Posted on 03/08/2018 4:00:36 PM PST by EyesOfTX
The Evening Campaign Update (Because The Campaign Never Ends)
I’ve been traveling this week, so I just noticed this myself this afternoon. In an interview with Fox New’s Shannon Bream Wednesday night, Attorney General Jeff Sessions dropped a bomb when, after asked about allegations that officials within the FBI and the DOJ had violated the FISA process in order to spy on the Trump Campaign, he said the following:
“I have appointed a person outside of Washington, many years in the Department of Justice (DOJ), to look at all the allegations that the House Judiciary Committee members sent to us; and we’re conducting that investigation.”
Wait, what? When did that happen? Why all the secrecy? What is this person’s name? What else might the person be looking at? Here are some thoughts on what the answers to those questions might be.
First, you have to look at this from Sessions’ point of view: He leads the DOJ, and thus the FBI as well. Having his own DOJ lawyers investigate the FBI and DOJ anti-Trump cabal’s abuses would present a clear conflict of interest, as I pointed out last week.
My bet is that he took this action after he became aware of potential FISA abuses shortly after he assumed office in March of last year. At that point, during his first briefing with DOJ Inspector General Michael Horowitz, he would have been made aware of the IG’s investigation into the FISA and other related matters, and thus would have become aware that he had a set of truly bad actors in his midst. That is likely something Sessions already suspected, since it had become obvious during his confirmation hearing that he had personally been under illegal surveillance, but a briefing from Horowitz would have confirmed that reality.
Sessions would not have wanted to formally appoint a special counsel at that time, because that is a very public act, one which requires the public identification of the person who was being named. Remember also that, at that time, Horowitz’s own investigation had only been up and running for a few months, meaning that some of the bad actors we know about today had not yet been identified, or had cases fully developed against them.
Formally appointing a special counsel at that time would have given all of these people the chance to either flee, cover their tracks, or even lawyer up before cases could have been fully developed. Remember that we have only begun to publicly find out people like Strzok, Ohr, Page, McCabe and Baker since the first of December. Remember also that the disciplinary actions taken against them have been designed to keep them close and controlled.
It is also very interesting to note that none of these and others who have been identified as bad actors have been quoted in the press at all. This is in direct contrast to James Comey, who went around leaking and singing like a jaybird for a few months after President Trump fired his sorry butt, and who is about to release a book next month.
This silence by the other bad actors most likely means one of two things: Either these people have lawyered up and are keeping quiet to protect themselves in preparation for being prosecuted, or they are actually cooperating with Horowitz and Sessions’ unnamed outside lawyer in their ongoing investigations.
The quote from Mr. Sessions is a clever reference to the fact that he has had an outside prosecutor working on all of this stuff for quite some time now. It is also most likely another move to set the stage for the impending release of IG Horowitz’s own report. Unlike Horowitz, this unidentified special prosecutor would have the power to convene a grand jury – and may have already done so – and quickly begin issuing subpoenas based on the recommendations contain in the Horowitz report.
Thus, Sessions next statement from the interview:
I am well aware we have a responsibility to insure the integrity of the FISA process. We’re not afraid to look at that. The inspector general — some think that our inspector general is not very strong; but he has almost 500 [employees], most of which are lawyers and prosecutors; and they are looking at the FISA process. We must make sure that it’s done properly, and we’re going to do that. And I’ll consider their request.”
He’ll not only consider their request, he’s had a special prosecutor preparing the playing field for quick action on those requests for months now.
Clever. Boom.
That is all.
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“Sessions is specifically recused on all matters related to the Clinton Foundation”
Try again.
“Attorney General Jeff Sessions, facing a storm of criticism over newly disclosed contacts with the Russian ambassador to the United States, recused himself on Thursday from any investigation into charges that Russia meddled in the 2016 presidential election.”
+1
Interesting. Hopefully he's not influenced by Rosenstein.
they’ll all be in line for big helpings of crow.
The Silent Executioner, sounds good.
Thank you for factual comments.
SESSIONS: Mr. Chairman, it was a highly contentious campaign. I, like a lot of people, made comments about the issues in that campaign. With regard to Secretary Clinton and some of the comments I made, I do believe that that could place me objectivity in question. I've given that thought.
I believe the proper thing for me to do, would be to recuse myself from any questions involving those kind of investigations that involve Secretary Clinton and that were raised during the campaign or to be otherwise connected to it.
GRASSLEY: OK. I think, that's -- let me emphasize then with a follow up question. To be very clear, you intend to recuse yourself from both the Clinton e-mail investigation and any matters involving the Clinton Foundation, if there are any?
SESSIONS: Yes.
You bet.
As the AUSA for Eastern Arkansas (which includes Little Rock), Cody Hiland would have jurisdiction over the Clinton Foundation Investigation, since the Clinton Foundation is headquartered in Little Rock.
He may have had a Grand Jury impaneled for months already, for all we know.
The Clinton Foundation could also fall under the additional jurisdictions of AUSA’s covering their offices in New York, Los Angeles, and elsewhere.
Another positive is Victoria Teonsing saying that William Campbell was called in as a witness.
I didn’t know that thank you for that post.
Here is hoping he silently un-recused himself.
Otherwise, your post was extremely informative and I appreciate your time and consideration teaching me something about Sessions.
I certainly have no problem with the man, just with having Rosenstein running all Russia Collusion issues at Justice. That should be the AG, not his Obama loving 2nd.
I understand, but I have heard Sean Hannity’s panel members including from Sean himself, that souces they have in Justice are saying that Sessions is actually keeping himself in the dark about many things related to the Mueller investigation, I presume so he is not tempted to interfere.
The AG should be on top of EVERYTHING the special counsel is doing, including preventing the Special Counsel from overstepping his mandated authority, which Mueller completely is. It is not as if Rosenstien is going to tell Mueller to stop going off on tangents. That is Sessions’s job, and he can’t do that.
That is not acceptable, therefore Sessions must go.
When I said that overseeing the Mueller investigation and issues of Russian Collusion, I meant that the president will lose is power if he loses the House, loses the Senate, or loses a second term. If he loses the Senate, you can kiss all judicial appointments goodbye.
So reforming immigration is in fact a really important thing, but if Trump loses his power or loses the 2020 election, then he will be limited in what he can accomplish.
The president’s means of power in Washington come first, or he won’t be able to weild it long enough to build the wall, get infrastruction going, or get more potential SCOTUS appointments.
You've been all over this for a long time.
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The quote from Mr. Sessions is a clever reference to the fact that he has had an outside prosecutor working on all of this stuff for quite some time now. It is also most likely another move to set the stage for the impending release of IG Horowitz’s own report. Unlike Horowitz, this unidentified special prosecutor would have the power to convene a grand jury – and may have already done so – and quickly begin issuing subpoenas based on the recommendations contain in the Horowitz report.
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......"timing is everything"
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Wise.
Neither you nor any of the anti-Sessions crap posters have an iota of proof of what he has or has not been doing. You’ve just been chiming in with the meme and frankly it demeans Free Republic.
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Yes, I swear some of these non-stop anti-Sessions posters are paid operatives from the "dark side".
People continually pound on the guy when they are completely in the dark.
Plus one
Lot of us “Sessions apologists” have been hoping this is how he has been doing business - he makes it really hard to keep giving him the benefit of the doubt but I have been prepared to let him ride until the end of this year to see if he produces.
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