Trump Does Not Deny He Is Under Investigation

Ken AshfordL'Affaire Russe, Polls, Trump & AdministrationLeave a Comment

Amid a terrible day involving attempted assassination of Congressmen, one piece of news managed to break through: Trump is under investigation by special counsel Mueller for obstruction of justice.  The obstruction of justice investigation into the president began days after Comey was fired on May 9 with the team actively pursuing potential witnesses inside and outside the government. The White … Read More

The Sessions Sessions

Ken AshfordCongress, Constitution, Courts/Law, L'Affaire Russe, Republicans, Trump & AdministrationLeave a Comment

Ok, I’ll liveblog SOME of Sessions hearing before the Senate Intel Committee, but again, I expect he’ll talk about what he wants to talk about and then filibuster (or rely on executive privilege) when trapped in a corner. 2:56 pm Sessions has no recollection of meeting, talking to Russian ambassador or other Russian official at the Mayflower hotel. Here’s a notable … Read More

Sessions To Testify Before Senate Intelligence Committee

Ken AshfordCongress, L'Affaire Russe, Republicans, Trump & AdministrationLeave a Comment

2:30 today. The thing to remember is that Sessions WANTED this testimony. So this is likely to his benefit. Or Trump’s. Sessions was once on the periphery of the Trump-Russia scandal. I mean, sure, he failed to disclose at his confirmation hearings that he met with the Russians twice during the campaign. But he fixed that as soon as the … Read More

Can Trump Fire Mueller?

Ken AshfordCourts/Law, L'Affaire Russe, Republicans, Trump & AdministrationLeave a Comment

This is complicated and I don’t have much time. So hold on. Trump does not have the legal authority to fire special prosecutor Mueller directly, but that doesn’t mean Trump can’t TRY.  For Trump to fire Mueller, he TECHNICALLY must order the Attorney General to fire Mueller.  If Trump tried to fire Mueller directly, Mueller could (and probably would) choose … Read More

Maryland And DC Attorneys General File Lawsuit Against Trump Under Emoluments Clause

Ken AshfordConstitution, Courts/Law, Emoluments Violation, Trump & AdministrationLeave a Comment

Although CREW currently has a lawsuit going, the attorneys general of Maryland and DC have filed a lawsuit today against President Trump, citing a constitutional violation of the Emoluments Clause of the Constitution.  The damage? Well, they claim, the US is effectively not living up to the Constitution, a document that Maryland signed onto in part because of the Emoluments Clause.  Also, … Read More

The Comey Memos — Part Two

Ken AshfordConstitution, Courts/Law, L'Affaire Russe, Trump & AdministrationLeave a Comment

So some idiot at Redstate is making the argument that the Comey Memos were leaked in contravention of the law: The documents leaked by Comey were official government records. Period. They were created by a government employee (Comey) while acting in his official capacity (FBI director) on a government-issued laptop while sitting in a government car driven by another government … Read More

Did Comey Break The Law By Revealing His Memo Contents To The Press?

Ken AshfordCourts/Law, L'Affaire Russe, Trump & AdministrationLeave a Comment

No, and in fact, if Trump goes after Comey for dong that, Trump could get in deeper trouble. Here’s why: As the news broke, I was on the phone with Stephen Kohn, partner at a law firm focused on whistleblower protection. We’d been talking about where the boundaries lay for Comey in what he could and couldn’t do with the … Read More

Not To Be Forgotten

Ken AshfordL'Affaire Russe, Trump & AdministrationLeave a Comment

One of the most telling and damaging points Comey made was that even after being informed there was absolutely no doubt Russia had mounted a huge effort to interfere with and undermine the credibility of the US election process, Donald Trump never even asked what was being done to prevent further interference by Russia. He was completely incurious about how … Read More

Breaking: Full Text of Comey Prepared Remarks Tomorrow

Ken AshfordL'Affaire Russe, Trump & AdministrationLeave a Comment

Chairman Burr, Ranking Member Warner, Members of the Committee. Thank you for inviting me to appear before you today. I was asked to testify today to describe for you my interactions with President-Elect and President Trump on subjects that I understand are of interest to you. I have not included every detail from my conversations with the President, but, to … Read More

Previewing Comey’s Big Testimony On Thursday

Ken AshfordL'Affaire Russe, Trump & AdministrationLeave a Comment

Former FBI Director James Comey’s testimony Thursday to the Senate Intelligence Committee promises to be one of the most highly anticipated congressional appearances in years. Indeed, for a comparable high-stakes hearing, you have to go back to 2015, when Hillary Clinton testified before the House Benghazi Committee. Or 1991, when Anita Hill testified in Clarence Thomas’ Supreme Court confirmation hearing. … Read More

Trump’s Tweets Today Are The Most Unhinged And SELF-Destructive (And It’s Only 10:00 AM)

Ken AshfordConstitution, Courts/Law, Immigration and Xenophobia, Trump & Administration, War on Terrorism/TortureLeave a Comment

God knows why they just don’t take his phone away. Or give him a fake phone with a fake Twitter account. This is how bad it has gotten: Trump’s own advisers have gone on television and stated that Trump’s tweets are not his policy.  Well, who knows? How can we tell? Would Trump agree with that? Even this morning, Kellyanne … Read More