Driving Miss Crazy

One of my conservative Facebook friends, with all due respect, is an idiot.

He shared a link to a Politico article which reported House Intelligence Chairman Devin Nunes’ declaration that members of Donald Trump’s transition team, possibly including Trump himself, were under inadvertent surveillance following November’s presidential election. My “friend” posted that this was “awkward” for Democrats.

My friend apparently believes, like Trump himself, that this validates 45’s claim that Obama had Trump Tower wiretapped. I think my “pal” might be one of those idjits that shares articles without actually reading them. This is not awkward for Democrats. What’s awkward is getting caught licking Trump’s balls.

Nunes is chairing the investigation into Russia’s meddling in the 2016 presidential campaign, and possible collusion with the Trump campaign. Nunes apparently came across information that the transition team were inadvertently under surveillance. This from the party complaining about leaks.

Instead of sharing this information with other members of the committee, Nunes held a press conference, took the information to the White House to inform Donald Trump, and then held another press conference. You don’t inform the target of an investigation on what the investigation is turning up. You don’t give them a heads up. Nunes didn’t just go to the press, or email, or call the White House. He went out of his way to tell Trump personally. No word on whether or not he had the meatloaf during his visit.

While my “friend” and other Republicans believe this validates Trump, the same Politico article (scroll up and click the link) reported that Nunes himself said the information does not show that Obama had Trump Tower, or the campaign, wiretapped. Nunes also said the surveillance was common practice and legal. See? You gotta actually read the articles before you share them, people. It also might help if you can actually comprehend what you’re reading. It’s important.

The top Democrat on the intelligence panel, Adam Schiff, said “the chairman will need to decide whether he is the chairman of an independent investigation into conduct which includes allegations of potential coordination between the Trump campaign and the Russians, or he is going to act as a surrogate of the White House, because he cannot do both.”

Nunes is supposed to be leading an independent investigation. Not be a surrogate for Donald Trump. Nunes was a member of the Trump transition team. In February he was the first leading House Republican to deny that the intelligence community has evidence of contacts between Russian operatives and the Trump campaign. He rejected calls for an independent committee and said that the “House will not engage in a witch hunt.” After national security adviser Michael Flynn was forced to resign for communicating with Russia, Nunes said he didn’t want to investigate that matter and said “From everything that I can see, his conversations with the Russian ambassador — he was doing this country a favor, and he should be thanked for it.”

I will “thank” Congressman Nunes if he steps away from the white Ford Bronco and not give Trump the slow drive evading investigators. The president of the United States is currently under an FBI investigation on whether or not he and members of his campaign committed treason. Can we not muck that up?

While Democrats are calling for an independent investigation, and Schiff is now saying there’s “more than circumstantial evidence of a Trump/Russia collusion,” Senator John McCain has joined calls for an independent investigation.

This will be a slow drive to the truth. Especially if Nunes and fellow Republicans continue to thwart the investigation by digging in their heels to drag the proceedings out, and by giving the target information on what the committee is finding.

Maybe when it’s all said and done we’ll find the “real killers.” I suspect we’ll find them on a golf course.

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