Agent Orange

The Manchurian President:  Late on Friday, the NY Times published another bombshell, reporting that the FBI opened an investigation into whether Trump was secretly working for Russian agents against US interests.  The investigation was opened up in May 2017 after Trump fired former FBI Director Comey, told NBC’s Lester Holt that his dismissal was over the “Russian thing,” and then followed up by informing Russian Ambassador Kislyak and Foreign Minister Lavrov that he had fired that “nutjob” to “ease the pressure” as he shared top secret Israeli intel with them. It’s not unprecedented for the FBI to investigate a president for criminal activities, however a counter intelligence investigation into a sitting president is shocking, then again, as Trump would be the first to say, he’s a trend setter so why shouldn’t he be the first president to be investigated for being a witting or unwitting Russian tool.  Given Trump’s subsequent actions like his kowtowing to Putin during their joint  Helsinki news conference where he publicly sided with Putin over all the conclusions of the US intelligence agencies because Putin “strongly” said that he never interfered in the US election the investigation is justifiable.  The NY Times reports that the FBI knew its actions were highly unusual and as such they dutifully informed everyone who needed to know, meaning that Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein most definitely signed off, explaining why he started to look and act exceptionally stressed at that time.  Recall that’s when he “joked” about trying to get some cabinet members to initiate the 25^th Amendment “ditch the crazy president” process. Additionally, shortly after the counter intelligence investigation was opened Rosenstein shocked both Attorney General Sessions and Trump by appointing Special Counsel Mueller.  It’s not clear whether or not the counter investigation into Trump is still ongoing, but there’s no question that it did go on for some time.  Respected Lawfare Website founder Benjamin Wittes, who was interviewed by the NY Times for their article argues that though “most observers of the Russia investigation have generally understood” Mueller’s work as focusing on “two separate tracks: collusion between the Russian government and the Trump campaign, on the one hand, and potential obstruction of justice by the president, on the other” the “obstruction was the collusion—or at least a part of it.” If he’s right, that collusion is part of the criminal investigation, then assertions that Trump can’t be guilty of obstruction because as president he can obstruct all he wants, are probably wrong.  It’s also quite likely that the “Gang of Eight” which includes the Republican and Democratic leaders of the House and Senate and the leaders of the House and Senate Intelligence Committees were also informed. That’s particularly notable because if Devon Nunes, then Chair of the House Intel Committee was read in, he would have shared his knowledge with Trump which goes a long way towards explaining Trump’s overt hostility to the FBI and the firing of virtually everyone at the FBI who had anything to do with the initiation of the investigation into him and his campaign.  Unfortunately for Trump, it appears that his new FBI Director Christopher Wray and Mueller picked up where all those former FBI Agents left off.  As to the assertion that he’s a Russian agent, when asked about it by his good friend Fox’s Jeanine Pirro this weekend, Trump called the accusation insulting but didn’t deny that it was true.  When they were asked if the NY Times article was accurate Senators Warner, Burr and Congressman Schiff the heads of the Intel committees wouldn’t comment but left the distinct impression that the Time’s reporting was spot on.  The Trump as spy plotline got another boost after the Washington Post reported that Trump pressed his interpreter to destroy notes taken during his meetings with Putin so that no one other than the Kremlin could get a thorough read out on what was discussed.  A number of Trump’s surrogates were out on the talk show circuit over the weekend, their party line is that Trump gets to do what he wants and that he’s been harder on the Russians than Obama. In particular they cite the sanctions that were imposed last year though curiously they fail to mention that Trump was forced by Congress to impose those sanctions and that Treasury Secretary Mnuchin has been trying to lift the ones imposed against the Oleg Deripaska controlled aluminum businesses.  Whether Trump is an actual spy is highly debatable but that he acts like Putin’s puppet is not. As to obstruction, he continues to do what he can there as well, over the weekend he called for Jeanine Pirro to start looking into former fixer/lawyer Michael Cohen’s “criminal” in-laws, a not so veiled attempt to get Cohen to reconsider his upcoming House testimony.  

2020:  The Democratic presidential field keeps growing. Hawaii Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard plans to make a formal announcement that she’s running shortly.  Gabbard checks a lot of boxes, she’s photogenic, an Iraqi war veteran, Hindu and Samoan.  However Gabbard has also trashed homosexuality, Jews and Muslims, supported Putin and once visited Bashar al-Assad in Syria to better understand why he’s so vicious so it’s not all that surprising that she’s already been dubbed the Jill Stein of the 2020 cycle.  Also attractive but far less controversial, Julian Castro, the former mayor of San Antonio and Obama HUD secretary, formally announced his candidacy.  Castro, who’s twin brother is a congressman, is someone to watch.  It’s unlikely that the 44 year old will make it to the top of the Democratic ticket this time around but he would make a good VP choice and given his relative youth could make it to the top in the future.  Getting into the race early has improved Senator Elizabeth Warren’s poll position so Trump has reverted to his racist ways, calling her Pocahontas again, going so far as to question why her husband hasn’t been showing up at her events in a Native American headdress.  Though no Republicans have formally announced plans to challenge Trump, Iowa Congressman Steve King has been getting a lot of press for all the wrong reasons.  Long viewed as a racist by fellow racists, in a recent NY Times interview he questioned why white supremacism was a bad thing. Though his long held views come as no surprise to his party, a number of Republicans are now pretending to be shocked that they have a neo-Nazi in their midst. In a Washington Post Op-Ed, the Republican party’s sole Black Senator, South Carolina’s Tim Scott, said that “it’s because of our silence when things like this are said” that “Republicans are constantly accused of racism.”  In response House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy said that he’ll meet with King and that action will be taken raising the possibility that King could lose his committee assignments.  For his part Senator Ted Cruz, who had King as his 2018 presidential committee co-chair, said that King’s statement was stupid, his way of saying so what?  The aptly named King is viewed as a king maker in Republican circles because he wields a lot of influence in the all-important Iowa primary. Racist or not, don’t expect Republicans, especially those with presidential ambitions, to throw him completely under the bus any time soon.    

Trump Shutdown:  Though he’s tried to distance himself from responsibility for what is now the longest government shutdown ever, Trump’s efforts aren’t working, polls indicate that most Americans lay the blame at his feet. Unfortunately, those polls are skewed in that his base remains solidly behind him.  As of now, despite efforts by a few Republicans to push him to open up the government, the truculent Trump is standing firm, waiting for Nancy Pelosi to blink. So far that’s not happening. There’s got to be an exit ramp out there, but so far no one, not even Lindsey Graham who suggested that Trump should agree to open the government now because he can always declare a faux emergency later, can find one.    

International Front:  The Pentagon has started to withdraw troops from Syria despite assurances from security advisor Bolton that we wouldn’t be rushing to do that.  Trump has threatened harsh actions against Turkey if they respond by slaughtering Kurds and reports are that shortly after assuming his position Bolton had the Defense Department draw up plans to attack Iran but given all the Trump as spy stuff and the disruptions at the airports most people missed that highly disturbing story. Just another week in Trumpland, USA.