Discussion: What To Make Of The FBI's 'Extraordinary' Raid Of Michael Cohen

[trnc]

Am I wrong to wonder whether DT might have records in Trump Tower anywhere near where the fire broke out?

[loss_mentality]

It’s looking more and more like the day of the 2016 election will go down as the worst day in the lives of the members of team orange.

Too bad they weren’t smart enough to see that coming. We’d not have a DOTUS if they had been.

[flamingprogressive]

It is an attack on “his country,” not ours

[texastwostep]

If this is a crime committed in New York, even a Federal crime, does this also put this in the hands of the State of New York? One can get the first bite at the apple, but both may be able to prosecute.

Thus, an unpardonable offense in a New York crime.

[erik_t]

Infrastructure Week is gonna be lit.

[caltg]

@benthere

I always trusted that the U.S. Constitution and the integrity and resilience of our institutions would save the country, but it seems Robert Mueller might single-handedly do that. While I am grateful for that, it is also scary.

Mueller appears to be acquitting himself quite well and with considerable discretion and honor. So too are a myriad of other attorneys, investigators, and agents in the DOJ and the FBI, not to mention Deputy AG Rosenstein and many people of whom we will never know.

What we can and should know is that the vast majority of these civil servants likely span a wide variety of political viewpoints and worldviews, but for most, if not all, they take their oath to the Constitution seriously and they value their integrity, the law, and their moral compass – concepts of which Trump is completely and devoutly ignorant.

It is completely beyond his crippled imagination that anyone who seeks to bring him and his corrupt administration can be anything but evil and unpatriotic. And that is because Trump sees the entire world as being as completely corrupt as he is.

What all of us as Americans need to remember, and hopefully when this all comes to an end, be able to celebrate is that our system will once again survive the foul, diseased, and putrid corrupt distraction that has been the Trump Administration. May he and his entire clavern of despicables crash and burn!

[ericaz]

It will be interesting if the inventory of stuff they grab includes millions in loose cash. It would explain where the $130K for Stormy came from.

[trnc]

Well, I dunno. DT doesn’t have to be clever - someone else (like maybe Cohen) could have convinced him to do it, so I wouldn’t be too shocked if anything like that was found in Cohen’s office.

[maximus]

I am having an attack of irrational exuberance, and loving it…

Thanks, Mr. Andrea Mitchell, for putting the concept in words…

That being said, I wouldn’t wan’t to be living anywhere within US missile striking range tonight, as Deflection Dotard lashes out…

I also hope that the FBI has some Russian language experts to translate all the documents seized…

[old_curmudgeon]

“Some people are saying…”

[fiftygigs]

If you’re talking to your attorney to get them to help you to commit crime, that’s the part that’s not privileged.

I would have thought highly-educated, genetically-superior, European-American men would know the basic difference between right and wrong.

[trnc]

IANAL, but so far, we only know of a federal investigation. Anything uncovered in the investigation related to state law could be turned over to the NY AG (eg, non-election financial crimes that were run from Trump Tower). I would personally be pretty surprised if some of that hasn’t already happened, especially since I think his casino bankruptcies might have been part of a money laundering scheme (so, state of NJ involvement). But I’m not sure if that can be kept under wraps, and so far, we only know of federal investigations.

[philmore]

Yes, I suspect Mueller and Schneiderman have been working together for some time. So pardons, Trump firing Sessions, Rosenstein and Mueller would have no effect on the New York State investigations.

[philmore]

I do wonder and worry how close we are to Trump firing Mueller; or it would be Sessions, Rosenstein and then Mueller. I hope they make it to at least indicting Jared and Fredo.

[airportman]

Oh so hoping…

[airportman]

More like Roscoe or Enos…

[alyo]

@tsp

Could T rump have stashed a bunch of his own criminal records in the possession of Cohen with the expectation that attorney/client privilege would keep them secret for the duration?

I don’t know about that but Cohen took possession of the digital dirt Stormy Daniels had on Trump.

Heh.

[chancelucky]

Is it possible that Trump himself provided the basis for the raid. If your own client is saying he was unaware of a payment and agreement made on your behalf, Committed both an ethical breach and a possible crime.
If that turns out to be the case, it’s a pretty extraordinary blunder.

[map2]

More like Boss Hogg…

[srfromgr]

“If you’re talking to your attorney to get them to help you to commit crime, that’s the part that’s not privileged.”

Should have stayed in Manhattan as a pretentious real estate guy and a lousy and pompous reality TV star. Just think, no one would have been the wiser. But since you made all this the entire country’s problem, found a million ways to cheat the system, break laws and avoid responsibility, I hope you and your fucked up lawyer/fixer/partner in crime, get hauled off in handcuffs crying like babies.