POLITICUSUSA
On January 6, 2017, between Donald Trump winning the presidential election and his being sworn in, our nation’s intelligence community issued a document clearly outlining how Russia, at the directive of the President of that nation, interfered with our election, favoring Donald Trump.
Donald Trump said on Thursday the hands-off approach he has taken to the U.S. Justice Department given the probe into possible collusion between his campaign and Russia could change, comments that could re-ignite concerns he might move to impede the investigation.
U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions on Wednesday declined to say during a congressional hearing whether he would recuse himself from an investigation involving Michael Cohen, the personal lawyer for President Donald Trump, but said he continued to honor his recusal agreement for campaign-related issues.
Several rumors continue circulating that Mr. Trump wants to fire the Deputy Attorney General for the United States Department of Justice, Rod Rosenstein, or Special Counsel, Robert Mueller, with reports by major media outlets such as The Washington Post and The New York Times, confirming such speculation.
Last night, Robert Costa, from the Washington Post reports that Steve Bannon is “pitching a plan to West Wing aides and congressional allies” in an apparent attempt to “cripple the federal investigation, into the matter of Russian interference.”
During Mr. Trump’s meltdown on Monday night, prior to his meeting with his security team regarding the issue of Syria, the reader might recall a reporter asking Mr. Trump quite an unusual question:
It is one thing for liberal leaning political analysts or pundits to discuss Mr. Trump’s apparent meltdown yesterday addressing how his long time friend and lawyer, Michael Cohen is now at the center of a federal investigation and quite another to witness Republican strategist, and former John McCain campaign Chief Strategist, Steve Schmidt doing so.
In front of his Security Council yesterday, Mr. Trump commented on the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s earlier raid and warrant served on his longtime friend and lawyer, Michael Cohen.
Lashing out at the Federal Bureau of Investigation, calling the investigation a “witch hunt” and a “disgrace,” Trump said the following regarding the raid which took place in multiple locations earlier in the day:
Ever since The Washington Post reported two days ago, that Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s team, in an attempt to interview Mr. Trump, told Trump’s legal team that Trump was being investigated, but that Mr. Mueller “does not consider him a criminal target at this point,” a parade of pundits and analysts have chimed in to provide Americans with an analysis of what this may mean for Mr. Trump.
The internal watchdog at the U.S. Justice Department said on Wednesday he is launching a review, after Republican members of the U.S. House Intelligence Committee alleged that the FBI made serious missteps when it sought a warrant to monitor a former adviser to President Donald Trump's 2016 election campaign.