Political Potpourri

Picture if you will a pot simmering on a cast iron stove, filled with various fragrant blossoms each of which is a political occurrence. They’re all different, but they all smell…nice? That’s what I’ve made for breakfast, ingredients via mainstream news (aka fake news), and predictions on Twitter by those who seem to be in the know. This fog of pollen in the Washington air seems to have blown in as a result of Donald Trump’s unpopular decision to fire FBI director James Comey. He kicked the beehive with that clumsy move.
Today’s blooms:

• A frenzy of activity in Virginia: FBI agents obtaining dozens of warrants, multiple US Marshals and their vans frantically doing official looking things. (I’m not a reporter.)
• FBI and NYPD Joint Organized Crime Task Force arrested ten men in New York City, charging each with running a racketeering conspiracy as part of an organized crime effort. These men and their crime family have alleged ties to the Russian mafia and to…Donald Trump.
• Word is that proof is coming regarding Detroit Michigan’s voting machines. The allegation is that they had been tampered with during the presidential election, affecting tens of thousands of votes in that heavily Democratic city, more than enough to votes alter the results for the state.
• A top cleric of the Russian Orthodox Church and ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin met privately with Vice President Mike Pence Thursday morning and urged the U.S. to cooperate with Russia to combat terrorism in the Middle East. (Yea, I’m sure that’s what they discussed.)
• The FBI Raided the Office of a Republican Consulting Firm, or “GOP fundraising firm” in Maryland. 

• Mitch McConnell’s wife may have ties to Russia, which would explain his refusal to authorize an independent counsel to investigate Trump/Russia.
• A top politician’s relative was caught with 40 lbs of cocaine, but no charges were filed.

• Trump was interviewed on NBC by Lester holt and offered up a plethora of impeachable sound bites. Trump said: “When I decided to [fire Comey], I said to myself, you know, this Russia thing with Trump and Russia is a made up story.” Hmm— obstruction of justice, and speaking of himself in third person again—both wrong. Trump also said —Comey told him 3X he wasn’t under investigation. Hmm… an attempt at intimidation? 
• Sources close to Comey revealed— seven days after Trump’s inauguration, Comey was summoned to the White House for a private dinner with Trump and was repeatedly asked to pledge his loyalty to him. Comey declined, but offered honesty instead. (Seriously, what would Trump do with honesty?) They also discussed crowd size…really. (I’m not sure if they had chocolate cake, but if they had it would not have been as beautiful as the cake Trump would have in coming weeks with China’s leader.)

• Acting FBI Director Andrew McCabe (kind of very handsome), contradicted every claim Trump has made in attempts to justify the termination of James Comey: In response to claims that Comey was disliked by FBI members, and that “moral was low”, McCabe testified before a Senate committee Thursday: “I can tell you also that Director Comey enjoyed broad support within the FBI and still does to this day.” In response to Trump’s claim that the Russia investigation was a low priority for the FBI, McCabe said the investigation was “highly significant.”
• Page, Manafort and Epshteyn, possibly also with Trump, are on tape discussing a plan for Page to carry a recording of Donald Trump to Moscow, offering his favors in exchange for Russia’s help hacking the election. That tape of Trump was played by Page to Russian intelligence, possibly including Mr. Diveykin, the Russian official in charge of hacking the election; and multiple foreign intelligence services, (among them the UK, Germany and Ukraine), have a copy of this tape of; and finally, in October, the FBI was able to listen to that tape. (Yes, that is before the election.)

• Season Spicer is hiding in the hedgerows. 
• Donald Trump is imagining, or making up stories in order to divert attention—again. This time American fighter jets are secretly flying over Japan.

• Trump threatens a witness (Comey) on Twitter.
• Russian fighter jets are still playing chicken with U.S. fighter jets, “coming within 20 feet” of each other.
• And last but not least, according to Louise Mensch on Twitter, something big is about to happen with little Jeffrey Sessions. 

Speculation has it that dozens of arrests are being made among the worker ants in hopes that one or two will offer up information confirming collusion and racketeering on the part of the giant orange ant. 

While I am thankful to have a vast selection of political prompts of which to scribe, I wouldn’t mind a day with no political news…you know, I could talk about me again. How much longer can this potpourri simmer before it permanently damages the pot?
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<a href=”https://dailypost.wordpress.com/prompts/maze/”>Maze</a&gt;