[AMV] Amerikaanse politiek #462 Stormy actions

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President Donald Trump’s newly unveiled budget would cut millions of dollars from the National Instant Criminal Background Check System, which gun dealers use to verify if someone is banned from buying a gun before selling it to them.

Buried on Page 719 of his fiscal year 2019 budget, released Monday, the president calls for cuts to the National Criminal Records History Improvement Program and the NICS Act Record Improvement Program. Both provide federal grants to states to help them improve their reporting of criminal records and protection orders to the national database for background checks, including domestic violence records.

Mass shootings are now a regular occurrence in the country ― and so is Congress’ inaction on it. There have already been 30 mass shootings and 18 school shootings in 2018. Republican leaders in Congress routinely offer “thoughts and prayers” in response to each shooting but don’t follow up with any policy changes aimed at stemming gun violence.

more: https://www.huffingtonpos(...)abdee4b0774f31d1b770

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If Americans want gun control legislation in the wake of Wednesday's mass shooting at a Florida high school, they need to vote Republicans out of office, a former GOP lawmaker said.

"Republicans will never do anything on gun control," former Rep. David Jolly (R-Fla.) said on CNN Wednesday.

Jolly said Republicans refuse to enact any gun control laws, even after a member of Congress was shot at a baseball practice last year.

"The idea of gun policy in the Republican party is to try to get a speaking slot at the NRA and prove to that constituency that you are further right than generations past on guns," Jolly said.

more: https://www.huffingtonpos(...)274ae4b0774f31d1f615

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Florida Republicans Sen. Marco Rubio and Gov. Rick Scott were swift to condemn the horrific school shooting in their state on Wednesday afternoon, offering prayers after a gunman killed at least 17 people at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland.

Scott called for "thoughts and prayers" as news of the shooting emerged, and Rubio sent off a tweet calling the shooting an event "you pray never comes."

But both men have a history of coziness with gun advocates, receiving "A+" ratings and endorsements from the National Rifle Association ahead of their respective elections in 2014 and 2016. The distinction is reserved "for legislators who have excellent voting records on Second Amendment issues and who have vigorously fought to promote and defend the right to keep and bear arms."

more: https://www.huffingtonpos(...)dc26e4b0774f31d1dcfe

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Op donderdag 15 februari 2018 15:42 schreef Tchock het volgende:
Ik haal deze maar weer van stal. Het lukt me niet meer om niet-cynisch te reageren op die shootings.

Thougts & Prayers: The Game
https://www.thoughtsandprayersthegame.com

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Op donderdag 15 februari 2018 15:02 schreef westwoodblvd het volgende:
Die benzinebelasting is een typisch voorbeeld van hoe deze regering de kleine man een vette worst voor houdt maar intussen keihard van achteren pakt. Anderhalf biljoen aan belastingverlaging voor de rijken maar jan met de pet mag extra dokken voor de benzine die hij nodig heeft om bij zijn drie verschillende banen te komen.

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Op donderdag 15 februari 2018 16:53 schreef Iwanius het volgende:

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En dan durven sommigen landgenoten,nog steeds het als het "beloofde" land te zien waar ze betere kansen krijgen dan hier in Nederland.

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So many signs that the Florida shooter was mentally disturbed, even expelled from school for bad and erratic behavior. Neighbors and classmates knew he was a big problem. Must always report such instances to authorities, again and again!

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Op donderdag 15 februari 2018 18:21 schreef Ulx het volgende:
https://twitter.com/realD(...)110212885106689?s=20

Het stuk vreten geeft de slachtoffers in Florida nog even een trap na.

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Op donderdag 15 februari 2018 18:25 schreef Monolith het volgende:

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Sowieso nogal vreemd. De voornaamste 'hints' waren dat hij nogal graag met wapens poseerde op Instagram. Dat doet een significant deel van zijn eigen achterban ook maar al te graag.

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The leader of a white nationalist militia says Florida school shooting suspect Nikolas Cruz was a member of his group and participated in paramilitary drills in Tallahassee.

Jordan Jereb told The Associated Press on Thursday that his group, the Republic of Florida, wants Florida to become its own white ethno-state. He said his group holds “spontaneous random demonstrations” and tries not to participate in the modern world.

Jereb said he didn’t know Cruz personally and that “he acted on his own behalf of what he just did and he’s solely responsible for what he just did.”

He also said he had “trouble with a girl” and he believed the timing of the attack, carried out on Valentine’s Day, wasn’t a coincidence.

Nineteen-year-old Cruz has been charged with 17 counts of premeditated murder in the shooting.

AP

twitter:

NeilSteinberg twitterde op donderdag 15-02-2018 om 04:50:42 I too am sending out thoughts and prayers: thoughts that Congress is a bunch of cowards, and prayers that we'll finally throw the bums out of office and elect representatives with the guts to enact the sane gun laws most citizens in our country are begging to see put in place. reageer retweet

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Op donderdag 15 februari 2018 19:19 schreef Re het volgende:
En hij schijnt dit jaar zijn geweer gekocht te hebben, na het opheffen van de mental illness check door meneer tweet

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Op donderdag 15 februari 2018 19:32 schreef westwoodblvd het volgende:
Ben ik overigens de enige die denkt dat Donald al een tijdje niet meer zijn eigen tweets schrijft?

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Bannon spent a total of some 20 hours in conversations with the team led by Mueller, who is investigating possible collusion between the Trump campaign and Russia as well as other issues that have arisen around the probe.

twitter:

realDonaldTrump twitterde op donderdag 15-02-2018 om 20:25:23 The Schumer-Rounds-Collins immigration bill would be a total catastrophe. @DHSgov says it would be “the end of immigration enforcement in America.” It creates a giant amnesty (including for dangerous criminals), doesn’t build the wall, expands chain migration, keeps the visa... reageer retweet

twitter:

realDonaldTrump twitterde op donderdag 15-02-2018 om 20:26:09 ...lottery, continues deadly catch-and-release, and bars enforcement even for FUTURE illegal immigrants. Voting for this amendment would be a vote AGAINST law enforcement, and a vote FOR open borders. If Dems are actually serious about DACA, they should support the Grassley bill! reageer retweet

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Op donderdag 15 februari 2018 20:15 schreef Ulx het volgende:
Hij doet ze nog steeds zelf volgens mij. Hooguit luistert hij wat meer naar adviseurs.

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The Senate on Thursday rejected immigration legislation crafted by centrists in both parties after President Trump threatened to veto the bill if it made it to his desk.

In a 54-45 vote, the Senate failed to advance the legislation from eight Republican, seven Democratic and one Independent senators. It needed 60 votes to overcome a procedural hurdle.

A few Democrats, including Sens. Kamala Harris (Calif.), Martin Heinrich (N.M.) and Tom Udall (N.M.), withheld their votes until it was clear the measure could not get to 60, and then voted against it.

The centrist deal, backed by Sens. Susan Collins (Maine), Jeff Flake (Ariz.) and Lindsey Graham (S.C.) and other Republicans, represented perhaps the best chance to advance legislation in the Senate, but was opposed by Trump and his allies in part because it did not cover all four immigration “pillars” he had demanded.

Two other amendments were rejected before the vote. The first, a bipartisan proposal from Sens. Christopher Coons (D-Del.) and John McCain (R-Ariz.), fell in a 52-47 vote. The second measure, which would have cracked down on cities that don't comply with federal immigration laws, also fell in a 55-44 vote.

SPOILER

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Op donderdag 15 februari 2018 18:21 schreef Ulx het volgende:
https://twitter.com/realD(...)110212885106689?s=20

Het stuk vreten geeft de slachtoffers in Florida nog even een trap na.

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Op donderdag 15 februari 2018 22:30 schreef Freak188 het volgende:

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Het land lijkt wel uitgehold te zijn en dan krijg je een dergelijke clown als leider. Het is de schaamte voorbij. Als je het gemaakt hebt woon je veilig, als je van het klootjesvolk bent dan ben je een wandelend doelwit. Zowel voor de overheid als mafkezen met wapens.

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Op donderdag 15 februari 2018 20:49 schreef Kijkertje het volgende:
Steve Bannon met with Mueller multiple times over the past week

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Former adviser Steve Bannon answered questions about Russian election interference before the House Intelligence Committee on Thursday — but only ones "scripted" for him in advance by White House officials, according to committee members.

The ousted former political strategist to President Donald Trump appeared on Capitol Hill after multiple interviews with special counsel Robert Mueller in recent days, according to a source close to Bannon who confirmed an NBC News report. Both Mueller and the House Intelligence Committee are investigating whether the Kremlin might have influenced or colluded with Trump's campaign.

During a closed-door meeting with the House Intelligence Committee that lasted nearly four hours, Bannon refused to answer any questions beyond 25 that had been pre-screened by the White House, senior Republican and Democratic committee members said. Rep. Adam Schiff, the committee's top Democrat, suggested those questions were so narrowly drawn that they appeared intended to mislead lawmakers.

SPOILER

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A powerful Republican lawmaker has publicly endorsed expanding Medicaid in Virginia after years of opposition, boosting the chances the Old Dominion will join 32 other states in expanding the program for the poor under President Barack Obama's health care law.

Del. Terry Kilgore, whose district in Virginia's southwest coal country voted overwhelmingly for Republican President Donald Trump, said Thursday that he's now in favor of Medicaid expansion with some conditions, like work requirements and small copays.

Kilgore said his change of heart was due partly to President Donald Trump's embrace of work requirements for low-income people on Medicaid.

The Trump administration recently announced that it will approve state proposals requiring "able-bodied adults" to work, study, or perform some kind of service. The move has helped prompt lawmakers in other conservative states to resurrect expansion plans and has already been approved in Kentucky.

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Op donderdag 15 februari 2018 18:26 schreef Szura het volgende:
Hypocriete gek

https://www.nbcnews.com/n(...)eople-mental-n727221

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Op vrijdag 16 februari 2018 00:21 schreef Szura het volgende:
https://www.cnn.com/2018/(...)stigation/index.html

Plea deal voor Gates

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Op vrijdag 16 februari 2018 00:57 schreef ExtraWaskracht het volgende:
Opvallend dat het gelekt wordt dat er bijna een plea deal is. Waarom niet wachten tot het een voldongen feit is?

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Op donderdag 15 februari 2018 23:41 schreef Kijkertje het volgende:

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Bannon limits answers to House after seeing Mueller

The former Trump political adviser met with the House Intelligence Committee, and has also had multiple meetings with special counsel Robert Mueller in recent days.

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Steve Bannon, the combative former chief strategist for President Donald Trump, was interrogated for 20 hours over two days this week as part of special counsel Robert Mueller’s Russia investigation, according to a person familiar with the process.

The person, who declined to be named because they were not authorized to publicly discuss the investigation, said Bannon answered every question that was put to him by Mueller’s team. That’s in contrast to a Thursday interview with the House intelligence committee, where Bannon declined to answer some of lawmakers’ questions, despite a subpoena.

While the exact questions for Bannon are unknown, Mueller is investigating whether there was any coordination between Trump’s campaign and Russians who meddled in the 2016 election, and also whether there have been any efforts to obstruct the ongoing FBI probe into those contacts. The House panel is investigating the meddling and whether Trump’s campaign was involved.

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Parkland student: My generation won't stand for this

Editor's Note: Cameron Kasky is a 17-year-old junior at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School. He and his brother Holden survived Wednesday's school shooting at their Parkland, Florida, high school. The views expressed in this commentary are his own

I thought it was going to be a wonderful day. My high school, Marjory Stoneman Douglas, was full of cheerful students -- many of whom were celebrating Valentine's Day with one another. Even those who didn't have a Valentine seemed like they could find reasons to smile.

But then, of course, everything changed. Toward the end of the day, I went to pick up my little brother Holden from the special needs classroom. As we exited the school, the fire alarm went off. And as we retreated to the parking lot, per fire drill procedure, we were told to run back inside.

It was very confusing, especially since I was surrounded by special needs students. But the truth is, nobody really knew what was going on. We huddled in a room, listening to terrifying noises we couldn't quite identify, and spent an hour plagued by uncontrolled anxiety ... waiting for answers. Waiting for somebody to either come in and shoot us or come in and tell us everything was going to be OK.

Eventually, the SWAT team came in and did an excellent job taking care of the students with disabilities. We were then escorted to our evacuation location and, after hours of confusion and terror, my brother and I made it home.

Though we made it home, 17 people didn't. Those 17 people were murdered on the grounds of a school that has always felt like the safest place to be in a town that's been called the safest town in Florida.

We can't ignore the issues of gun control that this tragedy raises. And so, I'm asking -- no, demanding -- we take action now.

Why? Because at the end of the day, the students at my school felt one shared experience -- our politicians abandoned us by failing to keep guns out of schools.

But this time, my classmates and I are going to hold them to account. This time we are going to pressure them to take action. This time we are going to force them to spend more energy protecting human lives than unborn fetuses.

One of the most frustrating arguments I've heard is that it wasn't the Republican Party that killed those people and it wasn't the National Rifle Association -- it was the shooter himself. I understand where they are coming from. I do not believe this was a direct attack from the Republicans or their close allies at the NRA.

However, the shooter is not the only one responsible for this tragedy. While the alleged shooter may have had several issues, he also lived in a society where Sen. Marco Rubio refuses to take responsibility for the role gun culture may have played in this tragedy.

And there is no denying that the NRA continues to donate millions of dollars to politicians at every level of government. Then those politicians -- often "family values" conservatives -- rile up their base by making them think that "liberals" are going to take their guns away. Not knowing any better, some of these people stockpile guns in advance of a gun ban that never comes, and the gun manufacturers and the NRA make millions.

But the truth is that the politicians on both sides of the aisle are to blame. The Republicans, generally speaking, take large donations from the NRA and are therefore beholden to their cruel agenda. And the Democrats lack the organization and the votes to do anything about it.
I'm just a high school student, and I do not pretend to have all of the answers. However, even in my position, I can see that there is desperate need for change -- change that starts by folks showing up to the polls and voting all those individuals who are in the back pockets of gun lobbyists out of office.

Please do it for me. Do it for my fellow classmates. We can't vote, but you can, so make it count.

https://edition.cnn.com/2(...)ion-kasky/index.html

twitter:

realDonaldTrump twitterde op vrijdag 16-02-2018 om 15:37:56 I will be leaving for Florida today to meet with some of the bravest people on earth - but people whose lives have been totally shattered. Am also working with Congress on many fronts. reageer retweet

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Op donderdag 15 februari 2018 17:05 schreef Monolith het volgende:

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Ach, dat is ook best zo als je een goede opleiding hebt genoten in Nederland en je daar in een beetje een fatsoelijke buurt woont hoor. In Amerika krijg je betere kansen als je maar aan de goede kant van de ongelijkheid staat.

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Op donderdag 15 februari 2018 19:32 schreef westwoodblvd het volgende:
Ben ik overigens de enige die denkt dat Donald al een tijdje niet meer zijn eigen tweets schrijft?

twitter:

realDonaldTrump twitterde op vrijdag 16-02-2018 om 15:49:54 Cannot believe how BADLY DACA recipients have been treated by the Democrats...totally abandoned! Republicans are still working hard. reageer retweet

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The Washington Post and the Partnership for Public Service, a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization, have been working together to track the status of 626 top jobs in the executive branch. This includes assistant secretaries, chief financial officers, general counsels, heads of agencies, ambassadors and other leadership positions that experts believe are critical for the federal government to function effectively. These represent about half of the roughly 1,200 positions that require Senate confirmation.

The White House likes to blame Congress for dragging its feet, but that’s only part of the story: As of this morning, there is no pending nominee for 245 of the 626 jobs we're tracking. Among them: deputy secretary at Treasury and Commerce, director of the Census, director of ATF, director of the Office on Violence Against Women at Justice and commissioner of the Social Security Administration.

At Veterans Affairs, no one has been tapped to be the undersecretary for health or benefits.

At the Transportation Department, there is not a nominee to be administrator of the Federal Highway Administration, Federal Transit Administration or National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

Trump has not submitted nominees to direct the National Park Service, Bureau of Land Management, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service or the U.S. Geological Survey. He has also not picked someone to be assistant secretary of Interior for fish, wildlife and parks.

Many of these jobs have “acting” directors, but these people aren’t fully empowered and cannot indefinitely stay in these roles without being confirmed by the Senate because of laws related to vacancies. The lack of permanence creates uncertainty and makes strategic planning difficult. It also makes it harder to manage career staff, who are less likely to follow orders they disagree with when they realize that their boss is a short-timer.

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twitter:

MittRomney twitterde op vrijdag 16-02-2018 om 14:19:48 I am running for United States Senate to serve the people of Utah and bring Utah's values to Washington. https://t.co/TDkas6gD2p reageer retweet

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Op vrijdag 16 februari 2018 16:48 schreef Kijkertje het volgende:

twitter:

MittRomney twitterde op vrijdag 16-02-2018 om 14:19:48 I am running for United States Senate to serve the people of Utah and bring Utah's values to Washington. https://t.co/TDkas6gD2p reageer retweet

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Encounters with an angry traveler in the Atlanta airport and other unruly critics prompted EPA security staff to recommend first-class travel for the administrator, the agency says.

EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt’s security team decided last year he should fly first class to avoid confrontations with angry individuals on planes and in airports, an agency official said Thursday as EPA sought to explain the chief’s penchant for pricey travel.

“He was approached in the airport numerous times, to the point of profanities being yelled at him and so forth,” Henry Barnet, director of the agency's Office of Criminal Enforcement, told POLITICO.

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Mark Corallo, former spokesperson for President Donald Trump’s legal team, spoke with Special Counsel Bob Mueller on Thursday for over two hours, two people familiar with the matter told The Daily Beast. He isn’t expected to go in for another interview, according to a person familiar with the matter. When he was in the White House, Corallo sparred with Hope Hicks, Jared Kushner, and Ivanka Trump. The New York Times reported last month that Corallo’s conversation with Mueller would likely involve topics related to potential obstruction of justice.

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"Mark Corallo [former spokesman for Trump's personal legal team] ... privately confiding [to Wolff] that he believed the meeting on Air Force One represented a likely obstruction of justice -- quit."

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Mr. Corallo is planning to tell Mr. Mueller about a previously undisclosed conference call with Mr. Trump and Hope Hicks, the White House communications director, according to the three people. Mr. Corallo planned to tell investigators that Ms. Hicks said during the call that emails written by Donald Trump Jr. before the Trump Tower meeting -- in which the younger Mr. Trump said he was eager to receive political dirt about Mrs. Clinton from the Russians -- "will never get out." That left Mr. Corallo with concerns that Ms. Hicks could be contemplating obstructing justice, the people said.

In a statement on Wednesday, a lawyer for Ms. Hicks strongly denied Mr. Corallo's allegations.

"As most reporters know, it's not my practice to comment in response to questions from the media. But this warrants a response," said the lawyer, Robert P. Trout. "She never said that. And the idea that Hope Hicks ever suggested that emails or other documents would be concealed or destroyed is completely false."

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Special Counsel Robert Mueller's office said Friday that a grand jury indicted 13 Russian nationals and three Russian entities for alleged interference in the 2016 presidential elections, during which they boosted the candidacy of Donald Trump.

The indictment says that the defendants by early to mid-2016 were "supporting the presidential campaign of then-candidate Donald J. Trump ... and disparaging Hillary Clinton."

The indictment said "the organization," known as the Internet Research Agency LLC, "sought, in part, to conduct what it called 'information warfare against the United States of America' through fictitious U.S. personas on social media platforms and other Internet-based media."

"By in or around May 2014, the organization's strategy included interfering with the 2016 U.S. presidential election, with the stated goal of "spread[ing] distrust towards the candidates and the political system in general," the indictment said.

An announcement from Mueller's office said that the government accuses all the defendants of conspiracy to defraud the United States.

Three defendants are charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud and bank fraud.

Five defendants are charged with aggravated identity theft.

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Op vrijdag 16 februari 2018 19:11 schreef westwoodblvd het volgende:
Ben benieuwd of er in de indictments iets te vinden is over contact tussen de verdachten en Amerikanen. Want dat Rusland gestookt heeft in de verkiezingen was al wel duidelijk.

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Op vrijdag 16 februari 2018 19:16 schreef speknek het volgende:

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Contact ja. Maar voor nu nog unwitting individuals.

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https://mobile.twitter.com/user/status/964560879269433344

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Op vrijdag 16 februari 2018 19:16 schreef speknek het volgende:

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Contact ja. Maar voor nu nog unwitting individuals.

https://mobile.twitter.com/user/status/964560879269433344

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Op vrijdag 16 februari 2018 19:21 schreef Nintex het volgende:

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Jup, dit is praktisch vrijspraak voor de Trump campagne.

Opvallend ook dat de Russen zowel anti als pro Trump events organiseerden en met name Jill Stein probeerde te pushen.

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Op vrijdag 16 februari 2018 19:21 schreef Nintex het volgende:

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Jup, dit is praktisch vrijspraak voor de Trump campagne.

Opvallend ook dat de Russen zowel anti als pro Trump events organiseerden en met name Jill Stein probeerde te pushen.

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Op vrijdag 16 februari 2018 19:07 schreef Kijkertje het volgende:
Russians indicted in special counsel Robert Mueller's probe of election meddling to support Donald Trump

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Op vrijdag 16 februari 2018 19:31 schreef Szura het volgende:
Overigens weet die Mueller wel hoe je een bommetje gooit, z’n team zit werkelijk potdicht .

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Op vrijdag 16 februari 2018 19:32 schreef Nintex het volgende:
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Goddamn, dat troll niveau van die Russen.

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Op vrijdag 16 februari 2018 19:07 schreef speknek het volgende:
Mueller onthult aanklacht tegen 13 Russen vanwege inmenging in de verkiezingen. Gaat om leden van de St Peterburgse trollfarm IRA.

https://twitter.com/mkraju/status/964558562780381184

https://twitter.com/user/status/964557150038253570

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