US Politics The Mueller Investigation - report is out

[JahSEEuS]

Haiguise

https://www.npr.org/2018/04/17/6030...-mueller-as-special-counsels-favorability-dro

Mueller's positive favoribility is less than Trump's across the board.

https://m.washingtontimes.com/news/2018/apr/16/robert-mueller-many-news-stories-trump-russia-prob/

Either Mueller has no control or is full of shit.

I'm guessing both.

 

[JGrimez]

I also find it fascinating that people think they could read the intel used to grant a FISA warrant and make a decision about whether or not it should have been issued. Most people don't know what a FISA warrant is, much less the standard that must be met.

Believe it or not some people could read the documents and understand then.

So why exactly is the FISA warrant relevant to Mueller's investigation?

Seriously? How is surveilling the Trump team relevant to an investigation into their alleged Russian collusion....

A much-hyped memo that shows alleged government surveillance abuse during the 2016 campaign has been released to the public and cites testimony from a high-ranking government official who says the FBI and DOJ would not have sought surveillance warrants to spy on a member of the Trump team without the infamous, Democrat-funded anti-Trump dossier.

It Ain't Easy Getting a FISA Warrant: I Was an FBI Agent and Should Know

FISA is a rubber stamp. During the 25 years from 1979 to 2004, 18,742 warrants were granted, while only 4 were rejected. Fewer than 200 requests had to be modified before being accepted, almost all of them in 2003 and 2004.

1,856. That's the number of applications presented to the court by the government in 2012.
And it's also the number that the court approved: 100 percent success

 

[noone1]

Big difference, those all began with crimes. Pick a scandal from the Left and I will tell you the crime that spearheaded the investigation.
Good luck doing that with Trump without sounding like a conspiracy theorist or a politician trying to avoid answering a question directly, instead bringing up vague connections that prove nothing of the original mandate of the investigation.

For some reason Trump keeps hiring corrupt people that where being investigated by the FBI before hand.

Since you keep repeating debunked talking points about the nonexistent uranium one scandal I see it is pointless to discuss this. I keep wondering if the cult of 45 will end with mass suicides when reality smacks them in the face.

 

[JGrimez]

The fact that you all completely ignore the Uranium One scandal is very worrying.
Tip: you cannot debunk something just by saying that it is "debunked".

Just answer these simple questions:
Did Russians linked to the government obtain 20% of US uranium?
Was said uranium allowed to leave the country?
Did the Clinton Foundation receive $140million+ from Russian donors linked to the deal?
Did Bill Clinton meet privately with Putin around the time of the deal, and did he receive half a million from a Kremlin bank for a speech?

Good luck "debunking" that, and if you can't then just feel free to not put 2 + 2 together.

 

[Xorkoth]

For some reason Trump keeps hiring corrupt people that where being investigated by the FBI before hand.

Since you keep repeating debunked talking points about the nonexistent uranium one scandal I see it is pointless to discuss this. I keep wondering if the cult of 45 will end with mass suicides when reality smacks them in the face.

I look forward to the day when reality comes crashing down. I wonder how many die-hards will take their faith to the grave even after it crumbles before their eyes? As much as I am in disbelief that people can still support this guy regardless of what he does, I hope the explosion of cognitive dissonance can be dealt with in a healthy way.

The fact that you all completely ignore the Uranium One scandal is very worrying.
Tip: you cannot debunk something just by saying that it is "debunked".

Just answer these simple questions:
Did Russians linked to the government obtain 20% of US uranium?
Was said uranium allowed to leave the country?
Did the Clinton Foundation receive $140million+ from Russian donors linked to the deal?
Did Bill Clinton meet privately with Putin around the time of the deal, and did he receive half a million from a Kremlin bank for a speech?

Good luck "debunking" that, and if you can't then just feel free to not put 2 + 2 together.

No, but you can debunk something using evidence. Snopes did it, here ya go: https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/hillary-clinton-uranium-russia-deal/

 

[Droppersneck]

^snopes is a biased/partisan operation. We learned this during the election, that said, they are a decent enough resource. But you have to remember to always look at other sources to get the full picture.

Grimez did you hear about Mueller saying that he thought the press was pushing the fake Russian collusion theory, I think he’s trying to set the public’s expections. You have tons of liberals following his every more praying for him to find something.

 

[cduggles]

Believe it or not some people could read the documents and understand then.

And evaluate whether or not they reach the standard for a FISA warrant? Okay.

Seriously? How is surveilling the Trump team relevant to an investigation into their alleged Russian collusion....

I'm going to go with Republican Trey Gowdy, who unlike you and Devin Nunes, read the underlying intel for the FISA warrant. He says it isn't relevant to the existence of the Mueller investigation and that the investigation is legitimate.

He did v thorough research on the subject.

And in case you missed it, Trump can declassify any document any time he wants. Perhaps the Nunes memo is as close to the truth that Trump wants anyone to get?

Because Trump hasn't declassified the intel related to the FISA warrant in question. Why is that?

Xoroth: I think Trump supporters will literally die thinking that the obstructionist Democrats and the Deep State kept Trump from saving America.

 

[cduggles]

Haiguise

https://www.npr.org/2018/04/17/6030...-mueller-as-special-counsels-favorability-dro

Mueller's positive favoribility is less than Trump's across the board.

Mueller's job isn't to be popular. It's to conduct a fair and thorough investigation, only some of which involves Trump.

On the other hand, for Trump, his low approval ratings simply reflect his unpopularity. And as the titular head of the government, one should find that worrisome. Obviously his fellow Republicans do.

https://m.washingtontimes.com/news/2018/apr/16/robert-mueller-many-news-stories-trump-russia-prob/

Either Mueller has no control or is full of shit.

I'm guessing both.

????
Mueller doesn't control the media.

And his team doesn't leak, so that indicates control. Excellent control.

Having a spokesperson state that stories in the press about the investigation might not be accurate is not being full of it. It's sort of the opposite.

There's a saying in journalism that if you don't control the narrative, someone else will fill in the blanks. It could be a crazy tweeting politician or a journalist with questionable sources.

Mueller job is to find the truth, not fight a PR battle.

Speaking of which, which is more devastating? The tweets that Trump and fans try to use to chip away at the legitimacy of the investigation, or the torpedoes from the silent submarine of the Mueller investigation?

I think the unknown terrifies Trump and keeps the integrity of the investigation intact, but isn't a great PR strategy. However, Ken Starr (Independent Counsel who investigated Bill Clinton) eventually got skewered for being so press-friendly.

On the PR and political front, I think Trump's attacks on the DOJ, FBI, and the Mueller investigation have had a negative impact on the perception of all those institutions and possibly the investigation.

In the end, it's either going to be about politics or facts and the rule of law. Not a comforting prospect.

 

[JGrimez]

I look forward to the day when reality comes crashing down. I wonder how many die-hards will take their faith to the grave even after it crumbles before their eyes? As much as I am in disbelief that people can still support this guy regardless of what he does, I hope the explosion of cognitive dissonance can be dealt with in a healthy way.

You say this and then directly link Snopes? The projection is real.
We all know what happened with Uranium One, some will not accept it though because doing so completely destroys Trump/Russia collusion conspiracy theory, and discredits Mueller.

You have tons of liberals following his every more praying for him to find something.

Yes I just had a liberal trying to tell me how Mueller was such a moral, stand-up guy. I expect a liberal flip-flop in the not so distant future.

And evaluate whether or not they reach the standard for a FISA warrant? Okay.

Did you see the figures for FISA warrants? So not only is FISC a rubber-stamp court, but they actually denied their first application for surveillance because it was so shitty.
Enter British intelligence and the Steele dossier (which I mentioned on the previous page)

I'm going to go with Republican Trey Gowdy, who unlike you and Devin Nunes, read the underlying intel for the FISA warrant. He says it isn't relevant to the existence of the Mueller investigation and that the investigation is legitimate.

So just listen to one guy and that's it, end of story? The fact remains that the FBI is refusing to release the unredacted document which started the investigation. You understand they're facing contempt charges by refusing to do so? This means they are hiding something.

And in case you missed it, Trump can declassify any document any time he wants. Perhaps the Nunes memo is as close to the truth that Trump wants anyone to get?

How is Trump supposed to get the document if the FBI is refusing to hand it over? Should he bust into the bureau like Vince McMahon and table slam anyone in his way? How about the FBI follows the law and refrains from acting like they've got something to hide? (they obviously do). It's also better if Trump stays out of this so that nobody can accuse him of a being power-abusing dictator, and it also allows the FBI to sweat and eventually hang themselves. Better for optics and justice in general if it just eventuates organically, and would be amusing to see legal action being taken against the FBI, further discrediting the corrupt officials at the top.

The House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence (HPSCI) demanded Wednesday that the FBI and DOJ comply with the committee?s subpoena to review documents pertaining to the bureau?s Russia investigation. In particular, the committee wants the un-redacted version of the original investigative document, also known as ?Electronic Communication? that launched the FBI counterintelligence investigation into the Trump campaign, according to a letter issued by the Chairman.

Chairman Devin Nunes, R-CA, sent the letter to Department of Justice Assistant Attorney General Rod Rosenstein and FBI Director Christopher Wray warning them that their lack of compliance with the committee?s original Aug. 24, 2017 subpoena to turn over all requested documents could result in ?the Committee pursuing all appropriate legal remedies, including seeking civil enforcement? in a federal district court. The committee gave the FBI and DOJ until April 11 to turn over all the documentation requested.

The request for the un-redacted version of the originating ?electronic communication? is new and it reveals that the committee is looking into the FBI?s initiation of the investigation into alleged collusion between President Trump and Russia in the 2016 presidential election. The document would be a detailed report of the FBI?s reasoning to move forward with the investigation into the Trump campaign after the bureau was informed by Australian authorities of a conversation Trump campaign advisor George Papadopoulos had with one of their diplomats at a London bar.

?This is a key document in getting the whole thing started,? stated a congressional official, with knowledge of the investigation.\ ?The DOJ and FBI are attempting to keep us from seeing an un-redacted copy of it.? Nunes had originally asked Wray for assistance on Feb. 27 for an un-redacted copy of the originating ?Electronic Communication? but on March 14 when committee investigators were given access to the document from the FBI it was a heavily redacted version, according to the letter and congressional officials.
.......................
?After nearly three weeks without a meaningful response, (Office of Legislative Affairs) finally informed the Committee on Feb. 26, 2018, that ?the Department has not agreed to allow further member access.'? Nunes said in his letter ?this arbitrary resistance to legitimate oversight is unacceptable.?
..........................................
The committee?s final report on the Russia investigation criticized the FBI for withholding information from the court that the Democratic National Committee and the Hillary Clinton Campaign paid for former British spy Christopher Steele?s work on the unverified dossier, which accused Page of colluding with the Russians.

?We?ve been dealing with this for more than a year now and they always have some excuse,? said a congressional official. ?One example is the information we?ve seen lately on the redactions they kept from the committees in the (FBI Special Agent) Peter Strzok and (FBI Attorney Lisa) Page text messages regarding FISC Court Judge (Rudy) Contreras. It?s really hard to believe that they didn?t find this FISA stuff on Contreras relevant to our investigation. Congress is having continual problems getting information from the DOJ and FBI, even in the face of subpoenas.?

Late last month, new redacted text messages uncovered by congressional investigators revealed Strzok and his paramour Page discussed Strzok?s relationship with U.S. District Court Judge Rudolph Contreras. Contreras presided over Dec. 1, 2017, hearing where former National Security Advisor Michael Flynn pleaded guilty to lying to the FBI and on Dec. 7, he was recused from the case without explanation, as previously reported.

Strzok was removed from Robert Mueller?s Special Counsel?s Office last year after the DOJ?s Inspector General Michael Horowitz uncovered thousands of text message revealing the agent?s anti-Trump bias.

Numerous Republican congressional officials have told this reporter that the FBI and DOJ have continually stonewalled on delivering the requested information.

"The document would be a detailed report of the FBI?s reasoning to move forward with the investigation into the Trump campaign"

Since they've yet to charge Trump with anything, isn't this something that every one of us would be interesting in knowing?
My guess it that they did not have any legitimate reason to move forward with the investigation. I believe it was a coup enacted to remove an elected President, which directly contravenes the constitution and lands a few people in very serious doodoo.

 

[JGrimez]

https://edition.cnn.com/2018/04/19/politics/justice-mccabe-criminal-referral/index.html
Justice IG sends criminal referral of Andrew McCabe to US attorney

http://www.foxnews.com/politics/201...linton-mccabe-for-criminal-investigation.html
GOP reps refer Comey, Clinton, McCabe for criminal investigation

Nearly a dozen Republican members of Congress on Wednesday sent a criminal referral to the Justice Department and FBI seeking an investigation of former bureau boss James Comey, his deputy Andrew McCabe, ex-Attorney General Loretta Lynch and Hillary Clinton in connection with 2016 campaign controversies.

Attorney General Jeff Sessions already announced last month he had assigned a federal prosecutor to review some of those broader issues, while resisting calls for a second special counsel. But the referral represents an escalation of Republican pressure to probe top Democrats and Trump critics.

Rep. Ron DeSantis, R-Fla., and 10 other House lawmakers want an investigation into potential violations that cover everything from the handling of the Clinton email probe to the anti-Trump dossier?s funding to the Uranium One controversy. They made their case in a letter sent Wednesday to Sessions, FBI Director Christopher Wray, and U.S. Attorney John Huber, whom Sessions named to lead the previously announced evaluation.

https://nypost.com/2018/04/19/inspector-general-says-fired-fbi-head-mccabe-should-be-prosecuted/
Inspector general says fired FBI head McCabe should be prosecuted

The Justice Department?s inspector general has sent a criminal referral for fired FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe to the US Attorney?s Office in Washington, arguing that he should be prosecuted, a new report said Thursday.

Attorney General Jeff Sessions fired McCabe after the IG?s report said he had not told the truth when he was questioned about leaks to the media involving the bureau?s probe into Hillary Clinton, CNN reported.

It wasn?t immediately clear what charges the feds would seek to lodge against McCabe, who has repeatedly been denounced by President Trump on Twitter in recent weeks.

McCabe was fired just days before he would have been eligible for his full federal pension.

He has denied any wrongdoing.

Bloomberg: Rosenstein told Trump last week that he isn't a target of any part of Mueller's investigation, two sources say
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-04-19/rosenstein-said-to-tell-trump-he-s-not-target-in-mueller-probe

 

[cduggles]

^ It really is funny that the news cycle is too clogged up right now and the Witchhunt! rallying cry sucked up so much air with the nothing-news Nunes memo that this report is being ignored. Cry wolf too many times...

 

[JGrimez]

Rudy Giuliani joins Trump legal team, hopes to end Russia probe in "a week or two"
https://nypost.com/2018/04/19/rudy-giuliani-may-be-joining-trumps-legal-team/

Rudy Giuliani said Thursday that he will join President Trump?s legal team and hopes to bring an end to the special counsel?s investigation into Russian election meddling in "a week or two."
"I'm going to join the legal team to try to bring this to a resolution," Giuliani told The Post.
"The country deserves it. I've got great admiration for President Trump.
"I've had a long relationship with Bob Mueller. I have great respect for him. He's done a good job."
Giuliani, a former US Attorney, served as New York City's mayor when Mueller was the FBI director.

DOJ Sending Comey Memos to Congress Today
https://thegatewaypundit.com/2018/04/doj-sending-comey-memos-to-congress-today/

Faced with the threat of subpoena, the Justice Department is expected to send Comey?s unredacted memos to Congress later Thursday.

The deadline passed several days ago prompting Rep DeSantis to call for contempt charges against Rosenstein.

The Daily Beast confirmed the Justice Department is finally complying with the oversight committee?s request and will be sending Comey?s memos to Congress today or tomorrow.
Comey penned 7 memos stemming from 9 conversations with President Trump.
The fired FBI Director admitted to leaking contents of the memos to the New York Times through a friend in order to prompt a special counsel investigation into Trump.
CNN?s Jake Tapper also reported the Comey memos would be available to Congress later today.

 

[cduggles]

Trump couldn't get a big-name practicing D.C. lawyer with experience in Special Counsel investigations? Or are skeletons starting to surface in other states? Or both?

Former federal prosecutor Peter Zeidenberg said Giuliani could benefit Trump more on the public relations front, rather than on the nuances of the legal fight.

“Not the guy I would hire for the job; show horse, not a workhorse,” he said. “Trump needs a workhorse. But he’ll be good on TV, and I guess that is what matters to Trump.”

Giuliani to join Trump legal team


But Giuliani was US attorney for the Southern District of New York, so maybe Trump is hoping the dirt on him in the Cohen raid can be disappeared. He needs a new fixer after all.

The other two off-brand attorneys are from Miami with experience in organized and white-collar crime. Sounds peachy.

Miami Husband-and-Wife legal duo to join Trump defense in Russia investigation

The two are widely respected defense lawyers in Miami who have represented many high-profile white collar crimes, including federal immigration agents suspected of extorting money from drug kingpins, mob suspects, and a contractor tied to the 1996 ValuJet plane crash in Florida Everglades...

[David Weinstein, a former federal prosecutor at the U.S. Attorney's Office in Miami] said the community of former federal prosecutors in Miami is small and it was known that the Raskins supported Trump. He was not surprised they were picked, but found it curious that Trump would pick lawyers from South Florida as opposed to New York or Washington, D.C.

“It raises the question that he might be looking at vulnerabilities in South Florida,” Weinstein said.

 

[mostly-human]

Arguing Climate Skeptics gives credibility - as though there is something to be argued. (this is a metaphor)

 

[cduggles]

^ because

 

[JGrimez]

Nunes: Review of FBI, DOJ documents shows Russia probe was launched without supporting intel
https://truepundit.com/nunes-review...-probe-was-launched-without-supporting-intel/

House Intelligence Committee Chairman Devin Nunes said Sunday his review of FBI and Justice Department ?electronic communication? documents shows no intelligence was used to begin the investigation into possible collusion between the Trump campaign and Russia during the 2016 election.

?We now know that there was no official intelligence that was used to start this investigation. We know that Sidney Blumenthal and others were pushing information into the State Department. So we?re trying to piece all that together and that?s why we continue to look at the State Department,?

Nunes Fingers Hillary Clinton Cartel For Leaking Anti-Trump Intel to Comey, McCabe, FBI to Spy on Trump Campaign
https://truepundit.com/video-nunes-...to-comey-mccabe-fbi-to-spy-on-trump-campaign/

A new wrinkle in the Trump illegal wiretapping and Russia investigation.

A BIG Wrinkle.

Congressman Devin Nunes is fingering Hillary Clinton for leaking and tampering in the investigation, using surrogates to infuse Intel to the State Department and FBI.

Nunes? new revelations echo Intel uncovered by True Pundit last week, showing James Comey, Loretta Lynch and the entire U.S. intelligence community worked with Hillary Clinton to frame Donald Trump and associates.

Loretta Lynch?s Justice Department and James Comey?s FBI worked together with the Hillary Clinton campaign to entrap Donald Trump and associates ? including his eldest son ? prior to the 2016 presidential election, according to records and testimony of federal law enforcement insiders.
One high ranking official in the Justice Department called it a sweeping ?highly illegal? scheme to ensure Hillary Clinton?s election to the White House.
?This was clearly a scheme using Justice (Department) resources and State (Department) resources to get the Russian lawyer into the United States,? one Justice Department insider said. ?Who has the power to do this? Only the people at the very top.?
Lynch. Comey. Andrew McCabe. Preet Bhahara. Sally Yates.
And according to high ranking FBI sources, the Bureau played a definitive role in plotting this sweeping privacy breach. But the FBI had much help from the NSA, CIA, the Office of of the Director of National Intelligence, Treasury financial crimes division under DHS, and the Justice Department, federal law enforcement sources confirmed.
John Brennan. James Clapper. Jeh Johnson.
That places the Barack Obama administration directly into this illegal soup, led by Lynch, Yates, Comey and the FBI?s McCabe and associates.
In fact, Hillary Clinton along with the DNC bankrolled Fusion GPS to set up Donald Trump Jr. in the large scheme to undercut his father?s path to the presidency, sources said.

​

 

[JGrimez]

GOP-led House panel officially clears Trump in Russia probe
https://www.washingtonpost.com/poli...05a446d19b8_story.html?utm_term=.9ae92f6c2070

The Republican-led House intelligence committee on Friday officially declared the end of its Russia probe, saying in its final report that it found no evidence that the Trump campaign colluded with Russia in the 2016 presidential campaign.

The report’s conclusion is fiercely opposed by committee Democrats, who say the committee did not interview enough witnesses or gather enough evidence to support its finding.

 

[alasdairm]

^ if a democratic-led house panel cleared clinton of email wrongdoing, how would you react (given the current political climate)? it's an honest question.

alasdair

 

[JessFR]

Fuck em all. They're all a bunch of lying manipulating politicians.

Fuck Trump, and fuck Clinton too. I'll admit that if I absolutely had to choose, I'd probably rather Clinton had won the last election. But it's like saying that if I had to choose, I'd rather have be shot to death than stabbed to death.

 

[JGrimez]

^ if a democratic-led house panel cleared clinton of email wrongdoing, how would you react (given the current political climate)? it's an honest question.

Honestly, I wouldn't be completely convinced. But that also depends on if I had investigated the issue myself and formed my own conclusions.