{"id":7349,"date":"2018-06-25T01:10:09","date_gmt":"2018-06-25T01:10:09","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/georgiawasp.com\/?p=7349"},"modified":"2023-05-11T16:04:11","modified_gmt":"2023-05-11T16:04:11","slug":"the-rope-has-to-tighten-slowly","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/georgiawasp.com\/?p=7349","title":{"rendered":"\u201cThe noose has to tighten SLOWLY\u2026\u201d"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n

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There\u2019s been a lot of hubbub lately about Donald Trump\u2019s pardon power.\u00a0 And a lot of Americans worry that he could use that pardon-power so freely that he could avoid any successful prosecution.\u00a0 (Either against himself or against any of his underlings.)<\/em><\/p>\n

The first question has already been answered:\u00a0 He can’t pardon himself.\u00a0 (See\u00a0No Donald, you CAN\u2019T pardon yourself<\/a><\/strong>.\u00a0\u00a0And even if he could, that “self-pardon” would only apply to federal crimes<\/a>, not state crimes or civil suits.)\u00a0<\/em> But that still leaves the question:\u00a0 \u201cIf Trump pardons anyone and everyone who could incriminate him, wouldn\u2019t that be the same as ‘pardoning himself?’\u201d<\/p>\n

\"AllThe answer?\u00a0 \u201cNot necessarily.\u201d\u00a0 Which brings us back to the years from 1972 to 1974.\u00a0 Back to \u201cDeep Throat<\/a>,\u201d\u00a0Richard Nixon<\/a>, the\u00a0Watergate scandal<\/a>, and the movie \u2013 and book \u2013\u00a0All the President\u2019s Men<\/a>.<\/p>\n

And for you thinking this is\u00a0\u201clike deja vu all over again<\/a>,\u201d\u00a0it is<\/strong>\u2026\u00a0\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

* \u00a0 * \u00a0 * \u00a0 *<\/p>\n

First of all, I wanted to call this post, \u201cThe truth will come out\u2026<\/em><\/strong>\u201d\u00a0 (Because that’s what I believe.)\u00a0 <\/em>Then I started re-reading\u00a0All the President\u2019s Men<\/a>,\u00a0the 1974 book by\u00a0Bob Woodward<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0<\/span><\/span>Carl Bernstein<\/a>.\u00a0 I was looking for the part where \u201cDeep Throat<\/a>\u201d lectured\u00a0Woodward<\/a>\u00a0on the importance of building a conspiracy investigation slowly<\/em><\/strong>, “from the outer edges in.”\u00a0 (In an obscure parking garage at 3:00 a.m…)\u00a0\u00a0<\/em><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

I checked out the hard copy from a local library – my paperback is somewhere “lost in my house” – and eventually found the passage in question.\u00a0 Then I started\u00a0typing in the lecture, and the phrase \u201cthe rope has to tighten slowly<\/em><\/strong>”\u00a0sounded ever<\/em><\/strong> so much better.<\/p>\n

* \u00a0 * \u00a0 * \u00a0 *<\/p>\n

But here we\u00a0cut to the chase<\/a>.\u00a0 Specifically,\u00a0could Donald Trump use his pardon-power so<\/em><\/strong> freely that he could avoid any successful prosecution?\u00a0 Put another way, what would happen if Trump pardoned all those lower-level minions who could possibly incriminate him?<\/p>\n

Just this.\u00a0\u00a0Since those “minions” will have been pardoned, they will no longer face the prospect of incriminating themselves.\u00a0 Which means they can be compelled to testify.\u00a0 And if they refuse to testify, they can be jailed for\u00a0contempt of court<\/a>.<\/p>\n

And once they testify, a prosecutor \u2013 or Democratic Congress \u2013 can start building a case against Trump for obstructing justice.\u00a0 For one thing, granting pardons to hide a criminal act is a criminal act itself.\u00a0 Which brings us to the old saying, “The wheels of justice turn slowly, but grind exceedingly fine<\/a>.”\u00a0 (As illustrated at left.)<\/em><\/p>\n

And today’s\u00a0antithetical<\/a>\u00a0version: “Why is the Mueller\u00a0investigation\u00a0taking so long<\/a>?”\u00a0\u00a0(Note that that complaint was lodged as early as\u00a0five months after Mueller was appointed<\/a>.\u00a0 Which brings up the classic\u00a0American need for\u00a0instant\u00a0gratification<\/a>, but that’s a whole ‘nother story…)<\/em><\/p>\n

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Which brings us back to 1974, and\u00a0\u201cDeep Throat<\/a>\u201d lecturing\u00a0Bob Woodward<\/a>\u00a0on the importance of building a conspiracy investigation\u00a0slowly<\/em><\/strong><\/span><\/span>.\u00a0 You can read the full lecture – and background – at page 196 of the Simon and Schuster (1974) hardback, All the President’s Men<\/a>:<\/p>\n

\n

\u201cA conspiracy like this \u2026 a conspiracy investigation \u2026 the rope has to tighten slowly around everyone\u2019s neck.\u00a0 You build convincingly from the outer edges in<\/strong>, you get ten times the evidence you need against the Hunts and Liddys.\u00a0 They feel hopelessly finished \u2013 they may not talk right away, but the grip is on them.\u00a0 Then you move up and do the same thing to the next level.\u00a0 If you shoot too high and miss, then everybody feels more secure.\u00a0 Lawyers work this way.\u00a0 I\u2019m sure smart reporters do too.\u00a0 You\u2019ve put the investigation back months.\u00a0 It puts everybody on the defensive \u2013 editors, FBI agents, everybody has to go into a crouch after this.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

The book added, \u201cWoodward swallowed hard.\u00a0 He deserved the lecture.\u201d<\/p>\n

The point is this:\u00a0 The Mueller Investigation started over a year ago, in mid-May, 2017.\u00a0 So far – it appears – it has resulted in 17 indictments and five guilty pleas.\u00a0\u00a0So what happens if Trump starts pardoning more<\/em> <\/strong>lower-level people?<\/p>\n

Simply this:\u00a0 They lose their Fifth Amendment right not to incriminate themselves.\u00a0 They can be compelled to testify, on pain of being jailed for contempt of court.\u00a0 The Mueller Investigation might end, but we would begin a whole new series of state<\/em><\/strong> criminal proceedings.\u00a0 As in any state like New York where “The Donald” or his minions have done business.<\/p>\n

And the \u201cnoose-tightening\u201d would start all over again\u2026<\/em><\/strong><\/h3>\n

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<\/p>\n

* \u00a0 * \u00a0 * \u00a0 *<\/p>\n

The upper image is courtesy of Noose Tightening Image\u00a0–\u00a0Image\u00a0Results<\/a>.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

Re: Pardons and the Fifth Amendment.\u00a0 See\u00a0Would a full presidential\u00a0pardon\u00a0void an individual\u2019s\u00a05th\u00a0Amendment protection<\/a>, and\u00a0Donald Trump\u00a0Pardons: How a\u00a0Pardon\u00a0Could Backfire<\/a>.\u00a0 For a fuller explanation of “contempt of court” in such circumstances, see\u00a0<\/em>If you\u2019re pardoned, can you\u00a0be compelled to testify about\u00a0your crime<\/a>?<\/em><\/p>\n

Re:\u00a0 “The wheels of justice turn slowly.”\u00a0 \u00a0See\u00a0Justice\u00a0–\u00a0Wikiquote<\/a>, under the letter “F,” which noted the saying has “appeared in various forms over the millennia, going back as far as “Euripides<\/a>\u00a0circa 405 BCE.”\u00a0 In other words, the concept was known at least over 2400 years ago.\u00a0\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

Re:\u00a0 The Mueller investigation starting on or about May 17, 2017.\u00a0 See\u00a0Robert\u00a0Mueller, Former F.B.I. Director, Is Named Special Counsel for Russia Investigation<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n

Note that the ellipses (“…”) were in the original “Deep Throat” quote in\u00a0All the President’s Men<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n

For the guilty pleas and indictments, I Googled<\/a>\u00a0“mueller investigation indictments and guilty pleas.”<\/em><\/p>\n

Note that the change from “rope-tightening” to “noose-tightening” was a bit of\u00a0creative license<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n

The lower image is courtesy of Just The Facts Ma’am\u00a0– Image Results<\/a>.\u00a0 But see also\u00a0Joe Friday\u00a0–\u00a0Wikipedia<\/a>, which noted that\u00a0Detective<\/a>\u00a0Friday never actually used the phrase:\u00a0 “A common misattributed catchphrase to Friday is ‘Just the facts, ma’am.’ In fact, Friday never actually said this in an episode, but it was featured in\u00a0Stan Freberg<\/a>‘s works parodying ‘Dragnet.'”\u00a0 See also\u00a0<\/em>FACT CHECK: Dragnet ‘Just\u00a0the Facts’ –\u00a0snopes.com<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n

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\u00a0<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

* \u00a0 * \u00a0 * \u00a0 * There\u2019s been a lot of hubbub lately about Donald Trump\u2019s pardon power.\u00a0 And a lot of Americans worry that he could use that pardon-power so freely that he could avoid any successful prosecution.\u00a0 (Either against himself or against any of his underlings.) The first question has already been […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[3,2,5],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/georgiawasp.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7349"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/georgiawasp.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/georgiawasp.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/georgiawasp.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/georgiawasp.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=7349"}],"version-history":[{"count":38,"href":"http:\/\/georgiawasp.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7349\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":15104,"href":"http:\/\/georgiawasp.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7349\/revisions\/15104"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/georgiawasp.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=7349"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/georgiawasp.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=7349"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/georgiawasp.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=7349"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}