Trump’s Triumph: Fastest Countdown to Special Prosecutor Kickoff (May 18, 2017)

Trump.45 is obsessed with his own personal records and best performances, even when they occur exclusively in his own mind, like his estimates for the Inauguration crowds, or his 2016 popular vote margin of victory, for example.

There is however, one granite ribbed, fact-based, solid gold standard of unique firstness just achieved in his honorable favor last night. The fastest time in US history to appointment of a Special Prosecutor Investigating possible criminal conduct related directly to the President is now his alone.

On Top of the Mountain, King of All He Surveys (at least for now).

These powerful federal prosecutors have been variously named: the latest, Robert Mueller, has been designated as Special Counsel. Previous occupants have been called Special Prosecutors, or Independent Counsels. Whatever we call them, they have much the same legal function, duties, and powers, with some exceptions. And they are powerful enough that none of this activity is the least bit of good news for Trump.45, or his fans and loyalists.

The whole spectacle of Special Prosecutors roaming the offices, records, computers, communications, and cubbyholes of the President’s aides and officials, and the recriminations and turmoil they bring to a sitting Administration dates from the time of Watergate, and we owe a debt of origin and gratitude to Richard Nixon.

In the 45 years since Nixon rang the bell on this phenomenon, America has had nine Presidents: Nixon, Ford, Carter, Reagan, Bush I, Clinton, Bush II, Obama, and Trump.

Five of these men (better than half of the total) have had their personal run-ins with Special Prosecutors of various stripes: Nixon, Reagan, Clinton, Bush II, and now Trump joins the Pantheon. For the record, 80% of the Presidents afflicted with this tribulation were Republicans. Only one was a Democrat. Unrelated, of course.

Four escaped or alternatively committed no political outrages serious enough to trigger the immense effort to reign in perceived political sins. This fortunate group includes Obama, despite Trump.45’s personal animus and distress at this completely unfair witch hunt situation. Among the four who were not encumbered were two Democrats and two Republicans, 50-50, even-steven.

The names of Special Prosecutors who have held the job are a familiar part of the America’s political record for the last 50 years (Archibald Cox, Leon Jaworski, James Neal, Lawrence Walsh, Robert Fiske, Ken Starr, Robert Ray, and Patrick Fitzgerald, among others).

Historically, there have been other instances where significant misconduct caused Presidents to appoint Special Prosecutors to investigate, root out, and clean up corruption among their associates and cronies: Ulysses Grant, James Garfield, Teddy Roosevelt, Calvin Coolidge, and Harry Truman, among others, before the modern era.

Countdown to Trouble

Thus, Trump wins the All-Time Olympic Gold Prize for Shortest Time to Presidential Legal Trouble by a whopping margin, less than six months. Actually less than five months; in fact after just 119 days. A World Record Supreme.

Nixon, the original source of the trouble, in the only scandal that caused a sitting President to resign from office, required 53 months to build up sufficient animus and evidence to scald himself. For Reagan the time to his fall from grace suspicion was 72 months. By the 1990’s the threshold barrier had eased somewhat and Clinton was implicated in 12 months. Bush II was caught up in 24 months.

So, Trump.45 is far and away the Champion-in-Chief of Dodgy Presidential Conduct and Cover Up requiring a Special Prosecutor to sort out, time-wise. His record is likely to stand forever as a monument to an American dicey political experiment that sowed the seeds of its own travail.

This is not the place for a detailed review of the final outcomes of the previous four completed, and now fifth ongoing investigation, but they don’t come easy or close quickly. The Clinton era Whitewater Special Prosecutor investigations were extended over three named lead prosecutors and finally wrapped up in September 2000 after 6½ years, having cost some $60-$70 million of taxpayer funds in the meantime. Prosecutor Walsh’s investigation of Reagan’s Iran-Contra Deal finished in August 1993, also after 6½ years of work.

Neither are these Special Prosecutor toothless or risk free for the President’s senior advisors and confidants, nor the President himself. All four previous Presidential Special Prosecutors obtained indictments and convictions (often multiple) of investigative targets close to the President other than the President himself. The Watergate Investigation lead directly to Nixon’s resignation from office in disgrace in August 1974, barely ahead of certain impeachment by a final vote of the entire House of Representatives. In 1998 two article of impeachment were approved against Bill Clinton in the House, but he was acquitted of both charges by the Republican controlled Senate three months later.

So, based on the last 50 years of American political history, when a Special Prosecutor is appointed to investigate the President, half the time the President himself is impeached or forced to resign to avoid this ignominious process. In the impeachment case that went forward against Bill Clinton, the case failed (conviction requires 67 votes in favor). Despite the Republican Senate majority of 55 votes in 1999 when the Clinton Trial was held in the Senate, the votes were 50-50, and 55-45 against impeachment on the two charges, thus both failing.

If the past is any guide then, Trump.45 and associates are in significant legal and political trouble as of right now, and the damage and intrusive investigations will most probably last for at least a full term, if he decides to stick it out. It might last as short a time as 20 months for the affected parties if Trump.45 chooses to resign sometime, say for health reasons (analogy to Watergate’s last trial verdict in January 1975: Mitchell, Haldeman & Ehrlichman all convicted and sent to prison)

So much for Trump.45’s imperious instruction and/or wan, vain hope for a quick and successful end to his self-induced political worst case scenario nightmare unfolding as we speak.

Wrap Up

Trump.45 is finally in the American Presidents Record Book with a durable, long-lasting First Place Award, proof against all challengers. Any Permanent First Place is important, good or bad. Just spell his name right: Donald John Trump, to be precise. Actually, this achievement is kind of like the MLB All-Time record for Most Strikeouts.

If Trump.45 were wise and careful about his own situation (despite continuous evidence to the contrary via Twits and his public talk so far) he would promptly and semi-permanently shut the hell up, and start taking some really smart criminal lawyer’s advice to chill big time. Chances are he isn’t and he won’t, as his self-imagined infallible personal radar will demand justification and exoneration via major media, social networks, and public rally events, long before any legal jeopardy for his actions is past.

In other words, he will most likely keep digging long and hard until he tunnels all the way to China, out of cell phone and Twitter range. Based on Trump.45’s twin Twits from this morning, and his remarks at the White House this afternoon, he is getting a good start onmaking this particular prediction come true.

Hubris is a dark and powerful force, often irresistibly attractive for blatant narcissists like Trump.45, even if he were fully in control of his former youthful mental faculties, on which point there is some doubt.

In the meantime, all of American pays the price for his unwavering arrogance and overconfidence. The only hint of amusement to be gained from all this mess would be if you were safely fortunate to live in a civilized modern society, not too close or affected by U.S. political thrashings, like say Switzerland, or New Zealand. Maybe even Canada, if they weren’t so close to us geographically.

We can but hope and pray.

Trump.45, Please Shut Up and Listen to An Actual Smart Lawyer.

(Someone whose expertise extends beyond real estate deals, corporate bankruptcy, licensing deals, taxes, and/or suing business rivals.)

Background on Independent Counsels from Wikipedia:

United States Office of the Independent Counsel was an independent prosecutor — distinct from the Attorney General of the United States Department of Justice — that provided reports to the United States Congress under 28 U.S.C. § 595. The office was terminated in 1999 and replaced by the U.S. Department of Justice Office of Special Counsel.

In 1978, a Democratic Party-majority Congress was determined to curb the powers of the President and other senior executive branch officials due in part to the Watergate scandal and related events such as the Saturday Night Massacre. They drafted and passed the Ethics in Government Act of 1978, creating a special prosecutor (later changed to Independent Counsel) position, which could be used by Congress or the Attorney General to investigate individuals holding or formerly holding certain high positions in the federal government and in national Presidential election campaign organizations.

The prosecutor, who was appointed by a special panel of the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, could investigate allegations of any misconduct, with an unlimited budget and no deadline, and could be dismissed only by the Attorney General for “good cause” or by the special panel of the court when the independent counsel’s task was completed. As the president could not dismiss those investigating the executive branch it was felt that the independence of the office would ensure impartiality of any reports presented to Congress. However, there have been many critics of this law including Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia. Many argued the new Independent Counsel’s office was a sort of “fourth branch” of government that had virtually unlimited powers and was answerable to no one. However, the constitutionality of the new office was ultimately upheld in the 1988 Supreme Court case Morrison v. Olson.

Previously under the Independent Counsel Reauthorization Act of 1994, United States Attorney General Janet Reno had Donald Smaltz appointed Independent Counsel by the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia (Division for the Purpose of Appointing Independent Counsels Ethics in Government Act of 1978, As Amended, Division 94-2) on September 9, 1994, to “investigate to the maximum extent authorized by law” whether the US Department of Agriculture Secretary Mike Espy “committed a violation of any federal criminal law . . . relating in any way to the acceptance of gifts by him from organizations or individuals with business pending before the Department of Agriculture.” Smaltz was also given jurisdiction to investigate “other allegations or evidence of violations of any federal criminal law by organizations or individuals developed during the course of the investigation of Secretary Espy and connected with or arising out of that investigation.”

The most famous Independent Counsel was Kenneth Starr, whose report led to the impeachment of President Bill Clinton by the United States House of Representatives, though he was later acquitted by the United States Senate.

The Office of the Independent Counsel is not to be confused with the U.S. Office of Special Counsel (OSC) which is a permanent independent federal investigative and prosecutorial agency whose basic legislative authority come from three federal statutes, the Civil Service Reform Act, the Whistleblower Protection Act, and the Hatch Act.

It should also not be confused with the “independent counsel” who is appointed by the Attorney General pursuant to 28 Code of Federal Regulations 600.1. There have been three independent counsels of this type regarding the following: the Iran/Contra investigation in 1987 (sec. 601.1); Edwin Meese III, the Wedtech case in 1987 (sec. 602.1), and President and Ms. Clinton in the Madison Guaranty/Whitewater case in 1994 (sec. 603.1). Finally, it should also not be confused with the appointment in 2003 of Patrick Fitzgerald (“United States Department of Justice Office of the Special Counsel”) regarding the investigation into the public naming of CIA spy Valerie Plame, nor should it be confused with the appointment of Robert Mueller III to investigate possible interference by the Russian government in the 2016 presidential election, which includes investigating possible collusion between the Russian government and the campaign of President Donald Trump. These were done pursuant to the general statutory authority of the Attorney General.

Eventually, the law establishing the independent counsel expired at midnight on June 30, 1999.

Originally created by the Ethics in Government Act of 1978 and the Ethics in Government Act Amendments of 1982 (96 Stat. 2039), January 3, 1983

Reauthorized for five years by the Independent Counsel Reauthorization Act of 1987 (101 Stat. 1293), December 15, 1987

Lapsed, December 15, 1992, by failure of reauthorization

Reinstituted by the Independent Counsel Reauthorization Act of 1994 (PL 103-270), June 30, 1994

Expired at midnight on June 30, 1999

Investigations carried out by Independent Counsel

Independent Counsel Arthur Christy relating to allegations of illegal drug use of Jimmy Carter’s aide Hamilton Jordan, 1978

Independent Counsel Leon Silverman relating to Raymond Donovan, 1981–84

Independent Counsel Jacob A. Stein relating to Edwin Meese III, 1984

Independent Counsel Whitney North Seymour, Jr. relating to Michael Deaver, 1981–89

Independent Counsel Alexia Morrison relating to Theodore Olson, 1986–88

Independent Counsels Arlin Adams and Larry Thompson relating to Samuel Pierce and others associated with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, 1988–98

Independent Counsel Lawrence E. Walsh relating to the Iran-Contra affair, 1986–93

Independent Counsels Joseph DiGenova and Michael Zeldin relating to improper search of passport records, 1992–95

Independent Counsel Donald Smaltz relating to charges of corruption against Mike Espy, 1994-2001. Espy acquitted at trial.

Independent Counsel Daniel Pearson relating to the allegations of the Commerce Department trade mission controversy, 1995-96

Independent Counsel David Barrett relating to Henry Cisneros payments controversy, 1995–2006

Independent Counsel Curtis Emery von Kann relating to Eli J. Segal, 1996–98

Independent Counsel Carol Elder Bruce relating to Bruce Babbitt and allegations of public corruption surrounding the Department of Interior’s denial of a casino contract to an Indian Nation and the truth or falsity of testimony to a Senate Committee concerning the official conduct, 1998-2000

Independent Counsel Ralph Lancaster relating to charges of influence-peddling and the solicitation of illegal campaign contributions against Labor Secretary Alexis Herman, 1998–2000

Independent Counsels Kenneth Starr, and Robert Ray relating to the suicide of Vince Foster, the Whitewater scandal, Travelgate, Filegate, and later the Lewinsky scandal, 1994-2001

Special Counsel, Nicholas J. Bua (November 13, 1991) relating to allegations that high-ranking officials of the United States Department of Justice during the Reagan Administration (1981–89) had acted improperly for personal gain to bankrupt Inslaw Inc.. Bua was appointed by Attorney General William Barr to advise Barr on whether or not an independent prosecutor ought to be appointed to investigate the allegations.

Historical Use of Special Prosecutors in America (partial from the Washington Post):

Here’s a brief history of special prosecutors:

Whiskey Ring Scandal

In 1875, Treasury Secretary Benjamin H. Bristow exposed a conspiracy by a group of whiskey distillers in St. Louis, Chicago and Milwaukee to evade federal taxes. The distillers had bribed IRS officials and planned to use unpaid tax money to help fund the reelection campaign of President Ulysses S. Grant.

Grant, who was not suspected of involvement, appointed special prosecutor John B. Henderson, whose investigation led to 238 indictments — including of Grant’s personal secretary, Orville E. Babcock. Grant fired Henderson and replaced him with James Broadhead. Grant testified in Babcock’s defense, and Babcock was acquitted; 110 others were convicted on charges related to tax fraud.

Star Route Scandal

President James Garfield appointed special prosecutor William Cook in 1881 to investigate the awarding of postal contracts for so-called star routes in the West and Southwest. Cook’s probe produced 25 indictments on charges related to bribery but yielded only convictions, both of which were reversed in a retrial.

More Post Office bribery

In 1903, President Theodore Roosevelt’s attorney general, Philander Knox, appointed two special prosecutors, Charles J. Bonaparte and Holmes Conrad, to investigate another bribery scheme at the Post Office. Thirty Post Office officials and private contractors were indicted, but the postmaster general, Henry C. Payne, survived the scandal.

Oregon land fraud

Knox appointed another special prosecutor, Francis J. Heney, in 1905 to investigate a land fraud scheme in Oregon. Almost 100 people were indicted, including Sen. John H. Mitchell (R-Ore.) and Rep. John N. Williamson (R-Ore.), both of whom were convicted. Williamson won his appeal; Mitchell also appealed but died before the case concluded.

Teapot Dome Scandal

In 1924, President Calvin Coolidge appointed special prosecutors Atlee Pomerene and Owen Roberts to probe the leasing of oil fields, including the Teapot Dome reserve in Wyoming. Interior Secretary Albert Bacon Fall was convicted of bribery five years later, but served just nine months in prison.

Justice Department corruption

After a congressional probe uncovered a conspiracy among officials at the Justice Department and Bureau of Internal Revenue to fix tax cases, President Harry S. Truman appointed special prosecutor Newbold Morris in 1952. Morris was given the title special assistant attorney general.

As part of his investigation, Morris demanded that roughly 600 Justice Department officials fill out detailed personal finance questionnaires. Attorney General J. Howard McGrath refused and fired Morris, who had been on the job for only two months. McGrath then resigned, and Truman did not name another special prosecutor.

Watergate

In 1973, Attorney General Elliott Richardson appointed special prosecutor Archibald Cox to lead the Watergate investigation. Cox subpoenaed Oval Office audio recordings made by President Richard M. Nixon, but Nixon fought the subpoena in court. After a federal appeals court ordered Nixon to turn over the tapes, he fired Cox. Richardson and Deputy Attorney General William D. Ruckelshaus resigned in protest, in what became known as the Saturday Night Massacre.

Nixon initially said his Justice Department would take over the Watergate investigation but, under pressure, he appointed another special prosecutor, Leon Jaworski, who ultimately succeeded in obtaining the tapes via a Supreme Court ruling. Nixon resigned in August 1974.

Iran-contra affair

In 1986, a three-judge panel appointed independent counsel Lawrence E. Walsh to investigate the Ronald Reagan administration’s sale of weapons to Iran. (The Ethics in Government Act of 1978 had replaced the term “special prosecutor” with “independent counsel.” Attorneys general retained the power to decide when a special prosecutor was necessary, but judiciary panels assumed selection authority.)

Walsh concluded that the Reagan administration had illegally sold the weapons to secure the release of U.S. hostages and defied Congress by giving the proceeds to Nicaraguan rebels, known as contras, who were fighting to overthrow their Marxist government. Fourteen U.S. officials faced criminal charges and 11 were convicted, including Reagan’s national security adviser, Navy Adm. John M. Poindexter, and Marine Lt. Col. Oliver North, the National Security Council staff aide accused of masterminding the scheme.

The convictions were overturned on appeal, however, and other officials received presidential pardons. A $39 million investigation ultimately resulted in zero prison time.

Whitewater

In 1994, Attorney General Janet Reno appointed Robert B. Fiske Jr. special counsel (yes, another new term) to investigate the business dealings of the Whitewater Development Corp., formed by Bill and Hillary Clinton and two partners after their joint purchase of 220 acres of land in Arkansas’ Ozark Mountains in 1978. The Ethics in Government Act had lapsed by the time Reno tapped Fiske; when it was renewed later in 1994, a three-judge panel replaced Fiske with Kenneth W. Starr.

Starr’s investigation led to fraud convictions for the Clintons’ partners, James B. and Susan McDougal. The Clintons were never charged. But Starr’s probe expanded to include the president’s personal conduct, ultimately focusing on his affair with White House intern Monica Lewinsky and his statements under oath about the relationship. The House of Representatives impeached Bill Clinton in 1998, accusing him of perjury and obstruction of justice, but the Senate acquitted him in 1999.

The Whitewater investigation cost $70 million.

Valerie Plame

In 2003, Attorney General John D. Ashcroft recused himself from an investigation into whether George W. Bush administration officials illegally leaked the name of CIA operative Valerie Plame to a journalist. The Ethics in Government Act had lapsed again, leaving the Justice Department with the authority to name a special prosecutor.

With Ashcroft on the sideline, the decision fell to his 43-year-old deputy, who had been on the job for just three weeks — James B. Comey.

Comey appointed Patrick J. Fitzgerald, who sought the cooperation of New York Times reporter Judith Miller in identifying the source of the leak. Miller refused because she had promised to protect a confidential source and in 2005 spent almost three months in jail for contempt of court. Miller’s source, I. Lewis “Scooter” Libby, chief of staff to Vice President Richard B. Cheney, ultimately released her from their confidentiality agreement and was convicted in 2007 on charges related to the leak.