Introduction
On February 2, Devin Nunes (Rep. from California) released a memo written by Republican members of the House Intelligence Committee which they claim highlights abuses by the officials in the FBI in order to obtain FISA warrants to monitor Carter Page who is a former advisor to President Trump. The purpose is to show that these abuses are indicative of corruption in the way investigators are carrying out their mission – and to imply that the special investigation by Robert Mueller is thus tainted and illegal. You can read Nunes’s 3 ½-page memo here, as well as the 2-page letter from the President’s White House lawyer – which explains the decision by President Trump to declassify and release Nunes’s memo on Friday, February 2. The House Intelligence Committee has so far refused to release the Democrat-written version of the committee’s findings.
This post (Part#1 about the Nunes Memo) shows responses to the Nunes memo from prominent Republicans. The comments show that not all Republicans agree with the President on what this memo shows; some are luke-warm, other more passionate. I will appreciate your feedback and predictions on where you think this matter is going.
My comments below are in regular type while the comments of others are in bold type and are included in “quotes.”
Discussion
The President’s response was swift and, as usual, hyperbolic. He attacks the Russian Interference Investigation and declares the memo exonerates him from charges of Russian collusion and obstruction of justice. Note he refers to himself in the third person – “Trump.”
“This memo totally vindicates ““Trump”” in probe, But the Russian Witch Hunt goes on and on. There was no Collusion and there was no Obstruction (the word now used because, after one year of looking endlessly and finding NOTHING, collusion is dead). This is an American disgrace!”
Former FBI Director Jim Comey who was fired by President Trump last year had this to say about Nunes’s memo:
“That’s it? Dishonest and misleading memo wrecked the House intel committee, destroyed trust with Intelligence Community, damaged relationship with FISA court, and inexcusably exposed classified investigation of an American citizen. For what? DOJ & FBI must keep doing their jobs.”
This excerpt from Sarah Huckabee Sanders, White House Press Secretary, shows agreement with the memo, but is less strident than the president’s response – and does not mention the Russian Investigation:
“The memorandum raises serious concerns about the integrity of decisions made at the highest levels of the Department of Justice and the FBI to use the Government’s most intrusive surveillance tools against American citizens.”
House Speaker Paul Ryan is more circumspect in his response on Saturday and says the memo does not impugn special investigation.
“The memo was merely about the oversight of a very few potentially bad actors in the FBI and Justice Department. It does not impugn the Mueller investigation or the deputy attorney general.”
Trey Gowdy, Rep. from SC, says he was involved in the writing of the Nunes memo and that it has nothing to do with the Robert Mueller’s investigation:
“As I have said repeatedly, I also remain 100 percent confident in Special Counsel Robert Mueller. The contents of this memo do not – in any way – discredit his investigation.”
“I was pretty integrally involved in the drafting of it. There is a Russia investigation without a dossier. So to the extent the memo deals with the dossier and the FISA process, the dossier has nothing to do with the meeting at Trump Tower.”
This excerpt is from Senator John McCain’s (Senator from Arizona) response to the Nunes memo is highly critical of what he sees as an attempt by the president and Nunes to undermine the Mueller investigation He starts out by discussing the Russian government’ s attempts to interfere with the US election in 2016, a claim that President Trump insists is a hoax and a lie. These are harsh words from a true American Patriot about a president who has never admitted that Russian meddling is real or that Vladimir Putin of Russian is anything but a great leader and upstanding man.
“In 2016, the Russian government engaged in an elaborate plot to interfere in an American election and undermine our democracy. Russia employed the same tactics it has used to influence elections around the world, from France and Germany to Ukraine, Montenegro, and beyond. Putin’s regime launched cyberattacks and spread disinformation with the goal of sowing chaos and weakening faith in our institutions. And while we have no evidence that these efforts affected the outcome of our election, I fear they are succeeded in fueling political discord and dividing us from one another.
The latest attacks on the FBI and Department of Justice serve no American interests – no party’s, no president’s, only Putin’s. The American people deserve to know all of the facts surrounding Russia’s ongoing efforts to subvert our democracy, which is why Special Counsel Mueller’s investigation must proceed unimpeded. Our nation’s elected officials, including the president, must stop looking at this investigation through the warped lens of politics and manufacturing partisan sideshows. If we continue to undermine our own rule of law, we are doing Putin’s job for him.”
![181328_3657829321565_1383381028_n[1]](https://bobillweaver.files.wordpress.com/2018/01/181328_3657829321565_1383381028_n12.jpg?w=378&resize=378%2C250#038;h=250 "181328_3657829321565_1383381028_n[1]")
Bobillweaver Horizons 
Comment by Marie Warbington
The morning shows, of course, were discussing this topic this morning. I caught most of Trey Gowdy’s interview that you mentioned in your post and I thought it was interesting that he doesn’t have the same impressions as Trump regarding the implications of the memo.
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The evil and corruption found in this memo, and then people defending it due to impact on the DNC does not surprise me. There are allegations I don’t give any ear to, and there are facts that I do. Anything or any allegations to discredit the President after a devastating loss will continue versus the desire to unite and heal this country. The desire for the President to fail is not American, and I pray that God deal with those that do accordingly, and He will. He knows the heart. Wanting the President to fail is wanting America to fail, and is sickening and continuing witch hunts that impede forward progress of a nation is damaging and shameful. And right now, this country is starting to thrive in many areas, many noted in the State of the Union. We in the military are certainly seeing the difference at home and abroad. The President is doing a great job, regardless of what media and those on the left claim. It’s time to do what is right instead of trying to be right, no matter the party, and then getting on our knees and praying to God, thanking Him, knowing that He remains in control of every situation, which includes the outcomes of political issues. As I posted recently, the allegations after a devastating loss to President Trump cause many to seek any way they can to discredit him, especially media and others that have been proven bias and lack integrity in journalism. This is similar to Munchausen Syndrome by Proxy (MSBP). Specifically, there are those that don’t want the country to get well by the current doctor (President) and they suffer from a political MSBP. They want to keep the country sick and dependent on them, even though the medicine and treatment currently being rendered by the doctor is working as outlined in the State of the Union speech (facts on record). They neglect any treatment by current doctor or others on that doctors team to improve the country’s life and independence because they want the country to remain dependent on them, their ideals, and no one else’s, knowing they haven’t and can’t produce the quality of treatment currently being rendered. The current doctor being a prior entertainer and businessman, not a politician does not help matters. Time to unite.
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Ed said: “The desire for the President to fail is not American, and I pray that God deal with those that do accordingly, and He will. He knows the heart.”
These words express strong passion for your cause, but no compassion for those who disagree with you. Are you so certain of your convictions that you would pray to God to
take revenge on some of the President’s enemies?” This is old testament “an-eye-for-an-eye doctrine and sets you in the judgment seat. Even after four years of bloody civil war in a bitterly divided nation, President Abraham Lincoln could not be sure that God sided with the Union in its fight against the Confederacy, a nation founded on the principle that slavery was moral. This quote is from Lincoln’s second inaugural address in 1865.
“Both [America and the Confederacy] read the same Bible and pray to the same God, and each invokes His aid against the other. It may seem strange that any men should dare to ask a just God’s assistance in wringing their bread from the sweat of other men’s faces, but let us judge not, that we be not judged. The prayers of both could not be answered. That of neither has been answered fully.”
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This comment was made by Jim Boone.
“I would come to the same conclusion as you if my info came from the liberal media & Democrats. Try listening to FOX.”
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Jim – My post was mostly about how different Republicans reacted to the Nunes memo. These are direct quotes, some favorable, some other not so much, to the memo, and their meaning is not altered by where the words were uttered or written on this or that news channel or newspaper. My question to you is – why do you think conservatives like Ryan, Gowdy and McCain disagree so strongly with the President on the significance of the memo. I look forward to your considered response.
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Bo, Ryan & Gowdy agree with memo, but do not think that it will compromise Special Counsel investigation. Most Republicans believe that it will, especially due to the high probability FISA court was not advised that dossier was not corroborated & was paid for by Hillary & DNC through Fusion GPS. As for McCain, he is a Trump hater & will go to any lengths to compromise Trump. When full documentation is revealed, you will understand why the Democratics & Liberal media are fighting so hard against this memo – it will expose both Hillary & Obama for who they really are.
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I try to understand how people can support Trump, but I can’t. I’ve watched his campaign rallies, the debates, the inaugural address, his attack on all of America’s intelligence agencies, his meeting with the Russians in the WH where he insulted America, his attack on judges, his support of racists, … This is a just a short list of things I’ve seen with my own eyes, no main stream media required. I am perplexed and saddened by it all.
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Thanks for your thoughts, Brooks – My impression and distain for Donald Trump has been built up by watching and listening to him. I read where someone has suggested that Trump isn’t actually a person, but rather a collection of bad traits. But he could not have damaged this country and its institutions the way he has unless the Republican Party had looked the other way, and in some cases, helped him out. I won’t be surprised to see the Republican Party suffer both long and short-term damage from their willful association with him and what he stands for.
Take a look sometime at my photography on my website. I plan to take a several photo trips this year, including one or two to Florida to photograph birds, and one or two to either Arizona or Glacier National Park in Montana, mostly to photograph landscapes.
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Comment by Bertie Jackson Tillotson
Don, Jr. says “sweet revenge”. We will see if Trump permits release of the Democrat memo. Stay tuned. Senator McCain’s response is the truth; however, very disturbing. The guy who suggested watching FOX, can’t watch Trump TV.
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Thanks, Bertie, for your comment – I agree that Senator McCain is a hero – and a national treasure. I plan to write a tribute to McCain soon. Most people will wait until he dies to give him the praise and appreciation that he so truly deserves. Hope you and your family are okay.
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BTW, Bertie – you might know Jim Boone, who made the comment about Fox news. He’s the son of the Late James and Lois Lord Boone (school teacher) formerly of Toomsboro.
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McCain is a war hero in my book, but has always been a-rebel in the Republican Party. As for FOX, OAN, & talk radio, these outlets are the only sources for a conservative to hear the truth. We deplorables like Trump’s policies, even though some don’t like his personality. Some of us are well educated & some are not, but most all have one trait in common- common sense.
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Jim – Bad manners and some forms of bad behavior may be seen as personality traits, but dishonesty, racism and demeaning other people are character traits. Some might not like Trump because of his personality, but I see him mostly as a collection of bad character traits.
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Comment by Lynda Crayton
“My opinion is-why is trump still in the white house!”
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Thanks for your thought, Linda. My answer; because republicans control congress.
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Comment by Sharon Amor:
“My only comment is to suggest that people read the article by Jonathan Rauch and Benjamin Wittes in the March issue of The Atlantic. It can be viewed online.”
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I’ve moved your comment and others here from facebook because I’d rather not have these discussions there. I thank you for the reference to the Atlantic, which I think is quite good. My favorite lines from the article which I find is so true are: “Forced to choose between their support for Trump and their suspicion of Russia, conservatives went with Trump. Forced to choose between their support for Trump and their insistence that character matters, evangelicals went with Trump “
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Comment by Linda:
“Ya know, it’s not necessary to keep proving “our king” is no good-just get rid of him and his people.”
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