âI encountered and am aware of information and intelligence that revealed contacts and interactions between Russian officials and U.S. persons involved in the Trump campaign,â he said. âI was concerned because of known Russian efforts to suborn such individuals. And it raised questions in my mind again whether or not the Russians were able to gain the cooperation of those individuals.â
Am I wrong to interpret that as a big deal? Seemed as though Gowdy was really pushing for something exculpatory and that was not it. It looked like Brennan handed Gowdy his ass repeatedly during his questioning.
Not surprising since Gowdy is a twit, butâŚit seemed Brennan went further than Iâve heard anyone go yet. Have I missed something in this clown show?
We need names. Who among the minions of Little Donnie Trump were engaged with the Russians to subvert an American Election? I understand that the ongoing investigation by the Special Council may not want to deal with too much publicity at this point in the investigation but the public right to know must be considered as well.
Asked if the individuals he was referring to were official members of the Trump campaign, Brennan declined to identify them due to the classified nature of the intelligence in question.
Someone was just talking the other day about their absolute right to declassify any intelligence. I bet they could help with this. Now, who was that?
ââŚbut the public right to know must be considered as well.â
Why, it certainly wasnât considered in the lead up to the election. So much of this was held close. No one in the questioning has asked why that was. Itâs the dog that didnât bark of this whole investigation.
What was Obama thinking?
or
How bad is this thing that they couldnât be open about it?
We already knew this. Not moving the ball forward.
No. It sounds like something but not as big a deal as it sounds. We know Flynn had contact with Russia. This fits within what Brennan is re-saying.
How did I forget FlynnâŚ
Heâs the first person I thought of.
I would like to never have to think of Flynn again because heâs locked up somewhere for treason.
"Mr. Rooney, I donât do evidence, I do intelligence. "
video [3:03] https://www.c-span.org/video/?c4670905/brennan2
Donât forget Kisliak, a known Russian agent.
Why is it that almost everyone from the Trump campaign that met with him âforgotâ about it?
From Kushner to Sessions to Flynn. And who know who else. Maybe Trump himself.
I disagree with lestatdelc in large part because Brennan later used the word, âtreasonous,â albeit in a hypothetical. That hypothetical was his explanation for how things might have escalated. Another detail is that Brennan referred to âpersonsâ (plural). So, yes, I agree that this isnât surprising, but I think itâs a big deal in of itself.
Because international, legal consequences for US election meddling are sorely lacking.
Surprised our Putin-fluffing sock puppet hasnât weighed in yet with his usual disingenuous tut-tutting.
But repetition shapes public opinion.
The more something is restated the âtruerâ it seems to be in the collective mind.
I once read about a â120 day ruleâ. Something not repeated in the news for 120 days, no matter how big or heinous, simply drops out of collective consciousness.
It is interesting that all this is happening pretty actively while Orange is away. Coincidence?
I bet we really donât want them to, because doing so would likely expose sources and methods for gathering the information in the first place.
Letâs let Mueller do his job, and get a special commission to do the public-facing investigation in parallel. But just declassifying stuff because we want some red meat is a bad idea.
I disagree. What we know and what the Trump voters know, or the people watching the NBA playoffs know, are entirely different things. I think this is a very big deal.
Finally someone has dropped the T word: âFrequently, individuals who go along the treasonous path do not even realize theyâre along that path until it gets to be a bit too late,â [Brennan] said. Thank you Mr. Brennan.
Watergate was a prank compared to what Trump and his goons were up to. Now it emerges that Trump tried precisely the same strategy that brought Nixon down â asking the âpeople over the riverâ to ask the FBI to back off.
There is a very interesting article by Julian Sanchez, stating that trying to p[rove collusion is the wrong approach, in part because it likely did not happen and even if it did, unless the Russians rat there will be no way to prove it. What Trump is afraid is that any investigation unto the âcollusionâ will uncover all kinds of corrupt activity that Trump has been having with the Russians over the years.