Don's Tuesday Column

         THE WAY I SEE IT   by Don Polson   Red Bluff Daily News   5/07/2019

End one investigation; start another

First, some sad news on a personal note: My dear sister, Bonnie Horbovetz, passed away on Friday, April 26, at the age of 61, due to heart failure brought on by a severe stroke. She resided in Valparaiso, Indiana, after moving from nearby Hobart, where she lived with her husband of 40 years, Jack, and her nearby sons and grandchildren. I wrote in the Rees Funeral Home Guestbook:

“Bonnie, Steve and I grew up together through numerous towns and homes. Our Mom filled our home with all the love and support that she could. Bonnie will be remembered by me fondly as the little sister with the smile who we cherished having tag along with her big brothers. I could have been a better brother and life could have rewarded her better by leaving out some of the less appealing experiences.

“A rare flower emerged when she had the blessings of her husband, Jack, and sons Aaron and David. She was able to touch with love and care all whose paths she crossed. My wife, Barbara, and I were too far away for regular family visits but somewhat made up for it with time spent with Bonnie and Jack in Lake Tahoe in 2001, when they had to drive cross country because the flights were cancelled post-9/11. Then in Las Vegas for their renewal of vows.

“Those times, and the pictures and memories will always be cherished. I know that many people will have a hole in their lives with her passing; that she is with her Lord doesn't remove that. She achieved 2 of her life's goals by out living our Mom and getting to see her grandchildren; I know that she cherished those goals to the end.”

Ironically, she had suggested that we siblings get together this summer, in the Denver area where brother Steve lives. Since our summer motorhome trips visit the West Yellowstone area, we said we’d go to Denver whenever Bonnie and Steve could agree on dates. Regrettably, she had to postpone the effort due to her knee problems and Jack’s back surgery; it would have been too late, anyway. Life rarely unfolds as we wish.

Americans of all partisan stripes should welcome the exoneration of President Trump (and of anyone in his campaign, or any Americans) of collusion, conspiracy, cooperation or coordination with Russian actors or agents. There’s the caveat that Clinton/FusionGPS/Steele Dossier connections to actual Russians remains uninvestigated. I think that the Democratic Party is in the thrall of the most vehement, hysterical and radical of their base, who seem, for all their supposed adherence to “facts” and “science,” to accept outlandish conspiracies, plots and secret, delivered wisdom. But for that coterie of activists, level-headed Democrats would likely move on to policy advocacy designed to appeal to Americans.

Many of us “get” that they despise President Donald Trump, attach the worst possible motives to Republicans supporting him, and regard him as an existential threat to “truth, justice and the American way” (as they see it). I could substitute “President George W. Bush” in place of Trump and the sentence would have been accurate during Bush’s first term. While many Republicans held similar views toward Barack Obama, and his potential third term via Hillary Clinton, I’ve seen a more mature and reflective acceptance of electoral cycles—of winning some and losing some—on this side of the spectrum.

Unfortunately, it’s not evident that rationality has settled among the Trump-hating/never-Trump crowd, a likely small group locally. Just observe the fairly seamless transition from “Trump Derangement Syndrome” to “Barr Derangement Syndrome.” Attorney General William Barr has neither done nor said anything inaccurate, or unsupportable by the 400-page Mueller Report, and has followed the Special Counsel law written during President Clinton’s term. It means nothing to the Democrat partisans obsessed with twisting every statement or action into a “pretzel of perfidy.”

Yes, I made that phrase up. What’s not made up are the intentional misstatements and misleading media narratives surrounding Barr’s April 24 summary, Mueller’s memo to Barr, conversations between them and the redactions involving about 2 percent of Mueller’s report. Barr’s handling of it all has been flawless; it was Mueller that failed to redact what was legally prohibited from dissemination, thus needlessly delaying the publication of his report. Mueller and his team of partisan Democrat lawyers wrote language in the “obstruction” section that suggested Trump violations where there were none.

Likewise, it was Mueller that dragged out an investigation for 2 years, when he could and should have quickly determined, within months of his appointment, that there had been no “collusion” by Trump et al. Setting aside crimes by Paul Manafort and Mr. Cohen—uncovered by Mueller’s team but committed prior to Trump’s candidacy—there were few, if any, actual crimes that would have stood alone but for the Mueller probe, interrogations and depositions.

General Flynn and George Papadopoulos deserved no guilty pleas or jail time—agents were on record saying Flynn didn’t lie. George P. committed no crime absent the legal machinations of Mueller’s hit team and spies Mifsud, Halper and “Azra Turk” feeding and retrieving inside dirt to/from him. SPIES!

Moreover, Trump associate Carter Page’s relatively unsuspicious actions provided the thin predicate for FISA surveillance warrants—the supposed reason for wiretaps, electronic monitoring of the phone, email and written communication of anyone contacted by Page prior to and during his role on Trump’s team. Yet, no charges against Page?

The efforts to purge inconvenient-but-accurate words from our usage—like “spying”—is now demanded by Trump’s/Barr’s enemies so as to control our very thoughts about what was done by Obama’s FBI, CIA and DOJ. They used all available tools to impede not only the election of the opposing candidate, Donald Trump, but also to render his presidency ineffectual and hobbled, both domestically and internationally. Let the investigations of the investigators proceed!