A Step Too Far

More Obstruction:  Former national security advisor Michael Flynn who replaced his former legal team with a Trump approved FBI critic who sells anti-Justice Department t-shirts emblazoned with the catchphrase “Creeps on a Mission” under a picture of former Special Counsel Mueller and his team is now blaming his prior lawyers for pushing him to admit that he’d lied to the FBI. He also appears to have given up on continuing to be a cooperating witness.  Blindsided by Flynn’s new stance, prosecutors now say they will no longer ask him to testify in the trial of his former business partner, Bijan Kian, who is accused of violating foreign lobbying disclosure laws. Instead the prosecutors plan to name Flynn as an unindicted co-conspirator so that they can introduce his prior statements about Kian’s criminal activity without calling him to the stand to testify.  Emmet Sullivan, the judge overseeing Flynn’s case and his sentencing, is not amused.  Late last year Judge Sullivan had postponed Flynn’s sentencing, warning him that he’d only get the lenient treatment he covets if he continued to cooperate with prosecutors.  Sullivan has now ordered prosecutors and Flynn’s t-shirt hawking lawyer to court to provide further details about what’s behind their change of plans.  It’s hard to believe that Flynn would run the risk of angering the judge responsible for his sentencing absent a promise or at the very least implied promise of a pardon from a certain president. Trump’s chief obstruction enabler, Attorney General Barr, appears to be walking back the deal that his Justice Department had made for Aaron Zebley and James Quarles, two of Special Counsel Mueller’s top aides, to testify before closed door sessions of the House Judiciary and House Intelligence Committees.  Their appearance is supposed to compliment Mueller’s much anticipated public testimony.  The Justice Department has now informed the two former aides, both of whom no longer work for Justice, that Barr is opposed to their testimony.  Barr has also advised Mueller that he’d prefer he stay home as well.  According to the New York Times “it is unclear what effect the Justice Department’s intervention will have on the men’s eventual appearances, but it raises the prospect that a deal lawmakers thought they had struck last month for testimony from Mr. Mueller, the former special counsel, and the two prosecutors could still unravel.”  At least for now Mueller’s testimony is still scheduled to take place on July 17.  Felix Sater, Trump’s and Michael Cohen’s one time business associate finally showed up for his closed door testimony in front of the House Intelligence Committee.  The Committee was so dissatisfied with his level of cooperation that they released a rare statement accusing him of being uncooperative and obstructing the panel’s investigation by withholding documents and testimony in defiance of a subpoena.  Though her lack of cooperation didn’t surprise many, the Judiciary Committee was also dissatisfied with the written responses to their questions provided by Annie Donaldson, the former aide to former White House Counsel Don McGahn. As directed by White House and Justice Department lawyers she refused to respond to most of the questions posed to her although unlike Hope Hicks she did confirm where her office was located.  Donaldson, who is very pregnant, was permitted to respond in writing because she is now residing in California and can’t travel.  In other news US District Court Judge Jesse Furman barred the Justice Department from changing its lawyers in the fight over the Trump administration’s efforts to add the citizenship question to the 2020 census.  The Judge, Jesse Furman, said government’s lawyers’ motion for the change was “patently deficient” except in the case of two lawyers who have already left the department. He added that the "Defendants provide no reasons, let alone 'satisfactory reasons,' for the substitution of counsel."  An unhappy Trump condemned the Judge pointing out that he’d been appointed by Obama.     

Epstein Fallout:  Trump who had previously described Jeffrey Epstein as a “terrific guy” now says that he’s “not a fan” and that he stopped hanging with him eons ago. Though he hasn’t expressed any sympathy for any of the women that Epstein victimized and probably is praying that he isn’t in any of those pictures found at Epstein’s NYC mansion, he does feel very bad for Labor Secretary Acosta, the former federal attorney who facilitated Epstein’s sweetheart deal.  That said, its not clear that Acosta will be around for much longer.  Though Trump has expressed support for the Labor Secretary, he also says that his staff is looking into the situation and reports are that acting White House Chief of Staff is pushing Trump to get rid of Acosta sooner rather than later.  Mulvaney is only mildly concerned about Acosta’s role in the Epstein affair but wants him out because he and a number of other conservatives believe that Acosta isn’t doing enough to roll back Obama-era workplace regulations or tackle employment discrimination lawsuits. Giving preferential treatment to a serial child molester is marginally bad but failing to overturn Obama rules, that’s a bigly sin.  As expected a large number of Democrats including Speaker Pelosi and Senate Minority Leader Schumer want Acosta booted as well.  Most Republicans are standing by him or avoiding questions.  Senate Leader McConnell called the accusations against Epstein horrendous but says that he’ll defer to Trump about Acosta’s continued service, Senator Lisa Murkowski says that she likes Acosta and that he should stay and Senator Susan Collins, who is up for reelection in 2020 is doing her usual “distressed, pearl clutching” thing.

Obamacare:  The lawsuit filed by a number of Republican state attorneys general continues to make it through the courts.  Yesterday a panel of federal appeals court judges made up of two Republican appointees and one Democratic appointee sounded likely to uphold a lower-court ruling that the Obamacare individual mandate, the requirement that most people have health insurance, is unconstitutional. The Republican judges made a number of disparaging comments about Obamacare as a whole, leading some but not all to believe that they might rule that the whole health law “must fall if the insurance mandate does.”  Whatever happens in their court, the case is likely to make it to the Supreme Court sometime later next year where the fate of Obamacare will rest in the hands of Chief Justice Roberts.  Makes you wonder how that that much better health care program that Trump promises he’s been working real hard on is doing.    

Across the Pond: This morning Kim Darroch, the British Ambassador to the US, the one who spoke the truth by calling Trump inept in what were supposed to be secret memos to his government, resigned saying that the fallout from the leaked communication was making it impossible for him to carry out his role as he would like.  Apparently, it’s okay for despots like Kim Jong un to make officials statements attacking Trump but when an ally sends a secret message questioning our dear leader’s character, that’s a step too far.  as I would like