NY Times: Trump campaign aides had repeated contacts with Russian intelligence

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How do they know this?

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So the RW criticisms of Obama all these years gave been projections

-I never criticized Obama for criticizing Mitt Romney for being a moron regarding Russia.

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Again, how do they know this?

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To any and all ignoramuses: the danger is not that the President is too pro-Russia. It is the risk that he is too anti-Russia.

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Again, how do they know this?

This is what we pay them to do?

-Unnamed officials are not paid to leak to the press. Fire 'em.

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Mr. Morden is calling for a total and complete shutdown of Russian government phone calls to the White House until our country’s representatives can figure out what is going on.

-I object to the motion.

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Again, how do they know this?

FBI surveillance

-Did they have a warrant? I object to warrantless wiretaps.

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Donald Trump will be President on January 19, 2021 barring his imminent death from fast food consumption. I've never seen people who are so out of touch with reality.

Well I agree, but would you expect any better from this forum? Trump could be ahead in all 50 states in October 2020 and people here would still predict a Democratic wave. It's just strange that they never really seem to learn from their mistakes in the past (2014, 2016). Even DailyKos isn't as overconfident.

Trump is more unpopular than probably any President in history for being 1 month into his term.  This isn't normal.  It's been a different train wreck every day.

That's what happens when you run the two most unpopular people in the modern history of polling against each other.

Do you believe Hillary's private e-mail server scandal is far worse (and more worthy of impeachment, if she had won the electoral college) than anything Trump has done thus far? 

-Of course.

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Well, on the positive side, at least we now know exactly how much party matters over country to Republicans. We are also measuring in real time just how much his supporters will ignore and rationalize in defense of their chosen one, raising the question of why so many Americans lack any curiosity into the truth, opting instead to feed their own endless bias.

But, with any hope, we can build up more and more support for taking back a chamber of Congress in 2018 and then using Congressional investigatory powers to unravel the rest of the Trump administration's mysteries. Until then, shocking as all of this is (really), I don't expect it to be anything more than headlines while Republicans have unified control of the federal government. So long as Trump delivers on conservative policy wishes, the GOP will bend to its donors and its need for self-preservation. Party over country, after all.

-Does it really help the country to pile on a guy who resigned for what can barely be seen as a good reason?

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And Republicans thought Benghazi was bigger than watergate.

-Did somebody die in Watergate?

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This may be a lot of hysteria. Wait for more information. Every administration has baggage. We haven't had a baggage free administration in decades.

Ummmm Obama had baggage?

http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/article/2009/jan/16/your-guide-geithner-tax-controversy/

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Any Republican who still supports Trump and wishes him to remain president is doing so only for partisan reasons.

To continue to support a man with reported Russian collaboration during the election is nothing short of anti-Americanism. You are unpatriotic if you like Trump. There is absolutely nothing about him that is in line with the things we pride ourselves on as a nation.

-You are unpatriotic if you desire senseless Russian-American confrontation.

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Ryan now signaling the House is possibly behind codifying sanctions on Russia. He personally backs it and I think so does McConnell, which implies the GOP conferences in both chambers may have significant support behind the idea.

Good, they should do it, and override Trump's veto. They need to salvage the Republican Party's honor from this shameful episode.

Excellent news

-Mexico is far more deserving of sanctions than Russia.

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Any Republican who still supports Trump and wishes him to remain president is doing so only for partisan reasons.

To continue to support a man with reported Russian collaboration during the election is nothing short of anti-Americanism. You are unpatriotic if you like Trump. There is absolutely nothing about him that is in line with the things we pride ourselves on as a nation.

-You are unpatriotic if you desire senseless Russian-American confrontation.

This binary is basically a Kremlin talking point, BTW. I don't think you're a Putinbot (English too good) but you're regurgitating Kremlin propaganda

That's modern Republicans for you. Almost all of them don't care that everything we stand for is at stake with Trump. They're perfectly willing to let the country go, all in the name of party loyalty. Before 2016, I had never voted for a Democrat for president. But when Trump is a leading candidate, any sensible person who does not want to see what America would be like under Nazi rule would not have been able to support him.

Even Reagan would've despised what his party has sunk to with the likes of Putin's buddy in charge.

-Reagan supported the frigging Mujahadeen.

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Any Republican who still supports Trump and wishes him to remain president is doing so only for partisan reasons.

To continue to support a man with reported Russian collaboration during the election is nothing short of anti-Americanism. You are unpatriotic if you like Trump. There is absolutely nothing about him that is in line with the things we pride ourselves on as a nation.

-You are unpatriotic if you desire senseless Russian-American confrontation.

This binary is basically a Kremlin talking point, BTW. I don't think you're a Putinbot (English too good) but you're regurgitating Kremlin propaganda

-The Kremlin is, more often than not, right. Certainly more right than the knee-jerk partisan hacks in the MSM, who desire nothing more than to transform the U.S. into Mexico with missiles.

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Any Republican who still supports Trump and wishes him to remain president is doing so only for partisan reasons.

To continue to support a man with reported Russian collaboration during the election is nothing short of anti-Americanism. You are unpatriotic if you like Trump. There is absolutely nothing about him that is in line with the things we pride ourselves on as a nation.

-You are unpatriotic if you desire senseless Russian-American confrontation.

This binary is basically a Kremlin talking point, BTW. I don't think you're a Putinbot (English too good) but you're regurgitating Kremlin propaganda

That's modern Republicans for you. Almost all of them don't care that everything we stand for is at stake with Trump. They're perfectly willing to let the country go, all in the name of party loyalty. Before 2016, I had never voted for a Democrat for president. But when Trump is a leading candidate, any sensible person who does not want to see what America would be like under Nazi rule would not have been able to support him.

Even Reagan would've despised what his party has sunk to with the likes of Putin's buddy in charge.

-GWB was far, far closer to Hitler than DJT as President. I find #NeverTrumper Bushies to be generally HPs.

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The last four posts aren't even worthy of a response, other than to say I'm incredibly sad at the state of our country and its voters.

-Same. I'm sad that more people voted for HRC than for Trump.

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The last four posts aren't even worthy of a response, other than to say I'm incredibly sad at the state of our country and its voters.

-Same. I'm sad that more people voted for HRC than for Trump.

Hypothetical: Hillary Clinton was elected president. Less than a month into her administration it is revealed that her campaign had been in constant contact with Russian intelligence officials during the course of the campaign. This, on top of prior revelations that the Russian government hacked the RNC and leaked damaging information about Trump.

And also the FBI broke policy one week before the election with a very vague yet unsettling announcement that they were investigating Trump.

What is your reaction at this point in Clinton's presidency?

-Horrified at their control of the Deep State, but I would be a bit reassured if it was Russian intelligence officials, rather than Ukrainian (only a bit, though, as HRC still made far too many anti-Russian statements during Her campaign). I wouldn't have a problem with the leaks themselves, only the motive and their selectivity. I'd call for HRC's emails to be hacked, just like I call for the RNC emails to be released if they were hacked. And I certainly wouldn't blame Trump's defeat on leaks; he should have been able to explain them clearly and easily, though I would be very disenchanted with the process of American democracy, as it just meant the Deep State would always win 100% of the time, no matter what the situation was. My biggest worry would be the Supreme Court.

Now, if it was Rubio, on the other hand, I'd be fine with it, and look at it in a spirit of entertainment. I might even support HRC, to spite him.

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The last four posts aren't even worthy of a response, other than to say I'm incredibly sad at the state of our country and its voters.

-Same. I'm sad that more people voted for HRC than for Trump.

Hypothetical: Hillary Clinton was elected president. Less than a month into her administration it is revealed that her campaign had been in constant contact with Russian intelligence officials during the course of the campaign. This, on top of prior revelations that the Russian government hacked the RNC and leaked damaging information about Trump.

And also the FBI broke policy one week before the election with a very vague yet unsettling announcement that they were investigating Trump.

What is your reaction at this point in Clinton's presidency?

They know exactly how they would respond. But they would never admit it.

-Neither is true. I was disgusted by Romney and supported Obama over him; I'm not some kind of blind partisan. The key matter in 2016 that made it different from 2012 was Scalia's death.

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I was disgusted by Romney and supported Obama over him; I'm not some kind of blind partisan. The key matter in 2016 that made it different from 2012 was Scalia's death.

That's easy for you to say now, since you've only been on the forum a little over a month.  But frankly, given what you have posted in your short time here, I don't believe you.

-I'm pretty sure I wrote a Disqus comment in 2012 2013 as evidence. But, as Disqus has no search function, what's the point of me going back to try to find it?

Edit: found it!

http://www.patheos.com/blogs/slacktivist/2013/04/12/its-easy-if-you-try/#comment-862488236

You will not find a word I wrote in either 2011 or 2012 in support of Willard Mitt Romney.

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Eharding,

I'm just curious. What, if anything, would cause you to stop supporting Trump?

If the now known repeated communication with Russia during the campaign doesn't bother you, what will? What if it came out that his team was directly involved in the Russian hacks, which we also know occurred? Would you not consider it treasonous?
And what do you suppose his campaigns frequent contact with Russia during the course of the election was about, if not something to do with hacking our system? They weren't just exchanging recipes. What else would it be? Please humor me.

Will he have to be accused of rape and sexual misconduct before your support wavers?
Against an underage child?
Those accusations exist.

Would appointing under qualified cabinet officials do anything for you?
.Betsy DeVos.

Or him using his position to further his own, and his children's, brands? Because that is happening.

There has to be something that would even make you vote against him in the next election. I refuse to believe an educated voter in this country would have no moral reservations considering any of the above.

-As I've told you, my worries aren't that Trump might be too pro-Russian (lol), but anti-Russian. Sure, lots of things could cause me to stop supporting Trump. Him transforming into John McCain is one. Opening up the borders is another (but I repeat myself). Him appointing liberal justices to the Supreme Court would cause massive disillusionment if it happens.

How would direct involvement in hacks be "treasonous"? It would be illegal, and I then think the Trump administration should face the same penalty as any other hacker. But that's obviously not going to happen, since the Trump administration had no direct involvement in the hacks.