President Donald Trump has again triggered a tsunami with a series of tweets. Trump went to his favorite device to accuse his predecessor, Barack Obama, of wiretapping Trump Tower. “Terrible! Just found out that Obama had my “wires tapped” in Trump Tower just before the victory. Various news outlets have noted that Breitbart just ran a story on the use or attempted use of Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) to investigate connections to Russian banks. The story was covering allegations voiced by radio host Mark Levin.
The first tweet stated “Nothing found. This is McCarthyism!” Trump threatened that “I’d bet a good lawyer could make a great case out of the fact that President Obama was tapping my phones in October, just prior to Election!”
“Terrible!” Trump tweeted. “Just found out that Obama had my ‘wires tapped’ in Trump Tower before the victory. Nothing found. This is McCarthyism!”
Terrible! Just found out that Obama had my “wires tapped” in Trump Tower just before the victory. Nothing found. This is McCarthyism!
Is it legal for a sitting President to be “wire tapping” a race for president prior to an election? Turned down by court earlier. A NEW LOW!
How low has President Obama gone to tapp my phones during the very sacred election process. This is Nixon/Watergate. Bad (or sick) guy!
Arnold Schwarzenegger isn’t voluntarily leaving the Apprentice, he was fired by his bad (pathetic) ratings, not by me. Sad end to great show
It is a rather frivolous concern to follow such a significant allegation.
I have previously stated that Trump’s use of twitter is not as shocking as many have suggested given the long-standing effort of presidents to use new technology to speak directly to the American people. However, such communications should not take on the character of stream of conscious thoughts or issues that should be first fully examined by aides or counsel. It is also problematic for a president to discuss FISA targets which are highly classified. Thus, it is a rather odd for a president to opine “Is it legal for a sitting President to be “wire tapping” a race for president prior to an election? Turned down by court earlier. A NEW LOW!”
The President has access not just to Breitbart but classified evidence including any and all FISA applications. (For full disclosure, I had occasion to go to the FISA court when I was an intern with the NSA and later became a critic of the court). The problem with the President’s question is that the standards for FISA are so low and easily satisfied (with little judicial review) that it is difficult to establish any illegality under the law.
Passed in 1978 as a compromise with the Nixon Administration, FISA allows for “foreign intelligence” surveillance and was designed to evade the fourth amendment protections governing the use of warrants. FISA surveillance is permitted based on a finding of probable cause that the surveillance target is a foreign power or an agent of a foreign power. That is manifestly different from probable cause to believe someone has committed a crime. It is true that, if the target is a “U.S. person,” there must be probable cause to believe that the U.S. person’s activities may involve espionage or other similar conduct in violation of the criminal statutes of the United States. However, citizens can be collateral to the primary target under FISA.
In 1994 Congress extended FISA further to allow for covert physical entries in connection with “security” investigations, and then in 1998, it was amended to permit pen/trap orders. It has been used to gather business records.
There is provisions stating that a U.S. person cannot be surveilled “solely upon the basis of activities protected by the first amendment to the Constitution of the United States.” Thus, if Trump aides were targeted for political reasons, the surveillance would be unlawful even under the dubious protections of FISA. There are also minimization provisions designed to excise collateral or protected communications.
Notably, the tweet is likely to take over this news cycle just as the Administration was about to release the long-delayed Executive Order on immigration. As I previously discussed, a senior aide is being quoted as saying that it will be delayed again to guarantee that the order “has its own moment.” Of course, an executive order is not like some debutante that longs for its own moment like a coming out party at Mardi Gras. It is intended to protect national security and the “moment” (according to the government’s own filing) has already passed. However, whatever moment was being waited for, it may not come with this latest controversy.
I do consider the allegation of the prior Administration taping Trump Tower to be a matter of great concern but it depends on who was the target. Watergate after all involved an illegal break in and completely unlawful use of surveillance targeting political opponents. If true, this was done through a legal process. That does not make it right of course. Trump is correct that, if true, this should be a matter for investigation. The government should show considerable restraint in targeting political opponents. The Trump Tower was well-known to be the nerve center of the Trump campaign. However, we still do not know how the surveillance was tailored, if it was requested or granted.
“Passed in 1978 as a compromise with the Nixon Administration . . . ” Uh? What?
1978 the President was James Earl Carter.
First, Breitbart is identified as the source. That fact, alone, makes it smell like manure. Second, Dumpster says “nothing found”. What does this mean? If this representation isn’t another lie, then he must have a file. If so, is he going to make it public? Why hasn’t Dumpster identified the person or agency that was target of the wire tap? Assuming a court was involved, since the standard is that the surveillance target had to be a foreign power or the agent of a foreign power, why doesn’t Dumpster identify who it is, instead of implying that it was his residence or his campaign office, and that President Obama personally wiretapped him for political reasons? I think I know why, and I also think this is the last we’ll hear of it because there’s nothing there. Just a tactic to deflect attention away from the Sessions and Pence scandals. It is truly amusing to hear the multiple accusations Pence made about Mrs. Clinton, over and over again, all the while he was using an unsecure email account that was actually hacked. Oh, that’s right, the difference is, she intended to evade the law, and he didn’t.
As to the matter of review of Dumpster’s stupid stream of consciousness tweets by aides or counsel, don’t you know that no one on earth knows better than Mr. Tiny Hands about what’s best? Up to now, he’s never listened to anyone’s advice, other than to read the TelePrompter during his recent speech and not ad lib. He did manage to do that. Of course, he just had to exploit the widow of a Navy Seal who was unnecessarily killed in the name of attempting to make Dumpster look tough and macho. At least he didn’t try to grab her crotch. He also had to lie about the outcome of the mission that was, according to military experts, a complete failure. When the failure of this mission was exposed, of course, he tried to blame President Obama. Dumpster is the most odious person ever to occupy the White House.
Comment not posted due to repeated need for fresh log in.
Originally posted — 7 steps used by ‘bogus repair persons’ to place on location wiretaps.
What Obama did is Seditious Conspiracy
He is attempting to distrupt or damage the function of the US govt by illegal subterfuge.
Obama is essentially a traitor
If that is the case the white house needs to launch a full investigation and provide the evidence. Why do I think the white house really does not want an investigation and is trying to deflect again.The American people deserve a full independent investigation. Forget partisanship and seek the truth.
Do we even know that there was a wiretap? No evidence yet,
Do we even know there was any wrongdoing between the Trump campaign and Russia? No evidence yet.
Hey JT! You must be so proud to have readers like this? Boy, How this blog has fallen.
People forget, the US Treasury Notes and Bonds are traded on the international markets, with Trump acting like he is, tweets when he can and passing the blame for his mistakes (they include people working for him the bonds will be traded at a substantial discount.
Please Mr Trump, act like a grown up, you may have had your daily tantrums at Trump towers, but it is very unpresidential to act this way as a leader of the US.
If Trump were running a major corporate entity, he would certainly have a majority of board members give him a Vote of NO CONFIDENCE.
Three million voted that way.
The New York Times has a new tag line, “Truth. It’s Hard to Find.” The real story is the silent coup being orchestrated by Obama and his team. And now Sessions has recused himself from investigating any of it. It sure looks like there is a coordinated attack on our democracy and our election coming not from Russia, but from Obama and the Democrats. I wonder how hard the NYT and WaPo and other MSM outlets will dig into the allegations Trump just made against Obama?
Gladly, I presume. The Trump administration is providing ample opportunities for investigative reporters..
Right. I’m willing to bet that the focus will not be on investigating Obama and his administration for his possible role in using NSA intel agencies to spy on Trump and his campaign and all of the illegal leaks to media. MSM can report on a story and choose to leave out relevant facts, then spin the narrative, the headlines and the soundbites to hurt Trump and the Republicans and go easy on Obama and the Democrats. Or there is a complete blackout and no coverage of a story that would hurt Democrats or Obama. This is the usual bias displayed for those who care to see it – you know, because the “Truth” is hard to find when you are a liberal/progressive activist posing as a ‘journalist.’
I don’t think you can accuse many reporters of being investigative. Perhaps their grandfathers or grandmothers if they were also reporters but that dissapeared along with an endangered species called integrity.
They are instead, stenographers, and look “investigative” only for the moment and only because their bosses, who are doing the bidding of their bosses, tell them to tear Trump a new one. You can tell because much of what they investigate are pre-cooked lies such as all this nonsense with Russia.
Once Trump starts to play ball (when he stops Tweeting stream of consiousness), you will find the “investigative” part melts like a scattering of snow on one of Al Capone’s blazing Tommy Guns.
One can always hope.:)
Why is the San Francisco deal getting a free pass in all the media except one and that’s yesterdays news.?
Good grief 🙁
I’ll start worrying when Trump stops tweeting the stream of consciousness. That will be the precise moment he realizes he has a boss in spite of all the yes men surrounding him and that it’s the same boss as Obama’s boss. That’s also the moment detente with Russia flies away like some strange bird that came totally unexpected to rest in front of our window and then just as we realized how unusual it was, ooop, away it goes.
Another problem. Assuming Trump has been punked by Obama, how does he deal with that without loosing the power to punk that got him punked? He could theoretically just disappear Obama. Obama himself signed the bill that established that little gem; eliminating habeas corpus. But… That’s the problem with these damned constant erosions of civil liberties? How can the elite get away with it on other elites, without getting it turned on themselves?
I look at Trump tweeting his consciousness like my neighbors displaying the Battle Flag of The Confederacy, I want to see both out in the open so I know who I’m dealing with. Insight is insight and not knowing a thing about what Obama was thinking until it happened brought me no comfort.
May the POTUS tweet to his heart’s content.
Stability is way over rated.
It’s a phantom concept fabricated to protect the investor class.
The investor class strong supports Trump and why not as he has done well for them. How much money have they made since the election?
Maybe I should have suggested that market stability is a ruse. You are correct.
The investor class wants political stability even if they have to blow up the earth to get it (rationality is not required). And Trump does not inspire a sense of stability, at least as of yet. Trump made a big thing of shooting down the TPP (even though it was already dead), and the investor class WANTED the TPP. A lot. In any event, their support for any president is as transient as the stock market and yet as immutable as the prospect of corruption they feel they can exploit. They are now waiting to see if Trump will redo NAFTA and slip in the ISDS provisions that were in the TPP or if he will get behind TISA (Trade In Service Agreement) which is actually worse than the TPP. That would go a long way towards giving them a sense of “stability” since it would pretty much neuter all governments of the signatories, local and national, in favor of corporate tribunals.
In brief, a majority of investor class are not sold on Trump, though he is not without some support.
Anon…
-Tens of millions of Americans are in “the investor class”.
If they have a 401k/ and or an IRA, they are likely in the investor class.
The health of pension funds, endowment funds, etc. are, to a large degree, interconnected with the performance of the stock market.
So even those without brokerage accounts, 401k s,IRAs, etc. may be impacted by market performance.
There were numerous predictions that a Trump win in November would trigger a big drop in the market.
If that had materialized, then the lousy stock performance would be put on Trump.
Since the market has rallied sharply after the election, then Trump can be blamed for serving either “the 1%”, or the “investor class”.
So in a sense it is a win-win situation as far as blaming Trump for a market decline, or “blaming” him for a market rally.
Realistically, the stock market often “goes its own way”, independent of implemented or proposed policy decision by a President.
Tens of millions of Americans are in “the investor class”
I have to disagree. Tens of millions of Americans are affected directly or indirectly by the markets. That does not make them the investor class in the sense Anon used the term.
I suspect given the term, “class,” he means that branch of the elite, such as venture capitalists, who invest for a living with their own and/or others money. But It has to do with scale more than employment – though being “professional” is often the case. It’s true there is some overlap with the little guy, but it’s much the same as the overlap of the mom and pop land lord with that of the corporate land lord who owns and runs hundreds, if not thousands, of units. Let’s see the mom and pop land lord go and get a half billion dollar loan to put up a new complex, or the 401k family ask a bank for a hundred million to finance a software company before its IPO.
As to Trump getting the blame either way, I think that has more to do with Trump playing “establishment” ball more than any thing else.
Yes, that was my thought about the investors class.
Brookline Bridge and Anon,..
– Someone with a $1Million 401k will make $100,000 on a 10% return, and an identical 401k with $100,000 will make $10,000 on that same 10%move.
We disagree on that I think both should be considered members of
“the investor class”.
That smaller investor may be impacted just as much by a 10% portfolio move as the larger investor is by the same 10% move.
If you’re citing the rise in stock market prices as evidence that a.Trump caused it, and b. that Trump “designed” that stock market gain for a select few, I think you’re on thin ice on both counts.
“we disagree IN THAT, not ON that”
The stock market has gained on promises of corporate tax cuts and deregulation. Of course all investors benefit but the select few benefit.vastly more.
Anon,
I “conceed” that larger investos make more from a 10% more than smaller investors.
That has ALWAYS been the case.
“conceded”
Good heavens, tnash, you are awfully touchy about Trump: If you’re citing the rise in stock market prices as evidence that a.Trump caused it, and b. that Trump “designed” that stock market gain for a select few,….
My comment regarding the term, investor class had nothing to do with Trump, and only – as my words put one after another tell – with the term “investor class” being used to describe the little guy. You were going off on a Forbes magazine like rant about how the investor class includes motherhood and apple pie, and I was simply saying no, not those investors (they generally don’t invest, they have others invest for them), Anon means the corporate version.
But since you insist, I’m quite aware the little guy exists because he or she generally gets well screwed over as you will note by Trump’s recent elimination of one of the remaining Dodd Frank vestiges of financial protections; in this case the stipulation that investment firms must act in the interest of their client, which Trump apparantly feels is “so unfair” to the real investor class. The con-ors, not the con-ees. But that wasn’t what I was talking about.
Finally, My last paragraph was not a criticism of Trump either. If anything, I argued that Trump is (at least in appearances) sticking up for his campaign promises – which, frankly, takes some integrity. I’ll grant you that I don’t think he will hold out for too much longer on his plans of rapprochement with Russia, I suspect he puts a hard nosed upper price limit on the value of integrity, but if you read what I say at all, you’ll get the fact that he has a very big and significant group against him.
Brooklin Bridge
( Some of my comments are not posting, by I’ll try to respond.someome else just siad that thete comments were not posting)
Before you conclude that I am “touchy about Trump”, go back and find all of the positive comments that I’ve made about him….here, or in months or tears past.
I’ll save you the trouble…it is ZERO.
And I don’t see that pointing out that a Mom and Pop landlord can’t get a half$Billion loan is “touchy”.
Or my comments that the markets can and do move indepently of executive policy, or proposed policy.
If I’m “touchy” about anything, it’s about people who make baseless, senseless comments like you..
Tnash, the sentence, “If you’re citing the rise in stock market prices as evidence that a.Trump caused it, and b. that Trump “designed” that stock market gain for a select few, I think you’re on thin ice on both counts.” certainly sounded like you thought our distinction about the Investor Class, suggested that Trump “designed” that stock market gain for the select few. It didn’t.
Don’t want to make a big thing of it Tnash. I apologize for any twisting of your views.
Brookline Bridge..
I would not expect a “Mom and Pop landlord” to be able to get a half
$ Billion loan at any time, under any administration.
A very large landlord/developer MIGHT get that that same loan.
Common sense and economic realities, (not catering to the “investor class”), account for that disparity.
I agree… this is turbulent and likely only partially revealing but the opposite, ?, the way Obama operated. Secretive, opaque and in denial at all times. AND cosseted by the media.
I don’t know what to think. IF it was done how then? Thru FISA as T states or extra-judicial tap/taps..? I would think T who has what appears to be competent private security, his lead man with him a long time, would regularly check for this sort of thing.
They don’t need to get in your office for wiretaps, that is old school.
Without being technologically smart, I would assume what you are saying. However are there no safeguards, none at all? I assume even a wealthy person with a security detail has no way to over ride NSA power to listen, but other itinerant drop ins?
I recall Snowden advised Greenwald on tech safeguards… which Greenwald then did not follow, which amazed me. (or so the story went)
Time for Trump to play their game. Fight fire with fire. Get the very best twitter / electronic expert and put out EVERYTHING on Schumer, Pelosi, McCaskill, Obummer, Jarrett, Clinton and everone who is trying to bring his administration down. He can expose a lot of CRAP on all of them… time to get down in the dirt and play with the bad boys if Trump wants to STOP this dead in it’s tracks. Get busy and go after them with everything the Repubulicans have!! If he has someone else do this Trump doesn’t have Twitter on his hands.. Let’s GO!
Amen, sister!
Maybe he can start with his own tax returns.
Indeed! And I agree, Let the games begin!
Lets start with Obama and AG Eric Holder running guns into Mexico and never prosecuted.
Considering the number of Trump campaign aides that were interacting with the Russians and that his campaign headquarters was a tenant (at an inflated rent), it’s seems reasonable that the FBI would be able to get a FISA warrant. All we need to hear now is a leaked recording of him speaking with Putin making promises.
Why would any members of the new administration be interested in dealing with Russia?
Deals of course. They have something we want and we have something they want.
It’s sad that they just don’t use Dick Cheney’s playbook and invite everyone involved to the White House, declare it secret due to needing candor and not release any guest lists etc. There is a deal out there that needs to be cut and all this Putin love is part of a deal that will go down here pretty soon and be revealed eventually and all of the whiney little loser Democrats will face the reality they got cut out of the spoils that their dear Leader Frau Clinton was denied..
I’m thinking of something comparable to Reagan’s arms for the Contra’s for the hostage deal. The Democrats are just spoiled losing game wreckers and I suspect some embarrassment for the Obama Clinton faction of the party is due for an embarrassment of the nth degree.
Just speculating purely straight out of my ass.
It appears that Trump kicked the ball into his own goal this morning. He has made the situation look more suspicious and the need for a public reckoning all the more necessary.
You paid attention didn’t you?
That’s all that matters with the Trump crowd.
The public reckoned it needed a new way with electing Trump too didn’t they?
This is all about who ever has the helm drives the ship my friend. Some folks voted for the bumpy ride.
Apparently such a recording does exist, reportedly. On it Trump is reported to have told a Russian offical –“Tell Vladmir I can be much more flexible after the election…”
Clearly the Russians must have something on him…
I didn’t realize Obama perjured himself when he said that.
bettykath,
This linking of everyone in the Trump administration to the Russians is without evidence. I know that you are a partisan Democrat but it is imperative that citizens, no matter their party, not repeat things without proof. The Russian accusations are being used to cause a war with Russia. They are pumped by every Democratic leaning mouthpiece on the planet, yet still no proof is provided. Finally, we can tell the Russia narrative is a con job because of the war cries which accompany it.
If there were illegal contacts with the Russian govt. than these can ably be handled through our criminal justice system. Yet there are no screams for our use of the criminal justice system, just screams for war.
The big lie works. I’m sorry that so many people fall for it and pass it along as god’s truth.
I guess that Session’s confession is NOT PROOF ENOUGH? Yet all of you say Hillary is corrupt and dishonest without PROOF and when I pointed this out, most said that they need NO PROOF! That denies reality.
Randyjet – Confession? There has been no confession to my knowledge. If Sessions has committed a crime then an investigation will be conducted and let justice be done. Somewhere in the last two months people have changed the concept of innocence until proven guilty by a court to innocent until proven guilty by the mainstream media. 100 headlines don’t a guilty verdict make. Is that the world you want to live in? No proof of Hillary’s dishonesty and corruption? Have you read any of the wikileaks emails? Have you read anything about the Clinton foundation quid pro quo donations?
Jill,
It seems that people are linking everything that is going on with the Trump administration to everyone else but Trump.
What is wrong with bk saying what’s on her mind?
Well said Jill. I have read where the administration people have had contact with Israeli officials as well, but that is not a problem. Once again, Russia is (was not) an enemy. The Democrats and Goldman Sachs are working hard to make sure they are.
Are the six Goldman Sachs official that work for Trump involved? 🙂
http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/features/the-vampire-squid-occupies-trumps-white-house-w456225
Right. And Flynn resigned for simply hurting Pence’s feelings.
I don’t think I had heard of FISA before 9-11.
The column states that it was “Passed in 1978 as a compromise with the Nixon administration”.
Nixon left office in 1974, so I’m not sure if JT meant the Carter administration, or got the 1978 date wrong if FISA was passed in the Nixon administration.
Trump was a conspiracy theory candidate and now he is a conspiracy theory president. Apparently he got to Miralago before his handlers came and went nuts.
And many of the people who voted for the orange pile of garbage totally hated the government. Now that government-haters like Bannon are in, they have to re-direct their viewership off the government and onto something else: the media.
I see no reason to disbelieve Trump on this one. Obama is setting up an opposition center in his house in DC. Jarrett has just moved it. Obama set as many landmines as he could before he left. This is right up his alley.
Do you think Arnold is in on the plan, too?
You bet your bottom dollar Obama himself factors in the mix coordinating these leaks and attacks on Trump’s administration. Right up his alley for sure. And Obama is good at getting away with it too because the press/media/Hollywood is on his side and the Republicans are weak and cowardly.
Remember this story from 2013 when Eric Holder’s DOJ secretly spied on AP reporters?
http://www.npr.org/2013/05/14/183810320/justice-department-secretly-obtains-ap-phone-records
Or when Obama used his IRS to target his political opponents?
“The evidence shows “that the Obama IRS scandal is also an Obama DOJ and FBI scandal,” noted Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton. “The FBI and Justice Department worked with Lois Lerner and the IRS to concoct some reason to put President Obama’s opponents in jail before his re-election. And this abuse resulted in the FBI’s illegally obtaining confidential taxpayer information.”
http://nypost.com/2015/07/07/the-irs-scandal-just-got-even-worse/
Or how Obama used the late night shows as his platform to spin away any such notion of an IRS scandal…
nypost.com/2015/07/26/obamas-pathetic-attempt-to-spin-the-irs-scandal/
“Of course, the biggest scandal of all is that Team Obama has managed to stonewall and leave the public hanging. And that no one has been held accountable.”
— This quote is from the above IRS scandal article, but it applies to just about every one of the Obama scandals that went on during his self-declared “scandal free” administration. Even today, no one has been held accountable and Obama and Holder are not going away.
And remember Eric Holder NEVER recused himself, nor did Loretta Lynch. First mistake by Sessions was to recuse himself.
The President cannot order wiretapping. He is delusional if he thinks that Obama did that in fact.
I will say that, I have read and heard Obama sent to 20 different agencies the Intel report from the FBI and CIA. Obama did not want the message to get lost.
Boy, are you ignorant. He is the head of the executive branch. Anybody who did wiretap worked for the president.
Hey Webster: Don’t be delusional. It’s not a question of whether Obama personally “ordered” the application to the FISA court. His political underlings at CIA, NSA and Justice did this, almost certainly with Obama’s approval.
Note the nuanced language of Obama’s denial and other denials from his national security flunkies. These are classic non-denial denials, attacking the authority of the presiident to order a wiretap on his own — outside the FISA process. These and other responses make it pretty clear this operation happened as Trump charged. Speaker Ryan issued a non-denial affirmation when asked directly if he had learned of the wire tap as a member of the gang of 8 — he stated that he had not heard anything to contradict what was reported.
Demonstrating probable cause to this court is not difficult; let’s see the affidavits. But this is top secret compartmentalized info, available on a need ot know basis to only the highest levels of US government and security officials. Deep throat could not have said it better.
Q: Was Obama aware of the Trump wiretap application? Difficult to imagine that Obama did not at least implicitly approve this operation, as it was done under the executive authority of the president over national security matters — this is at the same extremely high level of political sensitivity/need for deniability as Putin’s approval of releasing Podesta emails to Wikileaks through a cutout.
Comey should come out and make a statement. The guy had not one but two presidential candidates under FBI investigation at the time of the election. …the first time in history. He has spoken about the loser’s case but not the winner’s case The public would like some answers.
“Just found out that Obama had my ‘wires tapped’ in Trump Tower before the victory. Nothing found. This is McCarthyism!”
You voted for this moron. I didn’t. Thank yourselves that he has his finger on the nuclear button.
It doesn’t matter if it’s true or not. HIs supporters are going to believe him. I think it’s brilliant. Defense is a losing position and he needed to change the positions on the field. His adopted party doesn’t seem to have his back. Extreme times calls for extreme measures.
With that being said, I don’t trust any of them; Obama, Hillary or Trump. I found myself watching the actions of these players as if I was watching a reality show. I never liked such things.
I really hope he keeps this up. It makes for interesting TV. If he doesn’t I’ll go back to my nonfiction library and read.
I’m hoping that they bring in space aliens and big foot!
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