Trump, Declassification, and Leverage

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American Thinker
Mark Wauck
Oct. 10, 2018

There's a reason why President Trump has not unilaterally declassified the documents exposing perfidy against him: leverage.  As the whole Russia hoax is beginning to come into some sort of global perspective – quite literally, as we'll see – the extent of the advantage he now maintains by holding back declassification as a threat outweighs the benefits of transparency.  Recent posts by observers who write from widely varying perspectives give us the ability to discern the current state of play.

Let's start with the domestic front of the Russia hoax.  Sundance at Conservative Tree House has an excellent post up: "President Trump and DAG Rod Rosenstein – "No Collusion", No Immediate Worries..."  The overall theme is one that's dear to Sundance's heart: leverage.  The state of play is this: the congressional investigation has progressed to the point that it's clear beyond cavil that the entire Russia narrative is, in fact, a hoax and fraud – both on the American people in general and on our legal system.  This is to say real criminal liability exists for the key players who developed the plot against Trump.  John Solomon summarizes what Congress has discovered in succinct fashion:

More... https://www.americanthinker.com/articles/2018/10/trump_declassification_and_leverage.html

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This is at least believable. If Trump knew there were no legitimate charges to be brought against him then the one peril was a perjury trap which Mueller's team is practiced at springing. So he didn't give Mueller that face-to-face opportunity.

OTOH, declassifying what would blow up the DOJ-FBI could turn even the Republican Congress against him. McConnell and others have surely informed him of congressional reality in that regard.

So, the still classified material becomes a fleet in being.

[Bigun]

This is at least believable. If Trump knew there were no legitimate charges to be brought against him then the one peril was a perjury trap which Mueller's team is practiced at springing. So he didn't give Mueller that face-to-face opportunity.

OTOH, declassifying what would blow up the DOJ-FBI could turn even the Republican Congress against him. McConnell and others have surely informed him of congressional reality in that regard.

So, the still classified material becomes a fleet in being.

This actually makes perfect sense to me. The President is playing the long game here as he should.

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This actually makes perfect sense to me. The President is playing the long game here as he should.

There was probably no choice but to let the Mueller game play out, adjusting to it as necessary. Counterattacking on Twitter keeps the game from becoming a fait accompli.

A fait accompli was probably the goal in attacking both Trump and Kavanaugh. Poison the public mind with seeming wrongs and no actual wrongs need be proved.

[Sanguine]

I want to see what they've got.  If Trump is somehow building a case against the rampant criminality in the intelligence community and State Department, I can see withholding the information during that time.  I have no confidence that that is what is happening though.

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I want to see what they've got.  If Trump is somehow building a case against the rampant criminality in the intelligence community and State Department, I can see withholding the information during that time.  I have no confidence that that is what is happening though.

Yeah, trust is a choice you make. But hope springs eternal.

The case seems to be building in Congress. Stop laughing, they may actually do something. If nothing else, some timely leaks may be in store.

[Sanguine]

Yeah, trust is a choice you make. But hope springs eternal.

The case seems to be building in Congress. Stop laughing, they may actually do something. If nothing else, some timely leaks may be in store.

Trust our government?  On an issue where they have been clearly untrustworthy?

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Trust our government?  On an issue where they have been clearly untrustworthy?

No, not at all. The people of government are remote and detached.