Two exclusives this morning:

NPR, w/outside data firm, sifted through 3 million Russian troll farm tweets to find out how the Internet Research Agency talked about the NRA and guns from 2015-2018

npr.org/2018/09/21/648…

npr.org/2018/09/21/649… Russia's Twitter influence campaign was strongly pro-gun, pro-NRA, and echoed the NRA's views

The analysis shows that 77% of their content was pro-gun, pro-NRA; and 11% was anti

npr.org/2018/09/21/648…

Had an eye-opening interview this week with the CEO of @FireEye, a top cybersecurity firm.

The facts are depressing.

Bottom line is: there's no such thing as a reliable cyberdefense. A dedicated attacker WILL get through eventually. @FireEye FireEye formed over 300 'Red Teams' where companies/orgs hired them to try and break in. Break in to steal the CEO's email or affect the assembly line.

More the 90% of the time, FireEye was able to do it in five days.

And these are conscientious companies!

Sen. John McCain was one of a kind. He was grouchy, hilarious, self-deprecating, passionate, independent.

I was lucky enough to cover him starting in 2011. He was always a good sport.

Rest in peace. For me my most potent memory of John McCain will be him stepping off the train in the basement of the Capitol.

Half grin and half scowl:

"What do you want, you little jerks?"

Democrats on House Oversight Cmte write to White House asking for docs related to whether National Security Adviser John Bolton reported his previous work with Maria Butina, an alleged Russian spy

NPR previously reported on Bolton's work with her group.

democrats-oversight.house.gov/news/press-rel… Reps. Elijah Cummings and Stephen Lynch:

"We request that you produce documents relating to whether Mr.Bolton reported his previous work with this alleged Russian spy on his security clearance forms or other White House vetting materials."

democrats-oversight.house.gov/sites/democrat…

My first impression on this AP story about the Army discharging immigrant recruits is that there is less than meets the eye here.

What the AP needs to show is evidence of a policy shift in the Army. It hasn't done that.

apnews.com/38334c4d061e49… This AP article is about immigrants who have enlisted but not gone to basic training.

People who enlist but then cannot go to basic for whatever reason are discharged all the time.

I bet I could find 40 recruits discharged bf basic for being too fat.

NEW: NPR has decide to publish the audio of Michael Cohen making legal threats against me while I was a Daily Beast reporter in 2015, as part of a larger story on Cohen's history of threats:

Listen here:
npr.org/2018/05/31/615… What else did we learn?

Michael Avenatti now alleges to NPR that Stormy Daniels was coerced into signing the original Oct 2016 agreement by Michael Cohen.

npr.org/2018/05/31/615…

Buried in Senate Judiciary Cmte Dem report on Trump camp efforts to get incriminating info re Clinton:

"The Committee has obtained a number of documents that suggest the Kremlin used the National Rifle Association as a means of accessing and assisting Mr. Trump and his campaign" We've done a ton of investigative work on possible NRA/Russia ties.

Here's our work, based on public records requests, that show how Russian politician Alexander Torshin criss-crossed the US for years to build up relations w/conservative groups:

npr.org/2018/05/11/610…

THREAD: This weekend marks National Stop the Bleed Day, sparked when an Army SOF medic decided to see how many people could be taught basic bleeding control in one day.

I'm going to try something new: teaching a BCon class via Twitter. #NSTBD18 My credentials are that I'm a nationally registered EMT, which you can check on the registry here: nremt.org/rwd/public/das…

And I'm certified by the American College of Surgeons' Committee on Trauma to teach basic bleeding control.

Friendly neighborhood EMT here. Rick Santorum said folks should learn to use CPR for shootings

Putting aside the merits of response, he's advocating wrong skill. CPR is used when patient is, essentially, dead. No pulse, no breathing

For shootings/trauma, learn to stop bleeding. As it happens, National Stop the Bleed Day is this week.

Here's how to stop the bleeding in a trauma scenario:
bleedingcontrol.org/resources/how-…

Friendly neighborhood EMT here. Let's go over what you should do if you come upon a gunshot wound.

While there are many complications that can arise, depending on the wound's location, the first tasks are:

a) ensure scene safety
b) put on gloves if you have
c) stop bleeding ... most dangerous bleeding is arterial bleeding. Will be spurting, bright red blood. People can die within minutes.

If you have no medical supplies, act swiftly to apply as much pressure into the wound as possible. Lean into it. You are buying precious time for paramedics.

Hamilton 68 has been tracking Russian bots/influence networks now for six months straight -- I sat down with their team to discuss how bot activity has evolved. Here's what they've noticed:

npr.org/2018/02/08/584… First, Hamilton 68 noticed that Russian bots/influence networks have really upped the 'deep state narrative' to undermine faith in US institutions -- it just 5-10% of bot chatter in October. Last week, it was 38%. npr.org/2018/02/08/584…

Hey folks, let me tell you a story about the National Rifle Association's delegation to Moscow in Dec 2015:
thedailybeast.com/articles/2017/… Keep in mind that the NRA spent $30mil+ to support Trump's WH bid, more even than Trump's super PACs, and was its strongest outside ally (2)