It's Rupert Murdoch FIX News network that's leading the charge and willingly supplying the 24/7 attack dogs to smear the DOJ and FBI.
Their White Dear Leader must be defended at all costs.
3
Republicans fail to understand that some day, they will not control the government, and on that day, there will be payback.
Count on it. What goes around comes around.
6
Attack is a good strategy. Mueller is Trump's enemy, bent on destroying Trump any way any how. Trump must fight bak and play as dirty as Mueller. This is a pitted battle between a prosecutor run-amok and the most powerful human on earth. Stay tuned.
1
steve;
Just wait until Cohen flips on Trump.. That day is coming.
You guys got lucky with No Drama Obama, who did not want to prosecute BANKSTERS an Wall Street.
When Democrats regain control of the overnment, there will be payback for all the dirty play of the Republicans, starting with Mitch McConnell and Trump.
3
If both the CIA and FBI were conspiring against Trump and for political purposes, then why did they refuse to let the public know during the entire campaign season about their investigation of some Trump campaign officials’ possible connections to the Russian interference in the election?
5
How can this be? That an illegitimate president can denigrate the lawful branches of our government? News flash, swamp dwellers...trump wants to turn the FBI into his personal version of the KGB. Listen up, spineless Congress and Senate...you are expendable, we citizens can vote you gone.
3
You know what is really bizarre about all this? ... the FBI uses informants and undercover agents because they don't want others to be aware of what they are doing.
What does Trump expect? ... that undercover agents and informants introduce themselves as agents? .. yeah, that will surely elicit information about criminal activity.
Trump and the Republicans are trying to take American citizens for fools ... ain't gonna work.
8
What a tangled web we weave, when we practice to deceive, what was it at Mark Twain said about the truth, “ if you tell the truth, you don’t have to remember anything”.
For the sake of America, and Republicans everywhere, the truth would sure beat this nonsense.
1
If they wanted to conspire against him why didn't they put this stuff out before the election to stop him from being elected? It's absurd. If they had all of this planned and ready to spring on him they would have.
The GOP has been investigating the Clintons for 30 years and come up with next to nothing.. They were in the middle of running a new one during the election of 2016. They cheered on Comey for his irresponsible public statements about Clinton that went a long way to throw the election to Trump.
The GOP was in control and all of this conspiracy against Trump happened on its watch? Then what makes Trump think that such a passel of fools knows what it is doing and should be running more investigations? Either the Clintons are way too smart for them or the GOP Congress is part of the Deep State covering up for them. Or.. there really is no there there.
So should one think the Republican Congress is what is really behind these attacks on Trump?
I mean Trump is asking us to believe that the Deep State somehow manipulated Trump, his son, Manafort, Kushner, Flynn etc. etc. into doing all of the things that are evidence of collusion with Russia. Maybe they are manipulating him now into asking for an investigation so that they can discredit him when the evidence doesn't appear because they have hidden it?
Trump just leads people down rabbit holes with his lies about his own behavior.
4
One of the real overlooked dangers of the attacks on the DOJ and the FBI by the Republicans(including the firing of last 2 FBI directors for "lying") is that it is only a matter of time before other defense lawyers in this country claim the FBI was ran by liars and that their clients who were charged must immediately be released. They will argue in court that the FBI was apparently ran by dishonest directors who frame people and had to be fired by the President for lying, and The FBI has the nerve to charge my client? It's only a matter of time. In Kansas, several jurors in the militia trial recently had to be dismissed because they claimed not to trust the FBI. The mistrust in justice and the rule of law, as well as law enforcement will take years to recover from.
4
The support for impeachment among anti-Trump activists is pretty much a given. It shouldn't be. Polls show that voters don't favor candidates in the upcoming election who call for impeachment. That could change depending on the results of Mueller's investigation. But it might not change much.
The pursuit of criminal justice and the well-being of the country are two different things. I don't see Trump resigning. So I foresee a trial in the Senate if he is impeached. There is no doubt that such a trial would be deeply divisive. That makes me ask if it's the best option out there.
It is the American way to pursue truth, and that would require a trial. If Trump is simply voted out in 2020, he would likely escape justice. But, at the same time, we would escape national trauma. I don't pretend to know what's best. But I think this is the biggest question out there and not many are talking about it.
If you have an easy and pithy answer to this question, I think you are simple-minded. The most profound question of this crisis -- whether we look to the Senate or to the American people to "dump Trump"-- is the most important and most difficult question facing the nation. Two word answers won't do.
Lets all draw a block diagram at home of all the elements that have influenced, bribed, coerced, extorted Trump and his entourage (mostly willingly on his part). And do our own personal research in quality journalism. Try not to “idealogize” it. Ive learned a whole lot by doing extensive reading. Do evidence-based thinking and don’t let your denial-center run things. (I guess Im talking to the non-believers). This thing is very, very very big.
3
@Carl, it’s so massive that since January 2017 I have filled 16 spiral notebooks with notes on news reports from reputable publications.
1
Yup ... Trump has been their (and now our) “useful idiot”, under progressive recruitment for 1 to 2 decades, via Russian government, intelligence, banks, oligarchies ... and, other nations too ...
1
It's in his eyes. Full of hate. An evil megalomaniac indeed. A very dangerous and unstable, petulant child right now.
6
He’s back! James R. Clapper, President Obama’s former Director of National Intelligence, promoting his new book, “Facts and Fears: Hard Truths From a Life in Intelligence,” dismissing the investigation of candidate Trump as “a routine thing that goes on all the time” I remember Clapper’s “Hard Truth” circa 2013 while testifying under oath.
Sen. Ron Wyden: "Does the NSA collect any kind of data at all on millions or hundreds of millions of Americans?"
Clapper : "No sir."
Sen Wyden: "It does not?"
Clapper: "No sir, not wittingly."
The Snowden documents proved Clapper was no credit to the intelligence community, just your garden variety perjurer, posing as the people’s defender while willingly obstructing justice.
Fortunately, he wasn’t around in 1970 when the Nixon White House wanted to launch a massive domestic surveillance operation using the FBI plus the CIA and military intelligence. Hoover said no on jurisdiction and legal grounds, but it was the military Intelligence services that finally killed it. Navy Capt. Edward G. Rifenburgh set the tone telling the WH rep, “Look, we don’t have the manpower or the budget and even if we did, spying on US citizens is fr%$#*ng illegal!” And as the Army & Air Force guys forcibly added, “you think the demonstrations are big now, . “.
My Uncle Ted, like most men & women in our intelligence operations served with honor and deserve our respect. As brave as he was eloquent, I still hear his voice as if it were yesterday.
I predict that following the end of Trump's presidency, there will be a flurry of social psychology research studies on how so many citizens of one country (the U.S.) could support and encourage such a pathological person as President Trump. The same thing happened after World War II, when there was a flurry of scientific research studies that were aimed at trying to figure out how so many German people could have supported such horrendous behavior as occurred during the Holocaust. These scientists assumed the typical German at the time of Hitler was no different that anyone else in terms of intrinsic violence toward those Hitler targeted. The social psychologists, instead, investigated what situational factors could induce almost anyone to follow orders like those Hitler gave. The results of numerous studies showed that certain situational factors were indeed influential enough to lead average experimental subjects to ignore their tendencies to refuse to obey the experimenter when he ordered them to deliver strong electric shock to another person. Some day, I imagine, social psychologists will develop lines of scientific research that reveal what about what Trump does that leads some people to continue to support him despite the patterns of lies that hurt them. Why are West Virginians falling for Trump, clearly an outsider, who cares only for their votes.
3
For the devoted NY Times reader base that is on endless Trump-hate tilt, see today's NY Times article on one-time Clinton ally Mark Penn. That is, if you're interested in other details and credible opinions on the Mueller investigation that just might possibly be contrary to your prejudices. Penn actually helped defend Bill Clinton during the equally scandalous, taxpayer money wasting Starr investigation.
Sorry, the secord I heard Penn use the term "Deep State" I stopped believing he had any credibility.
2
Trump doesn't know how to hire people.
That explains why he's President.
If Trump is innocent of wrongdoing why is he freaking out?
He's guilty and scared and I love it. He deserves every second of anxiety, misery, etc. He's a heartless, soulless, ugly inside and out half-man.
He stole the 2016 election from Clinton who should run for president again, and spare me your anti-Clinton bile fueled by Russian bots, Fox News, and holier than thou pure as the driven snow Johnny and Jenny Come Lately millenial and hipster Berne cultists who ignore that Clinton beat him by almost four million votes in the primary.
If I'm Hillary I announce I'm running again and want Sanders to be my running mate and top general for healthcare - put him on the spot.
3
History will be unkind to Mr. Giuliani and Professor Dershowitz, I think. The tactic that Trump and Giuliani have decided to pursue is immoral, unethical, foul, possibly illegal and certainly detrimental to the good of the country, but then, the same could be said for nearly almost anything the egomaniacal kleptocrat in the WH does. As a former prosecutor, I cannot imagine marching into the subject or target or defendant's office to reveal the inner workings of my investigation, or to show them before discovery required it the evidence compiled.
The fact that the President seems to think he has the authority to do so makes this violation of norms all the more egregious.
As I said above, I believe history will deal harshly with Giuliani and Dershowitz -- of course, they may just be demented hulks of their former selves, in which case perhaps they will escape with only a sad recollection of what they had once been....
4
Does Trump realize the FBI is The Federal Bureau of Investigation? Meaning they investigate. And use informants. They do counterintelligence investigations. It's FBI 101.
An FBI operative approached a Trump campaign staffer in mid-July of 2016. (His name has since been outed).
The investigations are meant to be kept secret.
(Hello, GOP House Rep. Devin Nunes---You Republicans are ridiculous. Your memo was flawed. Even Republicans said so in the senate: the Democrats memo was accurate.)
An official counterintelligence investigation involving Trump campaign staffers + contacts with Russia began after input from Australia re: a diplomat's meeting with staffer George Papadopoulos, who bragged about contacting Russia to get information on Clinton for Trump.
Why is this so hard for Donald J. Trump + his minions in the congress to comprehend?
3
Nunes & trump care nothing for the informant’s safety. By exposing his name (and with this leaking administration), address, & phone number they put his life at risk. There is a reason for informants to be protected. Trump won, what is his problem? Is there something about to be exposed (treason)?
1
Folks and concerned citizens, we are witnessing a slow moving coup.
4
Things are getting quite fraught. It might be better to withhold the oxygen of our attention from the Trump/Giuliani brinksmanship plays, than to understand those plays deeply. Still, I appreciate Peter Baker’s piece on the subject.
3
It must be noted how very situational Trump and the GOP's opinions have become regarding law enforcement and its personnel.
Consider, the GOP's sudden concern about FISA warrants run amok. The GOP that has resisted all efforts to limit them. The only notable exception is Rand Paul. In fact, the names of Republicans who have voted to support the secretive FISA process every single time the issue was raised won't fit on this page (I tried it.). But one name on that list illustrates the situation: "REP. DEVIN NUNES (CA-R)." But now conservatives talk of "transparency" and Nunes tries to reinvent himself as some kind of champion of government accountability.
Consider also how Comey was praised by Trump for having "guts" to go after Clinton despite pressure to stop (October 2016), then excoriated for not bringing charges (November 6, 2016), then complimented following Clinton's loss ("I respect him a lot. I respect the FBI a lot."-November 13, 2016)... and we all know the current status.
Or there's the past praise the GOP had for Mueller's integrity compared to the barely concealed innuendo they allow to be propagated in their ranks today. Once it was the GOP telling DEMOCRATS to be prepared to accept Mueller's conclusions and not to whine about the special counsel later. Now Mueller (R) is characterized as being part of some deep state liberal cabal orchestrating a bloodless coup to... I don't know... put Pence in the Oval Office? Is that the liberal endgame?
16
I remember years ago having a discussion with someone about the NSA and the Patriot Act and saying what if the government wanted to use these tools to spy on their political enemies? Republicans fought to establish these surveillance tools and now are trying to make up abuses that they claimed couldn't happen.
3
The Cohen flip will be dramatic and entertaining at the same time.
I can't wait to see the convoluted ways the millions Cohen collected, found their way into Trump's pocket.
5
Since when do we let criminals and their yapping spokespoodles tell the investigators what they can and can't investigate and lay down a timeline?
17
Mr. Mueller is a MUCH better poker player than blabbermouth is is. People don't act like paranoid, ranting idiots when they're innocent. MUELLER / AVANATTI 2020
14
If a police officer is writing a traffic ticket but sees a bank robbery in progress, the officer should stick with writing the ticket.
Common sense, right?
5
It would be helpful if the NYT would underscore that this is a narrative set up by Giuliani and not relevant or binding but rather the desperate posturing of an incompetent lawyer.
When Mueller announces the investigation over, that is when this should be given front page coverage.
4
He knows that his supporters (aka followers) would follow him over a cliff. He also knows that his guilt will soon be revealed. What better way to attempt to dig his way out of it than to throw his very own Justice Dept under the bus, to turn his followers against them? When his guilt is finally brought to light, they'll think it was all some giant scheme (fake news) to discredit this narcissistic demagogue. You better stand up and start paying attention if you honestly think this man is harmless or not a true threat to the democracy of this country. Russia has him in its back pocket.
11
It seems that Donald's attempts to obfuscate have intensified greatly since the Times ran the "boring" story about Donald Jr's. meetings with envoys from those middle eastern countries. It wasn't just the Russians that Junior welcomed with open arms. That story hit a nerve, so it probably had a lot of truth to it.
5
If Trump were innocent, he'd have nothing, absolutely nothing, to worry about.
5
And he certainly seems worried.
1
By blackening the FBI and the DOJ, Trump and the GOP may be trying to cause so much confusion and dissolutionment that they will then aim to cancel the 2018 midterms this assuring their stay in power.
1
The evil hate filled megalomaniac roars again. Potentate Donald is running scared. It'll be nice watching this blowhard go down. Justice is slow, but it wins in the end. You can run Mr. Trump, but you can't hide.
3
It's beyond my understanding why The NY Times continues to front-page ridiculous statements from Giuliani, such as Mueller wrapping up the investigation by September 1st. Really? Have you heard that from Robert Mueller? Why publish this nonsense? How would it be if we had a day without Trump, et al, being front-page news? Might we all be able to breathe a bit? IMHO, I don't think Mr. Mueller is anywhere near finished. And when he is, I'm sure he will be able to say so. Until then, I don't believe anything coming from the Trump camp. We have a constitutional crisis on our hands, brought on by incompetence and lies, and breaching the boundaries between branches of government.
8
How can anyone person with a thread of reason or logic believe anything Trump asserts.
In the end, the truth will be known..remember, it took "Deep Throat" during the Nixon era to bring the truth to the public..then momentum took over.
There are many within our Republic which might or will do the same thing if momentum swings from truth to continued lying covering what could be crimes against the United States.
5
Trump’s allegations don’t add up. In the weeks and months before the election, both the CIA director and the FBI saw signs of possible connections between the Trump campaign and the Russians who interfered in the election. However, despite this, the FBI and the DOJ never publicly acknowledged these concerns until long after Trump was elected president.
However, the FBI did announce the re-opening of the investigation into Hillary Clinton’s emails just 11 days before the election. This is what prompted Senator Harry Reid to frustratingly acknowledge the FBI’s double standard.
6
If Trump is indeed innocent as he so vehemently claims, then why is he so determined to shut down the investigation before it's concluded? Moreover, if Giuliani is right and a sitting president can't be indicted, why are they trying desperately to discredit Mueller and end his probe? If Trump cannot be indicted for perjury, then why do his lawyers fear a "perjury trap" if he testifies?
Trump's desperate evasions are riddled with logical fallacies. Of course, that will not dissuade his supporters. They appear allergic to reason.
3
Why has the NYT the past few days been running articles that consist of mostly Rudy Giuliani's assertions, Trump's tweets and "it seems like Trump might be laying the groundwork to fire Rosenstein/Muller/"etc? Where is the analysis, or even just noting it seems unlikely Muller would promise Giuliani the investigation will be over by 9/1, for instance? The emperor has no clothes, much less a legal strategy. If I wanted the Trump administration's twisted view of reality presented as hard fact, I'd watch Fox News.
4
"more proactive, more aggressive and more anticipatory" ---- precisely what the american electorate needs to be to corral trump in november with a democratic congress and get rid of him altogether come 2020.
1
All Trump is doing is making himself look more guilty with every day that passes. Who would protest this much to an investigation unless they were guilty? Are you sure Giuliani isn't there to take him down? Either that, or they (Giuliani, Freedom caucus, Ryan, McConnell, etc) are also guilty of taking help from foreign powers for their own elections. I think we will need investigations into all of the GOP funding and election conduct after this one if the American people are to have any faith at again in our congress.
7
And exactly how are trump’s latest demands not themselves an attempt to obstruct justice?
6
It’s yet another “I know you are, but what am I?” strategy by Trump and his surrogates, chock full of verbal chaff to deflect from his high crimes and misdemeanors. Trump’s mafia-like conduct should be no surprise - he built a fake career out of it. The lack of integrity and outright participation in the destruction of our democracy by both the Republican leadership and their rank and file is soul crushing. How can such a sizable portion of our society be so selfishly evil? Will November 2018 be too late? I’m starting to think so.
6
November 2018 is too far away.
trump and the gop are playing, fast and loose, with the law, and trampling on the Constitution. If this were Barack Obama, what would they have done to him? I shudder to think. The "fox" (congress) is standing at the hen house door, laughing his sides off, daring anyone to try and stop him.
4
Not since Nixon has an innocent man worked so hard to stop an investigation.
20
We could sure use a few more devil's advocates around here....
So much news coverage of the volcano in Hawaii when the real volcano is erupting in Washington, DC.
4
He doth protest too much, methinks ...
6
Make America vote again. I want to party like it’s 2020. I’m so tired of seeing Trump’s face.
8
We can count on Trump and his corrupt minions to continue obstructing justice in every way they can dream up. They will be constantly looking for new molehills to claim as mountains as long as the investigations continue. Trump's behavior is absolute proof of his guilt, and absolute proof that he is unfit to be president.
4
Democrat/major media strategy > > divert attention from corrupt obama regime weaponizing American intelligence agencies to spy on, undermine, attack opposing political party, GOP/Trump candidacy, subverting American legal system. The red herring Russian collusion charade was always intended to cloak the radical left obama regime attack on constitutional America. Scoundrels include but not limited to - pretend president obama, clinton's, holder, brennan, clapper, numerous others. This radical left ideologue assault on the core of American government is frightening..
2
Oh please. Trump, an adorer of Putin, very publicly asked Russia to spy on HRC. This Administration is naked corruption, advancing their personal business and increasing capital on the backs of American taxpayers. Wake up!
8
Do you have any proof of this terrifying conspiracy?
Ever since Donald Trump urged the Russians to hack into Hillary Clinton's server, I have been certain that Trump and his posse of prevaricators have colluded with the Russians to tilt the election Trump's way. And everything he has said and done since has increased that certainty. Rudy Giuliani and Alan Dershowitz have completely prostituted themselves in the service of someone who is becoming a gangster politician. Only Special Counsel Robert Mueller separates us from a forced march detouring our nation from the truth of all that he is investigating. If Donald Trump and his team are truly innocent then they deserve our apologies and support. But if they are guilty, particularly of collusion with a foreign power, hostile or otherwise, then I say "Lock 'em up!"
8
I don't want to hear this; I want to hear that our sound, responsible and functioning government is still looking for a tree tall and strong enough from which to hang Donald Trump.
Otherwise, this nation is finished.
12
Trump must be pinching himself when he reads these daily, detailed NYT articles painstakingly explaining and elaborating his legal strategies, while poor Mueller has to keep his mouth shut. Talk about a one sided fight!
Who needs Fox News or Twitter when you can get the NYT, the so-called national "newspaper of record, to give you its entire front page on a daily basis to explain your position and faithfully reprint all your Tweets, no matter how inconsistent, incoherent, nonsensical or untruthful they are?
Trump has the best of all possible media worlds, his own captive television network, the entire medium of talk radio, and now the "both sides have a point" mainstream media, all too eager to give Trump front page, headline coverage in exchange for ratings, eyeballs and page clicks.
Maybe in the spirit of fairness, the NYT will someday present Mueller's side of the story. Until then, it seems that we are only being given one side of the argument.
4
It is it not strange to cadet bone-spur's supporters that his ONLY defense against any allegation is to attack the messengers? What do we know about people who attack the messengers? Oh yes, they attack the messengers because they cannot assail the truth.
6
Ever since Donald Trump urged the Russians to hack into Hillary Clinton's server, I have been certain that Trump and his posse of prevaricators have colluded with the Russians to tilt the election Trump's way. And everything he has said and done since has increased that certainty. Rudy Giuliani and Alan Dershowitz have completely prostituted themselves in the service of someone who is becoming a gangster politician. Only Special Counsel Robert Mueller separates us from a forced march detouring our nation from the truth of all that he is investigating. If Donald Trump and his team are truly innocent then they deserve our apologies and support. But if they are guilty, particularly of collusion with a foreign power, hostile or otherwise, then I say "Lock 'em up!"
4
“If he can make it a red-blue issue, he wins because Americans don’t want to see a president impeached based on partisanship.” - Dershowitz
Anyone remember a guy named Bill Clinton, and the extremely partisan investigation by Ken Starr? It started with a concern about pre-Presidential real estate dealings, and somehow morphed into investigating him for cheating on his wife. They couldn't even find anything illegal about cheating, except by dragging him before Congress and asking questions to which he replied with a lie. The "High crimes and misdemeanors" offense that supposedly justified impeaching him? - Lying about cheating on Hillary.
Wasn't Star a Republican and unabashedly a Clinton-hater? And wasn't the House that impeached him Republican-controlled? And didn't they get him on a virtually party-line vote? It seemed kind of partisan to me.
Some Americans apparently like partisanship, as long as its against the other side.
At least it's nice to see that Republicans were so concerned about Hillary that they'd twist the laws upside-down, and misuse the impeachment process, just to stick up for that poor, wronged woman. To hear some of them talk about her nowadays, you'd think they didn't like her much. But maybe that's what the GOP means by "working across the isle".
3
Exactly Tom!!
It brings to mind OJ Simpsons trial, right?
He may just slip and slide out of this ,and then once 2020 , 11/8,He is indicted. Rosenstein is giving him.asuch rope as he needs to hang himself on obstruction and conspracy ,. plus all of his past money related crimes will be finally come home to roost in Trump Toower.
Also, please vote and help others to vote as well.
5
There is no hiding from this. Regardless of what DJT and his legal team say, or don"t say, he's guilty as sin. However, there will be no real punishment. He's POTUS and he's above the law. They only hope for this country is that he loses he 2020 election because of this scandal or any one of the others that exist or will surface later.
5
He is not above the law as much as they want you to think that. See Nixon, see Agnew, See Clinton. The president is NOT above the law. The Congress is aiding and abetting a felon.
2
If President Trump truly doesn't have anything to hide about his campaign, he shouldn't be so dead set against Special Counsel Mueller's investigation.
It really makes you wonder what exactly this administration is trying to prevent the public from learning.
But it's not what Trump thinks, says or rants about. It's not what Rudy Giuliani thinks, says or makes claims about - that cannot be disproved because Mueller's office has a "no comment" policy and cannot confirm or deny anything. Ultimately, what matters is what the investigation produces.
Trump’s lawyers have found a way to control the Russia narrative during interludes when the special counsel probe takes a quiet turn. However, whenever Mueller moves publicly, and has someone indicted and charged with criminal acts - and he has - it always blows everything up, and Trump, his White House and defenders are left scrambling and flailing to come up with something, anything, to discredit Mueller and his investigation.
Discrediting the investigators and an investigation is the oldest and standard trick in the book. Deny everything, discredit everyone and attack ferociously and viciously.
4
My country is far from perfect but thank God I live in Canada. When Trumps end comes, and it is going to come, I wouldn't want to be living in the U.S.
5
We are being played by Trump with his pretending to want to wrap the Russia investigation up. Considering his approval ratings seem to go up the longer the investigation goes on why would Trump ever want it to end?
3
The problem with Nixon - Trump analogy here is that Watergate occurred so long ago that either people don't know it firsthand OR they do, but they're so old (or whatever) that they see today's battle-lines as they saw them then. The Establishment is NOT right-wing. It's mostly coming from the left (i.e. pseudo-liberal, Democratic party), together with mainstream Republicans. Any "hardhats" left were abandoned by the establishment a long time ago. Academics have joined the professional class and finance sector in allowing a HUGE division of wealth and protecting global capitalism. The obviously obscene wealth of the 1% is a Red Herring. The upper quartile to upper half are the defenders of the status quo - and they are mostly Democrats. The times have done changed....
2
I don't know where you get your information, but much of it is wrong. If you look at the flows of political money, including the direct spending as well as giving to candidates, parties, and interest groups, there is an extremely powerful conservative presence. If you look at the distribution of income and wealth since the mid-1970s, the share going to the bottom 40% of Americans has gone downwards. The share going to the top 20%. 10% and 5% has risen. A quite large share of the recent tax cuts went to the wealthiest Americans and corporations. Pres. Trump is a billionaire (he claims) with a Cabinet mostly of rich people. They are part of the Establishment.
2
Nunes is asking the JD for classified information, which Nunes will undoubtedly release selectively as partisan propaganda. Same with Trump. The Democrats on the House Intelligence Committee have asked to see this information too. Any bets on whether Nunes will refuse?
3
Donald Trump promised to drain the swamp while running for president. In order to do so he clearly believes he first must define its extent. It is becoming clear that its power center appears to reside in the upper floors of the intelligence community, Justice Department and FBI. Until he was elected president, its most odoriferous inhabitants were able to cloak their abuses behind the vail of “classified” secrecy or through intimidating their opponents with threats of exposing their indiscretions. It was an art perfected by J. Edgar Hoover and one clearly embraced by the likes of John Brennan, James Clapper and Jim Comey who for years have immersed themselves in the swamps slime.
The inhabitants of the swamp or deep state or whatever else you want to label it viewed Donald Trump as a threat during the campaign and even more so now he has become an effective president. In truth he terrifies them because his power base is millions of ordinary people while theirs is relegated to rigid institutions and hierarchies they’ve spent their lives oozing their way through. So they used their power to try and destroy him and anyone else thought to be aiding him. President Trump realizes that and the showman in Trump is determined to make sure the country knows it too.
The thing that's scary is the vagueness of this law, especially the term 'thing of value.' Serious question. Please give an example of something that would be of 'no value.' It's a corrupt term meant for lawyers to manipulate.
Why has it taken so long to put Donald J. Trump in jail? There must be a way to restructure the Executive so this doesn't happen again.
4
For once it seems Trump's imaginings aren't a sure thing, so this Mueller thing needs to end now. Now! Before the guilty verdicts can materialize.
His paradigm of lie, cheat and "Let my lawyers deal with it" may not do it this time. And he's getting uncomfortable considering possible outcomes, one being full disclosure. And that could put an end to things for The Donald, which is why Trump needs for this Mueller Investigation to go away.
Too bad for The Donald, though, because Mueller is not one who can't be bought off for $130,000.
2
POTUS's blame-anybody-else strategy may offer some temporary shelter from the storm for a while, but I wonder if Donald J. Trump understands how he keeps crippling not only his presidency but the Eecutive Office itself at almost every turn.
4
He doesn't care about the executive office, the Constitution, the rule of law, or the government. He cares about his kingdom which includes his family and what businesses he has. The union of states may not hold as a result of his machinations. As a president, he is barely paying attention to matters of state. As a country, we are so distracted from what confronts u s.
7
My guess is that Trump whose success is built on deception and lies tried his best to collude to win, or at least get as close a possible to the Presidency. However, he could not find the dirt he wanted and was frustrated, but granted, appreciative of the negative posts about his opponent made by "who knows who". In the end the question may be, should someone who has been proven guilty of conspiring to collude be our President? Guilty or not, this is not America.
3
Trump and Giuliani now look like Baby Huey and Mr Magog lying as they go and as Trump said re his lies about Canada “I just make things up”. The key questions are the hard facts the Special Persecutor Republican Robert Mueller and team find. Ignorance says “oh it’s a witch hunt” or “it’s taking too long, costs too much”. Wrong. Cost? Trump spent over 30 million dollars of taxpayer money to not be at the White House after his electoral win and unattended smallest crowds inauguration because “the White House is a dump.” His 100s of lies delineated factually and irrefutably and ever growing. The fact that many indicted people have admitted their crimes. Some specific issues fir America remain. We need to know about the possible and many likely areas involving Trump, family and political associates such as obstruction of justice, emoluments clause violations of the United States Constitution, money laundering, misuse of campaign funds and payoffs, conflict of interest and influences by foreign governments on Trump family business such as the Chinese on their first visit, Kushner real estate pitch to China, Saudi arms deal involving Kushner and all possible quid pro quo diplomacy deals and influences. Trumps Saudi roots are deep back to Adnan Khashoggi the Saudi arms dealer and the unprecedented military deal with the Saudis and Kushner doesn’t pass the smell test. The Chinese and Russians are deep in Trumps world. The Cambridge Analytica impact with the Trump team. Lights on!
4
Point taken typos aside! What a mess with trying to hamper the investigation. Classic Trump. Giuliani seems as out of touch with reality as Trump. His law firm had to let him go. They go by the law.
2
Trump's strategy is similar to a sexual abuser not only attacking the victim but the prosecution who is looking into the facts. Trump has incriminated himself by what he said publically. A special prosecutor has been appointed to determine what actually happened. And now Trump is saying the investigation is rigged and politically motivated. Sounds like guilt to me.
8
Trump is doing this because he knows he is guilty. Since the start of his own real-estate dealings, he has been a cheat, racist and has avoided paying taxes.
He did launder money for Russians Oilgarchs via his real-estate transcations. He has not released tax-returns because he is a crook.
What he is doing is nothing new of his past practices.
13
It's obvious to any rational observer that trump is lashing out in all directions, as the noose tightens around him and his family. I, for one, don't believe there is any strategy in anything trump does, other than to deflect attention from the very real collusion with Russia. The more news that comes out that supports the actual collusion, the more he tweets and lashes out - mostly against President Obama against whom he seems to have a fixation bordering on insanity.
Happy the day when the U.S. and its long suffering neighbours will no longer be subject to the trump reality show.
16
A lying bully, in order to cover his misdeeds, surely has to be “more proactive, more aggressive and more anticipatory.”
“Mr. Trump, who has been accusing the special counsel, Mr. Mueller, of running an office filled with partisan Democrats with conflicts of interest.” That kind of offensive defense will be hugely popular with his partisan supporters.
“Both Mr. Trump and Mr. Giuliani are terrified of James B. Comey because the latter is one of the President’s most outspoken critics as well as a potential witness against him.”
Mr. Trump, because of Twitter, a mass disinformation tool that was not available to Nixon and Clinton, and the highly partisan Fox News and Breitbart News, can relentlessly and possibly successfully spread a vast amount of distortion and deception to bend public opinion in his favor.
Wait! Even if Mr. Trump succeeds with his blitzkrieg, history will eventually sort it all out in the future.
For now, it is for the public to separate the wheat from the chaff.
9
The "President" can continue to bluster. Meanwhile Mueller and his team quietly continue with their work. No leaks, no publicity, and a clear sense that they have a game plan to handle all contingencies, including firings.
Stay strong,and get ready to vote this Congress out of office in November.
13
You are presupposing that we still will have elections in November. I pray you are correct, but the prospect of a war (with anyone, anywhere, thanks to Bolton) and the possibility of a declaration of martial law, would allow T and Congress to suspend elections, indefinitely, so long as we are at war. And T and Bolton can certainly make that happen, and, I believe, are preparing to. We are no longer facing a constitional crisis, we are in its midst.
3
Trump is merely playing ‘three-card montey’ with the American public hoping to divert their attention with his bombast and slight-of-hand. Whether or not America falls for this game is the only question.
8
Most of America can see through this game, but there are those that still believe their cult leader is what they want for all of us. It is these people we should be afraid of. There is hope however, it is called the power of the wallet.
1
This rapidly decaying Republic on an authoritarian dystopian path is what happens when you elect a wannabe strongman who caters to fear and bigotry. What can you expect when you elect someone mentored by Roy Cohn, a major force behind the McCarthyism that destroyed so many lives ? If he's really innocent why does Trump repeatedly, daily sometimes hourly, try to delegitimize and politicize the Mueller investigation?
2
Donald baby....start by showing your tax returns! It's not a big thing to ask. What are you hiding?
12
Trump's behavior mirrors that of Richard Nixon in his last days as President. With Trump's increasing incursions upon the Justice Department/FBI, we are in a constitutional crisis. It will only worsen, as Trump's purpose is to bring the investigation to a halt.
"Has seen the White Whale?" ~~
Herman Melville (Moby-Dick, or, The Whale)
4
Endlessly curious about the investigation, I'm done. I don't NEED or WANT to know things that infuriate the President and his minions who then enact even more unbearable atrocities like exposing confidential informant! I'll wait till Mueller report comes out. I wish media would save us more needless hysterics and leave it to Mueller. I'm not interested in tidbits of info that can't ..and shouldn't ..reveal what Mueller is really doing. Trump is incorrigible. But we have no weapon against his misdeeds except Mueller..We do FBI, DOJ and Mueller no favors picking around and even disrupting investigation and endangering lives!I wish everyone would leave it alone unless something HUGE comes along. Anyone who cares can read more than humanly possible in a yr. of amazing reporting and books. Meanwhile, please stop poking the Trump bear and making it harder for us all to get through however long it takes for them to finish. We've all crossed a line at this point too...as readers.
4
Trump once said to some one "The Aprentice" is the #1 show on TV after off air the person told Trump that the Show is NOT ranked #1. Trump responded I know but if you keep saying it people will believe it. So with that Trump Keeps Saying
"Witch Hunt" hoping the Masses will but it.
6
More of a witch trial than a witch hunt.... Anything he does that may impede the investigation is considered proof of his guilt! I read mostly THIS paper. So I doubt the power of suggestion is at work here... for me, at least. Read the comments here and the paper's description. There's an elephant in the room.
1
The behavior of the Liar and Grifter in Chief is enough to conclude that the man is a corrupt obstructionist and colluder. Why would he act the way he does if he was not guilty of anything? Finally caught after all these years and he knows it.
11
The President is acting like a guilty man. We all know he is guilty of collusion because he told us so on the campaign trail, during his transition in to the White House, on twitter and while being interviewed by reporters on national TV. He knows he is likely to end up as an unindicted co-conspirator with his campaign managers, his son, and son in law. Once they are in prison and this ignorant President is out of office, he will be indicted, convicted and sent to prison to join his family. He is twisting in the wind. Giuliani and the GOP leadership are not going to be able to save this perversion of a Presidency.
5
Trump comes off like the autocratic dictator that he wants to be. This is the behavior of a president that is as guilty as sin. It's hard to imagine a president that is attempting to direct the activities of the Dept. of Justice, who is investigating possible illegal influences on a presidential campaign. Both Alan D. and Rudy G. come off as co=conspirators, who are assisting Trump to once again game the system, as Trump has done most of his adult life in the business world, with links to organized crime, and now to possible links to what has been our arch enemy, Russia. The house of cards that the white house, the GOP, and both houses will without a doubt fall, or else we're going to continue to morph into an autocratic, racist dictatorship, run by a grossly ill, megalomaniac criminal.
2
Even in Salem they found witches during their "Witch Hunts".
They burned them at the stake. Maybe in DonDon's case they can use Trump Steaks!
The occupier of the White House doth protest too much, methinks. I don't think an innocent person would go to such lengths to discredit and thwart an investigation. If he truly has nothing to hide, then he shouldn't fear the outcome. But if he's guilty, then his "strategy" is ill-conceived; he makes himself look more guilty with every tweet/rant he utters about Mueller & Co.
2
A huge megalomaniac with a brain the size of a pea, and a mouth as big as the Grand Canyon.
10
Trump's team has finally realized that they can't just fire Mueller directly without having severe backlash, so now they are going after Mueller's boss, Rod Rosenstein. They are trying to put Rosenstein in a bind with this other concocted investigation--either Rosenstein does what the president wants or he is forced to resign or gets fired on the pretext for failing to carry out the president's order. Once Rosenstein is forced out or fired over this supposed spying scandal, then Rosenstein will be replaced with someone who will stifle or completely shut down the Mueller investigation. Trump may be a buffoon, but he has enough lawyers around him that someone is finally thinking more than one step ahead.
5
This is a standard Trump strategy: attack more fiercely than your attackers.
Every day we awaken to yet another gut-wrenching news day filled with Trump's idiocies and legal and moral transgressions. The Republican Party has absolutely no shame. They allow Trump to drag the American people through the mud again and again while they stuff the pockets of their mega-donors at the expense of everyone else.
The key question is how can we put a stop to this daily misery. The most obvious answer is get people to the polls and vote against the Republican destroyers of our nation in every election across the land.
7
Monsieur Trump's time is almost up. It is way over due, after a lifetime of "getting away with it." He can keep up his loud mouth campaign, but my prediction is that the tide is coming in, and it will overwhelm him finally. On financial and tax evasion crimes, on coordinating with Russians and others during the 2016 campaign, on attempted obstruction of justice, on violation of the emoluments clause, and on obvious sexual harassment. If he testifies under oath, most likely perjury as well.
2
Wow, are we seeing Trump, the Republicans, and foreign dictators in open warfare against the people of the United States?
9
Yes. We're still living in the Planet-of-the-Apes.
2
It is a bitter irony that in the Vietnam war we had on one hand Mueller commanding a platoon of Company H, 2nd Battalion (“The Magnificent Bastards”), 4th Marines and its mission “to close with and destroy the enemy by fire and maneuver, or repel the enemy’s assault by fire and close combat”. He was awarded the Bronze Star, the Purple Heart and the Vietnamese Cross of Gallantry.On the other hand trump at the same time was immersing himself in the Manhattan party scene and cynically boasting that “fighting venereal disease was his Vietnam” A disgusting war coward, he evaded sacrifice not once but five times in the Vietnam war ... a draft dodger par excellence while over 50,000 americans died as he carried on his self-serving hedonistic life style with absolutely no regrets or second thoughts.
7
Clicked to this essay and once AGAIN had to face the ugly mug of our seeming president! Can we please stop featuring his face with every article that mentions him or is about him and his efforts to muddle through running this country? He loves seeing his face everywhere, and even has fake magazine covers devoted to his visage. It's been more than 2 years and we know what he looks like: angry, pouty, stern, angry, insecure. Time to change the photos to be of something else related to the article. I'm just done.
4
On any given day, less than 1% of Americans watch Fox News, far less a number of Americans than one would imagine given the torrid onslaught of reporting from the ramparts that FOX armies are at the gate threatening both castle and kingdom.
That doesn't mean we shouldn't be concerned about Fox as a disseminator of Trump's lies, just need to put it in proportion.
1
Trump's strategy has been unwavering from the start. It is the standard playbook for defending the indefensible.
Admit nothing.
Deny everything.
Make counter-accusations.
104
Roy Cohn in action.
4
Sounds like William O. Brennan's feelings of fear and desperation this week. ''Clapper, you're gonna get up both sent up the river!''
Trump is impatient and has put pressure on intelligence and law enforcement officials to “allow congressional Republicans to view highly classified information related to the Russia investigation that they had previously refused to divulge.” Why, his worry speaks volumes – his legitimacy is at stake.
Sofar the public still supports Robert Mueller’s investigations, but it will not last forever. Mueller is very thorough and the probe will take a long time because it involves a foreign hostile government and many international players who have little incentive to cooperate. Whatever the outcome, Mueller is more focused on delivering an account for the American public, because the 2016 election was unprecedented in US history.
3
Trump's attack on the rule of law is a clear sign that he knew that he and his family sought help from Putin and now the gulf states in winning the election. He withe the help of GOP house and senate will do anything to stop Mueller's investigation. obstruction,
3
Perhaps the presidency is by the power invested in it exempt from a charge of obstruction of justice. If it is not, this president -- regardless of what he may or may not have done in the recent past -- now is obstructing justice.
1
As far as "Attack the Investigators" strategy goes, we are facing a constitutional crisis not only because of the Trump/Giuliani effort, but also because of the actions of congressional sycophants like Meadows, Nunes and Gaetz, and the inaction of congressional leadership.
It seems to me that they're all engaged in obstruction of justice. This is a crucible for our nation.
4
Yes, and they’re all on the side of the NRA. These are the people that are violent with guns. This is a aggressive coup.
4
We've already seen, by the lack of willingness on the part of Congress to pass legislation to protect the Special Investigator, that is little concern on the part of the vile GOP operatives in Congress, to get the truth out and punish anyone found to be guilty of crimes, including (no, especially) the President. Is it any wonder that Trump feels emboldened to pressure Mueller as he seeks to find out the truth? In my view, this now goes beyond Trump and extends into the very core of our federal government. The lack of desire that legislators are showing to find out what potential criminal acts might have been committed is the most shocking issue that I've seen take place during my lifetime and it puts our country's survival as a democratic institution at severe risk. Even Nixon dared not go this far in his attempt to block exposing his crimes for which he ultimately resigned. I can well imagine the Supreme Court insisting that Orange Man "turn over the tapes" to which he'd simply reply to the Justices "you're all fired" and who would remove him from power? The Republican leaders in Congress? Fat chance.
4
The linchpin controlling this entire affair lies in the plain fact
that Hillary R Clinton lost the election ... to think ... none of the emerging murk would have ever been revealed had she won...
2
Yes they are making a mountain out of a molehill. Not only is this so-called informant standard procedure, it was done to protect Trump and his campaign. By being discreet and not calling people in for questioning they avoided a big public mess that would have caused political damage to him.
The bigger issue is the damage that Trump will be doing to the larger intelligence and law enforcement community. Currently people who decide to take the risk and work as informants (for police or military) are pretty sure that they will not be betrayed and outed. If Trump and the house GOP members continue their current course, we will find it a lot more difficult to develop the informants that needed to protect US.
3
So... since when does the person under investigation get to dictate the terms of the investigation? That’s news to me and certainly good news for all the (other) criminals out there.
Let’s see... how would that work in other investigations?
“Okay, I understand you’re investigating me for murdering this particular victim with a gun, but if you find a bloody knife in my basement that was used in other murders, you can’t use that against me.”
Our “President” must have learned law at Trump University.
9
To be effective, Trump needs to go after the quasi-legal fawning Comey--Mueller's mutant twin--did for Obama, Rice, and Lynch. And at some point, the FBI needs to acknowledge its role in being the agents of deep-swamp protection pre- and post-2016 election. Otherwise, FBI might as well be just a continuation of same, same Hoover legacy--corruption replete.
1
It is time to get serious about Trump and his supporters who wish to shut down the Mueller investigation. Essentially what they are doing is trying to do is to derail a legitimate investigation (run by Republicans!) which is looking at whether the Trump campaign essentially colluded with a hostile country. It is a very simple word for this behavior – the word is treason. Clearly these Trump minions should be considered co-conspirators. What we need to do is to indict these minions for treason themselves, convict them, lock them up, and forever brand them as traitors.
8
It is treason and we may need the guns dictated by the second amendment after all. Wouldn’t that be ironic.
4
So, Dershowitz thinks Americans are good with a treasonous President, and don't want to impeach him because he is defended by his partisan supporters and attacked by his partisan opponents? Dershowitz is an idiot.
9
The best defense is a good offense is a sound strategy if you have a good offense.
Whining and dissembling and whining some more is a patently useless strategy.
The American People are too smart for this. Patient? Yes (most folks). Willing to give the benefit of the doubt? Sure.
Dumb and dumber? No (not the overwhelming majority).
Time is always on the Truth's side.
5
This and other related articles establishes that Trump is getting more paranoid and desperate to keep himself out of the reach of Robert Mueller.
As the old saying goes: If you have done nothing wrong, then you have nothing to fear.
On the alleged communications between Trump’s minions and Russian agents prior to the November election, Trump keeps denying any involvement. But I always believed that Trump was not only aware of these communications, he was directing and/or orchestrating the communications.
Robert Mueller: Keep up your valued work.
3
Seems to me if the FBI was trying to figure out if the Russians were threatening Trump's campaign that Trump would want to know about it. Trump's hard denial and supposed lack of interest in knowing the truth makes him look awfully guilty. Imagine a democrat looking this guilty. Democrats have been destroyed by the right wing lemmings for far less ...
3
So whats really going on behind all Trump's smoke?
If Trump were just another impulsive, mendacious, needy, dissolute moneygrubber, one might dismiss him as one more disreputable pol. But the usual problems are compounded by this man's willful incapacity to separate matters of state from his personal interests.
Who now doubts Trump would find some way, any way to be the first in line when somebody drags a hundred dollar bill on a string through Trump Tower---and never once stop to consider who is pulling the other end of the string?
Real world results? Corruption. It isn’t only Russia. Corruption is now running rampant throughout this supine Republican controlled administration and Congress. They, their enablers and their so called ‘advisors’ are selling off favors, regulations, policies, and US institutional integrity to anybody, everywhere foreign or domestic who pays.
Examples?
See AP : https://apnews.com/a3521859cf8d4c199cb9a8567abd2b71/The-princes,-the-pre...
See Atlantic : https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2018/05/there-is-only-one-t...
2
Why would an innocent man need to "contain and attack" an investigation touching on his ethical conduct? Trump seems terribly paranoid for supposedly having nothing to hide.
3
Actually, this strategy is transparent: to push Rosenstein to the wall with outlandish demands, until he is forced to resign. A convenient stooge can then be appointed in his place. Nixon tried it, and we all know how it ended. So far, Rosenstein is outsmarting the Trumpsters -- no surprise here.
1
For all those still hyperventilating about Russia, where's the Saudi Arabia, Israel, and Gulf Monarchies investigation?
They do it in plain daylight.
2
How much money has this faux investigation cost the US taxpayer?
Note to Giuliani: If Trump is innocent, then he, and you, should encourage Justice to come up with its conclusion.
If Trump is guilty, then he and you would work to thwart the work of the Special Counsel. Got it?
14
Well Trump and his co-conspirators on the hill are winning the pr battle...the daily barrage of lies about Mueller and the investigation are beginning to have an effect.
4
Each day and with each bit of breaking news my heart sinks more. We elected a dictator and unless the Democrats take control of the at least the House, and hopefully the Senate, we are all doomed! All of us who take the time to read and write comments to the Times need to get on the phone and call the Republicans in Congress who cavort with this president: Mark Meadows, Nunez, and their pals. They need to hear from the public-not just their donors and constituents. They need to hear a public outcry. Now!!
12
Mr. Mueller should indite Donald Trump Jr. Now.
4
Dear GOP: I can smell autumn coming!
4
Vulgar Trump is no dummy, he has a criminal mind, perverse and vengeful, given he is unable to admit fault of his own...in spite of the evidence. It is said that the best defense is to attack, and our demagogue in- chief has been consistently bullish in denying himself the truth and the facts pointing to his culpability. If he were innocent of graft, why is he trying to distract us with his stupid accusations, demanding an investigation of his investigators? It is also galling to see dishonest politicians 'a la Guiliani' trying to stop the sun from shining...with their index finger, a frighteningly useless tool, as the facts begin to choke their malfeasance.
7
If stupid wasn't guilty, he wouldn't be wasting his time with this, he
would be doing his job. How this shell of a man could become president is beyond belief. He is just a willing front for the disastrous policies of those that control him. Because of them, the country suffers.
6
The most telling part of this article is Dershowitz once again revealing that he is willing to support any repugnant miscreant just to have a chance to demonstrate his savvy as a criminal defense attorney.
6
“If he can make it a red-blue issue, he wins because Americans don’t want to see a president impeached based on partisanship.” (Dershowitz)
Really? As an older American, I don't care what party you represent. If you prefer to break laws and put our democracy in peril for your own self interests, you deserve punishment to the fullest extent.
13
There's nothing new about this being Donald Trump's strategy since it's the same one he used since sitting at the feet of his mentor, the notoriously vituperative Roy Cohn.
But unfortunately for Mr. Trump he hasn't come to realize that this is not always the best M.O., since it can occasionally backfire.
And though he may think he looks all-powerful and intelligent by taking this course of action, in reality, he's only looking increasingly desperate.
106
Maybe. On the other hand, as Dershowitz points out, “if he can make this a red/blue issue, he wins”. That’s what’s so frightening about all this. Mueller may end up throwing in the towel just to avoid a civil war.
@Simon Studdert-Kennedy
Just for the record. Nobody wins if this country doesn't win, and this country won't win as long as Donald Trump is president.
As for Robert Mueller throwing in the towel to avoid a civil war -- it's too late. We're already well on our way to one after the horrific G.O.P. tax plan, and months of Trump's racially insensitive comments and tweets.
Remember JFK's remark about "those who foolishly sought power by riding the back of the tiger ended up inside"? I wonder whether those who temporize with Trump or make seemingly minor concessions to placate him will eventually figuratively end up inside the tiger; i.e., be fired, thus provoking a constitutional crisis. What if Rosenstein or others told Trump to pound sand now, rather than wait to resign or be fired later as seems to be in the cards? By incrementally appeasing Trump for over a year, haven't we given Trump time to strengthen his forces through an information campaign involving Fox, Breitbart, Freedom Caucus, rallies, bots, trolls, etc. that will, in Giuliani's words, try to shred any case against Trump? Aren't we like the frog that stayed in the water while it boiled, rather than jumping out, fighting back, when we could?
7
Yes, @Ed.
1
Trump takes great pains to channel his inner Nixon.
3
Wouldn't a president who wasn't guilty want to get to the bottom of this?
8
As Trump rightfully fears, the end is near. Lock him up!
6
How this administration avoids Prison is an unanswered question? Just an eventuality .
4
Is the rule of law dead.
I guess that we shall see.
4
giuliani has the same extremely oversized shoulder pads in his suits that trump does, which look like laughably costume-shop props for insecure, trifling men, dressing up in big clothes, while they tell lies on top of lies on top of lies
7
It's 10:40 CDT. Republican Congresspeople are attempting a coup upon the United States. Be forewarned.
5
Thank God that the country is made up of more than "the uneducated" that the president loves.
3
Trump continues to try to obstruct justice and undermine our countries rule of law. This is despicable behavior.
4
My Mama always told me "you are guilty of what you are accusing others of!" Well said, Mama, well said.
4
For justice to be served, it is imperative that the DOJ and the Executive Branch remain separate. James Comey in his book "A Higher Loyalty" explains the separation principle convincingly.
3
Maybe besides being frustrated and impatient, Trump is also guilty as sin. There's certainly nothing in his actions that suggests otherwise.
2
To those who complain about the long time taken by the FBI in this investigation they should be aware that Mueller is not investigating Trump because he has stolen an apple from the grocery store but because this case is complex and involves a huge amount of powerful people, nationally and internationally. It is a kind of obstacle race having at the center of the investigation a subject of immense power with a kind of defensive attitude, typical of wrongdoers. Frankly I do not understand the anxiety of Trump and his inner circle. Big lies, murkiness, attack to investigators, distraction, questionable moves...you name it.
If our neighbor has this kind of behavior we would be at least alarmed. What's different with a president?
1
The mainstream media and the DOJ/FBI/CIA have had a "strategy" since Election Day to remove Trump from office.
He has a perfect right to respond. Even paranoids can have enemies.
Strategy? Because Trump has not been examined by a doctor with the credentials to declare him as having Narcissistic Personality Disorder, the politically correct keep trying to explain Trump's behavior in some sort of normal terms. Here is a narcissist's strategy: say and do anything - anything - that will protect himself. Say one thing at one time and something entirely different at another, according to the audience and need. Scream it loud and clear. Degrade and humiliate anyone who gets in the way. Trash, distort, or manipulate any and all inconvenient truths. Swing a wrecking ball at anyone or anything that threatens the sense of the always-right-supreme-self. No one who goes head-to-head with a narcissist's shear force/sense of survival will come away unscathed. I'm hoping for two things right now. 1) That there are members of Congress and law enforcement who are studying up on the disease and strategizing accordingly. 2) That the Democratic party will put forth candidates who can win in their localities, i.e. moderates, liberals, or progressives according to district demographics. We can't hang our hats on Mueller. It is going to take the Vote.
12
The worst thing an adult can do when a child throws a temper tantrum is to give in. The Constitutional Crisis is here. Let's get it over with. Never mind the "blue wave", we need a Blue Typhoon!
8
Another one of these trump lies and blatant collusions and yet no consequences. Don’t we have checks and balances in our government, so where are they? trump is clearly breaking the law in the highest office. We need to stop entertaining intellectual curiosity items about this guy and hold him to account for doing everything from obstructing investigations to enriching himself by refusing to divest interests. His henchmen keep trying to normalize the abnormality of his behavior. Nothing about his time in office has been normal and nothing about him has changed. He is grossly incompetent and proves it daily. He is using the office to enrich himself and his spawn, and proves it daily.
8
Bluster and bloviation. I thought the American Judicial system was based on the premise of innocence until proven guilty. I thought Mr. Trump believed in the rule of law and due process. I thought he knows he is innocent of “collusion” with Russia. If one one one = three, then Mr. Trump should be assured of his exoneration. Why the need to ‘fight and attack aggressively?’ Besides, he hasn’t even been charged with anything. Besides, his Twitter rants do not constitute a legal defense, just evidence. Besides, Rudy Giuliani is just making a fool of himself so he’ll get a regular Fox legal commentator job. Besides, the “best and brightest” legal minds consider Mr. Trump to be radioactive. And pity the poor DOJ who has to be partisan and impartial at the same time (like talking out of both sides of your mouth). And pity Mr. Mueller who must feel like the OJ detectives who “knew” they had their guy only to lose him when the votes came in. Trump’s best defense is absolute chaos. But, why does he need one in the first place?
3
With Giuliani - Trump has already lost.
6
Trump is acting more like a dictator than a president and the Senate and Congress remain silent. The credibility of the USA abroad is diminished with every stupid move of Trump to try every means to stop the investigation, assault the Constitution, pull out of formal commitments, negotiate in bad faith, etc.....
12
Best defense is a good offense. And we know that Trump is good at giving offense.
5
Yes.
I can’t think of anyone who is more offensive.
4
We have a sitting President who may have conspired with the Russians, or other nations, to take control of our government and we are discussing his legal strategies to avoid prosecution?
It is time for the Press to stop treating this as a criminal investigation like White Water and start treating it like a National Security Breach.
24
TRUMP: “I have absolute right
to do what I want to do with the Justice Department.”
Dec 28, 2017: Trump’s interview with The New York Times. Trump thinks he has absolute power over the Justice Department like a tyrannical king, tyrannus rex.
Is he acting like a tyrannosaurus rex?
7
Why is anyone surprised in the least that DT would behave this way?
When you elect a criminal as POTUS, that is exactly what you get- more crimes.
21
As an American concerned about my country, I am interested in what Mr. Trump is hiding. Why did he never release his back taxes? Why does he want to limit what prosecutors can look at? Shouldn't Americans know if he has been involved in a money laundering scheme with the Russians, or if they have some other leverage over him? Why shouldn't we know if he is a criminal or if his family members are? I think the Republican were much more ambitious in their constant investigation into Hillary Clinton. Why hasn't Rudy Giuliani been disbarred yet?
21
For anyone that is the least bit surprised about the behavior of Donald Trump, I would suggest reading and studying his background and especially the way he has conducted his business. David Cay Johnson's book about Trump and other documentaries, especially, "Dirty Money" (all info of which is in the public record and can't be dismissed as "fake news"), confirms the way he operates. Here is someone who during the course of his business career has been involved in over 4000 lawsuits, gave several depositions in the process, and sued others while they sued him, settled many out of court. i.e Trump University in which it was claimed he bribed the Florida Attorney General to limit the probe! In his depositions would attempt to intimidate lawyers in the process and the beat goes on and on. With all this in mind, every question that is being asked as to why he is doing what he is doing should be obvious to anyone, he is using the system(and power) to further his agenda and in making a deal with the Republican Congress which is " suppose to be" the check and balance to the Presidents power, they, along with his handpicked group of puppets around him, have become his enablers, a perfect scenario for him which offers all the protection he needs from exposing his obvious indiscretions and criminal activity.
He is totally corrupt, and despite the rhetoric he sells to his gullible supporters, has spent his life up to his ears "in the swamp". He thrives in it!
5
Trump is giving his base another fig leaf in an attempt to hide his gross corruption. Trump praises or smears anyone and everyone depending on the day and the news cycle.
He doesn't seem to have lost any support from his hard core followers because he is trashing womens' rights, ethnic minorities, LGBT, "the poor", immigrants and, just yesterday, unions beyond their wildest dreams.
9
enough. make trump stand up and take his punishment along with his henchmen like human beings.
8
It should be obvious to everyone by now that whatever Trump is hiding it has to do with his finances and total ruin for him if it comes out. Nothing else could cause all the things he's tried to get rid of the investigation.
I don't understand his concern. He's totally safe. His Republican lap dogs will absolve him of anything he does, and so will the Supreme Court, so he can just go ahead and fire Rosenstein and then Mueller.
Should he not prefer that route he still has the establishment of martial law after he starts his war with Iran and he can use the powers then given him to totally get rid of the investigation.
I'm just waiting to see which of those routes he chooses.
12
I admit I'm getting nervous. I am beginning to think Mueller's virtue of keeping his mouth shut, is turning into a vice.
I think in a brief statement he should say that he is only investigating Russian interference with the presidential campaign. And that he is not at all interested in anything else swirling around in the news.
1
I would imagine that if Mueller is removed there would be a massive document dump (leak?) that would be highly incriminating. Truth will out.
0 that would be embarrassing at best and incrinating at worst.
3
This isn't a legal strategy, it's a temper tantrum by an unchecked tyrant who's destroying the norms that hold our democracy together, and he's aided and abetted by the Republican party.
34
I find myself thinking about the old saw about a tree falling in a wood with no one to hear.
But now: is it obstruction of justice if you do it openly on Twitter and Fox?
Vote your answer in November.
5
This is like the Salem witch trials (or at least the common characterization of them).
Only after being dragged down can Trump prove that he's innocent. And if he can hold his breath long enough to pass the Russian collusion test, they'll add new tests, involving obstruction of justice, campaign finance, etc.... and not just for him. The behavior of Trump's peripheral associates can also be added to the test series.
An example of the Salem witch trial effect is the broad consensus in mainstream media that ALL of Trump's actions which could undermine the Mueller investigation are motivated by a desire to avoid the truth - that being, he is a witch. This avoidance then proves he is, in fact, guilty. Classic.
The obvious point here is that the examination ITSELF is very damaging and not in his (or the country's) self-interest (independent of the verdict). It would be only responsible for an innocent president to restrict such an expansive and expensive investigation... Furthermore, if there's any question about the objectivity of the investigation, an innocent and responsible president might also want to limit it. In short, the consensus that Trump's antagonism with the Mueller probe demonstrates his guilt actually demonstrates that the media is no pillar of justice.
1
I could only recommend this as far as it twists strains of history and truth into fantastic illogical knots. Well done sir, this may illuminate derangement of thought for some students of logic at some future time, if his Excellency the Trump deems such studies profitable to him and his cohorts.
5
"It would be only responsible for an innocent president to restrict such an expansive and expensive investigation..."
No, it wouldn't.
8
Is an investigation not damaging if it is about the Clintons?
Trump has no strategy -this is his typical strategy. Put pressure on the opposition, blame them, issue a strategy, change the strategy, blame the opposition or contractor.
Start all over again!
6
Trump's rage increases every time Mueller gets closer to the truth. Normally, any person accused of something they didn't do wants the truth to be known. If there is nothing to hide, why is Trump trying so hard to end an investigation that could prove his, or his family's, innocence? I think we all may know the answer to that.
26
I must question giving Dershowitz such undeserved pole position right at the top of the article as the reasoned voice, a neutral expert somehow out of the fray himself... I am not so sure: having seen him on ABC Sunday morning with George Stephanopoulos, he sounded anything but impartial, trying to quickly slide in a completely unfounded dig about the bias of Mueller and so forth. For which he was later called on. But he sounded to me more like someone auditioning for a spot on the team, or at the very least for himself, anything to remain in the spotlight.
12
Dershowitz has one interest: Israel.
2
Yep. Not since Claus von Bulow.....
Hey, here's a question: how come we never see ol' Alan fulminating on behalf of somebody poor?
4
Trump can't help but be his awful arrogant clueless self. But I do hold the GOP fully accountable for allowing him to go so far off the rails without a peep. The damage he is doing to our country is unparalleled, and the GOP does nothing but smirk.
21
Mueller's credibility has not been damaged by our Liar-in-Chief. He may be the most honest man in Washington. Those who support The Liar, are complicit in his crimes, and unable to understand what's at stake, here. No surprise. The wealthy ones like it just fine; the poor ones have critical thinking problems, don't wish to make their own informed decisions, or avoid the real news, at all costs.
24
It’s obvious to anyone other than Trump and his sycophants that the FBI was actually trying to protect his candidacy by rooting out possible Russian moles or dupes in his campaign.
21
Yes, it's totally normal that weeks after Trump announced a foreign policy team, two members of that team are approached by paid US intelligence assets to "assist" them in the campaign- but really are gauging Russian influence over them.
One of those team members is a USNA graduate, Council of Foreign Relations Fellow, and Georgetown graduate. Totally normal.
Indeed it is normal when the FBI learns that at least two Trump's "advisors" may be Russian assets. The twist is that Trump actually wants Russian assets on his team. Too bad it's illegal under U.S. law, no? The "assist" you cynically claim is for the majority of U.S. citizens who aren't so far up Trump's you-know-what to ensure the integrity of our political system.
Seriously republican base here's a guy who is using the entire mechanism of the Dept. of Justice to protect him from being indicted or impeached or both. Even the blindest of you should be able to see something wrong here.
23
New York Times - March 2, 1998
White House's All-Out Attack on Starr Is Paying Off, With His Help
"From the moment that the name Monica S. Lewinsky began to dominate the national conversation, the White House determined that President Clinton's best survival strategy in the scandal was to mount an all-out attack on Kenneth W. Starr, the independent counsel.
''There's going to be a war,'' said James Carville, a longtime Clinton loyalist. In the five weeks since Mr. Carville's drawled declaration, the war between the President and the Whitewater independent counsel has escalated with a bitter and personal attack from Hillary Rodham Clinton, who accused Mr. Starr of being part of ''a vast, right-wing conspiracy'' against her husband.
One White House official was blunt about the strategy, calling the coordinated hostilities ''part of our continuing campaign to destroy Ken Starr.''
2
The difference between the Kenneth Starr investigation and Mueller’s is intent. Starr had to veer off into consensual sex in order for the House under Newt the Hoot to indict and Mueller is investigating criminal activity and traitorous act against the state.
5
And it turned out Starr had nothing on Clinton in the end. Wanna bet that won't be the case with Mueller?
2
Trump's Mueller strategy is to do whatever Netanyahu, Putin, Salman and Sisi command and demand.
5
No one thought Trump would get elected, not even him, it was not a lark that he won as much as a possible fraud, which is being looked into. If it turns out he was installed as president by a combination of undemocratic forces then his inauguration is a fraud too, and his presidency is not only an incompetent and chaotic mess, but also illegal. That has got to weigh on the man no matter how dense people think he is.
11
We have a third prong on Trump's insidious trident used to attack our DOJ and FBI. Trump has his minions in likes of Hannity, Limbaugh, Nunes, Conway, Schaap, etc.
5
Tell Trump to be patient. When he is in total control he can just have all the investigators shot.
6
The disturbing thing is that he would actually do this if he thought he could get away with it.
4
I certainly hope this was a sarcastic comment...
2
so true and yes so disturbing.
1
If a sitting President can defend himself -- like any citizen has a right to -- than ipso facto he should also be subject to those indictments and/or subpoenas that a court of law have duly subscribed to him.
Furthermore why be so defensive unless he has something to hide?
8
The scary reality the GOP after all their lies there is no collusion is trying to force it on Mr Mueller and I hope he has the guts to ask for impeachment.
1
Pretensions apart, the whole disinformation and malighning campaign directed against the Mueller investigation by Trump and his associates is best summarised by Trump's consciously adopted ostrich like approach that gives him some moments of relief.
America is so sick and tired these wild and obvious efforts by Trump to obstruct justice.
Let's just get all the evidence out in the open and confront this "Constitutional Crisis" right now.
Whether the cowardly GOP takes action or not, at least the whole world will know of the massive corruption and bumbling coverup attempts by Trump and his team of criminals.
And we will deal with GOP co-conspirators in November.
13
Traitor Trump and his crime family feeling it all closing in. #TicToc
12
I am certainly no fan of Trump but I totally disagree with this widespread narrative that any criticism of Mueller and his investigation 'undermines our democratic institutions' and is somehow unpatriotic and totally below the belt
Does anyone remember Ken Starr? Go to the search box right here on the NYT website and look back at the Whitewater coverage. Ken Starr and his investigation was lambasted and criticised throughout the entire process.
7
Ken Starr wasn't the president, though, as I recall
Trump is throwing mud until something sticks and the DOJ offering evidence is the first step down a slippery slope
Trump needs to be taken out in handcuffs before it is too late
22
There's a difference between unearthing and shaming parties to a consensual sexual relationship and investigating foreign interference in our electoral process. The one is maybe a moral failing, but the other is illegal.
37
Investigating payment to a porn star certainly doesn't feel like it fits within the Russia collusion investigation
Sounds like a family member indictment.
6
This is a brilliant, yet disgraceful, move to turn the narrative around 180 degrees. Now it's a story about an unethical FBI infiltrating a campaign. How undemocratic! See M Pence interview on Fox (the official PR machine for the Trump Admin) where he claims "millions of American would want to know..." about FBI investigating a presidential campaign. Never mind what the purpose of the investigation was...the selling of a presidential campaign to foreign interests...now it's a runaway story about a corrupt FBI! I fear these masters of manipulation, along with their Fox allies and an extremely misinformed public, just might pull this off.
19
I think Julie had a hand in this strategy.
I think a lot of real Americans will respect Trump for doing this. In the true patriotic spirit of 1776, what good American would allow themselves to be subjugated and steam-rolled by a self-righteous Imperialist power purporting to know exclusively what the truth is. It's one thing to tax tea for a quick and easy profit, another to decide for and tell people what's right and wrong.
In this case it’s called the law. We’re all subject to it, including Trump. His 2 pronged strategy is just more obstruction of justice.
21
Wake up. It's difficult to imagine any decent American with half a brain respecting Trump for anything, much less this ploy.
4
Since the DOJ already knows what is commissioned, there is no need for an investigation. If it did something seemingly against its own rules the IG is the appropriate place to send this. But basically this is an exercise in chipping away at DOJ's independence and duty to the american people. The check here is Congress, but it is failing its duty...and the Ryan appointed head of the House Intelligence Committee (Nunes) is a shill for Trump (thanks to Ryan).
18
There is a broad streak of the obvious here. Giuliani doesn't approve, Trump wants to find anything he can use to stop an investigation that is obviously on to something. Did we expect enthusiastic applause? Keep on digging, take your time Mr. Mueller, give us the facts. Then we'll determine if it was a witch hunt. Methinks the witches are nervous for a reason.
119
Courts will not care one whit about this dangerously authoritarian strategy, except insofar as it adds to the case for obstruction of justice. When this all shakes out it looks like obstruction will be one of the least of the felonies trump will be charged with
9
What a sick and decaying country we have become in just 1.5 years thanks to the corrupt Trump administration and their lackeys McConnell, Ryan, and Nunes. Remove them from office in any way possible to save our constitution and Bill of Rights (which I bet none of them have even read). This is a despotic regime -- wake up everyone.
26
This is just Dennison being Barron. The best defense is a good offense. Those of us who see him for the liar he is have our eyes on the ball.
9
Framing this story as a public relations battle, as the Times does, is essentially adopting Trump's frame: he says the investigation is legitimate, the other side says it's legitimate. Who you gonna believe?
This isn't a p.r. battle, or a case of "he said she said." Trump is assaulting the rule of law, smearing and seeking to discredit law enforcement for its entirely legitimate investigation of him and his campaign. The Times seems to be operating from some sort of muscle memory, from a day when Presidents just didn't order the Justice department to persecute their political enemies, or attack Justice when it failed to comply, when the Times could occupy (or reasonably imagine it did) a journalistically neutral space above the fray.
There is no such space. Trump is seeking to overthrow the rule of law in the United States. You live in the United States. You're a target ("failing/lying New York Times"), along with me and everyone else. Why aren't you framing this story accurately?
11
I think our FBI knows the Russians didn't just hack into 21 state election systems. They changed votes now they don't know what to do about it. If they came out and said it there would be a constitutional crisis. If Trump wouldn't agree to a new election or step down we would be in a civil war .
11
The problem for Trump is that most Americans WANT the FBI and the CIA to investigate suspicious activity by suspicious people who might be undermining the security of the country. That's their job. So when he points out that they did their job, the 73 percent of us who still have some grip on reality might be thinking, "I sleep better at night knowing they ran down these leads."
We want an intelligence community that is highly trained and professional. When Trump calls them the deep state, what he is really alluding to is the fact most career professionals in the intelligence community don't answer to a political ideology or follow a particular political leader, but rather follow a set of rules called "laws." For the most part, they try to follow them no matter who is in office. I'm okay with that.
29
Most Americans do not want the FBI/IC to have an "insurance policy" in place in case a candidate wins an election. They also do not want an FBI that colludes with a media organization to release an unverified dossier to spark the appointment of a special counsel.
Innocent people don't do this. No other President would dwell a second on even commenting about an ongoing investigation like this. If the Mueller investigation has no merit, they would actually have done the opposite and remained quiet and just let it purr along and it would simply remain a back-story. The media would lose interest, and the whole thing would just grind to its own conclusion. The report would be submitted and the details forgotten about and after a day in the news and a few soundbites from Congress people contemplating possible remedies, the story would be over. Did Reagan lose sleep over Iran-Contra?
What doesn't fit here are the daily deflections, distractions, and the all out deceptions, including the misinformation campaign by Giuliani, who, and let's be honest here, no lawyer in the country could take seriously at this point. Trump has been openly obstructing justice since the day he was sworn in regarding the Russian collusion issue. He knows it happened, (his son was directly involved in it) and one can see daily how he is trying to abuse the power of his office to try and sabotage the ongoing investigation.
Sadly, we're down to having only Mueller's team now and a few honest DOJ officials left to ensure that justice prevails. The Republican House and Senate members have abrogated all responsibility and are being used as just another toolset of this President to obstruct justice.
It's high time to sit for the interview before the Korean summit.
10
Yeah, it’s simple.; The strategy is obstruction of justice.
23
Giuliani is clearly running the show and in Trump, he has a client who's not bright enough to realize the extent to which he's exposing himself by following his "attack dog" advice. I keep waiting for Trump to cross a line that will finally put the future of his administration in jeopardy. If obstruction of justice (and that's clearly what this is) doesn't do the trick, I can't imagine what will.
7
The right wing conspiracy you seem to dismiss as a delusion has gerrymandered its way into total control of the federal government, and most state governments. But you need to pander to the Trump base, so I guess that's what passes for analysis.
7
We all knew trump had no integrity and would be unethical in his role as president. What surprises me is how many Republicans are more than willing to follow his lead. Many Republicans are supporting unjustified attacks on some of the best and most dedicated people in law enforcement - At the same time, these same Republicans are defending corrupt and potentially criminal behavior from this administration. Corruption and criminal behavior destroys great countries.
14
The entire upper echelon of the Republican party are coconspirators. They can desperately try to help in obstruction, or be exposed as criminals.
In the end whichever path they chose they will be brought to justice.
6
You're surprised by the Republicans? You shouldn't be. Go read Jane Mayer's book "Dark Money". Trump is waving shiny objects while the Republicans are furiously dismantling the institutions of this country and facilitating a take over by the super rich. The Russians love it because they can show the sham to their desperate population. The Chinese love it because they play the long long game. In the end, China will rule and America like Britain will get all their excitement from weddings, award shows and football games. Oh and parades. Don't forget the parades. SMH.
4
Trump, Guiliani, Pompeo, Bold and their ilk are throwing this democratic Republic into a political and most likely constitutional crisis and all because Trump would like to have complete control over the FBI and the Justice Department and stop what he calls the "witch hunt" in its tracks. Unfortunately McConnell, Ryan and most of the Republicans in Congress stand idly by and do absolutely nothing about it. The following analogy seems appropriate. Trump acts like Nero (Julius Caesar) except while the fire in Rome burned parts of Rome down quickly, Trump's fire and fury seems to burn down this democratic Republic ever so slowly. Just like Nero and his ilk in ancient Rome, the politicians in Washington just watch the show go on and on. Some even stand up and cheer the bully and quasi dictator in the White House on while very few stand up to him. In the meantime this country looses all its credibility with other countries and their head of states.
13
Whoever knew the president of the United States has so much power they could not only commit crimes without consequence but also commit treason without consequence? Who ever thought the Republican Party was completely unscrupulous to the point where the only thing that matters is them being in power? Whoever thought the Justice Department would succumb to being patsies, and fold upon command?
15
Not all Republicans in Congress are traitors. The Senate Intelligence Committee just released a bipartisan report concluding that the Russians interfered in the election for Trump’s benefit.
The investigated hereby demand the investigators be investigated. Muller, war hero with a distinguished law enforcement career, is a corrupt threat to the rule of law. Trump, serial bankrupter, payoff meister, volcano of lies, will keep our legal procedures pristine. An educated forecast, the year 1984 was off by just 34 years in describing what we have become.
13
All of this is so exhausting and takes away from any real governance. Look at the turmoil this White House is in, and it is constant and relentless. I am, for one, tired of an angry president whose face is a study in defiance and petulance on a daily basis. Trump is rotten to the core, and his tactics to obstruct justice have a deeply negative effect on our country. Trump should get what he deserves after a long life of bullying, deceiving, and destroying. I hope Mr. Mueller and his team continue heir hard work as this nutcase of a president implodes.
17
So Donald Trump's proposition now is that it is all well and good to break the law as long as you do it during a presidential election. in which case any attempt to investigate is for political purposes. Of course this concept only applies to Donald Trump. His opponent on the other hand it is just fine and dandy for the FBI and even the Russians and Wikileaks to investigate.
8
If the FBI/DOJ was investigating the Trump campaign for potential criminal conduct they should have been more careful re: the means of methods of investigation.
Plus, their post-election actions suggest that they had one goal in mind completely unrelated to investigating crime.
Of course none of this applies to Hillary Clinton since she is in no position to demand that the investigators themselves be investigated
Trump and his campaign has, in fact, been under investigation since 2016. And the investigation has not stopped.
It was only recently that the motivations of investigators has been questioned- for very good reasons. After all, Rosenstein was quick to hand the investigation to the IG without protest.
Anyone with friends and family living elsewhere in the Country please, encourage them to vote. Vote to save our Democracy and rid ourselves of this unethical congress and president. This is very scary times for many many US citizens.
11
Using an informant was a good move from the FBI. When you have a situation, unprecedented in our history, of a foreign power not only trying to interfere in our election, but in contact with key members of their preferred choice, an investigation is vital to our national interests. How could any reasonable person approve of those being investigated sharing control of the investigation?
10
Investigating Trump's campaign was not for political purposes, but to find out if he was selling out the country.
25
That would all well and good, except for numerous texts between Lisa Page and Peter Strzok which demonstrate that exactly the opposite is true. It is also belied by incredibly damaging emails sent by Andrew McCabe which suggest the FBI and the media coordinated to leak damaging information re Trump which they knew was not true.
When Mark Penn starts writing that this investigation was a hit job, then it is likely a hit job.
1
Personally, I don't think Trump is capable of strategic thinking, no matter what his enablers may say. He behaves more like the character of Big Baby from Toy Story, lurching from one self-created crisis to another, striking out at anyone who doesn't agree with him, and using his office to intimidate and defame both real and imagined enemies.
183
I agree. He makes a statement or chooses a direction and his flunkies handle the rest.
25
Eventually DJT will give up and file for a bankruptcy for the entire U.S. It is the only way he can "win?" this deal.
11
he's acting out, no less or more strategic than a child throwing a tantrum.
26
Unfortunately, just like the Republicans in Congress , the Justice Department and Trump’s cabinet fold like a deck of cards whenever he throws his temper tantrums.
They only speak up after they’re fired or when they resign. The spineless behavior of these officials is reprehensible , almost as bad as the president’s.
18
Deplorable does not adequately cover this behavior. Despicable is more like it.
22
By the way, stop insulting banana republics by comparing them to the Trump cartel.
14
He wants to be king.
15
I agree. I truly believe that he has an agenda that spreads far beyond just the presidency.
It's the only thing he learned, and he learned it from Roy Cohn, the master.
10
Trump and Giuliani, aka, Bob and Weave...
2
I cannot understand Trump's complaint
concerning "informants". If the F.B.I. or any other federal law enforcement agency, detected illegal acts with foreign governments occurring in the Presidential election, I think that those agencies and their leadership had every right and obligation to send in informants and question bad actors. What is the "issue" here? Has America gone crazy?
33
No just the GOP, they are the only people that have gone crazy, they have shown their true colors who they really are as a party. Their ideology and lack of common decency, demonstrates on a daily basis their desire to stay in power no matter the cost whether it’s on a personal level, or with those far right,wing nuts or elected officials have made a deal with the devil. Even those who aren’t as far right, so far have been unwilling to stand against their party. At some point those that are more moderate will be drug down the rabbit hole with the whole Republican Party. We used to have more moderate parties both sides realized that they weren’t going to get everything they want, so to move the business of the people forward, both parties compromised. Now, our elected officials those who represent all of the people whether you’re part of their party or not. If our government is an embarrassment then the face of the nation is embarrassed, except for the few that seem to think that human decency doesn’t exist.
We’ve always had the lunatic fringe on both sides of the isle, but never like this. The polarization of politics and the root cause and is the 545 elected officials that we send to represent our interests not their own, that responsibility rests with those people. We the people don’t set monetary policy, we don’t appropriate money, or levy taxes, we don’t collect taxes, we have no say in how the money brought in by the government is spent.
3
I hope that Americans are vigilant in protecting their country. Mr. Trump is attracted to dictators and despots because he yearns to have their powers and none of the restraints of a democracy.
25
And the republican congress does nothing. As usual.
5
And he won't stop until he has those powers, unfortunately.
1
Trump is doing what his mentor, Roy Cohn taught him. Basically, he said, "even if you are wrong fight back, hit hard." Cohn has been compared to McCarthy. So, why is anyone surprised at Trump's latest attack on Muller and the FBI. It's a way to redirect our attention from the melt down of his promised attack on China and to levy large duties on Chinese products!
The Chinese are not puppets. They have resisted with their own game. The big win is now just a small one.
15
These traitors continue to commit crimes in public view as their misguided strategy. One act of obstructing justice after another.
15
If the Republicans are going to receive this information then so should the Democrats on the House Intelligence Committee? This whole issue smacks of Republicans trying to give cover to Trump. It’s time for shaming, but I forget there is no shame in the White House or the Republican Party.
Meantime the Democrats don’t appear to be doing anything. Are they that Impotent? Where is the Democratic Leadership? There must be some arcane rule, regulation, or law that can be used to stop this travesty that is Trump.
The Democrats have been trying to come up with a slogan. I suggest the message should be “Dump Trump”.
14
I wonder what the folks who voted for Mr. Trump think now?
Do they not care if our republic fails.
Our children are victims in school shootings and nothing happens. The NRA $$$ have them bought and paid for.
The Koch brothers pay politicians $$$$.
Do they really think these politicians give a care what happens to them?
The only thing we have of value to the politicians is our VOTE. For the sake of the country, our children and our constitution GET OUT AND VOTE.
18
Trump supporters do not care if our country falls apart - They had been told so many times by trump and fox news that the country was in shambles that they thought it was already destroyed. As long as trump talks tough, and attacks Hillary Clinton they will support him.
7
Both you and SB have hit the nail on the head. Fox News and Breitbart have led his followers into believing that our country was almost beyond salvage. They truly believe that any other news station is fake news. They think Democrats are upset that Clinton lost. The list of ignorance spreads far and wide. I know this because I know some Trump supporters personally. He is almost a god to them.
1
The informant is a red herring at best. At worst, we'll probably find the FBI's actions were perfectly legitimate but the White House is essentially asking the FBI to out an informant. That's probably worse than the president demanding an investigation into his own investigation. Impropriety aside though, Rosenstein basically shrugged and said "yeah, whatever."
Giuliani and Trump are out banging the war drum about spies infiltrating the campaign. However, Rosenstein punted the issue to the inspector general where an internal inquiry would have gone anyway. We saw a similar thing when Trump was complaining about partisanship in the Mueller investigation. Pass the issue off to the inspector general where the entire story goes to die. At some point, we'll get an announcement saying the FBI acted appropriately; there was no wrong doing. Meanwhile, Rosenstein avoids a showdown and the Mueller investigation continues as usual.
As noted, the Giuliani PR campaign is mostly meant to appease Trump. No one with a rational thinking brain takes Giuliani seriously. He looks foolish. The scary part is we know Giuliani is preparing for a worst case scenario. The media should honestly stop giving him airtime. Trump might accidentally believe he has a predicate to fire Mueller. We'd end up with the showdown Rosenstein just quietly avoided.
11
keep the pressure on #45...
7
I believe that's part of what Michelle Goldberg meant in today's article when she used the phrase: "con men."
6
I have never understood the unfair charge of liberal bias against The New York Times' reporters. But I think in its mission to provide "balanced coverage," The Times sometimes bends over backward to give voice to Trump lies and propaganda. "Balanced coverage" is what brought on this disaster in the first place. Maybe it's because The Times assumes its readers closely follow the news and can read between the lines? But if I emerged from a two-year hibernation or if I was a Fox News viewer who read this analysis - in other words, the average American - I would think that poor Donald Trump IS the subject of a witch hunt. Not until at least three-quarters of the way through the Giuliani and Dershowitz spin, do we learn the facts from James Clapper: Trump and his criminal cohorts are "trying to distort standard investigatory practices to insinuate wrongdoing." Trump will go to any length to undermine the rule of law, usurp the Constitution, persecute political opponents and put Dear Leader Donald Trump above the law. Also, this "witch hunt inspired by Democrats who paid for research used to justify the inquiry" was originally commissioned by Republican opposition to candidate Trump and then later presented on a silver platter to Democrats. And it never hurts to remind readers that Republicans are in charge of this "witch hunt."
17
It's time Trump and the Republican Congress is officially charged with obstruction of justice.
That is one law that has been broken multiple times, with millions of American citizens as witnesses.
20
I seems to still again note that Trump acts as if he's profoundly guilty of something or things about which he's is well aware. And most everyone on all sides appears to agree. So his defense has boiled down such arguments as "he can't be indicted", "he needn't honor a subpoena", "the Republican Congress won't impeach", etc. Desperation is setting in.
15
i think our president knows the noose is tightening around his family members, if not himself. i see these latest attempts the actions of a desperate man and i fear for our country. what's his last resort? scary.
if there are indictments on the horizon, they should be made today, not in September or next year.
13
We are seeing the final throes of a desperate man. As the financial and politcal scandals continue to surface, Trump and his minions are attempting to obliterate the constitutional established separation of powers and our system checks and balances.
What is truly alarming is that so many of his followers are blinded by the “deep state” conspiracy rhetoric that is being echoed over and over by the likes of Bannon, Hannity, and the rest.
I wonder how long it will take for our country to heal once this nightmare is over.
96
I think the GOP will ultimately betray Trump as quickly as it betrayed the country. Ryan is the bellwether, and he didn't waste any time trying to create some distance. ( It won't help however; Ryan is forever tainted as a profile in cowardice.)
16
Trump is now approaching Clinton and Nixon territory; trying to obstruct justice. He is crossing into very dangerous constitutional and "rule of law" territory.
His goal to shutdown, or at least discredit, the current investigation and deflect to the previous administration. He is also manipulating the conservative media in an all out attack on anyone who is reporting so called "fake new" on Trump. If Trump succeeds, in hist crusade, it will be the end of this republic as we know it. We can also blame Citizens United and evangelical politicians as complicit in this.
Mr. Mueller, and high officials in the FBI, are racing against time, as Trump is ready to have his own version of the "Saturday Nigh Massacre". But, unlike 1973, he has a Congress that will not do to him, what they did to Nixon or Clinton. So, time is short, very short.
22
Trump supporters need to be reminded that the Watergate investigation took over TWO years. And they should also be reminded that Trump did not win the popular vote. When they say "the American people don't care" about this they are NOT speaking for ALL Americans. I will never understand Trump supporters that keep defending him.
33
Trump and his associates are only showing how desperate they are by trying these side shows. The AAG, is out smarting them by giving a few bread crumps, to hold them at bay, so he isn't fired or has to resign, which would allow trump to appoint someone new who would then fire Mueller. The AAG understands the seriousness of the Mueller investigation, because he knows every thing that has been uncovered so far. Trump is doing what Nixon tried to do to circumvent the Watergate issue. It should be noted that Trump would rather have phone calls from the likes of Sean Hannity and others who give him really bad advice, rather than listen to very qualified lawyers. To myself and a lot of Americans this alone indicates how desperate trump and his House GOP friends are about what's going to eventually come out of the Mueller investigation. Certainly more indictments to come, one for his personal lawyer, and Donnie Jr.
16
and Kushner. Donnie Jr never took a position in the Administration while Kushner has continued to horse trade as a WH official.
1
It's so simple. If Mr. Trump has done nothing wrong, what is he worried about?
19
Devin Nunes, the scheming Trumpist who snuck into the White House in the middle of the night to hand over sensitive information to his lord and master, is now orchestrating more ways for the White House to get its hands on the investigation's information.
The White House violates every rule of precedent in its attempts to interfere with a Justice Department investigation, and Nunes is aiding and abetting the president in his plot to undermine the rule of law in the United States. These men are attempting to exercise undue control over a case in which they are both now up to their necks in filth.
How Californians tolerate Nunes is a mystery. He and Trump are both traitors to the American people, trying to hold onto power at any cost -- and they want the American people to pay the price for them by tearing apart the foundations of our system of justice.
This is disgusting, utterly revolting behavior, and November cannot come soon enough. I will vote against this destructive behavior, and I will be volunteering over the next six months to persuade others to vote against this.
22
Trump's defense is classic of the culpable, attack the prosecutors and law enforcement because the evidence is too strong. Mr. Baker the reporter is spot on, the fact the real fake media, Fox News, Breitbart News, and Trump's Tweets are there to pump out their wacky propaganda creates a smokescreen that Republicans gladly welcome.
Rosenstein is pretty adept, he sidestepped the issue by letting the FBI's IG look into it, to buy Mueller more time. In my view, Giuliani was hoping to have used this matter to precipitate firing Rosenstein. What is obvious is that after the November elections, Mueller will be fired ---of course that will begin with Rosenstein's firing for some other trumped up reason.
The November election is truly important because Trump's prosecutor and the jury is the US Congress, not Mueller. Don't forget to add the beating of the war drum with Iran on the political landscape. The trouble for reactionaries is that they keep forgetting that a majority of the American people are emphatically against more war---with anyone.
163
I always wondered where the expression "trumped up" came from. Now I know.
9
Ahhhh, you beat me to it!
Mueller indicted a Russian company. To his displeasure the firm showed up in court. Now Mueller is stalling. And is accusing the company that he indicted of treachery by asking for discloser. Discloser is common practice. It’s the law.
Mueller had nothing on this company. He made up stuff. Time to fold up operations.
Trump and Giuliani deal in half-truths, and for that reason, they continue to arouse suspicion, not trust. Mr. Horowitz, the inspector general, will probably report the facts that are already known - the FBI informant had probable cause to be watching those Trump campaign goons. When there's probable cause, partisanship becomes a weak accusation to throw at the FBI. Giuliani and Trump seem not to have a long-term game plan by crying partisanship. If and when the inspector general produces the facts, Trump and Giuliani's strategy will fall apart. But by then they will be cooking up other red herrings to distract a less attentive audience. One thing is sure: Robert Mueller is thoroughly adept at seeing past red herrings and labeling them what they are: the rantings of the guilty.
13
"Red lines" and "limits"? Who do these crooks think they are? I don't recall any situation where criminals are allowed to dictate the limits of law enforcement's investigations, nor to set a timeline, nor to assert the terms of questioning. To push my analogy a bit further, a police officer is not going to ignore a brick of cocaine on your passenger seat if you're only pulled over for speeding.
It could not be more blatant that Trump and Giuliani are attempting to interfere and obstruct this investigation.
19
"“I think we’re finally seeing some semblance of a strategy emerge,” said Alan M. Dershowitz, the Harvard Law School professor emeritus who speaks with the president from time to time but has declined to join his legal team. “They have now decided that they need to be more proactive, more aggressive and more anticipatory and I see that happening.”
Alan Dershowitz should be ashamed of himself. Throughout this sorry period of our history he's played devil's advocate to abuse of power unlike any we've seen, and certainly far greater than that of Nixon.
He's supposed to be a law professor, for God's sake. What is lawful about suborning the justice department for one's own ends, meeting with post office officials to punish a political enemy, and hiring a ranting lunatic like Giuliani to go on TV and defend the indefensible?
The only reason we're in this mess is because neither Congress nor Justice will stand up to this president.
I don't know what Rosenstein and Wray are waiting for. By walking such a fine line, they are wasting time, ceding authority and soon, it will be too late to stop this unchecked power grab by the most corrupt president in US history.
You can't allow a president to order his justice department to investigate the investigators. That's tantamount to throwing in the towel on the rule of law.
This is what autocrats like Putin and Erdogan do.
We've been in a constitutional crisis for months.
When will anyone tell Trump enough is enough?
33
Why hasn't anything been found yet that directly indicts the President?
Starr Chamber?
1
Its early. Watergate took more than 2 years, and it didn't involve treason, just a 3rd rate burglary.
8
Kimbo, you can't really saying nothing has been found because Mueller hasn't revealed what's he and his team have found yet.
7
The US is no longer a democracy. And remember when Dershowitz would have defended it?
12
We underestimate the grave danger to our democracy and the peril facing constitutional governance by the vicious and unhinged likes of Trump, his unblinking acolytes, and a supine, craven right-wing shadow government masquerading as a media operation. We are one postponed election (for national security reasons of course) and one nightime march by Trump defenders carrying not tiki torches but automatic weapons from something our country has never seen and until now never feared.
14
My only consolation is that this terrible traitor who leaves carnage everywhere he injects himself still cannot outrun death. But meantime, he and his enablers from within and without can and will destroy the US as a viable republic. Vote now and in November in such overwhelming numbers that even manipulation of voting machines and stealth propaganda campaigns would still be ineffective. We should never forget that the Republicans just don't have the numbers overall and nationwide to win elections on the basis of their policies, they have to resort to other methods to win and stay in power. Will America stand up to this bully machine?
26
Thank you NYT for calling it like it is. Trump the monster will do anything to protect himself, including wrecking this country. This man is the worst danger to our democratic republic in its history. The selfish, greedy people who knew better and the scared, frustrated people who didn't--a combination of people who voted for Trump, et al.--will be held accountable by scholarly written history--and condemned!
20
Don't forget that history is written by the victors. Trump may well go down in history as the greatest president ever, and the current resistance as traitors. It all depends on actions taken in the remaining days until November, and the results of the next election (if there is one). People get ready, there's a train a-coming!
3
The rule of law means nothing to Trump. In fact it disgusts him as it gets in his way of getting his way always. Be it contract law or, now, possibly criminal law, it applies to everyone else, but not to him.
I do not like one party rule. We're seeing the mess the GOP has made of it, but we need to get out and vote in November for every Democratic candidate we can find. This in ensure that justice, in the end, is served and not shackled by the unstable occupant of the White House. Trump fears that his election is tainted. It is and will be forever.
19
Attack and smear your accuser? Sounds like Trump has learned a thing or two from the Clintons.
2
When will the Pence Commission deliver its report on the massive voter fraud that gave Hillary her popular vote majority?
2
wouldn't it be nice if trump cooperated? and stopped charging the tax payers millions of dollars every week for trump to play golf and promote his business? and millions more for his family to travel the world and promote his business.
33
and this supposed to be matured democracy
4
Where is our judicial branch in all this? Absent without leave?
Why aren't the powers that be in the DOJ and the FBI looking to the courts to protect them from Trump's unrelenting obstruction of justice campaign? When Trump "demands" they release classified information regarding their investigations, why don't they refuse and let the matters play out in court?
Why doesn't Mueller subpoena the president and then let the Supreme Court tell us whether he has to respond, and testify before a grand jury? Why aren't all the tools of law enforcement brought to bear in this constitutional crisis? I don't know - and I'm increasingly more worried every day that Trump and his enablers in Congress just might thwart those seeking to uphold the Constitution and the rule of law in this country.
Our Judicial branch is apparently sitting this one out, as Trump continues unimpeded his efforts to pack the courts with Republican lackeys he can count on to overlook his crimes. Our system of government is in dire peril as our citizens bask in the glow of Trump's twitter feed and Nunes and Giuliani conspire to undercut the rule of law.
It ain't looking good, folks. The whole system appears to be disintegrating under the load. Can November come soon enough?
19
Where have you been the past 18 months? The answers to your questions are obvious, and the November elections may never come, and if they do they certainly won't be fair. Stop waiting and sitting on the sidelines. Get ready!
2
We’re watching Obstruction of Justice play out right before our eyes in real time.
28
There is no legal precedent for a specific timeline under which the Special Counsel must conclude an investigation. This is simply Donald Trump and other Republicans becoming very nervous about the November Congressional elections and using Rudolph Giuliani to state claims that may - but most likely were not - stated behind closed doors. Mr. Giuliani is excellent at "baiting" and not bright enough to know by this time that Robert Mueller and his group won't take the bait.
Continue onward, Mr. Mueller!
13
This isn't a strategy! Why does the NYC continue to report on treason by Trump et al as if it were business as usual?
10
Why do the Trump-deranged insist on slinging around terms like treason, which has a specific definition (and collusion, which is not a defined crime at all)?
For treason, we would need to see evidence of someone who, "owing allegiance to the United States, levies war against ... or adheres to their enemies, giving them aid and comfort within the United States..."
So, please name an actual enemy. Hint: Russia, with whom we maintain diplomatic relations, cannot qualify.
"President Trump has embarked on what amounts to a two-prong strategy to contain the threat and undercut the credibility of the escalating investigations targeting him and his associates."
Oh, really? With Rudy leading the way?
Fat chance. Bob Mueller isn't swayed one tiny bit by any this. All Trump is doing is posturing for his base.
Maybe Trump should focus on his Constitutional obligations as President instead of trying to deflect the doomsday he knows is coming right at him. Enough two-stepping, Sir. Get to work.
11
What right do Congressional Republicans have too see highly classified Justice Department documents apart from Democrats? I have never heard of such blatant partisan nonsense masquerading as "oversight" in all my life.
16
The NYTs continues to try to paint a picture that Trump is running scared when in fact he holds all the cards. Once the IG of the Justice Department completes their investigation the Mueller investigation will shrivel up and go away. But not before the corporate news media and the Democrats raise one last cry of outrage against Trump. In the end Trump will remain president and a once great news paper will have to back track and retract their wild Never Trump accusations. Ultimately the country is left with same racist buffoonish corrupt president.
1
The FBI and the Justice Department are not above the law. If there is reason to suspect that they have acted contrary to the laws of our nation, then an investigation is justified. Robert Mueller's had a year and untold amounts of resources with which to make a case of wrongdoing against the President. It's getting close to the time Mueller needs to show his hand or else fold. Justice delayed is justice denied for all of us, not just the President.
4
Sorry, but the Mueller investigation needs to take as long as it needs to take. Attacking it, as Trump and his miserable band of misfits have been doing and continue to do, is totally unacceptable. It's not a question of the FBI and the Justice Department being above the law, which they are not; it's more a question of Trump doing what no other American president has done, which is to attack those whose job it is to investigate whether or not crimes have been committed. Clearly, Trump doesn't get that, which makes one wonder.
7
Lets be very clear...Trumps own actions and the actions of his cronies are what has put him in the mess he's in today.
How many indictments to date? Something like 20 including his former campaign manager, secretary of defense and several inner members of his team. For those who keep saying no collusion, maybe you've seen Mullers final report, the rest of American has not, so you know nothing about collusion.
As for the time, I rather we get it right than get it fast. For the first time in American history we have a siting President who may have colluded with an enemy of this country to win an election. Amazing that republicans and Trump supporters don't seem to care. If this were Hilary Clinton in office, Fox and the Republicans would be screaming at the top of their lungs for impeachment.
Ask yourself this question. Why is Trump so terrified about what Muller might find? If he did nothing wrong, he should be encouraging the investigation not discouraging.
5
Yes Mark let's be clear. First, collusion is not a federal crime, except in a case involving antitrust law of which this is not. Cultural elites should know this. Get it right, call it an investigation into potential acts of criminality. Everyone wants to get to the bottom of the investigation but we need to be shown the compelling evidence in order to continue. To date most of the indictments have been made against Russians, Mark. Paul Manafort's indictment has nothing to do with the Trump campaign but his dealings with the Ukrainians prior to it. Finally Mark the President is not terrified of what Bob Muller may find, rather he's annoyed that he hasn't found anything and never will. Mueller's motley crew of democrats is like barking dogs in the middle of the night. They serve no purpose other than to annoy.
Rosenstein is giving the GOP a petard upon which they will hopefully hoist themselves. If I am wrong and he is just giving in, then we might as well pack it in and admit a senile old carnival barker showed us the weaknesses in the founders' plan and we the people sat by watching royal weddings and other distractions. Trump will expose the informants, threaten lives and no one will do a thing about it except yell on twitter.
We the People will get what we deserve. I hope NY will think about #bluexit with other sane states. Leave the red states with Trump, their guns and their god.
80
I also think it is time for blue states to leave the union. Yes, it sounds crazy, but not as crazy as the situation we find ourselves in. I'm sick of paying for all these deadbeats anyway.
17
Who cares? The American People do not. This is taking the only swipe at Trump the Left possibly can and making a mountain out of it. Meaningless to most, and undecipherable.
1
"The left" comprises three million more voters than "the right" based on the last election. Just because y'all rigged the system to keep power does not make you the majority.
5
LOL. The majority of Americans do in fact care and want justice to be served. It might be helpful to remember that Trump didn't capture a majority of the popular vote and in fact was elected by a minority of a minority since less than half of eligible voters voted and less than half of them voted for him. And with a plethora of indictments already, it's not a faux mountain that's being made here.
12
Funny how the mountain is a mole hill when it's a Republican under investigation. How many times was Hillary investigated on Benghazi alone? But I guess it's the difference between Bill Clinton/Lewinsky and the Trump/Daniels payoff, the biggest sin since Adam and Eve bit the apple in Clinton's case and small change in Trump's. Or spending, reckless when Democrats spend on social programs, education and science for the common good, but fine when Republicans give a trillion-dollar tax break to the top one percent. Or George W. Bush initiating two fruitless wars that cost trillions of dollars. How is Afghanistan looking to you these days, GOP?
11
Assuming, for discussion's sake, that Mueller has several indictments ready to go, all of Trump's pressure tactics can't be too comforting for those close to him, like Don Jr. and Jared. And, also assuming that at least his lawyers realize this and have advised him so, he must be willing to sacrifice them to save his own skin. Amazing!
13
If this third rate despot says he is not guilty of anything then why attack Mueller and "demand" the DOJ begin his witch hunt?
Trump's endless complaining and Rudy's babbling are only making what could be true to be more truth than fiction.
Perhaps the deflect, deceive and obfuscate plan of attack no longer works.
21
in so many ways, Rosentein's position reminds me of the Sonderkommando who was forced to comply with the orders of his ruler. There are no acceptable choices. he can either comply with what he knows to be unacceptable or be destroyed (probably along with the investigation, in Rosenstein's case.) Either path leads to a dark place. And in the end, he will probably be thrown in the fire with the rest.
8
Just more distraction from the fact that everyone around Trump has unclean hands. With Trump's demands for loyalty how would he not known of Russian efforts,Saudi and UAE efforts to aid him. Dershowitz and Guiliani are as unhinged as Trump.
24
Such a heart breaker for me. All of this, and the GOP does nothing, will do nothing. And our country will re-elect Republicans over and over. Blue Wave? I will contribute, I will vote, but I will believe it when I see it.
38
Guilty as sin and dumb as a rock, our "POTUS" is surely tempting fate.
Message to the WH: kicking the Justice department is like kicking a hornet's nest. Unless you're working for a president-for-life, I'd assume that your post-WH days will be a time for keeping your head on a well-oiled swivel.
Good luck with that.
31
I suspect he'd enjoy the "president-for-life" title and I honestly feel that's his agenda. Start another civil war and turn his dictatorship into a lifetime presidency....no matter how fraudulent it may be.
2
Nixon tried the same tactic, only privately. This is obstruction of justice, trying to undermine an investigation that you are the target of. Trump is the new Nixon.
48
And we pray he ends up in the same place Nixon did.
8
The corruption is bubbling up from the biggest swamp in ages!
Those who voted for him continue to be enablers. We get what we vote for.
Let's not do it again!
13
What Nixon did in private Trump does openly, and yet this Congress is completely silent. It's going to take a new broom to sweep up this mess.
It’s time to play your cards, Mr. Mueller!
13
The legitimacy of the Trump administration is called into question by this investigation. Trump knows that he will never be considered a “real” president if the public finds out he is a shill for Putin. He is trying to salvage a reputation that has been savaged by the truth. Sorry Donald. You are too late. In the eyes of most Americans you are a national disgrace.
68
Well actually, the new strategy is:
"So what if I AM guilty? So what?"
22
All we need to know is whose blocked number Trump Jr. called before and after that Trump tower meeting with the Russians. Next is pinning down the NRA and Roger Stone's roles in the conspiracy
19
Trump’s constant attacks on the Mueller probe are literally obstruction of justice. This is how a guilty man acts.
84
This is treason.
35
Dear Peter Baker, Our criminal codes have words for "Contain and Attack" in the context of an investigation like this, they are "Obstruct Justice". Please use them. You're adding to the confusion that is allowing this to continue. Shame on the New York Times.
8
Eh, the NYT is supposed to be reporting facts, not playing judge and jury. It's not their place. That's what court and the opinion section is for. I don't believe Trump's perspective at all, but a political hit is not completely beyond the realm of possibility. Let journalists stick to what is known with certainty and only that.
3
"Frustrated and impatient, fed up with waiting and eager to fight back". How do we know this account of Trump's state of mind to be a "fact"? I don't believe Trump's state of mind to be "frustrated", I believe him to be terrified, as a person who knows his own guilt would be, yet we constantly get Trump's state-of-mind reported to us as fact. Why in this case, does the Times parrot what Trump says as fact? The choice of words and the way these facts are relayed matters
I would be upset with Trump's new legal strategy if I believed it was being competently led---but as with anything Trump does, his strategies are always concepts that have no one around him with the political or intellectual ability to transform a concept into practical action.
3
It's about time the president fight back. Like he said, is a witch hunt. And if Bill Clinton and his cronies could have denigrate Special Prosecutor Kenneth Star in the 1990s then President Trump by all means has a right to hit harder
10
absolutely no comparison. blindness.
59
To equivocate Bill Clinton's defense to Trumps using the Justice Department to mischaracterize the FBI's actions to protect the US from intervention & manipulation by foreign powers into the electoral process is laughable.
81
A witch hunt that found many witches that pleaded guilty or were indicted!!!
51
Rudy Giuliani and Alan Dershowitz, two old men, desperately trying to remain relevant and willing to sell their souls and discard convictions and the Constitution to do so.
Trump’s legal strategy is clear: Become a dictator and you can’t be bound by laws.
It is easy to get lost in legalese. Somehow people, including Trump, think that if they can show that the investigation was started for improper reasons that all of the investigation is tainted beyond repair.
They first started with the Steele Dossier. Unfortunately, for them, the FBI started their investigation before the Steele Dossier when the Aussie Foreign Minister (“informant”, “spy”) reported the conversation with Loose Lips Papadopolous
Oops.
So now they are trying to muddy the water and discredit the investigation because the FBI ran a counterintelligence operation against the Russians. The FBI was doing what it was supposed to do.
Whatever Trump and his Trump Network do to challenge the investigation, they can not erase what the investigation has uncovered to date: Trump Campaign officials eager to accept help from foreign governments with the implicit, if not explicit, promise to aid these countries in return, once in power.
And, more importantly, Russia meddled in our elections to great effect.
The more Trump deviates from the Constitution and norms, the guilty he looks. And Giuliani and Dershowitz can’t explain that away.
40
Clearly our pathetic president is on a rampage,
He has led a life of crime and does not want to pay the consequences.
124
This man has never been held responsible for anything. He dodged the draft, bankrupted several businesses, openly discriminated in the management of his properties, stiffed vendors and contractors, committed serial adultery, defrauded consumers and students through his shady businesses and "universities" and the list goes on and on.
I think he's about to hit a brick-wall, head-on.
SPLAT!
157
Thomas Payne: Trump was held accountable for the fake Trump University - he had to pony up $25 million!
3
And how much more than $25 million did he rip off from those students?
1
Good point, Bassman!
America has had enough of this vindictive old man Trump bully regime and wants him out by any means necessary. The fact that he’s a lousy criminal and will be booted out by American law infuriates the GOP criminal machine, so their strategy is to undermine centuries of American jurisprudence to save their laundered money and unearned perks of white bully society.
99
Why not call it a “third rate burglary” while you’re at it, Rudy? That worked so well for Nixon....
18
If Trump and his fools are truly trying to limit and attack the investigation against the Russians then that would clearly show obstruction of justice and that would be great.
This fool has shown that he has no respect for the law and is totally unfit to serve as President.
Every day that he sits in office he puts this country at risk both nationally and internationally.
Time for him to go.
29
Alan Dershowitz said, “If he can make it a red-blue issue, he wins because Americans don’t want to see a president impeached based on partisanship.” Sorry, Alan, you got one of the colors wrong. It's more likely going to be black and blue for both Trump and the country.
11
Given the number of injustices in our legal and criminal justice systems, Trump and his attacks should to studied and replicated by all.
Bring this thing to its knees...
Wait, wrong idea.
Dershowitz, (in)famous for getting criminals off the hook, is pushing the investigation into hyper-partisan territory. After all, obfuscation worked to get OJ off. But with international money-launderer but cash-poor Trump, the resulting separation won’t be red-blue — more like green-green. Follow the money.
12
Actually, sounds like a pretty good strategy....
This topic is so old and stale I think many readers, and most of the American public has already checked out. Mueller needs to bring something the table and charge the president or close the investigation, this is a tremendous waste of time and taxpayer money for something that has produced next to nothing.
3
Oh dear! You actually consider 19 indictments and 5 guilty pleas "next to nothing?" Why? Because your boy is cornered and acting like it? Hillary Clinton was investigated for 4 years at a tremendous cost over Benghazi and that yielded nothing because she is innocent. She testified publically for 11 straight hours and still nothing because she is innocent. Trump can't possibly testify because he is as guilty as humanly possible. All he can do is flail about and threaten people and our DOJ and FBI because they are about to show his guilt to the world. Not that Trump cares about who knows he's guilty, but he might lose power because of that. He might lose his adoring crowd and that's the only thing that counts for him.
3
The fight isn't just over money laundering, it is more over the desire for horrible creatures like Trump to destroy democracy in America, and finally realize his dream of being a dictator.
America needs to pick up its game, and here I am not talking about Mueller's investigations, but America's press and other leaders. Fight with everything you have...there is no second chance...lose to Trump, and we made fall into a darkness that may not be beaten for many decades.Russia has a pretend democracy, with pretend courts and legal system. It is obvious Trump wants the same for the US, and he is eager to be a junior version of Putin, and strut about his palaces with no fear of the press, or of pesky laws.
Soon the feared day will come and Mueller will be fired, or intimidated into giving Trump and his family a pass, which would be even worse.
Hugh Massengill, Eugene Oregon
21
Aid, abet, collude, make it a Dem/Rep issue. Prove to me the Russians are just goofing off with the United States democracy. Should Trump alone investigate Russian Tampering?
I'm not impressed with gotcha moments or delusional rhetoric, this is not a game or wish, that Trump may be treasonous. The way I feel is, Russia is NOT the USA, Russia has never been remotely like the USA. Russian Oligarchs want, have, and are manipulating (via troll factories) USA citizens now.
This is not theory. Let's get down to it, without obstruction, with clear minds.
2
This man and his team of charlatans (to include Fox News) are threatening our democracy. Gary Kasparov , no fan of Trump or Putin, warned us of this administrations attempt to combine the Russian and American oligarchs in a power move that would be difficult to stop. Sane Americans need to step up before it's too late. Watching Gorsuch move yesterday regarding lawsuits and corporations is a small indication of what we're dealing with. McConnell's move against Obama's Supreme Court nomination was an indication that the Executive Branch isn't the only problem. We should have been in the street's based on McConnell's obstruction of fairness.
We need to get off our butts before it's too late. November will be telltale.
53
Marc Lindemann: Yes. It's what I've been saying all along: Trump and many of the people he has picked for his administration are candidates for the America-Russia oligarchy. Some of them have jumped the gun a bit, as you can see by their blatant corrupt behavior (exorbitant travel on the US dime, hiring family and friends and not even disguising it, whacking away at regulations that help keep the environment clean and consumers safer from business predators).
3
How did our democracy become so helpless? Does rule of law no longer function? Do we now allow particular parties to declare themselves immune? Is government no longer “By the people, for the people, of the people....” no longer functioning?
23
Trump is not just waging an attack on this investigation, he is waging an attack on our system of justice. He is waging an attack on the rule of law. He is waging an attack on one third of our system of government. This is then an attack on the United States of America. This is treason.
It is the duty of the president to uphold the law, to protect and follow the Constitution. Trump is doing the opposite.
Prosecutors have to follow strict rules. There are rules of evidence. The Constitution and our legal code protects the defendant against these misdeeds. If a prosecutor does not follow those rules, the case is thrown out and can get into trouble, big time.
There is a place where these battles are waged and waged vigorously. They are waged in a court of law. If a case is levied agains the president, he will have ample opportunity to defend himself. If he has been made a victim of prosecutorial misconduct, he can have the case thrown out.
Giuliani is behaving disgracefully. He knows what the law is. But he is turning this investigation into a Fox News political rally.
This is not a legal strategy. Courts are not political theater. Trump has no respect for the rule of law. Trump act like a desperate, cornered man who will stop at nothing to derail an investigation against him. Innocent people don't do that. Trump is utterly disgusting. Those that support and applaud his efforts to undermine our system are just as disgusting.
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And the DOJ seems to be giving in to pressure from the Republicans as well as Trump. That is the terrible risk we're running. The GOP will not stand up for the rule of law, but in fact is promoting destruction of the court system. With no respect for our system of justice our democracy is broken and our country is doomed.
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Actually, I think Mr. Rosenstein and the DOJ are doing a "rope-a-dope" to fend off this latest mud-slinging effort. They are playing along which deprives Drumpf of any excuse to fire Mr. Rosenstein and replace him with a GOP stooge who will stop Mueller's investigation.
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On the contrary -- right now, L. Lynch, Comey, and BHO are searching their records, trying to find if they have the paperwork to back up the FBI's work.
And if they do not -- they're going to call their lawyers, STAT.
See you in court, y'all.
Americans have already seen a president because of partisanship. That was when Repub$ impeached President Clinton. A more bipartisan investigation took place when Congress drew up articles of impeachment and the sensible voice of the Republican Party, convinced Richard "I am not a crook" Nixon to resign, since he was most definitely guilty.
It does not appear that there are many sensible Repub$ that will convince the President to to the right thing.
NIxon called the investigation a "witch hunt" as well. A witch hunt cannot exist since there is no such thing as witches.
"45" also has a "National Enquirer" media that will support him no matter what.
Most Americans are looking forward to the day when we can again have a President that respects the office and puts the country before his or her personal interests or ego.
Not ready for impeachment yet, but the more Mueller finds, the more apparent it is that there was collusion and obstruction of justice. Keep the investigation going strong. Or Americans do you think that the president is above the law.
Wouldn't release of the President's tax returns help shed some light on this now? By this point everyone realizes that there is something hidden in those tax returns.
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With this latest "attack" on the Justice Department Donald Trump has crossed what many consider "a red line" in abuse of power by intruding on an investigation of which he's certainly a "subject" if not a "target." This is blatant "obstruction of justice" where the only person standing in his way is Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein. It appears that Mr. Trump, his political attack dog Rudy Guiliani and his Congressional co-conspirators Reps. Devin Nunes, Jim Jordan and Mark Meadows are moving beyond just trying to "limit" the Mueller investigation, but to shut it down either by this fall or, even more ominously, by forcing Mr. Rosenstein into a position where he'll be no longer able to protect the Special Counsel and be forced to resign. It seems that we're at that point where the next "demand" might precipitate that Constitutional crisis.
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Just in time for the mid-term elections. Do you think it might overshadow their "accomplishment" of the tax overhaul. Besides, by November no one will remember the one time measly bonus they may have received back in January.
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If these actors are ever held accountable for all of this, they should be charged with treason against the citizens of the United States.
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So far, the Mueller investigation has resulted in 19 people charged with crimes and 5 guilty pleas. These are the facts. The efforts by Trump, Giuliani, and others in this administration, to distract and mislead, cannot change these indisputable results made so far by Mueller and his staff. The whining and complaining by Trump is not the actions of a leader, but of a petulant child who is quickly realizing that his misbehavior will soon have grave consequences.
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Money laundering and tax fraud (long before participating in the campaign) and making false statements to the FBI - something that is tied to the witch hunt idea as just about anyone can be found guilty of that if the FBI wants it. No conspiracy found to this date. So, when does Mueller complete the investigation and conclude whether a conspiracy took place? The guilt pleas so far have nothing to do with a conspiracy. If it exists, bring it to light!
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How do you know that there is no conspiracy to this date? There's no way to tell, Mueller is releasing his "finds" as he needs to.
Anybody can be indicted on more than 3 dozen counts of financial/bank fraud charges? The indictments against Manafort/Gates in particular seem extremely serious and well justified based on what we know at this point.
You can't seriously downplay laundering ~$100,000,000, earned via illegal lobbying activities, from Russia-backed Ukrainians with a straight face.
Show us the evidence! Where's the beef? The angry president with the bright red face is containing the threat against him and his people. Rudy Giuliani -- the president's "personal lawyer" -- is spraying the landscape with his pronunciamentos re Mueller finishing up his investigation by 1 September, He's blowing serious hot air and chewing like an old ham on the scenery. This is the way he is informing the American people that the president's tolerance of the Special Counsel's investigation is on the rocks. Rudy's warning us to look out for the lava and laze fall-out from the erupting Prez.
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Indeed. What we are seeing is the ultimate New York lawyer in Giuliani using the ultimate strategy.
His strategy is frightening . It wins often.
Giuliani is counting on Trump remaining calm. We all know that is impossible for Trump. That can mean only:
The Hawaii volcanic explosion is about to meet Donald Trump!
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Lava and laze fallout from an erupting "president"?
No such thing will happen. There will be a series of tweets followed by some comment by Rudy followed up by the press secretary.
And as usual Trump's attention span will have reached the limit of attention and we will see a new series of tweets in coming days with containing more nonsensical babble.
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I'm not sure exactly what your comment said, but I enjoyed reading it nonetheless. Your clearest point is likely the right one though: Trump & Rudy are setting the stage for a massacre.
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Why is this taking soooooooo long. Maybe, can't find anything.
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Wishful thinking. Do not confuse the discipline and expertise of the Mueller team - which is extraordinary! - with "can't find anything". Meanwhile, the guilty WH (what else explains their erratic behavior?) can barely keep it between the ditches.
Mueller is most likely SO far ahead of this hapless WH crew that DJT and the clown posse will never know what hit them until they are exposed for the criminals they are.
And could this President do his job once in a while, between Fox news, golf and tweeting?
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I suppose, or maybe they're doing exactly the job they were given.
Investigations take time and, if you're worried about that, perhaps you would consider that a year-long barrage of lies, false accusations, and repeated reports of statements by Mr. Mueller that have no relationship to any conceivable reality are gumming up the works.
Mueller has been notably silent, all the roadblocks to progress originate in the White House.
Let the man do his job. Unless of course you just don't care about the truth. Which seems very, very likely.
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What makes you think this is taking long? Fox News? Have you compared this to other special counsel investigations? Do you know how long a prosecutor takes to investigate organized crime matters?
Don’t just ape what someone told you. Be a citizen and think for yourself!
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Comey said it best - working with Trump gave him “flashbacks to my earlier career as a prosecutor against the Mob. The silent circle of assent. The boss in complete control. The loyalty oaths. The us-versus-them worldview. The lying about all things, large and small, in service to some code of loyalty that put the organization above morality and above the truth.”
Trump's means and methods are directly from the Mafia Don's handbook.
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And Mueller took Mafia Dons down. Including the "Teflon Don."
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Criminal Defense 101. When the evidence is strong and no coherent theory of defense exists consistent with innocence, attack the prosecutor, sow confusion, attack the witnesses, etc. This is how a guilty person defends a case.
Sometimes successful, but usually not. But here you don't have an unbiased jury, you have Republicans. You have a defendant who may have the ability to fire his prosecutors. You have a defendant who has the pardon power to re-flip government witnesses.
Vote in November. It's the only answer.
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I just hope that remains a viable option.
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If the evidence is strong, then give it to us. We are 2 years in, at a cost of tens (or hundreds?) of millions. I realize there are many ways to hide money and obscure events, but if the FBI had informants on the campaign and the DNC has a dossier, then why isn't this done?
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@Ma. We are one year in at this point, not two. And Watergate took more than two years. I don't care how much saving our democracy from the likes of oligarchs like Trump costs...it's worth every penny. So far there have been 19 indictments and 5 guilty pleas. I think Mueller is doing just fine. But Trump is unraveling and acting just like a cornered badger. In other words, Trump is acting as guilty as all get out!
The only diamond in this pile of manure is that we do not know what Special Counsel Robert Mueller has. Neither, I suspect, does the "president."
We are, like a slow-motion train wreck, headed toward a Constitutional crisis of unprecedented proportions. The imperial "president" is taking a hammer to his own investigative and intelligence agencies. The defiance of his (and other presidential) appointees stand between us and anarchy; chaos running amok in the streets.
We're well on our way to a nation without any governing institutions that a majority of citizens can recognize and/or support. Investigative and intelligence require operatives--call them informants or spies or whatever you like--so they may do their work. The moving parts must be so complex and bewildering that following this thread or that must be taxing to the utmost. The F.B.I., for example, would clearly be derelict in its duty if it were to ignore warnings or signals that have the vast potential to imperial the Republic.
Perhaps this is what enrages the "president" most: he has the deepest knowledge of the sins he may have committed--both as candidate and as a carryover into his presidency--and perhaps realizes that an exposure places his name in the gravest danger. It is clearly beyond his understanding that the nation comes first. It is also clearly beyond the understanding that the Republican-majority in Congress that the country comes first.
They long ago sacrificed America to narrow ideology.
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Excellent assessments our current state of affairs, but especially your third paragraph is the most frightening as we have neither an executive or legislative branch that is functioning. We have to assume the judicial branch still functions, but their most critical tests may be in front of them if serious constitutional questions around this case come before the SCOTUS.
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The right wingers of the GOP own the Supreme Court. I see little hope there, this Court seems to be destroying the constitution in favor of the oligarchs and the Republican party - see the recent decision limiting employees' ability to seek justice by bringing class actions in court, but allowing employers to force them into arbitration. We are each on our own now.
When the dems take back power, they should recall Gorsuch as he was appointed illegally by denying President Obama's choice to be put up for nomination. Extraordinary times call for extraordinary measures. We must be as bold and determined as the corrupt congress we now face, if not more so. Cowards need not apply.
If there is going to be an inquiry of who put their thumbs on the scale in connection with the election, why shouldn't it be bipartisan? Meetings at Trump tower, meetings on the tarmac at an Arizona airport..........why investigate one and not the other?
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No reason. But your tarmac fantasy would require a seperate investigation, unrelated to Mueller's work.
Given the investigation extravaganza which is the Republican Congress, one has to wonder why your party has yet to embark upon such an undertaking.
Still, that has nothing at all to do with Mueller.
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Email, Benghazi, Uranium, Whitewater....we've been there...Americans and their short mindedness. Ugh!
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Exactly RM. Investigate the Clinton tarmac incident. Just because it has already been investigated and dismissed is no reason to not open another investigation. Same with Ben Ghazi...let's get to the bottom of it. Whitewater? Did we ever find out what happened there? Lewinsky? What's her story - I'd be interested to know. Giving all our uranium to the Russians? How did Hillary pull that off? It's time for Mueller to wrap things up so that our justice department can investigate any of the real crimes that I've listed here.
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Obfuscation is the last refuge of the GUILTY.
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That's what gangsters do!
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The president's intent is to thwart the rule of law by setting the parameters of justice merely to suit his own purposes and avoid being held accountable for crimes he may have committed. It is indeed odd for a sitting president to attack his own Justice Department and the FBI, agencies whose duty is to uphold the law and maintain order. The closer Mueller gets to the truth, the president pushes back and now claims FBI agents are spying on him, while ignoring the fact that Russian and Saudi operatives infiltrated his own campaign in 2016 to help get him elected. The noose is tightening and the president is in full panic mode.
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So am I.
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Congrats on getting the first Times Pick! You've nailed it, my friend. Trump's desperate moves are a last ditch effort to fight the truth. When even Chris Christie cautions that he's told Trump repeatedly that he's making the investigation worse, you know Trump is beyond the pale. And as you said yesterday, one can only imagine what we'd be hearing from Trump if he faced a real injustice.
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Problem being he might succeed in thwarting the law. In fact it seems quite likely. There is no guarantee on any of this. It’s a huge gambit. We, the people, must be prepared to protest. Loudly. The republic is at risk.
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Keeping your eye on the ball. This is not how someone who is innocent reacts. This strategy is needed to defend someone who is guilty. This is the O.J. trial all over again.
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Interesting analogy. The moment I realized Donald Trump was President felt like the day O.J. Simpson was acquitted.
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That's what I am afraid of . . . OJ got away with it!
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Hard concrete Evidence is what matters.
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Well, there seems to be plenty of hard evidence, considering there have been 19 indictments and 5 convictions so far.
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