U.S. Senate passes bill 97-2 to take Russian sanctions-easing powers away from Trump

[Meghan54]

You can't use Sonniku's previous avatar. It is simply uncouth for you force other members to mistake you for someone that actually deserves and has earned respect around here.

Truth!! Bad form all around.

 

[BxgJ]

You can't use Sonniku's previous avatar. It is simply uncouth for you force other members to mistake you for someone that actually deserves and has earned respect around here.

This. I for one was quite confused for a moment.

 

[interchange]

I understand that this was overshadowed by the baseball game shooting and by the news that Mueller is investigating Trump for obstruction, but this seems quite a big deal to me. The senate is taking it in their hands to address Russia and providing a check on Trump's power in setting Russian policy, and does so in an overwhelming majority fashion.

It makes me wonder if Republican Congress already sees Trump as a dead duck but is publicly trying to keep his administration afloat until things start getting real as a result of Mueller's investigation.

 

[vi edit]

I understand that this was overshadowed by the baseball game shooting and by the news that Mueller is investigating Trump for obstruction, but this seems quite a big deal to me. The senate is taking it in their hands to address Russia and providing a check on Trump's power in setting Russian policy, and does so in an overwhelming majority fashion.

It makes me wonder if Republican Congress already sees Trump as a dead duck but is publicly trying to keep his administration afloat until things start getting real as a result of Mueller's investigation.

Yes, this gives me a glimmer of hope that we still have some functioning form of checks and balances out there. It's also good that it's showing the Democrats as not being obstructionists.

 

[Fanatical Meat]

Yes, this gives me a glimmer of hope that we still have some functioning form of checks and balances out there. It's also good that it's showing the Democrats as not being obstructionists.

Yes its a glimmer, however I say its more about Republicans not willing to get yelled at in Town halls over Healthcare and Trump doing something stupid over break like lifting all Russia Sanctions because Russia will but some coal from us that will employ an addition huge number of miners but we later learn that it will employ 40 miners. Then we learn about more Russian meddling. These are easy things to imagine and it would double the yelling.
Which is actually the way our system is supposed to work so I'm good with Congress today.

 

[fleshconsumed]

It makes me wonder if Republican Congress already sees Trump as a dead duck but is publicly trying to keep his administration afloat until things start getting real as a result of Mueller's investigation.

Maybe, but if they see the end coming, does it really make sense to drag it out too close to 2018/2020?

Yes, this gives me a glimmer of hope that we still have some functioning form of checks and balances out there. It's also good that it's showing the Democrats as not being obstructionists.

I wouldn't call it functioning. I'd call it self preservation.

 

[Thebobo]

We should reach out to Russia not shun it.

I agree, If they leave Crimea admit they were wrong shooting down the Malaysian passenger plane and stop trying to interfere with ours and others elections, stop jailing and murdering political opponents. Yes then we can talk about removing sanctions.

 

[SMOGZINN]

Maybe, but if they see the end coming, does it really make sense to drag it out too close to 2018/2020?

I think they are still holding out hope that they will be able to pass some part of their platform while they hold all the cards. It is seeming like a long shot but the Republicans have never been ones to give up just because reality is against them.

 

[Sheik Yerbouti]

Your hyperbole is ineffective. My point stands.

you point shits itself in perpetuity, fucking poseur.

 

[bshole]

Rand Paul and some dude from Utah, however I heard both were at the baseball practice and their votes may have been delayed because of the shooting. I'm not sure if they actually voted no or it was some kind of Parliamentary thing that made their votes appear no. I'm not sure either of no vote guys were in the building.

Regardless, this is Congress acting they way it should and I appreciate this vote and its result.

Voting more power for themselves..... how shocking. I guess all Senators agree that they need more power. That is about the only thing they agree on.... besides corporate money in politics being an objective good.

 

[Stokely]

I agree with those that say when Russia stops their undeclared war against...well, most people...then let's be pals.

In similar spirt, hopefully the USA gets boycotted by tourists the world over for what our government has done. Short term pain hopefully yields long term gain.

 

[interchange]

Maybe, but if they see the end coming, does it really make sense to drag it out too close to 2018/2020?

This is wild speculation, but here is my thinking:
The investigation is ongoing. So there is enough to damn the administration or at least make them pay close attention to that possibility. But the threat outside of letting Russia off the hook is not an active one. There would be many reasons not to act while the investigation is ongoing. So they want to keep the everyday operation of the government as solvent as possible until they are ready to act.

 

[sandorski]

In relatedish News, Putin has joked about offering Comey, Asylum.

 

[Thump553]

Republican Sens. Mike Lee and Rand Paul were the only GOP members to oppose the bill.

I'm assuming Rand Paul isn't even trying to make a pretense of being a libertarian these days.He's becoming the most dangerous type of politician-a total hack but a very articulate one and further with a substantial backing from people that (wrongly) think he believes in what they do.

 

[Ranulf]

I agree, If they leave Crimea admit they were wrong shooting down the Malaysian passenger plane and stop trying to interfere with ours and others elections, stop jailing and murdering political opponents. Yes then we can talk about removing sanctions.

Haha, leave Crimea. Fat chance and they shouldn't. People can whinge about illegal force or intervention or whatever but Crimea has been Russian since just before the USA was founded. Read some history books. Strategically for them it makes no good God damn sense to give up control/influence over it. Let alone natives there that are more Russian than Ukranian. Good ol Woodrow and FDR talked a good game about self-determination but not followed through. US policy hasn't changed much since then.

 

[zinfamous]

Haha, leave Crimea. Fat chance and they shouldn't. People can whinge about illegal force or intervention or whatever but Crimea has been Russian since just before the USA was founded. Read some history books. Strategically for them it makes no good God damn sense to give up control/influence over it. Let alone natives there that are more Russian than Ukranian. Good ol Woodrow and FDR talked a good game about self-determination but not followed through. US policy hasn't changed much since then.

Oh.

 

[Fanatical Meat]

Haha, leave Crimea. Fat chance and they shouldn't. People can whinge about illegal force or intervention or whatever but Crimea has been Russian since just before the USA was founded. Read some history books. Strategically for them it makes no good God damn sense to give up control/influence over it. Let alone natives there that are more Russian than Ukranian. Good ol Woodrow and FDR talked a good game about self-determination but not followed through. US policy hasn't changed much since then.

Lordy

 

[werepossum]

We should reach out to Russia not shun it.

Russia and Red China both need a good bitch slapping. We can't administer one to China because we've made ourselves China's bitch. However, we don't really need Russia for anything, and we couldn't trust them if we did. So yes, we should reach out to Russia and slap the fool out of them. From what I've read, the great majority of sophisticated for-profit hacking comes out of Russia, so sanctioning them for hacking is bound to pay dividends somewhere.

I find it sad that this was triggered by Russia embarrassing the DNC after everything Russia has done before that, but if that's what it takes to get the left on America's side, so be it.

 

[werepossum]

This. I for one was quite confused for a moment.

Me too.

Voting more power for themselves..... how shocking. I guess all Senators agree that they need more power. That is about the only thing they agree on.... besides corporate money in politics being an objective good.

That's a good point, but in this case they are removing power from one guy and passing it to 535. So while it's more power to Congress, it's actually a decentralization of power.

 

[Zorba]

Haha, leave Crimea. Fat chance and they shouldn't. People can whinge about illegal force or intervention or whatever but Crimea has been Russian since just before the USA was founded. Read some history books. Strategically for them it makes no good God damn sense to give up control/influence over it. Let alone natives there that are more Russian than Ukranian. Good ol Woodrow and FDR talked a good game about self-determination but not followed through. US policy hasn't changed much since then.

Texas belonged to Mexico/spain long before the US, and the natives long before that. Should we give it back? While we're at it, Russia used to own Alaska let's give that one back too.

 

[zinfamous]

I find it sad that this was triggered by Russia embarrassing the DNC after everything Russia has done before that, but if that's what it takes to get the left on America's side, so be it.

Are you smoking crack before the weekend, again?

 

[werepossum]

Are you smoking crack before the weekend, again?

Nope, just remembering decades of the left blaming America for the Cold War.

 

[JSt0rm]

russia should be sanctioned to north korea levels. No outside trade of any kind.

 

[Fanatical Meat]

Nope, just remembering decades of the left blaming America for the Cold War.

While I was alive for only the tail end in my opinion your memory is a bit skewed but I will say left guys historically were against ever increasing military spending so I won't say you're totally wrong.

 

[alien42]

I find it sad that this was triggered by Russia helping Trump get elected after everything Russia has done before that, but if that's what it took to get the right on Russia's side, so be it.

FTFY