Despite a lack of any real evidence, President Trump and some of his allies in Congress have charged that there is a “deep state” at work inside the FBI and some other U.S. intelligence agencies that has been improperly working against Trump, which if true would be an extraordinary situation unprecedented in American history.
If it were true, it would be the kind of extraordinary situation that might require an independent outside counsel be appointed for an investigation which would run parallel to the work being done by Special Counsel Robert Mueller.
However, after due consideration, Trump’s Attorney General Jeff Sessions has decided another independent or special counsel is not needed.
Sessions, in letter to Goodlatte, Gowdy, and Grassley, says he has concluded that the circumstances don't justify the appointment of a second special counsel to investigate FBI misconduct. How will Trump take this? https://t.co/5bIcW5bmdK pic.twitter.com/TcuEoljsIO
— Natasha Bertrand (@NatashaBertrand) March 29, 2018
Sessions sent a letter today to Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Sen. Charles Grassley, House Judiciary Chairman Rep. Robert Goodlatte, and House Oversight and Government Reform Committee Chairman Trey Gowdy to inform them that this does not rise to meet the standard of being “extraordinary circumstances,” so there will be no outside counsel.
Instead, Sessions told the lawmakers, the investigation will be handled within the Justice Department under the leadership of United States Attorney John Huber, who is based in Utah, and who will continue to report to Sessions.
#BREAKING: Attorney General Jeff Sessions has just told Congress that he is rejecting the GOP's demands and will NOT appoint a second special counsel to investigate the FBI, per @NBCNews.
— Caroline O. (@RVAwonk) March 29, 2018
When Huber files his findings, Sessions said he will decide if it requires further action or the filing of any charges.
In other words, not only won’t there be an independent counsel, but in the end Sessions – who has repeatedly shown that he is loyal to the president whether the facts agree or not – will be in charge of making the decision about what to do, or not do.
So the good news is that there is no evidence of an FBI conspiracy that rises to the level of being “extraordinary,” which could distract from the Russia investigation, but the bad news is that Sessions is keeping his hands firmly on the control button – unlike the situation he finds himself in with Special Counsel Mueller.
If anything this gives Sessions and Trump even more power to play whatever results emerge to fit their view of how things should go, and neither one can be trusted.
Rep. Swalwell on FBI misconduct investigation: There shouldn’t even be a minimal investigation, Sessions is trying “to appease Donald Trump … giving any life to this is just an effort to distract” from the Russia investigation https://t.co/PMS8KKPf3T pic.twitter.com/PlDO343w3o
— The Situation Room (@CNNSitRoom) March 29, 2018
