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| Home Front: Politix |
| The President Has Himself, Not Sessions, to Blame for the Limitless Mueller Investigation |
| 2017-07-23 |
| [National Review] President Donald Trump’s rant against Attorney General Jeff Sessions, in an interview with the New York Times, is a foolish bit of revisionist history. Sessions erred in the rashness and overbreadth of his recusal from the Russia investigation, but the president has himself to blame for the appointment of a special counsel. Trump is the one who hired Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein. It is Rosenstein whose order appointing Robert Mueller fails to set limits on Mueller’s investigative jurisdiction, thereby authorizing the fishing expedition that has Trump so ballistic. Moreover, it was Trump’s own botching of the firing of FBI director James Comey that spooked Rosenstein, inducing him to appease furious Democrats by giving Mueller free rein. Trump has a point, though not as much of one as he seems to think, in saying that Sessions should not have recused himself. I’ve argued that the recusal was unnecessary, or at least premature. The disqualification regulation on which Sessions relied calls for an attorney general to step aside if "a criminal investigation or prosecution" causes him a conflict of interest. At the time of his recusal, the Russia probe was a counterintelligence investigation. (For all we know, it still is.) For the umpty-umpth time, a counterintelligence investigation is not a criminal investigation, and no criminal prosecutions have resulted from it. Thus, there was nothing for Sessions to recuse himself from. |
| Posted by:Besoeker |
| #15 Investigations such as Mueller are very dangerous as #10 Tennessee said; they can go anywhere and generally, when they have occurred before they do. They are an investigation looking for a crime rather than a crime needing an investigation. These investigations have occurred in the past all the way back to President Grant. |
| Posted by: JohnQC 2017-07-23 23:04 |
| #14 http://ace.mu.nu |
| Posted by: NoMoreBS 2017-07-23 17:18 |
| #13 re #4, try Ace of Spades HQ, a delightfully blunt blog with great art, pets, book ideas and amusing commentary. Discovered it last month and readi it twice a day now. The library and art pictures are worth the look, and the pet pics are usually a crackup! |
| Posted by: NoMoreBS 2017-07-23 17:17 |
| #12 On The Job Training (OJT) Many thanks, Rantburg Acronym Division. :-) |
| Posted by: trailing wife 2017-07-23 15:16 |
| #11 I used to read NR regulary, subscribing sometime after 1986. I cancelled the dead tree subscription about ten years ago. I can think of four things that eventually stopped me from reading it - them kicking out Derbyshire, then Ann Coulter, the death of WFB and their Never Trump issue from whenever it was. 'Twas nice knowing you guys... |
| Posted by: Raj 2017-07-23 14:33 |
| #10 I took NR off my reading plate awhile back as well, but IMO Andy McCarthy's analysis (at link) seems spot on. Reference CI investigations vice Criminal Inquiries - There is grave danger to Trump... more likely to the bootlickers in his orbit...CI investigations can go wherever they need to - unlike criminal investigation which are limited. CI investigations are bound to report criminal activity whenever they come across it... |
| Posted by: Tennessee 2017-07-23 13:47 |
| #9 On The Job Training (OJT) |
| Posted by: Rantburg Acronym Division 2017-07-23 12:25 |
| #8 OJT? Translation, please. |
| Posted by: trailing wife 2017-07-23 12:14 |
| #7 Consider this a novitiate for Trump. These first few months are OJT--he is a quick learner--It'll be all right. He has accomplished quite a bit in these first few months. He has not been able to drain the swamp fast enough to satisfy most of his voters. And he has not prosecuted the crooks from the last administration. People out here are frustrated by the many impediments placed in his path by Rinos, Donks, the media and the "deep swamp." Perhaps, there will be a cost in the next election for those who build impediments. |
| Posted by: JohnQC 2017-07-23 10:33 |
| #6 cancelled my NRO email subscriptions and let them know why. F*ck the National Review Never-Trumpers. And Bill Kristol too. Smarmy elitist deep staters |
| Posted by: Frank G 2017-07-23 09:57 |
| #5 Anyone who is very clean when it comes to an investigation has nothing to worry about. See, Holder, contempt of Congress. The era of "clean as Caesar's wife" is long past other than to losers who want to console themselves as losers. It's about power. |
| Posted by: Procopius2k 2017-07-23 08:12 |
| #4 To hell with National Review. Frankly, I'm running out of web content worth visiting. Rant-burg, Drudge, and Insty. New Criterion and City Journal print editions. That's about it. Suggestions? |
| Posted by: KBK 2017-07-23 07:39 |
| #3 Anyone who is very clean when it comes to an investigation has nothing to worry about. Where's the "\sark" Woozle? |
| Posted by: g(r)omgoru 2017-07-23 05:35 |
| #2 Anyone who is very clean when it comes to an investigation has nothing to worry about. Corrupt investigators do have to worry about what happens to them if they loose the Media Smear that they hoped such an investigation produces. The scope creep is an attempt to find SOMETHING criminal SOMEWHERE. The only regret Trump probably has is what his children are going through after he asked them to assist in the White House. The left are a nasty bunch of jerks. |
| Posted by: Woozle Glaiger9616 2017-07-23 05:14 |
| #1 I think this is a classical Judgmentof Solomon situation. Trump, for all his vulgarity and cynicism, cares about USA and wants to preserve it's essential institutions. The opposition (can't call this collection of the filthy rich) only cares about winning. |
| Posted by: g(r)omgoru 2017-07-23 03:01 |