With this posting, for the first
time since the inception of this blog in 2009, I am being cautious of my
language in an unprecedented manner.
The President has accused some who have spoken against him of being enemies
of the people and even accused them of treason and has asked his Attorney
General to investigate those who have investigated him. These are the actions of a frightened
man. His actions mimic those who have aspired
to be dictators throughout history.
The
Mueller Report, addressed in some detail below, is not a “hoax” as
the President repeatedly characterizes it and his doing so makes, at least in
my mind, this time one of the most dangerous in American history. It appears that he is prepared to act on his
words through the Department of Justice.
It is inconceivable to me that
other Americans are not already beginning to share similar fears based on what
is happening and start watching their words more carefully. Were it not for the strong legal
base our Constitution provides, individuals here might already be taking still more extraordinary
steps to preserve democracy. We think of that happening elsewhere, but not here! Thoughts
like this have been expressed throughout history in times like these. During the Revolutionary War,
Thomas Paine in the first of his series of “American Crisis” pamphlets, said that “These are the times that try men’s souls.”
The Mueller Report
I have before me my own
personal copy of the Mueller Report. No
doubt you have heard of it. Volume One,
dealing specifically with the details of Russian Interference in the 2016
Presidential Election, consists of 356 pages.
Volume Two, dealing with Obstruction of Justice in that Investigation,
consists of 330 pages. Following that
are four appendices consisting of 67 pages.
 |
| Muelller |
Over the next few
weeks, a little at a time, I will be going over both volumes. But here, in the words of Special Counsel
Robert S. Mueller, III (or of those members of his staff who wrote the Report
under his direction) are his conclusions based on the material provided in each
of the two volumes.
From an ethical and a
historical standpoint, in my opinion, this ‘source’ material is preferable to
the significantly opinionated four-page summary Attorney General William Gates
provided to the public prior to the actual Report’s release. (Highlighting is mine.)
From the Introduction to Volume One, pages 12 -13:
“As set forth in detail in this report, the Special
Counsel’s investigation established that Russia interfered in the 2016
presidential election principally through two operations. First, a Russian entity carried out a social
media campaign that favored presidential candidate Donald J. Trump and
disparaged presidential candidate Hillary Clinton. Second, a Russian intelligence service
conducted computer-intrusion operations against entities, employees, and
volunteers working on the Clinton campaign and then released stolen
documents. The investigation also identified numerous links between
the Russian government and the Trump Campaign. Although the investigation established that the Russian
government perceived that it would benefit from a Trump presidency, and worked
to secure that outcome, and that the Campaign expected it would benefit electorally from information stolen
and released through Russian efforts, the investigation did not
establish that members of the Trump Campaign conspired or coordinated with the
Russian government in its election interference activities.”
From the Conclusion of
the Executive Summary to Volume Two, page 25:
“Because we determined not to make a traditional
prosecutorial judgement, we did not draw ultimate conclusions about the
President’s conduct. The evidence we
obtained about the President’s actions and intent presents difficult issues
that would need to be resolved if we were making a traditional prosecutorial
judgement. At the same time, if we had confidence after a
thorough investigation of the facts that the President clearly did not commit
obstruction of justice, we would so state. Based on the facts and the applicable legal
standards, we are unable
to reach that judgement.
Accordingly, while this
report does not conclude that the President committed a crime, it also does not exonerate him.”
In view of this material,
particularly regarding obstruction of justice, any statements commenting on the
Mueller Report which are at variance with the above actual quotes taken from
the Report itself are not to be taken seriously.
Quite specifically, the
Mueller Report does not exonerate the President from committing the crime of
obstruction of justice. Mueller writes
that if that were the case, “we would so state.” Anyone who says or infers otherwise, and this
includes the Attorney-General, Senator “Mitch” McConnell and the President
himself, is lying, which is par for the course for most Republicans in this
second decade of the Twenty-first century.
These quotes from the Report are the facts, not spurious Administration-originated
“alternate” facts.
Jack Lippman
To Impeach or Not to Impeach, that is the Question
A “full
blown” impeachment of Donald Trump isn’t in the works … because it would never
work. Sure, the Democratic House could
easily pass Articles of Impeachment, but the additional twenty Republican votes
needed to get them through the final court of Impeachment, the Senate, just
won’t be there, leaving the President wagging his finger saying “Nah, Nah, You
tried to impeach me and couldn’t do it, Nah, Nah!”
Republican
Senators, many of whom know what a charlatan Trump is but who love his support
of traditional G.O.P. priorities, other fearful Republicans who might face
primary challenges from the right for their jobs, and finally those who, down
deep, sympathize with the bigots, gullibles and crazies who form Trump’s base
would never supply those twenty votes. So
as for a “full blown” impeachment? Fuggedaboudit!
Ah, but still
in any thusly doomed House impeachment effort, the revelations which would come
out under the broad rules governing such proceedings might so traumatize the
American public, even the Trump base, that he would have no alternative but to
resign … before the measure ever reached the Senate or was even voted on by the
House! That is the dream of many in
favor of impeachment. This is the way the nation got rid of Richard Nixon.
True, but
even without such impeachment proceedings in the House, the same revelations
might still come out in “normal” Committee hearings there! But in that case, the governing procedural rules
would be stricter and Committee Chairs like Cummings, Nadler and Schiff might
have to put up with the President’s game plan of delaying tactics in Congress and
court challenges, obstacles which impeachment proceedings would significantly short
circuit.
Hence,
although the numbers for a “full blown” impeachment are just not there,
impeachment proceedings in the House might be the best course to most
expeditiously reveal enough information to possibly result in a Presidential
resignation or certainly a defeat in the 2020 elections.
At this moment, Nancy Pelosi still hopes that
the work of the House committees might suffice to achieve the same result. She might be correct, but only if the
obstructive efforts of the Executive branch are speedily rushed before the
Supreme Court, bypassing lower venues, and they rule against the Executive
branch’s contentions. That’s a big
gamble.
 |
| House Speaker Nancy Pelosi talks to Judiciary Committee Chair Nadler |
On the
other hand, impeachment efforts in the House to bring the truth about Trump to
light would avoid that tricky route. If,
however, Articles of Impeachment ever reached the Senate, it might end up with a
grinning President and the Republicans gloating, “Nah, Nah, we told ya so!”
My
conclusion at this time is that the best tactic would be a modified
“Fuggedaboudit” approach to impeachment which amounts to:
a. Getting the President’s stonewalling activities before the
Supreme Court on a priority basis, in perhaps no more than thirty days, and if
they rule against him and his colleagues there,
b. Letting the House of Representatives’ regular Committee hearings
proceed to bring out the truth, and not be sidetracked into impeachment
proceedings,
c. But, if unsuccessful in the Supreme Court, or if the
Executive branch defies the rulings of that Court against it, or if Republican
delaying tactics still persist, by the end of July, the House Judiciary Committee
should immediately and without further delay commence hearings to establish
Articles of impeachment but in a manner, however, which would never reach the
point of being voted upon in the Senate.
In either
eventuality, the importance of nationwide television coverage and the presence
of Robert Mueller as a witness would be fatal to the President. No matter which way it happens, what comes
out is likely to result in either the President’s resignation (in order to
prevent criminal charges once he out of office) or his certain defeat in 2020
if the remains of the Republican Party is foolish enough to re-nominate him.
Finally,
in expending energy and resources to follow the tactics regarding impeachment
outlined above, the Democratic Party must not
depart from its much grander strategy of presenting programs which make
life better for all Americans and actually acting
to do so in the House of Representatives. As desirable as getting rid of
Trump may be, its progressive agenda should remain
the major thrust of the Democratic Party’s candidates.
Jack Lippman
Winning the Rust Belt
And specifically,
the Democrats will need a potent strategy to recapture the “rust belt” states
(Ohio, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, Michigan, West Virginia, etc.) which went for Trump in
2016. (see map below) The Democrats MUST stress what is
important to voters there.
 |
| Democrats must recapture the "rust belt" electoral votes of Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Ohio, Michigan and Wisconsin. (Indiana and Kentuciky would be nice too, but that ain't gonna happen.) |
 |
| Waiting for the plant to reopen |
These
voters don’t care about impeachment. To
them, all politicians are crooks and liars, including Trump. To quote a Democratic politico from Ohio, all
they care about are “paychecks and pensions.”
The result in the “rust belt” rests in getting the votes, again quoting
that politician, of “those who shower after coming home from work, not before
going to work.” Think about that, you
folks in New York and California.
But the
Democrats, if given the Presidency and control of both Houses of Congress, will
embark upon a program of rebuilding the nation’s infrastructure and restoring
the environment which will provide millions of new jobs with generous paychecks
and solid retirement benefits … and this will happen not only in the “rust belt”
but throughout the country. And the
icing on the cake will be the new jobs created in providing health care for all
Americans, not just those who can afford to pay for it. Democrats can and
will make life better for all Americans! They must deliver this message.
That’s
how the “rust belt” can be won in 2020.
Is anyone listening?
JL
A Word to the Women in our Audience
 |
| Alabama Governor Ivey, a traitor to her sex, signs that State's obscene abortion legislation under which, if she should become pregnant after being raped, she would be forbidden to have an abortion. Good Luck, Kay! |
Anti-abortion,
“pro-life,” legislation in various Republican-controlled State legislatures is
aimed at reaching the Supreme Court in an effort to get it to disregard that
Court’s history of “stare decisis” (basing opinions on precedent) and overturn
the 1973 Roe vs Wade decision which legalized abortion.
At this
point it should be clear that any woman, regardless of her religious beliefs,
who votes Republican at any level whatsoever has to be out of her mind. Ladies, the State does not own your bodies. You do.
JL
More from Baltasar Gracian
 |
| Gracian |
Last week’s posting
introduced some of you to the writings of Baltasar Gracian. Here’s another of my occasional quotes from
“The Art of Worldly Wisdom,” a compendium of maxims by this seventeenth century
Spanish Jesuit scholar. (The translation from the Spanish is by
Chirstopher Maurer.) Things don’t change over the years, do they? Note how Gracian ties deceit to
vulgarity. Still true! (This is number 146 of 300 paragraphs in the
book.)
146: Look deep inside. Things are seldom what they seem, and ignorance, which
sees no deeper than the bark, often turns to disillusion when it penetrates
into things. In all things, deceit arrives first, dragging fools
behind it in endless vulgarity. Truth is always late, always last to
arrive, limping along with Time. Prudent people save one of their ears for
truth, thanking their common mother, Nature, for giving them
two. Deceit is superficial, and superficial people are quick to run
into her. Discernment lives hidden away in retirement, so as to be
more esteemed by the wise and the discreet.
JL
A Quote Worth Thinking About
 |
| Bethune |
A recent letter
published in the Palm Beach Post included the following quote
from Mary McLeod Bethune, renowned Florida educator, and of whom a statue will
soon be placed in the Capitol rotunda in Washington replacing that of the
Confederate General which up to now has occupied Florida’s position among the
statues there.
“Some truths are
merely true; they inform our minds. Other truths are nourishing;
they feed our spirits.”
I tried to think of some examples of this. The first kind of truth includes
such information as the fact that the earth is spherical and is not flat, and that
the second kind of truth is best exemplified by these words from the
Declaration of Independence: ('truths that the Founding Fathers found to be self-evident') ... “that
all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain
unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of
Happiness.”
(Traditionally,
the above “unalienable rights” were ‘Life, Liberty and Property’ as defined by the English philosopher John Locke. The Founding Fathers, specifically Thomas Jefferson,
substituted ‘the pursuit of Happiness’ instead of the very specific idea of
‘property’ in this trio, leaving open its future interpretation. Basically, within the limits of the law, it
means, ‘Whatever makes you happy, go for it!)
JL
The Lower Depths
For years, politicians have published unfavorable photos of
their opponents. Sometimes, they are in
black and white, often poorly lit and “grainy.”
That’s the way the game is played, even justifying technically altering
a photo to make it look even worse than it really is. This is done because politicians know there
are enough gullible people out there who will be swayed, even subconsciously, by
such photos
Right now, supporters of the Administration are doing this
kind of thing with videos of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and going so far as to
slow the video down to simulate a slurred manner of speech, perhaps indicative of
senility or drunkenness. There is no limit
to the depths to which the President’s supporters will sink to in order to protect him
from whatever results verifiable criticism of his actions will bring about.
Critics of the President do not have to take such steps because undoctored pictures and videos of him suffice to honestly paint him for what he is.
JLCritics of the President do not have to take such steps because undoctored pictures and videos of him suffice to honestly paint him for what he is.
* * *
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