(THREAD) Far and away the worst take on Mueller's testimony is that we learned nothing new from it. In fact, the *new* facts we learned were jaw-dropping. This thread focuses *only* on 10 new things we now know. I hope you'll RETWEET this for anyone you think might be interested.
1. A VAST TRUMP-RUSSIA COUNTERINTELLIGENCE PROBE IS ONGOING. It's exponentially broader than Mueller's probe, it covers "collusion" (a fair term in the counterintelligence sphere) and its findings are being kept from America *and* Congress. The fight to see them began yesterday.
2. FEDERAL LAW ENFORCEMENT CAN'T CONFIRM TRUMP ISN'T COMPROMISED BY RUSSIA. Because "compromise" is a counterintelligence issue, and compromised politicians are national security threats, and no one has seen any FBI counterintelligence report, we don't know if Trump is a threat.
3. MUELLER DIDN'T INVESTIGATE ANYTHING TRUMP WAS ACCUSED OF BESIDES OBSTRUCTION. The non-obstruction allegations against Trump were aiding/abetting, bribery, money laundering, and illegal pre-election receipt of in-kind donations from non-Russians. Mueller looked at none of that.
4. THERE IS SUBSTANTIAL EVIDENCE TRUMP AIDED AND ABETTED COMPUTER CRIMES. Mueller testified—under oath—that Trump gave "hope" and a "boost" to WikiLeaks' "criminal activity" after he knew such activity was afoot. The crime that describes—aiding/abetting—must now be investigated.
5. THERE IS SUBSTANTIAL EVIDENCE TRUMP COMMITTED THE FEDERAL FELONY OF MAKING FALSE STATEMENTS TO LAW ENFORCEMENT. Mueller testified—under oath—that Trump's written answers to the FBI and the Special Counsel were "generally" *untruthful*, as the facts in Mueller's report confirm.
6. TRUMP AND GOP CLAIMS OF "NO COLLUSION," "NO OBSTRUCTION," AND "NO EVIDENCE OF CONSPIRACY OR COORDINATION" ARE ALL FALSE. It isn't news to anyone paying attention, but as much of America isn't, many learned for the first time from Mueller that these GOP talking points are lies.
7. MUELLER SAID TRUMP COULD BE CHARGED WITH OBSTRUCTION POST-PRESIDENCY AND WOULD HAVE BEEN CHARGED NOW IF NOT FOR THE OLC. Mueller's later (confusing) "walk-back" of the second claim—which many had taken as an accidental truth—didn't erase the specter that he meant what he said.
8. ANY TRUMP CRIMES INVOLVING OTHER NATIONS ARE STILL UNREPORTED. Mueller's testimony made clear that evidence involving nations besides Russia—whether past election interference or future election interference, past collusion or future collusion—went to FBI counterintelligence.
9. REPUBLICANS HAVE NO OBJECTIONS TO ANY OF THE DAMNING FACTS IN THE MUELLER REPORT. Media waited with baited breath for Republicans to contest the Report's damning findings rather than just opine about what else Mueller could have looked at—and shockingly, the moment never came.
10. MUELLER ONLY CHOSE NOT TO INTERVIEW TRUMP FACE-TO-FACE BECAUSE HE ADJUDGED HE HAD ENOUGH EVIDENCE OF "CORRUPT INTENT" ON OBSTRUCTION. Mueller resolved a *longstanding* mystery: why didn't he insist on keeping Trump to his public promise of a live interview? Well, now we know.
BONUS. TRUMP WITNESSES "IMPEDED" THE MUELLER INVESTIGATION. Mueller testified under oath—in answers to questions by Rep. Demings—that contrary to Trump and GOP claims that the White House facilitated campaign aides assisting Mueller, the opposite was true: they tried to stop him.
BONUS. MUELLER BELIEVES TRUMP AND HIS AIDES OPENED THEMSELVES TO KREMLIN BLACKMAIL. Mueller told Rep. Correa he "doesn't disagree" that a series of acts answering to behavior by Trump and his aides would be sufficient to give the Kremlin leverage and blackmail material over them.
BONUS. MUELLER SAYS NOT REPORTING FOREIGN AID OFFERS IN A CAMPAIGN CAN BE A CRIME. Trump says it isn't; the GOP is today fighting as hard as they can not to legislate on it—as they think Trump will do (may already have done) it—but Mueller told Rep. Himes it can be a crime *now*.
BONUS. TRUMP AND THE GOP SAY NEITHER MUELLER NOR BARR CAN "EXONERATE" TRUMP ON OBSTRUCTION. One of yesterday's oddest moments came when *multiple* Republicans said no one at DOJ can exonerate Trump on obstruction—meaning Mueller's report is definitionally an impeachment referral.
BONUS. TRUMP'S CAMPAIGN MANAGER PAUL MANAFORT SPENT THE WHOLE CAMPAIGN EXPECTING TO RECEIVE FINANCIAL COMPENSATION (NOT JUST LOAN FORGIVENESS) FROM THE KREMLIN FOR HIS STEWARDSHIP OF TRUMP. Many thought this shocking fact was discussed at length in Mueller's report—but it wasn't.
PS. Mueller also refused to say there was "no evidence" Manafort met with Assange; refused to say there was no evidence Trump's campaign was involved in the theft of HRC/DNC emails; rejected the "hoax" and "witch hunt" slurs; and said Putin could have compromising tapes of Cohen.
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(📢) PROOF EXCLUSIVE: Are Far-Right Insurrectionists Infiltrating the Pro-Ceasefire Protests As Part of the Run-Up to the November Political Violence Trump Just Hinted at in Time Magazine?
1/ This report is driven by two things: hard data and documented historical evidence.
2/ Moreover, it is a call for a major media investigation in the United States predicated on that hard data and documented historical evidence, not a claim that something is or is not happening. But evidence that something is happening *is* provided in bulk.
BREAKING: Trump Just Posted Online a Creepy QAnon Video About All of Earth “Submitting” to His Authority
[Be advised: this is a recruiting video for a domestic terror group that wants Trump to use all means—including violence—to become a global tyrant.]
(IMAGE)
(MORE) The QAnon recruiting video just posted by Trump—a rapist, career criminal, con man, and insurrectionist—ends with the image below, QAnon’s call for collective violence against, and/or concerted oppression of, *anyone* who does not “submit” to the will of God-Emperor Trump.
(1/3) Anyone who’s been paying attention understands that these protests aren’t going to stop. There’ll be more and more, at a larger and larger scale, at more and more colleges/universities. They’ll continue to be mostly peaceful; mostly advocating for wholly honorable causes...
(2/3) ...such as a ceasefire and an end to Trump friend Netanyahu’s attempted genocide; and they’ll on occasion be infiltrated by hardcore antisemites. The problem ultimately isn’t the protests. It’s the Trump-Netanyahu pro-genocide axis. Biden needs to be far bolder than...
(3/3) he has been, and the time has come to start *massively* conditioning any aid to Israel. But if you don’t understand that under a second Trump administration every Gazan will be wiped off the face of the Earth, you need to wake the f*ck up. To Trump, all Gazans are animals.
(THREAD) I’m a Trump biographer and presidential historian who’s also a NYT-bestselling journalist covering the criminal trial of Donald Trump on 34 felonies in New York.
This thread explains why I’m warning people to be careful about assuming David Pecker’s testimony is true.
1/ For the full PROOF report, see below. The first two sections are free, the remainder free with the trial offer at the link. The report title: “What Longtime Trump Associate Pecker Doesn’t Want to Discuss Involves a Plot to Steal the 2016 Election.”
2/ I’ll start with the CNN summary below. It covers the part of the Pecker testimony today involving topics neither Pecker *nor Trump* want the public to properly understand. The Pecker testimony on Stormy Daniels is actually much *less* charged, because Pecker was less involved.
The Supreme Court of the United States is literally deciding today whether Donald Trump can legally have them all executed on January 20, 2025, and the upshot I get from major media updates from inside the courtroom is that they are taking a serious look at it
America is over
One justice said—apparently without breaking out in maniacal laughter and requiring a straitjacket—that it may not be fair to a POTUS to judge his motive when he engages in an act
“Mens rea” has only been one half the analysis of whether a crime has been committed for 500 years
This country has descended into absolute madness and I think it is really important that journalists do absolutely nothing to normalize it
What is happening at the Supreme Court today is not normal or okay or consistent with American traditions in any respect
I said that this criminal trial is very much about illegal election interference, and I meant it. Per usual, the good guys are only telling about 10% of the story in order to not ruffle feathers. But America deserves the full truth about this.
Keep in mind Cohen didn't front the money to AMI for these ops. Not only did AMI outlay cash on the front end as Trump was ramping up his whirlwind introduction of Pecker to his Saudi pals, but there were times the cost was so high AMI balked. Then... suddenly they had the money.
The Saudis went almost directly from their meeting with Donald Trump Jr. in Trump Tower—where they asked the Trump family exactly how they could help illegally steal the election for Trump—to AMI, with whom they immediately developed a highly lucrative relationship (...for AMI).