Around 2500 people met at the Minnesota capitol grounds to call on Republican President Donald Trump to release his returns, divest his holdings, and disclose his conflicts of interest. (Photo Credit: Fibonacci Blue, CC 2.0) Every week seems to bring a new story of corruption and avarice from the Trump Administration, driven in large part by … [Read more...]
New York Passes Double Jeopardy Changes in Shot at Trump
One of the President's few untrammeled powers is his ability to issue pardons. It has long been understood that the President can pardon anyone he wants and for any reason – the President's ability to dispense pardons is designed to exist without external constraint. However, Donald Trump has, as he has in so many other ways, challenged the … [Read more...]
Obstruction of Justice in the Mueller Report: Michael Cohen
(Photo Credit: Gage Skidmore, CC 2.0) For years, Michael Cohen was referred to in press reports as “Donald Trump's personal lawyer.” However, Cohen never really performed the tasks traditionally associated with attorneys – it's rather difficult to imagine Cohen spending long nights in document review or taking depositions. Instead, Cohen was a … [Read more...]
Obstruction of Justice in the Mueller Report: Paul Manafort
Even before his relatively brief tenure as manager of the Trump campaign, Paul Manafort was one of the more infamous behind-the-scenes players in American politics. Manafort, who had worked for multiple Republican presidential campaigns in the 80's and 90's, was primarily known as a high-priced political consultant with a taste for life's finer … [Read more...]
Obstruction of Justice in the Mueller Report: Covering Up the Attempts to Fire Robert Mueller
In a previous post, American Legal News examined one of the most troubling stories in the Mueller Report: the President's attempts to fire Special Counsel Robert Mueller and, having failed in that, to impede the Special Counsel's investigation into Russia's interference in the 2016 election. These are two cases where the evidence, as laid out in … [Read more...]
Obstruction of Justice In The Mueller Report: Jeff Sessions and The Russia Investigation
Jeff Sessions speaking to supporters at an immigration rally hosted by Donald Trump. (Photo Credit: Gage Skidmore, CC 2.0) Jeff Sessions, at the time a Republican Senator from Alabama, was one of the Trump campaign's most frequently deployed surrogates in 2016. Sessions was the first GOP Senator to endorse Trump during the primaries – the … [Read more...]
Obstruction of Justice In The Mueller Report: The Trump Tower Meeting
Trump Tower New York, New York where the "Trump Tower Meeting" takes place. (Photo Credit: Bin im Garten. CC 3.0) The second volume of the Mueller Report is filled with behavior from the President and his aides that would likely qualify as obstruction of justice if the Special Counsel had decided it was appropriate for him to make that … [Read more...]
Obstruction of Justice In The Mueller Report: Impeding the Special Counsel’s Investigation
Don McGahn speaking at the 2018 Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) in National Harbor, Maryland. (Photo Credit: Gage Skidmore, CC 2.0) From the very moment former FBI Director Robert Mueller was appointed as Special Counsel with a mandate to investigate Russian interference in the 2016 election, Donald Trump has made clear that he … [Read more...]
Obstruction of Justice in the Mueller Report: James Comey
https://youtu.be/kbYdH7k2ewc?rel=0 In early 2017, FBI Director James Comey was a man without many friends. His decision, made in the closing weeks of the 2016 presidential campaign, to announce in a letter to Congress that the FBI was re-opening the investigation into Hillary Clinton's use of a private e-mail server during her time as Secretary … [Read more...]
Obstruction of Justice in the Mueller Report: Michael Flynn
https://youtu.be/MoZUTEVa0Rw?rel=0 During the 2016 presidential campaign, retired General Michael Flynn was one of Donald Trump's regular campaign surrogates, to the extent that Trump considered him for the Vice Presidency. Flynn frequently spoke at Trump campaign rallies and appeared on television to speak for the campaign. Flynn was, at … [Read more...]
