Investigating the Investigators

American Greatness ^ | Oct 23, 2017 | Victor Davis Hanson

[bitt]

Despite having both an expansive budget and a large legal team, Special Investigator Robert Mueller likely will not find President Trump culpable for any Russian collusion—or at least no court or congressional vote would, even if Mueller recommends an indictment.

That likelihood becomes clearer as the Trump investigators—in Congress, in the Justice Department, and the legions in the media—begin to grow strangely silent about the entire collusion charge, as other scandals mount and crowd out the old empty story. This news boomerang poses the obvious question—was the zeal of the original accusers of felony behavior with the Russian collusion merely an attempt at deflection? Was it designed to protect themselves from being accused of serious crimes?

[bitt]

What Did the FBI Do? "It was bad enough that the original narrative had the authors of the so-called Fusion GPS/Steele dossier leaking their smears to the media. Worse, the FBI, in the earlier fashion of the Clinton campaign, may have paid to obtain the Fusion concoction...."

[bitt]

Victor Davis Hanson ping

[ETL]

October 18, 2017:

Justice Department Oversight Hearing Attorney General Jeff Sessions testified at a Justice Department oversight hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee

From the transcript: C-Span...

(sorry about the CAPS. That is how they do their transcripts)

CHAIRMAN GRASSLEY:

I WANT TO ASK YOU A QUESTION THAT LOOKS LIKE HISTORY, BUT IT WAS IN THE NEWS RECENTLY.

YESTERDAY, I BELIEVE, ACCORDING TO GOVERNMENT DOCUMENTS AND RECENT NEWS REPORTS, THE JUSTICE DEPARTMENT HAS AN ONGOING CRIMINAL INVESTIGATION FOR BRIBERY, EXTORTION, AND MONEY LAUNDERING INTO OFFICIALS FOR THE RUSSIAN COMPANY MAKING THE PURCHASE OF URANIUM ONE.

THAT PURCHASE WAS APPROVED DURING THE PREVIOUS ADMINISTRATION AND RESULTED IN THE RUSSIANS OWNING 20% OF AMERICA’S URANIUM MINING CAPACITY.

WHAT ARE YOU DOING TO FIND OUT HOW THE RUSSIAN TAKEOVER OF THE AMERICAN URANIUM WAS ALLOWED TO OCCUR, DESPITE CRIMINAL CONDUCT BY THE RUSSIAN COMPANY THAT THE OBAMA ADMINISTRATION APPROVED TO MAKE THE PURCHASE?

A.G. SESSIONS:

MR. CHAIRMAN, WE WILL HEAR YOUR CONCERNS. THE DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE WILL TAKE SUCH ACTIONS AS IS APPROPRIATE, I KNOW, AND I WOULD OFFER THAT SOME PEOPLE HAVE GONE TO JAIL IN THAT TRANSACTION ALREADY, BUT THE ARTICLE TALKS ABOUT OTHER ISSUES.

SO WITHOUT CONFIRMING OR DENYING THE EXISTENCE OF ANY PARTICULAR INVESTIGATION, I WOULD SAY THAT I HEAR YOUR CONCERNS AND THEY WILL BE REVIEWED.

CHAIRMAN GRASSLEY:

I THINK I KNOW WHY YOU ARE PROBABLY RELUCTANT TO GO INTO SOME DETAIL ON THAT, BUT I WOULD LIKE TO REMIND YOU THAT DEPUTY ATTORNEY ROSENSTEIN DIRECTLY SUPERVISED A CRIMINAL CASE WHEN HE WAS U.S. ATTORNEY IN MARYLAND.

I DO NOT THINK IT WOULD BE PROPER FOR HIM TO SUPERVISE A REVIEW OF HIS OWN CONDUCT, DO YOU?

A.G. SESSIONS:

IT WOULD BE HIS DECISION. HE IS A MAN OF INTEGRITY AND ABILITY. IF HE FEELS HE HAS AN INABILITY TO PROCEED WITH ANY INVESTIGATION, IT WOULD BE HIS RESPONSIBILITY TO MAKE THAT DETERMINATION, AND SHOULD CONSULT, AS I TOLD YOU I WOULD AND AS I HAVE DONE, WITH THE SENIOR ETHICS PEOPLE AT THE DEPARTMENT.

CHAIRMAN GRASSLEY:

REPORTS SUGGEST THAT THE CLINTON FOUNDATION RECEIVED MILLIONS OF DOLLARS FROM INTERESTED PARTIES IN THE TRANSACTION. BILL CLINTON RECEIVED $500,000 FOR A SPEECH IN MOSCOW, JUNE 2010, FROM THE RUSSIAN GOVERNMENT ALIGNED BANK, THE SAME MONTH THAT RUSSIA BEGAN THE URANIUM ACQUISITION PROCESS.

THIS FACT PATTERN RAISES SERIOUS CONCERNS ABOUT IMPROPER POLITICAL INFLUENCE ON THE PROCESS BY THE PREVIOUS — BY THE CLINTONS DURING THE OBAMA ADMINISTRATION.

HAS THE JUSTICE DEPARTMENT FULLY INVESTIGATED WHETHER THE RUSSIANS COMPROMISED THE OBAMA ADMINISTRATION’S DECISIONS TO SMOOTH THE WAY FOR TRANSACTIONS, AND IF NOT, WHY NOT?

A.G. SESSIONS:

WE ARE WORKING HARD TO MAINTAIN DISCIPLINE IN THE DEPARTMENT.

IT WOULD NOT BE APPROPRIATE FOR ME TO COMMENT ON ANY ONGOING INVESTIGATION.

https://www.c-span.org/video/?434413-1/attorney-general-says-interviewed-special-counsel

[SunkenCiv]

Thanks bitt.

[gattaca]

bmp

[Louis Foxwell]

Not a whisper until the hammer falls.

[Ann Archy]

Jeff Sessions can’t maintain DISCIPLINE in his own dept??? OMG...what a WIMP!

[hardspunned]

That idiot Sessions would sleep through the impeachment of Trump and installation of Clinton as president with Putin sitting at her side as foreign policy advisor. What intransigence must Sessions be guilty of for Trump to finally fired his worthless a$$?

[Paladin2]

Rip is the one being disciplined by the DoJ DeepState.

[Baynative]

[GOPJ]

Special Investigator Robert Mueller likely will not find President Trump culpable for any Russian collusion—or at least no court or congressional vote would, even if Mueller recommends an indictment.

That likelihood becomes clearer as the Trump investigators—in Congress, in the Justice Department, and the legions in the media—begin to grow strangely silent about the entire collusion charge, as other scandals mount and crowd out the old empty story. This news boomerang poses the obvious question—was the zeal of the original accusers of felony behavior with the Russian collusion merely an attempt at deflection? Was it designed to protect themselves from being accused of serious crimes?

fyi