Tag: Trump tweets

Want to Know More About: Trump’s Department of Justice Tweets

John Berman: “The President Is Criticizing Federal Charges Against Two Republican Members Of Congress Because Those Charges Hurt Chances For Republicans To Hold Those Seats.” JOHN BERMAN: “We also have a new update on president Trump’s level of support for an impartial and apolitical justice system. That level apparently approaching zero this morning. The president is criticizing federal charges against two Republican members of congress because those charges hurt chances for Republicans to hold those seats. His unambiguous statement is raising alarm even with members of his own party, one senator saying this is not some banana republic.” [New Day, CNN, 9/4/18; Video]

John Berman: “President Trump Is Slamming His Attorney General Jeff Sessions And More Importantly Making It Clear He Doesn’t Want The Justice Department To Remain Apolitical.” JOHN BERMAN: “Back in Washington, president Trump is slamming his attorney general Jeff Sessions and more importantly making it clear he doesn’t want the justice department to remain apolitical. Last month, New York Congressman Chris Collins was charged with 13 counts of fraud related to an alleged insider trading scheme. California’s Duncan Hunter was indicted by a grand jury after allegedly misusing a quarter million dollars in campaign funds.” [New Day, CNN, 9/4/18; Video] Continue reading “Want to Know More About: Trump’s Department of Justice Tweets”

Debate rages over Trump tweets and obstruction

The following article by Morgan Chalfant was posted on the Hill website August 4, 2018:

President Trump may have given special counsel Robert Mueller a new gift this week: tweets that could help build an obstruction of justice case against him.

Trump’s tweet lashing out at Attorney General Jeff Sessions and saying that he should quash Mueller’s investigation into Russian interference would seem to feed an obstruction of justice case — following reports that Mueller is looking at the president’s messages on Twitter closely.

Legal analysts say that a single message would not form the basis for an obstruction charge.

View the complete article here.

Mueller Examining Trump’s Tweets in Wide-Ranging Obstruction Inquiry Image

The following article by Michael S. Schmidt and Maggie Haberman was posted on the New York Times website July 26, 2018:

Investigators for the special counsel, Robert S. Mueller III, have told President Trump’s lawyers that they want to question him about his tweets. Credit: Doug Mills, The New York Times

WASHINGTON — For years, President Trump has used Twitter as his go-to public relations weapon, mounting a barrage of attacks on celebrities and then political rivals even after advisers warned he could be creating legal problems for himself.

Those concerns now turn out to be well founded. The special counsel, Robert S. Mueller III, is scrutinizing tweets and negative statements from the president about Attorney General Jeff Sessions and the former F.B.I. director James B. Comey, according to three people briefed on the matter.

Several of the remarks came as Mr. Trump was also privately pressuring the men — both key witnesses in the inquiry — about the investigation, and Mr. Mueller is examining whether the actions add up to attempts to obstruct the investigation by both intimidating witnesses and pressuring senior law enforcement officials to tamp down the inquiry.

View the complete article here.

Trump’s tweets suggest he doesn’t understand his legal jeopardy

The following article by Aaron Blake was posted on the Washington Post website May 1, 2018:

With the term whirling around Washington, a former federal prosecutor explains what to know about the criminal charge of obstruction of justice. (Jenny Starrs/The Washington Post)

President Trump isn’t happy that questions Robert S. Mueller III wants to ask him have leaked to the media. But his reaction to the situation seems to betray a real lack of understanding of the legal trouble he faces. Either that or he’s deliberately misleading us.

First off, Trump tweeted that he was very upset about the leak of the information, but he ignores the fact that it came not from Mueller’s side, but apparently from his own. Continue reading “Trump’s tweets suggest he doesn’t understand his legal jeopardy”

Trump keeps saying he’s innocent. So why does he keep sounding like he’s guilty?

The following article by Philip Rucker was posted on the Washington Post website April 24, 2018:

President Trump has repeatedly denied any collusion between his campaign and Russia. (Patrick Martin/The Washington Post)

As concern grew inside his orbit that Michael Cohen might become a cooperating witness to federal investigators, President Trump issued a declaration about his longtime personal lawyer and fixer.

“Most people will flip if the Government lets them out of trouble,” Trump tweeted over the weekend. He added: “Sorry, I don’t see Michael doing that.” Continue reading “Trump keeps saying he’s innocent. So why does he keep sounding like he’s guilty?”

Kellyanne Conway lashes out when asked to answer for Trump’s tweets

The following article by Tommy Christopher was posted on the shareblue.com website April 22, 2018:

Defending Trump is a thankless job, and Kellyanne Conway seems less and less ready or willing to do it.

Credit: CNN

Kellyanne Conway threw a tantrum of her own when asked to explain Trump’s latest Twitter tirades. And she wound up making a devastating point against her boss.

Trump posted a series of panicky tweets Saturday morning, fretting about the prospect of his personal attorney “flipping” on him. On CNN’s “State of the Union” Sunday morning, host Dana Bash asked Conway to explain the tweets.

When Conway was unable to do so, Bash asked, “If the president’s going to tweet something like that, shouldn’t he own it and explain it?” Continue reading “Kellyanne Conway lashes out when asked to answer for Trump’s tweets”

Five things to keep in mind whenever Trump tweets about polling

The following article by Philip Bump was posted on the Washington Post website April 16, 2018:

President Trump speaks to the press before departing the White House. (Carolyn Van Houten/The Washington Post)

For the third time in two weeks, President Trump on Sunday touted poll numbers that showed half the country approving of the job he’s doing as president.

“Just hit 50% in the Rasmussen Poll, much higher than President Obama at same point,” Trump wrote, with his characteristically idiosyncratic capitalization. “With all of the phony stories and Fake News, it’s hard to believe! Thank you America, we are doing Great Things.”

That tweet provides a great opportunity to review some of the ways in which Trump uses poll numbers to present a rosier case for his presidency than is warranted. So let’s do so. Continue reading “Five things to keep in mind whenever Trump tweets about polling”

‘Untruthful slime ball’: Trump blasts Comey as details emerge from scathing book

The following article by John Wagner was posted on the Washington Post website April 13, 2018:

Former FBI director James B. Comey details his conversations with President Trump in his new book, “A Higher Loyalty: Truth, Lies and Leadership.” (Patrick Martin, Allie Caren/The Washington Post)

President Trump lashed out Friday at former FBI director James B. Comey on Twitter, calling him a “weak and untruthful slime ball” who deserved to be fired “for the terrible job he did.”

“It was my great honor to fire James Comey!” Trump wrote in his first remarks since advance copies surfaced of Comey’s upcoming book that includes blistering descriptions of Trump and his presidency. Continue reading “‘Untruthful slime ball’: Trump blasts Comey as details emerge from scathing book”

White House Flips, Flops, Then Flips on Stopgap Spending

The following article by John T. Bennett was posted on the Roll Call website January 18,2018:

Trump’s tweet sends Hill into spin

President Donald Trump defied his staff by criticizing the inclusion of a provision to extend CHIP in the latest continuing budget resolution. (Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call file photo)

President Donald Trump on Thursday undermined efforts by House Republican leaders and his own staff to avoid a government shutdown, criticizing a decision to include an extension of the Children’s Health Insurance Program in a GOP-crafted stopgap spending bill.

Hours later the White House announced the president supported the House GOP-crafted stopgap spending measure that includes a six-year CHIP extension — despite a confusing morning tweet that raised questions to the contrary.

The president, after first contradicting his own chief of staff via Twitter on Thursday morning, fired off another post expressing his view that a CHIP extension should not be part of a four-week stopgap measure on which the House is slated to vote later in the day. Continue reading “White House Flips, Flops, Then Flips on Stopgap Spending”

New year, new start? Not in President Trump’s Washington

The following article by Julie Pace was posted on the Associated Press website January 3, 2018:

WASHINGTON (AP) — So much for a new year, new start.

For Donald Trump, that energy-sapping 2017 cocktail of blistering presidential tweets, salacious White House infighting and jaw-dropping feuds with foreign adversaries has given way to, well, more of the same.

“We are off and running,” said Josh Holmes, a longtime adviser to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell. “It’s amazing that the pace that we set in 2017 has continued with equal vigor.” Continue reading “New year, new start? Not in President Trump’s Washington”