BY BRIAN BEUTLER, PRIYANKA ARIBINDI & CROOKED MEDIA
Tuesday, May 14, 2019 | GUILTY UNTIL PROVEN #MAGA | Attorney General William Barr has ordered yet another review of how the Russia investigation began, which will target current and former Justice Department and intelligence officials whom Trump perceives as his political enemies. This is despite any evidence that these officials broke any laws or otherwise conducted the investigation improperly. Barr’s review is at least the fifth examination of the Russia investigation's origins. Past congressional and internal DOJ examinations revealed that the Russia investigation began because the Russian government was subverting the U.S. election, trying to infiltrate the Trump campaign, and finding willing partners within it—good things to investigate! Barr selected John Durham, the U.S. Attorney from Connecticut, to conduct the so-called “review,” but like all U.S. Attorneys, Durham is a federal prosecutor whose job is to investigate and charge crimes. It is possible, even likely, that Durham won’t ultimately seek to prosecute anyone. He is a career official who has helmed several national security investigations in the past. He has secured the cooperation of intelligence chiefs, including FBI Director Christopher Wray who testified under oath just last week that he had seen no evidence that the government had engaged in unauthorized surveillance of Trump associates. (By no coincidence, Trump has repeatedly smeared Wray in the days since.) But no matter what, the investigation will disrupt the lives of innocent people and send a chill through the Justice Department, where several Trump-related investigations are ongoing. And if Democrats ultimately decide to launch an impeachment inquiry, no one will be surprised if Trump spins it as a scheme to cover up the “deep state” crimes that Durham is investigating. Of course, politically motivated investigations like this one are impeachable offenses in and of themselves. And if Democrats allow Trump to get away with it, Trump and Barr will feel free to repeat the practice on Trump’s other enemies, including Democratic presidential candidates. | In response to orders from the White House, the Defense Department has revised military plans for war with Iran that involve sending up to 120,000 troops to the Middle East if Iran attacks American forces or ramps up efforts to build nuclear weapons. National security adviser John Bolton and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, both of whom have advocated war with Iran for years, have implied that Iran is trying to reconstitute its nuclear weapons programs. Threat assessments by U.S. intelligence agencies have concluded the opposite. The Iraq War—lesson not learned! From Tommy Vietor: John Bolton desperately wants war with Iran. He's famous for cooking intelligence. This is deadly serious. Congress should make clear that there is no authorization for military force. And the press should demand to see any intelligence reporting that could be used as pretext. | A security flaw in the messaging app WhatsApp allowed attackers to spread software that let them spy on iPhones and Androids. Over one billion people around the world use the app, and if you’re one of them, it’s impossible to know whether your device was compromised. Security researchers believe that the NSO Group, an Israeli firm that produces surveillance technology, created this software. Donald Trump, Jr., has agreed to testify before the Senate Intelligence Committee in June on a limited scope of five or six topics for between two to four hours. Gov. Steve Bullock (D-MT) has officially launched his campaign for presidency. He kicked it off with a dad joke, and honestly it wasn’t that bad. Sri Lanka’s nationwide curfew will be in effect for a second night in a row after violent anti-Muslim riots continued on Monday. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross held a secret meeting with racist troll/Holocaust denier Chuck Johnson and communicated with him for work purposes over personal email, which we recall is something that the political media used to think was bad? China, if you’re listening, maybe you can find those emails? Disney has taken operational control of Hulu from Comcast (which owns NBCUniversal and its shows). You’ll still be able to stream NBCUniversal shows on Hulu for the next year, but after NBC’s streaming service launches, some of the network’s programming will move there. Disney will move most of its television shows and movies from Netflix to Disney+ once it launches in November. Finally we can get rid of cable bundling thanks to... *checks notes* ... internet subscription bundling? Elizabeth Warren promised to replace President Trump’s Education Secretary Betsy DeVos with a former public school teacher if she’s elected. She delivered the promise before an audience of teachers union members. The White House “forgot” to invite any American Muslims to its annual Iftar dinner in celebration of Ramadan. Again. The NBA draft lottery is tonight, and we will finally get an idea of where Zion Williamson will end up. Now would be a good time to reach out to any Knicks fans in your life and make sure they are okay. | Ch-ch-ch-ch-changes! The world changes fast, and so do the skills that you need to succeed in it. Enter Flatiron. Flatiron is a global school that teaches innovative skills like software engineering, data science, and UX/UI Design, and offers immersive online and on-campus courses in cities like NYC, DC, Houston, and Atlanta. So let’s go! It’s time to stop clicking “remind me tomorrow” on those mental push notifications you’ve ignored for the last 6 months, and finally update your skills for the 21st century. Apply here, now. | Before they were fired earlier this year, former Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen and acting Immigration and Customs Enforcement chief Ronald Vitiello opposed a secret White House plan to blitz 10 major U.S. cities and arrest thousands of parents and children. The administration fast-tracked cases in immigration court, and when people didn’t show up to their hearings on time, it obtained deportation orders against them and planned to raid their neighborhoods and homes to kick them out of the country. You know you’re pretty bad when Kirstjen Nielsen has to tell you to slow your roll. | Elizabeth Warren has declined an invitation to participate in a Fox News town hall, and used the opportunity to explain why, unlike several of her primary competitors, she won’t participate: “Fox News is a hate-for-profit racket that gives a megaphone to racists and conspiracists—it’s designed to turn us against each other, risking life and death consequences, to provide cover for [corruption]… I won’t ask millions of Democratic primary voters to tune [in]... especially when Fox will make even more money adding our valuable audience to their ratings numbers.” Preach. | Did someone forward you this email? Sign up to get What A Day in your inbox! Want to advertise with us? What are you waiting for?! | If you prefer not to receive these emails, you may unsubscribe. 7162 Beverly Blvd #212, Los Angeles, CA, 90036 © Crooked Media 2018. All Rights Reserved. | | |