Are The Republicans Russian Dupes?

Do you remember the Red Scare of the 50s?

Do you remember Republican Senator McCarthy question… “Are you now or have you ever been a member of the Communist Party?” Well now the Republican Party should ask that question to themselves.

RUSSIA WANTS AMERICANS TO DOUBT MUELLER, EXPERTS WARN
Newsweek
By Zacary Fryer-Biggs
December 26, 2017

Russian meddling in the 2016 election was apparently just the prequel.

Now America’s former Cold War rival is using social media to undermine special counsel Robert Mueller’s probe, a former CIA official and a former Republican congressman said Monday night.

Michael Morell, who ran the CIA, and Michael Rogers, former chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, wrote in an op-ed in The Washington Post that Russia is still busy using its social media tools to create doubt across the U.S. about Mueller’s integrity.
[…]
During one week in early December, for example, roughly 20 percent of the activity from accounts tied to Russian intelligence for propaganda was focused on undermining faith in Mueller’s investigation into potential collusion between Russia and the successful campaign of Donald Trump, according to research by The Alliance for Securing Democracy.

Meanwhile…

Trump slams FBI, attacks Steele dossier
Mercury News
By Michelle Ye Hee Lee | Washington Post
December 26, 2017

PALM BEACH, Fla. – After a quiet Christmas Day, President Trump is back at work – on Twitter.

Trump began his day criticizing the FBI and claiming the now-famous dossier containing allegations about his connections to Russia and possible coordination between his campaign and the Kremlin is a “pile of garbage.” Trump, who is vacationing at his private estate in Mar-a-Lago, appeared to be watching and quoting from the morning cable-news show “Fox and Friends” while tweeting.

“WOW, @foxandfrlends ‘Dossier is bogus. Clinton Campaign, DNC funded Dossier. FBI CANNOT (after all of this time) VERIFY CLAIMS IN DOSSIER OF RUSSIA/TRUMP COLLUSION. FBI TAINTED.’ And they used this Crooked Hillary pile of garbage as the basis for going after the Trump Campaign!,” Trump tweeted. (For the record, the account he credited in the tweet is a fake Fox & Friends Twitter account).

You have to wonder why Trump is so worried about Muller’s investigation?

Is he closing in on Trump?

Is Trump’s puppet master in Russia pulling the strings?

GOP lawmaker calls for 'purge' of FBI
The Hill
By Rebecca Savransky
December 26, 2017

Rep. Francis Rooney (R-Fla.) on Tuesday called for a "purge" of the FBI, warning of "deep state" figures at work in the agency.

Rooney said during an interview on MSNBC that the American people have "very high standards" for the country's government agencies, and suggested they aren't being met.

He was pressed during the interview on whether he is trying to discredit the Department of Justice, and by extension the investigation into Russia's election interference.

"I don't want to discredit them. I would like to see the directors of those agencies purge it," he replied.
"And say, look, we've got a lot of great agents, a lot of great lawyers here, those are the people that I want the American people to see and know the good works being done, not these people who are kind of the deep state."

Why are the Republicans so bent on discrediting the FBI when they were praising in 2016 when the FBI was investigating Hillary Clinton. Is the investigation getting to close? Or has the Republican Party gotten cozy with Putin?

Jennifer Rubin: Now we know why Republicans are attacking the FBI
The spectacle of Republicans trying to cook up a spurious case of corruption against the entire FBI is strong evidence of their inability to take their constitutional responsibilities seriously.
Salt Lake Tribune
By Jennifer Rubin | The Washington Post
December 25, 2017

CNN reported that Deputy FBI Director Andrew McCabe this week testified before the House Intelligence Committee and then before members of the House Intelligence, Oversight and Judiciary committees that former FBI director James Comey told McCabe that President Donald Trump had asked for a pledge of loyalty. Comey previously testified that the president had requested loyalty; Trump has denied that this took place.

Rep. Jerrold Nadler of New York, the ranking Democrat on the House Judiciary Committee, put out a statement slamming Republicans for holding a secret meeting of House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte, R-Va., and House Oversight and Government Reform Committee Chairman Trey Gowdy, R-S.C., with members of the House Oversight and Judiciary committees to discuss interviewing McCabe:

“Today’s ‘emergency’ interview with FBI Deputy Director McCabe was both rushed and unnecessary and further demonstrates that Republicans are desperate to distract from the Russia investigation and undermine the credibility of the FBI and Special Counsel Mueller’s investigation,” Nadler said in the statement. “This truth was laid bare when we learned last evening that a group of Republicans have been secretly meeting for months for just that purpose.
[…]
The Republicans, by their conduct, implicitly recognize Trump’s weak defense to a potential obstruction charge. Contrary to the Trump attorney’s mumbo jumbo, they realize that a sitting president with a corrupt intent can be cited for obstruction of justice, although the case might need to be prosecuted after he leaves office.

Second, Republicans understand that if the fact pattern is believed, Trump at the very least committed an impeachable action (although not necessarily a criminal violation of federal statute) in pressuring the then-FBI director to lay off of Michael Flynn and curtail the Russia investigation. If the facts here were not so damning, Republicans would not find it necessary to call into question the credibility of the entire FBI.

Are the Republicans discrediting the FBI to just protect Trump or are they worried that the money trail will back to them? Or are they also on the take?

Discrediting the FBI is a serious violation of the public trust. It is the leading law enforcement agency in the U.S.; who knows how it will affect other criminal cases if the trust is lost? It is even worse if they are doing to rally their conservative base.

Maybe we should ask all the Republicans ““Are you now or have you ever been in the pay or have received money from the Communist Party?”