Posted on 03/04/2017 12:56:47 PM PST by SkyPilot
Before heading off to his so-called "winter White House" in Palm Beach, Florida, on Friday, President Donald Trump summoned some of his senior staff to the Oval Office and went "ballistic," senior White House sources told ABC News.
The president erupted with anger over the latest slew of news reports connecting Russia with the new administration -- specifically the abrupt decision by Attorney General Jeff Sessions to recuse himself from investigations into Russian meddling in the 2016 campaign.
Sources said the president felt Sessions' recusal was unnecessary and only served to embolden Trump's political opponents. The attorney general made his announcement Thursday just as Trump returned to Washington from a trip to the U.S.S. Gerald Ford in Virginia for a speech about his agenda as president.
Hours earlier, aboard the ship, the president had told reporters that he had "total" confidence in Sessions and saw no reason why the attorney general should recuse himself.
“We should have had a good week. We should have had a good weekend. But once again, back to Russia," a senior White House official said, expressing the frustration simmering in the West Wing following the news earlier in the week that Sessions failed to disclose during his confirmation process that he had met with the Russian ambassador twice during the election campaign. Sessions at the time was a senator on the Armed Services Committee and was also helping the Trump campaign.
Among those gathered in the Oval Office on Friday: Chief of staff Reince Priebus, chief strategist Stephen K. Bannon, White House Counsel Don McGahn, press secretary Sean Spicer, newly-hired Communications Director Mike Dubke, along with Trump son-in-law and senior adviser Jared Kushner and his wife Ivanka Trump, the sources said.
(Excerpt) Read more at abcnews.go.com ...
I believe nothing from unnamed sources. Nothing.
No idea. I’m just a wife and mom. Lol And political junkie.
You don’t give up with the fake news do you?
You’re also continuing to attack Sessions. How many times do you have to be reminded that ....
- Sessions stood with Trump when no one would?
- Sessions took on the establishment with immigration when no one else did.
- Sessions was against trade deals to sold us down the river.
- Sessions doesn’t want un-vetted muslims from hostile nations dumped on us.
You keep trying to belittle the man but I trust his understanding of legal issues and the current situation far more than I do you. I also know where he truly stands on making America great again.
Oh man, that brings back bad memories. Ken Starr - another leaky vessel that we should not have poured too much hope in.
I do not believe Sessions recusal would extend to this issue, as it is a totally separate issue that does not implicate Session’s involvement at all.
Furthermore, it does not involve the Russians either. So no one can honest;y say that he was ignoring is recusal. I think Sessions is smart enough to figure this out, if not I will help him see the light. 8>)
Kenneth Starr was my first thought too.
It was reported ABC? got a long-range camera and hired lipreaders and Trump mind readers to watch the Oval Office.
The answer for President Trump’s team is very simple. Stop feeling like they need to answer every accusation’s specifics. All they are doing is drawing attention to the story.
The accusation is a one day (or news cycle) story.
The denial makes it a two day or two cycle story.
The response to the denial makes it a three day story
... and then we are close to or into weekend talking head news shows, etc.
It’s like the day the small time Washington DC political rag printed a story accusing a Member from Arkansas of being one of the 10 Dumbest Congressman. Probably 200 people read the story.
The next day one of the named Congressmen called a news conference to deny he was really one of the 10 dumbest Members. EVERYBODY covered the story, and his hometown media picked the story up off the AP and ran it in rotation for 4 days!
Bottom line, an unknown rag called him one of the dumbest members of Congress... and he then proved it the next day!
Another example, Clinton and Monica. The story broke at 11:45 PM late one Monday night. He then made his half-arsed denial the next day.... Linda Tripp released some of her tapes... and we were off to the races.... for 18 months.
Had Clinton had kept his mouth shut, asked for 10 minutes of TV time on Thursday night, admitted it, taking full responsibility, asking for forgiveness, begging forgiveness, then finding someone to bomb the following Monday, the story would have been dead in a week.
We are making flea sheet into major bull sheet.
The Team needs to have the same answer to every accusation.
“This is all bunk. This is newspaper editors in New York and Washington trying to reverse the results of the voters in Pennsylvania, Indiana, Michigan and the rest of the country.”
“Rather than agreeing with 78% of the nation who supports President Trump’s vision of a great American future, the entrenched Washington Dems and their partners in the media are trying to sabotage President Trump... and America.”
More statements like that.
Rather than trying to defeat every little pin prick, simply lump them all together, redefine the playing field as the Dems and the Media vs. the American people.... and keep repeating that message again and again and again.
Actually, Sessions did exactly what an ethical lawyer or judge would do: Recuse himself or herself.
This does not make sense to me. Nor did the Flynn resignation.
Perhaps this is all theatrical maneuvering by the Trump administration which is designed to trap the swamp creatures in their web. I surely hope so.
Trump's baseless wiretap claim
The article calls it "baseless", but hints that Obama's Justice Dept got a Federal judge to agree to tap Trump Tower, his phones, and personal residence under FISA - hinting that Trump was suspected of being a "foreign agent."
I kid you not:
A federal judge would only have approved a warrant to wiretap Trump's phones if he or she had found probable cause that Trump had committed a federal crime or was a foreign agent.
I could not find the story about Trump summoning Jeff Sessions to a meeting with him in Florida.
I was never impressed with Sessions from the getgo...
He’s old and feeble and inarticulate as hell. Whenever he talks in his slow drawl, I keep asking myself, “How smart is this guy?”
Doesn’t seem like a fighter.
It’s time for Trump to be decisive and appoint a better Attorney General like Trey Gowdy or Ted Cruz or some high caliber legal pit bull.
IDK, maybe there is a silver lining. If Sessions is not busy with Russia-gate, he can devote all of his time to John podesta, Pizzagate, and the Clinton Crime Foundation. That is far, far more important, IMO.
Yeah, well, #### ethical. The days of us being gentlemen losers is ####ing over.
I had a vending route in NYC. Being “ethical” would have lost me the route in a week.
This is a fight for the country.
I’m sorry. Do whatever the #### you have to Trump, and the guys with you.
I’m a NYer with a different mindset, and I apologize if it offends
I am serious about that last line. Not being sarcastic.
Yes. This is a new game with no rules and the stupid Republicans don’t get it. I’m not even sure Trump does.
They used to get their rears handed to them with the old rules. They need to get up to speed fast if they want to survive.
Thanks for the update.
I believe it and it was a huge mistake. Among other things I think those who thought it was all planned were wrong.. So now an Obama appointee will run any investigation or her replacement if he gets in confirmed next week. this is a guy the rats have already said they are fine with.
Sessions needs to act quickly to relieve Dana Boente as acting Deputy Attorney General and move one of his own men into that position.
This is important as failing to do so could lead to an impeachment push against the president.
I believe the democrat plan is to keep pushing until Sessions agrees to allow a Special Prosecutor to be appointed.
Since he has already agreed to recuse himself the acting Deputy Attorney General will make the appointment and we know Boente will appoint one of Obama's people.
Once a Special Prosecutor is appointed he will effectively be able to expand his appointment into going on investigative fishing expeditions to tie Trump down on every issue and action.
This will go on for years.
A Special Prosecutor could justify a broad and lengthy investigation by claiming that an investigation of Russian collusion means that any activity of President Trump's is potentially influenced by the Russians. We know that is Bull Crap but the media will feed that characterization to the public.
And President Trump has very little backing and support from republicans.
If President Trump or anyone in the administration resisted expansion of the Special Prosecutor investigation the democrats and the media will cry that it is a coverup of Trump's collusion with the Russians.
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