Schumer: I Support Blocking Confirmation of Next FBI Director Until Prosecutor Appointed to Trump/Russian Investigation


Displaying his ignorance, Schumer overlooked that under the filibuster rule changes led by former Majority Leader Harry Reid in 2013, the Senate minority party is unable to block confirmation of any executive branch appointee.

When pressed on the issue, Schumer acknowledged that in order for such a strategy to succeed, several Republicans would have to join in the effort to block confirmation and force appointment of a special prosecutor.

There is almost no Republican support for a special prosecutor — largely because there are no crimes yet to prosecute. President Donald Trump is not even under investigation. The FBI’s inquiry has reportedly centered around three Trump campaign aides who played minor roles, and former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn. Even perennial gadfly Sen. John McCain has only called for a select committee, not a special prosecutor.”

The irony here is that Democrats had called for the resignation or firing of FBI Director James Comey for months back in 2016. Consider these comments from the Democrat leadership on November 2:

I do not have confidence in him any longer.” Chuck Schumer

Maybe he’s not in the right job.” Nancy Pelosi

As recently as January 13, Congresswoman Maxine Waters said, “All I can tell you is the FBI director has no credibility.”

Among other Democrats critical of Comey during the 2016 election campaign were then-Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid, failed presidential candidate Bernie Sanders and Congressman Steve Cohen of Memphis.

There is no question that President Donald Trump was well within his legal authority to dismiss Comey. Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein fully laid out the rationale for Comey’s departure. As Comey’s direct supervisor in the Department of Justice, Rosenstein made it clear the FBI chief made serious mistakes in the investigation of the Clinton email server and his unusual announcement of the investigation’s conclusion.

I cannot defend the director’s handling of the conclusion of the investigation of Secretary Clinton’s emails,” Rosenstein wrote, “and I do not understand his refusal to accept the nearly universal judgment that he was mistaken. Almost everyone agrees that the director made serious mistakes; it is one of the few issues that unites people of diverse perspectives.”

A well-respected federal prosecutor, Rosenstein was confirmed last month to his position by the Senate in a heavily bipartisan 94-6 vote.

President Trump is moving swiftly to name Comey’s successor, with four possible candidates having been interviewed this past weekend.

There is speculation he might make an appointment before he leaves on Friday for his first foreign trip as president.

Those believed to have been interviewed by Attorney General Jeff Sessions and Rosenstein are: Senator John Cornyn of Texas; Acting FBI Director Andrew McCabe; Alice Fisher, former head of the Justice Department’s criminal division; and New York state appellate judge Michael Garcia, former U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York.

There may still be others under consideration.

Source: Breitbart

 

 



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