Russagate Heads to the Barr

And drinks to the fill of the whiskey jar. There are two big stories related to Russiagate today. First, the last adult in Washington D.C., Bill Barr told everbody, including Donald Trump, to shut up. AP, Barr swipes at Trump: Tweets make it ‘impossible’ to do job, as AllahPundit at Hot Air happily reports Barr On The Roger Stone Sentencing Fiasco: Trump’s Tweets Are Making It Impossible For Me To Do My Job, Da Wire, Barr Warns Trump Over Tweeting On Stone Case: ‘Cannot Do My Job’ With ‘Constant Background Commentary That Undercuts Me’, Ace, AG Barr: Trump Needs to Stop Tweeting About Open DOJ Matters Under My Jurisdiction; The Tweets "Make It Impossible for Me to Do My Job" I mean: True. Sundance at CTH, McConnell Agrees With Bill Barr – President Trump Not Using Political Filter Enough With His Tweeting – Too Much Honesty…. and Elbow Room – AG Barr: “President Trump Tweets Make It Impossible For Me To Do My Job”…. Just One Minute, Now Its Barr v. Trump. Unless Its Not 

Andy McCarthy on The Roger Stone Sentencing Fiasco

Like criminal-justice “reform,” the Stone prosecution is more politics than law enforcement. It was the Mueller probe’s last gasp at pretending there might be something to the Russia-collusion narrative – notwithstanding that, when the “gee, it sure feels like there could be some collusion here” indictment was filed, over a year and a half after special counsel Robert Mueller was appointed, it had long been manifest that there was no Trump–Russia conspiracy.

So, the Left has a quandary here: Do they hate Trump more than they love sentencing “reform”? We could have predicted the decision to go with hating Trump, and thus fomenting outrage over DOJ’s retraction of its original sentencing recommendation of about nine years’ imprisonment, now slashed to a far more reasonable range of four years or less. To be fair, though, Trump critics could not have been expected to resist the combination of DOJ missteps and Trump Twitter taunts that mark Stone’s sentencing, the combination that has managed to turn Mueller’s maulers into media martyrs.

AmThink, Devin Nunes hints that Robert Mueller's team will be exposed soon, Sundance, Devin Nunes Discusses Upcoming Bill Barr Testimony…



Althouse gets a different message, "In [Roger] Stone’s case, the guidelines worked a severe result. In tampering cases, a guidelines enhancement calls for a drastic increase in the sentence..."

"... if the defendant threatened the witness with physical injury. This drove Stone’s 'offense level' from 21 to 29 on the guidelines grid, so even though he is a first offender... his recommended sentence zoomed to 90 to 108 months — instead of 37 to 46 months....  [T]he prosecutors’ submission was an accurate (if extreme and unyielding) rendition of federal sentencing law....[T]he president went bonkers on Twitter upon learning of the recommendation... [but] the DOJ and the White House have had no communications about the case.... Late Tuesday, the DOJ filed a revised sentencing memo, which does not recommend a specific sentence but strongly suggests that a term calculated without the eight-point enhancement — i.e., between 37 and 46 months’ imprisonment — would be just. The new memo concedes that the prosecutors’ calculation in the original memo was 'arguably' correct, but contends that it would be unreasonable under the circumstances... But for his connection to Trump, Stone would never have been pursued in a collusion fever dream that Mueller’s prosecutors knew was bogus when they charged him. Yet his crimes, while exaggerated, were real. He was convicted by a jury... though he could be spared by the judge....  If President Trump is afraid, in an election year, to take the political hit that a pardon for Stone would entail... he should bite his tongue.... The Justice Department’s job is to process cases, including Mueller cases, pursuant to law. If the president wants to make those cases disappear, he has to do it himself and be accountable."

Insty, ON THE ONE HAND, I GET IT.

On the other hand:

The Justice Department’s descent into partisan hackery and its inability to police itself are doing more harm than any tweet.

Caroline Court at Da Fed explains why Why A Nine-Year Prison Sentence For Roger Stone Is Insane, while Kurt Schlichter at Town Hall alleges Trump Charges the Liberal Hacks’ Latest Ambush. At Da Caller, Attorney General Bill Barr Will Testify Before Congress On Roger Stone, Rudy Giuliani And More. Nice Deb at AmGreat, Shock: Stone Head Juror Who ‘Broke Silence’ to Defend Prosecutors Is Far-Left Activist Who Tweeted About the Case. Matt Margolis at PJ Media lists 5 Times Barack Obama Protected His Allies from Justice and Democrats Didn't Care and writes how SHAMELESS: Obama 'Wingman' Eric Holder Claims 'Unprecedented' Politicization of DOJ Under Trump. That's different because, shut up!

And then, second, the next story broke, Ace, Forewoman of Roger Stone Jury Criticizes Trump In FaceBook Post; People Discover She Has Long Been a Rabidly Anti-Trump, Anti-Republican Zealot Who Ran for Congress as a Democrat and Tweeted About Stone Before the Trial "This conviction will have to be thrown out. This woman is obviously biased beyond any capability of dispassionate evaluation. And she wasn't just a juror, but the jury foreman, so she probably influenced the other jurors." I don't see how the convictions stands, but I don't trust the legal system either. Stacy McCain, BIAS: Roger Stone Jury Forewoman Is Partisan Anti-Trump Democrat

Clear evidence of judicial malpractice:

The foreperson on the jury that convicted Roger Stone has come forward, and is revealed to be a failed Democrat candidate for Congress and activist vehemently opposed to President Donald Trump.
Tomeka Hart, a former Memphis City Schools Board President, came forward as the Stone jury foreperson in a Facebook post on Wednesday, voicing support for prosecutors in the case.
Hart confirmed to The Daily Memphian that she wrote the Facebook post, but she declined an interview with the newspaper.
Stone supporters were shocked when a review of Hart’s social media posts showed that she posted on Twitter mocking Stone’s dramatic arrest prior to being seated on the jury, and frequently denounced Trump, including calling the president and his supporters racists.
It’s unclear whether Stone’s political views and social media history were disclosed during jury selection, potentially raising questions about fairness that could impact the verdict on appeal.

The judge in the case (Amy Berman Jackson) is a Democrat appointed by Obama. So how is it that another Democrat — from West Tennessee, of all places — is chosen as forewoman of a federal jury in the District of Columbia?

Nice Deb at AmGreat, Shock: Stone Head Juror Who ‘Broke Silence’ to Defend Prosecutors Is Far-Left Activist Who Tweeted About the Case, EBL, Did the Jury Foreperson in the Roger Stone trial lie so as to get him convicted from the start?. Almost certainly. At the Victory Girls, Roger Stone And The Biased Juror,  and finally Dr. John at Flopping Aces, Roger Stone will get a mistrial, thanks to Tomeka Hart- and Donald Trump.

But that's not all the Russiagate "news". Victoria Taft at PJ Media has Devin Nunes Links Trump's NSC 'Friday Night Massacre' to General Mike Flynn and ... Whoa and Julie Kelly at AmGreat writes that Coup Plotters Fear the Quickening, "The Left’s convulsions are warranted, just not for the reasons they now are giving the public." Sundance goes on about  how U.S. and U.K. Intelligence Agencies Worry About John Durham – Scrutiny of CIA Draws Media Apoplexy… and how The FBI Corruption is Far Worse Than We Currently Imagine – President Trump Authorized His Own Surveillance…

After a lot of talk about her in the last few days, sundance reports Jessie Liu Resigns Treasury Dept. Following Nomination Withdrawal… to spend more time with her family.

From Breitbart, McClatchy Moves to Dismiss Devin Nunes’ Lawsuit, but Judge Grants Him Discovery. Hmmmm.

From Jerry Dunleavy at WaEx, 'No relevance': DOJ says FISA report doesn’t justify dismissing Michael Flynn case. Yeah? Flynn needs to go to court and call McCabe and Strzok at witnesses, and just beat the hell out of them.

Insty, ERIC CIARAMELLA IS NOT A “WHISTLEBLOWER,” HE’S AN OPERATIVE: YouTube Removes Video Of Rand Paul Naming Alleged Whistleblower Eric Ciaramella On Senate Floor.

Da Wire, Democrat Eric Swalwell: We May Impeach Trump Again Soon,  Ace, Eric Swallowall to Collusion Truther Jake Tapper: Yes, We Might Well Impeach Trump Again Over Barr's Overruling of Mueller's Rogue Prosecutors. Via Redstate.

And this isn't just any old Democrat saying this -- this is Eric Swallowall, former Democrat presidential candidate.

(I mean, he was. Technically.)

The National Pulse, The overwhelming majority of voters want to move on from impeachment and view the Democrats’ failed attempt to remove President Donald J. Trump from office as a boon to his 2020 campaign, according to a Rasmussen Report.. Capt Ed at Hot Air, Impeachment-Um? Trump, RNC Raise $60M In January. Don't throw him in dat briar patch! George Korda at da Knox News thinks Lamar Alexander impeachment statement offers a good plan for the future

Via The Wombat's In The Mailbox: 02.12.20 has Twitchy: Schiff’s Tweet Blasting The Investigation & Persecution Of Political Enemies Blows Up In His Face