A Rose By Any Other Name

Read this and tell me what you think.

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Oversight of the Report on the Investigation into County Interference in the 1996 Mayoral Election: Former Dedicated Prosecutor Richard S. Mabry, Jr.

Councilman Tommy Lawry (Westside):
Thank you Superintendent Mabry for your long history of service to our country, including your service as a Marine, where you earned the Bronze Star with a ‘V’ device. I’d like to now turn to the elements of Obstruction of Justice as applied to the mayor’s attempts to curtail your investigation. The first element of Obstruction of Justice requires and obstructive act. Correct?

Mr. Mabry: Correct.

Lawry: I’d like to direct you to page 97 of Volume 2 of your report, and you wrote there on page 97, quote “Sitter was being instructed to tell the Dedicated Prosecutor to end the existing investigation into the mayor and his campaign,” unquote. That’s in the report – correct?

Mabry: Correct

Lawry: That would be evidence of an obstructive act because it would naturally obstruct an investigation. Correct?

Mabry: Ah… correct.

Lawry: Let’s now turn to the second element of the crime of Obstruction of Justice which requires a nexus to the official proceeding. Again, I’m going to direct you to page 97 – the same page in Volume 2 – and you wrote, quote, “by the time the mayor’s initial one-on-one meeting with LaChance on June 19, 1987, the existence of a grand jury investigation by the Dedicated Prosecutor was public knowledge.” That’s in the report – correct?

Mabry: Correct.

Lawry: That would constitute evidence of a nexus to an official proceeding, because the grand jury investigation is an official proceeding… correct?

Mabry: Yes.

Lawry: I can now turn to the final element of the crime of obstruction of justice. On that same page – page 97 – do you see where there’s an intent section on that page? (unintelligible)

Mabry: Correct.

Lawry: Would you be willing to

First Lady Melania Trump Calls For Firing Of Deputy National Security Advisor Mira Ricardel

Various news gathering and reporting agencies have said today that First Lady Melania Knauss Trump is seeking the firing of Deputy National Security Advisor Mira Ricardel, allegedly because she was disgruntled over the way her October trip to Africa was handled.

First Lady Melania Trump in Egypt, the last stop after visiting the African nations of Ghana, Malawi, and Kenya in October 2018.

Stephanie Grisham, Press Secretary and Communications Director for the First Lady, made an unprecedentedly terse statement that, “It is the position of the Office of the First Lady that she no longer deserves the honor of serving in this White House.”

While Ms. Grisham offered no explanation for the complaint, others have said the basis of the request for her ouster is “over seating on the plane and requests to use National Security Council resources” during the First Lady’s solo trip to Africa. One White House staff member who declined to named for fear of retribution, defended Ms. Ricardel and said “Mira Ricardel is one of the highest ranking women in the Trump administration,” and noted that Ms. Ricardel “has never met the first lady.”

Mira Ricardel, Deputy National Security Advisor

Ms. Ricardel is top deputy to National Security Advisor John Bolton who is now in Singapore with Vice President Pence, where they are attending the meeting of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations.

Ms. Ricardel’s clash with the First Lady’s staff came after she threatened to withhold National Security Council resources during Melania Trump’s trip to Africa last month unless she or another NSC official was included in her entourage. She did not go.

John R. Bolton, National Security Advisor

The Wall Street Journal reported that Mr. Bolton has resisted requests from White House Chief of Staff John Kelly to fire Ms. Ricardel, who Mr. Bolton hired April 23, 2018 from the Department of Commerce, and had previously worked in the Department of Defense under President George W. Bush.

John F. Kelly

Trump administration officials concede that Ms. Ricardel is widely disliked by many White House staffers because she’s considered inflexible and obsessed with process, which has complicated coordination between the National Security Council and other cabinet-level agencies. One White House official who declined to be named for fear of retribution, said Ms. Ricardel’s behavior has “sort of alienated everyone” at the National Security Council, except for Mr. Bolton.

Before her dust-up with the East Wing, Ms. Ricardel had regular conflicts with Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis, which contentious relationship is a well-known grudge within the Trump administration.

James N. Mattis, Secretary of Defense

Ms. Ricardel’s disputes with Mr. Mattis preceded her role as Deputy National Security Adviser and originated with