Trump: Even if there was collusion with Russia, 'it’s not a crime'

[GennGreymane]

http://thehill.com/homenews/administ...ts-not-a-crime

President Trump in a new interview denied any collusion between his 2016 presidential campaign and Russia, adding “even if there was, it’s not a crime.”

Speaking to The New York Times Thursday, Trump praised lawyer Alan Dershowitz, who has argued that Trump’s firing of former FBI Director James Comey was not obstruction of justice because Trump has the right to fire the head of the bureau.

“I watched Alan Dershowitz the other day, he said, No. 1, there is no collusion, No. 2, collusion is not a crime, but even if it was a crime, there was no collusion,” Trump told The Times. “And he said that very strongly. He said there was no collusion. And he has studied this thing very closely. I’ve seen him a number of times.”

“There is no collusion, and even if there was, it’s not a crime,” he continued. “But there’s no collusion.”
Trump also blasted special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation into ties between Trump’s campaign and Russia, saying it “makes the country look very bad.”

“It puts the country in a very bad position,” Trump said. “So the sooner it’s worked out, the better it is for the country.”

One of President Trump’s lawyers, Jay Sekulow, said earlier this month that it didn’t matter if members of the Trump campaign colluded with Russia because “there is no crime of collusion.”

“For something to be a crime, there has to be a statute that you claim is being violated,” he told The New Yorker. “There is not a statute that refers to criminal collusion. There is no crime of collusion.”

Mueller's investigation has the authority to investigate any matters that come up in the course of investigating possible collusion between Trump’s campaign and Russia, including possible obstruction of justice, which would be a crime.

[Draco-Onis]

1) We never colluded with Russia all fake news.
2) We may have met some Russians.
3) Ok we met a lot of Russians but it was not collusion.
4) Investigation is a witch hunt all fake news.
5) Even if we did collude it's not a crime.
6) Jail.

[GennGreymane]

1) We never colluded with Russia all fake news.
2) We may have met some Russians.
3) Ok we met a lot of Russians but it was not collusion.
4) Investigation is a witch hunt all fake news.
5) Even if we did collude it's not a crime.
6) Happy skroe

I fixed it

[Dsonsion]

The Republicans should just abduct him and hire an impersonator, it would save them a a lot of headaches.

[Toppy]

I swear its like watching a sitcom at this point.

[Draco-Onis]

I swear its like watching a sitcom at this point.

A very bad comedy.

[alexw]

I am pretty sure Trump actually knows whether there was actual collusion or not. Now the thing to understand about him is that he sees lying as no different than telling the truth. For him there is no implicit moral bias to try to be truthful as there is for most people, who might also lie but who do prefer to be truthful as there is an inbred aversion to lying. For Trump there is no such preference, whether to lie or not lie is simply a matter of which choice he believes will gain him the most advantage at that particular point in time.

Thus no word which comes from Trump's mouth can be taken at face value. Any statements he makes can not be taken to most likely be truthful, which is what we would generally assume to be the case in the interactions we make with others in our daily lives, and that extends to the statements he makes on denying collusion with Russia, and his involvement with it. Not a word out of his mouth on this issue can be trusted.

[Dontrike]

His lawyers keep saying that what he did isn't against the law because he's above the law so I'm sure that since he's listened to it so much on Fox & Friends he now actually believes this.

[Skroe]

No, but conspiracy, espionage, fraud, hacking and theft are!

But as it pertains to Trump himself, most of all, obstruction of justice. That is very much a crime.

[TZucchini]

I realize that the Trump campaign colluded with a foreign adversarial government in order to undermine our democratic institutions....

BUT, he only did so in order to save us from the massively corrupt ultra liberal Hillary Clinton.

So I don't care.

[Thekri]

Even if you leave out the entire content, the argument itself is appalling. The President of the United States just told a media source something that he saw on TV, where a man that isn't part of his administration said that his administration didn't commit crime (How would he know?), and since that man said it "Very Strongly" the President is convinced of the entire argument. Tax payers pay a lot of money to give the President better information then what he sees on TV, but for Trump, TV is reality.

I am getting so tired of this guy disgracing my nation every time he opens his mouth. In the past even presidents I disagreed with showed class OR intelligence, although not always both at the same time. Trump never has either.

[Skroe]

I realize that the Trump campaign colluded with a foreign adversarial government in order to undermine our democratic institutions....

BUT, he only did so in order to save us from the massively corrupt ultra liberal Hillary Clinton.

So I don't care.

Wait, you're serious? Please say no. I can't keep track.

[PosPosPos]

Wait, you're serious? Please say no. I can't keep track.

He's just predicting the next step up from "it's not a crime/illegal".

In case you haven't really paid attention to his posts, he's definitely not fond of Trump.

[Arvei]

1) We never colluded with Russia all fake news.
2) We may have met some Russians.
3) Ok we met a lot of Russians but it was not collusion.
4) Investigation is a witch hunt all fake news.
5) Even if we did collude it's not a crime.
6) We colluded, but it's not a crime.
7) So collusion is a crime, but you can't indict a sitting president!
8) So you can indict a sitting president, but I can pardon myself!
9) Jail.

Fixed. We're currently at #5. When we get to #8 things are going to be very interesting for Sweet Potato Saddam.

[Daelak]

He's just predicting the next step up from "it's not a crime/illegal".

In case you haven't really paid attention to his posts, he's definitely not fond of Trump.

Pretty much. All Trump supporters will come out and say it is OK for political campaigns to use the resources of a hostile foreign adversary to beat out an opponent, effectively making them all traitors.

[Adam Jensen]

No, but conspiracy, espionage, fraud, hacking and theft are!

But as it pertains to Trump himself, most of all, obstruction of justice. That is very much a crime.

As is tax evasion, which I'd bet my left nut that Trump is guilty of.

[TEHPALLYTANK]

Is Trump trying to give his lawyers a heart attack? I almost pity them, simply because Trump is such a stupid client.

[Drutt]

Sweet Potato Saddam

Just sprayed my drink across the monitor. Thanks a bunch!

As regards the topic, if this situation wasn't so serious in its implications, it would be hilarious.

[D Luniz]

Is Trump trying to give his lawyers a heart attack? I almost pity them, simply because Trump is such a stupid client.

pretty sure they get paid by the hour, not on if their client wins, so they're fine since if there is one thing they'll copy from him, if you lose, pass that blame

[tikcol]

To be fair, if Russia interfered in the US elections they did the world a favor.

I'd rather have Donald holding the reins than a fickle old crone(both male and female old crones).

He has been nothing but a breath of fresh air and has been super effective in dealing with international affairs. Especially Rocket Man. I applaud his decision for finally ending all doubts concerning the ownership of the holy land of Jerusalem finally putting a stop to Palestinian invasions.

All that is left for him to do is to build the wall. If he does that, he will effectively be the most successful politician in US history.