You’ll recall the sequence: after a guilty plea but before sentencing the William Barr Department of “Justice” petitioned to drop the case against confessed perjurer Michael Flynn. The judge, Emmet Sullivan, would not be rolled, and sought advice through an amicus brief by a former prosecutor and judge, John Gleeson.
Gleeson’s brief just dropped:
The former prosecutor, John Gleeson, who also is a retired judge, told U.S. District Judge Emmet Sullivan that the Justice Department’s reasons for wanting the case dismissed were contradictory and were disproven by previous filings in the case.
What? A problem with a Trumpist-led federal agency’s arguements?
Why yes:
“They contradict and ignore this Court’s prior orders, which constitute law of the case,” Gleeson said of the DOJ’s new reasons for why the case should be dismissed. “They are riddled with inexplicable and elementary errors of law and fact.”
Was this mere incompetence, yet one more example among so many of what happens when you make a conscious policy of subpar hires?
Why no:
Gleeson described the DOJ’s explanations for dropping the case as “not credible,” saying that it was involved in “corrupt, politically motivated dismissals.”
TL:DR version:
“The Government has engaged in highly irregular conduct to benefit a political ally of the President,” Gleeson wrote.
I have little doubt that Trump will pardon Flynn. It may be that he has to, as the ex-general, ex-NSC head, maybe-not-ex Russian asset might have some serious leverage on the Shitgibbon.
But when or if he does, Gleeson’s brief makes it impossible for even the most complacent of media folks to avoid the fact that such a pardon is simply the latest in the seemingly endless chain of “corrupt, politically motivated” acts aimed at benefitting “a political ally of the President.”
Which is to say, Flynn remains an albatross for Trump and the Republicans, and it’s up to us (and the Lincoln Project, bless their enemy-of-my-enemy little hearts) to keep it dragging down on their worthless necks.
Image: Gustave Doré, I watched the water snakes, (Illustration for “The Rime of the Ancient Mariner), 1876
Elizabelle
Proud of Judge Gleeson. Minces no words, and that is what is needed.
Lord Fartdaddy (Formerly, Mumphrey, Smedley Darlington Mingobat, et al.)
Won’t that leave Flynn with no way to plead the Fifth Amendment though? If investigators or prosecutors go to him looking for answers–federal ones at least–won’t that leave him open to having to answer them? He’ll be free from any threat of prosecution, so he’ll have to answer, right? It doesn’t seem to me, a guy with no legal training–though I did work at the law library when I was in college–like he’d be open to any state or local charges. Maybe somebody who is a lawyer could straighten me out here if I’m wrong.
Gin & Tonic
Boy, if I read a review of my own work that contained a phrase like that, I’d be worrying about whether my access card will open the door tomorrow, if you get my drift.
randy khan
I used to think that Trump wouldn’t pardon Flynn or Stone. Now I’m wavering on Flynn because he might think it helps with enthusiasm among the base. (I find that odd because his base seems to be at a fever pitch at all times, but we’re talking about his thinking, not mine.)
That said, I still believe he won’t pardon Flynn after the election, as he wouldn’t see any personal benefit and since that’s the lens through which Trump sees everything. It’s probably before or not at all.
Gin & Tonic
@Lord Fartdaddy (Formerly, Mumphrey, Smedley Darlington Mingobat, et al.): I fully expect he will develop a sudden lack of recall in that case.
Frankensteinbeck
Trump has abandoned even personal friends to swing in the wind when they get caught breaking the law for him. Flynn is getting far more help than anyone else, and it’s not like Flynn is the only one with Dirt. Why is this different? I have two theories: 1) This is the first time it’s dropped with Barr at the helm, and unlike Trump Barr grasps the concept of mutual protection. 2) This is the first agent Putin did not consider expendable.
patrick II
Both Flynn and Stone will most likely get pardoned. But then they have no need for protection against self-incrimination and if Biden wins the election and there is an investigation, they will have to tell the truth be indicted again for the same reason they are now — lying to the FBI. The upside, with Trump out of power, they may be more inclined to tell the truth. The problem may be if Trump is pardoned, by either himself or Pence, there may be no case to involve their testimony in.
Ruckus
Probably shitforbrains best thing to do would be nothing, but given his need to always make it worse it’s an even bet he will pardon.
I think that would be another nail in this debacle. Just one more reason to vote him the hell out. Like we need more reasons….
Joe Falco
The artwork was made in 11876?
Now it’s been ten thousand years
Man has cried a billion tears
For what he never knew
Now man’s reign is through
But through the eternal night
The twinkling of starlight
So very far away
Maybe it’s only yesterday
MattF
I suspect that Flynn’s avatar is an albatross. He’s dragged Trump and Barr into deep waters, and the waters are everywhere. Trump and Barr may claim they’re doing justice, except… for those previously submerged bodies that keep floating up from the ocean floor. And it’s going to keep happening.
West of the Rockies
I hope Flynn feels disgraced and miserable about time in the joint. I’m sick of his sharp, pointy features and arrogant attitude. May gastrointestinal distress of the worst magnitude set in for him.
Also, I have a copy of that Dore-illustrated Coleridge work. A most felicitous pairing.
Lord Fartdaddy (Formerly, Mumphrey, Smedley Darlington Mingobat, et al.)
@Gin & Tonic:, but would that work? I mean, the F.B.I. guys or whoever ends up looking into him could just read everything he said back to him to help him out, you know? Is there any way to catch somebody out when they tell you they’ve forgotten shit, but there’s all kinds of evidence to help them unforget it?
West of the Rockies
@MattF:
Well, the judge gonna land an arrow in that albatross, just like in the Coleridge poem.
Raoul
“They are riddled with inexplicable and elementary errors of law and fact.”
Worth reflecting back to former US Attorney and NBC contributor Glen Kirschner
Wapiti
The corruption in the Trump/Barr DoJ and the corruption in the Minnesota/Minneapolis police are two parts of the same thing – the use of the legal system to not prosecute criminal behaviors of the in group.
West of the Rockies
@Joe Falco: 11876… Doesn’t have the same ring as 2525 (if man is still alive), does it?
Tom Levenson
@Joe Falco:
Fix’t.
Wise guy.
kindness
Sullivan should sentence Flynn today and send him to Guantanamo. Just to prep it for all Trump’s people who also are taking Putin’s money (looking at you MoscowMitch).
Booger
I’ve always said this blog needs more Doré. Haven’t I always said that? You’ve heard me say that, right?
Delk
Shades of Monica Gooding.
pat
I haven’t looked. Did you take that extra e out of arguments?
Hehe.
The Moar You Know
Trump isn’t going to do it because of leverage – that’s a knife that cuts with both edges, and I have zero doubt that both of them are legitimately guilty of treason.
Trump’s going to do it because it will make the libs howl, and that’s what his base hired him to do.
A Streeter
Does anyone know the current status of the appeals court proceedings, wherein Flynn’s lawyers are trying to get an (apparently sympathetic) appeals court to force Sullivan to do their bidding? The last news I could find was about lawyers hired(!) by Sullivan arguing at some hearing before the appeals court. These are strange times indeed when a Federal judge has to hire his own attorneys to defend his procedure before a Federal appeals court (but IANAL and perhaps legal training would make it seem less strange).
Joe Falco
@Tom Levenson
Hey, I appreciated the excuse to bust out an old song!
West of the Rockies
@pat:
Tom has been nominated for science nook of the year. I think he’s allowed to abuse an occasional ‘e’ now. :)
DRickard
Fixed that for you.
Oh, you have way more faith in media critters’ ability/willingness to overcome their willful blindness.
condorcet runner-up
@Gin & Tonic: maybe in normal times, but in these times i bet the drafters of that brief get appointed to the federal judiciary …
Kent
I disagree. I would expect some sort of truth and reconciliation type hearings in Congress about Russian interference in 2016 (and 2020). All of that will still be relevant and ongoing. And there will be damned good reason to demand all their testimony in front of Congressional committees and to throw their asses back in prison if they lie or refuse to talk, whether or not Trump actually pardons himself.
I don’t think the focus of any Dem-lead investigations in 2021 will be Trump. It will be the Russians and American-complicity in their meddling. That will, of course, envelope the whole Trump organization. But it won’t be directly targeting Trump himself.
Besides, I don’t think Trump’s pardon power extends to corporations does it? I think it is only people. He might be able to pardon himself and all of his spawn. But he can’t pardon the spiderweb of Trump-associated corporations and businesses. Those are all fair game for Congressional inquiry no matter what.
Kay
They’re terrible, weak people because they never say “no” to him. None of these people should ever be in power again because they have the kind of personality and (lack of) character that makes them unable to resist demands from authoritarian leaders. They’re just too deeply flawed to hold power. They volunteer for these jobs! Actively seek them out. They could all walk away. But they don’t.
pat
@West of the Rockies:
nook or book?
Kay
Seems like there’s another giant corrupt scandal involving Saudi arms deals breaking through the scummy surface of the Trump Swamp. Now there’s a shocker. Only the biggest illegal and unethical scandals surface so it’s likely more horrible than the 15 others.
laura
@Booger:
Here’s a bit more Dore -Gustave’s grand or great grand daughter: irishchamber.com.au/consultations/irish-australian-business-awards-peoples-choice-2016/response-784
She’s a very close friend to my Aussie sister in law and her family and she’s joined us for Christmas a couple of times.
Re Flynn – he’s a straight up traitor to his nation. He sold his country out. He and his scabby son deserve to rot in prison. Barr and trump can join them on the cell block.
West of the Rockies
@pat:
Book, but it would appear on your Nook (you schnook!).
Nora
@Kent: Besides, I don’t think Trump’s pardon power extends to corporations does it? I think it is only people. He might be able to pardon himself and all of his spawn. But he can’t pardon the spiderweb of Trump-associated corporations and businesses. Those are all fair game for Congressional inquiry no matter what.
Interesting question. I would have thought corporations couldn’t have religious rights (owing to their being, you know, creatures of the state and not human beings), but the Supreme court didn’t think so in Hobby Lobby. Can corporations assert 5th amendment rights? What’s the limit of corporations being treated as “people”?
For my money, the First National Bank of Boston v. Bellotti Supreme Court decision, and all its progeny right down to Citizens United, was wrongly decided and should be reversed. There is very little logic and no Constitutional history that gives any basis for pretending that corporations have the same rights as human beings do.
pat
@West of the Rockies:
Actually that’s a great idea. Would love to know the title of said book so I can find it on my nook.
sdhays
@West of the Rockies: But a Nook can’t read, so a Nook can’t cook, so what good to a Nook is a hook cook book?
lumpkin
A pardon won’t leave Flynn unable to assert his 5th amendment rights. He can still claim that by testifying he could incriminate himself for other crimes that he wasn’t pardoned for. To invalidate this defense the prosecution would have to show that he did not commit any other crimes.
MattF
@Kay: More details (from CNN) about the cease & desist letter.
Baud
@Kay:
Now I have to assume that his unifying speech on race will be in the form of a cease and desist demand that racists stop doing things on camera that make Trump look bad.
West of the Rockies
@pat:
The Hunt for Vulcan. Very good!
West of the Rockies
@sdhays:
LOL. All of this because of one hapless ‘e’.
pat
@West of the Rockies:
Thanks.
BellyCat
@Gin & Tonic:
Rotating tag line if ever there was one!
James E Powell
I’ve been meaning to ask this for a while. I’m a lawyer, but rarely did any criminal defense work and never in federal court. Why was there so much time between the guilty plea and the sentencing?
Krope, the Formerly Dope
@BellyCat: Concurred.
pat
I found Thomas Levenson (but not Tom Levenson) on my Nook and looked up the book and it was published in 2015. Silly question, how can it be nominated for book of the year? How do these things work?
MisterForkbeard
@Lord Fartdaddy (Formerly, Mumphrey, Smedley Darlington Mingobat, et al.): In theory. But no one’s going to charge him if he starts saying “I can’t remember” or lies more. It’s going to step into a HUGE political minefield and put that prosecutor in direct conflict with the President.
There’s some hope that would change after Biden wins, but I’m not hopeful. It’s still going to be a huge football, and Trump and Barr’s DOJ have managed to shoot enough squid ink that some large portion of the country will assume this is all political and Flynn is being framed.
AJ
Tom did you link to / attribute the quotes?
Looks like TPM but maybe I missed the link
laura
@James E Powell: Because he fired his counsel and hired Sidney Powell. If you want real comprehensive coverage and analysis of all things Flynn you should check out Emptywheel blog. Non-lawyer Marcy Wheeler is diligent and her analysis is very insightful.
Kent
Is Flynn really part of the Trump inner circle? My impression is that he basically wormed his way into the campaign with the MAGA “lock her up” bullshit during the convention but that he wasn’t a long time Trump-lackey like say Michael Cohen.
I don’t know if that makes a difference. But I have wondered why the Trump folks have been so insistent on bending the law for him rather than washing their hands of him like they have done with so many other Trump appointees that have gone down in disgrace like say Scott Pruitt or Ryan Zinke. I have to conclude that Flynn knows where some important bodies are buried, so to speak vis a vis Russia. That is the only plausible explanation.
artem1s
If he could, he would have already. No more 5th amendment for Flynn if he is pardoned. He also has to admit guilt to be pardoned. And the closer we get to January 2021, the more likely it will be that a brand new AG, the next House investigation committee, and the AGof NY will want to have a talk with Mr. Flynn. Pardon is the only thing Dump has left to keep Flynn’s mouth shut. He’s never giving up that leverage. Barr has already been thrown under the bus so many times and he still doesn’t understand he’s a dead man walking. Dump isn’t going to lift a finger if it is likely to come back and bite him – he’s perfectly willing to let Barr take the hit though.
oatler.
@sdhays:
Well done, Mr Geisel!
jc
“It may be that [Flynn] might have some serious leverage on the Shitgibbon.”
I think that’s how everything works with these guys, from Putin on down.
rikyrah
Clap clap clap clap
jimmiraybob
What? You mean that “Because I say so, neener, neener, look at the birdies” is not a legally valid argument in light of contradictory tangible evidence? Damn Anitfa!! All that money wasted on a degree from the Homer J. Simpson School of Law & Stuff (no longer affiliated with Trump University).
Tom Levenson
@AJ: Ooops. Yes. TPM.
Will belatedly link now.
randy khan
@Kay:
Ha. Ha. Ha. Ha. Ha.
I realize that there’s nobody in his orbit who can tell him no when he wants to do something like this, but I think this tops his campaign committee suing the NY Times, WaPo, CNN, and some Wisconsin TV station for defamation.
cmorenc
@Kent:
Why wouldn’t the Presidential Pardon power (Article 2, section 2, clause 1) extend to corporations, especially since the 5-4 SCOTUS majority, per Chief Justice Roberts, ruled in the 2010 Citizens United case that corporations are “persons” under federal law? The constitutional pardon provision says:
There’s no limitation in the constitutional pardon provision limiting it to extend only to “natural persons”, rather than also to “corporate persons”, at least so long as Citizens United remains governing constitutional law.
James E Powell
@Kent:
That seems the most likely explanation, but I also wonder if Flynn’s got friends who Trump needs to please.
J R in WV
@lumpkin:
Just no. To do any good, a pardon need to be broad and all encompassing, as in “all crimes that may have been committed from 2014 to 2017 related to anything whatsoever…”
Read Ford’s pardon of Nixon, for a relevant example.
J R in WV
@Kent:
Well, perhaps, but I suspect he was involved with illegal arms deals with the Saudis, and with a conspiracy to kidnap a legal resident of the US on behalf of Turkey, a respected Turkish cleric living in the US to avoid the Kashoggi treatment. Dismembering, actually.
Flynn is willing to sell nuclear technology to the Saudis, and kidnap someone destined for gruesome murder, a truly despicable piece of shit floating upon the darkness of Trumpism. For money!!
Ol'Froth
I’m so old I remember when Republicans tried to make an issue of Jimmy Carter pardoning his brother.