February 3, 2018
House Republicans, Sean Hannity and Trump have worked in concert to gin up the release of this Nunes memo that the FBI and DOJ have warned them not to release. Why is this so important? What’s all the fuss about?
Let’s start with the premise that Trump is guilty of working with the Russians to become the president. We have a lot of evidence of that although we do not have the “smoking gun” just yet. But I want to start with that premise because what I see going on with Trump and the Republicans is that they are feeling intense heat as Mueller closes in and they are constructing Trump’s defense to anything coming out of the Mueller investigation IF anything ever comes out- because they are also working hard to kill the investigation.
This memo was constructed by Devon Nunes’ aides in conjunction with the White House (I wonder if Trump himself did not help construct this memo just as he wrote or helped to write the Trump Tower meeting adoption statement.) What this memo does is cherry pick the basis for the FISA warrant and allege that the Steele Dossier was the real basis for that eavesdropping approval. That is not true. There were multiple sources of information that formed the underlying basis for that FISA warrant which was also reviewed and approved by a FISA court judge and there are 50 pages of information to support underlying the warrant. But the Republicans, Sean Hannity and Trump are alleging that this dossier was the basis for that FISA and that it was baseless. In other words, this is a “Witch hunt”. Don’t accept anything coming out of the FISA warrant, the investigation etc. The goal is to batter the FBI and DOJ, in the court of public opinion and give Trump grounds to do a cleansing operation at both agencies. Get rid of anyone who is not loyal to him. He does not care about what this does to the FBI or to DOJ. He only cares about himself. The goal is also to have grounds to fire Rod Rosenstein and replace him with someone who is loyal and pliable. That person will do his best to abolish the Mueller investigation.
In addition, they are going to say that the FBI and DOJ are part of the Deep State that is trying to take Trump down. We know Trump is paranoid. This man is afraid of being poisoned. He eats Mc Donald’s fast food burgers so that he knows he will be safe – no one will have put poison in fast food he eats – is his thinking We have evidence that he is paranoid in other circumstances as well. So it would make perfect sense that Trump would believe the Deep State is out to get him. But add on the fact that Trump himself knows he is guilty. Trump knows he obstructed the investigation. Trump knows he was in bed with the Russians to win the election. So how can he defend himself? He is desperate to find a way.
The best defense is a good offense.
We are seeing that offense.
And why are the Republicans playing along with this? Why have they become an extension of the White House cover up? I believe they are being manipulated by the Russians as well. I have written about this before. Both the DNC and RNC were hacked by the Russians. The DNC emails were made public in a way to damage Clinton prior to the election. The RNC emails were not made public, but the Russians have these Republicans by the balls. The Russian oligarchs gave money to both Dems and Republicans in the general elections until 2016. For the 2016 election they only supported Republicans. The carrot and the stick. Republican lawmakers are being played by the Russians as well as by Trump. I think this is one of the reasons we are seeing so many Republican lawmakers decide against running again for House seats. This game is not just dirty, it is downright un-American, anti-Democratic and twisted. The stakes are high. Our country is at risk.
When I worked as an Assistant US Attorney I assembled the evidence for my cases. I would prepare the witnesses and study the evidence. I understood the truth of what happened in the crime I was prosecuting and knew the validity of the prosecution (or I would have dropped the case). I was impressed that the FBI agents I worked with were a lot like Clark Kent – nerdy and super patriotic and always wanting to be on the right side of the law. But then I would go to court and try the case. And the defense attorneys would put in their defense during the trial. In the beginning I was surprised that the theory of the defense was commonly a paranoid theory similar to what is being played out with Trump, Hannity and the Republicans. The allegation would be – the FBI and the prosecutor (me) had doctored evidence or there was a scheme, a trap. It was a witch hunt. Which was a flat out lie. I knew that was a lie because I had assembled the evidence and I knew I was a straight arrow. I understood that these defense theories were the best the defense attorney could come up with because the FBI had done such a good job of interviewing people and gathering evidence to get to the truth and I had done a good job preparing the case which I knew was fact based. The difference is that this defense for Trump is being constructed BEFORE the trial or impeachment or whatever Mueller intends to do to refer the matter to Congress. Trump and his minions are seizing the opportunity to do an end run around the justice system with their PR and they are working on a way to attack it from within as well. They are doing a PR assault using Hannity and Breitbart to put in their defense of Trump even while we get steady leaks to the press from people inside the White House or otherwise in the know telling us the truth.
I am concerned about the future of this country.
We have a president who is a criminal who has all the levers of power as well as money at his disposal. And he will use everything in his power to beat up and beat back his opponent without regard for the law or ethics.
This could be the end of our democracy as we know it. With the large sums of money that Republicans have at their disposal to use for their campaigns for 2018 thanks to Citizen’s United and the new tax law that will fill their coffers, they will use every trick in the book to turn back the Blue Wave that they see coming, If Americans don’t understand the scam they are getting with the Tax Cuts for the Rich because they also got some bucks thrown their way, they may not care about Russiagate. If people in our country do not rise up and get out the vote to counter the deconstruction of our democracy, we could become a Banana Republic. Putin will have won.
What could turn the tide?
1) Strong voices calling out this deception – journalists, Democratic lawmakers (hey, there could be Republicans too – where are you guys??!!), Attorney Generals across the country. Governors. Please speak up, you guys!! Oprah, you have a good voice, USE IT. Richard Painter and Malcom Nance are calling it like it is. More! More!
2) The Women’s Movement rising up for 2018 to get out the vote, This is huge. This could be the answer to the vast sums of money on the right. Energy on the left. Talking with Independents to hear them and explain why the Dems will be better for them. Everyone off the bench, as Michael Moore says.
3)
a) Mueller finally comes out with additional indictments that shed light on the underlying crime of Russian/ Trump conspiracy, or
b) Mueller indicts the president on obstruction of justice to ensure that the facts get out to the public in a court of law rather than referring the matter for impeachment to this Republican led Russian influenced Congress which would try to bury the information, or
c) Evidence comes out that contains the smoking gun (probably money laundering revealed in Trump’s tax returns and other evidence that Trump is compromised) or
d) Information is leaked to us through journalists or a Deep Throat that reveals what Mueller has learned.
4) Sean Hannity and the Republicans are convincingly revealed to be in the pocket of the Russians.
What can you do?
Do whatever you can to make the Blue Wave happen. That is what those of us who do not have power can do to save our country. Be ready to get out and march when Rosenstein is fired. Don’t wait for Mueller. Rosenstein is the lynchpin and he is hanging by a thread. If we work hard for 2018 there is a chance we can eventually, with effort, restore our democracy.
If the Dems can control Congress we will at least get that branch of government back working for us again instead of plotting with Trump and the Russians to turn our democracy into an Oligarchy.
The Real Aim of the Secret Memo Is the Mueller Investigation
The memo has emerged as the latest attempt by Republicans to portray the actions of the investigators in the Russia inquiry as the real scandal.
NYTIMES.COM