Monday, March 19, 2018

"The Firing" and the Coming Political Bloodbath

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Friday evening, about 25 hours before Andrew McCabe's retirement from the FBI was set to take effect with a $1.8 million retirement package, Attorney General Sessions fired him---effective immediately.

The events of this weekend have produced a firestorm of opinions and uncertainty from politicians with both parties.

I believe a political bloodbath looms over the political "ruling class" in America.


Last Wednesday, Matt Zapotosky wrote in the Washington Post, "The FBI office that handles employee discipline has recommended firing the bureau's former deputy director over allegations that he authorized the disclosure of sensitive information to a reporter and misled investigators when asked about it, leaving Attorney General Jeff Sessions to decide whether he should fire the veteran official just four days before his expected retirement date..."

The Post says McCabe pleaded with the Attorney General's office not to fire him.

Friday, about 25 hours before McCabe's retirement, Jeff Sessions fired him. Effective immediately. Retirement package gone.

A/G Sessions made this explanation:

After an extensive and fair investigation and according to Department of Justice procedure, the Department’s Office of the Inspector General (OIG) provided its report on allegations of misconduct by Andrew McCabe to the FBI’s Office of Professional Responsibility (OPR).
The FBI’s OPR then reviewed the report and underlying documents and issued a disciplinary proposal recommending the dismissal of Mr. McCabe. Both the OIG and FBI OPR reports concluded that Mr. McCabe had made an unauthorized disclosure to the news media and lacked candor - including under oath - on multiple occasions.
The FBI expects every employee to adhere to the highest standards of honesty, integrity, and accountability. As the OPR proposal stated, “all FBI employees know that lacking candor under oath results in dismissal and that our integrity is our brand.”
Pursuant to Department Order 1202, and based on the report of the Inspector General, the findings of the FBI Office of Professional Responsibility, and the recommendation of the Department’s senior career official, I have terminated the employment of Andrew McCabe effective immediately.

Predictably the response from the Democrats was anger and outrage---however, the response from Republicans was mixed.

For example, Rep. Bob Goodlatte (R-Va.) said, "We think the Attorney General did the right thing. It was the appropriate decision given the reports of his having leaked internal information to the media and then giving false information about that misleading information to those investigating the matter. These are very serious concerns and they tie into the overall concern about how the FBI handled investigations into the elections last year, so the steps are appropriate."

Republican Senator and former presidential candidate, Marco Rubio profoundly disagrees. He said on NBC's "Meet The Press" yesterday, "I don't like the way it happened. He should have been allowed to finish through the weekend."

A tale of a divided Republican Party, within a deeply divided country.

Other GOP politicians weighed in. Some agreed with Sessions---some did not. All feel passionate about it. And for the most part, all Democrats are running with the story, claiming it's somehow further proof that we've got to get rid of Trump.

This story will dominate the news today, and the next several days.

While Republicans disagree with each other publicly, and the Democrats run helter-skelter trying to somehow make political hay out of it, Consider this:

Kevin McCullough wrote yesterday, "The firing of Andrew McCabe, the discovery of his private notes, [notes he says he made of his private meetings with President Trump] the ill-tempered response by other Obama loyalists and a yet to be disclosed Inspector General's report on an investigation that began before Donald Trump had come to office are all pieces of a story that dwarfs the still absent evidence of anything Trump and company did to cooperate with Russians in changing votes in Michigan and Wisconsin."

So many Republicans and Democrats have now said there is no evidence of Russian collusion with Trump that it has become laughable in most circles---yet Mueller rolls along, still trying to get the president.

And all this seems to be clouding the much bigger issue: The more serious scandal appears to have covered up criminal behavior, illicit manipulation of the FISA process, and undo the results of an election "by the people."

The Democrats illicit political affair with the Obama Justice Department and what appears to be an increasingly corrupted leadership at the top of the FBI reveals a much more serious collusion than anything made up by individual players in the deep state or shadow government committed to keeping Trump from becoming president---and after his surprise win, destroying his presidency.

The illicit relationship between Peter Strzok and Lisa Paige revealed more than their personal indiscretions--- it revealed just how deep the efforts to control elections, or even overturn the will of the people after an election, runs in some of our most trusted institutions,

From all, this is emerging a profile and pattern of corruption.

We have the Obama Justice Department A/G meeting with Bill Clinton in a thought- to- be secret rendezvous at the Phoenix airport while she (Loretta Lynch) is supposedly investigating Hillary; FBI attorneys Strzok and Paige colluding with their FBI boss, McCabe, to undo an American presidential election, FBI Director Comey penning what should be considered classified and protected notes of conversations with the new president then passing them out to the press like candy at a parade; and this weekend Deputy McCabe now admitting to employing some of the same practices.

Hypocrisy. At the highest levels.

If Mueller isn't willing to now look at the evidence before him and the American people regarding the real collusion, why should he continue?

In fact, a poll taken by Drudge over the weekend found 76% say Trump should fire Mueller.

Yes, Drudge is a conservative site, but it certainly reflects the thinking of Trump supporters.

There was collusion in the election of 2016.

It involved Russians, a British ex-spy, law firms, FBI agents, DOJ attorneys, an FBI Director that prejudged evidence, an Attorney General that had an unethical meeting with the spouse of a target of investigation, FISA warrants obtained on faulty information that stemmed from political sources, a Deputy Director ( McCabe) whose wife received monetary support in an election, an FBI Director who lied to Congress, an FBI Director who lied to the Justice Department's Inspector General and the mishandling of much classified materials.

The scope of this collusion is overwhelming. It reveals how deep and how pervasive the corruption really is in some our most trusted institutions.

This will get worse before it gets better. Now that the cat is out of the bag---and those who know, say the actual Inspector General's soon to be released report on McCabe will be even more explosive---the American people will be more informed and less deceived...I hope. And pray.

I believe there will be a political bloodbath. Many old faces will be gone, while new ones emerge. This is about more than politics and political parties.

The news media will work with diligence to keep this issue convoluted and complicated. It isn't. This unfolding story will surely bring more clarity not more confusion---particularly for conservative Christians.

There is, in the hearts of tens of millions of Americans, a need to trust their elected officials.

Very likely, by the time this is settled---and it will take time because justice most often moves slowly, politics in America will no longer be "politics as usual."

To biblical Christians: If you have ever considered becoming informed and engaged in the culture---now is the time.

Patrick Henry, one of America's Founding Fathers, patriot and deeply committed biblical Christian, said: "The liberties of a people never were, nor ever will be, secure, when the transactions of their rulers may be concealed from them."

Be Informed. Be Vigilant. Be Discerning. Be Diligent. Be Pro-Active. Be Prayerful.