Former National Security Adviser John Bolton called the Conservative Political Action Conference’s (CPAC) straw poll results a “pathetic” showing for former President Donald Trump, who teased a possible 2024 run during his speech.

As Mediaite reported, the results from CPAC’s 2021 straw poll showed Trump would be the “preferred nominee of 55% of attendees.”

“But just to take CPAC, if this is the epitome of support for Trump, the straw poll that was taken this weekend and released just before Trump spoke, showed of all the participants 55% supported Trump being re-elected as president,” Bolton told CNN Newsroom anchor Pamela Brown.

“That is a pathetic figure,” he added. “I would have expected 90%. So if 55%, one month after leaving office at CPAC, is the best he can do, that’s a mark of how far he has fallen already.”

Watch above, via CNN.

Former President Donald Trump spitefully went through a list of Republican members he wants to vote out during his speech at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) on Sunday afternoon.

The lengthy list of GOP House members and Senators featured legislators who voted in favor of his second impeachment.

“Instead of attacking me and, more importantly, the voters of our movement, top establishment Republicans in Washington should be spending their energy in opposing [Joe] Biden, [Nancy] Pelosi, [Chuck] Schumer, and the Democrats,” Trump began.

The former president then encouraged all Republicans to stop “attacking” him and turn their energy to Democrats.

“I have said to some of them, during the Obama years and now during Biden, if you spent the same energy on attacking them, you would actually be successful. As you do on attacking me in many cases,” he continued.

Trump then listed GOP targets to beat in the U.S. Senate before moving on to names of House members.

“The Democrats don’t have grandstanders like Mitt Romney, little Ben Sasse, Richard Burr, Bill Cassidy, Susan Collins, Lisa Murkowski, Pat Toomey,” Trump stated.

“And in the House Tom Rice, Adam Kinzinger, Dan Newhouse, Anthony Gonzalez, that’s another beauty, Fred Upton, Jaime Herrera Beutler, Peter Meijer, John Katko, David Valadao, and of course the warmonger, a person that loves seeing our troops fighting, Liz Cheney.”

At the mention of Cheney, the CPAC crowd erupted in boos.

“The good news is, in her state she’s been censured and her poll numbers have dropped faster than any human being I’ve ever seen,” Trump added. “So hopefully, they will get rid of her with the next election.”

“Get rid of them all,” Trump exclaimed.

Trump did not target Mitch McConnell, who condemned his role in the Capitol attack but declined to vote to convict him, but later took credit for boosting the Kentucky senator with an endorsement for his 2020 re-election bid. The mention of McConnell also prompted loud boos from the CPAC crowd.

Watch above, via Fox News.

President Donald Trump continued to lie about the results of the 2020 elections — multiple times — during his big CPAC speech on Sunday.

To recap: the former president’s legal team was thrown out of court time after time after time, by many Republican-appointed and even Trump-appointed judges, but Trump kept pushing the false idea that he won the election and, in a particularly incendiary moment, said the election was stolen in the video he posted while the riots at the Capitol were happening.

As Trump absurdly claimed “this election was rigged and the Supreme Court and other courts didn’t want to do anything about it,” the CPAC crowd erupted in chants of “You won!”

Trump did not win.

Several other CPAC speakers have pushed the “big lie” about the election over the course of the weekend, including the CEO of Goya.

You can watch above, via Fox News.

Saturday Night Live’s Weekend Update took on the Covid relief bill that the House passed this week, comparing the $1.9 trillion estimated cost of the legislation to drunken spending.

“Well, just like me when I’m drunk, Congress decided to spend a bunch of money at 2:30 in the morning,” quipped anchor Colin Jost.

Jost scoffed at Republican criticism of the bill as a “liberal wish list,” saying that a real liberal wish list would be more like “avocado toast with Chrissy Teigen, free college for pets, and a hip-hop musical about Anderson Cooper starring Lin-Manuel Miranda.”

Jost’s co-anchor Michael Che chimed in to encourage Democrats to fight harder to make sure the bill passes.

“When Republicans lose the vote, they storm the Capitol,” said Che. “Why can’t y’all get that mad? Say what you will about a guy in a Viking helmet taking a dump in Nancy Pelosi’s desk, but he will not be ignored.”

Watch the video above, via NBC.

Saturday Night Live’s cold open mocked the rollout of the coronavirus vaccines by conducting a reality show competition — judged by Democrat governors who have botched their rollouts — called “So You Think You Can Get a Vaccine” to see who gets the shot first.

The game show was hosted by Kate McKinnon playing the role of Dr. Anthony Fauci.

“Hello. I’m America’s voice of reason and celebrity hall pass, for some reason,” the Fauci lookalike began. McKinnon then explained how the game would work.

“Getting the vaccine shouldn’t have to be a competition, but Americans will only want to get it if it means someone else can’t,” McKinnon added.

McKinnon then introduced the judges for the game show, which included Alex Moffatt playing Governor Gavin Newsom (D-CA), Cecily Strong impersonating Governor Gretchen Whitmer (D-MI), and Pete Davidson playing Governor Andrew Cuomo (D-NY).

SNL actors Ego Nwodom, Melissa Villasenor, Heidi Gardner, and Bowen Yang then showed up on set as everyday people seeking to get the vaccine.

The SNL cold open closed with McKinnon’s Fauci announcing that the power had gone out at the local CVS, so the vaccines were now “first come, first stab.”

Watch the full cold open above, via NBC.

Fox and Friends weekend host Pete Hegseth was brutally mocked on Twitter after claiming at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) that people he speaks with at diners across America are talking about the 10th Amendment.

As a quick reminder, the 10th Amendment delegates all powers not expressly reserved to the federal government to the states and the people, essentially serving as a check against the federal government from becoming too powerful.

“I sit down with a school teacher, or a construction worker, or a small business owner, or a cook at a restaurant, or a waitress at the restaurant we’re at,” Hegseth stated.

Pete Hegseth says that when he sits down with real Americans at diners across this nation, “they’re not talking about esoteric things that the Ivy League talks about.” They’re talking about things like the Bible, standing for the national anthem … and the 10th Amendment. pic.twitter.com/YELviZB1nH

— Right Wing Watch (@RightWingWatch) February 27, 2021

“And they’re not talking about esoteric things that the Ivy League talks about or MSNBC talks about. They’re talking about the Bible, and faith, and prayer, and their family, hard work, supporting the police, standing for the national anthem, the 1st Amendment, the 2nd Amendment, the 10th Amendment.”

Needless to say, many Twitter users were skeptical about how many folks were really hanging out at diners and discussing the finer points of this constitutional provision.

Fwiw we led our show last night with the fact the minimum wage is too low and it’s too hard to make ends meet for too many Americans. But maybe that’s more esoteric than the 10th amendment, I dunno. https://t.co/bgB66H9GDs

— Chris Hayes (@chrislhayes) February 27, 2021

“Real Americans” talk about the 10th Amendment? https://t.co/McdLqaaBm2

— Marc E. Elias (@marceelias) February 27, 2021

It’s true. When I go back to Arkansas and I’m eating at the local Denney’s, people simply can’t stop talking about the 10th Amendment and standing for the anthem. I ask what they think of the weather and they say the pledge of allegiance https://t.co/hdVCCzVBbx

— Jared Holt (@jaredlholt) February 27, 2021

Yeah the Cracker Barrel is always filled with people talking about the 10th Amendment that’s totally a real thing https://t.co/nphK6nHCoz

— Thor Benson (@thor_benson) February 27, 2021

$10 says that if you poll every single person sitting in any given bar, 90% of them cannot tell you what the 10th Amendment says without googling it. https://t.co/X0ZGAxawEv

— Jill Filipovic (@JillFilipovic) February 27, 2021

99.99% of Americans can’t tell you what the 10th Amendment is.

Also, Pete has degrees from 2 Ivy League schools https://t.co/xmGQqDzL7r

— Token White Dude (@tokenwhitedude) February 27, 2021

I was just saying to the lady bringing me my pancakes. “Man..how about that 10th Amendment?” She was like “right! Federalism is so important to me and my kids futures!”

I’m also lying like Pete.

— Fred Wellman (@FPWellman) February 27, 2021

Every time I’m in a Real American Diner, all the 10th amendment talk is honestly too much. Can’t even hear myself think! https://t.co/8pUpRdZdk4

— Scott Lincicome (@scottlincicome) February 28, 2021

Normal Americans are not sitting around discussing the intricacies of the 10th amendment Pete https://t.co/1pGe5ifdmU

— Jessica Huseman (@JessicaHuseman) February 28, 2021

Watch above, via Right Wing Watch.

CPAC via Instagram 

The Conservative Political Action Conference chairman Matt Schlapp strongly denied that CPAC’s stage in Orlando, Florida this year was designed to evoke any Nazi symbolism after many viral posts on Twitter accused the organization of modeling their stage after an “Odal rune” Nazi symbol.

2021 CPAC Stage

“Stage design conspiracies are outrageous and slanderous. We have a long-standing commitment to the Jewish community. Cancel culture extremists must address antisemitism within their own ranks. CPAC proudly stands with our Jewish allies, including those speaking from this stage,” Schlapp tweeted on Saturday night.

Stage design conspiracies are outrageous and slanderous. We have a long standing commitment to the Jewish community. Cancel culture extremists must address antisemitism within their own ranks. CPAC proudly stands with our Jewish allies, including those speaking from this stage.

— Matt Schlapp (@mschlapp) February 27, 2021

A fact check conducted by Snopes rated the claim “unproven,” as the outlet was “unable to verify at the time of this writing whether the allusion to the Nazi symbol was made intentionally or consciously by any CPAC organizers.”

As Mediaite’s sister site The Mary Sue reported, the “Odal rune dates back to ancient Germanic languages and symbolizes heritage, inheritance, or inherited estate.”

Less known than the swastika, the Odal rune dates back to ancient Germanic languages and symbolizes heritage, inheritance, or inherited estate. As the emblem of ethnic Germans (Volksdeutsche), the Odal rune appeared on the flag of the 7th SS Volunteer Mountain Division Prinz Eugen operating during World War II. The Odal rune was also prominently featured as a badge on SS uniforms, and has been co-opted by neo-Nazi groups, including the National Socialist Movement (NSM), across the globe.

A plethora of fiery tweets about the stage design have gone viral, since the start of the conference on Thursday afternoon:

Dear @Hyatt

Are you okay with Nazi symbols being used on your properties?

Because if you fail to speak out & do something about this immediately, I’ll be sure to no longer patronize any of your properties ever again. #CPAC2021 #CPACstage #CPACNazi pic.twitter.com/beFauYAMwO

— Sari Beth Rosenberg (@saribethrose) February 27, 2021

The #CPAC stage is designed to be a rune used by the Nazis. Curious if @Hyatt is okay with Nazi symbols being used on their properties like this? pic.twitter.com/D0332vKKoN

— Morgan J. Freeman (@mjfree) February 27, 2021

The stage at CPAC is literally a Nazi symbol, and I can’t say I’m even surprised anymore. pic.twitter.com/v4hLCPQ3D7

— Santiago Mayer (@santiagomayer_) February 26, 2021

Is anyone really shocked that the #CPAC stage is in a shape of a Nazi SS symbol pic.twitter.com/WpJjIPD7xR

— Wu-Tang Is For The Children (@WUTangKids) February 26, 2021

A short thread on #CPAC2021‘s unusual stage, which is clearly in the shape of a well known Nazi symbol.

It is also a symbol in use today by American extremists.

Matt Schlapp and the CPAC leadership need to explain how this could have happened. https://t.co/TW9r8JXY9q

— Simon Rosenberg (@SimonWDC) February 27, 2021

Drew Angerer/Getty Images

Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D-NY) is now being accused of sexual harassment by a second former aide, according to a report by the New York Times.

Earlier this week, Lindsey Boylan published a lengthy post on Medium describing her tenure as the chief of staff for the state’s economic development agency, and accusing Cuomo of multiple incidents of sexual harassment, including telling her he had a “crush” on her, suggesting they play strip poker during a flight, giving her an uninvited kiss on the lips, and other inappropriate comments and actions.

Cuomo denied Boylan’s allegations.

Saturday, the Times published an interview with Charlotte Bennett, who served as an executive assistant and health policy adviser in the Cuomo administration until she left in November, in which she too alleged multiple instances where the governor had sexually harassed her:

Ms. Bennett, 25, said the most unsettling episode occurred on June 5, when she was alone with Mr. Cuomo in his State Capitol office. In a series of interviews this week, she said the governor had asked her numerous questions about her personal life, including whether she thought age made a difference in romantic relationships, and had said that he was open to relationships with women in their 20s — comments she interpreted as clear overtures to a sexual relationship.

Bennett also said that Cuomo had complained about being “lonely” during the pandemic, since he “can’t even hug anyone,” and then asked Bennett who was the last person she hugged. Bennett  demurred, saying that she missed hugging her parents, but Cuomo kept pressing. He never actually tried to touch her, she was careful to note, but his intentions were unmistakable.

“I understood that the governor wanted to sleep with me, and felt horribly uncomfortable and scared,” Bennett told the Times. “And was wondering how I was going to get out of it and assumed it was the end of my job.”

Bennett described other interactions with Cuomo as what she now felt was “grooming” her, including asking repeated personal questions like “whether she was romantically involved, whether she was monogamous in her relationships and whether she had ever had sex with older men.”

Cuomo has denied anything inappropriate happened with Bennett.

Read the full article at the New York Times.

Congressman Paul Gosar (R-AZ) has had quite the weekend. He spoke Friday night at Unite the Right attendee Nicholas Fuentes’ white nationalist “America First Political Action Conference” (AFPAC), then he claimed to denounce “white racism” on the main stage of the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) Saturday morning, and finally concluded Saturday by meeting with Fuentes where the two snapped a photo together.

On Saturday morning at CPAC, Gosar attempted to distance himself from his Friday night keynote address at Fuentes’ AFPAC event. Both conferences are being held in Orlando, Florida.

“Before I get to that, I want to tell you: I denounce when we talk about white racism. That’s not appropriate,” Gosar told CPAC chairman Matt Schlapp’s wife, Mercedes Schlapp.

Following his CPAC speech, the congressman confirmed to The Washington Post that he was, in fact, denouncing Fuentes and his white nationalist gathering. The very same gathering where he spoke less than twelve hours before.

“He said later that he was referring to Friday night’s America First Political Action Conference, organized by 22-year-old online commentator Nick Fuentes, who rallied rioters outside the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6,” The Washington Post’s David Weigel reported. 

That said, shortly after Gosar claimed to denounce Fuentes, the congressman had a one-on-one meeting with him.

Rep. Paul Gosar, after speaking at AFPAC on Friday night, and then saying he denounces “white racism” at CPAC on Saturday morning, is now meeting with white nationalist and Unite the Right attendee Nick Fuentes with a CPAC lanyard around his neck. pic.twitter.com/Dv0XIEqtaJ

— Zachary Petrizzo (@ZTPetrizzo) February 27, 2021

“Great meeting with today with Congressman Gosar! America is truly uncancelled,” Fuentes tweeted on Saturday afternoon, with a photo attached of himself and Gosar, appearing to be having coffee together.

The Conservative Political Action Conference and CPAC communications director Ian Walters didn’t respond to multiple requests for comment from Mediaite regarding if Gosar remains welcomed at CPAC after meeting with Fuentes on Saturday afternoon.

Fuentes and Gosar’s office didn’t return Mediaite’s request for comment on Saturday evening.

White nationalist “groypers,” Fuentes’ followers, aren’t a new problem for CPAC. One of Fuentes’ followers, Jaden McNeil, who is best known for posting racist jokes online about George Floyd, was welcomed at CPAC before he was apparently kicked out on Friday. One of CPAC’s “participating sponsors” was also sponsoring Fuentes’ event.

Read the rest of this entry »

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) authorized the Johnson & Johnson Covid-19 vaccine for emergency use on Saturday, according to a report by CNN. This is now the third vaccine approved for emergency use authorization (EUA), after ones developed by Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna.

The FDA’s authorization follows a day after an advisory panel unanimously recommended that the vaccine receive approval.

The Johnson & Johnson vaccine only requires one dose and does not require extremely cold storage, unlike the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines, and therefore should be easier to administer.

Dr. Esther Choo told CNN’s Pamela Brown that the approval of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine was “really great news,” since this new vaccine “still has an outstanding safety profile and has the added benefit of tremendous convenience,” which will avoid some of the “huge logistical challenges” of the two-dose vaccines that require special storage and handling.

Johnson & Johnson reportedly has several million doses ready to ship and begin administering as early as next week, and Choo said that the expectations were that the pharmaceutical company would be able to quickly ramp up production to provide about 40 million doses by the end of March.

Choo also addressed the lower effectiveness rate of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine in clinical studies, noting that it had been subjected to more stressful factors (and a likely more virulent strain of coronavirus) than the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines. Nonetheless, Choo declared Johnson & Johnson’s product to be “an outstanding vaccine,” highlighting how it had shown 100 percent effectiveness in preventing death and hospitalization.

Watch the video above, via CNN.

Fox News had a strong showing in the valuable demographic of viewers age 25-54 across key dayparts Thursday, while MSNBC was most-watched overall in total day and early morning.

MSNBC averaged 1.560 million total viewers Thursday, with 216,000 in the A25-54 demo. Fox was a very close second, with 1.555 million total viewers, and was first in the demo, with 251,000 – marking the network’s largest post-election total day win in the demo. CNN was third in total day, averaging 1.05 million total viewers and 233,000 in the demo, according to data from Nielsen.

Prime time belonged to Fox, which averaged 2.83 million total viewers, and dominated in the demo, with 481,000. MSNBC was second, with 2.55 million total viewers and 381,000 in the demo. CNN averaged 1.54 million total viewers and 345,000 in the demo Thursday.

Tucker Carlson Tonight was the most-watched show in all of cable in total viewers and in the demo, with 3.41 million total viewers and 572,000 in the demo. The Rachel Maddow Show was second in total viewers, with 3.24 million, and third in the demo, with 482,000. Hannity was third in total viewers, with 2.96 million, and second in the demo, with 499,000.

Morning Joe on MSNBC had the most viewers in the early morning, with 1.38 million, and 177,000 in the demo. Fox and Friends averaged 1.19 million total viewers, and won the demo with 200,000. CNN’s New Day was third, averaging 649,000 total viewers and 136,000 in the demo.

CNN’s Erin Burnett questioned White House communications director Kate Bedingfield Friday over the Biden administration not sanctioning Saudi crown prince Mohammed bin Salman directly over the murder of Jamal Khashoggi.

The Treasury Department announced sanctions in connection with Khashoggi’s murder, but no direct consequences for the crown prince in particular.

Burnett asked, “Why is this? Does this send a message to the world that the U.S. will tolerate this?”

Bedingfield said no and responded that Biden has made clear he wants to have a “very different relationship” with Saudi Arabia from the previous administration.

“The fact of the release of this report today is one step forward in that way. It’s one step toward his commitment to transparency and accountability by making this information by making this information available,” she added.

Burnett then brought up comments Biden made in 2019, in which the then-presidential candidate said, “Khashoggi was, in fact, murder and dismembered. And I believe in the order of the crown prince. And I would make it very clear weere not going to in fact sell more weapons to them. We were going to in fact make them pay the price and make them in fact the pariah that they are. There’s very little social redeeming value in the present government in Saudi Arabia… They have to be held accountable.”

“He’s not making them a pariah. What’s changed?” Burnett asked.

Bedingfield said the Biden administration has “made clear” to the Saudi government that “this will not be tolerated.”

You can watch above, via CNN.

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