Should Attorney General Bill Barr Resign?
Posted by Warm Southern Breeze on Thursday, February 13, 2020
I think there’s little question that this administration is very likely the MOST corrupt administration in the history of our nation. Not even the Nixon administration could hold a candle to it.
And, to be certain, corruption needn’t be blatant, nor does it require violation of law. There is such a thing as “legal corruption,” and this POTUS and his administration are living, breathing, examples of such legal corruption.
Roger Stone, center, pictured in 1985 with fellow Republican operatives Paul Manafort, left, and Lee Atwater. (Photo By Harry Naltchayan/The Washington Post).
So, exactly what IS corruption?
While words usage and meaning often changes over a period of time, one can discern what words meant by examining their origin and derivation, which is called “etymology.”
The etymology of the word “corrupt” shows that, as an adjective, it emerged in the early 14c., and meant “corrupted, debased in character,” and was derived from the Old French word “corropt,” meaning “unhealthy, corrupt; uncouth” (of language), and came directly from the Latin word “corruptus,” which is the past participle of “corrumpere” meaning “to destroy; spoil,” while figuratively it means to “corrupt, seduce, bribe.”
The Latin word itself was an from assimilated form of the Proto-Indo-European past participle stem of “rumpere” meaning “to break,” and a Sanskrit source states that a portion of the word from that language meant “to suffer from a stomach-ache.” It was also used a verb and meant to “deprave morally, pervert from good to bad.” Around that same time, it included, and incorporated a use and meaning to be “guilty of dishonesty involving bribery.”
There is a “longstanding difficulty about the term “corruption” and its use in social science and political advocacy.”
“Corruption” implies deviation from some ideal state, and so defining corruption usually involves an implicit or explicit selection of a baseline standard of “correct” behavior. The three most common possibilities – none entirely satisfactory – are:
1. Law (“corruption” entails violation of specific legal prohibitions on, say, bribery, nepotism, embezzlement, etc.)
2. Public opinion (“corruption” involves acts, or patterns of behavior, that would be viewed by most citizens as wrongful abuses of power, whether or not they are illegal)
3. Public interest (“corruption” involves acts, or patterns of behavior, that contravene the public interest—whether or not the actions in question are illegal and/or the subject of widespread disapproval).
The Edmond J. Safra Center for Ethics at Harvard University writes that there are “…two specific forms of corruption across American states: illegal and legal.
We define illegal corruption as the private gains in the form of cash or gifts by a government official, in exchange for providing specific benefits to private individuals or groups.
“It is the form of corruption that attracts a great deal of public attention. A second form of corruption, however, is becoming more and more common in the U.S.: legal corruption.
We define legal corruption as the political gains in the form of campaign contributions or endorsements by a government official, in exchange for providing specific benefits to private individuals or groups, be it by explicit or implicit understanding.
“Such dealings are, in turn, one aspect of the broader issue of Institutional Corruption which, according to Lawrence Lessig,
“is manifest when there is a systemic and strategic influence which is legal, or even currently ethical, that undermines the institution’s effectiveness by diverting it from its purpose or weakening its ability to achieve its purpose, including, to the extent relevant to its purpose, weakening either the public’s trust in that institution or the institution’s inherent trustworthiness.”
Roger Stone, at his office in Fort Lauderdale, FL, September 30, 2014 is a veteran “dirty tricks” Republican political operative. (Credit Image: © Carl Juste/TNS via ZUMA Wire)
The Safra Center also states that “institutional corruption” is the consequence of an influence within an economy of influence that illegitimately weakens the effectiveness of an institution especially by weakening the public trust of the institution, which may lead to loss of public trust, but loss of trust is not necessarily a component of corruption. In fact, an institution may be highly trusted, but be quite corrupt.
“An institution may be highly trusted, but be quite corrupt” – such is the case with the Trump presidency, and administration – at least in significant part, to the extent of those Americans polled (based upon an average of all scientific, unbiased surveys performed – for more information see: https://www.realclearpolitics.com/epolls/other/president_trump_job_approval-6179.html -and- https://projects.fivethirtyeight.com/trump-approval-ratings/) who approve of his job performance, which has fluctuated from a low of 44.3% at the outset of his presidency in January 2017 to an all-time low of 37% in December that same year, and is now hovering around 45.3% in February 2020.
United States Attorney General William “Bill” Barr, official portrait
Given the recent bombshell that all FOUR Federal Prosecutors in the Roger Stone case resigned following the Attorney General’s recommendation that the Prosecuting Attorneys recommendation of 7-9 years as Stone’s punishment be significantly reduced, there’s little confidence left in the Department of Justice (DOJ). ALL FOUR are career prosecutors.
The four whom resigned are:
• Aaron S.J. Zelinsky, Special Assistant U.S. Attorney (lead prosecutor), and U.S. Attorney in Maryland;
• Jonathan Kravis, Assistant U.S. Attorney, from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia (whom also resigned from the DOJ entirely);
• Adam C. Jed, Special Assistant U.S. Attorney;
• Michael J. Marando, Assistant U.S. Attorney, also Assistant U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia.
In an official memorandum written by the DOJ late Tuesday afternoon, Barr’s office wrote in part, that,
“The government respectfully submits that a sentence of incarceration far less than 87 to 108 months’ imprisonment would be reasonable under the circumstances.”
“While it remains the position of the United States that a sentence of incarceration is warranted here, the government respectfully submits that the range of 87 to 108 months presented as the applicable advisory Guidelines range would not be appropriate or serve the interests of justice in this case.”
Roger Stone, a Republican political operative known for his “dirty tricks” and bizarre adoration of Richard Nixon (as evidenced by a tattoo of Nixon’s face on his back), was found guilty of seven criminal charges resulting from the Mueller investigation:
1 count – Obstruction of an Official Proceeding;
5 counts – False statements, and;
1 count – Witness Tampering.
The judge in the case is District Judge Amy Berman Jackson, United States District Court for the District of Columbia.
It seems that in the Trump administration, the “rule of law” means little, or nothing.
The American Anti-Corruption Act is model policy that sets a framework for city, state and federal laws to fix our broken political system. It fundamentally reshapes the rules of American politics and restores the people as the most important stakeholders in our political system. An Anti-Corruption Act has three primary goals:
- Stop political bribery so special interests can’t use job offers and donations to influence politicians.
- End secret money so people know who’s buying political power.
- Fix our broken elections so the people, not the political establishment, are the ones in control.
RepresentUs members are passing sweeping Anti-Corruption Acts in cities and states across the nation. Find out where we’ve won.
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Thirty hours ago news breaks that all four prosecutors in the Roger Stone case suddenly quit because Bill Barr interfered to give Stone sweetheart treatment on behalf of Trump.
Now imagine that THIS is what followed. 👇
All news networks immediately STOP covering the Dem Primaries of the 41st most populous and 2nd most white state in America.
Instead, they bring in every available legal expert to drill into the public’s consciousness that the country is now in a rule-of-law crisis.
By 10:30pm all television stations cut to an emergency announcement from Speaker Pelosi.
She gravely states that Trump’s and Barr’s actions have severely damaged the rule of law and that House Dems will meet at 6am the following morning to decide on a course of action.
All Democratic Senators asked Minnesota Senator Al Franken to resign, following allegations of sexual impropriety.
By midnight every single Senate Democrat officially calls on Bill Barr to resign with the same gusto and alacrity they did for Al Franken.
https://www.cnn.com/2017/12/06/politics/al-franken-democratic-senators-resign/index.html
By 10am the next morning (Weds), House Judiciary has already voted to subpoena Bill Barr to appear before them the following morning (Thurs).
Barr’s office is notified that since his actions are so egregious and damaging this is NOT a request.
The House Judiciary understands that the Attorney General is not a higher authority than it is and that Barr was previously found in contempt.
They contact the DC jail and let them know to make a cell available.
They tell Barr he will be taken into custody using their powers of inherent contempt if he does not comply with their subpoena. They tell him the jail is ready to accommodate him.
The House Judiciary also subpoenas all four prosecutors who left the Stone case to appear before them on Thurs afternoon. Again, not a request.
By noon on Wednesday:
– Every Democratic State AG officially calls for Barr’s resignation.
– Every Democratic governor calls for Barr’s resignation.
– The New York and DC bars announce formal investigations into Barr’s conduct.
By 5pm on Wednesday:
– At least 2000 federal prosecutors have signed on to a statement of no-confidence in Barr and demand his resignation.
– The ACLU calls on him to resign.
During this time, CNN, ABC, NBC, apologize that they’re not covering the results of the Dem Primaries of the 2nd whitest and 41st most populous state in America, but … there’s something MUCH BIGGER AT STAKE.
Bloomberg and Steyer and Billionaire Bernie put their money into YouTube and Facebook ads: “RED ALERT. THE RULE OF LAW IS DYING. Please call your Republican senators and representatives and tell them they WILL NOT GET YOUR VOTE unless they DO SOMETHING TO STOP BARR.”
Now we’re at the present time. Nearly midnight on Thursday morning. We could be at the tipping point. Barr is seriously considering resigning rather than be arrested the following morning.
Or we could be where we are right now, where we’re all bemusedly reading THIS letter and wondering if maybe the House doesn’t think Bill Barr’s actions are that serious after all.
Today fellow @HouseJudiciary colleagues and I confirmed AG Barr will testify before the Committee on March 31st to address concerns regarding his leadership of the @TheJusticeDept and the President’s improper influence over it and our criminal justice system.
READ THE LETTER👇🏼
Text of letter addressed to Attorney General William “Bill” Barr requesting his testimony to the House Judiciary Committee.
A Republic if you can keep it.
People in power need to imagine what they COULD do if they were bolder.
Warm Southern Breeze 
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