‘Unhinged and Disgraceful’

Democratic U.S. Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard of Hawaii launched an attack against her own party and her own party’s most-recent presidential nominee late Friday afternoon, as reports grew that former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said Russia is grooming an unnamed but current 2020 presidential candidate, a woman, to run as a third-party candidate.

Gabbard – as did many – apparently assumed Clinton was referring to her, and took to Twitter to slam Clinton as “the queen of warmongers, embodiment of corruption, and personification of the rot that has sickened the Democratic Party for so long.”

She also said Clinton has been “cowardly” behind a “concerted campaign to destroy my reputation,” and invited her to once again run for president.

Great! Thank you @HillaryClinton. You, the queen of warmongers, embodiment of corruption, and personification of the rot that has sickened the Democratic Party for so long, have finally come out from behind the curtain. From the day I announced my candidacy, there has been a …

— Tulsi Gabbard (@TulsiGabbard) October 18, 2019

… powerful allies in the corporate media and war machine, afraid of the threat I pose.

It’s now clear that this primary is between you and me. Don’t cowardly hide behind your proxies. Join the race directly.

— Tulsi Gabbard (@TulsiGabbard) October 18, 2019

Clinton, whose charges against Donald Trump have come true, said Russia’s goal is to throw the election once again to Trump.

While Clinton did not name or even suggest Rep. Gabbard, many on social media assumed it was the Congresswoman from Hawaii.

Gabbard has a history of aligning herself with Russian and Syrian talking points. Her unannounced and largely to this day unexplained 2017 trip to visit Syrian dictator Bashar al Assad, who has been accused of war crimes including gassing his own people.

On Twitter, Gabbard was quickly berated and mocked:

Lol, you’re getting beat by @AndrewYang. Maybe Hillary Freaking Clinton is a *little* out of you political league, just at the moment?

— Elie Mystal (@ElieNYC) October 18, 2019

Hillary never mentioned your name. That you recognized yourself in her words is telling. Your reputation preceeded you. Your vile anti-gay rants sounded just as unhinged as this. So did your demands that Obama refer to”radical Islam.” And your refusal to disown Assad. We see you. https://t.co/MqiGLMR9sk

— Victoria Brownworth🎃👻💀 (@VABVOX) October 18, 2019

This response by @TulsiGabbard actually removes any doubt about the claims Secretary Clinton made about her. A frightening insight into her true colors. Unhinged and disgraceful.

— Alex Mohajer (@AlexMohajer) October 18, 2019

I love the new “I don’t give two f____ks” @HillaryClinton . Mostly because I think the opinions she holds are right even when they piss people off. https://t.co/zyK1DW7Clv

— Hilary Rosen (@hilaryr) October 18, 2019

This tweet reads an awful lot like the Facebook content pumped out by Russian bot farms in 2016. https://t.co/SLpvgdbBQL

— Brian Fallon (@brianefallon) October 18, 2019

Gabbard is vile; in some ways the best strategy is to ignore her. But 2016 election was multi-prong attack that involved not just attacking Clinton but bolstering candidates like Stein who undeniably played spoiler role. We ignore possibility of that repeating itself at our peril

— Susan Hennessey (@Susan_Hennessey) October 18, 2019

I wish HRC hadn’t called Gabbard a Russian asset. I see no evidence for this. Definitely a stooge and a useful idiot. But that’s different. But gaslighting her notional party is the centerpiece of Gabbards politics. She is the malevolent kraken of Democratic politics.

— Josh Marshall (@joshtpm) October 18, 2019

Tulsi claims the primary is between her and Clinton, but sure, Hillary is the “crazy” one. https://t.co/XxmuSCXOOi

— Amanda Marcotte (@AmandaMarcotte) October 18, 2019

Why is Tulsi Gabbard getting so frantic on Twitter?

Because her presidential bid is Russian out of time.

— Charlotte Clymer🏳️‍🌈 (@cmclymer) October 18, 2019

I blocked Tulsi Gabbard a couple years ago and I’ve never felt better about a decision on here.

— Kevin M. Kruse (@KevinMKruse) October 18, 2019

Remember when a Russian embassy defended @TulsiGabbard? pic.twitter.com/eytU0tvZtH

— Ben Popken (@bpopken) October 18, 2019

Image by Gage Skidmore via Flickr and a CC license

President Donald Trump has just announced his Secretary of Energy, Rick Perry, has resigned.

“Rick and I have been talking for 6 months” Trump told reporters in Texas minutes ago. “In fact, I thought he might go a little sooner. But he’s got some very big plans, he’s going to be very successful. We’ll announce his successor pretty soon.”

Trump added he will announce Perry’s replacement at a rally tonight.

Perry was Trump’s second Energy Secretary. He appointed Grace Bochenek as Acting Secretary on his first day in office. She stayed until March, when Perry was sworn in.

UPDATE:
Video –
Trump says Perry leaving by end of year.

JUST IN: President Trump says Energy Sec. Rick Perry is "going at the end of the year." https://t.co/SvZxUjgAQb pic.twitter.com/FOO8MElVMp

— NBC News (@NBCNews) October 17, 2019

This is a breaking news and developing story. Details may change. This story will be updated, and NCRM will likely publish follow-up stories on this news. Stay tuned and refresh for updates.

President Donald Trump’s Ambassador to the European Union is testifying behind closed door to congressional impeachment investigators and has just delivered a devastating indictment of the president. Ambassador Gordon Sondland says President Trump ordered him to work with his personal attorney, Rudy Giuliani, on Ukraine.

“He directed those of us present at the meeting to talk to Mr. Giuliani, his personal attorney, about his concerns,” Ambassador Sondland said, according to The Washington Post. “It was apparent to all of us that the key to changing the president’s mind on Ukraine was Mr. Giuliani.”

Sondland added that it was not “until much later that Mr. Giuliani’s agenda might have also included an effort to prompt the Ukrainians to investigate Vice President Biden or his son or to involve Ukrainians, directly or indirectly, in the president’s 2020 reelection campaign.”

Vice News’ Cameron Joseph adds that “Sondland, in prepared opening statement, says Trump directed him, Volker and Perry to work with Giuliani on Ukraine corruption in late May.” Volker is former United States special representative to Ukraine Kurt Volker. Perry is Trump’s Energy Secretary Rick Perry.

CNN adds, from Sondland’s prepared remarks that he “will testify that Trump put on hold effort to strengthen relations with Ukraine until top US officials were in contact with Giuliani, who had been pursuing investigation into the Bidens and 2016 elections.”

But one expert is poking holes in Sondland’s claims of innocence.

Matthew Miller, a former Dept. of Justice top spokesperson:

About Sondland's claim that he didn't realize on May 23 that what Giuliani and Trump were really after was a Ukraine investigation into Biden…the NYT had reported that's what Giuliani wanted on May 9. It was a big story! https://t.co/2YkROA2XcZ

— Matthew Miller (@matthewamiller) October 17, 2019