Former FBI top dogs James B. Comey and Robert Mueller have a long-standing relationship of mentor and protégé that teeters on the brink of collusion. Upon Comey’s firing May 9, his subsequent leaking of misinformation to the New York Times, and the appointment of Robert Mueller as special counsel into allegations of Trump-Russia, an unholy alliance has been spawned; the crosshairs of their government sponsored weapon appear to be steadied on President Trump.
Mueller accepted the position of the special prosecutor from Acting U.S. Attorney General Rod Rosenstein (U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions recused himself) on May 17, sending shockwaves of disbelief throughout channels of those debating ethical, legal practices:
Our nation is grounded on the rule of law, and the public must be assured that government officials administer the law fairly. Special Counsel Mueller will have all appropriate resources to conduct a thorough and complete investigation, and I am confident that he will follow the facts, apply the law and reach a just result.”
The law governing the appointment of a special counsel falls under the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) 28 CFR 600.3, and is clear that candidates must be vetted with a “detailed review of ethics and conflicts of interest issues.”
Yes, Mueller has stellar credentials, but he should’ve declined the offer. He has a brazen conflict of interest in this case — his friendship with James B. Comey. They have been described as “Brothers in Arms” for their friendship that has spanned fifteen years, beginning in the darkest days after 9/11, continuing through the Bush administration and reaching the pinnacle during Obama’s eight-year reign. Bureau agents have described them as “attached at the hip,” although their vast difference in height has one thinking of the cartoon characters, Mutt and Jeff. Comey and Mueller are close. Theirs is not, by any definition, a casual or work-specific union. And the Code is specific in that “a personal relationship with any person substantially involved in the conduct that is the subject of the investigation or prosecution” 28 CFR 45.2, is conflicted out of the role. Say hello to my little friend, and star witness (heck, only witness), James Comey.
Mueller and his friend Comey with former President Obama.
There are other causes for concern with how deep Mueller may investigate, or not investigate, the matter at hand. For those who have just learned from recent headlines of this union, let’s go back a few years to the most notorious case this Comey and Mueller ninja warrior team seriously bungled. I will defer to Carl M. Cannon, of Real Clear Politics, for an extremely detailed reminder of a dark day on the Hill in 2001, as “anthrax letter attacks took five lives and infected 17 other people,” and egged on the Bush administration to turn up the heat in Iraq. In a nutshell, what you have is two law enforcement officers who have made it a pattern to influence investigations and go ‘rogue’:
It appears that Mueller, Comey, and others misinterpreted the evidence and botched the case by fingering an innocent man, Steven Hatfill. It ended up costing taxpayers roughly $ 5 million in a legal settlement.
Here is the interesting part that few people recall. Hatfill’s successful lawsuit accused the FBI and DOJ of leaking information about him to the press in violation of the federal Privacy Act. Sound familiar? That’s right, a leak. Very much like Comey’s premeditated leak to the media of his now infamous memo reciting his alleged conversation with President Trump. Perhaps, old habits are hard to break.
Is anyone else curious about the days leading up to the Senate Intelligence Committee hearing with Comey, specifically, if he had been meeting with Mueller or speaking privately to him before his testimony? Considering their ‘thick as thieves’ relationship status, that would have been a more appropriate question from any one of the eager senators participating in the unraveling of Comey’s twisted rationale, explanation of ‘his feelings’ and the ‘nauseating’ and personal recollection of the benign conversations with President Trump.
It’s possible that Gregg Jarrett, of Fox News, is insanely accurate in his recent post: Legal Notice: “Proudly Announcing The Newly-Formed Law Firm of Mueller & Comey. We Specialize In Bungling Cases, Ignoring Legal Standards, And Bringing Down Presidents.” I have not yet received the announcement in the mail. But I expect it will arrive any day now.
America should demand that Mueller resign.
