VIPS Fault Mueller Probe, Criticize Refusal to Interview Assange

The bug in Mueller’s report released on Thursday is that he accepts that the Russian government interfered in the election.  Trump should challenge that, says VIPS.

MEMORANDUM FOR: The President

FROM: Veteran Intelligence Professionals for Sanity (VIPS)

SUBJECT: The Fly in the Mueller Ointment

April 16, 2019

Mr. President:

The song has ended but the melody lingers on. The release Thursday of the redacted text of Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s “Report on the Investigation into Russian Interference in the 2016 Presidential Election” nudged the American people a tad closer to the truth on so-called “Russiagate.”

But the Mueller report left unscathed the central-but-unproven allegation that the Russian government hacked into the DNC and Podesta emails, gave them to WikiLeaks to publish, and helped you win the election. The thrust will be the same; namely, even if there is a lack of evidence that you colluded with Russian President Vladimir Putin, you have him to thank for becoming president. And that melody will linger on for the rest of your presidency, unless you seize the moment.

Mueller has accepted that central-but-unproven allegation as gospel truth, apparently in the lack of any disinterested, independent forensic work. Following the odd example of his erstwhile colleague, former FBI Director James Comey, Mueller apparently has relied for forensics on a discredited, DNC-hired firm named CrowdStrike, whose credibility is on a par with “pee-tape dossier” compiler Christopher Steele. Like Steele, CrowdStrike was hired and paid by the DNC (through a cutout).

We brought the lack of independent forensics to the attention of Attorney General William Barr on March 13 in a Memorandum entitled “Mueller’s Forensic-Free Findings”, but received no reply or acknowledgement. In that Memorandum we described the results of our own independent, agenda-free forensic investigation led by two former Technical Directors of the NSA, who avoid squishy “assessments,” preferring to base their findings on fundamental principles of science and the scientific method. Our findings remain unchallenged; they reveal gaping holes in CrowdStrike’s conclusions.

We do not know if Barr shared our March 13 Memorandum with you. As for taking a public position on the forensics issue, we suspect he is being circumspect in choosing his battles carefully, perhaps deferring until later a rigorous examination of the dubious technical work upon which Mueller seems to have relied.

Barr’s Notification to Congress

As you know, the big attention-getter came on March 24 when Attorney General William Barr included in his four-page summary a quote from Mueller’s report: “The investigation did not establish that members of the Trump campaign conspired or coordinated with the Russian government in its election interference activities.” Understandably, that grabbed headlines — the more so, since most Americans had been convinced earlier by the media that the opposite was true.

There remains, however, a huge fly in the ointment. The Mueller report makes it clear that Mueller accepts as a given — an evidence-impoverished given — that the Russian government interfered in the election on two tracks:

Track 1 involves what Barr, echoing Mueller, claims “a Russian organization, the Internet Research Agency (IRA)” did in using social media “to sow social discord, eventually with the aim of interfering with the election.” A careful look at this allegation shows it to be without merit, despite Herculean efforts by The New York Times, for example, to put lipstick on this particular pig.  After some rudimentary research, award winning investigative reporter Gareth Porter promptly put that pig out of its misery and brought home the bacon. We do not believe “Track 1” merits further commentary.

Track 2 does need informed commentary, since it is more technical and — to most Americans — arcane. In Barr’s words: “The Special Counsel found that Russian government actors successfully hacked into computers and obtained emails from persons affiliated with the Clinton campaign and Democratic Party organizations, and publicly disseminated those materials through various intermediaries, including WikiLeaks. Based on these activities, the Special Counsel brought criminal charges against a number of Russian military officers for conspiring to hack into computers in the United States for purposes of influencing the election.”

We are eager to see if Mueller’s report contains more persuasive forensic evidence than that which VIPS has already debunked. In Barr’s summary, the only mention of forensics refers to “forensic accountants” — a far cry from the kind of forensic investigators needed to provide convincing proof of “hacking” by the Russian government.

But They Were Indicted!

Circular reasoning is not likely to work for very long, even with a U.S. populace used to being brainwashed by the media. Many Americans had mistakenly assumed that Mueller’s indictment of Russians — whether they be posting on FaceBook or acting like intelligence officers — was proof of guilt. But, as lawyers regularly point out, “one can easily indict a ham sandwich” — easier still these days, if it comes with Russian dressing.

Chances have now increased that the gullible folks who had been assured that Mueller would find collusion between you and Putin may now be a bit more circumspect — skeptical even — regarding the rest of the story-line of the “Russian hack,” and that will be even more likely among those with some technical background. Such specialists will have a field day, IF — and it is a capital “IF” — by some miracle, word of VIPS’ forensic findings gets into the media this time around.

The evidence-impoverished, misleadingly labeled “Intelligence Community Assessment” of January 6, 2017 had one saving grace. The authors noted: “The nature of cyberspace makes attribution of cyber operations difficult but not impossible. Every kind of cyber operation — malicious or not — leaves a trail.” Forensic investigators can follow a trail of metadata and other technical properties. VIPS has done that.

A “High-Class Entity?”

If, as we strongly suspect, Mueller is relying for forensics solely on CrowdStrike, the discredited firm hired by the DNC in the spring of 2016, he is acting more in the mold of Inspector Clouseau than the crackerjack investigator he is reputed to be. It simply does not suffice for Mueller’s former colleague James Comey to tell Congress that CrowdStrike is a “high-class entity.” It is nothing of the sort and, in addition to its documented incompetence, it is riddled with conflicts of interest. Comey needs to explain why he kept the FBI away from the DNC computers after they were said to have been “hacked.”

And former National Intelligence Director James Clapper needs to explain his claim last November that “the forensic evidence was overwhelming about what the Russians had done.” What forensic evidence? From CrowdStrike? We at VIPS, in contrast, are finding more and more forensic evidence that the DNC emails were leaked, not hacked by the Russians or anyone else — and that “Guccifer 2.0” is an out-and-out fraud. Yes, we can prove that from forensics too.

But the Talking Heads Say …

Again, if Mueller’s incomplete investigation is allowed to assume the status of Holy Writ, most Americans will continue to believe that — whether you colluded the Russians or not — Putin came through for you big time. In short, absent President Putin’s help, you would not be president.

Far too many Americans will still believe this because of the mainstream-media fodder — half-cooked by intelligence leaks — that they have been fed for two and a half years. The media have been playing the central role in the effort of the MICIMATT (the Military-Industrial-Congressional-Intelligence-Media-Academia-Think-Tank) complex to stymie any improvement in relations with Russia. We in VIPS have repeatedly demonstrated that the core charges of Russian interference in the 2016 election are built on a house of cards. But, despite our record of accuracy on this issue — not to mention our pre-Iraq-war warnings about the fraudulent intelligence served up by our former colleagues — we have gotten no play in mainstream media.

Most of us have chalked up decades in the intelligence business and many have extensive academic and government experience focusing on Russia. We consider the issue of “Russian interference” of overriding significance not only because the allegation is mischievously bogus and easily disproven. More important, it has brought tension with nuclear-armed Russia to the kind of dangerous fever pitch not seen since the Cuban missile crisis in 1962, when the Russian provocation was real — authentic, not synthetic.

Sober minds resolved that crisis more than a half-century ago, and we all got to live another day. These days sober minds seem few and far between and a great deal is at stake. On the intelligence/forensics side, we have proved that the evidence adduced to “prove” that the Russians hacked into the DNC and Podesta emails and gave them to WikiLeaks is spurious. For example, we have examined metadata from one key document attributed to Russian hacking and shown that it was synthetically tainted with “Russian fingerprints.”

Who Left the Bread Crumbs?

So, if it wasn’t the Russians, who left the “Russian” bread-crumb “fingerprints?” We do not know for sure; on this question we cannot draw a conclusion based on the principles of science — at least not yet. We suspect, however, that cyber warriors closer to home were responsible for inserting the “tell-tale signs” necessary to attribute “hacks” to Russia. We tacked on our more speculative views regarding this intriguing issue onto the end of our July 24, 2017 Memorandum to you entitled “Intelligence Veterans Challenge Russia Hack Evidence.”

We recall that you were apprised of that Memorandum’s key findings because you ordered then-CIA Director Mike Pompeo to talk to William Binney, one of our two former NSA Technical Directors and one of the principal authors of that Memorandum. On October 24, 2017, Pompeo began an hour-long meeting with Binney by explaining the genesis of the odd invitation to CIA Headquarters: “You are here because the president told me that if I really wanted to know about Russian hacking I needed to talk to you.”

On the chance Pompeo has given you no report on his meeting with Binney, we can tell you that Binney, a plain-spoken, widely respected scientist, began by telling Pompeo that his (CIA) people were lying to him about Russian hacking and that he (Binney) could prove it. Pompeo reacted with disbelief, but then talked of following up with the FBI and NSA. We have no sign, though, that he followed through. And there is good reason to believe that Pompeo himself may have been reluctant to follow up with his subordinates in the Directorate of Digital Innovation created by CIA Director John Brennan in 2015. CIA malware and hacking tools are built by the Engineering Development Group, part of that relatively new Directorate.

Obfuscation’

A leak from within the CIA, published on March 31, 2017 by WikiLeaks as part of the so-called “Vault 7” disclosures, exposed a cyber tool called “Marble,” which was used during 2016 for “obfuscation” (CIA’s word). This tool can be used to conduct a forensic attribution double game (aka a false-flag operation); it included test samples in Arabic, Chinese, Farsi, Korean, and Russian. Washington Post reporter Ellen Nakashima, to her credit, immediately penned an informative article on the Marble cyber-tool, under the catching (and accurate) headline “WikiLeaks’ latest release of CIA cyber-tools could blow the cover on agency hacking operations.” That was apparently before Nakashima “got the memo.” Mainstream media have otherwise avoided like the plague any mention of Marble.

Mr. President, we do not know if CIA’s Marble, or tools like it, played some kind of role in the campaign to blame Russia for hacking the DNC. Nor do we know how candid the denizens of CIA’s Directorate of Digital Innovation have been with the White House — or with former Director Pompeo — on this touchy issue. Since it is still quite relevant, we will repeat below a paragraph included in our July 2017 Memorandum to you under the sub-heading “Putin and the Technology:”

“We also do not know if you have discussed cyber issues in any detail with President Putin. In his interview with NBC’s Megyn Kelly, he seemed quite willing – perhaps even eager – to address issues related to the kind of cyber tools revealed in the Vault 7 disclosures, if only to indicate he has been briefed on them. Putin pointed out that today’s technology enables hacking to be “masked and camouflaged to an extent that no one can understand the origin” [of the hack] … And, vice versa, it is possible to set up any entity or any individual that everyone will think that they are the exact source of that attack. Hackers may be anywhere,” he said. “There may be hackers, by the way, in the United States who very craftily and professionally passed the buck to Russia. Can’t you imagine such a scenario? … I can.”

As we told Attorney General Barr five weeks ago, we consider Mueller’s findings fundamentally flawed on the forensics side and ipso facto incomplete. We also criticized Mueller for failing to interview willing witnesses with direct knowledge, like WikiLeaks’ Julian Assange.

Political Enemies & Mainstream Media (Forgive the Redundancy)

You may be unaware that in March 2017 lawyers for Assange and the Justice Department (acting on behalf of the CIA) reportedly were very close to an agreement under which Assange would agree to discuss “technical evidence ruling out certain parties” in the leak of the DNC emails and agree to redact some classified CIA information, in exchange for limited immunity. According to the investigative reporter John Solomon of The Hill, Sen. Mark Warner, (D-VA) vice chair of the Senate Intelligence Committee, learned of the incipient deal and told then-FBI Director Comey, who ordered an abrupt “stand down” and an end to the discussions with Assange.  

Why did Comey and Warner put the kibosh on receiving “technical evidence ruling out certain parties” [read Russia]? We won’t insult you with the obvious answer. Assange is now in prison, to the delight of so many — including Mrs. Clinton who has said Assange must now “answer for what he has done.”

But is it too late to follow up somehow on Assange’s offer? Might he or his associates be still willing to provide “technical evidence” showing, at least, who was not the culprit?

You, Mr. President, could cause that to happen. You would have to buck strong resistance at every turn, and there all manner of ways that those with vested interests and a lot of practice in sabotage can try to thwart you — with the full cooperation of most media pundits. By now, you know all too well how that works.

But you are the president. And there may be no better time than now to face them down, show the spurious nature of the concocted “evidence” attempting to put you in “Putin’s pocket,” and — not least — lift the cloud that has prevented you from pursuing a more decent relationship with Russia.

For the Steering Group, Veteran Intelligence Professionals for Sanity

William Binney, former Technical Director, World Geopolitical & Military Analysis, NSA; co-founder, SIGINT Automation Research Center (ret.)

Bogdan Dzakovic, former Team Leader of Federal Air Marshals and Red Team, FAA Security (ret.) (associate VIPS)

Philip Giraldi, CIA, Operations Officer (ret.)

Mike Gravel, former Adjutant, top secret control officer, Communications Intelligence Service; special agent of the Counter Intelligence Corps and former United States Senator

James George Jatras, former U.S. diplomat and former foreign policy adviser to Senate leadership (Associate VIPS) 

Larry Johnson, former CIA Intelligence Officer & former State Department Counter-Terrorism Official, (ret.)

Michael S. Kearns, Captain, USAF (ret.); ex-Master SERE Instructor for Strategic Reconnaissance Operations (NSA/DIA) and Special Mission Units (JSOC)

John Kiriakou, former CIA Counterterrorism Officer and former Senior Investigator, Senate Foreign Relations Committee

Karen Kwiatkowski, former Lt. Col., US Air Force (ret.), at Office of Secretary of Defense watching the manufacture of lies on Iraq, 2001-2003

Clement J. Laniewski, LTC, U.S. Army (ret.)

Linda Lewis, WMD preparedness policy analyst, USDA (ret.)

Edward Loomis, NSA Cryptologic Computer Scientist (ret.)

David MacMichael, former Senior Estimates Officer, National Intelligence Council (ret.)

Ray McGovern, former US Army infantry/intelligence officer & CIA presidential briefer (ret.)

Elizabeth Murray, former Deputy National Intelligence Officer for the Near East & CIA political analyst (ret.)

Todd E. Pierce, MAJ, US Army Judge Advocate (ret.)

Peter Van Buren,U.S. Department of State, Foreign Service Officer (ret.) (associate VIPS)

Robert Wing, U.S. Department of State, Foreign Service Officer (former) (associate VIPS)

Ann Wright, U.S. Army Reserve Colonel (ret) and former U.S. Diplomat who resigned in 2003 in opposition to the Iraq War

165 comments for “VIPS Fault Mueller Probe, Criticize Refusal to Interview Assange

  1. April 27, 2019 at 11:30

    Mr Trump,
    what have you got realistically, maybe another ten years, twelve on this planet. How do you want to be remembered, just another ass hole like Obama, Bush, Clinton etc,etc. It doesn’t matter how much money you’ve got you can’t take it with you. It doesn’t matter how many planes,buildings, golf courses your name is on, they could be renamed or junked the minute your gone. This is the closing chapter of your life, i’ve read your Bio, you’ve been training your whole life for this. There are over seven billion people on this planet but your the only one right here right now that can destroy this hidden hand that casts a malignant shadow over all our lives. The cost to you will be high over these next five years, probably most of your remaining life force, but the reward will be equally high. The love and respect of billions for generations to come.

    • April 28, 2019 at 01:58

      That was a really terrible way to address Potus. Everything he has done has already made him the best President we have ever had! The truth is coming out and that is what he went to DC to do. I don’t think he needs you to tell him how much time he has and to do the right thing. His many steps ahead of you or I. Potus has never drank smoked, did drugs and for all we know could live to be 100 easy. So 10 to 12 yrs is ridiculous. Very glad we are on the same side when all is said and done…..

  2. Norman Melling
    April 22, 2019 at 18:14

    Please POTUS take immediate action NOW!
    Destroy the “Deep State”

    Enlist these VIPS to investigate the threat to our Republic.

  3. Neville
    April 22, 2019 at 06:19

    If you can analyse the 2016 election results town by town you will most likely come to the conclusion that it was religious people who voted for Donald Trump , not because they like him personally , instead that they wanted a business man to run their affairs of State instead of a politician going on the mess that politicians like Hillary and her mob have caused on their USA .

  4. Whiterlight
    April 20, 2019 at 20:39

    We are close.

    Stay the course.

  5. Rong Cao
    April 20, 2019 at 18:43

    The Russians using Facebook to interfere with the US presidential election was a direct retaliation of the US using Facebook to spread disinformation during the Russia’s presidential election. tic-for-tac. But the cyber forces of the US are way more superior than that of Russia’s. To the rest of the world, it was not Putin, but rather shady companies like Cambridge Analytical that helped elect President Trump and won the Brexit on the British referendum on whether to leaving the EU. It was Mercer that funded Cambridge Analytical and run by Bannon. Now Bannon is posed to use the similar method through his organization called Movement to direct the EU parliamentary election to the right wing populists direction.

    Thank you VIPS for writing these articles, so the rest of the world will know there do exist in the US some sane groups and individuals who have constantly spoken out the truth against that MICIMATT complex. I guess only the American and Israeli in this world have sincerely believed the Russians had tipped the balance of American presidential elections in Trump’s favor. Assange could have a heart attack in the prison if he dared to spell out the beans. better deposit him in the UK to rule out the certain parties before being extradited to the US. Or maybe there is another scenario in which Assange’s deposition would help Trump to won the reelection in a perfect timing sometime before the Nov of the next year.

  6. April 19, 2019 at 23:54

    VIPS certainly appears to have an impressive membership but I wonder about its efforts to support and strengthen a man who, by any objective assessment is unfit to be President. You seem to be implying the President needs to get closer to Putin to ensure continuing detente with Russia, but doesn’t Trump already claim to like Putin and believe his assurances on the alleged interference?

    As an outsider but one whose life is inevitably affected by the actions of the United States, it’s Military Industrial Complex and also the grubby fingers of its public and private interference in world economic affairs, I am more concerned about the way the Republican Party and its operatives, funded by shadowy PAC’s and multi-billionaires have gerrymandered the electoral system than I am about whether or not the Russians had a role in Trump’s win, which after all was not reflected in the actual vote numbers.

    In my naivety I actually thought Bernie Sanders had a chance of winning but reckoned without the Democrats ability to shoot themselves in the foot by pursuing the Clinton candidacy and using dirty tricks against Bernie.

    Had Sanders won, we would be seeing a much different US today.

    A final comment on the VIPS offering: there is reference to the issue being too arcane for many Americans. I would suggest that in writing this memorandum to the President you are asking too much of a buffoon who is known not to be able to absorb more than a tweet’s amount of information with a commensurate attention span.

    Expecting him to take on board, let alone understand what you are offering borders on the same naivity I admit to.

  7. CerpherJoe
    April 19, 2019 at 17:29

    Hoping VIPS will provide a detailed reply to the actual Mueller Report text with respect to the DNC hack. The text is pretty much a white wash asserting that Russia GRU was responsible for the hack. Very little forensics evidence provided (and doubtfully ever accumulated).

    I think the DNC hack and the FBI’s response is at the heart of the matter.

    A point by point rebuttal might be a key ‘first document’ for the judicial pursuit of Spygate.

    • Gary
      April 20, 2019 at 09:56

      Yes, a rebuttal on you tube.

  8. Steven Greenberg
    April 19, 2019 at 16:21

    In your memorandum you said “Key among the findings of the independent forensic investigations is the conclusion that the DNC data was copied onto a storage device at a speed that far exceeds an Internet capability for a remote hack.”

    Your experiment was flawed. You tried to send the data over the internet to Europe. I do not see that you
    considered the possibility that the “hackers” might have sent it over the internet to a computer situated near the DNC, and the data was copied to a thumb drive there, and the thumb drive was sent to Europe – WikiLeaks.

    Unless you fix the flaw, your evidence is not convincing.

    • CerpherJoe
      April 19, 2019 at 17:54

      You do not have it correct. The claim is from a computer on the local DNC network, if not the email server itself, to a thumb drive. No Internet at all, local or otherwise.

  9. Rodion Raskolnikov
    April 19, 2019 at 15:32

    I’m reading the Mueller Report now and I have to say the investigation was lazy. They seemed to have a preconceived narrative and they looked for whatever would confirm that. they did not look for anything else. They did not bother with sources that could have contravened the narrative they wanted.

    This is generally what prosecutors do. They are not interested in the truth. They want just enough to put someone in jail. But in this case, I don’t think they wanted Trump in jail. they wanted to blackmail him so that he would become a compliant servant of the FBI, CIA, and other Deep State forces. In that respect, Mueller has been 100% successful. Trump is now just like Obama or Bush or Clinton — a “house negro” for the war-party and the weapons makers. He does what he is told.

    • irina
      April 19, 2019 at 20:23

      Yup. Additionally, this charade has sent a very strong message to anyone running for President.

      “Resistance is futile.”

  10. April 19, 2019 at 14:29

    Yet another person’s reputation tainted by working for Trump or the Trump administration.
    I really don’t see Mueller as all that great. He allowed rumor, gossip, conspiracy theories and just plain disruption to occur across the country when he could have curtailed it early and several times without losing the investigation. But he didn’t, as if he were standing upright and ramrod on some isolated principle without any thought as to its effect across the nation.
    Then there is the bit about keep your eyes on the wrong ball (Russia) instead of the real game ball (corporate money, PACs, Wall Street, voter suppression, and on and on).
    Two years and millions of dollars allowing the absence of any information to cause the space to be filled in with any wild nonsense media and CIA/NSA/ETC “inspired” media could come up with. In the meantime all sorts of other damage is being done while this unsupported wellspring of expectation that The Trump will finally be removed with the report is done. Nonesense and now all those promoting this idea to get rid of Trump are discredited, a famous old tactic that works better than direct opposition.

  11. April 19, 2019 at 14:13

    Trump attacked Syria based on false information, is attempting to install a criminal as President of Venezuela, vetoed the one hope that the suffering innocents in Yemen have, gave Israel a sweet real estate deal on the Golan Heights, and has now declared an essential part of the Iranian armed forces a terrorist organization. So long as he continues to be influenced by Bolton, Pompeo, Haspel, etc. the Golem Goose will have little attention span time for VIPS. He appears to have as minimal grasp of foreign policy as Bush the last. Thank God My Country Tis of Thee doesn’t interfere in other countries elections!

  12. Ray
    April 19, 2019 at 13:34

    Abe,

    Don’t know what you mean by “reticent.”

    We cannot cover all relevant territory every time. On the mischievous Israeli elephant in the room, we have done a number of memos tied specifically to front burner issues. You are right, though, that we have not done anything definitive on Russia, per se, in a while. And we probably should. Last one of that general nature on Russia was: ***

    Obama Warned to Diffuse Tensions with Russia
    ALERT MEMORANDUM FOR: The President?
    SUBJECT: PREVENTING STILL WORSE IN SYRIA?
    October 2, 2016

    Below is a list of relatively recent memos relating to Israel. Reticent?

    VIPS to Trump: Intel on Iran Could be CATASTROPHIC
    MEMORANDUM FOR: The President
    ?SUBJECT: Intelligence on Iran Fails the Smell Test
    ?August 1, 2018

    VIPS Call on Trump Not to Pull Out of Iran Nuclear Deal
    MEMORANDUM FOR: The President
    ?SUBJECT: Being “Played” By Bogus Evidence on Iran?
    May 7, 2018

    Growing Risk of U.S.-Iran Hostilities Based on False Pretexts, Intel Vets Warn
    MEMORANDUM FOR: The President?
    SUBJECT: War With Iran?
    February 26, 2018

    Intel Vets Tell Trump Iran Is Not Top Terror Sponsor
    MEMORANDUM FOR: The President?
    SUBJECT: Is Iran the “World’s Leading Sponsor of Terrorism?”
    ?December 21, 2017

    *** Those who sometimes forget to click onto raymcgovern.com may find this also of interest:
    https://raymcgovern.com/2019/04/18/dnc-gate-patrick-lawrence-saw-through-it-from-the-start/

  13. Tom
    April 19, 2019 at 13:33

    They also refused to interview Ambassador Craig Murray who knows who leaked the emails.

    Murray has offered to testify under oath and is banned from the country.

  14. DH Fabian
    April 19, 2019 at 13:01

    I recall reading a previous statement from Mueller confirming that no evidence had been found showing Russian interference with the 2016 election. Whatever his feelings about the issue are, the lack of evidence to support that claim is the relevant point. I also recall that in 2017, FBI computer forensics experts had determined that voting machines, etc., were not hacked. The issue with the DNC email server was a leak, not a hack. That is, they had determined that someone with direct physical access to DNC’s computers had downloaded a huge number of files onto ordinary thumb drives, which were then passed along. (Reportedly, the DNC’s computers weren’t even minimally secured.)

    The purpose of the Mueller investigation was to determine if there was any evidence to confirm the allegations that Russia somehow interfered with the 2016 election. There wasn’t. The investigation did result in a long list of indictments for perjury and business-related crimes, several convictions to date — not for political crimes/election interference. At this point, I’m not aware that any crimes directly tie to Trump. We’ll have to wait and see.

    Who didn’t know that party loyalists (including those who eagerly supported Mueller’s investigation) would reject any conclusion that didn’t confirm their own? That’s just human nature. Those who are knowledgeable about contemporary Russia and Putin — and certainly, about the several measures Trump has taken against Russia since taking office — knew why the allegations made no sense.

  15. John Neal Spangler
    April 19, 2019 at 11:06

    CIA and NSA fixing the intelligence around the policy. Bloody Gina is another incompetent that is not giving the President the truth.

    • DH Fabian
      April 19, 2019 at 13:05

      There was a 100% chance that whatever the outcome of the investigation was, one side or the other would shout, “Fraud!” Consider that people are still debating the Kennedy assassination, and there are still many who insist that the moon landing never happened.

      • Sovereign Ag
        April 19, 2019 at 16:14

        That is only because the public indoctrination systems have churned out idiots who do not understand the concepts of certified facts and evidence.
        They think feelings matter over facts. Anyone with half a brain could see this was nonsense from the beginning. This is what happens when people let hate rule them, they will believe anything to go along with their hatred, and will never stop hating, while the hate consumes them and destroys them and everyone around them. This is why they hate facts, evidence, debate, truth….
        They are the most dangerous bullies created yet. They have no moral compass within, no way of even knowing the difference between truth and lies anymore. They are collectively mentally ill and are proud of it.

  16. April 19, 2019 at 08:26

    The late General Smedley Butler quote “War is a racket”
    Further more he was responsible in stopping the first fascist coup d’etat against FDR in the 30’s
    Tolstoi”History would be a wonderful thing if only it were true”
    Girodano Bruno” History is always written by the victors and not the vanquished”
    Gianbattista Vico”There will always be an elite class”
    Benito Mussollini ” Lo stato corporato (The corporate state) Fascismo purro Pure fascism
    How ironic that we are living Mussolini’s dream in our dying western exceptionalist ways.
    Democracy died long time ago !!!!!!! Federal Reserve Act 1913.
    Just think of recent events
    IE: Trump assigns the Golan to Israel
    IRGC is designated as a terrorist organization
    THe Congress is initiating a Bill sponsored by both Democrats and Republican plutocrats to designate the Russian federation as a
    sponsor of international terrorism
    YOU CAN’T MAKE THIS STUFF UP
    Largest wealth extraction in the history of the industrial age exceeding the Gilded age.

    • Sovereign Ag
      April 19, 2019 at 16:26

      Our country is not a democracy, it is a republic, a republic can only function if the people are moral, intelligent, honorable and hard working. Much of the rest you said is true. Democracy is mob rule, a republic is a nation of laws, not men. This is not a fight about countries, or colors. This is a fight for individual sovereignty, and the ability to exercise our God given rights, over evil globalists who use religions and races to fight their war against the people so they can rule in hell. They want to distract the common people with things like color or gender, while they continue to mount their agenda, because a people divided always fall. The people who allow their egos to rule them and buy this propaganda and choose to hate others based on lies and propaganda, to stir up false emotions are the problem.

      The people who participate due to a lack of ethics, intelligence and morality are nothing but useful idiots, the world has not changed, only the names have changed, for a millenia, humans are still choosing to be corrupt. They say the definition of insanity is continuing to repeat the same things over and over, expecting different results. The Human species is certifiable.

      If humans do not rise above the level of peasants, nothing can ever change. Our founders gave us this opportunity a little more than 200 years ago, to self rule, and humanity has rejected this, therefore, they reap what they sow. As Jefferson said, a nation that seeks to be ignorant and free, never can and never will be. The problem is the laziness, ignorance and apathy of the human species. Very few rise above this, and those who are envious of those who do, who do not want anyone to be free, work with those who wish to enslave everyone under a worldwide dystopian rule.

      This is the bottom line, the rest is just theatre. There are pockets of good people everywhere, the problem is, they are not the majority.

  17. AcidBurn
    April 19, 2019 at 00:19

    Breach.
    Devices
    3
    Not sure.

    Zoom.
    WeChat
    Mr Translator.

    Voice from Beijing.

    Slaves to italy.

    Bad blood confirmed.

    Fast.

    Not much time left for this old dog.

    Follow me and find truth.

    Leave me to die.

    No vengeance.

    Peace is the goal.

    We will not be slaves.

    Vigilo Confido.

  18. Whiterlight
    April 18, 2019 at 23:01

    Listen to what I say, if you want.
    If you don’t, at this point I could care less.

    Ghosts of the past.
    Enemies within.

    There is not much time, and any action taken in the wrong context will lead to the pavement covered in innocent blood.

    I have spent years. My whole life, watching and waiting. Observing and reporting what I’ve seen.

    This is no Game of Games.
    This is not a delusional persuit of happiness.

    This is real life, my friends – And you have one chance to make it to the stars.

    Believe what I say, not because I tell you to – but because I have seen, and watched, and waited.

    I am reporting now – to let you know the infection is nigh untennable.

    Containment is the procedure.

    Quarantine is the answer.

    A fireline must be drawn and the corruption torn out, root and branch.

    Trump is alone, and slowly being torn apart.

    He cannot sustain much longer.

    Act now.

    But if you make the wrong decision, GOD help us all.

    Trust me.

    I remember.

    I remember.

    I remember.

    63.

    11/22/88

  19. Gregory Herr
    April 18, 2019 at 21:15

    Important to recognize Julian’s analytical insights and communication skills. Really cuts to the chase with this.

  20. Steve Parsons
    April 18, 2019 at 20:21

    Are the authors creating a Straw Man by contrasting their team against “Crowdstrike’s conclusions.
    On the author’s side are “two former Technical Directors of the NSA, who avoid squishy “assessments,” preferring to base their findings on fundamental principles of science and the scientific method. ”

    Omn the other side is not only “Crowstrike” but the current Director of the NSA – and the directors of all the other US intel agencies, and several foreign ones.

    So while “Crowdstrike” might be ‘squishy”, why are not the current heads of US intel as ‘evidence based” as the two (only two) former government officials who dissent from the overwhelming contrary opinion, that Russia is behind the hacking and disinformation?

    I mean, if you are going to make an ad homuinem argument, as is done here, and hold up the words “former NSA head” as some kind of credential, you wopuld need to explain why the current heads of NSA (and all the other intel agencies) are not similarly hard-headed and evidence based. They didn;t rise to their positions by bvewing ‘squjishy’, did they?

    • geeyp
      April 19, 2019 at 00:38

      Have you read Caitlin Johnstone’s recent piece in Medium? It seems that you are applying her principles incorrectly. And no, Julian Assange is most certainly not a snitch.

    • E Wright
      April 19, 2019 at 03:29

      You can be pretty sure that the senior people at all these agencies know very little about how the technology works. They only demand that they are given the information ‘they want’. We have seen this time and time again. Middle rankers don’t have the guts to stand up to them.

    • anon4d2
      April 19, 2019 at 06:41

      No, only two of the initially-hinted 17 agencies were involved. as I recall, and no NIE was made. There was no ad hominem argument, only fair criticism. All conclusions are poor when the evidence is concealed.

    • michael
      April 19, 2019 at 08:04

      If you are going to make an Appeal to Authority argument (I have CURRENT authorities, you only have two!) you have come to the wrong place. VIPS repeatedly has laid out EVIDENCE for their assertions. They also consist of the inventors of much of the NSA tools and have collective expertise, and more importantly have lived the BS of government bureaucracy. If you can present contrary EVIDENCE, not just faith-based assertions, people would be accepting of your criticisms, maybe leading to fruitful discussions.

      Is it morally wrong for Assange to give up Seth Rich, if his source? Seth Rich is dead, so no fear of jail, although his family would be upset.

    • Anna
      April 19, 2019 at 11:42

      You mean, to provide a competent opinion on the Russophobic fraud committed by CrowdStrike is “ad hominem argument?”
      The lawful approach would be to let the FBI to conduct the investigation. And yet the DNC has been adamantly against such investigation and firmly in support for the (DNC-paid) CrowdStrike run by a resident of the Atlantic Council — this stain on the US Republic. https://stephenlendman.org/2018/08/the-atlantic-councils-russophobic-rage/

    • hetro
      April 19, 2019 at 13:09

      Read the Mueller report at for example page 42. The language indicates the information comes from a DNC source, which we now know to be Crowdstrike. Over the past two years or so this site and others have established the biased nature of Crowdstrike as well as its being employed by Hillary Clinton. Crowdstrike personnel include Ukrainians bitterly opposed to Vladimir Putin, let alone in the employ of Hillary Clinton.

      We also know that in the January 6, 2017 report by the three intelligence agencies they based their “assessments” (also warning that these assessments were basically “guesses”) NOT on examining Clinton computers but relying on Crowdstrike. Further indications from this time period show bias amongst FBI personnel, including statements that Trump would not be allowed to assume the presidency. We also know the Steele dossier pee tape was part of this overall production to explain/cover/shift attention from the Clinton election loss, paid for by Clinton forces.

      Further, investigation, as with the Binney team, has indicated the likelihood Guccifer 2.0 was meant to give the impression of being a Russian source, using specific Russian earmarks as part of its effort to create a false impression of a Russian source.

      Assange has denied the source was Russian and does not have a history of lying; Binney et al have offered a scientific theory indicating the “hack” was a local leak, not a hack via Russian GRU sources. There is also the yet unresolved problem of what happened to Seth Rich, and his possible–although not yet confirmed–role in supplying the DNC corruption to wikileaks.

      All of these factors at the very least suggest more skepticism is needed in trying to evaluate Mueller’s contentions on how the DNC information got to wikileaks. Last, note there is not one word in the Mueller report about what the DNC leaks revealed–the corruption of the DNC and Clinton herself in manipulating/rigging the system to get herself the nomination.

      From the Mueller report page 42:

      “On June 14, 2016, the DNC and its cyber response team announced the breach of the DNC network and suspected theft of DNC documents. In the statements, the cyber response team alleged that Russian state-sponsored actors (which they referred to as “Fancy Bear”) were responsible for the breach . . .”

    • DH Fabian
      April 19, 2019 at 13:21

      You know, they never even settled on just what they think Russia did. The FBI computer forensics experts had already determined in 2017 that there was no evidence showing that voting machines were hacked. It ultimately WAS determined that someone with direct physical access to the DNCs computers (not to voting machines) had downloaded a huge number of files onto ordinary thumb drives, which were then passed along. A leak, not a hack. They haven’t determined who did it yet.

      What remains unanswered: If Russia played any role in the 2016 election, why did they try so hard to get Hillary Clinton elected? Any guesses? After all, in spite of so much Dem voter opposition to the Clinton wing since the 1990s, she got the most votes. Trump is president because he got the most electoral votes — something a foreign entity couldn’t hack, steal, influence, etc., etc.

    • JGMcCue
      April 21, 2019 at 01:31

      There are plenty of things that the Trumpette has done that are worthy of impeachment. That’s what makes it so pitiful that it is necessary to stand up for him in this instance, but may I suggest the fact that all these VIPS people being whistleblowers gives them a certain cachet that doesn’t automatically adhere to ordinary people even those of high position in the intel community or, for that matter, the “Special Prosecutor”, himself. In particular, the two Bobs, Mueller and Barr are known liars. To put their word up against Bill Binney would be laughable, were it not such an important situation.

  21. Steve Parsons
    April 18, 2019 at 20:14

    Isn’t Assange selling out his sources, which few journalists would do, in offering to cooperate with the government and give them info on where the hacked emails came from? He would be snitching on someone who would face jail time, right?

    • April 18, 2019 at 22:56

      He didn’t do any such thing. You are badly misinformed.

    • anon4d2
      April 19, 2019 at 06:44

      Where did you get that? He made no such offer as I recall. If he did, that would be inadmissable coerced testimony at this point, and likely he knows that the source is safe, or already dead.

    • Annette
      April 19, 2019 at 11:44

      For some less endowed people the courage of the true mensch is intolerable.

  22. Sam F
    April 18, 2019 at 20:11

    Yes, Abe, the whole business of mystical Russian influences is clearly a coverup, when we know for certain that Israel directly influenced the elections very strongly. Not only were Hillary’s top ten donors all (or nearly all) zionists, as documented publicly, but the US mass media are substantially controlled by zionists, as shown daily in their news bias. And for those afraid of admitting that Russiagate is really Israelgate, there is always Saudi Arabia, massive donors to the Clinton foundation. Probably both donated to the Repubs as well, in far greater amounts than the Facebook ads of a few folks back in Russia. Likely even the Ukrainians beat Russia in such influences.

    • Sam F
      April 18, 2019 at 20:32

      It is also pretty funny that no one is afraid of the influence of China on US elections, when its economy is far larger than that of Russia, and it likely has far more of its nationals here.

      And it does seem likely that, if Russia or China ever do influence US elections, either of them would have a more salutary influence on behalf of the people of the United States than the Dems or the Reps. After all, they could only gain in foreign trade and reducing US wars of aggression. We have nothing to lose but the 1%, who would never be missed.

      • michael
        April 19, 2019 at 08:48

        Arguably Chinagate was the model for Russiagate, although the Clintons per usual avoided prosecution (some Chinese went to jail).
        It was a great deal for China, as Bill Clinton granted them PERMANENT most favored nation trading status, relaxed rules on advanced technology transfer to a communist country, and encouraged the offshoring of American jobs to China. Clinton started China along the path to being the World Power they are today.

  23. Willow
    April 18, 2019 at 19:19

    Julian was holding Gore Vidal’s book, the Rise if the Security state
    Here is Gore Vidal discussing it in 1998 at the press club – presented on C-Span -48 minutes

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xxyOpQbAz4E

    • jean
      April 19, 2019 at 14:16

      thanks for the link!

    • Bob Van Noy
      April 19, 2019 at 17:57

      Really helpful Willow. Thank you.

      • Bob Van Noy
        April 19, 2019 at 18:50

        Upon viewing this excellent video, I have become much more aware of the critical period post WWII, especially the timing of the Cold War, Berlin, Loyalty Oaths, and the huge gap philosophically between Henry Wallace and Harry Truman, it’s a very revealing video and says much about why Julian Assange was displaying it

  24. Sam F
    April 18, 2019 at 18:58

    An excellent letter with timely and coherent suggestions for Mr. Trump. Let us hope that he takes this opportunity to listen to Mr. Assange, perhaps through intermediaries. He could cite the VIPS with better credibility than his agency appointees. Simply pardon Mr. Assange and call off the dogs.

    The exoneration of Mr. Assange would help to discredit the very rogue elements in the mass media and secret agencies that have joined in efforts to discredit Mr. Trump. It would be a service to the people of the United States in both areas.

  25. Whiterlight
    April 18, 2019 at 18:45

    You will taste betrayal.
    You will know and understand its flavor well, and it will linger on the tongue.

    In this way you will come to know me better. You will understand what it means to be torn asunder by a once-ally. A brother.

    Family.

    Someone once told me…….

  26. mike k
    April 18, 2019 at 17:36

    The VIP’s are voices crying out in the wilderness of a thoroughly brainwashed American public.

    • Sam F
      April 18, 2019 at 19:10

      Very true, although here they have identified a key point of action for the people, which is an executive act of self-defense that would also counter rogue elements in the mass media and federal agencies. If Trump pardons Assange based on the VIPS advice, all three and the People defeat the brainwashing.
      If Trump fails to pardon Assange, we at least have further truth about him.

      • Bob Van Noy
        April 19, 2019 at 08:49

        So true Sam F. There is great value in these VIP reports in that they help reveal who supports the truth and it gives Trump a critical option if he is independent enough to take it. Either way, much will be revealed. Many thanks for the thought.

    • April 18, 2019 at 19:11

      Sad but true. Most of our fellow citizens are so confused and uninformed I doubt if they would recognize the truth if it was Jesus Christ himself proclaiming it.

  27. Anne Jaclard
    April 18, 2019 at 16:28

    Bill Binney and the VIPS scrutinized the claims about Russian hacking of the Democratic National Committee (DNC) based on the file transfer speed, which computer experts say could not have been conducted from Russia but could match the speed of a thumb drive.

    In Mueller’s report, he claims that the GRU leased a computer inside the United States to transfer the file, which would explain the discrepancy and debunk the VIPS claim.

    Too bad that the evidence for Mueller’s claim on the computer’s location is redacted and the rest comes from an indictment not meant to go to trial. Where did he get it? We will never know unless the full, unredacted report is released.

    Until that time, I’m placing my bets on the fact that the information comes from the discredited, partisan cybersecurity firm that started this mess, Crowdstrike.

    What does everyone else think?

    • DavidH
      April 18, 2019 at 18:04

      So, if they leased the computer here, was it some special computer they could take back home and still get the files that fast over the net? Or were they here physically to download the stuff? I know, sounds like a dumb question.

      And the Reality Winner leak…a fabrication left insecurely where it shouldn’t have been for some shocked person to mail over to The Intercept? I’ve thought sometimes that the national sec estab (nse) might not want to let out solid proof we were so wide open…that there might have been a turf or bureaucratic argument about doing so.

      Actually, I still think it’s a big issue…due to the fact that neoliberals won’t hire (maybe we need another name for neolibs like Ralph Nader says). Even though the “old” backdoors list went all over creation, cheaters and totalitarians might still hold to the leave-bdoors-open-logic. There’ll always be new ones to horde up as well.

    • Sam F
      April 18, 2019 at 19:40

      As I recall, the transfer rates of the DNC data required that the download was either to a flash drive or another computer on the same LAN, not an internet connection, i.e., to a nearby flash drive. So a computer elsewhere in the US is ruled out. But if not, it is an unlikely hypothesis without substantial evidence, and there would be no reason to redact such evidence. Who would redact evidence to protect a computer or the accused owners? After this time, any criminals would have been arrested.

      Further, any actual evidence of a specific transfer could have been faked just as easily with the Vault 7 tools like Marble. It is apparently common for internet criminals to make up shell corporations named after historic Russian figures, with officers or servers falsely registered as located in Moscow, etc. I traced one such internet piracy outfit “Tsarmedia” to Texas. All of their registration and legal information is bogus, and they choose a popular demon to conceal themselves.

      Further, why would the DNC refuse to let their server be investigated? And why would FBI refuse to seize it for investigation, even after they lost the election? Trusting such sources would be absurd at this point. Not that the Repubs are any better: they don’t bother to conceal corruption because it is their most cherished value. But they don’t like Russia either.

      • Miranda M Keefe
        April 18, 2019 at 22:48

        I don’t know, but I suspect they didn’t want the FBI to get it because then the FBI would have proof that the DNC had hacked the Sanders campaign and did a false flag to try and cut them off from DNC data. Remember that? Remember DWS self righteously saying the Sanders campaign had to be punished?

        Here’s one thing I’ve learned about the slime that is the Clinton camp. They accuse others of what they do. So if they are accusing someone of something, you can be sure they’ve been doing that.

        • Lily
          April 19, 2019 at 03:54

          Miranda, I do agree. What Clinton is telling us about her enemies tells us more about Clinton than about her enemies.

          I think that is projection and it is preferably done by people who are unable of any insights or selfreflektion. In fact that is what most people do especially the ones who are constantly smearing others.

        • Bob Van Noy
          April 19, 2019 at 09:15

          Thank you for that reminder. I think you’re right. Here is an interview at that time with Tulsi Gabbard that will remind us of the tension within the DNC.

          https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=F__FsD4ItJE

      • DavidH
        April 19, 2019 at 18:58

        Thanks, Sam F. Get’n up early, so gotta hit the hay. But I’ll return.

    • geeyp
      April 19, 2019 at 01:46

      Having read just the first 100 pages of this 448 page report, it reminds me that we cannot allow various groups of people from different walks of life getting together and striving for the common good. The “powerful” do not allow that. And , of course Mueller does not have the decency to turn this investigation around into the Clinton Crime Family. Alright Mueller, you’ve had your mini-vacation now, get to work and do one of these 448 page reports on Clinton!!

    • michael
      April 19, 2019 at 08:34

      New Knowledge, the NSA / State Dept start up, turned “Russian” hacking into a lucrative business model. They pretended to be Russians convincingly enough to interfere in a Senate Election and turn red state Alabama into Blue. Was that their first attempt? Unlikely; they have their “hammer” and there are lots of nails. Possibly New Knowledge hacked the DNC computers and servers, likely posing as Guccifer 2.0 after wikileaks first leak, with Crowdstrike’s (and the NSA’s?) implicit permission. Otherwise, those computers and servers would have been seized as evidence by the FBI.

  28. April 18, 2019 at 15:57

    “…Cuban missile crisis in 1962, when the Russian provocation was real — authentic, not synthetic.” Big fail on that guys and gals!

  29. April 18, 2019 at 15:53

    “Mueller’s Record of Framing Innocent People – Chapter One” by Eric Zuesse
    https://off-guardian.org/2019/03/30/muellers-record-of-framing-innocent-people-part-one/

    • Skip Scott
      April 19, 2019 at 15:45

      Arby-

      Thanks for this link. It is quite a lengthy article, but very informative. It really gives the reader a lot to consider about Mueller and Comey’s history. It is amazing that they could become “good guys” for so many suffering from TDS. For those who take the time to read it, take note that it is an 8 part series, and the link for the last parts is at the bottom of the first article.

  30. April 18, 2019 at 15:39

    “And that melody will linger on for the rest of your presidency, unless you seize the moment.” Does Trump care? Does he care about his rep? Or about right and wrong? He doesn’t have to, Does he?

  31. Groucho
    April 18, 2019 at 15:33

    Hey Time Magazine here is the real “Committee to Save the World”.

    • geeyp
      April 19, 2019 at 01:58

      RT.com “On Contact” – Chris Hedges with historian Vijay Prashad. The only critique that I have ever had of Hedges’s work is that he seems to think President Trump refers to all news org. as fake news. He should know what Trump is referring to when he says that: CNN, and most all of the lying MSM. One last must see: Julian Assange just won another award for journalism, the GUE/NGL Journalism award. Accepted with an IMPASSIONED speech: MaireadMaguire. You can view it on: twitter.com/DefendAssange

  32. AnneR
    April 18, 2019 at 09:47

    Well – on NPR as we read and write (6.30 a.m. onward) Barr is reading his redacted version, blah blah in which – of course – he has “accepted” (as Mueller, the Deep State and the Demrats have intended all along) as “fact” that the Russians meddled in the 2016 election to ensure Trump would win and HRC would lose. Earlier this morning NPR – as ever – commentators, pundits and the rest speak about this confection from whole cloth as if it were *The Truth* and nothing but. Whether they are truly deluded, simply doing their job as shills for the DNC, the establishment and so on I don’t know. But they never ever have any counterpoint voices on, never have to back up their position (on whatever the current government-corporate-capitalist-imperialist stance toward whatever matter is actually spoken of [leaving aside all of those which are ignored completely]) in a discussion with someone who is knowledgeable and disagrees with the Orwellian mis/dis-information they are spreading.

    They will never let it go – certainly not before November 2020’s results are in.

    • April 21, 2019 at 07:06

      So the Republitards are innocent as the driven snow, huh?
      Riiiiiight. Hmm it seems that the impetus for the Dossier was FusionGPS, which was hired by REPUBLICANS to mine dirty on Dufus Donnie. Who funded such machinations? Oh duh, the Mercers and other right-wing zillionare loons.
      The ONLY reason the Clown in Chief even got past the primary was twofold: 1. Because the “mainstream media” FAILED to do their job and report the FACTS of his whole gangster/mob biz practices for 50yrs, and 2. He stirred up the biggest hornets nest in the country, racism.

      No, the election had nothing to do with Rooskies. It was gotten the old fashioned way- it was stolen.
      Referrence Greg Palast “Interstate Crosscheck”

  33. Kim
    April 18, 2019 at 09:20

    Thank god our system is a “mature, streamlined democracy” –it takes just a handful of gangsters to operate it!

  34. April 18, 2019 at 07:51

    This is exactly why VIPS leader Bill Binney must be called before Congress and every other public forum to present his unrefutable evidence that the DNC report WAS NOT HACKED, BUT WAS DOWNLOADED, on a thumb drive or smilar device, based on the speed of transmission, the numerical endings of the FAT files, and other evidence he has presented. Before Congress. On TV. everywhere. His proof crushes the central premise of the Mueller investigation. See:
    https://larouchepac.com/20190304/mr-president-listen-bill-binney-russiagate-worse-hoax-you-thought.

    • Skip Scott
      April 19, 2019 at 08:47

      Amen Anita! This is what we’ve got to get out to the general public, especially since the Mueller report has been released. The power of what Bob Parry called “the Mighty Wurlitzer” is on full display. How do we counter it?

  35. RnM
    April 18, 2019 at 06:29

    Pompeo, and his buddy-with-the ‘stasche (who is an open book), is the key unknown. Just where his loyalties are is the issue.
    He (Pompeo) appears, through his mumbling speech and overfed appearance, to be somewhat of an overachiever, so how he reached his various positions would be a good project for an ambitious investigative reporter type. He smells strongly of neocon, except with an actual, though suspiciously brief, military career (for a 1st-in-his-class guy). Ambition might be the key word with him.

    • geeyp
      April 19, 2019 at 00:47

      It’s a new TV cop show, “Pompass and Stache”! Seriously, there is that special place in hell for those two weasels (certainly no offense to weasels) and cowards. Right into the hole now occupied (George H.W.) and reserved for them as I foresee no redemption for any of them.

  36. Norumbega
    April 18, 2019 at 05:55

    Good refresher review of the Marble Framework hacking tool, which was a capability to “obfuscate” CIA’s own hacking operations by leaving breadcrumbs in foreign languages spoken in countries NATO views as rivals.

    But NOTE: this situation does NOT at all apply to the situation that produced Guccifer 2.o. The Guccifer 2.0 operation was evidently a PRETEND “hack” and release of certain (politically neutral or anti-Trump) files that were obtained locally (i.e. really leaked), in order to do damage control on a REAL _leak_ to WikiLeaks by someone else, in order to jumpstart the Russia-did-it narrative. One could say it was a _leak_ obfuscating another _leak_.

    Furthermore, the actual means by which the “Russian fingerprints” in the earliest G-2 materials came to be in those documents has been independently studied (e.g. Adam Carter and The Forensicator), and the steps by which these fingerprints came to be there fairly well established (if not in every detail), and a program like Marble Framework does not seem to have been involved.

    • michael
      April 19, 2019 at 09:15

      I’m sure New Knowledge and even Crowdstrike had MARBLE-like capabilities, but probably were concerned the fake Russian hacks would be figured out by technical experts. So they destroyed the computers and servers (the evidence) after making their claims.

  37. John Puma
    April 18, 2019 at 05:11

    Isn’t amazing, and mind-bogglingly tragic, how the Dems/DNC/HRC could
    1) so readily botch a “can’t lose” campaign and
    2) THEN drive one of the few assemblies of integrity in US politics into
    an amicable relationship with the homophobic, misogynist and racist
    white-supremacist-in-chief!?!

    • anon4d2
      April 18, 2019 at 18:38

      What “assembly of integrity in US politics” could you be referring to?

      • geeyp
        April 19, 2019 at 00:49

        Yes, please do tell.

      • John Puma
        April 19, 2019 at 08:32

        What assembly? VIPS … i.e. the authors of the article on which we are commenting

    • Anna
      April 18, 2019 at 20:12

      The Dems/DNC/HRC must be interrogated, person by person, about the highly suspicious death of Seth Rich.

      It is stunning how disinterested the “progressives” are in the death of the young DNC operative. And it does not help that the person in charge of the Seth Rich death investigation is a relative of Mrs. Debbie Wassermann-Schultz, the dishonest promoter of Mrs. Clinton.

      Mrs. Debbie Wassermann-Schultz asked her brother, an Assistant US Attorney, “to stop investigators from digging around the DNC’s potential involvement in Seth’s death.” https://newspunch.com/debbie-wasserman-schultz-seth-rich/

      “Speaking to Dutch television program Nieuswsuur after earlier announcing a $20,000 reward for information leading to the arrest of Seth Rich’s killer, Assange said the July 10 murder of Rich in Northwest Washington was an example of the risk leakers undertake.” https://politics.slashdot.org/story/16/08/10/2122249/assange-implies-murdered-dnc-staffer-was-wikileaks-source

  38. Bjorn Jensen
    April 18, 2019 at 02:30

    VIPS aren’t the only ones analyzing:

    https://www.emptywheel.net/2019/04/17/the-debate-we-may-be-having-tomorrow-if-trump-obstructed-justice-to-hide-compromise-by-russia-could-that-be-a-crime/

    Mueller may not have been able to prove a crime but Trump , his father and his family have been dancing around the edges for decades and getting away with it. He’s a total slime ball –

    • geeyp
      April 19, 2019 at 00:53

      Empty Wheel is not accurate and is propaganda. Mueller is the “total slime…”. Racist, anti-Russians…

  39. Bjorn Jensen
    April 18, 2019 at 02:20

    Okay- so it’s stated that VIP and here that MSM (I’m no fan of main stream media) will ignore their findings –
    It’s red meat to his base. VIP Fox News will love you so why aren’t you doing/done interviews there in advance of today’s lead up release? RT will host you- The Guardian hates Assange – go to them –

    Get on the horn and shout about it to the American people if you have real evidence – sell it or shut up –

    This U.S.president- Muelller report or not -is unfit to hold the office. Grifter, liar, just short of a criminal – a sexual predator – a buffoon – He’s a laughing stock the world over-

    • April 18, 2019 at 13:26

      What do you mean “sell it or shut up”? Shut up because you don’t like the conclusion? Shut up because you don’t like Trump? Look, as intelligence professionals we go where the evidence sends us. We are not politicos. If you’re looking for polemics, rather than analysis, you’re on the wrong website.

  40. Tim Jones
    April 17, 2019 at 22:59

    Our only hope is to inform and put pressure on key figures like Barr. Don’t forget folks like Devin Nunes to put pressure on DOJ to speed along those 8 indictments. Note the exact proximaty in time between Assange arrest with Nunes’ announcement of the 8 indictments.

  41. KiwiAntz
    April 17, 2019 at 19:39

    For Mueller ‘s report to have had any credibility or legitimacy, he should have begun his investigation by first, subpoenaing the Democrats server to establish whether this was a DNC leak by a insider or a Russian hack? Mueller didn’t do this, relying on unsubstantiated information by a third Party called Crowd Strike that said it was a hack, without providing any evidence to support that claim. Secondly, the FISA process & how this was illegally applied based on a dubious, fake Dossier by Christopher Stelle, needed to be scrutinised & put under the microscope to determine who authorised it & why & to what purpose? Stelle, Comey & the rest of the Political & Intelligence crooks who fabricated this massive hoax to falsely frame Trump as a Russian Manchurian Candidate, needed to be investigated properly by Mueller & serious questions asked? Mueller failed to do this! Mueller’s flawed Report, whether its the short version released by Barr or the redacted long version, can now be put in the fiction section of any Library because Mueller’s poor investigating skills & lacklustre work over this phoney Russiagate Hoax? Putin was right when he described the Mueller report release was a joke? The Report promised a Mountain (of real evidence to prove Trump collusion & Russian interference) but has delivered a mouse? And no matter how you spin it, a mouse that roared is what your left with? Russiagate, the 2year nothing burger containing a mouse pattie with a side of greasy fake DNC lies & washed down with sour grapejuice! Yummy?

    • Bjorn Jensen
      April 18, 2019 at 02:36

      Nobody including you, has seen the evidence – or lack of including the testimony of the 500 people interviewed – the mountains of stuff collected –

      Nobody has seen or read anything yet-

      The report or some version of it will be released today –

      • anon4d2
        April 18, 2019 at 18:44

        Read the article, BJ. It was released, without evidence.
        Don’t bother huffing and puffing here. No one cares.

      • Anna
        April 18, 2019 at 20:21

        Can you refute the statement, Mueller had been “relying on unsubstantiated information by a third Party called Crowd Strike?” You cannot.
        The CrowdStrike has been caught on fraudulent analyses, repeatedly. They are fraudsters and ideologues.
        The CrowdStrike is led by a well-known Russophobe who is also a “resident” at the infamous Atlantic Council stuffed with the disgusting Integrity Initiative “journalists:” https://www.mintpressnews.com/the-integrity-initiative-and-the-uks-scandalous-information-war/253014/
        Also, like many other “progressives” you are not interested in the death of Seth Rich. Why?

  42. April 17, 2019 at 16:31

    Let’s go back and remind ourselves of how desperately our military-industrial-congressional, etc. complex needs a formidable enemy. Russia fits the bill nicely.

    And so our budget for human needs continues to shrink. What does it take to make the connection?

    • April 18, 2019 at 19:48

      It’s such an obvious connection that even Robert Mueller could make it. But he won’t, and nor will all the people who’ve been told for their whole lives that America is a force for good in the world and believe it without looking at the evidence.

      • geeyp
        April 19, 2019 at 00:58

        Yes, and just like Clinton, Mueller is too cowardly to even show up right away to announce the loss and waste of tax payers money and time on this.

    • April 21, 2019 at 07:28

      Nah, dont need Rooskies anymore. We have “turrrism” as the boogeyman for the next hundred years.

      And btw, WE create them! Talk about job security for the MIC!!
      WOOHOO!

  43. DH Fabian
    April 17, 2019 at 15:28

    The big question: Who will Demo9crats blame for 2020? As much as we ignore it, there’s no way around the consequences of Democrats having split apart their own voting base, mainly by class, and their anti-Russian crusade made them too dangerous to vote for.

    • Bjorn Jensen
      April 18, 2019 at 02:44

      Yea well so go ahead and vote for Trump in 2020 and give the Americans and the rest of us – four more years of chaos, lying, grifting, cheating, destroying the planet and on and on – Yes the U.S has a lot to answer for but mixing it all up into the cauldron if dung that is the horrific Trump administration and his awful cabinet appointees is nothing short of stupid -Trump is a puppet – a Koch puppet, a stooge for the evangelical far right – a puppet for the 1% who rob honest working poor Americans every single day- they are the enablers of this idiot – who can’t even string a coherent sentence together –

      • John Puma
        April 18, 2019 at 05:17

        The “chaos, lying, grifting, cheating, destroying the planet and on and on” did NOT start with Trump.

        He is the cause of NOTHING.

        He IS the logical, immediate effect of the do-ZERO-for-the-99% previous President
        (of corporate affairs) … and one-man Weimar Republic

        • Doggrotter
          April 18, 2019 at 15:04

          Thank you John. Bjorn your not making sense

      • AnneR
        April 18, 2019 at 09:30

        Clearly you are a very miffed Clintonite as well as a Russophobe. Perhaps you are also a Demrat Troll? And it is perfectly obvious that you – along with the rest of the bourgeois Killary supporters – do not care one iota about the contents of those emails, of their revelations about the profound corruption (Clintonite at base) of the DNC. Only about blaming Russia.

        Really? So Russia forced Clinton to ignore the three crucial (because of the aristocratic Electoral College construct) states during her campaign? So Russia twisted HRC’s arm into speaking to Wall Street bankers (G-S, I seem to recall) for oodles of boodle during her campaign (never mind the huge heaps she and Slick Willy have harvested in similar ways at other times)? Compelled her to speak of those who were not going to vote for her – those among the great unwashed, that is, you know the non-bourgeoisie – as “deplorables”? Presumably, also, Russia was behind HRC’s friend and buddy, Albright’s vitriolic remark about women who wouldn’t vote for her chum (an appropriate word for HRC when you consider its other meaning)? And of course Russia made HRC chortle on camera at Gaddafi’s murder, following on from her and Obama’s (along with toadies France and the UK) massively destructive bombardment of Libya? All Russia. Really. Let it go.

        Recognizing the lying, corrupt HRC and DNC for what she and it is IS not the same thing as being a Strumpet supporter. And to smear someone in that fashion is a deliberate calumny meant to push the anti-HRC/DNC (as it is and has been for decades) on the defensive while denigrating their argument.

        Moreover Ray McGovern et al’s investigations are trustworthy. (What sane person who knew anything about the histories of either the CIA or the FBI – leaving aside the NSA and the rest – would trust their *word* about anything? *Lying* is their trade.) And as they point out Assange – and Craig Murray, ex Ambassador for the UK – were willing to give evidence to the Mueller inquiry, but Mueller (and the CIA/FBI) didn’t want their testimony on record anywhere. Because it would reveal that in fact the emails from the DNC were *leaked* not hacked.

        And – in defense of my position: I did not vote for either of the two “parties” not the Repulirat nor the Demrat contender. Both disgusted me, as do their respective (and fundamentally joint worldviews) so-called parties and policies. Their politics are most decidedly not mine.

        • Doggrotter
          April 18, 2019 at 15:11

          Dear Anne. Thank you but I’m afraid you’re wasting your breath, please stop, unless you have breath to waste.
          If they haven’t got it now, they ain’t ever gonna get it. Kind of depressing

          • Marina Nelson
            April 18, 2019 at 19:37

            Dear Anne,

            You are not wasting your breath. Many of us did not vote for either candidate and we find ourselves in the middle of this terrible, hateful, back and forth non-discussion. I listen to both sides, read alternative news, in an attempt to get answers that cannot come from any MSM. It is always refreshing and informative to hear someone as articulate as yourself, referencing a list of items we all need to consider as very reasonable evidence of why Trump won the election, and not just blindly pin the election results on Russia’s involvement.

            Thank you for your contribution.

      • Mike
        April 18, 2019 at 20:29

        You are a hopeless delusional fool.

        • mike
          April 18, 2019 at 20:32

          I was speaking to bjorn, he is a hopeless delusional fool.

      • geeyp
        April 19, 2019 at 01:03

        The previous two president’s crime list is way too long to get through your head, although skipping the MSM would help you in sorting it out. This current president would no longer live if he would have enacted all his original plans. Thanks to cheap shots like yours and deep state threats, we have this.

        • geeyp
          April 19, 2019 at 01:05

          I also am referring to Mr. Jensen.

    • April 21, 2019 at 07:34

      When approximately 1/3rd of the electorate voted for/will vote again for, and the Clown in Chief has made it his mission in life to piss off the other 2/3rds, do the math amd lemme know how you get to your conclusion?
      Oh wait, he did win last time with LESS VOTES.

      It wasnt Rooskies. It was good ole voter suppression. Just like every first time win of a republitard pres since Eisenhour.
      Ref. Greg Palast’s exposes on “Interstate Crosscheck”

  44. worldblee
    April 17, 2019 at 15:19

    All very pertinent facts that will be ignored by the MSM, the Democrats, and Trump, unfortunately. VIPS is right, but I suspect only history will recognize this fact. Keep telling the truth, though!

  45. DH Fabian
    April 17, 2019 at 14:58

    Interestingly, Mueller stated a few weeks ago that there is simply no evidence to support the anti-Russian campaign. Democrats just have nothing left to sell. Look at the 2016 election results. It is no secret that much of the Democrat voting base have opposed the Clinton right wing since the 1990s. But in the end, Clinton did get more votes. Trump, however, got the most electoral votes. What we have learned since then is that there is much US ignorance about our own elections process, and about contemporary Russia.

    • Bjorn Jensen
      April 18, 2019 at 02:46

      Mueller has never publicly stated anything. Ever. And you talk about ignorance?

      • Annette
        April 18, 2019 at 20:35

        Bjorn Jensen, why the FBI has not checked, still, Mrs. Clinton’s server? Why Mueller has refused to interview the honest, patriotic and competent American specialists and instead decided to rely on the opinions of an emigre Alperovitch of the disreputable CrowStrike?

        Also, the DNC has shown a complete indifference to the death of Seth Rich, the young operative of the DNC. There was something that made Alperovitch very dear to the DNC, as for Seth Rich — not so.

        In addition, it seems that you need to familiarize yourself with the story of Uranium One, before talking about puppets and puppeteers.

  46. Deniz
    April 17, 2019 at 14:12

    Trump called the Russiagate proponent’s actions treason and an attempted coup, he publicly stated that we should lock up Clinton during his campaign; CN has yet to make such strong statements. It is hard for me to believe that he does not understand what is going on. Trump simply made the cynical calculation that Assange is expendable, that is all. Implying that Trump is uninformed and if only the common sense of good people could reach the kings ears, all will be better in Oz, actually obfuscates the issue.

    The issue is incentives, what will Trump gain or lose in the grand chess game by challenging his enemies over the Assange issue? Publicly accusing Trump of being a weak coward for not standing by Assange and otherwise challenging his bravado, which is the essence of his mystique, could be far more effective than pleaing with the Emperor to spare another serf.

    • Deniz
      April 18, 2019 at 13:39

      “Democratic senator Mark Warner, the ranking member of the Senate intelligence committee, said that Mr Assange had become “a direct participant in Russian efforts to undermine the West and a dedicated accomplice in efforts to undermine American security”

      https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5KBIQA3L69o

  47. hetro
    April 17, 2019 at 13:05

    Of course this latest VIPS report will be ignored, along with the rest, and not simply because it won’t fit into a five minute concentration limit for Trump. The establishment, of which Trump is now solidly (almost lovingly I think, for someone like Pelosi) a part, will brook no alternative view to its pathetic efforts to maintain power. At this time the major enemy of the Dems exists within its own party via the “radicals” who murmur out unclear phrases that can be wildly construed as “disrespectful.” Meanwhile, Bernie goes to a FOX news audience and wows them, and conservative commenters at the TAC are so confused on this they have no clue that the public is seriously upset over establishment politics. We are amidst an unusual new maelstrom, not yet grasped by the politicos, and not the least of which is the Establishment turning its tendencies to be a pack of wolves onto each other.

    • JDD
      April 17, 2019 at 18:58

      The issue addressed by this report is not only of vital interest to the sitting president, but to the critical issue of avoiding what has become an escalation of hostilty toward Russia, which if not reversed, threatens to destroy civilization as we know it. So far, there has been no indication that Senator Sanders or any other Democratic candidate has challenged the unfounded assumptions in the Mueller report, and in fact have joined in spreading the lies and hysteria over “Russian Interference.” Moreover, simply complaining that this report will also be ignored is a self-fulfilling prophecy. The VIPS can’t do it on their own. Every American can pick up a phone and call the WH, Senators and Representatives and demand that the truth be heard.

      • hetro
        April 17, 2019 at 19:58

        You seem to imply that I am ignoring the report, and “simply complaining.” Far from it. Unfortunately, these reports have had little impact on congress so far. My point is broader–centrist neoliberalism is in the saddle riding mankind. Unfortunately we can’t pick up a phone to do much about that. However, something kicks in JQ Public. Hopefully the next maverick politician won’t be a Trump.

      • Annette
        April 18, 2019 at 20:38

        The issue addressed by this report is highly relevant to the US habit of regime-changing in other countries. The American citizenry is now facing an attempt at regime change at home.

  48. Eddie
    April 17, 2019 at 12:11

    The issue not specifically mentioned in this letter is the Seth Rich murder. Even though there was a potential connection of this slaying with Hillary Clinton and the DNC that she and her cabal controls, law-enforcement agencies hardly investigated the crime.

    It is not beyond the scope of reason that a warmonger as corrupt and sadistic as Clinton, who is responsible for tens of thousands of deaths, could take revenge against someone she believed had betrayed her criminality to the media.

    • Norumbega
      April 17, 2019 at 19:20

      Nevertheless, in my opinion we should put priority on the question of whether Seth Rich was involved in the DNC email leak – not on the murder, much as we would like that to be solved. As Publius Tacitus put it on the Sic Semper Tyrannis blog when mentioning Malia Zimmerman’s retracted Fox News report: “It is unfortunate that the Fox News story intermingled the speculation that Seth’s murder was a deliberate hit with the actual factual statements identifying him as the source of the DNC emails.”

      For a synoptic summary of what sources with plausible claims to knowledge have said or implied with respect to Seth Rich and WikiLeaks, see my post on Moon of Alabama (comment #48): https://www.moonofalabama.org/2019/04/assange-vault-7.html#c6a00d8341c640e53ef0240a4529848200c

      Given President Trump’s famous short attention span, we might focus on this one simple question (demand): “Mr. President, are you going to declassify the 32 pages that NSA admits they have regarding Seth Rich AND Julian Assange?”

  49. Roger Holzapfel
    April 17, 2019 at 12:04

    This isn’t a memo, by Trump’s standards it’s a novel. Too many words. Too many big words. Shrink it down to bullet points for a tweet. Put it on a poster and hold it up for him to see at the next rally. Or tweet the people he does listen to.

    • Tim Jones
      April 17, 2019 at 22:39

      Brilliant! Crowd source a bullet point PSA or billboard ad.

  50. April 17, 2019 at 11:57

    When Gangsters Are In Control
    Unfortunately I believe:

    “When Gangsters Are In Control”

    When gangsters are in control, endless wars slaughter millions of souls
    And countries are destroyed by the hit men of the gangster ghouls
    The unethical money changers finance their dirty depredations
    And corporate cannibals profit from the bloody confrontations

    Government by gangsters is now “the rule of law”
    And “justice” is in the hands of criminals and outlaws
    The language is twisted and debased
    To suit these evil demons of the “human race”

    Fancy titles and Houses of ill repute
    Is where these villains consort and debut
    Making “laws” to screw the masses
    Yet, people continue to vote for these asses

    If there really was “law and order”
    These gangsters would be charged with genocide and murder
    Instead these war criminals parade on the world stage
    When they should be in a big enormous prison cage

    They sell arms and weapons to bloody head choppers
    They don’t know the meaning of improper
    Grovelling and saluting financiers of terrorism
    They are in bed with the dictators of barbarism

    Such is the sick state of the world today
    And much, more could be said, of the gangsters’ way
    Evidence abounds of these criminals roles
    That’s why we know gangsters are in control…

    [more info at link below]

    http://graysinfo.blogspot.com/2017/01/when-gangsters-are-in-control.html

    • Patti
      April 17, 2019 at 12:22

      ?????? Bravo!!!

  51. Robert
    April 17, 2019 at 11:35

    It is critical that this VIP memo reaches Trump. Based on over 14,000 comments of Breitbart News readers to the arrest of Assange, there is overwhelming support for Julian Assange for his courage, sacrifice and dedication to the truth, with many recommending he be awarded a medal. There are also calls for Barr to interview Assange to reveal who really (not Russia) leaked the DNC emails. Many see the possibility that the same players who fabricated and promoted the Trump-Russia collusion lie, were also involved with the invention of Assange-Russia collusion to elect Trump.

    • April 17, 2019 at 13:10

      Wikileaks will survive well without Assange.
      Assange now is fodder for whomever.
      But given his personality and whats left of his genuis will in my opinion keep him from revealing sources.
      Confinment seems not to be as big a concern to him as how he looks in history.

      • Realist
        April 17, 2019 at 16:33

        His lawyers and the independent news media should demand free and frequent access to him so the professional goons don’t get the chance to torture him without pity, as they did Manning and every poor sap in Guantanamo. After all, he has, at this point in time, been convicted of NOTHING (and likely cannot be if the analyses of the charges I read hold true and he does get a transparent and “fair” trial). He must be presumed innocent and treated with the dignity and respect due every human being. Or does simply capriciously declaring anyone on Washington’s hit list to be an “enemy combatant” strip them of all dignity and rights? Says who? Not our constitution, which they’ve tried to pre-empt with their malign “Patriot Acts.” Time to restore proper governance in this country and toss such travesties against rule of law and human rights out the window. This man never took up arms against America. His actions were to apprise Americans that some of their greatest enemies lie within their own government, military and intel agencies. His actions were meant to protect us. He needs influential citizens of the world to protect him now.

    • DH Fabian
      April 17, 2019 at 15:17

      Thank you for pointing out that it was a leak, not a hack. It had been determined (FBI computer forensics experts) by summer, 2017, that someone with direct physical access to the DNC computers had downloaded a large volume of files onto ordinary thumb drives, which were ultimately passed along to Wikileaks. (Interestingly, John Podesta was an early suspect.) We watched as the Dem Party bosses took the tale and ran, blaming Russia, a familiar old boogeyman. The powerful Clinton wing have already expressed their fury at Julian Assange, and have worked to redefine Assange as a most unpleasant, unwashed toady of Vladimir Putin. In fact, Russia played n0 role in this drama whatsoever.

  52. Jeff Harrison
    April 17, 2019 at 10:58

    If elections could actually change anything, we wouldn’t be allowed to vote in them. I’m 69 years old and I can attest to Vladimir Putin’s observation – presidents come and go but the policies always stay the same.

    • Anon
      April 18, 2019 at 21:01

      Yes, it makes no sense that Putin would even care who is president since being KGB, he understands the Deep State and who wields power. And according to some, he preferred HRC because she was a known entity. This whole charade never made any sense and it is obvious that nobody is really interested in the truth. It’s a Brennan job according to Seymour Hersh and that still makes the most sense to me. The democrats and the MSM just can’t let it go because there is too much energy and money invested in it. Huge waste of time and money and resources. Just another sign that this country is too far gone.

      • Eddie S
        April 19, 2019 at 11:44

        Yeah, JH, I’m also 69 and it’s VERY frustrating to see the voting habits/patterns in this country that you & I have lived-through. Only about 50% of the people vote in presidential elections, about half that in off-year local elections, and 15 or 20% in local primaries. But of course from a left/progressive/humanitarian perspective, the bad news is that we probably account for 15 or 20% of the vote in any of these elections. (The 1972 POTUS election was my first, and the start of many POTUS election disappointments). While I strongly believe that our corporate MSM is inherently biased in favor of (surprise-surprise) the for-profit system, and their narratives are skewed (subtlety or otherwise) in that direction, and promote the agenda of the MICIMATT/deep-state/status-quo (whatever term is used), still there are SOME things that seep through (or should) like the WMD scam in the run-up to the Iraq War-crime being a major example,
        and an INTERESTED electorate COULD find the same deep-background/alternative info that CN readers find, especially in this age of electronic media. However, I do believe that voting is ultimately the best way to bring about positive, lasting change, IF that is possible. The alternatives (violence, apathy and/or non-involvement) are virtually guaranteed to produce no-change, OR worse conditions.

  53. Andrew Nichols
    April 17, 2019 at 08:56

    The refusal to interview either of Craig Murray or Assange over the DNC matter has always convinced me the Russia did it thing was a sham.

  54. Skip Scott
    April 17, 2019 at 08:46

    Great letter. I can only hope that Trump and Barr have the courage to follow the real evidence and prosecute ALL those responsible for the creation of RussiaGate. Schumer’s “six ways from Sunday” is a very real danger.

    • P. Michael Garber
      April 17, 2019 at 21:28

      I agree, this VIPS memo was well-argued and thorough. I’m glad to have one article I can refer folks to who seem open to questioning the Russiagate narrative. Unfortunately it kinda looks like Trump has embraced the neocons, and it wouldn’t be surprising if he would rather accept the “Putin cloud” over his presidency than face the hornet’s nest he would stir up were he to actually expose the wide-ranging anti-Russia and anti-Trump activities of the unelected, unaccountable and often anonymous national security officials of the deep state.

  55. Anon
    April 17, 2019 at 08:06

    Nobody is interested in the truth – it’s all propaganda all the time.

  56. geeyp
    April 17, 2019 at 07:56

    Give me my Smith-Corona and I would stack this address properly. Write to: Julian Assange 3/07/1971 HMP etc. Go to: Write Julian.com for the new address. Very simple instructions are included.

  57. Ewan Maclean
    April 17, 2019 at 07:30

    I would be very grateful if Mr. Binney could comment on what Duncan Campbell has said about hacking versus leak.
    Thank you.

  58. April 17, 2019 at 06:47

    Saddens me that no one seems to be listening to the warnings. I wrote non-fiction books on this to shout the truth out and yet, mainstream does what it does best, lie and follow their own ideas. The US is taking tremendous punishment from this, in fact, the very core institutions are now being undermined. So sad to see this happening to inherently good people. Thank you to this group for standing up and making their views heard. GMJ

  59. Realist
    April 17, 2019 at 06:14

    “The bug in Mueller’s report to be released Thursday is that he accepts that the Russian government interfered in the election. Trump should challenge that..”

    But he won’t because he is a Deep Stater.

    • Skip Scott
      April 17, 2019 at 11:21

      He is a “Deep Stater” in training. He is learning where the boundaries of acceptable behavior lie.
      Rule no.1- Russia is BAAD.

    • LJ
      April 17, 2019 at 11:39

      BINGO

      • LJ
        April 17, 2019 at 11:52

        yes , Trump appears to have moved towards becoming a Deep Stater himself. Like Obama, he seems to have had the round edges whittled down by 2 and 1/2 years in Office and is now following the directives that were laid down by the previous Administration . He’s going even further. More ass in the morass , more slime in the Swamp. Unfortunately, for all his brashness and the impulsive mouth he seems to be practical and basically a realist. Sorry. The unfortunate reality of the entire situation. The Deep State won. Trump was corralled . Notice that Trump,the man who spoke favorably about Wikileaks over 100 times in campaign appearances, is now the one who OKs rendering Assange in violation of International Law ,with complete disregard to our own First Amendment.. If he could get Edward Snowden, he would. That would make the Boys and Girls really happy. They might even vote for him in 2020.

        • Anon
          April 18, 2019 at 21:07

          Yes, seems like Pence and Pompeo are really in charge. And that idiot with the mustache.

  60. pmcall
    April 17, 2019 at 03:50

    The fact that the VIPs information has not been widely discussed in the media (not discussed at all) says a great deal, in and of itself. Everyone should be very concerned about, not only the media blackout about the VIPs info, but what the actual VIPs investigation reveals.

  61. Realist
    April 17, 2019 at 02:47

    Unless some very wealthy and influential bigwig with close ties to the Deep State objects to any piece of the most damaging and unjust government policy or the most mind-bending and bizarre distortion of the truth in official propaganda, absolutely nothing will be done in response to anyone else’s objections, be they the most educated or qualified individuals on earth to speak on the matter. In fact, the more qualified they are to opine on such subjects, the more quickly and thoroughly will they be denied a public forum by the corporate-controlled government propagandists masquerading as a “free press.” The VIPS rediscover this basic principle of America’s dialogue with its government every time they release one of their memoranda, which will be of value mostly to future historians. (Not that they should stop, for that will be significant some day.) Stephen F. Cohen confronts this reality every time he tries to offer any informed and objective remarks about Russia or its leaders. Clearly those controlling the levers of power in Washington fear that if they allow us, the public, access to the genuine truth, as opposed to their wild-eyed false narratives, we may handle it by convicting them all of high treason, embezzlement of public revenues, racketeering, fomenting of civil unrest, election fraud, mass murder and crimes against humanity….just for starters.

    • geeyp
      April 17, 2019 at 11:22

      Realist – I have to add unless the people of this country know this, and the question is how can they know this, you have summed it up succinctly.

    • RnM
      April 18, 2019 at 06:46

      The saving grace might be Hillary’s insanity, and paranoid state of mind. She continues to be a loose cannon, (perhaps) unwittingly making Trump look good in comparison to Herself.

    • Anna
      April 19, 2019 at 11:59

      “In fact, the more qualified they are to opine on such subjects, the more quickly and thoroughly will they be denied a public forum by the corporate-controlled government propagandists masquerading as a “free press.”
      This perversity has been destroying this country. The competent professionals have become unwelcome in the US government, whereas the usefully belligerent ideologues like Pompeo, Bolton, and Gershman have been prospering.

  62. Tim Jones
    April 17, 2019 at 02:30

    ‘Far too many Americans…the media have been playing thecentral role in the effort of the MICIMATT (the Military-Industrial-Congressional-Intelligence-Media-Academia-Think-Tank) complex to stymie any improvement in relations with Russia.’

    Perception management/control is a science now and as ordinary folks, as we are, we are outgunned. Mind control, a more specific research, is a coordinated, muti-branched area from controling what medias show and print to conveying (not you own thoughts) to your brain via signals (electro-magnetic to name one) to influence the way you think, is proceeding with along with ample funding. I previously mentioned Arizona State Uni as an example of a place that does such research. This program is mapping the way neurological centers /areas of the brain interact with each other with the expressed aim of ‘how to disrupt or induce narratives’ in test subjects.

    • Anon
      April 18, 2019 at 21:12

      I believe they are losing the narrative and that is why things are becoming very, very crazy.

  63. April 17, 2019 at 01:18

    it’s not a tweet so Trump probably won’t read it

  64. Tom Kath
    April 17, 2019 at 00:20

    I agree that Trump holds the POTENTIAL key. I hold the opinion that it is always better to support a “bad” person in doing good, than to support a “good” person in doing bad. VIPS correctly focuses on the action not the actor.

  65. pmcall
    April 17, 2019 at 00:17

    The fact that the VIPs information has not been widely discussed in the media (not discussed at all), says a great deal, in and of itself. Everyone should be very concerned about, not only the media blackout about the VIPs info, but what the actual content of the VIPs investigation actually reveals.

  66. Tom
    April 16, 2019 at 22:59

    Excellent report!

    Of course we all know that the CIA and FBI were working in concert with the DNC and against Trump and that Obama wanted to know everything

    “FBI texts: Obama ‘wants to know everything we’re doing’“

    As bad as he is he has the deep state working against him.

    • Regina
      April 16, 2019 at 23:26

      You’re another Trump brainwashed supporter. Out of frucking context always makes jerks like you look pathetic! Fascist

      • Antiwar7
        April 17, 2019 at 11:46

        Your name-calling is so persuasive.

        Triggered somewhat? Uncomfortable truth fighting its way into your consciousness?

      • Tom
        April 17, 2019 at 18:20

        I’m a Sanders supporter whom the DNC cheated and everything I posted is a fact.

        The only Russian collusion that can be proved is by the DNC and FBI who used the Steele Dossier compiled from top Russian government officials to blackmail and illegally spy on a candidate and sitting president.

        Bigger than Watergate.

        Whether you like Trump or not the real criminals are the DNC and FBI.

        • Norumbega
          April 17, 2019 at 19:46

          I haven’t seen any real evidence that the Steele Dossier was “compiled from top Russian government officials”. There is at least one Ukrainian whistleblower who says he knows other Ukrainians who were asked to fabricate for it. The British, hand in hand with the FBI and CIA, were all over this 2015-to-present plot against Trump, as seems especially clear from the Papodopoulos revelations.

          This should be a non-partisan issue. The same national security establishment which launched this coup against Trump is also at war with all independent media, and will attack any prominent political figure from the Left who threatens to disobey their dictates (e.g. Corbyn, Gabbard).

        • JDD
          April 17, 2019 at 22:56

          The assault on Trump began in British Intelligence via GCHQ before Steele ever compiled his fairy tale. The former MI6 head of the Russia desk has been long banned from Russia and is a detested figure, is a bitter foe of President Putin and would not be allowed anywhere near “top Russian officials.’ Steele made the thing up, perhaps using former intel contacts, and the couldn’t even get the right Michael Cohen. He is now being sued in Britain by one of the Russians he slandered. You have missed the point of the entire report. If you are suggesting, without any proof, that Putin intervened to help Hillary Clinton, then you’ve managed to come up with something that even the FBI and Mueller desperately sought, but after three years and 40 million dollars later could not allege.

          • Tom
            April 17, 2019 at 23:39

            Putin didn’t have anything to do with it.

            Steele and his Russian contacts did.

            They sought dirt on Trump and from Russia.

            Exactly what democrats accused Trump jr of doing and the Russian lawyer who met with Trump jr worked for Fusion GPS!

            And had nothing.

            That’s called a set up

            Ditto what they did to Popadopolus.

            Not that you care obviously

            The FBI is trying to cover up its many crimes.

          • Tom
            April 18, 2019 at 01:43

            I never said a thing about Putin.

            Steele said he got information from top Russian government officials not me.

            Now you say that he was lying!

            So that means that the dossier was pure fabrication and lies and that is what the FBI used to illegally spy on Trump?

            You are right about the U.K. helping conspire against Trump too and Stephan Halper was working for the Fbi and was behind a lot of the meetings with “ Russians “.

            Bigger than watergate !

        • Anon
          April 18, 2019 at 21:18

          Obama weaponized the DOJ, FBI, and CIA to go after his political enemies! THAT is the real story. He want HRC to get elected to preserve his legacy. Exactly what legacy he is concerned with – I do not know.

          • tom
            April 18, 2019 at 23:28

            The BUSH neoconservative war agenda…..

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