Former Federal Prosecutor Speaks Out And Calls Trump A Tyrant and A Despot

Former federal prosecutor Paul Butler called Trump a tyrant and a despot while saying that Rod Rosenstein knows better than to comply with Trump’s demands for an investigation into those who are investigating him.

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Butler said on All In With Chris Hayes, “The president has ignored all of the ethical and procedural guidelines of the department and hereby demands an investigation? I know Rod Rosenstein. He knows better than this. This is not how the system is supposed to work. So in the worst case scenario, Rod Rosenstein is being played by President Trump just like President Trump played him to get him to write that memo justifying the firing of James Comey. The best case is that he’s trying to appease the president to avoid a Saturday Night Massacre but Chris, you can’t apiece a tyrant. You can’t mollify a despot. All you do is embolden him.”

Why did Rod Rosenstein comply with Trump’s request?

Rod Rosenstein has figured out the same thing as foreign leaders and Trump’s own staff. The president has the attention span of a coked up fruit fly. Focus isn’t Trump’s thing, so if Rosenstein can bury Trump’s request, Trump will forget about it and move on to something else. It is all a game to buy Mueller time to let him finish the investigation before Trump has a chance to plunge the country into a constitutional crisis. It would not be unreasonable to assume that Rosenstein is trying to buy enough time get through the midterm election, and then know that there will be more protections if Democrats take back all or part of Congress.

Trump is a despot

Trump is behaving in a despotic manner. He is now declaring what he wants as if democracy no longer exists and he is the Constitution. For the next five-plus months, Rosenstein and Mueller are democracy’s last line of defense. It makes sense that Rosenstein would try to punt this one off, but tyrants and despots are only toppled when they are stood up to. Since Republicans won’t do anything, it will be up to the voters to stage a ballot box revolution in November.

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Jason Easley

Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.

Awards and  Professional Memberships

Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association