A Persistent “Deep State” in the Age of Trump
When FBI Agent Peter Strzok testified before a joint session of the House Judiciary and Oversight Committees on Wednesday, July 12th, what became apparent was evidence of a well-entrenched “deep state,” explicitly personified in the demeanor, bearing and testimony of the witness being questioned. While no significant revelations resulted from the day-long hearing, what did manage to surface was the fact that Strzok was inordinately biased in his handling of the Clinton e-mail, Trump/Russia, and the Mueller investigations- three separate investigations in which he was conveniently placed in charge.
The very fact that the same man was placed in charge of all three investigations was telling, in and of itself, especially given the fact that Robert Mueller initially placed him in charge of the latter investigation, knowing full well that Strzok’s credibility had already been besmirched in the two prior investigations of Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump. Worse, when his texts became public and Mueller had no choice but to remove him from his own investigation, it was only for the “appearance of a conflict of interest” as opposed to an obvious conflict of interest as evidenced by the texts he exchanged with Lisa Page, a Justice Department lawyer also assigned to the three investigations, with whom he was having an extra-marital affair.
During the combative hearing, Strzok was surly, defensive and contemptuous towards Republican House members questioning him regarding his text messages, while insisting that his personal feelings about Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump had no bearing on the actions he took in handling the investigations, despite mounting evidence to the contrary. It also became apparent that Strzok revealed his intent to sabotage the Trump campaign, just as the investigation into Trump/Russia collusion began during the 2016 presidential election. Then, when former FBI Director James Comey was fired, and immediately after Robert Mueller was appointed to investigate allegations that Trump had obstructed justice in Comey’s dismissal, Strzok envisioned the possibility of impeachment even before he was named to head up the Mueller probe in the months that followed. Such inclinations on his part show an overt amount of bias to a level that cannot possibly allow anyone to pursue official duties without the ill-effect that it would have on any official undertakings. This also explains why he was so intent on absolving Hillary Clinton of the multiple crimes she committed, most notably by changing the phrase “gross negligence,” (which is a crime) to “extreme carelessness” (which is not a crime), in Clinton’s exoneration- penned two months before Clinton and thirty-one others had even been interviewed.
His infamous texts and his subsequent actions and testimony before Congress reveal a “deep state” of career Washington apparatchiks who sought to hijack a presidential election in favor of Hillary Clinton and against Donald Trump. Other players, including Lisa Page, James Comey, Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Former Attorney General Loretta Lynch, Former Acting FBI Director Andrew McCabe, Former CIA Director John Brennan, Former Director of National Intelligence James Clapper, Former National Security Advisor Susan Rice, Former Senior Advisor Valerie Jarrett, Former U.N. Ambassador Samantha Power, Former Acting Attorney General Sally Yates and Former Acting Attorney General Dana Boente all took part in this “deep state” corruption, but it is Strzok who has become the very face of the deep state under Obama, given the animus he displayed and continues to display against the current President.
If Strzok is indeed the face of the “deep state” that existed during the Obama administration, then it is becoming quite clear that Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein has become the face of the “deep state” in the age of Trump, doing everything he can to obstruct Congressional oversight into the Justice Department’s handling of these investigations, and in his obvious attempt to undermine the President he now serves. It is Rosenstein who signed off on subsequent FISA warrants against members of the Trump campaign, it is Rosenstein who wrote to President Trump advising him to fire Comey (which launched the Mueller probe), and it is Rosenstein who has continuously blocked the release of documents subpoenaed by Congress.
Upon President Trump’s nomination of Judge Brett Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court, it is Rod Rosenstein who has now directed federal prosecutors from around the country to comb through Kavanaugh’s rulings and documents to find anything they can to thwart his nomination- something that has never been done by the Justice Department for any other Supreme Court nominee, ever.
Then, on the very Friday before President Trump was scheduled to sit down with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Helsinki, Finland on Monday, July 16th, Rod Rosenstein called a press conference to announce his indictment of twelve Russian generals for their part in hacking Hillary Clinton’s emails, along with e-mails by Clinton campaign manager John Podesta and other members of the Democrat National Committee. The timing of these indictments, which could have been brought anytime during the last six months, is an obvious attempt by Rosenstein to throw a wrench into Trump’s meeting with Putin. These indictments have also prompted both Democrats and anti-Trump/neverTrump Republicans to demand that Trump postpone any meeting with the Russian leader until these Russian generals are extradited to the United States to face charges- something they all know is never going to happen.
The media- ALL of the media, constantly reminds us that Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein is a Republican, who was appointed by Trump to his position as Deputy Attorney General in the wake of Attorney General Jeff Session’s recusal from all matters related to the 2016 campaign. What the media never says, however, is the fact that Rod Rosenstein’s wife, Lisa Barsoomian, is a lawyer who once was the protégé of both Comey and Mueller, and who once represented former HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, as well as Presidents Bill Clinton and Barack Obama, and has even done work for the Clinton Foundation…quite a cozy relationship that Rosenstein enjoys with Trump’s political opponents.
Meanwhile it is President Trump who has the sense of purpose to pursue the domestic and international changes he seeks to implement in both the status quo ante, and in the face of all of this “deep state” corruption so intent on his demise. So far, the President has been adroit in allowing his political adversaries from both parties to unwittingly reveal their treachery and corruption for all to see, without any interference on his own part. In the past he has often reiterated his intent to maintain a “hands-off” approach with regards to the Justice Department, indicating at some point he might have to “step in”. A good start would be for the President to fire Attorney General Jeff Sessions, fire Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein, and fire FBI Director Christopher Wray. At the same time, he should subsequently order the FBI and Justice Department to release all of the documents relating to the Clinton-email investigation and pay-for-play corruption relating to the UraniumOne acquisition of our nation’s uranium stockpile, as well as all of the documents relating to the launch of the Mueller probe…
In doing this, it’s the timing that presents the biggest challenge to President Trump, and there would be no better time to do all of this, than on the day after the mid-term elections, November 8, 2018.
-Drew Nickell, 15 July 2018
© 2018 by Drew Nickell, all rights reserved.
author of “Bending Your Ear- a Collection of Essays on the Issues of Our Times”
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