Beltway Insider: Trump/Mueller, Testimony Takeaways, Baltimore, Border Wall Boost, Brits PM, Royal Navy

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President Donald Trump continued his divisive rhetoric as he celebrated what he interpreted as a complete vindication derived from the testimony of former Special Counsel Robert S. Mueller III, which others interpreted as filled with evidence of treason.

According to Gallup, President Trump's job approval rating, which was tracked for the two week time period ending July 7, 2019, increased three percentage points to 44% of those polled who approve of his effectiveness as President and those who disapprove of his effectiveness decreased four percentage points to 51%. A slight 3% of the population polled have no opinion. Ratings are calculated bi-monthly.


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Trump Responds to Robert Mueller's Testimony

President Trump reverted back to candidate Trump and used the testimony of former Special Counsel for the United States Department of Justice, as a springboard to announce to his supporters, via every mouthpiece, the complete and thorough vindication of the collusion "witch-hunt."

"They are devastated.  The Democrats lost so big today.  Their party is in shambles right now.  They've got the Squad leading their party.  They are a mess — where even you take a look at scribe and you take a look at so many of the people that were the most outspoken, and they say this was a devastating day for the Democrats.  And you know it, John, and everybody else knows it.  This was devastating day for the Democrats," President Trump said to the press before boarding Marine One.

During the same mini-press briefing, the president presented his score card of administration victories, "We've got the strongest stock market, the best unemployment numbers, the most number of people ever working in the history of our country right now — almost 160 million.  Our military has been rebuilt and getting even stronger. We've done a great job, and we've done it under this terrible, phony cloud."

Obviously briefed on Special Counsel Mueller's testimony, possibly through a GOP redaction, he appeared to have no opinion on the meat of the testimony which as presented unequivocally did not vindicated the president or offer a complete and thorough vindication from this "ridiculous hoax."

Throughout the mini-brief, the president continued his standard take-down mode belittling Mueller, his mental stamina, his capabilities, his reach and stuck to the practice of "wag the dog," create a scandal to hide a scandal, or turn the tables to make the accuser look guilty and the guilt party appear innocent.

In this case, the president now wants the voting population to believe he is the innocent and even more so, the targeted candidate due to the "nasty" payback from former democratic presidential challenger Hillary R. Clinton.

The facts remain, what was presented remained consistent throughout the last two years, in which "34 people and three companies have been criminally charged as a result of the probe. Mueller was named special counsel in May 2017 by Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein, and directed to investigate "any links and/or coordination between the Russian government and individuals associated with the campaign of President Donald Trump" and "any matters that arose or may arise directly from the investigation," NBCnews reported in an article March 07, 2019.

That investigation, which has concluded and is now under microscopic review by multiple committees including a large percentage of Democratic representatives at least 100 who are pressuring the Speaker of the House, Representative Nancy Pelosi, to push for impeachment. A slightly larger percentage, 135, are urging her to show prudence in the decision.

Charging ahead is playing into the president's hand at this point. The long game, to secure the White House and to seek criminal charges for participating with a foreign government to influence the 2016 election, can only occur if Trump is no longer in office.


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There are only three scenarios: The President is re-elected and immediately impeachment proceedings begin. Scenario two, the President is defeated in the 2020 election and is immediately indicted on a litany of criminal charges including treason and lastly, democrats begin impeachment proceedings now, lose, and the president survives a targeted attack in the nine months before the general election which translates to a GOP win in 2020 or the democrats secure the votes, in theory, to secure impeachment and in the clinch representatives cast a different vote or not. So, the next GOP in line steps up and the democrats have taken "our" candidate from "us" again telling "us" what to do so the disgruntled and disenfranchised will say "fuck you" watch. And come November Mike Pence is president with a moderate VP like Former Ohio Governor John Kasich.

Mueller Testimony Takeaways

As many understand at any point when there is testimony, especially of the nature that effects the party structure, both Democrats and Republicans are afforded a specific and allotted time to preface questions with opinions.

The Mueller testimony was no different with both ranking members offering their take on these proceedings. Unfortunately, by this time, the population has essentially come into the same proceedings with opinions formed.

The testimony contained no new "bombshell" although the statements made by the director were shocking and an indictment of the evolution of the political system. The system of hostile takeover, a term and practice well known and understood by the billionaire developer and now President Trump, was employed during his campaign and in unison with each of his adult children forging their own strategies to the same end securing the white house.


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The possibility that President Trump had no knowledge of what his adult children where involved with outside of specific duties is doubtful, and possible. The possibility also is clear that the three adult children and one spouse, Donald Jr., Eric, Ivanka and her husband, Jared Kushner, the son of a convicted building developer, approached the Russians outside of the presidents knowledge understanding the power they possess in persuading him in business dealings.

Lastly, of course, the loyalty to country. Is it possible the president has a greater sense of patriotism than his four adult children? It is very possible, and one can almost say clearly, unquestionably, and without a doubt his children are less patriotic than he.

Trump campaign et al perceived the 2016 Election as a hostile takeover and in doing so were compelled to approach each aspect of the campaign as it were a board room battle.

The first takeaway of course is the main charge of the special counsel investigation. Did the Russians influence the 2016 Campaign? Yes. They did. Russians Still Attempting to Influence Elections

"Robert S. Mueller III warned lawmakers on Wednesday that Russia was again trying to sabotage American democracy before next year's presidential election, defended his investigation's conclusions about Moscow's sweeping interference campaign in 2016 and publicly rejected President Trump's criticism that he had conducted a "witch hunt," The New York Times reported.

President Trump also stated if he would accept "dirt" a standard term used for damaging information on his opponent, in this case, his Democratic Presidential challenger Hillary R. Clinton, to which he replied, "Yes. Everyone does it." The problem is his nonchalant approach is in response to a foreign government, with its own agenda has offered a citizen information, any citizen loyal to its government would reject, unequivocally, reject the information and even further report the person offering the information to the necessary judicial authorities.

As expected, Mueller stated the Presidents written responses were generally "not truthful." The president an expert at the spin stated, "I don't know whose answers weren't.  I guess his answers weren't.  Because if you look, the whole report — you take a look at what they did: Some of the things that he didn't even know about; some of the things he didn't even know what was going on."

Trump Called Out on Vernacular

President Trump has once again inflamed lawmakers at large with his hate rhetoric this time directed at House Oversight Committee African American Rep. Elijah Cummings, (D-MD), who spoke publicly criticizing on the deplorable condition of the immigrant detention facilities.

"Overcrowded, squalid conditions are more widespread at migrant centers along the southern border than initially revealed, the Department of Homeland Security's independent watchdog said Tuesday. Its report describes standing-room-only cells, children without showers and hot meals, and detainees clamoring desperately for release," The New York Times reported in a July 2, 2019 article.

Representative Cummings is not alone in his position on the conditions of the detention facilities. His comments, this past week, sparked a backlash from President Trump who took to Twitter calling the representative a "brutal bully" whose district, which is primarily comprised of POC (Persons of Color) who live below the poverty line, calling it "disgusting, rat and rodent infested mess" and "far worse and more dangerous" than those immigrants face at detention facilities.

Video has surfaced of pockets of knee-deep squalor within the Representative district. These widespread dumping is unfortunate an outgrowth of a pervasive attitude that seems to be present in every city across this nation.

From Skid Row in Los Angeles, where the homeless problem has reached epidemic levels with no plan in place to deal with the daily increasing social plague, to Baltimore, where homeless and squalor are now the focus of the president's twitter rants and not his empathy.

The pushback from citizens at large, from members of the media to those who monitor the twitter-verse, reveled the president's strategy of divisiveness many be waning thin when attacking specific individuals and drawing attention to the living conditions of those most vulnerable in society.


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Samantha Williams of The Centers for Disease Control, stated, [the CDC] "is in a great position to make a huge contribution to the elimination of homelessness. When I say the elimination, I don't mean the eradication; I mean reduce the number of people who are homeless, and the number of people who are affected or at risk of homelessness. We, as a public health agency can do exactly that. We may not be able to end overall poverty, but what we can do is make our contribution in lessening the impact. We can improve the health of the public, partner with federal and local partners, to leverage our combined resources."

As the world is now focused on North Baltimore with "deplorable" conditions circling the globe highlighted those who are have refused to utilized the cities disposal services, action should be taken beginning with fining the landlord or a clean-up day, which many cities utilize those who are receiving federal supplemental benefits to work with a supervisor and pull heavy duty one day a month.

What the residents of North Baltimore, nee Americans in all four corners of this great nation who are facing challenges unlike any they have seen, those who live in their cars (a quickly rising phenomena), shocking tent cities and others who are not utilizing the traditional transitory housing options, need is empathy and a president who would direct care instead of hate rhetoric, one who would show concern and not mask his hate with words associated with pestilence, a president who would not attempt to shame the resident but help carry the burden.

Border Wall Boost

The Supreme Court overturned a lower court decision, splitting along expected lines, which allowed the president to access nearly $2.5billion for the border wall project, which theoretically should, stem the pipeline of illegal immigrants who are using methods akin to drug smugglers in the height of their efforts, as they find every avenue which transports them across the border.

"The president celebrated the ruling on Twitter: "Wow! Big VICTORY on the Wall. The United States Supreme Court overturns lower court injunction, allows Southern Border Wall to proceed. Big WIN for Border Security and the Rule of Law!,"' Fox News reported.


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Brits Elect New Prime Minister

Boris Johnson, the newly elected British Prime Minister has had his initial meeting with Queen Elizabeth and will begin to form his government in her name. Media have been reporting Prime Minister Johnson, who is in the middle of a divorce has also moved his live-in girlfriend into Ten Downing Street.

Johnson who has been restricting his government has stated "a no-deal Brexit is madness." He has also called all Remainers to stop posturing and attempting to sabotage the efforts and more ahead to making Great Britain once again the envy of the world.

The Queen, media have reported, may have modernized her beliefs somewhat, and still insisted the Prime Minister spend the weekend Balmoral estate alone.

UK Royal Navy Escorts Flagged Ships

The Royal Navy has sent a second warship to the Strait of Hormuz, after Iranians seized two UK flagged oil tankers, to escort oil tankers through the waters. The escalation of tensions have forced nations who depend on the passage to transport oil to take counter measures to ensure the safety of their vessels, cargo and crew.

For more information on President Donald Trump www.whitehouse.gov.

Sources: whitehouse.gov.