Robert Mueller’s insurance policy against Donald Trump is kicking in
Robert Mueller was only appointed as Special Counsel to investigate Donald Trump’s Russia scandal because Trump illegally fired the last guy who was in charge of the investigation. Mueller has known from day one that once he got too close to the truth, Trump might be tempted to fire him as well. All along it’s been a given that he had some sort of insurance policy in place, in case Trump got any funny ideas. Now we’re seeing a definitive piece of that insurance policy kicking in.
The U.S. Attorney’s office in the Eastern District of New York is going after Jared Kushner’s financial records from Deutsche Bank, according a New York Times report (link). The reporting does not confirm whether or not this is in relation to Kushner’s role in the Trump-Russia scandal, or Mueller’s own seized records from Deutsche Bank, or none of the above. But that part may not matter.
This is a clear signal that Kushner’s alleged crimes are going to be fully investigated and prosecuted whether Trump tries to fire Mueller or not. In fact, it’s a timely reminder that Mueller has also partnered with state level prosecutors in the Trump-Russia scandal. If Kushner’s activities are being investigated by the U.S. Attorney in New York, then those same activities are certainly being investigated by the Attorney General of New York. Trump cannot pardon anyone for state level crimes.
The real upshot here is that this story is suddenly leaking to the media. Ordinarily, Robert Mueller and the U.S. Attorney involved with the investigation would be better off keeping this kind of thing a secret. However, under the current circumstances in which Mueller’s job may or may not be in danger, he appears to be sending a signal to Donald Trump and Jared Kushner: ‘Don’t bother firing me, because this is all coming out in the wash whether I’m the one who nails you or not.’
