Posted on 04/30/2019 5:58:12 AM PDT by Mount Athos
The clearest of all the laws concerning U.S. intelligence is Section 798, 18 U.S. Code—widely known in the Intelligence Community as “the Comint Statute,” or “the 10 and 10.” Unlike other laws, this is a “simple liability” law. Motivation, context, identity, matter not at all. You violate it, you are guilty and are punished accordingly.
Here it is:
(a) Whoever knowingly and willfully communicates, furnishes, transmits, or otherwise makes available to an unauthorized person, . . . any classified information—
(1) concerning the nature, preparation, or use of any code, cipher, or cryptographic system of the United States or any foreign government; or
(2) concerning the design, construction, use, maintenance, or repair of any device, apparatus, or appliance used or prepared or planned for use by the United States …or
(3) concerning the communication intelligence activities of the United States or any foreign government; or
(4) obtained by the processes of communication intelligence . . .
Shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than ten years, or both.
On December 9 and 10, 2016, the New York Times and the Washington Post independently reported that anonymous senior intelligence officials had told them that, based on intercepted communications, the intelligence agencies agreed that Russia had hacked the Democratic National Committee to help Donald Trump win the election. Their evidence was the fact of their access to U.S communications intelligence. A flood of subsequent stories also cited allegations by “senior intelligence officials” that “intercepted communications” and “intercepted calls” showed that “members of Donald J. Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign and other Trump associates had repeated contacts with senior Russian intelligence officials in the year before the election.”
Incontrovertibly, the officials who gave these stories to the Times and Post violated the Comint Statute, and are subject to the “10 and 10” for each count. There is no clearer instance of what the governing law is, of how it was violated, and of the punishment that this incurs.
Consequently, there is no clearer indictment of our legal system than the fact that no one has been prosecuted for these violations, much less punished.
Nor is there any doubt as to who at least two of these “senior intelligence officials” are: Former CIA director John Brennan and former Director of National Intelligence James Clapper.
Beginning in January 2017, Brennan and Clapper made essentially the same statements on national television. The only possible excuse—that their allegations were lies—is irrelevant because the essence of the violation is the revelation that U.S intelligence was monitoring the communications of the Russians in America, and those of the Trump campaign as well. This is true, and that revelation is a textbook violation of the Comint Statute.
The reasons no prosecutions have followed should be plain enough. The offenders are big people, in the permanent government and in the Democratic Party. They have a great many friends in the U.S Justice Department. From the top down, the Trump Administration has been filled by much smaller people. Loud words aside, the president has kowtowed to the intelligence agencies in every way imaginable. No prominent Republican has chosen to challenge the de facto privileged relationship between Democrats in the intelligence agencies and the media.
And so, Brennan and Clapper continue as living proof that the United States has a dual system of justice. The example of their impunity speaks louder than any speech, and reassures their leftist successors in the intelligence agencies that their channel to the Times and Post is as safe as ever.
Politics is not responsible for the non-application of Section 798 to Brendan and Clapper. It is difficult to imagine that the public would not approve massively the straightforward application to prominent men of a law that is so unambiguous, which is the foundation of arguably the main part of U.S intelligence, and which has been applied countless times to ordinary people.
Rather, the absence of real politics—of real competition between opposing sides in American life—is the culprit. What we see is that those in the upper echelons of American life, whether they call themselves Republicans or Democrats, have greater loyalty to the ruling class to which they belong than to any law or institution. The refusal to apply Section 798 to Brennan and Clapper —the fact that they are free men —is simply the most obvious manifestation of the fact that we have a ruling class, that it is coherent, and that it has yet to be challenged in any serious way.
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Their rules are different.
It’s more than that.
After the election, I think Trump wanted to move on and unify the country. Going after (much less jailing) that repugnant witch Hillary would not have done that - it would have caused the left to go even more apeshit than they did - probably to the point of violence in the streets.
I don’t agree with this decision (unfortunately, President Trump didn’t ask for my opinion) but I understand it.
Why I DON’T understand is why, after the Witch spent the next several years spewing venom and clearly doing everything she could to destroy Trump’s administration out of spite that he didn’t go after her THEN. It’s completely out of character. What’s the one rock-steady facet of Trump’s personality... so reliable that you can count on it as much as the sun coming up tomorrow morning? It’s that if someone attacks him, he FIGHTS BACK.
But I haven’t seen any “fighting back” against Hillary.
I haven’t seen any sign that anyone’s “fighting back” behind the scenes.
Yeah... I know, there’s supposedly many “investigations” going on by someone, somewhere, somehow. But they never seem to bear fruit and we never hear about them. Why? The left didn’t keep it a secret that they were “investigating” Trump for 2+ years.
AT LEAST GIVE US HOPE THAT JUSTICE WILL BE DONE, President Trump!
We have been waiting DECADES waiting for that, seeing that bitch laugh in our faces because she LITERALLY gets away with EVERYTHING.
... and the people shielding her and “bending justice” on her behalf need to be pulled down and jailed as well - even if it means dismantling the discredited FBI and starting over from scratch.
Because, reasons.
Rather, the absence of real politics—of real competition between opposing sides in American life—is the culprit. What we see is that those in the upper echelons of American life, whether they call themselves Republicans or Democrats, have greater loyalty to the ruling class to which they belong than to any law or institution. The refusal to apply Section 798 to Brennan and Clapper —the fact that they are free men —is simply the most obvious manifestation of the fact that we have a ruling class, that it is coherent, and that it has yet to be challenged in any serious way.
McCain got a hero's funeral and hillary roams free. How can that be?
Once the IG report comes out and there are criminal referrals, Clapper, Brennan and Yates will be the first ones arrested.
I think Trump is going to stay as far away from Hillary and Obama until after 2020. But before that he will take down the coup ring leaders to keep it in the news. Someone is going to take the get out of jail card and rat out everyone. My bet is it will be the Ohr’s.
All should be hanged.
Because The Deep State is alive and well, particularly at the DOJ.
Thank you. Good response. And Hillary knows where all the bodies are buried. Hell, she put most of them there herself.
And never will. They are too many, for too long and too deep.....
That is correct. Thank you.
RINO’s are the biggest culprit for why these criminals aren’t playing spread-the-cheekos with Bubba. Without their cuck-sure arrogance at racing to manage the decline as the minority party, the entire Democrat Party would be on the ropes.
None of the participants of the Kenyanesian Usurpation are going to jail because BOTH parties cooperated to violate the Constitution.
They will not risk prosecuting even the smallest fish for fear of their own complicity being exposed.
All one has to do is look and listen. Day after day, conservative spoke-persons assure us that many criminal activities are being investigated and many persons could be held accountable, however, the important result is not to find someone guilty and punish them but to learn a lesson so these activities will not be repeated in the future.....
So, what will we get in the end? We will have been made privy to misdeeds of political players, misdeeds consisting of unpaid parking tickets, overdue library books, NSF checks, not tipping the bartenders, not putting lids on trash cans, watching porn, cheating on spouse and lying, as if we didn't know already.
We are being provided a dog and pony show to satisfy our need to have "something done".....
I think Codevilla is too wedded to his premise. I think DJT goes after the swamp hammer and tongs after the IG report and wins.
Agreed though if the deep state steals the next election there will be no one to put them into prison.
Why? Because the statute cited calls for max 10 years imprisonment, and they are building the case for so much more. Wouldn’t want to risk losing THAT because of double jeopardy.
We didn't vote for a dog and pony show. We voted for draining the swamp. Problem is, the swamp hasn't been dredged. It contaminates everyone and everything which enters.
It also didn’t help that PDJT had to battle through the first two years of his term without an AG.
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