When the worst of the corruption starts in White House it is always complicated.
22
Why is the headline about a complicated relationship - not that Trump is trying to take power that is not constitutional? Why not that the Barr and Trump are using the DOJ and the law as weapons to attack Trump's enemies?
Why is it not a headline when the Freedom of Information Act reveals that the DOJ has hidden - since September - that FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe is NOT being charged. That a grand jury found no cause to indict and yet the DOJ tried to push the case? That Judge (a Republican appointee) said:
"I don't think people like the fact that you got somebody at the top basically trying to dictate whether somebody should be prosecuted," Walton said. "I just think it's a banana republic when we go down that road….""
WHY?
44
Why give any validity to this political theater?
You are working for Trump if you buy into this.
28
Trump’s ‘legal right’ to interfere with DOJ cases....and his desire to do so...makes this government no different from that of China. China.....the land of opression and limitations of personal freedom. And this is what the MAGA gaggle support?
30
Barr wants to keep his job for another 4 years and he wants his daughter and son in law to keep theirs so he has sold his soul to the devil. He knows, as does Trump, that the role of Russia in getting Don elected hasn’t been buried with the Mueller report because the two key figures in that conspiracy are up before the courts and might well squeal if they do big time. Stone knows where all the bodies are buried and was the key figure organizing the release of stolen property the Russians choreographed, and which essentially led to Clinton’s defeat. More critically Flynn met with Kisliak earlier on, undoubtedly initiated by the Russian FSB Officer, to undoubtedly discuss a quid pro quo - remove sanctions, deep six the Magnitsky act and we will dig up dirt and flood Facebook with negative ads on Clinton. Both Flynn and Stone know too much and Trump does t want them squealing if they are unhappy in jail. He’s not angry, he’s fearful. And Barr knows this could all blow up and he and his family end up getting booted out by a New Democratic president, who may well turn around and investigate Mr. Barr for his dirty dealings.
27
Times readers who support Mr. Trump, or believe that he's in the right as head of the executive branch--consider this:
"Mr. Trump is demanding that some of the people whose actions he believes led to his troubles be charged, convicted and sent to prison...."
Is this the kind of country--or president--you want?
Thank you.
35
Interesting how easily Barr flipped the media narrative away from the resignation of 4 prosecutors. His only real complaint, maybe, is an ask that he be able to do what he's doing without it being so obvious.
25
Welcome to the new America and the DOI-Department of Injustice.
11
Indeed, these are fraught times for POTUS.
He needs to be very careful with AG Barr.
Barr is no Sessions.
Barr does not even need to be an AG - his portrait already hangs there.
He even does not need a job.
Corporations will line up outside his house from dawn seeking his advice.
It is POTUS who needs Barr more.
And if he makes Barr resign and I suggest Barr does - if another offensive thweet is directed at him.
POTUS should remember no Republican senator is going to fall on a sword to get a replacement confirmed - not with an election around the corner.
They will pull a Garland to protect themselves - rightfully so.
And Barr has stocked DOJ with his folks - and they will not take kindly to their boss ouster.
So, as a Republican - I say to POTUS - think twice before you tweet.
You may get your whatever out of your system - but you are digging your own grave.
And no spin masters including Kellyanne or Hope Hicks will save you.
You have had good 2 months of the New Year - don't abuse it.
3
What job does he think he got hired to do? His job is to enable, Donald Trump, and figure out ways to cover for his lawless, selfish, vindictive, legal missteps. Just as when he got hired, it remains entirely possible for Barr to do the job. If, as he is indicating, he wants a different job, I’m sure Rudy Giuliani would be willing to take over for him.
13
I can't believe this charade in being taken seriously. It's a good cop/bad cop show. Political theater taken to a new level.
22
The ABC interview and McCabe release means nothing. If Bill Barr were independent, he'd have been fired by now.
13
Both AG Barr and WH Consel Cippalone should inform Trump that Article II, Section 3, Clause 4 of the Constitution mandates of the president that "...he shall take care that the laws be faithfully executed...".
This mandate is quite different than Trump's misapprehension that he has a right to interfere in Justice Department criminal cases.
13
Please stop publishing articles that suggest a republican will be the country’s savior to solve Trump’s unconstitutional behavior. There is no republican savior. They are all complicit.
28
I can’t tell you how much us folks in normal land don’t care about this. The last 2 attempts to take down Trump ended badly. And with each attempt, the premise is getting more and more unbelievable. I was hoping after the impeachment hoax, Democrats would finally get back to governing. And yet they went right back to thinking they have some “gotcha” moment, to tear Trump down at a minimum, or worse, some already suggesting another impeachment.
CNN and MSNBC start the top of their newscast with this nonsense. I used to like listening to the news in my car. I just can’t anymore. I’m tuning you out. You’re preaching garbage. The last 2 years, this economy has enabled my business to explode. This is Trumps economy. Why would I want it to change? Because he tweeted support for his friend? A guy who never would have had this problem if he wasn’t a vocal supporter for Trump?
We are evolving from a nation of laws to a nation of men one small step at a time. Donald Trump is taking small steps, seeing that he can get away with it, and then tries taking bigger steps.
Emoluments, personally profiting from the Presidency (watch him rename the Lincoln Bedroom the Trump Bedroom). Excessive Presidential authority. Savaging the press and his opponents, then encouraging others to do the same (always with plausible deniability). First taking advantage of foreign powers interfering with our elections on their own, then soliciting their help. Trashing military leaders in public and ignoring expert advice. Trashing his own staff, which allows him to trash anyone else. Expecting full loyalty and giving none; e.g. throwing Michael Cohen, his personal lawyer, under the bus. Subordinating foreign policy to his own electoral advantage. And now directly interfering in the Justice Department's sentencing procedures.
If he ever steps out on Fifth Avenue, everyone -will- run for cover.
In the play "Becket", when Thomas Becket, Archbishop of Canterbury, refuses to acknowledge the supremacy of the King Henry, Henry says, "Will no one rid me of this pestilent priest?", and a small group of assassins slips out to do his bidding.
No explicit order given, no quid pro quo, but the deed was done. King Trump has his lackeys - the "three amigos" in Ukraine, Mike Pompeo at State, and now William Barr at Justice.
The list of victims is growing.
18
Barr’s predecessor is Sessions also picked by Trump. So what is he cleaning up after? Seriously, how many do-overs do criminals and Trump get? It is not the playground at an elementary school.
5
It is now time for Impeachment Part II.
Despite the horrible political optics that would cause for the Democrats, if Trump is truly a threat to our nation it is their solemn duty to conduct another impeachment. This time the Democrats must call Bolton and others to show us the truth.
Country over party.
12
"Critics assume it is all a Kabuki dance, cynical theater meant to preserve Mr. Barr’s credibility as he executes Mr. Trump’s personal political agenda while pretending to look independent."
It sure does look that way. But Barr's Kabuki dance is complicated by the fact that DOJ line prosecutors and rank and file employees also look at it that way. They know Barr is corrupt, and Barr showed it from Day One when he turned the Mueller report on its head. He also personally tried to bury the whistle-blower matter and has since been in the middle of the Ukraine /Biden investigation debacle.
The DOJ is falling apart with Barr at the helm. So is Barr's Kabuki dance.
10
William Barr is protecting William Barr. He's making it look like he's impartial, but wink wink, he's not. As one reader suggested, he's just engaging in Kabuki theater. Behind the curtain he is getting away with unbelievable crimes.
9
I have decided that I am no longer shocked by anything a Republican does. The only shock I have remaining is for any Democrat who is dumbfounded by their behavior.
But if you are dumbfounded, I can help you with a little linguistic clarification.
"Republicans" are Trump supporters. The term no longer applies to your Romneys, Ryans, Boehners, or anyone who has left the Trumpian circle of power. (Those ones are merely traditional conservatives.) Our feelings of shock need to end because shades of gray are ending. We are moving into the third stage of fascism. The Republican popular movement now has the consent of their ruling elites in the Senate, they are stacking the judiciary, and they are consolidating control of the government. Dissenters are being thrown out and the rest are getting in line. And if you missed it, please understand that Susan Collins and Lisa Murkowski are now Trump supporters. They didn't leave the line, did they?
13
Time to restart the impeachment process. Perhaps, this time, Collins, Murkowsky, and Alexander will realize the error of their previous vote.
7
Barr said he wouldn’t be bullied by anybody, and complained that Trump’s tweets about court cases and attacking judges were making his job “impossible.”
And what is Trump's reaction? Nothing. This is all theater and a show. Not working. People are smarter than that.
Why, of all the court cases is Barr only caring about cases involving Trump's friends...or his enemies?
14
I watch the unfolding disaster in the US with a combination of disdain, contempt, a certain amount of schadenfreude, and a great deal of apprehension. The fact is that the man in power in the White House is a sociopath who has a deep commitment to abusing his power to the utmost with the conviction that it is his right to do so. At the same time, the American institutions that were supposed to guard against this have failed utterly and spectacularly. American institutional structures are being corrupted and undermined at a phenomenal rate. It is remarkable how weak so many of them - particularly the DOJ - have proven to be. The danger that Trump poses is not just to the US but, even more, to the rest of the world. What is striking is how many traditions and norms have proven to be paper tigers - based entirely on the decency of the person in power and toothless when the person in power has no decency. One point: it is a measure of the kind of delusional alternative universe that the American right lives in that it would regard the Obama administration- objectively, the cleanest, most scandal-free White House in memory - to be corrupt. And this is coming from a group of people who are willingly sustaining and enabling -again, objectively -the most corrupt, criminal US President, probably in history. When your grasp on reality is that perverted, all sense of reason is lost.
15
The four prosecutors who resigned were the driving force behind Barr's supposed pushback to Trump and deserve much credit. You can't be an effective AG amidst a deserved mutiny of your professional staff.
4
Even IF Barr turned over a new leaf, he would still have the problem of credibility.
He said in an interview with ABC on Thursday about Trump: “If he were to say, go investigate somebody, and you sense it’s because they’re a political opponent, then an attorney general shouldn’t carry that out, wouldn’t carry that out.”
Barr has done Trump’s bidding on many other fronts, by misleading the public about the special counsel’s findings, before Congress could a chance to read the report; working to discredit the Russia investigation; and opening a special channel for dirt on the Bidens. Last July, he traveled to London to ask intelligence officials there for help with the investigation. He made a similar trip to Italy in September.
Why does he want outside prosecutors to review the handling of the criminal case against Michael Flynn and other sensitive national security and public corruption prosecutions in the US attorney’s office in Washington?
It just confirms concerns that Barr is using the DoJ to exert more control over high-profile, sensitive cases that could hurt Trump. And Barr wants to cover up for a corrupt president - he doesn't bite the hand that feeds him.
He’s an eager accomplice in eroding norms, unwilling to insulate the criminal justice system from political interference, threatening the bedrock principle of equality before the law.
9
The actions taken by Barr’s DOJ are far from bewildering, and should not be described as such as they are actually entirely predictable based on prior recent history. Perhaps a more precise adjective would be “monarchic”.
2
The actions by Trump and Barr have revealed the weaknesses in our Constitution. There is according to this article no law against Trump using the Justice Department to pursue his perceived enemies (anyone who doesn’t slavishly support him) and to reward his supporters when they break the law. The writers of the Constitution never conceived of having a President that would not put the interests of the Nation first. We are very close to losing our freedoms and Democracy if we don’t get rid of Trump and his sycophants that enable him and pass laws that preserve equal justice for all.
4
In the next budget Congress just defund the office of the president,make no money available to run the presidency.
5
Why is it assumed this is “complicated” rather than collusion?
5
I wouldn't waste too much energy on examining this.
The biggest question that this article should be raising is not if there is some drama between Trump and Barr, but if all Americans, and especially those who hold office, are paying attention to this duo's daily erosion of laws, norms and transparency?
Because, to put it in the simplest terms, their collusion will ultimately destroy our democracy,
7
Don't believe it. It is just a part of Don the Con's show and Barr is a part of the show. It is too obvious.
4
This “rift” is a purely strategic performance for the Twittersphere to make it appear that Barr and Trump are on the outs. Don’t be deceived, actions speak louder than words. They will both continue to compromise the independence of the Department of Justice and build the unary power of Trump’s corrupt presidency.
4
Hearing the DOJ described as a previously non-partisan force for truth and justice that somehow fell into the hands of crooks and vandals still lands jarringly on the ear, and even more harshly on the memory. It's a lie.
Here's but one example of this fantasy:
Edwin Meese (1985-1988): The Whopper. Started with Reagan in California, where he recommended detention camps for student protesters. Prior to being named AG, declared that he had seen no evidence that children were hungry in America.
3
Well, I have been considering a career change and right now a life of crime is looking ever more appealing. The first thing I need to do is cozy up to President Trump, which shouldn’t be hard if I make a tidy political donation as an investment in my future. Perhaps I could get a foreign oligarch, with ops in the US, to finance me if I promise to use my influence to help him out. Who knows, I might come up with some juicy new crimes that would be just the creative destruction we need around here... and if I play my cards right, I might just get away with it even if I trip over my own feet. The first question, I guess, is which of the swank Trump country clubs would admit me as a member so I can get the old ball rolling.
3
Separation of powers and checks and balances. The three branches and foundation of governance of the United States.
2
"It is all a Kabuki dance". Yes. Definitely.
"The tension is real". Also true, because the president has been a very poor dance partner.
4
The Constitution specifically requires that the President "shall take care that the laws be faithfully executed . . . ." Invidious prosecutions instigated by him for political vengeance surely abrogates a faithful execution of the laws.
Moreover, the Constitution itself is ruthlessly silent on the legal ways in which a President may intervene in criminal prosecutions. It doesn't expressly prohibit--or permit--any such thing. As Abraham Lincoln said on vexing issues where the Constitution is vague or silent, the law itself must be interpreted by responsible minds and authorities, including, I take it, members of the Congress and the Supreme Court, especially in a sensationally disputed question or action.
But perhaps impeachment is the only real solution to the problem of presidential irresponsibility to the law. If so, that issue is in any practical sense dead for the moment. Our country is in a very bad place because it is, in my view.
2
For an hour, yesterday, I was happily inviting the revolution - the one we were told would not be televised.- Remember boomer? But no. I've poured my cup of coffee. I've pulled my chair up to the edge of humanity to witness another revolution - televised criminality and social media friendly.
2
Notwithstanding what passes for courage in publicly criticizing the president in a TV news interview, Mr Barr has a record that he cannot live down. He mischaracterized the findings of the Mueller report. He said that candidate T was "spied on" in 2016, without justification. He inappropriately ordered a world wide investigation of the origins of the FBI probe, chasing down conspiracy theories. He dismissed the whistleblower's report. He publicly disagreed with the Inspector General that the investigation of Russian influence was correctly predicated. And so on. What this means is that his credibility is shot at this point, and cannot be recovered. The president's treatment of his predecessor shows that he does not accept the AG's independence: Sessions recusal was the only proper course, but the president saw it as a personal betrayal. It isn't hard to guess what happened. Barr was embarrassed by the tweets this week, that made his political meddling seem too obvious. He wants to fulfill T's desires while maintaining a facade of professionalism. Now he is making a deal: give up McCabe and I'll help out Flynn. But the AG has no good reason to micromanage any of these cases, or bring in outside people to oversee DOJ professionals. He needs to keep his hands off. Appearances of impropriety matter, and Barr's reputation is lost beyond recovery. He needs to resign.
7
Barr and Trump see eye-to-eye on three out of four of the recent controversies.
Both agreed the initial sentencing recommendation against Roger Stone was excessive.
Both agreed that the prosecution of Michale Flynn should be reviewed based on new evidence that suggests the FBI falsified the evidence against him and coerced a confession by threatening to prosecute Flynn’s son.
Both Barr agreed that allegations against Joe Biden and Hunter Biden merit looking into. The Justice Department is now vetting evidence Rudy Giuliani uncovered in Ukraine
The thing the Flynn and McCabe cases have in common is that both were accused of lying about actions that were perfectly legal. The FBI determined that Flynn’s conversations did not violate the Logan Act while McCabe was authored to disclose the information he disclose. However, the president will pardon Flynn if he receives a jail sentence while McCabe may still be charged in connections with his handling of the Crossfire Hurricane investigation.
1
Barr is attempting to save Trump from himself by feigning concern about Trump's open destruction of law and order. Their agenda is exactly the same; Place the presidency above the law and smother the evidence of Trump's Russian collusion, as evidenced by Barr's interference and misrepresentation of the Mueller investigation, and more importantly, in the counter espionage investigation that has been going on for years, that explains Donald Trump's true purpose regarding sanctions on Russia.
1
There is no mystery here. DOJ had no case against McCabe, or it would have charged him. They just left him hanging to make it look like they did. This is Trump's MO: announce an investigation to tout at rallies and on Fox. It doesn't matter what it turns up because they will spin it. It's just like the Durham investigation; where is that report? And it's just like the investigation he wanted in Ukraine. Trump didn't care about a real investigation, he just wanted Zelensky to "go to the mic" and announce one.
After the Roger Stone fiasco, with four Assistants quitting, Barr had to throw a bone to his staff to prevent the mass resignations that should be coming. McCabe was that bone. Now Barr will continue to interfere in investigations of Trump's friends, including Giuliani.
5
The made-up Trump-Barr dispute is just another made-for-TV reality show to focus attention on a supposed falling out rather than the fact that Trump and Barr have turned the DOJ into an arm of Trump’s re-election campaign that can be used to open investigations into Trump’s enemies and even bring charges that the media faithfully reports but often fails to mention when the bogus charges get dropped because there is no evidence. McCabe was not indicted because even Barr could not manufacture evidence that would pass the smell test for any nonpartisan judge. This is simply another “look over here” effort by Barr and Trump to take our eyes off the damage they are doing to the Constitutional rule of law. If the founders had intended the chief executive to be above the law and able to do anything he wanted, they would have chosen the role of king, not a president answerable to Congress for high crimes and misdemeanors. Of course, they could not foresee that a partisan element of Congress called Senate Republicans would look at those high crimes and misdemeanors and shrug their shoulders and dismiss them as unimportant to a functioning democracy. Their refusal to live up to their oath of office and oath for the Senate trial led directly to this unprincipled president declaring himself able to do absolutely anything he wants, legal or not, and answerable to no one.
3
“The president was cheered this week when Mr. Barr moved to reduce the sentence of a convicted presidential friend, only to be shocked when the attorney general publicly called on Mr. Trump to stop tweeting about it.”
It strains credulity to suggest that Trump was “shocked” by Barr’s tweet. Based on the past behavior of Trump, Barr, and the rest of this Administration, a far likelier scenario is some variation on the following: Trump understood from TV news coverage that Barr’s shamelessly obvious focus on doing the President’s bidding wasn’t playing well - and/or that Barr explained that a public “rebuke” of Trump would strengthen his (Barr’s) ability to effectively carry out the President’s wishes. Either way, it seems painfully obvious that Trump was well aware of what Barr’s statement would be, and had authorized it in advance.
4
I despise Trump, but he may well be right here. Presidents traditionally have not interfered in federal prosecutions, but Trump was elected precisely because he has no trust in or respect for traditions and accepted protocols. I have read or heard nothing that suggests he is constitutionally prohibited from influencing the outcome of a trial such as this.
65
@CritterDoc The great revelation of the Trump Presidency is how much our system of government relies on norms and character. Trump has low character and no respect for norms that conflict with his self interest. So, while you may be correct that there is no constitutional bar to the power Trump claims, there is certainly a norm and tradition that the President should not use the DOJ to corruptly benefit is own personal interest or the interests of his friends and allies.
It is clear that the need for government reform following the end of Trump will be far greater than it was after Nixon resigned.
472
@CritterDoc
Intimidating witnesses, tampering with the justice system and intimidating judges are against the law. trump is not above the law, in fact, he is responsible to see that laws are faithfully executed.
431
@CritterDoc
The primary reason the President is not to interfere with the execution of the laws is to protect the legal outcomes from judicial review. The President is not a lawyer, and even if he was (like Barack Obama), any interference with the independence of the Justice Department could easily be seen as politically motivated and thus a corruption of justice, i.e. obstruction.
If the Presidents enemies were prosecuted at the direction of the President, that is prosecutorial misconduct and grounds for a dismissal of charges.
The President DOES have the power to interfere in the implementation of justice, however, and it's specifically enumerated as the pardon powers.
However, the modern guidelines for the pardon process require that the person petitioning for a pardon wait 5 years after they are released, which, according to the DOJ is "designed to afford the petitioner a reasonable period of time in which to demonstrate an ability to lead a responsible, productive and law-abiding life, begins on the date of the petitioner's release from confinement."
Trump doesn't care about abiding by laws. He doesn't care about justice. The people who drafted the constitution thought that the other branches of government would rein in a person such as this before they could do this much harm.
They were wrong. The cult of Trump has infected our politics in ways that they had not foreseen.
380
Trump might have said both publicly and privately to open investigations into political rivals and to drop inquiries into him or his associates, but nothing specifically was done, even though Trump has the authority to do so. Trump's political rivals also asked to start specific investigations against Trump and his associates and in some cases it was initiated under pressure like Mueller investigation. It appears that Democrats want to punish Flynn, but not McCabe while Trump and Republicans want the opposite. In my opinion, all these are okay under our system with check and balance as long as it is legal and DOJ acts independently and prudently. It appears that DOJ and Barr are acting appropriately, although liberal media finds faults with only Trump as usual.
3
Barr's actions are not bewildering if you're able to get past your narrative and admit that he's a real, independent AG and not, as the rabid, Trump-hating media paint him, Trump's toady.
.
He has to be Trump's toady for your Trump-as-dictator, "Democracy is in danger" narrative to hold. But Trump is not a dictator. And he's not the danger to our democracy.
.
If our democracy is in danger, it's because our media have lost their way and now publish "news" that fits their political bias. This is on both sides, but at least the right admits it.
.
That's the real danger to our democracy. Trump will be gone soon enough (yes, sorry, he's going to leave the White House when he loses), and we can start to fix the mess he left behind.
.
But who's going to restore the trust in the media? And how?
.
Yeah. That's a tough one.
4
Perhaps this AG is doing things in the right way— pursuing things that have evidence of injustice (Flynn, FISA issues)— or do not (McCabe). As an independent, I think it’s best to look at the person and not the party.
Those who continually look for conspiracy will always see nefariousness in patterns that contradict their message or beliefs—-It enables support for their habit, in this case the continual blind partisanship and hatred for POTUS.
4
@Matters
Interfering with the Stone case is just that -- interference. The sentencing guidelines are the DOJ's OWN guidelines. Reducing the sentence before it has even been passed is obstruction. It is up to the judge to decide the sentence, not Barr, not Trump, and certainly not Barr on behalf of Trump.
39
@LauraF
The issue is not the sentence, which the judge imposes, but the sentence recommendation from the US Attorney.
1
@lauraf
You misinterpret the DOJ intention; it was not to reverse a sentencing, it was to ratchet back what many in the department felt was an overzealous recommendation. This is purely and squarely within the preview of the DOJ and, in fact, was being debated well before any tweets or news stories got ahold of this. I would suggest reading other more unbiased accounts of actually what happened and the laws surrounding our justice department.
3
I’m no big Trump fan but the president is the chief law-enforcement officer under the Constitution. Who wants an independent law-enforcement agency accountable to nobody? We need agencies accountable to elected officials and citizens.
43
@Jim Dunlap
You want independent law enforcement agencies to be held accountable by this president who as all the evidence shows doesn't have a clue as to what is the Constitution?
184
@Jim Dunlap And presidents accountable to citizens and the Constitution. Even if one stipulates that certain agencies are the president's tools, he can not use those tools for improper purposes.
149
@Jim Dunlap We need agencies accountable to the law.
133
The framers investing the president with the right to commute or pardon have
a fortiori condoned the presidential right as you blithely opine to “interfere”.
35
@Unhappy JD
[Citation Needed]
Opining? Are you serious? This is long-standing tradition.
29
@BB: Presidents always get flak for pre-judging court proceedings. Pardons and commutations are normally issued after verdicts are rendered.
37
@Unhappy JD
A pardon or commutation is an act taken AFTER the trial and sentence have been passed. There is no right for anyone, whether he is an impeached president or a bankrupt real estate man, to "interfere" in the justice system.
117
Barr is trying to make amends for his past actions like some one late in life trying to get into heaven. Sorry Secretary Barr, once you sign a pact with the devil your soul is lost!
8
Barr 2024
2
We must impeach him again!
Blatant lawlessness!
4
“I am the state.” Louis XIV
8
I am scared for our country, and in some of my more fearful moments, I have played a scene in my mind where McConnell walks up the street to the WH and tells Trump he needs to resign, just like Goldwater did to Nixon. My "projector" is now running a different scene - where someone/anyone walks into the Senate office of McConnell and tells HIM to resign. A fantasy, to be sure, but we are hopeless without a movable, responsible Congress.
10
It is quite possible, that this "method" is by design. Sowing confusion by enacting contradictions will make any reasonable discourse impossible, any accountability meaningless. If there is no standard of conduct there cannot be judgement - only triumph of the most ruthless.
It is certainly what Trump has done all his life, brazenly doing whatever suits him and nobody else. That is is also always shortsighted does not matter, when their is no accountability for failures and crimes.
7
There's nothing complicated here.
Trump has demonstrated time and again his inability to control his impulses when he feels criticized.
If he thought that Barr had seriously criticized him, he would have undoubtedly raised a tweetstorm against him.
Well, he didn't.
That could be either
a) Trump has suddenly developed a thick skin, or
b) Trump knew in advance of Barr's plan
Conclusion:
Barr's move was smoke and mirrors.
18
Re: Laura Ingraham's comment that Barr was merely signaling that he had trump's back. Nonsense. Barr has worked closely enough with trump to know that appearance of strength and control are paramount to Fearless Leader. To openly challenge him and push back is absolutely not the way to assure this megalomaniac. To trump, this is public insubordination and he won't stand for it.
2
The Federal government is entering a tailspin lead by the State Department followed by the Justice Department. The Senate took the guard rails down and the President is loosing control. This is going to be bad.
10
It is very likely that Trump and Barr are in cahoots with each other as a way to take the pressure of Barr who is interfering with standard procedures long practiced by the Justice Dept. The scheme is that Barr makes quasi remarks about his boss interfering with the way he wants to manage the Department, while continuing to relieve pressure on Trump's disciples. It's a scheme and the American public is being played like a fiddle.
This is not fake news, folks. This is just fake.
10
Lie after coverup after lie after coverup after lie makes life complicated. Like a reality tv script, the perfect, plot-twisting distraction of complications. They say it's perfect, perfect as a phone call. But very complicated. Who knew that lying could be so complicated?
7
Barr is a loud and proud champion of the unity presidency. He found his avatar in the intellectually challenged failed reality tv star and has been cultivating the unity presidency voraciously and at top speed since then.
He has gotten a little over his skis and is in danger of being rebuked by the DC Bar association once the back story at the DOJ comes out. He went into this with hubris and it has now dawned on him that there a choppy waters ahead.
He is attempting to navigate a maelstrom of his own making.
I hope he fails.
12
Maybe it's because Mr. Barr is not the political hack the left would like to think he is. Maybe there is truth to the fact that Mr. Barr independently believed that 7-9 years was an excessive sentence for Roger Stone. I think Mr. Barr wants to keep his license to practice law and like any honest lawyer he will not do anything that he believes is unethical.
2
An honest lawyer would not have lied to the American people about the Mueller Report findings 2 weeks before releasing the redacted report itself.
3
Is there any hope in all of this that an emboldened, corrupt, disturbed and narcissistic Trump will tweet himself off a cliff resulting in congressional Republicans finally putting on the breaks?
6
@Kathy Absolutely not because the Congressional Republicans fully support him. The few that don't are still more at home with the country he's creating than the one we currently have, and are in denial of the consequences of their choices.
1
Barr's relationship with Trump is "complicated"? He does what he's told via Tweet. What's complicated about that? Sycophantic, yes. Complicated, no.
9
This so -called push by Trump and push back from Barr is totally orchestrated to show that Barr is his own "independent" AG. All the while he is doing what Trump wants: reduce Stone's sentence, open Michael Flynn's indictment. Barr is grovelling to Trump because he thinks Trump will nominate him to a seat on the Supreme Court when one becomes available.
8
@Elizabeth Wong No, he is doing what he does because he believes in an authoritarian President and a theocratic society. Although yes, I'm sure he'd love the SCOTUS seat to help make that vision happen asap too.
2
"Ms. Ingraham, who is close to Mr. Barr, said the attorney general was not breaking with the president but, in effect, reassuring him that the Justice Department’s leadership would carry out Mr. Trump’s wishes to clean up what they see as the corruption of his predecessor and that the tweets were neither necessary nor helpful."
That sums it up for me. Soothing the savage beast of a president, letting him know everything will be ok sir...we'll take care of all those nasty honest people trying to do their jobs and clear the way for you to pardon your corrupt pals and continue to make money off of the hapless American citizens. And all of this said without a trace of irony. We are at the precipice and should all be worried.
10
Would McCabe now have a 'wrongful dismissal' case against the president, since he has been exonerated of wrong doing. perhaps, his pension should be reinstated too.
9
As disgusted I am by the actions against Mr. McCabe, the failure of a criminal case against an employee does not automatically lead to the reversal of administrative actions against him or her.
And reimbursed for the legal fees he surely incurred.
2
With all of the accusations they have made against the Obama administration, not one bit of criminal evidence has surfaced against him, no lackeys are in prison and no plea deals were required.
That is all of the proof I need of GOP propaganda machine. Find your nearest polling booth. We need every eligible voter to win in November.
13
The new witness vote was 49-51. If this is the best the current Senate can do, even Rudy Giuliani would be approved for the position.
1
This is pretty naive. It's obvious from Mr. Barr's actions he is doing damage control for the President's tweets but still acting in lockstep with the President. I'm sure there is a backstory for dropping the case on Mr. McCabe.
Please stop writing such stories that seems to imply that any of the President's cronies are acting on their own will. Such spoken words are meant as a distraction.
9
“ ...his only restraints are self imposed.”
A brief description, presented as an adequate explanation.
Which it is not.
About a complex issue and dynamic reality barely considered.
With many diverse known, currently unknown, and
perhaps even unknowable implications.
As well as temporary and more permanent outcomes.
Expected and unexpected ones.
For example, in a democracy, not an autocracy,
dictatorship, or monarchy, of what ever types,
along with the elected policymakers’ “rights,”
are a range of obligations, and responsibilities.
Personal accountability by...is one of them.
A concept which is more foreign to this desecrator of
the Presidency than of any other US elected President
since the creation of this fought for, and over, nation.
And America has enabled herself a range of “ unaccountables.”
Not only selected and elected policymakers at all levels.
All around. Everywhere. THEN. NOW. Tomorrow?
But also a citizenship, diverse in many characteristics.
Beliefs. Values. Norms. Ethics. Traditions. And legacies.
In a divided nation. Past and present. Also in its
choices to BE complacent about... As well as complicit in...
How will individual Americans, as well as temporary
more permanent groups, whatever their “sharings,”
respond to an “I am above the laws and traditions of America?”
America, from her beginnings, has enabled, and even fostered at
times, an ongoing, toxic, infectious WE-THEY violating culture;
existing with impunity! Puritans hung Quakers-1600s
1
It is beyond belief that the executive board at Fox News is determining US government policy. (This is assuming that the positions taken by Hannity, Carlson, Ingraham et al are a reflection of board decisions and direction)The fact that the PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES waits to hear (take direction?) from this, an UNELECTED media platform, betrays both the man's stupidity and especially his laziness. More than the king has no clothes, this president has no thoughts of his own.
10
Trump & Barr are on the same page. Maybe it’s a little slight of hand to occupy the media while the other hand is doing the work. I would be worried about the bigger things Barr is working on. A slow timely drip to keep Democrat Candidates on the defense instead of offense, then let the hammer fall.
4
Has Trump tweeted displeasure with Barr as he historically does with anyone who defies him?
Has Trump complained to Fox News as he does whenever he feels slighted?
Has Trump interrupted a press conference or photo op to deride Barr, call him any sort of names, As he has with every other critic?
Has a Trump ever been quiet when so publicly humiliated?
Answer: NO
Reaction: media coverage pivoting from the Democrats, proclamations Trump is in power and does what he wants, Republican response zero.
We’re being played folks. Trump is stretching his power further and using Barr’s “criticism” as bait to the media. This is all a show brought to you by the Trump administration. I’ll believe a Barr when the above questions can be answered yes.
7
Laura Ingraham was right. “Barr was basically telling Trump, ‘Don’t worry, I got this." She seems to find this reassuring. I find it frightening.
Barr's message to the president is, "You don't have to do anything. Just let me help your friends and persecute your enemies without shining a spotlight on it."
7
This is quite simply business as usual. The president publicly swipes at Attorney General Barr , Barr says stop it and behind closed doors it’s the same as it ever was.
10
Barr's faux criticism of Trump is just a fig leaf making it easier for Barr to continue protecting Trump. By providing prominence to Barr's criticism, the media simply perpetuates the scam.
13
Dear Potential Jurors in Any Political Prosecution the Justice Department may bring under Trump/Barr,
You have powerful vote: Not guilty.
2
I don't think it's so mysterious. It's really simple: Trump wants the AG to be his personal lawyer and fixer. Like Michael Cohen. End of story.
7
If Trump is setting up false claims to justify his future pardons, isn't that an indication of his guilt?
7
It's not complicated at all. Barr takes his instructions from Trump and follows them implicitly.
6
C'mon, you have to ask why Barr is saying this now, when he so far has been such a loyal hench-slash-yes-man ... perhaps because it makes Barr appear more independent as he continues to do Trump's immoral and illegal bidding on the latter's direct orders. Deflection.
10
Trump and Barr realize that they are controlling a game that no one else can play and until one of them dies no one can touch them. All this happening on an old rock that is spinning through our solar system at 73,000 miles an hour.
3
If Trump doesn't fire Mr. Barr we'll know this is all a charade...
4
Although much of America seems to be in love with the idea of an imperial presidency, the Framers had a different view. The AG as an officer of the United States has personal responsibility for the powers delegated to him/her. Those powers having been delegated are a part of his/her commission. If an officer refuses a Presidential command, the President has the option to revoke the commission and fill the vacancy until the next session of the Senate. An officer ought not to follow the President's instructions if they would conflict with his/her commission. The President doesn't have absolute power over the Officers or the Offices, since even if he would revoke the AG's commission, the Office's powers would exist in some way, to be exercised by someone in an acting capacity. If an Officer would do the President's personal bidding, they would be in violation of their oath of office and subject to impeachment. At least that's the theory.
5
Let us not be confused.....a leopard does not change his spots. Trump sensing some rebellion from his toadies they cannot cover over now will play a longer game to subvert the constitution, Barr did not suddenly get a conscience. Trump is still the child who’s bone spurs protected him from the draft but who could still play tennis and golf but who complains our soldiers who were injured and suffered concussions just had headaches.
2
Thank you, Republican members of the Senate. We’re in this mess because you are more interested in being re-elected than getting this vindictive, unstable man out of office. I can only hope that any of you up for re-election in November get voted out.
73
John Yoo and Bruce Green... partisan hacksaws the first order, who would have HOWLED if Obama had done one of the many things Trump has done, misuse of power wise, are still being asked what they think? Let’s see how they react in November when their fearless leader is expunged from public life...
26
John Yoo, whose legal interpretations enabled torture to be carried out as policy; “ torturing” the English language through creative semantic surrealism.
5
Barr is playing a simple game: I will declare that Prez is meddling in my business, and Prez will pretend that my public statement bothers him... a little.
That way, Barr can continue to do ‘his job‘ without hinderance from the public.
Nice American justice.
47
Barr/Trump have created a precedent for Roger Stone. No doubt he'll get of real easy....Now every defense lawyer in the US will be pleading for the special exigencies of their climate. They'll cry out for the Roger Stone defense.
Republican strategist Rick Wilson's book entitled "Everything Trump Touches Dies" shows how Trump corrupts everyone and everything he touches. The State Dept. is hollowed out and ruined, such that statecraft no longer exists. And now the Justice Department is corrupted, senior, experienced lawyers resign in protest. The rule of law is dead.
27
We don't have the type of government we used to have, which has brutally shocked and slowly dawned on us concomitantly. Donald Trump, as President, is a minotaur of a man with enormous animus and appetite for power. He has completely changed the dynamics of power in our government. He is hated and greatly feared, much like Vladimir Putin. We have a corrupt oligarchy now, instead of a republic. The deed is done. William Barr is just a sideshow.
Trump has not started to assassinate people with poison, there are still many decent people quietly doing good work within the government as best they can, and newspapers and journalists keep working. That is the good news of the day. I do think if it is still possible to have free and fair elections here, he and the Republicans are so hated they will be voted out of office.
26
Based on the president muddling in the affairs of the judiciary, my biggest fear is that Trump calls a legitimate Democratic victory come November “rigged” and declares it null and void. Maybe 100 million people in the streets with pitchforks will change his mind?
23
When will we start using the term Dictator? He would be calling himself that if he was his own enemy.
16
There is isn't anything complex about the relationship between Trump and Barr. Trump is just being his useful selfish, juvenile self, and Barr is beginning to catch on to the fact that if someone doesn't rein in Trump, the Republicans will loose the Presidency in less than a year.
Barr, a long time Republican is trying to do that. We will see how well he does at that. No one else has ever been able to reason with Trump. It seems unlikely than Barr can do it either.
Frankly, I believe they will both fail and in fact, I hope they will. We have had enough government by overgrown spoiled brat.
17
The Justice Department is involved in many investigations. Nobody knows exactly who or what Durham is investigating, or what evidence or cooperation McCabe or Comey have offered to Durham in his investigation. Until his report, and/or referrals for prosecution become public, we can only guess. IG Horowitz’s report left a lot of unanswered questions Durham is going to answer. Maybe everyone gets off, or maybe deals have already been made to gain evidence with cooperating witnesses. Until Durham’s investigation is completed, everyone should back off. Barr and Durham are tight lipped on what is unfolding in the criminal investigation. If Durham recommends a dozen indictments in October, Trump will be happy, and Democrats will be screaming. Nobody is off the hook yet.
3
@Jay Has even one of the dozens of Republican investigations discovered someone on the hook yet? I don't think so. Might want to recalibrate your waiting, waiting, waiting, waiting. and check how many Republican incarnations of 'Governmenting' have produced indictments, as opposed to Democratic years. You might be shocked.
3
"Watch what we do, not what we say" was how it was put by the Watergate era's John Mitchell, who, because of William Barr's role as Donald Trump's fixer and enabler, must now be considered only the second most corrupt attorney general in American history. The eventual result back then, luckily, was that a criminal president resigned.
Today, the Mitchell alert applies just as much, if not more so.
Beyond all the sophisticated theatrics, stagecraft, smokescreens and ruses, there needs to be a laser focus on what they *do* -- the extent to which the Trump-Barr combination relentlessly undermines our system justice and the rule of law. They're like a pair of giant termites.
With precious few exceptions -- no doubt as distractions, for appearance's sake -- a corrupt president gets what he wants because a corrupt attorney general gives it to him. Which not only leaves our fragile democracy much the worse for it, but the door wide-open to a Trumpian autocracy.
18
At some point it needs to be made clear in Washington that there is a difference between the BAR OF JUSTICE and the JUSTICE OF BARR, especially to the person elected to oversee both.
13
I agree with the Judge... With the dissolution of separation between politics and a justice system, We ARE becoming a "Banana Republic " subject to the caprice of our Potentate...
6
@Tom sorry but "are becoming" does not capture it.
2
Give me a break! Their relationship was never “complicated.” Barr has no respect for the US Constitution, no respect for US laws and no respect for Democrats or the American people. He was put in his position because he was willing to do anything the Dictator in the White House wants.
33
I do not believe this whole scenario. It seems a bit staged to me. Remember Trump's enthusiastic participation in World Wrestling Entertainment? How the "fights" start with calling out your opponent as being really out of line, but it is all choreographed for effect.
26
There’s nothing complicated about this relationship. Trump wanted a Roy Cohn without AIDS—he dropped his mentor after his diagnosis—and he got him in Barr. Barr’s protest about Trump’s tweets was a bit of theatre worthy of a Parisian Grand Guignol revue. A more enlightened republic would have them both on the scaffold.
28
This is the type of thing dictators do. And just think: We in America (or is it Amerika?) now have one of our very own.
22
does anyone else feel like we're living in a mafia?
26
Mousolini II. HE must be stopped oh lord. Stroke or heart attack. You make the call.
20
This is not right. We are seeing the beginning of a autocratic reign and nobody cares. I'm sure if he's voted out of office he'll pardon thousands of convicted criminals and let them run amuck before he leaves. We need to standup to this type of behavior before it gets worse. I'm sure the Democrats are letting him have enough rope so that he'll hang himself. This is bad.
17
@Earl we do care. Trumps supporters are blind and they are saturated with propaganda from trump who is more in campaign mode aided abetted by Republican lawmakers than doing his actual job of presidency.
Do you know how much it costs us taxpayers for Trump golf playing each weekend? There’s no way on a $400,000 salary a president can live that lifestyle. Makes us so mad, this inequality our elected officials enjoy on our hard earned money.
3
There relationship is purposely complicated because it takes public attention off of their fleecing of America, which is their real goal.
And media outlets like the NYT fall for it.
Time after time.
MB
17
We all know by now that Donald Trump is a con man, grifter, tax evader and pathological liar.
We also know that William Barr is a career attorney general's office staffer, that hung around for 30 years, until Trump made him AG after Barr's letter pledging total supplication.
So this isn't a complicated relationship. They are master and slave. They are boss and sycophant. They are co-conspirators. They need each other. They abet each other.
Together, they make all the crimes possible!
22
Barr will go down in history as the Hans Frank of the Trump totalitarian vision and supremacist ideology.
13
These dudes are playing the old good cop bad cop game... and people are really not catching on?
"Oh, Gee golly, guys, Barr isn't in bed with Trump after all... Trump tweeted that he's mad"
19
Barr is wasting his time in what appears to be an effort to save his reputation. There is none of that left. His obituary will still describe him as one of the Career Criminal-in-Chief´s top henchmen.
26
Trump finally got what he has always wanted:
Roy Cohn reincarnated.
A personal lawyer who can bully America as AG,
and protect every dark and corrupt thing Trump has ever
said or done.
Bill Barr. Yes, Donald, there is a Santa Claus.
21
Uh...complicated.
We do all know that the president (lower case intentional) is just plain nuts, and greedy nuts at that, and that the likes of what surrounds him are at best a flock of carrion birds, right?
We do all get that this is crazy, yes? That all the alibis, excuses, half-witteries, all of it, is exactly what it looks like? And we do get that the various and sundry screaming from the self-anointed Left isn’t all that much better? Yes?
Don’t get this comment confused with “independents,” of which I have yet to see any, or anti-communism, or whatever. This is about pretending we didn’t all contribute to electing this loon and keeping him in power, when we pretty much all know better.
This is crazy, amd to call it anything other than crazy is crazy.
15
Don't get your hopes up with Barr. They are just playing Good Cop/Bad Cop.
16
It's half a neighborhood turf war and half a schoolyard bully 'show', it's Don Corleone, think Barr..arguing against the introduction of drugs while Emilio Barzini, think Donnie boy.. wants to open up the territories for well..everything.
The allies are stretched thin on Barrs side.half your standard run of the mill establishment Republican dangerous yes but not really rabid..
On Donnies side you have the 'new' generation Calhounists, convinced they have kicked down the door..with a side deal cookin' with the Kochs, the Federalist Society and the Heritage foundation..
Under normal circumstances it'd be funny watchin' 'em try to eat each other..but something is at work here, each wants to stand their ground..but..the voters are pushing for each to prevail...while the Democrats appear ready to self destruct.
There's several books and a movie plot in here somewhere....
4
It is just a third rated Good Guy & Bad Guy play. The boring part is that you already know that Trump has to play the Good Guy. Boring!
5
How is it that Barr doesn’t have a conflict of interest with his position as the Attorney General when three of his family members work in the executive department? Wouldn’t it be feasible that any of these persons could be collaborating with Trump and Barr?
Barr has 3 relatives in the executive department:
Mary Daly, daughter, FinCEN US Treasury
Tyler McGaughey, son in law (younger daughter’s husband),White House Legal Adviser
Michael Patrick Daly, husband of Mary Daly, DOJ National Security Division
15
It is a telling fact that the president gets his direction from a bunch of “experts “? at Fox news. What a joke.
13
The president is intervening in federal criminal cases and the attorney general is helping him. This is the stuff of dictators
22
Trump Unbound could turn out to be just what the doctor ordered for Democrats this November. The number of voters who want more and better tyrannical tantrums won’t grow. The number who want an end to them will.
16
Well, that's what this group of thugs does best: overwhelm any sentient being with bewilderment, confusion and obfuscation.
The 'sheeple' just go along.
The rest of us ... spend our days (and restless, tossing nights) trying to tease out any sort of truth and reason from it all. Mostly, we come up ... exhausted.
Which, of course, is also entirely their goal. Wear down and out the questioners.
10
How is it that Barr doesn’t have a conflict of interest with his position as the Attorney General when three of his family members work in the executive department?
Barr has 3 relatives in the executive department:
Mary Daly, daughter, FinCEN US Treasury
Tyler McGaughey, son in law (younger daughter’s husband), Trump’s White House Legal Adviser
Michael Patrick Daly, husband of Mary Daly, DOJ National Security Division (under William Barr)
8
@Bob Genuine questions- When were these appointments agreed? What was the selection process for getting these jobs? Do their resumes fit the posts? What was the competition like at the interviews? did any of the above coincide with Barr's appointment by Trump?
2
Even Derschowitz says that the single biggest flaw now with our system is that the U.S. Attorney is under the guidance of the DOJ (Executive Branch). Moving the U.S. Attorney (prosecutorial function) to the Judidial Branch would avoid this increasing conflict involving the Executive investigating/prosecuting itself.
6
@JUHallCLU
The judicial branch is headed by the Supreme Court,, with judges nominated by the President and confirmed by the Senate,, Will it decide which prosecutions to pursue and then adjudicate them?
1
Trump is making it clear that our constitutions need a few more amendments.
14
No, you are wrong. What you need is a whole new constitution, one that give women and people of color their correct status from the beginning, and not as an addition to mens power. Ås a start.
4
I think the founding fathers would say that the American people shouldn't have elected a man who abuses his power. The constitution seemed to serve us well for the past 200 years. The problem is the LEADERSHIP. Americans have no one to blame but themselves. Government by the people, for the people - the people apparently want a dictator. And that's what we got. We ELECTED it.
2
Barr's actions are not bewildering if you're able to get past your narrative and admit that he's a real, independent AG and not, as the rabid, Trump-hating media paint him, Trump's toady.
.
He has to be Trump's toady for your Trump-as-dictator, "Democracy is in danger" narrative to hold. But Trump is not a dictator. And he's not the danger to our democracy.
.
If our democracy is in danger, it's because our media have lost their way and now publish "news" that fits their political bias. This is on both sides, but at least the right admits it.
.
That's the real danger to our democracy. Trump will be gone soon enough (yes, sorry, he's going to leave the White House when he loses), and we can start to fix the mess he left behind.
.
But who's going to restore the trust in the media? And how?
.
Yeah. That's a tough one.
3
Barr should be thinking about the night of Tuesday, Nov 3, 2020, if Trump is not re-elected in the presidential election 0f 2020. Trump will resign the following morning paving the way for Mike Pence to be sworn in a 46th and get a presidential pardon for all the misdeed Trump did last four years, including CAMPAIGN FINANCE VIOLATION, for which Trump's former attorney serving times.
7
Barr is intent on proving his theory on the unitary Presidency. Trump provides him with the perfect opportunity. If Trump was some milk toast President, Barr would not be interested. The points he is trying to make would be too nuanced. The way it stands now, the point will be in your face, black and white with no chance of being misconstrued. Barr is an egotist in his own right.
3
Not really. Trump is certain that Barr will do his biding. So why the Trumps tweets? Because Trumps wants is for everybody, specially his perceived enemies, to know that he has the power to unleash Barr on them at will. He needs to make threat public. Of course Barr is 'uncomfortable' with this role. But soon he will discover that he is been played (like others) to satisfy the 'apprentice' of dictator personal interests. Same as Trujillo.
6
Trump is by far the politically most inept President in my lifetime of 70+ years. He expects that his corruption should hold sway independent of other considerations. I have to say that if the Republican party and the Public are willing to put up with public in your eye corruption then that's what will happen.
If Trump is crazy enough to go after McConnell for corrupt reasons and tries to get him criminally tried and removed then perhaps he will be impeached and removed. As he says it may be likely that if he murders someone on 5th avenue in Manhattan he could get politically stronger. Unless powerful Republican senators or other billionaire's are threatened nothing much will happen. The U.S. like Russia is turning into an autocracy at least at the top.
4
When can we expect Barr to be fired or will he finally get "religion" and walk the walk??
Register and VOTE November 3rd.
4
The trouble is Barr has found religion and that’s the reason he’s forgotten the law he vowed to enforce and follow.
9
It's pretty obvious from all of Trump's false claims and theatrics that he intends to pardon Stone and Flynn while messaging the public falsely by rote to give the appearance he is justified, but he wouldn't be.
8
Justice should not be about what makes Mr. Trump angry or not, but about what is right or wrong about what someone did. Nonetheless, in spite of his denials, the Attorney General's behavior seems to be leaning towards the former.
6
After three years of Trump, I wonder if we should have a single individual in our government with such extraordinary power, some of which was an abuse of office. When George Washington was President, he was offered a noble rank of King. He declined, likely knowing he had fought one and knew well his tyranny. Trump is no George Washington.
7
I do not buy this supposed independent streak being exhibited by Atty. Gen. Barr. Barr is a strong advocate for the imperial presidency theory, which posits (among other things) that a sitting president cannot be indicted even if he (or she) were to commit the most heinous of federal felonies in the most brazen of manners. That line of reasoning makes it absolutely legal for Trump to use the Department of Justice as Enforcers for the criminal syndicate of a government he has put together. Under Barr's own theory, the Attorney General is just a pawn to be commanded toward whatever ends Pres. Trump chooses. These are the legal and logical implications of Barr's own theory of the presidency. His supposed outrage at Pres. Trump's behavior is just a little show for all the US Attorneys who are threatening to walk away from their jobs. It is a last ditch grasp at the legitimacy he long ago threw by the roadside on his chosen career path to power. Do not fall for this act.
13
“The only real recourse, he added, would be impeachment. “If a president attempted to misuse the Justice Department and its criminal justice power for private ends, that’s an abuse of power that is potentially impeachable,” Mr. Green said. “
IF??? The evidence is in full view, mostly on trump’s twitter feed
7
Give me a break. Their relationship hasn’t changed one iota. It’s still a symbiosis of liars and criminals. Everything, and I mean everything they say and do, is for the purpose of subversion of our democracy. If you want to over-think it and assign some more complicated meaning to it, fine. But all that amounts to is that you’re abetting and enabling what they are doing.
9
Someone should ask the President what he thinks he doesn’t have the legal right to do. His answer might be revealing. And probably terrifying.
7
Not much to figure out here. Barr is Trump's lackey, but felt the need to play the victim in his interview. Let's see if he shows up to answer questions from Congress this time.
8
It is certain he won’t show. The date is too far in advance. Somehow he will demur.,
The real question we should be asking, is it time for an Ammendment of the Constituion? As the President is correct in declaring that he has the right to intervene in cases and while we are at it, should we not create parameters for Presidential pardons? Just asking.
6
@Allatdem
"The real question we should be asking, is it time for an Ammendment of the Constituion?"
Sure, that's a great idea. Maybe we should do this after we pass spelling class, but do it we should!
Do we want to do it before or after our next impeachment attempt? Or maybe both at the same time. Because the country doesn't need the House to do anything real, like create and pass legislation, and the Senate will no doubt get behind these two ideas unanimously.
.
Count me in! Can I send all my money to some website for this?
4
@Allatdem
"The real question we should be asking, is it time for an Ammendment of the Constituion?"
Sure, that's a great idea. Maybe we should do this after we pass spelling class, but do it we should!
Do we want to do it before or after our next impeachment attempt? Or maybe both at the same time. Because the country doesn't need the House to do anything real, like create and pass legislation, and the Senate will no doubt get behind these two ideas unanimously.
.
Count me in! Can I send all my money to some website for this?
3
@Allatdem
"The real question we should be asking, is it time for an Ammendment of the Constituion?"
Sure, that's a great idea. Maybe we should do this after we pass spelling class, but do it we should!
Do we want to do it before or after our next impeachment attempt? Or maybe both at the same time! Yeah, that's the ticket. Because the country doesn't need the House to do anything real, like create and pass legislation, and the Senate will no doubt get behind these two ideas unanimously.
.
Count me in! Can I send all my money to some website for this?
3
In 2016, there was some implicit understanding that Republicans would guard us from Trump's worst impulses. They've preferred not to. Instead they've entirely lost sight of what is at stake.
It seems that an entirely new political movement is operating under its own rules and the only rule is 'Whatever Trump wants, Trump gets. Whatever the cost.' Can America afford to be Trump's seventh bankruptcy? Not just broke, but bereft of all laws and norms?
Just as the kleptocratic Trump Inc presidency has given a new spin to The Buck Stops Here. The entity operating under the standard of the GOP has given a new spin to Republican In Name Only. Or maybe I'm being too generous.
In 2020, it's in our hands. Any Democratic nominee will fit the bill and any is electable when we unite behind them. We can vote Trump out, if that's our priority. Is there any credible argument against that? Not really.
10
Republicans always plant evidence to help them later if they are caught. The discourse between Trump and Barr appear to be an attempt at interjecting an objection for later claims of independence in what certainly seems like an effort to terrorize those who have or would investigate the Administration. Barr even used Television to document it. I have no doubts that Trump and Barr are working in unison. Trump didn't make any remarks about replacing Barr, did he?
7
To Patrick in response to:
“Trump didn’t make any remarks about replacing Barr, did he?”
Exactly. It was nothing more or less than flimflam, and not very convincing flimflam at that.
2
Trump’s relationship with Barr is not complicated. It’s middle school-level theater.
5
This is not that complicated. Anyone can recognize donald uses the tried and always fails "chaos" style of management.
When everything below the top level is kept in a state of chaos on a continuing basis the only person who actually has a clue what is going on is the guy at the top.
This mgmt. style is usually used by people who have absolutely no idea what they are doing and can keep the entire organization so utterly confused no one can argue.
Anyone see donald using this?
4
I think Barr had no choice but to end the persecution of McCabe. There was obviously nothing there and the optics were starting to look very bad for the administration. It is naïve however to think that Barr and Trump are not solidly on the same team. Barr is stirring up controversy and initiating investigations that provide fodder for Fox News and other right wing outlets all for the transparent purpose of aiding Trump in his reelection bid. The so-called Justice Department led by Barr is now a government paid wing of Trump's reelection campaign.
8
"But scholars said Mr. Trump is right that he has the power to intervene if he chooses. Under Article II of the Constitution, any president has the authority to directly oversee criminal cases carried out by the Justice Department. There are no statutes that limit the contact between the White House and the Justice Department.
“The president can do what he wants,” said Bruce Green, a law professor at Fordham University. “His only restraints are self imposed. There are no legislative restraints.”
Maybe a future and more responsible Congress will enact laws that protect the AG, the Justice Department, the courts and all national law enforcement agencies?
MoscowMitch and the prostrate GOP are deliberately asleep at the switch, they are just whistling by the graveyard that is democracy in America.
7
Barr resides in Trump's back pocket and any statements he makes against Trump are for public consumption.Barr is trying to keep from having a mutiny at The Justice department. The press is so fast to think Barr finally grew a spine that it is grabbing at straws. There is really nothing complicated about Barr's and Trump's relationship. Barr lives to serve his master and he really doesn't care how he looks doing Trump's bidding. Once you let the Genie out of the bottle its impossible to get him to go back in. Trump is unleashed and it hasn't been two weeks since the Senate took the top off of the bottle.
5
Attorney General William Barr's pandering and devotion to Mr. Trump have defiled the Department of Justice to make it a shadow of it's former self. They have corrupted the Office to the point the only Justice served is for 'just us! ' Bill and Don!
By ensuring that any investigations arising from the malfeasance of Mr. Trump has to be signed off on by Mr. Barr, any appearance of an independence is compromised.
Re visiting the Michael Flynn and Roger Stone trials is just two more instance and many more will follow. William Barr has become just on more henchman for Mr. Trump.
4
It's clear the role of the Office of Attorney General is in question. Not only now in the Trump Administration, but also in the past Nixon administration. AG John Mitchell also acted on behalf of former President Nixon and ended up in jail for 19 months after the Nixon resignation, convicted of conspiracy, obstruction of justice, and lying under oath. Sound familiar?
I am still amazed that with 19 Intelligence Agencies, the strongest fighting force in history (theoretically), the FBI, and the CIA, that this country is in the midst of being taken over by a Russian Asset, namely, Donald Trump, President.
And, the NY Attorney General of the Southern District, and the people of the United States cannot even see the president tax returns and trace the money connections? Just who runs this country? Law and Order is on the verge of collapse. Barr, McConnell, and Trump should be tried for Treason.
8
AG Barr. when are you going to reopen the case against John Wilkes Booth and his so-called conspirators. Everyone knows Booth was not the gunman at Ford's theater that night! Disappointing, truly disappointing, Billy Barr.
2
The title of phony show is "Wm Barr's Independence Theater"
4
Barr wants Trump to stop tweeting because it calls attention to what Barr is doing.
14
So Barr is essentially saying they intervening in the Stone matter is his own doing - this is still not much better than Trump. WHY is he intervening? WHY is he saying that such criminal behavior deserves leniency when other cases are pursued with venom and to the fullest degree? No mater the rational, no matter where one looks, Trump & Co stink to high heaven.
8
@DM
@DM
WHY is he intervening? WHY is he saying that such criminal behavior deserves leniency when other cases are pursued with venom and to the fullest degree? No mater the rational ... Trump & Co stink to high heaven.
.
Why are you asking WHY if no answer will satisfy you?
.
Nice post otherwise, lucid and intellectual. Especially nice touch on your city.
2
@DM
WHY is he intervening? WHY is he saying that such criminal behavior deserves leniency when other cases are pursued with venom and to the fullest degree? No mater the rational ... Trump & Co stink to high heaven.
.
Why are you asking WHY if no answer will satisfy you?
.
Nice post otherwise, lucid and intellectual. Especially nice touch on your city.
1
Oh, stop acting like this is new or unique to Trump. What was it that Obama's Attorney General Eric Holder said? "I’m still the President’s wing-man, so I’m there with my boy."
2
source?
3
Of course, I'm confident that Trump's lawyers will argue that he's just acting "in the national interest." L'etat c'est Trump.
7
we have long since passed the point when treason became an everyday occurrence; it's just in daily variations now.
12
It is well past time for each of us to commit to rejecting the commands of loud Trump, this deluded would-be autocrat.
7
He believes he is always right and there is nothing to stop him from doing what he wants. He is now a dictator.
7
In my opinion, Barr's objections to Trump's tweets is only frustration to the effect of, "Boss, you're blowing my cover. I can't do your bidding while you shine the media spotlight on me." it does not indicate independence, or any other sign of higher calling than the president's bidding. the meddling and second- guessing of his own prosecutors is obviously political.
7
Get rid of all of these criminals. AG Barr's pathetic explanations reek of hypocrisy and out right lies.
This is how a Justice System works in Vladimir Putin's Russia. When the state decides to investigate high profile (opposition) and punish people who dare to speak truth to power and demand accountability for actions and/or tilt the scales of justice in favor of "friends" who cover criminal deeds of the Executive Branch there can be NO TRUST in the Institution of Justice.
Trump's faithful and the lapdog Republicans in the House and Senate, plus media (FOX) are too dim-witted to appreciate these crimes and illegal conduct can easily be turned on those rabid supporters of Trump in a whim or on a blind rage should Emperor Trump decide to embark on a new set of purges in the government.
This is the Putinization of the United States of America - and this crime is being abetted by coward (Republicans) who fail to read history on things happened in post-Czarist Russia and post-USSR Russia under Putin.
Excuse my verbal outrage - I am really bothered by this - but what doesn't the rest of America fail to see in this conduct which doesn't stir them to action? You thought the pressure on Zalensky and Ukraine was Impeachment worthy? Trump's meting out "revenge" purges via Bill Barr is a Valentine's Day Massacre upon our nation's Rule of Law and Judicial System.
13
Trump’s message is the same as that adage of the old South American Dictators, “For my friends anything, for my enemies the law.”
13
Hail Caesar!? Barr non, Mr. Barr may soon find himself "Gone with the Vindman," as our people, the American people, abdicate our role to call Donald out. We need to put our feet to marching - can this wait till November? Assuredly not.
7
"insiders insist the tension is real..."
That sentence encapsulates everything that is wrong with the reporters who cover the DOJ and William Barr.
They are so busy reporting on what "insiders" tell them that they don't see what is right in front of their face.
I don't know if the reporters here are being intentionally oblivious to preserve their insider access, or are truly that out of touch with reality, but they embarrass themselves with yet another in their endless series of articles that present William Barr exactly the way William Barr wants to be presented. The reality of what William Barr has done with every action is ignored in favor of false narratives like "Barr suggested Trump stop tweeting" so he's totally independent."
If this country wasn't in such grave danger, it would be hilarious to watch William Barr's DOJ showing "independence" by not indicting a man who committed no crime but had been left in limbo for 2 years because Trump wanted to "punish" him. It would be hilarious to read this newspaper mischaracterizing that as some great act of independence. But it isn't funny. When Barr is interfering with investigations because Trump favors or dislikes someone, he shows everyone who he is. Surely the reporters must be blind.
9
The relationship isn't complicated at all. Trump is a mob boss and Barr is his stooge consiglieri. They are corrupt to the core as they destroy the rule of law and our democracy. It is like the worst Grade B movie, except it is real, and it looks as if there will be no happy end.
14
These two reporters have nailed it! Trump is a VERY Angry POTUS. He PROVES he's unfit to Lead daily!
5
This is why the moral character and integrity of the president is of utmost importance. I wonder how many voters knew they were electing a con man and huckster who has no respect for any law he doesn’t like?
11
Madness is as madness does. One will recognize madness when it shows itself. We are clearly witnessing madness in plain sight, and should admit that the emperor truly has no clothes on. The corruption is front and center and the DOJ under the leadership of Barr and control of a Trump is exhibit number one. Now, the only question that has to be answered is what shall "we the people" do about it; "Foolery does walk about the orb, like the sun; it shines everywhere, (Shakespeare, Twelfth Night)
6
This little Trump and Barr brouhaha has to be a Kabuki Theater illusion to entertain us little people. While the last vestiges of rule by law in American are shredded.
8
I am inexorably lead to the notion that Republicans as a party are traitors to democracy and the rule of law who will lie, cheat and deceive in order to hold onto power. McConnell wants Ginsburg to die or retire so he can further bias the Supreme Court. None of them have any scruples. Allowed to stay in power Trump will surely turn our govt into an autocracy and his private property and it might not wait till the next term. How long will it be before people start to disappear or wind up dead like Putin's adversaries? He's already gone so far in defying the rule of law that it won't take much for him to see if he can get away with it. It's becoming US, the people of the United States versus THEM. Is anyone naive enough to think with this man leading them that the Republican party will willingly allow a transfer of power in November even if they legitimately loose in the election cycle? No one wants to hear this. No one will want to talk about but I am afraid it will come, one way or the other, to somebody's blood flowing in the streets
12
@Gary Sclar.
Then out spoke brave Horatius,
The Captain of the Gate:
"To every man upon this earth,
Death cometh soon or late;
And how can man die better
Than in facing fearful odds,
For the ashes of his fathers
And the temples of his gods? "
1
It's not complicated! Stop dressing it up as anything other than what it is. Barr is the new fixer. That's it. Period.
14
@Jean Merigo
Agree! Reporters are the only people who seem to find it "complicated"!!!
4
Guess who:
Symptoms of Paranoid Personality Disorder:
believing that others have hidden motives or are out to harm them
doubting the loyalty of others
being hypersensitive to criticism
having trouble working with others
being quick to become angry and hostile
becoming detached or socially isolated
being argumentative and defensive
having trouble seeing their own problems
having trouble relaxing
5
Trump is betraying America, and the Republicans are providing him cover. AG Barr is acting as the Defense Attorney of this Plot Against America, with co-conspirators Roger Stone, Paul Manafort, and Michael Flynn already convicted.
The strongest reason to impeach Trump, and defeat him in November, is that he endangers our National Security by repeatedly and consistently aiding a foreign power, Russia. This is Treason, and all Americans must understand this.
Trump’s tax returns would also show that he is in hock to Putin-connected Russian oligarchs, which is why Trump is so desperate to hide his financial records. Mueller was prevented from investigating Trump’s finances by Rosenstein, and Barr terminated the investigation prematurely.
Remarkably, virtually the entire Republican delegation in Congress (with the lone exception of Romney) is in complete denial of all of this.
The GOP has become the Gang of Putin!
9
Trump is reading straight from the Russian-misinformation playbook: inject confusion into the situation.
13
"Critics assume it is all a Kabuki dance..."
Stop it. This is not about "critics". Every sentient person who believes in democracy and the rule of law can SEE that it is all a Kabuki dance.
Unlike the apparently blind reporters at this newspaper, every sentient person who believes in democracy sees what William Barr has done over and over again. It is outrageous to call Americans who value democracy "critics" because they see what people who have co-opted democracy have done.
They are PATRIOTS.
Patriots KNOW that it is all a kabuki dance because they have eyes and can remember Barr's actions from yesterday and the day before and know those actions speak much louder than the "insiders" whose opinions the reporters here trust more than their own lying eyes.
11
Trump will do whatever he wants to do until he can't. And that requires the Republicans in the Senate to stop him. So all we can do is vote him out, otherwise the next four years will be much worse
7
Who do you believe: "insiders" close to Barr who provide self-serving leaks, or your own lying eyes?
Apparently, if you are a reporter who covers Barr and the DOJ, the answer is "I believe insiders close to Barr".
The rest of us believe our eyes. Although the White House does want to gaslight Americans into believing that what they see is not really what they see. I guess the White House assumes that since their propaganda works on reporters, it will work on the rest of America.
Barr's every action over the last year have shown us what he is. Unlike this newspaper's reporters, we don't embrace whatever self-serving statements about Barr "insiders" say when Barr's actions enabling and empowering a corrupt president finally cause career prosecutors to resign in disgust.
The desperation to excuse Barr by writing articles like this is truly astonishing.
5
There is nothing complicated about the relationship between Trump and Barr. Barr carries out Trump's desires. He only has to make an occasional public show of independence for the media, which he can then easily walk back in private.
18
How much does it matter whether the "tensions are real"? Barr's motivations are political, as they have been since the beginning of his tenure. Indeed, he was hired for the very reason that Trump believed Barr felt Trump and his crowd of enablers were being persecuted for political reasons (despite overwhelming evidence of wrongdoing and manifest intent to circumvent or simply break the law).
6
Barr apparently believes that the president should have more power than the other two branches of the Federal government and when he auditioned for the job of Trump's attorney general he made that clear. Never mind that this bogus theory is contrary to the Constitution.Trump is easily led when his ego is involved and he has no moral core. In doing Trump's bidding Barr is carrying out his own agenda of giving absolute power to the presidency. Being smarter than Trump makes Barr more than complicit, he actually bears more than a little responsibility for what is being unleashed on our republic and the rule of law.
9
It used to be the separation of powers was a bedrock principle in our Constitution and underlying our government.
However, Trump, as the Executive, has cast this bedrock principle aside and asserted he has a right to interfere with federal criminal proceedings.
Call me old fashioned but I think the nation's need to recognize, uphold and promote the separation of powers and the concomitant need for the DOJ to be free of undue Executive influence trump's Mr. Trump's fake right to interfere with federal criminal proceedings.
7
It may be just me, but I discount all comments that begin with “I’m no fan of Trump, but...” or “I really despise Trump but....” Seems like it’s okay to defend the worst president in the history of the world if that’s how one really, really feels. It doesn’t make the defense somehow more legitimate or believable.
9
@Bluebeliever41 That is not its purpose. It is to state it shouldn't be wielded as a weapon/cudgel indicating support of everything Trump. You may think this goes without saying but I recently made a comment like "I used to be like Trump..." and people misunderstood it as "I like Trump..." So people are sensitive about their support (or lack thereof) of this POTUS.
"Critics assume it is all a Kabuki dance, cynical theater meant to preserve Mr. Barr’s credibility as he executes Mr. Trump’s personal political agenda while pretending to look independent. And it is certainly true that, even now, Mr. Barr continues to demonstrate a willingness to personally take charge of cases with Mr. Trump’s interests at stake."
I'm glad the writers opted to include the above opinion, which as we who know and understand the Trump creature, is a 100% accurate statement.
Trump has lived his life, since his early NYC Real Estate days, managing perception, and manipulating all who interact with him, whether family, friends, business associates, lenders, essentially all who orbit his existence, and now that he occupies the Presidency of the United States of America, he considers himself to be the Landlord of all who live in the nation, and he genuinely believes that he has the absolute right to affect the existence of every single resident of these United States, whenever and however he wishes.
Trump not only sees himself as the absolute ruler of all residents of the United States of America, he may in fact see himself as some kind of Diety, imbued with the kind of wisdom from a higher authority which makes him infallible, always always right.
11
Plato. Democracy becomes tryanny. Which makes Trump the "son of the democratic man", who considers himself the champion of a world in need of order, so he grabs power...(Pointed out to me by a Russian)
Or Trump is just a distraction and the real-power grabbers are Mitch et. al.
4
Barr is putting on weight at a great rate. This is a sign of a lot of anxiety and internal stress. If he does not straighten out his life and lessen the stress, he will have a heart attack and that will be the end of his career. He is throwing away his life for what?
5
@joyce
In his recent speeches, Barr laments our current moral laxity, supposedly ushered in by liberals, but the man can't exercise enough self-control to regulate his portion size. Physician, heal thyself.
4
Isn’t there a distinction between intervening in just any federal criminal case, and intervening in a federal criminal case that involves one of your friends and advisers who has been convicted of a felony? Are there no ethical (OK, ridiculous question in this context) or legal barriers to this intervention? Are there no constraints on this type of corruption? Somebody enlighten me!
8
To Trump defenders, what do you think will happen if a Democrat becomes president? Even if he or she acts like a pre-Trump president, even if he or she obeys laws, precedents and norms as they used to exist, Republicans will attack, investigate, and lie about everything the president does. They will do this without any concern, awareness or acknowledgement of their hypocrisy. They will obstruct the Democratic president as they did Obama from the moment he was sworn in. They will hector and harrass the president and, should they take the House, impeach as soon as they can.
A recent Op-Ed said Republicans no longer believe Democrats have a legitimate right to govern. A democracy (or democratic republic) cannot survive when one party views the other as illegitimate.
In fact it is the Republican party that no longer plays by the rules that have been in place for over 200 years. Their party needs to be demolished, and replaced with a new conservative party that will.
13
It is not complicated! Barr wants to do Trump”s crooked work but he does not want Trump to bring attention to it by tweeting.Barr is trying to quietly dismantle the Justice Department while Trump is constantly tweeting and giving interviews which offer him no cover.He wants to work in the shadows-Trump offers,only a bright and glaring spotlight.
11
So the ex-host of a stupid game show is a constitutional scholar now? Perhaps Trump should consult President Obama...who happens to be a real constitutional scholar.
17
Next time you attend a rally for the dems, please yell "lock them up"
3
No, you don’t. You are the executive branch. That is the legislative branch. And you are not a dictator.
2
If you don’t read or can’t read
And lack a context
1
It is apart for my feeling of sadness and despair – also a blessing to see the previous decennia of Western intimidation by holding the flag of ”freedom, democracy, human rights and the rule of law” is crumpling. Development of human [and non-human] societies is a phenomenon of nature. It is interesting to observe the direction of the American society moves towards the Asian way of governance.
1
Yeah, thanks for patronizing. After all, y’all—and please note the Southernism—treat the Rohingya so very well.
1
My thoughts: Even in Nixon's worst moments, he did not go this far. What have we become to allow this aberrant behavior?
18
@Armo
"We" haven't done anything to allow this terrible behavior. Rather, the Republicans have allowed by, because they have lost all ethical and civil grounding.
4
Roger Stone’s demonically possessed back tattoo?
2
I trust Barr no more than I trust Trump, not at all, not even to turn my back on them, wouldn't even want them as a neighbor.
After puzzlement over Barr's apparent rebuke to the President for sticking his nose into direction of the DOJ, I finally understand Barr's subterfuge. Barr is at least a competent lawyer even while being an addicted sycophant of the President.
Trump may legally recommend an investigation. However, if Trump maintains a harangue on the sidelines about knowing that the subjects are guilty and prejudging the outcome, he is attempting to bias the cases.
That Presidential prejudging through his megaphone that is sent out to the whole population of the US is a basis for appeal that would almost certainly be granted by virtually any judge and make it impossible to find an unbiased jury. Result? Drop the charges with no retrial.
That is Barr's remonstrance to the President. If Trump continues to pronounce guilt independent of the work of prosecutors, grand juries, and trial jurors, he is effectively trying to bias the outcome, a certain basis for throwing the investigation out.
Barr isn't a good guy, he is just Presidential minion that wants cases resulting in jail terms, not dropped investigations.
9
I believe this was all orchestrated between trump and Barr.
Trump loves chaos and in this case, the appearance of chaos and dissension.
All of a sudden, Barr found integrity and independence?
14
The only reasons that Barr "rebuked" Trump are that: 1) Trump was drawing attention to how Barr was using the DOJ to protect Trump and his friends and to pursue Trump's "enemies"; and 2) Barr has to protect himself professionally because he is violating the ethical requirements of prosecutors. Barr can be disciplined by and including disbarment for what he is doing for Trump.
5
Our first president -- a few too many vaccinations? Not enough vaccinations? What ails this person who seems driven to appear as miscreant?
It is beyond belief any society would actually make him chief. But here we are.
Is it an economy our people lust for, willing to give up on clean air, water, and protected lands? For an 'economy'? Is it an 'economy'. If so, our people better be looking over their shoulders while remembering what gravity does to things. You can send anything up, but recall that all of it comes down. Except decency.
8
Barr will come to regret the day he advocated for unitary executive power. He didn’t count on an deranged personality disordered executive.
8
Barr does not care. Barr is doing exactly what he wants to do, while telling donnie, in code, to shut up and stop drawing attention to what I'm doing for you.
4
@GeoD Disagree, See my comment above. I do believe however, Barr wants Trump to shut up, because he thinks it will take away from what he is actually doing. In other words, Barr wants credit for proving his theory, in spite of Trump and us. He is as, if not more, egotistical than Trump.
1
This will become known as the Valentines Day Massacre of the rule of law. Barr stands naked in his complicity helping a naked king. A very very sad day for America.
11
The moment trump tweeted, "Congratulations to Attorney General Bill Barr for taking charge of a case that was totally out of control and perhaps should not have even been brought" (Feb 12).
.........You knew that Barr GOT the message. (Remember, trump doesn't give 'direct' orders, he couches them in code.
The moment Barr said, [that trump] “has never asked me to do anything in a criminal case.”
.........You knew trump HAS talked to Barr about cases.
The moment trump said, "“This doesn’t mean that I do not have, as President, the legal right to do so, I do, but I have so far chosen not to!”
.........You knew trump DID talk to Barr.
Look for the next tweet in typical trump MO fashion:
"Yes, I talked to Barr. It doesn't matter if I did!"
12
I think -- in having Donald Trump for his client -- William Barr has a tiger by the tail.
6
How is it possible that there isn't a single democratic organization with the reach and will to organize mass protests? I don't think phone banking will do it this time. We might be past that.
7
Want to truly resist in a practical manner? Just don’t pay taxes. You can be greedy and lazy and still not pay taxes. All it takes is the bare minimum of resistance to authority and safety in numbers. It’s the easiest thing in the world. But Americans won’t do it. Even when they think their government is turning toward fascism, they still feel the need to be good little citizens who obey the fascists’ laws and fund the fascists’ government. I don’t believe that we are truly headed toward fascism, and yet I am still willing to proselytize on behalf of a national tax strike. Henry David Thoreau was a true American hero. He invented the concept of civil disobedience. And he refused to pay taxes to fund the Mexican War. If he could do that, why can’t Americans refuse to fund Trump and the McConnell GOP?
4
I have been wondering the same.
In my altruistic make-pretend world the Dem candidates hold a press conference or at least have a commercial, in which each, together, stand united in saying no matter who it is that challenges him, a Democrat has to stop the travesty in Washington.
I think it would blow Trump’s mind and be a rallying cry for sanity.
3
Folks, don’t you see that they are playing Good Cop/Bad Cop with us? Trump ordered Barr to send the message about not interfering. They think we are too stupid to see through the ruse. All you need to do is look at Barr’s actions and see if they match his words.
NYT, call them on this.
9
Trump is a criminal and so is Barr for allowing a criminal to interfere in any judiciary procedures. At some both of them will end their days behind bars in a federal prison where they both belong.
12
One more step on the road to Fascism. Translation of Barr's tweet about Trump: Hey, how can I pretend to be independent if you make it obvious that you're influencing me? Back off, for your own good.
15
This cannot continue.
11
@Elli
Think so ?
I believe it's going to not only continue but grow crazier right up to election day next November when Trump is ousted by the Democratic nominee, and its beginning to look likely that Trump may not concede and cite non-existent voting irregularities as a reason to orchestrate a recount with a manipulated result indicating he won.
Obvious to all of us now is the reality that Trump and his Republican partners are capable of anything.
6
@Elli
Oh, yes it can. And it will. Unfortunately.
2
If truth and justice prevail again the only "legal right" mr. trump will have is 3 meals a day in a 9x12 cell.
13
Watching from South Africa, even I feel really scared for what the future holds for the USA if this pathetic excuse of a human coniinues to manipulate the country into an extreme, even facist future. Its happening incrementally and we are all blinded to it behind our glowing scenes, exchausted by the 24 hour news cycle and talk shows ad naseum.
19
We are too big and diverse to ever join together in a truly fascist regime. That is a good thing. We are much more likely to go the endlessly corrupt route. Brazil comes to mind.
1
It seems that most Americans who haven't spent time in dictatorships have only a vague idea of where DJT is taking us, thinking he is just bossy, angry and crooked, simply trying to enrich himself, not realizing what is likely to follow. The NYT has several fine reporters who might give us some ideas on what might be coming from this administration, so please let us read about what to expect. And it might be helpful to read more articles on ex-pat/retirement opportunities abroad.
12
Donald Trump is a walking talking disgrace. He acts and speaks like an angry thug in a perpetual state of vitriol. Laws don't extend to him. He'll do whatever he wants when he wants. He'll pardon himself (he's stated as much) if he has to. He ignores rules. He undermines our various branches of government by his constant interference, his sticky patronage, by threats and through gross nepotism involving men with little or no character. This is ugliness close up. Welcome to America.
12
Is Congress really okay with this?
14
@CastleMan
Congress ??
We don't have a Congress anymore; instead we now have individuals who in that capacity pretend to be Congresspersons, but in fact are employees of corporate America acting solely for corporate America.
3
The King has spoken and it's not pretty. Vote him out so no more damage is done to America.
11
If you guys believe Barr then I have a piece of land to sell you.
Barr knowingly did ridiculous favors for the president, favors that conflicted with his position, and is now hedging by saying he can't do the job he has already done.
Are you guys going to suddenly forgive him?
12
To quote Oscar R. Benevides 100 years ago:
'For my friends everything, for my enemies the law.'
15
My theory is this. Bill Barr is already accustomed to lying covering up for a president team once before. So he has enough practice this time. Remember he was there when George W Bush-Cheney lied to the whole world to attack Iraq on made up excuses! Barr was there. In fact he donated $55,000 to Jeb bush campaign PAC.
Party before everything else, it’s all for the lying Republican party. Although as citizens we are 100% sure democratic politicians are not saints either. All politicians cannot be trusted to tell the truth.
11
Mr. Trump asserts all manner of nonsense on a daily basis. Let's not get apoplectic. Mr. Barr seems to know what he is doing.
1
Little Timmy: "When I grow up, I want to be a Doctor, a Police Officer or a Nurse, Civil Right Volunteer or a History Teacher!"
Teacher: "And what if you have to do another job other than those."
Little Timmy: (Thinks a bit) Well, it all else fails, I guess I could be President. But that's worst case scenario."
2
More evidence and cause vote every Republican out of every office at every election.
15
What a surprise to read that corporations are seeking directors who aren't CEOs of some other corporation. Are there cracks in the interlocked directorship?
3
He is the President and can do as he sees fit. If President Trump has decreed his judgement on a criminal case that is in the national interest of the country, then he has that power. The Senate, the senior body of our Congress elected by the 50 States, has found President Trump's behavior to be perfectly in line with his powers so long as he thinks it is in the interest of the country. It very well may end up that the interests of the country include him continuing on as President beyond what has traditionally been two terms as previously done by FDR. In fact, any election in which he was not declared the winner could be considered tainted and thus null and void. In which case, President Trump would have no choice, but to continue on as the leader of this country. If, for whatever reason, he should happen to not be able to continue on as President, there are alway one of his sons that could carry on in his stead until a proper election could be held.
3
@Cliff Thank you. I need a refill of fresh nightmares and never ending anxiety.
6
so if he loses an election it's tainted but if he wins it is not. unbelievable
4
@Cliff
You are terrifying. Un-American, even.
Don't you even understand the difference between a democracy and an autocracy?
Have you never read your Constitution? What you are suggesting is totalitarianism. You know, Like Russia.
And "one of his sons" could not step in to take over. Trump isn't a king, and the laws of succession do not apply in your country. BY LAW the Vice-President becomes President should Trump succumb to ill health or death. But the idea that you would even suggest this reveals your utter ignorance of everything a democracy stands for.
2
If the President controls the executive branch, presided over a puppet legislative branch that does his bidding, and seized control of the judicial functions, so we still have a Democracy?
9
@AAA You still have a republic. Just that it's a Banana Republic. The funny thing is, over years the US has gone into countries or done things to 'sort out' Banana republics in the cause and for the good of democracy.
Who is to come to the aid of the USA in it's hour of need? It won''t be Russia or Korea with their leaders being pals with the President.
4
Why do people trust that Trump actually knows what “the law” allows him to do. He’s shown quite well over his life that he doesn’t really understand or care about “the law.”
9
“This doesn’t mean that I do not have, as President, the legal right to do so, I do, but I have so far chosen not to!” he said.
Trump thinks everyone is as gullible as his supporters. They are not.
I wonder if Alan Dershowitz will agree with Trump’s legal opinion.
5
Everyone who knows anything about criminal law knows that the President does not have the power to determine how criminal cases are handled. So everybody in the know knows that Trump is wrong. And nobody is going to give in to his claim of right. It's as if the President were to claim the right to torture anybody he chose to. The claim is absurd and should not and cannot be taken seriously. Trump is ignorant about half the duties of his job. And this is one of thoem. This whole thing is nonsense and Trump simply cannot and will not get his way. Anybody expressing outrage knows well that they are upset for the sake of being upset. Let's get real.
6
It’s still worth pointing out how utterly ignorant Trump is regarding the Constitution and how the office of the presidency actually works. No outrage required.
5
I spent a career as a state prosecutor and know selective prosecution motions rarely win, but with Trump i can see them being a fertile field.
Sitting for depositions might be his full time job. It would limit his ability to destroy our country.
7
Hey, what's wrong with buying or seeking to influence judges or attorney generals? Ain't that what Don Corleone said in The Godfather movie? Trump knows how to be a mob boss. Being a mob boss also fits within Trump's aspirations to be America's king. Let's pay homage where it is due. Everybody -- all us Americans -- ought we not bow down to King Trump and Dictator Trump?
4
I know this is the tiniest of things, in a world of troublesome things, but Trump's extensive use of exclamation points in his tweets strikes me as ridiculously childish. Straight out of "Mean Girls".
1
That's what America voted for - the dismantling of governmental institutions, the concentration of power in one person, the rise of hatred. The end of democracy. It's crazy, but it's true.
11
Time for the House of Representatives to shut down the funding for positions in the federal government acting in a corrupt manner against the interest of the nation.
11
Government as criminal enterprise. Growing up in the aftermath of WW2 I saw my parents worrying about Joe McCarthy's drunken rants. Neither they nor I ever imagined what we're seeing now.
9
Time will tell.
Mr. Barr, in my opinion, was not play acting. He threw down the gauntlet and Mr. Trump will challenge Mr. Barr at his peril.
Be sure Mr. Barr knows where all the bodies are buried. Trump will never recognize his jeopardy because his arrogance and hubris is the ultimate in self deception.
Many have said about Trump's outrages that this the last straw, the last nail in the coffin, etc. but if he fires Mr. Barr, who will replace him?
There is likely some fool who will volunteer, but Mr. Barr is not going to go away that quietly.
2
I have submitted some pretty critical comments about how bad is your President, and how unfathomable it is that people support Trump when it is so obvious he is incompetent, intellectually bankrupt, anti-democratic and just a mean immoral person. So today when we read he believes he has the legal right to obstruct justice I say to myself - what further proof do the American people need to substantiate my opinion.
In spite of this, what we see is totally illogical, obviously blind, and completely dysfunctional support from Republicans, GOP senators, and Trump's base. How much further into the abyss are Americans prepared to fall?
17
If you were wondering what those five undocumented meetings with Putin were about. They were tutorials.
18
What is appalling is the GOP Senate is tacitly approving of this behavior. They refuse to rebuke Trump, and even are participating in the degradation of our democracy. They are so cowed by Trump and his cult they are setting aside norms that were put in place to assure we do not have a rogue President using his offer to punish political enemies and manipulate elections -Trump is Nixon on steroids. I recall the GOP Senators becoming hysterical because Bill Clinton spoke to the AG - while neither he or his wife held political office. Yet Trump clearly states he has a right to use The DOJ and AG as his personal weapons against political foes and to protect this friends they do nothing. In many other countries people would be in the streets, but here apathy seems to rule.
8
Is there anyone in Trump's cult that can explain to this grade-school mind that. . . oh. . fugetaboutit
5
So let’s see, some believe the President has a right to intervene in cases before the federal courts- so the President can decide who is guilty and who is innocent and what the sentence should or should not be. Taken to its logical corrupt end and you have Joseph Stalin and dozens of lesser evil autocrats who persecuted their own people.
19
What say you now, Senators Collins and Murkowski?
19
Amen.
3
Democracy 1776-2016.
16
This is not in any way a defense of Trump but we do not know for certain that the following assertion from the report is true:
"Past presidents in both parties have respected long standing traditions that are aimed at preventing political influence from the White House..."
Why is it that presidents are always very careful in whom they name attorney general? How can we know conclusively what past presidents say in private?
Looking back over the last fifty to sixty years, it is abundantly clear that the president's choice for AG has always been a highly critical choice. Kennedy, Johnson, Nixon, et all have picked people they could "trust", people who were close to them politically and, in most cases, with whom they had a long association going back years. Robert Kennedy was John Kennedy's pick because "he's the best man for the job" but both Kennedys must have been mindful that any AG holds enormous power.
Can we say for certain that no president has not nudged "justice" in one direction or another? We cannot.
What we do know is that Trump's effort to apply pressure openly is a radical new deal and his stated belief that he has a right to do so even more radical and untested. If this power exists, and is used against enemies, there is no limit.
6
The Constitution is vague about how much power the president has over the workings of the DOJ. He can supervise the actions of the department and ask for reports on its doings.
The Bill of Rights guarantees the citizens of equal protection of the law, which would be somewhat impossible if the president can start or stop cases at his whim.
14
I don't think Barr is referring to President Trump's tweets at all. He's referring to the press and other media who report on his skullduggery in aid of the President. THAT is what he considers his "job" to be.
1
"...testing whether that nation, or any nation, so conceived and so dedicated, shall long endure."
When I learned those lines in high school, I never imagined that day would come again in the form of a president who is trying to bully the Department of Justice into his mouthpiece.
I hope, as Lincoln hoped, that democracy survives this.
8
Everybody should read the full text of the Declaration of Independence and ask themselves who it reminds them of.
5
I love how Trump incriminates William Barr with his claim that he could have interfered with prosecutions if he wanted to but William Barr has given Trump absolutely no reason to want to interfere!
"This doesn’t mean that I do not have, as President, the legal right to do so, I do, but I have so far chosen not to!”
Barr already knew that his role was to elevate Trump into an all-powerful leader who answers to no one. Trump makes his desires known in meetings and tweets and his minions do what pleases Trump.
If Trump's minions, like Attorney General Barr, had not acted in complete accordance to Trump's wishes, Trump would have "chosen" to intervene in those criminal cases.
So we can be sure that what Attorney General Barr has done since taking office has been exactly what Trump wanted him to do.
But we already knew that. Although no reporters at this newspaper who cover the DOJ seem to know that.
1
It would be nice if there was a "smart" Trump. Unfortunately there's no such person. He doesn't belong in the white house but he's still the lesser of two evils in the upcoming election. As a result I'll vote for Trump - can't vote for any of the Democrat candidates.
1
@DED
"He doesn't belong in the white house but he's still the lesser of two evils in the upcoming election. "
So you want a complete buffoon running your country instead of a qualified person. Check.
3
Even if you are the staunchest Trump supporter if this doesn't prove to you this man believes he is above the law nothing will. Donald Trump has contempt for the "rule of law" and in the past few days has proven it several times. Vindictive and holding a vendetta against those who dare call his hand, to Donald Trump he is accountable only to himself and no other power. It is my hope that the judge pronouncing sentence upon Roger Stone will give Stone the maximum sentence under the law. Then perhaps Trump will learn a lesson about respect for authority, though I doubt it.
3
@Jean W. Griffith
Nah! He’ll just threaten the Judge - “Lock Her Up!”. And our esteemed Chief Justice, along with the rest of the impotent establishment will roll over and play dead.
These members of the nations power elite are either completely feckless, or they are silently in support of what Trump is doing.
1
As the GOP Senators ( except for Mitt) said, the king can do no wrong. Welcome to the Dark Ages
1
Trump has no Constitutional right, or other legal right to intimidate or tamper with jurors or judges. ZERO!
2
Am I wrong or are Barr and Trump just playing "good cop, bad cop"?
9
Pardon to all the former collaborators, with the exception of Michael Cohen.
When trying to look into a crystal ball it is often helpful to know the past in order to glance into the future. Some of you may remember this guy:
''François Duvalier, also known as Papa Doc, was the President of Haiti from 1957 to 1971. He was elected president in 1957 on a populist and black nationalist platform. After thwarting a military coup d'état in 1958, his regime rapidly became totalitarian and despotic. An undercover government death squad, the Tonton Macoute, indiscriminately killed Duvalier's opponents, and it was thought to be so pervasive that Haitians became highly fearful of expressing any form of dissent, even in private. Duvalier further sought to solidify his rule by incorporating elements of Haitian mythology into a personality cult.''
Can you see much of a difference between Duvalier and Trump? Is this where America is heading?
Papa Doc...Papa Trump... can you see it now?
3
I want to formally announce that I am the enemy of Donald Trump. Unequivocally.
Hope I have lots of allies.
22
You know that Barr's "rebuke" was not serious and only meant as a red herring because, if it were real, Trump would be rage-tweeting Barr. And, this morning...nothing.
17
Judges have a legal obligation to rule in accordance with the law and the jury verdict even if it ignores the pronouncements of The Imperial President.
6
The "senior Justice Department" officials referenced should resign.
2
The Senate didn’t convict him with ample evidence because “politics”. This is what a king looks like. This is the new normal. There was a chance and it was thrown aside because Republicans value party over the law and over the Constitution. Who is going to stand up to this tyrant? Who is going to speak for the Constitution?
5
There's no doubt in my mind that Barr did that ABC interview for damage control. It was staged.
But Trump had to tweet about his "legal rights" because even though he in Barr are as thick as thieves, Trump can't let anything pass without telling the world that HE is in charge.
7
Trump does not understand how the Constitution works. He really believes that he can rule like a king.
6
Trump repeatedly violates his oath of office, sworn to uphold our Constitution, he instead steamrolls it, emulating his authoritarian pals from overseas. GOP, you enable him, you are to blame.
12
Add his red meat base to that list.
2
If you ever wondered what those five undocumented meetings trump had with Putin were. They were tutorials.
12
All of this lays bare how powerful the executive branch is, how unbalanced and ineffectual the checks and balances are in such a situation, and how unhinges, hypocritical, and depraved the current “Republicans” are.
That said, this is the Democrat’s election to lose. I pray they choose a centrist that can move us forward!
13
A lesson for the leftists with their hair on fire: What’s in the Constitution, Article II? The powers of the Executive. The president.
What’s NOT in the Constitution? The office of the Attorney General.
The president, not the AG, is in charge of enforcing federal laws.
Class dismissed.
3
The president is in charge of enforcing federal laws. The judicial branch is in charge of deciding guilt and determining appropriate punishments. When the president tries to interfere with verdicts and sentencing, he is overruling the judicial branch, not the Attorney General. Your argument is based on a faulty premise. You are also ignoring the fact that many of the laws which the president is challenging are state laws, not federal, which is another overreach by the president.
12
@Cjmesq0
OK fine.
Please remember this when Bernie is president!
4
This is a federal case, but the president has been interfering in other cases as well.
2
And the House has the right to drag you off to gaol, Mr. Trump. Why? How? What are you talking about, this is the way the country is governed now. Have you been living under a rock? Speaker Pelosi believes it's the right thing to do. And so do "they." You know, the...all kinds of good people who think you should be in jail. "They" have been talking to Pelosi and Schiff about it, and they agree, so it's right and OK. Two can play at this game.
Pack a bag, the House Sergeant at Arms will be coming by to cuff you in ten minutes.
3
I present this. Suppose during a political protest, two protesters defaced federal property. One protester wrote a pro-life message, and the other wrote a pro-choice message. Both protesters were arrested, but only one was prosecuted. Is there not an expectation that a president speaks out against such a political prosecution?
2
One may imagine what the Republicans would have said if President Obama said that he had the legal right to interfere with criminal cases. Actually, no imagination is required. Not even two weeks have passed and Trump is making claims that not even the most tolerant of Republicans would tolerate if said by a Democrat. Didn't one Republican Senator said that Trump would learn; well he did learn, that his approach of trampling on The Constitution has no bounds.
18
Thomas Jenckes, Department of Justice 1870; “The humblest servant of the Government should not be at the mercy or the caprice of the most distinguished politician. Let every man who may receive a commission from the United States know that he holds it from the people, in service of the people.”
The key words here should be "in the service of the people."It doesn't say at the behest of Donald Trump or if the current DOJ is acting or complicit with Donald J. Trump!
This sentiment is a good representation of the direction of the Constitution. This administration has lost sight of the fact that everyone employed by the government ( including the President) took oaths to guard, protect and serve the Constitution and Peoples of the United States. I've seen scarce evidence of that from this administration.
9
"The three branches of the U.S. government are the legislative, executive and judicial branches. According to the doctrine of separation of powers, the U.S. Constitution distributed the power of the federal government among these three branches, and built a system of checks and balances to ensure that no one branch could become too powerful." Source: History.com
7
This is a constitutional nightmare. Who is left to stop the Trump Express from demolishing our democratic republic? Not the sycophantic GOP. Not the decidedly pro-Trump SCOTUS. Which makes it imperative for those who cherish our democracy to vote Trump out.
17
The Trump-Barr coup d’etat is underway. The gradual transition from democracy to competitive authoritarianism. This must not be permitted to proceed
14
Come on, Pelosi. Man up. So your job, again.
3
He can't but he can. He can but he can't.
I think Trump 'gets away' because he is just 'voicing his opinions' but maybe officially he asks or suggests or tells what he wants done and what he doesn't want to be done. But maybe there is no 'official record' of his 'orders', and that leaves to the office bearers to make 'official' the 'orders' on their own as a part of their 'actions' or 'decisions' or 'implementation' of their official position.
It is difficult to see Barr going all out against Trump since he has been 'loyal' so far, even during 'impeachment' proceedings.
Maybe this is a 'setup' situation for Trump to openly exercise his newly found legitimacy for his style of functioning.
Or maybe the Republicans did not concede to the Democrats and stood by Trump but now that is done and over, they feel free to take him on within the Party. The beginning of the end ? Maybe no easy way to securing the nomination for a second run ? The Republicans may hedge their bets on Trump against the actual voter base out there.
2
Republicans are in for a big surprise in November. If the Democrats nominate anyone but Bernie Sanders and Joe Biden moderate Republicans will come out of the wood works to vote against Trump. This is the sleeper voting bloc. These people are silent now but they will rise up against this president and surprise everyone.
Not suburban moms, not millennials, not seniors, but rather and angry segment of the population who call themselves moderate Republicans will determine this election.
16
@Oliver
Joe can beat Trump.
Don't count on a sleeper voting bloc. That sounds like Nixon's silent majority.
People must be pushed to vote. They must be shown why they NEED to remove Trump. Can't rely on just hatred for him. Need to show how bad he is for the country.
Bernie and Warren (and maybe Mayor Pete) can't beat Trump.
1
Seems to me that Americans desperately need to do two things:
1 - Return to normalcy by voting out Trump. Since there won’t be a Republican incumbent to Trump, this can only be achieved by voting blue.
2 - Under a new - normal - administration set up additional safeguards to prevent this blatant crossing of separation of powers from ever happening again. What was once considered to be the acceptable way-to-go needs additional specificity in the laws that govern this free nation. Assumption does not make the cut any longer...
10
Isn't this exactly what Senate Republicans voted for when they exonerated Trump of both impeachment charges? It's certainly how he understood their vote, and they must explain to the people who will vote to remove or reinstate them why they think that a president may place his or her personal needs ahead of the country's.
18
Trump's argument essentially is that as President and Chief Executive he has the right and power to intervene directly in any federal court proceeding in which the federal Government is involved. In other words, he can walk into court and assume the federal Government's legal representation because he has the power to do so in every such federal court case. But by parity of reasoning, in every federal court case the federal judge has the power to control the conduct of the federal Government's representative -- including any out-of-court public statements about the case or its participants or the presiding judge. So every federal judge has the power to impose a gag order on the President with regard to his tweets or other public statements which the judge deems inappropriate. And since the First Amendment limits the power of federal officials to restrict the free speech of private persons -- and does not guarantee any free speech rights to federal officials -- a federal court gag order against the President cannot deny any First Amendment speech rights nor can it be deemed any more objectionable than gag orders which are imposed on attorneys in federal court every day of the week. So I encourage federal judges to begin issuing gag orders against President Trump whenever he makes public statements interfering with the fair administration of justice in federal court cases. They have the power to do it, and Trump richly deserves it.
4
@richard young
Where did you get the idea that freedom of speech ends when you become a federal official??
As President, Trump does not have that power. As God, he can do whatever he wants.
2
The words of the Constitution can be contorted to allow Trump's power-grab, but the spirit of the Constitution says otherwise.
Turns out spirit has a 'Sell by date'.
3
I believe most of the misconduct conducted by the Trump administration has never been portrayed before in American history. They are testing the limits of the US Constitution's essential principles that are outlined and were signed off by The Framers to govern these lands with order in place; whilst observing who resolutes from their actions.
4
The President prefers power to tradition obviously. The large specialized bureaucracies we have now as the country has grown to unmanageable size tend to obscure the scope of constitutional power the President has over Executive agencies. We just ask fewer questions when matters of State, Defense, and Homeland Security are at issue then with Justice and domestic law enforcement.
2
@Frunobulax: Fractal organization is efficiently scalable.
For years I have observed our elected house and senate officials steeping in corruption with big money exercising undue and undemocratic influence over the structure of our laws and policies. Consequently, I took heart in the fact that our executive branch was relatively free of corruption with some misdeeds by a few members in all administrations but, the Obama Administration. My heart is now broken as this executive branch is infinitely more corrupt than our house and senate have ever been, although the senate's poor performance with respect to Trump's impeachment shows yet more corrupt action. As long as it costs millions of $ to be elected to a measly 2 yr term in the house we will be subject to our elected representatives (and senators) doing the bidding of big monied interests. Do we want to get off our addiction to fossil fuels? Publicly fund all elections only. Do we want to rid ourselves of this massive income (and opportunity) inequality? Publicly fund all elections only. Do we want high quality and affordable universal health care? Publicly fund all elections only. Do we want to stop poisoning our air, water, and soil? Publicly fund all elections, only, no private donations, no corporate donations, no pacs, no big money influence and control over our safety and well being. Preserve our democratic republic. Preserve our planetary habitat. End this corruption.
12
Trump can do anything he wants. The Republicans have made that crystal clear. What he wants is absolute power.
3
Well of course Trump has a legal right with the Justice Department The Senate just handed it to him unequivocably on a not-guilty impeachment platter.
Certainly Lamar Alexander, Susan Collins and other prominent fence-sitters have drawn particular ire, and so have the usual zeros like Mitch McConnell, Lindsey Graham, Ted Cruz, Jim Jordan, and so on. But hiding in the middle of these extremes were more than 40 others.
Shame on all of them.
13
Trump has publicly interfered in the court martial of of several accused American war criminals. Because he is Commander in Chief, that is clearly “Undue Command Influence”, which is a violation of the Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ). To be clear, the UCMJ codifies crimes and criminal behavior. It is not a suggested code of recommended ethics or behavior.
5
He has a right to call for an investigation of a congressman he doesn’t like? A citizen who criticizes him? You? Me? Do we now need to be very careful what we say or write?
13
Is Trump, the President of the United States, actually doing anything besides tweeting and watching TV all day long? Probably not, and that’s a relief.
5
Well apparently he’s also easily distracted by badgers...this could be his kryptonite! Someone let Nancy know...
1
We all agree, trump’s gotta go.
How much worse does it have to get?
He is in complete denial of our constitution.
“The Winds of War,” book by Herman Wouk, 1971.
“Stones from the River,” book by Ursula Hegi, 1995.
Many other publications about the rise of Nazi’s.
Even I can feel the rumblings. Even I can hear the ignorant.
We cannot become the “brown shirts.”
11
Where is Pelosi?
1
Come on, Pelosi. Man up. So your job, again.
1
What else do we expect from dear leader? He’s a bully and unfit for public office. Doesn’t expect the GOP to care....they are dear leader lackeys with no spine.
6
The "legal right" to interfere in a prosecution. Well, that s new one and another giant step backwards for the US as a nation under the rule of law. There is not one half democratic country which purports to have a legitimate criminal justice system where the executive would even suggest it had the right to interfere in a prisecution.
Of course Trump ( laughable called the Commander in Chief) has already done it with the recent military case.
You guys have a big problem.
6
On July 14, 1934 it was revealed in public reporting that Adolf Hitler had perpetrated a "purge" of "disloyal" elements in his Nationalist Socialist Party. At least seven individuals were named in the reporting of purges performed with pistols, not pens. On Friday, July 13th the Fuhrer explained his actions by declaring that "The supreme court of the German people during these twenty-four hours consisted of myself." The deputies in the Reichstag rose and cheered.
I suppose one could make the argument that we are not "there" yet, but only because the weapons used in our own Putsch were not firearms.
It is not heartening to consider what is happening here.
2
Watch out folks. This is a time-honored pickpocket move.
While Trump and Barr stage a public brawl to grab your attention, another gang member (probably Rudy Giuliani) is stealing your wallet.
Where the heck is Rudy, anyway? And, will Barr and Trump have another set-to over Lev and Igor's cases?
16
Does anyone really think the Barr/Trump dance isn't choreographed by them? I mean I find it hard to believe they aren't baiting the media with a fake rift to make Barr seem independent.
18
Trump's arrogance just confirms what we suspected already, that he is convinced he is above the law. Last I checked, he assaulted the presidency, not a kingdom. His haughty remarks are those of a bully (a coward in disguise)!
9
Yes, I do recall that 'Legal Right' development that President Bone Spurs speaks of. I believe it was a collaboration a few years back betwixt Trump University and Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.
4
By now everyone should be sickened by Trump the 2-bit knock off Mussolini. Everything from demanding Neo-fascist architecture, to illegally rewarding his friends and punishing those who do their duty. Anyone with even a whiff of conscience or love for Democracy has long since fled Thump’s administration. There is nothing left by toadies and worse.
16
The disgrace, Señor Trump is none other than you.
5
Will he look into the Menendez brothers next? And what about Phil Spector? OJ - well forget that one as Gerchie is his boss' friend...
1
Corruption plus Republicans equals- Trump. A dictator wannabe who has stained America's Constitution and democracy!
12
You know...that's what Benito Mussolini said to the Italian government opposition who challenged his powers as he quietly amassed control as dictator.
15
Trump thinks that the country is all his, no questions asked! He treats the USA as his personal piggy bank!
11
He did not claim to have a right to interfere, but to speak out. He's absolutely right that he has that right. In fact, as the president, he runs the justice department, so he probably has a right to interfere. He arguably has the power to stop investigations and prosecutions, just as any government chief execute does. The convention has been to avoid it to promote confidence in the neutrality of the justice process, but he doesn't believe that it has been fair. Would any of the liberals excoriating him refrain from doing the same if the shoe was on the other foot? I really doubt it. What they would do is take care of it behind closed doors. Is that better?
3
Having the authority for an action does not make it legal if the action is performed for a corrupt purpose. As Mueller documented, Trump obstructed justice in a number of instances, and is only protected from indictment while he is in office.
6
Nice try, but your boy specifically said that he could do what he wanted with Justice, and then proceeded to demand a reduced sentence and prosecutions of all and sundry.
Maybe try the, “You can’t take him literally,” bit, as this one ain’t working at all.
5
@Jim I hope that was sarcasm.
5
The President has no more RIGHTS than any citizen. He, within the the Constitution, has certain AUTHORITY, but not a right. I wish he and his enablers understood this important difference.
15
Perhaps Mr. Trump could kindly advise us of what things he DOESN'T think he has a right to do. It is obviously a much shorter list.
13
Kim and Putin would never put up with this tradition of an independent justice system ,no self respecting dictator would and Trump is certainly not one to shrink from absolute control of govt . Get use to it.
4
Each day with more and more of his actions it seems like Trump is trying to turn our country into a version of the now autocratic nationalist Hungary. Trump wants more and more power to corrupt the justice system so he can punish his perceived enemies and reward his loyalists by manipulating the justice system. Anyone who cares about democracy and our constitutional rights should be very alarmed.
8
There is no constitutional restriction. Lol he can do it. Being outraged because he can, not because he doesn’t is just how triggered you are now. What are you going to do until 2024? The electoral college is still in place, no one with a job, house, and retirement plan is voting him out and trust me everyone in that group will be voting for “no change.”
I have all of those things and certainly won’t vote for him. Nor do statistics bear out your assertion.
4
@Mary Ellen Slayter There hadn’t been an incumbent president that has lost re election when the economy is good. Voters vote their pocketbook.
Nixon” well, when the President does it, that means it’s not Illegal”...we know what’s happens to Nixon...We know what’s happens to Trump...How are we going to get rid of him...We are having a nervous break!....
3
Trump needs to watch a Schoolhouse Rock episode about the constitution and the branches of government. Or that too complicated for him?
14
I guess Robert Mueller has washed his hands of the whole thing. We can't count on him to speak out.
3
This should dispel any doubts as to whether we now live under a dictatorship.
11
“I have the legal right as President” said the man who was just given approval by his fellow Republicans to do anything he wants.
3
The Founding Fathers seem not to have sufficiently considered that America's citizens might elect a corrupt madman as President.
They left loopholes in the Constitution where they imagined that decency would surely prevail in their new nation, such that they need not stipulate every detail to be prohibited.
Who could blame them for not considering that the citizenry could be glamoured by contemptible weasel?
Big mistake Founding Fathers: Trump has proven you way too optimistic, and now your "republic" is failing badly.
26
The original system was decentralized and ceased to exist in 1861. The US Constitution has needed to be extensively rewritten ever since.
It took 11 years for the cynical truce of the Civil War gave way to a new era of conquest. The result: an ever more consolidated block of power in the hands of corporations controlled by the mandates of money.
A whole lot of hypocrisy has clogged the arteries of the system. It’s either going to succumb to a heart attack or congestive heart failure as the forces of money cut off Democracy’s air supply.
3
I’d like to recommend reading some American history. Preferably, not fictional.
1
Perhaps I missed something in all of the constitutional law and political science classes I took in college. Can someone please tell me where it is stipulated that a president can interfere in a court case? As I understood it, we're all equal in the eyes of the law. But perhaps somewhere a professor failed to mention to me that those in the president's circle are more equal than others.
Do we know if the GOP sycophant Senate is now attempting to codify presidential tweets? At least that would give them something to do.
17
Problem is the Constitution is ambiguous on this. The President chooses and appoints the AG. The AG serves at the pleasure of the president. Justice is a department under the executive branch. Trump is testing how far the Oval Office can stretch its reach.
Don’t like it? Then challenge in the courts. Oh wait. ?! The justices are nominated by the President. Hmmmm. Trouble.
9
The catch to this cycle is that he may only exercise his authority within the bounds of the law. If not, he is subject to impea.....oh, never mind. We may not keep the republic our founders left us.
2
Its a real shame that the president and the attorney general don't have offices nearby or even a phone to use. Instead, they seem to be communicating by Twitter.
The only reason Barr has made his comment about "not being bullied" is because the House mentioned impeaching him. Turns out that they can although I don't know that it has ever happened. Would he be disbarred for such a thing? No one in our country seems to know what the constitution says or means which is why the "scholars" disagree about most everything the Founders wrote. Dershowitz is one of the top legal minds from the top legal college in our country and he thinks the president can shoot someone on 5th Avenue with no repercussions.
8
There seems to be an epidemic of petulance going around. The Presdient is punishing New Yorkers for air travel and Californians for air quality. I guess he doesn't need either state to get re-elected. Then there's those who resign in protest. That seems very popular in Europe but in the USA, resigning means you loose your platform and sometimes your identity.
5
Trump is arrogant and ignorant. Over and over. It never ends.
19
I wonder what kind of advice Cohen would have to offer from behind his prison door?
5
How long before His Lordship claims droit du seigneur within the DOJ??
9
IMPEACH …..Trump again in the House: then impeach Barr
as well; the list goes on...
And expose the Trump disinformation campaign ads...…;
We are fighting those who would not defend our nation.
Hurrah for Mike Bloomberg; and if he can outwit the Trump
disinformation campaign; with Bloomberg memes...maybe
just maybe we can save our nation from a takeover by
those would be the servants of a criminal King Trump and
his backers.
14
If there’s a mass impeachment, let’s throw in Kavanaugh too.
2
Seriously, has anyone in this administration ever told the truth? Ever?
22
I'm so sorry, I"m a less than perfect judge of humans but it's obvious to me that the President is lying because he's a lying liar.
24
I'm a progressive Democrat, BUT, Trump does not have a monopoly on getting friends off with light sentences.
David Petraeus committed serious breaches of national security but was allowed to plead guilty to a misdemeanor charge of mishandling classified materials. He got two years probation and a $100,000 fine. --a slap on the wrist considering the serious nature of his offenses. Why was he given special treatment? Democratic friends in high places.
The US has a chronic "friends in high places" problem.
5
@ShenBowen: Taking on a security clearance is legally perilous of itself.
1
@ShenBowen "
Donald Trump asserts ‘legal right’ to intervene in criminal cases"
......and therefore?
I don’t think that trump will be satisfied with just being an autocrat. Soon, he’ll just tell us he is God.
15
@Kb No he is only the “chosen one”
1
Under J. Edgar, the FBI was an independent and conservative political power with files on peoples' sexual and other habits and deviances. Trump wants to restore its role as a conservative political power, but without independence. Such files work on most politicians, but not on Trump; he has managed to make himself almost immune from scandals, so the FBI cannot protect its power by blackmailing him.
Trump has decided to get rid of our tradition of independent prosecutors and justice officials. His party will not consider this as grounds for removal from office, so the defense of the tradition falls to the citizens. He has also gotten rid of the tradition of accurately counting things, such as the number of people at an inaugural -- or the number of votes. This means he can accept and defend counts he thinks are true, and attack and reject counts he thinks are not true. This would get us to the point that the armed forces would have to decide to serve somebody -- either the Commander in Chief or the meaning of the Constitution -- or have themselves a bunch of civil wars.
6
The bottom line is this; a constitutional system that is entirely dependent upon the good will of the people who lead it is not a functional system. SCOTUS mightily contributed to this dysfunction by Citizens United, a decision so ludicrous as to be entirely bankrupt of legal scholarship. Similarly, the Bush v Gore decision was likewise ridiculous. SCOTUS has been juicing the game with biased decisions for the last 20 years. The system was designed as it was to protect states with large numbers of slaves, a factor not present today. A presidency with unlimited powers and complete immunity was not contemplated by the founders, but there are no protections against it. The founders could not have contemplated big money media domination, huge corporations, or mass/social media. The limits of 18th century government have been reached. It’s time for direct election of the president, a representative Supreme Court, and a Senate that is more democratic. We cannot risk what is happening now to ever happen again.
18
Right on Todd!!!
2
I never heard of a person "as President" having a legal right to do anything A legal right is something all citizens have. If it's confined to the president, it's a power, not a right.
Is this another example of Trump's ignorance of how government works, or do I understand this wrong?
15
Trump's Toadies in Congress and others in government who have sold their souls to the Dictator have told him that he can do whatever he wants to do with out fear of consequences.
7
barr and trump are performing a kabuki dancing to deflect the story.
11
Vote out every single Republican. Every single one. Vote as if your freedom depends upon it, because it does.
The 2020 general election is not about choosing a president; it’s about choosing to uphold our democratic values and the rule of law, which have been trampled with abandon by Trump and the Republicans.
Vote blue no matter who.
24
Trump and his "absolute right" argument is getting really tiresome. Asmfar as I'm concerned, he has an absolute right to resign and save us all further angst, or he truly will wind up behind bars for obstruction of justice.
19
Trump and Twitter should be sued for violating Public Nuisance laws. This has caused a National Mental Health crisis.
17
As long as the rich are making bank and enough Americans think that a sort of benevolent plutocracy is preferable to a democracy than the Constitution is null and void and the rule of law is dead.
18
@Red Tree Hill than ?
1
If he has this "right", then it is a right to prosecute enemies and pardon friends. I'm simply astonished.
12
It is nonsense to believe that Cabinet Members are not under the scrutiny of the President of the United States. Having said that the House has the Constitutional privilege to Impeach the President for unlawful acts involving interaction with his Cabinet. Let us see how this plays our Constitutionally.
2
My question, as we watch trump use what some feel is his power under the Constitution (and others do not), is when does the exercise of that power become abuse of power. Suppose a trump political ally/supporter/administration official commits a felony so there is no question of guilt. Suppose that felony harms many people either physically or otherwise. Trump peremptorily issues a full pardon. Is that an exercise of power given by the Constitution, pardons, that is so egregious that it becomes an impeachable abuse of power? I fear many Republican supporters would shrug it off and say no abuse.
6
I guess Trump should get some credit for just telling u we are now living in a dictatorship with him at the top instead of pretending we still live in a free county governed by the law.
9
Legal scholars will probably have a much more credible and viable answer for this, but Trump's gasconades are sickeningly distasteful. He is a dissembling dude, and not one word he says has been that of a prudent and astute statesman. He is known to disgorge an astronomical number of lousy lies, at the drop of a hat. Or not.
And now Barr is sounding bells of dissent and dissonance, almost in a defiant manner. After quite a few months of Barr's almost unbridled acquiescence, it becomes an upheaval task just to believe his words, at this juncture. He still might be either bloviating or simply blowing smoke, to put it brusquely.
And Trump continues to blow his own trumpet, unabated, and unafraid of the consequences. His acolytes are essentially maintaining pin-drop silence, just to say the least. Again, may the Good Lord help America and the decent people of this planet. One fondly hopes this might not be too much to ask for.
9
@Vernon: It is too much to ask for. It invites a very irritable response. You're supposed to help yourself. No deity lives vicariously through you.
Those of us who reject President Pathological's emperor delusion must organize, support each other, devise and act on strategies to prevent his delusion from becoming our reality. All we have at stake is survival of our USA as the democratic republic that our founders envisioned and established.
14
@Jim Steinberg: Equal votes for all at the federal level should be the unifying foundational principle.
3
Absolutely. I'm shocked we as Ameeican citizens are not filling the streets in protest ti this evil man. I'm sick and tired of it and don't want to take it anymore.
3
Just don’t pay taxes. It’s easier on our essentially lazy and greedy American nature.
1
The question’s now is not if, but when Barr resigns or gets sacked. Not a surprise. No one with even a shred of character or principles - and it seems like Barr has a shred, after all - can take Trump long, or be tolerated by him. That’ll be the how-many-eth to get fired?
Since I believe that most people have something like character or principles - unlike Trump, who is totally devoid of such encumbrances - I believe that sooner or later more and more even in the GOP will stop supporting Trump as unconditionally as they have done so far. The result, as I see it, is Trump “firing” the party altogether and forming his own (“America First” comes to mind, since Trump sees himself as coterminous with America, so “America First” really means “Trump First”). He knows that would split Republican voters, but he is so self-enamored that he believes he’ll be elected President anyway. He’s wrong, the GOP will have been weakened, and the road will be open for a Democratic landslide.
Pipe dream? Maybe, but I trust Trump to continue to be Trump - he can’t be otherwise - and I don’t think he can avoid self-destruction, and destroying most of those close to him.
9
@gbdoc
your last paragraph scares me, mainly because it's so plausible.
1
This is not going to end well.
Trump is testing the limits after being emboldened by the pitiful republican impeachment trial performance in the senate.
Worst case scenario he stays in office for another term and finishes the hit job on the American democracy while near half the country cheers him on. Best case scenario he will loose the election in November, and the pendulum swings the other way. However, future corrupt presidents now have the blue print on how the executive branch can manipulate the institutions to their will without being held responsible.
15
Donald Trump and William Barr are engaged in an elaborate charade designed to mask the fact that Mr. Trump, at every single opportunity, demands that his cronies receive special favorable by the courts and that his enemies or critics receive special unfavorable treatment.
Bill Barr, whenever asked, has acceded to the Trump demands and has even added personal flourishes like traveling the globe to hunt for people willing to say bad things about Trump rivals or critics.
Neither the American voters nor our judges should tolerate this nonsense.
14
This nonsense all the time...
America: ask the Republican Party the party of chaos:
Is this any way to run a country?
Answer by voting straight Democratic
11
Trump's staff should be cautious. Pretty soon he will claim the “droit de seigneur.”
4
Rebuke? That wasn't a rebuke. It was "how to" guidance for the president. Barr is Trump's henchman, and he was simply telling the president that it's impossible to do that job when tweets are constantly revealing the scheme.
22
What did the Republican senators who just acquitted Trump expect?He did indeed get a license to behave as he sees fit, and that's what he is doing now. Make sure to thank your Republican senators (minus Mitt Romney, who stood up for himself) for this in November.
And, for Trump supporters, what would you think if, let's say, a President Sanders would run the country like Trump does now but from the opposite end? How would you like that?
17
@Pete in Downtown: Mitt Romney stood with the rest of them to deprive Congress of power to compile evidence for any more impeachments.
5
There will be a constant probability of seeing the station filled by characters preeminent for ability and virtue.”
— Alexander Hamilton
Federalist 68
In the era of Trump you can throw that one out the window. He has no sensitivity to the discretion that decency and integrity demands of his office. Legality and illegality are a matter of his ego-driven feelings, especially as related to his political fortunes. Trump views the law as either a hindrance or a weapon. Bill Barr has a front row seat but the performance appears to be getting tiresome.
4
I think many are missing barr’s message to trump,
It is “trump you are doing too many illegal things and tweeting about them faster than I can cover them up and hide or destroy the evidence.
23
Sen. Marco Rubio is slamming Attorney General Loretta Lynch for her private meeting with Bill Clinton this week, calling it "a real lack of judgment on both their parts." Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump was not convinced by the attorney general's assurances, attacking the judgment of both Lynch and Bill Clinton. The Manhattan billionaire decried the meeting as "terrible," "horrible," "amazing" and "really a sneak" the Republican-controlled House , former Attorney Gen. Loretta Lynch came to the Capitol under a subpoena and promptly got grilled by lawmakers about her infamous tarmac meeting with President Bill Clinton. Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), Lynch said it was a bad idea for anyone in government to be speaking about the inquiry senior Republican in the Senate CHARLES GRASSLEY: Given the politics involved, the potential for improper influence over the work of the investigators and career prosecutors is high because of Loretta Lynch's private meeting with Bill Clinton.
4
@pigpen195053: Marco Rubio is qualified to be a luxury car dealer's gofer.
1
The judge is being set up. After she gives Stone a lengthy (but fair) sentence, this will give Trump the pretext to claim Stone is Being victimized and pardon him.
6
I've been thinking about Trump's acquittal and how it predictably has emboldened him and his lackeys to be more brazen in flaunting norms and abusing power. In a perverse way, it's almost a better outcome for the country and for Democrats, than Trump's removal from office. (Which I supported.) We're seeing the unraveling begin, with outrageous and unprecedented actions (like Barr's) that may start to change minds without Democrats having to pay the political cost of "reversing the election." Sure, they'll pay a price among some moderates/independents for having pursued it to begin with, but removal would have unleashed far stronger sentiments I think. This is not a very comforting thought. Still scared to death of what is yet to come with Trump, Barr and the rest.
7
In more enlightened time it would be another count of Obstruction.
11
Hello everyone.
As an outsider with limited constitutional knowledge of the US system, when I read the articles and numerous comments defending DT right to interfere, I kept naively thinking: “So, if my friend/associate is POTUS, I have a potentially better legal protection than citizen x who doesn’t have that connection.”
Ok...then. Let’s put that statement to Trump supporters and see if they agree with this principle. If they do, then all is fine I guess...
Just a thought.
3
How many times has the phrase, "I told him, but he just wouldn't listen" been uttered in hushed tones at the White House? Thousands, maybe? And throw in, "He just doesn't comprehend what we're saying."
8
It wasn't so much as a "rebuke" by Barr, but signaling to tRump that he's got it under control.
If this isn't more impeachable proof, I don't know what is.
Keep shining the light!
5
Trump has no legal right to interfere in a Justice Department case. No American that I know off his such a "legal" right. For Trump to claim otherwise is a mark of corruption.
8
DOJ works for the president. In this case Trump. Period. Don’t like it? Elect somebody you like.
To claim that DOJ does not have an elected boss is to claim that they are a power upon themselves not to be
“interfered” with. They may believe it, that is for sure, but most Americans don’t. DOJ and the subagencies have the power to destroy lives, launch politically motivated investigations, look the other way or throw the book at somebody. And they do. They need to be kept on the shortest of leashes and prosecuted vigorously when they play games.
Nobody ever get punished for anything among career denizens of the establishment. The opposite is true, book deals and TV gigs and politically connected jobs are the reward.
DC is beyond reform. Need to start over.
Actually no trump you do not have a”legal right” to interfere in federal criminal cases. Read the Constitution. There is something called separation of powers. Legislative, executive, and judicial.
6
Actually, the Justice Department is part of the executive branch, not judicial (that’s the courts). So, technically, The AG does report to the president, and that’s why Trump has always thought he had a right to tell the AG what to do. He is under the mistaken impression that the AG is his lawyer, not the People’s. This was the source of his frustration with Jeff Sessions, and his venom against James Comey. Trump has been grinding this ax since he was sworn into office.
4
To NYT readers: “activity isn’t action”
I see a lot of doom, gloom, and pontification in these comments pages. I sincerely hope that all of you who choose to comment about how bad things are getting will also actively work in your communities between now and Election Day to convince everyone to vote this guy and his party out of office. Otherwise, you’re part of the problem - not the solution.
3
This can all go away with YOUR VOTE in November!
8
The White House is simply a vengeance machine now.
11
Pretty soon he will claim the right to change the score of every Little League ballgame in the country.
18
It is truly amazing (and horrifying) how easily a single person can destabilize, degrade, and disable a seemingly solid and enduring democracy. Trump is like a virulent bacterium that gets into the system. If it is caught early and fought aggressively with the right antibiotics, it can be defeated. If, instead, it is allowed to remain in the system and spread, before long the whole body is so sick there is simply no curing it.
35
This isn’t being done by one person. Trump has a whole lot of enablers, who have been trying to create an imperial presidency since at least the George W Bush administration. They all need to be swept out of power before we can breathe free again.
4
The idea that Attorney General Barr, a member of the President’s Cabinet, a person who serves at the pleasure of the President, would publicly admonish his boss like he is a misbehaving teenager, is surreal. Knowing how Trump would react to insults like this and the fact he did not, screams set-up.
26
Speaking of disgrace ! This man has so far exceeded that antique word that it becomes a real challenge to come up with appropriate words.
Leaving that aside there is the important topic of the claim that he-the imposter in the white house, has the power to do this or that- withouth limit.
Fact is that he can do whatever he wants in any field of government or private life that he chooses. That view of presidential power has been affirmed by the legal consul for the president during the impeachment hearings and ratified by the GOP's refusal to take any action against him.
Of course the investigations into this campiagn and its clear conpiracy with Russia, was well founded as has been established time and again.
Trump must make it all vanish, obsessed as he is about the facts of the matter and the cloud that will forever taint his presidency.
He will do what ever it takes to make that happen before the next election.
Any use of power at all, without limit! This is in fact the Trump view of his role in our countries life. If that sounds like madness it is.
The implications are clear.
Intervaining in legal actions against persons who were involved in conspriracies with you, as in this case, is not just a abuse of power, it is the total lawlessness of a madman. He should not have been allowed to get within spitting distance of public office, or indeed polite company.
History is going to view those in the tank for Trump very badly.
11
Come on. He’s the head of the Executive Branch, which includes the DOJ. Obvious.
@Bill Yelenak
The Executive Branch is charged with executing the laws. It is not above the law. Big difference--which is not obvious to all of us. In addition to abuse of power, conventional crimes are in play here, e.g., jury intimidation, prosecutorial misconduct, threatening the judge.
12
@Bill Yelenak He can nominate judges and AGs and ask the AG to resign, that's it. Judges are impeached by congress. He can pardon but not adjust sentences.
1
Maybe Barr suddenly realized that John Mitchel, Nixon's AG, was disbarred and sentenced to 3 years in prison, and thought he should not himself in position for a similar outcome.
11
@John Mardinly
Some 40+ Nixon staffers, lawyers among them, spent time in a federal prison. Cheerful thought.
8
@Robert 48!
1
Barr only rebuked Trump for confirming in tweets what we all know: that Barr is working theses cases for Trump's favors. Barr has been doing this from the beginning, it's only Trump outing him that is making this difficult due to the public backlash. if Barr could continue to quietly influence all these cases, he would not be complaining. People, we are going down. Get your bunkers ready.
4
Trump never learns. He's not a lawyer. He technically has a college diploma, I guess, but probably hasn't read anything since graduation. So now he's Mr. "Legal Right." He's a malevolent Chance the Gardener from "Being There." Look it up, young'uns.
9
If you don't consider Barr's "rebuke" of Trump on Thursday a staged display, essentially scripted with and for Trump, please reconsider.
18
“This doesn’t mean that I do not have, as President, the legal right to do so, I do, but I have so far chosen not to!” he said.
He's talking of interference in Stone's case, of course. If Trump wan't such a pathological liar, we could actually give him the benefit of the doubt because of his abysmal ignorance. If he reads this post, he might actually like it. Such is the POTUS.
4
This a a Barr/Trump Dog 'n Pony Show. Trump is trying to boost Barr as an independent AG to give him cover for the eventual reduced sentences to Flynn and Stone. What a bunch of gangsters.
8
It looks like Trump needs to be impeached again.
14
Sigh, Trump opining again on things he has no knowledge, training, or understanding of...
12
Just compare Emperor Trump comments with the dialog of Col. Jessep in "A Few Good Men".
"You need me on the wall"
"Yes, I ordered the 'Code Red'"
"I was only doing my job"
"My existence while grotesque and incomprehensible, to you, saves lives"
And from certified a 'bone-spur coward' comes, "Whose gonna do it you, you lieutenant Weinberg?"
"You're Fired"
4
If Barr is still employed, then it proves that he and Trump are in cahoots. Trump has not had his usual knee-jerk reaction. WHO do they think they are fooling ?
12
Keep talking people.... November we need to vote him out!!!!
6
Rewrite- In matters of criminal justice, I trust a jury's verdict more than I trust Trump's "verdict."
3
Enjoy the semantics.
Remember Bill Clinton / Mark Rich.
Trump is a megalomaniac, there's only one way to stop him and the democrats are giving a masterclass in disunity. Frightening. Ah well, I guess my children will get used to totalitarian life, because we've just given up haven't we?
3
Anyone else got a problem with this?
3
Don Trump puts me in mind of an old foxhound I used to have, name of Governor Dobbs. Old Gov' had a voice like a twelve dollar bugle, and he loved to use it. Seems like he just wasn't happy enough to live, unless he could tell everybody what to do. Got to where every time I turned him lose in the pack, he'd start giving tongue, whether he picked up the scent or not, just to prove he was top dog. Some folks are like hounds in that respect I reckon. Trouble was, when it come to trailing, old Gov' never did know a buck rabbit from a bumble bee. You know what that fool dog did? He led the whole pack plum into a flock of skunks. I guess Don Trump will have to kick up an almighty big stink before he learns his lesson.
3
It makes me ill to merely think about what might be happening out of eyeshot.
6
Barr's feigned outrage and disingenuous muscle flexing is now almost 24 hours old. Why no vituperative, ad hominem response to Barr by the small minded occupant of the WH?
7
The genesis of America's KGB.... dissenters beware!
5
Article 3 is not a blank check
When will the lawlessness stop
4
"Empire abroad entails tyranny at home"
Hannah Arendt (to her own German people)
2
NYT Please Advise: Given...
...the perilous trajectories of our country and planet,
…the criminal acts committed by Trump,
...the impeachment of Trump in the House,
...the sham trial of Trump in the Senate,
…and Trump’s new level of lawlessness…
...at what point does the NYT take the lead, as one of the nation’s most respected news organizations, and call for Trump’s resignation (without the benefit of a Pence pardon)?
Thank you.
+++++++++++++++
FYI: A bit of history from Wikipedia:
Impeachment Process Against Richard Nixon
On November 4, 1973, Senator Edward Brooke became the first congressional Republican to publicly urge President Nixon to resign. That same week, several newspapers, including The Atlanta Journal, The Denver Post, The Detroit News and The New York Times, published editorials also urging him to resign. Time magazine, in the first editorial in 50 years of publication, did so as well, declaring that the president "has irredeemably lost his moral authority" to govern effectively, and that Nixon "and the nation have passed a tragic point of no return."
6
What good would it do?
He only gets his news from Fox.
1
Remember, Eric Holder said he was Obama’s “wingman.” Look that word up and it’s clear Barr and Trump are nowhere near that kind of “I do what the Prez says” relationship.
1
A waking nightmare...
3
He also has the right of jus primae noctis, doesn't he?
1
You have ALL the rights you want, Dear King.
Whatever you want to do.
We can't investigate, prosecute, indict, nor impeached you.
You are surely above the law.
Soon we will change the country name to reflect our subordination to your majesty: The United States of Trumps.
I know you don't read anything, but I regret to inform you the clowns at FIX News are not telling you the truth about aspiring dictators in the past, like Benito Mussolini or Gaddafi.
So, please be aware. Be very aware.
2
Give this president an inch - he will take a mile - some think they are getting the results they want - so they don’t care - I hope he is not allowed to continue to do whatever he desires or next thing you know - he will become a leader like his idols in Russia, China, Philippines, and Turkey and then it will be to late for us!
6
Easy peasy impeach Barr, Mnuchin and everyone else at lower levels like any gang prosecution start from the bottom, work your way up. Make the GOP overtly protect a criminal at the very least
3
After the Senate vote on Impeachment, its now "Trump. unchained" looper by the day.
3
Make Dictatorship Great Again !
November 3 2020
Register
Vote
Save America.
6
Trump has the delusional conviction that US democratic institutions are just like real estate con jobs and his ‘founding father’ is Roy Cohn.
Tough guy posturing by an ignorant fraudulent man requires utter defiance as though this indicates strength & authority. What a grotesque travesty- perhaps the overreach that will sink him.
4
The President has the legal right to be a complete jerk and interfere with justice, the rule of law, and the price of French wine. And being a complete jerk is, sadly, not an impeachable offense.
Happy Valentine's Day.
1
The views of the New York City Bar Association of Trump's interference with judicial process:
https://www.nycbar.org/media-listing/media/detail/prosecution-of-roger-stone-and-related-actions-by-the-department-of-justice
We have a full-on dictator on our hands.
2
Can we impeach him again?
4
The President's interference in a federal prosecution violates the Constitutional guarantee of equal protection of law. The President's interference creates a two-tiered system of justice where his friends get preferential treatment while others go through the system. This is no different and petty than a Mayor of a city asking the police not to issue a traffic ticket to a supporter.
8
I hate to point out the obvious, but until and unless someone of statemanship and courage stands up to him and erects the constitutional barriers that are supposed to exist between the three branches, our democracy will continue to be subverted by someone with Mussolini-like tendencies. It is still not too late, but at some point soon it will be, as anyone knows who has even made a cursory study of the history of the opening and closing of even the greatest of great societies.
12
@Christopher: The Republican Senate delegation could resign en masse to atone for its rank idiocy to decapitate the House.
1
@Christopher The senate had that chance. Now no one is coming to save us. The vote remains of course.
I cannot believe how naive people are to believe that Barr's comments were a 'rebuke' of Mr. Trump and his tweets. Listen to Barr carefully. His first complaints (about his inability to do his job) are against Congress and editorials by the press. Only at the END of his comments does he mention, almost parenthetically, tweets by Mr. Trump. His speech was totally orchestrated with Trump in preparation for his appearance before the House Judiciary Committee where he will, undoubtedly, state that he is not controlled by Trump and he will reference as evidence of that his ABC interview. Come on folks, pay attention to what he actually does - NOT what he says!!
18
@Dannydarlin: Barr works for the God he sees reflected in still waters.
1
@Dannydarlin Of course this is the case. Maybe this was a test to see how gullible are the press in this country. Those who unquestioningly follow Herr trump's lead are already on his side. It's those who see the damage being done and don't approve who are being conned by this charade of independence.
2
Good grief. He’s just daring us to stand up and throw him out in November. How many more reasons do we need?
6
As far as I can tell, Barr "rebuked" Trump only for *advertising* their joint subversion of the Justice Department.
9
@Bluesq: Barr rebukes for God. Gods supposedly sends in people like him to instill fear of wrathful immortals.
Appropriately unflattering Trump photo, as always.
Speaking of which:
Given that Trump is not O.K. "upstairs" (if you know what I mean), I've long wondered why he makes so many "O.K." signs.
6
@Ken: He also concludes most sentences with "Okay?" . He assumes you agree if you don't interrupt him right away.
2
I think the stagecraft by Barr is only meant to throw sand in the eyes of any Trump supporters that were suspicious and could consider defecting before the election. The thugs in the White House know there’s no fooling the majority about corrupt intent, corrupt acts and criminal enterprises. They don’t care if the majority knows and is inflamed as long as the majority is powerless and the minority is blind, deceived and ignorant that they are equally victims here.
Senator Collins: Does this look and sound like a president who has “learned his lesson”? He is what he is and always will be. Shame on you and other Senate Republicans for acquitting and enabling him. Hopefully, in November you will be sent packing so you can learn your lesson.
9
@ASD32: In all my years of listening to Susan Collins, I've heard no evidence she learns anything.
2
A Norton (Art Carney) was quoted: "Ralphie boy, we have reached a new plateau...sheesh."
trump hates laws, has probably never read the constitution and, even if he had, surely cannot understand it and really isn't interested in being an american president. what he is seeking is his idol's quasi presidency, putin. trump has taken over the doj, the epa and other institutions because they get in his and his cronies' way. trump yearns to be a fascist and gets closer and closer to being one after the sycophantic minions of his republicans in the senate gave him what he wanted - no restrictions. it is being seen every day since that debacle in the senate's vote to acquit trump of his wrong doings. and it won't stop until he is out, one way or another.
3
Mike Bloomberg is the only candidate who can go toe-to-toe with El Jefe.
Bernie will just be caricatured into a raving Socialist lunatic.
Biden has too much "Ukraine" baggage now, and the press will jump on him with "Why not appear before the Senate?" all year long.
Nobody knows who Klobuchar is, or Warren, or even care for that matter...both will be portrayed as Hillary-Bernie 'lites".
Mayor Pete...too young, inexperienced and his orientation may work against him and God only knows what kind of ridicule he may have to endure.
Are these really the folks we want going up against a billion-dollar wannabe dictator, sure to eclipse all previous campaign spending records? This is what is known as "fighting fire with fire".
Bloomberg will be proclaimed a RINO in DINO clothing, which is most likely true but he has proven he can stand up to Dumber on all his turfs, literally.
We can worry about policing Bloomberg later (the GOP will be more than willing to impeach him if the time comes). Bloomberg is our best hope for drawing disaffected Trump voters who know he's out of control and isn't fooling them.
Apologies to Michael Moore and Elizabeth Warren but it will have to be MB in 2020, because this time it is a Fight for The Future.
5
@Monterey Totally agree and think Bloomberg could take Texas. And with Texas we could get our country back.
2
@Monterey. I respectfully disagree. Trump has been calling Bernie a crazy socialist for years, as have his supporters. And look how much support Bernie has today? And growing.
You’re betting that if Bernie’s the nominee, all the moderates will stay home or vote third party. And yet most moderates would rather vote for a ham sandwich than Trump. All I keep hearing from them is “vote blue no matter who.” Perhaps it’s maturity.
If Bloomberg is the nominee, the Bernie supporters very likely WILL stay home or vote third party, because they did in the past, and they all seem to be talking that way again. They absolutely hate the idea of “vote blue no matter who.”
1
@Jordan F Then it's a matter of who outnumbers who, disaffected Trump voters or Bernie Bros. I am betting those who voted for El Jefe out of frustration have not lost their minds and realize Jefe is not the answer, Those folks are more likely to vote MB than Bernie, and most likely outnumber the BB's. Loss of the BB's did not cost Hillary the election, loss of black voters did. Bloomberg is reaching out to the black community and apologizing, something EJ would never do.
You take a chance either way but current polls show MB and Warren even. These are numbers that can only increase as Bloomberg pours on the media offense and the field narrows to Super Tuesday, and beyond (while Warren's numbers have only declined since her peak). We will see, but I don't think Bernie's support is as strong as 2016, and Trump hasn't come at him full-throated, yet.
The truth of the matter is when will Republican's see the defaults including lying or more politely fibbing ,public cursing even at a National Prayer Meeting and other misdeeds of this President ?
The man Trump is unhinged and I hope in time we have a Psychiatrist in residence at the White House.
2
If the US administration was any good, son of the real estate developer had been interned long time ago.
1
Mr. Trump is wrong.
Mr. Trump is frequently wrong, frequently ill-informed, frequently willfully ignorant.
Yet Mr. Trump prattles on and on, demanding an ever larger audience to satisfy his insatiable need for attention.
But, in the end, Mr. Trump is still wrong. And no amount of narcissism will not make wrong right.
All of this gnashing of teeth, as if this is new. Trump is a liar. Barr is a liar. Seditionists both. It is clear and evident both are doing what they want when they want for whom they want. It seems no one is intent on stopping them. There is little sense of crisis, only mute rebuke, and no collective action or calls for such. Four prosecutors resign and the country, elected officials, career prosecutors—all of us—simply carry on as if this might all just “go away” on its own. America has near fallen.
3
Trump and his pirate ship are going to continue to run ramrod all over this country until enough Americans rise up and clean out this gang in November 2020. It's pretty obvious the U.S. Government is impotent to handle the assault of the Trump Administration.
We, as a country, die a little death every single day.
If you're in a RED state like I am, join your Democratic Party and help defeat your GOP Senators.
Senator Jim Risch, consider yourself on notice.
6
From an article entitled “Can the President control the Department of Justice” from the University of Alabama Law Review, October 18, 2018:
“In the first two hypotheticals posed by Part I, the Attorney General must disregard and disobey the President’s direction to indict a political opponent or to dismiss charges against a political ally because the Presi- dent’s motivations are partisan and because conventional prosecutorial norms and policies dictate a different result. The hard question, which we leave for another day, is posed by the last hypothetical, in which the President, pursuing legitimate foreign policy objectives, directs prosecutors to file espionage charges that are weak but supported by probable cause. This scenario creates a tension between the President’s enumerated power under the Constitution and the Attorney General’s implied authority under legislation. Here, some perceive, presidential preeminence is a necessity. Perhaps so. But absent such a powerful presidential claim of constitutional authority, history and policy suggest that prosecutors must answer to the law, not the President.”
4
@Glevine: The president is at liberty to present ostensible evidence of crimes to established investigative and prosecutorial agencies just like anyone else.
In addition to straightforward abuse of power, any number of conventional crimes are in play here, e.g., witness tampering, intimidating prosecutors, jury tampering, threatening judges, obstruction of justice, prosecutorial misconduct. It is noteworthy that Mr. Kushner's father spent time in prison for a couple of those. The Executive Branch is responsible for executing the laws but that doesn't make them above the law. That doesn't give them the right to weaponize the DOJ against their political adversaries, critics, or career professionals. According to our own system of democracy, the DOJ and its agencies are independent nonpartisan agencies. In that light, the DOJ is accountable to the people through the mechanism of Congressional oversight, so long as Congress does not abandon that Constitutional duty.
5
I never was a fan of Jeff Sessions, but Barr makes Sessions look like a judicial Hall of Famer. When the House, Senate and White House are under a common majority, the law should be changed to establish some independence for the administration of justice. The Supreme Court could review cases, but the cases themselves should be insulated from intervention for the friends of Presidents.
4
The discussion, is nationwide, the power of "Officers of Court" i.e. that in fact we have at play a defacto, in and of itself, by way of the State Bar Associations, Officers of the Court, who in no way, shape or form, are being policed. These "Attorneys" are the ones that have negated our constitution, the Blame is not at Trumps' feet, he just "uses" said "Officers" to do his bidding; the blame is at those in charge of "policing" said "officers" and then refusing to do so. Dangerous precedent and practice is entrenched; I know of what I speak; as a media blackout whistleblower on a near 200M securities fraud with a morass of international law firms descending upon me in various proceedings, armed with out of court "stipulations" and non consideration "NDA's" upon my co founders; I have documented near 11 years of "Officers" un policed, over a 20 year period that enabled this fraud upon all the founders; we as U.S. Citizens are Founders of the Constitution in 2020; what have we found? Who will make a finding? Who controls the act of "finding"? What is the collective result?
3
@Hale: Judicial systems, at both state and federal levels, are the least supervised agencies common citizens come into contact with.
Here's a thought. The Attorney General should be elected. In New York state, we have that. The AG is independent of the governor.
7
@Jim Stevens: That would make a fourth political office subject to election at the federal level. How would that one be apportioned?
US Supreme Court Justice Kavanaugh and others on the Court shares Trumps view power under a "unitary executive" theory.
Democrats confirmed Judges with that legal view.
Media failed to educate them American public about what it meant and what the implications were.
We're now living with the consequences.
3
He is the beta tester of the constitution, and showing us all the failure modes. I am not a constitution expert, but have read that the constitution to a large extent on political norms and established principles. That still leaves a lot of room for someone who does not follow the norms.
2
I can't believe all the comments that amount to: He can do anything he is the president. He can do anything as the leader of the executive. (Odd, that was never true of a Democratic president, but oh well, we have a new game in town I guess.)
It is all based on a (boss's) broad interpretation of "The executive Power shall be vested in a President of the United States of America." since the Constitution doesn't spell out every possible meaning of "executive power".
However the Constitution does include limits on the office of president. First it requires the President to take and abide by an oath to "faithfully execute the Office" and to "preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States."
It also requires Congressional approval from the Senate for a number of appointments but says that congress shall decide which positions it will grant approval for the President to appoint directly. And he even has to report to Congress via State of the Union "information" where can "recommend to their Consideration such Measures as he shall judge necessary and expedient".
If there is a claim of expansive executive power there is also equal justification for Congressional oversight of the office. The Constitution clearly did not intend the President to be King. Especially after just defeating one. Any argument for a monarch king president is anti-patriotic at bast and traitorous at worse.
2
Republicans have a rather stark choice. Trump will give them every right wing program, law, policy, and judges which they want but the cost will be the rule of law is replaced by rule by whoever has the power to have their way. That means, retaining right wing Presidents, forever, and majorities of Republicans in Congress, forever. Without the rule of law, whoever has power can do as they wish. So either expel all Democrats and moderate to left independents from the country or get Trump out of office and restore the rule of law, very soon.
3
Before Trump can assert anything about presidential power, he needs to take and pass a test on the Constitution; then he needs to release his tax returns.
4
Now the question is , why bother mentioning the Constitution as the form and format for running our government when Donnie, the Menace, can walk all over it without getting reprimanded, arrested, jailed, impeached, removed from office or otherwise punished?
2
SInce the very beginning of his term in office Trump has employed the most right wing of erudite professionals and managed to alienate and drive them out of his administration. The reason is quite simple and it's not his bad manners as President, it's because he never learned to discipline his mind nor his behaviors. Trump has a native intelligence that is relatively high but he relies upon quick decision making without thoroughly considering consequences beyond his near term objectives and his database of knowledge is unusually sparse. He illustrates how ignorance and weak intellectual skills can diminish any human being's performance in demanding jobs where decisions must be made despite uncertainties.
1
If our government is not going to defend the Constitution in the face of an autocratic president intent on breaking all the laws and intents of this format for running our Nation for his own use, why have one? Either we have recourse to curtain Trump’s interpretation of what he or anyone can do outside the recognized design of this document for his own aggrandizement or we disband as a recognizable nation.
2
If Trump is denying having pressured the Justice Department related to cases that he has personal stake in... you had better believe he has already done exactly that.
Him saying “it wouldn’t be wrong had I done it” is just him moving the goalposts before evidence comes out that he had done what he denied. This has happened time and time again, most recently concerning his “perfect call” with the Ukrainians.
3
Forget that Bloomberg is a billionaire, that Sanders is a socialist, that Hunter Biden got millions from Ukraine and that South Bend is only the 5th largest city in Indiana. The only issue is that trump's conduct gets more and more outrageous and authoritarian and tools like Collins, Gardner, Graham and ringmaster McConnell are enabling law trump. Everyone who has enabled trump must be voted out to prevent the world from sliding into the dark ages.
5
I'd like to hear from a constitutional lawyer. I scoured Article II after reading some of the comments here and I see no granting of power to the president in judicial matters. However, it may be in some other place. If there's one good thing about this administration it has sent me to reading the Constitution almost every day.
3
OK but why would he need a "legal right"? Not having one has never stopped him before.
5
For the love of Pete, William Barr did NOT "publicly rebuke" Trump. Barr made some self-serving comments about how perfect he is -- a strong independent who stands up for right is right. And this newspaper acted as if it was true despite those self-serving comments occurring the day after career prosecutors resigned because of Barr's interference to help Trump's friend. Despite Trump thanking William Barr publicly for his help.
Despite this newspaper not being able to cite a single instance where Barr hasn't acted to protect the president. Instead, reporters keep mischaracterizing Barr asking Trump not to tweet about the help Barr gives him as a "rebuke".
What Barr says doesn't matter; what Barr DOES matters.
This newspaper used to know that about politicians.
2
Trump is wearing his bond with Barr thin, as he has with so many others, because he acts compulsively and inconsiderately. Barr like so many before him seems to have seen in Trump something which he thought would serve something he wanted but is becoming disillusioned with the man as he happens to be.
1
The smartest act would be for Judge Berman to declare a mis-trial and order a new trial for towards the end of this year thereby bringing the trial into 2021. Bloomberg will not pardon Stone.
1
"... Mr. Trump quoted Mr. Barr saying that the president has never asked me to do anything in a criminal case.' ..."
O boy. Here we go again. I didn't do it. In any case, if I had done it, it wouldn't be wrong. I did do it, everybody does it, get over it. This politically motivated interference in DOJ cases and these politically motivated attacks against exemplary career prosecutors are unambiguous violations of a vital linchpin of our democracy, namely, the nonpartisan independence of the DOJ and its law enforcement agencies. Madame Speaker: These are impeachable wrongdoings.
4
Like all American citizens, Donald J. Trump has a right under the First Amendment to say whatever is on his mind. However, as president, he's supposed to have the public good on his mind, not his petty political spasms. His public display of willingness to bully the attorney general, steer the operations of the Justice Department, and erode the separation of powers just reflects his ignorance of the Constitution and the outlandish size of his ego.
5
@David Behrman
"Like all American citizens, Donald J. Trump has a right under the First Amendment to say whatever is on his mind.'
That doesn't seem correct does it? The president may verbally threaten juries or judges, for instance?
2
If the President does have the right to interfere in DOJ cases and to actually influence them then the USA is no better than any other two-bit dictatorship.
Another crack in a deeply flawed Constitution.
3
Barr didn't rebuke Trump. He was telling Trump to stop telling the world about his corrupt actions, and "let him do his job" behind the scenes so the world can't see. You guys have to be able to understand the sub-language between Trump and his minions.
6
How soon before Trump claims the "legal right" to shoot someone on Fifth Avenue?
How soon after Trump claims that "legal right" does this newspaper run interviews with Republicans who explain that Trump does have that legal right, while those who say Trump does not have the legal right to shoot someone on Fifth Avenue are described only as "partisan Trump-haters".
William Barr did not rebuke Trump. William Barr gives a self-serving interview about how independent he is and tells Trump that his tweeting is interfering with his doing what he plans to do (which just happens to be exactly what Trump wants, although no mention of that in any story since this newspaper is pushing the narrative of Barr's "independence" now.)
2
Day by day, Trump is acting more and more authoritarian and dictator like.
This latest move of his takes him one step closer, this is what Jong Un and Ergodan would do.
What is the point of having Federal courts and judges if Trump is going to overrule every decision that goes against him or his "friends" and "allies" - let's face it, how many friends and allies does he have?
Soon he will start replacing judges who rule against his wishes with those that do as he already has the DOJ in his pocket.
With this latest move, and cleaning out the WH of the last remnants of any ethical people and replacing them with yes men and sycophants, having total control over the Republican party, Trump is totally out of control and unstoppable.
The only way to stop him is for VP Pence to invoke the 25th with the help of 13 members of Cabinet, and that won't happen - Pence is complicit and has the power he needs as the leader of the evangelicals and religious right. The cabinet won't as they are there at Trump's whim and will lose their positions.
The WH that the world looked to for guidance, saw as a bastion of world security, and could rely on to do the right thing (in most cases) is now full of thugs and mafia wannabes.
If Melania could speak French, she wouldn't be out of place saying "Let them eat cake".
The WH is becoming a palace - America fought a war to get rid of one royal family, now they are getting another.
4
"You cannot amend the Constitution through persistent evasion."
-Mario Cuomo
I wish he was still around to witness the current horror show.
2
As a matter of political philosophy, the unitary corrupt executive makes kind of an awkward ideal.
2
The President has every right to do so. You elected him as President so by proxy you should be OK with this.
RS -- I didn't elect Trump. I can't stand Trump.
8
Less than half the country voted for Trump. I am not one of them. It was obvious from the beginning of him first running for Office, that there was/is something very wrong with him.
3
Last Tuesday, Trump asserted that he has an "absolute right" to tell the Justice Department what to do. But in an editorial on Feb. 12, 2020, the NYT said: "No, in fact, he does not. The Constitution compels the president, among other things, to 'take care that the laws be faithfully executed.'"
2
A King has every right to meddle in criminal judicial cases, and in anything else in which he chooses to involve himself. Who doesn't understand that? Surely the Attorney General of the United States understands what a King can and cannot do. That's Political Science 101. Dah....
2
"Whether it’s Congress, newspaper editorial boards or the president, I’m going to do what I think is right ..." W Barr
I think it's hilarious that everybody assumes Barr was primarily going after Trump --so much do we want to believe that there will be some knight in shining armor to finally "take him out," as our President so memorably put it in relation to Ambassador Maria Yovanovitch. The real targets of Barr's retaliatory remarks are the Democrats in Congress and those "newspaper editorial boards" that occasionally have the guts to issue condemnations of our corrupted DOJ, courtesy of Barr and Trump. Barr threw Trump in there to give his cover to his real targets -- no doubt he and Trump are having a good laugh over the whole thing, as the two of them continue to dismantle whatever rule of law is left within the executive branch and the DOJ, as we've seen again today.
4
I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the banana republic for which it stands . . .
5
For a nation of laws in which no one is above the law, the irony is that Trump's litigiousness in challenging this principle seems likely to completely bring the nation to a grinding halt. What will it take to flush this office and get on with the real challenges of global warming and an aging demography? Or am I missing something more important?
14
We are getting to explore like never before, what behaviors by the executive branch of government violate the Consitution and the rule of law. I am amazed how some people who no doubt regard themselves as possessing critical reasoning skills, think they are acting within the law. The overwhelming majority of constitutional, legal and ethics experts in the U.S. are shocked and opposed to what Trump is being allowed to get away with.
981
@AGoldstein
Trump is exercising power to act in defiance of the rule of law. Simple. He is changing our liberal democracy into an illiberal one on the way to oligarchy under plutocrats and theocrats.
96
@AGoldstein
One thing's for sure: No Republican politician, no Republican voter, and certainly no Far Right media outlet that pays bozos like Rush Limburger, or Tucker, or the hundred other lunatics of the Deep Right (including McConnell) thinks Trump could or would ever be found guilty.
54
@AGoldstein
And yet republicans will find one who disagrees and trot them out.
23
Given his history, Trump has no credibility regarding what he asserts. Hence, when he says something about anybody we all should quietly laugh and find a way to ignore his rants. The basis of all healthy relationships is trust. Trust in family, in business relationships, in community, state and national politics is the glue and the oil that allows us to function. I experience this every day. Trump and his ilk in DC tear at this fundamental value and should be admonished often by the press, the democratic party and, especially the GOP - should they hope to regain any measure of respect from our citizens.
6
Trump is claiming legal rights that do not exist but nevertheless claiming them because he believes as president he is not only above the law, but he IS the law, that whatever he says or desires is the new law of the land.
We have an out of control megalomaniacal dictator in the White House backed wholly by a corrupt party completely in league with his insanity.
We in a slow-rolling revolution and we’d better realize its inertia will overwhelm us unless we act on it with an equally powerful force. It may be too little too late by November.
31
all play-acting by Trump and Barr to try to obfuscate illegitimate conduct on both their parts (overturning convictions of Trump's cronies).
8
As far as President Trump is concerned, the entire Department of Justice is the same as the restaurant staff at Mar-A-Lago. He thinks is an autocrat........... Barr functions as the head waiter.
16
Imagine the outcry if President Obama, had personally intervened in the many Black Lives Matter cases that went nowhere.
7
“When someone shows you who they are, believe them; the first time.” ― Maya Angelou
20
Donald Trump is a loose cannonball, careening and caroming about the decks of the USS Constitution. He and his cabal of right wing extremists are mowing down our international alliances and infrastructure. He and these political henchmen are destroying our State Department, our Department of Justice, our EPA and all our other federal institutions. He has just stolen another $4 billion (his "Right", he proclaims) from the US military budget to pay off his contractor friends for building his stupid "Wall".
This must end on November 2nd. Otherwise, the country we love "... shall perish from this earth.".
11
This is the dumbest narrative I’ve heard, which is basically that the President has no right to express his opinion on, or intercede if necessary, in the work that is conducted in the various Executive Branch agencies that report to him.
1
Is it as dumb as being unable to distinguish shooting your mouth off from expressing an intelligent view or showing the self-disciplineexpected of an adult, or being unable to understand that the President ain’t spozed to be using the Justice Department to go after people he hallucinates are his enemies and to reward people he hangs around and steals with?
Is it as dumb as thinking that we need a tinpot dictator running this country?
2
@Robert
We live in a weird “fascist dictatorship” where only the “Dictator’s” family, friends and associates get hounded and persecuted and jailed, but none of his opponents.
Trump is a tyrant.
13
The tin-pot dictator speaks and Attorney General Barr listens.
15
People tend to forget that Trump, unlike previous so-called presidents, has a moral mandate from the Higher Power to do as he does. Thank you.
1
You are sarcastic, please
With trumpers it’s sometimes hard to tell
4
@Southern Boy And who might that Higher Power be? Vladimir Putin?
4
@Lucille Caliendo No, he's serious. He has drunk the Kool-Aid as his previous posts have shown. He's a believer.
2
Barr has been undercutting himself for so long, that it rings hollow that he now claims it is Trump who is undercutting him.
7
Classic Good Cop Bad Cop routine.
8
Sure! Without any laws in place why not? Oh, wait a minute...we do have laws in place. Sad. Very, sad...
5
The swamp is gone. We are living in a toxic waste dump, aka the Trump administration.
15
My main civic task in 2020 is to register young people (broadly defined) to vote in my state. A related task is to get others to do this vital, vital work also.
I implore folks who are commenting today to take up this work in 2020. Also, when they are out in society, attend community meetings, go to their churches and temples, and see their neighbors and younger people in their families to urge these people to vote.
Our precious country is under siege, bit by bit, day by day, drop by drop. We must rise up.
11
Come on, people. This is all just cooked up between Barr and trump. Just a show.
29
@Vivien: If I want a soap opera, I'll watch "The Young & the Restless."
2
You think the party of the Constitution would care about the rule of law. Then I remember that for the GOP the Constitution begins and ends at the 2nd Amendment.
What an embarrassment this country is.
36
What a hoot, the unlawful president claiming he has the lawful right to interfere in Justice Department cases.
That's entertainment! This administration truly is a laugh a minute!
Shucks, we're going to miss it after November. Woo, hoo...
20
Actually, no, he may not interfere with the justice system. As I read the Constitution, the president is a citizen with rights and privileges (except for Franking and pardons) equal to the rest of us. None of us has the right to interfere with the judicial system. In fact, the president swore an oath to UPHOLD the laws. That is not the same as administering the laws or applying the laws. Aside from his ability to provide a pardon (which confirms the guilt of the pardoned party) he has no other right to interfere with the administration of justice. But in order to know this, Mr. Trump would have to read the Constitution and understand the Constitution. I doubt he has read it and am confident he does not understand it. In fact, he gets away with breaking the law on a regular basis, so he is convinced that his way is the norm.
15
@MPS: " I don't see any evidence of response to the "So help me God" these folks swear to. Do you?
1
There's an old saying that goes, "It's always darkest before the dawn". And that dawn often comes in the form of a human being - a savior. Well, I'll tell you, if this country ever needed a savior, it's now. Because, in my 54 years of living in these United States, I've never seen it darker than it is right now.
24
The problem is, his backers think he’s the savior
1
@Chicago Guy: Who can afford to stage descending from the sky on a cloud? Mike Bloomberg?
In-saaaane! If Crazy Eddy had run for President and won, or sort of won -- we would be hearing this all the time. Oh wait, we are....
9
Still wonder how Americans can withstand this juvenile, arrogant, ego maniacal President. If it was in some other country the US would be calling him madman and tyrant and preparing to bomb his country to smithereens.
US doesn't practice what it preaches.
21
What President has not? Iran Contra, White Water, IRS Tea Party scandal etc..... were all influenced by Presidents.
1
Hey, President Trump... to which office in your Administration does Andrew McCabe go to get his good name back?
14
While a president may have that 'right', per se, it absurd that he/she should be able to wield it only for friends and political allies where there is clearly a conflict of interest. It completely undermines the concept of 'due process' - something that Trump was all about, going into the House impeachment investigation..
He wasn't in the court room for Stone's trial, didn't hear the testimony of witnesses or review any of the evidence presented for or against or transcripts (because - as he's said - he doesn't read), so his derogatory comments about the charges, the conduct of the trial, the judge and the sentence have no foundation in fact, reason or reality.
The notion that THIS president in particular gets to say what's fair or just, lawful or not on a whim.... because it suits him, it's politically expedient or just good theater should truly frighten us all.
8
The Federal government, the Executive branch, seems out of control.
If the Federal government wishes to destroy itself, our system of government here in California has a right of self-preservation and defense, I would think.
3
If we do manage to recover our republic post-Trump, I recommend we
1)amend the Constitution walling the Executive from the Justice Department and the administration of justice generally.
2) Include that the President appoints the Attorney General from among those who have served as US attorneys.
3) The Attorney General be the only politically appointed officer at the Justice Department
4) That the President can be both investigated and indicted while President. Any President convicted of a felony, is automatically removed from office and replaced by the Vice-President
Let's face reality on point 4, and going forward, if we have the type of President who is indicted, that person should be prosecuted and then convicted, and forfeit the office.
The impeachment mechanism within the Constitution looks good on paper, very official, lots of pomp, but just doesn't work. Having it handled by Congress is just too political and too tribal in today's atmosphere.
9
@DJ Kaminsky 100% agree on all points. Rep or Dem President, they should all be treated equally.
I also agree that some mechanism to "wall off" the Justice Dept from undue influence from any elected official/person is critical.
Trump’s psychological state presents an imminent danger to America and to the world. So say a group of 650 psychiatrists, who recently submitted a petition to the House Judiciary Committee. https://dangerouscase.org/petition-to-the-judiciary-committee/
This is a key passage:
“What makes Donald Trump so dangerous is the brittleness of his sense of worth. Any slight or criticism is experienced as a humiliation and degradation. To cope with the resultant hollow and empty feeling, he reacts with what is referred to as narcissistic rage. He is unable to take responsibility for any error, mistake, or failing. His default in that situation is to blame others and to attack the perceived source of his humiliation. These attacks of narcissistic rage can be brutal and destructive.”
Unfortunately, Trump's outbursts are likely to get worse.
23
Whom does Barr think he is fooling with his comments? If he had upset Trump, he would be out of a job.
Barr’s greatest obstacle to do Trump’ s bidding is Trump’s need to I remind the public of his power to do what he wants.
4
Here is where the word “Fake” is used correctly.
Barr’s “ rebuke” of Trump, is surely a fake rebuke.
11
Stop this crazy go round, please.
8
Why can't he Just Shut Up?
The WH issued a statement last night that made me think they understood the worth of Barr's remarks.
But, naturally, Trump couldn't/wouldn't shut up. He HAD to assert his authority. He HAD to strike back. Even against his biggest toady.
I wonder what Barr thinks of Trump's response, being as he just got Trump's middle finger right in his face.
I read another story today about Trump flying into a screaming rage in a call with Boris Johnson. (Boris was apparently so disturbed by this that he cancelled an upcoming trip to the US.)
Sorry, folks, but this is clearly dementia in action. And it's only going to get worse.
14
Remember Donald J Trump;the J stands for jenius.
9
How do you spell fascism?
I spell it
t r u m p
20
Look at what you have brought us republicans.This is on you.We have a new King and his name is putin.King putin has a lap dog jester named trumpski
9
And isn't this precisely the problem? A democratic society is one that is governed by laws, but also by norms: there are some things that should not be done. It is arguably the case that the President has the power to direct certain operations within the DOJ. However, it is always possible that a legal action is being undertaken for corrupt means. That is why the power of impeachment was given to the Congress: to hold a president accountable for actions that are both legal and corrupt.
2
Since when does a sitting US President, have a right to undermine and obstruct, the US legal system?
Trump’s ongoing and blatant contempt of court, shows Trump is ignoring his oath of office on a daily basis.
5
@Barry of Nambucca And he has been since he was elected.
1
Capitulating to Trump's assertion (that he has the legal right to interfere) is to change our system of governance. Trump, who has benefitted from our system, is foolish to want it changed; if the DOJ becomes politicized, he will surely be persecuted as well as prosecuted once out of office.
Trump has never understood that just because the presidency gives him the power to do something, he is not entitled to do it whenever, and for whatever reason, he likes.
You can't abuse power if you don't have the power to begin with. That doesn't make malfeasance permissible or acceptable, especially when it's done for personal gain or to cover up illegal or unethical behavior.
1
Perhaps, most representative of Trump's thoughts is a long ago interview by Oriana Fallaci of the strongman of South Vietnam General Nguyen Thieu.
THIEU: Voyez bien, Mademoiselle, anything I do I like to do well. Whether its being CONVERTED, or playing tennis, or riding a horse, or holding office...... That's why I am always the one to decide. ALWAYS! I may listen to others suggest some decision, and then make the opposite decision. Oui, c'est moi qui decide... Mademoiselle, ask me this question " Who's the Chief here?"
FALLACI: "Who's the Chief here?"
THIEU: I am! I'm the Chief! Moi! C'est Moi le Chief!
Thieu's reference to conversion was like Trump's dalliance with the Republican evangelicals, somewhat phony. Thieu converted from being a Buddhist to a Catholic only for political expediency when noted Catholic Diem ruled.
However, unlike Trump, Thieu rose from a somewhat impoverished family and served in combat which makes even Thieu tower above Trump.
1
Is there no limit to what this guy will do or attempt to do? The guard rails are burnt. So with an approving gop (except perhaps Romney) the sky's the limit in his brain.
As for that "rebuke" from the US AG - as someone else suggested, that was code for "quit tweeting. I know what you want me to do. Next time just make a phone call. Don't broadcast it all over twitter."
Please America - end this idiocy by voting in November. Congress can't get it done. It's up to us now.
3
Paging Susan Collins! Paging Lamar Alexander! Paging all of those stooges in the GOP who are sitting around while democracy BURNS!
I truly hope you’re all happy with yourselves and you all lose your reelection campaigns or have your retirements ruined by guilt!
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Just I think I couldn't find trump more despicable he out does himself. VOTE HIM OUT OF OFFICE!!!
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Barr is already interfering in Flynn's case.
Choen can't be far off.
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A legal right if this is Turkey and your name is Erdogan, or if this is Hungary and your name is Orban. Or if this is North Korea and your name is Kim Jong-Un. Or this is 1970s Uganda and your name is Idi Amin. Pick an autocrat, any autocrat. Autocrats R Us now. That’s not what the Constitution seemed to be about when they were teaching it in grade school but what do I know? I’m just an American citizen. The GOP seems to have rewritten it to benefit someone else.
4
Well, remember that republic that Franklin stated we have if we can keep it... it was quaint while it lasted for we have now crossed the threshold of banana republic, dictatorship...
What amazes me are the throngs that cheer on this crap. Like it is some sort of WWE event. This matters. This is our lives and our country.
4
"As President, I have every right to ignore election results", Donald Trump, November 4th, 2020.
And Mitch McConnell will agree, saying, "We need to give the people a second chance to express their voices!"
Will the American people stand up against this dictator before it's too late? The answer is, it's already too late.
Trump WILL rig the next election, or refuse to honor the results. Mitch McConnell will back him up. Trump will prevail. And term limits will be abolished for the presidency, and Donald Trump will become president for life.
End of story.
And the end of a democracy will all thought was impervious to a non-violent coup d'etat which would result in the installation of our first dictator.
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Or, Trump will manufacture a national civil conflict, declare marshall law, and stay forever. God help us all!
3
"Traditions" or "rules" which one is it? Are there "Laws" on the books or not? Let's create some laws so we don't have to rely on the tender mercies of our leaders. All these loop holes were put in place so people of power had choices, and they all had their wink/wink "norms" that regular people had no access to. So can we talk about a system of laws instead of a system of "gentlemen's agreements"?
1
The POTUS is in charge of all three branches of government, and can do whatever he wants, right? Woe to us for eliminating civics from our secondary education curriculum. The framers, with all of their human flaws, were reasonable men whom believed that government would be such that checks and balances would prevent abuses of power and most feared, the election of an incumbent whom acted as a monarch. This Republican party, way more than the Democratic, have sadly shown the framers wrong. Collusion is a powerful corrupting mechanism and today we have a Senate and an Executive Office that have colluded not only to obviate the constitution but to eviscerate common sense and decency while so successfully bifurcating the nation that certain Trump supporters wear t-shirts emblazoned with, "I'd rather be a Russian than a Democrat."
I do appreciate the NYT comments group for picking opposing views to the majority of commenters even though I am not certain as to whether they are presented for comic relief or just to show us how equivocal and indefensible the arguments supporting Trump have become.
11
I am fearful for the rights of all but a few Americans. The autocracy is hitting its stride. Democracy is at death's door.
4