Trump Unleashes Tirade Against Mueller's 'Big Time Conflicts of Interest'
President Donald Trump opened up on special counsel Robert Mueller in series of tweets Friday, alleging his team is made up of “17 angry Democrats” and is rife with conflicts of interest.
The president’s Twitter storm came the same day Mueller’s team was expected to file a sentencing memo relating to former Trump attorney Michael Cohen’s cooperation with the special counsel and a court document detailing why prosecutors believe former campaign manager Paul Manafort violated his plea agreement, CNBC reported.
Additionally, former FBI Director James Comey was slated to testify behind closed doors to the House Judiciary Committee concerning his role in the FBI counterintelligence investigation into Trump’s campaign during the 2016 presidential race.
Many political watchers are also anticipating that Mueller could issue his final report detailing the findings of the Russia investigation before Christmas.
Trump began his series of tweets Friday by highlighting conflicts of interest he sees on Mueller’s team, with the clear implication they will not produce a fair and fact-based report.
“Robert Mueller and Leakin’ Lyin’ James Comey are Best Friends, just one of many Mueller Conflicts of Interest. And bye (sic) the way, wasn’t the woman in charge of prosecuting Jerome Corsi (who I do not know) in charge of ‘legal’ at the corrupt Clinton Foundation? A total Witch Hunt,” he wrote.
Robert Mueller and Leakin’ Lyin’ James Comey are Best Friends, just one of many Mueller Conflicts of Interest. And bye the way, wasn’t the woman in charge of prosecuting Jerome Corsi (who I do not know) in charge of “legal” at the corrupt Clinton Foundation? A total Witch Hunt…
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 7, 2018
The Washington Post, in a May 2017 piece titled, “‘Brothers in arms’: The long friendship between Mueller and Comey,” pointed out the two worked closely together during the George W. Bush administration when Mueller was FBI director and Comey was deputy attorney general.
Additionally, they rose through the ranks together as prosecutors in the Justice Department in the 1990s, according to Washingtonian, in an article titled, “Forged Under Fire — Bob Mueller and Jim Comey’s Unusual Friendship.” The pair were mentored by then-Deputy Attorney General Eric Holder during the Clinton administration.
The “woman” prosecuting Corsi to whom Trump referred is Jeannie Rhee, who represented Hillary Clinton during her 2015 lawsuit involving her use of a private unsecured email server while she was secretary of state. Rhee also served as legal counsel for the Clinton Foundation, The Washington Times reported.
Rhee was a maximum donor to Clinton’s 2016 presidential campaign, according to Politifact.
Trump also put Mueller team prosecutor Andrew Weissman — who attended Hillary Clinton’s election night party in 2016 — in his crosshairs.
“Will Andrew Weissman’s horrible and vicious prosecutorial past be listed in the Report,” he asked. “He wrongly destroyed people’s lives, took down great companies, only to be overturned, 9-0, in the United States Supreme Court. Doing same thing to people now.”
….Will Robert Mueller’s big time conflicts of interest be listed at the top of his Republicans only Report. Will Andrew Weissman’s horrible and vicious prosecutorial past be listed in the Report. He wrongly destroyed people’s lives, took down great companies, only to be……..
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 7, 2018
Weissman worked as a prosecutor in a case against the accounting firm Arthur Andersen. The attorney flipped witnesses that helped the DOJ secure a 2002 obstruction of justice conviction against the firm in relation to its auditing work for the energy company Enron.
The Supreme Court overturned the conviction in a 9-0 ruling in 2005.
However, the damage had already been done by the prosecution. Arthur Andersen — one of the nation’s “big five” accounting firms, once employing 28,000 people — was forced to close its doors after 89 years of being in business, ABC News reported.
Trump further wondered if Mueller’s report will disclose to the public the “substantial & many contributions” his team of “17 Angry Democrats” made to “Crooked Hillary.”
…..overturned, 9-0, in the United States Supreme Court. Doing same thing to people now. Will all of the substantial & many contributions made by the 17 Angry Democrats to the Campaign of Crooked Hillary be listed in top of Report. Will the people that worked for the Clinton….
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 7, 2018
Politifact confirmed last spring that Mueller’s team has no registered Republicans, save Mueller himself, and 13 registered Democrats. The remaining four members’ party affinity is not known.
The fact-checker also reported that among the lawyers on the team who made political contributions, approximately $62,000 went to Democrat candidates, while $2,750 went to Republicans. Six members of the team did not contribute to any federal candidate.
Additionally, three attorneys on Mueller team gave a total $18,100 specifically to Clinton’s 2008 and 2016 presidential bids.
Trump promised in another tweet his lawyers will be ready with a report to counter Mueller’s.
“It has been incorrectly reported that Rudy Giuliani and others will not be doing a counter to the Mueller Report. That is Fake News. Already 87 pages done, but obviously cannot complete until we see the final Witch Hunt Report,” the president said.
It has been incorrectly reported that Rudy Giuliani and others will not be doing a counter to the Mueller Report. That is Fake News. Already 87 pages done, but obviously cannot complete until we see the final Witch Hunt Report.
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 7, 2018
Last week, Harvard Law School professor emeritus Alan Dershowitz predicted that Mueller’s report will be a “devastating” attack on Trump.
He argued on Fox News that the only way to balance the report, which will be offered as a means to shape public opinion against the president, presumably to justify his impeachment, is for Trump’s legal team to review it and have a chance to rebut it.
“It’s devastating only if it’s unrebutted,” Dershowitz said, “which is why it is absolutely essential for the president’s team to demand that the Justice Department not allow the release of the Mueller report until they’ve had a chance to review it and rebut it.
“And then both the reports, the Mueller report and the president’s lawyers’ report, come out at the same time so the American public can judge.”
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