June 11, 2017

Mistrusting Mueller.

On Fox News Sunday this morning, first, there was Newt Gingrich:
CHRIS WALLACE: Speaker Gingrich, I want... to start with the - your tweet... "Republicans need to focus on closing down independent counsel because it clearly isn't independent." What's your reasoning and wouldn't that really look like an obstruction of justice?

NEWT GINGRICH: Well, first of all, look at what Comey said. Comey said, I deliberately leaked, through an intermediary, to create this counsel, who happens to be one of his closest friends. Then look at who Mueller's starting to hire. I mean these are people that, frankly, look - look to me like they're - they're setting up to go after Trump. They've - including people, by the way, who have been reprimanded for hiding from the defense information into major cases. I think this - this is going to be a witch hunt. I think that Comey himself, by his own testimony, tainted this particular process. You have a director of the FBI deliberately leaking in order to create a special counsel, who we're now supposed to believe is going to be this neutral figure. I think that's just nonsense....
Then, Karl Rove:
ROVE: Look - look,... I think it would be a huge mistake to try and checked [sic] down the special counsel. This would leave the Trump administration, the Trump presidency, under a cloud until the very last day and make it an ongoing issue. I do have confidence in Mueller. I - the question is, is Robert Mueller Patrick Fitzgerald or not? Is he going to look for an underlying act and focus on the underlying act -

WALLACE: Now, we should point out, Patrick Fitzgerald was the special counsel in the case about Valerie Plame and the leak of that information.

ROVE: And the day that he took - the day he took his responsibility, he knew exactly who had leaked her name, Richard Armitage, undersecretary of state. He knew she was not a covered person, that there was no underlying effort. Chuck's paper, when they found out - when it was - was several years later revealed that it was Richard Armitage, they said, well why - why did we even go through all this exercise because everybody knows Richard Armitage had no axe to grind. But the - but he ground an axe for a long period of time trying to find people that he could indict on the fact that they had said one thing in - in - that he could get them on and he got Scooter Libby on the fact that he had not - that he said -

WALLACE: Let me - let me - let me - let me just move on because we're - I - I don't want to talk about Scooter Libby. I - I will say, you were also a target and you ended up spending a whole pile of money on private legal fees....

214 comments:

1 – 200 of 214   Newer›   Newest»
rhhardin said...

Deep state all the way down.

Good character isn't to be found in government.

Kevin said...

Smart. Start shaping the battle space to keep the investigation in bounds and on the lookout for prosecutorial abuse. Put into Mueller's head that he doesn't want to lose his hard-won reputation in this thing even if others would be more reckless.

David Begley said...

Too late now. But I think it is within Mueller's mandate to find out who was unmasking and leaking. Rice, Power or Brennan are in big trouble.

Chana said...

Couple things - Did Comey tell Trump that Flynn was under FBI investigation? If not, was Trump to PRESUME Flynn was under investigation and for what? Misleading VP Pence?
The only unlawful charge against Flynn seems to be failure to file forms correctly (Foreign Agent, maybe some others). How is that usually treated? Don't they just file the forms correctly and thats it?

MayBee said...

It does seem a bit of an issue that Mueller and Comey are so close, and Comey's actions bear some investigation.

MayBee said...

But perhaps that will stop Mueller from doing what Fitzgerald did.

The Cracker Emcee Refulgent said...

Ken Starr him. Easy enough to do these days.

robinintn said...

Dave Begley, Mueller COULD do that but he won't. He's already looking for process violations to use against Team Trump (since there aren't any real crimes). And Gingrich is correct - the people he's bringing on are pretty slimy.

Yancey Ward said...

I don't think Mueller will stray far from his mandate even if he is Comey's friend. I also don't think it will take longer than the end of the Summer for him to wrap this up.

Joe Biden, America's Putin said...

the real criminals on the left are never in trouble.

Otto said...

Guess who appointed Fitzgerald as special counselor in the Plame case?

rhhardin said...

And call it macaroni.

dreams said...

Robert Mueller was complicit in the IRS crime of targeting and blocking conservative groups from getting to participate in the 2012 election and he won't be going after any of the Dems.

I think it's likely that an unlucky Republican will go to jail as happened to Scooter Libby.

"Nevertheless, law-enforcement is not supposed to subject a person to the processes of a criminal investigation absent a good faith belief that a crime may have occurred. It is abusive to interrogate people, not to uncover a reasonably suspected crime, but to create a new crime."

http://www.nationalreview.com/corner/448394/comeytestimonywhyflynngrilledbyfbi

MayBee said...

Comey's friend Fitzgerald went on to raid Blagoavich's house in the early morning hours for bribery. He made a blistering statement about the guilt of the governor. Valerie Jarrett on those tapes was found to be maneuvering (via the SEIU) for the replacement Senate seat left by Barack Obama. In that case, the Obama white house was left to investigate itself and found itself innocent, although Blago went to jail.

Now, those tapes have resurfaced again to hurt another person vying for the the Senate seat at the time- and now the governorship, one of the Pritzkers.

US Attorneys shouldn't be allowed to have friends.

chuck said...

Given the sordid history of special prosecutors/counsels I don't have much faith in Mueller. Guess we will see if his reputation for integrity is as flimsy as Comey's turned out to be.

Yancey Ward said...

People have to remember, too- this isn't like Kenneth Starr who no one could fire. If Mueller doesn't produce something in 6 months, he will be dismissed- count on it.

Michael said...

These people believe they are undermining Hitler. They are in the wayback machine putting a stop to the horrors of WWII.

This is what they are telling themselves.

Amadeus 48 said...

It would be cool if Mueller turned on Comey. He can't think St. James the Greater brought honor to the Bureau with his actions.
Well, I can dream...

Unknown said...

Ah, poor Trump. He's sending his surrogates out to say the nasty no good Comey and his "friend" Mueller have got it in for him. Poor, poor Trump. How tough life is.

And, then there is the NY AG who is pursuing a RICO charge against Trump. Poor Donnie Trump. The guy just can't catch a break.

steve uhr said...

I don't see why the "leak" is a big deal. Comey was not a government employee and the information was not classified. He could have called the NYT himself and told them what happened, so how does it matter that he did it through a third party?

Also, assume hypothetically there are tapes and they corroborate Comey to the letter. Would it matter to any of the Trump supporters on this site? Doubt it.


Unknown said...

BREAKING NEWS: "Donald Trump has told Theresa May in a phone call he does not want to go ahead with a state visit to Britain until the British public supports him coming. The US president said he did not want to come if there were large-scale protests. The call was made in recent weeks, according to a Downing Street adviser who was in the room. The statement surprised May, according to those present."

Not fake news but real news. Big tough guy Donnie Trump is scared of street protests against him in the UK.

What a coward and wuss.

But, then you knew that didn't ya Trumpski's. Can't stay in denial forever.

sunsong said...

LOL - Get your buttered popcorn and watch the show :-)

Anonymous said...

"LOL - Get your buttered popcorn and watch the show :-)"

Hopefully it will be prime time viewing, not hidden away in some private hearings.

Bushman of the Kohlrabi said...

The Democrats desperately need a scalp for their witch hunt. Imagine how dumb and corrupt they'll look if they come up empty. Since they can't get Trump, Mueller's job is to salvage something (anything) from their fake narrative.

readering said...

How could independent counsel be shut down with Sessions refused?

Unknown said...

Ginrich said ... Oh, that GINGRICH. You know, the one whose WIFE was appointed by Trump to be US Ambassador to the Vatican.

No conflict of interest here. Move along.

Diogenes of Sinope said...

"There is actually no such thing as an “independent, non-partisan investigation.”"

All government appointments are political.

Hagar said...

Well, of course he does not want to talk about Scooter Libby!

steve uhr said...

Mueller, nominated as FBI director by Bush, and appointed as special counsel by a Trump appointee (who himself was nominated for a Circuit Court judgeship by Bush), is a tool of the democrats. How does that work.

Michael K said...

I think it is within Mueller's mandate to find out who was unmasking and leaking. Rice, Power or Brennan are in big trouble.

Is there a source for who these people Mueller is hiring are ? Are they some of the people from the Ted Stevens case ? I thought they were disbarred.

I don't trust him for a moment.

Michael K said...

" How does that work."

The uniparty. Why don't you read The Ruling Class? You may think your side is winning but you are all losers when this is done.

Me, too but I'm older and have less to lose.

Tank said...

Legal Insurrection is on this too. Jacobson says Mueller should go.

Etienne said...

"Comey said, I deliberately leaked, through an intermediary, to create this counsel, who happens to be one of his closest friends."

He could have ended the show on that.

I mean, that is the gutted fish right there. No guts, all edible meat. Have a feast.

Our sermon in church today was children need adult leadership: Adults should be in charge, not the children.

Anonymous said...

"He already has picked three former colleagues from his last job as a partner at the Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale & Dorr law firm: Aaron Zebley, who also was Mueller’s FBI chief of staff; Jeannie Rhee, a former DOJ attorney; and Quarles, who got his start in Washington some four decades ago as an assistant Watergate prosecutor.

But Mueller’s biggest hire to date was [Andrew] Weissmann, who is taking a leave from his current post leading the Justice Department’s criminal fraud section. The two men have a long history together at the FBI, where Weissmann served as both the bureau’s general counsel from 2011 to 2013 and as Mueller’s special counsel in 2005.

Weissmann’s prosecution record includes overseeing the investigations into more than 30 people while running the Enron Task Force, including CEOs Kenneth Lay and Jeffrey Skilling. And while working in the U.S. attorney’s office in the eastern district of New York, he tried more than 25 cases involving members of the Genovese, Colombo and Gambino crime families"

http://www.gq.com/story/robert-mueller-russia-investigation-team

Bad Lieutenant said...

steve uhr said...
Mueller, nominated as FBI director by Bush, and appointed as special counsel by a Trump appointee (who himself was nominated for a Circuit Court judgeship by Bush), is a tool of the democrats. How does that work.
6/11/17, 12:41 PM


Very simple. There are no loyal Republicans, only loyal Democrats. Go on, name some (ok, I'll admit there may be one; his name ain't Comey). And those that may aspire to loyalty apparently are stupid. How did Sessions let himself get into a position where he had to recuse himself?

William said...

My bet is that NOTHING, nada, zilch will come from Muller's investigation. It's all a matter of who said—or is supposed to have said—what to whom. There is very little hard evidence (because there is very little actual collusion). And Mueller sure won't extend the investigation to the Clinton corruption; you can bet the bank on that.

What will happen is the thing will atrophy. Some other national crisis will intervene to take the Congress's attention away from anything Mueller finds.

Don't believe me? Think about the 9-11 Commission "investigation." It took FOREVER, and nobody got nailed, nobody lost a job, nobody was named as having ANY accountability for the intelligence failures.

Remember, boys and girls, this is the GUVMNT. They are not like the real world where you have to produce or you get fired (expect, of course for teachers). But I digress

MayBee said...

Also, assume hypothetically there are tapes and they corroborate Comey to the letter. Would it matter to any of the Trump supporters on this site? Doubt it.

Comey when he admits he told Trump three times that he was not under investigation?

hombre said...

The most serious issues of late regarding the Russia memes, etc., are the intelligence leaks, not Trump cronies' conversing with Russians, which is not illegal. Hiring special counsel was stupid and unnecessary in the absence of some specific allegations of statutory violations.

DOJ/FBI are equipped to investigate the leaks. If that investigation is within the parameters of Special Counsel, it is a mistake. Sessions is proving to be a dunce. No intelligent prosecutor sacrifices his jurisdiction to an outsider without adequate cause. Ass-covering is not adequate.

hombre said...

The most serious issues of late regarding the Russia memes, etc., are the intelligence leaks, not Trump cronies' conversing with Russians, which is not illegal. Hiring special counsel was stupid and unnecessary in the absence of some specific allegations of statutory violations.

DOJ/FBI are equipped to investigate the leaks. If that investigation is within the parameters of Special Counsel, it is a mistake. Sessions is proving to be a dunce. No intelligent prosecutor sacrifices his jurisdiction to an outsider without adequate cause. Ass-covering is not adequate.

Paul from Decatur, GA said...

After he was fired, Comey was, as a former FBI employee, supposed to have turned in all of his work product to the Bureau. Obviously he did not, or he would have had nothing to leak. Will this violation be pursued and appropriately punished? We need all of the details about the staff Mueller is hiring for his investigation(s)? The Watergate team was a precedent for a partisan witch hunt.

steve uhr said...

"There are no loyal Republicans" Gee - don't you have a mirror at your house?

MayBee said...

Also, assume hypothetically there are tapes and they corroborate Comey to the letter. Would it matter to any of the Trump supporters on this site? Doubt it.

Trump when he says it would be good to find out if any of his campaign satellites were involved with Russia?

MayBee said...

With what Comey said about what Trump told him, let's re-evaluate what he supposedly said to Lavarov in the Oval.

"That takes some of the pressure off me". What could that possibly mean? Trump wanted the investigation to continue. Trump wanted to know if his satellites were involved. Trump supposedly hoped Flynn would be let off, but why would that take pressure off Trump?
Could it be Trump simply didn't trust Comey to not be leaking about things like the dossier?

readering said...

The only thing that will come out of talk like Sunday morning show is extraction of promise from FBI heead nominee to fully cooperate with special cousel, no loyalty to POTUS.

Anonymous said...

""I just fired the head of the F.B.I. He was crazy, a real nut job," Trump told the Russian foreign minister and U.S. ambassador on May 10 during an Oval Office meeting, according to a transcript of the meeting read to The Times by a U.S. official. "I faced great pressure because of Russia. That's taken off."

White House press secretary Sean Spicer did not dispute the account of the conversation to The Times and, in a statement to NPR, argued that the Russia investigation was harming U.S. foreign policy."

Anonymous said...

"Trump supposedly hoped Flynn would be let off, but why would that take pressure off Trump?"

Because Trump is worried that Flynn will sing like a bird.

Bad Lieutenant said...


steve uhr said...
"There are no loyal Republicans" Gee - don't you have a mirror at your house?
6/11/17, 12:56 PM

I think I said this before, Steve, but for a Jew, you're pretty stupid.

roesch/voltaire said...

Just read about Jack Posobiec and how his tweets of misinformation get picked up and spread through the talking machines.
And I wonder how witch hunt got to be the meme of the day questioning the investigation because of Mueller's tainted friendship with Comey. I can only hope his investigation does not jump to conclusions as fast as some of the bloggers here and will wait to see how he untangles the webs of Russian involvement in our election, which may, after all, require special powers,

Jim at said...

"They are in the wayback machine putting a stop to the horrors of WWII."

And if they're not careful, they're going to find themselves in 1861 instead.

Jim at said...

"Hopefully it will be prime time viewing, not hidden away in some private hearings."

I agree. Let EVERYBODY see what fools you are.
You got nothing. You never had anything.

But it keeps the drooling imbeciles on the left busy thinking, "Well, THIS time we got him."

Just keep it up.

Drago said...

Inga: "Because Trump is worried that Flynn will sing like a bird."

About what, precisely, one wonders?

Flynn knows perfectly well he was supposed to be the ""Scooter Libby" That Proved Everything" so his demanding immunity to avoid a charge for getting a date wrong or missing some minor detail is completely warranted.

Unknown said...

Love this one:

Street sign outside of London (UK) pub, "All Americans Must Be Accompanied By An Adult".

Good job Trump isn't going to London because which adult would accompany him.

Seeing Red said...

Mueller and Comey are tight. The witchunt is still on.

Original Mike said...

Inga said..."Because Trump is worried that Flynn will sing like a bird."

Really missed your input on the Russian conspiracy theory thread.

Anonymous said...

"About what, precisely, one wonders?"

We'll eventually find out, won't we?

Unknown said...

Btw, talking of Trump not going to London. Maybe it is a protest against people not planning to visit the US this year because ... Tourist travel to US is already 16% down this year due to Trump. So much winning.

hombre said...

Unknown (12:38): "No conflict of interest here. Move along."

Conflict of interest doesn't mean what you think it means.

Drago said...

R/v: "And I wonder how witch hunt got to be the meme of the day questioning the investigation because of Mueller's tainted friendship with Comey."

Probably due to the fact that there is not a single scintilla of evidence of collusion primarily because the entire collusion hoax was cooked up by the Dems yet the left keeps calling Trump and his staff Traitors' and treasonous and demanding even more investigations based on nothing but political wish casting.

I hope that helps you catch up.

Joe Biden, America's Putin said...

Flynn will sing like a bird? About what?

Flynn's sin was that when he was National security advisor under Obama, he didn't tow the Obama line when Obama insisted Flynn admit that terrorism was over. Flynn refused.


Trump blames Obama for not vetting former national security adviser Michael Flynn

President Donald Trump is blaming former President Barack Obama for not fully vetting Trump's former national security adviser Michael Flynn after it was revealed that Flynn received payments from foreign governments without approval from military officials in 2014.

In an interview with Fox News released today, the president said that Obama officials bear responsibility for the oversight -- not his own administration, which tapped Flynn for the post.

"He was approved by the Obama administration at the highest level. And when they say we didn’t vet, well, Obama, I guess, didn’t vet, because he was approved at the highest level of security by the Obama administration," Trump said. "So when he came into our administration, for a short period of time, he came in, he was already approved by the Obama administration and he had years left on that approval."

Flynn resigned from the post in February.

Both the Republican and Democratic leaders of the House Oversight Committee say Flynn may have broken the law by accepting the payments for giving a speech to Russian state television and lobbying on behalf of the Turkish government. Committee Chairman Jason Chaffetz, R-Utah, said in a statement that "by all appearances" Flynn violated that law, and asked the secretary of the Army to "make a final determination" on whether Flynn broke it.


****Only the Clintons are allowed to "earn" money from foreign sources.

MayBee said...

Street sign outside of London (UK) pub, "All Americans Must Be Accompanied By An Adult".

Yeah. Now make that sign with Pakistanis or Syrians. Still funny?

Unknown said...

Re: Inga said..."Because Trump is worried that Flynn will sing like a bird."

Hey, Trumpski's ... Flynn is already singing like a bird. Tweet tweet.

rcocean said...

It is suspicious that Sessions recused himself for very little reason and over Trump's wishes. And that his Deputy AG, who Sessions must have picked for the job, immediately selected Mueller, Comey's friend as the special counsel. It smells like a setup.

However, the Democrats have already made it quite clear that they will impeach Trump in 2009 - if they win back the House - no matter what the Special counsel comes up with.

So, the special counsel can be fired by Trump without having any real impact. However, he'd need Sessions and the Deputy AG's buy-in and that won't be forthcoming because they might be in on it.

Anonymous said...

"If a former high-ranking official like Flynn is offered immunity, it generally means he can offer up a bigger fish. “The problem with being high up in government is that there are few people higher for the purposes of targeting,” the legal scholar Jonathan Turley noted today on his blog. “People get immunity to incriminate the Flynns of the world. With the exception of the President himself, it is hard to see who Flynn could offer as a possible target in exchange for his own immunity.”"

http://www.newyorker.com/news/ryan-lizza/could-michael-flynn-turn-on-trump

If Mueller offers Flynn immunity, look out......

Bob Boyd said...

"Anyone who knows you knows you're a straight shooter. I mean I feel like I got Robert Mueller here." Yesterday Bill Maher shoehorned this remark into his apology conversation with Michael Eric Dyson and a little red light started blinking on my narrative detector.

When Hillary was being investigated, the Progs in the media kept telling us what a straight shooter Comey was and I remember thinking, I hope so, but look who's telling me this.

MayBee said...

""I just fired the head of the F.B.I. He was crazy, a real nut job," Trump told the Russian foreign minister and U.S. ambassador on May 10 during an Oval Office meeting, according to a transcript of the meeting read to The Times by a U.S. official. "I faced great pressure because of Russia. That's taken off."

That's reportedly what he said. But considering what Trump actually talked to Comey about, it can't mean Trump didn't want his campaign investigated (he did!), and he can't be because Trump thought he was personally under investigation (he was told he was not).

It sounds like it was about Comey personally. Or Comey refusing to publicly exonerate Trump while letting leaks happen that went against Trump.

MayBee said...

"If a former high-ranking official like Flynn is offered immunity, it generally means he can offer up a bigger fish. “The problem with being high up in government is that there are few people higher for the purposes of targeting,” the legal scholar Jonathan Turley noted today on his blog. “People get immunity to incriminate the Flynns of the world. With the exception of the President himself, it is hard to see who Flynn could offer as a possible target in exchange for his own immunity.”"


You cannot be serious, after all the immunity the FBI granted Hillary Clinton's associates.

Unknown said...

Donald Trump JUNIOR on Fox News today:

“When he (Donald Trump SENIOR) tells you to do something, guess what, there’s no ambiguity in it. There’s no, hey I’m hoping, you and I are friends, hey I hope this happens, but you’ve got to do your job. That’s what he told Comey.”

Well, well, well.

MayBee said...

It is suspicious that Sessions recused himself for very little reason and over Trump's wishes.

John Ashcroft recused himself from the Valerie Plame investigation because he knew Karl Rove. Which put Comey in charge.
Never underestimate the power of the press to make Republicans act in an upstanding manner so that Democrats can get what they want.

Mike Sylwester said...

Former FBI Director Robert Mueller's two primary goals will be to

1) whitewash the FBI

2) whitewash FBI Director "Crazy Comey the Leaker".

The FBI has been conducting a never-ending and absurd "investigation" of Russian meddling, and this "investigation" has become just a pretext to undermine the Trump administration.

Everyone now understands that the FBI's Trump-hating top officials have been leaking information to Trump-hating journalists. The very top FBI leaker was Crazy Comey.

And this problem is supposed to be investigated by former FBI Director Mueller, a personal friend of "Crazy Comey the Leaker"?

Our Intelligence Community at work.


Francisco D said...

Legal Eagle Inga: First we impeach and convict Trump, then we will figure out what the crime was.

Or if any crimes were committed, by people other than Comey.

Joe Biden, America's Putin said...

Look out for what?

Flynn is going to admit that Trump and The Russians hacked the voting machines! and peed on the mattresses! and made money! profit! evil fitly lucre. (shut up - belongs to Hillary)

Mike Sylwester said...

In the 1960s, the FBI conducted a never-ending, absurd "investigation" of Russian meddling in the Civil Rights movement.

Top FBI officials used their "investigation" as an occasion to leak salacious information to journalists who hated Martin Luther King.

If J. Edgar Hooover had retired, would he have been a good selection as the Special Counselor to write the report about that controversy?

Anonymous said...

"First we impeach and convict Trump, then we will figure out what the crime was."

No, first we find out what the results of the investigation is, then we impeach Trump, only then does he get indicted. First things first, dummy.

MayBee said...

Exactly, Mike Sywester.

I suspect the FBI really, really wants to know if there are any White House tapes, too.

I think it's really weird that Comey says the thought of tapes existing moved him to leak to his friend to force a special prosecutor.

MayBee said...

Comey briefed Trump one-on-one for the dossier. Trump then wanted that investigated to prove it wasn't true, and Comey discouraged that. Comey then refused to say publicly that Trump was not under investigation, but the fact of the dossier being briefed to Trump was leaked to the press.

Is there any reason Trump *should* have trusted Comey?

Anonymous said...

Trump's own big mouth has created another TrumpMess, one of many.

"There is a cloud over the presidency, the president said, and that's rightly so," Schumer told John Dickerson, the host of CBS' "Face the Nation."

"There two ways to clear up that cloud," Schumer added. "If there are tapes, he should make them public right away. If there aren't, he [Trump] should let that be known. No more game playing. He said he would testify. I am inviting him to come testify and we can work that out."

House and Senate lawmakers leading the Russia investigation have asked the White House to provide tapes Trump hinted might exist of his conversations with Comey. The lawmakers also requested Comey to provide copies of the memos he said he wrote to chronicle the conversations."

MayBee said...

Here is an article about Ashcroft recusing himself (because he knew the people being investigated) and Comey stepping in to appoint a special counsel.
Just in case you feel it couldn't be true:
https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/politics/2003/12/31/ashcroft-recuses-self-from-leak-case/53c7218b-24e6-4b03-8759-0e134d4551fb/?utm_term=.429a59b7a7c4

tcrosse said...

No, first we find out what the results of the investigation is, then we impeach Trump, only then does he get indicted. First things first, dummy.

But you've already convicted him. First things first, indeed.

Michael K said...

Inga, I almost admire your persistence. If only it was based on anything real.

However, delusions are never admirable.

MayBee said...

"If there are tapes, he should make them public right away. If there aren't, he [Trump] should let that be known.

Why?

Anonymous said...

Michael, what are your assertions of Trump's innocence based on? Your delusions are far bigger and better than anything I could ever dream up. You are the Master!

MayBee said...

How does "You better hope there aren't tapes" become hinting that tapes exist?

MayBee said...

Inga- innocence of what?

Anonymous said...

"Why?"

To prove Trump's not a lying sack of excrement, that's why. To disprove Comey's testimony? For shits and giggles? "Why" indeed, lol.

papper said...

Mueller is blind if he doesn't realize that his independence has been tainted by his huddling with Comey. Then again, Comey thinks he still has his integrity intact. These guys all seem to think they are as pure as the wind driven snow and everyone else is corrupt.

Bay Area Guy said...

What an investigation. To date:

1. No indictments
2. No convictions
3. Yes, Russian attempts to influence election, but didn't hack Ohio, Wisconsin, Mich, or Penn voting systems
4. No evidence of Russian "collusion" with Trump campaign.
5. No criminal investigation of Trump
6. 1 resignation, Flynn
7. 1 recusal, Sessions
8. 1 firing, Comey
9.Lotsa leaking/unmasking by Obama loyalists

One giant nothing-burger - all because Leftists are still smarting from losing a winnable election to Trump.,What losers the Dems and their enabling allies are.

They'll gain some House seats in 2018 - every midterm favors the party outta power. But they won't win enough to re-install Pelosi as Speaker and try their silly impeachment.

MayBee said...

What are we proving Trump lied or didn't lie to Comey about? The word "loyalty"? The "hope" of Flynn getting off?

What do either of those things matter?

Original Mike said...

"I think it's really weird that Comey says the thought of tapes existing moved him to leak to his friend to force a special prosecutor."

When he said it it didn't make sense to me. It still doesn't. Perhaps Inga can offer an explanation.

Bad Lieutenant said...

Papper, there is an analogy to the ostrich. The reason the ostrich hides its head in the sand, as I understand it, is because if it can't see the Predator, it thinks the Predator can't see it. I don't know whether this actually works. I believe children, small children, proceed on a similar basis. It would be perfectly appropriate to compare James Comey to a small child, but I don't know about the other fellow.

Kate said...

The Left is slavering to start WWIII with Russia.

Because Drumpf, or something. And hacking, which was actually an idiot falling for a phishing scheme. And a press corps that can't admit they're so partisan they believed a whopper. But, yeah, let's antagonize the nuclear-armed country.

Joe Biden, America's Putin said...

Many on the left get out of bed in the morning only because of delusion and false hope.

Anonymous said...

"...there is an analogy to the ostrich. The reason the ostrich hides its head in the sand, as I understand it, is because if it can't see the Predator, it thinks the Predator can't see it. I don't know whether this actually works. I believe children, small children, proceed on a similar basis. It would be perfectly appropriate to compare James Comey to a small child, but I don't know about the other fellow."

I see you folks as being the ostriches.

readering said...

I guess Inga has replaced Chuck as the mouse among the elephants on this site.

Mike Sylwester said...

During the Watergate period, the most important leaker was "Deep Throat" -- also known as FBI Associate Director Mark Felt.

Here is the analogy:

Watergate ---> FBI Associate Director Mark Felt

Russiagate ---> FBI Director "Crazy Comey the Leaker"

Former FBI Director Robert Mueller -- a personal friend of "Crazy Comey the Leaker -- will whitewash the FBI and will whitewash Comey.

Everyday when Mueller goes to work as Special Counsel, he will be preoccupied with those two goals. All other goals in his "investigation" will be secondary.

His third goal will be to find a scapegoat -- someone like Scooter Libby -- who can be imprisoned as proof that the FBI's "investigation" of Russiagate was valid and worthwhile.

Gusty Winds said...

Can anybody accurately describe the crime that Mueller is tasked with investigating? Seriously. Wha it is it?

Anonymous said...

OM,
Perhaps you can explain why the Special Counsel was appointed.

Joe Biden, America's Putin said...

Can anybody accurately describe the crime that Mueller is tasked with investigating? Seriously. What it is it?


Trump beat Hillary.

Anonymous said...

"Can anybody accurately describe the crime that Mueller is tasked with investigating? Seriously. Wha it is it?"

Did you not listen to even one Hearing? Those questions were asked. The answers always were that it was classified and couldn't be discussed in open session.

Original Mike said...

I'm sincere, Inga. I don't understand what Comey meant and am looking for an explanation.

Gusty Winds said...

What crime did Michael Flynn commit that warranted an investigation? There was none. He was the incoming National Secruty Advisor and spoke to the Russian ambassador. BFD.

Trump new the man had committed no crime and did want him railroaded. So what.

Perhaps we should phrase this correctly. Trump may be guilty of obstructing an injustice.

Bay Area Guy said...

Mueller or one of the committees needs to get Comey and his leaking lackey, Professor Daniel Richman, Columbia Law School, under oath about how they orchestrated the leaked memo, where the copies and original are, did either of them destroy the original or leaked copies of the Memo, and, most importantly, DID EITHER OF THEM LEAK ANYTHING ELSE TO THE PRESS IN THE PAST 7 MONTHS.

Michael K said...

Michael, what are your assertions of Trump's innocence based on?

On the fact that there is no "there" there. There is no crime, no Russian collusion, no obstruction.

This is a fantasy dreamed up after the election to explain how Hillary could lose. It couldn't be her.

After all, bankers paid her millions to give useless speeches.

The Russians paid her millions to buy 20% of US Uranium and to reward Bill and her for favors anticipated.

Bill rewarded China quite well for their contributions,. US missile technology that they are using today.

Everyone but Trump thought she was a lock.Cam she admit she was a crappy candidate?

Theresa May is coping with a similar problem right now. Jeremy Corbyn is as repulsive to the elites as Trump was.

How could she lose ?

You keep busy with conspiracies, Inga and we will try to continue winning elections.

Hagar said...

We can hope Mueller will set about rescuing the FBI from this mess Comey has got the Agency into.
It is not good for the FBI to be seen as an arm of the Democratic Party - particularly when serving under a Republican administration.

Mike Sylwester said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Mike Sylwester said...

Our President Trump should declassify everything -- EVERYTHING -- related to Russiagate.

Top Trump-hating FBI and CIA officials have been leaking much of the information to Trump-hating journalists anyway. The only details that are kept secret are details that exonerate Trump.

So, Trump might has well declassify ALL OF IT.

Let the public see the details of the FBI and CIA Russiagate "investigation" which never will end unless it is exposed as the devious pretext that it is.

Anonymous said...

"and we will try to continue winning elections."

I wouldn't bet the bank on it.

MayBee said...

Original Mike -
When he said it it didn't make sense to me. It still doesn't.

Right?
Especially since Comey wasn't moved to come clean about their whole conversation. He let it sit out there- in fact seems to have led his cronies to encourage the idea- that Trump was lying about being told he wasn't under investigation.

So if he's telling the truth, I can only imagine he wants the special investigator to go on a fishing expedition for WH tapes.
And if he's not telling the truth, perhaps he was just coached by someone like Schumer to make sure the idea of tapes gets talked about in the hearing.

Original Mike said...

I guess Inga doesn't have an explanation. Anybody else have an idea why the potential existence of tapes was the motive for Comey to leak his memo?

Anonymous said...

"Our President Trump should declassify everything -- EVERYTHING -- related to Russiagate."

YES! He should! But he won't, wonder why?

Rabel said...

"I don't want to comment on anything that might come from leaked documents," Comey said. "One of the things we do best in the FBI is to keep any investigation we might be involved in confidential, so that we don't smear the innocent and we don't let the guilty escape. So, I can't comment."

James Comey, 2013

David said...

These people do not take these jobs to find others innocent. They are prosecutors, not judges. We will see how the actual judges do when these cases get to them.

There may indeed be a crisis of democracy brewing and it's not being created by Donald Trump. The President of the United States is being used as a pawn.

Joe Biden, America's Putin said...

The hearing revealed Trump committed a crime? Boy - that's big news.

Care to name the crime, Inga? Please don't say "Obstruction of Justice."
If you do - what obstruction of justice? What justice was obstructed. Name it.

Gusty Winds said...

I watched the whole hearing live. Turned off the TV immediately when it was over. All pundits make me puke. There was nothing. No crime. No collusion. No interference. No obstruction.

Comey is a deep state slimeball with a God complex. He was lying about the timing of his leaks. And now no one can produce the leaked memos his friend told the NYTs about over the phone. Bet they never even existed. Comey was so concerned about Trump he deleted his notes.

Bullshit. He's lying.

But the best part is watching the Dems worship they guy after he helped sink Hillary.

I'm Full of Soup said...

I have heard for almost two years now that Comey had great integrity blah blah blah. Well, that turned out to be a crock of shit. He seems like a typical political scumbag to me based on his testimony this week.

And the same people describe Mueller the same way so I now have to assume he is scummy too.

MayBee said...

I just heard someone on Chris Wallace's show say the perfect thing about Comey

"He is the 'consummate professional' who has caused chaos in all three administrations in which he served"

Joe Biden, America's Putin said...

Schumer said "There's a cloud" -

A cloud, a stink, an odor, smoke. Amazing how the left get to twist language into the fake-news false-hope for leftists clown mirror of criminality.

grackle said...

Will this violation be pursued and appropriately punished?

No. We have an un-elected bureaucrat who broke the law in order to get a Special Counsel on the duly elected POTUS’s ass. He decided in his bureaucratic wisdom that a Special Counsel was needed.

Nervous Nellie Sessions, who reminds me more of Don Knotts every day right on down to the slight trembling of the head, helped him do it. Sessions is afraid to fart in his own backyard and won’t make a move unless it’s approved by the Dems/MSM/eGOP.

And the eGOP in Congress, who would rather that Hillary had won, the better to continue their “loyal opposition,” instead of actually accomplishing anything – was also complicit. They saw their chance and took it. They don’t like this POTUS that their constituents back home gave them. And they’ll cheer if he’s driven from office.

The eGOP could lose big in the upcoming elections unless they pass some significant legislation. If they do suffer loses I predict they’ll blame Trump when the actual cause would more likely be because they did not support their own voters’ choice for POTUS.

traditionalguy said...

The current most dangerous man in DC is righteous Jeff Sessions. He has the right tools at the right time to charge and convict the Clinton gang's provable con game crimes.

The attack on DJT for obstructing Justice is a red herring with zero evidence. Remember LBJ's gang only killed JFK to eliminate his righteous attorney general that had the goods and was closing in on the LBJ gang's con game crimes.

Rabel said...

GRASSLEY: And thank you for your opening statement. I’m going to start out probably with a couple subjects you wish I didn’t bring up, and then a third one that I think everybody needs to hear your opinion on on a policy issue. It is frustrating when the FBI refuses to answer this committee’s questions, but leaks relevant information to the media. In other words, they don’t talk to us, but somebody talks to the media.

Director Comey, have you ever been an anonymous source in news reports about matters relating to the Trump investigation or the Clinton investigation?

COMEY: Never.

GRASSLEY: Question two, relatively related, have you ever authorized someone else at the FBI to be an anonymous source in news reports about the Trump investigation or the Clinton investigation?

COMEY: No.


- James Comey to the Senate Judiciary Committee one week before his now acknowledged leak to the Times.

MayBee said...

Rabel- Don't you love the way Comey was able to say he wasn't an anonymous source- by telling a non-government employee to leak for him?

Michael K said...

"I wouldn't bet the bank on it."

The Democrats in GA-6 are betting the bank on it.

Cash is flowing in at such saturation levels that Democrat Jon Ossoff’s campaign had the money for everything from Korean radio ads to free Lyft rides for voters on primary day. The Atlanta NBC station has even bumped reruns of “The Andy Griffith Show” from their regular slot in order to extend its local newscasts and make more room for political ads.

The Congressional aide who advised Hank Johnson that Guam might capsize is getting 90% of his money from outside the district.

Let's see if it is worth it.

Rabel said...

Note the hole in question two in my 2:31 quote - "someone else at the FBI."

MayBee said...

Rabel- yup

MayBee said...

Rabel, your 2:16 is soooo sooo juicy.

Heywood Rice said...


Note the hole in question two in my 2:31 quote - "someone else at the FBI.

Yup

news reports about the Trump investigation or the Clinton investigation

Correct me if I'm wrong, but there was no Trump investigation under Comey.

Tommy Duncan said...

Inga said...

"About what, precisely, one wonders?"

We'll eventually find out, won't we?


Your statements on this thread provide a nice example of commentary intended to irritate others without adding any content or insight. I've mentioned in the past that I hope you are well paid for your comments, since your sole purpose appears to be to annoy others. The ones who are most annoyed are those who are actually trying to understand and find the truth. Your contributions to this forum remind me of "Rules for Radicals".

Rabel said...

Right, MayBee.

And also note the (possibly) willful stupidity by Grassley in not asking the obvious question three:

"Director Comey, have you ever used a third party cut-out to be an anonymous source in news reports about the Trump investigation or the Clinton investigation?"

steve uhr said...

It seems highly unlikely Trump tapes his conversations. Someone else would know about the system (unlikely he installed it himself) and Trump could not lawfully destroy any of the tapes since they are government records covered by FOIA. So he would always have to be on guard that nothing he said could be misinterpreted or worse. That doesn't seem to fit his personality.

Hagar said...

The more significant segment of FNC Sunday may have been the one before with Sen. Jack Reed (D-RI).
If major figures in the Democratic Party really believe these things, they have gone nuts, and if they are saying them while not believing them - well, words fail me!

cf said...

. . .

Mute Prayer

. . .

steve uhr said...

Sessions' testimony should be interesting. Now that Trump has said that he fired Comey because of the Russian thing, how does Sessions square his role in the firing with his decision to recuse himself from all things Russian? Trump goes off script and everyone else pays the price.

Anonymous said...

Tommy Duncan, I'm here to express my opinion. If my opinion angers you, too damn bad. Your comments so far seem to concern themselves solely with me and not the topic.

Rabel said...

"Trump could not lawfully destroy any of the tapes since they are government records covered by FOIA."

The court has long acknowledged that a President's private conversations are not subject to FOIA.

The Cracker Emcee Refulgent said...

""About what, precisely, one wonders?"

We'll eventually find out, won't we?"

Lewis Carroll, call your office. Inga unwittingly (but I repeat myself) cops to the fact that there's no there.

Hagar said...

There is a good story about the Oval Office taping system. LBJ taped Bobby Kennedy regaling him with tales about the stunts pulled by the Kennedy brothers while JFK was President, and LBJ could hardly believe his ears that Bobby would tell him all this, but what LBJ did not know was that Bobby had been in charge of installing the system, knew all about it, and was wearing a jammer device that left LBJ with just one long screech on the tape!

Hagar said...

Trump may just be assuming "The Deep State" has the White House thoroughly bugged besides the "official" taping system, and he is not the only one in town who has enemies.

steve uhr said...

Rabel -- It appears that you are correct, but the president still can't destroy his records pursuant to the Presidential Records Act. So taping is unlikely.

Joe Biden, America's Putin said...

Rabel @ 2:31

Excellent find.

exiledonmainstreet, green-eyed devil said...

" I've mentioned in the past that I hope you are well paid for your comments, since your sole purpose appears to be to annoy others. "

She inspires laughter in me.

And nobody is paying her. Writing witless comments on Althouse appears to be her hobby in retirement.

Joe Biden, America's Putin said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Joe Biden, America's Putin said...

Trump says Comey is a liar. Trump is correct.
Comey is a liar.


Breezy said...

It is quite dumbfounding that Comey is a leaker. Here he was, in charge of the fricking FBI, which is tasked with investigating the leaking of information. Why should he get a pass on this behavior, which he did for his own benefit? Country be damned - I got fired so I think I get to retaliate, feed the seagulls with crumbs, which continues the harassment of people even though there is no evidence. This is downright immoral.


lonetown said...

I think he should fire Mueller since the process was tainted and appoint someone squeaky clean to look at the whole mess.

Michael K said...

Trump may just be assuming "The Deep State" has the White House thoroughly bugged

I think that could be it. He could not install a taping system without a leak. He assumes they are taping him and is calling their bluff.

the president still can't destroy his records pursuant to the Presidential Records Act. So taping is unlikely.

Why would he want to ? You seem an unlikely conspiracy theorist. Do you really think the Russians had anything to do with Trump that affected Hillary's loss ?

I sense you don;t like Trump but are you are silly as Inga and the others ? You seem more "moderate," unlike ARM who used to be.

Michael K said...

"someone squeaky clean to look at the whole mess."

There is no one in DC who fits that description.

I was in favor of naming Louis Freeh as FBI Director. He was an agent and has been there and was pretty much clean.

He was well liked by the agents. When my daughter was in the Academy, he used to come down and run with the candidates there.

Paul Ciotti said...

If Sessions hadn't failed to report his Russian contacts when applying for the job of attorney general, he wouldn't have had to recuse himself and we wouldn't be in this never ending mess today. Why doesn't Sessions resign so Trump can appoint a new Attorney General who won't have to recuse himself from anything?

Beloved Commenter AReasonableMan said...

In another thread there seemed to be something of a consensus that non-believers shouldn't get their knickers in a twist when told that they are going to hell.

Wouldn't the same argument apply. Righties believe that Trump and his people have done nothing wrong so shouldn't they remain confidently unperturbed by any Lefty efforts to prove otherwise.

Tommy Duncan said...


Blogger Inga said...

Tommy Duncan, I'm here to express my opinion. If my opinion angers you, too damn bad.


Some people approach the world like Boy Scouts and try to leave a place better than they found it. The concept of seeking truth and understanding seems to be foreign to you.

One of my liberal friends once told me that he is not seeking truth, he's seeking advantage. Coincidentally, my friend could have been a twin to Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin, complete with the hair style and mustache.

Michael said...

ARM

Agree. I think most thoughtful conservatives are content to watch the circus and the progressive project winding down.

MayBee said...

In another thread there seemed to be something of a consensus that non-believers shouldn't get their knickers in a twist when told that they are going to hell.

Wouldn't the same argument apply. Righties believe that Trump and his people have done nothing wrong so shouldn't they remain confidently unperturbed by any Lefty efforts to prove otherwise.


The comparison is inapt.

If you don't believe Hell exists, you don't fear that someone else's ideas can send you to Hell.
But no matter what you believe, innocent people can get sent to jail or lose their jobs even if the reasons or unjust.

Mike Sylwester said...

AReasonableMan at 3:43 PM

Wouldn't the same argument apply. Righties believe that Trump and his people have done nothing wrong so shouldn't they remain confidently unperturbed by any Lefty efforts to prove otherwise.

The Intelligence Community has been looking for any information about Trump associates having some link to Russia -- any business deal, any tourist travel, any link at all.

Any such information will be given to Special Council Robert Mueller, who then will look for some crime that any such Trump associate might have committed. That Trump associate's testimony and documents will be subpoenaed. Mueller will use the threat of criminal prosecution to pressure that victim to denounce other Trump associates. Mueller will expand his circle of victims.

This is the main police-state method. Use police powers to pressure ordinary people to undermine a political opponent.

A big goal is to create some pretext to obtain all of Trump's tax records, which will be released to the public. The Trump-haters still believe that exposing those tax records is the key to removing Trump from office.

If Mueller can remove Trump from the Presidency, then this feat will vindicate the FBI for its disgraceful Russiagate "investigation", which the FBI's Trump-haters are determined to continue until Trump is removed from office.

Michael K said...

This is the main police-state method. Use police powers to pressure ordinary people to undermine a political opponent.

"Show me the man and I will show you the crime." Lavrenti Beria.

Mike Sylwester said...

The FBI's Trump-haters are determined to continue their Russiagate "investigation" as long as Trump remains in office. This "investigation" provides a justification for examining all of Trump's associates. If any such associate has any link to Russia -- a business deal, a tourist trip, anything -- then that is an investigative thread that will be followed relentlessly with the full resources of our Intelligence Community.

Any such thread might lead to a possible crime. The FBI will use its full resources to investigate any such possibility. Testimony and documents will be subpoenaed. Plea deals will be offered.

Our President Trump needs to expose all these police-state activities and methods to the public. He should suddenly declassify all government information about the Russiagate "investigation", about Michael Flynn, about Russia's INTERNET RESEARCH AGENCY and everything else. Let the public see the entire, absurd pretext.

Michael K said...

Why doesn't Sessions resign so Trump can appoint a new Attorney General who won't have to recuse himself from anything?

Blood in the water. Sessions seems to have panicked, which is unlike him having been slimed by Democrats 30 years ago.

Maybe he thought the feds had some connection with a Trump insider. So far it is all smoke and no fire.

If the Congress does something, like getting the repeal of Dodd-Frank through the Senate by ending the filibuster, the Democrats may have to either back down or get creamed in 2018.

It is a test of nerves for the next year.

Rabel said...

A handy link for ARM.

Please use the Althouse Amazon portal for your purchase at no cost to yourself.

Hagar said...

Sessions' "Russian contacts" so far seem to have consisted of the Russian ambassador passing through his office to say hello while visiting the Capitol on other business.

I do not understand this current Democrat obsession with "the Russians." They used to be all in favor of them when they ruled the Soviet Union!

wildswan said...

Rabel @ 2:31

Excellent.

Lawyers say this: "If you have the facts, argue the facts, if you don't have the facts, argue the law. If you don't have the facts or the law, scream and pound the table." The media is continuing with its anti-Trump narrative because it has become a Dem psy-op. But notice that now its narrative is composed of complex arguments about whether there is a process crime - a Martha Stewart, a Scooter Libby. To me this means that the Dems recognize that they have lost the argument on the facts. This matters to the country more than it does to DC which is happy just talking. But in the end reality matters. The Millies have been used. Maybe they will like it. Maybe they will be too embarrassed to acknowledge it. But the righteous steam went out of their Resistance as Comey talked and you can see it in the pictures of them in bars.

Mike Sylwester said...

The FBI's long investigation of Russian "meddling" in the Civil Rights Movement in the 1960s has been declassified.

That investigation was absurd, but it gave the FBI an excuse to wiretap that Movement's leaders, especially Martin Luther King. FBI officials then used that wiretap information for blackmail and to leak to MLK-hating journalists.

Similar activities have been conducted by the FBI under the leadership of "Crazy Comey the Leaker". He hates Trump, and he intended for his Russiagate "investigation" to catch Trump associates who could be pressured to testify against Trump.

Former FBI Director Robert Mueller is determined to cover all this up.

Francisco D said...

Tommy Duncan wrote: "One of my liberal friends once told me that he is not seeking truth, he's seeking advantage."

I have taken numerous Continuing Education classes with lawyers (advising psychologists). They have all made that same exact point. It is a gladiator-type adversarial system that does not rely on truth.

Once people realize that, it all starts to make sense.

rcocean said...

Several things I wonder about:

1) Why did Session recuse himself so quickly? A Clinton/Obama DoJ wouldn't have recused themselves under ANY circumstances.

2) Why did Rosenstein appoint a Special Counsel so quickly after the Comey leaked memo?

3) Why did Rosenstein get selected as Deputy AG?

4) Why did Deputy AG select Mueller, best friend forever of Comey as special counsel?

And now it looks like Mueller is putting a lawyer on his team that's done work for the Clinton Foundation.

rcocean said...

I'm getting the feeling that Rosenstein is another of these supposedly "Bi-partisan" "Respected by both sides" Deep state Democrats who are after Trump.

I wonder if he's another Comey.

rcocean said...

The FBI wiretapped MLK with the approval of JFK, RFK, and LBJ.

Something that gets forgotten.

And they had good reason to wiretap MLK. King had surrounded himself with CPUSA aides and speech writers. When appraised of the fact by Several high level Government officials, MLK said he didn't care.

And a note for stupid people: Just because I'm laying out historical fact, doesn't mean I agree with it.

Bay Area Guy said...

Let's not forget what 100 DOJ officials were saying about Comey before the election:

"For this reason, Justice Department officials are instructed to refrain from commenting publicly on the existence, let alone the substance, of pending investigative matters, except in exceptional circumstances and with explicit approval from the Department of Justice officials responsible for ultimate supervision of the matter. They are also instructed to exercise heightened restraint near the time of a primary or general election because, as official guidance from the Department instructs, public comment on a pending investigative matter may affect the electoral process and create the appearance of political interference in the fair administration of justice."

"It is out of our respect for such settled tenets of the United States Department of Justice that we are moved to express our concern with the recent letter issued by FBI Director James Comey to eight Congressional Committees. Many of us have worked with Director Comey; all of us respect him. But his unprecedented decision to publicly comment on evidence in what may be an ongoing inquiry just eleven days before a presidential election leaves us both astonished and perplexed. We cannot recall a prior instance where a senior Justice Department official—Republican or Democrat—has, on the eve of a major election, issued a public statement where the mere disclosure of information may impact the election’s outcome, yet the official acknowledges the information to be examined may not be significant or new. "

"Director Comey's letter is inconsistent with prevailing Department policy, and it breaks with longstanding practices followed by officials of both parties during past elections. Moreover, setting aside whether Director Comey's original statements in July were warranted, by failing to responsibly supplement the public record with any substantive, explanatory information, his letter begs the question that further commentary was necessary. For example, the letter provides no details regarding the content, source or recipient of the material; whether the newly-discovered evidence contains any classified or confidential information; whether the information duplicates material previously reviewed by the FBI; or even “whether or not [the] material may be significant."

Comey was a disaster under Obama, and was a disaster under Trump. Trump's only mistake was not firing Comey earlier without fanfare.

Dr Weevil said...

Is it true that "Tourist travel to US is already 16% down this year due to Trump" (Unknown, 1:18pm)? The last three words seem highly dubious. The British pound was worth an average of $1.4672 US last June, $1.2949 this month, an 11.75% drop in just twelve months. (To check my numbers, Bing "exchange rates 2016 HMRC" or the same with 2017 to get monthly averages.) When the relative value of your currency in some foreign country drops almost 12%, you do tend to cut down on your travel to that country, no matter what you think of its government. Try again, Too-Lazy-to-Pick-a-Damned-Pseudonym.

Humperdink said...

Inga attempts to shatter the profanity glass ceiling: "If my opinion angers you, too damn bad."

Too late, Kirsten Gillibrand upped the ante with F-bombs. Inga, always behind the curve (cough).

n.n said...

Another baby hunt? How exciting.

Good luck to the abortionists. Here's hoping that you don't expose more witches.

h said...

First, we thought we could impeach Trump because he hired Flynn. Then Flynn quit, so that wouldn't work.
Then, we thought we could impeach Trump because of collusion with the Russians. Then it became obvious that there wasn't collusion, so that wouldn't work.
Then, we thought we could impeach Trump because his firing of Comey was obstruction of justice. Now a lot of legal experts are saying that it wasn't obstruction of justice, so that probably won't work.

But let us not get discouraged and lose sight of tour main objective -- Impeach (and remove) Trump. The rationale is totally unimportant. We will continue to cast about for a plausible sounding basis for impeachment, and ultimately we will find something.
We can use the plausible basis as a reason to elect Democrats in 2018. And if we can get Nancy Pelosi as Speaker of the House in January 2019, we can remove both Trump and Pence and we will have our first female President.

Crimso said...

'I do not understand this current Democrat obsession with "the Russians."'

I do. Remember before the election how the Dems were making noises about what a bad thing it would be to question the integrity of the election? Their "obsession" (which I don't think it is; it is cold calculation dependent upon the misinformation constantly shoved down the throats of the gullible and the ignorant) began when it became useful for THEM to question the integrity of the election. It is a narrative made up out of whole cloth. The Russians did nothing other than that which they have always done. They didn't listen to Obama when he told them to cut it out.

It is interesting that it appears that DHS "hacked" the election to about the same extent the Russians did.

I think it's time for another Church Committee to rein in the bureaucracy. They are doing a great deal of real damage to the country.

Sebastian said...

"It is a narrative made up out of whole cloth." But they, the very people who ridiculed Mitt for treating the Russians as adversaries, what, 4-5 years ago, will try to turn the cloth into a straitjacket.

tim maguire said...

Is Flynn under investigation? Or is he under matter? Because if it's a matter, well, Trump couldn't have impeded an investigation, then, could he?

DanTheMan said...

>>We will continue to cast about for a plausible sounding basis for impeachment, and ultimately we will find something.

Exactly right. Trump will be investigated, there will be hearings in congress, CNN will be pushing the scandal of the week every day that Trump is president.

If they are successful, it will be the new D playbook: Every R elected president is illegitimate and must be removed...

DanTheMan said...

Trump should be Trump and say:
"For every investigation of me, I will direct the FBI to begin two investigations of your side. First up: Hillary's collusion with the Russians, and Obama's secret deal with Iran."

Your move.


Mike Sylwester said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Cynicus said...

While we are all watching this stupid cloak and dagger nonsense who exactly is running the country.

Mike Sylwester said...

rcocean at 4:37 AM

The FBI wiretapped MLK with the approval of JFK, RFK, and LBJ.

Similarly, the FBI began its Russiagate "investigation" with the approval of Loretta Lynch and Barack Obama.

Mike Sylwester said...

rcocean at 4:37 AM

The FBI wiretapped MLK with the approval of JFK, RFK, and LBJ.

The initiative came from the FBI. JFK, RFK and LBJ were afraid to prevent or curtail the wiretapping.

Mike Sylwester said...

rcocean at 4:37 AM

King had surrounded himself with CPUSA aides and speech writers. When appraised of the fact by Several high level Government officials, MLK said he didn't care.

The FBI's main target was Stanley Levison, described by Wikipedia as follows:

Stanley David Levison was born in New York City on May 2, 1912, to a Jewish family. ... He received two law degrees from St. John's University. While serving as treasurer of the American Jewish Congress in Manhattan, he aided in the defense of Julius and Ethel Rosenberg. During this period, he worked for a variety of liberal causes.

In the early 1950s the FBI considered Levison to be a major financial coordinator for the Communist Party USA and began to monitor his activities. ... According to the FBI, Levison's CPUSA activities ended in **1957**.

He had initially been introduced to King by Bayard Rustin, a Quaker, in New York City in 1956. Though King had offered to pay Levison in exchange for his help, Levison refused on every occasion, as he believed "the liberation struggle is the most positive and rewarding area of work anyone could experience."

He was questioned by the FBI twice, on February 9 and March 4, 1960. Two years later, on April 30, 1962, he was called to testify under subpoena at an executive session of the Senate Subcommittee on Internal Security, where he was represented by William Kunstler. Large parts of his testimony are still classified.

Although there was no evidence of Levison having further ties to the CPUSA, the FBI inexplicably used his earlier communist history to justify wiretaps and bugs on his offices and the offices and hotel rooms of Martin Luther King. FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover had long associated the civil rights movement with communism, and he strongly expected that Levison would use or manipulate King to stimulate political unrest within the United States.

In 2012, Tim Weiner wrote in his history of the FBI that Hoover believed Levison had "indoctrinated King in Marxist thought and subversive strategies", and that King was "part of Moscow's grand design to subvert the United States of America."

Levison was instrumental in all the activities of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC), the organization established by King and other Southern black preachers to further the cause of civil rights. He professionalized the fund raising of the organization and took on many of the publicity tasks, in addition to serving as King's literary agent. He was also a close adviser to King and a ghostwriter for him.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stanley_Levison

chuck said...

> They are doing a great deal of real damage to the country.

My fantasy is that they should all roll ten sided dice and anyone who rolls one gets beaten to death by the others. Do this everytime there is a leak and things should settle down pretty quickly.

Mike Sylwester said...

Mike Sylwester at 8:33 PM

In the **early 1950s** the FBI considered Levison to be a major financial coordinator for the Communist Party USA and began to monitor his activities. ... According to the FBI, Levison's CPUSA activities ended in **1957**. ...

He was questioned by the FBI twice, on February 9 and March 4, **1960**. Two years later, on April 30, **1962**, he was called to testify under subpoena at an executive session of the Senate Subcommittee on Internal Security, ...

Although there was **no evidence** of Levison having **further ties to the CPUSA**, the FBI inexplicably used his earlier communist history to justify wiretaps and bugs on his offices and the offices and hotel rooms of Martin Luther King.


The FBI investigation of Levison continued for almost two decades. By the late 1960s, the investigation was just a pretext for the FBI to wiretap MLK. The purpose of the wiretap was **NOT** to catch Levison helping Russia to meddle in the Civil Rights Movement. Rather the purpose was to give top FBI official information they could use to remove MLK from the leadership of the Civil Rights Movement.

That is quite similar to how the FBI -- under the leadership of "Crazy Comey the Leaker -- has been trying to use its Russiagate "investigation" to remove President Trump from office.

C R Krieger said...

Dishonest Prosecutors are what makes for bad Government. If we can't trust the Government for fair law enforcement, what can we trust them for. Zealots are not just a danger, but a threat to Democracy.

We need an Office of Where I Can Go to Get My Reputation Back.

I don't think I would put in DOJ.

Regards — Cliff

C R Krieger
Lowell, MA 01852

rcocean said...

"Rather the purpose was to give top FBI official information they could use to remove MLK from the leadership of the Civil Rights Movement."

You keep repeating the Liberal myth. The FBI wiretapped MLK with the approval of LJB, JFK, RFK, and whoever was AG under LBJ.

I just it feels better for a liberal to blame Hoover. But no, he wasn't going rogue in this case.

rcocean said...

And it wasn't just Levinson. There was another person, who's name escapes me.

Further, just because the FBI interviewed Levinson and he said he was no longer a Commie, means shit. Hiss said he wasn't and never had been a commie till the day he died. The Rosenberg's did exactly the same thing. Lots of other Commies made "death bed" or "Old age" confessions that despite lying for 20, 30, 40 years - they'd really been communists.

Michael Straight "the 5th man" told the FBI he was no longer a commie in the 50s. And the CIA later found out after the fall of the USSR, that Straight was still working with the KGB in the 1960s.


rcocean said...

One thing that never gets mentioned is that Jackie Kennedy despised MLK and says so in her taped discussions after JFK's death. He was "a horrible man". I think JFK had let her listen to some of the MLK wiretaps.

Of course, none of this became well known until 10 years after she died.

Ralph L said...

whoever was AG under LBJ.
Ramsey Clark?

Fen said...

This is why we need term limits for Federal Employees. Doesn't matter if we elect another Reagan, the unelected unaccountable beurocrats will just ignore his agenda and continue to advance the goals of the authoritarian State.

Start cycling them out, starting with the incompetent SES who are only in leadership positions becsuse their career path consisted of being "promoted" out of the office so they could be someone else's problem. Replace them with hard working Americans who have been forged in competitive private sector.
'

The Gipper Lives said...

Trump should announce he's going to start using a private server, since it's so darn safe and perfectly legal.

Then he should say he's considering selling Putin an additional 20% of our uranium.

And while he's considering it, he should send Kushner to Moscow to give a half-million dollar speech to Russian bankers for the Trump Foundation.

...wut?

Fen said...

Because it's the only way to clear out the rot.

Fen said...

Gipper I hear ya. I think for the nexf fake "get Trump" scandal we should employ the "depends what the definition of 'is' is" coupled with "no controling legal authority. And documents under subpoena should be lost in a freak boating accident only to turn up years later on a might stand. And obviously, all computer hardware should be wiped with a cloth.

Fen said...

"Who is running the country"

And when NYC gets Dirty Nuked, guess who will have the audacity to blame Trump. Earth to Lefties - the current trend is that you lash at Trump and wind up in the ER for throwing your hip out. I hope you've realized that if you keep this bullshit up, some of those consequences are more disastrous.

Fen said...

But I dont really care if your blue city-states come tumbling down. The Jihad is right about one thing - you are corrupted and fallen. It's one thing to wander off the Path. But you people have been lost for so long that you've forgotten the Path even exists.

Crimso said...

BuSab, now more than ever.

Bleach Drinkers Curing Coronavirus Together said...

With the amount of effort these right-wing schmucks are putting into restraining, redirecting and delaying the investigation, you'd almost think they have something to hide. Or a partisan benefit to gain by preventing it.

Hmmmm....

WillowViney said...

The problem with these special counsels is that they always want to get a scalp, and they never stop until they do. Ken Starr was appointed to investigate the Clintons' shady dealings with Whitewater, and yet Starr got Clinton on a process charge for lying about a completely unrelated event, having sex with an intern, that was far outside his original mandate.

Patrick Fitzgerald was appointed to find the leaker of Valerie Plame's CIA employment. It turned out to be Richard Armitage, a Democrat. So instead he got Libby Scooter, a Republican, on a process charge for misremembering certain dates during a routine FBI interview - an interview that was not recorded, had no contemporaneous notes taken, and where the FBI agent when cross examined and was revealed to be just as confused as Libby was. And yet a DC jury convicted him anyway in what many legal experts thought was a travesty of justice.

It has never been shown that Nixon knew about the Watergate break-in in advance. (Historians agree he didn't.) So Leon Jaworski got Nixon on a process charge for trying to protect Gordon Liddy.

Every single time these special counsels are unleashed they run amuck until they can tag someone with something. It is always a 'gotcha' related to the investigation itself, and never the actual original act that got them appointed in the first place.

And whatever charge Mueller can get on Trump's staff will go before a DC jury where 91% of the citizens voted for Hillary and only 4% voted for Trump.

chickelit said...

And whatever charge Mueller can get on Trump's staff will go before a DC jury where 91% of the citizens voted for Hillary and only 4% voted for Trump.

DC Deep State is a metastatic cancer.

Bleach Drinkers Curing Coronavirus Together said...

DC Deep State is..

Yes! FUCK the administrative agencies! FUCK the EPA, and the FDA and the FBI, and every other administrative agency that allows us to have any competence in the federal government! WE WANT A SOMALI-STYLE GOVERNMENT NOW!

chickelit said...

Yes! FUCK the administrative agencies! FUCK the EPA, and the FDA and the FBI, and every other administrative agency that allows us to have any competence in the federal government! WE WANT A SOMALI-STYLE GOVERNMENT NOW!

I feel your anger. The root problem is not mission or mission statements but rather recompense and rice bowls.

The Deep State is bent on remunerative recompense the likes of which we've never seen. I am reminded of the WI State employee Union's "uprising" which your personal nemesis, Scott Walker, quelled.

I, like a majority of Americans, am/are not opposed to Federal service: we are opposed to unchecked largesse and fee for service extortion.

chickelit said...

In short, the DC bubble needs to burst, bigly. I have personally lived through bubbles. The virtuous survive and prosper.

Bleach Drinkers Curing Coronavirus Together said...

You're a dummy. What you're against is checks and balances, the federal judiciary, and the ability of the federal government to ensure clean air and water, safe and effective drugs, working transportation and other infrastructure (see Commerce Clause for details), a non-patronage based civil service (championed by Teddy Roosevelt), autonomous federal law enforcement and every other administrative apparatus of the federal government as affirmed over and over again as constitutional by any SCOTUS that knows a thing about the difference between the U.S., Egypt and SOMALIA.

Go take a civics course. Preach your phony baloney equivocation between the American and Egyptian governments there, bozo.

Bleach Drinkers Curing Coronavirus Together said...

I have personally lived through bubbles.

Including the one that contains your cerebrum?

chickelit said...

Root and branch!

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