It was Rod Rosenstein who signed off on Mueller’s wish to raid Donald Trump’s personal attorney:
Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein personally gave the green light for the FBI to raid the hotel room and office of President Donald Trump’s longtime lawyer Michael Cohen on Monday, The New York Times first reported.
Rosenstein oversees special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation into Russia’s role in the 2016 election. The Cohen raid came, in part, from a referral from Mueller’s team.
The raid was executed by the office of the U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York. The man running that office, interim U.S. attorney Geoffrey Berman, is a Trump appointee whom the president personally met with when he was up for the job. Berman also donated $5,400 to Trump’s presidential campaign.
Alan Dershowitz called it “very dangerous”:
“This is a very dangerous day today for lawyer-client relations,” he added.
Dershowitz, who has drawn the ire of Democrats for defending Trump, said Mueller’s move is also dangerous because it gives the FBI the option of deciding what information seized from Cohen to pursue.
“I tell [clients] on my word of honor that what you tell me is sacrosanct,” he said. “And now they say, just based on probable cause … they can burst into the office, grab all the computers, and then give it to another FBI agent and say, ‘You’re the firewall. We want you now to read all these confidential communications, tell us which ones we can get and which ones we can’t get.'”
“If this were Hillary Clinton being investigated and they went into her lawyer’s office, the ACLU would be on every television station in America, jumping up and down,” he added.
The raid sought to obtain documents related to Stormy Daniels. Cohen has claimed he paid Daniels $130,000 for a non-disclosure agreement out of his own pocket and Trump has claimed to be ignorant of the action. It is thought that Mueller is looking to squeeze (and most likely bankrupt) Cohen into saying something – anything- true or not. Mueller will probably again threaten Cohen’s family as he did to Michael Flynn, but it is the violation of attorney-client privilege that is most concerning. Once that formerly immutable principle of the law is rendered meaningless the entire legal system is in jeopardy. The willingness of Rosenstein to mastermind the erosion of the law signals in no uncertain terms that it is his solitary intent to take Donald Trump down.
These desperation tactics indicate that Mueller obviously has little to nothing in his Russian foray and is in need of fabricating trumped up charges with which to coerce witnesses into saying whatever he wants them to say. Thus, Mueller is forced to rely on a porn star. And whatever Mueller wants, Rosenstein permits. It’s getting way out of hand. By the way, where is the collusion?
What this does, though, is set the stage for a Special Prosecutor seeking raids on the documents of the attorneys of Clinton, Comey, Lynch, Yates and McCabe and the rest of the miscreants.
That ought to be fun.
And as for Trump being interviewed by Mueller, I’d advise Trump to tell Mueller to go f*ck himself.
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Except for liberals being foolish.
Trump’s election has brought out the anti-American NWO communists.
These people, who are all signatories to lawless law enforcement, know to destroy the evidence. They also know there is no penalty for destroying evidence.
Until that perception is changed, the rule of law in the United States, at least for political elite, is in danger of disappearing altogether.
Mueller was not charged to find out if any crimes were committed; he was charged with finding that a crime WAS committed.
I would be embarrassed if people I supported were participating in activities like this. When the ends justifies the means, however, I guess embarrassment is impossible. This must be the “fundamental change” Obama had in mind.
These are the dominos if this is allowed to stand:
attorney-client.
doctor-patient.
clergyman-congregant.
husband-wife.
If this falls they all fall sooner than you’d expect.
@Deplorable Me:
Exactly. He did more to undermine our election process and faith in our government institutions than the Russians or anyone else could have ever dreamed of. We resemble a banana republic more than the constitutional republic we are supposed to be.
Trumps election has brought the worst in liberals and shows us just how nasty they can get when they no longer have any power left
Have at it. All that’s required is probable cause.
In the case of the raid on Cohen’s offices and residence, Mueller obviously isn’t the only one who became convinced that probable cause existed. The United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York—a Trump administration appointee and Trump presidential campaign contributor—was convinced. So was the federal magistrate judge who reviewed and approved the warrant authorizing the raid. Everyone involved would have looked at the referral very closely and critically, as this was in no way a routine action or a routine matter.
Rod Rosenstein is a republican. Robert Mueller is a republican. Geoffrey S. Berman is a republican. So far as I know, the federal magistrate judge has not been identified.
@Nanny G: This is something the liberals seem to disregard or perhaps they know conservative don’t employ the same tactics as they do and they have no fear of IRS reprisals, raids on political or legal offices, illegal spying on their campaigns or come under baseless fishing expedition investigations and bankruptcy trying to defend one’s self.
@another vet:
And liberals have spared no effort making sure the purported goal of the Russians is achieved through their assault on a duly elected President. Do they even care about the damage they are causing? I doubt it.
@Greg:
You don’t pay attention much, do you? Not only is their probably cause all over the place but your liberal witch hunters have created the precedent that all that is required is an easily contrived accusation to serve as probable cause. For instance, if anyone ever spoke to a Russian, even if they didn’t KNOW it was a Russian, that can be construed as “collusion” and the FISA court should be engaged immediately to authorize spying on that person and everyone they have ever known.
You have obviously forgotten the lesson of the Steele dossier; all it takes for the presentation of “evidence” is an active imagination.
They reamaned so quite while Obama abused his power and used executive orders or ignored the rules its only now the liberals are starting to howl and they need to be muzzled
Who was the liberal President who made Rod U.S.Atty for Maryland 7/05?
Hints:
The same progressive that:
1. 9/4/01 made Mueller Director of FBI
2. on 12/9/03 made Comes Deputy U.S. A.G.
Is it merely a coincidence that these totalitarians were all put in very high government positions by the same progressive President?
@Deplorable Me, #7:
Did the unidentified federal magistrate judge call you last night and fill you in on the details that convinced him to warrant an unprecedented raid on the offices and residence of a President’s personal attorney?
Issuing such a warrant was so unusual and so politically controversial that it wouldn’t even have been considered without an unusually compelling probable cause argument. It won’t have been something based on rumor or vague supposition.
Astute republicans have picked up on that signal and have read it correctly. Mueller is looking for something specific. They won’t support any effort on the part of the Trump administration to fire him. They’ve warned him that doing so would be political suicide. Forty-one are abandoning ship, Paul Ryan being the latest to announce he won’t seek reelection.
@Greg:
Did he call you and tell you otherwise? Has there not been a history of those trying to destroy Trump to falsify “evidence” then pretend it is valid and trustworthy and use it to justify surveillance?
Hmm…. almost as unprecedented as conducting surveillance on a Presidential candidate of the opposing party or an “investigation” of a sitting President for colluding and conspiring with the enemy? I guess you think no one notices what exactly is going on here. The rule of law has broken down. Some in intelligence and law enforcement no longer think they have a duty to the Constitution but rather an overriding loyalty and obligation to maintain a status quo in Washington which rewards the perpetuation of Big Government, support for World Government and a march toward socialism. Stalinist style “investigation” where a person is targeted and the “crime” is developed to fit the need has become the norm.
True-believer Trump supporters certainly have not. The rule of law is what is asserting itself.
@Greg:
GESTAPO law.
@Deplorable Me:
The end justifies the means to these essentially Communist bozos. “Show me the man and I’ll show you the crime.” Right?
Look at the bright side to this. Right now there is an investigation into the handling of HRC’s email “investigation”. The differences in the way the FBI and DOJ handled that compared to way they are handing this are even more stark than they were before. It’s even more out the open that there are two standards- one for BHO’s deep state and one for the rest of us. It makes the charge of obstruction even more solid and may very well open up other charges as well. Trump should leave these bozos in place and let them keep digging their holes deeper. BTW, a new Quinnipiac poll found that only 23% of Americans think the Daniels’ issue is important. And that poll is heavily weighted ‘D’.
@Deplorable Me: Did Greg just admit the”true” law wasn’t used on Hillary and her abettors? How many DNC related offices were raided where is the Paki lover of DWS? Why hasnt DWS been arrested promoting her Paki lover to congress, with no background checks?
Duplicate post. Sorry about that.
@Deplorable Me, #13:
No, the laws being asserted are the same laws that have been on the books all along. No one has changed them into “Gestapo law,” although the man you blindly support does show a few inclinations along those lines.
You didn’t vet this man. You ignored every warning, even from your own party, and much about him that has been open knowledge for years. You totally ignored the fact that he lied continuously and changed positions constantly, and let him waltz into the White House with an entourage of alligators followed by porters carrying more baggage than an expedition up the Amazon. What did you expect would happen?
I understand that there is a opening on Guam that just screams for a man of his talents. Maybe Greg can go with him in some capacity.
@another vet:
Indeed, that investigation should be delayed until the Obama scat is cleaned out of the DOJ and FBI so a true, thorough investigation can be conducted.
@Greg:
Hillary was vetted and found to be a corrupt liar that sold US uranium to Russia for her own monetary benefit, endangered lives with her mishandling of critical classified information and proved incompetent in national security. Trump, on the other hand, has led a public life for all to see. How could we vett the things you crybaby liberals were going to make up to compensate for promoting the worst possible candidate you could field?
Did you vett Obama, a relative unknown who kept all his personal records locked away?
Mueller is desperate for something to satisfy his leftist handlers, so he invades homes and businesses of people already cooperating with his “investigation”.
@Deplorable Me:
That’ll take awhile. They are delaying as much as possible in hopes the dems take back Congress that way they’ll be in charge of the committees and can cover for the coup.
They finally released the 2 page document that started all of this to Nunes. I’m sure they’ll continue to deny it was an unvetted political opposition dossier that served as the trigger for the FISA warrant and insist it was a hearesay drunken statement made in a bar to an opposition party political operative that triggered it. Either way is an extremely low bar to get a warrant to spy on American citizens. If that’s all it takes then the FISA program needs to be scrapped.
@another vet: Meanwhile, Hillary lies on video under oath before Congress and no investigation, no seizing documents, no raiding offices.
@Deplorable Me: Here is an excellent overview of what transpired. It’s a couple of months old so the most recent developments aren’t addressed but it gets to the point. I’m not sure if has been posted here before.
@another vet: Greg brags about how Mueller’s “investigation” is meticulous and methodical. I am sure the FBI knows how to conduct a thorough and efficient investigation and get results. The problems arise when politicized FBI leadership decides pick and choose which cases to employ their high standards upon.
The fact that Hillary was not under a Grand Jury investigation is meant to imply she is innocent while the existence of a Grand Jury and subpoenas in Trump’s case is meant to imply guilt. Thus, even when probing for evidence of 12 year old dirty talk is all that is keeping the “investigation” alive, it isn’t the substance but the mere existence of an investigation that implies guilt and that is all the left is trying to achieve.
Absolute and total abuse of power and authority.
@Deplorable Me:
The best advice I can give is to ignore him because he is a left wing ideologue who has emotional issues.
Looks like any future intelligence agency employees must have an extreme vetting to make sure they have no Clinton contamination.
@another vet: That’s what he’s here for. I only ignore those too cowardly to answer questions about their own positions. Greg at least owns up to his own words, unlike some notable others.
@Greg:
Lower taxes, Obama Care killed, and actual respect on the global scene, thus preventing war.
Got all that and more.
Vetted? *laughs* Uh huh…coming from the party of Obama…that’s rich.
And if it takes alligators to clear Washington of trolls and scum, like you, so be it.
@Nathan Blue, #27:
Where are Trump’s tax returns? And who’s the idiot for not caring?
We saw Obama’s. Nothing to hide, there.
@Greg:
Where are Hillary’s emails? Who’s the idiot for thinking there were 33,000 emails about yoga which she for some reason saved until they were requested as evidence?
Where’s Obama’s college records? Who’s the idiot for not wondering why those have to be secured in secret?
You liberals are more than happy to turn a blind eye to liberal corruption and abuses of national security yet obsess and fantasize about Trump’s tax returns, of which you have already seen two. More hypocrisy.
@Deplorable Me, #29:
Why should I care about Obama’s college records? Maybe his grades weren’t so high as has been claimed?
The issue with Trump’s tax returns has to do with questions regarding potentially serious conflicts of interest that could affect his ongoing exercise of the powers of his office. They could conceivably range from use of public office for personal or familial gain, to matters of outside influence having direct implications for national security.
The two sets of issues are in no way equivalent.
Clinton’s emails? How would you react if democrats demanded that all of Donald Trump’s personal email be made public, and then began making claims about what was in them when he refused?
At Least 6 White House Advisers Used Private Email Accounts
@Deplorable Me:
Rand Paul has the best idea yet.
https://youtu.be/fqT9R2VNU0I
Trump Plans to Pardon Scooter Libby in C.I.A. Leak Case
An interesting signal, to anyone who might be called on to testify under oath. There’s a caveat, of course: The beneficiary of perjured testimony can’t issue a pardon if he’s been removed from office himself.
@Greg:
Why? Maybe he identified himself as a foreign student to receive grants and aid. Maybe he never took the courses and had the accomplishments he says he did (not so useful now that we KNOW what an enormous liar he actually is). Maybe he had gay lovers with whom he did illegal drugs and committed crimes. Maybe he had a consensual affair with a porn star.
COULD. Could, could, could. However, regardless of what business dealings he had… and he had business dealings all over the world… it COULD have no bearing whatsoever on his decisions. We have seen he does not cut slack to anyone that is acting against US interests, so except for the fishing expedition to see what you could possibly use against Trump, there is nothing there any liberal needs to know. You’ve all proven yourselves, with the help of Mueller, too immature to objectively handle information or even to tell the truth.
Well, Greg, that all depends. Are these his own personal emails which he has on a separate private server on which he has NO government business emails or is it a server on which he was conducting ALL government business, emails which, by law, are supposed to be archived and belong to the citizens of the United States. In the latter case, he would not get to be the one to determine what is government (and possible harmful to him, as it would be illegal to have them on that server) and what is strictly Trump-related.
It would also be very important if Trump tells the truth about what was on that private server on which he conducted government business. If he lied consistently about it, that would strongly indicate that the 33,000 emails he rushed out and obliterated as soon as he discovered the government was aware of and wanted them contained much more than tee-off times.
Hillary lied consistently about the emails, she lied under oath before Congress, she obstructed justice, she illegally mishandled classified information and she destroyed evidence. Hardly anything else could disqualify a candidate more thoroughly than this confirmed, factual, established, irrefutable information, yet you wanted her for President. Do you honestly believe I am ever going to take any of your phony, biased, sore loser critical attacks on Trump seriously??
You still don’t get it. The Obama administration established the precedent that lying under oath is not a crime.
@another vet: There is definitely a reason why the FBI, DOJ and State Department stall and obstruct when requested to turn over documents to Congress.
Remember Obama granted pardons to rapists and murderers Trump granted a pardon to Arpiaio unfairly convicted by a mexican crinimal judge
@Greg: #17
You know who *did* vet him? Team Hillary.
Hillary and her hand-picked DNC water carriers got *exactly* who they wanted to face. The only problem she forgot to focus on was that she was a worse candidate than the Donald…
But, you know, keep on with the constant barrage of attacks against him…
Please!
@Jay: Greg forgets that, unlike Hillary and the DNC, the RNC didn’t have the full offices of the government of the United States of America to use at their whims. Aside from that, with illegal surveillance ongoing for almost three years and a year old special “investigation”, what has been found?