Dead From The Neck Up

Mr. President, a couple minor corrections: (1) I have never committed a crime, which is an important pre-req for jail in most countries, still including ours; and (2) there’s just one book, but I think there is a movie coming and I hope doesn’t recognize the you get to see it. pic.twitter.com/T1E94bRG51

— James Comey (@Comey) February 13, 2020

This a is the best account/quote of Trump’s words that I can find. What dothey reveal is how determinedly, stupefyingly, brutally ignorant he is. Then again, this is the guy who doesn’t recognize the significance of Pearl Harbor.

Roger Stone was tried in a jury trial. He was convicted on seven counts, including obstruction of Congress, lying to Congress, and witness tampering (sound familiar? And honestly, what Stone's trial revealed about the Trump campaign, and Trump, is much more interesting than the "horse race" of whether or not he'll be sentenced, by how much, and will he be pardoned.  Manafort's trial revealed much, too; but no one is interested in anything beyond how he spends his time in jail.).  He isn't being punished for reasons "nobody understands."  The person who doesn't understand is the doofus watching FoxNews rather than taking information from his own administration.


What happens now? This is very likely how this ends:

Fully aware I might be entirely wrong, here's my prediction on the Stone sentencing: Judge Jackson will impose a sentence no lower than 60 mos, no higher than 87 mos. She will remand Stone into custody immediately. (Trump will go berserk, but won't pardon Stone immediately.)

— Elizabeth de la Vega (@Delavegalaw) February 13, 2020

Except I don’t expect a pardon.  Trump has attacked Judge Jackson for putting Paul Manafort in "solitary confinement" (she didn't; judges don't decide that, prisons do).  But while he's complaining anew about Manafort's treatment, he's not so much as dangling a pardon for Manafort.  Nor for Flynn, who hasn't been sentenced yet.  This is faux outrage ginned up by Trump spending too much time watching basic cable.  He's not so much flexing his muscles as venting his spleen.  William Barr is a knight in the retinue to Trump's Henry II (and that's as far as THAT analogy goes), who is ridding Trump of this troublesome priest.  Trump likes that:  he says frog, Barr jumps.  But does Trump really want to order the pardon (murder) of Stone (Thomas Becket; again, let's not carry that any further)?  No, of course not.

Roger Stone was convicted of LYING TO CONGRESS & TAMPERING WITH A CONGRESSIONAL WITNESS.

What he did was a direct affront to Congress.

What Trump & Barr are doing now to shield him is, in turn, a direct affront to Congress.

So where's the bipartisan congressional outrage??

— Joshua A. Geltzer (@jgeltzer) February 12, 2020