Editorials & Other Articles

nitpicker

(7,153 posts) Mon Mar 25, 2019, 06:10 AM Mar 2019

No collusion, plenty of corruption: Trump is not in the clear

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2019/mar/24/mueller-report-trump-collusion-corruption-congress-democrats

No collusion, plenty of corruption: Trump is not in the clear

Richard Wolffe

Sun 24 Mar 2019 21.50 GMT Last modified on Mon 25 Mar 2019 09.38 GMT

Suspend your disbelief for a second.

Assume that the Trump administration – which lies so easily and so often on matters big and small – can tell the truth about the Mueller investigation. Forget the cover-up about separating families at the border and jailing children. Pretend it has fully embraced the death toll of more than 3,000 Americans in Puerto Rico after Hurricane Maria. Imagine Trump’s inauguration crowds really were exceptionally large.

Let’s just give the new attorney general, Bill Barr, the benefit of the doubt, based on his service in the George HW Bush administration if nothing else.

Let’s also assume his four-page summary of the special counsel’s investigation is the very best case he can make on behalf of the man who just hired him.

That case would sink any other leader in any other western country. Any previous president of the United States would need to start lawyering up for impeachment.
(snip)

According once again to Trump’s own attorney general, making his best possible case for his boss, Mueller declined not to make “a traditional prosecutorial judgment” about whether Trump committed a crime. So Barr made it for him. Strip away all the legal throat-clearing, and he decides the case is “not sufficient”.
(snip)

Case not proven” on two counts sounds like the end of a long Democratic dream.

It’s actually a blessing.

For starters, Mueller’s considerations were narrowly drawn and judged but the issues he has surfaced – and the investigations he has spawned – are far broader.

In particular, US and state attorneys in New York are peeling away the layers of the stinking onion that is the Trump family business. Those layers include hush money to a porn star, fraudulent statements to lenders and insurers about real estate, a sham family foundation and corruption involving foreign donations to an inaugural committee.
(snip)

Both Congress and the southern district of New York have a very long way to go. They might just find out why Trump was so determined – even if he didn’t commit a crime, in the view of his own attorney general – to stop the Russian investigation. Especially if the investigation Trump feared was far more about his business than his election.
(snip)

8 replies

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Highlight:

No collusion, plenty of corruption: Trump is not in the clear (Original Post) nitpicker Mar 2019 OP

YES! empedocles Mar 2019 #1

- last 3 paragraphs are instructive. I do not believe this is over by any stretch of imagination hlthe2b Mar 2019 #2

I see it, but I'm so disheartened. It seems like... Blue_playwright Mar 2019 #3

Bill Barr promised last June that he would write this exact dismissive summary. lagomorph777 Mar 2019 #7

IMHO to prevent a Civil war, I believe Muller was Fired Period. bonniebgood Mar 2019 #4

We wondered why no tweets over the weekend Timmygoat Mar 2019 #5

You're saying Mueller got fired, then blaming him for Barr's bullshit letter? lagomorph777 Mar 2019 #8

I especially liked this part: MBS Mar 2019 #6

empedocles

(15,751 posts)

1. YES!

Reply to nitpicker (Original post)

Mon Mar 25, 2019, 06:13 AM

Mar 2019

hlthe2b

(102,376 posts)

2. - last 3 paragraphs are instructive. I do not believe this is over by any stretch of imagination

Reply to nitpicker (Original post)

Mon Mar 25, 2019, 07:09 AM

Mar 2019

Blue_playwright

(1,568 posts)

3. I see it, but I'm so disheartened. It seems like...

Reply to nitpicker (Original post)

Mon Mar 25, 2019, 07:35 AM

Mar 2019

The corrupt always win. In politics. At work. In everyday life. I’m so crushed by this summary report. I don’t think the full report will ever surface. And Americans have become such sheep and lackadaisical about politics and real governance, in general, that I fear Russia will do it again in 2020 while the Republicans LIHOP.

I’m so disgusted and sad today.

lagomorph777

(30,613 posts)

7. Bill Barr promised last June that he would write this exact dismissive summary.

Reply to Blue_playwright (Reply #3)

Mon Mar 25, 2019, 03:37 PM

Mar 2019

No shocker there. What will be a shocker (to Barr) is when the Mueller report (and Mueller himself) actually speak for themselves.

bonniebgood

(943 posts)

4. IMHO to prevent a Civil war, I believe Muller was Fired Period.

Reply to nitpicker (Original post)

Mon Mar 25, 2019, 08:26 AM

Mar 2019

Muller took his marbles and went home. Or Muller was in on this corruption. What I'm so ashamed of is
all the Dems kissing Muller's ass over the past two years of what a nice honest decent Guy Muller/Comey is, they both
turned out to be republicans first. which is the reason I'm not disappointed this morning. and NO, that Muller report will never be seen by Congress or the American People. Even if a Democrat wins in 2020.
What I found so disturbing when this investigation starting was to find out that ALL the top people in CIA, FBI, ICE, ALL republican? and don't forget the Supreme Court and the MEDIA.
There will NEVER be justice or a Democracy in the USA. The whole country is AL and MS. accept a few States at a local level.

Timmygoat

(779 posts)

5. We wondered why no tweets over the weekend

Reply to bonniebgood (Reply #4)

Mon Mar 25, 2019, 08:34 AM

Mar 2019

I think Trump knew of everything that Barr was going to do, so he made an obvious performance about being out of town, playing golf etc, so as to be able to act like he did not know what was going on. He was probably told to keep quiet and not tweet.

lagomorph777

(30,613 posts)

8. You're saying Mueller got fired, then blaming him for Barr's bullshit letter?

Reply to Timmygoat (Reply #5)

Mon Mar 25, 2019, 03:39 PM

Mar 2019

That doesn't make sense.

Everything we "know" about Mueller's report is Barr's spin, which still sounds pretty bad if you read it carefully.

MBS

(9,688 posts)

6. I especially liked this part:

Reply to nitpicker (Original post)

Mon Mar 25, 2019, 11:05 AM

Mar 2019

“Case not proven” on two counts sounds like the end of a long Democratic dream. It’s actually a blessing.

For starters, Mueller’s considerations were narrowly drawn and judged but the issues he has surfaced – and the investigations he has spawned – are far broader. . . They might just find out why Trump was so determined – even if he didn’t commit a crime, in the view of his own attorney general – to stop the Russian investigation. Especially if the investigation Trump feared was far more about his business than his election.

Much like last year’s elections, the Mueller report has done Democrats a huge favor. Winning both the Senate and House would have set up a titanic clash between Congress and the White House, the kind of clash White Houses have often won in time for re-election.
In the same way, a clear and damning Mueller report would have set up a titanic clash over impeachment: a process that would fail in this Republican-controlled Senate, no matter the evidence presented. There will be many Democrats disappointed Mueller did not scream “Guilty!” and that impeachment remains on hold. But party leadership, and election veterans, know short-term disappointment offers a long-running advantage.It means a year of more congressional revelations and a year of more indictments. It means the 2020 election can be forward-looking about Trump’s fitness for office, rather than backward-looking about the last election.

It means more consideration of corruption and less talk of collusion. Voters, as well as lawyers, may struggle to define collusion and to prove conspiracies beyond reasonable doubt. Even when a presidential candidate goes on national TV to ask the Russians to hack his opponent’s emails. But what voters readily understand is the stench of corruption around a man who promised to drain the swamp. Populism tends to lose its popularity when the populists are more concerned with personal profit than public service.
With a large field of talented candidates running to drive Trump from office, Democrats can look forward to a long and fine discussion of what standards of conduct and character we expect from a president.

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