E. Jean Carroll

"Trump attacked me in the dressing room of Bergdorf Goodman." (click here)

The plight of beautiful women.

I admire her courage, today, as well as 23 years ago. I find her story commonplace. She was and still is a powerful woman with a magnificent career. When she talks about respect, I find that a defense to prevent an opinion that could hurt her. She is a public figure. She was compromised before it even began and I think her assailant knew that.

She stated she was leaving Bergdorf Goodman while he was entering. Did she ever wonder if he was entering because she was there?

Women do blame themselves for these attacks. Especially women that are used to taking care of themselves and are resilient to life's ups and downs. Women like to be in control and blame themselves as not being smart enough when something like this happens. I don't read minds, I doubt she does either. How could any woman ever blame herself for being attractive and enjoying attention afforded her because she is who she is?

The climate of tolerance of sexual assault is different because of women that came forward that said, "No more." I find her reflection of the women at the border being raped and facing issues of abortion and homelessness in a country that they are not familiar with admirable. She has made a life of worrying about others. I am confident those women would appreciate her focus on them.

Today, E. Jean Carroll came forward about a rape she never spoke of before except for her strictest of confidants. That is a personal accomplishment and I applaud her. We know a lot more about Donald J. Trump we didn't before and it all adds up, doesn't it?

She is a good person, this was not her fault, she had no defense against it and today she is free. I thank her for her honesty. I want her to be free of this burden of all these years and realize a beautiful woman is allowed to receive the attention she considered lighthearted without assault or without the threat of defaming herself by coming forward to report it.

She did the right thing for herself 23 years ago, no different than other women have done the right thing for themselves. The burden is on society, not the women. Rape is serious and women are not stupid for having it occur.

She is as much a great woman today as she was 23 years ago. I hope her life is enjoyable and lighthearted and as graciously social for the rest of her life. I thank her for joining the "Me Too" movement. It is a great moment for all of us, too.

June 21, 2019
By Madeline Ciak

Fadwa Hammoud was sworn in on February 14, 2019 (click here)

Flint - According to a news release, (click here) Michigan Solicitor General Fadwa Hammoud and Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy will be coming to Flint.

They are scheduled to visit the city on June 28.

They want to have a community conversation with the resident of Flint following the dismissal of pending criminal cases related to the Flint Water Crisis.

Kim Worthy in her 2010 campaign for office. (click here)

I think this is necessary. I am sure these great women have considerable information and evidence from the previous administration, however, they are reopening the investigation because of new evidence. It is only correct to retrace the steps of so many years ago and look under every rock and turn every page to be sure there isn't more undiscovered evidence. Flint and Michigan should be proud of their efforts to unearth the truth.

There is an ongoing problem with McLaren Hospital. It never removed the threat of Legionella from the hospital environment. Just a couple of things, did this hospital ever have problems with Legionella before the Flint water crisis and if so what is the exact history in the way of numbers of victims and the dates at which they were diagnosed along with their outcomes.

Also, there is no excuse for a hospital showing any traces of Legionella bacteria. They need to consider closing the hospital until the State of Michigan determines it is in compliance.

To note McClaren is near the Flint River. 

There are other options. Hurley Medical Center and Hurley's Children Clinic may be able to pick up the patients from McLaren. The State may want to take over McLaren and possibly replace the entire management staff with help from the University of Michigan. I am quite sure there are administrators within the UM hospital system that can do a far better job of determining the fate of the McLaren hospital than the current administration for that hospital. I think the state needs to move immediately to dissolve the credentializing of the hospital until it is determined to be safe. There is no excuse for this. People have to be safe first and foremost.

McLaren-Flint will have to be quarantined until further notice.

June 21, 2019
By Ron Fonger

Flint - McLaren-Flint (click here) says it’s finding low levels of Legionella bacteria in hospital water not because of internal issues but because it’s working so hard to identify and fix problems coming from the city’s water distribution system.

In a brief filed with the Michigan Office of Administrative Hearings and Rules this week, McLaren says it has spent more than $2 million to safeguard its water system in less than three years -- only to be punished by the state Department of Health and Human Services because its intensive testing has “occasionally” found “very low levels” of Legionella....

One Congressperson does not even make a quorum.

...But at least one member of Congress (click here) appears to believe the warnings from Trump's top Iran hawks, National Security Adviser John Bolton and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, and it's former Vice President Dick Cheney's daughter, Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.). In a classified briefing Wednesday, Cheney "argued that the intelligence warranted an escalation against Iran," the Post reports, citing a person with knowledge of the briefing. "In response, Democratic Rep. Seth Moulton (Mass.) (click here) accused her of exaggerating the threat in what the person described as a 'very heated exchange.'"...

I might point out that Congressman Seth Moulton was a soldier. He understands war. He even has his health care needs attended to by the Veterans' Administration. I believe him to be trustworthy. He does not want to plunge the USA into an unnecessary war causing thousands and thousands of deaths. I know who I can trust with the military of this country and it is not a person willing to believe the worst without balancing the costs of human tragedy.

Congresswoman Cheney is looking toward becoming a US Senator in 2020. I don't think she will make it if she is unwilling to think before she acts. 

On the first day of Summer, Amazon is announcing growth into Texas.

This will bring new jobs, competition for wage labor, health care benefits and a chance for advancement. I wish everyone good luck in this new venture.

June 21, 2019
By Maria Halkias

Amazon is planning to open (click here) one of its new 4-Star stores in the Dallas area.

4-Star stores are designed to bring Amazon's online experience into a physical space with employees who can answer questions and displays that feature products that are top sellers in local markets.

Amazon hasn't yet disclosed the Dallas-Fort Worth location, but it has started hiring and posted a job for a store manager on its website. The ad's job details included Frisco....

Iran and the USA need to return to peace talks and the Iran Nuclear Agreement before it is too late.

I sincerely appreciate the fact President Trump did not take the next step in escalating tensions. That is a sign of hope and he should build on it.

I understand Iran has the drone.

June 21, 2019
By Ivana Kottosova

The aborted US strikes against Iran on Thursday (click here) were meant to target a limited set of Iranian radars and missile batteries, according to a US official with direct knowledge of the matter.

The strikes were set to begin on Thursday night when the White House called them off, said the official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the information.

No US weapons had been launched when the decision was made to call the strikes off, the official said.

The decision to call off the strikes was first reported by the New York Times....

The Navy Seals played their hand well.

June 20, 2019
By Vanessa Romo

The war crimes trial of Navy SEAL Chief Edward Gallagher (click here) took a dramatic turn Thursday when a lead prosecution witness — another SEAL who has been granted immunity to testify — confessed that he was the actual killer of a 17-year-old ISIS prisoner.

Special Warfare Operator 1st Class Corey Scott stunned prosecutors as he described a previously unheard version of events, saying he asphyxiated the teenage Islamic fighter as an act of mercy.

Among other charges related to his 2017 military service in Iraq, Gallagher is accused of killing the insurgent.

Scott began his witness testimony as prosecutors had expected, KPBS reporter Steve Walsh told NPR. Like several other witnesses who have taken the stand earlier this week, Scott first said Gallagher plunged a knife into the neck of the wounded ISIS captive as they were providing him with medical care....

How does it feel to be an American today? Safe?

All this is because Trump carried through with a campaign promise to leave the Iran Nuclear Deal, which is an act of war.

Trump needs to apologize to Iran, reverse course and return to the peace table and the Iran Nuclear Deal.

Trump never attempted in any way renegotiations. Germany attempted to seek renegotiations, but, Trump never did and there was not one meeting with Iranian officials to register a complaint about the Iran Nuclear Deal. It is an act of war.

June 21, 2019
By Jon Gambrell 

Dubai – Major airlines from around the world (click here) on Friday began rerouting their flights to avoid areas around the Strait of Hormuz following Iran’s shooting down of a U.S. military surveillance drone there, as America warned commercial airliners could be mistakenly attacked.

Australia’s Qantas, British Airways, Dutch carrier KLM and Germany’s Lufthansa said soon afterward that they will avoid the region as well.

The FAA previously warned of a risk in the region, but Friday’s warning threw into stark relief a danger both it and analysts warned was real after the shooting down of a Malaysian Airlines flight over Ukraine in 2014. That could further imperil the bottom lines of Gulf long-haul carriers, which already have faced challenges under the Trump administration....

"...keep your foot on the gas..." Said differently, escalation, escalation and more escalation.

The Trump peace plan is war.

20/06/2019

US National Security Advisor John Bolton (click here) will travel to Israel at the weekend for "regional security talks" with top Russian and Israeli officials, the White House said Thursday amid spiking tensions with Iran.

Bolton will meet Sunday with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, followed by talks with his Israeli and Russian counterparts, Meir Ben-Shabbat and Nikolai Patrushev, NSC spokesman Garrett Marquis said...

The crisis with Iran is directly Donald Trump's fault. When will he accept responsibility? The Trump Cabal is the equivalent of premeditated international murder.

The USA military was conceived to protect the country and not for the use of private dreams of billionaires.

Not one terrorist, not one, of September 11, 2001, was a Shi'ite. Not one. They were Saudis.

The people of the USA need to begin now in writing their House and Senate representatives to end hostilities with Iran and return to the peace tables and reinstate the Iran Agreement.

Lindsay Graham is a warmonger and attempting to inflame the tensions.

Let's get something straight. Iran never went looking for a drone, it was delivered them. The drone was an unknown capacity to Iran. Iran did not expect this. The Iranians had a right to defend their country and they did.

And get rid of the idea of al Qaeda in Iran. That is such a joke. Iran is Shi'ite and al Qaeda are Sunnis. It ain't gonna happen.

Where is the drone?

We know for a fact the Trump White House has been lying about Iran. They want war with that country.

IF THE DRONE WENT DOWN IN INTERNATIONAL WATERS, WHERE IS IT?

Iran is not Syria.

If he actually takes action like he shouldn't the evidence to the FACTS will eventually come out. He also better not kill anyone. NO ONE. This was an unmanned drone and there was nothing that occurred here except Trump's embarrassment.

I don't believe him. I believe he instructed the USA SECRETARY OF STATE TO GET EVIDENCE ON IRAN and they lost their drone over Iran and/or territorial waters. Pompeo was just at Centcom (click here). This is the result of Pompeo's visit.

US drones are known to be very successful in killing human beings, including teens. There was no reason for Iran to believe differently.

Iran had every right to defend its people. There are some drones that are huge and have the capacity of jet fighters. Iran did what Iran had to do.

The drone went down in Iranian waters or very, very close to it. This is what happens when very expensive and sophisticated military equipment is in the hands of warmongers.

The USA should apologize and get over it. The fact of the matter is the Iranians now have the drone and will dissect it to mimic the technology. Trump's White House was WRONG to use this drone for a mission to FIND EVIDENCE to make a case against Iran. There is no case against Iran. There are international inspectors in and out of that country all the time. There is no reason to escalate tensions with Iran.

Trump needs to make concessions to Iran and get back to the peace tables.

Page 20 of Volume i of the Special Counsel report, page 28 of the PDF.

Harm of Ongoing Matter

Footnote 33

Harm of Ongoing Matter

Footnote 34

Harm of Ongoing Matter

Bottom of page 

Footnote 33 -  Harm of Ongoing Matter   See SM-2230634, Serial 205

Footnote 34 - See SM-2230634, Serial 204 Harm of Ongoing Matter

There isn't anything to discuss on this page. The SM articles in the footnotes are in the evidence that accompanies the report. If the evidence is not released to the public, there is no real way to assess the information.

Page 21

Harm of Ongoing Matter

Footnote 35

Harm of Ongoing Matter

Footnote 36

Harm of Ongoing Matter

Footnote 37

IRA (Internet Research Agency) employees also traveled to the United States on intelligence-gathering missions. In June 2014, four IRA employees applied to the U.S. Department of State to enter the United States, while lying about the purpose of their trip and claiming to be four friends who had met at a party.38 Ultimately, two IRA employees-Anna Bogacheva and Aleksandra Krylova-received visas and entered the United States on June 4, 2014.

Some of the information in the report will also be found in the indictment I read yesterday. So this is not new to this reading of the report.

Prior to traveling, Krylova and Bogacheva compiled itineraries and instructions for the trip.

Harm of Ongoing Matter

Footnote 39

Harm of Ongoing Matter

Bottom of page

Footnote 35 Harm of Ongoing Matter

Footnote 36 Harm of Ongoing Matter

Footnote 37 Harm of Ongoing Matter

Footnote 38 - See SM2230634, serials 150 & 172 Harm of Ongoing Matter

Same thing here. The SM numbers and serials are EVIDENCE FILE numbers.

Footnote 39 Harm of Ongoing Matter

Page 22

Harm of Ongoing Matter

Footnote 40

Harm of Ongoing Matter

Footnote 41

2. U.S. Operations Through IRA-Controlled Social Media Accounts

Dozens of IRA employees were responsible for operating accounts and personas on different U.S. social media platforms. The IRA referred to employees assigned to operate the social media accounts as "specialists."42 Starting as early as 2014, the IRA' s U.S. operations included social media specialists focusing on Facebook, YouTube, and Twitter.43 The IRA later added specialists who operated on Tumblr and Instagram accounts.44

Initially, the IRA created social media accounts that pretended to be the personal accounts of U.S. persons. 45 By early 2015, the IRA began to create larger social media groups or public social media pages that claimed (falsely) to be affiliated with U.S. political and grassroots organizations. In certain cases, the IRA created accounts that mimicked real U.S. organizations. For example, one IRA-controlled Twitter account, @TEN_ GOP, purported to be connected to the Tennessee Republican Party. 46 More commonly, the IRA created accounts in the names of fictitious U.S. organizations and grassroots groups and used these accounts to pose as antiimmigration groups, Tea Party activists, Black Lives Matter protestors, and other U.S. social and political activists. 

This is information already covered when the indictment was read on this blog. 

The IRA closely monitored the activity of its social media accounts.

 Harm of Ongoing Matter

I would like to point out that the knowledge in the indictment is only a part of the information in the report. How do we know this, because, it is easy to point to the indictment information, HOWEVER, there is more information in the redacted parts of the report. So, this reading is not seeing the additional information of the report in the redacted sections OR the evidence file.

End of page

Harm of Ongoing Matter

Footnote 40  Harm of Ongoing Matter

Footnote 41 Harm of Ongoing Matter

Footnote 42 Harm of Ongoing Matter

Footnote 43 Harm of Ongoing Matter

Footnote 44 See SM-2230634, serial 179 Harm of Ongoing Matter

Let me just add that the footnotes with "Harm of Ongoing Matter" next to them are probably other numbers in the evidence file. These redactions took place over actual words typed on the page of the report. So the length of the redaction reflects what might be out of sight. As I stated before, there is nothing wrong with trying to understand the text beyond what is readable.

Footnote 45 See, e.g., Facebook ID 100011390466802 (Alex Anderson); Facebook ID 100009626173204 (Andrea Hansen); Facebook ID 100009728618427 (Gary Williams); Facebook ID 100013640043337 (Lakisha Richardson).

In this footnote, the Special Counsel has linked the Facebook ID to the name using the ID and not just the number.

Footnote 46 The account claimed to be the "Unofficial Twitter of Tennessee Republicans" and made posts that appeared to be endorsements of the state political party. See, e.g., @TEN_GOP, 4/3/16 Tweet ("Tennessee GOP backs @rea!DonaldTrump period #makeAmericagreatagain #tngop #tennessee #gop").

This footnote is important for obvious reasons. In this case, the Russians actually adopted a false name BUT ALSO THE AUTHORITY of a state GOP identity. That is huge. In the state of Tennessee, the Russians found it necessary to force an authority to impose a value system on the electorate. That is Russia's first step to larger aspirations. They want to control not just a statewide political organization, but, also the entire country. This is not ego, this is a strategy. A covert strategy to displace the USA's democracy, hence the freedom of citizens. That is huge. That shows the true intent of the Russian attack on the USA's sovereign elections of 2016. Realize the Russians had no apprehension or cause for a pause in taking such authority away from Americans. The Tennessee GOP are real Americans. Their political identity was robbed from them so Putin could obtain a goal of control over these Americans.

This report is not a benign piece of work. It clearly documents the evidence in files to back up all the facts stated here. Russia under the Putin leadership wants to overthrow the USA Constitution. It is obvious. This is not just ONE ELECTION SO WHO CARES. This is a strategy implemented by a sovereign Russia to overthrow the USA Constitution.

The Russians are not afraid of their power and they like making fools of Americans.

Their intent is not wholesome. They would like to place their own people in power no different than witnessed in Ukraine. Their plan would be completed in the children's classroom.

Page 23

Harm of Ongoing Matter

Footnote 47

Harm of Ongoing Matter

Footnote 48

Harm of Ongoing Matter

By February 2016, internal IRA documents referred to support for the Trump Campaign and opposition to candidate Clinton. 49  HOM             directions to IRA operators. Harm of Ongoing Matter "Main idea: Use any opportunity to criticize Hillary [Clinton] and rest (except Sanders and Trump - we support them.)" 50

Why would Russia support Bernie Sanders? Socialism? No. He was the opposition to Hillary. Putin knows Hillary. He knows Bill and Barak. Throw "W" in there, too, along with McCain. He knows what he wants to continue his intrusion into the USA and he does not want Hillary. He even threatened the USA electorate with nuclear war if Hillary was elected president. Putin wanted this bad. He has wanted this for most of this KGB career right into his presidency.

See from my point of view there was a reason Paul Manafort was at the Trump Campaign. He accomplished Putin's goals in Ukraine. Why would he not be able to do the same in the USA?

Putin was investing heavily in the 2016 elections, why risk the campaign of Trump from going badly wrong?

Harm of Ongoing Matter

The focus on the U.S. presidential campaign continued throughout 2016. In  HOM 2016 internal HOM            reviewing the IRA-controlled Facebook group "Secured Borders," the author criticized the "lower number of posts dedicated to criticizing Hillary Clinton" and reminded the Facebook specialist " it is imperative to intensify criticizing Hillary Clinton."51

End of text

Footnote 47 Harm to Ongoing Matter 

Footnote 48 See, e.g., SM-2230634 serial 131 HOM

Footnote 49 The IRA posted content about the Clinton candidacy before Clinton officially announced her presidential campaign. IRA-controlled social media accounts criticized Clinton's record as Secretary of State and promoted various critiques of her candidacy. The IRA also used other techniques. Harm to Ongoing Matter   See SM-2230634, serial 70.

They started their campaign long before she did. They started in 2013. This is one of the reasons Trump and FOX need to stop using Hillary Clinton as their wiping boy. This is a tried and true strategy adopted by Putin and it is toxic to the democracy of the USA.

Footnote 50 Harm to Ongoing Matter 

Footnote 51 Harm to Ongoing Matter 

End of Page

Page 24

IRA employees also acknowledged that their work focused on influencing the U.S. presidential election. Harm to Ongoing Matter 
Harm to Ongoing Matter 

Footnote 53

I will return to reading later and I will start here on page 24.

3. U.S. Operations Through Facebook 

continued in later entry

New Zealand is conducting a national gun buy back program. I think it is a great idea.

Unfortunately, it would not work in the USA. The money obtained from the guns handed in can be used to purchase more of the same only newer. New Zealand banned military style weapons AND the add ons that change an average gun into a deadly weapon to enable mass murders.

These programs can work in the USA to reduce the number of deadly guns, but, there has to be legislation that provides for the safety of the citizen over the gun lobby. If that happens, these measures would work just as well in the USA. I am not sure it would cost anymore either. Let's see, New Zealand is a country of 5 million people and 1.5 million guns. Of those guns 1.5 million guns about 14,300 would be eligible for the buy back. There are many more guns than that in the USA and many more military style weapons.

New Zealand gun ownership is about 3 citizens to 1 gun, in the USA I think it is a 1 to 1 ratio.

September 22, 2018
By Alex Yablon

...The National Firearms Act of 1934 (click here) required owners of fully automatic guns to register the weapons with the federal government. Since 1986, Congress has forbidden gunmakers from producing fully automatic weapons for the civilian market, leaving machine gun aficionados to collect older models, and then register them. According to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, there are roughly 638,000 machine guns in circulation in the United States, a number that includes both assault rifles like the M16 and more novel products, like the Uzi submachine gun....

It is interesting. New Zealand is a far smaller country and has about 2 percent of the number of military style guns compared to the USA. It would be more expensive, about 50 times more expensive if the USA ran a SUCCESSFUL program to remove these deadly weapons from the streets. There is a real incentive to conduct such a program, it saves police lives. If laws were passed to eliminate these weapons the incentive to buy back could be done incrementally over a few years to absorb the cost.

It would mean a major commitment to bring the number of guns on the street down significantly. It would be a good commitment.

Graph (click here) 

June 19, 2019
By Charlotte Greenfield

Wellington - New Zealand’s government (click here) on Thursday launched a multimillion-dollar, six-month “buy-back” scheme to compensate owners of powerful but newly banned semi-automatic weapons prohibited in the wake of deadly attacks on two mosques in the Southern city of Christchurch.

Finance Minister Grant Robertson and Minister of Police Stuart Nash said in a joint emailed statement that NZ$208 million ($135.97 million) had been set aside to compensate owners of the banned semi-automatic firearms up to 95% of the original cost.

They would have until Dec. 20 to hand in their weapons.

“Police have detailed plans in place for the next step, which is the collection of firearms from the community. It will be a huge logistical exercise and is expected to get under way in mid-July,” Nash said.

Parliament passed the gun reform law - the first substantial changes to the country’s gun laws in decades - by a vote of 119 to 1 in April....

It has to stop somewhere.

I am sorry to hear this was a Democratic staffer, but, this is really terrible. I am so sorry these Senators were victims to this level of attempted coercion. It is notable the charge of obstruction of justice was actually upheld. It matters.

June 19, 2019
By Matt Naham

U.S. District Judge Thomas Hogan said that “We have … a society that has become very vicious,” adding that it was “very concerning to the court and unfortunate” that Jackson Cosko “played into that.”

The defendant has pleaded guilty (click here) to carrying out a months-long series of burglaries and sophisticated data theft offenses directed at the office of United States Senator Maggie Hassan; to a separate set of “doxxing” offenses through which he maliciously released personal information of Senators Lindsay Graham, Orrin Hatch, Mike Lee, Rand Paul, and Mitch McConnell; and to obstruction of justice, because he attempted to silence a witness by threatening to release the private health information of a Senator’s children, because he corrupted another person and persuaded her to attempt to “wipe down” the scene of his burglaries, and because he attempted to destroy evidence in his own apartment. The defendant ultimately pleaded guilty to five felony counts.

Again? Iran brags about these things. Last time they put the darn thing on public display.

People have to be careful with Iran. They are a real stickler about sovereign borders. That is how Americans end up in Iranian jails while hiking the trails. They put a foot in Iran and they are arrested.

I am fairly sure the last time the USA Air Force lost a drone to Iran, it was near the Afghanistan border. Oops, it went a little too far, just checking out the Taliban. Sure.

June 19, 2019

Tehran — Iran’s state-run IRNA news agency (click here) said Thursday that the country’s Revolutionary Guard has shot down a US drone. The US military declined to immediately comment.

IRNA said Thursday the drone was hit when it entered Iranian airspace near the Kouhmobarak district in southern Iran’s Hormozgan province....

The murder occurred in a Saudi Embassy in Turkey. That is fairly official.

June 19, 2019
By Jackie Northam

Editor's note: This story contains graphic details of the actions leading up to Jamal Khashoggi's death.

A special U.N. investigator (click here) says Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman should be investigated in the killing of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi because there is "credible evidence" that he and other senior officials in the kingdom were responsible.

Agnes Callamard, the special rapporteur for the U.N.'s Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, conducted a five-month investigation into Khashoggi's death last fall at the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul.

Her resulting report, released Wednesday, found that "Khashoggi has been the victim of a deliberate, premeditated execution, an extrajudicial killing for which the state of Saudi Arabia is responsible under international human rights law."

Callamard's report says the mission to "execute Khashoggi" required significant coordination, resources and finances. It adds that every expert consulted for the report found it "inconceivable that an operation of this scale could be implemented without the Crown Prince being aware, at a minimum, that some sort of mission of a criminal nature, directed at Mr. Khashoggi, was being launched."...

Something at the time of the murder is that Donald Trump, Jr. was promoting the idea that Jamal Khashoggi deserved to die because he was affiliated with jihadists. Why would a president's son do that? The UN investigator may want to ask him about that.

October 13, 2018
By Sophie Tatum and Nicole Gaouette

Donald Trump Jr. retweeted (click here) an unsubstantiated claim on Friday insinuating missing Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi is a terrorism sympathizer -- a move that comes as the administration of his father, President Donald Trump, faces pressure on how to respond to the journalist's disappearance....

That type of concern belongs in a police file and investigation, not death in a Saudi Arabian embassy. If find Donald Trump, Jr.'s behavior very strange. Why was he trying to justify the death?

President Erdogan is also stating the recent death of Mohammad Morsi (click here) was a murder and not a heart attack. I don't know how he knows that or why he believes that, but, there was a report about that as well.

Page 19 of Volume I, page 27 on the PDF

C. The IRA (Internet Research Agency) Targets U.S. Elections

1. The IRA Ramps Up U.S. Operations As Early As 2014 

The IRA's US operations sought to influence public opinion through online media and forums. By the spring of 2014, the IRA began to consolidate U.S. operations within a single general department, known internally as the "Translator" (written in Russian in report) department.'

What impresses me about the work of the Special Counsel in this section of the report is the detail of which the WORK CRAFT of the Russians became obvious. There are no minor details that were unimportant to the Special Counsel. It speaks to Robert Mueller's vast personal knowledge of these networks and how they work in the USA. He was the best choice for this job. Absolutely.

Americans are such suckers for money. Money even has power in the USA Supreme Court. That is scary to me.

The Russian operation was picking and choosing primary outcomes as well.

43. By 2016, Defendants and their co-conspirators used their fictitious online personas to interfere with the 2016 U.S. presidential election. They engaged in operations primarily intended to communicate derogatory information about Hillary Clinton, to denigrate other candidates such as Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio, and to support Bernie Sanders and then-candidate Donald Trump. 

Harm to Ongoing Matter

IRA subdivided the Translator Department into different responsibilities, ranging from operations on different social media platforms to analytics to graphics and IT. 

Ya know, if Facebook really wants to understand how to end the foreign invasion into elections they should ask Russia for its analysis of Facebook as a platform for covert ops.

To understand many of the footnotes in this report, the evidence to the report needs to be available. I believe some was turned over to the US House, but, the entirety of the evidence is still locked away in a place controlled by the DOJ. It will take a FOIA demand to get at that information some time in the future.

29 Investigative Technique See SM-2230634, serials 131 & 204.

It appears to me and I may have stated this before, the SM documents and their "series #" are internal documents in the evidence file. The initials S.M. can be found in other language of the FBI. Example below:

Special Agent S.M. (click here) worked on an organized crime squad in the New York Division and was a member of the SWAT team when the attacks occurred on the World Trade Center

That is what leads me to believe this is an internal language understood within the agency.

30 See SM-2230634, serial 156

31 Internet Research Agency Indictment (click here),

The indictment of the Russians is damning. They were causing a great deal of issues for Americans unwittingly going about their lives, but, it also clearly illustrates Russian contacts with the Trump Campaign.

6. Defendant ORGANIZATION had a strategic goal to sow discord in the U.S. political system, including the 2016 U.S. presidential election. Defendants posted derogatory information about a number of candidates, and by early to mid-2016, Defendants’ operations included supporting the presidential campaign of then-candidate Donald J. Trump (“Trump Campaign”) and disparaging Hillary Clinton. Defendants made various expenditures to carry out those activities, including buying political advertisements on social media in the names of U.S. persons and entities. Defendants also staged political rallies inside the United States, and while posing as U.S. grassroots entities and U.S. persons, and without revealing their Russian identities and ORGANIZATION affiliation, solicited and compensated real U.S. persons to promote or disparage candidates. Got that? Americans were having contact with Russian agents that paid them to disparage Hillary Clinton. None of the Americans involved with this solicitation by Russians knew they were a target of espionage. There were probably a good number of Americans solicited. And this is where the elections of the USA are strongly tainted by foreign influence. There is not one political campaign in the USA that has the capacity to influence elections within the media, social or otherwise, as a sovereign country such as Russia.It is why whoever vacated the indictment against these people is a traitor to the sovereign USA. There is no excuse for it and it is a hostile act against the people of the USa. Some Defendants, posing as U.S. persons and without revealing their Russian association, communicated with unwitting individuals associated with the Trump Campaign and with other political activists to seek to coordinate political activities.

r 12 b; see also 5/26/16 Facebook Messages, ID 1479936895656747 (United Muslims of America) &

These are all internal reference numbers in the evidence file. Of course, Facebook has this information as well, but, a FOIA would have to go to Facebook to find out exactly the information at this ID number.

Further, from the indictment:

Beginning in or around June 2014, the ORGANIZATION obscured its conduct by operating through a number of Russian entities, including 
Internet Research LLC, 
MediaSintez LLC, 
GlavSet LLC, 
MixInfo LLC, 
Azimut LLC, and 
NovInfo LLC

These are six LLCs which were operating under the auspices of Russia. In the way they use the infrastructure of the USA, it is all too easy to realize Russia uses terrorist thinking to invade the USA and achieve their own goal. Anyone seeking to dismiss the severity of this attack is an enemy of the people of the USA.

(10) c. The ORGANIZATION sought, in part, to conduct what it called “information warfare against the United States of America” through fictitious U.S. personas on social media platforms and other Internet-based media

It is a war. A significant amount of the war is conducted in cyberspace. Individuals that seek to undermine the rule of law in conducting the prosecution of these Russias is a treasonist.

By July of 2016, there were 80 Russian organization employees ASSIGNED to these efforts to spread distrust of the candidates and the political system itself. One of the reasons people state they voted for Trump and may continue to vote for Trump is because they feel the system is untrustworthy. They aren't listening to valid concerns of the USA, they are listening to Russian propaganda.

The USA is a magnificent democracy that was established out of a war to end the domination of a foreign power. It is a crime to realize Americans allow a foreign power to influence the way they see their democracy.

CONCORD MANAGEMENT AND CONSULTING LLC (Конкорд Менеджмент и Консалтинг) and CONCORD CATERING

These are more Russian companies DESIGNED to carry out important aspects of the operation. These companies are held separate from the others in the indictment because they are the funding for the operations in the USA.

...monthly budget for Project Lakhta submitted to CONCORD exceeded 73 million Russian rubles (over 1,250,000 U.S. dollars), including approximately one million rubles in bonus payments....

..distributed monies to the ORGANIZATION through approximately fourteen bank accounts...

Account Names:

Glavnaya Liniya LLC, 
Merkuriy LLC, 
Obshchepit LLC, 
Potentsial LLC, 
RSP LLC, 
ASP LLC, 
MTTs LLC, 
Kompleksservis LLC, 
SPb Kulinariya LLC, 
Almira LLC, 
Pishchevik LLC, 
Galant LLC, 
Rayteks LLC, and 
Standart LLC.

These are shell accounts. The 80 Russian agents were solely supported by these operations.

12. Defendant YEVGENIY VIKTOROVICH PRIGOZHIN (The Chef) (Пригожин Евгений Викторович) is a Russian national who controlled CONCORD.

a. PRIGOZHIN approved and supported the ORGANIZATION’s operations, and Defendants and their co-conspirators were aware of PRIGOZHIN’s role.

Hubris. The Russians were laughing at the ease at which they were able to enlist Americans into their plots.

b. For example, on or about May 29, 2016, Defendants and their co-conspirators, through an ORGANIZATION-controlled social media account, arranged for a real U.S. person to stand in front of the White House in the District of Columbia under false pretenses to hold a sign that read “Happy 55th Birthday Dear Boss.” Defendants and their co-conspirators informed the real U.S. person that the sign was for someone who “is a leader here and our boss . . . our funder.” PRIGOZHIN’s Russian passport identifies his date of birth as June 1, 1961.

You have to realize Russians are going to set up money laundering enterprise anywhere they can. The exchange rate between the Russian currency and that of the rest of the world is very poor. So, any business that can be established regardless of the type of business, even a sports team, will be an exercise in money laundering to benefit Russia.

Russians carry out businesses that are LLCs, which seems to be the preference of Russian operations, that will bring USA dollars to the operation rather than Russian Rubles. All the better, especially since oligarchs were very happy to carry out long term business interests for Russia. They obviously didn't expect to be caught or if caught they believed they would have influence that allowed them a longer stay at their business practice. I guess they didn't count on Robert S. Mueller.

The indictment names all the Russians and their role in carrying the operations.

18. Defendant MARIA ANATOLYEVNA BOVDA (Бовда Мария Анатольевна) A/K/A MARIA ANATOLYEVNA BELYAEVA (“M. BOVDA”) worked for the ORGANIZATION from at least in or around November 2013 to at least in or around October 2014. M. BOVDA served as the head of the translator project, among other positions.

Ms. Bovda began her work in 2013 before the launch of the organization in 2014. Makes sense. The organization was worthless if they weren't able to understand the people they sought to influence. Evidently, Ms. Bovda's work was attracting help. I can't help but believe Aslanov had a special relationship with Putin. KGB maybe.

20. Defendant DZHEYKHUN NASIMI OGLY ASLANOV (Асланов Джейхун Насими Оглы) A/K/A JAYHOON ASLANOV A/K/A JAY ASLANOV joined the ORGANIZATION by at least in or around September 2014. ASLANOV served as head of the translator project and oversaw many of the operations targeting the 2016 U.S. presidential election. ASLANOV was also listed as the general director of Azimut LLC, an entity used to move funds from CONCORD to the ORGANIZATION.

These guys weren't technicians taking orders. They were agents with the capacity to cripple social media to serve it's own purpose. They didn't specialize in code, so much as human behavior. They had computer skills, but, that wasn't their first expertise.

21. Defendant VADIM VLADIMIROVICH PODKOPAEV (Подкопаев Вадим Владимирович) joined the ORGANIZATION by at least in or around June 2014. PODKOPAEV served as an analyst on the translator project and was responsible for conducting U.S.-focused research and drafting social media content for the ORGANIZATION.

There are the people that directed the activity of others. Vacating this indictment releases them to do more of the same.

23. Defendant IRINA VIKTOROVNA KAVERZINA (Каверзина Ирина Викторовна) joined the ORGANIZATION by at least in or around October 2014. KAVERZINA served on the translator project and operated multiple U.S. personas that she used to post, monitor, and update social media content for the ORGANIZATION.

Vladimir did what some Americans do, several identities. Funny, though, many times such multiple identities aren't kept straight by their users. Evidently, Vladimir didn't have that problem. No abandoned identities to shed when lovers are shed.

24. Defendant VLADIMIR VENKOV (Венков Владимир) joined the ORGANIZATION by at least in or around March 2015. VENKOV served on the translator project and operated multiple U.S. personas, which he used to post, monitor, and update social media content for the ORGANIZATION.

They were in the USA for personal reasons. Sure.

The Russian lead into their assault began in 2013 and seems to have peaked in preparation in 2014. After establishing their METHODS they had more than two years to attack Americans and effect their ideas.

30.
c. Only KRYLOVA and BOGACHEVA received visas, and from approximately June 4, 2014 through June 26, 2014, KRYLOVA and BOGACHEVA traveled in and around the United States, including stops in Nevada, California, New Mexico, Colorado, Illinois, Michigan, Louisiana, Texas, and New York to gather intelligence. After the trip, KRYLOVA and BURCHIK exchanged an intelligence report regarding the trip.

d. Another co-conspirator who worked for the ORGANIZATION traveled to Atlanta, Georgia from approximately November 26, 2014 through November 30, 2014. Following the trip, the co-conspirator provided POLOZOV a summary of his trip’s itinerary and expenses.

Purple states:

...posing online as U.S. persons, communicated with a real U.S. person affiliated with a Texas-based grassroots organization. During the exchange, Defendants and their co-conspirators learned from the real U.S. person that they should focus their activities on “purple states like Colorado, Virginia & Florida.”...

...Specialists were directed to create “political intensity through supporting radical groups, users dissatisfied with [the] social and economic situation and oppositional social movements.”...

...a range of issues, including: 
-immigration (with group names including “Secured Borders”); 
-the Black Lives Matter movement (with group names including “Blacktivist”);
-religion (with group names including “United Muslims of America” and “Army of Jesus”); and 
-certain geographic regions within the United States (with group names including “South United” and “Heart of Texas”). By 2016, the size of many ORGANIZATION-controlled groups had grown to hundreds of thousands of online followers....

...spending thousands of U.S. dollars every month (online ads)...

The organization became so emboldened by their success preying on unwitting Americans they decided their influence was best suited by creating their own accounts.

...controlled the Twitter account “Tennessee GOP,” which used the handle @TEN_GOP. The @TEN_GOP account falsely claimed to be controlled by a U.S. state political party. Over time, the @TEN_GOP account attracted more than 100,000 online followers...conspirators tracked the performance of content they posted over social media...

They wanted their own statistics to their success to tell The Chef all about it. He, in turn, would talk to Putin and Putin, in turn, would make social appearances on western media to deny any such activity.

Putin made his appearances in media after the DISCOVERY of the hacked emails.

Vlad. It was all unilateral, you Bozo. This is what Americans call "A no brainer."

The Chef was feeling no pain and went for the gold.

39. To hide their Russian identities and ORGANIZATION affiliation, Defendants and their coconspirators—particularly POLOZOV and the ORGANIZATION’s IT department—purchased space on computer servers located inside the United States in order to set up virtual private networks (“VPNs”).

It was all too easy.

...controlled hundreds of web-based email accounts hosted by U.S. email providers under false names so as to appear to be U.S. persons and groups.

Identity theft besides:

41. In or around 2016, Defendants and their co-conspirators also used, possessed, and transferred, without lawful authority, the social security numbers and dates of birth of real U.S. persons without those persons’ knowledge or consent....

After the Chef convinced Putin he was really on to something they wanted more. Identity theft is not easy to accomplish. A sovereign authority could carry this out with ease if it invested enough understanding to online banks of information.

...Using these means of identification, Defendants and their co-conspirators opened accounts at PayPal, a digital payment service provider; created false means of identification, including fake driver’s licenses; and posted on ORGANIZATION-controlled social media accounts using the identities of these U.S. victims. Defendants and their co-conspirators also obtained, and attempted to obtain, false identification documents to use as proof of identity in connection with maintaining accounts and purchasing advertisements on social media sites. 

They wanted US dollars in the worst way. 

For a country, like Russia, that covets USA dollars and Euros as if they are their own, they don't take the interest in their own country and countrymen and women to grow an economy that is healthy, vibrant and has EARNED the respect of the USA dollar. But, they carry out espionage to take over the USA and weaken the people.

Russia, under Putin, was supposed to grow and become highly respected as the Russian presidents before him expected. Instead, Putin is driving Russia into a rouge status and will lose any footing it ever gained.

44. Certain ORGANIZATION-produced materials about the 2016 U.S. presidential election used election-related hashtags, including: “#Trump2016,” 
“#TrumpTrain,” 
“#MAGA,” 
“#IWontProtectHillary,” and 
“#Hillary4Prison.”

 Defendants and their co-conspirators also established additional online social media accounts dedicated to the 2016 U.S. presidential election, including the Twitter account “March for Trump” and Facebook accounts “Clinton FRAUDation” and “Trumpsters United.”

So what, they made materials and used #s, right? Americans do that, too. Often they are unsuccessful.

Get this.

45. Defendants and their co-conspirators also used false U.S. personas to communicate with unwitting members, volunteers, and supporters of the Trump Campaign involved in local community outreach, as well as grassroots groups that supported then-candidate Trump. Those individuals and entities at times distributed the ORGANIZATION’s materials through their own accounts via retweets, reposts, and similar means. Defendants and their co-conspirators then monitored the propagation of content through such participants.

Low voter turnout is not allowed. Voting is being an American.

46. In or around the latter half of 2016, Defendants and their co-conspirators, through their ORGANIZATION-controlled personas, began to encourage U.S. minority groups not to vote in the 2016 U.S. presidential election or to vote for a third-party U.S. presidential candidate.

"Woke Blacks" vote for Killary.  Or if facing the best of "two evils" why vote at all.

"Blacktivists" “Choose peace and vote for Jill Stein. Trust me, it’s not a wasted vote.”

"United Muslims of America" - “American Muslims [are] boycotting elections today, most of the American Muslim voters refuse to vote for Hillary Clinton because she wants to continue the war on Muslims in the middle east and voted yes for invading Iraq.” 

"Stop AI." “Hillary Clinton has already committed voter fraud during the Democrat Iowa Caucus"

Twitter @TEN_GOP - voter fraud were being investigated in North Carolina and on the same account, “#VoterFraud by counting tens of thousands of ineligible mail in Hillary votes being reported in Broward County, Florida.”

They never favored Hillary Clinton as some people claim. They would post what appeared like favorable postings, but, then turn the tables on those that read it.

53. In or around late June 2016, Defendants and their co-conspirators used the Facebook group “United Muslims of America” to promote a rally called “Support Hillary. Save American Muslims” held on July 9, 2016 in the District of Columbia. Defendants and their co-conspirators recruited a real U.S. person to hold a sign depicting Clinton and a quote attributed to her stating “I think Sharia Law will be a powerful new direction of freedom.” Within three weeks, on or about July 26, 2016, Defendants and their co-conspirators posted on the same Facebook page that Muslim voters were “between Hillary Clinton and a hard place.”

Russians like racism, evidently. The rallies were taking place toward the end of the 2016 election season to garner more participants and march them right into the voting booths. I remember the lines that existed in Florida in 2016.

...group “Being Patriotic,” the Twitter account @March_for_Trump, and other ORGANIZATION accounts to organize two political rallies in New York. The first rally was called “March for Trump” and held on June 25, 2016. The second rally was called “Down with Hillary” and held on July 23, 2016.

55. In or around late July 2016, Defendants and their co-conspirators used the Facebook group “Being Patriotic,” the Twitter account @March_for_Trump, and other false U.S. personas to organize a series of coordinated rallies in Florida. The rallies were collectively referred to as “Florida Goes Trump” and held on August 20, 2016.

By 2018, the American voter was becoming savvy to the antics of Russia. From the Tampa Bay Times:

May 21, 2018
By Steve Bousquet

The people (click here) who count votes in Florida realize the eyes of the nation will be on them again as millions of people make their choices in the 2018 election.

Supervisors of elections from the state's 67 counties will meet this week at a Fort Lauderdale oceanfront resort hotel for three days of brainstorming. They're preparing for a trouble-free midterm election in the nation's premier battleground state, with its long history of close races and nail-biting election nights.

Here are five specific issues they will deal with at their annual summer conference....

Putin wanted control of the final outcome. He played both sides against the middle. He was going to ensure Trump supporters remained so and opposition voters were controlled and negated.

57. After the election of Donald Trump in or around November 2016, Defendants and their coconspirators used false U.S. personas to organize and coordinate U.S. political rallies in support of then president-elect Trump, while simultaneously using other false U.S. personas to organize and coordinate U.S. political rallies protesting the results of the 2016 U.S. presidential election

58. In order to avoid detection and impede investigation by U.S. authorities of Defendants’ operations, Defendants and their co-conspirators deleted and destroyed data, including emails, social media accounts, and other evidence of their activities.

There is a summary in the indictment called "Overt Acts." This one was especially sad.

70. On or about August 2, 2016, and August 3, 2016, Defendants and their co-conspirators, through the use of a stolen identity of a real U.S. person, T.W., sent emails to certain grassroots groups located in Florida that stated in part:

My name is [T.W.] and I represent a conservative patriot community named as “Being Patriotic.” . . . So we’re gonna organize a flash mob across Florida to support Mr. Trump. We clearly understand that the elections winner will be predestined by purple states. And we must win Florida. . . . We got a lot of volunteers in ~25 locations and it’s just the beginning. We’re currently choosing venues for each location and recruiting more activists. This is why we ask you to spread this info and participate in the flash mob.

Wouldn't that be interesting. Putin having the ability to control mobs of Americans programmed like dummies for his own purpose.

COUNT TWO 

(Conspiracy to Commit Wire Fraud and Bank Fraud) 

86. Paragraphs 1 through 7, 9 through 27, and 29 through 85 of this Indictment are re-alleged and incorporated by reference as if fully set forth herein....

There is no way any charge against the Russians should be vacated. it isn't bad enough that Americans were made fools of, this is bank fraud. Even if the antics of the Russian election organization is laughable, this isn't.

On page 32 of the indictment, there are initials of real Americans used for the purpose of bank fraud. Plus, the identity theft that allowed Russians to deceive PayPal. What did they care? They were going back to Russia and hide behind Russian borders to prevent prosecution.

92. On or about the dates identified below, Defendants and their co-conspirators obtained and used the following fraudulent bank account numbers for the purpose of evading PayPal’s security measures:...

COUNTS THREE THROUGH EIGHT

(Aggravated Identity Theft) 

96. Paragraphs 1 through 7, 9 through 27, and 29 through 85, and 89 through 95 of this Indictment are re-alleged and incorporated by reference as if fully set forth herein....

The indictment is 37 pages long and full of all the proper legalese necessary to indict and begin prosecution and signed by Robert S. Mueller.

At least the indictment wasn't redacted. I think the indictment is important. It clearly illustrated a foreign power with designs on the USA and it's attempt to control the country through elections.

THAT SHOULD BE IMPORTANT TO EVERY AMERICAN.

32 Harm to Ongoing Matter  see also SM-2230634, serial 189.


The Special Council Report on page 20 begins with:

Harm to Ongoing Matter 

I will start there later.

continued in following entry