Hi everyone,

Welcome back, and a happy snowy Monday to you all.  The meteorologists seem to have gotten this one right - it looks like I've got a lot of shoveling to do today.  That's fine (he says through gritted teeth.)  BDH and Little Buddha say the long-range forecast still calls for significantly warmer temperatures after this week, so we just have to plow ahead in the meantime.  (No pun intended.)  I'll deal with all of that later.  The guys made a fresh pot of coffee, so help yourself to a nice medium DD, and let's clear out some Clutter.

Senator Rand Paul (R-Kentucky) said he will vote for the resolution blocking Donald Trump's declaration of a fake national emergency to justify his almighty border wall.  That makes Senator Paul the fourth Republican to support the resolution, which means it should have enough votes to pass the Senate and go to Trump's desk.  The Great Pumpkin has vowed to veto the bill, and perhaps he'll do it, but even if this ends up being decided in the courts, it would be a major loss on a priority issue for Trump.  An inability to keep the GOP in line on immigration would show a significant crack in his support.  That's particularly ominous for Trump, as House Democrats have made it clear they're coming after him from multiple directions. 

The House Judiciary Committee will seek documents from 60 people, including Donald Trump Jr., as it begins its investigation into whether or not Donald Trump has obstructed justice.  Chairman Jerry Nadler (D-NY) already believes Trump has done exactly that.  Given that this is the committee that would oversee an impeachment hearing, the storm clouds just got even darker for the White House.  In the meantime, we're enjoying the idea of Junior having to testify under oath in front of the cameras.

Meanwhile, House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff (D-CA) believes there's "direct evidence" that the Trump campaign colluded with Russia in 2016. Chairman Schiff says the emails between Russian representatives and Donald Trump Jr. regarding Hillary Clinton's stolen emails, and the Trump campaign's subsequent actions, constitutes collusion.   The Justice Department may not want to indict the father while he's still in office, but there's no reason Junior shouldn't have to deal with the legal system now.

We also can't forget to mention that the House Ways and Means Committee is preparing to finally ask for Donald Trump's tax returns, and the committee is prepared for a legal battle if that's what it takes to finally bring these documents to light.

In other words, Robert Mueller's report is just the beginning of Donald Trump's problems.

The walls continue closing in on Donald Trump.  (pic via wgrz.com)

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo won't back up Donald Trump's statement that Kim Jong Un didn't know anything about Otto Warmbier's mistreatment in North Korea.  Apparently Secretary Pompeo can't bring himself to offer the same unqualified support for dictators that his boss gives freely.

Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) made it clear that she doesn't consider Vice President Mike Pence to be a decent man, given his extensive anti-LGBTQ record.

There appear to be questions about where freshman Representative Lori Trahan (D-MA) came up with the last-minute campaign funds that led to her primary win last year.

John Oliver has plenty to say about Michael Cohen, Ivanka Trump, and Jared Kushner.

The winning design for the new Boston memorial honoring Martin Luther King Jr. and Coretta Scott King is gorgeous.

The bull market is about 10 years old now.   While all good things must eventually come to an end, our hope remains that the conclusion is a gentle decline rather than a meltdown like 2009, because the idea of Donald Trump being in charge of a crisis like that should scare the hell out of everyone.

The notion of the Boston Red Sox going with a closer by committee again makes us a little queasy.  We remember how badly that went in 2003.  On the other hand, we've got the utmost faith in manager Alex Cora.  If he says he knows what he's doing, we'll trust that he's right, but...eesh.

The Boston Celtics continue to free-fall with a 115-104 loss to the Houston Rockets yesterday. It's starting to look like an early playoff exit would be a mercy killing for this team.

Yesterday marked the 25th anniversary of John Candy's death, and Ryan Reynolds tweeted this sweet tribute in memory of his fellow Canadian.

There's a new trailer out for Terry Gilliam's upcoming movie, The Man Who Killed Don Quixote.  There's a long convoluted history to the making of this film.  Not sure if we'll be able to catch it in during its one-night run in the theaters on April 10, but we'll certainly watch it on video if necessary.  The story looks like it could be fun, and even if it isn't, Gilliam's movies always have fascinating visuals:

Okay kids, that's going to do it for now.  We need to make sure this week starts with the right attitude.  Here's Linkin Park to help with that with, "Bleed It Out," for today's, "Song of the Day."

That did the trick.

Thanks for stopping by, everyone.  It was great to see you, as always.  Enjoy the rest of your day, be good, and we'll meet up again for more fun soon.  Also, don't forget to drive carefully on those slippery roads, unlike the car we just saw fly down the street.  We expect you all back here in once piece.  Until next time, that's today's Clearing out the Clutter, and we are outta here.