According to the Mueller Report, Don McGahn recalls Trump telling him “Muelller has to go”. However, Trump denies he ever said that. We discuss on Fox News.
#mueller #muellerreport #donmcgahn #trump #subpoena
Bob Bianchi discusses The Mueller Report, Don McGahn, and Trump on Fox News
April 26th, 2019
Trace Gallagher: Let’s bring in Bob Bianchi, he’s a Criminal Defense Attorney and former Prosecutor Bob, Great to see you. You know, I was reading up on this, there’s just not a lot of history when you’re talking about the blanket refusal of all subpoenas. Not a lot to go on here.
Robert Bianchi: Yeah. We’ve had this issue with Nixon. We’ve had it with the Bush, the W. Bush administration. We also had it with the Obama administration, but generally speaking, Trace, the courts are looking in favor, in fact supporting Congress’s oversight role on the article one, to check abuses in the executive branch of government as well as get data and information from, from which they can do due diligence to have legislative policy here. So, one of the things that is going to be really problematic are the two issues you’ve kind of alluded to are they alluded to, number one is all privileges can be waived if you allowed it to go to a third party that’s outside the communication chain, i.e., McGhan’s testifying or speaking to Mueller. And secondarily, when Mueller decides when they could have exercised executive privilege to redact the information to the public, they didn’t. That’s going to be very, very difficult for them because you know, once the round is out of the chamber of a gun, it’s virtually impossible to get it back, Trace. And the second thing that I think is very, very relevant here, and I’m not politicking and it’s just the law in all cases is when a litigant, if you will, is making public statements about a thing. Then they’re basically opening themselves up because again, they’re waiving that privilege that’s there. The executive privilege to keep confidential communications with a small group of people, candid and open and honest, but that’s not what’s going on here. It’s out in the court of public opinion, Trace.
Trace Gallagher: You’re saying the President is undermining his own cause here?
Robert Bianchi: Well, I mean listen to any of these things, Trace, there’s a legal issue and there’s a political issue. I, I can’t second guess the President as to what he wants to do in terms of how he’s politicking the particular thing. All I can say is when you are politicking, when you’re infusing that into a legal process, you may be shooting yourself in the foot as it were. But the interesting thing about this is, McGhan no longer works there. He has an ability to be able to make his own decisions, and if it goes to the courts though Trace, and they decide they’re not going to order, follow a court order, where is the mechanism for enforcement?
Trace Gallagher: Well, and that’s the whole point. And you said there’s a political and there’s a legal way to go about this. Bob. The question is how long would it take? I mean this sounds like the first volley in what it could become a very long drawn out war.
Robert Bianchi: Well, some of these issues, and there haven’t been a lot of them Trace as you noted, have occurred sooner than later, but sooner is within years. Later has been with the Obama administration, for example, when Eric Holder was withholding information, that case, believe it or not, it’s still ongoing and took years to work its way through the courts. But ultimately when the courts issued a ruling Trace, they followed it, quote unquote. Whether the Trump administration is willing to do that, when the DOJ is the one that would have to execute the court orders, is really suspect here. What I would do if I were lawyers for the Democrats, I’m just making the argument, is I would want to go directly to the supreme court on many of these issues and say, we need an emergent order right now as to what can be done or not done. Enforcing that order, Trace again, that’s a whole other ball of wax.
Trace Gallagher: It’s a whole different story. The President says he does not see why he should cooperate because the Democrats are just going to keep on going. So, this could be a very long battle. Bob Bianchi, very good to see you. Thank you, my friend.
Robert Bianchi: You got it Trace.