Trump Has Royally Screwed Congressional Republicans

[babylonsister]

https://newrepublic.com/article/141120/trump-royally-screwed-congressional-republicans


Trump Has Royally Screwed Congressional Republicans
His unfounded claim that Obama wiretapped his phones is forcing the GOP to do exactly what it tried to avoid.
By Brian Beutler
March 6, 2017

snip//

It is alarming for Trump to seek an investigation of the Obama administration on the basis of right-wing agitprop and raw impulse. Under slightly different circumstances, it is easy to imagine Trump and his Republican supplicants ruining the lives of innocent people with this kind of behavior, corroding the rule of law in the process. But in this specific case, what he’s actually asking for is an expansion of the various investigations into Russian campaign meddling and the Trump campaign’s connections to it. Democrats should happily oblige.

As Nunes noted in his statement, his interest in Trump’s allegations stems from the fact that “one of the focus points of the House Intelligence Committee’s investigation is the U.S. government’s response to actions taken by Russian intelligence agents during the presidential campaign.” In other words, to the extent that House investigators are taking orders from Trump, they will be digging further into the question of whether the Trump campaign and the Russian government conspired against Clinton. In light of the strenuousness of Obama’s denial, and Comey’s extraordinary interest in clearing the FBI’s name publicly, it is likely that Nunes’ inquiry will either reveal serious probable cause for investigating Trump or that Trump’s accusations don’t have even tenuous connection to reality.

By staking out this ground, Trump has activated a partisan response from Republicans who were trying to protect Trump from scrutiny. That’s why Republicans can’t safely count on the vicissitudes of the news cycle to protect them from the political consequences of this Trump outrage, as they have in the past. One Republican lawmaker speaking to BuzzFeed described Trump’s tweets as “a big deal that will be forgotten in two weeks if it’s not true.” I’m not sure that’s so.

When that investigation is over, it will either clear Trump and his team or it won’t, but in either case it will almost certainly reveal that Trump is willing to abuse the megaphone of the presidency to smear his political enemies and seek recriminations against them. The question for all the Republicans humoring Trump right now will then be: What are you going to do about it?

[randome]

1. Unfortunately, there is still wiggle-room to pin something on Obama.

Say the wiretap investigation turns up a redacted FISA request that was denied. Right-wing dullards will trumpet, "See? That's the one Obama tried to use!" Utterly 'forgetting' that their original contention was that he actually did it. The virus will simply morph into a different form.
[hr][font color="blue"][center]"If you're bored then you're boring." -Harvey Danger[/center][/font][hr]

[Bernardo de La Paz]

2. Democrats knew he'd screw them. We derided them as they contorted themselves in the election.

Especially Paul Ryan who repeatedly condemned tRump's statements but never condemned tRump.

Now he is deeply enmeshed in the coverup and it's easy to imagine him in the middle of the election crimes as well.

[beachbum bob]

3. nothing will happen until after 2018 election and we all must focus on that

[BumRushDaShow]

4. We need to focus on 2017 first

and take care of our state elections so that we regain power in our states. That will help us gain the upper hand when it comes time for redistricting after the 2020 census.

[babylonsister]

5. I think you are very wrong. He cannot sustain this

imo. We shall see.

[beachbum bob]

7. 2018 is our next opportunity...Unless trumps approval rating dips to 30 percent

Lower

[Orsino]

6. And with the Kochs pushing the botched ACA repeal...

...America may finally learn to stop giving the GOP majorities. But the price of that knowledge will be ruinous.