Tag: Vladimir Putin

Part III: Behind The Curtain

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Part III: Behind The Curtain

D. S. Mitchell

One thing we have learned over the years is that Donald Trump is very aware of perception, most notably, the size of his fortune. In a 2006 lawsuit Trump sued Timothy L. O’Brien, author of TrumpNation: The Art of Being The Donald, for $5 million in damages because O’Brien asserted that Trump was actually “worth somewhere between $150 million and $250 million.” This was after Trump had stated in the book that he was worth $6 billion.

Trump claimed that “low ball estimates of his wealth came from guys who have four hundred pound wives and were jealous of his success.” ***(“four hundred pound wives’ sounds eerily familiar. Remember that imaginary “four hundred pound hacker siting on his bed” Trump described during the debates? So, my first twisted thought is that if I hear the “400 pound” line come out of his mouth I will assume it is an outright lie.)

So, what is Trump really worth? We are now entering murky waters. In the O’Brien lawsuit Trump claimed that an unfavorable news story, article, comment, or book in this case, could “psychologically hurt me. I am a billionaire, not a perceived billionaire.”

Court records from that case, based on a Trump Organization financial statement placed his net worth at $3.5 billion, far less than the $6 billion Trump claimed to O’Brien during interviews for TrumpNation. That same year there were many other efforts to assess the size of Trump’s fortune.  North Fork Bank, now Capital One Bank, estimated his total worth to be $1.2 billion, while Deutsche Bank put the estimate at closer to $788 million in 2005.

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Trump On Tour

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Trump On Tour

D. S. Mitchell

I am screaming at the top of my lungs. It’s a damn good thing this is not a pod cast commentary, because someone would be ordering psych restraints for this old girl.

I started writing for Calamity Politics because I saw Trump as a demented, narcissistic, irrational, terrifying, irresponsible, backward thinking, corrupt and dangerous individual. I was concerned that the country had just elected a gross misogynist clown as President of the United States.

I wanted to speak out against what I expected to be an immediate attack on the environment, entitlement programs and Roe v Wade. I knew the Republicans, heavily financed by the Koch Brothers, and other right extremist Superpacs, would launch an all out attack against anything progressive as soon as the inaugural partying was over.

Because of my intense concern, I felt the pressure to get on line with Calamity Politics as soon as possible. If you as a reader, wonder who I am, and what I stand for, I suggest you take a few minutes and read ‘About Me’ and ‘Mission Statement’ which are located on buttons at the top of this page.

I thought I might be alone in my outrage. Had I “lost” my mind, as was suggested by two family members, or was I one of many?

I found out soon that I was just one of an army of individuals who were truly fearful that the election of Donald Trump was a step back in time. None of us wanted to take 21st century America back to the segregated, air polluted and garbage littered mid 20th century America romanticized by Donald Trump. So fearful in fact were we, that we began organically to call ourselves the “resistance”. I embraced the label as a personal commitment to fight trump, and everything he represents. I am a soldier in the fight against authoritarianism. I am one of the ‘resistance”.

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Killings Mar Palm Sunday

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Killings Mar Palm Sunday

D. S. Mitchell

Tanka, Egypt

Two Coptic church bombings have occurred in Egypt. The first attack was in Tanka, Egypt, a Nile Delta city. The bombing came during Palm Sunday services at St. George’s Church. The bomber placed the device close to the altar. 27 died and 78 were injured. ISIS has claimed responsibility for the bombing.

Alexandria, Egypt

Hours after the Tanka bombing, St. Mark’s Church in Alexandria, Egypt was attacked by a suicide bomber. Security patrol assigned to St. Mark’s stopped  the terrorist who was wearing an explosive belt before he reached the church grounds. The terrorist blew himself up at the gate. The detonation killed two police officers and 14 other citizens within the bomb’s explosive zone, and wounded 41 others. ISIS, through its media wing, Amaq, took credit for the bombing.

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Flynn Facts

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Flynn Facts

D. S. Mitchell

Flynn Facts

Lt. General Michael Flynn (Retired) was born in 1958, in Middletown, R.I. and served in the U.S. Army for 33 years before being forced out of his intelligence position at the joint operations command.  He had clashes with superiors over his chaotic management style and his vision for the agency. Insiders state, “Flynn got fired because he was abusive to staff, refused to listen, worked against policy and was a poor manager,” per the Huffington Post. Furthermore, Flynn had a reputation for playing fast and loose with the facts. Subordinates referred to his dubious assertions as, “Flynn facts.”

Religious Bigotry

Flynn believes the Muslim religion is the cause of “Islamist terrorism.” He has famously proclaimed Islam “is a political ideology and a cancer.” He tweeted, “Fear of Muslims is RATIONAL”. With that tweet he included a link to a video that claimed Islam intends to enslave or exterminate 80% of the world population. He supports return of Betula Gulen to Turkey to face charges of instigating a failed coup against Turkish President Erdogan. Erdogan’s government has moved closer to Russia over the last several years and Flynn has stated he wants to see the United States, “begin to work constructively with Russia.”

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Tillerson’s Big Lie

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Tillerson’s Big Lie

D. S. Mitchell

Morning Cable

I just watched Christine Romans, on ‘New Day,’ a morning political cable news show on CNN. I like her style, she really knows how to put her guests on the hot seat. Her questions are pointed and intuitive. Sometimes I feel sorry for the guests. LOL. I used to start my morning’s with ‘Morning Joe,” he comes on at 0300 her in the West. But recently Scarborough’s poorly veiled support of Trump is a turn off. If it wasn’t for Mika Brzezinski, I would have turned to ‘New Day’ a lot sooner. After watching New Day I have a choice of half a dozen activities. I either walk, bike or swim for an hour. Next, I grab breakfast. Then I go start research for a new blog post.

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The List

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The List

D. S. Mitchell

Heat It Up

Calamity News and Politics, is a progressive blog based on the North Oregon Coast.  Calamity is here to stimulate the political conversation. A little argument is good, if it can clear the air. Some chaos is good, if it helps us re-center. Investigation is good, if it leads to the truth.

Siding Up

There is a an unsavory connection between Putin and Trump. The House Intel Committee began hearings today with some very interesting testimony.  The partisan divide was immediately clear.  To me at least, the Republicans were leading a campaign to ferret out the folks leaking information, while the Democrats were on a mission to uncover a Russian spy network. The questioning hinted heavily of money, sex, cyber hacking, election tampering and sabotage.  My suggestion to the lawmakers is, let it go guys.  For everyone concerned, we need an Independent investigator or a Commission to get to the bottom of the Kremlin-Gate scandal.  As scary as it may be, it is entirely possible that there is a Russian operative in the White House. A Manchurian Candidate.

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