Day 456: Trump claims Comey memos prove innocence just days after decrying them as fiction
The incongruity of Sunday and Thursday statements was apparently ignored.
Donald Trump has never been a logician, frequently saying or doing whatever he can to get from one day to the next, regardless of linear reasoning. This is true from everything from foreign policy to the Russia investigation.
After Republicans orchestrated the release of former FBI Director James Comey’s memoranda for somewhat curious reasons, the public got to see almost entirely what was in them.
The memos read as in line with the public perception and private reports of Trump. According to Comey’s notes, Trump rambles about himself, is concerned about publicity and appearances, frequently engages in non-sequiturs, forgets entire conversations from just days earlier, repeatedly asks Comey if he’d like to keep his job and whether Trump can count on him to be loyal, continues to engage Comey in discussions about Russian hookers, and presses for a public announcement that he was not under personal investigation.
There don’t appear to be any real bombshells in the memos, other than what has been previously reported. Trump, for his part, has changed his tune on the substance of the memos.
Just days ago he claimed that they were fake, a trope he has used previously.
Late Thursday night, he claimed that they exonerate him entirely.
Of course Trump’s quick flip from fake to exoneration doesn’t make an iota of sense. The memos can’t be both fake and used by Trump to prove his innocence.
Trump’s “NO COLLUSION and NO OBSTRUCTION” tweet is just a standard excuse for Trump and comes off silly when looking at the context of what the memos are. There would be no reason that the memos would even discuss collusion between members of the Trump team and Russian officials. The memos merely detail conversations between Comey and Trump or Comey and members of Trump’s team.
Trump claiming that the memos are proof of no collusion makes about as much sense as claiming his dinner plate is proof of no collusion.
On the obstruction front, the memos detail Trump asking for loyalty and inquiring about on-going investigations about him and members of his team. They also lay out Trump pressing Comey to publicly clear him. The memos stop when Comey was abruptly fired, an act which could be considered obstruction by special counsel Robert Mueller. At the very least, there’s a legal question as to whether Trump’s actions rise to the level of obstruction.
456 days in, 1006 to go
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