The Trump Investigation(s) Thread

[Paingod]

And older people in this country are ... increasingly immortal. Some of this will shift when these dinosaurs start dying off.

Ummm.

It was just a joke.

On all of us...

[Carpet_pissr]

I thought it was a typo for ‘immoral’

[malchior]

I thought it was a typo for ‘immoral’

Fair enough - I probably should have said 'seemingly immortal'.

[Brian]

I thought it was a typo for ‘immoral’

That was my thought as well.

[Unagi]

my assumption as well

[YellowKing]

I guess I'm the only one who got it and thought it was funny.

[GreenGoo]

I've been saying that drumpf must have access to some pretty serious Giuliani skeletons for Giuliani to behave so completely unhinged when defending drumpf. In my opinion Giuliani has been more active, more frothy, more reality bending than even some of the more outrageous conspiracy websites, and that includes Jones'.

It wouldn't surprise me at all to find out that he was heavily involved in drumpf's shady real estate business, including tax evasion through devaluing properties. Maybe Giuliani had his own, personal real estate appraisers who signed off on these criminally low values used for tax property purposes, for example.

I don't know what it is that drumpf has on Giuliani, but I figure it's something big. Something that you go to jail for. The revelations in the Times article suggest lots of fraudulent activity during the 80's and 90's when drumpf's money was still mostly NYC real estate, years before Apprentice. I have no idea about what timelines are involved in drumpf's behind the scenes financial troubles or when he first started to enjoy the company of Russians, but I would think he would have been under enormous financial pressure to willingly put himself under their thumb. Or maybe not. He's a moron. If that started around the mid 90's, it's possible that Giuliani might be involved in that too in some way.

Of course I'm wildly, wildly speculating. It's just that Giuliani is so adamantly, publicly, and truth bendingly supportive of drumpf that I can't help but think that Giuliani's well being is tied to drumpf somehow.

[Carpet_pissr]

I can see that.

[Jaymann]

Like a vampire to his master.

[El Guapo]

I'm inclined to favor the explanation that Guiliani has always been something of a crude amoral hack, who benefited from heroic myths associated with: (1) being Mayor at a time when crime was declining due to preexisting long-term trends; and (2) being Mayor on 9/11.

[Fretmute]

I'm inclined to favor the explanation that Guiliani has always been something of a crude amoral hack, who benefited from heroic myths associated with: (1) being Mayor at a time when crime was declining due to preexisting long-term trends; and (2) being Mayor on 9/11.

Right. What GG said isn't implausible, but Occam would have us believe that sometimes an asshole is just an asshole.

[GreenGoo]

I'm inclined to favor the explanation that Guiliani has always been something of a crude amoral hack, who benefited from heroic myths associated with: (1) being Mayor at a time when crime was declining due to preexisting long-term trends; and (2) being Mayor on 9/11.

Right. What GG said isn't implausible, but Occam would have us believe that sometimes an asshole is just an asshole.

And I can believe that. Unlike some of you though, I wasn't aware that he was an asshole before drumpf's campaign. I mean, how do you get elected mayor of NYC behaving as he has been with drumpf?

If Occam is involved, isn't it more likely that he's changed, rather than he's been able hide what a completely amoral monster he is for decades at a time? He's practically shouting it from the rooftops on a near daily basis now, or has been.

I'm not saying it's true, only that I think *something* must be true, and this was one idea.

[El Guapo]

I'm inclined to favor the explanation that Guiliani has always been something of a crude amoral hack, who benefited from heroic myths associated with: (1) being Mayor at a time when crime was declining due to preexisting long-term trends; and (2) being Mayor on 9/11.

Right. What GG said isn't implausible, but Occam would have us believe that sometimes an asshole is just an asshole.

And I can believe that. Unlike some of you though, I wasn't aware that he was an asshole before drumpf's campaign. I mean, how do you get elected mayor of NYC behaving as he has been with drumpf?

If Occam is involved, isn't it more likely that he's changed, rather than he's been able hide what a completely amoral monster he is for decades at a time? He's practically shouting it from the rooftops on a near daily basis now, or has been.

I'm not saying it's true, only that I think *something* must be true, and this was one idea.

He has done some pretty sick shit in the past, though. The first thing that comes to mind was when there was a police shooting of an unarmed black man in 2000 (good thing we solved that problem since then, eh?) and Guiliani defended the police by releasing the victim's prior criminal record and describing the victim as "no altar boy".

[GreenGoo]

He has done some pretty sick shit in the past, though. The first thing that comes to mind was when there was a police shooting of an unarmed black man in 2000 (good thing we solved that problem since then, eh?) and Guiliani defended the police by releasing the victim's prior criminal record and describing the victim as "no altar boy".

Fair enough, and that seems right up drumpf's alley, so maybe they are two birds of a feather and that's all they are.

If I recall drumpf spent money to malign the wrongfully accused so called "central park 5".

With that said, victim blaming is hardly new, or unusual. Plenty of people do it. Well respected people, even.

I feel that his support of drumpf goes beyond unusual, and he was doing it before he was "hired" to be one of drumpf's lawyers, although you could argue that he was toadying in the hope of getting a juicy appointment somewhere.

[El Guapo]

He has done some pretty sick shit in the past, though. The first thing that comes to mind was when there was a police shooting of an unarmed black man in 2000 (good thing we solved that problem since then, eh?) and Guiliani defended the police by releasing the victim's prior criminal record and describing the victim as "no altar boy".

Fair enough, and that seems right up drumpf's alley, so maybe they are two birds of a feather and that's all they are.

If I recall drumpf spent money to malign the wrongfully accused so called "central park 5".

With that said, victim blaming is hardly new, or unusual. Plenty of people do it. Well respected people, even.

I feel that his support of drumpf goes beyond unusual, and he was doing it before he was "hired" to be one of drumpf's lawyers, although you could argue that he was toadying in the hope of getting a juicy appointment somewhere.

I don't think Giuliani's support of Trump is all that unusual. I think what's unusual about it is that he's really bad at it. Which is part of the whole "he wasn't actually a good mayor, he just benefited from effects of which he had little to no part of".

[GreenGoo]

I don't think Giuliani's support of Trump is all that unusual. I think what's unusual about it is that he's really bad at it. Which is part of the whole "he wasn't actually a good mayor, he just benefited from effects of which he had little to no part of".

Ok, sure, but if what you say is true then I start to think he's mentally handicapped or ill, not just "bad" at showing support. His behaviour is exceptionally crazy in it's zealotry.

IMO of course.

[Carpet_pissr]

If I am reading GG correctly, RG is not simply supporting Trump - it seems that when he defends Trump of late, you can almost see the spittle on TV, he gets so worked up. He becomes unhinged, irrational. Much like the Lindsey Graham blow up the other day. As someone mentioned, that look, that anger, that seething...there is something else there underneath all that, and my guess is it involves some kind of guilt or self-loathing. His actions and words just seem ridiculously over the top of late, and I never saw that kind of crazy from him before.

Obviously you have to consider the timing of him becoming his lawyer, but that still doesn't equal "turn into a raving lunatic".

Edit: oops, just saw GG's last post. Yeah, that.

[malchior]

Are they raving lunatics or just playing lunatics for an audience of one? Graham, Giuliani, and Kavanaugh were all acting like the boss expects. And that is not a bad idea considering how horrible a human being the boss is.

[GreenGoo]

He's not the boss forever. You have to remain employable after the fact. Presumably.

With that said, Giuliani submarines Drumpf as much as he helps. I'd consider the suggestion it's intentional if he didn't seem like such a bumbling moron while doing it. And if he is doing it on purpose, see: Employable after the fact.

[Kraken]

When Trump is gone, his deplorables are going to be looking for a new boss who's at least as bad, if not worse. Plenty of job security there.

[$iljanus]

When Trump is gone, his deplorables are going to be looking for a new boss who's at least as bad, if not worse. Plenty of job security there.

And if the NDA agreements that he obsessively asks people to sign are unenforceable then book deals galore!

[GreenGoo]

If you think Giuliani can replace Drumpf, you and I have very different opinions about what makes drumpf popular.

[Grifman]

When Trump is gone, his deplorables are going to be looking for a new boss who's at least as bad, if not worse. Plenty of job security there.

And if the NDA agreements that he obsessively asks people to sign are unenforceable then book deals galore!

I don't think you are going to get many book deals from people that really matter. The problem is that so many of these people are so deeply implicated in covering for this admin. Do you really believe that Kelly Ann Conway is going to write a tell all book? A book that would say she lied her ass off and prostituted herself morally to support this idiot of a president? I have my doubts.

[$iljanus]

When Trump is gone, his deplorables are going to be looking for a new boss who's at least as bad, if not worse. Plenty of job security there.

And if the NDA agreements that he obsessively asks people to sign are unenforceable then book deals galore!

I don't think you are going to get many book deals from people that really matter. The problem is that so many of these people are so deeply implicated in covering for this admin. Do you really believe that Kelly Ann Conway is going to write a tell all book? A book that would say she lied her ass off and prostituted herself morally to support this idiot of a president? I have my doubts.

The mid level deplorables could make some bank. The high level one's will always have a place at Fox News, the Heritage Foundation or some K Street outfit.

[GreenGoo]

I don't think you are going to get many book deals from people that really matter. The problem is that so many of these people are so deeply implicated in covering for this admin. Do you really believe that Kelly Ann Conway is going to write a tell all book? A book that would say she lied her ass off and prostituted herself morally to support this idiot of a president? I have my doubts.

No one said the books would be the truth. These are alt-books.

[Kraken]

I didn't have Giuliani in mind as head man, but he might serve the next would-be dictator. There are plenty of other villains with bright futures in the GOP.

[tjg_marantz]

Trump Jr is looking at his political future.

Add John Oliver says, the religion is Trump, just like Noko.

[Paingod]

When Trump is gone, his deplorables are going to be looking for a new boss who's at least as bad, if not worse. Plenty of job security there.

Sounds like the plot to Minions.

[Isgrimnur]

https://www.cnn.com/2018/06/07/politics ... index.html

Federal prosecutors accuse James Wolfe, the former security director for the Senate Intelligence Committee, of lying to FBI agents in December 2017 about his contacts with three reporters, including through his use of encrypted messaging applications. According to the indictment, Wolfe made false statements to the FBI about providing two reporters with non-public information related to the matters occurring before the committee.

NPR

Wolfe, 57, once dated a young Washington journalist, Ali Watkins, who made a name for herself covering national security in Congress. Wolfe also had relationships with other journalists who covered the panel formally known as the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence.

Wolfe was never charged with mishandling classified information or leaking to the press, but investigators alleged that he lied to them about his relationships with reporters.
...
Burton, along with attorneys Benjamin Klubes and Lauren Randell, later issued a statement:

"We emphasize again today that Jim was never charged with having compromised classified information, nor is such a charge part of today's plea ... Jim has accepted responsibility for his actions and has chosen to resolve this matter now so that he and his family can move forward with their lives."

[Paingod]

The FBI gets to charge a lot of people for lying about where they've been putting their genitalia.

[Max Peck]

Treasury official arrested, charged with leaking data from Russia probe

A senior Treasury Department employee was arrested this week and charged with leaking “highly sensitive information” about suspects in the high-profile investigation into Russia's meddling in the presidential election, the Justice Department said Wednesday.

Natalie Mayflower Sours Edwards, a senior adviser at the Treasury Department's Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN), allegedly "betrayed her position of trust” by leaking confidential banking reports on the Russian Embassy and suspects charged in special counsel Robert Muller’s Russian collusion probe, the government said in a statement.

Federal prosecutors said Edwards, of Quinton, Virginia, provided a journalist with confidential material, including suspicious activity reports (SARs) on former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort and political consultant Rick Gates, according to the statement.

Given the general leakiness of the federal government these days, I'm sort of amazed that nobody at the IRS has dumped Trump's tax records yet.

[GreenGoo]

Given the general leakiness of the federal government these days, I'm sort of amazed that nobody at the IRS has dumped Trump's tax records yet.

Me too.

On the other hand, getting caught is going to result in the full weight of the federal government dropping on your head, and you know there will be many more resources put on the case than you might expect in a non-drumpfian world.

It's gonna be awhile before another Snowden risks everything for the American people.

[El Guapo]

Treasury official arrested, charged with leaking data from Russia probe

A senior Treasury Department employee was arrested this week and charged with leaking “highly sensitive information” about suspects in the high-profile investigation into Russia's meddling in the presidential election, the Justice Department said Wednesday.

Natalie Mayflower Sours Edwards, a senior adviser at the Treasury Department's Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN), allegedly "betrayed her position of trust” by leaking confidential banking reports on the Russian Embassy and suspects charged in special counsel Robert Muller’s Russian collusion probe, the government said in a statement.

Federal prosecutors said Edwards, of Quinton, Virginia, provided a journalist with confidential material, including suspicious activity reports (SARs) on former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort and political consultant Rick Gates, according to the statement.

Given the general leakiness of the federal government these days, I'm sort of amazed that nobody at the IRS has dumped Trump's tax records yet.

FWIW this isn't "ordinary" leaking. The official apparently leaked SARs, whose confidentiality is taken *very* seriously.

[Pyperkub]

Treasury official arrested, charged with leaking data from Russia probe

A senior Treasury Department employee was arrested this week and charged with leaking “highly sensitive information” about suspects in the high-profile investigation into Russia's meddling in the presidential election, the Justice Department said Wednesday.

Natalie Mayflower Sours Edwards, a senior adviser at the Treasury Department's Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN), allegedly "betrayed her position of trust” by leaking confidential banking reports on the Russian Embassy and suspects charged in special counsel Robert Muller’s Russian collusion probe, the government said in a statement.

Federal prosecutors said Edwards, of Quinton, Virginia, provided a journalist with confidential material, including suspicious activity reports (SARs) on former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort and political consultant Rick Gates, according to the statement.

Given the general leakiness of the federal government these days, I'm sort of amazed that nobody at the IRS has dumped Trump's tax records yet.

FWIW this isn't "ordinary" leaking. The official apparently leaked SARs, whose confidentiality is taken *very* seriously.

Are these the same ones Avenatii was waving around a few months ago?

[El Guapo]

Treasury official arrested, charged with leaking data from Russia probe

A senior Treasury Department employee was arrested this week and charged with leaking “highly sensitive information” about suspects in the high-profile investigation into Russia's meddling in the presidential election, the Justice Department said Wednesday.

Natalie Mayflower Sours Edwards, a senior adviser at the Treasury Department's Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN), allegedly "betrayed her position of trust” by leaking confidential banking reports on the Russian Embassy and suspects charged in special counsel Robert Muller’s Russian collusion probe, the government said in a statement.

Federal prosecutors said Edwards, of Quinton, Virginia, provided a journalist with confidential material, including suspicious activity reports (SARs) on former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort and political consultant Rick Gates, according to the statement.

Given the general leakiness of the federal government these days, I'm sort of amazed that nobody at the IRS has dumped Trump's tax records yet.

FWIW this isn't "ordinary" leaking. The official apparently leaked SARs, whose confidentiality is taken *very* seriously.

Are these the same ones Avenatii was waving around a few months ago?

I don't know. Avenatti waves around a lot of things.

[Max Peck]

Avenatti apparently had access to SARs pertaining to Cohen, iirc, whereas the ones that Edwards leaked to Buzzfeed seem to be related to the Russian embassy, Manafort and Gates.

[Pyperkub]

Avenatti apparently had access to SARs pertaining to Cohen, iirc, whereas the ones that Edwards leaked to Buzzfeed seem to be related to the Russian embassy, Manafort and Gates.

yeah, that sounds right. Thanks!

[Jolor]

Given the general leakiness of the federal government these days, I'm sort of amazed that nobody at the IRS has dumped Trump's tax records yet.

Me too.

On the other hand, getting caught is going to result in the full weight of the federal government dropping on your head, and you know there will be many more resources put on the case than you might expect in a non-drumpfian world.

It's gonna be awhile before another Snowden risks everything for the American people.

Will the next Reality Winner come on down? Not likely.

[Daehawk]

It would be so nice to see the entire Trump clan go to prison for tax evasion or fraud.

I read that about that in 1995 Trump claimed a $945+ million loss which entitled him to 18 years tax free.

[Isgrimnur]

Politico

Former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort appeared in federal court in a wheelchair on Friday and his lawyer said he’s dealing with “significant issues” tied to his health because of his confinement at a Northern Virginia jail.

The attorney, Kevin Downing, didn’t specify what the problem was in open court but a source familiar with the situation later explained the longtime GOP operative who has been confined since mid-June is dealing with an issue related to his diet and has inflammation in his foot.

Manafort, 69, was wearing a green prison jumpsuit labeled on the back “ALEXANDRIA INMATE” and no shoe on his right foot during the proceedings. He appeared in the same ninth-floor federal courtroom where a jury in August convicted him on bank and tax fraud charges.

The hearing, called to address Manafort’s ongoing cooperation with special counsel Robert Mueller tied to his subsequent guilty plea in Washington D.C., concluded with U.S. District Court Judge T.S. Ellis setting a Feb. 8 sentencing date for Manafort.

Ellis also formally dismissed 10 counts against Manafort where the jury had failed to reach a verdict.
...
During Friday’s hearing, Mueller prosecutor Uzo Asonye confirmed there’s no set end date for Manafort’s cooperation. Still, the special counsel’s office agreed to let Ellis start the sentencing process despite the uncertainty on when they’ll be finished with Manafort.
...
Moving to avoid any trouble with Ellis, Mueller’s attorneys signaled earlier this week in a court filing that they were open to launching the sentencing process while Manafort meets with the special counsel.

“This is what I was going to do and I’m glad you agreed to it,” Ellis said on Friday. The judge added that Manafort could get credit for his cooperation even after he’s been sentenced.