December 4, 2017 6:47 AM
Monday Morning Reads — December 4
Happy Monday, everybody! How in the world is it already December?
News by the Numbers
- $69 billion – CVS agreed to buy Aetna for a hefty price in a move that will alter healthcare and has the potential to lower healthcare costs. Imagine the 9,700 CVS stores evolving into local clinics.
- 70 percent – Of counties in the United States paper ballots and (surprise!) they have their results quicker than we do in Georgia.
- 2 Big Macs – Apparently Trump’s McDonald’s order is two Big Macs, two Fillet-O-Fish, and a chocolate malted. Corey Lewandowski’s book on the Trump Campaign is available tomorrow.
- 88.8 million iPhones – Apple is breaking its record in the number of iPhones shipped this quarter. It’s no secret the iPhone X is a massive success.
- 1 day – Tomorrow is Election Day in Atlanta and the race for mayor is getting uglier and uglier. Last night’s debate was…rough.
- 8 recipes – Use your sheet pan more often. Just do it.
- 8 percent – The super moon is super dumb. It got closer and appeared 8% larger than normal. This is nothing new and will happen again. People need to chill.
About Author
Will Kremer
Will is an active member of the Georgia Republican grassroots. He previously served as Chairman of the Georgia Association of College Republicans, 2nd Vice Chairman of the 7th District Republican Party, and Treasurer of the Forsyth County Republican Party. Promise Land = Forsyth County.
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Today brings closing arguments in the Nydia Tisdale trial in Dawson County. I’m not sure even the Tom Robinson jury could vote to convict in this one.
What was Dawson County thinking when they decided to prosecute Ms. Tisdale?? I hope the jury sends a strong message with a swift verdict of Not Guilty, and a demand that the prosecutors apologize for bringing this case forward.
What the hell is a chocolate malted? Is that even on the Micky D’s menu? I don’t see any “malt” listed on the milkshake ingredients.
I think McD’s replaced malt with sugar.
A little levity today: You remember how Clinton was a junk food guy, too. Phil Hartman used to do a great SNL of Bubba in Micky D’s, too.
https://chamblee54.wordpress.com/2017/12/03/killed-by-police-december-3/
22 people were killed by police in the United States last week.
Good Guy with a Gun shoots maggot…
http://koin.com/2017/10/18/vancouver-homeowner-shoots-intruder/
Only a very few references in Lewandowski’s book to Flynn as if the guy that had made over 30 campaign introductions and had been with the campaign very early on was a fringe member. I’m guessing the book is primarily fluff.
“General Flynn is a wonderful man. I think he’s been treated very, very unfairly by the media — as I call it, the fake media, in many cases. And I think it’s really a sad thing that he was treated so badly.” Trump defending Flynn at a news conference the day after his departure.
“I had to fire General Flynn because he lied to the Vice President and the FBI. He has pled guilty to those lies. It is a shame because his actions during the transition were lawful. There was nothing to hide!” Trump tweet 12:14 PM – Dec 2, 2017
Trump tweets he already knew Flynn had lied to the FBI when he fired Flynn. The day after the first quote above Trump directed everyone leave his office so that he could privately ask Comey to lay off investigating Flynn, and fired Comey when he didn’t. A wee bit more corroboration and a couple more circumstances like these would make a good obstruction case.
Trump has told so many lies he can’t remember them, and just can’t help himself.
And this: Donald Trump should “be careful” about tweeting during an ongoing criminal investigation. – Lindsey Graham on Face the Nation.
Whoa, the big gun. Trump is probably shaking in his boots, what with all that Graham has done to stand up to Trump to date and everything.
Will, did you just discover cooking with sheet pans? Seriously, this has been a thing for a LONG time. I started cooking squash halves with butter and brown sugar surrounded by chicken, garlic cloves and lemon juice on one sheet pan when I was 11 and got home from school .
I have lots of recipes and things I tried if you want more.
Send me all the recipes, Ellynn. I love to cook.
That link was more or less aimed at people who eat out all. the. time.
I have made this with cod and sea bass on a half sheet pan and a 13 x 9
http://ahealthylifeforme.com/oven-roasted-sea-bass/
Super moons give us super photos….
https://www.axios.com/axios-am-2514711277.html?rebelltitem=4&utm_medium=linkshare&utm_campaign=organic#rebelltitem4
Since the tax bill “accidentally” removed the tax credit for companies to do R & D, what will these companies do IF they move money back to the US? We all know very little is to their work forces, since raising worker pay forces companies to also raise what they pay in employer matches to the government. They are not going to hire more then needed since that costs companies in training, benefits, etc…. Of course they can do what they did last time the country did tax reform in the late 80’s and buy smaller competitors and then liquidate the assets they don’t want or need. (this is what started the decline of Midwest manufacturing), or they can buy back their own stock, Maybe hand out dividends to stock holders?
So many options…
https://www.axios.com/overseas-cash-2513641878.html
Increase dividends, executive compensation, share buybacks. You know, the job creator stuff that’s done when there’s already a huge pile of cash on hand and interest rates are very low.
Atlantans, remember that Felicia Moore–and her steadfast, long-tenured commitment to open, ethical and approachable city government–is head and shoulders above the other three current councilmembers running for the top two posts.
Mary or Keisha, we need Felicia.
In my decade of covering (Fayetteville & Peachtree City) and actively following (since moving to Atlanta in 2011) municipal politics, Felicia Moore is at the very top of the councilmembers and mayors I’ve known. She is committed to integrity, ethics and openness. She’s engaging and always willing to listen; competent about the issues her constituents face; intellectually curious; unafraid to change her mind about issues on the merit of arguments alone; easily accessible and highly responsive. Of the public servants I’ve known and worked with, only former Fayetteville Mayor Ken Steele is in the same ballpark. I don’t have anything negative to say about Alex Wan. But I’d vote for Felicia regardless of who she is running against–and for whichever office she’s seeking.
Can you imagine Feisty Felicia as Council President and Keisha as mayor? Yikes!
edit: This is a tough one. If one is going to vote for Norwood, do you then also vote for Felicia so that the center of power doesn’t shift too far northward?
And the candidates have to give up their current seats to run, right? So whoever loses is out of government (for a while, anyway). So which one are we willing to lose?
I would have loved for Felicia to have been city council president during the Reed administration precisely because of her commitment to ethics and open government. The Sequel absolutely needs that check.
Also, District 9 is Northwest Atlanta. Felicia lives in Riverside. Wan’s District 6 is in Northeast Atlanta. Neither district gets close to I-20.
Another sterling Trump pick: Conway as Opioid Czar. (The current president is not Obama, so appointing unconfirmed “czars” to spearhead individual administration policy initiatives is again acceptable to Republicans.)
Given the progress on opioids that Jared Kushner has already made and Conway’s qualifications, problem solved. It’s such a sure thing that Trump is yet to appoint someone to head the Office of National Drug Control Policy after over 10 months in office. Like the State Department, who needs that Office when Trump’s best and brightest are on it like white on rice.
The president cannot be guilty of obstruction of justice?
While that may (arguably) be technically true, it doesn’t mean he didn’t do it. Is that really how they want to play this? Maybe he did obstruct justice but you can’t charge him with it?
The dumpster fire is starting to burn out of control.
18 felony convictions of fraud and tax crimes…Wow!!
http://www.actionnewsjax.com/news/local/corrine-brown-finds-out-whether-she-will-serve-prison-time-/657496007
Good afternoon, Mr. One Note Pony. You truly are a sad man…Regarding Ms. Brown, pul–eeze remind us all what party she is a member of.
Genuine question for the group today: Do any of you really think that 2/3 of the Senators would vote to convict Trump in the Senate trial of the impeachment articles?
Not sure, but I am looking forward to the fascist twitter storm while they debate it.
You need 67. If today that’s 16+. There isn’t enough Republican or even Democrat political courage out there to do that. It’s the old self-preservation game. And The Deplorables will politically filet the Senators in their state who even contemplate it. To paraphrase Fred Thompson in The Hunt for Red October, this exercise is “all academic…” Ain’t gonna happen.
Lemme look at your list. I think Lee wouldn’t and despite being insulted by Trump, I don’t think Lindsey would, either. Cruz in Texas would be roasted like the Ewing barbq if he did. Florida Repubs would obliterate Marco. I just don’t think enough Repubs would pull that political trigger.
I could see Johnny joining the club–assuming he’s retiring at the end of the term.
I’m not even sure all that is necessary. They actually did get to a vote with Clinton, but that whole mess actually made him more popular. Trump is more like Nixon. At some point Graham and Ryan and maybe even McConnell will go to him and tell him it’s time to return to his golden palace where he can build a McDonalds right in his building if he wants to.
What do you folks think about the argument that once Trump signs the tax bill Congressional gopers won’t have much further use for him? Not saying they’ll push for impeachment but with tax bill in hand they’ll have their 2018 campaign flag and can look more actively towards a Pence administration. Or hell, a Ryan administration, if it comes to that.
More info is breaking on the biased investigators on Mueller’s staff . Somebody wake up or dig up Claiborne Darden. “It’s ovaaaaa…”
This witch hunt is almost done.
Not fake news, but half-baked news. Desperately trying to discredit a whole operation bc one person (since fired) allowed himself a political/personal opinion. I smell a hypocritical “holier than thou” stench on this one. But the strategy is clear- make the stench and blame it on the other guy in the elevator.
So, you see no problem with this?
Me? No prob bc the guy who crossed the line was fired. That’s a standard of conduct we can only wish was upheld in every way in our gov’t. Plus, the guy’s expression of opinions didn’t change Comey’s or Mueller’s positions or actions. The hypocrisy is when you call out a splinter in your neighbor’s eye when you have a timber in your own-even after the neighbor removes the splinter. Is that the right parable?
Making a stench and blaming the other guy is grade school, not unexpected from the GOP’s grade school leader.
C’mon, Dave. Do you see a legitimate problem with having a biased investigator working with Mueller. No snark from me here.
To be clear, you are say the investigation is over because Mueller fired a guy months ago directly after he found bias, to prevent the investigation from being bias. If he kept the guy on, what would you be saying right now?
What’s the standard – are we going for Caser’s wife here? You have both republican and democratic people who serve in government. Do we only hire folks with no opinions, because they don’t exist. We can’t have democratic or republican DA’ police officers, judges anymore?
This is also a classic legal defense ploy. Discredit the other side, make them look bad, maybe not really bad, but bad enough that people question their motives, make every thing seem like a like a vendetta, like its all a big right or left wing plot to get you or yours. Lets make it look like Mueller’s team was too hard on questioning Flynn, since the guy is bias and everything… or what if he was to soft questioning Flynn? Flynn is a registered Democrat after all… did they stick together, lib to lib . Everyone has a bias. Everyone. And in the end after we have ripped the reputation of people to shreds to save whatever side you fancy, what have we gained? and more important, what have we lost?
Meanwhile Nero tweets and Rome burns.
And we should also add, given that it is unrealistic to hire people with no opinion, that we expect professionals to keep their opinions and their work separated. Most of us can do that, and we do it every day. I’m pretty liberal, but I sell to conservatives and I buy from conservatives (although I’m probably going to dump Uline. They went too far. And besides, that’s not politics, that is just human decency.) I even listen to Ted Nugent a little bit sometimes. Not a big fan of Charlton Heston but that’s because he couldn’t act. And I am going to vote for Norwood because I can’t accept the sea of corruption swirling around KLB.
So Mueller firing that guy is to preserve the appearance of impartiality. I’m sure other people on his staff have opinions too, but they need to keep them private, and especially not let it affect their work. Not that hard to do. They wouldn’t be in those jobs if they didn’t think they could do that.
It’s hard for super-partisan people to see I guess, but there are things that most of us value more than Party, and Justice is one of them.