XPost: alt.fan.rush-limbaugh, alt.atheism, alt.global-warming   
   XPost: alt.politics.trump   
   From: yourdime@outlook.com   
      
   When Trump opens his mouth, don't you just want to shove your cock into it   
   and grab him by his wig?   He grabs Pam Bondi and Kirsty Noem by the pussy   
   if they say the wrong thing.   
      
      
   Trump associates who have been sent to prison or faced criminal charges   
      
   Rep. Chris Collins, an early Trump supporter, faces sentencing Friday.   
   BySoo Rin Kim   
   January 17, 2020, 2:57 PM   
      
   President Donald Trump speaks during an event on prayer in public schools,   
   in the Oval Office of the White House, Jan. 16, 2020, in Washington.   
   President Donald Trump speaks during an event on prayer in public schools,   
   in the Oval Office of the White House, Jan. 16, 2020, in Washington.   
   Evan Vucci/AP   
      
   Rep. Chris Collins, R-N.Y., the congressman who was once the first to stand   
   up and endorse then-candidate Trump during the 2016 election, was sentenced   
   to two years and two months in federal prison on Friday.   
      
   Having pleaded guilty to charges related to securities fraud conspiracy and   
   making false statements, and resigning from his post last year, Collins is   
   just the latest in a series of close allies and associates of President   
   Trump to face the stain of a criminal record. In all, 14 Trump aides,   
   donors and advisers have been indicted or imprisoned since the days when   
   the first-time candidate promised that he would only hire "the best   
   people."   
      
   Presidents are surrounded by tens of thousands of supporters and hire   
   hundreds of aides into various jobs – so it may be inevitable that some   
   tiny fraction of them will run afoul of the law. But experts say Trump is   
   amassing a record unusual for an American president – in that so many   
   senior advisers have come under legal scrutiny.   
      
   The count includes senior members of Trump’s campaign staff, including   
   former campaign chair Paul Manafort and his deputy, Rick Gates – both   
   snared on financial misdeeds in special counsel Robert Mueller   
   investigation. Trump’s first national security adviser – Lt. Gen. Michael   
   Flynn – pleaded guilty to lying to the FBI – though he has recently moved   
   to retract his plea. His personal attorney, Rudy Giuliani, is under   
   criminal investigation for his business relationship with two men arrested   
   in an alleged campaign finance scheme, according to sources. Both Giuliani   
   associates have pleaded not guilty.   
      
   White House did not respond to ABC News' request for comment and the Trump   
   campaign declined to comment.   
      
   Collins is one of the two earliest Trump supporters in Congress – and both   
   have recently been convicted in federal prosecutions. Former Rep. Duncan   
   Hunter, R-Calif., who had the distinction of being the second congressman   
   to endorse Trump, stepped down from his seat earlier this week, after   
   pleading guilty last month to conspiring to misuse $250,000 of campaign   
   funds for his personal expenses. The California Republican is slated to be   
   sentenced in March.   
   Rep. Chris Collins walks out of a New York court house after being charged   
   with insider trading on August 8, 2018 in New York City.   
   Spencer Platt/Getty Images, FILE   
   MORE: Congressman accused of insider trading is resigning   
      
   At the time of Collins and Hunters' indictments in 2018, Trump responded in   
   a tweet blaming then-Attorney General Jeff Sessions and the Justice   
   Department for bringing investigations of "two very popular Republican   
   Congressmen" to a "well publicized charge, just ahead of the Mid-Terms."   
      
   "Two easy wins now in doubt because there is not enough time," He added.   
      
   And Trump has seen some of his donors ensnared in criminal probes.   
      
   Washington-based lobbyist Sam Patten pleaded guilty to illegally funneling   
   foreign money into Trump's inaugural committee as well and was sentenced to   
   three years of probation, a $5,000 fine and 500 hours of community service.   
   As the president's personal lawyer, Giuliani at that time downplayed   
   Patten's association with Trump, saying "Trump has no idea who these   
   contributors are."   
      
   New England Patriots owner Bob Kraft, a close personal friend of Trump's, a   
   Mar-a-Lago member who gave $1 million to the inaugural committee, is   
   currently fighting misdemeanor charges in Florida related to alleged   
   solicitation of prostitution. Kraft has pleaded not guilty.   
   MORE: Patriots' owner Robert Kraft has assembled a legal dream team to   
   handle his misdemeanor sex solicitation case; can they save him?   
      
   George Nader, a Lebanese-American businessman and lobbyist with ties to the   
   Trump world and a key witness in the Mueller investigation, recently   
   pleaded guilty to charges related to child sex trafficking and child   
   pornography possession. He was also charged last month in connection to an   
   alleged scheme to funnel millions of illegal campaign contributions to   
   political entities supporting Clinton during the 2016 election.   
      
   California-based Imaaz Zuberi, who gave $900,000 to the Trump inaugural   
   committee, was indicted last October for allegedly making illegal foreign   
   straw donation, violating foreign lobbying laws and evading taxes. Last   
   week, federal prosecutors added obstruction of justice to Zuberi's   
   indictment, accusing him of taking "numerous steps" to thwart the federal   
   criminal investigations upon learning of the investigation. Zuberi has   
   pleaded guilty. Zuberi was also a major donor for Hillary Clinton and   
   former President Barack Obama.   
      
   Trump is by no means the only president who has been associated with   
   convicted criminals. The Watergate burglary, which led to Richard Nixon’s   
   downfall, resulted in a number of Nixon’s associates, including his   
   campaign operative G. Gordon Liddy, being convicted. Bill Clinton pardoned   
   his brother, Roger, who was convicted of cocaine possession in the 1980s.   
   And on his last day in office, Clinton made the controversial decision to   
   pardon financier and major Democratic donor Marc Rich, who had fled   
   overseas to escape indictment for alleged financial crimes. In 2009, a top   
   donor to Democrats John Kerry, Hillary Clinton and Barrack Obama -- New   
   York financier Hassan Nemazee –– was sent to prison after being convicted   
   of financial crimes.   
   MORE: Trump inaugural donor charged with campaign finance and lobbying   
   violations   
      
   To Trump’s critics, though, the charges being brought against his advisers   
   has been viewed as a symptom of something concerning. Watchdog group   
   Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington's policy director   
   Jennifer Ahearn said she worries about the “tone from the top.”   
      
   “Would he issue pardons to help these very people avoid the consequences of   
   their actions?” she asked. “Would he interfere in Justice Department or   
   other enforcement actions against them? These could be additional serious   
   ethics problems on top of all the troubling conduct we've already seen."   
      
      
   [continued in next message]   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)