I'm gonna provide a transcript of Trump's remarks concerning Bill Barr's decision not to indict people associated with the Biden campaign before the election. I say it that way, because Barr, in his House testimony, specifically refused to rule out indicting persons involved in the Russia Hoax. I believe those indictments didn't come down for purely legal reasons, and not political ones--the investigation keeps expanding, now with Daniel Jones and his whole cabal. However, it appears from Trump's remarks that Barr must have made a specific decision not to indict members of the Biden Crime Family before the election.
Here's my transcript of Trump's remarks--edited by inserting just a few proper names in place of pronouns, just to make the antecedents perfectly clear. I think these remarks have been misinterpreted by some as a knock on Barr. My take is that Trump is deliberately mending fences with Barr. He knows he's been a bit rough on Barr--out of legitimate political concerns. But he recognizes that Barr has his own legitimate concerns and--confident now that he'll win reelection--Trump is making a magnanimous gesture, reaching out very publicly to a man he knows to be a very important part of his team. It shows Trump at his best:
Today [Biden's] staying in his basement to talk to his lawyers--they caught him cold. [Chants of 'Lock him up!'] I'll tell you something. I mean this, too. He is lucky that we have in our country, and they don't appreciate, a wonderful human being and the most fair Attorney General of the United States. Cuz, I know people who woulda had [Biden] locked up five weeks ago. Bill Barr is a very nice man and a very fair man, and they have no idea, because somebody else woulda taken that thing [the laptop] and all the crap and corruption--[Biden's] been a corrupt politician for a long time, this guy--and in many ways it doesn't make some of us happy, but in many ways Bill Barr is a wonderful human being and a very fair person. And he's not a person who wants to hurt people. Just remember that. I say it, and I say it once. Just remember it, cuz I get angry too. But just remember it: he's a very fair man, and in many ways and especially in that position, there's something very nice about it. OK? So what can I say?
And here's the video link that I got from CTH, so you can hear Trump's tone of voice:
I was construing this as also, an effort to stress that, when the hammer falls, it'll be only after Barr had showed the greatest possible restraint.
ReplyDeleteA reference to how much cred Barr has earned, with fair-minded, knowledgeable folks.
Giuliani is still the only person in Trump's network who I have seen who knows Barr on a near peer basis, & Barr's history is one of Bush entanglements & a WASPish distaste for the President. So only Rudy's invitation, & Barr's ideological disdain for the Comey-Mueller assault on the Executive Office of the President could explain Barr's joining the administration.
ReplyDeleteIf you buy that thesis, then there's no plausible theory of the Trump WH where Barr doesn't know exactly what Giuliani is doing.
They're playing good cop, bad cop.
Giuliani can do whatever he wants with information he has gathered as a private citizen. Barr can't really do that. Trump is lucky to have both in his corner.
Delete"Giuliani can do whatever he wants with information he has gathered as a private citizen."
DeleteCorrect. However, our journalist class doesn't really grasp that. They prostrate themselves before liberal officialdom and cannot conceive of the authority of the private citizen. The FBI has this information, therefore it is government information. Hence, Giuliani cannot possibly disclose any of this without some sort of government approval.
Wrong.
183X
I'll eat my shorts live in the internet if anything substantial every becomes.
ReplyDeleteUntill then I just don't believe Barr will ever do anything to anyone with a .gov email address associated to their name.
Zoom comes highly recommended.
DeleteTrump, for all his billions, speaks more like me.
ReplyDeleteHis public pronouncements no matter the venue is what I would have or actually said to others.
Sorry, while I do not think that Barr came out of retirement to protect the institution, at the same time I feel he is just turning gears to no real end.