New filings from the Special Counsel, responding to Manafort’s motion to dismiss his indictment due to Mueller overstepping his defined jurisdictions for the Trump Russian collusion probe includes a new heavily redacted document from Rosenstein dated last August confirming that Manafort is within his remit. This was an older memo, according to the date on the release, August 2, 2017, simply defining the extra latitude granted the Mueller probe to include the financial dealing which Manafort had with other parties, in this case with Ukrainian politicians (see image below). This was nothing new and was merely released to refute Manafort’s claims for which he demanded the charges brought against him be thrown out as the information was attained outside the legal guidelines of the probe. There will still be a hearing as every motion gets its moment in court, even the least intelligent. The catch and risk of filing these memos and challenges is that you run the risk of making the judge(s) to this case quite put out. As this will also be the judge, or panel of judges, who will be hearing the case, ruling on objections and in the end, possibly determining the outcome. What will be interesting is what the judge(s) have to say when they decide between the motion to throw out the charges due to their being beyond the limits of the probe and the expanding of the probe into any financial dealings by a member of the Trump team completely outside anything to do with the campaign or election. The assumption is the permission from the Rosenstein memo to widen the investigation to include, one could say, almost any perfidy or potentially criminal act whether as part of the campaign or completely unrelated will stand due to his position as Acting Attorney General. Trump and Manafort supporters will hold out hope that the judge(s) will consider the politicization of the FBI and Department of Justice most ranking members and decide that the memo simply was permitting latitude far beyond what a reasonable individual would consider appropriate and legal. The debate on social media might provide some new wrinkles but also potentially set more friends and family members in hot debate with pitched tempers flaring. Whatever, this decision could have more of an effect and ripples down the road than is first apparent, and that is where we will find our discussion.
Rod J. Rosenstein Acting Attorney General Memo
There is little to talk about should the decision come down in Manafort’s favor and the Mueller Probe is instructed to limit their investigations to the campaign, election and Russian collusion and tampering at the expressed requests of the Trump campaign. That would be a huge victory for the Trump administration and the people who worked on his campaign. We probably would not be able to imagine what some of the more important people have felt like as the Mueller Probe branched out investigating items further afield on several Trump campaign officials looking into items with little if any connection to the campaign. Anybody who had a skeleton hidden away in their basement closet believing it dead and buried never again to see the light of day, the expanding probe must have been a nightmare. What has been somewhat of a surprise has been that there have been so few indictments against Trump campaign people and nothing even coming anywhere near close to President Trump. The President is so far from being investigated for any wrongdoing that the latest leak from the Mueller Probe was that President Trump is not under consideration for anything criminal. As far as criminal probes in Washington go, the Mueller Probe has netted the fewest number of people on charges unless the potential implications of possible improper activity bringing charges against FBI officials and officials from the Justice Department are brought into consideration. Washington probes usually catch their targets and not net Washington high office holders from the Justice Department and FBI having committed the most serious offences.
On the other side of the coin, it could be decided that in order to keep Washington well within the law and to investigate all implications and leads to their furthest ramifications, the Mueller Probe may be freed up to go as far afield as they desire and look into anything which suits their fancy. That would, or at least should, send a chilling shiver down many Trump campaign officers’ spines. A ruling with an advisory that all activities which occurred during the campaign by officials or leading up to their consideration for a position in the campaign which may have been influential in their consideration is legally within the permitted scope for the probe would have unmatched ramifications. Such a ruling would lead to the Mueller Probe being granted an entirely new lease on life and the members of Mueller’s team chomping at the bit to go wide and far astray seeking any morsel of wrongdoing. About the only thing which might, at that point, be beyond inspection would be grade school principle’s behavior reports. Well, actually it would not quite be that bad but the span and scope of the investigations would then include looking into all of Trump’s business dealings, his Trump University, his work on beauty pageants, his reality television show, real estate dealings, the running of Mar a Lago resort and anything else Trump has done and all the legal wrangling performed by his lawyers. The anti-Trump army will be exhilarated and licking their lips at the promise that now they will have Trump as there is no way he will escape now. The truth is if the Mueller Probe team is permitted complete and unfettered latitude, then there is almost a guarantee that there will be some charges brought against President Trump, but they will be kept reserved for once he is out of office. There will not be anything which will give them their hoped for impeachment related charges. Even if somehow impeachment charges brought, and even if the House of Representatives impeach Trump sending him to the Senate for trial, he will not be found guilty, and that is all that matters in the end. That will simply send the already angered anti-Trumpers around the bend and into full-throated protestations as the only thing they have sought since election day fails before their eyes. Now all that is left is to wait for the decision by the Judge(s) on the request for charges on Manafort to be dropped due to their being beyond the scope of the Mueller probe.
Beyond the Cusp
Beyond the Cusp 
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