January 29, 2018

"Andrew G. McCabe abruptly stepped down on Monday as the F.B.I.’s deputy director after months of withering criticism from President Trump..."

"... telling friends he felt pressure from head of the bureau to leave, according to two people close to Mr. McCabe. Though Mr. McCabe’s retirement had been widely expected soon, his departure was nevertheless sudden. As recently as last week, Mr. McCabe had told people he hoped to stay until he was eligible to retire in mid-March.... In a recent conversation, Christopher A. Wray, the F.B.I. director, raised concerns about a forthcoming inspector general report examining the actions of Mr. McCabe and other senior F.B.I. officials during the 2016 presidential campaign, when the bureau was investigating both Hillary Clinton’s email use and the Trump campaign’s connections to Russia. In that discussion, according to one former law enforcement official close to Mr. McCabe, Mr. Wray suggested moving Mr. McCabe into another job, which would have been a demotion. Instead... Mr. McCabe chose to leave...."

The NYT reports.

UPDATE: "President Trump reportedly told then-acting FBI Director Andrew McCabe that he should ask his wife, who had lost a bid for political office in Virginia, how it felt to be a loser.... Trump made the remarks in a phone call to McCabe the day he fired FBI Director James Comey that was placed to demand why Comey was allowed to fly on a FBI plane from Los Angeles to Washington, D.C., after being fired" (The Hill).

172 comments:

Third Coast said...

What the NYT fails to mention is that FBI Director Wray just happened to see the Nunes FISA memo last night. McCabe forced to resign the next day. Coincidence? I don't think so. Word is that more resignations to follow.

Original Mike said...

Yeah, right. The cause of McCabe stepping down was criticism from Trump. Sheesh.

And, is the term “months” factually correct? Seems to me Trump’s singaling out McCabe was recent.

deepelemblues said...

Another unaccountable bureaucrat who thought he and his cronies had carte blanche to do whatever they wanted because they are just so superior at everything shown the door.

Bye Felicia.

Rick said...

The NYT headline originally included that this was "Widely Expected" trying to reduce the newsworthiness of the resignation.

Sebastian said...

"Widely expected" to leave when he was eligible for his pension. So: forced out.

Draining the swamp one alligator at a time, if you'll pardon the ecological difficulty.

tcrosse said...

There's plenty of room in the roost for all those chickens.

AllenS said...

It's always nice to spend some time with your family before you go to prison.

Darrell said...

They'll have to open up a new prison wing for all the new FBI, DOJ, and Obama Administration inmates arriving soon. Their pensions should pay for part of it.

Sprezzatura said...

"The NYT headline originally included that this was "Widely Expected" trying to reduce the newsworthiness of the resignation."

I think that sorta headline makes more sense.

It's already been reported that he was leaving. But, that he wanted to wait to get his time in. Which he's still doing since he'll be on leave, until the mark in March.

So weird that this is being played as if we didn't all already know that he was leaving.

IMHO.

Bonkti said...

Occam's razor: He looked at his 401k.

David said...

"Mr. McCabe chose to leave...."

Highly doubtful.

JohnAnnArbor said...

Highly doubtful.

I don't know. Sounds like an inherently stressful job to me. Sometimes you're just done.

Mike (MJB Wolf) said...

I’ve been told only Trumpists are guilty and would quit or be fired! But the demotions and retirements among FBI are starting to outnumber those charged by Mueller. Hmmmm.

Anonymous said...

Right, adss- No difference or even significance in McCabe leaving now and McCabe publicly stating that he planned on staying until mid-March so as to vest his pension.
And yes, we all get to voluntarily go 'on-leave' and sit and do nothing job-wise until our pensions are funded. I am sure that will work out just fine.

No fuss needed.

AMDG said...

How does a demotion impact a pension?

dreams said...

The NYT spins.

Hari said...

If McCabe has behaved honorably, surely that would have come out had he refused to resign and either remained in his position until his announced retirement or been fired.

Dude1394 said...

Good. Those traitors deserve perp walks and not pensions. I'm hoping the perp walks are to come. They are literally traitors, hanging is in order.

As far as conjecture about reasons from the NYTimes, worth nothing.

readering said...

Typical run-up of stories to SOTU address.

Mike Sylwester said...

A short time ago today, The Conservative Treehouse published a timely reminder about how McCabe jerked around Reince Pribus in February 2017.

McCabe came to Pribus and told him that the FBI disagreed with current newspaper reports that the FBI was investigating President Trump. Then when Pribus asked McCabe to make a public announcement, McCabe refused.

A short time later, FBI leaks caused the newspapers to report that Pribus had pressured McCabe to make a public announcement.

https://theconservativetreehouse.com/2018/01/29/hours-after-fbi-director-chris-wray-reviews-house-intel-memo-asst-fbi-director-mccabe-resigns/

-----

Read also the newer Conservative Treehouse article about how the FBI apparently lied to the FISA court about what the FBI was told by Glenn Simpson.

https://theconservativetreehouse.com/2018/01/29/breaking-and-important-details-surface-of-senator-grassleys-criminal-referral/

exhelodrvr1 said...

My understanding is that he has enough vacation time on the books to make it to his vestment date.

Matt Sablan said...

The noose around Trump tightens, clearly.

Tommy Duncan said...

Anti-de said: "So weird that this is being played as if we didn't all already know that he was leaving."

I suspect they needed an angle to make Trump look bad, so it was necessary to "adjust" the facts.

Jim at said...

How does a demotion impact a pension?

Doubtful it impacts his at all, considering he was so close to retirement.

The Godfather said...

How long before Trump is accused of obstruction of justice for forcing McC to retire?

chuck said...

I don't recall lot of "withering" criticism from Trump. Lot's of criticism from Trump supporters, sure, but not Trump.

David Begley said...

This is going to end badly for many at the FBI and DOJ.

McCabe’s wife took six figures in campaign donations from the Clintons’ bagman. She was running for the state legislature.

Next up is a Special Counsel to investigate the FBI and DOJ. And one of these Feds is going to rat them all out.

320Busdriver said...

Laughing all the way to the bank, just like Lois Lerner. Scum.

Otto said...

Ann quoting from her Bible after today's devotion time. Remember first reports are usually inaccurate - fog of war.

M Jordan said...

Liberals can’t understand the new world they’re living in. With the Obama cover removed, what was acceptable and even glorified behavior is now criminal. It’s like these old-school 50s type macho men, grabbing “dames” by the buttocks with impunity ... until the world changed beneath them.

I’m sure McCabe and his wife are experiencing extreme cognitive dissonance and some depression as well. And they aren’t alone.

David Begley said...

McCabe will get his pension benefits while he is in Leavenworth. With Hillary and Mook.

dreams said...

"HMM: Sara Carter: Sources in FBI Tell Me More Resignations To Come."

Via the Instapundit.

320Busdriver said...

House vote happening now to release memo?

Original Mike said...

”HMM: Sara Carter: Sources in FBI Tell Me More Resignations To Come."

Once they resign, I’m guessing they can tell Congress to pound sand.

We need a special prosecutor.

Big Mike said...

McCabe’s wife took six figures in campaign donations from the Clintons’ bagman. She was running for the state legislature.

Reported to be $700,000. Six figures indeed!

Birkel said...

Original Mike:

Once they're all gone how much easier will it be to process FOIA requests? Do you think the information controlled by the FBI, sought by Congress, will be harder or easier to find once the cabal of corruption is gone?

Further, they can take the 5th any time they want. Everybody can. It's a right possessed by any free people.

But their documents will tell the tales.

Original Mike said...

”McCabe’s wife took six figures in campaign donations from the Clintons’ bagman.”

I’ve known this for months, yet it still shocks me.

Amadeus 48 said...

The ground may be shifting under Mueller’s feet. Let’s see what happens.

Drago said...

OM: ”HMM: Sara Carter: Sources in FBI Tell Me More Resignations To Come.

Leftist/Deep Staters/MSM/LLR's hardest hit.

FIDO said...

How does resigning remove them from the demands of Congress when it was their actions while working for Congress that they are being asked to testify about?

I think his wife can kiss her legislature position away. An indictment hanging over her husbands head is not going to look good, even in a prospective sense.

I would not want to be him talking to his wife tonight.

Mark said...

You know, maybe just once in a while, Trump and his guys are right about something and maybe, just for kicks, people ought to listen.

Maybe it's time for the left to say, "We have met the enemy and it is us."

Bill, Republic of Texas said...

By appointing Mr. McCabe in 2016, Mr. Comey was seen as valuing intellect and management over experience making cases. Mr. McCabe’s ascent sometimes rankled the workaday agents who believed he did not pay his dues in the field

So he wasn't even qualified for the position. More evidence Comey was stacking the FBI with his homeys.

Inga...Allie Oop said...

“I think his wife can kiss her legislature position away. An indictment hanging over her husbands head is not going to look good, even in a prospective sense.”

Wishful thinking.

Clyde said...

I suspect that I'll have to go to the store and get more popcorn.

Bay Area Guy said...

The "Get Trump" Squad formally loses one of its ring-leaders.

Bye-bye Birdy!

Comanche Voter said...

Well the Times version of events is one way to tell the (fairy) tale. I don't know whether the Deputy Director of the FBI is a presidential appointment or not. It may be a position appointed by the Attorney General. But whatever--McCabe was a holdover from the Obama regime.

Now Christopher Wray (current head of the FBI may have gone all Claude Rains and been "shocked, I tell you, positively shocked" to find out (for the first time) that McCabe had been doing dirty work at the crossroads as is probably outlined in the "Nunes Memo" which Wray "read for the first time on Sunday night". And McCabe took a leave of absence and early retirement on Monday morning. I happen to believe that. And I also happen to believe that a deed to the Brooklyn Bridge was put in the mail to me--just this morning.

It is not the first time that a national police force has been corrupt--whether here in the good ol USA or in some tinpot banana republic. The sainted J. Edgar Hoover was a real piece of work when it came to meddling in politics. I suspect that the current crew are amateurs compared to him. For one thing, J Edgar managed to keep his blackmail files and his sexuality on the down low.

Original Mike said...

”I think his wife can kiss her legislature position away.”

I don’t think she won.

Bay Area Guy said...

The FBI should next demote Peter Strzok from HR to cafeteria duty.

Birkel said...

His wife lost.
Could not buy a seat with $700k and the governor's support.

Bay Area Guy said...

Maybe, Lisa Page has a blue dress secreted away as a potential bargaining chip. I can dream can't I?

Birches said...

The noose around Trump tightens, clearly.

lol

wildswan said...

Newspaper stories on these subjects for the last few weeks have seemed like those gangster movies where the villians burst from the door and are shot down in slow motion by assembled lawmen. It's all pretty horrible and slowing it down makes it worse. It's ugly to think of the corridors of the FBI (THE FBI!!) filled with scuttling officials darting from office to office trying to spin the facts into safety, like rats in experiments trying make food drop. And seeing that fortune's wheel has fatally turned and that Hillary won't come in and save them. Or Bill. Or Putin. Or the Post.

Cardinal Wolsey said: “I see the matter against me how it is framed. But if I had served God as diligently as I have done the King, he would not have given me over in my grey hairs." And if this bunch had served the country as diligently as they served the Clintons they would all be retiring with honor.

Quaestor said...

Inga wrote: Wishful thinking.

Words of wisdom from the past mistress of wishful thinking.

Anonymous said...

I always feel so sorry for chuck because of the behavior of his more uppercaseally-endowed Doppelgaenger.

It must be rough and psychically draining having to read through all the comments and winnow out all the stuff responding to....what shall I call him? .. ??.....???...(upper-case Chuck??? no.).....I have it!

Up-chuck! Kinda like Brangelina or Meadhouse.

Anyway, good ol' chuck, I am throwing all the positive waves I can in your direction.
And, re comment: I don't recall that either, Seems way overstated.

n.n said...

That's one less pawn obstructing justice.

They wanted the President's head, but instead they lose their heads over Obama spied, Clinton colluded, DNC denied. Water Closet is what Watergate was purported to have been and so much more.

tcrosse said...

Up-chuck! Kinda like Brangelina or Meadhouse.

It's Chuck U. Farley.

320Busdriver said...

The 5 WI DA's that spied on countless conservative Walker supporters using a John Doe law that allowed them to silence their targets are untouched. The "theory" of campaign finance violations of coordinated issue ads seems similar to using oppo research paid for by your adversaries to get warrants. Not holding my breath for justice for these criminals.

Inga...Allie Oop said...

Why must every single thread have to devolve into schoolyard taunts and insults? Isn’t the subject matter interesting enough for you folks? All it takes is the one instigator to start it. Just pathetic already.

steve uhr said...

Trump purposely fires Comey when Comey is out of town and then berates McCabe for permitting Comey to fly back at government expense. Maybe McCabe just got tired of dealing with the man child. Life is too short.

Inga...Allie Oop said...

“Maybe McCabe just got tired of dealing with the man child. Life is too short.”

Exactly my thought too.

Original Mike said...

“Maybe McCabe just got tired of dealing with the man child. Life is too short.”

From the NYT article: “In a recent conversation, Christopher A. Wray, the F.B.I. director, raised concerns about a forthcoming inspector general report examining the actions of Mr. McCabe and other senior F.B.I. officials during the 2016 presidential campaign, when the bureau was investigating both Hillary Clinton’s email use and the Trump campaign’s connections to Russia. In that discussion, according to one former law enforcement official close to Mr. McCabe, Mr. Wray suggested moving Mr. McCabe into another job, which would have been a demotion.

Instead, the former official said, Mr. McCabe chose to leave.”

Rick said...

Why must every single thread have to devolve into schoolyard taunts and insults? - Poser Inga

“Maybe McCabe just got tired of dealing with the man child. - Inga

Quaestor said...

Inga wrote: Exactly my thought too.

Wishful thinking.

Matt Sablan said...

McCabe should have been fired when he hid Clinton's donation to his wife.

tcrosse said...

“Maybe McCabe just got tired of dealing with the man child. Life is too short.”

So this guy quit in a fit of pique ? In a snit ? In a huff ? It must mean he didn't believe that the axe would fall on Trump.

Matt Sablan said...

How much do we want to bet some important documents get destroyed or devices wiped now that he's left?

Anonymous said...

I am trying to put myself in Wray's shoes. To do so I have to imagine myself as both corrupt and non-corrupt. Schroedinger's FBI Director, I guess.

Anyway, if he is honest and now sees the weight of evidence and understands what charges may be looming for his employees, then he is forced to clean house. The same is true if he is corrupt, actually. The case may be so strong that he will be compelled to do so out of self-preservation.

So how do we tell what state he is in? Does the McCabe removal so soon after reading the memo indicate anything either way? I would've expected a few days deliberations and discussions behind closed doors before making that call, not first thing next morning? Maybe I'm off-base on that.

It looks to me that Gowdy (or whomever) told Wray on Sunday that they were going to release the memo on Monday, and that Wray better get ahead of things. Perhaps McCabe, being so vulnerable with his pension hanging in the balance and perhaps even the threat of jail time, decides he will roll-over, go state's witness, and start singing like Pavarotti all in exchange for retaining his pension and sentencing leniency. I find it highly interesting that he is 'going on leave' instead of being fired. Perhaps CS rules make that too difficult and something had to happen now.

Does anyone here have a read on Wray?

I admit to just reading tea-leaves here. Anyone else going down my track?

Inga...Allie Oop said...

“Maybe McCabe just got tired of dealing with the man child.”

I was quoting, or didn’t you notice in your haste to pounce? Also, Trump is a public figure, he isn’t a private citizen commenting here. Why do I need to spell this out for you? Why weren’t you able to figure this out for yourself?

Original Mike said...

”How much do we want to bet some important documents get destroyed or devices wiped now that he's left?”

I believe it was reported recently that his texts are missing.

Quaestor said...

@ Rick

Pointing out hypocrisy to Inga is a singularly unproductive exercise. She can't see around that beam.

Inga...Allie Oop said...

If you think no one should say negative things about Trump, perhaps you should’ve thought about that when you treated Obama similarly.

Speaking of hypocrisy....

Drago said...

Inga: "Exactly my thought too"

Which guarantees that it's incorrect, as McCabe was late last week discussing publicly his intent to stay on till March.

But over the weekend Dir Wray had access to the 4-page memo (which is based entirely on DOJ/FBI and Inspector General reports) which documented something alarming enough to Wray that he told McCabe to hit the bricks.

That Inspector General investigation is the one that has been churning out all of the exposure info on the dems/deepstaters/LLR efforts.

Now we have LLR Chuck's ally Adam Schiff-ty spinning like crazy to keep the report from going public, but he, and his dem pals, have failed.

Despite the lefts best efforts, the memo is coming out, and probably within 24 hours.

And every item in it is backed up by the dept's own records and/or the IG information.

Drago said...

Inga: "If you think no one should say negative things about Trump, perhaps you should’ve thought about that when you treated Obama similarly"

Obama was spied on by a weaponized partisans in the intelligence agencies?

First I've heard that.

Have you contacted the NYT? If you haven't, just call any obama holdover at Justice or the FBI...they have all the reporters contact numbers...obviously.

Jersey Fled said...

The panic at the FBI seems to have ramped up since those 5 months of "missing" emails turned out to be not missing,

Incidentally, did Inga just call someone an instigator?

Original Mike said...

I don’t know what I think about McCabe being booted one day after Wray reads the Congressional memo. There can’t be anything in it that Wray does not already know (can there?).

Quaestor said...

I was quoting, or didn’t you notice in your haste to pounce?

Yes, we saw that. We also saw Exactly my thought too.

Popular wisdom holds the claim that females have difficulty with logic to be a "sexist trope". It is very un-feminist of you to confirm it.

Inga...Allie Oop said...

“Which guarantees that it's incorrect, as McCabe was late last week discussing publicly his intent to stay on till March.”


“My understanding is that he has enough vacation time on the books to make it to his vestment date.”

Rick said...

Inga said...
[Maybe McCabe just got tired of dealing with the man child.]

I was quoting, or didn’t you notice in your haste to pounce?


I noticed. But I noticed this too.

Exactly my thought too.

When you cite something approvingly you are incorporating it into your own position. In your haste to deny reality did you forget your wrote "exactly" in reference to what you now deny?

Anonymous said...

Drago:
Pointing out facts to Inga is a singularly unproductive exercise. She can't see that beam.

H/T Quaestor

Francisco D said...

Dems are terrified of information that will be coming out in Devin Nunes memo. I just watched Adam Schiff engage in the most desperate spinning I have ever seen.

He sort of like Inga with 20 more IQ points.

This is going to get interesting.

Jersey Fled said...

What may have been news to Wray was the degree to which they had the goods on McCabe.

tcrosse said...

There can’t be anything in it that Wray does not already know (can there?).

It's not that Wray learned anything new. It's that the stuff is going public.

Drago said...

Livermoron: "Does anyone here have a read on Wray?

I admit to just reading tea-leaves here. Anyone else going down my track?"

There is actually alot of rumblings that he is a "company man" but that he wants to clean it all up.

He knows what the lefties have been up to but think about how difficult his position is. He knows the dem partisans put the investigative and intelligence services at the disposal of the dems and their oppo research which is watergatex1000.

But he has to salvage the agencies image and protect the moral and welfare of all the good people at the FBI.

How do you walk that line particularly when lots of information that was in the pipeline to be released got into that pipeline long before you were appointed?

Might be the toughest role in DC at this moment: how to "quietly" get rid of the obama partisan law-breakers without creating too much of a wave because if it all gets out, how do we have trust ever again?

Looks like Putin's plan to feed oppo research to Hillary and dems and then those dems working with their allies in the agencies has paid off better than Putin could ever have dreamed.

Just wait until we get a definitive answer to this question: Did the FBI/NSA/DOJ allow federal contractors to access the raw intelligence data captured by our most sensitive means?

And if so, were 2 of those contractors the heavy hitter dem oppo research firms Fusion GPS and/or Crowdstrike?

You probably remember Crowdstrike since they were the ones who "bleach-bitted" Hillary's servers.

How. Convenient.

Rick said...

Inga said...
If you think no one should say negative things about Trump


The subject was juvenile insults, but Inga then switches to somehow claim the criticism is against anything negative about Trump.

This is from someone supposedly wanting decent discussions. How could anyone have a decent discussion with someone so fundamentally dishonest?

Fabi said...

"Why must every single thread have to devolve into schoolyard taunts and insults? Isn’t the subject matter interesting enough for you folks? All it takes is the one instigator to start it. Just pathetic already."

Mon Dieu!


Drago said...

Rick: " How could anyone have a decent discussion with someone so fundamentally dishonest?"

You cannot.

Which is why discussing anything with the lefties (and LLR's (wink wink)) is pointless.

David-2 said...

This kind of reminds me of that scene from The Untouchables where Eliot Ness (Kostner) is surprised when long time Chicago cop Jim Malone (Connery) takes him on a liquor raid - right to the US Post Office.

Mr Ness, everyone knows where the booze is. The problem isn't finding it. The problem is who wants to cross Clinton?

madAsHell said...

I fail to understand how anyone in the executive offices at the FBI could wake up one morning, and think.....yeah, undermining the election is a fucking good idea.

Original Mike said...

”[Wray] knows what the lefties have been up to but think about how difficult his position is. He knows the dem partisans put the investigative and intelligence services at the disposal of the dems and their oppo research which is watergatex1000.

But he has to salvage the agencies image and protect the moral and welfare of all the good people at the FBI.”


I don’t think his position is difficult as all. There’s only one course that salvages his agency: complete openess. Anything less will ultimately make things worse.

Drago said...

BTW, the New York Times immediate lie headline about McCabe simply moving on was wrong (but it served its purpose to make all the lefties feel better, which is always the point as you can see from some early comments on this blog from the usual suspects) and has been corrected to reflect he was moved out under direct pressure.

Anonymous said...

Rick:
It is impossible. You lay her own words in front of her and she denies they even exist.
She's deranged and we should just accept that. Someday Meadhouse will pull her plug. They've done it before.
Maybe they'll make it permanent.
But, let me be clear, they shouldn't do that without treating someone equally dishonest from the conservative and LLR-side the same way.
We should all sacrifice.

Drago said...

McCabe, Baker, Rybicki, Strzok, Page.

Yeah, lefties, nothing to see here.

Original Mike said...

”Just wait until we get a definitive answer to this question: Did the FBI/NSA/DOJ allow federal contractors to access the raw intelligence data captured by our most sensitive means?”

This isn’t even news, is it? Wasn’t Snowden an NSA contractor?

Rick said...

But, let me be clear, they shouldn't do that without treating someone equally dishonest from the conservative and LLR-side the same way.

Ha!

Inga...Allie Oop said...

“Someday Meadhouse will pull her plug. They've done it before.
Maybe they'll make it permanent.”

Excuse me? Althouse and Meade have only “pulled the plug” on one commenter, and that is M. Now you must lie to gather your troops? You have a real problem, buddy and it’s not me.

Fabi said...

Office Pool -- If and when Trump releases the memo: how long before democrats leak classified material in their rebuttal?

I'll set the over/under at three mintutes.

Drago said...

With McCabe stepping aside with how that appears on top of all the other clinton/obama partisans and with more IG report material being shared with congressional committee's, I fully expect the Mueller democrat partisans to crank up as many leaks as they can overnight knowing that LLR Chuck's MSM/lefty pals will not cover what is going on.

Original Mike said...

Thanks for that post, Mike S.

Bad Lieutenant said...


steve uhr said...
Trump purposely fires Comey when Comey is out of town and then berates McCabe for permitting Comey to fly back at government expense. Maybe McCabe just got tired of dealing with the man child. Life is too short.

1/29/18, 5:17 PM


Nigga pleez, you of all people, a purported prosecutor, don't know about twisting the knife?


Dear Mr. President,


Jesus, Don! Just when I was getting a little drowsy from all the winning, there you go ramming a fistful of No-Doz down my throat!

KUTGW!
MAGA!!!

Yours in schadenbonerism,

Bad Lieutenant

Drago said...

Fabi: "I'll set the over/under at three mintutes"

I expect it to be cut loose tonight for the news tomorrow.

Or, perhaps some advisor will determine they want to discuss nothing other than the SOTU topics and therefore sit on the memo for a couple days.

Either way it's coming out this week.

Bad Lieutenant said...

Excuse me? Althouse and Meade have only “pulled the plug” on one commenter, and that is M.


Inga, there have been others. Let it go.

Browndog said...

You can bet 'sources close the investigation' will have some very damaging things to say to the Washington Post before the week is out, likely tomorrow. Probably directly implicate Trump in something nefarious, and probably impeachable.

This is coming to a head. Trump versus Deep State.

Mueller vs Trump.

Two men enter....one man leaves.

Anonymous said...

OM: If he is not corrupt that is his only option.

What if he is corrupt? I keep looking for signs.

Drago: Saw that they changed the headline, too. Didn't see where they indicated it was changed.

I think there is one thing we ALL can agree on: If the FBI/DOJ are corrupt, they must be cleaned out, no matter who the president is and no matter which party suffers. As America-lovers all we put country over party.
That's correct, isn't it?

Drago said...

Livermoron: "Drago: Saw that they changed the headline, too. Didn't see where they indicated it was changed."

They never document the changes. They usually hide the changes.ds

The first story and lies usually fire up the LLR Chuck's and Inga's and get rebroadcast/reprinted/retweeted about a million times and then the quiet change maybe gets a minor note on a few websites.

I actually had a conversation with a lefty the other day who told me they knew Trump was racist when Trump had MLK's bust removed from the oval office. When I explained that he hadn't they actually said "fake news" back to me.

So the "mistake" served its purpose, as it always does with our "objective" "straight down the middle" "journalists".

Fabi said...

Browndog -- Given his track record over the last two years, I'd bet on Trump.

Bad Lieutenant said...

Speaking of schadenfreude: make sure McCabe is mulcted of his pension. Take away those accumulated leave days with a reprimand or something. You can do it, Wray!

Original Mike said...

@Livermoron: Yeah, i was assuming he is not corrupt. If, in fact, he is not, he has no choice but openess or people will assume that he is. His own reputation is at stake.

If he is corrupt, stonewalling will be the tell

Fabi said...

You also made an excellent point, Browndog -- neither side will go down without a fight, and the battlefield has just today reached the boiling point.

Bad Lieutenant said...

Hey Liver, let Inga alone a bit, she's harmless.

On the other hand, as long as there will be a purge of one leftist and one (life long) Republican, true balance demands the sacrifice of... A moderate! I know just the guy. He'll understand. After all, he's A Reasonable Man!

Kathryn51 said...

Mike S - that's the first time I have ever seen that timeline or detail (talked a well-qualified military vet out of running?? Wow). Thanks for posting.

Original Mike said...

Interesting. Andrew Napolitano just described Wray and McCabe as long-time friends.

Quaestor said...

Two men enter....one man leaves.

Who's that little critter riding on Mueller's shoulders? The one with thick ankles swigging chardonnay from a vodka bottle...

Anonymous said...

Stonewalling seems to be the obvious play. I don't think that he believes that there is time left to do that. He'd have to stonewall until the next election. I don't see that happening. If he tries that tactic, which is contra-indicated by today's actions, then, yes he is corrupt and doomed. Maybe he will slow-roll the firings as a way to stall, but how long can that go on?

Maybe it doesn't matter if he remains Schroedinger's FBI Dir.

Perhaps alea ieacta est and things are out of his hands.

I'm leaning that way, that his state matters not. They have sown the wind....

Quaestor said...

Speaking of schadenfreude: make sure McCabe is mulcted of his pension.

Ah, let'em keep the pension. McCabe gonna need a shitload of attorneys pretty soon, how's gonna pay 'em?

Anonymous said...

Yeah Bad, I'll try. I was really hoping to use logic on her but it's like teaching cribbage to cabbage. She just isn't capable.
I do admit that her loony responses to me make me laugh out loud and inspire my mirth. But I have never approved of teasing the retarded. I will try to improve.
No promises.

Wilbur said...

Buh-bye, McCabe.

Anonymous said...

And I think it speaks well of her that she is sometimes able to get past the verification system here.
So she's got that going for her.

Inga...Allie Oop said...

“Yeah Bad, I'll try. I was really hoping to use logic on her but it's like teaching cribbage to cabbage. She just isn't capable.
I do admit that her loony responses to me make me laugh out loud and inspire my mirth. But I have never approved of teasing the retarded. I will try to improve.
No promises.”

Bullshit Livermoron, you now are trying to slither away from your pathological need to attack commenters here who you see as in opposition to your world view. You fool no truly intelligent commenters about what your purpose is. You have a problem, I’m not it.

There is a certain subset of commenters here who have very little interest in discussion or even just expressing their opinion. Their only raison d'être is to lay in wait for someone they consider the opposition to appear in the comments sections and then they pounce, most often in a weird pathological fashion. I think perhaps they have sadistic tendencies and aggression issues.

Inga...Allie Oop said...

“And I think it speaks well of her that she is sometimes able to get past the verification system here.
So she's got that going for her.”

Let’s ponder what ails poor Livermoron. Never have I run across someone who has such difficulty grasping others’ meaning. It’s as if he has his mind so full of preconcieved notions that even despite bring corrected multiple times, he cannot wrap his overwrought brain around what the other person is saying. It’s as if he can only believe that the person must say what he wants them to say so he can counter them, simply for the sake of argument and strife. This isn’t normal, this isn't conducive to a decent discussion and in truth I think he does it purposefully in order to find a way to insult and demean a person he happens to have in his sights. This is pathological. It’s a shame really, as the discussion could progress in a much better fashion without the unnessesary disruption

Drago said...

Original Mike: "Interesting. Andrew Napolitano just described Wray and McCabe as long-time friends."

I'm sure they were/are.

You can't spend that many years working in the same agency and not know each other well.

That's the problem for Wray. Wray probably dislikes Trump as well, but no so much that he would conjure up a BS reason to spy on a domestic political opponent.

I imagine Wray saying to McCabe how could you have been so blinded and stupid? Sure Hillary was a "lock" to win, in which case you could bury all this, but you were still spying on a domestic political opponent! Don't you know how hard this is for me and how hard it will be for to salvage the reputation of the FBI and still clean things up?

Something like that.

Fabi said...

"Their only raison d'être is..."

One has only one raison d'être so your "only" is adjectively superfluous.

Anonymous said...

Please Inga, continue to engage me. I love putting you on display. It's fun for me but tiresome for others who've given up on you.

Once again folks, for you viewing pleasure, Ingarage's level of hypocrisy on full display:
There is a certain subset of commenters here who have very little interest in discussion or even just expressing their opinion. Their only raison d'être is to lay in wait for someone they consider the opposition to appear in the comments sections and then they pounce, most often in a weird pathological fashion. I think perhaps they have sadistic tendencies and aggression issues.

I enjoy pushing your own shit back down your throat, so please, please, please engage me.

Love, L

Inga...Allie Oop said...

“I love putting you on display. It's fun for me but tiresome for others who've given up on you.”

You put your own psychopathy on display. It’s not up to me as I usually DO NOT engage you, you idiot. I mostly defend myself from your obsessive personal INSULTS directed to me. If you don’t want me to humiliate you any further, I’d suggest you stop with the comments directed to me, which you’ve done three days in a row now. Even when I had not commented on a particular thread, you dragged my name into it only in order to insult. So you flappin’ psychopath, if you don’t want me to rip you a new asshole, I’d say leave me the hell alone.

FullMoon said...

She removed herself, came back as unknown. Regulars recognized her after four or five comments. She denied it for weeks.Not as smart, or as crazy as Mary!

Inga

Stop and think how ridiculous you've become. I'm

fine with becoming persona non grata. Your blog has

become the cesspool it once was. I'm pretty much

done here. 6/30/17, 6:33 PM


Inga...Allie Oop said...

And a cesspool it’s become once again now that Althouse has backed down on her rules, more’s the pity.

Anonymous said...



Get used to me Inga, because you have a stalker now.

Enjoy!

Inga...Allie Oop said...

“Get used to me Inga, because you have a stalker now.

Enjoy!”

Really? So you admit to being a stalker? Good to know. Saving the comment.

Anonymous said...

Do you need someone to show you how?

FullMoon said...

Oh my goodness !!

Ann Althouse said...

It's not an absolute rule. I don't have the time to enforce such a rule. It is a standard that I apply with discretion. Your lack of respect for the effort it takes and the advice you were given underscores why the discretion was applied against you and why you are approaching persona non grata status.

6/30/17, 6:30 PM
Blogger Ann Althouse said...

Stop and think about how boring you are.

Quaestor said...

Really? So you admit to being a stalker?

Won't some faithful retainer fetch Miss Pittypat her smelling salts?

JAORE said...

How does a demotion impact a pension?

In the fed service you retain your pay for two years and, only then do you drop to the lower level.

And retirement is based on the "high 3" pay (average pay over the past 3 years, assuming that is your top pay).

He's not going to be dinged a bit in terms of retirement pay.

Francisco D said...

Inga,

I was going to ask "Who cares what you think?" I changed my mind.

You don't think. You just follow the talking points that the DNC feeds you.

That explains all the cutting and pasting.

FullMoon said...

And a cesspool it’s become once again now that Althouse has backed down on her rules, more’s the pity.

Something annoying to me. Commenters whining to AA and Meade to "enforce the rules". This forum is free . Nobody subscribing or paying anything to read or comment. Acting as if AA and Meade should be full time monitors here is very unappreciative.
If you can't stand the heat, get out of the kitchen for awhile.
Simplest thing is to not respond when other commenters have obviously won destroyed you. Just come back later and start your trolling anew, as usual. Win some, lose most is your motto.

FullMoon said...

HaHa, Allen called it back then.


Blogger AllenS said...

Inga said...
Your blog has become the cesspool it once was. I'm pretty much done here.

Translation: I'm going to use another name.

Too funny. You can't make this shit up!


6/30/17, 6:58 PM

Bay Area Guy said...

Drip, drip, drip - show us the Memo!

The "Get Trump" Squad has been knocked back on their heels. They are stunned. Adam Schiff is getting drunk at a bar, as we speak.

Show us the FISA application!

For those keeping score:

1. Dems paid GPS/Fusion to do opposition research on candidate Trump.
2. GPS/Fusion hired Steele to dig up dirt on Trump.
3. Steele produced the Dossier, but it was never verified or corroborated.
4. GPS/Fusion and Steele peddled the unverified and uncorroborated Dossier to many news outlets
5. Steele gave Dossier to the FBI
6. FBI used the Dossier to get a FISA Warrant to spy on the Trump Campaign
7. Obama loosened up access to the confidential product obtained from the spying
8. Obama's government minions "unmasked" the confidential information.
9. Obama's government minions leaked the confidential information to NYT and WaPost to fuel hysterical news stories about Russia-collusion to try to damage Trump's candidate.

Bad Lieutenant said...


Quaestor said...
Speaking of schadenfreude: make sure McCabe is mulcted of his pension.

Ah, let'em keep the pension. McCabe gonna need a shitload of attorneys pretty soon, how's gonna pay 'em?

1/29/18, 6:15 PM

Just ask yourself, if the tables were turned and it was Hillary doing this to a loyal American government servant, what would she do to him? That's what he should get.

Inga...Allie Oop said...

“Get used to me Inga, because you have a stalker now.

Enjoy!”

I’d be very careful when making such threats, Bruce R.P.

Inga...Allie Oop said...

Bruce, I’d be more careful about threatening to stalk someone.

“California's criminal laws addressing online harassment state that it is illegal to use an electronic communication device to make repeated contact with another person with the intent to harass or annoy, or to make a single intentionally harassing contact if it includes any obscene or threatening language.”

Original Mike said...

Blogger madAsHell said...”I fail to understand how anyone in the executive offices at the FBI could wake up one morning, and think.....yeah, undermining the election is a fucking good idea.”

It speaks to how confident they were Hillary was going to win.

pacwest said...

Didn't I read somewhere that Wray told Trump that if he fired McCabe then Wray would quit? I never followed up on the story.

Bruce Hayden said...

I suspect that McCabe was, essentially, bought. Probably thought himself an honorable man until the end. But he was thought to have gotten the #2 job w/o paying his dues, and then his wife got the $700k. Probably thought himself one until the bitter end, just like Comey, the guy who made him. Wouldn’t even be surprised if he had been a moderate Republican until his wife was drafted by the Clintons to run for office. She seemed to have been. But the writing was on the wall, and the Obama/Clinton Administration was set for an 8 year term.

But then his name popped up too much with the Clinton investigation and, then, the “insurance policy”. Crooked Hillary lost, and his name was tied to the “Resistance” by Stryck and Page. Can’t have the FBI #2 trying to take out the king. The only question was how hard would he have to work for that pension. He was on pretty thin ice already, and the memo may have made it break. But I suspect that Wray made him an offer that he couldn’t refuse - go out early and Wray would authorize him to take his sick and annual leave up until his retirement date, or go down hard, joining Stryck in HR until then. Plus, he can now safely plead the 5th when he has to testify before Congress.

Ralph L said...

One has only one raison d'être so your "only" is adjectively superfluous.

Having two means you're very unique.

pacwest said...

Hey, Livermoron, get off it with Inga already. We already know who and what she is. You're just cluttering the airwaves.

Inga...Allie Oop said...

I’ve always thought the name Bruce was so effeminate.

Bruce Hayden said...

“1. Dems paid GPS/Fusion to do opposition research on candidate Trump.
2. GPS/Fusion hired Steele to dig up dirt on Trump.
3. Steele produced the Dossier, but it was never verified or corroborated.
4. GPS/Fusion and Steele peddled the unverified and uncorroborated Dossier to many news outlets
5. Steele gave Dossier to the FBI
6. FBI used the Dossier to get a FISA Warrant to spy on the Trump Campaign
7. Obama loosened up access to the confidential product obtained from the spying
8. Obama's government minions "unmasked" the confidential information.
9. Obama's government minions leaked the confidential information to NYT and WaPost to fuel hysterical news stories about Russia-collusion to try to damage Trump's candidate.”

Except that you may have left out the steps of Fusion people getting access to the 702 database by the FBI to build the Dossier,j and then running it through Steele in order to launder that information, so that the FISC wouldn’t see that the basis for the 10/16 FISA warrant was actually illegally obtained FISA 702 information. Not clear that this happened, but FBI did allow contractors access to the 702 Database, and there were close ties between Fusion and both the DoJ and FBI.

Inga...Allie Oop said...

Oh sorry Bruce Hayden, I didn’t mean you.

Original Mike said...

”Oh sorry Bruce Hayden, I didn’t mean you.”

I guess she didn’t mean Bruce Bruce (or something).

Drago said...

"Except that you may have left out the steps of Fusion people getting access to the 702 database by the FBI to build the Dossier,.."

Lots and lots of rumors that BOTH Fusion GPS and Crowdstrike were allowed access to our most sensitive intelligence data.

Both the DOJ AND the FBI have refused to answer questions about that. And now the FBI refuses to turn over McCabes texts.

We will see how long that continues.






Original Mike said...

”Lots and lots of rumors that BOTH Fusion GPS and Crowdstrike were allowed access to our most sensitive intelligence data.”

Yeah, that will be really something, if true.

Original Mike said...

Wonder where the LLR is tonight?

Rabel said...

Nancy P. is on CNN. She's really upset. She's also chewing. I mean literally chewing. Constantly. Her lower denture may be loose.

Inga...Allie Oop said...

“Wonder where the LLR is tonight?”

Maybe he’s sick of you people.

Rabel said...

Day room with the computer doesn't open til 8.

Original Mike said...

”Maybe he’s sick of you people.”

We can hope.

Darrell said...

”Lots and lots of rumors that BOTH Fusion GPS and Crowdstrike were allowed access to our most sensitive intelligence data.”

Not rumors--fact. Raw data on regular Americans. Each instance is a felony. The lawsuits should total $Billions.

Original Mike said...

”Not rumors--fact.”

How do you know that?

Bruce Hayden said...

To be honest, we really don’t know if either Fusion or Cloudstrike were among the FBI contractors allowed access to the NSA’s 702 databases. But a 702 search is maybe the best explanation for why Fusion made the mistake of the wrong Michael Cohen going to (I believe) Prague. Not the sort of mistake that spies doing spywork, but rather better explained by an “about” search of the NSA 702 databases with the names of the Trump campaign inner circle. And, if that is the case, the rest follows, because things didn’t blow up with the FISC until Oct 2016, several months after the Dossier was mostly complete. In October, not only did the DoJ/FBI go to the FISC for the warrant, but Adm Rogers went to the Court to tell them that contractors had been allowed to access those databases, that “about” inquiries were being abused, that the Obama White House was unmasking like crazy (etc). (Probably didn’t understand that it all came together with unmasked 702 “about” searches ended up in Obama’s PDBs, and, thus, in the hands of 30+ people, many of whom were political operatives). And, in response to Rogers going to the FISC, his boss, DNI Clapper, tried to get him fired. All in 10/16. But before that, the Obama people, and esp the Lynch DoJ, were massively violating at least the spirit of FISA, for often political ends, esp, it seems through the summer and into the fall. The FBI couldn’t go to the FISC for the Trump warrant based on 702 “about” searches of Trump campaign bigwigs. The court would very likely ask way too many embarrassing questions, such as “WTF?” Why are you doing searches on the Trump team (US Persons in the US) in the first place? Not only should their identities have been masked, but the searches should have been disallowed in the first place. The same court has oversight over the 702 databases and issuing FISA warrants. But the DoJ/FBI could go to that court if the information appeared to have come from the Russians, using traditional spycraft. Thus the suggestion of Fusion and the FBI laundering the information through Steele.

Should be interesting to see how far the miscreants went before being caught.

mockturtle said...

Nice rundown, Bruce. This is so much bigger--and more evil--than Watergate. I watched the Watergate hearings with interest and look forward to seeing these miscreants with their feet to the fire. At last. I can see why impeaching Trump has been so high on their agenda.

FIDO said...

If the FBI is hiding this and that memo names names, there will be enormous pressure on the FBI to comply or there needs to be SIGNIFICANT reasons besides 'We don't want to lose our jobs' to justify not showing it...WITH political cover from Congressmen verifying this reasoning.

I doubt Nunes is going to so any such thing. Republicans are in charge and it is a LONG time till November. Democrats can't stand another scandal, particularly one which besmirches the last administration.

IF it is true. But the reactions from the Democrats...it's fishy. Very fishy. The Democrats don't normally have any problem releasing confidential information since the Pentagon Papers...unless it kicks THEM in the fork.

Hmm!

Birkel said...

The names were redacted in one place.
But CrowdStrike and Fusion GPS were subpoenaed by Congress along with many other guilty parties.

It is a fact that those two entities saw the raw data.
It has not become a public fact.

Did anybody else object to the California stalking statute as blatantly unconstitutional? It is not content neutral. It makes no attempt at content neutrality. It specifically attempts to criminalize the disfavored type of speech.

Original Mike said...

”But the DoJ/FBI could go to that court if the information appeared to have come from the Russians, using traditional spycraft. Thus the suggestion of Fusion and the FBI laundering the information through Steele.”

Oh, I believe that, I just don’t think what’s in the public domain qualifies as “fact” yet.

Drago said...

Inga: "Maybe he’s sick of you people."

Not enough p****-hats and sexual harassment hypocrisy, no doubt.

Yancey Ward said...

McCabe is leaving because it was only a matter of time before he was suspended for taking the 5th when put before a committee again. As an official called in that capacity to testify, he can't keep his job and take the 5th- he was forced to choose, and we know his choice. I suspect that he never appears before Congress again, even if they subpoena him.

Achilles said...

Drago said...

"Except that you may have left out the steps of Fusion people getting access to the 702 database by the FBI to build the Dossier,.."

Lots and lots of rumors that BOTH Fusion GPS and Crowdstrike were allowed access to our most sensitive intelligence data.

Both the DOJ AND the FBI have refused to answer questions about that. And now the FBI refuses to turn over McCabes texts.

We will see how long that continues.


Crowdstrike and Fusion GPS are just 2 of the companies given access.

I count 6 companies including those two here.

"For the period from March 2016 through January 2017, please provide all
communications to, from, copying, or relating to: Fusion GPS; Bean LLC; Glenn
Simpson; Mary Jacoby; Peter Fritsch; Tom Catan; Jason Felch; Neil King; David
Michaels; Taylor Sears; Patrick Corcoran; Laura Sego; Jay Bagwell; Erica Castro;
Nellie Ohr; Rinat Akhmetshin; Ed Lieberman; Edward Baumgartner; Orbis Business
Intelligence Limited; Orbis Business International Limited.; Walsingham Training
Limited; Walsingham Partners Limited;
Christopher Steele; Christopher Burrows;
Sir Andrew Wood, Paul Hauser;4 Oleg Deripaska; Cody Shearer; Sidney
Blumenthal; Jon Winer;5 Kathleen Kavalec; Victoria Nuland; Daniel Jones;6 Bruce
Ohr; Peter Strzok; Andrew McCabe; James Baker;7 Sally Yates; Loretta Lynch; John
Brennan."


The rule of law comes back. MAGA.

jaydub said...

Lot's of speculation on why McCabe is being allowed to go on leave and the affect on his pension. Here are some tidbits about federal pensions via my wife who once worked for the DoD:

- He is already vested in a pension, the only question is when he gets it, at age 55 or age 60. He probably turns 55 in six weeks, which is why he picked that date.
- His pension is based on his highest three years salary, so it doesn't matter whether he's demoted or not.
- He most probably had no intention of leaving earlier than his retirement date because he can sell back his unused leave, and he apparently had six weeks of it. That means him leaving now cost him around $20K vs six weeks from now.
- Firing him and taking his pension are impossible before he retires, but immaterial. If he is convicted of a felony susequent to retirement he can still lose his pension.
- The one unforgivable thing you can do as a bureaucrat is to bring heat and attention to your bureau, and the heat is about to get really intense. He would be a distraction, source of embarrassment to the FBI and unable to preform his current job. He had to go. Besides he needs to spend more time with his lawyers.

Thanks for the insight, dear.

Birkel said...

"Preform"

Excellent typo.

Michael K said...

I think FBI agents can retire at 50 with 20 years. My daughter is one and plans to stay to 55 at which time mandatory retirement kicks in. She is planning her post retirement career now.

Bruce Hayden said...

“I think FBI agents can retire at 50 with 20 years. My daughter is one and plans to stay to 55 at which time mandatory retirement kicks in. She is planning her post retirement career now.”

Scary stuff - kids thinking about retirement.

mockturtle said...

If he is convicted of a felony susequent [sic] to retirement he can still lose his pension.

And if that happens he can live off his book royalties.

Birkel said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Birkel said...

mockturtle:

A risk I am willing to take. Without a reasonable threat of deterrence why wouldn't these bureaucrats try another coup?

mockturtle said...

Agree, Birkel. Honestly, I've never seen so much fear. We know they all expected a Hillary win and that Trump's victory has threatened their entire devious system. This is only the tip of the iceberg, methinks.