a crock of gold.

Though the way Washington is currently behaving, it might be a better idea for the rest of the world to build a damn great wall around the US.

Donald Trump announces new immigration policy favouring financially stable English speakers.

President Donald Trump has introduced new legislation that would drastically cut the number of legal immigrants allowed into the country by implementing a "merit-based" immigration system.

Mr Trump promoted the RAISE Act alongside co-sponsors Senators Tom Cotton and David Perdue, claiming the act would "will reduce poverty, increase wages, and save taxpayers billions and billions of dollars".

It would do so, the President said, by favouring English-speaking, financially stable immigrants.

"This competitive application system will favour applicants who can speak English, financially support themselves and their families, and demonstrate skills that can contribute to the US economy," Mr Trump said.

He added: "They’re not going to come in and not just immediately collect welfare."

More follows...
https://www.yahoo.com/news/donald-trump-announces-immigration-policy-155500412.html

http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2017-08-02/russian-pm-medvedev-us-just-declared-full-blown-trade-war-russia?page=1

A Russian view of Washington's latest idiocy. I wonder, does the US have the slightest idea just how badly it is presenting itself to the world? Even the EU is threatening to retaliate against the US....

Donald Trump tells Senator Lindsey Graham he is 'prepared to go to war' with North Korea.

Donald Trump is prepared to go to war with North Korea if it continues to develop its missile program, Senator Lindsey Graham has claimed.

The Republican Senator appeared on NBC to discuss North Korea’s rapidly advancing weapons programme.

“There is a military option: to destroy North Korea’s nuclear program and North Korea itself,” Mr Graham said. “He’s not going to allow - President Trump - the ability of this madman [Kim Jong Un] to have a missile that could hit America.”

The Senator added: “If thousands die, they’re going to die over there. They’re not going to die over here - and he’s told me that to my face.”

Mr Graham’s press office has confirmed that the Senator was recalling the details of a conversation with Mr Trump.

Tensions between North Korea and the US have escalated in recent weeks, as the North Korean regime has tested increasingly advanced intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICMBs). The country launched an ICBM last month reportedly capable of reaching Alaska or Hawaii. The Pentagon estimates North Korea could have a nuclear-capable ICBM as early as next year.

The US test-launched its own ICBM on Wednesday. The Pentagon said the launch was not a response to North Korean actions, but an effort to show America's nuclear programme is "safe, secure, effective".   More at link.

https://uk.news.yahoo.com/donald-trump-tells-senator-lindsey-141300019.html
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Trump says he wants to listen to low-ranking soldiers instead of 'lousy' advice from generals for Afghan war strategy.

During a tense mid-July meeting with his national-security team, President Donald Trump dismissed the counsel of high-ranking military commanders, saying he leaned toward the advice of rank-and-file soldiers over that of his generals.

According to an NBC News report, Trump singled out Defense Secretary James Mattis, a retired Marine general, saying he had given Mattis authority to make decisions about the war months prior but had seen little progress.

Trump delegated authority to Mattis to set troop levels in Afghanistan in June, though the secretary would need White House permission to send more than 3,900 troops to the war-torn country.

"We aren't winning," Trump said at the July 19 meeting, senior administration officials told NBC. "We are losing." (Mattis himself told the Senate Armed Services Committee the same in July.)

One official told NBC that Trump's military advisers entered the meeting hoping he would agree to a strategy for the US's nearly 16-year-old war. But Trump's thinking appeared to have been influenced by another meeting he had with veterans from the war.

"We've been there for now close to 17 years, and I want to find out why we’ve been there for 17 years, how it’s going, and what we should do in terms of additional ideas,” Trump said prior to the meeting with veterans. "I've heard plenty of ideas from a lot of people, but I want to hear it from the people on the ground."
More at link.
https://finance.yahoo.com/news/trump-says-wants-listen-low-234221490.html

Suggestion - how about leaving the Graveyard of Empires?

On this very subject....

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/aug/03/afghanistan-war-helmand-taliban-us-womens-rights-peace

Sample quote:

In Helmand, which is markedly worse off than when foreign combat troops left three years ago, Afghan forces on the frontline are desperate for support. But critics say that more military power only risks fomenting insurgency.

“Even if you kill all the teenagers, the next generation will join the Taliban,” said Abdul Jabbar Qahraman, a former presidential envoy to Helmand. “The insurgency used to be mostly a business. Now it’s also about revenge.”

Afghanistan is America’s longest war, but it is a war America cannot win. And nowhere is this more evident than in Helmand.

Another view of American immigration laws.....



The way Washington is falling into chaos, the Native Americans may even get the last laugh. I can't see too many urban Americans - of any hue - having great survival skills if and when. .

Have you looked at Trunp's d-i-law sycophantic facebook page - link near top of page 1 on here!! It reaches a new height of insanity!! LL

Senators move to protect special counsel in Russia probe.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Two members of the Senate Judiciary Committee are moving to protect Special Counsel Robert Mueller's job, putting forth new legislation that aims to ensure the integrity of current and future independent investigations.

Republican Sen. Thom Tillis of North Carolina and Democratic Sen. Chris Coons of Delaware plan to introduce the legislation Thursday. The bill would allow any special counsel for the Department of Justice to challenge his or her removal in court, with a review by a three-judge panel within 14 days of the challenge.

The bill would apply retroactively to May 17, 2017 — the day Mueller was appointed by Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein to investigate allegations of Russian meddling in the 2016 election and possible ties between Russia and Donald Trump's campaign.

"It is critical that special counsels have the independence and resources they need to lead investigations," Tillis said in a statement. "A back-end judicial review process to prevent unmerited removals of special counsels not only helps to ensure their investigatory independence, but also reaffirms our nation's system of check and balances." More at link.
https://www.mail.com/int/news/world/5409466-senators-move-to-protect-special-counsel-russia-pr.html#.1258-stage-hero1-4

Donald Trump urged Mexican president to stop saying he wouldn't pay for the wall.

President Donald Trump urged the president of Mexico to stop saying publicly that his country would not pay for a proposed border wall between the two countries.

The revelation came as a transcripts of early phone calls between Mr Trump and Enrique Pena Nieto was leaked to the Washington Post.

Also leaked was an early heated conversation between Mr Trump and Australian prime minister Malcolm Turnbull in which Mr Trump said "I've had it."

It was a cornerstone pledge of Mr Trump's campaign that a border wall would be built between the US and Mexico, and that Mexcio would pay for it.

Addressing Mr Pena Nieto in a phone call on Jan 27 Mr Trump indicated he knew the funding for the wall would have to come from elsewhere.

But he told the Mexican president: “You cannot say that to the press."
<ore at link.
https://www.yahoo.com/news/donald-trump-urged-mexican-president-142716011.html
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Trump Transcripts Show Fraught Relationships With World Leaders.

Leaked transcripts of phone conversations between Donald Trump and two world leaders show the U.S. president relentlessly focused on his political image and underscore some of the difficulty he has had navigating foreign affairs.

The conversations between Trump and Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull and Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto during Trump’s first week in office offer a window into the president’s occasionally fraught relationships with other world leaders and his approach to negotiating toward his goals.
More at link.
https://finance.yahoo.com/news/trump-transcripts-show-fraught-relationships-165336251.html

Oh God, what next?

Trump lashes out over Russia probe, after news of grand jury.

Washington (AFP) - Donald Trump described Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election as a "total fabrication" Thursday amid reports that a special prosecutor has impaneled a grand jury to investigate the issue -- a step toward possible criminal indictments.

"We didn't win because of Russia. We won because of you," Trump said at a campaign-style rally in West Virginia.

Trying to build support among his core supporters, he said his enemies were "trying to cheat you out of the leadership you want with a fake story that is demeaning to all of us and most importantly, demeaning to our country and demeaning to our constitution."

"The reason why Democrats only talk about the totally made-up Russia story is because they have no message, no agenda, and no vision," he said. "The Russia story is total fabrication. It's just an excuse for the greatest loss in the history of American politics."

His comments came after the Wall Street Journal revealed that special counsel Robert Mueller has impaneled a grand jury to investigate Russia's interference with the 2016 presidential election.

The newspaper, citing two unnamed sources familiar with the matter, reported that the grand jury had begun its work in the US capital Washington "in recent weeks."

The move is a sign that the sweeping federal investigation -- which includes allegations that Trump campaign officials coordinated with Russia to tilt the election in the Republican's favor -- is gathering pace.

The establishment of a grand jury will allow Mueller -- a former FBI director -- to subpoena documents and get sworn testimony. It could well lead to criminal indictments.

"It's a significant escalation of the process," national security attorney Bradley Moss told AFP.

"You don't impanel a grand jury unless your investigation has discovered enough evidence that you feel reflects a violation of at least one, if not more, criminal provisions," he said.

"If you secure an indictment, your next step is to arrest the defendant."

Presidential lawyer Ty Cobb said he was not aware that a grand jury had been convened.

"Grand jury matters are typically secret," Cobb said, adding that "the White House favors anything that accelerates the conclusion of his work fairly."

"The White House is committed to fully cooperating with Mr Mueller."

White House spokeswoman Sarah Huckabee Sanders said the president was not likely the subject of the investigation.

"Former FBI director Jim Comey said three times the president is not under investigation and we have no reason to believe that has changed," she said.

Justice Department spokeswoman Sarah Isgur Flores declined to comment on the report.

Trump has repeatedly denied allegations of collusion, saying he is the victim of a political "witch hunt" and "fake news."

But he has been forced to acknowledge that his eldest son, Donald Jr, his son-in-law Jared Kushner and his then campaign advisor Paul Manafort did meet a Kremlin-connected lawyer to get dirt on Hillary Clinton.

Mueller is also said to be investigating Trump's financial records unrelated to Russia or the election, CNN reported.

Trump has publicly warned Mueller that his financial dealings should be out of bounds and investigating them would cross a red line.

If called to testify before a grand jury, Trump would not be the first president to do so. Then president Bill Clinton was forced to give details about his relationship with Monica Lewinsky, evidence that was used in his impeachment.

Thursday's revelations will only fuel speculation that Trump may try to curb the investigation by firing Mueller.

Two US senators introduced a bipartisan bill Thursday to pre-empt that move by insulating Mueller.

The legislation, sponsored by Democrat Chris Coons and Republican Thom Tillis, would bar a president from directly firing the special counsel without a judicial review.

Under the bill, Mueller would be allowed to challenge his removal in court in the event he is fired without good cause.

"A back-end judicial review process to prevent unmerited removals of special counsels not only helps to ensure their investigatory independence, but also reaffirms our nation's system of check and balances," Tillis said in a statement.

Coons added: "Ensuring that the special counsel cannot be removed improperly is critical to the integrity of his investigation."

https://www.yahoo.com/news/us-grand-jury-impaneled-russia-probe-report-210806449.html
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Trump blasts Russia investigation as Robert Mueller convenes grand jury.

Donald Trump has sought to rally thousands of diehard supporters against the investigation into his campaign’s alleged collusion with Russia – on the same day news emerged that the special counsel, Robert Mueller, has convened a grand jury in the case.

“They’re trying to cheat you out of the leadership that you want with a fake story,” Trump told a rally in Huntington, West Virginia.

The concerted effort could be a sign that the White House is realising the full gravity of the situation. Mueller, appointed special counsel in May following the dismissal of FBI Director James Comey, has recruited more than a dozen investigators, including current and former justice department prosecutors with experience in international bribery, organised crime and financial fraud.
More at link.
https://www.yahoo.com/news/trump-blasts-russia-investigation-apos-015914360.html
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Special Counsel Robert Mueller has impaneled a grand jury and issued subpoenas — clear signs the investigation into Russia’s interference in the presidential election and Moscow’s ties to the Trump campaign is heating up.

The move means that Mueller, who oversees the federal probe, “believes he will need to subpoena records and take testimony from witnesses,” according to The Wall Street Journal, which broke the story on Thursday.

Grand juries have the power to subpoena documents, get testimony under oath and seek indictments if there is evidence of a crime.

Mueller has already taken advantage of the added firepower. More at link.
http://www.nydailynews.com/news/politics/mueller-impaneled-grand-jury-trump-russia-probe-article-1.3381717

This thread is better than telly, the US seems to be spinning out of control.

Donald Trump blocked by US Senate from making government appointments during summer recess.

US politicians have blocked Donald Trump from making appointments without their permission as the Senate begins its summer break.

Senators unanimously agreed to hold nine short “pro-forma” sessions during the break, which runs from 11 August to 5 September.

It means the Senate will be in session every three days throughout August.

Democrats had suggested they would use the procedure to block the US President after it was suggested Mr Trump would try to replace Attorney General Jeff Sessions during recess, The Hill reported.

Mr Sessions has faced an onslaught of criticism from the former real estate mogul after recusing himself from the investigation into Russian collusion in the US elections.

Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer said the party was ready to use “tools in our toolbox” to block a summer appointment.

"We're ready to use every single one of them, any time, day or night. It's so vital to the future of the republic," the senior Democrat said.

Mr Trump is not the first president to be blocked from making appointments by Congress.

Former president Barack Obama was blocked from filling a vacant Supreme Court seat last year.

Pro-forma sessions require a senator to be in Washington during the recess, to open and close session in a brief one-minute meeting.

The US Constitution says neither the Senate nor the House "can adjourn for more than three days without the consent of the other."
https://uk.news.yahoo.com/donald-trump-blocked-us-senate-084453923.html