As Tucker Carlson is saying right now, for the last year all you heard from the mouths of democrats was “Russia, Russia, Russia.” They called Trump a Russian dupe and Michael Flynn a traitor. After a year with zero evidence of any Trump-Russia collusion and Robert Mueller inexplicably indicting a ham sandwich, people are catching on to this whole charade being what Trump says it is- a witch hunt. A number of signals are being sent from democrats revealing their intent to put as much room as they can between them and all the nasty things they’ve said about Trump.
Sen. Mark Warner (D-VA) began to soften expectations:
The top Democrat on the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence acknowledged in a recent interview that contacts between Trump campaign associates and Russians could be “a set of coincidences” rather than collusion.
“I’m reserving my final judgement until we’ve seen all the witnesses we need to see, and we’ve gotten all the facts. So I’m going to hold off,” Virginia Sen. Mark Warner said in an interview with The New Yorker’s David Remnick when asked whether he believes that Trump associates conspired with the Kremlin to influence the 2016 presidential election.
democrat pollster Doug Schoen warned democrats not to even think about impeaching Trump.
A former pollster for former President Bill Clinton is warning House Democrats about trying to impeach President Donald Trump if they win the House in November, arguing that it likely won’t pass the Senate and could cause serious gridlock within the government.
“Yet, if the Democrats do win back the House and pursue impeachment against the president, there is little on the record to suggest House Democrats have enough evidence to get a conviction in the Senate,” Douglas Schoen, a former pollster for Clinton, wrote in an op-ed in The Hill Sunday.
“We could thus see a divided government much like we encountered in 1998. Such an outcome does not serve the American people’s interests and only serves to further embroil Washington in divisive gridlock. It also, ironically maybe, would bode well for President Trump’s reelection bid in 2020,” Schoen wrote.
Media figures are also looking to change the discussion. Nicholas Kristof:
New York Times columnist Nicholas Kristof said Sunday that the media is too obsessed with talking about President Trump in lieu of more pressing matters across the world.
“I do think that we have to acknowledge that there is so much more happening in the world than Donald Trump. And we in the media are essentially all Trump all the time,” Kristof said during an interview Sunday on CNN, while commenting on a column he wrote on the topic.
The “addiction” is so bad, that the journalist quipped that it even happens during pillow talks with his wife.
Even late night comedians, who hate Trump so much they’re not funny any more, are thinking of toning it down:
In an interview with Deadline, Kimmel was asked whether he had prepared a “barrelful of barbs” for President Trump in his upcoming standup routine for ABC’s upfronts.
“Oh, wow. Yeah, you know, I hadn’t really thought about it that way, but I guess you’re right. Hopefully, it’ll be the last upfront of the Trump era, too,” Kimmel said.
“So, I don’t know, I don’t know how much focus there will be on that. I think people have had an ass-full of Donald Trump, and I feel like the upfront is a time to look within and make fun of ourselves,” Kimmel said of his comedy routine for the annual event that sees major advertisers gather to purchase airtime on networks, like ABC, ahead of the summer and fall TV seasons.
As documents find their way into the sunlight, it becomes clear that Fusion GPS founder Glenn Simpson was working as a Russian agent:
“So Glenn Simpson was working, effectively, also as an agent for the Russian government, as an adjunct to the Russian FSB,” the KGB’s successor. “At the same time . . . he’s doing this project to create a dossier on Trump." https://t.co/2xy2jUvGLc via @WSJOpinion
— Mollie (@MZHemingway) May 14, 2018
Also, Robert Mueller shot himself in the foot.
So, what does all of this mean? Metaphorically speaking, it would appear that the yapping dog chasing the car has sunk its teeth into the spinning tire. There is no way for Rover to escape injury. Even if Mueller and his pit bulls win the discovery battle and the case at trial, what’s the prize? A $500,000 fine or compensation to victims? How will they collect?
Mueller has a conflict on his hands involving a Russian oligarch:
Melanie Sloan, a former Clinton Justice Department lawyer and longtime ethics watchdog, told me a “far more significant issue” is whether the earlier FBI operation was even legal: “It’s possible the bureau’s arrangement with Mr. Deripaska violated the Antideficiency Act, which prohibits the government from accepting voluntary services.”
George Washington University constitutional law professor Jonathan Turley agreed: “If the operation with Deripaska contravened federal law, this figure could be viewed as a potential embarrassment for Mueller. The question is whether he could implicate Mueller in an impropriety.”
The Russian trail leads to Clinton lobbyists.
That’s not all: The busy Podesta Group also represented Uranium One, a uranium company acquired by the Russian government which received approval from Hillary Clinton’s State Department to mine for uranium in the U.S. and gave Russia twenty percent control of US uranium. The New York Timesreported Uranium One’s chairman, Frank Guistra, made significant donations to the Clinton Foundation, and Bill Clinton was paid $500,000 for one speech from a Russian investment bank that has “links to the Kremlin that was promoting Uranium One stock.” Notably, Frank Giustra, the Clinton Foundation’s largest and most controversial donor, does not appear anywhere in Clinton’s “non-private” emails. It is possible that the emails of such key donors were automatically scrubbed to protect the Clinton Foundation.
And let’s not forget Facebook’s collusion with the Russians.
James Comey can’t get his story straight. Nor can the rest of the conspirators:
The report states the committee “received conflicting testimony” from then-Deputy Attorney General Sally Yates, Comey, Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Mary McCord and McCabe about the purpose of the Flynn interview.
It listed several possible reasons for the interview, including whether the FBI was investigating Flynn’s “potentially misleading” statements to Vice President Pence, a possible violation of the Logan Act or to obtain more information about the Russia counterintelligence investigation.
And, of course, it was the Clinton campaign and the DNC who paid for Russian propaganda in the dossier.
We know for a fact that Devin Nunes is right over the target:
https://twitter.com/AshaRangappa_/status/996009777548406785?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw&ref_url=http%3A%2F%2Fdailycaller.com%2F2018%2F05%2F14%2Fcnn-asha-rangappa-devin-nunes%2F&tfw_creator=%40ChuckRossDC&tfw_site=dailycaller
Keep the name Stefan Halper handy in your mind.
The water is receding from the shore faster and faster and democrats are scrambling for their lives to get to high ground before it comes.
DrJohn has been a health care professional for more than 40 years. In addition to clinical practice he has done extensive research and has published widely with over 70 original articles and abstracts in the peer-reviewed literature. DrJohn is well known in his field and has lectured on every continent except for Antarctica. He has been married to the same wonderful lady for over 45 years and has three kids- two sons, both of whom are attorneys and one daughter who is in the field of education.
DrJohn was brought up with the concept that one can do well if one is prepared to work hard but nothing in life is guaranteed.
Except for liberals being foolish.
Stefan Halper. BINGO WE HAVE A WINNER!!! Though it can be hard to believe that a guy who worked with Nixon and Reagan would do this. Maybe he is just being vonsistent about the Russians. The Dems since McGovern always wanted to buddy up. Then the hammer came down on the hammer and sickle and suddenly the Ruskkies were the bad guys.
Its going to be hard for the Democrats to wash those Blood Stains from their lily white hands the blood of uncounted infants murdered by their favorite charity Planned Parenthood
As I said earlier, the longer this stupid, phony “investigation” goes on without any proof of any justification, the more clear it is to voters, right and left, that it is nothing but a ploy to try and weaken Trump in 2018 and remove him in 2020. It seems a lot of people, previous devotee’s of MSM propaganda, are realizing they are being lied to on a grand scale.
In the end, people should suffer prison and financial ruin for trying to do the same to innocent people in pursuit of a political agenda.
Proof is always presented at the end of a criminal investigation, not on a day-to-day basis while the investigation is still underway. Why would any reasonable person think Mueller’s investigation of the Donald Trump administration should any different?
@Greg: How often is there an investigation where there is no real evidence of a NEED for an investigation? This was all promulgated on the accusations the left WISHED was true, or at least wanted to generate the appearance of fact. Yet, as we see more and more evidence of what is driving this “investigation” we see what the true motivation is: to bury the liberal deep state efforts to delegitamize any Republican candidates and, when Hillary failed to win, to try and cover the tracks.
There is no collusion (other than among Democrats, Hillary and Mueller), there never was, there never was any proof or even legitimate suspicion. It’s been a political witch hunt from day one, with was during the Obama administration and involved illegally infiltrating an opposition political campaign and illegal surveillance. If Hillary had won, we’d never know about any of this. Lots of seditious liberals heads are on the block right now.
@Greg:
When all the charges have zip to do with the accusations, it’s pretty obvious Mueller is suborning perjury.
@Deplorable Me, #5:
There was abundant need for an investigation. Trump’s followers simply won’t acknowledge it. Warrants aren’t issued for surveillance or for searches and seizures without some credible basis. In any case, this is like arguing that the barn door should never have been opened when their real problem is the escaped horse.
I don’t expect Mueller’s investigation will come up empty. Neither do the people who are doing everything possible to stop him. Most likely this is taking time not because Mueller has found no leads to follow, but because he has found so many. The question of collusion is only part of the picture.
@DrJohn, #6:
Mueller’s investigation has never been limited to the question of collusion. That was clearly spelled out in the order appointing him and authorizing the investigation.
I don’t believe it’s possible to rescind that a year later without it leading to immediate impeachment proceedings, during which everything Mueller has thus far discovered would be presented in public hearings. Obstruction of justice would almost certainly become an issue.
@Greg:
Oh, I’ll agree with that, at least from the left’s point of view. Obama had been weaponizing the DOJ ever since he took office, the first benefit being the stonewalling of the Fast and Furious inquiry. Then there was IRS targeting, then Benghazi, then Hillary’s email debacle, then spying on the Trump campaign. So, it is now a race to the river (which the Democrats are losing) to discredit and depose Trump before the entire network is exposed. Oh, it was needed…. YOU needed it. But, there was no NATIONAL need. It’s a phony.
Again we are in agreement, but WHO provides the “credibility” and what that “credibility” is has been fabricated. The FBI used Hillary campaign propaganda, shopped around in a self-serving circle (another “echo chamber”) until it was pervasive enough to have the ring of truth about it. But, no one actually believed it and no one bothered to try and verify it.
What you expect is for it to drag on and damage Republican electoral opportunities. That’s all this has been for. If the Republicans can be weakened enough, all inquiries into the REAL collusion and the ongoing seditious activity can be buried, as Hillary’s victory was intended to bury it.
@Greg: You are, hands down, the stupidest person I’ve ever read.
@Deplorable Me: You are, hands down, the smartest person I’ve ever read.
@Greg: When assigning a prosecutor there is suppose to be a crime committed can you “name that crime?” Mueller has proven what a vile phoney he is. I want every dime of tax payer money back for this smoke screen to protect the crimes of spying on a US citizen without due cause.
Just name the crime and who Mueller is meant to investigate.
@Nathan Blue: How can you say that? Greg is an expert on military tactics, international relations, personal interactions, mind reading, macro and micro economic issues, physics, history, climate issues, security issues, religion, fossil fuel recovery, statistics for transporting crude oil criminal investigation and a myriad of other topics. Just read his posts if you don’t believe me. His specialty is how to peel potatoes without cutting himself.
@kitt: The issue here is that Mueller and his buddies, Brennen, Comey, McCabe and others conspired to make up a crime while to prevent the election of Trump and then after the election, they conspired to have Trump removed. I am sure that Trump must have committed some crime. Maybe he crossed the street without walking in a street crossing zone. Maybe he dropped his gum wrapper on the side walk. Could it be that Mueller and his swamp buddies made up a crime out of whole cloth and presented it to the FISA court? That could not happen since these swamp creatures are dedicated civil servants, could it?
@Randy: It appears an unverified fictional tale walked right through the premier law enforcement agency on the planet, as evidence. Like the x-files they wanna believe, so no one verifies the information, but use it as evidence. A special prosecutor investigates without a crime goes about spending my tax dollars like a drunken clinton. Not an expert but when an attorney files an indictment thats suppose to mean he is ready to prosecute has all the evidence to put away he person he is dragging to court. This clown indicts Russians and not having a clue how things work doesnt have the goods, wants more time…back on the short bus. Perhaps he should have indicted a company that existed during the time of the play pretend crimes. Look at Muellers slimey history and see he is a FU of the nth degree.
@Nathan Blue, #10:
You might want to begin proofreading your own posts.
05/16/18 — Republican-run Senate committee says Russia tried to help Trump win
@Greg:
No, they still haven’t found any indication or proof. We actually KNOW they didn’t. They can look as long as they want, but they should pay for the looking themselves.
I guess the Steele dossier Hillary bought from the Russians was meant to help Trump?
Collusion isn’t what the committee was investigating. They were evaluating the accuracy of the U.S. intelligence community’s post-election assessment of Russian election meddling. The Trump administration discounted that report, making it into a basis for attacks against our own intelligence community’s credibility.
The Senate committee concluded that the assessment was, in fact, accurate; that Russia had indeed mounted a highly sophisticated, covert effort to influence the 2016 election in favor of Donald Trump.
The possibility of collusion is a separate issue. Consider what it would mean, if someone inside the Trump camp knowingly took advantage of Russia’s efforts to corrupt our election process. That isn’t a possibility that can be ignored. It’s a question that demands full investigation.
@Greg: You really are dumb! The Russians worked both sides. That has been widely reported. It had nothing to do with Trump, yet the HRC campaign funded the Fusion GPS document that was used by Comey and others at the FISA court. I can not believe that with all of the information out there you still have not pulled your head out of your butt. You must love being the butt here.
@Greg: They have a prosecutor, normally dont investigators hand already gathered evidence to a prosecutor then he decides to bring charges or not. So what is the crime who is the evidence against. He has already indicted a company that did not exist, whats next for this ass clown?
@Randy:
The Russians were attempting to influence the election in Trump’s favor.
Why would they have wanted Clinton to be elected? It’s common knowledge that Vladimir Putin hates her. He wouldn’t have lifted a finger to help her in the election. Who did Russian hackers target? The DNC. Which campaign did Wikileaks attempt to damage? Clinton’s. Which candidate were most of the phony social media posts designed to damage? Which candidate did most of the false news target? It all adds up to one conclusion—which the republican-led Senate committee today acknowledged.
Today, 05/16/18 — Senate panel backs intelligence agencies findings on Russian meddling in 2016 election
Without the help of Vladimir Putin, Trump probably wouldn’t have been elected.
@Greg: No, you’re right; Congressional committees have determined there was NO collusion. Yet you whiny liberals still pretend to convince yourselves there was (or is).
Consideer what it would mean if a sitting President directed the IC and DOJ to conduct illegal surveillance on an opposition party political campaign, contributed to the false narrative that Trump was colluding with the Russians, covered up crimes committed by HIS party’s candidate and leaked damaging information on the opposition they KNEW was supplied by a political candidate and had not been verified?
Oh, no, that is far to politically valuable. But, once it has been investigated, with illegal surveillance, Congressional investigations and then a politically motivated witch hunt, most unbiased, reasonable people WITHOUT butthurt would be convinced and satisfied.
Because they have most of her emails, they bribed her in the Uranium One deal, they have pumped millions into the Clinton Foundation and she is a prime target for lucrative blackmail. Plus, she proved herself an incompetent leader as Secretary of State, so she, like Obama, would be a pushover.
Look what they got with Trump. He is arming the Ukrainians, bombing Syria, killing their economy with oil production and challenging Putin wherever he stands. Sure, Putin hates Hillary (everyone does), but she could definitely be bought; she’s proven that.
Do you accept the findings that Trump did NOT collude with the Russians just as you accept the findings that Russia interfered? Or, do you only accept what satisfies your biases?
The “help” went both ways and, as investigations have found, had NO detectable impact on the election. What hurt Hillary the most was the fact that Hillary was Hillary.
@kitt:
How much you want to bet that the verdict has NOT already been written (written a year ago) that Trump didn’t really MEAN to collude, so without intent no reasonable prosecutor would take the case, regardless of what is (not) found?
@Greg:
Greg who signed off on uranium, who got millions in her foundation? There isnt 1 iota of proof the Russians hacked her, the FBI was never given the server to examine, those that examined it are tied to the crooked law firm the unverified dossier came from. So the whole hacked thing is she says so, a liar and a purger.
Had they not emailed how stupid young people and blacks are the emails wouldnt be damaging would they?
There have been lots of developments in the last few hours. None good for the left wing swamp. Mueller admitted to Trump’s legal team he can’t be indicted (look for some bullshit charge in order to justify all the money spent). The name of the IC operation to take out Trump is now known along with the key players. The IG report on Hillary’s email “investigation” has been released to the principal parties for review. And the swamp is in a state of panic. Something says that comrade Brennan will soon be joining his comrade Comey in being a world of hurt. Gateway Pundit is a good read tonight.
Today, were this story to be re-written today, would be filled with mea culpa articles by liberals in deep state.
“Oh! I did it, BUT I did it for the BEST of reasons!” is what’s all over the papers whether the police, the DOJ the FBI or the media who leaked (illegally) to slime the Trump camp from before the election to just recently.
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/05/16/us/politics/crossfire-hurricane-trump-russia-fbi-mueller-investigation.html
Will Robert Mueller *69 Junior’s Phone Calls to a ‘Blocked Number’?
It’s hard to imagine Mueller’s people haven’t already determined who was on the other end of that telephone call.
@kitt: Even the most simple reasons are missed by Greg. HRC was and still is all about increasing her personal wealth. Damn the country and the people as long as she succeeds in her wealth accumulation schemes. Putin has been successful in Uranium 1, why would he stop know when he has been so successful?
@Greg:
If it was something damaging it would have already been leaked.
Mueller isn’t playing media games. Mueller is conducting an investigation. His people have leaked almost nothing. The identity of the other party to the call could be totally irrelevant or an unexploded bomb. They’d keep what they know about it quiet for the present in either case.
It’s interesting that republicans on the Senate investigative committee refused to issue a subpoena to learn the identity of the other party to the call. That’s one mystery that they don’t seem eager to clear up. You’ve got to wonder why. I suspect they’re worried about the unexploded bomb theory. We all know what their worst case scenario would be.
@Greg:
Yeah, that’s why he indicted 13 Russian entities that he never expected to take to court, then ran screaming like a little girl when one of them demanded a quick trial. Sure, strictly business. Just the facts, m’am.
They’ve leaked everything they have, and then some.
If it was a foreign person, the identity is already known. Otherwise, you have no business knowing.
May 18, 2018 — Analysis: Giuliani Escalates Effort to Erode Legitimacy of Mueller Probe
Lots of luck with that, Rudy. You’re like a passenger on the Titanic, disputing the legitimacy of icebergs.
May 18, 2018 — Paul Manafort’s Former Son-in-Law Pleads Guilty, Is Working With Federal Prosecutors
What might he know?
Has no one wondered why Paul Manafort was taken on as Trump’s campaign manager in the first place? Or why he would have attended the Trump Tower meeting with Natalia Veselnitskaya and Rinat Akhmetshin, along with Trump Jr and Kushner? Yeah. Lots of people have wondered.
May 17, 2018 — Mueller team gives judge unredacted memo on Russia mandate
There’s something we don’t know that focused investigators toward Manafort. Whatever it was, it’s a safe bet that Mueller knows far more about it now than he did to begin with. It will be interesting to see how Judge Ellis responds. No one can accuse Ellis of being biased in favor of the Special Counsel’s investigation.
@Greg: Guilty of anything related to Trump or collusion? Uh… nope. Grasp them straws. Chase them phantoms. Dream them dreams.
Witch hunt. Waste of time. Crybaby, sore losers salving their butt-hurt.
@Deplorable Me, #33:
Guilty, apparently, of something that has turned him into a cooperating witness. He may have information that brings Mueller a few steps closer to unraveling the entire puzzle. Manafort himself may flip at some point. Unless he alone is behind everything, why should he take the fall? Hopefully he’s being well protected.
@Greg: Yeah, guilty of “something”. However, what does it have to do with Trump? This is alleged crimes that occurred over a decade ago… what does it have to do with Trump and why are we paying $17 million to endlessly pursue it?
What did Monica Lewinsky have to do with the Whitewater investigation?
Republicans have spent around 100 million taxpayer dollars investigating the Clintons, and that’s all they’ve ever ever managed to come up with. But no problems with that, right?
@Greg: And all Clinton had to do, like all of Trump’s people have done, is tell the truth. But, Clinton was so dirty and involved in so many dirty deals that they finally cascaded into accusations of rape and sexual assault, which led to Monica, which led to perjury.
However, in Trump’s case, telling the truth and full cooperation, which has led to finding NO evidence of Russian collusion and any Trump impropriety, does NOT result in closing the case. It only leads to FBI raids and an endless witch hunt in a forlorn HOPE of finding something. No crime has been named and targeted with investigation. This is a witch hunt.
It doesn’t take investigation to find the influence peddling of Bill, as President, Hillary as Secretary of State, the Clinton Foundation, Hillary’s perjury on numerous occasions and her gross negligence in handling classified information.
Accusations are a dime a dozen. Credible evidence is required to demonstrate that they have any merit. That’s where the Clintons’ accusers always come up short—despite having burned through 100 million dollars of the taxpayers’ money conducting investigations.
@Greg:
Says the guy that believes, without a SHRED of evidence, that Trump colluded with Russia and should be impeached.
Had the Clintons’ not lied, stonewalled, destroyed evidence and had witnesses killed, the investigations would have cost much less. Now would be a good time to point out that Bill WAS convicted of perjury, WAS impeached and DID lose his law license. Keeping up the tradition, Hillary DID commit perjury and, pending the IG report, we’ll see if she continues to skate for gross negligence in handling classified information.
@Greg: We will see what the IG report says about the FBI cronies, her head isnt above water yet for defying security protocol.
I’ll believe the conclusions that Special Counsel Robert Mueller presents, once his investigation has been completed.
My personal opinion concerning Donald Trump is based on my own observations of what he says, how he behaves, how he has conducted his business affairs, and how he has conducted himself as a candidate and as a president.
@Greg:
I’ll hazard a guess that no, you won’t. Besides, the “investigation” will not be completed because it isn’t intended to be completed. It is intended to try and stain Trump and Republicans through the elections… 2020, if necessary.
Obama inserting a spy inside of Trump’s campaign will be a game changer. That’s rotten, third world stuff there.
The FBI inserted no one inside the Trump campaign. The FBI was aware of suspicious contacts between Trump campaign figures and people with Russian government connections. They enlisted an American academic who teaches in the UK to make inquiries and report back what he found out.
They probably figured “Hi, I’m here on behalf of the FBI to ask a few questions about your campaign’s suspicious Russian contacts” wouldn’t be a productive approach.
Meanwhile, another report surfaces:
May 19, 2018 — Trump Jr. met Gulf princes’ emissary in 2016 who offered campaign help: NY Times
@Greg: George Nader spent decades in Middle East policy … During the Clinton administration. But dont disclose that bwahahaha.
It was a set-up.
Facebook would never have given biased information to the investigators…http://www.independentsentinel.com/45-top-facebook-employees-are-ex-obama-hillary-staffers/
Why would there have been a vast and complicated conspiracy to set up a candidate that virtually everyone expected to lose the election?
What’s so hard to believe about the Trump campaign being receptive to offers of foreign assistance to win an election? People seem to forget that this kind of behind the scenes wheeling and dealing is Trump all over. It’s how he has always conducted business.
@Greg: Hillary blabbed there were 17 agencies is there anything more vast than our government? Not just the FBI and CIA in this coup.
@Greg:
Because Obama had a very low opinion of Hillary. In fact, he hates her. So, why not place spies in the Trump campaign? It’s just laws, the Constitution and stuff.
There was no reason to spy on the Trump campaign but for politics. None.
@Deplorable Me: You are being far too kind. I’d just hang them and call it even. It’s only fair. I’m really getting tired of these Marxists and their BS.
Do you see a pattern here?
@Greg: What Greg fails to point out is the bulk of the indictments against Trump are for Russian’s with nothing to do with the 2016 election campaign. Manafort included. In fact no American has been indicted with anything to do with the 2016 election campaign. Mueller has a history of going after the wrong people. Steven Hatfill anyone? So just what crime has been committed that Mueller is investigating? Greg can’t say. But as they say you can indict a ham sandwich. Greg doesn’t wish for nor want truth he wants his fantasy fulfilled. Good luck with that. Greg, your thoughts though many, are not worth a penny.