Good old Joe diGenova, summing things up again simply and to the point....much better job I think than Giuliani has been doing. Joe brings us some hopeful news here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=168&v=tW5JB-cPmUM
US, China Agree to Cut American Trade Deficit The two countries also agreed on "meaningful increases" of U.S. agriculture and energy exports and greater efforts to increase trade in manufactured goods and services By Martin Crutsinger and Paul Wiseman May 20, 2018 https://www.nbcdfw.com/news/politics/Donald-Trump-Transition-Presidency-404991195.html In this combination of Nov. 9, 2017 photos, U.S. President Donald Trump, right, and Chinese President Xi Jinping speak during a business event at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing. AP, Files What to Know The U.S. and China had talks from Thursday to Saturday to figure out how to "substantially reduce" America's huge trade deficit with China Beijing committed to "significantly increase" its purchases of American goods and services The two countries also agreed on "meaningful increases" of U.S. agriculture and energy exports The United States and China have agreed to take measures to "substantially reduce" America's massive trade deficit with China, but the Trump administration failed to get the Chinese to commit to a specific numerical goal. Still, the talks, which began Thursday and ended Saturday with the issuance of a joint statement, may have helped to ease tensions at least slightly between the world's two biggest economic powers. In recent months the two have threatened to impose punitive tariffs on billions of dollars in each other's exports. In the statement, Beijing committed to "significantly increase" its purchases of American goods and services, saying that the increase would "meet the growing consumption needs of the Chinese people and the need for high-quality economic development." The two countries also agreed on "meaningful increases" of U.S. agriculture and energy exports and greater efforts to increase trade in manufactured goods and services. The United States said it would send a team to China to work out the details. The statement, however, provided no dollar amounts on how much China might boost its purchases of American products. Lawrence Kudlow, head of the president's National Economic Council, had told reporters Friday that a reduction in the trade gap of at least $200 billion by 2020 was a "good number." Last year, the United States had a record deficit with China in merchandise trade of $375 billion, the largest with any nation. Saturday's statement also was silent on whether the talks had made progress in easing a developing tit-for-tat trade war in which each nation threatened to impose punitive tariffs. Trade analysts said it was highly unlikely that China would ever agree to a numerical target for cutting the trade gap between the two nations, but they said the talks likely were more successful in de-escalating recent trade tensions. Cougar Kills 1 Mountain Biker, Injures 2nd Near Seattle "It is likely that this agreement, weak and vague though it is, will serve as grounds to at least delay the imposition of tariffs," said Eswar Prasad, an economist and trade expert at Cornell University. "The Trump administration seems eager to engineer at minimum a temporary peace with China to ensure a smooth runup to the Kim-Trump summit in June," Prasad said, referring to the June 12 meeting between President Donald Trump and North Korea's leader. The Washington talks, which followed a high-level meeting last month in Beijing, were led on the Chinese side by Vice Premier Liu He and on the American side by Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin. The U.S. delegation included Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross and U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer. 10 People Dead in Santa Fe High School Shooting Trump campaigned in 2016 on a pledge to get tough on China and other U.S. trading partners. He views the massive U.S. trade deficit with China as evidence that Beijing is engaged in abusive trading practices and has outmaneuvered previous U.S. administrations. Last August, Lighthizer began an investigation into Beijing's strong-arm tactics to challenge U.S. technological dominance. These include outright cybertheft of U.S. companies' trade secrets and China's demands that American corporations hand over technology in exchange for access to the Chinese markets. Last month, the administration proposed tariffs on $50 billion of Chinese imports to protest the forced technology transfers. Trump later ordered Lighthizer to seek up to an additional $100 billion in Chinese products to tax. It's Hard to Predict When U.S. Volcanoes Will Erupt: Experts China responded by targeting $50 billion in U.S. products, including soybeans — a shot at Trump supporters in America's heartland. The prospect of an escalating trade war has shaken financial markets and alarmed business leaders. In a separate controversy, the Commerce Department last month blocked China's ZTE Corp. from importing American components for seven years, accusing the telecommunications company of misleading U.S. regulators after it settled charges last year of violating sanctions against Iran and North Korea. The ban amounted to a death sentence for ZTE, which relies heavily on U.S. parts, and the company announced that it was halting operations. A week ago, Trump tweeted that he was working with Chinese President Xi Jinping to put ZTE "back in business, fast." Media reports suggested that the U.S. was offering to swap a ZTE rescue for an end to proposed Chinese tariffs on U.S. farm products. *** Trump, Moon Discuss N. Korea's Threat to Scrap Summit Kim Jong Un (AP) Sunday, 20 May 2018 https://www.newsmax.com/newsfront/trump-moon-jae-in-discuss-north-korea/2018/05/20/id/861379/ US President Donald Trump and South Korean President Moon Jae-in on Sunday discussed North Korea's recent threats to cancel its unprecedented summit with Washington, Seoul's presidential office said. After weeks of warm words and diplomatic backslapping, Pyongyang abruptly threatened to pull out of the planned summit next month because of US demands for "unilateral nuclear abandonment", according to the North's official KCNA news agency. North Korea also cancelled at the last minute a high-level meeting with the South, protesting joint military drills between Seoul and Washington. In a phone conversation on Sunday, Trump and Moon "exchanged views on various actions taken by North Korea recently", Moon's office said in a statement. The two leaders agreed to "work closely" for the success of the landmark summit in Singapore on June 12, which would be the first meeting between a sitting US President and a North Korean leader. They are due to meet in Washington on Tuesday. North Korea's sudden shift in attitude followed a weeks-long charm offensive that has seen leader Kim Jong Un hold a historic summit with Moon and meet twice with Chinese President Xi Jinping. At a dramatic summit last month in the Demilitarised Zone dividing their two countries, Kim and Moon pledged to pursue nuclear disarmament and a peace treaty. Pyongyang also raised hopes ahead of the US summit by announcing it will destroy its nuclear testing site next week. But the promise is open to interpretation on both sides and the North has spent decades developing its atomic arsenal, culminating last year in its sixth nuclear test -- by far its biggest to date -- and the launch of missiles capable of reaching the US.
Trump is doing things his predecessors should have done years ago. This trade deficit was unsustainable and would inevitably lead to conflict if unaddressed. Kim seems unable to read the writing on the wall or is bluffing with a pair of twos.
Trump Should Get Details on Informant Before Mueller Interview, Giuliani Says President’s lawyer seeks information about person said to have been used by U.S. investigators Rudy Giuliani in November 2016. Photo: Carolyn Kaster/Associated Press By Peter Nicholas and Sadie Gurman May 20, 2018 https://www.wsj.com/articles/trump-...re-mueller-interview-giuliani-says-1526814000 President Donald Trump shouldn’t agree to talk with special counsel Robert Mueller without knowing more about a man said to have approached Trump campaign aides in 2016 as part of the U.S. investigation into Russian election interference, his lawyer said Saturday. Rudy Giuliani said Mr. Trump could be “walking into a trap” unless federal prosecutors make clear the role played by the suspected informant and whether the person compiled any “incriminating information” about Mr. Trump’s associates. Mr. Giuliani’s comments suggest the Trump legal team is seeking leverage in the latest rounds of monthslong negotiations with Mr. Mueller about the terms under which the president would testify. “What we intend to do is premise it on, ‘If you want an interview, we need an answer to this,’ ” Mr. Giuliani said in an interview. In recent days, Mr. Trump and his allies have been moving more aggressively to try to discredit the Russia investigation, edging closer to a collision with the Justice Department and Federal Bureau of Investigation. They have seized on reports about the informant as evidence in their view that the Russia probe is motivated by political animus toward the president and not Russia’s efforts to influence the election outcome. In a tweet on Saturday, Mr. Trump suggested that federal agents had been “infiltrating” his campaign “for the benefit of” his opponent, Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton. For his part, Mr. Giuliani in the interview said before agreeing to talk, the Trump team would seek to learn more about what he described as a breach of the campaign’s “private communications.” But former law-enforcement officials have said informants in a probe involving a presidential campaign could be used for law-enforcement or foreign-intelligence purposes, but not for political ends. The suspected informant met with Trump campaign aides Carter Page and Sam Clovis. Mr. Page had been on the radar of U.S. counterintelligence officials for years over his dealings with Russia, and Mr. Clovis has met with Mr. Mueller’s prosecutors over his involvement with a onetime campaign adviser who pleaded guilty to lying to the FBI about his contacts with Russians. Neither Mr. Page nor Mr. Clovis have been accused of wrongdoing. Congressional Republicans are demanding records from the Justice Department about both the informant and other aspects of the investigation into Mr. Trump’s campaign. Rep. Devin Nunes (R., Calif), chairman of the House Intelligence Committee and a close ally of Mr. Trump, has gone so far to threaten to hold Attorney General Jeff Sessions in contempt of Congress if he doesn’t supply information about the person—an extraordinary threat from a committee chairman to an attorney general of his own party. Last week, White House Chief of Staff John Kelly told Rod Rosenstein, the deputy attorney general, to turn over the requested information, a person familiar with the matter said. The Justice Department disputed that account of the meeting but declined to elaborate. Rep. Mark Meadows (R., N.C.), who co-signed a letter to the president on Tuesday asking him to direct the Justice Department to release the records, said in an interview Saturday: “Any instruction that the Justice Department may have gotten from Gen. Kelly is consistent with where I’ve come to understand the president’s position to be.” The White House didn’t respond to a request for comment. Mr. Rosenstein has at times shown a willingness to meet congressional requests for information. But the department has resisted Mr. Nunes’s latest demand, even during a classified briefing with the congressman last week with intelligence officials. Mr. Nunes didn’t respond to an invitation from the Justice Department to meet with intelligence officials again this week. Officials have told Mr. Nunes that providing him with the requested information would put lives in danger, hurt investigations and damage international partnerships. A former senior Justice Department official familiar with the department’s thinking said the requests for information about confidential human sources are a red line for Mr. Rosenstein and others who believe providing such details would set a dangerous precedent. FBI Director Christopher Wray and Mr. Rosenstein have been making increasingly pointed public statements about the dangers of giving too much access. Mr. Rosenstein has said the Justice Department wouldn’t be “extorted” or succumb to threats, and Mr. Wray this past week added that “the day we can’t protect human sources is the day the American people start becoming less safe.” People close to the White House are dismissive of that argument, saying broadly that Justice Department is merely trying to suppress potentially embarrassing information. Reports of a government informant have migrated in recent days from conservative news outlets to the mainstream press, with the Washington Post and New York Times publishing articles on Friday. Mr. Trump’s lawyers have spent the past several months discussing with Mr. Mueller’s team the parameters of a possible interview, which Mr. Trump had said he is eager to do. The special counsel is investigating possible collusion between the Trump campaign and Russia, as well as whether the president sought to obstruct justice. Mr. Trump has denied collusion and obstruction, and Moscow has denied election meddling. Mr. Page, who was a Trump foreign-policy adviser, said he met with a person who is now believed to be the informant in July 2016. The event, a symposium on the 2016 election, was held at the University of Cambridge in the U.K. on July 11 and 12. The suspected informant asked to meet Mr. Clovis, a Trump campaign co-chairman who had initially helped assemble the foreign-policy team, in late August 2016, presenting himself as a professor and foreign-policy expert who wanted to help the campaign, according to Victoria Toensing, a lawyer for Mr. Clovis. The two met just outside Washington, D.C., and discussed China, Ms. Toensing said. “Russia never came up,” she said. “The conversation was only about China.” More Trump Tweets Russia Probe Getting ‘Ridiculous’ 5/20/2018 Inquiry Expands to Israeli Entrepreneur 5/19/2018 Rudy Giuliani: President Trump May Be 'Walking Into a Trap' 5/20/2018 Trump Demands DOJ to Release Documents on FBI Informant 5/20/2018 View attachment 7925
Alan Dershowitz rips into Mueller’s probe with eight words after Dan Abrams defends it vigorously May 20, 2018 | Vivek Saxena | https://www.bizpacreview.com/2018/0...after-dan-abrams-defends-it-vigorously-636546 In a heated debate Sunday morning on ABC News, renowned legal scholar Alan Dershowitz summed up special counsel Robert Mueller’s unfavorable investigation against President Donald Trump with eight simple words: “They are all long-term Republicans who hated Trump!” he exclaimed during his debate with the network’s chief legal analyst, Dan Abrams, citing the political beliefs of both Mueller and his protege, disgraced former FBI Director James Comey. And that, Dershowitz argued, is why it’s only fair when the president blasts the investigation as a veritable “witch hunt,” just as he had earlier that morning. Look: Things are really getting ridiculous. The Failing and Crooked (but not as Crooked as Hillary Clinton) @nytimes has done a long & boring story indicating that the World’s most expensive Witch Hunt has found nothing on Russia & me so now they are looking at the rest of the World! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 20, 2018 ….At what point does this soon to be $20,000,000 Witch Hunt, composed of 13 Angry and Heavily Conflicted Democrats and two people who have worked for Obama for 8 years, STOP! They have found no Collussion with Russia, No Obstruction, but they aren’t looking at the corruption… — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 20, 2018 Dershowitz issued the observation while trying to argue that the Justice Department “should have appointed a non-partisan, independent commission like 9/11″ (versus Mueller) to investigate alleged Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election. Why? Because Mueller is clearly compromised. As an example, the famed legal scholar pointed to what Comey wrote about Mueller in his recently published memoir. “[H]e and Comey are so close — their history is so close together that when you read Comey’s book and you see what he has said, you really wonder about the objectivity of the investigation,” Dershowitz noted. Last year Fox News host Sean Hannity described the friendship between Mueller and Comey as being equivalent to the friendship between a father and son. The special counselor’s investigation into Trump has likewise been tarnished a thousand times over by scandal after scandal after scandal. For a Republican, Mueller has hired a suspicious number of Democrats to serve on his legal team. One of his hires, FBI agent Peter Strzok, had to eventually be removed from the team after it was learned he had exchanged anti-Trump texts with another agent during the election. “There was never a need for a Special Counsel — Special Counsel have targets, they’re looking to try to find crimes against people,” Dershowitz continued Sunday. “That doesn’t serve the interest of America. America’s interest is served by finding out the truth, the facts, changing the law and making sure it never happens again.” While many might argue that Dershowitz had a point, both Abrams and ABC News host George Stephanopoulos disagreed. “It sounds like you’re in league with President Trump on impeaching the credibility at this point of the Special Counsel,” the host said, echoing the same rhetoric used by every liberal aghast at the thought of anyone calling Mueller’s shattered credibility into question. Newsflash to liberals: Robert Mueller is not God, OK. He’s just a man … a very flawed man, at that! We know first-hand that censorship against conservative news is real. Please share stories and encourage your friends to sign up for our daily email blast so they are not getting shut out of seeing conservative news.
I bet that Comey and McCabe and others who were involved in sabotaging the investigation will give interviews to tell their side of the story while anonymous sources leak furiously to back them up this week. It's all about the spin before the IG report hits.
DOJ asks watchdog to look into possible 'impropriety' after Trump demands probe on alleged campaign 'infiltration' By Joseph Weber | Fox News http://www.foxnews.com/politics/201...spied-on-campaign-for-political-purposes.html Trump calls leakers 'traitors' Does president now admit internal strife? The Justice Department asked its watchdog to look into any alleged "impropriety or political motivation" in the FBI's investigation of Russian interference in the 2016 election, the DOJ said Sunday night -- hours after President Trump ordered a review looking into whether federal agents infiltrated or surveilled his campaign for political purposes. "I hereby demand, and will do so officially tomorrow, that the Department of Justice look into whether or not the FBI/DOJ infiltrated or surveilled the Trump Campaign for Political Purposes -- and if any such demands or requests were made by people within the Obama Administration!" the president tweeted. "The Department has asked the Inspector General to expand the ongoing review of the (Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act) application process to include determining whether there was any impropriety or political motivation in how the FBI conducted its counterintelligence investigation of persons suspected of involvement with the Russian agents who interfered in the 2016 presidential election. As always, the Inspector General will consult with the appropriate U.S. Attorney if there is any evidence of potential criminal conduct," DOJ spokeswoman Sarah Isgur Flores told Fox News. She also released a response from Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein: "If anyone did infiltrate or surveil participants in a presidential campaign for inappropriate purposes, we need to know about it and take appropriate action." Trump, late last week, began accusing the Justice Department of trying to frame him by planting a spy in his campaign -- an allegation his own lawyer said might not be true. Promoting a theory that is circulating, Trump quoted Fox Business anchor David Asman and tweeted Friday: "Apparently the DOJ put a Spy in the Trump Campaign. This has never been done before and by any means necessary, they are out to frame Donald Trump for crimes he didn't commit." But Trump lawyer Rudy Giuliani cast some doubt on that. On whether there was an "informant" in the 2016 presidential campaign, Giuliani told CNN, "I don't know for sure, nor does the president, if there really was one," though he said they have long been told there was "some kind of infiltration." Earlier this month, the National Review raised the question of a possible FBI spy in Trump's campaign. The article cites work by California Republican Rep. Devin Nunes, an ardent Trump supporter and head of the House Intelligence Committee, who has demanded information on an FBI source in the Russia investigation. Virginia Sen. Mark Warner, the top Democrat on the Senate Intelligence Committee as its vice chairman, objected Friday to such demands, emphasizing "the critical importance of protecting sources and methods." "It would be at best irresponsible, and at worst potentially illegal, for members of Congress to use their positions to learn the identity of an FBI source for the purpose of undermining the ongoing investigation into Russian interference in our election," Warner wrote in a statement. "Anyone who is entrusted with our nation's highest secrets should act with the gravity and seriousness of purpose that knowledge deserves." The New York Times reported separately this past week that at least one government informant met several times with Carter Page and George Papadopoulos, both former foreign policy advisers for Trump's Republican campaign. The Times reported Friday that the informant talked to Page and Papadopoulos because they had suspicious contacts linked to Russia. The newspaper attributed the information to current and former FBI officials. Also Friday, Giuliani said special counsel Robert Mueller has narrowed his possible interview subject areas from five to two as negotiations continue over whether the president will sit down and answer questions in the Russia investigation. Mueller is investigating possible coordination between Russia and Trump's 2016 campaign. A number of Trump outside advisers -- including former chief strategist Stephen Bannon -- have stepped up their attacks on the Department of Justice, calling for it to release more documents to the White House while saying a confidential source has worked against Trump. Fox News' Jake Gibson and The Associated Press contributed to this report. **** Devin Nunes doesn't rule out possibility of multiple FBI informants in Trump https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2018/may/20/devin-nunes-says-multiple-fbi-informants-trump-cam/ (click this link for live links in the article) View attachment 7930 View attachment 7928 View attachment 7929 An email referring to ‘collusion’ sheds light on professor’s interactions with Trump campaign Cambridge professor Stefan Halper expressed skepticism of the alleged collusion … BizPac Review May 21, 2018 In Huge Disappointment, the FBI’s Super-Secret Trump Informant Looks to Be . . . Stefan Halper Why? In any case, not to keep you in suspense any longer, by several accounts … Mother Jones May 20, 2018 MSM silence on Stefan Halper’s name ends This does not cover informants or sources and intelligence agencies ... of Congress when the FBI has leaked the same information to multiple media outlets is simply insane. We know Halper’s name as the likely Deep State operative who … American Thinker May 20, 2018 'FBI plant' in Trump campaign was Cambridge professor, reports say University of Cambridge professor Stefan Halper has been identified as an FBI … Fox News May 20, 2018
And if this pans out it will be one more check off for the Mark Taylor "Trump Prophecies": There May be an Impeachment in the Works… But it Won’t Be Trump Far left hack and historian Jon Meacham said Monday that he thinks impeachment will be the “season finale” to President Trump’s time in office. Meachum made the courageous announcement on the Morning Joe echo chamber on Monday. Meachum, the former Editor-in-Chief of leftwing Newsweek, may be on to something. But he might be surprised with the final result. It would be hard for the Deep State and their supporters in Congress to impeach President Trump for mean tweets. It would not be hard for Congress to impeach Barack Obama for spying on the opposition candidate during a national election. And that is where this story is heading. We now know that the Obama administration used all of the resources of government to spy on his political enemy during the 2016 election. The Obama deep state event injected a spy into the Donald Trump campaign. This is unprecedented in US history. On Sunday night Tom Fitton from Judicial Watch tweeted out to President Donald Trump that Barack Obama could still be impeached and barred from public office every again. .... On Monday morning President Trump tweeted this out on his predecessor: “The Wall Street Journal asks, “WHERE IN THE WORLD WAS BARACK OBAMA?” A very good question!” There may be a case for impeachment in the near future. But it won’t be President Trump. http://www.thegatewaypundit.com/201...mpeachment-in-the-works-but-it-wont-be-trump/
Trump, Conservatives Demand Investigation of ‘Hacked’ DNC Server As the special counsel investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election hit the one-year mark last week, President Trump and conservatives are demanding an investigation into why the allegedly hacked Democratic National Committee email server — the key piece of forensic evidence in Russia’s suspected interference in the 2016 presidential election — was never subpoenaed by the FBI. ......."FBI: We're here to investigate a crime. Let us exam the servers. DNC: No FBI: OK That server? The Dems had it taken apart and scrubbed it!https://fighting15th.com/2017/05/15/russian-hackers/ …https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrum MORE: http://www.thegatewaypundit.com/201...es-demand-investigation-of-hacked-dnc-server/
Eric Holder Lashes Out at Trump For Calling on DOJ to Investigate FBI Campaign Spies Former Attorney General Eric ‘Fast and Furious’ Holder lashed out at Trump on Monday after the President called on the DOJ to investigate the FBI’s infiltration of his 2016 campaign. The Deep State corruptors and criminals have come unhinged since Trump called on the Justice Department to investigate Obama’s illegal spy campaign. ......The most corrupt Attorney General in US history, Eric Holder came out swinging and called Trump’s move “dangerous” and a threat to our democracy. We have never seen members of the prior administration protest the current administration like this; it is unprecedented. Holder tweeted: Trump demand for DOJ investigation is dangerous/democracy threatening. DOJ response is disappointing.There is no basis/no predicate for an http://inquiry.It ’s time to stand for time honored DOJ independence.That separation from White House is a critical part of our system. http://www.thegatewaypundit.com/201...doj-to-investigate-fbi-campaign-infiltration/
So what exactly did President Trump say to these two to make such a change in their stonewalling? JUST IN: DOJ Agrees to Allow Congress to Review Requested Classified Docs After Trump Meets With Rosenstein, Wray After meeting with Rosenstein and Wray, the White House asked the Inspector General to investigate any irregularities with the FBI’s or DOJ’s tactics concerning Trump’s campaign. The DOJ also agreed to allow Congress to review the requested documents relating to the FBI’s infiltration into Trump’s campaign. MORE: http://www.thegatewaypundit.com/201...-docs-after-trump-meets-with-rosenstein-wray/
I'm starting to think this whole Mueller investigation is nothing but Freemason theater, with Trump as the good cop and Mueller as the bad cop. Trump has tweeted for a year complaining about this Mueller investigation. Memo to Trump: you are the Chief Law Enforcement officer in the country. You are the head of the Executive Branch. Mueller works for you, not the other way around. Trump could fire Mueller tomorrow if he really wanted and was really serious about doing so. Instead, he all he does is complain on Twitter. Either Trump is ignorant of the powers of the office he holds, or he is just part of the show as they say. The third possibility is that Trump started out truly believing in the America First mandate he was handed by voters but quickly became corrupted by the Deep State and dual-citizens that control Congress. In effect, Mueller was there to make sure Trump stepped into line with the Deep State and Israeli/Saudi-First agenda. Now that Trump has done so and Mueller's mission has been accomplished, you will see Mueller fade into the background and slowly disappear from occupying the top slot in the Media cycle. He'll wrap up his lawless investigation by September and there will be no conclusion on "Russian collusion." Meanwhile, the blatant Israeli-Saudi collusion by Trump, the Deep State and members of Congress will never get an investigation.
Former FBI Official: Trump was absolutely right to fire Comey. He should not fire Mueller By Chris Swecker May 21, 2018 http://www.foxnews.com/opinion/2018...ht-to-fire-comey-should-not-fire-mueller.html Like an old TV soap opera, Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s Russia probe – which turned a year old last week – keeps expanding into new storylines, generating increasingly complex and surprising plot twists, and bringing in new characters. Keeping track of the many rapidly changing developments is challenging for the average American and even for someone like me, a former FBI assistant director who served in the bureau for 24 years, including five years under Mueller. It’s understandable that President Trump finds the long and intrusive Mueller investigation objectionable and distracting. But because I know Mueller well, I am sure of one thing: he is conducting a full and fair investigation. The president would be wise to let the Russia probe continue and let Mueller continue to lead it. Firing Mueller would only worsen the president’s problems, making it look like he has done something wrong and wants to cover it up. It would strengthen the hand of political opponents who want to see him impeached. On the other hand, former FBI Director James Comey – as I’ll explain in greater detail below – should never have been appointed FBI director. President Trump was right to fire him, and criticism of the president for the firing is wrong. Comey treated Clinton with kid gloves, but went after Donald Trump with a sledgehammer. One of the latest developments in the complex Mueller investigation involves reports first appearing in the Washington Post and New York Times in the past few days that the FBI used an informant to gather information on the Trump presidential campaign. President Trump tweeted last week: “Wow, word seems to be coming out that the Obama FBI ‘SPIED ON THE TRUMP CAMPAIGN WITH AN EMBEDDED INFORMANT.’” The president added: “If so, this is bigger than Watergate!” In subsequent tweets, the president said that “if the FBI or DOJ (Department of Justice) was infiltrating a campaign for the benefit of another campaign, that is a really big deal.” He also tweeted that “If true - all time biggest political scandal!” Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani, now serving as an attorney representing the president in the investigation, told “Fox & Friends” last week that Comey “should be prosecuted” if the FBI spied on the Trump campaign. While both Comey and Mueller have been targeted for sharp criticism by the president and his supporters, there’s a big difference between the two former FBI directors. Mueller is an honorable patriot and former Marine officer who has served his country with valor and selfless dedication. He’s not about to compromise his values just to obtain a conviction of anyone under investigation, or to force President Trump from office. Mueller is playing by the rules zealously, proactively and within the bounds of the law. That's how any investigation should be conducted. In contrast, Comey failed miserably to do his job, broke the rules and made up his own rules during the short time he served as FBI director. In the more than two years I served as chief of the FBI’s Criminal Investigative Division and assistant director under Mueller, I attended over 400 meetings with him in individual and group settings. I never saw a hint of bias, politicization or improper motivation. Comey’s weak investigation of then-Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s basement email server and his tepid non-investigation of the Clinton Foundation provide fodder for those of us who believe that the two presidential candidates were handled very differently. Comey treated Clinton with kid gloves, but went after Donald Trump with a sledgehammer. If Comey had actually conducted a credible investigation of both the Clinton Foundation and the Clinton email server, people would be more understanding of the investigation now being conducted by Mueller. It is the unequal treatment under the law that is the real issue – Trump is getting far closer scrutiny than Clinton ever received. The starkly contrasting conduct of the investigations of the two candidate and the genesis of the Russia investigation – which was originally opened by Comey – have people rightfully questioning the entire process and Comey’s conduct. The original Russia espionage investigation was opened to determine if Russian President Vladimir Putin tried to undermine our democracy by gathering compromising dirt on both candidates and attempting to manipulate and undermine our election process. In addition, the investigation was begun to examine whether anyone in the Trump presidential campaign aided or cooperated with the Russians. Even before July 2016, there were legitimate questions about whether Putin actively infiltrated the presidential campaigns to compromise or influence the outcome of our presidential election. These are important questions to answer, and it's high time that Putin and his cronies were unmasked. The problem is that members of Comey's FBI investigative team – under the close supervision of disgraced characters such as fired Deputy Director Andrew McCabe, Deputy Assistant Director Jim Strozk and FBI Attorney Lisa Page (who was Strozk’s girlfriend) – apparently used questionable information from a variety of sketchy sources to justify the investigation of the Trump campaign. Reports that the FBI even planted an undercover informant to spy on the Trump campaign are particularly alarming. No such techniques were utilized to investigate Hillary Clinton, her campaign or the Clinton Foundation. To make matters worse, Strozk, McCabe and Comey deliberately withheld information from a judge that evidence they used to obtain a surveillance warrant against a Trump campaign adviser originated with a former British spy whose work was funded by the Clinton campaign. And who can forget the illegal and procedure-busting news conference where Comey stole the ball from Attorney General Loretta Lynch and claimed Hillary Clinton could not be prosecuted for her improper handling of classified emails – despite outlining a strong case for at least gross negligence in her conduct? In truth, there's no question that Secretary of State Clinton migrated all of her government emails – including classified information – to a private server located in her home. That’s about as secure as putting all of that information on your front doorstep. Unquestionably, she put our national security at risk by violating rules for the handling of classified communications. Yet she was never prosecuted. In addition, Comey was inexplicably indifferent to the Clinton camp’s obstruction of the investigation by destroying emails and withholding evidence. And he made many other sloppy mistakes. At the same time, Comey went full bore on the Russia-Trump campaign collusion investigation, despite many illegal leaks. The one thing everyone needs to clearly understand is that Putin is a vicious dictator dedicated to destroying our democracy and setting us against each other. Like a good mob boss, he hedged his bets by gathering derogatory information on both presidential candidates during the 2016 campaign. While I support President Trump, if anyone in his campaign intentionally or carelessly aided and abetted Putin's minions in accomplishing the disruption or manipulation of our elections or attempted to influence our elections, I want to know the truth. Once and for all, Putin must be unmasked and there must be visible deterrence to him, his operatives and any American from working wittingly or unwittingly to undermine or destabilize our democracy. Rest assured, Mueller is not going to frame anyone. Any action taken by his office will be based on overwhelming evidence of criminal activity. Mueller does not leak and unlike the grandstanding Comey has characteristically shunned the media. Mueller values competence, but exerts his will and follows his own counsel in making final decisions after gathering the facts. He will have the last word on any product coming out of his office. This is how he operated for 13 years as FBI director, three of which were “overtime” years past the statutory 10-year term because Congress overwhelmingly voted to extend his term until he chose to return to the private practice of law. In the more than two years I served as chief of the FBI’s Criminal Investigative Division and assistant director under Mueller, I attended over 400 meetings with him in individual and group settings. I never saw a hint of bias, politicization or improper motivation. Mueller is a humble, unassuming person who possesses all the best elements of a leader and commander. He earned a Bronze Star and Purple Heart for his heroic service as a Marine in Vietnam, surviving a serious bullet wound. No one who has served with Mueller in the public or private sector over the last 45 years has anything but praise for his conduct or his integrity. We need to know the truth and Mueller is our best chance to uncover the facts, however inconvenient. Chris E. Swecker served 24 years in FBI as Special Agent. He retired from the Bureau as Assistant Director with responsibility over all FBI Criminal Investigations. He currently practices law in Charlotte, N.C.
Since there is so far nothing to even back up the original reasoning given for the fraudulent Trump witch hunt one of the only things left is to create a non-existent "obstruction of justice" angle in order to continue the waste of time and tax payers' money. So they are baiting Trump with everything they can to challenge him to exercise getting rid of Mueller which would be his right to do anyway....which they, along with the Never Trumpers and their promoting media will pounce on for reason to instigate impeachment. They are doing everything to stall turning over discovery into the Midterm elections where they hope there will result a Democratic congress and build an impeachment case.....for firing Mueller which they would hype into some form of obstruction of justice propaganda. That is why Trump is in a bind when it comes to the demands from those to exercise his legal authority....playing into the "swamp's" plans.
The viciousness of any possible incoming Dem congress (along with any remaining RINOs/Never Trumper elitists)....pure hatred/hang morality, ethics, and law: AL GREEN: DEMOCRATS WILL IMPEACH TRUMP IF WE RETAKE THE HOUSE ‘Every member of the House is accorded the opportunity to bring up impeachment’ If Americans give the House of Representatives back to the Democratic Party this November, one of first things that will happen is the impeachment of President Trump, Rep. Al Green (D-Texas) said Tuesday. "There’s a good likelihood there will be articles of impeachment” brought against Trump, Rep. Green said. “Here is a point that I think is salient, and one that ought to be referenced. Every member of the House is accorded the opportunity to bring up impeachment. This is not something the Constitution has bestowed upon leadership. It’s something every member has the right and privilege of doing.” https://news.grabien.com/story-al-green-democrats-will-impeach-trump-if-we-retake-house Harvard Law Professor Laurence Tribe Warns Dems Pushing Trump Impeachment: ‘You Have to Shoot to Kill’ “If you’re going to shoot him, you have to shoot to kill,” Tribe said. “And that requires an overwhelming majority of a bipartisan kind. Otherwise you’re just going to nick the guy, and make him feel empowered and vindicated.” https://www.mediaite.com/tv/harvard...-trump-impeachment-you-have-to-shoot-to-kill/
Of course these days things can change rapidly.....either way: Poll Shock: GOP Takes Lead in 2018 Generic Poll By 6 Points — Nine Point Reversal in One Week! Democrats are hoping for a blue wave to take down Republicans in the 2018 midterm elections. Then they can focus on impeaching President Trump over his mean tweets. But the latest Reuters generic poll shows Republicans suddenly with a 6 point lead! That’s a 9 point swing in one week. This comes after more record economic news (ignored by the liberal mainstream media). And this week’s dip also occurred after news broke that the Obama intelligence community had infiltrated the Trump campaign with at least one informant spy. For all the media hype about the upcoming ‘Blue Wave’ sweeping Republicans from power in November, a comprehensive Morning Consult poll last week showed a Republican wave in the making in U.S. Senate elections across the country with five Democrat incumbents decisively losing by at least five percent and four other Democrat incumbents in statistical ties. http://www.thegatewaypundit.com/201...-by-6-points-nine-point-reversal-in-one-week/ And if such predictions come to pass it will be one more check off for the Mark Taylor "Trump Prophecies"!!
