CAN CONFIRM: Julian Assange has been charged, and prosecutors revealed it inadvertently in a court filing https://t.co/ndCo7PH9xE w/ @DevlinBarrett , advancing the incredible sleuthing of @SeamusHughes
— Matt Zapotosky (@mattzap) November 16, 2018
The Justice Department is preparing to prosecute WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange and is optimistic about bringing him to the U.S. https://t.co/VpCxcJF5j7
— The Wall Street Journal (@WSJ) November 15, 2018
NYT files a slightly different report from WaPo, saying prosecutors have “prepared an indictment” against Assange but that it isn’t clear whether it’s been filed. https://t.co/NNkwYnE6YM
— southpaw (@nycsouthpaw) November 16, 2018
/3 It’s not the ONLY possible explanation, but I think it’s the most probable.
Prosecutors re-use motions and briefs all the time. The more dull/procedural the motion, the more some ancient version of it gets changed and re-used, sometimes for YEARS.
— WhatCouldGoWrongHat (@Popehat) November 16, 2018
Meanwhile…
Half a dozen people in contact with the W.H. and other Trump officials say a deep anxiety has started to set in that Mueller is about to pounce and that any number of Trump’s allies and family members may soon be staring down the barrel of an indictment. https://t.co/2jSSufadkj
— Kyle Griffin (@kylegriffin1) November 16, 2018
… Mueller obsessives, political junkies and Washington insiders have been scrutinizing the president’s every mannerism, such as snapping at a CNN reporter for posing a “stupid question” about whether he wanted the new acting attorney general to stymie the Russia investigation.
“You can see it in Trump’s body language all week long. There’s something troubling him. It’s not just a couple staff screw-ups with Melania,” said a senior Republican official in touch with the White House. “It led me to believe the walls are closing in and they’ve been notified by counsel of some actions about to happen. Folks are preparing for the worst.”
Adding to the unease is a spate of anonymously sourced media reports suggesting Mueller’s self-imposed quiet period that started about two months before 2018 Election Day is about to transition into a Category 5 hurricane.