While speaking with reporters as he left the White House, Trump blew up all of his administration’s excuses for the FBI firings and revoking Brennan’s security clearance by admitting that he is doing all of this to discredit Robert Mueller.
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Trump said:
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Look, I say it, I say it again, that whole situation is a rigged witch-hunt, a totally rigged they could be looking at all the people that got fired by them, all of the people that got fired. They should be looking at Bruce Orr and his wife Nelly for dealing with Russians. They should be looking at Steele, all these FBI guys who got fired and demoted. It’s a really weird — it’s not us. It’s a rigged witch-hunt. I’ve said it for a long time.
I think Bruce Orr is a disgrace. I suspect I’ll be taking it away quickly. I think he’s a disgrace. For him to be in the justice department, doing what he did, that’s a disgrace. That is disqualifying for Mueller, and Mr. Mueller has a lot of conflicts also directly yourself. You know that. Mr. Mueller is highly conflicted. In fact, Comey is like his best friend, as you go into conflict after conflict. Sadly, Mueller is conflicted as well. Let him write his report. There’s no collusion, if he was doing an honest report, he would write it on the other side. Take a look at what they did, including colluding with the Russians. The other side.
Trump is trying to discredit Mueller
The revoking of security clearances and the firing of FBI agents who were associated with the Russia investigation isn’t about good government or “cleaning up” the FBI. The motive is as the president just said, an effort to discredit Robert Mueller and the Russia investigation. What is interesting is that Trump said so let him write his report, which indicates that he may understand that he can’t fire Mueller.
The strategic shift among Trump and his lawyers to attacking Mueller suggests that they have turned their focus from firing Mueller to discrediting his final report. Trump is setting up an impeachment defense, and the centerpiece of that defense involves firing FBI agents to argue that entire Russia investigation was corrupt.
Trump admitted that all he cares about is saving his own skin, and any excuse otherwise from this White House is a lie.
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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
