Republican nominee Donald Trump pleaded directly Wednesday with the Russian government to meddle in the U.S. presidential election by finding and releasing tens of thousands of private emails from his Democratic opponent, Hillary Clinton — an extraordinary and perhaps unprecedented maneuver in American politics...
...Asked whether Russian espionage into the former secretary of state’s correspondence would concern him, Trump said, “No, it gives me no pause. If they have them, they have them.”
The emails cited by Trump are from Clinton’s time at the State Department, where her use of a private server prompted a federal investigation. The FBI concluded that no prosecution was necessary...Trump is basically calling on a foreign power to actively spy on an American, to actively spy on a Presidential candidate, to actively spy on a former Secretary of State.
How isn't this treason - allying with a foreign power that is at odds with us - right up front and public?
I'm with Betty Cracker at Balloon Juice over this (although she's called it back a bit, I'm still in a rage over this). Let's call this for what it is: Trump calling on a foreign power to spy on any of us is basically Treason.
It doesn't matter that Clinton's email server has already undergone a complete federal investigation, where the worst the FBI found was that it was improper that Clinton was doing this (following how previous Sec of States did their private servers!).
Trump is taking the Far Right Narrative that Evil Clinton is still hiding something, anything, and they want to get at it by hook or by crook. Preferably by crook.
This is insane. This would be like having Richard Nixon asking Red China to wiretap Muskie (didn't have to, he hired his own). This would be like having Teddy Roosevelt asking Canada to intercept telegrams sent by Alton B. Parker back in 1904. This would be like John Adams asking the kingdom of Norway to raid Thomas Jefferson's home for his personal papers.
Or, here, let's say this in a way Trump will understand. This would be like Barack Obama calling on Ukraine to hack the IRS and expose all Trump's tax returns he refuses to show us.
HOW WOULD YOU LIKE THAT, TRUMP? You and the Far Right wingnuts on Fox Not-News would be screaming for impeachment and execution if he did that.
And that's exactly what you just said Trump. At what point should we apply what's fair to the crap you're pulling?
Dear sweet God, America. This man does not have the temperament, the intelligence, the awareness to serve as President. This is a man who will bulldoze over every law, every protocol, every liberty to indulge his own twisted fantasies and needs.
Trump is a man who is right now ignoring laws and the realities of foreign policy just to scare his voting base and bully everyone else. Trump distorts and destroys everything he touches, everything he lusts for. We are watching our nation's entire political system crumble into ash.
Dear Republican Party: any claim you have to being a serious party on foreign affairs is long over. This is just the final fucking nail in the coffin.
You need to denounce this monster in your midst and you need to denounce him by name and you need to denounce his deeds. Common decency and common sense DEMAND that you do this.
God help us.
