The soon to be firing of Jeff Sessions

[ordnance11]

Anyone taking any bets on when he rides into the sunset?

Edit: The main reason Trump hasn't fired him yet is because he doesn't want a clear obstruction of justice charged tied to him. The GOP was willing to give him a pass on Comey. Hopefully, not on Sessions. Trump might just do it anyway.
__________________
Into terror!,  Into valour!
Charge ahead! No! Never turn
Yes, it's into the fire we fly
And the devil will burn!
- Scarlett Pimpernell

[robkelk]

1) Is Trump sufficiently intelligent to realize that he put his own head into a noose as soon as he hired Sessions? (This is a rhetorical question, BTW.)

2) "Obstruction of justice" is an impeachable offense, right? (This is another rhetorical question, BTW.)

3) How long is it until the mid-term elections, again?
--
Rob Kelk
"Governments have no right to question the loyalty of those who oppose
them. Adversaries remain citizens of the same state, common subjects of
the same sovereign, servants of the same law."

- Michael Ignatieff, addressing Stanford University in 2012

[ordnance11]

1) Is Trump sufficiently intelligent to realize that he put his own head into a noose as soon as he hired Sessions? (This is a rhetorical question, BTW.)

2) "Obstruction of justice" is an impeachable offense, right? (This is another rhetorical question, BTW.)

3) How long is it until the mid-term elections, again?

On #1: Actually, it should be framed the other way around. Was Sessions aware of the snake pit he was about to be hung over when he took the job? Even better, why the heck did he throw in with Trump?

On #3: Too long
__________________
Into terror!,  Into valour!
Charge ahead! No! Never turn
Yes, it's into the fire we fly
And the devil will burn!
- Scarlett Pimpernell

[Labster]

Heh, my mother is organizing a protest immediately after Bob Mueller is fired as Special Council, because we know it's a matter of when, not if.  Terrible, self-defeating decision?  Trump'll do it.

Senator Jefferson Beauregard Sessions III, a Southern gentleman, was in with Trump from the beginning of the campaign, largely because Trump had the same opinions on illegal immigration and Obama being terrible.  He was one of the very first establishment Republicans to support Trump, and his loyalty was well rewarded.  What Trump didn't know is that Sessions has a greater loyalty to the law than to him (especially if it's a Jim Crow law, but anyway).

This is what happens when Trump is caught in a catch-22.  I think it's pretty clear he's committed some felony, whether it be obstruction of justice or fraud or theft or money laundering.  Maybe he shot a guy on Fifth Avenue.  It doesn't really matter, because they're all acting like they have something to hide.  And he came into the presidency thinking that if he had his guy in, they'd never be able to investigate him against his orders, because he's the alpha dog.  Which is not how it works at all, of course.  If you're in Russia sure, no one investigates Putin, because he's too busy topless horseback riding to commit crimes, obviously.

They've played the game of trying to spin cover stories, except that it gets proven false in two days, so they need another story, and then another.  So whatever it is, they weren't smart enough to keep it under wraps against the FBI and Special Council.  They've floated trial balloons about self-pardons, as if that wasn't an admission of guilt.  Note that the Constitution says pardons don't apply "in cases of impeachment", which means that the founders knew that some asshole would try this eventually.  Nor would pardons stop the investigation, because it has national security implications.

Given that Sessions recused, there's no way to have a cover story for the "ordering investigations into me stopped".  If he fires Sessions, Congress passes an independent council statute to restart the investigation.  So the only approach Trump has left is to try to get the guy to leave of his own accord.  Abuse the guy, and get him to quit.  Sessions is not that dumb.

So we're on to plan G, which is to rally the base with a transgender military thing from left field and telling Boy Scouts™ how terrible immigrants are, and then to fire Sessions in August and fill the seat with a recess appointment.  To which Democrats are already getting wise, and are talking about cancelling summer break.  So now both parties are talking about giving up the August Recess, for different reasons.  That only leaves the Saturday Night Massacre approach, and we've already seen that leads to resignation.

And Trump, for all that he's displaying early signs of dementia, does not have it in him to resign.  I feel like he's still trying to live up to his father's image that a man has to be a "killer".  He could never lose face in such a way as to quit being President after promising it would be "so easy".  Eventually he's going to come to terms with his failure, because eventually, reality always wins.  I'm starting to think we may see the first presidential suicide.  I mean, why not?  He's a coward and seems to do everything else wrong, so why not this?
-- ∇×V

[ordnance11]

Heh, my mother is organizing a protest immediately after Bob Mueller is fired as Special Council, because we know it's a matter of when, not if.  Terrible, self-defeating decision?  Trump'll do it.

Senator Jefferson Beauregard Sessions III, a Southern gentleman, was in with Trump from the beginning of the campaign, largely because Trump had the same opinions on illegal immigration and Obama being terrible.  He was one of the very first establishment Republicans to support Trump, and his loyalty was well rewarded.  What Trump didn't know is that Sessions has a greater loyalty to the law than to him (especially if it's a Jim Crow law, but anyway).

This is what happens when Trump is caught in a catch-22.  I think it's pretty clear he's committed some felony, whether it be obstruction of justice or fraud or theft or money laundering.  Maybe he shot a guy on Fifth Avenue.  It doesn't really matter, because they're all acting like they have something to hide.  And he came into the presidency thinking that if he had his guy in, they'd never be able to investigate him against his orders, because he's the alpha dog.  Which is not how it works at all, of course.  If you're in Russia sure, no one investigates Putin, because he's too busy topless horseback riding to commit crimes, obviously.

They've played the game of trying to spin cover stories, except that it gets proven false in two days, so they need another story, and then another.  So whatever it is, they weren't smart enough to keep it under wraps against the FBI and Special Council.  They've floated trial balloons about self-pardons, as if that wasn't an admission of guilt.  Note that the Constitution says pardons don't apply "in cases of impeachment", which means that the founders knew that some asshole would try this eventually.  Nor would pardons stop the investigation, because it has national security implications.

Given that Sessions recused, there's no way to have a cover story for the "ordering investigations into me stopped".  If he fires Sessions, Congress passes an independent council statute to restart the investigation.  So the only approach Trump has left is to try to get the guy to leave of his own accord.  Abuse the guy, and get him to quit.  Sessions is not that dumb.

So we're on to plan G, which is to rally the base with a transgender military thing from left field and telling Boy Scouts™ how terrible immigrants are, and then to fire Sessions in August and fill the seat with a recess appointment.  To which Democrats are already getting wise, and are talking about cancelling summer break.  So now both parties are talking about giving up the August Recess, for different reasons.  That only leaves the Saturday Night Massacre approach, and we've already seen that leads to resignation.

And Trump, for all that he's displaying early signs of dementia, does not have it in him to resign.  I feel like he's still trying to live up to his father's image that a man has to be a "killer".  He could never lose face in such a way as to quit being President after promising it would be "so easy".  Eventually he's going to come to terms with his failure, because eventually, reality always wins.  I'm starting to think we may see the first presidential suicide.  I mean, why not?  He's a coward and seems to do everything else wrong, so why not this?

No, based on his previous behavior he'll negotiate a deal that gets him out of the situation, while claiming he won. He'll call a news conference, pardon his family and aides of any and all crimes, say he made America Great Again, then resign. Pence then pardons him for any crimes.
__________________
Into terror!,  Into valour!
Charge ahead! No! Never turn
Yes, it's into the fire we fly
And the devil will burn!
- Scarlett Pimpernell

[Labster]

I guess.   Maybe I keep thinking about how I'd write the Trump story if it were a tragedy, but I forget that in reality stupidity is infinite.
-- ∇×V

[robkelk]

Quoting from http://allthetropes.org/wiki/Hanlon%27s_Razor

Hanlon's Razor is often stated this way:

Don't assume malice when stupidity is an adequate explanation. At least, not the first time.

However, once you pass the Mrs. Bridges test (taken from BBC's Upstairs, Downstairs, in that "Once is bad luck, twice is a bad habit"), malice becomes a reasonable hypothesis. At this point the Dr. Johnny Fever rule applies ("When they're out to get you, paranoia is just straight thinking").

How many times has it been, now?
--
Rob Kelk
"Governments have no right to question the loyalty of those who oppose
them. Adversaries remain citizens of the same state, common subjects of
the same sovereign, servants of the same law."

- Michael Ignatieff, addressing Stanford University in 2012

[Black Aeronaut]

One might argue learned behavior, but learned from what!?

Really, though, I would argue that it's a bit of column A and column B - He's malicious, and a fucking idiot at that.