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Breaking: Speaker Johnson will NOT defund special counsel Jack Smith or eliminate his job
My Inbox ^ | May 9 | Politico

Posted on 05/09/2024 10:58:28 AM PDT by RandFan

MIKE DON’T KNOW ABOUT JACK — We’d also like to highlight a couple of other newsy tidbits from Johnson, who spoke to us just a few hours after easily surviving the MARJORIE TAYLOR GREENE-led attempt to remove him as speaker.

He described how he “didn’t think they would go through with it” after talking with the Georgia Republican and her allies. He talked about how he approached Greene, Rep. THOMAS MASSIE (R-Ky.) and Rep. PAUL GOSAR (R-Ariz.) on the floor afterward to make peace.

“I said … ‘I don’t carry grudges, and I’m not angry about this,” he said. “We have to work together. And I want to work with you guys and those ideas we were talking about. I’m still working on them, so I hope we can put this behind us and move forward.’”

But in one of his more provocative remarks, Johnson went in depth on what exactly he’d discussed with Greene & Co. — particularly their demand to defund special counsel JACK SMITH as part of the appropriations process. He essentially called their effort to target DONALD TRUMP’s chief prosecutor unworkable.

“That’s not something you wave a wand and just eliminate the special counsel as a provision,” the former constitutional law attorney explained. “There is a necessity for a function like that, because sometimes the Department of Justice — which is an executive branch agency — can’t necessarily, without a conflict of interest, investigate or prosecute the president who’s their boss, or the president’s family.”

We followed up: So are you prepared to write language eliminating Smith’s job into appropriations bills?

His answer? “No.”

While Johnson might be correct that targeting Smith is much easier said than done, his candor on this topic could land crosswise with Trump, who played a major role in holding off a GOP coup and offered measured support for the speaker yesterday.

The issue is clearly a sensitive one. This morning, we asked Trump’s campaign about Johnson’s special counsel remarks at 10:27 a.m. Four minutes later, we got a call from a person close with Johnson who offered what he sees as an important caveat: that Johnson is looking at other ways to go after Smith.


TOPICS: Chit/Chat; Conspiracy
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Useless isn't he...
1 posted on 05/09/2024 10:58:28 AM PDT by RandFan
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To: RandFan

Smith was never approved by the Senate. He is illegitimate. Why are we funding him?


2 posted on 05/09/2024 11:00:56 AM PDT by kabar
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To: RandFan

>>Useless isn’t he...

He’s useful to someone.. just not us.


3 posted on 05/09/2024 11:01:49 AM PDT by vikingd00d (chown -R us ~you/base)
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To: RandFan

Johnson is right. (1) The measure would not even get a hearing in the Senate. (2) I think Trump will win the legal battle on the documents case in the courts. (3) Defunding special prosecutors will become a political tit for tat and will backfire at some time against the GOP.


4 posted on 05/09/2024 11:03:04 AM PDT by Wuli
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To: RandFan

Tell me how many votes Jack Smith is handing Trump in the upcoming election.
And that’s why I’m not going to get bent out of shape about an attempt to defund something which would only be counter productive and could not possibly succeed.
The most important thing coming up on aragenda is the election of Donald Trump. let’s get that accomplished before we start worrying about the current speaker of the house.


5 posted on 05/09/2024 11:03:42 AM PDT by Williams (Stop Tolerating The Intolerant)
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To: RandFan

Could be a blessing in disguise...............


6 posted on 05/09/2024 11:04:16 AM PDT by Red Badger (Homeless veterans camp in the streets while illegals are put up in 5 Star hotels....................)
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To: RandFan

Smith doesn’t need to be defunded. Let him stay. He’s destroying his case, and himself, all on his own.


7 posted on 05/09/2024 11:05:17 AM PDT by Signalman (I am not a snob. Ask anyone who matters.)
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To: kabar

We might not be for long.


8 posted on 05/09/2024 11:05:41 AM PDT by Ge0ffrey
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To: Wuli
I think Trump will win the legal battle on the documents case in the courts

Yup. The way the case is going, I think there are much better demands to be made of Speaker Johnson.

9 posted on 05/09/2024 11:11:05 AM PDT by FreeReign
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To: RandFan

““That’s not something you wave a wand and just eliminate the special counsel as a provision,” the former constitutional law attorney explained. “There is a necessity for a function like that, because sometimes the Department of Justice — which is an executive branch agency — can’t necessarily, without a conflict of interest, investigate or prosecute the president who’s their boss, or the president’s family.””

The DOJ is not placed to investigate the president. Congress is. This is more of that “independent DOJ” crap.
The President is the sole person charged with faithfully executing the laws. They check on that power is Congress with it’s impeachment power if he uses it corruptly. The check is not some agency who answers to nobody who can investigate him at will.
By the Constitution the President is authorized to start and stop investigations. He can even elect to conduct the personally. Thomas Jefferson did this.

Johnson was actually a Constitutional Attorney and he thinks DOJ is independent? No wonder we are in such trouble.


10 posted on 05/09/2024 11:12:58 AM PDT by DesertRhino (2016 Star Wars, 2020 The Empire Strikes Back, 2024... RETURN OF THE JEDI. )
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To: RandFan

It seems Judge Cannon has this case under control. She has postponed the trial date and not re-scheduling it until three hearings occur concerning Jack Smith’s mis-behavior.


11 posted on 05/09/2024 11:13:14 AM PDT by elpadre
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To: Wuli

I agree. Let’s use a little Sun Tzu smarts here! “Don’t defund your enemy when he’s fixin’ to be gelded with a butter knife by da judge.” Sun Tzu wrote that in “The Art Of The Lawfare Deal”. (right?)


12 posted on 05/09/2024 11:13:33 AM PDT by Nervous Tick ("First the Saturday people, then the Sunday people...": ISLAM is the problem!)
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To: RandFan

Assclown Johnson never explains how the nation got by without this “necessary” special counsel concept for our first 200 years.


13 posted on 05/09/2024 11:16:51 AM PDT by DesertRhino (2016 Star Wars, 2020 The Empire Strikes Back, 2024... RETURN OF THE JEDI. )
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To: RandFan

Mike Johnson isn’t there to serve the American people he’s there to serve his donors like most of our corrupt politicians.

REP. MIKE JOHNSON’S LARGEST DONOR WAS AIPAC. HE’S TRYING TO CUT FREE TAX FILING TO SEND WEAPONS TO ISRAEL.
https://theintercept.com/2023/11/01/mike-johnson-donor-aipac-israel/

It’s not just free tax filing they’re cutting. They are cutting the subsidies for poor Americans who received government assistance for their internet bill. They are cutting all sorts of domestic spending to favor the war machine. Since Israel has enough money to provide their citizens with free medical care and college educations why can’t they finance and pay for their own wars too? This entire country has been captured by Zionist interests that put Israel’s interests above that of Americans.


14 posted on 05/09/2024 11:17:06 AM PDT by jimwatx
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To: Wuli

I agree


15 posted on 05/09/2024 11:20:11 AM PDT by TribalPrincess2U (Bye done!)
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To: RandFan

duh.. he is uniparty approved.


16 posted on 05/09/2024 11:20:46 AM PDT by cableguymn
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To: RandFan

Go vote again to save FISA Mike.


17 posted on 05/09/2024 11:30:34 AM PDT by mass55th (“Courage is being scared to death, but saddling up anyway.” ― John Wayne)
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To: Wuli; All

Coward. It’s never the right time to do anything except pass full throated leftist bills. It’s ALWAYS the right time to do that.


18 posted on 05/09/2024 11:32:46 AM PDT by wiseprince (Me)
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To: RandFan
Pelosi’s bitch. He is owned. Well, so are 95% of all Republicans so there is that.
19 posted on 05/09/2024 11:44:08 AM PDT by Badboo (A fascist is the one who wants to take your guns. That's how it always starts.)
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To: Wuli

“Johnson is right“

Yeah ok, let’s give cover to Johnson who is s back stabbing Traitor and a dirty coward. Fine let it die in the Senate, at least he could have put some heat on that scumbag Smith.


20 posted on 05/09/2024 11:49:04 AM PDT by gibsonguy ( )
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