Thank you for your steady, solemn, serious acknowledgment of what we have been through, are going through, and are likely to go through… before we get to the other side. (I hope we will get to the other side.) I so appreciate your ability to honor our trauma while reminding us that all is not lost. A delicate balance.
Of course, you bring to us your experience and expertise in the law along with gathering trusted other sources and synthesizing those perspectives, as well. And offer this space for us to “talk amongst ourselves.”
Each is an essential ingredient. But it’s your gift of finding the sweet spot of truth with hope grounded in facts that is so precious in these perilous times.
I am keeping a list of Robert's gems. There have been so many. They make my eyes and ears smile and my heart dance! I believe there are some "T-shirt worthy" messages among them. Something to consider, Robert? "Hope grounded in facts" - Hmmm. . . .
Colleen, Aside from it being well-written, the full brilliance of your tribute to Robert rests in its truth that is undeniable, even to a casual observer.
Thank you Colleen (and, of course, Robert)... clarity, empathy and eloquence are gifts and even more rare when they are in concert from enlightened souls.
Grew up in Ulster County. Some consider it upstate. It IS country. Near Woodstock and New Paltz. My dad grew up in Queens. Been here since ‘82. So… I grew up in reddish dot in a blue state and moved to a deep blue dot in a purple state.
This moment would not be possible without Merrick Garland as our Attorney General. I have said from the outset it was essential to re-establish a DOJ that was depoliticized. With two terrible AGs in Sessions and Barr the agency had been seriously compromised. Garland has restored the DOJ. Trump looks as cornered as he is because Garland is a brand that he has not come up against. He understands domestic terrorism first -hand successfully prosecuting McVeigh for the Oklahoma City bombing. When he takes a case to the Supreme Court it is as a judge who served on the DC Circuit with John Roberts and was chief Judge until shortly before being made AG. How he handled the document theft by Trump shows he knows how to tie Trump up in knots of inconsistency highlighting the man's inability to tell the truth. The republicans odn't know how to deal with someone like Garland. He will not be cowed . He is a man who knows who he is and will act without fear of the consequences and he will do because it is the right thing to do not the political thing to do.
Thomas, Admittedly, I was among those, starting last Spring, who expressed dismay over Garland seemingly not holding any of the J6 command structure up to and including Trump accountable, at least to the point of being subject to full-blown criminal investigation. As far as I was concerned, because a blueprint for all of the criminal offenses that may have been committed by Trump and by others at the top had already been laid out by a number of scholars and former prosecutors, if that didn’t warrant investigation, nothing would.
I make this point merely to illustrate the importance, at least to me, of letting go of a belief, despite having taken action based on that belief, upon learning I might have incorrectly understood the situation.
I have been behind AG Garland since the beginning. I think some find it hard to accept that there are people who have no political lens. Merrick Garland is one such person, IMHO.
And I think at least half of the country is suffering ptsd of sorts and are aching for someone in the “best” position and is smart enough, has integrity, experience and fierce determination to follow the law… to step into the fray. Courage.
I knew Merrick Garland would be slow and methodical. As a judge he never lost a case because of this. Thank heavens that he wasn't wasted on the Supreme Court! As I said when McConnell refused to take up his nomination, "God has said to Merrick Garland, 'Wait, have faith, I have something much more important for you to do.'"
I confess that Ibecame a doubter of Merrick Garland at the 1 year mark. My knowledge base was limited, my faith in the system wavered, coupled with an immediate need for consequences. I will proudly say I am sorry Mr Garland for losing faith.
One thing that kept me faithful was being exposed to legal cases through taking sworn testimony at depositions (I'm not a lawyer) and realizing that the case started 3 to 4 years before that. At the stage I was involved in, trial wasn't scheduled for another year or two afterward. Many reasons for that, but one important one in my opinion is the time it takes to flesh out all the relevant evidence.
But, yeah, I have a burning need for consequences too!
Well said, Thomas. Though I had doubts along the way, I did believe that Garland was being slow, thoughtful and deliberate. His 4 minute statement the other day was brilliant and delivered with a quiet confidence and no arrogance. He is clearly an intelligent man and one who can be trusted.
Building on Robert’s astute and evenhanded balanced perspective, I would note, in light of A.G. Garland’s exemplary appearance this past Thursday, I am starting to believe that Republicans who have latched themselves to Trump will have so much to answer for in the coming weeks that no amount of backpedaling likely will save enough of them to retake either the House or the Senate this November.
Before you vote me off the island for being a cockeyed optimist, please, again, heed the words of U.S. Supreme Court Justice Louis Brandeis, who once wrote, “Most of the things worth doing in the world had been declared impossible before they were done.” As I posted recently, I simply would add that only in retrospect is the true value of persistence in the face of difficulty revealed.
Aug 14, 2022·edited Aug 14, 2022Liked by Robert B. Hubbell
Actually this has been a week of almost overwhelming hope. That Attorney General Garland is now ready to stand up and take hold of his destiny and put the rule of law back up on its pedestal next to Lady Liberty is fabulous. Second, that the Democrats and President Biden have done an outstanding job in getting significant ground-breaking legislation to President Biden's desk for signature is an amazing accomplishment with such a narrow Senate margin. Third, we are finally on the path of taking real action to save the Planet. Ad astra per aspera - To the Stars through difficulties!
I highly recommend watching the HBO series on John Adams. I'm loving how they are depicting the relationship of John and Abigail. And, the history of the American Revolution and the Continental Congress through the writing of the Constitution is highly relevant to our times as we confront this constitutional crisis. I have no doubt we will have a stronger nation for our efforts today. We, the People, all of us this time!
I grew up in Whittier, California, hometown of the 37th president. The city was giddy when our homeboy was elected 1968. I had a Milhous cousin in my 5th grade class who went to the inauguration. Things cooled for Tricky Dick in our Quaker town as the Vietnam war went on and on and on, but re-elect him, we did (or rather my parents did). The Society of Friends never forgave him for the bombing of Cambodia. I was coming of age, politically and otherwise in ‘73-‘74 when the Watergate hearings played out on the living room TV. This was a pivotal moment for me. I was with a friend at her family’s vacation beach house in Newport Beach when we all watched Nixon’s resignation speech. A week later, my family was vacationing in San Clemente, just up the beach from the Western White House, the Nixons’ home in exile. My brother and I walked down the Cotton’s Point, a surf break in front of the WWH (my brother surfed). We cheekily waved to security cameras, and in no time, who we suspected were Secret Service appeared above the bluff above us.
We were just two kids from Whittier still trying to digest that the man we had admired just 6 years before had betrayed the trust we gave him as POTUS. We were not anomalies. The entire country was attempting to fathom this deceit.
I bring this up because nearly 50 years ago, I witnessed members of his party stand up to a rogue president, explicitly telling him to resign before a very real bi-partisan impeachment would be confirmed. The courage exhibited by these senators was admirable, but I still registered as a Democrat when I turned 18 2 years later, the first in my longtime family of moderate GOP-ers. What I am seeing today, with the Watergate scandal as a very relevant backdrop, are elected representatives who have chosen to disown the oath they swore to uphold upon taking office in order to pledge allegiance to a man who exhibits more negative/appalling/horrible traits, attitudes, morals than I even care to detail (you know them all too well).
I was idealistic in 1976 when I first registered to vote, and hopeful, with the belief that our country, though flawed because of one man’s maniacal quest for power, would reset itself and once again be all that I learned about in my 11th grade civics class (that’s where I learned I was really a Democrat) - a democracy where all people are equal.
I am still hopeful, though far more cautiously so than my 18 year old self, and less so than my 58 year old self in 2016. To put it bluntly, the Republican Party disgusts me.
Mr. Mack - I lived for two years in the middle of the three ranch style houses that had housed the secret service next to the Nixon compound, after they moved out and it became government housing for other uses. I was extremely familiar with the cliff and beach you mention below the chain link fence and wire topper - and yes, those were probably secret service. The labelled control panels for all the cameras were still in the wall of the front hall (though the cameras were long gone).
Interestingly enough, decades later, my brother worked for a company that was owned by the guy who bought the former Nixon compound and went to a holiday party there. How’s that for coming full circle?
Ah, nostalgia... It was a lovely spot with the private beach and wildflowers, humming birds, helicopter pads, skunks, and swifts and giant incinerator structures... ;)
Wow, an exceptionally important piece even by Robert's high standards, fortifying and bucking us up for the coming chapters with likely big shifts. Very possible that Garland has intercepts of improper Trump interactions with other countries (doesn't want to use the intercepts, but the Trump files can be used as court evidence). Just one example, perhaps Trump received oligarch laundered loans through Deutsche Bank. Trump claimed he was exonerated of all Russia investigations, but in fact Mueller was prohibited from getting into these matters at all. Or more recently, the Saudi gift of $2 billion to Jared is unusual. Many others. Hope Garland can present this in the next two months; it's encouraging he is using a Grand Jury.
The measure of how deeply in trouble TFG is will be the degree to which some of his defenders and promoters simply go silent. Let's not underestimate the ability of the Grahams, Rubios, Cruzs, and Hawleys to suddenly go quiet and then for personal gain, toss their loyalty to TFG aside. They want the big job and when the big dog looks weakened, they will flip.
None of the MAGAs are truly fans of the con man. They only stick with him as a political expediency. That may change...
Thank you Robert. I agree, holding Trump accountable will be a deeply traumatic, but necessary. We just have to hunker down and hope for the best but prepare for the worst. I think part of my reflexive pessimism comes from the fact that there have been numerous times when we thought Trump was done (Charlottesville, 1st impeachment, Jan 6) for him to wiggle out of it, so I’d be lying if I don’t feel a sense of Groundhog Day, but we have to hope things will be different this time. The fact that conservative media is having a harder time defending him now is a good sign, as well as the numerous Trumpworld reporters (Maggie Haberman, Josh Dawsey, Robert Costa etc.) reporting discontent among Trump allies. I am also seeing a decline in the “this will be good for Trump” takes. While it may (and there is some evidence in polling that it has) cause a rally-around-the-flag effect among his base, I find it hard to believe this will benefit him in the long run.
A good and welcomed Edition tonight and thanks for taking the time putting this together. I am sure a lot of readers are overwhelmed by the sheer volume and tone of the news about what is happening around us and sometimes feel it is spiraling out of control and we are helpless to do anything about it. The voting public is getting tired of the volume and never ending corruption of the Trump administration and his constant denial and lies about what is happening. It’s a broken record and the tune is getting old and his defenders are getting tired defending him all the time . Many Republican primary winners were endorsed by Trump and some have pledged allegiance to him and as today that association has become very toxic. My feeling is in the next 60 days more revelations will come to light about existing investigation and indictments and the Democrats will have a great mid term elections . There is no doubt that the Democrats have demonstrated they know how to govern and get things done for everyone. We should be excited and motivated because the momentum is on our side. We need to get involved in any way possible and support our local candidates and feel confident we can win the Senate and House. As Jesse Jackson once said “ if your mind can conceive it and your heart can believe it then we can achieve it. “ We need to believe so we can achieve.
Thank you for your comforting words. They bring calm to an insane week.
But with all the talk about the papers at Maralago, here’s a little tidbit that, while featured prominently enough in the New York Times, seems to have slipped under mainstream media radar for the most part. No doubt this will be talked about once the 1/6 hearings begin again. In some ways, I find it more frightening than trump’s having removed secret documents
Thanks for the link. The DHS Inspector General acted to conceal the deleted texts and then ordered USSS to stop an effort to locate the texts. He learned of the missing texts in May of 2021, but waited for thirteen months to advise Congress--failing to do so in two semi-annual reports that imposed an obligation on him to do so.
To me, one of the most disturbing points in the article is that the Federal Law Enforcement Officers Association has objected to Congress being given the personal cell phone numbers of the USSS agents involved in January 6th--on the ground that the move interferes with the "privacy" of the agents. That is ridiculous. When you sign on to be an agent in an agency that must be above reproach, you waive all rights to your privacy. DHS (which oversees USSS) has a counter-intelligence arm whose purpose is to investigate efforts to corrupt its own personnel--including the USSS. The clear implication is that the USSS assisted Trump in the coup--or looked the other way. The actions of the entire USSS are therefore suspect and proper subjects of congressional and criminal investigations. Any agent in the USSS who doesn't like the scrutiny of their personnel lives that comes with protecting the president should resign today.
you're right. the scariest part might be when we learn the depth of the infiltration to overthrow the government.
Just imagine if voters didn't turn out to flip the House in 2018 and flip the Senate in 2020. America would be full on fascist regime today. VOTING MATTERS!! Especially the local elections.
No question you are right, Jan. Frankly, I think seeing him finally held accountable under the law will be a huge relief for most of the country. The only trauma I imagine during that time (other than the fallout from whatever horrible schemes he put in motion) will be the cries, threats and potential violence of his cult followers.
We can only hope that 1) The magnitude of his crimes if he is convicted will be enough that even his media sycophants will tone down their rhetoric and 2) the various state and federal law enforcement agencies will be well prepared to react swiftly and effectively against any potential violence from his devoted followers.
One post script: I heard a media person say that if Trump is ever convicted of a crime, he won't be incarcerated because his Secret Service agents can't be made to live inside a prison. They guessed he might be confined to his home. While we have a ways to go before this may even be an issue, I just want to be on record that NOT putting that "one person wrecking crew" behind bars in some fashion if he is convicted of a crime, would be a big mistake.
If the law mandates a prison sentence, letting Trump skate once again from punishment would be a blatant statement that even if a former president commits the worst of crimes against this country, he will be allowed to land in a comfortable home to live out his sentence. That is not justice. That is not carrying out the rule of law. That is not "honoring the office of the president."
And that is not deterrence to future fascists trying to overturn our government.
If Trump is convicted of a serious crime against America that mandates prison time, he must serve that time like any other criminal. If it's not safe, then he can be put into solitary confinement. Anyone who thinks this is harsh should go back and look at what this person has done and continues to do to our entire country.
I think Trump is going to fire his secret service detail when he figures out that it was likely a secret service agent who reported he was still holding nuclear secrets at Mar-a-Lago. Nixon relinquished his secret service detail voluntarily.
Thank you, Robert, for the reassurance and reminder to focus on “keeping our eyes”on the rule of law and the Constitution. We are so fortunate to have Merrick Garland as our head of the DOJ !! I have deep respect for his patience and deliberation about Trump. He is the cat that is going to get the mouse big time but it will be done with deep diligence, systematically caging the mouse!!!! Hooray for that and for Merrick Garland!!!!!
I didn't comment on the weekend edition, but I read most. I will add my gratitude for your most thoughtful response. I would/will seriously lose all hope if Trump is not held accountable. I think he will be -- and rough, yes, but completely necessary. One of my family members is in law enforcement that's vulnerable to the outrageous and dangerous behavior of Trump and many Republicans. They need to be held accountable as well.
Thank you, Robert. Very helpful to read all this. I will share with friends and family (those who don't already read your newsletter, which of course they should be doing already!).
I was thinking the same thing about sending this on to friends and family because Robert's reflections are both realistic about the immediate future and heartening about longer term.
Thank you for your steady, solemn, serious acknowledgment of what we have been through, are going through, and are likely to go through… before we get to the other side. (I hope we will get to the other side.) I so appreciate your ability to honor our trauma while reminding us that all is not lost. A delicate balance.
Of course, you bring to us your experience and expertise in the law along with gathering trusted other sources and synthesizing those perspectives, as well. And offer this space for us to “talk amongst ourselves.”
Each is an essential ingredient. But it’s your gift of finding the sweet spot of truth with hope grounded in facts that is so precious in these perilous times.
My deepest gratitude. Thank you.
And so we press on.
"....finding the sweet spot of truth with hope grounded in facts....."
This is literary eloquence. Thank you.
Omigosh, thank you.
I am keeping a list of Robert's gems. There have been so many. They make my eyes and ears smile and my heart dance! I believe there are some "T-shirt worthy" messages among them. Something to consider, Robert? "Hope grounded in facts" - Hmmm. . . .
Let’s send it to our friends at the DNC.
Colleen, Aside from it being well-written, the full brilliance of your tribute to Robert rests in its truth that is undeniable, even to a casual observer.
Thank you so much!!
😘
Thank you Colleen (and, of course, Robert)... clarity, empathy and eloquence are gifts and even more rare when they are in concert from enlightened souls.
Thank you, Marc.
Perfect, Colleen.
Thanks, Mim. (My mom’s name. I’m NYer now in NC. Very blue Durham.)
Where in NY? I'm from Brooklyn (very early years) and, after college, Queens.
Grew up in Ulster County. Some consider it upstate. It IS country. Near Woodstock and New Paltz. My dad grew up in Queens. Been here since ‘82. So… I grew up in reddish dot in a blue state and moved to a deep blue dot in a purple state.
Colleen, I couldn't possibly say it better myself.
Thanks, Loren.
🙏
Well stated Colleen. Thank you.
Thanks, John.
Colleen says it perfectly…Robert you are a gift and a beacon of rational hope. Thank you for your dedication to this community.
This moment would not be possible without Merrick Garland as our Attorney General. I have said from the outset it was essential to re-establish a DOJ that was depoliticized. With two terrible AGs in Sessions and Barr the agency had been seriously compromised. Garland has restored the DOJ. Trump looks as cornered as he is because Garland is a brand that he has not come up against. He understands domestic terrorism first -hand successfully prosecuting McVeigh for the Oklahoma City bombing. When he takes a case to the Supreme Court it is as a judge who served on the DC Circuit with John Roberts and was chief Judge until shortly before being made AG. How he handled the document theft by Trump shows he knows how to tie Trump up in knots of inconsistency highlighting the man's inability to tell the truth. The republicans odn't know how to deal with someone like Garland. He will not be cowed . He is a man who knows who he is and will act without fear of the consequences and he will do because it is the right thing to do not the political thing to do.
Thomas, Admittedly, I was among those, starting last Spring, who expressed dismay over Garland seemingly not holding any of the J6 command structure up to and including Trump accountable, at least to the point of being subject to full-blown criminal investigation. As far as I was concerned, because a blueprint for all of the criminal offenses that may have been committed by Trump and by others at the top had already been laid out by a number of scholars and former prosecutors, if that didn’t warrant investigation, nothing would.
I make this point merely to illustrate the importance, at least to me, of letting go of a belief, despite having taken action based on that belief, upon learning I might have incorrectly understood the situation.
I have been behind AG Garland since the beginning. I think some find it hard to accept that there are people who have no political lens. Merrick Garland is one such person, IMHO.
And I think at least half of the country is suffering ptsd of sorts and are aching for someone in the “best” position and is smart enough, has integrity, experience and fierce determination to follow the law… to step into the fray. Courage.
I knew Merrick Garland would be slow and methodical. As a judge he never lost a case because of this. Thank heavens that he wasn't wasted on the Supreme Court! As I said when McConnell refused to take up his nomination, "God has said to Merrick Garland, 'Wait, have faith, I have something much more important for you to do.'"
Excellent comment, Nancy Ray!
I confess that Ibecame a doubter of Merrick Garland at the 1 year mark. My knowledge base was limited, my faith in the system wavered, coupled with an immediate need for consequences. I will proudly say I am sorry Mr Garland for losing faith.
One thing that kept me faithful was being exposed to legal cases through taking sworn testimony at depositions (I'm not a lawyer) and realizing that the case started 3 to 4 years before that. At the stage I was involved in, trial wasn't scheduled for another year or two afterward. Many reasons for that, but one important one in my opinion is the time it takes to flesh out all the relevant evidence.
But, yeah, I have a burning need for consequences too!
Well said, Thomas. Though I had doubts along the way, I did believe that Garland was being slow, thoughtful and deliberate. His 4 minute statement the other day was brilliant and delivered with a quiet confidence and no arrogance. He is clearly an intelligent man and one who can be trusted.
Building on Robert’s astute and evenhanded balanced perspective, I would note, in light of A.G. Garland’s exemplary appearance this past Thursday, I am starting to believe that Republicans who have latched themselves to Trump will have so much to answer for in the coming weeks that no amount of backpedaling likely will save enough of them to retake either the House or the Senate this November.
Before you vote me off the island for being a cockeyed optimist, please, again, heed the words of U.S. Supreme Court Justice Louis Brandeis, who once wrote, “Most of the things worth doing in the world had been declared impossible before they were done.” As I posted recently, I simply would add that only in retrospect is the true value of persistence in the face of difficulty revealed.
Survivor fan, Barbara Jo?
Truthfully, Lynell, I’ve never seen the program. Still, the expression has stuck with me when I feel the need to clarify a perception.
Actually this has been a week of almost overwhelming hope. That Attorney General Garland is now ready to stand up and take hold of his destiny and put the rule of law back up on its pedestal next to Lady Liberty is fabulous. Second, that the Democrats and President Biden have done an outstanding job in getting significant ground-breaking legislation to President Biden's desk for signature is an amazing accomplishment with such a narrow Senate margin. Third, we are finally on the path of taking real action to save the Planet. Ad astra per aspera - To the Stars through difficulties!
I highly recommend watching the HBO series on John Adams. I'm loving how they are depicting the relationship of John and Abigail. And, the history of the American Revolution and the Continental Congress through the writing of the Constitution is highly relevant to our times as we confront this constitutional crisis. I have no doubt we will have a stronger nation for our efforts today. We, the People, all of us this time!
really enjoyed that series about John Adams.
Bought the book afterwards by author David McCullough.
I grew up in Whittier, California, hometown of the 37th president. The city was giddy when our homeboy was elected 1968. I had a Milhous cousin in my 5th grade class who went to the inauguration. Things cooled for Tricky Dick in our Quaker town as the Vietnam war went on and on and on, but re-elect him, we did (or rather my parents did). The Society of Friends never forgave him for the bombing of Cambodia. I was coming of age, politically and otherwise in ‘73-‘74 when the Watergate hearings played out on the living room TV. This was a pivotal moment for me. I was with a friend at her family’s vacation beach house in Newport Beach when we all watched Nixon’s resignation speech. A week later, my family was vacationing in San Clemente, just up the beach from the Western White House, the Nixons’ home in exile. My brother and I walked down the Cotton’s Point, a surf break in front of the WWH (my brother surfed). We cheekily waved to security cameras, and in no time, who we suspected were Secret Service appeared above the bluff above us.
We were just two kids from Whittier still trying to digest that the man we had admired just 6 years before had betrayed the trust we gave him as POTUS. We were not anomalies. The entire country was attempting to fathom this deceit.
I bring this up because nearly 50 years ago, I witnessed members of his party stand up to a rogue president, explicitly telling him to resign before a very real bi-partisan impeachment would be confirmed. The courage exhibited by these senators was admirable, but I still registered as a Democrat when I turned 18 2 years later, the first in my longtime family of moderate GOP-ers. What I am seeing today, with the Watergate scandal as a very relevant backdrop, are elected representatives who have chosen to disown the oath they swore to uphold upon taking office in order to pledge allegiance to a man who exhibits more negative/appalling/horrible traits, attitudes, morals than I even care to detail (you know them all too well).
I was idealistic in 1976 when I first registered to vote, and hopeful, with the belief that our country, though flawed because of one man’s maniacal quest for power, would reset itself and once again be all that I learned about in my 11th grade civics class (that’s where I learned I was really a Democrat) - a democracy where all people are equal.
I am still hopeful, though far more cautiously so than my 18 year old self, and less so than my 58 year old self in 2016. To put it bluntly, the Republican Party disgusts me.
Mr. Mack - I lived for two years in the middle of the three ranch style houses that had housed the secret service next to the Nixon compound, after they moved out and it became government housing for other uses. I was extremely familiar with the cliff and beach you mention below the chain link fence and wire topper - and yes, those were probably secret service. The labelled control panels for all the cameras were still in the wall of the front hall (though the cameras were long gone).
Interestingly enough, decades later, my brother worked for a company that was owned by the guy who bought the former Nixon compound and went to a holiday party there. How’s that for coming full circle?
Ah, nostalgia... It was a lovely spot with the private beach and wildflowers, humming birds, helicopter pads, skunks, and swifts and giant incinerator structures... ;)
Wow, an exceptionally important piece even by Robert's high standards, fortifying and bucking us up for the coming chapters with likely big shifts. Very possible that Garland has intercepts of improper Trump interactions with other countries (doesn't want to use the intercepts, but the Trump files can be used as court evidence). Just one example, perhaps Trump received oligarch laundered loans through Deutsche Bank. Trump claimed he was exonerated of all Russia investigations, but in fact Mueller was prohibited from getting into these matters at all. Or more recently, the Saudi gift of $2 billion to Jared is unusual. Many others. Hope Garland can present this in the next two months; it's encouraging he is using a Grand Jury.
The measure of how deeply in trouble TFG is will be the degree to which some of his defenders and promoters simply go silent. Let's not underestimate the ability of the Grahams, Rubios, Cruzs, and Hawleys to suddenly go quiet and then for personal gain, toss their loyalty to TFG aside. They want the big job and when the big dog looks weakened, they will flip.
None of the MAGAs are truly fans of the con man. They only stick with him as a political expediency. That may change...
I have been waiting for them to turn toward the light for 5 years. You are surely right, this will happen somewhere in the future.
If they don’t ‘let go’ of his coattails they’ll go down too but how to manage that?? They’ll try big time. They are slime….
Thank you Robert. I agree, holding Trump accountable will be a deeply traumatic, but necessary. We just have to hunker down and hope for the best but prepare for the worst. I think part of my reflexive pessimism comes from the fact that there have been numerous times when we thought Trump was done (Charlottesville, 1st impeachment, Jan 6) for him to wiggle out of it, so I’d be lying if I don’t feel a sense of Groundhog Day, but we have to hope things will be different this time. The fact that conservative media is having a harder time defending him now is a good sign, as well as the numerous Trumpworld reporters (Maggie Haberman, Josh Dawsey, Robert Costa etc.) reporting discontent among Trump allies. I am also seeing a decline in the “this will be good for Trump” takes. While it may (and there is some evidence in polling that it has) cause a rally-around-the-flag effect among his base, I find it hard to believe this will benefit him in the long run.
A good and welcomed Edition tonight and thanks for taking the time putting this together. I am sure a lot of readers are overwhelmed by the sheer volume and tone of the news about what is happening around us and sometimes feel it is spiraling out of control and we are helpless to do anything about it. The voting public is getting tired of the volume and never ending corruption of the Trump administration and his constant denial and lies about what is happening. It’s a broken record and the tune is getting old and his defenders are getting tired defending him all the time . Many Republican primary winners were endorsed by Trump and some have pledged allegiance to him and as today that association has become very toxic. My feeling is in the next 60 days more revelations will come to light about existing investigation and indictments and the Democrats will have a great mid term elections . There is no doubt that the Democrats have demonstrated they know how to govern and get things done for everyone. We should be excited and motivated because the momentum is on our side. We need to get involved in any way possible and support our local candidates and feel confident we can win the Senate and House. As Jesse Jackson once said “ if your mind can conceive it and your heart can believe it then we can achieve it. “ We need to believe so we can achieve.
👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼🙏🏽❤️❤️❤️🙏🏽🙏🏽🙏🏽🙏🏽❤️❤️❤️
Thank you for your comforting words. They bring calm to an insane week.
But with all the talk about the papers at Maralago, here’s a little tidbit that, while featured prominently enough in the New York Times, seems to have slipped under mainstream media radar for the most part. No doubt this will be talked about once the 1/6 hearings begin again. In some ways, I find it more frightening than trump’s having removed secret documents
https://www.nytimes.com/2022/08/11/us/politics/secret-service-texts-jan-6.html
Thanks for the link. The DHS Inspector General acted to conceal the deleted texts and then ordered USSS to stop an effort to locate the texts. He learned of the missing texts in May of 2021, but waited for thirteen months to advise Congress--failing to do so in two semi-annual reports that imposed an obligation on him to do so.
To me, one of the most disturbing points in the article is that the Federal Law Enforcement Officers Association has objected to Congress being given the personal cell phone numbers of the USSS agents involved in January 6th--on the ground that the move interferes with the "privacy" of the agents. That is ridiculous. When you sign on to be an agent in an agency that must be above reproach, you waive all rights to your privacy. DHS (which oversees USSS) has a counter-intelligence arm whose purpose is to investigate efforts to corrupt its own personnel--including the USSS. The clear implication is that the USSS assisted Trump in the coup--or looked the other way. The actions of the entire USSS are therefore suspect and proper subjects of congressional and criminal investigations. Any agent in the USSS who doesn't like the scrutiny of their personnel lives that comes with protecting the president should resign today.
you're right. the scariest part might be when we learn the depth of the infiltration to overthrow the government.
Just imagine if voters didn't turn out to flip the House in 2018 and flip the Senate in 2020. America would be full on fascist regime today. VOTING MATTERS!! Especially the local elections.
Thank you - I do want to suggest that NOT holding Trump accountable would be more traumatic!
No question you are right, Jan. Frankly, I think seeing him finally held accountable under the law will be a huge relief for most of the country. The only trauma I imagine during that time (other than the fallout from whatever horrible schemes he put in motion) will be the cries, threats and potential violence of his cult followers.
We can only hope that 1) The magnitude of his crimes if he is convicted will be enough that even his media sycophants will tone down their rhetoric and 2) the various state and federal law enforcement agencies will be well prepared to react swiftly and effectively against any potential violence from his devoted followers.
One post script: I heard a media person say that if Trump is ever convicted of a crime, he won't be incarcerated because his Secret Service agents can't be made to live inside a prison. They guessed he might be confined to his home. While we have a ways to go before this may even be an issue, I just want to be on record that NOT putting that "one person wrecking crew" behind bars in some fashion if he is convicted of a crime, would be a big mistake.
If the law mandates a prison sentence, letting Trump skate once again from punishment would be a blatant statement that even if a former president commits the worst of crimes against this country, he will be allowed to land in a comfortable home to live out his sentence. That is not justice. That is not carrying out the rule of law. That is not "honoring the office of the president."
And that is not deterrence to future fascists trying to overturn our government.
If Trump is convicted of a serious crime against America that mandates prison time, he must serve that time like any other criminal. If it's not safe, then he can be put into solitary confinement. Anyone who thinks this is harsh should go back and look at what this person has done and continues to do to our entire country.
I think Trump is going to fire his secret service detail when he figures out that it was likely a secret service agent who reported he was still holding nuclear secrets at Mar-a-Lago. Nixon relinquished his secret service detail voluntarily.
And besides, in prison he will have federal guards. I love the scenario.
Thank you, Robert, for the reassurance and reminder to focus on “keeping our eyes”on the rule of law and the Constitution. We are so fortunate to have Merrick Garland as our head of the DOJ !! I have deep respect for his patience and deliberation about Trump. He is the cat that is going to get the mouse big time but it will be done with deep diligence, systematically caging the mouse!!!! Hooray for that and for Merrick Garland!!!!!
Nina from Maine
Thank you again.
News reports are overwhelming.
You give me clarity.
I didn't comment on the weekend edition, but I read most. I will add my gratitude for your most thoughtful response. I would/will seriously lose all hope if Trump is not held accountable. I think he will be -- and rough, yes, but completely necessary. One of my family members is in law enforcement that's vulnerable to the outrageous and dangerous behavior of Trump and many Republicans. They need to be held accountable as well.
Thank you, Robert. Very helpful to read all this. I will share with friends and family (those who don't already read your newsletter, which of course they should be doing already!).
I was thinking the same thing about sending this on to friends and family because Robert's reflections are both realistic about the immediate future and heartening about longer term.