Trump Administration/Executive Ethics

Paul S. Ryan, head of litigation at Common Cause, a nonpartisan watchdog group in Washington, said the New York filing provides details of actions that could also violate a federal ban on campaigns funneling “soft money” through nonprofits. “This involvement of the Trump campaign in the foundation’s disbursements right before the Iowa caucuses may very well violate the campaign finance law soft money ban,” Ryan said in an interview.

The Inspector General’s report runs more than 500 pages but it clearly states that the investigation “found no evidence that the conclusions by Department prosecutors were affected by bias or other improper considerations; rather, we concluded that they were based on the prosecutors’ assessment of the facts, the law, and past Department practice.” The report will continue to be cherrypicked by President Trump and his defenders in an attempt to undermine Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation, the FBI, and the Justice Department itself. But we must not lose sight of the fact that the Mueller investigation has already led to 23 indictments and 5 guilty pleas. This is a real investigation into real crimes and it must be allowed to run its course.

Americans must thoughtfully, vigilantly evaluate the news, particularly on social media.

A former CIA chief argues that the the president is a product, not a cause, of a profound shift in the way millions of our fellow citizens and people around the world perceive the world.

The President’s pardon of Dinesh D’Souza looks like an effort to dismiss his own apparent violations as no big deal. But violating campaign finance laws is a big deal, and no one is above the law — not even the President.