My review of Netflix's "Dirty Money" S1

If there's a topic I'm interested in, Netflix's "Dirty Money" deals with it: the drugwar in Mexico, corrupt bankers & payday lenders, destruction of the environment in the name of profit, Donald Trump the con-man, etc.

Most importantly, if you'd like to know topics are being explained to you cognizant of the fact the content-maker doesn't have to worry about insulting potential advertisers (because it's Netflix), then this is the series for you. In addition, the title song is by "Run the Jewels" one of the few rap groups I still listen to.

The first episode is "Hard NOx". It deals with the VW scandal & provides new perspective on the "defeat devices" which were installed on the German manufacturer's cars. 

Like most everyone else, I take my car to pass emissions every two years & if my current car manufacturer had done the same thing as VW, I'd be just as angry as this episode's director (Alex Gibney). California's Air Resource Board (CARB) was instrumental in finding out about the cheating yet the Trump administration wants to undermine it; no surprises there. What is surprising is how lax European regulators are towards car manufacturers who are causing massive air pollution in their continent. Although things may be changing (hopefully) as reported by the NYTimes today:

https://www.nytimes.com/2018/01/30/business/energy-environment/german-carmakers-diesel-monkeys.html
"FRANKFURT — Volkswagen suspended its chief lobbyist on Tuesday amid a growing furor over revelations that the company and other German carmakers had financed experiments on monkeys as part of an effort to play down the health hazards of diesel exhaust."

Another important episode is "Cartel Bank". Of course, since the episode deals with HSBC's corruption & money-laundering for Mexican drug cartels, it hits close to home for me because my family is from Mexico. Therefore, I worry about the safety of Mexicans. However, this episode makes it very clear about the lack of concern the U.S. government has in truly punishing financial institutions who do business with drug cartels.

Then there's the "Payday" episode, about payday lenders utilizing abusively high-interest rates & hidden fees to take advantage of working-class & poor people. The episode focuses on Scott Tucker who was recently sentenced to 16 years in prison:

"Scott Tucker sentenced to over 16 years in prison for exploiting struggling Americans"

http://www.espn.com/auto/story/_/id/21974101/pro-racecar-driver-scott-tucker-gets-16-years-prison-exploiting-struggling-americans

The episode "Drug short" confirms everything bad you thought you knew about pharmaceutical companies & their lack of concern for struggling people who can't afford their medicine. Again, pharmaceutical companies wanting to impress Wall Street by hiking prices in order for their stock to rise will anger most everybody. 

There's also "The Maple Syrup Heist" about the robbery of $18 million worth of syrup. I wasn't that interested in that particular episode to tell you the truth but it was nevertheless interesting. Independent producers versus BigSyrup (?). I'm sure there's more to this particular episode but I may not have been paying attention: sorry.

Finally, the topic of Trump and his many failed businesses, bankruptcies, potential links to organized crime (& of course the Russians) is thoroughly examined in "The Confidence Man" (con-man). Which is one of the most interesting episodes because it deals with our current charlatan leader. Go watch it. 

Trump tried to fire Mueller back in june. Also... remember Stormy Daniels?

I started this particular blog post to write about Stormy Daniels (of all people), but then news broke about #TrumpRussia.

To be honest, I don't follow the #TrumpRussia investigation (that much) except on days like today. Tonight, the NYTimes reports Trump tried to fire Mueller last summer:
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/01/25/us/politics/trump-mueller-special-counsel-russia.html

"WASHINGTON — President Trump ordered the firing last June of Robert S. Mueller III, the special counsel overseeing the Russia investigation, according to four people told of the matter, but ultimately backed down after the White House counsel threatened to resign rather than carry out the directive."

So, let's try to think back to June 2017: what was going on? 
Let's see: Comey gave his testimony on 6-8-2017:
"Read Comey's prepared testimony"
https://www.cnn.com/2017/06/07/politics/james-comey-memos-testimony/index.html

Also, Mueller hired a criminal prosecutor on 6-9-2017:
"Top Criminal law expert joins special counsel Robert Mueller's Russia probe"
https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/top-criminal-law-expert-joins-special-counsel-robert-muellers-russia-probe/2017/06/09/daafb86e-4d45-11e7-bc1b-fddbd8359dee_story.html

Furthermore, news broke on 6-14-2017 that Trump was being investigated for obstruction of justice:
"Trump investigated for obstructing justice: Report"
http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/trump-being-investigated-for-obstructing-justice-report/article/2626030

Obviously, in my own scientific analysis of today's news, Trump was freaking-out back in june '17 thus he decided to fire Mueller. The NYTimes explains it more accurately:
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/01/25/us/politics/trump-mueller-special-counsel-russia.html
"Amid the first wave of news media reports that Mr. Mueller was examining a possible obstruction case, the president began to argue that Mr. Mueller had three conflicts of interest that disqualified him from overseeing the investigation, two of the people said."

Nothing about Trump's actions surprise me anymore. His sense of self-preservation "trumps" everything at the expense of being socially acceptable to the majority of Americans.

Recently (segue into Stormy Daniels story), I saw a comment which essentially stated:"imagine if Obama had paid off a porn star". The difference with Obama (or even W. Bush for that matter) is that he was someone you actually respected (even if you didn't agree with him) & couldn't picture paying off a porn star. But with Trump, of course you could picture him paying off a porn star: why not?

There's been a barrage of news about Trump (hard to keep up), each article more incredible than the last. But I gotta say, the porn-star news did catch me off guard for a moment when I first heard about it. But then I thought; of course Trump is involved in the porn world: Trump acts like an immature teenager (sorry to teenagers) using nicknames like "lyin' Ted", "sloppy Steve", etc. Therefore, like an immature teenager, Trump likes porn stars.

However, as ridiculous (but believable) as it sounds to have a president who was involved with a porn star, tonight's news are just as unsurprising. Because, of course Trump tried to fire Mueller: why not? 

My review of Netflix's "Mindhunter" S1 (Spoilers)

I've always liked looking at family pictures from the 1970's. The way my family dressed & looked back in those days always seemed interesting to me. The new Netflix series "Mindhunter" gets that seventies look right, the cars, the furniture, the music, the clothes. Even the movies, since there's a movie within a TV series when the main character & his girlfriend watch "Dog Day Afternoon" in a theater. 

The main character in "Mindhunter" is a young (single) FBI agent named Holden Groff. 
Groff's starting his career at the FBI, and has ambition to advance in his study of criminal behavior. 

The other main character is an older (married) FBI tough-guy-type named Bill Tench. 
Tench is consumed by his work, and he tries to lead a normal life in the suburbs with his wife and an adopted child who's always quiet. 

The series centers around Groff and Tench having conversations with serial-killers (a denomination which they apparently coined) to better understand these killers' sick mind.
The first serial killer interviewed, Edmund Kemper, is a nightmare, his crimes unbelievable: 
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edmund_Kemper
"Edmund Emil Kemper III (born December 18, 1948) is an American serial killer. He committed the murder of ten people, including his paternal grandparents and mother. He regularly engaged in necrophilia and claimed to haveconsumed the flesh of at least one of his victims, but later retracted this confession."

But in conversations with Groff & Tench, Kemper turns out to be a "chatty Kathy". Nevertheless, the fear in just a moment of silence or a dead stare from this killer is enough to remind you of the monster within.

The main female characters are Wendy and Debbie.
After the success of Kemper's interviews, we are introduced to brilliant professor Wendy who joins the FBI's effort to study serial killers.
The other main female character is Debbie, a smart college-age young woman who becomes Groff's girlfriend.

The second serial killer interviewed by Groff & Tench, is Monte Rissell, a young guy, who the older FBI agent Tench, has no patience for: 
http://murderpedia.org/male.R/r/rissell-monte.htm

"Yet another rapist-murderer, Monte Rissell killed five women in Alexandria, Virginia. A sexual deviant at a very early age, Rissell committed his first rapes at the unbelievably young age of only 14.

Arrested for one of his crimes while still in High School, Rissell was sent to an institution. It didn't stop him and he fooled his counselors into thinking he was improving as he continued to rape women during short escapes and once even in the institution's parking lot.

With this accelerated violent steak it is little wonder that he began to kill much earlier than most serial killers. His first kill occurred after a rape near his own apartment complex and took place when he was just 18."

The third serial killer interviewed, is Brudos (who somehow denies all his crimes): 
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jerry_Brudos
"Jerome Henry "Jerry" Brudos (January 31, 1939 – March 28, 2006) was an American serial killer and necrophiliac who committed the murders of at least four women in Oregon between 1968 and 1969."

Groff gives a pair of stilettos as a gift to Brudos. Seems Brudos is a transvestite, which seems one of the reason for his many crimes until Wendy educates the audience (us viewers) about transvestism which is obviously not the cause. Wendy appears knowledgeable about gender identity because she's a lesbian which seems to be something to be kept quiet back in the seventies.    

The fourth killer is Richard Speck: 
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Speck

Richard Benjamin Speck^[1] (December 6, 1941 – December 5, 1991) was an American mass murderer who systematically tortured, raped, and murdered eight student nurses from South Chicago Community Hospital on the night of July 13–14, 1966.

He was sentenced to death, but the sentence was later overturned due to issues with jury selection at his trial. Speck died of a heart attack after 25 years in prison. 

Speck is a loathsome character. Groff gets in trouble (trouble which will probably manifest itself in the second season) when he uses profanity demeaning to women in order to develop rapport with Speck.  

The last killer is:
Darrell Gene DEVIER Sr.
http://murderpedia.org/male.D/d1/devier-darrel-gene.htm

I've never liked watching serial killer movies or TV shows. But this series is different. "Mindhunter" makes it painfully clear about the danger women & girls face in this country & in this world. A fear and danger Groff is forced to feel in the final moments of the first season. 
Excellent series & no gratuitous violence or blood to achieve ultimate fear & discomfort. Although, words can be just as excruciating, I even had to stop watching (until the next day) when Groff (developing rapport again) was interrogating the last killer who murdered a twelve-year-old girl.

Government shutdown to end. Because...Democrats trust McConnell will keep his word (?)

Senate majority leader republican Mitch McConnell is not known for keeping his word. Just ask his fellow republican senator Susan Collins: 

http://thehill.com/homenews/senate/365822-collins-lets-mcconnell-slide-on-promise-to-shore-up-insurance-markets-in-2017

"Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine), in the face of staunch GOP opposition, is letting Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) slide away from his promise to pass legislation stabilizing health insurance premiums before year’s end."

Nevertheless, (despite being aware of the aforementioned fact) senate democrats are willing to trust McConnell: 

https://www.nytimes.com/2018/01/22/us/politics/government-shutdown.html
"The Senate voted 81-18 on Monday to end the three-day old government shutdown, with Democrats joining Republicans to clear the way for the passage of a short-term spending package that would fund the government through February 8 in exchange for a promise from Republican leaders to address the fate of young, undocumented immigrants known as Dreamers."

I feel really bad for the dreamers & their families. This is the only home they've ever known. & they ended up the same way they started. So in effect, it appears the democrats' efforts were for nothing. Don't get me wrong, I know this was a difficult task for the democratic party. This CNN poll did real damage to the Democrats' cause in regards to DACA:

https://www.cnn.com/2018/01/19/politics/cnn-poll-shutdown-trump-immigration-daca/index.html
"Washington (CNN) With hours to go before a midnight deadline for Congress to fund the government or shut it down, most Americans say avoiding a shutdown is more important than passing a bill to maintain the program allowing people brought to the US illegally as children to stay, according to a new CNN poll conducted by SSRS."

A republican relative (who always watches FoxNews & calls CNN "fake news") reminded me about the CNN poll when we were discussing the issue this past weekend (I was pro-DACA, he was against). It is what it is; we can only hope the democrats have a better strategy next month (however unlikely that is). But at the end of the day, this is all Donald Trump's fault: he's the one who in effect ended DACA. One positive outcome out of this mess; at least CHIP (benefiting 9 million kids) will be funded for the next six years:

https://www.vox.com/2018/1/22/16919640/chip-funding-congress-shutdown

"The Senate is expected to pass Monday 

a bill extending the Children’s Health 

Insurance Program for an additional 

six years, likely ending a funding 

crisis that has plagued the state-run 

health plan for the last four months."

Will the government shut down tonight?

"Shut down the government" is easy for me to say, because I am not a federal employee. But if you're a person with any common sense, you will worry about the real-life implications of a shutdown. For example: what are gonna be the consequences for families who depend on the government employees affected? 

I remember when Obama was president, the right-wing couldn't wait for the government to shut down. But now that Trump is president, the right-wing is not so sure.

As for Trump himself, yesterday it was clear he didn't know what the hell was going on. Trump actually tweeted against the GOP short-term spending bill:

https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2018/01/congress-trump-house-vote-shutdown/550871/
"The bigger drama for much of the day was whether a collection of defense hawks, along with conservatives in the House Freedom Caucus, would band together to sink the bill on the Republican side. Complicating the leadership’s effort was Trump himself, who tweeted in the morning his opposition to including a long-term extension of CHIP in a short-term spending bill. The White House was later forced to clarify that the president supported passage of the bill to avert a shutdown."

In addition, Trump & the GOP want to blame it all on... Senate minority leader Chuck Schumer? However, we all know republicans (& their factions) control all levers of power. "The Editorial Board of the "Boston Globe" put it best: 
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/01/19/us/politics/right-left-react-government-shutdown.html

The Editorial Board of The Boston Globe:

“The real problem seems to be that G.O.P. factions — deficit hawks, military hawks, Tea Party zealots, pro- and anti-immigrant legislators, President Trump’s various personalities — can’t agree on a deal among themselves.”

Besides the actual CHIP program, we all know DACA is another bargaining chip. Unfortunately, if a government shutdown doesn't kill DACA, the Trump administration's DOJ is asking the supreme court to do it: 

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/politics/ct-trump-immigration-daca-20180116-story.html
"The Justice Department on Tuesday said it would take the "rare step" of asking the Supreme Court to overturn a judge's ruling and allow the Trump administration to dismantle a program that provides work permits to undocumented immigrants raised in the United States."

Less than three hours from a government shutdown, we'll see who blinks first.

DACA negotiations & government shutdown

Yet again, following Trump's "shithole countries" comment, it appears the government will soon shut down:

"As Shutdown Talk Rises, Trump’s Immigration Words Pose Risks for Both Parties"

https://www.nytimes.com/2018/01/15/us/politics/trump-immigration-shithole-government-shutdown.html

"WASHINGTON — President Trump’s incendiary words about immigration have dampened the prospects that a broad spending and immigration deal can be reached by the end of the week, raising the possibility of a government shutdown with unknown political consequences for lawmakers in both parties."

The fact the government is headed for a shutdown is unbelievable, especially because Trump had said he'd support a bipartisan deal. & for a moment, it seemed republican senator Graham & democratic senator Durbin had actually reached a bipartisan deal on DACA:

https://www.politico.com/story/2018/01/11/dreamers-deal-reached-but-trump-has-yet-to-sign-off-336501

"The package negotiated by the senators includes $2.7 billion for border security, which includes Trump's $1.6 billion request for wall planning and construction, as well as $1.1 billion for security infrastructure and technology, three sources directly familiar with the negotiations confirmed to POLITICO.

The legislation would also include a 12-year pathway to citizenship for Dreamers, although people who have already been approved for the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program would have effectively a 10-year path because they would get two years of credit for holding DACA permits, sources said.
The plan would also delay green card holders from being able to sponsor their adult children until they obtain citizenship, according to three sources. That's a population of about 26,000 people who would have to wait longer until they could be sponsored for permanent residency, one of the people said."


I don't agree with $1.6 billion for a wall when that money can just be added to the technology budget for modern security like drones, cameras, radars, etc. In addition, the changes to immigration policy will be detrimental to people who are already waiting for legalization & who plan on legalizing their family. It really does appear republicans want to drive a wedge between current legal residents & dreamers. 
Even so, despite the heavy cost of approving DACA, democrats were willing to hesitantly cut a deal. 

However, it seems Trump just doesn't want to approve DACA at all, thus he's making all kinds of excuses. However, it'd be a risky move by Trump. Because blaming the democrats for a shutdown will seem ridiculous when you take into account republicans control the presidency, the senate, and the house of representatives.

Sunday's games: Jaguars vs Steelers/Saints vs Vikings

Jaguars vs Steelers final score: Jacksonville 45, Pittsburgh 42.
Here's what the press was saying last week:

http://www.nj.com/sports/index.ssf/2018/01/nfl_playoffs_picks_predictions_for_jaguars_vs_stee.html

"The Jaguars are led by head coach Doug Marrone, quarterback Blake Bortles, and cornerback Jalen Ramsey. Jacksonville comes into the game off a Wild-Card weekend victory over the Buffalo Bills.

The Steelers are led by head coach Mike Tomlin, quarterback Ben Roethlisberger and running back Le'Veon Bell. Pittsburgh qualified for the postseason by winning the AFC North and earning the No. 2 seed in the AFC.

Here's how our experts see the game playing out..."

http://www.espn.com/blog/jacksonville-jaguars/post/_/id/24369/jaguars-get-rematch-of-october-blowout-over-steelers-in-divisional-playoff-game"...the Jaguars have won in Heinz Field this season, beating the Steelers 30-9 in October. They intercepted Ben Roethlisbergerfive times and returned two for touchdowns, and Fournette had his best day as a pro, rushing for 181 yards and a touchdown – a 90-yarder on his 27th carry."

In conclusion, I had bet on the Jaguars last week & won, thus I was inclined to bet on them again. But since the Jaguars had beaten them before, I thought the Steelers would be determined not to lose again, especially since they'd have a healthy Antonio Brown back. But I was wrong (sorry for sounding bitter):

"Jaguars Upset Steelers, Continuing an N.F.L. Season of Surprise" https://www.nytimes.com/2018/01/14/sports/jaguars-beat-steelers.html

"PITTSBURGH — In an endlessly surprising year for the N.F.L., filled with attacks on the league from a sitting president, a politically charged debate over the national anthem, and more controversy over the league’s handling of its concussion protocol, perhaps what happened here Sunday on a frigid afternoon was only fitting.

The Jacksonville Jaguars, a franchise that had not won a division title since Bill Clinton was president, upset the Pittsburgh Steelers..."

Saints vs Vikings final score: New Orleans 24, Minnesota 29.
Here's what the press was saying last week:

https://www.cbssports.com/nfl/news/2018-nfl-playoff-odds-picks-saints-stun-vikings-patriots-roll-in-divisional-round/

"In Week 1, the Vikings beat the Saints 29-19 in a game that felt like a blowout, mainly because Minnesota was leading 29-12 before New Orleans scored a garbage-time touchdown in the final two minutes. 

The biggest difference this week for the Saints is that Sean Payton isn't going to have to spend half the game arguing with Adrian Peterson about playing time. I didn't keep a tally, but I'm pretty sure Payton spent more time yelling at Peterson than he did coaching back in Week 1." 
https://fansided.com/2018/01/11/saints-vikings-picks-predictions-odds/
"Minnesota is the No. 2 seed in the NFC playoffs. The Vikings were on bye last week, but will play at home this week against a team they already beat in Week 1 of the season. To be fair, the Saints and Vikings are completely different teams since they last played in September. The Saints now have a defense and the Vikings are winging a ton of games with Case Keenum as their starting quarterback."

In conclusion, I had also bet on the Saints last week & won. However, since they'd already beaten New Orleans before, and since the Vikings would be playing at home, I thought Minnesota would be more likely to win. & they did. But it was never a sure thing, I thought Minnesota had lost the game more than a few times. & the last few seconds of the game were very dramatic, won by "the first fourth-quarter, walk-off touchdown in NFL playoff history".

Here's the inside story from ESPN on the play "that saved the Vikings' season": 
http://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/22102295/inside-play-saved-minnesota-vikings-season-crushed-new-orleans-saints

Which team will win today? Saturday's games: Titans vs Patriots/Falcons vs Eagles

Titans vs Patriots will be broadcast today at 8:15pm Eastern time (CBS).
Here's what the press is saying:
http://www.sportingnews.com/nfl/news/nfl-playoffs-picks-patriots-vs-titans-predictions-odds-point-spread-line-divisional-round-game/lj661grsdf621w403o3paqtkc
"The Titans’ upset of the Chiefs disrupted the anticipated rematch of the prime-time NFL season opener that Kansas City won at New England. The Patriots not only have a respite from the chess match with the Chiefs offense, but any chance of them taking the Titans lightly was erased by the explosive ESPN story about dissension involving Brady, Bill Belichick and Robert Kraft. The idea of bulletin-board material seems foolish under these circumstances, but never underestimate the tools Belichick and Brady can use to sharpen their focus. It should be razor-sharp here."

In conclusion, I already bet against the Titans last week & lost. Titan's quarteback Mariota's TD pass to himself made the difference & reinvigorated Tennessee resulting in a victory I didn't see coming:

"Here is why Marcus Mariota’s TD pass to himself vs. Chiefs was legal"

http://www.kansascity.com/sports/spt-columns-blogs/for-petes-sake/article193380959.html

Nevertheless, Patriots still have the best record. Therefore, I think Tennessee is just delaying the inevitable & New England will win.

Falcons vs Eagles will be broadcast today at 4:35pm Eastern time (NBC).
Here's what the press is saying:
http://www.myajc.com/sports/football/falcons-eagles-playoffs-the-good-the-bad-and-the-ugly/1XqI5F22coWIyhM7IlgWoN/

"The Falcons and Eagles will meet for the fourth time in the postseason in a NFC Divisional Round playoff game on Saturday.

The Eagles hold a 2-1 edge, winning both games played in Philadelphia."
http://www.sportingnews.com/nfl/news/nfl-playoffs-falcons-vs-eagles-picks-predictions-odds-point-spread-line-divisional-round-game/23flkikw2cpz1xyj8sgovctpo
"The Falcons, after upsetting the Rams in the wild-card round, are the favorites to beat the top-seeded Eagles in Saturday's divisional playoff matchup in Philadelphia. The Falcons, however, will try to shake off some recent struggles in this matchup to live up to that surprising status."

http://www.espn.com/blog/philadelphia-eagles/post/_/id/23751/eagles-jay-ajayi-getting-j-train-cranked-up-for-falcons

"PHILADELPHIA -- The Philadelphia Eagles have not only the blueprint to beat the Atlanta Falcons but also the running back to see those plans through.

Jay Ajayi was by far the most effective back against Atlanta this season, rushing for 130 yards on 26 carries in Week 6 while still with the Miami Dolphins. That's 54 yards more than anyone else logged against the Falcons' defense (Buffalo's LeSean McCoy, New England's Dion Lewis and Minnesota'sLatavius Murray each ran for 76 yards against the Falcons."

In conclusion, I also bet against the Falcons last week & lost. Eagles have the best record but at this point that doesn't mean anything if the Falcons have momentum. Thus I believe Atlanta will win a very close game.

Trump asks: "why are we having all these people from shithole countries come here?"

Every week it's something or other with Trump. Yesterday, the Washingon Post reported the following:

https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/trump-attacks-protections-for-immigrants-from-shithole-countries-in-oval-office-meeting/2018/01/11/bfc0725c-f711-11e7-91af-31ac729add94_story.html

"President Trump grew frustrated with lawmakers Thursday in the Oval Office when they floated restoring protections for immigrants from Haiti, El Salvador and African countries as part of a bipartisan immigration deal, according to two people briefed on the meeting.

“Why are we having all these people from shithole countries come here?” Trump said, according to these people, referring to African countries and Haiti. He then suggested that the United States should instead bring more people from countries like Norway, whose prime minister he met Wednesday."

Obviously, I'm not a wordsmith. However, if I was in a professional setting, I'd like to think I could come up with a better phrase than "shithole countries" to describe struggling or third-world nations. 
Then again, being a Latino,  I inherently sympathize with the experience of other immigrants. But it appears when it comes to immigrants, our president can call us any name in the book, and it's fine with most republicans. Some republicans even say it's just Trump "tellling it like it is" or Trump is "just saying what many people are thinking".

I know when I visit my parents this weekend, they'll ask me about "shithole countries". So now I'm trying to figure out how to translate it in spanish: "paises de hoyo de mierda?". 
But we better get used to it. The fact republicans in leadership are too cowardly to call out the president means Trump's attitude will deteriorate with time, because Trump views any criticism as just "democrats" attacking him. 
So... Who knows what the Donald will say next?    

Senator Richard Durbin verified what Trump said. & he added the following:
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/breaking/ct-met-shithole-countries-durbin-20180112-story.html
"I cannot believe that in the history of the White House and of that Oval Office, any president has ever spoken the words that I personally heard our president speak yesterday. You've seen the comments in the press. I have not read one of them that's inaccurate."

Senator Durbin may be right. At least in modern history, the presidents whose administrations I've lived through, president Clinton, W. Bush, & Obama. I doubt words with such lack of professionalism & down-right racism were ever spoken in the oval office. But the republican party has a problem which could infect their party from now on. Because, since the republican leadership has been quiet about Trump's utterance, now you have your doubts about what has or hasn't been spoken in this particular oval office or any oval office which the republicans have ever controlled.