Category Archives: William Barr

Donald Trump, William Barr

We resisted and resisted and resisted… and now what – over and out?

After the 4-page Barr Report

By Roger Straw, March 27, 2019
Roger Straw, The Benicia Independent

OK, Attorney General Barr.  OK Rosenstein and Mueller.  OK Donald … I’ve had it.

We stood out in the rain here in our small west coast town during the Inauguration and in February and March of 2017, we stood vigil, stood strong here and vowed, promised, to remain vigilant against the corruption we knew would spew forth from the p****-grabbing narcissistic liar who took a near-majority of the nation and a fateful majority of the Electoral College down a hateful path to the presidency.  We promised to remain vigilant.

And we did.  And what did it get us – so far?

Every blankety-blank day, we watched the news.  Sickened at first – for maybe 6 months, then allowing ourselves for the next 6 months to laugh at the ludicrous shenanigans reported on the daily “Trump Show” on CNN and MSNBC…  Every single day for these last 22 months, we’ve tuned in and read the papers in print and online, tracked the indictments, the leaks, the investigative reports, the fact-checks and distillations of uncovered seamy stories and the ridiculous “presidential” pronouncements, one after another after another…

And it’s filled our brains.  And yes, our hearts have been strong.

We lit votive candles with Robert Mueller’s saintly image on them, fully expecting he would bring us indictable facts that, indicted or not, would lead to impeachment and removal of the malingering sore on our nation’s face.  Most of us took the advice of our truth-telling Democratic congressional leaders and were patient.  Wait until Mueller issues his report.  OK.  Wait.  Wait.  Wait…

And what do we get?  A Barr Report.  Bar none, the worst news of our 22-month vigil.  A whiteman wash.  An exoneration that promises a bump in electability for the ninny who holds the office but does not serve.

What do we get?  He didn’t do it.  No culpability in the Russia attack on our democratic election.  Maybe he did, maybe he didn’t obstruct justice.  NO WAY!  We’ve watched the evidence pour in for 22 months and we know that the Barr Report is a mischaracterization at best, a conspiracy of obstruction in its own right at worst.

Well, for a day or two, I seriously considered quitting.  Maybe move to Canada, maybe just retire and eat ice cream.  Think and act locally and forget globally.  Give up on my nation, a nation that was.  And yes, a nation born in genocide and raised on slavery.  A nation whose heart is spoiled, whose lingering hatred flows unstopped in bloody red veins.  It’s not just Donald.  What, 40% of us support him?!

For a day or two, I was convinced that only evil lay on our horizon.  War, civil and/or otherwise.  Reversal of human rights.  A wall to define a gated people, a wall to unwelcome the masses, a tearing down of the Statue of Liberty.  A stiff-arm to the world and to human kindness.

Yes, for a day or two, I was ready to give it over to Donald and FOX and Kellyanne and Rush and Ann Coulter and Mitch and Lindsey and the mercenary breath of Sarah Sanders.  OK, Barr and Mueller – you can have it.  I quit.

But today is day three.  And I’m mad as hell and I’m not going to take it anymore.  My time – our time – isn’t over yet.  We will swamp you in 2020, and meanwhile, we will remain vigilant.  And who knows, the Democratic House and New York’s Southern District may yet send you packing before then.

Watch out, Donald – we’re still here and we’re not going anywhere!

Donald Trump, Robert Mueller, William Barr

The Barr Report – two newsy updates

Repost of two articles…

Pelosi says Barr believes Trump is ‘above the law’

By Manu Raju and Jeremy Herb, CNN, Tue March 26, 2019 12:23 PM ET


(CNN)House Speaker Nancy Pelosi told House Democrats in a private meeting Tuesday that Attorney General William Barr’s words cannot be taken at face value, according to multiple sources in the meeting, arguing Barr got the job in the first place by authoring a memo criticizing special counsel Robert Mueller’s obstruction probe as “fatally misconceived.”

Pelosi told her caucus that said Barr’s job is to defend the President, and Democrats should wait to see what’s in the full report.
“We have to see the report,” Pelosi said, according to an aide in the room. “We cannot make a judgment on the basis of an interpretation by a man who was hired for his job because he believes the President is above the law and he wrote a 19-page memo to demonstrate that.”

Pelosi also sought to calm her nervous colleagues as Democrats are facing a torrent of criticism from congressional Republicans and the White House after … [continued on CNN.com]

The Critical Part of Mueller’s Report That Barr Didn’t Mention

The special counsel’s most interesting findings about Trump and Russia might be in the counterintelligence portion of his report.
By Natasha Bertrand, The Atlantic, March 26, 2019 6:00 AM ET
Robert Mueller CLIFF OWEN / ASSOCIATED PRESS

On Sunday afternoon, Attorney General Bill Barr presented a summary of Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s conclusions that contained a few sentences from Mueller’s final report, one of which directly addressed the question of collusion between Donald Trump’s campaign and Russia: “The investigation did not establish that members of the Trump campaign conspired or coordinated with the Russian government in its election interference activities.” In a footnote, Barr explained that Mueller had defined “coordination” as an “agreement—tacit or express—between the Trump campaign and the Russian government on election interference.”

Mueller’s full report has not been made available to the public yet, so it’s not clear whether it sets forth everything the special counsel’s office learned over the course of its nearly two-year investigation—including findings about conduct that was perhaps objectionable but not criminal—or whether it is more tailored and explains only Mueller’s prosecution and declination decisions. But national-security and intelligence experts tell me that Mueller’s decision not to charge Trump or his campaign team with a conspiracy is far from dispositive, and that the underlying evidence the special counsel amassed over two years could prove as useful as a conspiracy charge to understanding the full scope of Russia’s election interference in 2016.  [Continued on theatlantic.com]