Is Russia’s Election Meddling Trump’s Benghazi Moment?
The political equivalent to Chinese water torture was Hillary Clinton’s email scandal. Many blame the persistent drip-drip-drip of information as the mitigating factor in Clinton’s presidential loss. What many forget is that Hillary Clinton’s perceived trust issues began with the Benghazi terror attack.
The September 11th, 2012 Benghazi attack was a recipe for political turmoil. The attack killed four Americans on 9/11 during the 2012 election. Additionally, the resulting confusion surrounding the details of the attack lingered like a black cloud. Was this a riot, a demonstration or a coordinated attack? Was the attack a retaliatory effort due to a YouTube video criticizing the Prophet Mohammed? Did American intelligence have forewarning to the attack?
As questions swirled, allegations surfaced that Secretary Clinton was potentially concealing information about the nature of the attack from the public due to her use of a private email server.
Drip.
Secretary Clinton maintained she never knowingly shared or concealed classified information.
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The State Department’s inspector general uncovered the private server contained information marked classified.
Drip.
There were registered signatures from outside computers indicative of hacking attempts of the server
Drip.
The FBI began an investigation into the server.
Drip.
The State Department began an investigation into the use of a private server.
Drip.
Meanwhile, the House Select Committee on Benghazi spearheaded the systematic investigation of every staff member indirectly or directly linked to Clinton. The resulting investigation that originally was tasked to “investigate and report on the attack on the United States’ consulate in Benghazi, Libya” turned into a politically motivated trial of Hillary Clinton in an attempt to smear Clinton’s Presidential campaign. The Select Committee lasted from 2013 through to as late as June 28th, 2016 when the Committee issued their report.
If you still don’t believe the committee was politically motivated to smear Clinton, the 9/11 Commission, which was tasked to investigate and report findings of the 9/11 attacks, was founded on November 27, 2002 and issued a final report on July 22, 2004. That’s 603 days.
The House Select Committee on Benghazi took 812 days to issue a report.
Indeed, I find the politicization of the four Americans dead at Benghazi reprehensible, the handling of the investigation McCarthyesque and the resulting Republican electoral victory sickening. However, what would happen if the shoe were on the other foot? We may find out in less than four years given the Investigations into the Trump Campaign’s ties to Russia.
It was unearthed that, prior to his role as campaign manager, Paul Manafort dealt as an advisor to Ukrainian Oligarchs aligned with the Kremlin.
Drip.
Recently, it was reported Senior Advisor and Son-in-law to the President, Jared Kushner, attempted to create a backchannel that would allow senior Trump campaign officials to communicate with the Kremlin while avoiding detection by US authorities.
Drip.
Trump’s business interests are heavily invested by Russian oligarchs.
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The Trump campaign refused to disclose tax returns, many speculating a Russian connection in said returns.
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The Trump campaign was under investigation by James Comey and FBI for Russian electoral tampering prior to Comey’s firing.
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On his recent overseas trip, Trump refused to attack Russia’s meddling in Democratic countries’ elections in addition to failing to endorse NATO article 5.
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As an electoral strategy, Democrats have an opportunity to capitalize on the proverbial plumes of Russian smoke billowing from the windows of the White House. But is that tactically, ethically and politically a just and right act to pursue? What’s more, I’m not convinced that the majority of Americans are entirely compelled to dethrone Donald for his anti-internationalist, mercantilist point of view or for his potential Russian connections — they are too wonky issues.
-Parker