A poll of Fox News viewers believes that the Mueller probe should continue, and that it will find impeachable offenses.

Courtesy of Fox News:  

Most voters think it is important to continue investigating whether the Trump campaign coordinated with Russia -- but more believe President Trump will fire Special Counsel Robert Mueller before he’s done. 

About two-thirds, 67 percent in the latest Fox News poll, say it is at least somewhat important the investigation continues, and 56 percent think it’s likely that Mueller’s probe will find Donald Trump committed criminal or impeachable offenses.

And those are FOX NEWS viewers.

The numbers are much higher for the truly informed.

Some members of the Senate are also concerned that Trump will fire Mueller.

Courtesy of the NYT:

The Senate Judiciary Committee fired a political warning shot at the White House on Thursday, advancing on a bipartisan vote long-stalled legislation to allow special counsels such as Robert S. Mueller III to appeal their firing to a panel of judges and possibly be reinstated. 

Senator Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, the majority leader, has stated unequivocally that he will not bring the bill to the Senate floor for a vote. But with four Republicans, including the committee’s chairman, Senator Charles E. Grassley of Iowa, joining Democrats to vote in favor of it, the measure sent a clear message to President Trump that there would be serious consequences to firing the special counsel. 

Even senators who voted against the legislation warned Mr. Trump against trying to dismiss Mr. Mueller. Senator Orrin G. Hatch of Utah, the longest-serving Senate Republican, said that “firing Mueller would cause a firestorm and bring the administration’s agenda to a halt. It could even result in impeachment.”

I think that if Trump tries to fire Mueller that even Republicans like Mitch McConnell will turn on him, and then his days will truly be numbered.

Rudy Giuliani gets that sit down meeting with Robert Mueller. Is told that interview with Donald Trump is "essential."

Courtesy of WaPo: 

Rudolph W. Giuliani, President Trump’s new personal lawyer dealing with the ongoing probe into Russian interference in the 2016 election, met with special counsel Robert S. Mueller III on Tuesday to reopen negotiations for a presidential interview, ­according to three people familiar with the talks. 

Giuliani, who joined Trump’s legal team last week, conveyed the ongoing resistance of Trump and his advisers to an interview with federal investigators, but did not rule out the possibility, the people said, adding that Giuliani pressed Mueller for clarity on when the probe is expected to end. 

In response, Mueller reiterated that he would like a chance to ask Trump questions about steps he took during the transition and early months of his administration, the people said. The special counsel emphasized, as he did in conversations in March with Trump’s team, that an interview is essential for investigators to understand Trump’s intent in making key decisions as they seek to wrap up the portion of the probe focused on potential obstruction of justice.

I actually think that Mueller WILL ultimately get his interview with Donald Trump, assuming that he is not fired of course, it is still to be seen whether the interview is voluntary or the result of a subpoena.

Kind of interesting that though these types of negotiations have been going on for some time, that we are just now hearing about them since Giuliani joined the team

It is almost like he is an attention whore or something.

The lawyer who represented both Stormy Daniels and Karen McDougal in their hush money deals with Donald Trump, is now cooperating with Robert Mueller.

Keith Davidson

Courtesy of WaPo: 

Keith Davidson, the former attorney for two women who were paid to keep quiet about their alleged affairs with Donald Trump, has been contacted by federal authorities investigating Trump attorney Michael Cohen and is cooperating with them, a spokesman for Davidson confirmed. 

Davidson was asked to provide “certain limited electronic information” for the probe led by prosecutors in the Southern District of New York, spokesman Dave Wedge said. “He has done so and will continue to cooperate to the fullest extent possible under the law,” Wedge said in a statement Friday. 

Shortly before the 2016 election, Davidson negotiated a confidentiality agreement with Cohen under which porn star Stormy Daniels was paid $130,000. 

Davidson also represented Karen McDougal, a Playboy centerfold, in the $150,000 agreement she struck in August 2016 with the National Enquirer’s parent company, American Media Inc., for the rights to her story. AMI never published the story.

The impetus for this cooperation is likely due to the fact that the records seized from Cohen by the FBI included tapes that he recorded of conversations with Davidson.

I am guessing that Davidson would do almost ANYTHING to keep those records out of the newspapers. 

And the noose gets just a little bit tighter.

Jeff Sessions warns the White House that if Trump fires Rod Rosenstein he might have to quit as well.

Courtesy of WaPo: 

Attorney General Jeff Sessions recently told the White House he might have to leave his job if President Trump fired his deputy, Rod J. Rosenstein, who oversees the investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election, according to people familiar with the exchange. 

Sessions made his position known in a phone call to White House counsel Donald McGahn last weekend, as Trump’s fury at Rosenstein peaked after the deputy attorney general approved the FBI’s raid April 9 on the president’s personal attorney Michael Cohen.

Sessions’s message to the White House, which has not previously been reported, underscores the political firestorm that Trump would invite should he attempt to remove the deputy attorney general. While Trump also has railed against Sessions at times, the protest resignation of an attorney general — which would be likely to incite other departures within the administration — would create a moment of profound crisis for the White House. 

In the phone call with McGahn, Sessions wanted details of a meeting Trump and Rosenstein held at the White House on April 12, according to a person with knowledge of the call. Sessions expressed relief to learn that their meeting was largely cordial. Sessions said he would have had to consider leaving as the attorney general had Trump ousted Rosenstein, this person said. 

Another person familiar with the exchange said Sessions did not intend to threaten the White House but rather wanted to convey the untenable position that Rosenstein’s firing would put him in.

Now this may seem as if Sessions is finally sticking his chest out to defy his president, but he might be doing exactly what Trump wants him to do. 

Trump has already been warned about firing Sessions by his Republican supporters, who like and support the former Senator.

But if he fires Rosenstein, who his cohorts are already vilifying, and then Sessions quits of his own accord, that leaves Trump free and clear to appoint a new Attorney General who will not have to recuse himself from the Russia investigation and can hobble Robert Mueller with new guidelines and restrictions. 

This would allow Trump to gain back a little control, enough that he might even successfully neuter Mueller and make it almost impossible for him to do his job effectively.

As much as it pains me to say, the best thing for this investigation is that Jeff Sessions stays right where he is.

Of course it would also be very helpful if he did not fire Rod Rosenstein but I feel the writing is already on the wall.

Robert Mueller suspects that Paul Manafort may have been the Trump campaign's back channel to Russians intent on meddling in the election.

Courtesy of Bloomberg:  

Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s interest in former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort stemmed in part from his suspected role as a “back channel” between the campaign and Russians intent on meddling in the election, a Justice Department lawyer told a judge. 

The disclosure by U.S. prosecutors came Thursday during a hearing on whether Mueller exceeded his authority in indicting Manafort on charges of laundering millions of dollars while acting as an unregistered agent of the Ukrainian government. Manafort’s lawyers say those alleged crimes have nothing to do with Mueller’s central mission -- to determine whether anyone in the Trump campaign had links to the Russian government. 

Defense attorney Kevin Downing argued anew to U.S. District Judge Amy Berman Jackson in Washington that even Mueller’s appointment order permitting him to probe “any matters that arose or may arise directly from the investigation” wouldn’t cover the political consulting work that Manafort did in Ukraine for a decade. 

But Justice Department attorney Michael Dreeben said prosecutors were justified in investigating Manafort because he had served as Trump’s campaign chairman. “He had long-standing ties to Russia-backed politicians,” Dreeben told Jackson. “Did they provide back channels to Russia? Investigators will naturally look at those things.” 

Prosecutors hadn’t previously used such explicit language to describe their suspicions about Manafort. In a previous court filing, Mueller also cited business ties between Manafort and the Russian oligarch Oleg Deripaska.

Well if this pans out Manafort might be what they refer to in the legal profession as F.U.C.K'd.

David Corn of Mother Jones gets it:

How many times does this have to be explained? DJT Jr., Manafort & Kushner met with Russian emissary & signaled to Moscow they would gladly collude with secret Russian plan to help Trump by accepting HRC dirt. They showed Moscow they approved of efforts to intervene. https://t.co/JaLX9lxKiD

— David Corn (@DavidCornDC) April 19, 2018

And this only adds to the avalanche of legal problems that is crushing the life out of Manafort which include a five-count indictment in Washington on charges of money laundering and failing to register as a foreign agent for Ukraine, and an 18-count indictment in Virginia on charges of bank fraud, tax evasion and failing to report foreign bank accounts.

Did I mention that he was F.U.C.K'd? 

Manafort would also like to have access to his bank accounts returned.

Not because he wants to flee the country, but because he desperately wants to flee the country.

You know all of this reminds me of that word we kept hearing all year. You know the one that rhymes with "confusion."

Contusion, intrusion, foregone conclusion, nah that's not it.

Don't worry, I am sure it will come to me eventually.

Rudy Giuliani is joining Donald Trump's legal team, because hell, why not. Update!

Courtesy of WaPo: 

Former New York mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani, a combative former prosecutor and longtime ally of President Trump, told The Washington Post on Thursday that he has joined the president’s legal team dealing with the ongoing special counsel probe. 

“I’m doing it because I hope we can negotiate an end to this for the good of the country and because I have high regard for the president and for Bob Mueller,” Giuliani said in an interview. 

Trump counsel Jay Sekulow said Thursday in a statement that Giuliani is joining the team along with two former federal prosecutors, Jane Serene Raskin and Marty Raskin, a couple who jointly run a Florida-based law firm. 

“Rudy is great,” Trump said in the statement issued by Sekulow. “He has been my friend for a long time and wants to get this matter quickly resolved for the good of the country.”

Jesus, is that what you get when you scrape the bottom of the barrel, freaking Rudy Giuliani?

I think the last time that Giuliani practiced law he was chasing horse drawn ambulances.

It does not appear however that Giuliani is coming on board to do much legal work, but rather as a go between for Trump to reach out to the Mueller team.

just talked to Giuliani who said his role on Trump team is limited. He worked with Mueller at DOJ & as NYC Mayor (Mueller at FBI) He hopes knowing Mueller can help bring the investigation to conclusion, saying it "needs a little push." How soon? "maybe a couple of weeks"

— Dana Bash (@DanaBashCNN) April 19, 2018

Yes, because that's how these things work.

You just need to find a friend that you and the investigator have in common, and they will convince them that you are a good guy and they should back off.

Besides isn't that kind of how Trump got into this mess in the first place?

The President then returned to the topic of Mike Flynn, saying, "He is a good guy and has been through a lot." He repeated that Flynn hadn’t done anything wrong on his calls with the Russians, but had misled the Vice President. He then said, "I hope you can see your way clear to letting this go, to letting Flynn go. He is a good guy. I hope you can let this go." I replied only that "he is a good guy." (Source.)

It is VERY unlikely that Giuliani is going to be able to persuade Mueller to wrap things up quickly or see his way clear to "let it this go."

In fact there are currently rumors that Giuliani is ALREADY under investigation by the Mueller team.

That seems a little awkward.

By the way also keep in mind that Giuliani is waist deep in this Russia collusion thing as well.

July 28, 2016: https://t.co/MI4BqmvBxE

— Natasha Bertrand (@NatashaBertrand) April 19, 2018

Yeah, that was a lie.

And certainly not the first or last one that Giuliani has told on Donald Trump's behalf.

Just another clown added to the clown car.

Update: This Twitter thread makes an important point. 

Giuliani isn’t there to negotiate anything; he’s there as a conduit to rogue FBI agents looking to undermine probe. https://t.co/TWO2pLkfRa

— Jamison Foser (@jamisonfoser) April 19, 2018

Giuliani’s 2016 scheming with rogue FBI agents is an essential part of this story and any reporter who doesn’t include it should be ashamed.

— Jamison Foser (@jamisonfoser) April 19, 2018

Excellent point.

Trump's attorney Michael Cohen abruptly drops his suit against Buzzfeed and Fusion GPS. Gee, I wonder why?

Courtesy of Politico: 

Embattled attorney Michael Cohen has dropped a pair of much-touted libel suits against BuzzFeed and the private investigation firm Fusion GPS over publication of the so-called dossier detailing alleged ties between President Donald Trump and Russia. 

Cohen abandoned the suits late Wednesday as he continues to fight to recover documents and electronic files seized from his home, office and hotel room last week by federal authorities as part of what appears to be a broad criminal investigation into his conduct. 

"The decision to voluntarily discontinue these cases was a difficult one," Cohen's attorney David Schwartz said. "We believe the defendants defamed my client, and vindicating Mr. Cohen’s rights was — and still remains — important. But given the events that have unfolded, and the time, attention, and resources needed to prosecute these matters, we have dismissed the matters, despite their merits." 

The dossier claims that Cohen met with Russian operatives somewhere in Europe, including Prague, to attend a meeting to “clean up the mess” created by public disclosures of other Trump associates’ reported ties to Russia. 

So why would Cohen suddenly drop these lawsuits?

A couple of reasons spring to mind.

For one Cohen is under criminal investigation, and being sued for defamation by the attorney for Stormy Daniels.

That means he would be involved in at least three legal battles at the same time, one of which might see him face time in a federal prison.

That is a lot of money be spreading around. Even if he is rich, there is a limit. 

The other reason is discovery in the Fusion GPS and Buzzfeed cases.

Any evidence that Cohen has to reveal to battle them in court is likely going to then be made available to the media, and will definitely be available to the Mueller team.

And as we have witnessed before team Mueller are known for jumping on newly revealed information quickly and decisively.

In response to all of this Cohen might not remain Trump's personal attorney for long.

In fact one of Trump's past legal representatives has reportedly told Trump he cannot Trust Michael Cohen.

Courtesy of Slate: 

One of President Donald Trump’s longtime legal advisers said he warned the president in a phone call Friday that Michael Cohen, Mr. Trump’s personal lawyer and close friend, would turn against the president and cooperate with federal prosecutors if faced with criminal charges.

Mr. Goldberg said he cautioned the president not to trust Mr. Cohen. On a scale of 100 to 1, where 100 is fully protecting the president, Mr. Cohen “isn’t even a 1,” he said he told Mr. Trump…. In the call, Mr. Goldberg [-] said he told the president Mr. Cohen could even agree to wear a wire and try to record conversations with Mr. Trump. “You have to be alert,” Mr. Goldberg said he told the president. “I don’t care what Michael says.”

Of course IF Trump fires Cohen that would then give him less reason to go out on a limb to protect his former boss. 

You know it is almost as if Trump is being outmaneuvered on all sides.

Trump asked if he plans to fire either Robert Mueller or Rod Rosenstein, answers with "There was no collusion."

Courtesy of Raw Story:

"Have you concluded that it’s not worth the political fallout to remove either special counsel Mueller or Deputy Attorney General [Rod] Rosenstein?” Bloomberg’s Jennifer Jacobs asked the president during his joint press conference with Japanese President Shinzo Abe. 

“I can say there was no collusion and that’s been so found, as you know, by the House Intelligence Committee,” Trump responded, citing the recent closure of the Republican-led committee’s Russia investigation. “There is no collusion. There is no collusion with Russia other than by the Democrats, or, as I call them, the obstructionists. They truly are obstructionist.” 

The president then switched gears to reiterate his belief that the Russia investigation is a “hoax,” claiming that it was “created largely by the Democrats as a way of softening the blow of a loss which is a loss that frankly they shouldn’t have had from the standpoint that it’s very easy for them to have a tremendous advantage in the electoral college.” 

“You look at the kind of money that was paid, probably some went to Russia,” he continued. “You look at [Obama White House adviser] John Podesta having a company in Russia where nothing happened and people don’t talk about it. You look at the fact that their server, the DNC server, was never gotten by the FBI.”

You will notice that at no time did Trump proclaim that he was NOT planning to get rid of either Rod Rosenstein or Robert Mueller.

And as for collusion, we are seeing it happen right before our eyes with Trump refusing to implement the Russian sanctions that were voted on by Congress, and that his own Ambassador to the UN announced were coming.

That is the pro quo for Putin's quid.

In the meantime Mitch McConell is refusing to allow a vote to protect Robert Mueller reach the House floor.

And the police in Pittsburgh are preparing for the riots that will surely erupt once Trump does fire Mueller.

Can you say "constitutional crisis?" I knew that you could. 

Sean Hannity actually has THREE lawyers in common with Donald Trump.

Nothing to see here, nothing! Now stop looking for something!

Courtesy of The Atlantic: 

Sean Hannity has had no shortage of lawyers. In court on Monday, his name was disclosed as the third “mystery client” of Donald Trump’s personal lawyer Michael Cohen. Though Hannity says he was never actually Cohen’s client, he does appear to have used the legal services of other well-connected Trump-world lawyers in a different matter a year ago. 

On May 25, 2017, KFAQ, a radio station based in Tulsa, Oklahoma, received a cease-and-desist letter signed by two lawyers for Hannity: Victoria Toensing and Jay Alan Sekulow. Toensing’s signature sits above her name and that of her husband Joseph E. diGenova, the members of diGenova and Toensing LLP, who are identified as “Counsel for Sean Hannity,” according to a copy of the letter obtained by The Atlantic. 

Sekulow is also identified in the letter page as a “Counsel for Sean Hannity.” Sekulow is now the only known personal attorney for President Trump working full-time on the response to Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s inquiry. Sekulow recently announced that diGenova and Toensing had been hired to join him, before reversing course. 

The letter to the radio station was sent before Sekulow joined Trump’s team. The letter was sent in response to accusations against Hannity made by the controversial conservative activist Debbie Schlussel. During an appearance on the Pat Campbell show on KFAQ last April, Schlussel said Hannity had been “creepy” towards her and had invited her to his hotel room.

It should be noted that even though diGenova could not join Trump's team due to "conflicts of interest," reports are that he is still giving Trump legal advice.

Another thing to be noted is that both Sekolow...

...and diGenova have been frequent guests on the Sean Hannity Show.

And yes, the topic has often been the Mueller investigation.

So to be clear Hannity consistently invites his lawyers on TV to defend Donald Trump who is also seeking their legal counsel.

Well it's a good thing there is no conflict of interest here.

While Republicans pretend it is not going to happen Trump's lawyers prepare the groundwork to fire Robert Mueller.

Courtesy of the LA Times:  

The Supreme Court is set to hear a seemingly minor case later this month on the status of administrative judges at the Securities and Exchange Commission, an issue that normally might only draw the interest of those accused of stock fraud. 

But the dispute turns on the president's power to hire and fire officials throughout the government. And it comes just as the White House is saying President Trump believes he has the power to fire special counsel Robert S. Mueller III. 

Trump's Solicitor Gen. Noel Francisco intervened in the SEC case to urge the high court to clarify the president's constitutional power to fire all "officers of the United States" who "exercise significant authority" under the law. "The Constitution gives the president what the framers saw as the traditional means of ensuring accountability: the power to oversee executive officers through removal," he wrote in Lucia vs. SEC. 

"The president is accordingly authorized under our constitutional system to remove all principal officers, as well as all 'inferior officers' he has appointed." 

In addition to representing the administration before the Supreme Court, Francisco, a former law clerk for the late Justice Antonin Scalia, could be in line to oversee the Mueller inquiry if Deputy Atty. Gen. Rod Rosenstein is fired. Atty. Gen Jeff Sessions has recused himself from the investigation. 

Peter Shane, a law professor at the Ohio State University, called Francisco's argument a "radical proposition," and one that goes beyond what is at issue in the case. The justices said they would focus only on how the SEC in-house judges are appointed. But Francisco is asking them to go further and rule on the "removal" issue. 

"The solicitor general is obviously trying to goad the court into a broad statement about the removability of all officers of the United States," Shane said. "Were the court to make any such statement, it would surely be cited by Trump as backing any move by him to fire Mueller directly."

To be clear there really is no other logic reason to do this other than to gain the ability to fire Robert Mueller.

This would allow Trump to do that directly, and not have to jump through the hoops of firing Rod Rosenstein and then attempting to hire a replacement that would do the firing for him.

And while all of this is happening, we see this response to protecting Mueller from Paul Ryan.

Paul Ryan refuses to allow a vote on a bill to protect Special Counsel Robert Mueller, even if it passes the Senate. https://t.co/mxGf16vSZf #MTP #MeetThePress pic.twitter.com/S0h6IZQMqw

— PoliticusUSA (@politicususa) April 15, 2018

I actually think that Ryan KNOWS that Trump is preparing to fire Mueller and that is most of the reason that he is not running for reelection.

He knows that once it happens he will get the blame for not protecting the Special Counsel and he will be so vilified that he could not get elected dog catcher in this country. 

Let's end our day with SNL's brilliant cold open from last night.

That...that was great!

"I got a whole hard drive that's just labeled 'Yikes!'"

Just seeing Ben Stiller and Robert DeNiro back together was worth the price of admission.

Just to be clear Rod Rosenstein STILL has a target on his back.

Courtesy of The Hill: 

The White House is building a case to fire Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein, according to a report in The Wall Street Journal that said allies are being told to attack Rosenstein on television. 

The idea is to launch attacks on Rosenstein, the Justice Department official overseeing special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation into Russian election meddling, in a way that avoids making it appear that Trump is meddling in the probe. 

One person who spoke to the president this week told The Wall Street Journal that Rosenstein’s ouster is “a matter of when, not if.”

For his part Rosenstein seems to be at peace with the possibility.

Courtesy of NBC News:  

Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein has struck a stoic and righteous tone in private conversations he has had this week about the fate of his job as President Donald Trump has launched public criticism against him and considered firing him, according to three sources who have spoken to Rosenstein. 

In those conversations, he has repeated the phrase, "Here I stand," a reference to Martin Luther's famous quote, "Here I stand, I can do no other." Coincidentally, former FBI Director James Comey, whom Rosenstein fired, repeated the same phrase to President George W. Bush in a conversation that has been widely reported and that Comey describes in his forthcoming book. 

One source who spoke to Rosenstein said he seemed fully aware he may soon lose his job and was at peace with the possibility, confident he had done his job with integrity.

Rosenstein might be all Zen about losing his job, but that does not include everybody else.

Courtesy of HuffPo: 

If President Donald Trump fires Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein or any other officials involved in the Russia investigation, he faces the prospect of hundreds of thousands of activists immediately turning out to protest all over the country. 

A coalition of grassroots activists, unions, policy organizations and good governance groups have, for months, been plotting to quickly and forcefully respond to any perceived interference with the investigation. And with Trump increasingly vocal about his displeasure with the inquiry, these organizers say they’re stepping up their efforts. 

The coalition, calling its would-be gatherings “Nobody Is Above The Law” protests, released “red lines” that it said the president or his administration would have to cross to trigger the protests. These include firing any of the investigators or their supervisors, pardoning key witnesses or otherwise interfering with the investigation. 

However I seriously doubt that this will deter Trump, who seems absolutely determined to do something to interfere in this Mueller probe.  

Donald Trump sees the FBI raid directed at his personal attorney as more problematic than the Mueller investigation. Update!

Courtesy of the New York Times:  

President Trump’s advisers have concluded that a wide-ranging corruption investigation in New York poses a greater and more imminent threat to the president than even the special counsel’s investigation, according to several people close to Mr. Trump. 

As his lawyers went to court on Friday to try to block prosecutors from reading files that were seized from his longtime personal lawyer and fixer this week, Mr. Trump found himself increasingly isolated in mounting a response. He continued to struggle to hire a new criminal lawyer, and some of his own aides were reluctant to advise him about a response for fear of being dragged into a criminal investigation themselves. 

The raids on Mr. Trump’s lawyer, Michael D. Cohen, came as part of a monthslong federal investigation based in New York, court records show, and were sweeping in their breadth. In addition to searching his home, office and hotel room, F.B.I. agents seized material from Mr. Cohen’s cellphones, tablet, laptop and safe deposit box, according to people briefed on the warrants. Prosecutors revealed in court documents that they had already secretly obtained many of Mr. Cohen’s emails. 

Mr. Trump called Mr. Cohen on Friday to “check in,” according to two people briefed on the call. Depending on what else was discussed, the call could be problematic, as lawyers typically advise their clients against discussing investigations.

Mr. Cohen has publicly declared that he would defend the president to the end, but court documents show that prosecutors are building a significant case that could put pressure on him to cooperate and tell investigators what he knows.Mr. Cohen has publicly declared that he would defend the president to the end, but court documents show that prosecutors are building a significant case that could put pressure on him to cooperate and tell investigators what he knows.

The documents seized by prosecutors could shed light on the president’s relationship with a lawyer who has helped navigate some of Mr. Trump’s thorniest personal and business dilemmas. Mr. Cohen served for more than a decade as a trusted fixer and, during the campaign, helped tamp down brewing scandals about women who claimed to have carried on affairs with Mr. Trump. 

There are reports that thousands, if not millions, of documents were seized,  which clearly has Trump shitting bricks.

As indicated by the lawyer for Stormy Daniels.

A considerable amount of electronic data has been obtained by federal law enforcement in connection with the investigation of Mr. Cohen. Some might describe it as a "mountain of evidence". And I’m not just talking about a few days ago on Monday … #basta

— Michael Avenatti (@MichaelAvenatti) April 13, 2018

I think it is pretty clear Robert Mueller KNEW that the information in Michael Cohen's possession was potentially explosive and that was why he contacted Rosenstein and told him he needed to get a subpoena.

It was also just reported tonight by McClatchy that Mueller has information which confirms Cohen was in Prague back in 2016, just like it says in the Steele dossier, which Cohen vehemently denied:

The Justice Department special counsel has evidence that Donald Trump’s personal lawyer and confidant, Michael Cohen, secretly made a late-summer trip to Prague during the 2016 presidential campaign, according to two sources familiar with the matter. 

Confirmation of the trip would lend credence to a retired British spy’s report that Cohen strategized there with a powerful Kremlin figure about Russian meddling in the U.S. election. 

It would also be one of the most significant developments thus far in Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation of whether the Trump campaign and the Kremlin worked together to help Trump win the White House. Undercutting Trump’s repeated pronouncements that “there is no evidence of collusion,” it also could ratchet up the stakes if the president tries, as he has intimated he might for months, to order Mueller’s firing.

Right now Trump is getting hit from literally all sides and I don't think he will be able to stand up to the barrage for much longer.

At this point I do not know how his breakdown will manifest itself, whether it be firing Rod Rosenstein, orchestrating a military strike, or simply holding a rally for his followers during which he can vent his frustrations.

But whatever he does it will certainly not be nearly enough to calm his nerves for long.

Update: So military strike it is then.

Operation Distract From Russia begins as Trump announces military strikes in Syria. #Syria pic.twitter.com/ucMRY7hxUU

— Sarah Reese Jones (@PoliticusSarah) April 14, 2018

Jesus Christ!

Of course Assad has already had plenty of time to move his valuable targets elsewhere because Trump gave him so much lead time.

This is simply a distraction, and EVERYBODY knows it.

Update 2: There really is a tweet for everything.

The President must get Congressional approval before attacking Syria-big mistake if he does not!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 30, 2013

You know sometimes the 2013 Donald Trump gave some pretty solid advice.

So apparently Donald Trump's lawyer likes to tape conversations. Things that make you go, "Hmmm."

Courtesy of WaPo: 

President Trump’s personal attorney Michael D. Cohen sometimes taped conversations with associates, according to three people familiar with his practice, and allies of the president are worried that the recordings were seized by federal investigators in a raid of Cohen’s office and residences this week. 

Cohen, who served for a decade as a lawyer at the Trump Organization and is a close confidant of Trump, was known to store the conversations using digital files and then replay them for colleagues, according to people who have interacted with him. 

“We heard he had some proclivity to make tapes,” said one Trump adviser, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because of the ongoing investigation. “Now we are wondering, who did he tape? Did he store those someplace where they were actually seized? . . . Did they find his recordings?” 

Cohen did not respond to requests for comment. Stephen Ryan, an attorney for Cohen, declined to comment. A White House spokeswoman referred a request for comment to Cohen and his attorney.

HOLY.....SHIT!!!

Now this may turn out to be nothing, many things do.

But HOLY SHIT!!!!

If in fact Cohen taped conversations he had with Trump, with Stormy Daniels' former attorney, with other women that he has paid off in the past, and those recordings are now in the possession of Robert Mueller, that raid of Cohen's office and home may prove to be the most devastating thing that has happened to Donald Trump yet.

Have I said HOLY SHIT yet?

Which may be why Trump is no longer interested in voluntarily sitting down to talk with Robert Mueller.

Courtesy of NBC News:  

Special counsel Robert Mueller’s office and President Donald Trump’s legal team are now proceeding with strategies that presume a presidential interview will likely not take place as part of the Russia investigation, after months of talks between the two sides collapsed earlier this week, according to multiple people familiar with the matter. 

On Monday Trump’s lawyers were discussing a possible interview with Mueller's team and had begun to hash out the final sticking points, including the timing, scope and length, according to people familiar with the discussions. One person familiar with the strategy said the president’s lawyers had sought over the weekend to expand his legal team to include individuals who would prepare him for an interview. Another person familiar with the matter, however, said preparations had not yet gone that far. 

But the prospects for a presidential interview drastically dimmed once the FBI raided the home, office and hotel room of Trump’s long-time personal lawyer, Michael Cohen on Monday, these people said. The president criticized the raid as out of bounds in Mueller’s investigation into Russia’s interference in the 2016 election and possible collusion with Trump aides.

A TOTAL WITCH HUNT!!!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 10, 2018

Yeah I think the only thing that Donald Trump wants to do right now, is to flee the country.

Sadly he is now the most famous man in the world, so there ain't nowhere for him to go. 

ThisTime Magazine tweet is a must see.

TIME’s new cover: Donald Trump relied on Michael Cohen to weather the storm. Now the President is on his own https://t.co/Z8L5fYLuCO pic.twitter.com/UfTcklwg41

— TIME (@TIME) April 12, 2018

From the Time Magazine article: 

Since the night of Nov. 8, 2016, Trump’s political and philosophical opponents have been publicly and repeatedly asking, How long can this last? Those who have concluded “not much longer” have been vexed time after time. After all, this is a man who defied convention and criticism to achieve the highest office in the country, not to mention one who spent decades honing his abilities as a media provocateur. Skilled as Trump has been at deploying suspense, misdirection and invective to his advantage over the last 15 months, the Trump reality show appears closer than ever to colliding with reality itself.

It is hard to believe this is not the case.

But then again, as pointed out in this article, we have though that time and time again.

Donald Trump goes on Twitter rampage against Russia, fails to mention Putin by name.

Russia vows to shoot down any and all missiles fired at Syria. Get ready Russia, because they will be coming, nice and new and “smart!” You shouldn’t be partners with a Gas Killing Animal who kills his people and enjoys it!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 11, 2018

Our relationship with Russia is worse now than it has ever been, and that includes the Cold War. There is no reason for this. Russia needs us to help with their economy, something that would be very easy to do, and we need all nations to work together. Stop the arms race?

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 11, 2018

This last tweet of Trump's is dead right, but it is also too little too late.

We have been under attack from  Russia for several years now, and Trump is ONLY NOW acknowledging that fact.

And before you give Trump any credit for his change of heart you need to see the tweet that followed these first two.

Much of the bad blood with Russia is caused by the Fake & Corrupt Russia Investigation, headed up by the all Democrat loyalists, or people that worked for Obama. Mueller is most conflicted of all (except Rosenstein who signed FISA & Comey letter). No Collusion, so they go crazy!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 11, 2018

Sooo, it isn't Russia's support for Assad or the cyber attacks against America?

Once again let me point out that Trump did not mention Putin by name. but has no problem naming and blaming Justice Department and FBI officials who are just doing (Or just did) their jobs.

White House says that Donald Trump believes he has the power to fire Robert Mueller.

Sarah Sanders: Trump “certainly believes he has the power“ to fire Robert Mueller. (via ABC) pic.twitter.com/qtysO8K2pF

— Kyle Griffin (@kylegriffin1) April 10, 2018

Courtesy of Politico: 

The Trump White House punched back at its own Justice Department Tuesday, with President Donald Trump and senior officials expressing outrage over a law enforcement raid on lawyer Michael Cohen—and making thinly veiled threats to fire special Russia prosecutor Robert Mueller. 

“We’ve been advised the president certainly has the power to make that decision,” White House press secretary Sarah Sanders said when asked whether Trump could fire Mueller, who answers not to the White House but to deputy attorney general Rod Rosenstein. 

Trump began the day tweeting in defense of Cohen, a longtime Trump Organization associate. “A TOTAL WITCH HUNT!!!” Trump wrote on Twitter Tuesday morning. He also added: “Attorney-client privilege is dead!” 

A GOP operative close to the White House told POLITICO: “The all caps tweet, that’s the primal scream. That’s the war cry.” 

“He’s losing his shit,” the operative added. “We’re at a different level now.”

That is very similar to what Vanity Fair is reporting as well:

There have been times during Robert Mueller’s investigation—Mueller’s subpoenaing of Trump business records, for instance—when White House advisers worried Trump seemed on the verge of triggering a constitutional crisis by firing Mueller, Attorney General Jeff Sessions, or Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein. The stunning Cohen raid is another one of these moments. “He’s sitting there bitching and moaning. He’s brooding and doesn’t have a plan,” a Republican close to the White House said last night. “I could see him having a total meltdown and saying, ‘Fuck it, I’m firing all of them,’” a Trump friend told me. “This is very dry tinder. If someone strikes a match to it, you could see it catching fire,” added a former official.

It was also announced today that Trump has cancelled his planned trip to South America, supposedly to because he wants to monitor the situation in Syria, but of course we all know which situation has his full attention.  

All day today I have been expecting Trump to lose his shit and start firing everybody in the Justice Department, or declare war on Mexico, or set the rest of Trump Tower on fire.

But so far it's like that part of the horror movie before the teenagers go downstairs to figure out why the lights won't work.

You know that somebody is getting an axe in the forehead, you just don't know when, or which one it will be.

Search warrants reveal that Robert Mueller's interest in Paul Manafort is related to his time as the Trump campaign chairman, despite attempts by White House to say otherwise.

Courtesy of CNN:

The documents, used to obtain a search warrant in building the case against Manafort, were revealed in a court filing late Monday night. Manafort has pleaded not guilty in two federal cases, and the charges he faces do not include allegations about his time on the campaign. 

The search warrant makes clear that Mueller is also focused on Manafort's actions connected to the campaign. The White House and others have repeatedly said that the investigation into Manafort concerns his activities before he joined Trump's team in 2016.

Investigators in a search warrant application last July told a judge in Virginia that they sought evidence related to Manafort's interactions with a Russian real estate magnate and were suspicious of possible campaign finance violations. 

Specifically, the investigators sought from Manafort's apartment records "involving any of the attendees of the June 9, 2016, meeting at Trump Tower" and anything involving Aras and Emin Agalarov, an Azerbaijani-Russian billionaire and his son tied to the meeting, the 2013 Miss Universe pageant in Moscow and to a possible earlier unsuccessful attempt to build a Trump Tower in Moscow.

So much for the argument that this investigation of Paul Manafort is only focused on activities that took place BEFORE he became the head of Trump's campaign.

And in other bad news for Paul Manafort it appears that yet another employee has sold him down the river.

Courtesy of the Daily Beast:  

Former Trump campaign chief Paul Manafort has trouble in his own house. According to court documents, one of Manafort’s former employees led an FBI agent to a storage locker filled with paperwork on Manafort’s businesses and finances. The person’s name is redacted from the filings. But he’s now at the center of a fight over evidence that could play a significant role in the government’s case against Manafort. 

“People do strange things when confronted with authoritative FBI agents,” said Sol Wisenberg, a criminal defense attorney with Nelson Mullins. 

This makes the second Manafort associate known to have aided the government in the sprawling investigation into foreign influence in U.S. politics. Rick Gates, Manafort’s long-time right hand, began cooperating with Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s office in February.

Currently Manafort's attorneys are fighting tooth and nail to get this evidence thrown out of court, which means that it is definitely something that Mueller does not want thrown out. 

FBI raids Donald Trump's lawyer, Michael, Cohen's, office.

Wait, where are they?

Courtesy of the New York Times:

The F.B.I. on Monday raided the office of President Trump’s longtime personal lawyer, Michael D. Cohen, seizing records related to several topics including payments to a pornographic-film actress. 

Federal prosecutors in Manhattan obtained the search warrant after receiving a referral from the special counsel, Robert S. Mueller III, according to Mr. Cohen’s lawyer, who called the search “completely inappropriate and unnecessary.” The search does not appear to be directly related to Mr. Mueller’s investigation, but likely resulted from information he had uncovered and gave to prosecutors in New York. 

“Today the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York executed a series of search warrants and seized the privileged communications between my client, Michael Cohen, and his clients,” said Stephen Ryan, his lawyer. “I have been advised by federal prosecutors that the New York action is, in part, a referral by the Office of Special Counsel, Robert Mueller.”

Mr. Cohen plays a role in aspects of the special counsel’s investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election. He also recently said he paid $130,000 to a pornographic-film actress, Stephanie Clifford, who said she had an affair with Mr. Trump. Ms. Clifford is known as Stormy Daniels.

Here is more from NBC News:

The FBI on Monday raided the office of Michael Cohen, President Donald Trump's personal lawyer, seeking information about a $130,000 payment the attorney made to porn star Stormy Daniels shortly before the 2016 election, sources said. 

Several law enforcement officials confirmed the search of Cohen's office was not the work of Mueller's prosecutors. It involves a matter that the Mueller team came across, concluded did not fall under their mandate and passed on to the U.S. Attorney's office in New York. 

Legal sources familiar with the nature of the search said it involved the $130,000 payment to Daniels, who alleges that she had an affair with Trump. The sources did not say whether it might have also involved other matters. 

So the Mueller team found some incriminating information about this payoff to Stormy Daniels during their investigation of Trump and his associates, decided it did not fit comfortably with the focus of their investigation so they handed it off to the New York Attorney General, who was convinced that the evidence was sufficiently concerning enough to get a warrant to raid Cohen's office.

And that is not all. According to Vanity Fair the FBI also raided Cohen's hotel room.

And whatever is in that office clearly has Trump concerned.

Trump has been watching TV reports of the FBI raiding Cohen's office, per @jeffzeleny.

— Natasha Bertrand (@NatashaBertrand) April 9, 2018

And here is how Trump responded publicly to questions about the raid.

Trump comments responding to Cohen Raid pic.twitter.com/vNhZGsqCv5

— Josh Marshall (@joshtpm) April 9, 2018

Did I not say earlier that today was going to be stressful for Donald Trump?

That might have been an understatement.

Now the question is will this be the thing that freaks Trump out so much that he finally fires Rod Rosenstein and starts working to close down the Mueller investigation?

Donald Trump preparing for possible interview with Robert Mueller. More popcorn?

Courtesy of CNN:

President Donald Trump has begun the initial steps of preparing for a possible interview with the special counsel, a White House official and a person familiar with the situation said Friday, a sign the President's legal team is intensifying its deliberations over whether to allow him to come under Robert Mueller's questioning. 

One source familiar with the proceedings stressed the preparation efforts is "in its infancy." 

The preparations have been short and informal and included going over potential topics with the President that Mueller would likely raise in an interview, the people said. 

The President has not formally agreed to sit for an interview with Mueller. 

But word of early preparations is the clearest sign yet that Trump and his team remain open to an interview with Mueller, despite concerns from some people close to the President that such an interview could expose him to possible charges of perjury.

Okay I am going to admit to being a little conflicted about this.

Part of me is convinced that Trump will NEVER voluntarily agree to be interviewed by Mueller and his team. After all it would be political suicide.

However then I remember how completely fucking arrogant this POS is and I think there is no way he will NOT volunteer to be interviewed, just to demonstrate his courage and intellectual prowess.

Ultimately I think that Mueller WILL interview him one way or another.

Just not sure exactly how that will come about.