Here’s a long (converted) twitter thread from Neal Katyal that goes into great detail. Worth reading, but the gist is good news.(Katyal wrote the SCO regs.)
That report must explain why the investigation has concluded, and any instance in which the AG overruled the Special Counsel. The provision was designed to ensure “Congressional and public confidence in the integrity of the process.”
This optimism is cute. Trump and his sycophants have shown, time and again, they don’t care about telling the truth. They don’t care about the law. Their report to Congress will be 90% lies, sorry NYT editor here: misstatements, and if they’re caught after Mueller testifies they’ll just say “Lol what are you gonna do about it?”
There’s no point in lying if you know the truth is going to come out anyway.
If the truth is inevitable but makes you look bad, the time-honored tactic is not to hide it but rather to overwhelm it with spin.
Yeah but these fucks keep trying to lie anyway! (NYT Editor: misstate)
Yes, but it doesn’t help them. It just makes people think he is dishonest when the truth inevitably comes out.
And despite all the fatalism, this does have consequences. Polls consistently show that people think Trump is a liar. By large margins. This hurts him politically, and it helps challengers.
You’ve not met the current administration yet, have you?
Yes, idiots do pointless things. But there’s no reason to lose sleep over it.
Stone sounds like such a beta when he’s in the courtroom facing a judge.
I’m thinking Stone might be in trouble today.
https://twitter.com/ryanjreilly/status/1098688140225773568
Edit: Modifies conditions, he can no longer speak publicly about the case.
Or the Tobacco Industry, Oil Industry, etc.
I thought he was already under a gag order? How is this any modification to the existing conditions?
I think previously Stone was only barred from making public statements near the courthouse. Now he can’t say anything about the case anywhere, including social media, or indirectly through surrogates.
I’m sure he’s learned his lesson and won’t test the limits of this order at all.
Did I read it correctly that he’s claiming financial hardship/stress while earning $47,000/month for consulting?
He makes a lot of money but he spends a lot of money.
Poor guy can’t take advantage of the full 20% passthrough tax deduction for his consulting because he makes too much money. They should really fix the tax rates for hardworking Americans like this.
The lies are not pointless and that is worth losing sleep over.
The reason they lie constantly about things that are easily proven to be contrary to their statements is that they are eroding the very concept of objective truth and creating a world in which provable facts matter less than the source of information. For those who prefer lies that conform to their world view, the lies are a comfort and are willfully accepted as fact. For those who place value on objective truth, the constant assault on truth creates a sense of despair and cynicism that wears them down and creates a sense of helplessness. For those that don’t pay close attention, it just muddies the waters to the point that they give up trying to decide who is telling the truth and who is lying.
This assault on truth is a cornerstone of authoritarian regimes. The Russians have elevated it to an art. The Trump administration may be a bunch of dummies but their default instincts are autocratic so they naturally assault the truth.
This is the landscape that the Mueller report will be released in. The assault on truth has paved the way for the report to be hand waved away. For the waters to be muddied to the point where the court of public opinion has s divided enough they can get away with whatever they do or do not do in the wake of the report.
Definitely worth losing sleep over.
Absolutely. Excellent points.
This is why I agree with those who argue that Congress should hold impeachment hearings even knowing that the Senate won’t convict. At least that way we get the truth out to the public (even then I’m not sure that would work but it’s worth a try.)
I’m sure the Feds will be happy to pay for his room and board, should he so desire it (all he needs to do is shoot his mouth off a bit more…)