Greg Craig: and speaking of boomerangs…
…which I was, in my previous post today—
One of President Obama’s former counsels, Greg Craig, is expected to be indicted. This was reported in none other than the NY Times, and since it’s something that doesn’t sit kindly with them and they’re still reporting it, my guess is that it may in fact be true:
The New York Times reported last night that Gregory B. Craig, a counsel in Obama’s White House, is expecting to be indicted in the near future on work he did on behalf of the Russian-aligned Ukrainian president and that’s linked to disgraced Trump campaign manager Paul Manafort…
…the expected indictment…is reportedly based on the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA) and whether Craig lied about needing to register under it for work he did in the Ukraine…
An Ivy League-educated lawyer who held prominent positions in the Clinton and Obama administrations, Mr. Craig would become the first person who made his name in Democratic Party politics to be charged in a case linked to the special counsel’s investigation…
The link between Manafort and Craig is related to a report Craig produced while a partner at Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom firm in 2012. Manafort at the time was a political consultant for the pro-Russia Ukrainian government of Viktor Yanukovych, and apparently commissioned a report from Skadden Arps for $5.2 million in 2012 and 2013 that would be used “to use to quell Western criticism of the prosecution and jailing by Mr. Yanukovych’s government of one of his rivals, the former prime minister Yulia V. Tymoshenko, and to train Ukrainian prosecutors handling matters related to the case.”
Craig then, as ironically as possible, was quoted in The New York Times discussing the report and his firm was subsequently contacted by the DOJ and questioned as to why they had not registered under FARA. The crux of the potential indictment has to do with Craig insisting that he nor his firm proactively reached out to reporters to distribute the report. In a letter he sent to the DOJ he said that he only gave news outlets the report “in response to requests from the media.”
It was always clear that the prosecution of Manafort was motivated at least in part by politics and the need to try to get him to turn against Trump, and it was always clear that other people (including Democrats, of course) had probably violated at least portions of the same laws he violated, although perhaps not as flagrantly.
My question is whether Tony Podesta is next, and I would guess that’s Podesta’s question, too. The following is from an article that appeared in Vox back in July of 2018:
Earlier this year, special counsel Robert Mueller referred a case regarding Trump’s former lawyer Michael Cohen to federal prosecutors in Manhattan. But it turns out, Cohen might not be the only one.
CNN’s Erica Orden reported Tuesday that, since the spring, Mueller made additional referrals to prosecutors in the Southern District of New York regarding whether US lobbyists failed to register their work supporting the Ukrainian government. Those referrals include Democratic lobbyist Tony Podesta and lobbyist and ex-Minnesota GOP Rep. Vin Weber. Sources told CNN that former Obama White House counsel Greg Craig was also referred by Mueller to federal prosecutors in New York.
No charges have been filed against any of the individuals. The Washington Post reports that the referrals were made months ago, and there hasn’t been much activity on their cases since.
As I said, that was back in July. Bill Barr assumed office on Valentine’s Day, 2019 (hmmmm—is the date another irony?). And now perhaps these things are being moved on.
Of course, it’s only a story in the NY Times, so even though it’s a development about which the Times can’t possibly be happy, we need to take it all with a grain of salt.
[NOTE: I’ve read a bunch of stories about Greg Craig and this possibly pending indictment, and in the little summaries of Craig’s career it keeps mentioning that he was Obama’s White House Counsel for a while. That’s certainly true, but his name rang another bell for me, a great big gong actually. I didn’t notice it mentioned in any of the stories I saw, but I recalled quite vividly that he was one of President Clinton’s lawyers to argue on behalf of Clinton in the Senate impeachment trial. Sure enough, that was the case (and note that Podesta was one of the people he worked closely with):
Craig worked in the White House during the Clinton administration from 1998 to 1999, holding the title of assistant to the President and special counsel. Craig’s old friend and law partner Kendall was Clinton’s personal attorney. Craig was brought on specifically to coordinate the White House’s defense of Clinton during impeachment proceedings against him. Termed the “quarterback” by Clinton, Craig worked from the West Wing and oversaw legal, political, congressional, and public relations aspects of the defense, reporting regularly to President Clinton and consulting with John Podesta, the White House chief of staff. However, Craig claimed in an interview with PBS Frontline in July 2000 that Podesta was the one who recruited him and that Podesta told him that the White House needed a “coordinator quarterback.” He also stated that he mainly coordinated with Podesta and that “I could name to John ten other lawyers in America that could do the job as well, if not better.”
These people have certainly been movers and shakers for a long, long time.
I want to add something with which I expect many of you to disagree. But first, a quote from Craig at the Clinton impeachment trial:
In the second day of the President’s defense in his Senate trial, Craig, a special White House counsel, appealed to the senators not to “throw our politics into the darkness of endless recrimination” and not to “inject a poison of bitter partisanship into the body politic which, like a virus, can move through our national bloodstream for years to come.”
He added: “If you convict and remove President Clinton on the basis of these allegations, no President of the United States will ever be safe from impeachment again.”
Most of you probably think Bill Clinton deserved to be impeached and perhaps even convicted. I’ve said many times that I do not. Most of the arguments around that on this blog have occurred in the comments section rather than in a separate post, and I’m not going to go into the details here. But I refer you to this, this, this, and this, and please be sure to follow all the links in all those links.
The reason I’m bringing the topic up again here is that I believe that Craig was correct in this particular quote, or at least partially correct. Now, would the same have happened if Clinton hadn’t been impeached? Perhaps. Maybe even probably. Maybe it had already happened at the time; I certainly don’t think that but for that impeachment action by the GOP, comity would have prevailed. Nor do I think that “the Republicans started it” (some will cite what happened to Nixon, some Bork, and plenty of other incidents). But the Clinton impeachment certainly added fuel to the fire, and all for nothing in the end, IMHO.
I’m well aware, as I already said, that a great many of you may differ strongly with me on that.
At any rate, it may be that Greg Craig will now see himself on the other end of a courtroom proceeding.]
[ADDENDUM: I’d like to add that I agree with this:
My position is, if DOJ/FBI cannot manage to successfully prosecute Mr Craig on a primary crime, then they should leave him the hell alone. None of this “Obstruction” or “Lying to the FBI”—unless it’s an enhancer and specifically to the aforementioned primary crime that they are also prosecuting him on.
However, I also believe that if those on the right are prosecuted for mere process crimes, those on the left should be, too. At the moment, that’s the situation. However, I would advocate strongly that neither side be prosecuted for those things.]
Oh, I think Podesta is going down, too. Mueller opened this door with his pursuit of Manafort. Cory Lewandowski’s book makes it clear that Manafort is a wheeler dealer and probably a crook but this use of FARA is going to clear out K Street. Couldn’t happen to a nicer bunch, of both parties.
I don’t think he will go down as hard as Avenatti, but there are not many dirtbags of his quality.
I think the Podesta brothers will not face any indictments. They filed the necessary paperwork just before Manafort was indicted. Someone tip them off?
I just wish that the IG report would be the downfall of Brennen, Comey, Clapper. But it won’t be.
How DARE those barbaric Republicans go after those poor innocent patriots!
How DARE those cretinous know-nothings persecute and oppress them, torture them and slander them!
Do Republicans have no shame?? No honor?? No respect?? No morals?? (Rhetorical question, don’t bother answering.)
Simply barbaric! Outrageous!!
And LOW.
There ought to be a law
I tell you the GOP is trying to destroy America and anyone who doesn’t agree with their hideous point of view.
(And if you don’t believe me, just ask Max Boot…and Michael Avenatti!)
May they all get what they so richly deserve.
When it was discovered that Clinton had received oral sex in the Oval Office and was not immediately forced to resign by his own party… it revealed a moral failing that reflects even more upon the members of that party, than it does Clinton. He’s merely a common degenerate, they enable degeneracy and in doing so reveal themselves to be unworthy of the sacrifices of those “who gave that last full measure of devotion”.
Wait to Craig starts ratting out bigger fish.
GB 5:52 pm. Clinton is why I left the Democrat Party. If I had been as faithless in my marriage my wife would have divorced me. If I had multiple accusations of sexual assault and even rape against me, I’d have gone to prison. But I guess that matrimony and the law are different in Arkansas. It was immediately obvious that Bill and Hillary were a vile scummy pair yet the Democrats did what they could to get him elected. The Democrats are the totalitarian left who want power and other peoples money by any means necessary and are just fine with people like Bill and Hillary.
Remember that Obama was president for years before he discovered that he had “a phone and a pen.” That discovery coincided with John Podesta becoming Chief of Staff of the Obama Whitehouse.
I always figured that J. Podesta was at the pinnacle of Democrat power. If there is a real effort to indict Tony P., this could get interesting fast.
Did Neo tug on superman’s (the Podesta’s) cape? Is there a DDoS attack on thenewneo.com? I experienced multiple failures trying to get in.
Did Neo tug on superman’s (the Podesta’s or Craig’s) cape? Is there a DDoS attack on this site? Experiencing repeated access failures.
“The Democrats are the totalitarian left who want power and other peoples money by any means necessary and are just fine with people like Bill and Hillary.” – Paul in Boston
I used to vacillate between D and R depending on the person and the office, and sometimes how I felt at the time.
After Clinton’s escapades hit the news and I saw just what kind of principles the high-profile Democrats really believed in, I was appalled.
I didn’t start holding it against local Democrats, though, until it became clear that the entire leadership was ideologically degenerate and ethically corrupt at every level.
Even if a local Dem is a good person, I will never vote for the Party again.
And they wonder how we got Trump.
Slick Willy and the shrew queen are grifters, scamming for mega (Yuge) dollars. Corrupt to the core. That is all you need to know.
Aesop,
What took you so long? Seriously.
“Expected to be indicted” — he’s a Dem. This is pre-publicity, to minimize publicity. Now it’s small “expected”, but when it happens, it will already be “old news,” not the real “new” stuff.
I’m looking forward to a lot more indictment announcements, tho I can imagine Barr needs to push his prosecutors to actually do it … there can always be delay excuses/ reasons “we need more details”.
For me, actual indictments are almost as important as convictions.
Glad they’re going to nail Craig, will be interesting about the Podestas (filing late?) was it illegal then, but since they filed as agents before indictment, that means it wasn’t a prior crime?
This isn’t a boomerang. It just feels like one because the guy is a Dem.
A boomerang is something that de-legitimizes the Mueller probe. This is the opposite. Craig resigned from Skadden after Mueller indicted Alex van der Zwaan. Andrew Weissmann prosecuted him.
This emanates from the Meuller probe. If Craig is guilty, it demonstrates that probe was legit.
here is an off topic boomerang
Boston Globe Editorial: Tamper With Kirstjen Nielsen’s Food
[which will transalte to tamper with any unprotected persons food]
As for the waiters out there, I’m not saying you should tamper with anyone’s food, as that could get you into trouble. You might lose your serving job. But you’d be serving America.And you won’t have any regrets years later.
[and you can bet that someone who has hepititus, will get an extra point in thier self for spreaing that]
but now..
how do you remove the endemic racism they are creating to blame on the people who get to eat bad food?
you thin restaurant owners will want to risk it?
hire the other class of which we are importing and they are bribing
just take away everything from the blacks like jackson did the indians
and give it to the new immigrants for votes… history repeats in front of you
but note.
you gonna go and buy food from a place which may have, without means to tell
hired a person who will do that to the food?
Rather than quell the outrage, though, the decision [to take down the vile editorial] incensed others, including O’Neil, who slammed the publication’s integrity.
you can tell right now taht this kind of thing is going to increase
they believe they are the resistance in an occupied state and that this Maquis will destroy the nazis by passive agressive sabotage of the oppressors
welcome to feminisms end game a la marx..
we now will have sabotuers as the next stage as antifa cant continue overtly
can it?
Chief Counsel In The Obama And Bill Clinton Administrations Indicted For Untruths In Mueller Probe
parker on April 12, 2019 at 3:47 am at 3:47 am said:
Aesop,
What took you so long? Seriously.
* * *
I know / knew a lot of sane, nice Democrats, both family & church friends, and local / state officials were not so rabid as the nationals (less scope) or were just as good on policy as the Republicans.
(Lots of studies show the divide between Democrats and Republicans on policy & ideology has widened tremendously).
Now, the rot has gotten deeply into the local parties.
Unfortunately, the D voters are not seeing it (gee, I wonder why?) — although many who do are starting to #WalkAway (not going GOP though; I can understand that).
parker – more on the question of “are there still sane Democrats?”
https://hotair.com/headlines/archives/2019/04/will-democratic-faithful-ever-notice-leaders-crazy/
source of quote:
thefederalist.com/2019/04/12/will-democratic-party-faithful-ever-notice-leaders-crazy/