Kurtz: New Flynn revelations force CNN, MSNBC to play 'catch up' after ignoring developments
By: Yael Halon (Fox News)
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
"Media Buzz" host Howard Kurtz told the "Fox News Rundown" podcast Thursday that the mainstream media were forced to play "catch-up" after initially ignoring a series of new developments in the case of former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn.
"Here is a telling thing in terms of the media coverage," Kurtz said. "The week before Attorney General William Barr made that decision," to move to drop the Justice Department's case against Flynn, "a whole bunch of documents were released ... that appeared to show FBI agents considering setting a perjury trap for Mike Flynn."
"In primetime that night," Kurtz continued, "CNN did nothing. MSNBC did nothing. Fox, they had a whole lot. The problem with not covering a story like that at all is when the following week the case is dropped and then you have to cover it. You're immediately playing catch-up."
The Justice Department moved to drop the case against Flynn last week after handwritten notes showed bureau officials debating whether to set up the former national security adviser.
As the case continues to dominate the headlines, Kurtz said he is focused on "the degree to which partisan divides in the media affect the coverage of all this."
Kurtz later commented on President Trump's often contentious exchanges with members of the media, arguing that while "these are hyperpartisan times," both sides are at fault.
"It's hard to avoid the conclusion that the president is, after all, in an election year, [and] that part of his strategy is not just to demonize the press, which he has been doing for three-plus years ... but to do it in brutally personal terms," he said.
"The president feels it's in his interest to fight multiple battles at once," Kurtz added. "But the counter to that is, we're in this national emergency. Why not focus almost all of your attention on that?"
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As with all news which is contrary to the left's narratives, CNN and MSNBC simply ignore it.
The media has been MIA on the malicious prosecution of Michael Flynn!
Obama and his unmaskers!
Fox News supports Trump and belittles the competition. This is news?
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On the same day that Obama announced sanctions against Russia FOR MEDDLING IN THE US PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION, Michael Flynn told the Russian ambassador to the US not to react to the sanctions because the new administration would take care of it. Same day. That is undermining US foreign policy. Everyone knows this, its just that Trump supporters agree with what Flynn did. Unbeknownst to Flynn, US intelligence had intercepted the call and when they later questioned Flynn knew he had lied to Pence about it. There existed every right for "Obama's" intelligence apparatus to investigate Flynn.
Barr is miscarriaging justice. Fox News is distorting reality to benefit Barr and Trump. What else is new?
If Flynn committed a crime he would have been charged for it. There was no crime and that was part of the problem.
Obama and his henchmen were the one who miscarried justice. They got caught and MORE IS COMING!
Obama put sanctions on Russia for interfering in the US election. IMMEDIATELY after, a Trump official told Russia, in effect, "don't worry about it".
On the face of it this shows that Trump and Flynn were not concerned about Russias interference. They werent concerned because the interference had helped them.
This is not rocket science Vic and the public gets it. The intelligence agencies were totally justified in in investigating and questioning Flynn. Judge Sullivan knows this as well.
Even if Flynn said that, he represents the incoming administration. Obama wanted a good relationship with Russia and every administration gets to set their own policy. There was nothing illegal about that conversation and no pretext for an FBI investigation into it.
They werent concerned because the interference had helped them.
That is debatable John. There is new evidence coming out that shows info contesting the Brennan assessment.
This is not rocket science Vic and the public gets it.
No John, that was the shit that CNN & MSNBC put out for 3 years!
The intelligence agencies were totally justified in in investigating and questioning Flynn.
They were not. They took him down, John and Judge Emmett Sullivan, who is as biased as Adam Schiff, is going to try to force the President to pardon Flynn by dragging this thing out in an unethical way. Only the DOJ can prosecute Flynn, but the Judge is now going to try and turn the law on it's head. Progressives continue to damage this nation!
The reason the FBI went after Flynn?
Here's one man's opinion:
"And I think it's because, you know, Flynn had a bull's-eye on his back. People like Comey , McCabe, Brennan and Clapper all knew that once Flynn took the helm...as national security adviser, he would expose the Russia hoax," Jarrett stated. "And so they went after him with a vengeance. They targeted him, and they got rid of him."
A question for our readers to consider.
Wouldn't it be a little silly to enter a plea of guilty without being charged with a crime? And Flynn did it twice.
When Flynn pleaded guilty, he signed a five-page statement of facts. In that statement, he agreed in writing — and under oath before a federal judge — that the statements he provided to the FBI were false, and materially so. On Wednesday, at what was supposed to be his sentencing, Flynn again told a federal judge that he lied to the FBI, and that he knew this was a crime. It is remarkable for Dershowitz and others to suggest that Flynn did not commit a crime, when the facts and the law and Flynn so clearly say otherwise.
Lying to the FBI is a crime. Flynn lied to the FBI. The lies were material. Flynn acknowledged that fact in writing and in court. That should end the legal debate in this case.
Source
McCabe lied to the FBI. Where was the prosecution? Too many progressives sitting in judgement on DC Courts?
so if Flynn LIED about committing the Crime in the first place ,by admitting he committed the crime, then confessed to committing the Crime he says he didn't, HE HAD TO HAVE LIED,
on at a minimal of one of the occasions, which in itself
is a CRIME, NO ???
There was no Russia hoax. The FBI and CIA investigated the Trump campaign because they had reason to.
Dog do. Obama extended sanctions against Russia for invading Ukraine in the weeks following the 2014 Olympics. He added more sanctions and expelled Russian diplomats after the election interference was discovered.
When Trump took office, one of the first things he did was to ease, or give the appearance of easing, the sanctions on Russia. He did it for one reason and one reason only: Exxon Mobil had extensive oil production investiments in the Sakhalin off-shore oil fields. They were losing millions every day those fields were shut down. Exxon Mobile paid a one-time penalty of $2 million, and went back to work. Trump's personal investments of $1.5 million (and Rex Tillerson's $2.5 million in retirement stock) were safe as kittens.
Source
Sorry, m'dear. I thought we were talking about Flynn.
No
What was it John?
YES
[DELETED]
Obama's policy:
Obama was caught on microphone telling Dmitry Medvedev that he would have more flexibility after November's election deal with contentious issues such as missile defense.
The Russian reset was an attempt by the Obama administration to improve relations between the United States and Russia in 2009.
Obama needed Russia's help with his Iran Deal thus he allowed Russia to move on the Crimea, the Ukraine and Syria.
Trump's policy:
"Just last April, the Trump administration imposed new sanctions on Russia — including strict sanctions on seven of Russia’s richest individuals and 17 top government officials for their interference in our elections.
The sanctions directly penalized President Vladimir Putin’s inner circle by prohibiting them from traveling to the United States ever again. He did this by opening a bank account in the West, preventing them from doing business with the West and prohibiting anyone else to do business on their behalf.
The sanctions were significant — among the toughest sanctions ever placed on individuals in a foreign country, with the exception of perhaps Iran and North Korea. Yet like many of Trump’s successes, it received minimal mainstream media coverage.
During his first month in office in January 2017, President Trump upheld strict sanctions to punish Russia for its unlawful 2014 annexation of Crimea. With those sanctions, the Trump administration punished more than three dozen individuals and organizations that were behind the invasion of Ukraine.
Even Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin had a hand in the actions, stating that there would be no easing of the sanctions until Russia meets its obligations under the 2015 Minsk agreement — the ceasefire agreement between Russia and Ukraine.
In August 2017, Trump signed a bill slapping even more sanctions on Russia — this time specifically aimed at the country’s energy and defense industries. Congress made the legislation Trump-proof, meaning that no executive order could ever undo such sanctions; yet Trump signed it anyway.
In fact it was Trump — not Obama — who ordered the closure of Russian diplomatic properties in San Francisco, Washington, D.C., and New York City that appeared to be a threat to American security.
It was also President Trump who shuttered the Russian consulate in Seattle .
To be sure, Obama kicked 35 Russian diplomats out of the country after suspected election meddling by Russia, but only after Trump won the 2016 election. It is questionable whether he would have done so had Hillary Clinton succeeded in being the victor.
Furthermore, it was President Trump who led the world in expelling Russian diplomats after the Russian government was suspected of carrying out a nerve agent attack in the United Kingdom against one of their former spies. President Trump moved swiftly to expel 60 Russian diplomats from U.S. soil, and other countries followed suit by expelling dozens as well.
In addition to stringent sanctions, President Trump has also called out Russia publicly.
During a landmark speech last year in Poland, Trump lambasted Russia for using oil to hold NATO’s Eastern European countries hostage. Trump underscored the dangers of those countries’ dependence on Russian oil deliveries to keep their people warm during the winter, leading to their inability to criticize Russia the rest of the year.
The Trump administration even offered to help identify alternative energy sources for the region. Trump’s remarks on European soil was the energy industry equivalent of Reagan’s “tear down that wall” speech.
Compare all of the above actions to Obama’s milquetoast policy on Russia and outright appeasement on issues such as the “red line” that Russia blew right past in Syria. Obama’s lackluster track record with Russia is in stark contrast to the Trump administration that has already, in its first 18 months, surpassed what Obama did over a total of eight years."
I'll let our readers decide
I'm more sorry, you need to answer for that!
I thought we were talking about Flynn.
We were talking about Obama's FBI
Total Bullshit!
Trump had to be brought kickin and screamin to the table, as he took almost a year to implement sanctions that the Congress did bring before him.
Trump has consistently DENIED Russia interfered in HIS election, when they OBVIOUSLY DID !
Trump has consistently worked for and suggested, weakning of Russian sanctions would be best for both countries, as he states it would be better to get along with Russia.
No shit Sherlock, but when you're Butt buddies with Putin, you let him Put it in, and Trumps weird sex habits are not of concern to U S citizens, but when he's FCKN our Country, it Pops up, so to speak, and Vic, that post, So Damn Weak !
I'm going to let our readers decide.
Thanks for the informative reply.
"Sixteen former Watergate prosecutors have notified Emmet Sullivan, a judge for the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, that they intend to file an "amicus curiae" ("friend of the court") brief in the case against former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn after the Department of Justice (DOJ) moved to dismiss the charges against him.
Sullivan, however, has not yet approved the DOJ's motion and made the unusual move this week of announcing that he would accept such amicus briefs in the case. Sullivan is a trial judge in a trial court and amicus briefs are typically associated with appellate courts
Already swooping in were 16 former Watergate prosecutors, who told the court they want to weigh in on the DOJ's motion to drop charges against Flynn. This roster includes a number of Democratic donors and others who have been critical of President Trump before.
"In their roles as Watergate prosecutors, Amici investigated serious abuses of power by President Richard M. Nixon and prosecuted many of President Nixon’s aides for their complicity in his offenses," the Watergate prosecutors' statement of interest reads.
They continued: "Here, where the Motion seeks to reverse a prosecutorial judgment previously entrusted to and made by Special Counsel, Robert Mueller, the value the Watergate Prosecutors’ unique perspective on the need for independent scrutiny and oversight to ensure that crucial decisions about prosecutions of high-ranking government officials are made in the public interest, are viewed as legitimate, and are not subsequently reversed by political intervention."
Specifically, in a separate notice that they intend to file an amicus brief, the Watergate prosecutors note that "[t]he Government’s Motion also does not adequately address questions of this Court’s heightened Article III role in light of the posture of this case, with the Defendant having pled guilty and awaiting sentencing. A guilty plea represents a turning point between 'the Executive’s traditional power over charging decisions and the Judiciary’s traditional authority over sentencing decisions.'"
Here's a look at each of the Watergate prosecutors who intend to weigh in on the Flynn case:
Nick Akerman - Akerman, the first name on the list, is currently a partner at a New York City area law firm, according to his Linkedin account.
But that is not what the former Watergate prosecutor is famous for.
Rather, Akerman is an MSNBC contributor with a long history of criticizing Trump and a Twitter account filled with broadsides against the president.
Richard Ben-Veniste - Ben-Veniste is a partner at the D.C. law firm Mayer Brown for which he handles civil and white-collar criminal cases.
He does not have the kind of ubiquitous Twitter presence that Akerman has, but was a CNN legal analyst from 2017 to 2019.
In a 2019 appearance on the network, Ben-Veniste called the content of the House of Representatives' impeachment hearings into Trump's handling of security funding for Ukraine "extraordinarily disturbing."
"There is a very strong case now that the president subverted American national security interests for his personal political objectives," Ben-Veniste said.
Ben-Veniste also has a long history working in government outside of the Watergate prosecution. He was the chief counsel for the Democrats in the Senate Whitewater Committee in the 1990s and served on the 9/11 Commission, among several other roles, according to his biography on Mayer Brown's website.
Ben-Veniste donated $1,000 each to Sens. Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I., and Chris Murphy, D-Conn., in 2017. He gave Hillary Clinton's 2016 campaign $2,700.
Richard J. Davis - Davis' history of government service outside of his role as a Watergate prosecutor, according to a biography on his personal law practice's website, included a role in the Iranian hostage crisis and a stint with the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York. He was also a partner at a private law firm for 30 years.
Davis is less publicly political than some of his fellow Watergate prosecutors, but he did say in a 2015 opinion piece for CNN that he financially contributed to an effort to convince Joe Biden to run for president in 2016.
In the same CNN piece, Davis was vaguely critical of Hillary Clinton's ethics history, but the criticism was framed more as advice for her campaign than an attack on the candidate.
Davis has donated thousands of dollars to Democrats since 2019, including $2,800 to Joe Biden in April 2019.
Carl B. Feldbaum - Feldbaum is currently on the board of directors for BIO Ventures for Global Health (BVGH), a health-oriented nonprofit. Besides his Watergate service, Feldbaum was previously the chief of staff for late Sen. Arlen Specter, D-Pa., according to his BVGH bio , and wrote the book "Looking the Tiger in the Eye: Confronting the Nuclear Threat."
Feldbaum gave $2,800 to Joe Biden's presidential campaign in January, $100 to the Democratic National Committee in 2018, and donated to Obama's campaign on multiple occasions.
George T. Frampton, Jr. - Frampton is the founder and CEO of the environmental nonprofit Partnership for Responsible Growth. Frampton also served in several roles within the Clinton administration, specifically as the chairman of the White House Council on Environmental Quality and as the deputy director and chief of staff for the Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s probe of the nuclear incident on Three Mile Island, according to his bio on the Partnership for Responsible Growth website.
Frampton has donated thousands of dollars to Democratic candidates since 2018, including $150 to Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., in 2020 and $250 to Sen. Michael Bennet, D-Colo., in 2019.
Kenneth S.Geller - Geller, like Ben-Veniste, is a lawyer for Mayer Brown, specifically focusing on Supreme Court and appellate law. He served a nine-year stint as the firm's managing partner. Geller was also the Deputy Solicitor General of the United States for seven years in the 1970s and 1980s under the Carter and Reagan administrations.
He is also the father of Politico reporter Eric Geller and co-wrote a 2019 op-ed in the Washington Post, along with 16 other Watergate prosecutors, advocating for Trump's impeachment.
Geller donated $200 to Joe Biden in March of this year and $100 to Biden in April of last year.
Gerald Goldman - Goldman, according to his byline on a 2018 opinion piece for NBC News, served as a volunteer attorney for the Natural Resources Defense Council, an environmental organization that has been sharply critical of President Trump. He is also a former clerk for Supreme Court Justice William Brennan.
The NBC News piece, which he authored with fellow Watergate prosecutor Jill Wine-Banks, advocated for former Special Counsel Robert Mueller to release information on his investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election and possible Trump campaign involvement ahead of the official conclusion of his investigation.
Goldman donated $500 to Hillary Clinton in 2016 and $2,500 to Obama in 2012.
Jill Wine-Banks - Wine-Banks, Goldman's co-author on the NBC News opinion piece, is an MSNBC contributor and legal analyst. She also served as a general counsel of the U.S. Army under Carter.
Wine-Banks maintains an active Twitter presence, which is sharply critical of Trump. A recent tweet from Wine-Banks says that Trump is, "trying to undermine DOJ, FBI and our rule of law and justice by having Barr dismiss Flynn charges after guilty plea and lowering Stone sentencing recommendation. Dangerous. If reelected, nothing will stop him."
She also posted a political cartoon comparing Attorney General Bill Barr to the coronavirus.
Wine-Banks donated $25 to Amy Klobuchar in January and $2,800 to Biden in March.
Stephen E. Haberfeld - Haberfield, after his time as a Watergate prosecutor, served as a U.S. Magistrate Judge and a U.S. District Court judge before retiring from the bench. Now, he is a sports and entertainment arbitrator for the firm JAMS .
Haberfield's last political donation was a $1,000 contribution to Sen Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., in 1994.
Henry L. Hecht - Hecht is currently a resident lecturer at the University of California at Berkeley Law School. He serves on and writes for a number of professional law organizations, including the American Bar Association and the American Law Institute, according to his Berkeley bio .
Hecht also runs an organization that provides skill training for lawyers, specifically in depositions, direct and cross-examination and more.
Hecht donated $1,000 to Sen. Doug Jones, D-Ala., in 2017 and $154 to Bernie Sanders in 2015 and 2016.
Paul R. Hoeber - Hoeber has not kept as high a profile as many of the other former Watergate prosecutors in recent years. But he did argue a false advertising case against Nike before the Supreme Court in the early 2000s. The high court punted on the case, not coming to a ruling on the merits.
Hoeber was also one of the Watergate prosecutors who called for Trump's impeachment in the 2019 Washington Post op-ed.
Hoeber donated $600 to Obama in 2012.
Philip Allen Lacovara - Lacovara was a clerk on the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals and the vice president and senior counsel of General Electric, according to a 2005 profile of him on the D.C. Bar Association's website.
More recently, Lacovara authored a 2017 piece in the Washington Post criticizing Trump for his liberal use of pardons and warned that there is a chance the House of Representatives could find that Trump's use of pardons to "squelch an investigation into criminal misconduct by people close to the president constitutes an impeachable offense."
Separately, Lacovara said in an interview with America Magazine that Watergate "pales in comparison to what the investigations of President Trump’s conduct have revealed."
Lacovara has donated $500 to Joe Biden this cycle, but has previously donated to Republicans. Specifically, Lacovara donated $700 to Mitt Romney in 2012, $250 to Newt Gingrich in 2011 and $500 to the Republican National Convention in 2008.
Paul R. Michel - Michael, in the wake of his service as a Watergate prosecutor, was nominated by Reagan to a seat on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit in 1978. where he served until 2010, when he retired, according to a profile on the Federalist Society's website. Michael has participated in multiple forums on patent law with the Federalist Society, a legal organization for conservatives and libertarians, since his retirement from the federal bench.
Michael has even submitted an "amicus curie" or "friend-of-the-court" brief in a Supreme Court case as recently as 2019.
According to Bloomberg Law , Michael has also previously been the chief of staff for Specter, a job Feldbaum also held, and as the U.S. Associate Deputy Attorney General.
Michael donated $1,000 to Sen Chris Coons, D-Del., in October 2019 and $1,500 to Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., in August 2019. He also donated $6,000 to Rep. Jerry Nadler, D-N.Y., between 2018 and 2019.
Robert L. Palmer - Palmer is a private lawyer based out of Los Angeles. Outside of his Watergate service, Palmer previously served as a law clerk on the D.C. Circuit and during the 1990s was on the board of directors for the Arizona Center for Law in the Public Interest.
He was one of a number of former Watergate prosecutors who signed the 2019 Washington Post op-ed calling for Trump's impeachment.
Palmer donated $100 to Amy Klobuchar in March 2019 and $1,000 to Elizabeth Warren in 2011.
Frank Tuerkheimer - Tuerkheimer is a professor at the University of Wisconsin Law School. According to his university bio, Turkheimer has previously represented the Siera Club and the Natural Resources Defense Council, two environmental protection organizations.
Tuerkheimer has commented on the Flynn prosecution in the past during an interview with freelance journalist Jim Bessman.
"It might be in Trump's personal interest that the investigation against Flynn not go ahead, but not the national interest," he said. "These are obligations to the country—not him."
Tuerkheimer donated $100 to Sen. Tammy Baldwin, D-Wis., in 2018; $250 to Democrat Russ Feingold, who lost the Wisconsin Senate race to Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis., in 2016; and $250 to Obama in 2008.
Gee, that sounds like a list of Trump-hating progressives!
Ya Vic, I think you got it!
careful you don't tear a rotator cuff,
pattin yourself on the back...
Btw: Marie Yovanovitch, Joe Biden, John Brennan, James Clapper, James Comey and Andrew McCabe also lied.
Where are the prosecutions?