According to career law enforcement officials in this author’s family, criminals will do anything to deflect blame away from themselves and when possible are more likely to blame the police, prosecutors, and judges when they catch up to the bad guys. In fact, last week one of those relatives shared a story of a rapist who raised Hell in court and complained that the real crime was committed by the victim and her parents for “ratting him out†to the police over the sexual assault caught on one of those “nanny-cams;†the criminal demanded that the district attorney drop the rape charges and launch an investigation into who actually reported the crime and prosecute the parents for capturing the assault on video.
Over the past few months Americans have witnessed some high-level Republican criminals in Congress, and corrupt Donald Trump in the White House, attempt to blame the intelligence community for doing its job protecting Americans and national security. Trump has been beating the blame drum that the only crime regarding his campaign’s conspiracy with a hostile foreign nation was whomever “leaked†information that Trump’s people were in bed with Putin. That “criminal†behavior was on display before, during, and after the House of Representative held a meeting with directors of the FBI and NSA because they refuted a libelous charge from Trump about President Obama, and revealed the IC is investigating the Trump campaign’s collusion with Russia to help Trump and congressional Republicans, including Speaker of the House Paul Ryan, in the last election.
One would have thought the so-called patriotic Republicans on the House Intelligence Committee would have at least feigned concern over what they learned from FBI Director James Comey and NSA Director Michael S. Rogers about the lying fascist in the Oval Office. Mr. Comey, for his part, debunked the libelous Trump claim that President Obama went outside of America and enlisted British “contractors†to wiretap the paranoid nut-job in the White House. Mr. Rogers agreed with Comey and verified claims by America’s angry British allies that it was “utterly ridiculous†that their IC followed a direct order from a foreigner, President Barack Obama, to illegally “spy†on the Trump; whether through wiretaps or microwave ovens. Add to that, congressional Republicans learned that America’s IC was doing its due diligence and has been “officially†investigating the ties between Trump, his treasonous lieutenants and, the Kremlin. The Republicans’ response, like that of Trump, was to pretend that colluding with a hostile foreign government wasn’t really a crime and demanded that the focus of any congressional investigation should be on the intelligence community they all claim “leaked†information that the country has known to be true since last summer.
What was very revealing about just how closely tied to criminals in the Trump White House two Republicans on the House Intel Committee really are, both Representative Devin Nunes (R-CA) and Trey Gowdy (R-SC) were absolutely enraged over the revelation that Turkey’s foreign agent, retired Lt. General Michael Flynn the short-lived NSA chief, was caught lying about his contacts with the Russians. NO, they were not outraged that a retired general accepted payments from, and conspired with, a hostile Russian operator, they were livid that the American people learned that the man in the White House appointed a foreign agent and Russian sympathizer as head of the National Security Agency. Nunes and Gowdy agree with the Trump and believe the focus of any congressional or Justice Department investigation should target the intelligence community, not the “alleged†criminals colluding with the Russians. In that sense they are precisely like a common criminal blaming law enforcement because they were investigated.
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Here’s the thing about the intelligence community that Republicans are well aware of; every agent of every one of the 17 intelligence agencies serve the United States of America and work tirelessly to protect its people, interests and national security. In fact, the reason Americans feel safe flying the friendly skies is because of the intelligence community; not the brave men and women of the military. Like the military, the intelligence community does not serve whomever is in the Oval Office. This is particularly true when the current occupant is under investigation for what normal people call treason, and despite the protection by congressional Republicans who are arguably complicit in a cover-up by attempting to deflect attention away from the traitorous Trump-Russia connection.
If, and it is a monumental if, someone or many ones in the intelligence community did alert the public or the press about anyone in the Trump camp colluding with Russia or it’s spies to undermine American democracy, then they should be hailed as heroes. Instead they are being railed against by common criminals like Trump and congressional Republicans for doing their jobs protecting national security. In fact, the Trump is due to appoint one of his billionaire corporate cohorts, a wealthy elitist with no intelligence experience, to investigate the intelligence community and “clean house;†probably of any agent who refuses to take a blood oath swearing fealty to Donald Trump at the expense of American national security.
As the Washington Post’s editorial board said yesterday, mildly one might add:
“Congressional Republicans ought to consider larger national interests. Russia’s intervention in the election was not incidental and haphazard, but part of a concerted campaign to disrupt Western democracy. Given Trump’s refusal to acknowledge the threat, it is essential that Congress discover the truth about Russia’s activities…â€
The Washington Post’s editors also agreed, sort of, with this author that what Republicans should be doing is what the Trump and some Republicans want to punish the intelligence community for; “fully informing the public†about the “alleged†traitors in the Trump camp. Either congressional Republicans are terrified of Trump ordering the liar leading the Justice Department to investigate and punish them, or they are colluding with Trump to conceal his and his close advisors’ treason against the United States; something it appears that only the intelligence community can protect us from now that Republicans revealed they are part of the cover up.
Audio engineer and instructor for SAE. Writes op/ed commentary supporting Secular Humanist causes, and exposing suppression of women, the poor, and minorities. An advocate for freedom of religion and particularly, freedom of NO religion.
Born in the South, raised in the Mid-West and California for a well-rounded view of America; it doesn’t look good.
Former minister, lifelong musician, Mahayana Zen-Buddhist.
