Too many choice nuggets to choose one quote; it's a really good read.

United Utah » Founders say other parties are too extreme; aim to participate in special election.

By Lee Davidson @ The Salt Lake Tribune, May 25

Some centrist Utah Republicans and Democrats — tired of dominance in their parties by the far right or left — formed Monday the new United Utah Party.

Former Utah County Democratic Chairman Richard Davis, a Brigham Young University political science professor, is chairman of the new organization. Its executive director is Jim Bennett, the son and campaign manager of the late three-term Republican U.S. Sen. Bob Bennett.

"We will be a party of the people who are frustrated with the extremism of the two major parties," Davis said at a state Capitol news conference. "We believe that voters want some kind of alternative."

He said the party hopes to gather the 2,000 signatures needed to qualify for the ballot by Friday and aims to participate in the special election to replace U.S. Rep. Jason Chaffetz, R-Utah.

"If we qualify for the ballot," he said, "we will have a candidate." [.....]

By Mike DeBonis @ WashingtonPost.com, May 26

Former House speaker John A. Boehner continued a streak of remarkable post-office candor during a Wednesday appearance at a Houston energy conference, telling a luncheon audience that President Trump’s term has — foreign policy aside — been a “complete disaster.”

“Everything else he’s done has been a complete disaster,” Boehner (R-Ohio) said, according to a report in Rigzone, an online energy publication. “He’s still learning how to be president.”

Boehner, who resigned from Congress in October 2015, had praised Trump — a friend and golfing companion from his political years — during the presidential campaign. On Wednesday, he praised Trump’s efforts at getting serious about combating the Islamic State terror group, Rigzone reported, but ended his positive comments there.

Among other remarks, Boehner said Trump should not be allowed to tweet, the publication said.

Dave Schnittger, an aide to Boehner, said Friday the remarks made at the KPMG Global Energy Conference were “reported accurately” by Rigzon [....]

Seems the folks in Washington getting clever. Flynn won't offer up documents personally? well, subpoena his company instead - companies aren't quite people too when it comes to resisting inquiries.

Same with FBI - much was made of Mueller's law firm's holding Jason Kushner as a client, which could prevent the FBI special counsel from investigating him without Congress waiving restrictions. But by talking to him as a non "Subject of Investigation", the FBI can continue looking around the edges without drawing fire for inappropriate expansion of the investigation.

The best thing? Kushner can hardly refuse without looking shady as all hell, and the chance that *that* would trigger official permission to expand Mueller's scope (or find a 2nd special counsel) is too delicious.

One thing about all this Russian influence - Americans are adapting to chess, not checkers.

@ Politico.com, May 25

Obama’s calculated but opaque opposition to Trump was on full display in Berlin

When they realized former President Barack Obama was going to be in Berlin the same day President Donald Trump was going to be in Brussels, Angela Merkel was the one who called the White House to break the news [....]

@ BBC News, May 25 2 minute video. The accusations are of sulphur mustard and chlorine.

The first use of chemical agents in the battle for Mosul was recorded by the International Red Cross in March, when mortars were fired from IS-held areas injuring 12 civilians.

According to accounts the BBC has obtained from Mosul residents, there were a number of other incidents over the past few weeks, where IS militants are suspected of using crude chemical gas against residents and Iraqi troops.

"RoseAnn DeMoro, the leader of the nurses, said something in her speech during the convention that I think is worth noting.  What she said was, there is not going to be consensus or unity for the sake of unity; that the Democrats have to show that they really are the party of the people. "

By Danielle Paquette @ Wonkblog @ washingtonpost.com

The company that President Trump pledged to keep on American soil informed the state of Indiana that it will soon begin cutting 632 workers from an Indianapolis factory. The manufacturing jobs will move to Monterrey, Mexico, where the minimum wage is $3.90.

What you’ve got are prominent media figures, political operatives, scholars, and even US senators being taken in by this stuff — in addition to the tens, if not hundreds, of thousands of ordinary people consuming it on Twitter and Facebook. These people, too, are letting their biases trump interest in factual accuracy.

This is the key danger: that this sort of thing becomes routine, repeated over and over again in left-leaning media outlets, to the point where accepting the Russiasphere’s fact-free claims becomes a core and important part of what Democrats believe.

“Normal people aren’t reading extensively about what Louise Mensch claims someone told her about Russia,” Nyhan says. “The question now is whether Democrats and their allies in the media — and other affiliated elites — will promote these conspiracy theories more aggressively.”

That’s how the GOP fell for conspiracy thinking during the Obama years. There’s nothing about Democratic psychology that prevents them from doing the same — which means the burden is on Democratic elites to correct it.