White House

Over the past week a lot of digital ink has been spilled trying to preview and predict what will take place during Trump's first official mammoth visit abroad, when over the next 8 days after an overnight flight on Air Force One, Trump will hopscotch from Saudi Arabia to Israel to the Vatican. He’ll close his trip with a pair of summits in Brussels and Sicily. The stakes are great for Trump who makes his debut on the international stage: he’s the first president since Jimmy Carter to not travel abroad during his first 100 days in office.

After years of sexting scandals that cost him his marriage with Huma Abedin and potentially even cost Hillary the White House, disgraced former Democratic congressman and New York Mayoral candidate Anthony Weiner is set to appear in a federal courtroom in Manhattan today to enter a guilty plea for sexting with a minor.

According to the latest story sourced to the usual "several people briefed on the conversations", the NYT reports that "several White House advisers and personal associates of President Trump have urged him to hire an experienced outside lawyer" to assist on issues arising from the Russia controversy. The recommendations reportedly came even prior to a special counsel being named on Wednesday to lead the Russian collusion probe.

More details:

The Department of Justice has announced the appointment of former FBI Director Robert Mueller as Special Counsel to oversee the federal investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election, including potential collusion between Trump campaign associates and Russian officials.

Acting Attorney General Rod Rosenstein made the decision to appoint Mueller, the Justice Department told reporters Wednesday. It isn’t clear if Trump had a role in the decision, Bloomberg reported.

Israel Demands White House Explain Envoy’s Comment on Western Wall

reported by Jason Ditz

Here is a minuscule two-bit punk country demanding explanations from its sole protector and its sole benefactor. Amazing! Yet Washington trembles. Any American Diplomat Who States the Truth Is on Israel’s List to Be Out of a Job.