Just three items.
1) Today (or yesterday late?) AG William Barr appointed yet another Special Counsel to investigate “Obamagate!” John Bash of the Texas Western District of the DOJ. He has been assigned to investigate the various unmaskings of Michael Flynn that happened between the election of 2016 and Flynn’s interrogation by the FBI after Trump became president in January, 2017. The full absurdity of this is that even Barr in making this assignment recognized that there is nothing illegal about unmasking, not even anything improper. Nevertheless, he thinks this particular set of unmaskings needs further investigation by the Department of Justice.
2) This is really just an extension of the first. Not only are unmaskings normal and legal, but for the particular telephone calls on Dec. 29 that Flynn lied to the FBI about on Jan. 24, he was not even masked. Those were wiretapped by the FBI itself and never masked him. This makes this whole huffing about unmasking of Flynn all the more ridiculous. But then, when all these people say Flynn was somehow pressured into a plea bargain by the FBI on Jan. 24, well, he could have avoided all of this if he had simply not lied to the FBI. Again, for the umpteenth time, I do not get why a former DIA director did not realize his phone calls with the Russian ambassador would be tapped with the FBI and others finding out about them and listening to them. What on earth did he think he was doing when he engaged in that lying (as well as the lying to Pence that got him fired from the Trump admin).
3) I shall note that while it is no longer the top or dominating story, the Fox News propaganda machine continues to spend regular and considerable time on this matter, still calling it “Obamagate” and pushing on the idea that Obama is guilty of something awful, setting up Flynn to lie to the FBI or something. Hannity has cut it back, but this stuff still consumes a good quarter or so of his time nightly without a hint that any of it, much less pretty much the whole thing aside from a couple of botched FISA applications, is just a giant nothingburger. It may be that the cutback represents a realization that this is not catching on more broadly, not to mention it is stupid to go after the most popular political figure in the nation, but it probably is still going as fodder for the Trump base who have been sold this bill of goods, and the sale needs to be kept from being returned to the store.
Barkley Rosser
When you have to distract from 100K dead from COVID-19, millions unemployed and Trump’s dismal poll numbers, the conspiracy theory has to be pretty outrageous.
This is what flop sweat smells like, peeps.
I must note a correction. The plea bargain did not happen on 1/24/17, but much later in the year, early December I think. Those complaining that pressure to plead guilty in a plea bargain say it was in November or around then that the FBI threatened Flynn with possibly prosecuting his son for various shenanigans. This may be so, and this gives a bit more credence to these complaints. The problem remains, although apparently there is not an actual tape of the 1/24 conversation, that Flynn lied to the FBI. We know for sure he lied to Pence about the phone calls. So this is not one of these cases that do happen of some poor minority person who is innocent being pressured into pleading guilty. Flynn may have been pressured into so pleading, but he was guilty.
The transcript of Flynn call to Ambassador Kislyak was declassified and released.
https://www.grassley.senate.gov/sites/default/files/2020-05-29%20ODNI%20to%20CEG%20RHJ%20%28Flynn%20Transcripts%29.pdf
One plausible hypothesis is that Obama administration decided to revenge Flynn maneuver to foil Obama last move — the expulsion of Russian diplomats, which stated neo-McCarthyism campaign in the USA. He explicitly asked Russians not to retaliate and I would understand why Obama did not like this move.
In any case it looks like Flynn helped to avoid “boxing in” the new administration after the expulsion of Russian diplomats by the lame duck President? . That does not help Trump one bit, because first of all he is incompetent, and secondly he was instantly cooped by neocons, but still…
The key question here is whether Obama administration has motives to set a trap for Flynn now can be answered positively. If this was an entrapment then this is clearly a criminal offense and Strzok, Comey and possibly Brennan and Clapper, are clearly in hot water.
See
https://mobile.twitter.com/ProfMJCleveland/status/1266483118099378176
Likbex,
Pure, unadulterated bs.
On what planet do you spend most of your time? I would suggest you stay there and leave humans alone.
@EMichael , May 30, 2020 7:52 am
You missed putting arguments to support your statement 🙂
This is a classic reaction of Clinton camp neoliberal to anybody who tried to resist the “Empire of illusions” or Clinton followers groupthink about Russiagate.
Thank you for such a textbook example of this behavior.
Anybody who uses the term “Russiagate” seriously and not to recognize the actual and serious Russian interference in the 2016 US presidential election in support of Trump is not to be taken remotely seriously.
Libnez – “You missed putting arguments to support your statement” – well neither did you – just wild speculation. You yourself provided the evidence for E Michael.
Russiagate is a valid and IMHO very useful political discourse term which has two intersecting meanings:
1. Obamagate: Attempt of a certain political forces around Clintons and Obama with the support of intelligence agencies to stage a “color revolution” against Trump, using there full control of MSM as air superiority factor. With the main goal is the return to “classic neoliberalism” (neoliberal globalization uber alles) mode
Which Trump rejected during his election campaign painting him as a threat to certain powerful neoliberal forces which include but not limited to Silicon Valley moguls (note bad relations of Trump and Bezos), some part of Wall street financial oligarchy, and most MSMs honchos.
2. Neo-McCarthyism campaign unleashed by Obama administration with the goal to whitewash Hillary fiasco and to preserve the current leadership of the Democratic Party.
That led to complete deterioration of relations between the USA and Russia and increase of chances of military conflict between two. Add to this consistent attempts of Trump to make China an enemy and politicize the process of economic disengagement between the two countries and you understand the level of danger. .
When a senior Russian official implicitly calls the USA a rogue state and Trump administration — gangsters on international arena, that a very bad sign. See
https://nationalinterest.org/feature/russian-deputy-foreign-minister-sergei-ryabkov-%E2%80%9Cwe-have-no-trust-no-confidence-whatsoever%E2%80%9D
What I can’t understand is that this stupid jingoism, kind of “cult of death” among the US neocons, who personally are utter chickenhawks, but still from their comfortable offices write dangerous warmongering nonsense. Without understanding possible longer term consequences.
Of course, MIC money does not smell, but some enthusiasts in blogs do it even without proper remuneration 😉
Reason,
Thanks. And he did it again. And will do it again. Wish there was a block on this blog.
He is truly sick.
@reason, May 30, 2020 4:52 pm
It is not a wild speculation. It is the framework of interpretation of Russiagate events (right or wrong; I definitely understand that most on this blog reject it and even became angry about) which states that:
1. Both exclusion of Russian diplomats and the political assassination of Gen. Flynn were parts of a plot to prevent the shifting from a pro-China/anti-Russia policy to a pro-Russia/China-as-actual-competitor policy under a DJT presidency
2. Neocons still rule the USA foreign policy.
It has the right to exist because it allow consistently interpret wild mosaic of fact related to Russiagate including the value of Flynn entrapment and Gucccifer 2.0 as a false flag operation for the plotters.
IMHO much better then any alternative framework. And in no way I am Trump sympathizer, as you probably already guessed from my posts.
Can no one rid me of this turbulent poster?
He regurgitates trump tweets.
likbez,
That you are spouting worthless garbage can be seen by simply noting your silly claim that Flynn was “entrapped.” Pure bs. How was he “entrapped” into lying to the FBI? Oh, he had already lied to VP Pence so he had to cover that up by lying to the FBI as well? How was he entrapped into lying to VP Pence? Come on, likbez, explain how the awful entrappers did that to him? Come on. Really. Tell us.
Or maybe not given that you just spout one stupid lying piece of garbage after another.
I’m with Joel.