Illegal acts in Justice Dept routinely given wrist-slap
The law is for the little people: A new inspector general report has found that Justice Department employees who are caught committing crimes are routinely allowed to get off without any punishment at all.
In cases closed in the past month, more than a half-dozen FBI, DEA, U.S. attorney and U.S. marshal officials were allowed to retire, do volunteer work, or keep their jobs as they escaped criminal charges that everyday Americans probably would not.
In most instances, the decisions were made by federal prosecutors who work with the very figures impacted by or committing the bad conduct. In local law enforcement, that go-easy phenomenon is known as the “thin blue line.”
Spokespersons for the Justice Department and FBI did not respond to a request for comment.
I remain very pessimistic we shall see anyone prosecuted in Washington for the clear attempt in the past two years to overthrow a legally elected president. I also expect this behavior to worsen in the coming years. The law no longer means anything to most of the people in power in Washington, and they are increasingly teaming up to use their power to defy the law for their own personal gain.
On Christmas Eve 1968 three Americans became the first humans to visit another world. What they did to celebrate was unexpected and profound, and will be remembered throughout all human history. Genesis: the Story of Apollo 8, Robert Zimmerman's classic history of humanity's first journey to another world, tells that story, and it is now available as both an ebook and an audiobook, both with a foreword by Valerie Anders and a new introduction by Robert Zimmerman.
The ebook is available everywhere for $5.99 (before discount) at amazon, or direct from my ebook publisher, ebookit. If you buy it from ebookit you don't support the big tech companies and the author gets a bigger cut much sooner.
The audiobook is also available at all these vendors, and is also free with a 30-day trial membership to Audible.
"Not simply about one mission, [Genesis] is also the history of America's quest for the moon... Zimmerman has done a masterful job of tying disparate events together into a solid account of one of America's greatest human triumphs."--San Antonio Express-News
The law is for the little people: A new inspector general report has found that Justice Department employees who are caught committing crimes are routinely allowed to get off without any punishment at all.
In cases closed in the past month, more than a half-dozen FBI, DEA, U.S. attorney and U.S. marshal officials were allowed to retire, do volunteer work, or keep their jobs as they escaped criminal charges that everyday Americans probably would not.
In most instances, the decisions were made by federal prosecutors who work with the very figures impacted by or committing the bad conduct. In local law enforcement, that go-easy phenomenon is known as the “thin blue line.”
Spokespersons for the Justice Department and FBI did not respond to a request for comment.
I remain very pessimistic we shall see anyone prosecuted in Washington for the clear attempt in the past two years to overthrow a legally elected president. I also expect this behavior to worsen in the coming years. The law no longer means anything to most of the people in power in Washington, and they are increasingly teaming up to use their power to defy the law for their own personal gain.
On Christmas Eve 1968 three Americans became the first humans to visit another world. What they did to celebrate was unexpected and profound, and will be remembered throughout all human history. Genesis: the Story of Apollo 8, Robert Zimmerman's classic history of humanity's first journey to another world, tells that story, and it is now available as both an ebook and an audiobook, both with a foreword by Valerie Anders and a new introduction by Robert Zimmerman.
The ebook is available everywhere for $5.99 (before discount) at amazon, or direct from my ebook publisher, ebookit. If you buy it from ebookit you don't support the big tech companies and the author gets a bigger cut much sooner.
The audiobook is also available at all these vendors, and is also free with a 30-day trial membership to Audible.
"Not simply about one mission, [Genesis] is also the history of America's quest for the moon... Zimmerman has done a masterful job of tying disparate events together into a solid account of one of America's greatest human triumphs."--San Antonio Express-News
From the article: “In local law enforcement, that go-easy phenomenon is known as the ‘thin blue line.’”
For the rest of us, that go-easy phenomenon is known as “corruption.”
The question is: now that we know about this corruption in our national government, will we demand that it be eliminated? Will this part of the swamp be drained, or will we continue living with a corrupted government?
As long as the popular media remains on the sidelines abetting their fellow travelers in the swamp, nothing will change.
Given that the political parties are huge money makers for them, they’re not going to SERIOUSLY attack them, no more than they gave honest, hard coverage to the protests in Hong Kong.
Coverage starts, Chinese investors (aka PLA) complain to the heads of the networks about the coverage, story goes away.
New scandal? Rinse and repeat.
I am attempting to find an Alexander Hamilton quote regarding “congressional”, “political”, “power” and its caustic results upon the / Our Republic. Alas, I will have to continue to search.
Needless to say, Hamilton saw where the power was, and where it should be, with the People.
For now, as always, We The People have the government we deserve.
Vote wisely.
>Repeal the 17th Amendment.
That “thin blue line” is what is normally called nepotism.
You give your friends a better break than you would give strangers.
Your group is more valued than outsiders.
To fix this ‘thin blue line’ problem in government we need to automatically assign an outside the organization investigator and prosecutor to the cases.
I would personally trust the military to be the investigators of the US government departments. Maybe the local state being the prosecutors.
But the problem with your solution of having the military “be the investigators” would mean that there was a military Junta in operation and not a Democratic Republic operating under a Constitution.
No, all of what is going on in America, the chaos and the confrontation and the desperate political warfare is what needs to happen and the people must absorb it all and figure it out. There is no other way.
Embrace the chaos, for from the chaos will come order of some sort. Perfect? Never. But its the best we have got.
PS: What needs to happen, the reconciliation, is in process.
When men (and / or women) see what must be done and they are willing to become empowered and rise to the occasion and not be concerned with their legacy then that is how we reconcile the corruption that we all know and understand that will certainly emerge.
And who are these people? Trump, Pence, Nuniez, Meadows, Gohmert, Huber, Horowitz, Durham and the many, many others, and most especially the man that must lead it all, Bill Barr. (Bill “Everybody dies” Barr)
These men must rise to the occasion and become more than and take care of business no matter what the cost to themselves might be. And that is that, no hand wringing, no whining, no tears, just take care of business just like the Founders took care of business.
And if they refuse or are able to wrestle the corrupt and perverted abuse of power dragon to the ground and kill or at least deeply wound it? Then that is what places like China and Venezuela are built upon and what we will become.
And that just unacceptable.
The second set of laws created for the express benefit of one woman presidential candidate by a corrupt and self interested agency of the government must be reconciled!
No junta.
The military is not above the justice department but equal to it in power.
And they already exist.
Do you want the congress to investigate? And who would do the actual investigations? The CIA or FBI?
And I thought the thin blue line meant something honorable men and women in police departments and sheriff’s departments across this land walked. i.e. they abided by the law governing us all and the law governing them in their duties. That walking the thin blue line meant they are impartial and blind as to who the suspect is.
I may not know what law I am breaking because they are so voluminous.
It must be accomplished by and under the office of the Attorney General because all of this corruption and abuse of power exists in the Legal realm and the Legal realm is a part of the Pedestrian realm. The employees of the FBI and the DOJ and the CIA is where this all comes from and they exist in the Pedestrian realm. They are employees of the government and are subject to the legal system.
The military can not investigate or prosecute in the Civilian / Pedestrian realm. Not without there being a military coup where the military takes power. And we are not even close to being there. I don’t think any way.
The best sign in all this? When Bill Barr said: “Everyone dies”. That is the one statement that should give everyone a next order of belief that the system can clean itself out as per its design specifications. It means IMO he understands what must happen and he is not concerned about the problems and possible negative legacy in his future. Exactly what is needed.
And the next higher level after the Pedestrian realm is the gray, Politically empowered realm and this where the likes of Hillary and Obama occupy. Will it go that far? Stay tuned, it may be determined by the president and the Congress that that would be too disruptive to the body politic and just accept the scalps of those employees who were doing what they cam e to believe that they should be doing, executing THEIR political agenda. They have gone way over the line.
Lets see Comey and Brennan lead the indictments, that must happen.
Constitutionally the DoD (the military) are completely subservient to civilian power, and that stricture is ingrained into every soldier, sailor and airman from day 1.
It would take a serious breach for the military to void that concept, far more serious than even the naked legal coup attempt being attempted by the swamp.
Yes, the military pledges an oath to uphold the Constitution, not a political party or person.
Every elected official pledges that same oath.
pivoting…
NATIONAL SECURITY PRESIDENTIAL DIRECTIVE/NSPD 51
HOMELAND SECURITY PRESIDENTIAL DIRECTIVE/HSPD-20
Subject: National Continuity Policy
https://fas.org/irp/offdocs/nspd/nspd-51.htm
“(3) It is the policy of the United States to maintain a comprehensive and effective continuity capability composed of Continuity of Operations and Continuity of Government programs in order to ensure the preservation of our form of government under the Constitution and the continuing performance of National Essential Functions under all conditions.”
Wayne,
The difference is that servicemembers live it by necessity. Politicians if anything give lip service to the oath while they grift. One hand on the bible, fingers crossed behind their back.
commodude–
(Or… one hand on the koran, as the case may be…)
Yes, I did not mean to place politicians on the same level as loyal American service members. The average politician, hasn’t even read the Constitution, much less understand what it means.
The military MUST absolutely take their oath more literally than a politician, it is black and white. For if they did not chaos, instability and a military coup would happen often, SEE: Venezuela.
(I would think that there were serious related conversations among some high level generals at times during the Obama administration. But then again that would have been outside of our system, it was not incrementally broken enough to warrant such actions. But that incrementalism and erosion of the Constitution that he represented is what must be monitored and guarded against, that is one of our weak points)
Most politicians if they were judged by how they interpreted their oath to the Constitution should be arrested. However politicians are involved in the interpretation of the Constitution and not the execution of direct deadly force and protecting the nation, which the military is in regards to external forces who would seek to usurp our treasure, land, populous and freedom.
Our system is structured specifically in this manner for those reasons, but what emerges from it is what we are witnessing right now, its own special brand of treachery. The deep intel state in the form of the leadership of the FBI, CIA, DNI and DOJ and the military industrial complex (I m certain there are others) attempting to shape the body politic to its own subjective political needs and specifications. And this we agree can not remain so and must be dealt with.
Like I have said before, its not perfect but its the best we have and I see no proposal offered by any political party that is qualified to replace it. Anything that did replace it would be far inferior to the Constitution as written and intended and an insult to the men who formulated it and literally risked everything they had including their lives to make it so.
The deep state exists to a point in the military, particularly among those wearing stars.
I give you Wes Clark….
Trump’s Seven Days in May:
“The Deep State Plot to Destroy America” (2018)
https://youtu.be/BY5fhFEw1cA
9:21
Corruption you say?
Read this for lots of hand ringing and head shaking;
“While some witnesses and their attorneys complain he’s not doing his job, some critics who once had high hopes for Huber now suspect he was never expected to. They say Huber’s appointment was always political, that the Justice Department had no interest in exposing its own corruption”
Sessions friend, and Obama holdover.
https://www.realclearinvestigations.com/articles/2018/12/22/john_huber_vanishing_savior_for_gop.html
Apparently, his job was to investigate whether there needs to be an investigation… Doh!
Did you hear about his replacement? Yeah, I didn’t think so.
“Since then, Barr appointed another U.S. attorney, John Durham, to take over the investigation that was initially handled by Huber”
https://dailycaller.com/2019/05/31/william-barr-john-huber/
There’s a rumor that Huber used his connections in Utah uranium mining industry to help Hillary with the Russia sale. They appointed one of their own to investigate themselves.
Now it’s a game of hot potato, to keep flipping the investigation/Cover up just like Ken Starr until everyone involved is dead and gone.
(I had another conversation the other night at dinner with another friend who is upset with Trump and his Tweeting, he does not think that Trump has the right to comment on anything related to law, I disagreed. This is what I prepared for him.)
ON LAW ENFORCEMENT AND THE EXECUTIVE
“Law enforcement is a function of the executive branch; the president is the head of the executive branch. The president, therefore, is at the top of the chain of command of any federal law enforcement officer, apart from the small forces employed by the judicial and legislative branches, as noted elsewhere.”
Here president Trumps Attorney General who serves by his choice and at his pleasure makes a statement about a presidential executive order directly related to his job as Attorney General and the enforcement of the law as directed by the president. The president is the boss.
https://www.justice.gov/ag/presidential-commission-law-enforcement-and-administration-justice
So while an Attorney General is the person chosen by a president to serve as the Attorney General and is who runs the DOJ he is ultimately answerable to the president who is the executive and holds the power of law enforcement that flows through the office of the president to the Attorney General and creates their fiduciary responsibilities related to law and law enforcement.
Do I think it strategically wise for Trump to Tweet about every thought and feeling on every subject that comes before him? NO I DO NOT, on that I entirely agree with you.
It may be strategically unwise for Trump to Tweet related to any case that is in the public eye, but it is well within his right to do so if he so decides, whether one thinks that wise or not. Trump, like all executive officers structured by the Constitution and are saddled with their fiduciary responsibilities ultimately are responsible for the law enforcement in the country. And anyone who disagrees with any presidents actions in the execution of their job has the ultimate redress related to the job performance and that is their vote.
The people have the ultimate say.