Muller indicts 13 Russians for Election Interference / Wire Fraud

... and wow, didn't take long for the fact-checkers to examine trump's tweet...

 

Their plan was to create political discord, why else would they support two candidates instead of one

 

This is a very elaborate hoax.

 

It must be hard coming to terms with the fact that your whole reality was paid for and created by Russian spies and that they basically completely manipulated the last several years of your life. Or that you might be getting indicted soon for being a Russian troll. Either way, it must suck to be you right now.

 

I know this is the last place to post a serious question, but the word "unwitting" in the indictment when referring to members of the Trump campaign just REALLY stands out to me. It seems so completely unnecessary that it makes me wonder what it's purpose is: to placate, to exonerate.........or is it a smokescreen?

 

Hate to break it to you Hillary was already hated on her own.

 

Perhaps, but don't discount the issue of sanctions. There is a reason that the Russians wanted Trump or Sanders over Clinton.

Clinton is very hawkish on the Russian sanctions. On the other hand both Trump and Sanders have voted against sanctions against Russia.

The Russians did this because they wanted something that they were unable to get through other means. The sanctions were hurting Russia and undermining the level of total security Putin had.

 

Yeah, it seems like a strong adjective to include. I had a similar reaction. Unwitting is even more hard to prove than witting, LOL.

 

Of course it was to cause discord. Everyone has known that for a year. It isn't really an either/or type of issue.

 

If I'm learning to drive and was told that going through a red light was legal, am I innocent if I am pulled over for running a red light?

Mueller is giving an invitation.

 

Rod Rosenstein played a pretty solid hand today. He bought himself an insurance policy for the next few months, and took the narrative off the table that it was a "Hoax".

Its there in writing now in the courts.... Yes Russia meddled in our election, and yes it was a crime on many levels. Getting the public to accept that and taking it out of partisan lenses is important to whatever comes next.

Also - the language Rosenstein used in this narrow focused indictment (what THE RUSSIANS did, and crimes they committed with the election) was keenly focused on this key area and didn't go into the other lanes that the Trump campaign would have swimmed in (namely the hacked emails, Wikileaks, Quid pro quo on sanctions, etc.)

He gave the Trump admin some political cover the next few weeks too with his use of the word "Un-witting", but anyone who closely follows this case and knows anything about criminal cases like this knows that what Rosenstein did today is in no way the end of this saga for Trump. If that was the case, there would be no plea deals for Flynn, Gates, and Paps. There are two or three other arms of this investigation that these indictments don't even touch.

Trump and his fans will have a moment in the future where something looks really bad, and is potentially criminal and what Rosenstein did today will create a backdrop where there is nowhere to turn and say "Hoax". These are very very skilled prosecutors, and they are doing a pretty damn good job here.

 

Muller team probably interviewed those folks and determined they didn't know. And they may be fully cooperating at this time. It's limited to those folks. Maybe more, may not be more. If more, it's a smokescreen to keep going without obstruction.

 

I am sorry for all of those of you who changed their vote toTrump due to the efforts of these trolls. i am sure you are really pissed off right now.

 

I agree. I think he knows that this is a long investigation (Watergate, as has been pointed out, took 2 years) and that withholding information from the public prior to the 2018 elections would simply be helping the Russians with their brutal attack on our democracy. The others involved are attempting to coverup that involvement today. Former FBI Director Mueller, who served as Director of that huge agency under both Republican and Democratic presidents, is a patriot, luckily for the country, who has an ingrained interest in the truth. He is relentless. He won't quit until he gets to the bottom of the Russian/trump/2016 election catastrophe. It is far from over, as much as trump's supporters (I know it's shocking that any remain) are trying to spin that it is. This is simply another step towards finding the truth and punishing those who knowingly broke the law.

 

It is a placating smokescreen. A "side benefit." This is far from over. Revealing these indictments of over a dozen Russian nationals for interfering with the 2016 election in Russia's attempt to help trump "win" temporarily takes some of the heat off the desperate effort within the White House to fire Mueller, in my opinion.


(Unintentional double post - thought I was following someone else's!)