Maverick's World

The Daily Donald 03/28/2017

Extremely damaging revelations about unreported meetings between Jared Kushner and Sergei Gorkov (head of Vnesheconombank)  have appeared in the lay press. Given Mr. Gorkov's links to the FSB and VEB's links to a Russian spy ring, this latest revelation is making it look like the whole Trump Family is in bed with the RIS.

Chairman Nunes bizarre behavior has completely baffled most analysts but it appears that he is working for the Trump Administration (rather than the HPSCI or the people that elected him). The main objective of this Trump Admin employee appears to be to derail the HPSCI efforts to depose critical members of the USIC and DOJ. Apparently these members are in possession of evidence that would very damaging to the Trump Admin. (Update : both HPSCI and SSCI hearings for the week have been cancelled 8:35 AM 3/28/2017. Update 1:51 PM 3/28/2017 SSCI still on - Sally Yates to testify).

After the TrumpCare/ACHA fiasco President Trump is making a great deal of effort to lay the blame for everything wrong on House majority leader Paul Ryan. While it looks like DJT is doing this to avoid being blamed for going back on one his campaign's signature promises, I feel there is a much more sinister agenda in place. I feel it is more likely that DJT deliberately drove the TrumpCare bill to defeat because he wanted a lever on Paul Ryan. Paul Ryan has the ability to recall the HPSCI chairman and "un-fuck" the HPSCI investigation, but with DJT calling for his removal, Paul will be forced to make a deal that saves his own skin but essentially stymies the HPSCI for the moment.

This latter bit is a double edged sword - if DJT's efforts at planting the TrumpCare Fail at Paul's door fail or new evidence of collaboration between RIS and DJTC appears in the public domain, Paul will be left with no choice but to go on the offensive. He will have to unfetter the HPSCI investigation in order to protect the GOP form the adverse fallout of DJT's ties to RIS.

Speaking of Russia - it would appear that civil unrest is spreading to several cities despite the fact that Russian TV isn't actually covering any of the protests. As the number of protests grow, the Putin Admin's response to them is going to become harsher. Crude estimates of RU GDP (see below) put the number at 1998-2000 levels. This is catastrophic and it is unlikely that President Putin will be able to survive the political fallout of this madness.

RU GDP (source)

* Update 8:38 AM 03/28/2017 - if both SSCI and HPSCI are cancelled, that means the DJT Admin is in deep shit. This is a very reactive entity. They actually believe they can get away with anything and react poorly when they find they can't.  If they had to push to cancel those meetings it probably means that the Kislyak-Gorkov-Kushner conversation records contain something very incriminating or damaging to DJT himself. Wonder who he will throw under the bus now. 

posted by maverick @ 4:58 AM