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© (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2017.Flynn pleads guilty to lying about contacts with Russia
By Sarah N Lynch WASHINGTON©2023 GPlusMedia Inc.
166 Comments
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bones
this is gonna be interesting!
CrazyJoe
On the first day of Christmas
Bob Mueller gave to me
Mike Flynn and a guilty plea
Plead guilty to one relatively minor charge of lying to the FBI in exchange for everything you know about the Trump administration, that's apparently the deal.
PTownsend
Lock him up! And with him the other traitors among Trump's family and supporters who claimed to want to 'put America first' while selling the country off to the highest bidders abroad.
Drain Trump's gold lined, oil slimed swamp of traitors and global elitists!
CrazyJoe
America was the shining light of freedom for the planet, the hope for a free, prosperous, fair and decent world. We stood for decency, fair laws, equality, individual freedom, respect and were the land of opportunity for all. We have been tarnished, the light has been extinguished as we have been corrupted and are descending into a dark place as criminals, liars and cheats have taken over our government.
takeda.shingen.1991@gmail.com
A) Mueller's investigation has been pretty tight-lipped, B) You don't plead guilty on one count, someone is being ratted out, C) Its hearsay, but we've relied on hearsay for some time. Why does it matter now? Certainly explains Trump's behavior, putting Kushner in the west wing etc.
takeda.shingen.1991@gmail.com
Does every admin lie to the FBI about it? Do they try and set up a back with Russia through the Russian embassy to avoid US surveillance? Well..
Strangerland
Hehe
Comey investigates. The right:
Nothing to see here, carry on.
Comey fired. The right:
There was nothing to find. Carry on.
Mueller appointed. The right;
There is nothing to find. Carry on.
Mueller hands down the first indictments. The right:
These are nothing. Carry on.
Flynn pleads guilty. The right:
We’ll get this thrown out in court!!
Aly Rustom
You could say he's in like Flynn. LOL
smithinjapan
Burning Bush: "The December 22nd meeting, the one Flynn failed to disclose, was about the upcoming vote in the UN about settlements in Israel."
And? Al Capone was taken down for tax evasion... you think that's the worst he did? They are nailing Flynn with a minor meeting, but the point is that he lied to the FBI, which carries a much heavier penalty. Doesn't matter what he lied about. Now, they leverage this in exchange for more serious information in a plea deal and THAT is why people like you are now quaking in their boots.
Strangerland
And once again you’re trying to project. Not only could it happen to the Democrats, if they do something wrong, it should happen to them.
There is no room for corruption on either side. Well, unless you’re batting for team Trump - then corruption is something to be defended.
Laguna
Wonder what's planned for his son. The two of them could both be put away for a long time considering what they've done. Papa's no doubt decided to sing like a canary to try to save both. And more to come - just progressive steps up the ladder which will, in due time, arrive at the connections to Russia.
SuperLib
And we haven't even gotten to the obstruction of justice stuff yet.
Strangerland
Oh, good thing you were part of the inner circle, please tell us more of this information that only Trump's inner circle and the FBI know.
Strangerland
Lock him up! Lock him up!
No seriously, the man, unlike the woman who they previously shrieked that about, is no officially a criminal.
Lock him in a dark dungeon and throw away the key.
Strangerland
And where does it say they didn’t talk about anything else?
fake news.
Extanker: I don’t think there is anything wrong with meeting with foreign officials before being sworn in. It’s extrmemly doubtful that that is what the Mueller investigation is finding issue wirh.
cdanr
“Flynn would not be permitted to enter a plea bargain unless he had substantial credible evidence of criminal activity involving high-level members of the Trump campaign, including potentially the president himself,” Notre Dame Law School professor Jimmy Gurulé said. “Clearly this is not good news for President Trump.”
Also, Flynn’s admissions that he acted on behalf of the Trump transition team to interfere with U.S. foreign policy raises the potential of charges under the Logan Act, a never-used 1799 statute than bans citizens from interfering in foreign relations, as well as potential other criminal statutes.
The bad news for Donald J. Trump and company is that Michael Flynn is not the "big fish" Robert Mueller is targeting. He is a "medium fish" at best.
katsu78
What a nothingburger!
Oh wait, sorry, that's just me dining at MOS. The story? That's YUGE!
takeda.shingen.1991@gmail.com
I hope Trump is enjoying his Christmas party. Doesn't seem like many others are. ;)
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/donald-trump-tree-lighting-ceremony-empty-seats-crowd-size-numbers-white-house-washington-dc-a8087341.html
Simon Foston
YubaruToday 06:28 am JST
I know. That's why they put in the word "reportedly." I'm waiting to see what else Flynn actually says himself.
Simon Foston
YubaruToday 06:35 am JST
"Could be", yes. Most likely isn't.
bones
The look on trumps face when he was meeting with some guy from some country the day the story broke was priceless, his orange skin and raccoon patch looking eyes seemed inflamed.you could almost feel the discomfort when the reporter asked about the news of flynn pleading guilty.well he might have to fire mueller soon or invade... I mean pre-emptly strike NK!
Laguna
What a trillion and a half dollars in debt-driven stimulus to the economy does bring bubbles to ones head.
PTownsend
'All they could get'? I understand partisan supporters defending their politicians, but when supporters minimize dishonesty it's says a lot about their sense of ethics. And 'what about x, they all do it' should never be used to excuse dishonesty.
I don't know which country you're from, but the legal system in the US, and I assume most other democratic nations, often moves slowly. The US is not run by an authoritarian regime, at least not yet, that puts on quick and dirty show trials.
Laguna
Let's reiterate what is happening for the benefit of those uninformed or obfuscating. Flynn was charged for a relatively minor crime which likely has nothing to do with the main thrust of the investigation, and he agreed to plead guilty.
This indicates that the main thrust of the investigation contains veracity of matters which are extremely serious.
No one except Mueller and those close to him know where this is going - not even Flynn. All Flynn knows is that what he knows is enough to save his hide, and maybe that of his son (heads up! - another guilty plea soon to come!).
Flynn Junior. Donald Trump Junior. Jared Kushner. Historians may end up calling this "The Parable of the Lost Sons."
nishikat
This is the FBI. And whatever happened to Hillary's investigations?
The prosecutor is giving a light sentence. You just don't give a light sentence without getting something in return (a bigger fish higher up)
What is Trump waiting for??? Get her arrested. It's not Hillary's fault for not having Hillary arrested. Hannity and Friends need to cover this new crime news by Hillary on FOX News so Trump can get rolling and LOCK HER UP. No Hillary arrest means it's ALL on Trump.
Again, LOCK HIM UP!!! It's all on Trump for these unpunished crimes.
And when is Trump going to investigate Obama for wiretapping? It really happened because Trump Tweeted it.
Tommy Jones
Yes, but in a transparent manner, and didn't lie to the country and FBI about it.
Strangerland
Yeah, you know what they spoke of in that meeting, something only Trump's inner circle and the FBI would know. So which inner circle are you a part of?
cdanr
The fact that he is ONLY being charged with the one count of lying to the FBI and not for the serious additional crimes outlined in his statement of offense, coupled with Flynn's open admission that he is fully cooperating with Robert Mueller's investigation is fairly clear evidence that we are long past the "squeezing" phase.
But please, don't let these facts get in the way of your delusions.
takeda.shingen.1991@gmail.com
Lol why the hell would a person lie to the feds? Thought it sounded like a nice way to spend his free time?
Which is EXACTLY why he was charged with only lying. There is more to come, sit back and relax.
Must be pregaming hard, like it makes sense. Better go enjoy the economic success Trump has brought before a journalist "crashes the stock market." ;)
SuperLib
Why would you think they are anti-Trump? They're investigators doing their jobs. And so far they've caught money launderers and people who lied to the FBI. Nothing partisan about that; these people broke the law.
Flynn broke the law and entered a guilty plea. Again, nothing sinister or underhanded about it, except for his own actions. Naturally the next question is asking why he would lie to the FBI. Speculating that he was trying to hide something is what any normal person would do in that situation.
Next up will be Kushner and Trump Jr. And if they broke any laws, including lying to the FBI, then they are most likely going to jail, which is where they belong if they broke the law.
So what exactly is it you're outraged about?
mukashiyokatta
Delicious! Ooh, the irony! Don't worry about being alone in the slammer, Mike -- your pals will soon join you!
Tokyo-Engr
So Flynn copped a plea and agreed to cooperate. He has admitted guilt. In my opinion this is where things really begin and if he does cooperate it will be interesting to see what comes next. I believe there is more to the story however I will withhold judgment on others until we find out the rest of the story.
It should get real interesting from here.
Related to this it seems Trump's son in law may be involved with this as well. I was always very, very, very uneasy when he brought his son in law and daughter into the White House, which seemed to go against everything he was claiming to be.
2018 should prove to be an interesting and potentially historic year in the United States.
nishikat
Sons have to stick by Trump no matter what or they won't get their inheritance
Tommy Jones
A did that keeps uncovering crimes so justice can be served. The score so far: 2 guilty please and 2 indictments. That's 4 for Mueller and 0 for Trump. A dud indeed.
Muellers mandate allows him to pursue any crimes he uncovers.
takeda.shingen.1991@gmail.com
Its not fake. It was an error. Flynn lied bigly to the feds and is even moar bigger trouble. Huge trouble. Some say the biggest.
Who will he rat on to save him and his scion? Can't wait to find out!;)
Sure, I'll take 1/1/25. Deal?
Madverts
BB, you're being obtuse. This isn't a Russian investigation where the "suspects" are apprehended in 24 hours and have a confession beaten from them as you well know.
Mueller is playing Trump at his own game. Divide and conquer - or in this case divide and indict. Busy times ahead for a paid agitator.
katsu78
It says a lot about the nature of this discussion that the people you're arguing against have said again and again that their primary concern is that the people around the President have definitely had inappropriate contact with Russian operatives, a country that has definitely attempted to manipulate our sovereign elections; yet you are only worried about whether or not your "side" looks bad relative to "the other side".
takeda.shingen.1991@gmail.com
He lied to the investigator. WHY? Don't try to change the subject. What reason is there for lying about a perfectly legal meeting with Russians?,
takeda.shingen.1991@gmail.com
Its an active investigation, none of you business. Or mine. But the fact he lied about a perfectly legal meeting, and has now taken a plea deal, is telling. Let's enjoy the show! :D
Strangerland
Why? Who are you that you should be being told? If you're just a member of the general public, then no he shouldn't. In the middle of an active investigation, that would be the stupidest thing to do, it prematurely gives information to those who are the ultimate target of the investigation. You don't tell a murder suspect what evidence you have against them until it's absolutely necessary. Same with political criminals.
Strangerland
Hehehe
PTownsend
@MrBum Thanks. During part of Flynn's time behind bars he should be required to watch that video. After, of course, he's required to explain truthfully why he went to work for Erdogan, and maybe other leaders of authoritarian regimes. Which could explain why he was such a diehard Trump supporter.
The worldwide movements to establish authoritarian regimes are scary. They're going after a free press and other key parts of democratic systems. Hopefully it's not too late to stop the movements toward one in the US.
GW
Come on now CLEARLY this is about more MUCH MUCH more than what he is being charged with, take off your blinders for a few seconds and it SHOULD be crystal clear, but I think you are just trying to pretend this isn't about larger issues that are painfully over to most
Same for you BlackLabel, nice try but it is SO obvious this is all about bigger issues/problems, at least admit it LOL!!!
takeda.shingen.1991@gmail.com
Nonsense. Stocks opened lower, before the news even broke.
Besides, it doesn't matter whether it was candidate Trump or President elect Trump, Flynn lied to the Fbi. He's been flipped, and that all there is to it. ;)
takeda.shingen.1991@gmail.com
Not convicted. And let's remember he will have to tell the truth or face more charges. And based on what we's got every reason to flip. And to think that just last week you were claiming "there's no collusion, and no one can pin it on Trump." Rofl
Moving up the ladder here. Who do you think he's going to snitch on? Kushner or Trump? Too funny. :3
wtfjapan
Downvote me all you want. 'Candidate Hillary' asked to set up an 'informal, private, off the record meeting' with the Chinese Ambassador before she was NEVER elected. well then they should open an investigation into Hillary as well. What many fail to understand is Hillary will never be POTUS, even if she is investigated for whatever reason and found guilty this WONT stop Trump and his minions from being investigated until proof or none is found. Finding dirt on one candidate wont nullify the others, if they're both dirty they can go both to prison, Pence will be POTUS and thats an improvement on Trump
wtfjapan
yep, a federally convicted liar whose testimony is now worthless. Good job on that. when it comes to saving your bacon youll be surprised just how loud people can squeal the truth. Its much easier to tell the truth than fabricate a believable lie
Tommy Jones
In a manner that implied you know that interference/collision was also not discussed. Stranger's point being that you have no way of knowing what was discussed, if anything, beyond Israel.
TorafusuTorasan
Wallowing in semantics. You can say collaboration instead of collusion if that would make you feel better. Just tweak the legalese and it's like giving yourself a get out of jail free card.
Tommy Jones
A convicted liar testifying . . .
It's hilarious to keep reading posts from individuals that clearly are not lawyers. It happened in the article about that kiddie fiddler Moore. One poster determined others were defaming that predator, but obviously had only studied defamation through Wikipedia.
Incorrect. Suppression of evidence, which is what laypeople refer to as getting testimony (evidence) suppressed (thrown out) is a remedy for violations of the Fourth Amendment and perjury.
When/if Flynn testifies, his conviction for perjury will be introduced to call into question his credibility. The trier of fact (judge or jury) will then determine what weight to give the testimony. However, if there are further witness that corroborate his testimony, chances are the trier of fact will judge Flynn's testimony as credible.
Simon Foston
Tommy JonesToday 01:49 pm JST
Let's be fair, some conservatives. Maybe even a lot.
Simon Foston
BlacklabelToday 01:38 pm JST
I'm sure we all will. This stuff is endlessly entertaining.
Laguna
Mueller has been tasked with investigation into any links between Trump and Russia, along with "any matters that arose or may arise directly from the investigation", according to the letter appointing him.
If a cop pulls you over for speeding and happens to find drugs in your trunk, arguing "that's not what you're tasked with" will cut precisely zero mustard. Flynn (or perhaps his lawyers) was intelligent enough to figure this out.
Also, note the verb tenses in the above bold sentence - "arose or may arise" - that is, obstruction of justice. Exactly what Flynn's charged with.
We're not even through the skin of this onion, Burning Bush. Mueller's clearly got plenty; he just want to make sure none are left behind. And that's why everyone in the executive branch now assumes the other is wearing a tap.
lostrune2
So then, that Flynn lied is not fake news after all
So what other fake news would turn out to be not fake news too
katsu78
A case of a news outlet that retracting its story is by definition not fake news. Indeed, pulp comic book characters of the 50s aside, a general trend of human civilization is that greatness comes from institutions that are willing to admit its errors. The institutions that refuse to take ownership of their mistakes, you know, the fanatical religious cults, the authoritarian governments, Trump, have all been consistently destructive in the long run.
SuperLib
When do you guys think Kushner will be indicted?
Madverts
He'll be afraid of the American prison system. And that's where your boy's headed.
takeda.shingen.1991@gmail.com
Actually it does. Why would Flynn lie about a perfectly harmless meeting with the Russians?
You can't answer and its awesome. We know darn well why, and we know Flynn will be ratting on someone higher up than him and there aren't many people higher up than him.
26 of 120ish posts now, congrats.
dcog9065
He’s lucky he got the deal to nail the higher traitors. These Trump circle enemies of the state are so pink and soft, their time in jail would almost be comical to watch if not for their unforgivable crimes. Flynn is done
Haaa Nemui
He's taken a plea deal. There is more to come. A plea deal means nothing if there is nobody else or no other crime. It wouldn't even be on the table. I don't know what more is coming but there is more to come.
Strangerland
Um, plea bargain. Seems you may not know what that is. Google can help.
wtfjapan
Even if that is true, it's clearly criminally illegal to wiretap like Obama did to Trump. Why is Obama not being investigated for that? then Trump or the Reps should open an investigation in Obama, nobody stopping them, like I said before no amount of diversions / counter investigations is going to stop the FBI investigating Trump and his minions. The train has already left the station where it stops is anybodies guess, hopefully with the truth is the most desirable outcome.
bones
I predict a very BIGLY distraction coming up soon!!!
SuperLib
Deep state? The nutjob Sean Hannity thing? Why don't I hear more about this? Could it be the....MSM working with the deep state?
Who cares? Your boys are going to jail and that's that. Throw in a Podesta reference to feel like you've scored a point and let's move on.
SuperLib
The only ones talking about that are you guys. The left has been focusing on the fact he pleaded guilty for lying to the FBI. Sorry the news got it wrong initially about the Logan Act, but, ya know, the whole pleading guilty thing is what we like.
You guys were arguing over a point that we never made, and ultimately ended just talking to yourselves.
Strangerland
No he's not. Whatever gave you that silly idea?
We don't have to prove anything. We couldn't even prove anything - we don't have the information.
The only thing we need to do is sit back and let the Republican-led FBI special investigative team keep digging deeper and deeper, charging any culprits (on either side) as they see fit.
Good luck with the proof stuff. You guys keep making claims about there being nothing to find, and Mueller's team keeps responding with guilty pleas from Trump's team.
wtfjapan
But what they are saying is if you just let someone plea to lying to investigators, how can you prove any conspiracy happened or use the testimony of a convicted liar to indict others? thats why investigators will investigate whether the person make a plea deal statements are true, if they find nothing then the plea deal is off. The whole point of plea deals is to shed light on existing investigations or open new leads the investigators previously didnt know. People lie to save their butts , but they certainly can snitch on others
with the truth if it means saving their own butts also. As more of the jigsaw puzzle is put into place it make it harder for people to conceal the truth
wtfjapan
Could somebody make the connection between discussing Israel and the election conspiracy theory. the only persons who can do that is Mueller and his team, the rest is just speculation and prayers
Tommy Jones
Comservatives have an extremely simple worldview which leads them to believe that an investigation into a complex issue is a dud if nothing is discovered in the first week. Never mind any of the reasons that information would be scarce - so as not to tip off others being investigated, for instance.
Logical inferences clearly evade conservatives.
Strangerland
The look on Trump’s face when this broke was priceless. The ‘uh-oh, this isn’t good’ face.
Toasted Heretic
Happy Festivus! It's like opening your presents early. Now let's hope Santa delivers the main one by the big day.
Well done to all the elves, their hard work is paying off.
bones
It’s utterly amazing how many people STILL continue to defend trump and company given all that has become public knowledge of how clueless and dishonest he and his cronies are.
they seem to not be bothered by the reality of his lunatic policies that only favor the %1 .
Strangerland
Actually, to the right, 'fake news' means 'news they don't like', so in that regards, the Flynn news is still 'fake news'.
takeda.shingen.1991@gmail.com
Not "lying." Its lying. Been criminal now for a while. See Clinton Impeachment.
takeda.shingen.1991@gmail.com
Says drop, not "crash." Good grief.
That wasn't the illegal part, duh. Lying about it was. Why Mikey F. lie about a perfectly innocous meeting with Russians? Huhhh....
Madverts
He's indeed the next one to fall. I'm guessing Mueller will leave it as long as possible to sow plenty of discord in the inner circle.
The Whitehouse is under siege. And rightly so. They're all going to gaol.
wtfjapan
@wolf gee you must have a job on Mueller's team, or your speculation is running wild in the wilderness
gcbel
“Deep state” the mot du jour of the Alex Jones conspiracist paranoiacs and the intellectually lazy.
SuperLib
Sounds nutty,
SuperLib
See? Here it is again. Only you guys are talking about this, and it's meaningless when compared to a guilty plea for lying to the FBI. No one was ever talking about the Logan Act until you guys brought it up to say we had all been duped.
nishikat
How long is this going to continue on Hannity and Friends and in the mind of the Trump follower? Obama's gone! Trump followers have a bad habit of not thinking for themselves (which is the business of FOX News for the Trump follower). Don't forget Trump has not implemented a team to investigate Obama's wiretapping. What's going on with that?
Simon Foston
WolfpackToday 01:19 am JST
Which Trump may have admitted to knowing about when he asked James Comey to go easy on him.
Strange why he hasn't said anything before about knowing Flynn had lied to the FBI. I mean, he didn't cite that as one of the reasons for firing him at the time...
MrBum
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4h32IIbvH8A
Tokyo-Engr
Here is an interesting take from Leon Panetta, Obama's defense secretary.
https://ntknetwork.com/leon-panetta-its-a-stretch-to-say-trump-team-broke-law-with-russian-contacts/
It is interesting as Panetta has been very highly critical of Trump.
PTownsend
Thanks for continuing to give that issue the attention it deserves. Calling it a 'hacking conspiracy theory' is one way to describe it, but I think using ‘conspiracy theory’ detracts from the issues being considered. I’m cynical, but don’t think people of Mueller’s level involve themselves in conspiracy theories. I think you’re confusing the US with Russia, Turkey, Iran, China, Saudi Arabia or another totalitarian state.
I believe more Americans want to find out once and for all to what degree the Russians meddled in the US election, what the relationships were among Russians and Trump's family and supporters before the election, among other things.
Calling what Mueller etal are doing a witch hunt, conspiracy theory, whatever, may appeal to partisan extremists, but it’s like ‘fake news’ and other slogans, just another way to undermine the truth and legitimate investigations.
Do you have proof, or are you deflecting?
Madverts
The wheels are coming off the moron's wagon. Flynn pleaded guilty to one lowly charge. He's snitched bigly on the Trump inner circle.
Kushner will be next. The poop is rolling upwards for a change.
lostrune2
Like the CIA conspiracy in any public revolution such as Syria and Venezuela
To some conspiracy theory people, any revolution automatically means the CIA is always involved
takeda.shingen.1991@gmail.com
1) Stocks opened lower BEFORE the story broke.
2) A 100 point drop, or whatever it was, isn't a crash. You're being excessively dramatic.
takeda.shingen.1991@gmail.com
Lololololol You never said anything about "reasonable."
I'll take 1/1/25. This is all nothingburger, isn't it?I'm sure it'll be nothingburger in 2025 as well, no?
domtoidi
It's against the law to lie to the FBI. You can go to jail.
It is not against the law for the FBI to lie to you. They will not go to jail.
Simon Foston
SuperLibDec. 2 11:09 pm JST
Or what bargain he's made and what information he might have to offer in exchange for leniency.
Strangerland
We want to replace Trump with Bernie. Screw Hillary.
And that stuff is most definitely covered under Mueller’s mandate. Where did you ever get the silly idea that it’s not? Is that what they are telling you guys in the bubble?
nishikat
It will be Pence who believes in the flying Jesus zombie. Evangelicals annoy me. But he is a decent man unlike Trump who is a crude fat irrational old orange man who insults people like American Indians and the royal family- among many other insulting things. He has stupid behavior. Pence will do no such thing. But he wants to spread the brainwashing of the Conservative Jesus teachings across the USA. I'm not happy with that, but it's better than the insanity of Trump. Trump followers are definitely cultish about Trump. Pence will at least hire a decent staff which Trump has not been able to do even with the complete Republican control of the government.
Trump has to go. Too old and too crazy. Also, too orange. He needs to get a new head of fake hair.
Tokyo-Engr
@Blacklabel - I often disagree with you (I disdain Trump) but your posts regarding ABC's retractions are factual. Brian Ross now has 4 weeks off without pay to think about printing BS.
As I said before - accelerate the pace of investigations, get facts out there, and do what needs to be done. If it leads to Trump's impeachment so be it and on the other hand if it proves there was no collusion then so be it.
It is destructive to the country to let this drag on and on.
gcbel
Its lame, it's a misunderstanding of what the original concept of Deep State meant (as in state within a state or an invisible or shadow government) and it's dangerous. It's catch all conspiracist explanation of everything and nothing. Self-serving excuse for incompetence (Trump's failures oh its the Deep state!) or a facile explanation for things not breaking the way you would've liked them to (e.g., Hillary was spared prosecution because of the deep state). It's confusing or purposely blurring organizational inertia or indeed even resistance with a invisible illuminatist hand.
https://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2017/02/why-its-dangerous-to-talk-about-a-deep-state/517221/
cdanr
Sure thing, pal. Just like H.R. Haldeman and John Erlichman.
nishikat
Even if that is true, it's clearly criminally illegal to wiretap like Obama did to Trump. Why is Obama not being investigated for that?
Tommy Jones
Incorrect. Mueller's mandate requires him to investigate Russian interference in the election, which has been determined to have occurred by several intelligence agencies. He is also tasked with pursuing any other crimes he may uncover, so the perpetrators can be brought to justice.
The justice part is key, which makes it odd to hear anyone denigrating Mueller for laying charges for non-collusion crimes. Why would you not want criminals to be brought to justice? Soft on crime it would seem.
Strangerland
How would we know? Unlike you, we don't claim to be privy to insider information.
The investigation will take as long as it does.
And are you going to unsarcastically answer the question as to whether or not you are Russian?
bass4funk
I’m waiting to find out the connection between Manafort, Flynn and The Podesta brothers wonder where that will all lead to.
Simon Foston
bass4funkDec. 3 07:45 pm JST
Wait all you like. You could be waiting a long time. The rest of us will be following some real news.
No one else does. Keep mentioning it if you like, but no one's paying any attention.
sf2k
97 conspirators on the wall, 97 conspirators... throw away the jail key, more will plead guilty, 96 conspirators on the wall..
Tokyo-Engr
@Blacklabel and Laguna - Either one of you may be right in your above post but right now we simply do not know.
I consider myself as non-partisan and I am just happy things are moving and the best outcome is to resolve this as quickly as possible. If there is more to it I hope they get on with it and prosecute/punish those involved as necessary. If it does in fact go all the way to the President, so be it.
On the other hand if it ends up stopping at Flynn or not far up the ladder - figure it out and move on.
Some of the ridiculous calls for Trump to be impeached (i.e. Maxine Waters, etc.) are...just that...ridiculous, but if there is something credible that is in true violation of the law then so be it.
As I said above; 2018 may prove to be an historic year in U.S. politics and if this goes up the ladder it would be quite a bit more severe than what went on in the 70's with Nixon.
Blacklabel
there is nothing related to “stealing the election” or collusion which you want to use to replace Trump with Hillary. Not gonna happen.
Blacklabel
http://money.cnn.com/2017/12/01/media/abc-news-flynn-correction/index.html
First retraction already. It was NOT candidate Trump but President ELECT Trump. This journalist guy's carelessness caused a huge stock market drop.
bass4funk
I’m not outraged, but I’m not a fool either, don’t trust Mueller, he’s way overstepping his bounds of what the original intent was for this investigation, I just wonder why no one on his team is a conservative or someone who has contributed heavily to the GOP then I would be more open minded to this investigation, but generally speaking Mueller isn’t in the least interested in any of these men, let’s just cut to the chase.
Wolfpack
Every large bureaucracy bound organization has an entrenched set of interests and are capable of putting up with almost any sort of corruption to protect themselves. A good example is how Dems protected Bill Clinton’s sexual abuses for decades in order to protect their public policy gains. Do you think that groups of individuals with shared interests are immune from the faults of human nature just because you share their political ideology?
The entrenched Federal government bureaucracy, otherwise known as the ‘deep state’, is openly in contempt of the people they are supposed to serve. Notice how Comey outright stated that Hillary was ‘grossly negligent ‘ but went ahead and decided to exonerate her anyway even before completing the investigation into her malfeasance. You are blinded by your ideology.
Blacklabel
Yeah about that non partisan Mueller team:
http://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/362937-justice-dept-watchdog-confirms-review-of-fbi-agent-communications
same guy who was pushing the fake dossier to his FBI team and who was in charge of the Clinton email “investigation”
yeah I know he was eventually replaced but only after he got the dossier into the Russia investigation and after Email probe done.
Blacklabel
And like I said you guys gotta prove Flynn lied about some “conspiracy” or something to prove your beloved collusion/stole the election story. Which is what this is about for you ultimately.
obama state department authorized the calls and was legal under transition team activities. So just sucks to be Flynn for now.
Blacklabel
According to the National Review, you basically have to get someone involved in any type of conspiracy to plead to their role in the conspiracy in order to prove it exists. Then you can use the testimony of that person and the proven existence to indict all the people involved.
But what they are saying is if you just let someone plea to lying to investigators, how can you prove any conspiracy happened or use the testimony of a convicted liar to indict others? The actual calls Flynn made and their content/subjects were already investigated and found legal by the FBI. So its not simply the fact that someone else ordered him to call and are now guilty of a crime of telling him to call, it was just someone telling him to do his job.
I think they have a valid point but I guess we will see.
Blacklabel
The only question in my mind would be why did Flynn feel the need to lie to Pence and to the FBI about phone calls whose content and subject matter were cleared as legal later by the FBI?
Seems he knew wasnt the one who should be talking about those specific subjects so he lied and said he didnt. So to me that makes Pence and Trump look even better as the reason he had to lie is because he was talking something Trump and Pence didnt authorize. Otherwise no need to lie to FBI and Pence, just say he was talking about legal subjects that he was told to talk about.
Blacklabel
also, has the law changed since 2008? Washington Post:
In the weeks leading up to Obama's win.......so 'candidate' Obama sent his rep to talk to Russia? Just more proof that all Flynn did wrong was lie about what he talked about in the perfectly legal call.
Blacklabel
How was Flynn’s contact with the Russians inappropriate? Was after the election, part of his job and approved by Obama state Department.
Find me something that is related to the election and is inappropriate then I will listen. Until then you have a guy doing his job as a member of an incoming administration transition team.
Blacklabel
Actually it dropped 350 points not 100 but don’t let facts get in the way of your fake news/error.
Blacklabel
It’s fake news if you already know it’s fake when you post it. You can’t just say whatever you want and just retract when you get caught snd claim it’s an “error”.
This is happening ever single day now and always negative against trump. It’s so bad that CNN actually had to call out ABC on their fake news. When you got CNN admitting something is fake, it’s really fake.
Texas A&M Aggie
This "breaking news" has now been debunked as it turns out DJT instructed Gen. Flynn to speak to the Russians as part of his transisition team (a usual political practice) and NOT during the campaign.
But the alt-left media is expecting its useful liberal idiots to parrot their originalGen. Flynn "story" as indisputable fact. They have done so in the past; treating every word they print/speak as gospel, so why stop now?
The liberal media drain circling continues. . .
Blacklabel
If Trump won on Nov 8 why doesn’t he just become president on Nov 9?
Because there is a transition period to allow the new guy’s team to get in touch will all countries to start telling them what they want and how it’s going to be. Especially getting rid of a Dem and replacing with a Repub, gonna be major changes.
This transition period built in to the system for this purpose. Yet twitter is ablaze saying Trump can’t do ANYthing until after he is sworn in so that’s his crime. Total nonsense but ok take it to court and ask them what the role of transition team is.
Blacklabel
@Tokyo-Egr Yeah lets just get it done. either Flynn told them what they need to get everyone else, or thats all they have on him is the lying that Trump fired him for.
Like the link I posted right above, the media is just going to keep pushing false speculation and doing retractions when caught forever. They know the key to this is to prove something happened during the campaign not the transition team period. HUGE difference between 'candidate' Trump and 'President elect' Trump, Im sure the error was intentional.
I was promised treason and collusion with Russia to illegitimately win an election. Flynn was always the way Dems were going to prove that. But all I have gotten is Flynn being told to do his job as part of an incoming, lawfully elected Presidential administration.
Blacklabel
'candidate Obama' talked to Iraq foreign minister BEFORE he was even elected. Even talked policy that was against what the current President was doing and undermining his policy:
https://www.salon.com/2008/06/16/obama_iraq/
Secret talks with Iran and Syria too as 'candidate Obama'
https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/129728
So tell me again how Flynn's contact was wrong, other than him lying about it?
bass4funk
Well, you could be right, we just have to wait and see where it all goes.
Collusion doesn’t necessarily mean that a crime was committed, you’re getting too wrapped up over the word.
Blacklabel
ok I’m glad that’s all clear from when it’s your side’s turn. Doubt Comey will he sanctimoniously tweeting Bible verses by then.
wonder how many more “lies” from journalists are gonna crash the stock market this week.
Blacklabel
https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/smallbusiness/markets-and-us-dollar-fall-on-abc-news-report-on-michael-flynn/vi-BBG1i1o
here you go. Video and written words on bottom of tv screen plus the URL itself.
or is this fake news just an “error” too?
Blacklabel
Love playing with those words. You said 100 points it was 350. Said wasn’t related to ABC fake news. It was.
It doesn’t matter why he lied. If he lied about something illegal they would have gotten him for participating in the illegal act too. even you are admitting the only thing illegal was the lying about legal actions.
Blacklabel
You the one claiming the lie is obviously to cover up illegal activity. I say otherwise or he would have been indicted for the illegal activity as well.
so until the supposed illegal activity that was lied about is identified and proven, this is where we are.
Wolfpack
Mueller must have more on Trump than just the fact that his transition team was asked to make contact with foreign officials. Obama did the same thing when he took power from Bush. Because Obama did it as well, the deep state will automatically consider it legal regardless of what the law actually says.
The big news yesterday was actually a false story that had to be retracted regarding when the Trump team was asked to get involved with foreign policy matters. Fake news outlets lied and stated it was before Trump was elected. The financial markets quickly recovered from their swoon immediately after the media’s misinformation attempt was discovered.
At this point the only crime is that Flynn lied to the FBI that he had contacts with Russia and other foreign government officials. I can surmise that Flynn was motivated to lie because he had personal business contacts in foreign nations that if known would have cost him a shot at obtaining a position in Trumps administration. In fact, once deep state intelligence officials illegally disclosed his contacts to the press in order to embarrass Trump - information they mysteriously withheld from the president-elect - Trump fired Flynn after just a few weeks on the job. Had Obama intelligence officials informed Trump that Flynn was being investigated he never would have been hired. What was the motivation for Obama’s my minions to withhold important information affecting national security matters?
Wolfpack
Again there is nothing new to this breathless coverage of Flynn’s legal troubles. Trump fired Flynn less than a month after he joined the administration because he was caught in a lie.
There is no law against a newly elected president having contact with foreign countries- it’s actually a normal part of the transition from one administration to another. Unless Flynn has information saying that Trump was involved in coordinating with a foreign nation to illegally undermine the election process, this remains a nothingburger. If Mueller cared to look their is evidence that Hillary funneled money to Russian intelligence officers to provide false information about her opponent in the presidential election last year. But apparently the swamp has no time to hold their own to account.
Blacklabel
Its called 'precedent'. If its not illegal when others do it, that means its not illegal when I do it. In this case I didnt even do what they did, I did it AFTER the election not BEFORE. So its obviously even 'more fine' whatever I did, if that is even possible.
Blacklabel
Yep and Im still saying that today. Where is the collusion for something that happened AFTER the election? Who can pin it on Trump? a person who the FBI just publicly identified as a liar? yeah sure good luck.
Blacklabel
Oh and here is another one, proving the legality of speaking with foreign nations as President elect:
http://archive.boston.com/news/politics/2008/articles/2008/11/09/obama_chats_with_medvedev_on_phone/
Have a nice day.
FizzBit
OOOPS!
Fake news strikes again. ABC is retracting its earlier story.
Blacklabel
I just wonder why the liberal side is yet to be concerned that “lying” is criminal now.
too busy celebrating Flynn getting caught lying about doing his job I guess.
Blacklabel
Ok so what illegal thing did he lie about? With actual proof please.
The FBI has the entire conversation recorded and they said was no illegal activity in the call.
bass4funk
You did NOT say that with a straight face, right? We still have 4 months until April.
Probably when Tony Podesta gets indicted.
Well, when you talk about politics, good luck because a lot of blotted egos won’t let it happen.
What about the two biggest people in the Democratic Party? Even political Democratic strategist Donna Brazile thinks the party and the last president as well as the presidential candidate need to seriously own up and they haven’t done that. Tell me, why is that?
Blacklabel
Flynn lied, we knew he lied back in February and he was fired for it. Now we learned he also lied to FBI about same issue so proves his firing was justified.
This is what Trump was asking Comey about. Hey we know he lied and I fired him for it do we really need to prosecute him for lying to the FBI too? Got the answer to that and it’s yes they do, him just losing his job not enough.
So now that we established lying to FBI is prosecutable in this investigation at some point anyone else who lied to FBI should be found. Then anyone who IS the FBI as well.
Blacklabel
Such as what? what is Flynn pleading guilty just to lying going to lead to?
The calls already proven legal back in February, both in content and in Flynn's right to make them.
I showed you precedent where others not only talked to foreign leaders BEFORE the election, but also undermined the outgoing administration. This contact was after the election, but even if it was before seems to be no problem either.
What else is there?
Blacklabel
enjoy your 'victory' though, its been long awaited. But even the Obama State Department in January had no problem with what Flynn was doing with Russia as part of the transition. In fact they even agreed to help, if needed:
http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/state-department-has-no-problem-with-trump-teams-russia-contacts/article/2611810
Blacklabel
Mueller should be telling me why Flynn lied. That’s what he and his team of 22 anti-trump lawyers are getting paid to do. So either he doesn’t know (unlikely) or the reason isn’t criminal and only the lie part matters.
Yeah the ridiculousness of this they probably gonna try drag this out 7 more years and try to indict Barron for something too.
Blacklabel
meanwhile I’m headed to the club to enjoy some of this economic success Trump has brought us.
Look forward to all the crying in tomorrow’s tax reform passing article. Great news and another win for the guy who supposedly “does nothing but golf and tweet”.
Blacklabel
yep, a federally convicted liar whose testimony is now worthless. Good job on that.
Blacklabel
Phone calls after Trump won telling many countries not just Russia to relax about any last minute Obama nonsense on his way out and that the new administration is coming.
thats what’s called a transition. You can call people during that overlap period to start to explain to them what the new policies will be.
what happened to collusion before the election where Russia helped Trump win? If they had been in contact the whole time as people claim would have been no reason for this call.
Flynn going to testify against Trump as a federally convicted liar? Any decent lawyer would get his testimony thrown out.
Blacklabel
Downvote me all you want. 'Candidate Hillary' asked to set up an 'informal, private, off the record meeting' with the Chinese Ambassador before she was NEVER elected. Google is awesome, I can do this all day.
Blacklabel
So basically Flynn got fired for lying to FBI about same thing he lied to Pence about, which is the reason he was fired.
we already knew this long ago. The FBI already determined the content of his call and the fact he made it was legal and part of his job. So all they could get is that his testimony didn’t match their recording of him.
nothing about Trump nothing about collusion nothing about election.
bass4funk
Ok, so Flynn gets indicted and get squeezed, I was penniless and his son also going to get squeezed, typical FBI tactic. Once again the left is jumping up with all these conspiratorial theories and no nothing, if we don’t know anything, the public doesn’t know anything, but once again this is how this information could spread around the net in liberals take it and run with it.
But the left is so fixated on nailing the current administration with anything and everything they can find, that they are shooting themselves in the foot.
You get the million dollar answer. The up session so overly compulsive, but they can’t get past anything else and for the collusion is more important than anything, so much so that they can’t get past it just focus on anything else, it’s almost like can’t walk and chew gum at the same time
But liberals think they could never ever happened to them under any circumstances, although there is one that comes to mind.....
bass4funk
What garbage! You guys are hilarious. There was nothing out of the ordinary or different in Trump’s face, looks no different than usual, are you guys sitting in front of the television with monoculars trying to see every twitch and every fluctuation his face are guys that serious and that desperate and have that much time on your hands? Trump just went on his business as he should, now Flynn lying to the Feds and facing more criminal charges. Now I do know The man is worried that he cannot sustain this financially and worried about his son. They will no doubt Squeeze and threaten him, but once again, libs are getting waaaaaaay ahead of themselves.
extanker
Here's the problem that everyone seems to fail to realize. Every administration has communicated with foreign governments before being sworn in. It's the best way to hit the ground running once they take office. No one has ever been punished for it. Obama did it. Clinton did it. Everyone did it. It was the norm and no one cared because it was in the country's best interest.
But the left is so fixated on nailing the current administration with anything and everything they can find, that they are shooting themselves in the foot. This will set a precedent and no future administration will ever be able to communicate with a foreign government in advance ever again or risk punishment. Do you really think either side will ever let this go in the future?
So from now on, every future president will be starting at a disadvantage because their first day in the oval office will literally be their first day. I don't think it's worth it.
Yubaru
Let me add that yeah I know the article has the following written in in too;
Which may or may not be a crime as it happened PRIOR to him being elected, yet the title of the article reads "against" Trump.
Oh and a "confidant" could be the bell boy at a hotel,
Yubaru
Where is the proof on this? It's third party hearsay at best.