Pierce: Mueller Is Asking Questions. He Knows the Answers.

[babylonsister]

http://www.esquire.com/news-politics/politics/a15856780/mueller-sessions-comey/

Mueller Is Asking Questions. He Knows the Answers.
Jeff Sessions and James Comey were both interviewed by the Special Counsel.
By Charles P. Pierce
Jan 23, 2018


Any morning when you wake up and discover that the sitting Attorney General of the United States has been questioned by a special prosecutor on the subject of the president*’s complicity with thugs, hoodlums, international brigands, and Russian ratfckers is a day begun well, at least for scurvy political blogging types. From CNN:

The interview, a major development in Mueller's investigation, took place last Wednesday. A source familiar with the discussion said it was the first time Sessions was interviewed and he was not under subpoena. Justice Department spokeswoman Sarah Isgur Flores confirmed the meeting, which was first reported by The New York Times. She declined to say if the attorney general turned over any documents or communications to Mueller's office. The White House said it is cooperating with Mueller's investigation and press secretary Sarah Sanders said she didn't know if Sessions and Trump discussed the interview on Monday when Sessions was at the White House. White House special counsel Ty Cobb did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

This story emerged at just about the same moment as the exclusive Axios report that Jefferson Beauregard Sessions III , at the urging of the president*, had been pressuring FBI director Christopher Wray to fire deputy director Andrew McCabe, only to have Wray discover his inner Eliot Richardson and tell both JeffBo and JeffBo’s boss to pound sand.

Trump and other Republicans have been hammering McCabe — who was selected by the White House as acting director after the Comey firing — for months on Twitter. On July 26, Trump tweeted: "Why didn't A.G. Sessions replace Acting FBI Director Andrew McCabe, a Comey friend who was in charge of Clinton investigation but got...big dollars ($700,000) for his wife's political run from Hillary Clinton and her representatives. Drain the Swamp!"

And, of course, all of this takes place in the context of a general conservative assault on the FBI that runs from the incomprehensible toolhood of Devin Nunes and his magic memo to Sean Hannity’s nightly manic episodes. A good portion of the country already believes that James Comey was in the tank for Hillary Rodham Clinton, which she should find perpetually amusing. This frenzied activity on all fronts indicates to the casual observer that Mueller’s people are asking their witnesses a lot of unsettling questions for which Mueller and his team already know the answers. The question remaining is how many people will believe those answers when they finally are revealed.

UPDATE (3 p.m.)—Michael Schmidt of The New York Times has updated his story about the Sessions interview with the news that James Comey was interviewed, too.

The interview with Mr. Comey focused on a series of memos he wrote about his interactions with Mr. Trump that unnerved Mr. Comey. In one memo, Mr. Comey said that Mr. Trump had asked him to end the F.B.I.’s investigation into the former national security adviser, Michael T. Flynn.

This does not sound good for JeffBo, either.

[Cha]

1. KICK!

[Hekate]

18. Hell, yeah-- Kick!

[NurseJackie]

2. I've always believed that his interviews are just a formality, and that he...

... already knows the answers to every question he's going to ask. Each interview is something of a trap. The person being interviewed risks being caught in a lie and facing prosecution for lying under oath or for obstruction... OR... the interviewee can confirm what Mueller knows and possibly add more details.

The typical evasive responses, and non-responses, and outright lies and misrepresentations that politicians use effectively during media appearances and when speaking to their constituents, IS NOT a good strategy to use with Mueller.

[Wounded Bear]

3. This far along, you are probably not wrong...

By now, Mueller is probably seeking verification rather than any new info.

One way or the other, he's circling the White House, searching out weak points.

[kentuck]

9. He would probably compare different stories from different people about the same subject matter?

And then make the decision as to which sounded the most honest and truthful.

[BobTheSubgenius]

14. And perhaps pencil in some additional reservations at the Federal Greybar Hotel.

[babylonsister]

10. Exactly. And this is why dt and lawyers are so wary.

They're next!

[MyOwnPeace]

19. Oh, please, please, please...............

PLEASE be so!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[mcar]

4. Yep. Mueller knows the answers

[gibraltar72]

5. If past is prologue

Sessions is probably about to ask to amend his testimony.

[BobTheSubgenius]

15. +1000

[louis-t]

6. Like any good prosecutor......

[pecosbob]

7. If Mueller is asking questions to which he already has answers

there can only two reasons; to corroborate claims or statements obtained from other sources (unlikely that he would answer any questions honestly as he would only implicate himself), or to get a witness on record for perjury.

[Bernardo de La Paz]

8. Cue rumor that tRump is very angry with Sessions in 3, 2, 1, ... . . . nt

[Farmer-Rick]

11. A good portion of the country already believes Comey was in the tank for Hillary???

Really? They believe the guy who released a letter about Hillary's missing emails right before the country voted on her, or the ass-hole they got, was in the tank for the person he disparaged? Really, are Americans that stupid?

[babylonsister]

12. I think anything to discredit Comey

in the eyes of dt supporters works regardless of how based in fantasy it is.

[BobTheSubgenius]

16. I think the answer to your last question has been in for quite a while.

Clearly, not ALL Americans are that stupid - present company excepted, obviously - but enough to do damage. They've been voting against their own interests for a few decades now (and in the past, but I'm talking about modern history), in spite of objective evidence that counters their flimsy beliefs.

[L. Coyote]

13. A five hour grilling during which Sessions could not lie withouty felony jeopardy.

And he lies to Franken about something he wasn't asked about!

[TomSlick]

17. Here's what I tell my clients.

Anytime a lawyer asks you a question, s/he not only knows the answer, s/he can prove it.