The federal government continue to spiral towards utter dysfunction under a President on the precipice of (take your pick). But one freshman Congresswoman provides a bit of a light at the end of the Trump tunnel. [Audio link to today’s complete BradCast is posted below.]

Among the stories covered on today’s program…

• Donald Trump’s former personal lawyer Michael Cohen admits he paid a guy from Jerry Falwell Jr.’s Liberty University to rig online polls for Trump before he announced his candidacy in 2015. That, as Cohen is reportedly reconsidering his decision to testify to Congress next month in advance of his three year prison sentence, due to threats (witness tampering? intimidation?) by the President against him and his family. Trump failed to report the $50,000 payoff to rig polls to the FEC, which is yet another potential federal felony and/or article of impeachment for the sitting President. While the story should surprise no one at this point (remember, he also paid extras to cheer him on while announcing his candidacy at Trump Tower that year), its somehow still stunning and disturbing as yet another indication of just what Trump was likely willing to do, at any cost, to win in 2016;

• Speaking of what Trump and his campaign were willing to do, his new personal lawyer, Rudy Giuliani, may have broken the Internet after his appearance on CNN Wednesday night, in which he moved the “collusion” goal posts by falsely claiming that neither he nor the President ever claimed his campaign — if not Trump himself — “colluded” with Russia. In fact, contrary to Giuliani’s ridiculous assertions, both men claimed repeatedly that nobody on the Trump Campaign was involved in such an activity. As of Wednesday night, it seems, Trump’s lawyer is officially backing off that claim on behalf of the President…for some reason;

• Reverberations and consequences of Trump’s nearly-month long federal government shutdown continue. As House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and a Congressional delegation were preparing to leave today for a secret trip to visit U.S. troops in Afghanistan, Trump, in retribution for Pelosi’s threat to postpone his scheduled State of the Union Address during the shutdown, rescinded permission for the use of a military plane set to take Pelosi and the others on the overseas trip. You’ll also be shocked to hear he lied about it all too;

• Meanwhile, as more Congressional Republicans — and even a top former Administration official — are questioning the wisdom of shutting down the federal government over Trump’s demand for $5.7 billion to begin building his southern border wall, senior citizens and people with disabilities are facing the threat of potential eviction in HUD and USDA subsidized housing across the country;

• At the same time, the Administration is calling some 50,000 furloughed federal employees back to work without pay at agencies such as the FDA, FAA, and at the IRS as tax season begins;

• But, speaking of taxes, there is a reason that Republicans are freaking out — and lying — about the recent proposal floated by Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) to raise the nation’s top tax bracket to 70% on those earning more than $10 million: the proposal is wildly popular — by double-digit margins — across virtually every demographic and every area of the country. Thus, folks like Wisconsin’s failed former GOP Gov. Scott Walker was out bragging on social media this week about lying to school children about how AOC’s proposal would actually work, who would and wouldn’t be affected by it, and by how much;

• Finally, Desi Doyen joins us for the latest Green News Report, as Dems grill the Administration’s new nominee/coal lobbyists tapped to head an Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) where pollution prosecutions have plummeted since Trump took office, while Australia faces yet another record heat wave, and as the business world slowly begins waking up to the mounting threat of climate change…

The BradCast with Brad Friedman 1/17/2019

‘Collusion’ Confusion, Shutdown Woes, Tax Truth: ‘BradCast’ 1/17/2019  |  Trump paid Cohen to rig online polling; Giuliani moves the Russia goal posts (again); President throws tantrum at Pelosi; Government shutdown taking toll; And why Ocasio-Cortez is joyfully freaking out the GOP...   · · · · ·   ‘Collusion’ Confusion, Shutdown Woes, Tax Truth: ‘BradCast’ 1/17/2019  |  Trump paid Cohen to rig online polling; Giuliani moves the Russia goal posts (again); President throws tantrum at Pelosi; Government shutdown taking toll; And why Ocasio-Cortez is joyfully freaking out the GOP...

30s 30s

0:00 0:00

Download Episode Link to this page Embed on your site! Subscribe RSS/Podcast