The FBI should not be criticized for the actions of the 2020 election and Mar-a-Lago congressional committee on investigation of the case of Donald Trump
Dean Obeidallah is a former attorney and has hosted a daily program on the radio for the past eight years. Follow him @DeanObeidallah. His own opinions are expressed in this commentary. View more opinion on CNN.
Whatever House Republicans do will feel like a sideshow if the Department of Justice does take the unprecedented plunge of indicting Trump for either his involvement in efforts to overturn the 2020 election or his handling of classified documents at Mar-a-Lago.
The search, pursuant to a court-approved warrant, found more than 100 documents bearing classification markings – including three in desks inside Trump’s office – among other items that should have been returned to the National Archives.
Many in the GOP were not happy with the search. There were immediate calls to “defund the FBI” by some highly vocal GOP lawmakers such as Reps. Lauren Boebert, Marjorie Taylor Greene and Paul Gosar. All Republican candidates running for Congress in Florida, Ohio, and North Carolina echoed that call in an effort to stop the investigation of Trump.
After George Floyd was killed in May 2020 Democrats used the term “defund the police”, which the GOP slammed. It doesn’t matter what hypocrisy is when it comes to defense of Trump.
While the House Judiciary Committee was in session, the official account for the committee took a stand on the floor, asking why anyone would support a measure that gave more funding to the DOJ.
We have gone from some Republicans wanting to defund the FBI to lawmakers actually seeking to withhold funding to the DOJ, all seemingly to protect their beloved leader.
The GOP plays hard to get rid of something they don’t like. For example, in 2013, Republicans so desperately wanted to defund the Affordable Care Act – President Barack Obama’s landmark health care bill – that they caused a 16-day partial government shutdown.
We are not done. Last week, Politico reported that “GOP lawmakers are preparing a buffet of investigations” aimed at the FBI in response to its investigation of Trump. A member of the Judiciary Committee says the FBI must be focused on organized crime, not anti-Americanism.
The Democratic congressman who was a manager of Trump’s impeachment trial predicted on my show that the Republicans would gain control of the House.
Swalwell said that if they are given power in the next Congress, they will fight for Donald Trump. The House will become the largest law firm in D.C., but only with one client.
According to a CBS poll, 70% of Republicans think loyalty to Trump is important. GOP leaders understand that they need to defend Trump at all costs including possibly trying to prevent an investigation into his possible crimes.
With the recent hearings and two Trump impeachment efforts, as well as a previous attempt to get the government of Ukraine to investigate Hunter Biden, Republicans in the House are going to use their subpoena power.
The GOP congressman joined the impeachment chorus while appearing on a show hosted by the former adviser to the president who was indicted in New York for money-laundering. Bannon pleaded not guilty to the charges.
“If we don’t engage in impeachment inquiries to get the documents and the testimony and the information we need, then I believe that our voters will feel betrayed and that likely, that could be the biggest win the Democrats could hope for in 2024, when it really matters to investigate them and to hold them accountable,” Gaetz said.
In short, despite what some Republican leaders may have wanted the 2022 election to be about, it’s increasingly becoming a referendum on the GOP’s extremism.
Defending the Biden Case in Delaware, a Matter of Interest to the American Civil Libertarian. The Case against Hunter Biden and the State of the Art
Anyone who believes that Trump is above the law should obviously vote Republican in November. But for countless Americans who believe that all of us – including the rich and politically connected like Trump – should all be treated equally under the law, the choice is equally clear.
The case against Biden narrowed and was a matter of discussion in early summer between prosecutors in Delaware and the Justice Department, according to CNN. Sources tell CNN that the discussions included the assessment of the strength of the case, as well as the question of whether more work was required before deciding on charges.
Two sources familiar with the matter say prosecutors have not made any charging decisions on the case and have not met to discuss it. A decision is not expected before the midterm election.
A source familiar with the matter told CNN that talks between Biden’s team and the Justice Department have been ongoing for several months but nothing has changed in a couple of months on that front.
Chris Clark, the attorney for Biden, said in a written statement that the prosecutors are thoroughly weighing all the evidence in the case, including witnesses for the defense.
GOP lawmakers don’t have a detailed inflation plan, and the issue is driving voters to the polls. They have prepared a 1,000- page road map for the FBI and the Department of Justice after several years of investigating Hunter Biden, who has struggled with substance abuse and has made a career dealing with foreign nationals. Hunter Biden is already the subject of a two-pronged federal investigation in Delaware but has not been charged with any crime.
But prosecutors have also examined a 2018 incident in which a firearm owned by Biden ended up tossed by his then-girlfriend into a dumpster in Wilmington, a person briefed on the matter said. In media interviews last year, Biden mentioned that he was addicted to drugs and that he might have violated federal law when he bought the gun.
Still, Biden has publicly discussed his own substance abuse struggles, and some Justice officials have debated whether his open discussions of his past drug use could potentially weaken their case should they bring one.
In late 2020 after being notified by the Delaware US attorney about the investigation, he said in a statement issued by his father’s presidential transition office: “I take this matter very seriously but I am confident that a professional and objective review of these matters will demonstrate that I handled my affairs legally and appropriately, including with the benefit of professional tax advisors.”
The President, meanwhile, has repeatedly said he won’t interfere in the independence of the Justice Department. Early on in his presidency, Biden decided to keep US Attorney David Weiss, an appointee of former President Donald Trump, in office to continue to oversee the investigation in Delaware.
As the subject of a congressional subpoena, it must be painfully clear to Trump that he is a former president. Just another citizen. The kind who can be issued a subpoena.
All of those battles have dragged on for years, a timetable that the House January 6 committee doesn’t have. The Justice Department will not engage in any activity in the week leading up to the election because voters could hand control of the House to Republicans.
“They are trying to make the case that Trump is Oz,” said CNN’s John King, interpreting the committee’s subpoena of Trump. “When you look, it is a little guy behind a curtain trying to pull a machine, but he presents himself as powerful.”
Contempt. The full House, which is controlled by Democrats until at least January, could vote to hold him in contempt of Congress, something it’s done with several other uncooperative witnesses.
A prosecution. If found guilty, he could be in jail for at least 30 days. The House subpoena will result in the sentencing of Bannon later this month.
The Trump Test of the Fifth Amendment: When the House Oversight Committee meets the House of Select Committee on Investigations of Peculiar Phenomena
“None of that is going to happen,” the Trump critic and conservative lawyer George Conway predicted during an appearance on CNN Thursday. This is the process of laying a marker. This is about triggering a response (from Trump).”
When the National Archives failed to hand over information to the committee after Trump tried to block them, the Supreme Court made it clear who they were siding with.
In 2020 the Supreme Court punted when it sent the dispute over congressional subpoenas for Trump’s financial records back to lower courts. Justices told lower courts to consider separation of powers even in cases involving the president’s private information. Trump and the House Oversight Committee have an agreement to get access to the documents.
Vice Chairwoman Liz Cheney, R-Wyo., read out the motion, describing Trump’s testimony as an obligation — given that more than 30 witnesses in the investigation invoked the Fifth Amendment in answer to the committee’s questions about Trump, including key Trump allies Roger Stone, Michael Flynn, and John Eastman.
In 1974, Gerald Ford testified in front of a House subcommittee about his decision to pardon Richard Nixon.
While Chief Justice John Marshall subpoenaed President Thomas Jefferson to appear at the trial for treason, he chose not to. Jefferson did ultimately provide some documents. Burr was eventually acquitted.
Trump’s return to the spotlight: a critical reminder of what he did in December 2021, when he was charged with tax violation
The Supreme Court allowed New York investigators to have access to the financial documents. Trump’s company will go on criminal trial this month on charges of violating tax laws.
A judge forced him to comply with subpoenas from the New York Attorney General, who was auditing his business practices. He used the Fifth Amendment to protect himself from self-incrimination.
James subsequently sued the Trump Organization, Trump and his three oldest children. James asked a court to stop Trump from moving his assets in order to shield them from the lawsuit.
The January 6 committee will have to finish its work by January 3, 2023 if it wants to continue after the next Congress.
On Thursday, the House panel took a vote on whether to subpoena the former President to testify about the attack.
She said that they were obligated to seek answers directly from the man who started it. “We can protect the republic now, because every American is entitled to those answers.”
Since everything about Trump’s political career has been unprecedented, it’s hardly surprising that his political reemergence is posing new questions with the potential to further challenge and damage the country’s political institutions.
Trump dropped his clearest hint yet Saturday of a new White House run at a moment when he’s on a new collision course with the Biden administration, the courts and facts.
Trump is back in the center of US politics because of a variety of confrontations. It’s likely to deepen polarization in an already deeply divided nation. And Trump’s return to the spotlight probably means next month’s midterm elections and the early stages of the 2024 presidential race will be rocked by his characteristic chaos.
There is still much to be said for the shock and awe of Trumps single White House term, and the nation’s political and legal systems are still far from dealing with it. GOP Rep. Liz Cheney, the vice chair of the House select committee investigating January 6, 2021, alluded to that reality when she said on Sunday that the panel wants to avoid Trump turning his potential testimony into a “circus.”
Given the open legal and political loops involving the ex-president, a potential presidential campaign could create even more upheaval than his four years in office, as shown by the controversies.
And while fierce differences are emerging between Democrats and Republicans over policy on the economy, abortion, foreign policy and crime in the 2022 midterms – while concerns about democracy often rank lower for voters – there is every chance the coming political period revolves mostly around the ex-President’s past and future.
Trump’s men and women are also stepping up their activity. His political guru Steve Bannon, whose own grassroots movement is seeking to infiltrate school boards and local election machinery, is vowing to expose the Biden “regime” in an appeal against a prison sentence handed down last week for defying a congressional subpoena. Graham wants the Supreme Court to refuse to block the subpoena for him to testify in the Georgia investigation.
Kari Lake and the Trump Organization: The Ex-President’s Case for Defending Voter Fraud in the ‘Summary of Falsehoods’
In Arizona, one of the ex-President’s favorite candidates, GOP gubernatorial hopeful Kari Lake – a serial spreader of voter fraud falsehoods – is again raising doubts about the election system. Lake thinks it probably is not going to be fair.
An already pro-Trump Republican presence in Washington is likely to expand after the midterms. If the candidates lose their races in less than two weeks they will face questions over whether or not they will accept the results.
The Trump Organization is going to go to trial next week in New York. The ex-President hasn’t been personally charged but the trial could impact his business empire and prompt fresh claims from him that he is being persecuted for political reasons that could inject yet another contentious element into election season. In a civil case, New York Attorney General Lettia James has filed a $250 million suit against the Trump Organization, accusing them of running tax and insurance fraud schemes to enrich themselves for years.
Democrats have made their own attempts to return Trump to the political spotlight. Some campaigns are attempting to scare critical suburban voters, by warning them Pro- Trump candidates are a danger to democracy, because President Joe Biden compared them to’semi-fascism’.
But raging inflation and spikes in gasoline prices appear to be a far more potent concern before voters head to the polls, which could spell bad news for the party in power in Washington.
The ex- President told a crowd in Texas on Saturday that he will probably have to do it again.
“It may take multiple days, and it will be done with a level of rigor and discipline and seriousness that it deserves,” Cheney told NBC’s “Meet the Press.”
This will not be his first debate against Joe Biden and the circus, you know what I mean. This is a far too serious set of issues.”
Trump offered a glimpse of how he might use an appearance before the committee to create a political extravaganza after the panel announced it would send out the subpoena. In a 14-page letter, he made multiple false and debunked claims about election fraud, and lashed out at the panel itself, branding members “highly partisan political Hacks and Thugs whose sole function is to destroy the lives of many hard-working American Patriots, whose records in life have been unblemished until this point of attempted ruination.”
The committee has taken most depositions behind closed doors and on video and used testimony throughout its highly produced presentations. Only its most sympathetic witnesses have appeared in person. While this has helped create a powerful narrative that has painted a picture of shocking derelictions of duty by Trump on January 6, it has also deprived viewers of seeing witnesses under cross examination. This makes it difficult to assess if the committee’s case would survive a court of law test.
It would be harder for the former president to dictate terms of the exchanges and control how his testimony would be used if he were given video testimony over an intense period of days or hours.
The panel is debating whether to make criminal referrals of Trump and those around him to the Department of Justice over their actions around January 6. But the most significant potential areas of criminal liability for the ex-President are in the hands of Attorney General Merrick Garland – over the January 6 case and the classified documents storm – and prosecutors in Georgia, who are investigating attempts by Trump and his allies to overthrow the 2020 election in the key swing state.
If there is a crime, Garland has a dilemma whether to implement the law to its fullest extent or to try a former commander in chief in a political environment that could tear the country apart.
A decision to charge an ex-president for running for a second White House term would cause uproar. But sparing him from accountability if there’s evidence of a crime would send a damaging signal to future presidents with strongman instincts.
After voting ends Tuesday, there will be investigations of the Department of Justice and Republicans in the House of Representatives.
If investigators at the DOJ want to indict Trump before he launches his presidential campaign, they will have to act quickly. He could announce his candidacy a week after Election Day on November 14, sources told CNN, although that date could change.
If the GOP wins on election day, Trump wants to get control of the primary and prevent other republicans from getting there.
Hunter Biden is a Presidential Inquisition: How Republicans Will Affect the House Oversight Committee and Senate Ways to Protect His Son
With a new GOP majority in the House, there will be a lot of scrutiny on Hunter Biden, the son of the president.
The public inquisition Republicans have been pursuing for years against the President’s son will go into public overdrive as a result of the House shutting down on January 6.
It is not true that the January 6 committee is trying to document the insurrection and the GOP is looking into Hunter Bidens business activities.
Republicans will take control of the House of Representatives in January if they win Tuesday’s election. The likely new chair of the House Oversight Committee, Rep. James Comer of Kentucky, told CNN he’ll resend a letter to the Treasury Department demanding any suspicious bank activity reports linked to Hunter Biden, with the hope the threat of newfound subpoena power gets more attention.
That is one of the things in a report by CNN’s Melaniezanona,Manu Raju and Annie Grayer that indicates how Republicans will investigate the Biden administration.
Investigations, hearings and subpoenas will dominate in a GOP majority, according to CNN’s report, which notes that Republicans won’t have power to pass much of anything into law.
Zanona, Raju and Grayer write: “Most bills will be primarily messaging endeavors, unlikely to overcome the president’s veto or the Senate’s 60-vote threshold, though they would have to pass legislation to fund the government and raise the national borrowing limit to raise a debt default – an endeavor that is already alarming Democrats.”