Discussion: Mueller Hits Snag In Russian Internet Troll Case

Robert Mueller isn’t going to save us.

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At least the NAMES of the traitors working for those dirty Russian pigs is out in the media. Those scumbags need to be targeted for prosecution themselves - anyone working for the Russians is working for a dirty criminal regime and suborning treason.

That’s one thing that needs to come out of this in a big way - Russia must be truly punished. It needs to be brutal and fearsome. These dirty parasites have infested the world with their scum and villainy too long.

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A big problem I have with the Russian trolling is the level of sophistication that occurred over time. When I personally started noticing the trolling back in the summer of 2014 after the downing of the Malaysian airline, it seemed a lame attempt to influence American opinion on sites that covered politics and allowed commenting. The sophistication in 2014 was low. By late spring of 2016, the sophistication had jumped significantly. The increase in sophistication could have only have taken place with American help. And the sophistication was designed to deceive readers into assuming the writers were somewhat informed Americans. Also, when so many trollers were involved, money was clearly involved. Foreign trollers, don’t troll for free. If nothing else, it amounted to illegal campaign donations through a foreign government.

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Wait. Are you suggesting that we should project against the attorney’s the alleged crimes of their clients… We definitely should not do that. Our entire adversarial justice system works because attorneys are able to defend clients without risking personal credibility as long as they adhere to a shared set of rules.

I’m all for taking down bad actors, but the burden is and always has been on prosecutors to prove the case.

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Yes – And that is the case. And their actions to cover their tracks prove that they understand the legal liability of their actions. Claiming ignorance only works for the President.

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Trump appointed judge tries to undo Russian charges. The fix is in.

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Nope. I’m suggesting any American working for those companies is a traitor. Traitors get attorneys but they’re still dirty traitors who I want to see tried, convicted and punished as severely as possible. The attorneys should be allow to do their job…but should have their names and practices made absolutely famous by the process. They can live with the consequences to their reputations because they chose to defend (read: take dirty Russian blood money).

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Just because a defending legal team makes a motion to dismiss, THAT does not amount to a “snag”. Motions to dismiss are normal regular every-day mundane applications that RARELY work.

This one is classic bull crap: the Russian side - Concord Mgt - is claiming that the government must prove “knowledge of the state of law”.

The legal maxim that applies here is this:

Ignorantia juris non excusat or ignorantia legis neminem excusat

Ignorance of the law is not a legal excuse [or defense]

Dabney Friedrich is a Trump nominee, a GOper and a Federal Society member, but she’s also a Harvard Law grad and she’s perfectly aware that she’s required to FOLLOW legal precedent not make it, plus she’s ambitious for advancement in a context where it’s far from unreasonable to expect she’ll need some support or at least a lack of concerted opposition from Democratic senators.

She did not, however, come to this case with a history of practical experience with the legal concept of criminal conspiracy. The additional briefing she’s seeking is at least CONSISTENT with a good faith effort to overcome that deficiency.

Moreover, if she screws up here, the OSC’s appeal is to the DC Circuit, which is dominated by Obama and Clinton appointees, and led by Merrick Garland.

I continue to be intrigued by this TPM reporter’s attraction to advancing the goals of RW hype.

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How very prescient it was of trumpp to announce on May 8, 2017 he was appointing her knowing she’d eventually rule on an aspect of an investigation which began on May 17.

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Given the context of corruption that surrounds the the Trump administration and its interactions with the Russian gov’t and oligarchy, it’s important to note that Judge Dabney Friedrich is a Trump appointee:

On May 8, 2017, President Trump announced his intent to nominate Friedrich to serve as a United States District Judge of the United States District Court for the District of Columbia, to a seat vacated by Reggie Walton who assumed senior status on December 31, 2015.

Friedrich filled a seat that McConnell blocked President Obama from filling for over a year.

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It’s not Sneed alone who does this. The “feature, not bug” phenomena we refer to is always on display.

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It must be observed that the GOP has been stuffing the bench with a large number of hacks, after having blocked as many Dem nominees for the 8 years of the Obama administration. Same thing under Cheney-Bush.

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Looks like someone should check the judge’s bank account for a recent infusion of rubles.

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I’m not sure the timing matters so much as the fact of the appointment: Friedrich knows who nominated her and who’s responsible for her advancement into the judiciary.


Edited to Add:

And the group that nominated Friedrich - the Trump administration - is a fantastically corrupt entity. Now maybe Friedrich will rule fairly, and maybe she won’t. But to ignore the possibility that Friedrich is just as corrupt as the administration that nominated her to the bench is Panglossian at best.

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The Federalist Society stooges are more a sympathetic fifth column than out-and-out agents.

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Concord Management is arguing that Mueller has not shown in the indictment that the Russians knew about their legal obligations under those regulations, which according to Dubelier is required to bring criminal charges under the law, and is using the conspiracy charge as a workaround.

I thought ignorance of the law wasn’t a defense…

Update: I posted before reading @avattoir’s detailed comment which confirms that ignorance is not a defense.

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Of course he won’t, no one who thinks he will knows what they’re talking about. There are no number of indicments or guilty verdicts that will prevent Trump and the GOP from undermining our elections or this country now or in the future, and they’ll continue to do it with or without the help of a foreign enemy. The only thing that will save us is enough left-leaning people voting, overwhelmingly, every time there is an election.

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Yes they are. It’s part of McConnell’s plan to stack the bench with Rs. McConnell is fiendishness personified, and if there’s any recourse for Dems other than to flip the Senate I haven’t heard about it.

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Yeah but the russians don’t know that. Keep cashin dem checks…

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