Trump has given William Barr, one of his principal toads, the power to declassify anything he wants. Allegedly, this is so Barr can investigate how the investigations that led to the Meuller investigation got started. Paul Waldman explains why this is a big deal.
Barr is not trying to learn more about whether there was something fishy about that investigation. He’s looking for information that can then be selectively declassified in order to help Trump and undermine his perceived enemies. If that involves compromising sensitive intelligence, he won’t hesitate for a moment.
We can be pretty sure of what’s going to happen. Barr will scour every record he can to learn as much as possible about the Russia investigation. Whenever he comes across something that can be spun to make the FBI or anyone Trump has decided is his enemy look bad, he’ll put it in the “Declassify” pile. Then he’ll release it all to the public and hold a news conference where he suggests that there was a conspiracy to take down Trump. The president will then take to Twitter to proclaim that he was indeed the victim of a vile witch hunt that has at last been exposed. The news media, in possession of only the materials Barr has chosen to give them, will struggle to avoid amplifying and reinforcing Barr’s claims.
In case you were wondering what happens when an infinitely corrupt president decides to use the powers of the federal government for his own self-interest with the help of lackeys he has installed to protect him, this is it. Now just wait until he tells Barr to go after the Democratic nominee for president.
Yep, that’s how it will go down. Kind of amazing the United States lasted as long as it did, consideringa circus clown is doiing such a bang up job destroying it.
You know, do me a favor. Tell me if you think this is an actual *conspiracy theory*, or if you think it's a bit too plausible to be a conspiracy theory, even if you're pretty sure it isn't true.
Trump loves Putin, and talks to him, off the record, frequently.
Putin would *love* to sharpen up his election tampering game.
Knowing what the US knows would help, and help him hide it, and make him more effective in 2020.
Now, pause here, because this is something not everyone thinks about. A piece of information can seem totally innocuous to an ordinary person, but to a trained intelligence agency, it might reveal sources, and methods, and capabilities, and sometimes, in a cascading manner. You might remember that during WWII, the allies had to let attacks go undefended, to avoid risking the Germans learning they'd cracked the Enigma cipher. All the allies had to do was reveal one tiny fact, that the Germans could realize could only reasonably have been obtained from an encrypted communication.
Is Trump stupid enough to provide Putin with some advice on election interference? Yes, Absolutely. Even if that's all he was trying to do, that could cause us a lot of damage.
Let me say it again: I'm not saying I think this is happening. But I do think it steps a hair beyond conspiracy theory, because it's plausible, fits known motivations and historical data, and face it: if you're going to risk national security to try to seize control of the narrative, why not ask your buddy in Russia to do you another solid in 2020, "and here are those innocuous facts you asked for."
(I hope I don't have to explain why Trump would have to take the risk of having a toady do the research and compile the facts for him, rather than gathering it himself.)
When things get this weird, please just remember reality is the same as it has always been and truth is a noble elusive goal.
Zealously arrogant Trump and Barr are probably underestimating how dangerous it is to take on the intelligence services. They're not likely to cooperate and are capable of leaking information that will further damage the administration. Nixon learned that when a series of leaks from the FBI to the Washington Post and others revealed details of the Watergate scandal. In this case overseas intelligence even less under the control of the White House and DOJ would be involved.
I've had the same thought as Winston: since the intelligence community began surveillance on the Trump campaign due to credible inferences that the campaign was connecting to the Russians for unknown reasons, any investigation into that surveillance should bring out more information about how suspiciously the campaign was acting. If Barr, as maha suggests here, tries to game the intelligence release game to favor Trump, the CIA and FBI are likely to game him right back with mysteriously sourced but highly credible leaks of just how deeply Trump is in with Putin and the gang.
"When the going gets weird, the weird turn pro."
Hunter S. Thompson
I'm feelin' pretty weird!
You?
What I don't understand is Barr's reasoning in doing what he's doing. Can somebody explain this to me? Is he just corrupt or does someone somewhere have something on him?
I don't know the answer to your question, grannyeagle. But I think there is a book titled: Everything you always wanted to know about bootlicking*.
* but were afraid to ask.
On a serious note… I think he is corrupted by his ego and the challenge of the task he has undertaken. If he pulls it off and manages to flip the script it will be an enormous stroke to his ego and his perceived legal prowess. Rumpelstiltskin will have nothing on him. Maybe old Rumpel could spin straw into gold, but Barr will be spinning shit into gold if he succeeds in his endeavor.