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Trump and a “Man For All Seasons”
To my never-Trump friends: This National Review piece by Bradley Smith is important. He outlines the reasons why there is no campaign finance violation to which Cohen is, nonetheless, pleading guilty. It is an instructive read in toto, but please also focus on this cautionary summary:
In short, Michael Cohen is pleading guilty to something that isn’t a crime. Of course, people will do that when a zealous prosecutor is threatening them with decades in prison. But his admissions are not binding on President Trump, and Trump should fight these charges ferociously.
Many Americans have convinced themselves that Trump is a uniquely dangerous and bad man, such that any available tool should be used to expel him from office. But in that way lies the bigger threat to our democracy and rule of law.
In A Man for All Seasons, Sir Thomas More’s future son-in-law, Roper, states that he would “cut down every law in England” if it would enable him to catch the devil. To which More responds,
And when the last law was down, and the Devil turned ’round on you, where would you hide, Roper, the laws all being flat? This country is planted thick with laws, from coast to coast, Man’s laws, not God’s! And if you cut them down, and you’re just the man to do it, do you really think you could stand upright in the winds that would blow then? Yes, I’d give the Devil benefit of law, for my own safety’s sake!
We do ourselves no service by distorting and misapplying our campaign-finance laws in the hope of bagging Donald Trump.
When those of us who are railing against the Mueller investigation post it is too often regarded as “Trump lovers” protecting “their guy”. That is not true of me. I want to protect the constitutional system that, it appears, too many are willing to jettison just to get Trump.
Published in General
Exploiting to what end?
I think Trump will move early next year. We’ll see what the reaction is. The Democrats are crazy on a regular day, see what happens when there’s some real action.
You would think Americans would understand this. We have a Congress filled with uninformed Americans.
So, the American people are the problem?
Trump will move to do what?
Sessions turned out to be a dud when what we all needed was a stud. Who knew? Not me – I was persuaded at the time that Sessions would rock and roll. Then he recused himself on the biggest issue facing his department because….. I’m still not sure why he recused himself.
Necessitated? In what way? By which statute?
Comey earned his poop-canning fair and square. Everyone thought so until they figured they could benefit from his firing and also use it as a weapon against Trump at the same time.
BS. This would not have been brought against anyone except that now everyone is in a fever of Resistance. Do you really think the dysfunction at the DOJ is because of verbal Twitter abuse from President Trump. Seems to me more like resignations, resignations, and referrals for criminal investigation. From Strzok to McCabe to Comey to Rosenstein to Mueller to Sessions – are you claiming that this leadership would have been stellar if not for President Trump’s “juvenile abuse”?
Oh nothing. They used their time wisely and to the fullest in every way.
Sessions was undermined by Trump. He recused himself because he failed to tell the Senate about meetings he had with Russian officials when asked. His recusal was a nonissue to everyone but Trump who is under the illusion the AG is supposed to act as a personal attorney for the President.
Necessitated by Trump publicly claiming to fire the Director of the FBI because of the Russia investigation. You can believe Comey deserved to be fired but Trump opening his yap on TV made it difficult to argue it was not done in order to obstruct an investigation into the President’s actions.
Jeff Sessions and Rod Rosenstein were appointed by Trump and they led the DOJ, not Mueller, Strzok, McCabe, or Comey. Any ability they had to properly lead the Dept was undermined by Trump and his temper tantrums.
The US Attorney who brought the case against Cohen was also appointed by Trump.
Is this your way of admitting there is nothing of relevance to this situation they failed to do?
I don’t think it was difficult at all to argue that it wasn’t to obstruct an investigation (itself based on nothing, with no definitive “crime”, with faulty methods, and with a clear political motive and provenance). But few even tried to argue it, so like everything else the R’s fold on we’ll never know what could have been. In any event, a special counsel certainly wasn’t necessitated by firing Comey. It was desired. By other people with involvement in the phony FISA applications who had previously already weaponized the IC, FBI, and other federal arms. By people who just hated Trump. By people who imagine themselves to be a gallant resistance instead of lawless narcissists.
Only if you ignore the public statement of the man who did the firing.
Yes I know. Having normal yet unremarkable and passing contact with anyone whose last name ends in “ov” and failing to remark on that under questioning relating to remarkable and relevant contacts is cause to cede control of the biggest issue confronting your new department and the country. Ceding control to the same people who had made major missteps and who were themselves involved in the crux of the matter. .
So, yes, it was a nonissue. So yes, it was all because Sessions refused to serve as Trump’s personal attorney. Nothing to see here except Orange Man Bad.
He was asked a fairly straight forward question and he did not answer it fully. And again, he “ceded control” to another Trump appointee.
Any ability Sessions had to properly lead the department was undermined by him recusing himself from the deepest and widest matter facing his department and the country. There would have been no “juvenile abuse” thrown his way had he not folded at the first sign of pressure. Rosenstein, on the other hand, was not undermined. He was involved (didn’t he sign some of those phony FISA applications?) and incompetent too.
For that matter, any ability Trump had to properly manage that department was undermined by major accusations and investigations and active Resistance.
As for Cohen – I don’t care about him. However, appointing someone is no guarantee they’ll be good at their job or that they’ll refrain from using their position improperly. After all Reagan appointed O’Connor and Bush appointed Souter. Appointees crap out some times.
Yup. Nothing anyone could have done.
Was there only one statement? What was the actual statement you’re relying on? The NY Times (no Trump defender) doesn’t offer any quote which supports your assertion.
Also, didn’t Comey admit to leaking and lying with the express intent of getting a special counsel?
First, the Russia investigation was hardly the “deepest and widest matter” facing the DOJ. It may have been the most politically sensitive but that would make Session’s recusal more proper.
Rosenstein signed a FISA application, the assertion it was somehow “phoney” is arguable at best. Rosenstein has been undermined repeatedly.
If Trump is unable to appoint people to effectively manage the DOJ, he is responsible for the dysfunction at the DOJ.
This post is about the Cohen case.
Hah! He didn’t answer fully… right away! But when he did we found out that his omitted contacts were unremarkable and ordinary and forgettable. No way we can let that guy do his job on the biggest and most important matter facing his department and the country.
Also, again, Sessions ceded control to another Trump appointee who was already involved in the crux of the matter. Are you claiming that the FISA application was legitimate? Besides, “appointee” is a starnge description for what happened with Rosenstein. He was a careerist, next in line or close to it. Under the circumstances Trump’s hands were tied.
https://www.nbcnews.com/nightly-news/video/i-was-going-to-fire-comey-anyway-trump-tells-lester-holt-in-interview-941538371971
Did he? Then Trump walked right into it.
You’re the one who brought up the “dysfunction at the top levels of the Justice Department, dysfunction for which Trump has largely himself to blame.” That’s more than just Cohen.
TFW you think snark hides ignorance.
Wow, that’s quite an admission. Either there was actually a there there in which case an elected president would have been involved in conspiring with Russia to steal the election, or there was nothing there and all of this was just ginned up in which case the most powerful arms of the federal government had been politically weaponized in a new, more blatant, and more ambitious way than ever before. Neither of those options are important beyond just politics? Neither of those options need a strong non-involved AG to suss out the truth and prosecute where needed?
He didn’t answer fully and when he did it was too late and he had already been confirmed. The only reasonable response other than resignation was recusal.
Rosenstein (who was undeniably nominated to his position by Trump) was not involved in the investigation other than oversight, same as he is with Mueller.
What’s the damning quote? I still don’t see the slam dunk you seem to think exists.