Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein briefed congress earlier today and firmly stood by the recommendation he wrote that outlined James Comey’s ineptitude and inability to be an effective FBI Director.

Deputy Rosenstein’s recommendation was part of the portfolio President Trump cited in reference to his decision to fire FBI Director Comey.

Here’s the text of the opening statement made to congress earlier today:

Good afternoon. I welcome the opportunity to discuss my role in the removal of FBI Director James Comey, although I know you understand that I will not discuss the special counsel’s ongoing investigation. Most importantly, I want to emphasize my unshakeable commitment to protecting the integrity of every federal criminal investigation. There never has been, and never will be, any political interference in any matter under my supervision in the United States Department of Justice.

Before I discuss the events of the past two weeks, I want to provide some background about my previous relationship with former Director Comey. I have known Jim Comey since approximately 2002. In 2005, when Mr. Comey was Deputy Attorney General, he participated in selecting me to serve as a U.S. Attorney. As a federal prosecutor, he was a role model. His speeches about leadership and public service inspired me.

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Long time CTH readers will note we extended well over a year of benefit-of-the-doubt to the motives of former FBI Director James Comey with regard to the severity of his politicized nature and disposition.  Throughout the entire Clinton investigation we remained ambivalent to Comey’s motives.

Indeed it wasn’t until after the Pulse nightclub terrorist attack when Comey obtusely noted the FBI had been contacted (prior to the attack) about the sketchy behavior of Omar Mateen by a ‘random concerned citizen’ -and our finding that the actual ‘citizen’ was the far more substantive St Lucie county sheriff Ken Mascara– that we recognized how far Comey was willing to go to save his political face.

Yesterday, a friend of James Comey by the name of Benjamin Wittes, editor and writer for lawfare blog, now steps out and admits he was one of the primary sources for the New York Times Comey Memo article (Michael Schmidt); and in so doing outlines the severity of the political nature of the former FBI Director:

[…]  I called Schmidt Friday morning after reading his earlier story, which ran the previous evening, about Comey’s dinner with President Trump and the President’s demands at that dinner for a vow of loyalty.

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President Donald Trump held an informal luncheon with news reporters and TV anchors today in advance of the upcoming international visit.  Brett Baier reports President Trump was relaxed, warm and comfortable and showing no change in disposition from all prior encounters. Most of the discussion was off the record, however the president did release the following response to a question from one of the participants at the meeting:

Reporter Question: “You made a point about the special counselor and and you believe it hurts this country” —

President Trump: “I believe it hurts our country terribly, because it shows we’re a divided, mixed-up, not-unified country. And we have very important things to be doing right now, whether it’s trade deals, whether it’s military, whether it’s stopping nuclear… all of the things that we discussed today. And I think this shows a very divided country.

It also happens to be a pure excuse for the Democrats having lost an election that they should have easily won because of the Electoral College being slanted so much in their way. That’s all this is. I think it shows division, and it shows that we’re not together as a country. And I think it’s a very, very negative thing. And hopefully, this can go quickly, because we have to show unity if we’re going to do great things with respect to the rest of the world.” 

~ President Donald J Trump

Always remember the basic rule that has been proven accurate 100% of the time:

• When the CIA wants to leak a damaging story they coordinate with the Washington Post and ABC. (and vice-versa).
• When the State Dept. or FBI/DOJ wants to leak a damaging story they coordinate with CNN and the New York Times. (and vice-versa)

This consistent pattern has NEVER been broken.

There is also a particular transparency here with regard to media timing and intent.  The Washington Post (yesterday) and New York Times (today) are attempting to frame the anti-Trump narrative right before he goes on his first overseas trip.

Dual benefits for antagonistic media and political opposition:

♦ Trump team is out of country and unable to defend administration on-camera, while frenzy ensues 24/7 in U.S media, and ♦ Trump team becomes relentlessly questioned by traveling press corps abroad on domestic controversy, diminishing Trump international status and pushing the weak/damaged Trump image toward the host nation optic.

It’s how they roll.  Again, check out the timing:

Another explosive media story targeted, yet again, specifically to create controversy and lead the evening news cycle.

As to the substance of the matter – WE PREDICTED EXACTLY THIS SCENARIO – Less than a week ago we outlined the specific strategy being utilized to attack President Trump’s credibility in office. (more…)

The family of murdered DNC staffer Seth Rich is denying Rich was in communication with WikiLeaks.  However, according to a Fox report based on a federal investigator:

“44,053 emails and 17,761 attachments between Democratic National Committee leaders, spanning from January 2015 through late May 2016, were transferred from Rich to MacFadyen before May 21.” (link)

If that report is accurate, and it’s too specific of a report to be considered a disingenuous assertion not founded in fact, two large issues immediately surface:

• #1) The vast Russian conspiracy narrative about hackers being the source of the DNC leaks evaporates.  Which could explain why the DNC refused to allow the FBI to review the servers etc.
• #2) More alarmingly – With all of the expended investigative resources used by the FBI counterintelligence investigation, former FBI Director James Comey had to have known Seth Rich was the source of the DNC leaks.

That brings up even more questions about Director James Comey and his political motivations in creating an investigatory narrative that was entirely different from the facts known within the FBI.

Fox5 is reporting that a private investigator has turned up tangible evidence that murdered DNC staffer Seth Rich was in contact with Wikileaks.  Which further provides more evidence he was most likely the source of the DNC leaks.  The same report points out the FBI have been trying to cover-up the discoveries.

The motive for the leaks was obvious, the collusion within the DNC, specifically with the U.S. media, to eliminate Bernie Sanders as a potential risk to Clinton’s ambitions. If proven accurate this would also further prove “the Russians” had nothing to do with the DNC leaks.  That’s the basis for the entire “muh russian conspiracy” narrative.

#SheWontGoQuietly
DNC leaker wasn’t the Russians. It was Seth Rich & his computer shows he was emailing #Wikileaks. #SethRich #RIPSethRich pic.twitter.com/404GTppCUt

— AliceNUraniumOneLand (@American1765) May 16, 2017

//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js

WASHINGTON DC – […] Rod Wheeler, a private investigator hired by the Rich family, suggests there is tangible evidence on Rich’s laptop that confirms he was communicating with WikiLeaks prior to his death.

Now, questions have been raised on why D.C. police, the lead agency on this murder investigation for the past ten months, have insisted this was a robbery gone bad when there appears to be no evidence to suggest that.

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Earlier today President Donald Trump delivered a speech to honor our nations police officers. Tonight the White House will be lit with the color blue as a remembrance.

[TRANSCRIPT] 12:02 P.M. EDT – THE PRESIDENT: Thank you, everybody. (Applause.) Wow, what a beautiful introduction. Thank you, Chuck. That was above and beyond. That’s the way I’m going to be with you, too. And it’s a great honor — thank you very much — it’s a great honor to address America’s heroes on this most solemn occasion.

Words cannot express the depths of our gratitude, but I hope that our actions will show you how deeply we care and how strongly we feel about protecting those who protect us. America stands strong with our men and women in blue. Believe me, we stand strong together. (more…)

Trump Derangement Syndrome is real – Former journalist Jake Tapper and former ODNI James Clapper conduct a broadcast couples therapy discussion on the impact of Washington DC’s swamp draining.

Their collective grief session included a discussion of how President Trump was resetting the system of checks-and-balances by firing political appointees of the prior executive administration.  You have to watch the segment to fully grasp the level of stupid.

Sad faces abound as they console each other that a new administration actually removed the political appointees of the prior administration.  This action, according to their logic, is akin to the removal of one of the three branches of co-equal government; though they never actually do get around to explaining how the Legislative branch, or Judicial Branch have been removed by the Executive branch.  Funny that.

You cannot make this level of moonbattery up.  Virtuous defender of the republic Jake Tapper actually said: “because he’s firing the checks and balances“.  Don’t believe me, watch:

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I’m assuming the CNN audience was never exposed to grade-school civics, and probably don’t comprehend the FBI Director and Attorney General are appointed by the President and serve at the whim of the elected President, who IS The Executive Branch.

Despite what former ODNI James Clapper says, I promise you the FBI and DOJ are not “co-equal branches of government”.

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After a highly politicized FBI Director was fired by President Trump the knuckleheads in the Senate wanted to have James Comey show up to a closed session of the Senate Intelligence Committee.  President Trump drops a twitter telling Comey to make him a sandwich…. Comey ducks for cover.  The next story will be about Comey lawyering up.

wait for it….

WASHINGTON DC – […] Comey, who was fired on Tuesday by President Trump, was invited for a closed session before the panel by Committee Chairman Richard Burr, R-N.C., and Vice Chairman Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va.

Warner said on MSNBC Friday afternoon that Comey would not appear before the committee on Tuesday. Burr’s office confirmed to the Washington Examiner that Comey would not meet with the committee behind closed doors next week. (more)

President Trump drops another Mother Of All Bombs, this time in a twitter version directly targeted at a corrupted and politicized James Comey Dept. of Justice.

And what’s more stunning in the aftershock is the media’s incapacity to take the new Trump/Comey timeline information and add it to the existing Sally Yates timeline.

Then again, to do so would be to expose another level of FBI/DOJ politicization that remains hidden from public consumption.  Another political operative, Asst. Director of Counter Intelligence, Bill Priestap, who accompanied acting AG Sally Yates to the meeting with White House Counsel Don McGahn, is a Hillary Clinton campaign donor.

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