At RealClearPolitics Charles Lipson declares that “a boatload of shoes is about to drop”. He divides that boatload into four “baskets”:
- Basket No. 1: More information about the Mueller Report and the basis for its conclusions.
- Basket No. 2: Will House Democrats push ahead with other investigations of Trump?
- Basket No. 3: Expect serious backlash as voters ask, “Who led us down this rabbit hole?â€
- Basket No. 4: Did the FBI, Department of Justice, and intelligence agencies commit their own wrongdoing?
I think he’s overreacting. Baskets #1 and 2 are likely to happen. Basket #3 will almost certainly not happen—it’s more important to political junkies than it is to most people and try as they might neither party will gain much traction with it. They’d be better off sticking with bread and butter issues.
It is very difficult to believe that Basket #4 will take place. We have had a provable case of perjury on the part of the Director of Central Intelligence for a long time—nothing has come of it. Even if there are similar cases in the FBI and DoJ I it will take more than a mere scandal to bring those agencies to account for their malfeasance.
#3 depends on what Congress decides to do.
#4 is an interesting one. Lost amongst the whirlwind is it is a fact that the FBI, CIA opened a counter-intelligence investigation on the Presidential campaign of the party not in power; and we know conclusively on false pretenses. Americans should hope this does not become a regular occurance.
The lack of ripples is precisely why I think nothing will materialize of Basket 4.
#3 They say elections are played between the 40 yard lines. Actually, its more like the 47’s. That’s all the sway that has to occur.
#4 Perhaps. But you had the hopelessly incompetent Jeff Sessions and the conflicted FISA signer Rod Rosenstein before. Mueller shockingly (shockingly!!) magically stopping his outside the mandate investigation at the FBI and DoJ. (Something about those fair minded attorneys he stacked his staff with, like Rhee, I guess.) And now you have Barr. An actual by the book type. Its not a minor scandal.
The FBI, CIA opened a counter-intelligence investigation on the Presidential campaign of the party not in power; and we know conclusively that hose were well founded. So many of the Trump supporters felt compelled to lie, and they found so many crimes committed by Manafort in particular, it would have been impossible to not investigate. It may turn out that Manafort was the major criminal and the others were mostly just doofus types who lied out of habit or couldn’t keep their stories straight, but I think they uncovered so much that it is unlikely they go after the FBI and CIA. If the large group indicted had just been able to tel the truth, then it would be another story.
#2- Of course. The GOP ran 4 years of Benghazi investigations, not finding anything new with the follow ups, but that is perceived as helping to elect Trump. The Dems will follow this winning tactic, as will the GOP when it can until it is shown that running these never ending investigations harms electoral efforts.
Steve
Shrugs. A reminder, who is now the party out of power, and who has appointed the heads of the FBI, DOJ, and CIA?
It certainly won’t be Donald Trump who will be the next Presidential candidate that is subject to a counter intelligence investigation.