# A Thread for the Mueller Investigation Results and Outcomes (Part 1) **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [October 28, 2017, 8:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-thread-for-the-mueller-investigation-results-and-outcomes-part-1/800093 "2017-10-28T20:14:44Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 220
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2018, 6:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-thread-for-the-mueller-investigation-results-and-outcomes-part-1/800093/4382 "2018-05-03T18:15:01Z")
Good ol’ Josh Marshall, of _Talking Points Memo_, has this insight to offer, from an unnamed source that he vouches for… [https://talkingpointsmemo.com/edblog/an-mo-for-other-more-serious-crimes](https://talkingpointsmemo.com/edblog/an-mo-for-other-more-serious-crimes) To shorten: financial records. Trump shenanigans in real estate and finance. Want to know how much Il Douche is really worth? We may be about to find out. And how his various real estate dealings were financed. Of course, it is still possible that a thorough investigation will reveal an entirely pure and ethical set of transactions, strictly in line with the standards of trust and honesty that American capitalism pretends to. Place your bets. ---
**Author:** ![John\_DiFool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_difool/32/19543_2.png) [@John\_DiFool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_DiFool)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2018, 6:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-thread-for-the-mueller-investigation-results-and-outcomes-part-1/800093/4383 "2018-05-03T18:25:47Z")
With friends like Rudy, who needs enemies? ---
**Author:** ![Buck\_Godot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/buck_godot/32/6573_2.png) [@Buck\_Godot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Buck_Godot)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2018, 6:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-thread-for-the-mueller-investigation-results-and-outcomes-part-1/800093/4384 "2018-05-03T18:28:01Z")
> [@Fiveyearlurker](#): > > (On edit, it’s not clear when the call took place, merely that the tap was in place at that point. The call might have been after the raid.) If this was a movie an FBI agent mid-raid hearing one of the phones in evidence bags ring, pick it up and hear Trump say. “Mike! thank god i got you. I hear the FBI is coming to raid your office. It is of utmost importance that you destroy all the documents in the covfefe file. If they get their hands on those we are sunk! Run to your office and shred them now. Mike… Mike… are you there?” Camera slowly pans over to a thin file on the desk and focuses in the label “covfefe”. ---
**Author:** ![Happy\_Lendervedder](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/happy_lendervedder/32/8488_2.png) [@Happy\_Lendervedder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Happy_Lendervedder)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2018, 6:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-thread-for-the-mueller-investigation-results-and-outcomes-part-1/800093/4385 "2018-05-03T18:38:19Z")
Everyone’s wondered for a while now what this whole fiasco will be called-- variations of Watergate get bandied about from time to time-- I think the name’s been there all along. Covfefe. Nixon had Watergate. There will never be another. Trump has Covfefe. The term says it all. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2018, 6:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-thread-for-the-mueller-investigation-results-and-outcomes-part-1/800093/4386 "2018-05-03T18:38:39Z")
_Thin_ file? ---
**Author:** ![Covfefe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ee7513/32.png) [@Covfefe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Covfefe)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2018, 6:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-thread-for-the-mueller-investigation-results-and-outcomes-part-1/800093/4387 "2018-05-03T18:44:08Z")
Hey SHUT UP ---
**Author:** ![Happy\_Lendervedder](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/happy_lendervedder/32/8488_2.png) [@Happy\_Lendervedder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Happy_Lendervedder)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2018, 6:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-thread-for-the-mueller-investigation-results-and-outcomes-part-1/800093/4388 "2018-05-03T18:50:16Z")
> [@Covfefe](#): > > Hey SHUT UP Hey you’re the guy who named himself after a presidential scandal. You don’t see any jamokes named “Watergate” around here, now do ya? ---
**Author:** ![Merneith](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/57b2e6/32.png) [@Merneith](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Merneith)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2018, 7:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-thread-for-the-mueller-investigation-results-and-outcomes-part-1/800093/4389 "2018-05-03T19:03:32Z")
> [@Fotheringay-Phipps](#): > > That story seems mistaken. Comey himself testified to Congress that he did tell Trump that he was not a target, so it doesn’t seem possible that Trump could have fired him for refusing to do this. > > What it seems to be confused with is that Comey refused to publically announce that Trump was not a target. Whether that’s obstruction or not might be another issue. Yes & no. That RawStory link I put in earlier (here it is again - [link](https://www.rawstory.com/2018/05/thats-corrupt-intent-toobin-says-giuliani-blew-trump-defense-admitting-comey-fired-russia/)) included a clip of Rudy on his Wedsnight interview with Hannity where he (Rudy) said: \*\* “He fired Comey because Comey would not … among other things … say that he wasn’t a target of the investigation. He’s entitled to that. Hillary Clinton got that.”\*\* That part of is right at the start of the CNN video on the RawStory page. So Rudy actually was talking about Comey’s refusal to give a public announcement of Donald’s targethood, he just spoke sloppily. Of course, comparing the situation of Comey’s clearing Hillary (who was the target of multiple finished investigations, and was cleared) with Comey’s refusal to publicly clear Donald (who was the current target of an ongoing investigation) is also sloppy, but what else do they have. ---
**Author:** ![Merneith](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/57b2e6/32.png) [@Merneith](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Merneith)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2018, 7:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-thread-for-the-mueller-investigation-results-and-outcomes-part-1/800093/4390 "2018-05-03T19:05:27Z")
> [@friedo](#): > > I breathlessly await more in-depth analysis from the astute and well-informed legal mind of Joy Behar. I didn’t mention Behar because of her legal analysis, which she didn’t offer, but because of her dark suspicions about the rotten core of Rudy’s heart, which amused me. ---
**Author:** ![k9bfriender](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/k9bfriender/32/3283_2.png) [@k9bfriender](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/k9bfriender)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2018, 7:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-thread-for-the-mueller-investigation-results-and-outcomes-part-1/800093/4391 "2018-05-03T19:07:22Z")
> [@Happy\_Lendervedder](#): > > Everyone’s wondered for a while now what this whole fiasco will be called-- variations of Watergate get bandied about from time to time-- I think the name’s been there all along. Covfefe. > > Nixon had Watergate. There will never be another. > > Trump has Covfefe. The term says it all. Does that mean that -fefe becomes the new scandal suffix? The next time someone shuts down a bridge to get revenge on a mayor, it’d be balled Bridgefefe? Misuse of public funds for personal transportation being Travelfefe? All [these other -gated scandals](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_scandals_with_%22-gate%22_suffix) could all use a little fefe. ---
**Author:** ![JohnT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnt/32/15048_2.png) [@JohnT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnT)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2018, 7:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-thread-for-the-mueller-investigation-results-and-outcomes-part-1/800093/4392 "2018-05-03T19:09:22Z")
Actually, it’s -vfefe, not just -fefe, so that would be travelvfefe. ---
**Author:** ![wonky](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wonky/32/393_2.png) [@wonky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wonky)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2018, 7:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-thread-for-the-mueller-investigation-results-and-outcomes-part-1/800093/4393 "2018-05-03T19:14:20Z")
> [@JohnT](#): > > Actually, it’s -vfefe, not just -fefe, so that would be travelvfefe. Without the v, it lacks élan. ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2018, 7:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-thread-for-the-mueller-investigation-results-and-outcomes-part-1/800093/4394 "2018-05-03T19:20:41Z")
> [@asahi](#): > > Trump’s legal situation is in a tailspin and rapidly plunging toward the earth below. Expect something rash soon. The firings of Rosensein and Mueller will happen sooner or later. Maybe sooner. Of course, I don’t understand why he didn’t fire them months ago. ---
**Author:** ![Blue\_Blistering\_Barnacle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blue_blistering_barnacle/32/3386_2.png) [@Blue\_Blistering\_Barnacle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Blue_Blistering_Barnacle)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2018, 7:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-thread-for-the-mueller-investigation-results-and-outcomes-part-1/800093/4395 "2018-05-03T19:21:13Z")
> [@Happy\_Lendervedder](#): > > Everyone’s wondered for a while now what this whole fiasco will be called-- variations of Watergate get bandied about from time to time-- I think the name’s been there all along. Covfefe. > > Nixon had Watergate. There will never be another. > > Trump has Covfefe. The term says it all. Well, yes, of course. If you called it “The Trump Affair” it would lack a few degrees of specificity. ---
**Author:** ![Ambrosio\_Spinola](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9de0a6/32.png) [@Ambrosio\_Spinola](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ambrosio_Spinola)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2018, 7:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-thread-for-the-mueller-investigation-results-and-outcomes-part-1/800093/4396 "2018-05-03T19:47:38Z")
> [@RickJay](#): > > The firings of Rosensein and Mueller will happen sooner or later. Maybe sooner. Of course, I don’t understand why he didn’t fire them months ago. In all his previous encounters with the law (e.g., his many civil suits, dealing with gaming commissions, etc.) his MO has been to bluster and delay as much as possible. In the end he’d either wear down his opponents so they would just give up or pay them off so they’d go away (usually for less than they really wanted because they had been worn down.) A major federal criminal probe is inexhaustible and actually gets bigger as it goes, but I don’t think Trump realizes that even today since it’s so far outside his personal experience. ---
**Author:** ![Aspenglow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aspenglow/32/76_2.png) [@Aspenglow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aspenglow)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2018, 7:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-thread-for-the-mueller-investigation-results-and-outcomes-part-1/800093/4397 "2018-05-03T19:51:54Z")
> [@RickJay](#): > > The firings of Rosensein and Mueller will happen sooner or later. Maybe sooner. Of course, I don’t understand why he didn’t fire them months ago. Because if he does, it won’t stop the investigation; he’ll add on a few more serious obstruction charges; all his witnesses (Flynn, Cohen, Manafort) will still be wrapped up on various state charges and he, Trump, can’t protect himself by firing them. He may also (at last) galvanize Congress to move decisively against him – if the public is outraged enough. Mueller wove his investigation through law enforcement at all levels. He passed primary responsibility for the conspiracy matters to internal FBI career agents who will pursue them with Mueller or without him. He has IRS agents pursuing the tax matters. He has SDNY handling the investigations of crimes occurring within their jurisdiction. He has Eric Schneiderman working at the state level in New York and working to close the pardon loophole in addition to handling criminal prosecutions at the state level. And this is only what we know about. As Michael Caputo who was recently interviewed by the Mueller team said, “It’s clear they are still really focused on Russia collusion,” then added, “They know more about the Trump campaign than anyone who ever worked there.” He went on to say, “The Senate and the House are net fishing. The special counsel is spearfishing. They know what they are aiming at and are deadly accurate.” Also, regarding the interview itself, “It was very, very difficult. They know a lot. They have everything.” In short, there is no stopping this investigation now, and Trump has nothing to gain by firing Rosenstein/Mueller. That’s why Trump and his cronies are trying to fight it as a political matter and not a legal one. It’s over, but the mop-up period is going to be messy, long and painful. ---
**Author:** ![Sage\_Rat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sage_rat/32/399_2.png) [@Sage\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sage_Rat)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2018, 7:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-thread-for-the-mueller-investigation-results-and-outcomes-part-1/800093/4398 "2018-05-03T19:57:09Z")
> [@Blue\_Blistering\_Barnacle](#): > > Well, yes, of course. If you called it “The Trump Affair” it would lack a few degrees of specificity. I think there are so many different crimes that are up for grabs that anything much short of “The Trump Presidency” would accidentally diminish the scope of options. ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2018, 8:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-thread-for-the-mueller-investigation-results-and-outcomes-part-1/800093/4399 "2018-05-03T20:00:43Z")
“The Trump Presidency\*” ---
**Author:** ![Happy\_Lendervedder](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/happy_lendervedder/32/8488_2.png) [@Happy\_Lendervedder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Happy_Lendervedder)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2018, 8:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-thread-for-the-mueller-investigation-results-and-outcomes-part-1/800093/4400 "2018-05-03T20:07:03Z")
“Covfefe.” ---
**Author:** ![JohnT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnt/32/15048_2.png) [@JohnT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnT)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2018, 8:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-thread-for-the-mueller-investigation-results-and-outcomes-part-1/800093/4401 "2018-05-03T20:08:58Z")
Mueller, in the case against Manafort, filed today to receive 70 blank subpoenas. > [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-thread-for-the-mueller-investigation-results-and-outcomes-part-1/800093.md?page=219) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-thread-for-the-mueller-investigation-results-and-outcomes-part-1/800093.md?page=221)