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Robert Mueller, Former F.B.I. Director, Is Named Special Counsel for Russia Investigation

Discussion in 'BBS Hangout: Debate & Discussion' started by KingCheetah, May 17, 2017.

Page 188 of 487

Nook Member

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MadMax said: ↑

I can't imagine trying to defend a client who goes to twitter to make admissions regularly.
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Welcome to the present and future......... I have had to do it on some contract negotiations..... they won't stop either, they some how think it is "magic" and doesn't count if it is on twitter.

#3741 Nook, Aug 1, 2018

MadMax likes this.

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rudy yells out... "No, we said only collusion, no obstruction!"....

Special counsel Mueller wants to ask Trump about obstruction of justice: Sources

Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s office wants to ask President Donald Trump about obstruction of justice, sources close to the White House tell ABC News. According to sources, the president learned within the last day that the special counsel will limit the scope of questioning and would like to ask questions both orally and written for the President to respond to.
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According to sources familiar with the President’s reaction Wednesday morning, that was the genesis for his early morning tweet storm. Trump took to twitter in one of his strongest attacks against the federal probe into Russian meddling in the 2016 election, saying: "This is a terrible situation and Attorney General Jeff Sessions should stop this Rigged Witch Hunt right now, before it continues to stain our country any further. Bob Mueller is totally conflicted, and his 17 Angry Democrats that are doing his dirty work are a disgrace to USA!"
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Negotiations over a potential presidential interview have gone on for months, through several different iterations of the Trump legal team. Current lead attorney, Rudy Giuliani, told ABC News a week ago that his team had submitted a response to Mueller asking to limit the scope of an interview with Trump especially as it relates to obstruction of justice.
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https://abcnews.go.com/US/special-c...obstruction-justice-sources/story?id=56973384

#3742 NewRoxFan, Aug 1, 2018

adoo and No Worries like this.
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The ride has just begun ... could be a bit of bumpy ride for Two Scoops.

#3743 No Worries, Aug 1, 2018
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What the dotard and his supporters fail to realize is that the biggest "stain" on our country is the dotard himself.

IMPEACH

#3744 Rashmon, Aug 1, 2018

Nook, Deckard and adoo like this.
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Trump has a free Get-Out-Of-Presidency card ... the Emoluments Clause.

#3745 No Worries, Aug 1, 2018
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Eric Swalwell serves the neighboring district to Devin Nunez's; he has issued this blunt message to Traitor Trump

#3746 adoo, Aug 1, 2018

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Really interesting thread about the referred cases that were announced yesterday and about how careful (and leak-free) Mueller's investigation has been so far.

#3747 NewRoxFan, Aug 2, 2018

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Good article that spells out the core of the obstruction case..

Flynn, Comey, and Mueller: What Trump Knew and When He Knew It

too long to print it all so excerpts:

...

The central incident in the case that the president obstructed justice was provided by former FBI Director James B. Comey, who testified that Trump pressed Comey, in a private Oval Office meeting on February 14, 2017, to shut down an FBI criminal investigation of Trump’s former national security adviser, Lt. Gen. Michael Flynn. “I hope you can see your way clear to letting this go, to letting Flynn go,” Comey has testified the president told him.

In an effort to convince Mueller that President Trump did not obstruct justice, the president’s attorneys have argued that the president could not have broken the law because the president did not know that Flynn was under criminal investigation when he pressured Comey to go easy on Flynn. In a confidential January 29 letter to the special counsel first reported by The New York Times, two of the president’s attorneys, John Dowd (who no longer represents Trump) and Jay Sekulow, maintained that the president did not obstruct justice because, even though Flynn had been questioned by the FBI, Trump believed that the FBI investigation was over, and that Flynn had been told that he’d been cleared.

On its face, this is a counter-intuitive argument—for if Trump believed that Flynn had been cleared and was no longer under investigation, there would have been no reason for the president to lean on Comey to end the FBI’s investigation—telling Comey that Trump hoped that Comey would be able to “see your way clear to letting this go.” Yet Trump’s attorneys have pursued this line of argument with the special counsel because perjury and obstruction cases depend largely on whether a prosecutor can demonstrate the intent and motivation of the person they want to charge. It’s not enough to prove that the person under investigation attempted to impede an ongoing criminal investigation; the statute requires a prosecutor to prove that the person did so with the corrupt intent to protect either himself or someone else from prosecution.

If, therefore, Trump understood the legal jeopardy that Flynn faced, that would demonstrate such intent—and make for a much stronger case for obstruction against the president. Conversely, if Trump believed that Flynn was no longer under criminal investigation, or had been cleared, the president could not have had corrupt intent. But previously undisclosed evidence indicates just the opposite—that President Trump was fully informed that Flynn was the target of prosecutors.

I have learned that a confidential White House memorandum, which is in the special counsel’s possession, explicitly states that when Trump pressured Comey he had just been told by two of his top aides—his then chief of staff Reince Priebus and his White House counsel Don McGahn—that Flynn was under criminal investigation. This memo, the existence of which I first disclosed in December in Foreign Policy, was, as one source described it to me, “a timeline of events [in the White House] leading up to Flynn’s resignation.” It was dated February 15, 2017, and was prepared by McGahn two days after Flynn’s forced resignation and one day after Trump’s meeting with Comey. As I reported, research for the memo was “primarily conducted by John Eisenberg, the deputy counsel to the president and legal adviser to the National Security Council,” who, in turn, was “assisted by James Burnham, another White House counsel staff member.”
...
A person with first-hand knowledge told me that during interviews with the special counsel, both McGahn and Priebus confirmed that they had informed Trump during this meeting that Flynn was being investigated by the FBI. Further, according to three current and former administration officials, McGahn also relayed to President Trump that Flynn had told the FBI the same false story he’d earlier told Pence (that Flynn had never spoken to Kislyak about sanctions). Because Trump and McGahn knew of Flynn’s misstatements to the FBI, they would have understood the legal jeopardy Flynn was in: it is a felony to lie to the FBI—precisely the federal criminal charge Flynn would later plead guilty to.

Additionally, my sources say that the special counsel also interviewed the two White House attorneys, John Eisenberg and James Burnham, who helped draft the McGahn memo, in which they, too, concluded that Trump was told that Flynn was under FBI investigation. Both men said that they questioned McGahn while researching the timeline; one of them independently recalled McGahn’s contemporaneously telling the president that Flynn had been interviewed by the FBI. (In October 2017, Burnham left the White House to go to work as senior counsel in the Justice Department’s Civil Division.)

The next day, on January 27, McGahn summoned Yates back to the White House to follow up. According to the testimony Yates gave to the Senate Judiciary committee in May 2017, Yates said that McGahn “was concerned that taking action [against Flynn] might interfere with the FBI investigation.” Yates responded by telling McGahn that “it wouldn’t really be fair of us to tell you this and then expect you to sit on your hands,” in reference to Flynn’s misleading Pence about Flynn’s contacts with Kislyak.

Trump’s knowledge of the criminal investigation of Flynn is central to the special counsel’s obstruction case because of what Trump’s action later that same day, January 27, might reveal about his intent and motivation. It was then that the president called Director Comey and invited him to dinner that evening at the White House. Comey has testified to the Senate Intelligence Committee that he did not understand until he arrived that he and the president would be dining alone. At this dinner, Trump suggested to Comey that his job might not be secure, leading Comey to believe that Trump was attempting to “create some sort of patronage relationship,” something that was very troubling to Comey “given the FBI’s traditionally independent status.”
...
Aside from McGahn, Eisenberg, and Burnham, the special counsel has interviewed five other attorneys who currently work for the White House counselor or have previously done so, according to administration records. Underscoring just how important these witnesses are, the special counsel has interviewed a total of twenty White House officials; of that number, eight have worked for the White House counsel. Two people familiar with the matter have told me that these witnesses have been asked, among other things: about the McGahn timeline; what McGahn contemporaneously told them regarding his briefings of the president; and more specifically, whether McGahn indicated to them that he had informed the president that Flynn had been interviewed by the FBI and was under federal criminal investigation.

Sources have identified for me two other White House attorneys who have been interviewed by the special counsel. One is Uttam Dhillon, who has served the Trump administration as deputy White House counsel and deputy assistant to the president (on July 2, Dhillon was named by Attorney General Jeff Sessions to be the acting administrator of the Drug Enforcement Administration). Dhillon was a central participant in discussions with the president on whether to fire James Comey as FBI director—with Dhillon advising Trump not to do so. The special counsel has also interviewed Ann Donaldson, who is both the chief of staff to the White House counsel and special counsel to the president. Because so many attorneys working for the White House counsel have been witnesses in the special counsel’s investigation, and because their testimony will clearly be crucial in determining whether the president obstructed justice, Don McGahn took the extraordinary step last summer of recusing his entire staff from advising the president further about the Russia investigation.

The February 15 memo, combined with accounts given to the special counsel by Priebus and McGahn, constitutes the most compelling evidence we yet know of that Donald Trump may have obstructed justice. In an effort to persuade the American people that the president has done nothing wrong, Trump and his supporters have blamed those they identify as their political adversaries—from President Barack Obama to Jim Comey, and including entire institutions such as the FBI and CIA, and an ill-defined “Deep State.” But the most compelling evidence that the president may have obstructed justice appears to come from his own most senior and loyal aides. The greatest threat to his presidency is not from his enemies, real or perceived, but from his allies within the White House.
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The Flynn stuff seems like an eternity ago but don't forget that this was the precipitating incident (in regards to Comey) for this shitstorm.

IMPEACH

#3748 Rashmon, Aug 2, 2018

CometsWin, NewRoxFan and adoo like this.
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#3749 NewRoxFan, Aug 2, 2018
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Ruh roh... it appears manafort has a huge tax evasion problem too...

U.S. prosecutors shifted away from showcasing Paul Manafort’s excesses and toward the core of their fraud accusations against him, with Manafort’s longtime bookkeeper testifying that her client kept her in the dark about foreign accounts he used to pay personal expenses. The testimony from the bookkeeper, Heather Washkuhn, on Thursday bolstered claims by Special Counsel Robert Mueller that Manafort, President Donald Trump’s former campaign chairman, withheld information from financial advisers as he cheated the Internal Revenue Service and lenders.
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#3750 NewRoxFan, Aug 2, 2018
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#3751 Commodore, Aug 2, 2018
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Commodore said: ↑

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#3752 NewRoxFan, Aug 2, 2018
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These documents, couple with manafort's accountant's testimony, and manafort's goose is cooked.

#3753 NewRoxFan, Aug 3, 2018

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NewRoxFan said: ↑

These documents, couple with manafort's accountant's testimony, and manafort's goose is cooked.
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Now that you have learned more about the trial, are you now prepared to admit that this trial has nothing to do with Trump or Russian collusion?

#3754 El_Conquistador, Aug 3, 2018
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Trader_Jorge said: ↑

Now that you have learned more about the trial, are you now prepared to admit that this trial has nothing to do with Trump or Russian collusion?
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premature eJOCKulation on your part.

#3755 adoo, Aug 3, 2018
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Trader_Jorge said: ↑

Now that you have learned more about the trial, are you now prepared to admit that this trial has nothing to do with Trump or Russian collusion?
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*This* trial was not supposed to have anything to do with russia or trump's collusion (more precisely, criminal conspiracy). THIS IS A TAX EVASION AND BANK FRAUD TRIAL. And just for this trial, trump's campaign chairman faces 18 charges in a 32 count indictment that could get him 305 years in jail. But don't be surprised if russia doesn't get mentioned since manafort was in deep debt to russia (as much as $17 million) by the time he joined the trump campaign. And there will be russia details for the $60 million receved over time from the pro-russia former president of Ukraine.

Manafort also faces a second trial, this time in the DC court. That trial will focus on foreign lobbying violations. No clue how much russia will be discussed in this second trial. The judge in this trial won't be rushing the trial like in the first trial.

Through both of these trials, its clear manafort faces life in prison. Manafort doesn't appear to be the kind of guy hat wants to live the rest of his life in jail. It is quite possible he he opts of a deal with prosecutors to testify in other trials that may arise.

#3756 NewRoxFan, Aug 3, 2018
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trump's top lender...

Exclusive: Deutsche Bank reports show chinks in money laundering armor

Deutsche Bank has uncovered shortcomings in its ability to fully identify clients and the source of their wealth, internal documents seen by Reuters show, more than a year after it was fined nearly $700 million for allowing money laundering. In two confidential reviews, dated June 5 and July 9, Germany’s biggest lender detailed the results of tests on a sample of investment bank customer files in several countries, including Russia. Both reviews found gaps in Deutsche’s screening process, which aims to meet so-called “Know Your Customer” (KYC) requirements that are a cornerstone of global anti-money laundering controls.
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In Russia, the June report outlined problems including a “lack of verification of client address and existence” and a “lack of verification to be able to make an assessment of the client’s source of funds”. It also identified a lack of investigation into whether a client was a “politically exposed person” (PEP). Rules to fight financial crime require banks to identify such people because they present a higher risk of bribery or corruption by virtue of their position. These political figures could also be the target of international sanctions.
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https://www.reuters.com/article/us-...hinks-in-money-laundering-armor-idUSKBN1KO0ZC

#3757 NewRoxFan, Aug 3, 2018

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LOL... I don't think the "my client (manafort) was bad at being a criminal" is a very compelling defense...

#3758 NewRoxFan, Aug 3, 2018

El_Conquistador King of the D&D, The Legend, #1 Ranking

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NewRoxFan said: ↑

*This* trial was not supposed to have anything to do with russia or trump's collusion (more precisely, criminal conspiracy). THIS IS A TAX EVASION AND BANK FRAUD TRIAL. And just for this trial, trump's campaign chairman faces 18 charges in a 32 count indictment that could get him 305 years in jail. But don't be surprised if russia doesn't get mentioned since manafort was in deep debt to russia (as much as $17 million) by the time he joined the trump campaign. And there will be russia details for the $60 million receved over time from the pro-russia former president of Ukraine.

Manafort also faces a second trial, this time in the DC court. That trial will focus on foreign lobbying violations. No clue how much russia will be discussed in this second trial. The judge in this trial won't be rushing the trial like in the first trial.
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[Educational Post]
Thank you for admitting that neither trial has anything to do with Russia or Trump. You have erroneously conflated Russia with Ukraine -- two separate countries -- in your post above. I am not even going to go down the road of explaining how stupid that is. So somehow the short-lived Trump advisor (who was there to assist with the delegate process at the Republican Convention) advising a Ukrainian politician is proof positive that Trump colluded with Russia. Seriously, do you know how absurd that sounds? Ukraine and Russia are two separate countries! This is peak derangement from the libs -- all driven by a mind-erasing contempt for Trump.

GOOD DAY

#3759 El_Conquistador, Aug 3, 2018
superfob Mommy WOW! I'm a Big Kid now.

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Is this the new chewbacca defense?
It can't be a crime because I was so easily caught.

#3760 superfob, Aug 3, 2018

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