Trump loved the story of the snake. We all predicted that the fictional snake would jump up one day and bite Trump in the as*.

And now he has. Here's the anonymous op-ed in the New York Times Here's Trump's response. Here are the staff denials to date.

The sad thing is there is no one to cheer for here. The author sounds like a dangerous infiltrator trying to foist his or her own brand of conservatism on the country. So, who is it? [More...]

Special Counsel Robert Mueller's team picked up another notch on its belt today with the guilty plea of Sam Patten, a Republican lobbyist who specialized in Russian and Ukraine affairs.

Patten pleaded guilty to a FARA (Foreign Agents Registration Act) violation. The NY Times decodes several of the persons referred to as "Foreigner A" "Foreigner B", "Company A", etc.

The Information (charging document, in lieu of an Indictment) is here. His plea agreement is here. His statement of offense (factual basis for the plea) is here. [More...]

A new poll by the Washington Post finds that 60% of Americans disapprove of Donald Trump. On the other hand, they support Robert Mueller and Jeff Sessions.

Here are the results.

As for Rudy's comment the other day that the truth is not the truth, I think he's right in the context of cooperating with the Government. But his explanation is lame .

My statement was not meant as a pontification on moral theology but one referring to the situation where two people make precisely contradictory statements, the classic “he said,she said” puzzle. Sometimes further inquiry can reveal the truth other times it doesn’t.

I think what he really meant was, when you agree to cooperate with the Government, you are obliged to tell the truth. But it's the Government's truth you have to tell, because if your truth differs from the Government's truth, you get nothing. (Just ask Susan McDougal).

Ivanka Trump today announced she will close her clothing business. It was down to 18 employees. The boycotts of her clothes had a big effect. Other companies decided to stop carrying her line due to slumping sales.

The company, based in New York’s Trump Tower, had been dropped by retailers such as Nordstrom due to flagging sales. Its dresses, shoes and handbags — all of which were made in foreign countries such as China and Indonesia — also conflicted with her push for more jobs in the United States.

...“Views on the brand have become highly polarized, and it has become a lightning rod for protests and boycotts,” said Neil Saunders, managing director of GlobalData Retail. “While the company is still viable, doing business has become far more challenging and these problems will only increase.”

But it's not just Ivanka's business that seems to be in a slump. Remember Scion, the new hotel line Trump's sons were going to open (more affordable and planned for several mid-western cities)? Not a single one has been opened. [More...]

There are several media articles the past few days about Michael Cohen having taped Donald Trump two months before the election when they were discussing a $150,000 payment to American Media (owner of the Enquirer) that would then go to Karen MacDougal for telling her story about having an affair with Trump. Unbeknownst to Macdougal, American Media had agreed not to publish it.

Ms. McDougal says she began a nearly yearlong affair with Mr. Trump in 2006, shortly after Mr. Trump’s wife, Melania, gave birth to their son Barron. Ms. McDougal sold her story for $150,000 to The National Enquirer, which was supportive of Mr. Trump, during the final months of the presidential campaign. But the tabloid sat on the story, which kept it from becoming public. The practice, known as “catch and kill,” effectively silenced Ms. McDougal for the remainder of the campaign.Because she'd be signing a non-disclosure agreement, she couldn't tell or sell her story elsewhere if American Media didn't publish it.

New York is a state that allows taping provided one participant to the conversation agrees. But Cohen is a lawyer, talking to Trump, his purported "client". Is there a privilege or ethics rule that comes into play here? [More...]

It's virtually unanimous: Donald Trump pooped on himself and the United States today at his big Helsinki summit. The adjectives for his pitiful performance are boundless, and coming from both sides.

The New York Times:

Senator John McCain, Republican of Arizona, called it “one of the most disgraceful performances by an American president in memory.”

The cover of tomorrow's NY Daily News shows Trump shooting Uncle Sam, with a caption "Open Treason".

Former CIA Director John Brennan:

Donald Trump’s press conference performance in Helsinki rises to & exceeds the threshold of “high crimes & misdemeanors.” It was nothing short of treasonous. Not only were Trump’s comments imbecilic, he is wholly in the pocket of Putin. Republican Patriots: Where are you???

[More...]

Donald Trump continues his outlandish attempts to rip the fabric of our country's most cherished principles: Today it's due process.

According to Trump, we don't need no stinkin' trials, or judges.

“When somebody comes in, we must immediately, with no Judges or Court Cases, bring them back from where they came,” he said.

Does he even know that the law provides for asylum and that asylum seekers enter the country lawfully?

“What President Trump has suggested here is both illegal and unconstitutional. Any official who has sworn an oath to uphold the Constitution and laws should disavow it unequivocally,” said Omar Jadwat, director of the ACLU’s Immigrants’ Rights Project.

Trump says "Our system is a mockery to good immigration policy and Law and Order." What's next? Will he argue that migrants without proper papers should be shot at the border, so we don't have to pay to return them? I wouldn't be surprised.

It's not our system that's a mockery, it is Donald Trump that has made a mockery of America.

I don't know how you make a peace deal in the Middle East without Israel and Palestine being on board. Jared is going to do it we're told, even without Abbas. He thinks his plan is so good he can just release it to the media and the Palestinian people will want to accept it, even if their leaders don't.

Sounds like he's going to offer the Palestinians some real or imaginary economic benefits in hopes that will get them so unified they demand their leaders accept the deal.

My thought: Trump must be expecting a very bad week with Mueller and thus wants to deflect attention from what's coming -- so he's bringing out Jared, dusting him off and announcing a one-sided peace deal.

The Bureau of Prisons has issued an alert. An immigrant detainee at FCI Victorville in California has been diagnosed with the very contagious chicken pox disease.

“Measures are being taken to identify and contain inmate contacts who are at risk for getting chickenpox,” the letter said. It was sent out midday Monday via email to over 800 prison staff members.

.... E-U Housing Unit is one of about 12 units in the medium security facility where ICE has contracted with the Bureau of prisons to house up to 1,000 adult male immigrant detainees.

[More...]

Beware the person who cannot accept accountability for his own missteps. Donald Trump today issued an executive order on separating parents and children at the border. He continues to blame Congress instead of his own Executive Orders for the mess his policies created. He even has the gall to name it "Affording Congress an Opportunity to Address Family Separation."

It is unfortunate that Congress’s failure to act and court orders have put the Administration in the position of separating alien families to effectively enforce the law.

No one caused these separations but the Trump Administration itself. [More...]

Four major airlines are saying no to Donald Trump's policy that separates migrant children from their parents at the border:

American, Frontier, Southwest and United airlines are refusing to fly immigrant children separated from their parents for the federal government, the latest resistance to the Trump administration’s “zero tolerance” policy for undocumented border crossings.

All four airlines said they had no evidence that they have transported children under the policy yet. But they each said the policy runs counter to their corporate goals of connecting people.