Discussion: Republicans Fret About Campaign Fallout From Trump's Mounting Legal Woes

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They’re going to get beaten like gongs, there will be a wave of retirements, and then there will be wave of indictments.

@GOP #RNC #kompromat #Kislyak #RICO

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How could anyone have anticipated these events based on Trump’s history of integrity, family honor, and righteousness?

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It’s good to see the Republicans talking about the criminality of the president and his conspiring and breaking laws to get elected, rather than just how to deal politically with an inconvenience.

No, wait. I’m informed that I am totally wrong about the above.

How Republicans seriously consider their commitment to the Constitution and rule of law in the USA, and their character and their responsibilities in being elected members of Congress…

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Interesting Reactions. Slimy GOPers sounding skeezy.

That said - I am not sure who is being quoted here (guessing McCaskill or Heitkamp)

“I think that there’s a respected professional prosecutor running an important investigation and everybody should leave him alone and let him finish his work,” she told TPM when asked about her reaction to the Cohen news and other Democrats’ calls for the GOP to delay confirmation hearings on Trump’s Supreme Court pick.

“That’s all I’ve got to say about it,” she said emphatically, six times, when asked follow-up questions.

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Had to re-read it a few times to see if I missed who the “She” was…

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It amazes me how congressional Republicans dance with the words “not indicted” as though it somehow inoculates Trump. The situation surrounding the White House is like a disease vector. People keep falling to the side as we work our way to patient zero.

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The republican leadership has to be shitting in its pants.

I think Trump’s Core support is those who say they “strongly” approve of him. And that has been around 24-27% of the electorate depending on the poll/time of poll.

What has been happening IMHO is that republican partisans have been digging in as an avalanche of news about Trump comes in. His “fake news” ploy is designed to keep these folks on line. It is like the “Christians are being persecuted” claim that FOX is always pushing. That is why his popularity has bumped up back into the 40-41% range. But this has mostly been people joining the “somewhat” approve category. I think the recent avalanche of news will partially unwind some of that.

And Trump’s hold on the Republican base is not as tight as it appears either. He has a string of “wins” in the primaries, but often by backing the wackiest candidates (see GA Gov. Race). Yet yesterday, having endorsed a Billionaire republican donor Foster Freise (who was BTB the big backer of Santorum) for Wyoming Governor. The election was yesterday and Freise only got 27% of the vote, with the winner getting 34%. Republicans are looking really carefully for any sign that Trump’s hold is weakening so that they can start to pivot away from him so they can later try to claim they put Country over Party…

The republican strategy at this point is clear, (a) hope trump does not do something that forces the issue (pardons, firing Mueller), (b) try not to stir up Trump, and © hope other shoes don’t drop before the Midterm.

And I seriously doubt that we will hear anything from Mueller after Labor Day. He will follow DOJ guidelines to the letter, which have a “rule of thumb” of no indictments after 60 days before the election. See generally https://www.lawfareblog.com/pre-election-disclosures-how-does-and-should-doj-analyze-edge-cases

However, my guess is that Trump does something else stupid…

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The fretting comes from the worry that who would indoctrinate instead of educating our youth?
Who would take babies from their parents?
Who would destroy voting rights?
Who would load our courts with judges who could care less about our Constitution?
No reason to fret.

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“Still, Democrats could risk overplaying their hand.”

Talk about “fretting”…

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Failed
Republicans
Enable
Trump

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Those Democrats, many of whom are focused on avoiding the president’s ire, were loathe to talk about the big news.

Loath (adj) - reluctant, unwilling, wary
Loathe (v) - intense distaste, dislike, hatred

I loathe the way the GOP is loath to take any responsibility for this clown show.

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So is this for anybody in the US or just for those running in November that “no indictments shall be served”? I think it’s the latter and there are many Republican apparatchiks that aren’t running that can be indicted. BTW, Trump is not running in 2018.

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You oathbreaking sons of bitches did this to yourselves. You supported a manifestly incompetent traitor because you thought you’d control him and just have him sign bills and keep your idiot base stirred up. Aren’t you happy? You got a tax cut and at least one SC justice, right? Then why the long faces, you bastards? Turns out this undisciplined, vindictive, sadistic loon wasn’t controllable after all? He doesn’t even understand that you shouldn’t commit crimes or confess them accidentally once they’re committed? Well it just sucks to be you. It really does. It sucks just to have to share a country with you and hope it survives your venal idiocy. In lieu of pity, here’s my wish for you:

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This totally pisses me off.

They “fret” when they should be doing their constitutional duties to get rid of the criminal I-1.

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I am in the “fret” group. Trump is still popular in a number of places, and unfortunately those are Red States with Democratic senators who got elected due to weak Republican candidates in 2012. In these places 45% of the voters are so FOX addled that if a tape of Trump fluffing Putin showed up it would not move the needle with them (they would probably cheer on the pepe tape as giving the Kenyan fraudster what he deserved). To get to 50% the Democrats need to get 5% of hard core republican votes who are icky about Democrats, but also not so hot on Trump to buy a message of “I will work with Trump where appropriate for your interests”

In these places these voters are NOT for impeachment. They are for at most some checks and balances… The democrats can’t fall into the trap of looking like they are looking for a reason to impeach Trump (even if his campaign fraud with Cohen is arguable a “high crime and mistamenor”), particularly when Trump can try to argue that his actions in paying off porno stars have nothing to do with his term in office, and are just an excuse.

The correct approach is to run on republican corruption, and republicans not standing up for them. A lot more than is on the table now is needed for the Donnelly’s of the senate to before the election support impeachment

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It is a grey area if Mueller could e.g. indict Roger Stone. He is not running, and is not a candidate, nor you are correct would it implicate a candidate who was running. My guess though is that Mueller and Rosenstein (who has to approve any indictments) plays it safe. He does not want to be accused of doing what Comey did.

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It’s almost impossible to overplay this hand, isn’t it? When a presidents closest advisors, friends and business associates are all being convicted of or pleading guilty to felonies, that’s a damn strong hand.

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“It will be one more problem we face in the midterms — it’s just another thing to talk about other than the economy and how well things are going,” Graham continued.

How unfortunate for Graham that the feckless American electorate will be distracted by the nothingburger that is the president’s rampant criminality, and legal confirmation of the multifarious ways he and the party that embraced him broke the law and violated norms to brazenly steal power.

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McCaskill.

Maybe TPM updated the article…seems clear at this moment in time.

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