Posted on 05/19/2018 3:47:35 PM PDT by mandaladon
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) on Saturday said Republican lawmakers’ efforts to uncover the identity of an FBI informant in order to obstruct special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation comes close to "crossing a legal line."
Schumer was tweeting his support of a statement from the Senate Intelligence Committee's top Democrat, Mark Warner (Va.), who warned Republican lawmakers against exposing the identity of the informant who gave investigators information about possible ties between the Trump campaign and Russia.
Warner said in a separate Twitter thread on Friday, "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."
Exposing sources “makes it that much harder for every part of the intelligence community to gather intelligence on those who wish to do us harm,” Warner wrote.
The next day, Schumer said Warner's statement was "on the money" and serves as a severe warning to GOP representatives who are trying to tamper with the investigation.
Schumer and Warner’s comments come after a report from the Washington Post alleged President Trump had begun a campaign to expose the role of the informant.
The New York Times reported last week that an FBI informant met with two former Trump campaign advisers, George Papadopoulos and Carter Page.
The Justice Department (DOJ) denied a request earlier this month from House Intelligence Committee Chairman Devin Nunes (R-Calif.) for details related to the source. DOJ said that releasing such information would put lives at risk and endanger national security.
(Excerpt) Read more at thehill.com ...
Schumer goes to the front of the line for hanging traitors.
“As I said months ago, these trials are the best way to get this information out in the open because criminal defendants can demand to see information related to their cases that would otherwise be kept out of public view.”
How long will that take - months? years? And what’s to stop the judge from placing a gag order on the info, in the interest of national security?
Out in Oregon with the Oregon Standoff protest in 2016 those who informed for the FBI on the Bundy’s and their fellow protestors were outed in some cases in court and others were outed via a blogger.
The blogger got hauled to court by a judge sitting in a jail cell for a while so I guess Chuck should complain to a court about it if he wants to make a stink.
Looking back now, knowing what we know about all of these intelligence agencies being politically weaponized by the Obama administration and working together against Trump, Schumer's statement is very telling and prescient.
Maybe "revealing" is a better description since there is a pretty good chance that Schumer knew about the partisan's plans and schemes in the agencies doing the democRATS' bidding to get rid of Trump, one way or another.
My guess is that he already knew that the fix was in to get Trump and was "warning" Trump of something that was already in the works.
Have you been following the news about the major stories breaking just from two cases (the Paul Manafort case and the "13 Russians interfering the election" case) in the last couple of weeks?
And what’s to stop the judge from placing a gag order on the info, in the interest of national security?
The fact that he asked for the information in the first place is a huge deal. He can put a gag order on the information he has, but not on the testimony of a witness. We don't hold criminal trials in secret in this country.
Joseph Stalin coined the name (”SMERSH”) as a portmanteau of the phrase (SMERt’ SHpionam, “Death to Spies”).
Mr. President, we must not allow... a SMERSH gap!”
With leaders like Schumer and Warren, it sure boosts my confidence in our leaders. Time to hit the reset button and throw all the crooks including the black robed tyrants out. We need leaders with integrity and not partisan hacks. Our system is broken beyond repair.
The rope is missing...
Chucky knows he is implicated and he needs to stop it in its tracks.
Where was the concern about agents who were executed because of Hillary’s unsecured server?
George of the Jungle
Let’s subpoena him to testify before Congress. Gonna get interesting.
Mr. Schumer apparently missed some classes at Harvard Law School about the rights of accused. The sixth amendment grants to defendants the right to know the identities of their accusers. The fourth amendment gives protection against unreasonable searches and seizures by government, “The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated”. The FBI placing a spy inside someone’s organization is an unreasonable search. The sixth amendment would seem to prevent the government from keeping the name of an accuser (the spy) secret from the accused.
In addition Mr. Schumer, as a long time member of the Senate, certainly knows Congress has oversight authority over federal agencies and the bureaucrats employed by them.
Certainly there are federal laws governing behavior of law enforcement officials becoming involved in campaigns for federal office. It is hard to imagine there are not federal laws restricting federal officials from interfering in campaigns and using surveillance to extract information from a campaign.
Searches and seizures are allowed only with a warrant. Given the Constitution’s obvious bias toward transparency in criminal investigations, it is difficult to understand how the secret FISA courts are Constitutional. Probable cause is required to secure a warrant and there has yet to be made public and actual crime alleged to have been committed by the Trump organization (collusion is not a crime) nor has any evidence been communicated to the public which would demonstrate probable cause sufficient for a judge to authorize a search or spy mission. A manufactured dossier and unsubstantiated press reports do not constitute sufficient evidence for probable cause.
As to obstruction of justice, from all news accounts the Trump campaign and Trump officials have been very forthcoming in responding to DOJ, FBI, Congressional and special counsel requests for information. The only potential obstruction of justice accusation against Mr. Trump is his firing of James Comey as head of the FBI. That firing occurred after due process within the Justice Department (both Rosenstein and Sessions recommended the firing). Even without the concurrence of the Justice Department, Trump has the Constitutional power to fire senior members of the federal government at any time for any reason he chooses.
The UPSIDE to that is that you're a MILE AWAY from him and you've got the SOB'S shoes.
Thanks!
Like inserting a spy into an opposing presidential candidate’s campaign wasn’t crossing a legal line?
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.