NRSC OOO
The National Republican Senate Committee has found itself under the microscope lately as the post-election finger-pointing intensifies. They have faced calls for a review of the GOP campaign arm’s spending, after chairman Senator Rick Scott blamed “unauthorized and improper bonuses” awarded to staff. Cockburn can’t help but wonder if the NRSC would be better prepared for this flurry of bad press had they not let their comms staff work remotely all summer…
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Holmes’s new sidekick
Elizabeth Holmes, the disgraced Theranos founder, has got herself a fanboy. Senator Cory Booker has written a letter to a judge advocating for a lenient sentence for Holmes, who faces up to twenty years in prison over her role in the blood testing firm that collapsed after its technology was revealed to be fraudulent.
The letter, which was as sweet and it was bizarre, sees Booker reflect on a time when the pair were “bonding at a dinner when we discovered we were both vegan — there was nothing to eat, and we shared a small bag of almonds.” The dinner in question followed a McCain Institute event in Sedona, Arizona, back in 2015. Cockburn understands the pair really hit it off… amazing how a shared love of nuts can bring friends together…
Trump, Lake and Bolsonaro Jr. in Mar-a-Lago tête-à-tête
Trump, Kari Lake, Bolsonaro – let’s go pic.twitter.com/1q5VHPApoC
— Kingsley Cortes (@KingsleyCortes) November 18, 2022
Donald Trump, Kari Lake and Eduardo Bolsonaro were spotted over what’s either a commiseration lunch for election losers — or a planning meeting for retaking power. Cockburn thinks he can also make out Trump’s former SBA chief Linda McMahon (wife of WWE founder Vince) and Boris Epshteyn, who has been linked with a Trump 2024 campaign role.
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Rupar’s Drag Race
“Independent journalist” Aaron Rupar wins the prize for this week’s most embarrassing tweet. Rupar, who spends his days ripping clips from right-wing networks and posting them on Twitter, complained when Mike Sington ripped a clip of Herschel Walker from a right wing network and posted it on Twitter: “this guy 👇 loves posting the exact same videos others have already posted without any attribution. pretty sleazy and i’m not the only one who has noticed it.” Sington replied, pointed out that the video clip was from One America News Network and asked what he should have done differently. Rupar’s response is phenomenal:
RT mine? i actually watched the speech, you lazily saw my video go viral and decided to rip it off for stolen valor. you do this all the time and people notice. give people credit for their work when it is due
RT mine? i actually watched the speech, you lazily saw my video go viral and decided to rip it off for stolen valor. you do this all the time and people notice. give people credit for their work when it is due
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) November 17, 2022
Not long after, Rupar teased that he may be leaving the platform, tweeting “if this is my very last tweet, i just gotta say one thing — I will never, ever, buy a Tesla.” Unfortunately, he’s back to tweeting again. Addiction is a terrible disease.
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Musk rats
Last night, Twitter alerted employees that all office buildings are temporarily closed and badge access is suspended. It’s been reported that Elon Musk and his team took that dramatic step due to fear that employees are going to “sabotage the company.” No Twitter employees have had their access to the building cut off so far — even those who’ve publicly resigned. Musk and his team made the mistake of only keeping tabs on the employees who said they want to be part of Twitter 2.0, so they’re still trying to track who has even left.
Also, see how SF locals really feel about the new Twitter boss.
Twitter's San Francisco headquarters has gone hardcore tonight. #TwitterTakeover pic.twitter.com/DoG5pDD4AD
— Muskrat McRatfu*ker needs to resign as CEO (@christoq) November 18, 2022
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Dog and RHONY show
The Real Housewives of New York’s Lizzy Savetsky has quit the reboot as she received antisemitic abuse following her announcement as a cast member. Savetsky describes herself as a “Proud Jew & Zionist 🇮🇱” in her Instagram bio. But Bravo are said to be concerned — as online abuse may not have been the sole reason for her departure. Cockburn’s source claims it was “horrendous how she was treated by a fellow cast member… Bravo is worried because she’s not some dumb reality star — she’s a well connected smart Jewish lady.”
