Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

Ah, the different things are different argument.

Impressively dumb. Congratulations.

Republicans choose power over democracy, every day.

The fundamental promise of conservatism all over the world is a return to an idealized past that never existed.

“Cheese and Kraken paired together for the appetizer trial.”

In after Baud. Damn.

The Supreme Court is corrupt. Democrats must win in November and force court reform.

Thanks to your bullshit, we are now under siege.

Please don’t feed the bears.

If you still can’t see these things even now, maybe politics isn’t your forte and you should stop writing about it.

The line between political reporting and fan fiction continues to blur.

“Loving your country does not mean lying about it’s history.”

I wonder if trump will be tried as an adult.

Not all heroes wear capes.

There is one struggling party in US right now, and it’s not the Democrats.

Live so that if you miss a day of work people aren’t hoping you’re dead.

Let there be snark.

When someone says they “love freedom”, rest assured they don’t mean yours.

“But what about the lurkers?”

The party of Reagan has become the party of Putin.

How can republicans represent us when they don’t trust women?

Republicans do not pay their debts.

It’s all just conspiracy shit beamed down from the mothership.

Russian mouthpiece, go fuck yourself.

You are here: Home / Politics / America / Breaking News: Attorney General Sessions Has Fired Deputy FBI Director Andrew McCabe

Breaking News: Attorney General Sessions Has Fired Deputy FBI Director Andrew McCabe

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Attorney General Sessions’ statement:

There is no report yet as to whether they have also moved to terminate his pension earned in a 21 year career as an FBI special agent.

From The Washington Post:

Attorney General Jeff Sessions late Friday night fired former FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe, a little more than 24 hours before McCabe was set to retire.

Sessions announced the decision in a statement just before 10 p.m., noting that both the Justice Department Inspector General and the FBI office that handles discipline had found “that Mr. McCabe had made an unauthorized disclosure to the news media and lacked candor — including under oath — on multiple occasions.”

He said based on those findings and the recommendation of the department’s senior career official, “I have terminated the employment of Andrew McCabe effective immediately.”

The move will likely cost McCabe a significant portion of his retirement benefits, though it is possible he could bring a legal challenge. McCabe has been fighting vigorously to keep his job, and on Thursday, he spent nearly four hours inside the Justice Department pleading his case.

Here’s McCabe’s statement:

From The New York Times:

WASHINGTON — Andrew G. McCabe, the former F.B.I. deputy director and a frequent target of President Trump’s scorn, was fired Friday after the Justice Department rejected an appeal that would have let him retire this weekend.

Mr. McCabe promptly declared that his firing, and Mr. Trump’s persistent needling, were intended to undermine the special counsel’s investigation in which he is a potential witness.

Mr. McCabe is accused in a yet-to-be-released internal report of failing to be forthcoming about a conversation he authorized between F.B.I. officials and a journalist.

In an interview, Mr. McCabe was blunt. “The idea that I was dishonest is just wrong,” he said, adding, “This is part of an effort to discredit me as a witness.”

Mr. McCabe was among the first at the F.B.I. to scrutinize possible Trump campaign ties to Russia. And he is a potential witness to the question of whether Mr. Trump tried to obstruct justice. Mr. Trump has taunted Mr. McCabe both publicly and privately, and Republican allies have cast him as the center of a “deep state” effort to undermine the Trump presidency.

As a witness, Mr. McCabe would be in a position to corroborate the testimony of the former F.B.I. director, James B. Comey, who kept contemporaneous notes on his conversations with Mr. Trump. Mr. Comey said Mr. Trump prodded him to publicly exonerate the president on the question of Russian collusion and encouraged him to shut down an investigation into his national security adviser.

Mr. McCabe, a 21-year F.B.I. veteran, was eligible for a government pension if he retired on Sunday. The firing jeopardizes that benefit, though it was not immediately clear how much he might lose.

“It’s incredibly unfair to my reputation after a 21-year career,” Mr. McCabe said. He said the president’s public attacks were aimed at several targets. “The real damage is being done to the F.B.I., law enforcement and the special counsel,” he said.

To add insult to injury, someone seems to have leaked this to Fox News.

This was an ugly, unnecessary action. McCabe will sue to get his full pension, which will open Attorney General Sessions and the President up to discovery.

McCabe appears ready to name names and provide receipts:

This is going to get real ugly, real quickly.

We are off the looking glass and through the map.

Stay frosty!

Open thread.

Reader Interactions

299Comments

  3. 3.

    NotMax

    So does Fox have an inside line on Sessions’s decision or was this just a placeholder?”

    If it included attributed quotes, the answer is self-evident.

  4. 4.

    Bobby Thomson

    “If” they go after his pension? The timing was intentional – to twist the knife and take away his pension at the last possible moment. Both vindictive pettiness that came from the top, and a message to others that there will be repercussions if they don’t toe the line.

  6. 6.

    Corner Stone

    I, personally, am kind of happy the AG made this move tonight. The more like this the better.

  8. 8.

    Mary G

    Yeah, not enough popcorn in the world. Great no-holds-barred statement from McCabe; wonder how many weeks he’s been working on it. The Fox News leak is terrible. I suspect, like many things Twitler’s administration has tried, this will backfire on them spectacularly.

    I like ABL’s take:

    Bilbo Bigot is petty af https://t.co/rCaD0jtGVz— Imani Gandy (@AngryBlackLady) March 17, 2018

  9. 9.

    TS

    Fox News had advance warning – the little weasel had to release his actions early because Fox/Trump wanted it.

  10. 10.

    MJS

    Sessions himself is a known liar, based on his Senate testimony. He’ll make quite the witness in any proceedings.

  11. 11.

    Feebog

    Stupid bonehead move by Trumpov and Sessions. McCabe will sue, everything exchanged between Sessions, DoJ officials and White House officials, including Trumpov. Discovery could also include possibly deposing the principals, including Trumpov.

  12. 12.

    MP

    @Bobby Thomson: The thing is, the Federal Employee Retirement System, or FERS doesn’t work this way. There is a formula based on the number of years one works and not “cliff vesting” that extends out to 21 years. I’m still trying to figure out why the media is making such a big deal about the timing and its impact on McCabe’s pension. Under the standard formula, there would be a reduction in his pension, but not a loss of the pension just because he retired 2 days early.

  16. 16.

    satby

    So this was a Friday night massacre? Hope it does for the Drumpf admin what the Saturday Night Massacre did for Nixon’s.

  17. 17.

    Jeffro

    Once again, rather than let the slightest perceived slight go by, the Trumpov administration has decided to be petty and shortsighted and oh my god is it going to bite them in the ass.

  19. 19.

    Corner Stone

    This is going to get really funny, really quickly. The AG firing McCabe and the $20M lawsuit against Stormy.

  24. 24.

    Jeffro

    The remarkable thing is that within the next 48 hours the president* himself is going to undermine his own case for this being a completely objective and just decision.

    Did I say 48? I meant 2.

    And as an intimidation tactic goes this will likely have the opposite effect with everyone in the FBI as well as the law enforcement & IC communities in general.

  25. 25.

    Zelma

    Are they really this stupid? And this stupidly vindictive? Do they think that this will really discredit him as a witness? Do they think it will scare people? Lord help us if they are as stupid as they seem.

  27. 27.

    Corner Stone

    @Yarrow: I’ll share it with Adam. If you want in, declare your superhero footie pajamas of choice.
    The password phrase is: we’re better than you

  29. 29.

    Mary G

    Even if McCabe loses his pension, which I doubt, he will make up for in sales of his tell-all book.

  30. 30.

    Notpublic

    He was taking early retirement. Only eligible at 50. Birthday is Sunday so it is ver much about his pension.

  33. 33.

    Alain the site fixer

    I think the pension is about his age. He turns 50 Sunday and can’t get pension before then.

  34. 34.

    MP

    @Bostondreams: From what I’ve read, the regs are pretty tight. Unless the firing is related to crimes related to seditious conduct, treason or rebellion, they can’t take away the pension. And the formula for calculating the amount of the pension is here. McCabe would, I think, be eligible for a higher pension as a law enforcement officer.

  35. 35.

    tbf

    It is ironic that McCabe was fired by Trump and Sessions for his role in something that played a big part in Clinton
    losing. I hope this turns out to bite them back hard. He has nothing to lose now presumably has a lot of information that can hurt them. It was really petty, and I feel pretty sorry for McCabe, but at the same time can’t but feel that maybe he deserved this a bit?- he was part of the whole emails fiasco after all. I only wish Comey had lost his pension too..

  36. 36.

    Gravenstone

    @Jeffro: All this effort to undermine Comey and the senior FBI officials to whom he contemporaneously reported his conversations with Trump will only potentially affect the Obstruction of Justice charges. That is far from the only quiver in Mueller’s quiver.

  37. 37.

    patrick II

    @Corner Stone:

    I, personally, am kind of happy the AG made this move tonight. The more like this the better.I, personally, am kind of happy the AG made this move tonight. The more like this the better.

    Me too, but for a different reason. I think Sessions was in a trap. If he didn’t fire McCabe after the IG report recommended it it would have given Trump an excuse to fire Sessions. And, as despicable as Sessions is, I don’t think he can fire Mueller and I don’t want him replaced by Pruitt.

  38. 38.

    CaseyL

    This is authoritarian strong-arming, meant to intimidate and establish personality cult control over the nation’s law enforcement apparatus. The injustice to McCabe is huge, yet pales in comparison to the damage this does to the government’s investigative and enforcement apparatus.

    I hope McCabe fights it, and I hope he fights it with everything he’s got. And he better fight it fast, before the Senate finishes confirming a whole raft of fascist judges who will uphold Trump and destroy the rule of law.

    The pot is now at a rolling boil.

  39. 39.

    CarolDuhart2

    Options After Firing
    McCabe Can’t Be deprived of his pension unless he’s convicted of crimes involving espionage or even his earned compensation. But McCabe may not know that yet, and when he finds out, he has standing to sue for defamation and additional compensation. Yes, defamation. McCabe is only accidentally a public figure and has standing to sue for his reputation.

  40. 40.

    Percysowner

    In any case, the Trump administrations seems to want to make absolutely certain that the FBI, filled with lawyers who know their rights and investigators whose job it is to find out facts, HATES every member of the administrations with the passion of a thousand burning suns. This is not a good idea, as long as the rule of law remains in place. That does bring the question of whether Trump can destroy the foundations of our government, which may be on the table.

  43. 43.

    PsiFighter37

    @patrick II: The clock is ticking on what is left of regular order government. At some point, people need to stop playing by the rules, and we have to hold out until November somehow. I’m pretty convinced that if the GOP still controls every part of the government after 2018, we’re screwed for who knows how long.

  44. 44.

    Alternative Fax, a hip hop artist from Idaho

    @Steve in the ATL: @satby:

    Rick Wilson on twitter:

    If you aren’t seeing the echoes of 1974, you’re not paying attention.

    This will not go as well for the Mango Mussolini regime as they expect it to. It’s like Watergate but with stupid people.

  48. 48.

    Washburn

    Okay – who is going to set up the Gofundme for McCabe’s Retirement.

    I’m in for $25.

    Better yet, why doesn’t evil conspirator Soros or good-press-needing-billionaire like Zuckerberg or Brin just hold a press conference and say they’re giving him $10 million and naming a few endowed chairs after him?

    It’s time for people to start stepping up.

  49. 49.

    scott (the other one)

    These morons cannot stop scoring own goals, can they? And thank goodness for that.

  50. 50.

    lamh36

    The question…are career FBI angry enough and willing to do whatever they can to bring Chump down?

  52. 52.

    Corner Stone

    @CarolDuhart2:

    But McCabe may not know that yet,

    He knows it. He knows every word of it. But he’s fighting for more than just a pension right now. This is going to get hilarious if the Trump admin and AG keep this bullshit on.

  53. 53.

    seaboogie

    And yet, entirely unsurprising – this last minute dickish move. The Kelly OTR quote about Tillerson being in the ‘loo with dysentery when he got news of his own firing all a piece of it.

    Dotard thinks his petty vindictiveness has won the day in this moment, and he’s in for a rude surprise, I hope. Karma, bitchez! ?

  54. 54.

    Tilda Swintons Bald Cap

    @MP: If you are separated from Federal service before you are eligible for retirement you get your TSP (401K) and your SS, when eligible. You do not get the defined benefits. I think this Sunday was when he was eligible to retire.

  55. 55.

    CarolDuhart2

    @CarolDuhart2: So this act is mere petty vindictiveness. Trump has pissed off every Federal Employee by this move and certainly has strengthened the hand of every Federal Union.
    Pensions are earned compensation, like paychecks or sick pay. They are taxable as such in any rate. They are for services already rendered, a debt already incurred. This is a vindictive Fredo gesture by Trump for being less than subservient to him and his fucking personality cult.

  60. 60.

    Mary G

    Also breaking (WaPo): Engineer on Florida bridge project called state two days before deadly collapse to report crack, state says.

    “Hey Tom, this is Denney Pate with FIGG bridge engineers. Calling to, uh, share with you some information about the FIU pedestrian bridge and some cracking that’s been observed on the north end of the span, the pylon end of that span we moved this weekend,” the engineer said, according to a transcript of the call released by the Florida Department of Transportation.

    “Um, so, uh, we’ve taken a look at it and, uh, obviously some repairs or whatever will have to be done but from a safety perspective we don’t see that there’s any issue there so we’re not concerned about it from that perspective although obviously the cracking is not good and something’s going to have to be, ya know, done to repair that.”

    This was a voicemail left by the lead engineer two days before the collapse, only discovered Friday because the recipient was out of the office. Oops.

  61. 61.

    Adam L Silverman

    @Yarrow: I’m guessing there are going to be a lot of vacancies on the AG’s personal security detail. Can’t imagine too many of Special Agent McCabe’s colleagues are going to be willing to take a bullet for the AG after this.

  62. 62.

    CarolDuhart2

    @Tilda Swintons Bald Cap: He’s already been eligible for retirement according to the Federal formula.

    Deferred Retirement. If you retire at the MRA with at least 10, but less than 30 years of service, your benefit will be reduced by 5 percent a year for each year you are under 62, unless you have 20 years of service and your benefit starts when you reach age 60 or later.

  65. 65.

    poleaxedbyboatwork

    @efgoldman:

    Notta sideshow, more trial-balloon as canary-inna-coal-mine, imo.

    It’s like that cartoon picture Sin City where the senator is bedside expounding on how if you can get chickenshits to cowardly proclaim what they know ain’t true to be so, that’sa testament a power.

    If McCabe’s firing is “both-sidesed” to hell’n gone, reckon we’ll all have a purty clear pitcher of just how fucked we are n how far yet we gotta go.

    Guvmint by gaslight lest we call bullshit. It’sa brazen test n a audacious dare.

    imo

  66. 66.

    Jeffro

    @Alternative Fax, a hip hop artist from Idaho: Yeah…just ask your nearest RWNJ friend or relative: “What actions has Orange Crash taken in the past 18 months that make you feel, genuinely feel, that he’s innocent of collusion, conspiracy, corruption? I’ll wait…”

    Alternatively, you could ask (and I forget who originally came up with this way to put it): “Ok. You say that Trumpov is innocent of being a stooge for Russia, much less took part in any conspiracy. So if he had…what would be different?”

  69. 69.

    The Dangerman

    For roundball junkies out there:

    UMBC 38
    Virginia 24

    Will a 16 finally take out a 1? It almost happened with Princeton and Georgetown ages ago.

    ETA: It’s never happened, thought Princeton had Georgetown almost beat. Long, long time ago.

  71. 71.

    ruemara

    Every time something like this affects the IC/LEO community, I send a thank you for violating the Hatch Act note to the NY FBI. Pretty sure the plan is to put these cases in front of a Trump appointee and call in favors.

  72. 72.

    hervevillechaizelounge

    Question: do you think McCabe and Comey still consider themselves republicans? They probably just think Trump is some sort of aberration and Democrats are the party of safe spaces and treason, right?

    If I was Hillary Clinton I’d be prank-calling McCabe right now: “It’s your party and you can cry your ass down to the unemployment office, McCabe—no golden George Soros shekels for you!”

  73. 73.

    lamh36

    @waltshaub
    2m2 minutes ago
    More
    Under circumstances suggesting a partisan vendetta, the AG strips an FBI leader of a big chunk of his pension based on an allegation that he may have done what Sarah Sanders does everyday at work, while Gen. Flynn keeps his pension after admitting to committing crimes in office.

    https://twitter.com/waltshaub/status/974840870766874627

  74. 74.

    Jeffro

    @Adam L Silverman: Um, phrasing, that’s one way to put it…

    Nickel bet that Twitter Dick Nixon is advising certain senior administration officials to “stay out of Dallas for a few weeks, if you know what I mean”

  76. 76.

    J R in WV

    Well, how despicable…

    Jefferson Beauregard Sessions III shows all of America exactly how much “honor” he really has, kissing the ass of Donald J Trump in public.

    What a clown show our newest government really is. Our president insists that his high-level employees discard their “honor” as part of their application process. No one is allowed to have more “honor” than The Donald.

  81. 81.

    Adam L Silverman

    Been one of those days, I almost missed this:

  83. 83.

    debbie

    Fox has really crossed the line this time. Isn’t there something they can be prosecuted for?

  84. 84.

    Jeffro

    @Jeffro: Ok, close, here are three recent ones tonight from ol’ Tricky…

    3) “I’ve said it a thousand times: we knew it was Felt, but we couldn’t act against him because his position carried great knowledge, and it would set the whole FBI against us.”

    2) “I am wondering how he survived in real estate. The mafia doesn’t take kindly to panic.”

    1) “McCabe’s statement is very, you know, it’s very like a G-Man saying, “We both know what’s going on here.” ”

    #2 should win some sort of award for conveying much info in such a short space.

  86. 86.

    Ruckus

    @Adam L Silverman:
    Can cause is different than will cause.
    What are the possible reasons for cause? (I have no idea where to look for the answer)
    I’ve had a job where if you were fired you got one weeks pay for each year you were there and the only thing that could stop that is if you were fired for theft. The CEO, half joking offered to fire me after I’d given 2 weeks notice. (I had a wee bit of a don’t give a shit attitude at the time) I begged him to do it. He didn’t know about the parting cash rule. He declined to fire me after I explained why, as it would have taken 2 1/2 months of my pay out of his budget.

  89. 89.

    sukabi

    @patrick II: agree on Session’s dilemma, but trump is likely to fire him (Sessions) any way…probably next week as the news is fleshed out on what a stupid, vindictive move firing McCabe was.

  90. 90.

    Mary G

    They couldn’t find an actual Democrat serving at a high level at the FBI, but they did find a Republican who’s sufficiently wishy-washy in his politics to have a wife who’s a Democrat. So McCabe became the center of all kinds of derpy theories.— Matthew Yglesias (@mattyglesias) March 17, 2018

  92. 92.

    Suzanne

    Now Trump has the entire FBI up his ass.
    I’m sure that will work out well for him in the long run.
    TICK TOCK, MOTHERFUCKER.

  95. 95.

    Viva BrisVegas

    I’m confused.

    I’ve just been reading WaPo and I still don’t understand the nature of the matter over which McCabe has been fired.

    Was it to do with Clinton’s emails or the Clinton Foundation? I’ve seen both mentioned.

    Was he fired because he was unfair to Hillary, or because he was too accommodating to Hillary?

    I had this same problem with Comey’s firing.

    Is this just me, or is the reporting of the base facts of these matters truly pathetic.

  98. 98.

    Adam L Silverman

    @Jeffro: I have been stating that as: if the President and those covering for him (Nunes for instance) are not actually Russian assets, what would they be doing differently if they were Russian assets.

  99. 99.

    lamh36

    I have known people who due to Katrina, and the ensuing chaos and uncertainty afterwards, and the use of Katrina by despicable folks like Bobby Jindal and David Vitter, to gut the states public hospital system, lost part if not most of their pension. So you have people in the lab, who are working well past the age of 70…who otherwise would be long retired now, who had to get back to work, and compete against newer, younger “hungrier’ techs…

    To a person, to hear them talk about how devastated they were at the lost, was sad and maddening. And THAT was due to a random act of nature, and not even their own actions. So this idea that Chump via Sessions fired this dude not just to obstruct, but for the probably completely PETTY reason so that he could possibly lose his damn pension..

    I don’t even have to like the guy to be pissed for him…

    @SimplyNi
    15m15 minutes ago
    More
    If I couldn’t qualify for a pension until year 20 and you fire me over some petty shit at year 19 and 360 days. I would meet your ass outside every damn day and WHIP ?? YOUR ??ASS. DAILY

    https://twitter.com/SimplyNi/status/974839304303333377

  103. 103.

    Washburn

    C’mon – what is the name of the GoFundme site for McCabe’s retirement.

    If every American who is outraged sends in a dollar, then McCabe will get 200 million dollars. It’s a way of voting about the President TODAY and not having to wait until 2020.

    And McCabe, being a decent and honorable person will give away those millions of dollars to those he thinks are more needy. And that will be a story in the news every single day.

    Every day an announcement that The Gay and https://balloon-juice.com Alliance of Ft. Wayne Indiana gets a million dollars! Black Lives Matters Chapter (even though they don’t have a national structure) Of Oconomowok, Minnesota Gets funding for two lawyers to file suits against the County Commission that doesn’t recognize same-sex partners in their pension plan.

    Let a thousand flowers bloom.

  104. 104.

    debbie

    Twitter is very sluggish tonight. This must be why. Nixon’s feed is worth reading though.

  105. 105.

    Adam L Silverman

    @MP: The rules for FBI special agents are different.* A determination of making a false statement is cause for termination, which is the official determination here. Whether it will actually hold up once McCabe finishes suing the DOJ is another story.

    * The FBI has very specific rules for certain things, which limit their full rights as civil servants. This includes ascension into service, absent waiver, no later than one’s 40th birthday as special agents must retire after 20 years unless they are serving in a political appointment leadership position, such as deputy director.

    Other agencies have equally specific rules that also limit their rights as civil servants, such as the intelligence agencies.

  106. 106.

    Adam L Silverman

    @CarolDuhart2: FBI special agents, absent a waiver for serving in senior political appointment positions, such as deputy director, must retire after 20 years of service. It is why, absent a waiver, one cannot apply to be a FBI special agent after age 40.

  110. 110.

    efgoldman

    @Bobby Thomson:

    “If” they go after his pension? The timing was intentional

    Given that the firing is apparently against law and regulations, could McCabe seek injunctive relief rather than filing suit?
    Although discovery would be double popcorn time.

  113. 113.

    Ceci n est pas mon nym

    @Omnes Omnibus: Prefer to rely on the wisdom of people here for analysis on “what is the significance of this?” Not a straight question of reading someone’s bio.

  114. 114.

    Jeffro

    @Adam L Silverman: I like the wording here (and the addition of ‘those covering for him’).

    Would really like to see the media asking this very same question: what. would. be. different?

    (which is what Trumpov & Co have figured out as well, hence the ‘fig leaf’ announcement today about ‘sanctions’ that mean nothing…)

  115. 115.

    Adam L Silverman

    @Ruckus: In this case, under FBI rules, being found to have made a false statement, which is what the FBI’s Office of Professional Responsibility has concluded McCabe did, is just cause.

  116. 116.

    Amir Khalid

    Adam, I asked Cheryl what it would take for Sessions to deprive McCabe of his pension and other retirement benefits, and she chose to defer to your superior knowledge of the Federal civil service. Could you walk us through that?

    Also, as an aside, something I’ve noticed about American news shows on TV: The men dress for business, in suits and ties, but the women seem to dress for Sunday brunch — sleeveless tops are common, and so are necklines with a hint or more of cleavage. What’s up with that?

  117. 117.

    Adam L Silverman

    @debbie: McCabe is already a witness in Mueller’s obstruction of justice investigation as Comey read him onto the one on one meetings the President had with Comey.

  121. 121.

    Adam L Silverman

    @Viva BrisVegas: He was fired for, apparently making a misleading statement to the DOJ/FBI Inspector General regarding what McCabe authorized one of his subordinates to say to a reporter to clarify some reporting that McCabe was concerned, in his supervisory capacity, would cast the FBI in a negative light.

  122. 122.

    J R in WV

    @?BillinGlendaleCA:

    Additionally, firing a senior FBI manager in this manner is yet another action clearly amounting to an additional attempt to obstruct justice. So stupid. Tick, Tock, MotherFuckers.

  123. 123.

    Mary G

    Somebody was ready for this:

    “I absolutely never misled the inspector general in any way," Andrew McCabe said during an hour-long interview with CNN, calling his highly-public downfall the result of "a series of attacks designed to undermine my credibility and my reputation” including by President Trump.— Shimon Prokupecz (@ShimonPro) March 17, 2018

  124. 124.

    Another Scott

    @patrick II:

    I think Sessions was in a trap. If he didn’t fire McCabe after the IG report recommended it it would have given Trump an excuse to fire Sessions. And, as despicable as Sessions is, I don’t think he can fire Mueller and I don’t want him replaced by Pruitt.

    You may be right that Sessions was in a trap.

    But, that doesn’t mean the way out of it was to throw McCabe under the bus. Firing McCabe is only going to make it worse for Donnie and his minions.

    The way out of it was for Sessions to tell Trump – months and months ago – to cut out the attacks on McCabe (and everyone else) and let the process work its way out. Since it’s clear that Donnie is too chicken to fire Sessions (because even Donnie realizes that doing so would cause even more of a firestorm than firing McCabe or even Comey did), he had the power to stand up to him and get him to cut this crap out.

    But, of course, he didn’t. Because Sessions – just like Donnie – doesn’t see anything other than what’s in it for him. So, yet again, the coverup is going to take down lots and lots of people…

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  131. 131.

    jl

    I think, if it is as bad as it looks, another item on the bill of impeachment, in a sane world.

    What is this talk about ‘false statements’?. From what I’ve heard in news reports, the case is so weak the DOJ had to weasel word the charge. ‘Less than forthcoming’ was the elegant phrase I heard quoted. And this was supposed to be lying about what McCabe claims was in public record and done as part of his regular job description?

    Obviously politically motivated retribution. I think any bothsiderism by media needs to get a quick comment from viewers. Public perception of this will be as important as the lawsuit. And I would hope the public perception for at least 2/3 of public is that Trump needs his ass kicked out of office asap.

  132. 132.

    Another Scott

    @MP: If he hasn’t satisfied the requirements to retire, then he doesn’t have a pension yet.

    Lots of people leave the federal government before they’re able to satisfy the requirements for collecting a pension. The government isn’t “taking their pension away”. These people didn’t qualify (for whatever reason).

    In this case, it’s clear that they’re trying to punish McCabe by firing him before he qualifies to retire. I’m sure McCabe will do fine – eventually – either way. But Sessions and Donnie need to be slapped down for their underhanded treatment of him (for months on end).

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  134. 134.

    Raoul

    @Jeffro: Didn’t he undermine the situation months ago?

    @realDonaldTrump
    FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe is racing the clock to retire with full benefits. 90 days to go?!!!
    23 Dec 2017

  135. 135.

    jl

    @Adam L Silverman: Thanks for details. That is the best they can do? Sad. And Sorry.

    Edit: but also, quite transparent. At last we have transparency from the Trump administration. Credit where credit is due.

  137. 137.

    sukabi

    @Adam L Silverman: there was a Dem Rep on one of the “news” shows today, not sure which committee he was on and he was someone that I’m not familiar with, but he made the case that trump was a threat to national security…and that the failure to address hacking of our power, nuclear and other infrastructure was an impeachable offense…

  138. 138.

    Mike in NC

    Years ago I met a Navy Reserve SEAL in my DC Voluntary Training Unit (drilling without a monthly paycheck) who was an FBI special agent in his civilian job. It seemed that J. Edgar Hoover had a rule that FBI reservists couldn’t serve in units where they received drill pay, because he in effect wanted to have 100% control over where they were and what they did at all times (i.e., they couldn’t go off for normal 2-3 weeks of annual paid active duty). Don’t know if that is still policy.

  140. 140.

    Ruckus

    @Adam L Silverman:
    Thanks.
    I do wonder how political that finding was.

    And as you and many others have said, shit is getting very, very real. We are seeing, live, if our government can withstand open attempts at it’s destruction and from the inside at the highest level. Right now I’d bet the Vegas odds would be even. And I wonder what will happen if this charade of government by destructive ego goes on much longer.

  142. 142.

    Adam L Silverman

    @MP: No worries, it is all very confusing. You’ve got Title 5s, which are what most of us think of us civil servants. You’ve also got term appointment Title 5s, which function exactly the same as the regular Title 5s, but only serve for 4 years and change and do not have access to the full retirement system. Then you have Title 10s, which are excepted service. There are three categories: uniformed military, academic faculty (teaching and/or research) at professional military education (PME) schools and centers, and intelligence personnel. Then you have Intergovernmental Personnel Appointments (I was one of these). These are term appointments and can either come as Title 5 (I was one of these – GS 15 Step 5) or Title 10 (visiting faculty/fellows at the PME schools and centers). There are also Intergovernmental Personnel Appointment equivalents for the Senior Executive Service (SES), which are Highly Qualified Executives (HQEs). And there are various different categories within all of these. Some are department, agency, and/or bureau specific, some aren’t. Trying to keep it all straight can drive you nuts and because I helped run a US Army program I know more than most and I still only know a little.

  143. 143.

    jl

    @Amir Khalid: ” What’s up with that? ” I dunno, Probably need to ask the horny old male viewers what is up with that. And besides that $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$, our national deity.

  145. 145.

    Jeffro

    @Raoul: Oh absolutely. But I have faith that he’ll jump in and offer his ‘opinion’ on McCabe again any moment now, making the case that much stronger that this is just part of Trumpov’s efforts to obstruct/undermine justice.

  146. 146.

    japa21

    The UMBC-Virginia game was astounding not just that a 16 beat a 1, but it was actually a 64 beating the 1 and it wasn’t close.

  149. 149.

    MP

    @Adam L Silverman: I work primarily with folks retiring from CDC, and a handful from the EPA. With the possible exception of the Public Health Service, their benefits are relatively simple compared to the morass you’ve just covered!

  151. 151.

    GregB

    This whole house of shit ends one of two ways. One: Trump wins, consolidates power and destroys the American system as we know it.

    Two: Trump is humiliated and destroyed and sucks down everyone in his crime syndicate and either they rat out and save themselves or suffer terrible fates of shame and personal destruction at the hands of the American judicial system.

  152. 152.

    NMgal

    @patrick II: Trump pressures Sessions to fire McCabe. This Friday Sessions caves, does so. All week everybody yells it was a crap firing. Next Friday evening, Trump fires Sessions for firing McCabe. Et voila! Two problems solved, in the best way, fantastic, yuuuge success, everyone says so, amirite? Obstruction of justice? Eh, worry about that later, there’s two scoops of ice cream for dessert tonight!

  153. 153.

    Adam L Silverman

    @Amir Khalid: The women’s appearance on US tv news is the effect of Roger Ailes, though he wasn’t the only one to figure it out. Tight fitting dresses, women with large eyes, high cheekbones, full lips, and a slight underbite – or makeup that provides that appearance all make men think about oral sex. Do not ask me how I know what this is what Ailes and others like him were trying to promote.

    I’ve pretty much put everything I know in my various answers. My understanding from reading about this as it was being speculated about is that one of the things that can get an FBI special agent (and I would presume analyst) fired for cause is not being truthful in the context of an investigation, including into oneself. What the Office of Professional Responsibility (OPR) concluded is that he was not truthful (lied?) to the Office of the Inspector General regarding his ordering a subordinate to speak with a reporter to clarify reporting so as not to cause a problem for the FBI. This was, interestingly enough, actually part of his delineated duties at the FBI at the time this happened. As a result of the OPR’s findings, the AG then fired him for cause. And my understanding is that being fired for cause can jeopardize the pension portion of his retirement. I do not know if the termination order actually seeks to prevent him from receiving his pension as all I’ve seen is the AG’s statement.

  154. 154.

    jl

    @GregB: As I noted soon after that jerk’s election, in four years either no almost one will admit to have voted for Trump, or almost everyone will.

  155. 155.

    Jeffro

    @Adam L Silverman: Understood. But it’s the best way to put it: ok, you say he’s not compromised…but if he were…what would be different?

    Nothing. Actually if he were compromised and had half a brain, the whole thing would be a lot subtler. But here we are, with the benefit of having a Traitor President who’s also the dumbest president in our entire 230+ year history. Who is the patron saint of irony and/or thanks? We all owe him/her a toast.

  158. 158.

    Washburn

    I also assume that if you are out on leave before retirement using your accumulated days that would extend beyond your retirement date means that you no longer had to be active duty to get your pension.

  160. 160.

    danielx

    We are off the looking glass and through the map.

    Again.

    Jeebus, could he just go ahead and get rid of McMaster and Sessions and get it over with instead of keeping everybody in suspense? Next thing you know he’ll announce he has complete confidence in McMaster. It’s like watching a cat playing with a mouse, cruelty for the sake of cruelty.

  161. 161.

    ? ?? Goku (aka Amerikan Baka) ? ?

    @chris:
    That guy’s Republican friends are dipshits. Just like this guy I met recently from the Netherlands who immigrated here 12 years ago. He worked in printing for most of his life over there before coming to stock shelves over here to be with his girlfriend; a co-worker of mine, he’s a total RWNJ wackjob. I just did my job and tried not to talk about it. Nice guy otherwise. The point is: they live in their own little world with their own facts.

  162. 162.

    Adam L Silverman

    @Viva BrisVegas: A Wall Street Journal report that the FBI was slow walking the Clinton Foundation inquiry or something. The reporter apparently had a leak from someone in the Bureau that this was the case, so most likely one of the knuckleheads from the compromised NY Field Office (who were also leaking to Giuliani, and Kallstrom, and Fox News, etc). McCabe was trying to get it clarified that this was not the case, which was actually within his delineated duties.

  164. 164.

    mad citizen

    @sukabi: It made some news sites today, at least in my work world, but the government and industry have been addressing cybersecurity for a long time. An Alert was issued today: Alert (TA18-074A)
    Russian Government Cyber Activity Targeting Energy and Other Critical Infrastructure Sectors
    Original release date: March 15, 2018 | Last revised: March 16, 2018
    https://www.us-cert.gov/ncas/alerts/TA18-074A

    Someone at work told me today there are “millions” of attempts to hack into systems every day…

  165. 165.

    sukabi

    @patrick II: surprisingly old Bloody Bill has started to be right, or almost right…at least when it comes to trump…

    I attribute that to how fucking obvious trumps’ incompetence and corruption is.

  168. 168.

    Adam L Silverman

    @Jeffro: The only real advantage we have right now is that he and those around him are not the best and brightest, though he and they certainly seem to have a specific type of cunning. They are loud, they are sloppy, they cannot and/or will not shut up, and they telegraph everything.

  174. 174.

    Wapiti

    @sukabi: Yup, I just said this to my wife: Now Trump can fire Sessions for his shoddy handling of McCabe’s dismissal.

  176. 176.

    Aleta

    Wa Post

    Facebook is suspending the Trump-affiliated data analytics firm Cambridge Analytica, after learning that it failed to delete data that it had taken inappropriately from users of the social network, Facebook said late Friday.

    Facebook said it was suspending the accounts of Strategic Communication Laboratories, the parent company of Cambridge Analytica, as well as the accounts of a University of Cambridge psychologist Aleksandr Kogan, and Christopher Wylie of Eunoia Technologies.

    The analytics firm was asked in December to turn over internal documents to Special Counsel Robert Mueller.

    Facebook said that Kogan had requested and gained access to information from 270,000 Facebook members after they chose to download his app. The app, “thisisyourdigitallife,” offered a personality prediction, and billed itself on Facebook as “a research app used by psychologists.”

    The Facebook members gave their consent for Kogan to access information such as (their profile city), the content they had liked, as well as some limited information about friend groups and contacts. Kogan then broke Facebook’s policies and passed the information to Cambridge and to Wylie.

    Facebook learned about Kogan’s activities in 2015.

  179. 179.

    OGLiberal

    Big news. But not yet bigger than a school with “County” in its name beating the #1 team in the nation. Actually, they destroyed them.

    As an undergrad at Hofstra many years ago we (the hoops team, not me) played UMBC twice a season. Pretty certain they never beat us. Impressive.

  182. 182.

    Calouste

    @GregB: It’s not going to be 2. Either the shitgibbon wins or he is forcibly, as in with guns drawn, removed from office. He is not going to adhere to the rule of law and he is not going to resign. And the GOP is not going to stand up to him.

  184. 184.

    Gretchen

    @Amir Khalid: Your take on fashion is particularly noticeable on Fox News: The men wear suits, while the women show as much skin as possible: always sleeveless, low-cut, short dresses with no stockings. I hate it that even the more reputable news channels favor a lot of sleeveless, even in winter, to get as much skin on camera as possible. That’s one of the many things I love about Rachel Maddow. She wears a long-sleeved blazer over a normal shirt, with jeans and sneakers hidden under her desk. I hate it that women have to show skin to get on tv.

  185. 185.

    mai naem mobile

    @CarolDuhart2: I know some people who work for State government and i think they have a similar set up. I think McCabe can be hired back for either a few days or a quarter and the pension is back on. He just can’t get it right away. Whatever, it’s still a shitty stupid move on the part of Sessions’ and Dolt45.

  186. 186.

    ding7777

    @Adam L Silverman: McCabe losing his pension is collateral. The IG recommendation to fire McCabe would be meaningless once McCabe was retired If Trump’s goal was to discredit McCabe as a Comey witness,

  190. 190.

    Omnes Omnibus

    @chris: Many people do some research on their own before asking questions. Some of us were encyclopedia addicts as kids.

  193. 193.

    tobie

    @ding7777: You’re right. This was all about discrediting McCabe as a witness. I imagine the IG’s report will discredit Comey. Don’t know what will happen to the other witnesses. My husband speculates Rosenstein will be fired next. Any Trump detractor is held up to the letter of the law. Any Trump proponent can lie with abandon and no one cares. IG Horowitz seems either willfully or purposefully blind to the political ramifications of his task.

  196. 196.

    Cheryl Rofer

    Aaannnnnndddd we have a Trump tweet

    Andrew McCabe FIRED, a great day for the hard working men and women of the FBI – A great day for Democracy. Sanctimonious James Comey was his boss and made McCabe look like a choirboy. He knew all about the lies and corruption going on at the highest levels of the FBI!

  197. 197.

    No Drought No More

    Pelosi and Shumer must condemn Sessions tonight, and demand for his immediate resignation. They must condemn his chickenshit decision for what it is: an attack upon the rule of law in America, and a blatant attempt to aid and abet the evil designs of a foreign enemy upon our country and our democracy. And if Pelosi and Shumer refuse, they should be driven from power, and replaced by two democrats willing to uphold their oaths of office.

    Trump and his fellow conspirators- when convicted- will deserve to be executed for their high crimes. Goddamn them ALL…

  200. 200.

    guachi

    That Trump tweet is the tweet of someone who is reveling in the power to personally destroy the lives of others.

  201. 201.

    Adam L Silverman

    I know what McCabe’s attorney’s first exhibit entered into evidence is going to be:

  202. 202.

    tobie

    @Another Scott:

    Firing McCabe is only going to make it worse for Donnie and his minions.

    Can you explain how McCabe’s firing hurts Trump? I don’t doubt you. I’m just too upset to think this out.

  203. 203.

    CarolDuhart2

    @T.L.: He’s still entitled to the money they withdrew from his check on his behalf in a lump sum, his TSP money, and he’s already collected his final check. This move is to humiliate him.

    This is stupid on their part. If they had let him retire, McCabe probably would have gone quietly and stayed quiet for a while. If they hadn’t tried to orchestrate a drumbeat, he wouldn’t be taking them to court using a top-notch lawyer. And he will get one because DC is a company town where everyone knows someone in the civil service who may be vulnerable to such maneuvers. And the Civil Service has mountains of regulations and case law to protect against Pauly Walnuts and his shriveled, useless dick.

  204. 204.

    Yarrow

    @Cheryl Rofer: No way he wrote that, but it’s in his name so he’ll have to answer for it. If it wasn’t obvious he was going to war with the FBI, it is now. Never a good idea.

  209. 209.

    Brachiator

    @Adam L Silverman:

    The only real advantage we have right now is that he and those around him are not the best and brightest, though he and they certainly seem to have a specific type of cunning.

    Yep. This lays it out very well. The thing is, though, that cunning works very well against smart opponents who expect their adversary to be fair, or go by the rules.

    Trump telegraphs his moves, and yet people refuse to believe that he is as vengeful and petty as he is. Dopes keep muttering shit about how the president is above this. And Trump has people lie for him officially, and everyone just notes it and goes along with the lie. A Guardian story from the time that McCabe announced his retirement had the White House propaganda, uh, press office saying that Trump had nothing to do with it. And yet you had the continuous drumbeat of Trump’s Twitter stream saying that McCabe should be fired.

    Also, the secret sauce is the steadfastness of Trump’s Republican allies, who back him no matter what, and will lie for him or assist in humiliating whoever Trump fingers.

    ETA. I had gone out to dinner and thought that Trump was done for the week.

  211. 211.

    Jeffro

    @Calouste:

    Either the shitgibbon wins or he is forcibly, as in with guns drawn, removed from office. He is not going to adhere to the rule of law and he is not going to resign. And the GOP is not going to stand up to him.

    I’m going to bid on, and win, the auction for the Oval Office door frames that Orange Crash leaves claw marks in when he’s pulled out of there.

    (Actually, I think the craven coward will go somewhat quietly when faced with RICO charges and the prospect of leaving nothing but shame to Ivanka…hence my frequent references to him at a police interrogation table, face in his hands, recounting when he first got involved in money laundering for the Russian mob…)

  212. 212.

    jonas

    “Going to war against the federal law enforcement agency that knows where all my bodies are buried! How could this possibly totally blow up in my stupid orange face?” MAGA!

  214. 214.

    smintheus

    Is firing McCabe going to be construed by Mueller as obstruction of justice by Sessions and Trump?

  215. 215.

    randy khan

    @The Dangerman:

    For roundball junkies out there:

    UMBC 38
    Virginia 24

    Will a 16 finally take out a 1? It almost happened with Princeton and Georgetown ages ago.

    ETA: It’s never happened, thought Princeton had Georgetown almost beat. Long, long time ago.

    The real roundball junkies know that it *has* happened in the women’s tournament: #16 Harvard 71 #1 Stanford 67 in 1998.

    I’m actually sort of sad about this, though – I was in the crowd for the 1st 15 over 2 upset in the men’s tournament (Richmond over Syracuse in 1991), so I could claim I’d seen the greatest upset in tournament history. Not any more.

  216. 216.

    poleaxedbyboatwork

    @Adam L Silverman:

    : The only real advantage we have right now is that he and those around him are not the best and brightest, though he and they certainly seem to have a specific type of cunning. They are loud, they are sloppy, they cannot and/or will not shut up, and they telegraph everything.

    Animal cunning is the expression.

    Think this is true in the usedtawas. Think now, after having been slapped, publicly, repeatedly, (tho not truly chastened; name, blame n shame is t’order a the day) that ain’t so much operative nomore for the arrogant n the insane.

    It’s like learned behavior. If you can get away with being an unconscionable dick and no one challenges you, and, more importantly, you pay no price, then that’s what you do. And worse.

    B’lieve we are in the “even-dolts-are-starting-to-see-what’s-goin-on” stage a challenging lying dickish behavior, and we are beginning to see a differnt kinda rat emerge that is chary of subjecting theyselves to the naming, blaming and shaming, and is counting on the good manners of our citizenry (and our moribund press corpse) in not pointing it out.

  217. 217.

    Mike in DC

    Either 60 Minutes is going to air the Stormy Daniels interview on the 25th, or Ms. Daniels is going to be offered around 100x the 130k she got in the original settlement.

  218. 218.

    Jeffro

    @Cheryl Rofer: @Cheryl Rofer: @guachi: @Steve in the ATL: we should all be, in a very minor and reluctant and not happy about it way, grateful that the current president* is this much of a fucking moron. The next one the GOP serves up will be much subtler, but at least it will only be in the service of Mammon and not Putin.

  219. 219.

    Tom

    @chris: Barry McCaffrey was an infantry officer who served several tours of duty in Vietnam, where he was distinguished both for his tactical ability and his heroism (as witness his 3 or 4 Purple Hearts). He was the commander of the 24th Mechanized Infantry Division during the first Gulf War. They were the first division to be sent to Saudi Arabia when Saddam Hussein invaded Kuwait, and they’re rapid deployment was credited with being one of the reasons Hussein decided not to go on to Riyadh and the Saudi oil fields on the Persian Gulf. During the counterattack in February 1991 McCaffrey’s division was on the far left flank. The 24th moved faster and farther than any other heavy division, and in doing so sealed the back door, preventing the retreating Iraqi forces from getting away back to Baghdad. Schwarzkopf referred to McCaffrey as his most aggressive and successful division commander. In short, he’s one of the best generals the United States has ever had, and possibly the best living one.

  220. 220.

    sukabi

    @lamh36: I’ll go with John Kelly on the theory that he’s been driven insane trying to manage Donnie Dollhands…This is one more attempt to either get fired or amp up Mueller’s investigation…

  222. 222.

    Mike in NC

    Today gave us the Stormy Daniels lawsuit/counter suit, Andrew McCabe’s illegal firing, and news that shitstain Donny Jr might be subjected to an ugly divorce. What a country!

  223. 223.

    Adam L Silverman

    @CarolDuhart2: FBI special agents are excepted service. They do not have the full array of civil service protections. There are more than one type of civil servants, not just the default Title 5s.

    What this has done is that it prevents him from beginning to collect 100% of his pension starting on Monday. He may still be able to start drawing some of his pension at 57, but that is unclear as no one has published the termination order. He will likely lose his ability to access the Federal health insurance he would be entitled to as a retiree. Again, at least through his 57 birthday, but possibly in perpetuity. Anything he stuck in a 401K he will retain, but, of course, that can’t be accessed until he’s much older without a penalty.

    Finally, being fired for cause is something that may be used to deny one a clearance. So if he had planned to continue to do national security related legal work in retirement this could have a detrimental effect.

  224. 224.

    tobie

    @sukabi: I think it’s the fact that IG Michael Horowitz has given Trump and Sessions such cover which really bothers me.

  225. 225.

    Jeffro

    @smintheus:

    Is firing McCabe going to be construed by Mueller as obstruction of justice by Sessions and Trump?

    Magic 8-ball says: “Yes”

    Or rather, it’s yet another attempt to intimidate people who aware of the presidents*s potential culpability in the Comey firing, and the whole Russia investigation.

  229. 229.

    Omnes Omnibus

    @poleaxedbyboatwork:

    It’s like learned behavior. If you can get away with being an unconscionable dick and no one challenges you, and, more importantly, you pay no price, then that’s what you do. And worse.

    It is what you do – every day.

  230. 230.

    Feebog

    I would really like to see the IG report. Exactly what did McCabe say (or not say) that led the IG to conclude McCabe was untruthful in his responses. Full disclosure here, I frequently hear administrative discharge cases involving peace officers. Frequently one (and sometimes the only) charge is giving false responses during the investigation.

  233. 233.

    No Drought No More

    @Omnes Omnibus: I am calm. I mean every word. Donald Trump and his co-coconspirators have sold America out in the name of mammon, and I trust they will be impeached and/or convicted for their high crimes. I also believe an historic marker- or example, if you prefer- should and must be made of them ALL. I’m convinced of their guilt, and I make no bones about it. I’m also convinced they will be found guilty, and do no fear to so speculate at this point. The American people are not obliged to wait, either on the Mueller report or congress, to draw their own conclusions about what they’ve thus far seen and heard. Obviously, I’ve drawn my own. I’m convinced, when all is said and done, Trump (et.al.) will deserve death by execution for their high crimes. Whether I will support such a sentence remains to be seen. Up until now, I’ve opposed the death penalty my entire life. But I honestly don’t know, either. I do know this: they will deserve it.

  234. 234.

    randy khan

    @Amir Khalid:

    Also, as an aside, something I’ve noticed about American news shows on TV: The men dress for business, in suits and ties, but the women seem to dress for Sunday brunch — sleeveless tops are common, and so are necklines with a hint or more of cleavage. What’s up with that?

    I’m seeing a lot of comments about the sexing up of women’s clothes on the news, and they’re not wrong, but the truth of the matter is that you see a lot of the same things in offices around the country. Wardrobe choices on TV follow fashion, too.

    (As for Rachel Maddow, her whole thing is that she’s a wonk (and I love her for it). Her wardrobe reflects that, and from what I hear, it’s actually a step or two up in formality from how she dresses normally.

  245. 245.

    poleaxedbyboatwork

    @Omnes Omnibus:

    It is what you do – every day.

    It’s disappointing that you insist on living down to expectations. Every time.

    But you cannot help yourself, poor dear.

    I find it dispiriting that someone I probably agree with on most issues cannot restrain himself from declaiming my perfidy, but I must accept that that is who you are.

    Go, and God be with you or not, just as you please.

    But I give a fuck what you have to say after repeated opportunities for you to act like a mensch — and failing.

  246. 246.

    Adam L Silverman

    @sukabi: @Steve in the ATL:

  248. 248.

    Adam L Silverman

    @No Drought No More: Happy?

    Please consider switching to decaf.

  249. 249.

    Matt McIrvin

    @No Drought No More: Sessions may be Trump’s most evil Cabinet member. But he’s also the main obstruction standing in the way of Trump shutting down the Mueller investigation.

  250. 250.

    Mike in DC

    @No Drought No More: Of all the possible crimes Trump could be charged with, only actual Treason is a capital crime. However, since we are not in a formal or informal state of war with Russia, he probably would not be charged with that. I’m open to arguments to the contrary, though. I’d be satisfied with them spending the rest of their lives in a federal prison, though.

  254. 254.

    Brachiator

    @Jeffro:

    we should all be, in a very minor and reluctant and not happy about it way, grateful that the current president* is this much of a fucking moron.

    Trump doesn’t have to be smart if he can get what he wants through brutality and intimidation. And he’s got Republicans who are smarter than he is kissing his ass. I’m sure that some GOP leaders think that they are using Trump for their own ends, but they still have to jump when he tells them to.

  256. 256.

    smintheus

    @tbf: LBJ knew for a fact that Nixon had scuttled the Paris Peace Talks, he just decided not to make that public. Clark Clifford told that to a friend of mine in the early ’90s, saying that he was going to say relatively little in his forthcoming memoirs of all that he knew about NIxon’s traitorous activities.

  257. 257.

    poleaxedbyboatwork

    @Omnes Omnibus:

    Speak English and we may see.

    I find it charming that you feel it’s *my* motherfucking obligation to suit your parochial tastes.

    You might ponder that irony if you’re not too busy being self-satisfied.

  261. 261.

    Adam L Silverman

    This kid is dumb as a stump! Well done Jr! Now we know that the FBI’s national security division, which includes the counterintelligence folks, were looking at your dad’s activities all the way back to 2014.

  263. 263.

    Amir Khalid

    @poleaxedbyboatwork:
    I don’t expect you to reply with anything but the usual petulance and rudeness, but it would easier to take you seriously if you dropped that affected style of spelling. That, and the petulance and rudeness. All you get by being that way is people provoking you for their own amusement.

  264. 264.

    Adam L Silverman

    Not sure how I missed this at the time, but it is certainly topical tonight:
    http://foreignpolicy.com/2018/01/26/trump-launched-campaign-to-discredit-potential-fbi-witnesses/?utm_content=buffer989ee&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter.com&utm_campaign=buffer

    Trump Launched Campaign to Discredit Potential FBI Witnesses
    The president targeted three bureau officials who could provide key testimony in the Mueller probe.
    BY MURRAY WAAS | JANUARY 26, 2018, 5:08 PM

    President Donald Trump pressed senior aides last June to devise and carry out a campaign to discredit senior FBI officials after learning that those specific employees were likely to be witnesses against him as part of special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation, according to two people directly familiar with the matter.

    In testimony to the Senate Intelligence Committee on June 8, recently fired FBI Director James Comey disclosed that he spoke contemporaneously with other senior bureau officials about potentially improper efforts by the president to curtail the FBI’s investigation of alleged collusion between the Trump campaign and Russia to interfere in the 2016 U.S. presidential election.

    Mueller is investigating whether Trump’s efforts constituted obstruction of justice.

    Not long after Comey’s Senate testimony, Trump hired John Dowd, a veteran criminal defense attorney, to represent him in matters related to Mueller’s investigation. Dowd warned Trump that the potential corroborative testimony of the senior FBI officials in Comey’s account would likely play a central role in the special counsel’s final conclusion, according to people familiar with the matter.

    In discussions with at least two senior White House officials, Trump repeated what Dowd had told him to emphasize why he and his supporters had to “fight back harder,” in the words of one of these officials.

    In a brief conversation Friday afternoon, Dowd denied the accounts of administration officials contained in this story as “flat-out wrong,” but he also refused to discuss what details were incorrect. “My advice to the president is confidential,” he told Foreign Policy.

    “You don’t know me,” Dowd added. “You don’t how I lawyer, and you don’t know what I communicated to the president and what I did not.”

    While Dowd’s private advice to the president would ordinarily be protected by attorney-client privilege, Mueller might be able to probe comments that Trump made to others about that legal advice by asking him directly about it as well as anyone else he shared that advice with.

    A person with direct knowledge of the matter said although Dowd explained the risks of senior FBI officials joining Comey in testifying against Trump, that information was part of a broader presentation to the president about Mueller’s investigation. It is not improper, but in fact is a duty, for an attorney to explain to a client how they are at risk, the source said. What may have been improper, however, were actions Trump took upon learning that information.

    Since Dowd gave him that information, Trump — as well as his aides, surrogates, and some Republican members of Congress — has engaged in an unprecedented campaign to discredit specific senior bureau officials and the FBI as an institution.

    The FBI officials Trump has targeted are Andrew McCabe, the current deputy FBI director and who was briefly acting FBI director after Comey’s firing; Jim Rybicki, Comey’s chief of staff and senior counselor; and James Baker, formerly the FBI’s general counsel. Those same three officials were first identified as possible corroborating witnesses for Comey in a June 7 article in Vox. Comey confirmed in congressional testimony the following day that he confided in the three men.

    Much more at the link.

  266. 266.

    poleaxedbyboatwork

    @Adam L Silverman:

    g!: There is a difference between the NY Field Office and the rest of the FBI.

    Ya. Reckon there is.

    It’s like the differnce betwixt nationalistic onanistic playtime and actual, you know, service.

  267. 267.

    Another Scott

    @tobie: McCabe is (probably) going to file various lawsuits against Sessions and Trump (as others have outlined above) for wrongful termination, defamation of character, and worse. There will therefore be demands that they testify (meaning discovery and chances that they will lie under oath). McCabe will get to be on the news telling his side of things. McCabe will get to write his book about his time under W and Obama and Donnie (and will get to sue Donnie and the FBI if they try to prevent its publication).

    It keeps stories about Donnie’s attempts to obstruct justice (and worse) in the news.

    The AG and the POTUS each have a lot of power to ruin people’s lives. But use of that power in such a public manner has high costs for them. Sessions and Trump risk paying a very high price for what they did to McCabe.

    IANAL, and I have no inside information. This is just my thoughts at the moment.

    FWIW.

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  268. 268.

    Feebog

    @Adam L Silverman:

    Daddy was at a fund raiser for Maxine Waters opponent in SoCal this evening. She beat this same doofus by 50 points last time. Added bonus for Maxine this time, the moron is just getting off probation. The ads will write themselves.

  270. 270.

    poleaxedbyboatwork

    @Amir Khalid:

    I don’t expect you to reply with anything but the usual petulance and rudeness, but it would easier to take you seriously if you dropped that affected style of spelling. That, and the petulance and rudeness. All you get by being that way is people provoking you for their own amusement.

    It might unexpectedly befall your ignominious tree, but know what?

    Don’t care, even remotely, what you think. Shocking I know! Like Rick realizing there ain’t no waters in Casablanca (who knew!; well, we been all misinformed a time or two.)

    I realize you are presently congratulating yourself on your open-mindedness. Which is why it’s funny.

    Go you.

  273. 273.

    poleaxedbyboatwork

    @<a href="#comme

    nt-6800358″>Amir Khalid: @poleaxedbyboatwork:
    Your reply is only mildly amusing.

    Better mildly amusing than not at all.

    (Tho you judge both, poorly.)

  275. 275.

    MisterForkbeard

    @Amir Khalid: The weird thing is that he doesn’t even seem to conceptually acknowledge that someone intentionally adopting a strange and affected dialect/accent might make it harder to take him seriously. Especially in print where we all have a standard common usage and training, as opposed to verbally.

    It doesn’t bug me much, but I can absolutely see it causing an issue for others.

  277. 277.

    Mnemosyne

    @MisterForkbeard:

    He sounds like he’s taking his writing inspiration from James Fenimore Cooper, and I think everyone here is now aware of my opinion regarding the works of James Fenimore Cooper.

    In the words of Mark Twain, “Use the right word, not its second cousin.”

  278. 278.

    poleaxedbyboatwork

    @MisterForkbeard:
    says:

    March 17, 2018 at 2:20 am

    @Amir Khalid: The weird thing is that he doesn’t even seem to conceptually acknowledge that someone intentionally adopting a strange and affected dialect/accent might make it harder to take him seriously. Especially in print where we all have a standard common usage and training, as opposed to verbally.

    It doesn’t bug me much, but I can absolutely see it causing an issue for others.

    Know what the weird thing is?

    Whatta small-minded turd you are.

    I quite realize the fix you are in. It’s just that — as usual, you are wrong.

  279. 279.

    MisterForkbeard

    @Mnemosyne:

    I think everyone here is now aware of my opinion regarding the works of James Fenimore Cooper.

    Certainly, every time I hear of James Fenimore Cooper I remember your opinions. :)

  280. 280.

    Chet Murthy

    @MisterForkbeard: Just makes it tiring to read, so I skip past his pbwork’s comments. Or skim them, sometimes not bothering to really understand them well. Ah, well. Standard English exists for a reason.

  282. 282.

    MisterForkbeard

    @poleaxedbyboatwork: Oh look. I said it didn’t even bother me, but I could see why it might bug others. And you called me a small minded turd in response.

    This is also the first time I’ve ever exchanged words with you, despite you saying I’m “as usual” wrong. Most likely you’ve mistaken me for someone else and attacked me without reason or honorable cause. Perhaps you’d like to apologize? Or perhaps I was mistaken in believing that you were an honest commenter with an affected method of speaking rather than a gigantic throbbing asshole.

    We’ll see which way that goes, I suppose.

  284. 284.

    MisterForkbeard

    @Chet Murthy: This is my general response as well. I don’t skip past them, but it does take some small additional effort to read and I’m not sure I understand why he’s made this particular stylistic choice, especially since several commenters here have voiced considerable annoyance.

    If I’m told I’m doing something annoying, I tend to try and ameliorate or stop that behavior. Especially if I’m trying to participate in a group where I’m not well known.

    @Mnemosyne: You’ve certainly educated me as to Twain’s opinions. One of the reasons I like this place – plenty of trivia and interesting knowledge that’s discussed or tossed out into casual conversation. You learn something new every day.

  285. 285.

    Amir Khalid

    @MisterForkbeard:
    Exactly. He stands by his right to do it, which no one disputes. When it has the expected effect, him not getting taken seriously, he blames us for disrespecting his individuality.

  286. 286.

    Mnemosyne

    @MisterForkbeard:

    I have to give joel hanes credit as well — he linked to an anti-Cooper essay I’d never read before.

    Twain really, really hated Cooper, but also found him a very useful way to illustrate how not to write, utilizing the work of an allegedly “great” writer.

  287. 287.

    poleaxedbyboatwork

    @Amir Khalid: @Mnemosyne: MisterForkbeard:

    I have to give joel hanes credit as well — he linked to an anti-Cooper essay I’d never read before.

    Twain really, really hated Cooper, but also found him a very useful way to illustrate hownot to write, utilizing the work of an allegedly “great” writer.

    __________

    Fair enough. Think it’s purty well known whatta shit Cooper was. He tried, he failt.

    Not sure you appreciate whata shit you are.

    You tried, you failt.

    Depressing, really.

  289. 289.

    Elizabelle

    Just woke up and heard this. How shitty. McCabe should sue.

    Mostly, I think this makes it easier and easier to turn federal employees out to vote. (Suspect they already have good turnout.) And maybe some career FBI types can remember what their great Republican daddies have done.

    Again, just shitty, petty and vindictive. With a layer of character assassination on top.

  291. 291.

    Applejinx

    Of course McCabe should sue. Of course it’s bullshit.

    He ought to have no trouble doing so since apparently he’s got between four and ten MILLION DOLLARS so for fuck’s sake don’t make GoFundMes for his little pension. He’s a rich-as-fuck cop and there are people starving and dying and going bankrupt over being sick and McCabe does not need your money.

    OK, maybe if he ends up not having health insurance, and gets sick. But other than that he does not need your money!

  292. 292.

    Elmo

    @J R in WV: New kid at pool party running around pushing people in and cannon balling next to the snack table. “Pay attention to meeeeee!”

  293. 293.

    Barry

    @Jeffro: “Once again, rather than let the slightest perceived slight go by, the Trumpov administration has decided to be petty and shortsighted and oh my god is it going to bite them in the ass.”

    Trump is messing with the FBI on two levels beyond the ordinary presidential push-back:

    1) Acting like he has the power to *shut down* FBI investigations at will.
    2) Personally hurting high FBI officials – forcing somebody into retirement is one thing, but attacking their pension is adding injury to insult.

    I’m hoping for open war between the FBI and Trump.

  297. 297.

    Uncle Cosmo

    @The Dangerman:

    Holy Shit.

    UMBC 61
    Virginia 44

    I am soooo torn here. UVA was the alma mater of Skyler, Unc’s late lamented nephew.

    OTOH I am a UMBC alum (MS, Applied Math, too long ago to count).

    Torn, hell: WOOOOOOOOOHOO Retrievers!!!!

  298. 298.

    Uncle Cosmo

    @OGLiberal: Just FTR, the University of Maryland – Baltimore County (UMBC, sometimes pronounced “Umbick”) is a full-fledged campus of UMD located in Catonsville (Baltimore County) in the SW suburbs of Baltimore City. When it was established in 1966 (!!) there was already a UM-Baltimore campus (medical school & other grad schools) in the City itself, and a Catonsville Community College (now CCBC [Community College of Baltimore County] Catonsville campus), so the name kind of showed up faute de mieux as a byproduct of having a county and an independent county-level city jurisdiction with the same name.

  299. 299.

    Kayla Rudbek

    Adam, as I said in an entry downstairs, I’m not sure that the firing is even going to be effective, as the logistics don’t seem to work. FBI HR was already closed for business when this order came down, McCabe’s retirement effective as of 12:01 am Sunday (or so I’d assume from dealing with other federal agencies) so nobody at FBI HR is going to be able to act on the firing paperwork until they get into work on Monday morning. And at that point, they can work to rule…

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