Durham investigation

[Belsnickel]

So, some news that has kind of been shoved aside is that Barr announced that he appointed Durham as a Special Counsel: https://apnews.com/article/election-2020-donald-trump-robert-mueller-statutes-elections-ae0275b4eb23981c1e6fbf9fc49c3239

Quote:WASHINGTON (AP) — Attorney General William Barr has given extra protection to the prosecutor he appointed to investigate the origins of the Trump-Russia probe, granting him authority to complete the work without being easily fired.

Barr told The Associated Press on Tuesday that he had appointed U.S. Attorney John Durham as a special counsel in October under the same federal regulations that governed special counsel Robert Mueller in the original Russia probe. He said Durham’s investigation has been narrowing to focus more on the conduct of FBI agents who worked on the Russia investigation, known by the code name of Crossfire Hurricane.

The news isn't that big of a deal, honestly, but something of note in the discussion of this has been what the statute regulating Special Counsel appointment says (bolded line for emphasis is mine):

Quote:§ 600.3 Qualifications of the Special Counsel.

(a) An individual named as Special Counsel shall be a lawyer with a reputation for integrity and impartial decision making, and with appropriate experience to ensure both that the investigation will be conducted ably, expeditiously and thoroughly, and that investigative and prosecutorial decisions will be supported by an informed understanding of the criminal law and Department of Justice policies. The Special Counsel shall be selected from outside the United States Government. Special Counsels shall agree that their responsibilities as Special Counsel shall take first precedence in their professional lives, and that it may be necessary to devote their full time to the investigation, depending on its complexity and the stage of the investigation.

(b) The Attorney General shall consult with the Assistant Attorney General for Administration to ensure an appropriate method of appointment, and to ensure that a Special Counsel undergoes an appropriate background investigation and a detailed review of ethics and conflicts of interest issues. A Special Counsel shall be appointed as a “confidential employee” as defined in 5 U.S.C. 7511(b)(2)©.

Source: https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/28/600.3

That could mean that this was an illegal appointment. Barr is saying something in the memo allows him to skirt this rule, but I don't understand how.

[Belsnickel]

Here is the memo in question. I'm still not understanding what would make this a legal appointment: https://www.politico.com/f/?id=00000176-2008-d692-a977-3c7afcd50000

[Au165]

(12-02-2020, 10:51 AM)Belsnickel Wrote: So, some news that has kind of been shoved aside is that Barr announced that he appointed Durham as a Special Counsel: https://apnews.com/article/election-2020-donald-trump-robert-mueller-statutes-elections-ae0275b4eb23981c1e6fbf9fc49c3239


The news isn't that big of a deal, honestly, but something of note in the discussion of this has been what the statute regulating Special Counsel appointment says (bolded line for emphasis is mine):


Source: https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/28/600.3

That could mean that this was an illegal appointment. Barr is saying something in the memo allows him to skirt this rule, but I don't understand how.

It won't hold up legally, but politically it doesn't have to. Even if the appointment was illegal the line will be "What are they hiding? Why not let an investigation play out?". This is simply setting the stage so the Republicans have a controversy to start off chasing the Biden administration around on since the Laptop scam never panned out.

[NATI BENGALS]

Well if there is anything Trump taught us. It’s that Republicans will look the other way if the president fires an investigator.

[GMDino]

I was 5 years old when Nixon resigned.

I've read and watched a fair amount about him and his absolute desire for power at any cost.

He was smarter than Trump (who isn't...other than Eric and Jr.) but Trump may be dirtier.  At least he tries to be...but he's a small town crook who has the big city lights shined on him now.

https://apnews.com/article/donald-trump-politics-elections-7624560e990ec55383a2a3e421c3a52e

Quote:Trump aide banned from Justice after trying to get case info
By MICHAEL BALSAMO and ZEKE MILLER33 minutes ago


WASHINGTON (AP) — The official serving as President Donald Trump’s eyes and ears at the Justice Department has been banned from the building after trying to pressure staffers to give up sensitive information about election fraud and other matters she could relay to the White House, three people familiar with the matter tell The Associated Press.[/url]


Heidi Stirrup, an ally of top Trump adviser Stephen Miller, was quietly installed at the Justice Department as a White House liaison a few months ago. She was told within the last two weeks to vacate the building after top Justice officials learned of her efforts to collect insider information about ongoing cases and the department’s work on election fraud, the people said.

Stirrup is accused of approaching staffers in the department demanding they give her information about investigations, including election fraud matters, the people said. They spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to publicly discuss the matter.

The effort came as Trump continues to level baseless claims that he won the election and alleges without evidence that massive voting fraud was responsible for his defeat to President-elect Joe Biden.

Stirrup had also extended job offers to political allies for positions at some of the highest levels of the Justice Department without consulting any senior department officials or the White House counsel’s office and also attempted to interfere in the hiring process for career staffers, a violation of the government’s human resources policies, one of the people said.

The Justice Department declined to comment. Attempts to reach Stirrup for comment were not immediately successful.
On Thursday, Trump appointed Stirrup to be a member of the board of visitors of the U.S. Air Force Academy, according to a White House press release.

Earlier this week, Attorney General William Barr told the AP that U.S. attorneys and the FBI had [url=https://apnews.com/article/election-2020-joe-biden-donald-trump-elections-voting-fraud-and-irregularities-4eeb9e0c97301a23ae8d05b54c3144fd]looked into allegations of election irregularities and found no evidence of widespread voting fraud that would change the outcome of the election.

“To date, we have not seen fraud on a scale that could have effected a different outcome in the election,” he said on Tuesday.

Trump shot back at Barr on Thursday, saying the Justice Department “hasn’t looked very hard” and calling it a disappointment. But he stopping short of implying Barr’s future as attorney general could be cut short.

“Ask me that in a number of weeks from now,” Trump said when asked if he still has confidence in Barr.

“They should be looking at all of this fraud,” Trump said.

He was also critical of Barr’s statement that much of what has been presented so far by the Trump campaign and its allies amounts to allegations that belong in lawsuits, not federal crimes.

“This is not civil. This is criminal stuff. This is very bad, criminal stuff,” Trump said.

Stirrup, who previously was a central figure in the Trump administration’s push for hard-line immigration policies, technically still remains in her position after being placed at the Justice Department by the White House Office of Presidential Personnel.

The Trump administration has been working to have liaisons report directly to the White House instead of the agencies where they work. Across the administration, there have been concerns that the liaisons were undercutting the work not just of career professionals but also of Trump’s own political appointees.

Shortly after the election, the presidential personnel office had also instructed the liaisons to fire any political appointees who were looking for jobs while Trump refused to accept the election results. Trump’s term ends at noon on Jan. 20. Several thousand political appointees across the government will see their jobs end by that date.

The White House personnel office has been headed by former Trump personal assistant John McEntee, who has renewed Trump’s push to rid the administration of those deemed “disloyal” to the president.

In September, Housing and Urban Development Secretary Ben Carson inadvertently made public his anger with McEntee when cameras captured writing on the back of a page he was consulting during a speech.

In a reference to the White House Presidential Personnel Office, Carson’s notes said: “I am not happy with the way PPO is handling my agency.” It’s a sentiment that has been shared across the government.

Stirrup, a close ally of Miller, previously served as the acting director of the Office of Refugee Resettlement and was also a deputy White House liaison at the Department of Health and Human Services.

"Law and order" indeed.

[Benton]

(12-03-2020, 06:22 PM)GMDino Wrote: I was 5 years old when Nixon resigned.

I've read and watched a fair amount about him and his absolute desire for power at any cost.

He was smarter than Trump (who isn't...other than Eric and Jr.) but Trump may be dirtier.  At least he tries to be...but he's a small town crook who has the big city lights shined on him now.

https://apnews.com/article/donald-trump-politics-elections-7624560e990ec55383a2a3e421c3a52e



"Law and order" indeed.

We've gone Bond level.

The henchman's name is "Stirrup."

Her mission: stir up fraud propaganda. 

[GMDino]

(12-03-2020, 06:30 PM)Benton Wrote: We've gone Bond level.

The henchman's name is "Stirrup."

Her mission: stir up fraud propaganda. 

More Dr. Evil than Dr. No.