Month: April 2019

United States Attorney General William Barr provided a summary of the Mueller report that hides the truth from the American public who he was sworn to serve and allowed Trump to falsely claim NO COLLUSION, NO OBSTRUCTION.

Even though, the investigation could not prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the campaign did not coordinate with the Russian government, Trump feared that his actions and the actions of his campaign team would be found unlawful.

Volume II page 76 states that “…the evidence does indicate that a thorough FBI investigation would uncover facts about the campaign and the President personally that the President could have understood to be crimes or that would give rise to personal and political concerns.”  This is proof of someone who knowingly committed crimes.

Volume II page 78 states that “…when Trump heard that a Special Counsel had been appointed to investigate Russia and matters that arose from the investigation Trump said, ‘ Oh my God.  This is terrible.  This is the end of my Presidency.  I’m f…..ed.'”  This is the reaction of a knowingly guilty person.

In light of Trump’s actions, one would surmise that he was worried that he had in fact colluded or conspired with Russia to taint the election. Trump did not become a subject of the investigation until he repeatedly attempted to obstruct justice.

Volume II page 7 states that Trump was not personally under investigation due to the investigation into Russia meddling, even when the actions of the campaign were included.

Volume II page 2 of the Mueller report indicates that if they had confidence after this thorough investigation of the facts that the President did not commit obstruction of justice we would state so, but, based on the facts and the applicable legal standards, we are unable to reach that judgement.  THE REPORT CANNOT STATE THAT THE PRESIDENT DID NOT COMMIT OBSTRUCTION OF JUSTICE.

The Mueller report provides overwhelming evidence that Trump obstructed justice, but Mueller could not bring charges because Volume II page 1 of the report states that “The Office of Legal Counsel is of the opinion that a sitting President cannot be indicted.”  Therefore, impeachment or censure by the United States Congress is the correct action and NOT a summary that covers up the facts by A.G. Barr.

Currently, Trump is obstructing the Congress’s right and obligation to bring the evidence to the American public.  Sadly, the impeachment process can not be concluded before the 2020 election.  As a result, it is up to us to vote in order to bring this travesty to democracy to an end.  When Trump leaves office in January 2021 he can be indicted for his  crimes, but if he gets re-elected the statute of limitations will have run out by the end of 2024 and he will go scot free after destroying our sense of decency and our standing in the world.

Don’t board the plane for Neverland, study the facts and hold our public servants ( a role that is nonexistent in the mind of Trump) accountable.  It is up to you!

 

The Mueller report (redacted) was released to the public this week.  It is 448 pages long and is broken into two volumes.  The first volume addresses conspiracy and the second obstruction.

In this week’s post, I am going to briefly discuss volume I.  It begins with the statement that the Russian government interfered in the 2016 presidential election in a sweeping and systematic fashion.  The investigation began due to this Russian meddling (not the Steel dossier or some political vendetta). The investigation identified NUMEROUS links between the Russian government and the Trump campaign.  

Even though, the investigation could not prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the campaign did not coordinate with the Russian government, it did nothing to protect the United States and the election process from foreign influence.  It did nothing to protect our national security.  Maybe the campaign was not legally obligated to report the foreign contacts, but it was morally obligated to do what is right and honorable.

Some of the reasons that the investigation could not conclusively prove coordination or conspiracy were that witnesses lied, invoked the Fifth Amendment and destroyed evidence in deleted emails and texts.  The report stated that “The office cannot rule out the possibility that the unavailable information would shed additional light on the events described in the report.”

Exonerate means to absolve (free from guilt) from blame of wrongdoing.  The attempts to undermine, discredit and stop the investigation (better known as obstruction of justice) seem to be overwhelming evidence that the President believed that he had engaged in wrongdoing related to Russian contacts during the campaign.  The Russian meddling / conspiracy portion of the report covers nearly 200 pages of information.  Even though, charges of conspiracy were not recommended, there is plenty of evidence of wrongdoing by the President and the campaign.  Exoneration is a FALSE CLAIM to hide the truth from the American public.

 

President Trump appointed William Barr to replace Jeff Sessions as the Attorney General of the United States because Jeff Sessions followed the law and recused himself from the Special Counsel’s investigation into Russian meddling in the 2016 election.  Many Republicans and Democrats praised Barr and said he was an institutionalist and a straight shooter in that he would put the rule of law above partisan politics.  However, his first two actions has proven otherwise.

First, his refusal to release the Mueller report to congress and, secondly, insinuating that FBI investigators were “spying” when they  engaged in court approved surveillance has shown that he is committed to the bidding of the President and not to uncovering the truth and upholding the law.  I don’t understand how a man who has a distinguished career that he worked to develop over a lifetime would suddenly throw it all away.  Is it fame or power or some convoluted idea that he is doing the right thing in some alternative Trumpian reality?

I just think it is unfair that the American taxpayer is footing the bill for Donald Trump’s “Criminal Defense Attorney.”  Barr needs to do the right thing before it is too late to save his legacy.  The American people need the truth!

My understanding of current reality is confirmed by others, yet debunked by some.  Things that I see as obvious and immutable are not to everyone.  Out of respect to all, I am striving to understand.

In the stage play “The Search for Signs of Intelligent Life in the Universe,” Lily Tomlin’s bag lady character says that reality is nothing more than a “…collective hunch.”  Today, however, I feel that the collective hunch is divided and possibly scattered.  Maybe author, Lynn V. Andrews provides a more accurate description on how reality is perceived when she writes that “…each mind is a world unto itself (not sure this is a direct quote as I am recalling this from a book I read about 15 years ago).”

Author William A. Galston writes  in the article “The Populist Challenge to Liberal Democracy (4/17/18 brookings.edu),” that “All to often, liberal democracy is conflated with the spread of cultural liberalism at odds with custom and religion.  The combination of economic dislocation, demographic change, and challenges to traditional values has left many less educated citizens feeling that their lives are outside their control.”  The author suggests that this has created a loss of confidence in liberal democracy, including a loss of confidence in key liberal democratic principles such as, the rule of law, freedom of the press, and minority rights; consequently, this opens the door for authoritarianism.  We are witnessing these authoritarian tendencies in our current president and to my bewilderment not everyone is objecting.

Galston attributes this loss of confidence in liberal democracy and by insinuation the election of an authoritarian leaning president to the less educated citizens of our country.  This leads me to question why are there a multitude of educated people supporting this president and denouncing liberal democracy?  I don’t know why.  Maybe it’s money and/or power that makes them willing to belie their true values.  This complete disregard for the truth makes it really difficult for those of us who are in search of the truth.

Some hold on to what they think is the truth and refuse to assess its validity.  Validating the truth is hard work and not everyone is willing to do it.  Some are benefiting by not telling the truth at the expense of those who are not willing to validate the truth.  We all need to strive to understand other views and to meet in the middle and create a government for the people by the people, all people.