And People Say Rhode Island is Corrupt: Guest MINDSETTER™ Schoos
Sunday, May 14, 2017
Some of us are old enough to remember the evening of October 20, 1973 when Attorney General Richardson and Assistant Attorney General Ruckelshaus resigned rather than, at the behest of President Richard Nixon, fire Special Prosecutor Archibald Cox. Proving the third time’s the charm, Solicitor General Robert Bork delivered the coup de grace to Cox.
Cox’s offense was that he demanded that Nixon turn over audio tapes that might bear on possible criminality relative to the smorgasbord of offenses commonly known as Watergate. And as we now know, the reason Nixon refused to relinquish the tapes until finally forced to do, was that they contained incriminating evidence of his complicity in various crimes. All of this led to three Articles of Impeachment adopted by the House Judiciary Committee and finally to Nixon’s resignation.
Nixon ordered Cox to desist in his attempt to obtain the damning tapes and other presidential materials, yet he persisted. Disobeying the President’s order was the basis for Cox’s termination, but history has shown that the basis of the order was Nixon’s obstruction of justice to save himself.
GET THE LATEST BREAKING NEWS HERE -- SIGN UP FOR GOLOCAL FREE DAILY EBLASTWithin a couple of weeks of Cox’s termination – Memo to the Trump administration – more people than not favored the impeachment of the President, an extraordinary step to take in a democracy. The reason wasn’t that Nixon fired Cox, or more democrats than republicans wanted Nixon removed (although some versions of that narrative exist in our hyper-partisan age). Rather, it was felt by many, including many Nixon supporters, that he impeded a public official in the lawful performance of his duties, attempted to derail proper legislative inquiries, and subverted the rule of law.
On May 9, 2017, we had a mini-massacre of a public official. James Comey was terminated because…why? That is the parlor game now being played out in real time. No matter one’s political persuasion or affiliation, this made no sense – not on its face and more specifically how it was done.
We know that two weeks previous, Rod Rosenstein began his new job as Assistant Attorney General. We know that Rosenstein authored a “damning” memo that was the catalyst for Comey’s discharge. We know that Comey’s FBI was investigating matters pertaining to Russia’s influence in the 2016 election, and reportedly, that he requested that the Senate provide additional resources to further conduct this investigation.
Here’s what else we know. Rosenstein’s letter is a joke at best and a hack job at worst. This letter wouldn’t have passed muster in a I L law school class. It cites no rule, regulation, or statute. The underlying basis for the termination occurred ten months prior, and over that ten months Comey received praise from his “boss” the President. We know that there was little to no consultation with anyone in the Justice Department. This was done in one day, not over weeks or months. And we know that the secondary “persuasive” sources cited in the memo were cherry-picked op-ed pieces and interviews, with quotes taken out of context.
On second thought forget the I L reference. This memo wouldn’t have passed muster in any high school class.
We also know that Attorney General Sessions, who previously recused himself from any involvement in the Russia inquiry, signed off on Rosenstein’s memo. Recall that Sessions rightly recused himself from any involvement in the Russia investigation because of possible or perceived Conflicts of Interest. So here we have Sessions agreeing to discharge the person leading that investigation.
And some people say that Rhode Island is corrupt.
Finally, the President, using these materials, which it is doubtful that he read (he’s a self-admitted non-reader), then wrote a couple of paragraphs. One of paragraph contained a self-serving statement of Comey’s exoneration of the President from any investigation into the Russia matter, and the deed was done. Well almost done. Trump sent his Luca Brasi to the Hoover Building to deliver the termination letter. If that alone weren’t classy enough, Comey was giving a speech to FBI employees in Los Angeles when the letter was delivered and the news broke. He learned that he was unemployed when a TV monitor that was on during the speech broke the news. He thought it was a prank and laughed it off.
Let’s put this in some perspective. There were better grounds, a more respectful process, and a hint of humanity when Trump fired Gary Busey on The Apprentice.
There will be any number of correlations between Nixon and Trump offered over the coming weeks. But on one issue there is no correlation. Nixon respected the process of law and government. Trump does not. The proof in the Nixon pudding is that, when ordered by the U.S. Supreme Court to turn over the tapes to Cox’s successor, Leon Jaworski, he did it. He didn’t start a bonfire on the south lawn. He relinquished control of the evidence of his complicity in several crimes, knowing that his fate was sealed.
A major difference between Nixon and Trump is that Nixon was a creature of government and the rule of law. He understood the process of government and the role of each of its branches. And while he committed horrendous crimes as President, he understood that in a democracy, when the game is up, you surrender. Nixon’s only alternative would have been to destroy the government in a vain attempt to save himself.
Trump has no knowledge of or concern for government and the rule of law. If anything, he has disdain for both. In a democracy, that is a lethal combination. We’ve seen it time and again over the past 100 plus days: recanting on virtually every promise he made as a candidate, failing to supply presidential documents to Congress, impeding a duly constituted investigation whenever possible, enriching himself and his family, and surrounding himself with counselors and cabinet officers who can only, for the most part, be described as incompetent.
But if there is collusion between the Russian effort to subvert our democratic process and any member of the Trump campaign, then this really is worse than Watergate. A serious and honorable President would actively seek to get to the bottom of the matter, but that’s not Trump. He obfuscates and deflects at every turn, and now he’s fired Sally Yates and James Comey, both intricately involved in investigations impacting his administration.
Last February I warned of the rise of the totalitarian state and nothing since then has dissuaded me from that view. After all that’s happened, the Congress must finally demand that the Justice Department appoint a Special Prosecutor.
Geoffrey A. Schoos, Esq is the President of the Rhode Island Center for Law and Public Policy
Related Slideshow: Rhode Island’s History of Political Corruption
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