The Sleazy Origins of Russia-gate

[Ethereal]

The Sleazy Origins of Russia-gate (https://consortiumnews.com/2017/03/29/the-sleazy-origins-of-russia-gate/)

Exclusive: Official Washington’s groupthink is that Russian “disinformation” helped elect Donald Trump, but the evidence is actually much stronger that Russian “dirt” was helping Hillary Clinton, reports Robert Parry.

By Robert Parry

An irony of the escalating hysteria about the Trump camp’s contacts with Russians is that one presidential campaign in 2016 did exploit political dirt that supposedly came from the Kremlin and other Russian sources. Friends of that political campaign paid for this anonymous hearsay material, shared it with American journalists and urged them to publish it to gain an electoral advantage. But this campaign was not Donald Trump’s; it was Hillary Clinton’s.

And, awareness of this activity doesn’t require you to spin conspiracy theories about what may or may not have been said during some seemingly innocuous conversation. In this case, you have open admissions about how these Russian/Kremlin claims were used.

Indeed, you have the words of Rep. Adam Schiff, the ranking Democratic member of the House Intelligence Committee, in his opening statement at last week’s public hearing on so-called “Russia-gate.” Schiff’s seamless 15-minute narrative of the Trump campaign’s alleged collaboration with Russia followed the script prepared by former British intelligence officer Christopher Steele who was hired as an opposition researcher last June to dig up derogatory information on Donald Trump.

Steele, who had worked for Britain’s MI-6 in Russia, said he tapped into ex-colleagues and unnamed sources inside Russia, including leadership figures in the Kremlin, to piece together a series of sensational reports that became the basis of the current congressional and FBI investigations into Trump’s alleged ties to Moscow.

[...]

Robert Parry details the origins of Russia-gate and explains the numerous shortcomings at the heart of Steele's salacious "dossier". He also asks why Steele and the security firm that hired him are not testifying in front of Congress. Traditionally, the people making the accusations are confronted as a means of ascertaining their credibility. But this isn't a traditional investigation. It's a brazen witch hunt meant to punish Trump for upsetting the establishment.

[Subdermal]

Extremely well summated - both by the article's author, and by you.

There is nothing that the left can say in rebuttal. Nothing.

[Bethere]

Robert Parry details the origins of Russia-gate and explains the numerous shortcomings at the heart of Steele's salacious "dossier". He also asks why Steele and the security firm that hired him are not testifying in front of Congress. Traditionally, the people making the accusations are confronted as a means of ascertaining their credibility. But this isn't a traditional investigation. It's a brazen witch hunt meant to punish Trump for upsetting the establishment.

Steele probably will testify.

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2017/03/03/former-mi6-agent-christopher-steele-asked-testify-senate-probe/&ved=0ahUKEwj9ur6034HTAhXrwVQKHdPeAM0QFggzMAU&usg=AFQjCNGUcw1VSCAcDlMV319dh9_JTTKPhw

Enjoy.

[resister]

Steele probably will testify.

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2017/03/03/former-mi6-agent-christopher-steele-asked-testify-senate-probe/&ved=0ahUKEwj9ur6034HTAhXrwVQKHdPeAM0QFggzMAU&usg=AFQjCNGUcw1VSCAcDlMV319dh9_JTTKPhw

Enjoy.
Why even bother showing up?

[Ethereal]

Blaming Russia for Everything (https://consortiumnews.com/2017/03/31/blaming-russia-for-everything/)

March 31, 2017

Exclusive: The Senate Intelligence Committee launched its Russia-gate investigation by inviting some “experts” in to rant about how everything that goes wrong in the United States is the fault of the Russians, observes Robert Parry.

By Robert Parry

It’s almost getting comical how everything that happens in the United States gets blamed on Russia! Russia! Russia! And, if any American points out the absurdity of this argument, he or she must be a “Moscow stooge” or a “Putin puppet.”

When Sen. Marco Rubio’s presidential campaign fails seemingly because he was a wet-behind-the-ears candidate who performed like a robot during debates repeating the same talking points over and over, you might have cited those shortcomings to explain why “Little Marco” flamed out. However, if you did, that would make you a Russian “useful idiot”! The “real” reason for his failure, as we learned from Thursday’s Senate Intelligence Committee hearing, was Russia!

When Americans turned against President Obama’s Pacific trade deals, you might have thought that it was because people across the country had grown sick and tired of these neoliberal agreements that have left large swaths of the country deindustrialized and former blue-collar workers turning to opioids and alcohol. But if you did think that, that would mean you are a dupe of the clever Russkies, as ex-British spy Christopher Steele made clear in one of his “oppo” research reports against Donald Trump. As Steele’s dossier explained, the rejection of Obama’s TPP and TTIP trade deals resulted from Russian propaganda!

When Hillary Clinton boots a presidential election that was literally hers to lose, you might have thought that she lost because she insisted on channeling her State Department emails through a private server that endangered national security; that she gave paid speeches to Wall Street and tried to hide the contents from the voters; that she called half of Donald Trump’s supporters “deplorables”; that she was a widely disliked establishment candidate in an anti-establishment year; that she was shoved down the throats of progressive Democrats by a Democratic Party hierarchy that made her nomination “inevitable” via the undemocratic use of unelected “super-delegates”; that some of her State Department emails were found on the laptop of suspected sex offender Anthony Weiner (the husband of Clinton’s close aide Huma Abedin); and that the laptop discovery caused FBI Director James Comey to briefly reopen the investigation of Clinton’s private email server in the last days of the campaign.

[...]

Throughout history, oligarchies have always relied on manufactured threats as a means of cementing and extending their power. The western ruling class is no different. External threats are especially effective, since they can be readily and easily otherized and dehumanized. Russia is presently serving that purpose. But, because of the internet, information is harder to control and propaganda narratives more difficult to maintain. That is why, apart from trying to destroy Trump's presidency, the ruling class have been promoting censorship. They are desperate to regain control. They will begin by pressuring private companies like Google and Facebook to filter out narratives and information that challenge the status quo. Once that fails, they may resort to more extreme measures.

[texan]

The Russia issue was created to undermine Trump and win numbers back in 2018..

It is clear to me Obama and clan, showing low character, decided to investigate prior to the inauguration and could find no evidence. In the process they collected things to undermine Trump and republicans. Remember that it wouldn't matter what republican is in office. This is party related not person related.

The problem as more and comes out nothing is going to stick because there is nothing. The real scandal is an administration being able to do this to another which is being ignored. The progressives here should stand up for this it could happen to any incoming president going forward.

[The Xl]

The Russia nonsense is one of the biggest psyops I've ever seen. Embarrassing that people have fallen for it.

[Peter1469]

Right. Their brilliant strategy to attack Trump circles back to their own shady dealings with using the US intelligence apparatus against a political opponent. What did Bob Woodward call it?


The Russia issue was created to undermine Trump and win numbers back in 2018..

It is clear to me Obama and clan, showing low character, decided to investigate prior to the inauguration and could find no evidence. In the process they collected things to undermine Trump and republicans. Remember that it wouldn't matter what republican is in office. This is party related not person related.

The problem as more and comes out nothing is going to stick because there is nothing. The real scandal is an administration being able to do this to another which is being ignored. The progressives here should stand up for this it could happen to any incoming president going forward.

[texan]

Peter
The objectivity on some of these things is so stupid. For example Maxine Waters acts as unprofessional as one can act and no one says much. Somebody cracks a joke about her hair and we have a problem. Shows where we are and why people showed up for Trump. Get over yourselves people. Europe is a mess and we have people here wanting those policies. Get a clue for once in your life and stop reacting to these two parties BS!