President Donald Trump

[Hornsby]

Wouldn't Cohen have destroyed incriminating evidence by now.

I'm pretty sure that's a crime in and of itself...probably a heavy level felony.

BTW, the warrant was issued by a Republican Judge appointed by Trump, who was also a Max individual donor to the Trump campaign...

[Judge Jude]

I'm pretty sure that's a crime in and of itself...probably a heavy level felony.

BTW, the warrant was issued by a Republican Judge appointed by Trump, who was also a Max individual donor to the Trump campaign...

cite?

I see something else here:
http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/us-at...ry?id=54365546

"ABC News has learned that Geoffrey Berman, the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York, is recused from the Michael Cohen investigation. Two sources familiar with the matter tell ABC News Berman was not involved in the decision to raid Cohen's office because of the recusal...... Berman is a Trump appointee with ties to Rudy Giuliani who donated money to the 2016 Trump campaign."

not that it's the biggest deal anyway, but this whole thread sometimes seems like nothing but a string of partisan talking points - verification not required or even desired, just a fondness for the claim

[Hornsby]

cite?

I see something else here:
http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/us-at...ry?id=54365546

"ABC News has learned that Geoffrey Berman, the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York, is recused from the Michael Cohen investigation. Two sources familiar with the matter tell ABC News Berman was not involved in the decision to raid Cohen's office because of the recusal...... Berman is a Trump appointee with ties to Rudy Giuliani who donated money to the 2016 Trump campaign."

not that it's the biggest deal anyway, but this whole thread sometimes seems like nothing but a string of partisan talking points - verification not required or even desired, just a fondness for the claim

And yet the NY Times disagrees:

Mr. Cohen’s lawyer, Stephen Ryan, confirmed the raids. “Today, the U.S. attorney’s office for the Southern District of New York executed a series of search warrants and seized the privileged communications between my client, Michael Cohen, and his clients,” Mr. Ryan said. “I have been advised by federal prosecutors that the New York action is, in part, a referral by the office of special counsel, Robert Mueller.”

Mr. Sessions appointed the United States attorney for the Southern District, Geoffrey S. Berman, only in January. Mr. Berman is a former law partner of Rudolph W. Giuliani, a former New York mayor and a supporter of Mr. Trump.

https://www.nytimes.com/2018/04/09/us/politics/fbi-raids-office-of-trumps-longtime-lawyer-michael-cohen.html

And when I post something of a newsy nature, not just my opinion, I always try to have a source cited and linked. So there's your verification...the ABC snippet also doesn't have a time frame as to WHEN Berman may have been recused.

ETA: News of the Berman recusal apparently came out about an hour ago...not last night when the original post was up...

[Judge Jude]

I read the whole article looking for the part where it says "the warrant was issued by a Republican Judge appointed by Trump," since your excerpt doesn't say that. it isn't there, alas - so there is no verification of your point.

again, not saying this is the key element of this whole brouhaha at all. but a claim that Berman issued the warrant is attempting to buttress a talking point that "even a Trump guy!"

this might make it easier: if it turns out the issuance was made by an Obama appointee, the Rs would be claiming "witch hunt" - and we would both agree that at that level, the idea that decisions are made solely on whose laundry is involved is dopey.

well....

[Hornsby]

I read the whole article looking for the part where it says "the warrant was issued by a Republican Judge appointed by Trump," since your excerpt doesn't say that. it isn't there, alas - so there is no verification of your point.

again, not saying this is the key element of this whole brouhaha at all. but a claim that Berman issued the warrant is attempting to buttress a talking point that "even a Trump guy!"

this might make it easier: if it turns out the issuance was made by an Obama appointee, the Rs would be claiming "witch hunt" - and we would both agree that at that level, the idea that decisions are made solely on whose laundry is involved is dopey.

well....

As per Cohen's own Lawyer: “Today, the U.S. attorney’s office for the Southern District of New York executed a series of search warrants and seized the privileged communications between my client, Michael Cohen, and his clients,” He clearly says that the US attorney's office executed said search warrants. The Southern District USAA is Berman, who now apparently has recused himself. Again, we don't know the time frame.

It was hasty typing on my part to say "Judge", when the head of the office was obviously a Trump appointed USA. Mea Culpa...

[Judge Jude]

well, I wasn't trying to nitpick, to be clear. I just don't understand what the point of this was, I guess: "the warrant was issued by a Republican Judge appointed by Trump, who was also a Max individual donor to the Trump campaign... "

by all accounts I have seen, a judge is not going to issue this sort of warrant without significant evidence of probable cause. so who appointed that person doesn't matter to me.

[Hornsby]

well, I wasn't trying to nitpick, to be clear. I just don't understand what the point of this was, I guess: "the warrant was issued by a Republican Judge appointed by Trump, who was also a Max individual donor to the Trump campaign... "

by all accounts I have seen, a judge is not going to issue this sort of warrant without significant evidence of probable cause. so who appointed that person doesn't matter to me.

it bears a certain significance that someone of the same political persuasion is swayed enough by the presented evidence that they'll grant a warrant, despite their personal feelings. It says something to the credibility of the evidence, and the quality of the person's character. I'm not sure what Berman's recusing himself says about his character, or his future, given how Trump still vents on about Session recusing himself in the Comey kerfuffle...

[baldgriff]

Or it means that a judge just did his job - rather than play politics.

Edit to add:
How do you know what their personal feelings are?

[OaklandA's]

Or it means that a judge just did his job - rather than play politics.

President Trump said that "This is the most biased group of people, these people have the biggest conflicts of interest I’ve ever seen. Democrats, all — or just about all — either Democrats, or a couple of Republicans that worked for President Obama..."

So Trump is clearly trying to say the warrant was orchestrated by Democrats. I think that was why Hornsby was pointing out that the DA for New York was a Trump appointee (after Trump fired Preet Baharra, he replaced him with Geoffrey Berman, who Trump interviewed personally).

[Hornsby]

Or it means that a judge just did his job - rather than play politics.

Edit to add:
How do you know what their personal feelings are?

Oak summed it up well, but as to the personal feelings, it's the old duck cliche'...if a person works for a Republican (former Giuliani law firm employee), donates over $5000 dollars to a Republican Presidential campaign (Trump), and is appointed by a Republican President (again Trump), I think that it's pretty safe to assume that he/she has GOP leanings.

[revo]

Now Dumb Donald is, according to sources, looking to fire Rosenstein.


For a guy who says he has nothing to hide, he sure looks like a guy who has a LOT to hide!

[revo]

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Why do we keep broadcasting when we are going to attack Syria. Why can&#39;t we just be quiet and, if we attack at all, catch them by surprise?</p>&mdash; Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) <a href="https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/372943068267573249?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 29, 2013</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Russia vows to shoot down any and all missiles fired at Syria. Get ready Russia, because they will be coming, nice and new and “smart!” You shouldn’t be partners with a Gas Killing Animal who kills his people and enjoys it!</p>&mdash; Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) <a href="https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/984022625440747520?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 11, 2018</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

[swampdragon]

what does "nice" mean when describing missiles?
or "new" or even ""smart""

I just dont understand most of the things president* says and I spend the day interpreting middle schoolers ideas.

[Teenwolf]

what does "nice" mean when describing missiles?
or "new" or even ""smart""

I just dont understand most of the things president* says and I spend the day interpreting middle schoolers ideas.

It's so painful to see the fate of the world in the hands of a complete moron, embraced for his anti-intellectualism, mistaken for honesty. I really hope the Trump base starts to leave him, because his anti-law enforcement and anti-government conspiracy theory BS is a danger to the country. It's brainwashing, plain and simple, backed up by Fox News to make it all seem legitimate. Even the fringe conspiracy theory Info Wars/Breitbart nonsense has bled into the primetime Fox News content.

If Trump fires Rosenstein, will any Republicans stand up against Trump?

[Hornsby]

It's so painful to see the fate of the world in the hands of a complete moron, embraced for his anti-intellectualism, mistaken for honesty. I really hope the Trump base starts to leave him, because his anti-law enforcement and anti-government conspiracy theory BS is a danger to the country. It's brainwashing, plain and simple, backed up by Fox News to make it all seem legitimate. Even the fringe conspiracy theory Info Wars/Breitbart nonsense has bled into the primetime Fox News content.

If Trump fires Rosenstein, will any Republicans stand up against Trump?

To answer your last question first, no. Token GOPers will wring their hands and proclaim that what's happening is just not right, but nobody from leadership will stand up to Trump, nor will they allow anything that he doesn't clearly want. Like McConnell refusing to have a hearing on a potential bill to protect the Mueller investigation.

And no, his base is his base, and they're not leaving in any appreciable numbers. He'll be sitting anywhere from 35-40%, and that will never change. It's a very beatable percentage, if he decides to run again, or he doesn't leave office. BUT, people have to continue to get out and vote, and not split the ticket like last time...