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Special Council Files First Charges In Russia Probe
Topic Started: Oct 27 2017, 09:05 PM (59 Views)
Webster
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....just breaking over the wires as we speak....
Quote:
 
(CNN) Washington (CNN)A federal grand jury in Washington, DC, on Friday approved the first charges in the investigation led by special counsel Robert Mueller, according to sources briefed on the matter.

The charges are still sealed under orders from a federal judge. Plans were prepared Friday for anyone charged to be taken into custody as soon as Monday, the sources said. It is unclear what the charges are. A spokesman for the special counsel's office declined to comment.

Mueller was appointed in May to lead the investigation into Russian meddling in the 2016 election. Under the regulations governing special counsel investigations, Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein, who has oversight over the Russia investigation, would have been made aware of any charges before they were taken before the grand jury for approval, according to people familiar with the matter.

On Friday, top lawyers who are helping to lead the Mueller probe, including veteran prosecutor Andrew Weissmann, were seen entering the court room at the DC federal court where the grand jury meets to hear testimony in the Russia investigation.

Reporters present saw a flurry of activity at the grand jury room, but officials made no announcements.

Shortly after President Donald Trump abruptly fired then-FBI Director James Comey, Rosenstein appointed Mueller as special counsel. Mueller took the reins of a federal investigation that Comey first opened in July 2016 in the middle of the presidential campaign. Mueller is authorized to investigate "any matters that arose or may arise directly from the investigation," according to Rosenstein's order.

The special counsel's investigation has focused on potential collusion between the Trump campaign and Russia, as well as obstruction of justice by the President, who might have tried to impede the investigation. CNN reported that investigators are scrutinizing Trump and his associates' financial ties to Russia.

Mueller's team has also examined foreign lobbying conducted by former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort, former national security adviser Michael Flynn, and others. His team has issued subpoenas for documents and testimony to a handful of figures, including some people close to Manafort, and others involved in the Trump Tower meeting between Russians and campaign officials.

Last year, the Comey-led investigation secured approval from the secret court that oversees the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act to monitor the communications of Manafort, as well as former Trump campaign adviser Carter Page, as part of the investigation into Russian meddling.

In addition to Mueller's probe, three committees on Capitol Hill are conducting their own investigations.
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Webster
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University of New Hampshire professor Seth Abramson has a twitter thread on the events breaking here....

(1) BREAKING NEWS: First Charges Filed in Trump-Russia Probe, At Least One Arrest Expected Soon
(2) I'd predicted the first charges would be filed in November, so this timeframe is even more aggressive than the one I'd been working from.
(3) We don't know who's going to be arrested on Monday—or, given that the news is public now, much sooner—but in order of likelihood I'd say:
(4) Manafort (previously informed by Mueller's agents he'd be indicted); small gap; Flynn (FARA and/or Making False Statements); big gap...
(5) Kushner (making sworn false statements; Obstruction); small gap; some other person previously undisclosed; small gap; Don (Obstruction).

(6) For investigative reasons, you'd tend to issue every indictment you're already prepared on all at once—unless you expect someone to roll.
(7) By no means does that suggest these indictments are "all Mueller has"—far from it. This is the beginning of the next stage in the probe.
(8) The moment charges are filed, you can begin exerting real pressure on witnesses, through their attorneys, to roll on the big fish—Trump.
(9) If the charges filed—once unsealed or reported on (somehow) while sealed—aren't very closely tied to collusion, Trump will go ballistic.
(10) The probe stage I predicted would begin in November is starting now. Mueller is now at risk of having Trump try to fire him at any time.

(11) This stage also brings the possibility we'll have announcement of a cooperating individual at any time—which would be earth-shattering.
(12) You only let a smaller fish wriggle free—or, more likely, simply receive less punishment—when they can help deliver a much bigger fish.
(13) So if the indictment is Trump's campaign manager, this "early" indictment suggests they will be pressing him to help them get the POTUS.
(14) I say that because if it's a random fish, the large target could be Manafort; if the fish is Manafort, the large target is likely Trump.
(15) There's little reason for Mueller to use Manafort to get Kushner, Don, or Page. Only Trump or the Attorney General would make any sense.

(16) (I should add: in the "likelihood ranking" I gave earlier, Sessions—perjury—ranks after Don. Page falls in the "other person" category.)
(17) The historic import of this moment can't be overstated. This is the beginning of something very big, however some may wish it's the end.
(18) If the indictment's for financial crimes, Mueller is moving very quickly here, as those cases—especially when international—are complex.
(19) If it's a testimonial or technical offense—perjury; making false statements; failing to register as a foreign agent—the case is simpler.
(20) If it's Obstruction, this is a *somewhat* fast indictment, as those cases can be hard to prove—though *not* as hard as some pundits say.

(21) One might seal a criminal indictment for many reasons, usually having to do with the investigation—e.g. when you want a witness to roll.
(22) You might also do it not to taint other witnesses, provoke a witness to flee or show your hand in terms of the facts you've accumulated.
(23) The fact that the indictment leaked relatively quickly means the identity of the defendant will leak quicker—as an arrest will be seen.
(24) And if somehow the feds bring the defendant in quietly and secretly, it seems clear we'll learn the defendant's identity in short order.
(25) Don't let pundits tell you the nature of the charge, or who's hit with it, shows Mueller's hand—this is the *beginning* of a long stage.
(26) PS, I agree with any who note this leak is bad. I also think this is the biggest criminal case of our lifetimes—so "no leaks" is impossible.
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Webster
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Long-time GOP strategist Rick Wilson has his own take on tonight's breaking news....


(1) I told y'all on Twitter and Periscope and elsewhere; Mueller doesn't care about the static and the noise.
(2) Given the team he assembled and the information he has access to, no tweet or Fox story or meme what's going to change the methodical...
(3) ... and serious nature of the investigation and the legal consequences involved. Trump is the guy with the fancy Kung Fu roundhouse kick
(4) Mueller is the guy standing 20 feet away with a .45 waiting for the right moment.
(5) A lot of friends tried to run with the uranium one story. I didn't get hyped up on it because it was always a distraction.
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Webster
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--Robert Mueller has just convinced a grand jury to return an indictment and @seanhannity is talking about Hillary colluding with Russia with absolutely no mention of the indictment. (Ed Krassenstein, 27 Oct. 2017)
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Webster
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.....quoting West Wing Reports.....


(1) First charges have been filed in Mueller investigation - sealed tonight under orders from federal judge (CNN)
(2) The charges mean that the first arrest (or arrests) could be made as soon as Monday, CNN's sources say. Nervous weekend for some #Mueller
(3) In a country where rule of law is - and always will be - paramount, @realdonaldtrump does not determine if something is a "witch hunt"
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Webster
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....Reuters is also reporting the same as well.....
Quote:
 
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A federal grand jury in Washington on Friday approved the first charges in the investigation led by special counsel Robert Mueller into alleged Russian meddling in the 2016 U.S. presidential election, a source briefed on the matter told Reuters.
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Webster
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--For those scoring at home, save this Fox News graphic praising Mueller's biography for when they now decide he's the devil incarnate #Frauds (John Ziegler, 27 Oct. 2017)
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Webster
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Democratic Underground: And Fox News's Response Is...
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They are ignoring the charges that Mueller has filed. Completely ignoring them.

The headline read: No details in Democrat Scandals.

They were talking about the "fact" (in other words, fiction) that HRC sold our uranium to Russia for 110 million dollars. And that is so much worse than Donald Trump Jr. taking one meeting that supposedly came to nothing.

They live in an alternate reality. Unfortunately, they have demonstrated a great ability in the past to bring a large percentage of the country into that alternate reality with them.

The worst part of the post-Watergate era is the way it laid the groundwork for insane amounts of swiftboating.

The people at Fox are truly bereft of personal ethics. They are fundamentally evil people.
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Mozzie
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I think this is all just a front, i have a hard tie believing that Russia had anything to do with it, read it all here

https://www.realclearpolitics.com/video/2017/10/25/rand_paul_rumors_that_democrats_leaked_clinton_emails_to_wikileaks_russians_were_their_centrifuge.html
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Webster
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Mozzie
Oct 28 2017, 01:02 AM
I think this is all just a front, i have a hard tie believing that Russia had anything to do with it, read it all here

https://www.realclearpolitics.com/video/2017/10/25/rand_paul_rumors_that_democrats_leaked_clinton_emails_to_wikileaks_russians_were_their_centrifuge.html
The day I would trust Wikileaks, Mozzie, would be about the same day I score a date with these rockers below....

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....and that dog just don't freaking hunt, my friend....
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Webster
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--Wow. Roger Stone is losing what's left of his mind. (Pe Resists, 28 Oct. 2017)
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Webster
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*continues earlier thought* But as I look at it, Mozzie, what Bob Mueller is doing here is the same thing that you would do in going after a criminal organization: indict someone lower down on the ladder and use the pressure of a federal indictment - and trust me, the Feds' don't do anything without making sure everything's dotted and crossed beforehand - to get them to flip and roll on those higher up.

Watch to see who the indictment is for; if its' Kushner, Flynn, Donnie Jr. or Page, that likely means Paul Manafort needs to start negotiating with Mueller....on the other hand, if its' Manafort whose name is on that indictment, that tells me Mueller's looking at Trump as the main target, not Manafort.
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Webster
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--Multiple sources say Trump “completely lost his mind” after he found out Mueller’s filed charges & now he’s “having an epic meltdown” #AMJoy (Scott Dworkin, 28 Oct. 2017)
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