New: Mueller buried a tool in Flynn plea agreement that could protect Russia probe from Trump pardon

[MelissaB]

"Bob Mueller didn't just get Mike Flynn to flip, he got him to pledge potential cooperation with local prosecutors who Donald Trump can't touch"
Mueller buried a tool in Flynn plea agreement that could protect Russia probe from Trump pardon

Link to tweet

Link to tweet

[MelissaB]

1. Updated w/ second video: Mueller buried a tool in Flynn plea agreement that could protect Russia pro

Mueller buried a tool in Flynn plea agreement that could protect Russia probe from Trump pardon

[former9thward]

2. No, it doesn't work that way.

A pardon would free Flynn from any plea agreement no matter what it said.

[Kaleva]

4. Flynn couldn't then plead the 5th

He'd have to answer all questions.

[former9thward]

19. Not to local prosecutors

The pardon would just cover federal crimes, not local.

[mercuryblues]

27. for federal charges

Flynn can't plead the 5th. He is compelled to testify, even if he is pardoned. Now here is the fun part. If Flynn tries to lie, Mueller and his team have his written, sworn, signed statement. Lying will nullify the deal and Flynn will face perjury charges with everything else.

Never play poker with Mueller. He always has cards up his sleeve.

[Qutzupalotl]

5. A president can't pardon state charges. n/t

[former9thward]

17. Which has nothing to do with this subject.

A pardon would invalidate the plea agreement to cooperate with local prosecutors.

[Qutzupalotl]

20. It's the subject of the OP.

It doesn't matter if Flynn cooperates with state AGs, he still faces prosecution.

[former9thward]

24. For what state crimes?

I have heard no speculation about state crimes Flynn might have committed.

[LiberalFighter]

11. Mueller has a bit more experience than you do.

[former9thward]

18. Actually he doesn't.

He has never done defense work.

[OilemFirchen]

21. Who are you?

After receiving his law degree in 1973, Mueller worked as a litigator at the firm Pillsbury, Madison and Sutro in San Francisco until 1976.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Mueller#Law_career

[former9thward]

25. I will cut and paste what you didn't.

Pillsbury is a full-service law firm with an industry focus on energy and natural resources, financial services including financial institutions, real estate and construction, and technology. Based in the world's major financial, technology and energy centers, Pillsbury counsels clients on global business, regulatory and litigation matters.

First of all, no one is a "litigator" straight out of law school. Especially for a major law firm. They have the title of attorney but those years are spent getting coffee and doing research for the people who might actually be the courtroom.

Second, and more important, do you read the word "criminal" in the description of their work? They don't do criminal law which is what we are talking about here. Mueller has only been a prosecutor and never has done a minute of defense work. Prosecutors think they can do no wrong which is why so many of them over reach and get into trouble.

I know Mueller has become a god to some but I am afraid they will be deeply disappointed in the end.

[OilemFirchen]

26. He worked for a private firm.

To state that "he has never done defense work" borders on ignorance.

If you're an attorney, you should know to be careful with declaratives.

It's on the record that he's done more defense work than you - unless you wish to prove otherwise.

[former9thward]

31. It seems you have access to his work product during that time.

So why don't you tell us what criminal defense work he did at a private firm that does not do criminal law.

[OilemFirchen]

33. I don't need any.

He worked for a private law firm. Private law firms have plaintiffs and defendants. It would be ridiculous to state, without your own evidence to the contrary, that he did "no defense work". Even if he simply did research on the behalf of a defendant, that invalidates your preposterous claim.

BTW, it would behoove you to stop including "criminal" in your argument. It wasn't in the declarative that began this conversation and dramatically diminishes your argument... such as it is.

[former9thward]

34. I am talking about criminal law because that is what the OP is about.

Perhaps you should reread it. I am sorry if you think the rules and procedures of "defense work" in non-criminal cases is the same as criminal work. It isn't. This firm did not do criminal law and Mueller has no experience in it. He has solely been a prosecutor in criminal affairs.

But as you say "I don't need any". That says it all...

[OilemFirchen]

35. ...

[Kaleva]

3. The sun is setting on the the Orange Kist king

[Wwcd]

6. We're running out of time. Please hurry 😐

Thank you.

[Hortensis]

9. No, we're not. We'll HAVE to live on through time with

what bad citizens, left and right, created and sooner or later be able to start rebuilding.

Btw, if Hillary was president and the Senate was controlled by Democrats,

infrastructure projects all over the nation would already be providing many tens of thousands of good jobs with good benefits,

a million new students would be applying to study for affordable college degrees,

the ACA would be even better than it was at its best,

the Medicare eligibility age would be lowered to 55,

eldercare relatives would no longer be ordered out on the streets when their parent dies,

billionaires would not only be paying pre-Reagan private income taxes as per Obama but have their other taxes substantially raised,

the financial industry would be required to honestly serve customers, not exploit,

workers would have the right to family leave and other legal rights restored,

unions would once again be legally easy to form,

the minimum wage would be effectively $15/hour.

and SCOTUS would have a liberal majority.

JUST for a few things that would be different.

[PJMcK]

12. Good post, Hortensis!

If only Mrs. Clinton had won, the things you wrote-- and more-- would be making America great again.

Now, it's going to be much harder work.

Thanks, Trump.

[Wwcd]

13. Love you for this post tonight. Thanks

The cruel deportation of reasonable people seeking to have a safe & dignified life wouldn't be happening.

Citizens United would be broken in pieces.

I'll never stop believing we can still have that country.


Just want Mueller to be done & put an end to the sadness & fear & the chaos.
Soon please. Today was cruel.

Thanks for the reminder of a great America.
Will hold onto that 🍃

[Hortensis]

22. That country is us also. Of course. Amazingly.

Thanks for mentioning those two. There are so many things we need to be doing, but those are huge.

And poor Puerto Rico and Virgin Islands would be so busy with reconstruction that we'd almost hear the hammering on the mainland.

[Me.]

16. If Only

All we can do right now is resist until the wind shifts

[NewJeffCT]

28. if Clinton had won, they'd still need the House and Senate

to pass anything related to budgetary issues like infrastructure and raising the minimum wage, and McConnell would have kept on filibustering any nominee to replace Scalia because the Democrats likely would not have killed the filibuster for a SCotUS judge.

Republicans would be stamping their feet and holding their breath till they turned blue in trying to get another investigation into Benghazi or the Clinton emails.

That said, I think in the early stages of her presidency, she could have gotten somebody through to the SCotUS.

And, whoever headed the FCC would NOT be on the verge of repealing Net Neutrality.

Business and Environmental regulations would not be being rolled back, and likely would have been tweaked and improved.

I doubt they could get $15 as a minimum wage through, but I'm guessing it would be increased - maybe to $10, with additional increases to $15 over the next 3 years?

[Hortensis]

30. We WOULD have the senate, AND at very least

a large minority in the house, although a tie and majority were both within reach. In any case, they would have had to deal with us to get anything they wanted.

The same winds that accomplished that would have improved our positions in many states as well.

For now, as ME says.

But don't forget -- in an honest election we would have swept into power in 2016. Most Americans wanted that and want it even more now in these scary days.

[ananda]

7. Excellent!

Smart man, Mueller.

[bdamomma]

8. Mueller

is no chump like trump. This man is quite aware of everything and he must have an excellent team of people helping him.

[MyNameIsKhan]

10. great!

[charlyvi]

14. Niiice! n/t

[Barack_America]

15. Trump's money and freedom go bye-bye in a NY money laundering case...

...that's my guess, deutsche know?

[FakeNoose]

32. He'll forfeit his kids' inheritance - they will get exactly what they deserve

...which is nothing!

[Lee-Lee]

23. Good grief people are trying to hard to make stories where there are none

First, that agreements can’t overrule a Presidential Pardon. It’s an agreement with a Federal Prosecutor that is enforced by Federal Law. A Presidential pardon can render is null and void. And local/state prosecutors can’t enforce a Federal plea agreement, so they can’t take action under it.

Second, that language is standard language put into every plea agreement. Folks are acting like this is a huge groundbreaking move that’s never been seen before and means that Trump is toast on the state level- truth is it just means they put the same wording in there they do in every plea deal.

Folks are trying way to hard to create a sensational news story out smog anything they can, even when it’s not there.

[NewJeffCT]

29. Esteemed Harvard Law Professor Laurence Tribe would disagree

he's very active on Twitter as well and said that the wording allows anything from Flynn to survive a Trump pardon.

(I'd post a link to the tweet, but twitter is blocked at my work)