タグ: Michael Flynn

Special Counsel Robert S. Mueller and The Russia Investigation

                     by David Parmer / Tokyo

Did Russia interfere in the 2016 U.S. elections? Did Donald Trump’s people collude with Russia? How involved is the Trump empire with Russian money? There is every likelihood that we will get answers to these and many more questions in 2018. The answers will come from the US Department of Justice’s investigation into Russian meddling chaired by Special Counsel Robert S. Mueller.

                           Mueller’s Background

Mr. Mueller was the sixth director of the FBI (2001-2013). He is a Republican appointed by Republican President George W. Bush. (Mueller is considered to be a public servant of outstanding ability and impeccable character, and this fact is widely recognized by both Democrats and Republicans.) His initial 10-year term was extended another two years by President Barack Obama.

After graduating from Princeton University Mueller joined the US Marine Corps rising to the rank of captain and being decorated for valor while serving in Viet Nam where he sustained wounds in combat. He graduated from the University of Virginia law school in 1973 and began a career of government service for 12 years where he was US Attorney and Deputy Attorney General.

In 2001 he was nominated by President George W. Bush for the post of Director of the FBI. Shortly after assuming office the United States was attacked by Saudi terrorists who flew hijacked airplanes into the World Trade Center and the Pentagon. After 9/11, Mueller re-configured the FBI to have a major counter-terrorism role in defending the United States. Robert Mueller served as FBI director from 2001-2013; the second longest serving director after J. Edgar Hoover himself.

                        Post FBI and Special Counsel

After leaving the FBI, Mr. Mueller did a brief stint as a professor at Stanford University followed by work for a Washington law firm, he also handled some government work dealing with the Volkswagen emissions settlement during this period. On May 17, 2017 Robert Mueller was appointed as Special Counsel for the Investigation of Russian interference in the 2016 United States election.

Mueller’s investigation quickly began to bear fruit when on October 5, 2017 former Trump foreign policy advisor George Papadopoulos pleaded guilty to lying to the FBI about contacts he had with the Russian government in 2016. Following this, on October 30, 2017 Trump aides Paul Manifort and Rick Gates were charged with a number of violations of US law including money laundering, violation of the Foreign Agents Registration Act, making false and misleading statements and conspiracy against the US. (Both have pleaded not-guilty, and of this writing Manifort is suing Mueller and the Department of Justice.)

On December 1, General Michael T. Flynn, Donald Trump’s former national security advisor entered a guilty plea and made an agreement with the Justice Department for making false testimony about his contacts with former Russian ambassador Sergey Kislyak.

                                 Where From Here?

Reports indicate that Donald Trump feels plagued by the Russia investigation and would like it to go away. Characteristically, when his people get into trouble he cuts them loose and claims that they had very little contact with him or his campaign.

There has been much speculation that Donald Trump will fire Special Counsel Robert Mueller. This is not as simple as it seems, and would not be in Trump’s interest, but that may not stop the ever-impulsive former businessman.

According to senate Intelligence Vice-Chair, Mark Warner, (CNBC, 19 December 2017) firing Mr. Mueller would be ” a political disaster for the president and a constitutional crisis.”

But reason (which seems to take as many vacations from the White House as Trump himself) may not hold sway in Trump’s mind as the drumbeat of the Russia investigation gets louder and louder. Already questions of obstruction of justice in the firing of James Comey have been raised, and now bigger questions concerning relations between Deutsche Bank and the Trump organization and between Michael Flynn and Jared Kushner and Russian money are beginning to surface.

Who knows what will happen? One thing we can be sure of however: Robert Mueller and his team will be relentless in the pursuit of the facts, for we hold this truth to be sacred­–no one is above the law.

Please let us know your thought on this topic.

Photo: Wikipedia (Public Domain)

Compiled from Web sources.

Sergey Kislyak–Your Favorite Uncle, or Russia’s Real-life Karla?

                          by David Parmer/Tokyo

Is Russia’s ambassador to the United States a hard-working diplomat serving his country, and whose conduct is beyond reproach, or is he a real-life version of Russia’s top spy and George Smiley’s nemesis, Karla, in the John Le Carre novels? Well, it depends on to whom you listen.

A bit of background. Sergey Ivanovich Kislyak is a career diplomat who has held a variety of postings within Russia’s Foreign Ministry in his 40 year diplomatic career. Besides working in various jobs related to scientific cooperation, he has been ambassador to Belgium, representative to NATO and First Secretary at the Russian Embassy in Washington. Since 2008 he has been the ambassador.

What has brought Kislyak’s name to the fore is his contact with members of the Trump team before and after the election of 2016. His repeated phone conversations with Trump’s short-lived National Security Advisor Michael Flynn cost Flynn his job. Now there is a furor over contacts between not only Attorney General Jeff Sessions, but also other members of the team. Trump’s favorable remarks about Russian President Vladimir Putin have also opened him to charges of being soft on Russia.

Jumping into the fray, CNN has quoted intelligence officials as labeling Kislyak as Russia’s top spy in the US.

The Russians have reacted with anger and distain at these charges. On March 3, CNN reported that Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, speaking at a press conference in Moscow said regarding Kislyak and his contacts:

“The ambassadors are appointed in order to maintain relationships,”

 “They are maintained by holding meetings, talks and establishing contacts with officials from both executive and legislative branches of power. I can only quote what the media said today – this all looks like a witch hunt.”

Two days later, on March 5, Nicholas Burns, Harvard Professor and former ambassador to NATO who had worked opposite Kislyak, appeared on CNN where he had some hard words about Kislyak and the Russians.

“He is no friend of the United States.”

He described the ambassador as intelligent and professional, but added:

“The Russians are trying to defeat the United State.”

“They don’t wish us well.”

Burns ended by saying the whole problem was caused by Trump’s soft policy on Russia and added that the US does not need Russia to defeat ISIS (Daesh).

So, which hat does Mr. Kislyak wear–diplomat, spy, or both? Please let us know your thoughts on this.

Photo: creative commons via wikipedia