Paul Revere by Cyrus Dallin, North End, Boston

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Thursday, June 8, 2017

Comey Testifies Today


via GIPHY

UPDATE:

When asked by a senator if Trump had colluded with the Russians, Comey said he couldn't answer that question in an open hearing. Hmmmmmmm.





Charles M. Blow at The New York Times writesJames Comey Cometh:

 It is hard to calculate the grievousness of the wounds that James Comey’s testimony will inflict on Donald Trump. 

 On Wednesday, representatives of Comey, the consummate showman whose own flair for the dramatic rivals Trump’s, requested the release of his incredibly detailed opening statement in advance of his Thursday Senate testimony. If you believe the Comey statement, you must take away from it that Trump is a liar, a bully and a criminal. You must take away from it that Trump has a consuming need to be surrounded not only by loyalists but also by lackeys. You must take away that Trump is brand obsessed — his own brand — and that anything that besmirches that brand must be blunted. You must take away that Trump knows nothing of decorum and propriety and boundaries. You must take away that this is the most comprehensive and compelling case thus far that Trump did indeed engage in obstruction of justice. Trump’s comments as alleged in the Comey statement make Trump sound more like a mob boss than the president of a democracy.






19 comments:

Doris said...

So what, Trump will be vilified

Shaw Kenawe said...


More likely, Doris, Comey will tell the truth.

Clearwater, Florida said...

"The Russia controversy has unquestionably slowed or halted progress on Trump’s agenda. His fellow Republicans control both chambers of Congress, yet have delivered no signature legislation to the president. His plan to replace President Barack Obama’s Affordable Care Act only narrowly passed the House and is stalled in the Senate, while his tax cuts proposal has gone nowhere in either chamber."

That's not because of Russia. If anything, Russia blunts discussion of how truly heinous that legislation is. It's stalled because people hate it, and republicans are afraid of finally losing their seats over it.

F.G. said...

Comey is kicking Trump's fat orange ass!

Dave Miller said...

This is a one day theater. I remember watching the Watergate hearings and those ran on for days.

I doubt there are going to be any smoking guns today. More like simmering leads, but we could have scripted this in advance and been pretty accurate of what everyone is going to say.

What has come out is this... the meetings that the Trump campaigns may have had with the Russians were not illegal and not the problem. The investigations came about because members of the incoming Trump campaign lied about whether those meetings took place. Either innocently, or in an effort to cover up those meetings.

And this... that the FBI is 100% certain that the Russians tried to hack and influence our elections. And our President does not believe them.

Shaw Kenawe said...


Dave, don't forget the problematic meetings Jared Kushner had with the Russians in his effort to establish a back channel by setting up communications within a RUSSIAN facility and also talking to a Russian bank that had sanctions against it. All in secret. And Kushner LIED about those meetings. That's a lot of smoke. And it's no small matter.

Flying Junior said...

Man! Senator McCain is off his rocker. Must be constipated this morning.

"Tell me again just why Hillary is no longer the subject of this investigation?" "If the president had told me about a 'thing' that we had, I would be curious just what exactly that 'thing' was."

You know, it's our thing, like the Cosa Nostra.

In normal times McCain could be declared unfit for office. Nowadays he fits right in.

Shaw Kenawe said...

Clearwater, The criminal investigations have slowed down Trump's agenda, and that's a good thing. It'll stop further damage to America.

F.J., I missed McCain's performance, but have heard from a number of people that it was embarrassing. McCain could very well have some sort of dementia. He has my sympathy if he does, but he sure shouldn't be in Congress.

Kevin Robbins said...

This is a nice opening act. Mueller will be the main attraction. The Russian collusion hardly matters once they start pulling the threads to uncover the money laundering that surely took place. If vilified means incarcerated, then yes he will be, Doris.

Shaw Kenawe said...

From VOX:

The GOP’s absurdly low bar for Trump
The Republican spin on this involves a twofold absurdity:

The first plank is pretending not to notice that after Trump’s request to Comey regarding Flynn was not fulfilled, Trump fired Comey. That’s not a light touch at all.
The second plank is pretending not to notice that a president covering for subordinates’ crimes is serious wrongdoing, even if the president himself is not under investigation.
Forget Russia. Trump, like any president, has a wide range of contacts with friends, political supporters, donors, and the broader social and professional networks of his subordinates. He also oversees a vast executive branch that is responsible for supervising a huge range of law enforcement officials and regulatory agencies.

Anonymous said...

But he was right on the spot, and put Comey in a corner.

anymouse said...

I loved every second of it. When he said he memorialized it because he was afraid Trump would lie about it, I scared the dogs screaming "Yeah - finally someone calls the fat nasty old fool what he is - a LIAR."
This was major and the fact that the very pathetic right wing is attempting to claim some kind of 'victory' by parsing a few words of the testimony is hysterical to watch. LOL. THey are truly pathetic, at this point. A once great party has been reduced to a bunch of drooling, mumbling idiots.
Now, Mueller will spend a few months putting the paint on the bricks that Comey tossed through the window of the the Oval office and Trumputin will be gone and we can get back to moving the country forward.

Doris said...

According to Former FBI Director James Comey’s testimony today in Congress, Obama’s Attorney General Lorretta Lynch asked him specifically to not refer to the on-going Hillary email probe as an “investigation.” Rather, she asked that he simply refer to it as a “matter.”

What?! This is a new low, even for the Obama Administration. I can only imagine why Lynch would rather call it a “matter” than what it really was—an investigation.

Shaw Kenawe said...

BlueBull, the important thing to consider is this: Comey testified UNDER OATH, and the penalty for lying under oath is considerable. We all know that Trump is a liar. He lies like he breathes. Nothing he's claimed himself or through his lawyer has been claimed under oath.

I believe Comey. Trump is a liar.

Shaw Kenawe said...

"Doris," what has that to do with today's testimony by Comey? You righties always want to change the subject when it is bad for Trump. Trump is a liar.

Shaw Kenawe said...

Anonymous said...
But he was right on the spot, and put Comey in a corner.

Only you righties see it that way. You are the 34 percenters still clinging to a sinking Trump. Good luck.

Shaw Kenawe said...

Kevin, being vilified isn't what Trump should worry about.

Trump is a liar.

Les Carpenter said...

Even libertarian Judge Napolitano said on FAUX News that Comey made a credible case Trump has been dishonest with the American people.

More popcorn please.

Lee Arnold said...

Trump's Tweets Doom May in British Elections.
Projected to LOSE her majority.
Brexit could be in jeopardy.
Overall a good day in the World of International Politics.
BTW : Donald, thank you for being the Dick that you are.
Your time is coming soon.