I have written, deleted, remained quiet and also absorbed frustration likely similar to many of you. Now, perhaps, it is worth presenting the brutal truth of the matter; or, as was said in my family, it’s time to call the baby ugly.
Since the resignation of Joe diGenova as counsel to U.S. Attorney General Todd Blanche there have been many opinions shared. diGenova himself has given statements to some media outlets {NBC, non-paywall}. Other outlets have encapsulated with their customary spin {Citation}, and diGenova has also talked to others we might consider closer allied to a presentation of truth {source}.
As with all matters of significance, there are points missed, context missing, structural understandings that go beyond quick articles or soundbites. This is one of those examples. It’s highly likely the White House and Main Justice had a strong opinion about the pace of the South Florida effort and the lack of substantive action; I mean, aren’t we all? However, the root of the issue is one I am very familiar with, and with that in mind here’s the part that very few really understand.
If I had to give you the cliff notes version it would sound like this: Yes, the slowness is the problem, but the context is not entirely accurate. One of diGenova (and anyone else’s) problems, is that they don’t know the background material well enough. I have personally encountered this so much I no longer get frustrated; it just is what it is.
The investigators, prosecutors, inquisitors et al, spend too much time trying to figure out the storyline, and it is the storyline that is critical. Because, well, in brutal honesty, they don’t know it. They know it in a cursory fashion, at a high level; at a level of political talking points, media hits, clickbait headline discussion; but unfortunately, that’s not good enough for this case.
A granular level working knowledge of the specifics of Spygate and Russiagate are needed. That level of learning, understanding takes up so much time that it becomes almost impossible for them to act decisively and quickly. It is the complexity of the matter that becomes a self-fulfilling defense. Joseph diGenova was/is no exception. This is the central problem with all of these guys; they just don’t know the material well enough.
I’m not making excuses, I’m stating facts. Facts that are based upon my personal experience after almost a decade deep inside this issue.
That’s the cliff notes. If you want the full understanding, keep reading.
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Right about here someone will likely ask, ‘well, why don’t you help them’? I’ll explain that also. It’s more complicated that you might think.
The one thing you must remember about exposing Washington DC corruption with Washington DC people is their primary prism. It took me a while to figure it out, but after a while of seeing the pattern, I realized their outlook is a feature of everyone.
Everyone associated with the system of exposing corruption, soup to nuts – everyone, comes into the matter with this outlook. They are deathly afraid of losing their personal credibility, while simultaneously they demand full credit for any resulting positive public opinion.
They are afraid of the story, but they want credit if it becomes mainstream. Now, think carefully about that for a moment, because it is the one common characteristic amid all of them. I repeat, all of them. No one wants the risk – Everyone wants the credit. This forms the baseline for what I am describing.
Joe diGenova wanted the job; he wanted to investigate Spygate/Russiagate and deliver accountability. However, diGenova was limited in the outset to the information he understood, which to his credit was more than most but still only at a surface level.
There are others like diGenova, and all carry the same challenge inherent within their ability.
What does this look like in real life? Well, when I have a conversation about the storyline of Spygate/Russiagate that originates back in 2015 (note with some small references to the previous 2011 IRS operation), it takes me about three hours to walk through the timeline of activity. If there are questions, that conversation can take another few hours. Let’s put the total at four hours just to be fair.
Four hours. That’s per person.
You start with the 2nd asst to the 1st asst of the primary. That’s 4 hours of explaining. Then you wait until you are given a meeting with the 1st asst of the primary. That’s another 4 hours explaining everything you previously explained. Then you wait again until the 2nd and 1st asst have explained to the primary. Then the initial background vetting takes place, just to make sure the storyline factually makes sense, and ensure you are not nuts. Then you may, maybe not, get to explain it all again to the primary. Another 4 hours, and the primary will have questions. If they don’t have questions, you are pissing in the wind and all effort to this point is time wasted.
Once the primary agrees on the merit of the storyline, then you are tasked to explain it to the designee of the primary who will then go look closer at the information you are citing, just to ensure the evidence of the citation you are referencing is factually accurate. Another four-hour outline and conversation. If that evidence is factually accurate, the designee of the primary then begins the process to capture it, declassify it, make it public, or add it to the list of evidence needed to continue.
If there are any other stakeholders in the process, they too will request the 4-hour explanation of why this matters.
Everything you just read can pertain to one, singular document; one singular point in the storyline. How many weeks just passed?
It took me eight months to convince around a dozen people of the need to review, retrieve, declassify, return and then ultimately release the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence (HPSCI) transcript of testimony from former Intelligence Community Inspector General, Michael Atkinson. No one wants the risk – Everyone wants the credit.
[SIDEBAR: For a case study in ‘No one wants the risk – Everyone wants the credit’ look at John Solomon; who, in my personal opinion, was/is the biggest mistake by President Trump in the effort of transparency in Term-2. Special Govt Employee John Solomon is to White House transparency as Joe diGenova was to Main Justice accountability].
No one knows the granular details. No one fully understands the storyline, the connections, the matrix of names and activities, so nobody really knows where to look. Worse still, no one is willing to say, ‘we don’t know’ – until Tulsi Gabbard. DNI Tulsi Gabbard was the first person in a position of importance who was willing to walk into the situation admitting a lack of knowledge, yet wide open and enthusiastic to understand the specific issues.
No one wants the risk – Everyone wants the credit. This also applies to an odd fear of personal harm (or targeting) from understanding the issues. To me this is like being afraid of mythical dragons. Walk boldly in the light, be right with God and there is no sense of fear. However, I digress.
Please accept this is not me saying I’m the only one who understands the granular details; far from it. There are parts of the storyline I just don’t care about because they seem self-evident. Ex. State Dept officials involved in supporting the targeting of Donald Trump. Of course they did, Hillary Clinton was the Secretary of State and that institution is soup-to-nuts compromised. What’s to prove? What’s the value in exposing their activity? It’s all self-evident.
There are many researchers in a small group on the X platform who have a solid understanding, a granular level understanding, and who can cite chapter and verse of evidence to highlight details in the storyline. I’m sure there are other people on other platforms who can do the same, but not many. The point is not a detail or a series of details; the challenge is the entire storyline of complex details that weave together.
It’s the storyline that makes each point of evidence hold value.
When a prosecutor is building a conspiracy case the storyline is the most critical aspect.
The storyline highlights the motive and intention of each of the participants as they branch off into their specific activity and then return to build upon the sum of the targeting. This is the challenge for anyone who first enters with a willingness to understand.
When it comes to the Office of the President, again no one wants the risk – everyone wants the credit. The concentric circles around the Office of the Presidency are full of lawyers (legal filters), advisors/staff (territorial filters), stakeholders and those who look at everything through the prism of political risk to the office. No one wants the risk – Everyone wants the credit.
Catherine Herridge will not walk into a Trump hotel out of fear for being seen. No one wants the risk – Everyone wants the credit.
Maria Bartiromo. No one wants the risk – Everyone wants the credit.
Bill Alderman. No one wants the risk – Everyone wants the credit.
The need for control is a reaction to fear. No one wants the risk – Everyone wants the credit.
Do you remember when I outlined specifically how President Trump could cut through the fog of obstruction by those who seek control and operate from a position of fear as it pertains to declassifying information? {IMPORTANT REMINDER}
That process of releasing information is as true and effective today as it was when I published it in 2020. However, no one associated with the Office of the President has the guts to stand against the institutional and political fury of that approach. Additionally, everyone associated with the territorial objectives of Washington DC would work to ensure President Trump never took that approach. This is one small example.
Joe diGenova asked for the job with all the best intents and objectives. However, it is also true that a lack of granular understanding of the details led to months and months of time wasted in piecing it together. That delay likely led to Main Justice and White House frustration, which culminated in diGenova’s exit. Two things can be true at the same time.
That’s the cold, ugly reality of the situation as outlined by me, a simple guy, who has tried, failed and in some small measures succeeded in getting information extracted from within a system that both protects itself and is surrounded by those who fear it.
If the South Florida team cannot succeed in organizing a conspiracy case, then my advice or hope is that they take all the evidence to the White House and do what should have been done years ago…..
…. RELEASE IT!
My suggestion was to just release everything and fire everyone.
Stop trying to put people in jail.
The courts are too corrupt.
Just fire them all and then be done with this nonsense.
Putting people in jail is a pipe dream and it’s never gonna work anyways.
Focus on the immediate future.
I’ve been reading this stuff for years on this crap and you have done a wonderful job Sundance but it’s time to move on.
I know a lot of people will disagree on that point but the American people have no clue what’s going on and are more concerned with high prices.
I partially agree, but we can’t have a part of government go rogue and spy on US citizens. There has to be consequences.
That is indeed a very ugly baby…….thanks for breaking this stuff down for us Sundance.
If the corruption is that deep, then it isn’t worth saving
sounds like what digenova is basically saying is he needs a few years to put a case together here, if he can at all. The swamp can assemble these conspiracies much faster than any honest prosecutor can put a case together. Throw in lawfare judges protecting and impeding and seems like a very tough row to hoe. No wonder the swamp is so cock-sure of everything they do. I’d be too.
Also, maybe digenova just doesn’t have what it takes either. He and his wife are big talkers, but talking is different than doing. Not trashing this guy. He might be A-Team or not. No idea. Another pile of ground beef ready to cook from the swamp……
To the government worker at any level only two things are important. The Perks and the Pension.
All of this can be overcame, it just takes the right team. Joe resigned, but there are likely people that were working under him, or around him, that fully understand the scope and the granular stuff. They should be the ones bringing cases.
Part of President Trump’s issue he’s having, I feel, is that he often picks people that are very visible like Joe, because that’s who he notices while he’s busy doing a million other things. So often they’re quite literally people who have time to be on Fox news.
The people that really know this stuff and that will be the most effective don’t have their head up, and won’t get noticed as easily by President Trump or those immediately around him.
MOST of these people intend well but anything this massive and this consequential is going to take one hell of an individual to pull off. President Trump can pull off all kinds of things but he needs good people helping him who are knowledgeable. Stephen Miller can’t do everything. Scott Bessent can’t do everything. Etc.
When he finds (if he finds) the right person and the right group things will get done. The truth is, tons of things HAVE been done, just not some of the most visible, most frustrating things.
He’s probably accomplished 1000 great things. He hasn’t been able to pull off a couple dozen big things that people notice and complain about. It blows my mind all the chaff Trump gets by people that are supposed supporters. He is not only doing the best he can, he’s doing 10 times what Ronald Reagan would have done, for instance. Easily our greatest president, I honestly feel he’s a greater president than Washington was.
Basically they are out of time.
They know they are out of time.
The push was to make things happen before it became too politically difficult to achieve. The end point is the midterm. If the case isn’t assembled and ready to go now it never will be. With this resignation that signalls that it will never happen.
If the South Florida team cannot succeed in organizing a conspiracy case, then my advice or hope is that they take all the evidence to the White House and do what should have been done years ago…..
…. RELEASE IT!
This. Except there are people involved, as Sundance pointed out repeatedly, who are risk averse, but want the credit. Conflicted souls they are.
This problem has deep roots that have been growing over many decades. Take the recent Clancy court debacle. I could not but think of the sterling writing of C S Lewis on punishment in “The Humanitarian Theory of Punishment,” 78 years ago. What was true then remains true today.
Peter wrote nearly 2000 years ago in his first letter
“Be subject for the Lord’s sake to every human institution,
whether it be to the emperor as supreme,
or to governors
as sent by him
to punish those who do evil and to praise those who do good.“
Christians must insist that all people be held accountable for their evil actions
and that it is the God given duty of government officials to punish evil doers.
“No one wants the risk – Everyone wants the credit. ”
This sums up swamp operations perfectly.
“Another 4 hours, and the primary will have questions”
I never saw a primary spend 4 hours on anything. I have literally asked for 4 minutes, and kept it to 4 minutes. Bullet papers, 1 page. And most of the time you are only supposed to be retro-factualizing a decision that has already been made (unbeknownst to you). The briefer is just the fall guy, in case it goes south.
And here’s my two pesos:
The whole conspiracy is convoluted and gargantuan. I’ve read your articles three times but don’t ask me to quote any details past cursory “high level”, “really high level” of knowledge or understanding.
What’s missing is…… a visual aid!! No, not video. A digital wall full of interactive sticky notes and pictures of texts, emails and the rest. Something where when you click on a person you see all “incoming” and “outgoing” communications and actions. When you click on an action you see who’s doing it, to whom, and who else are participating or witnessing.
Few people can keep that body of knowledge in their heads alone, or even in a dozen folders with footnotes.
That’s what’s missing.
Then the link is passed to the top of the DOJ and whomever else wants to take credit. Give them the silver spoon and say: “it’s yours”, “your name will be immortalized”!
Pass the link to the Conspiracy Wall of Sticky Notes to everyone within reach of Trump or whomever is near a seat of some power.
Thats the way.
“Nobody wants the risk, everyone wants the credit.”
That is why you will see 10 people at the microphones when some big bust goes down. The police chief, the mayor, the local congresscritter all scrambling to get their 90 seconds. The real heroes, the people who did all the hard work and risked their lives, are allowed up on stage to stand in the background, but never offered the mic. To their credit, most heroes don’t want it.
I have an allergic reaction every time a see an official at a podium with a gaggle of flanking Christmas tree ornaments.
I accept all that Sundance has stated and applaud the thoroughness of the essay he presented.
The part he left out is that even experienced and honest prosecutors will have this problem, which is compounded by the fact there is INTERNAL Resistance from Congress as well as the Executive Branch (withing DoJ and INTEL) working to derail, if NOT stop cold, any efforts 2016 to date related to 2020 Elections, January 6 Protest, Russia-Gate, et al.
It is obvious the only safe and easy to execute prosecutions (to be allowed and executed) are as well as will be vs President Trump and his associates.
That seems to be only conclusive end to where this is all headed. Especially when there are State and Federal Courts, people occupying State-Local-Federal Offices as well as voters and media … ALL OK with those seeking office (at all levels) to run on a platform of promising to persecute the President and his associates.
What frustrates me to no end is all the “swinging for the fence.” While it would be satisfying to see Obama/Clinton/Biden in orange jumpsuits, that is not what We need.
We need to stop the Process, and the Process depends on minions to carry the water. Chain-of-custody, FOIA, and Whistleblowers are all elements of Congressional Oversight. By destroying evidence, withholding documents, and abusing Whistleblowers, the Deep State prevents accountability. Prosecute these not-so-sexy crimes and the Minions will scamper back into the shadows. Without minions, the Obamas can’t destroy this country.
And at the end of the day, ending this abuse of power is all we can expect.
Thank you Sundance for your insight into why digenova was released from his duties. However more importantly, who in the country has the legal chops, a solid grasp of the granular details much of which have been exposed here at CTH, and who also ‘wants the job’?
Having lived and worked in academic bureaucracies a good part of my life, I’ve experienced what Sundance describes as the process of working up through multiple assistants to gain the ear of a principal with power to act. It’s rare that anyone really wants to grok the details, and if the explanation take more than a quarter of an hour, it’s still more rare to find someone who will actually do something. Most will fob you off saying something like. “I don’t have the time” to “figure it all out.” And then “give me the condensed version.” What’s important to these people is what’s already pre-digested on on their desks.
Reminds me of Jerry Pournelle. Not the same, but related.
Great quote, Petronius (attributed) said;
“We trained hard—but it seemed that every time we were beginning to form up into teams we were reorganized.
I was to learn later in life that we tend to meet any new situation by reorganizing, and what a wonderful method it can be for creating the illusion of progress while actually producing confusion, inefficiency, and demoralization.”
It’s sort of like putting a guy in charge of the Untouchables in 1930, and four months later he finally asks “Now what is this moofia thing? What? MAHfia? Oh. Right. What is that?”
Head-slappingly over his head. Not his fault. You don’t know what you don’t know. But somewhere, in a US Attorney’s office somewhere in America, there must be a prosecutor who requires NO learning curve to take this over. Just sayin’
To SD,
I showed up early 2016 after reading some of your Russiagate essays. I’m on X, and follow some of these other researchers as well. Most I know because you pointed them out to me.
To this day, I have not seen anyone that has the granular knowledge and rote memory for the details like you have.
The only way this knowledge transfer gets done is if either you do it or you have a team that knows it just as well as you do to disseminate it.
You said a long time ago, no one will be held responsible. I felt bad about it then and I fear you’re correct now.
Thanks for all your hard work,
Max
PS if it rises to the level of Treason, why not just turn it over to the UMCJ and let them grind it out? The Judiciary is corrupt anyway.
Considering the amount of time and effort that would be needed for anyone involved in the South Florida conspiracy case to become familiar with the case well enough to proceed to a formal hearing or trial, I would suggest to just cut to the chase. Forget about the risk. Forget about the credit. Just assemble that portfolio as linked and release it to the public on the White House website. Done.
Imposing temporal restrictions is a subtle way of sabotaging an investigation.
Perfectly understandable SD, the process of delivery of the message becomes part of the hinderance & delay.
This said, why not consider coordinating your efforts to produce a video, that provides this granular detail without exposing yourself, perhaps with Prometheus Action or some other similarly aligned production group who can produce the product with you functioning directly as the content advisor in order to minimize the need for repeated “4 hour discussions”? In essence, watch this video then call me with your questions. This video could be blast to every assistant to the the primary & the primary themselves in one fell swoop. It could also be broadcast to the masses (the wolverines) so more than just a handful on X can be fully informed as well. As I can honestly say, that even having read most if not all of your content for years, it would even be difficult for me to share this information with someone in the granular detail I would like to.
‘DIFFUSED GUILT’: HOW THE SWAMP STILL ESCAPES ACCOUNTABILITY IN
PRESIDENT TRUMP’S 2ND TERM
https://us.list-manage.com/ut3AOAv3pK8?e=3989bb690b&c2id=8c0a86b7c3ffd17d1387177dfb201223
“No one wants the risk – Everyone wants the credit.”
There is one exception. Someone who has continually taken risks, indeed does so with every article published, and yet has continually invited others to use his work without giving him any credit. Thank you, Sundance.
The cockroaches have unlimited time, funding and resources to layer the corruption and filth in. This is because there is no form or MOI when you are pumping filth. It sprays EVERYWHERE. But when you dismantle it and clean and sanitize it all you must take care to do it legally and avoid collateral damage. And you must keep people interested or you lose the momentum.
Whatever happened to all the whistleblowers? Ask me why nobody comes forward. Schools are failing. People are addicted to drugs and devices. Most Americans are busy working paying bills raising a family. Our government is a complete failure at every level and it’s not going to change unless we the people rise to the cause. They used J6 inquiry to prison non violent protest. That’s a warning. The coup plotters got away with it. The history books may cite biggest conspiracy theory of the century. Obama will be very happy.