Thank you, thank you, thank you to Mr. Schrage and to Matt. What happened to our country? When did second-rate, wanna-be hacks become central players in a coup attempt against a Democratically elected POTUS? How and why did our FBI and other alphabet agencies become so corrupt and biased? Better yet, who corrupted them and why?
And maybe the most profound question is where - aside from this site and very, very few others - has true journalism gone? Where has unbiased, apolitical, "just the facts ma'am", un-spun journalism gone?
As an American - not a Republican or Democrat - I beg you to keep digging at the truth and let's let Mother Justice decide.
I would argue that our arrival at this place of corruption an bias is the logical result of 90-years of coordinated public relations and advertising efforts to separate language from evidence in service to money. "Words don't mean anything anymore." is a common refrain because we have lost our ability to differentiate between evidence and the contrived. www.LinguaGalaxiae.com
"What happened to our country?" Nothing much new. What changed as the Trump era arrived (idk exactly why) is that we have better visibility into what happens behind the veil of expert administration and the theater of red-blue politics.
"Who corrupted them and why?" They did it themselves (more-or-less consciously) within a career system that requires it. That's normal.
"Where has true journalism gone?" It's always been a struggle to get the truth of government corruption and incompetence through. I doubt Sy Hersch would say it was easier for him. Millions of Americans follow independent media now so it's probably better now than before.
It isn't about who corrupted these officials and agencies, it's what corrupted them. In a word: Money. Think about this for a moment: the 2021 federal budget, which begins on October 1, 2020, calls for spending $4.829 trillion. The scope and size of the federal government and the amount of money it has at its disposal creates incentives for even the most ethical and moral people among us to falter.
It’s not really the amount of dollars that matters. It’s the power to digitally print them for your allies. If the government were unable to debase our currency there would have to be a consensus on spending and it would be significantly lower.
Uhhh, you must be new to America. Have you never read any history of the US. I mean, Watergate, Iran-Contra, the 80's, Clinton's. This story is nothing new.
It sounds like the farcical nature of the original investigations and all subsequent investigations was an open secret. I thought that the Horowitz report was revealing but the reality is so much worse. Thank you for your commitment to the truth and to our Republic.
Thank you, Matt, for helping to bring the truth to this sordid affair. I found the article fascinating with details, etc as I have been following the story since 2017 when Mueller was appointed Special Counsel. You are a courageous journalist whom I greatly admire.
I breathlessly await the Washington Post’s coverage of this development (actually, Erik Wemple might go there). The NY Times probably risks another Slack chat staff revolt if they threaten to pursue this.
I always thought there was some BS in Russiagate; would *you* plot with the Trump team in a way that needed to remain secret? But I’ve been stunned at how almost entirely made up it really is. Sadly, only Republicans will pursue further investigation. And after years and years of Whitewater, Benghazi, election fraud etc, it would be hard to blame any casual observer who thinks it’s just Republicans going after Democrats yet again
Just think what John Le Carre would do with this bunch of greedy bumbling idiots. And heh --how do you like Obama now? What a "piece of work" (nicest thing I could think of)
The media have very successfully ignored almost anything of note so far so I'm sure you will be correct in this as well. Merely not reporting the actual news is mild compared to the many, many lies they have published. They truly are the enemy of the people!
Yep. They'll continue driving people apart, change the elections to mail-in and then increase police powers under the guise of fighting a war against infidels they themselves funded and planted.
We are probably running in different circles. Every voter I know (with the exception of a couple of Trump supporters) still believe the Russiagate story, absolutely. After all, Comey didn't "exonerate" anyone.
They have less influence than they used to, but they are not completely irrelevant in shaping public opinion. They are still quite powerful, particularly at generating hysteria in a large segment of the population. We have several hysterias being fanned simultaneously now, if you haven't noticed.
There are reasons to be suspicious and cautious of Schrage, because he is going public so late in the game and has old connections to Trump's Republican enemies. It's conceivable he could be attempting to misdirect ahead of some revelation. I've seen suggestions that he may want to help serve the FBI up as the scapegoat to take heat off the CIA and other intelligence services.
However, Matt Taibbi cut his teeth as a journalist in the hall of mirrors that was Russian politics and oligarch-owned media in the 1990s. He may literally be the one man in America most able see through the fog and get to the truth.
The sad truth is many Americans still believe Russiagate happened. As much I oppose T and his policies, it is evident that it was a plot to drive T from office and it failed. It will take either a tv series of a movie by Oliver Stone for people to be deprogrammed from the mass media lies on the left. But I will post this to the New Haven Green Party page for those who can handle the truth. Independent journalism is all we have left in this mad, death spiraling existence.
So if this is not to be an “October Surprise,” question - why now?
That is NOT to say, that the truth should not come out. The chips must fall where they may.
And for all the Trumpers in the comments, Trump is still not a good or competent person, even if he is a victim of Intelligence community set ups. His visibly harmful policies and actions, independent of these matters, define him.
Either way, I suspect this is validating to Aaron Mate, Glen Greenwald, Jimmy Dore, Matt Taibbi and others I am sure. And kudos to Matt for getting this out In the public for all to digest.
Trump’s sin is wanting to have detente with Russia. The bipartisan War Party cannot continence that in any way. It’s an existential threat to their gravy train.
Why now? Perhaps because it was difficult to do sooner given the unprecedented stonewalling that has gone on throughout this entire process.
I don't really think it's October surprise.
Durham couldn't start until Mueller was finished. And, to be fair, this has been coming out in drips for a year plus. The fact that it is going to reach a crescendo at election time is politics as usual
How dare you?!? In the last paragraph, he clearly says this shouldn't be an "October Surprise".
What do you mean "why now"? Didn't you read the article? In 2017, he didn't realize what he was recording. In 2019, he was too busy maintaining the strength in his upper lip to go back and listen. Only now, in 2020, like yesterday, and only at the request of someone else did he decide to review the recordings.
No, I just couldn't take the writing style. It's not Matt's It's Steven P. Schrage's own account. I noticed that Matt did write what I requested after I had made my comment. It's his next post here on Substack.
Alexander Downer, the guy who gave the “compelling” tip-off to start Crossfire hurricane investigation , is an all-round POS. He’s the closest thing to an Aussie Dick Cheney.
Oh .. and he also became director of the Australian subsidiary of Huawei 🤡and is on the Advisory Board of British strategic intelligence and advisory firm Hakluyt & Company 🤣
Thank you, thank you, thank you to Mr. Schrage and to Matt. What happened to our country? When did second-rate, wanna-be hacks become central players in a coup attempt against a Democratically elected POTUS? How and why did our FBI and other alphabet agencies become so corrupt and biased? Better yet, who corrupted them and why?
And maybe the most profound question is where - aside from this site and very, very few others - has true journalism gone? Where has unbiased, apolitical, "just the facts ma'am", un-spun journalism gone?
As an American - not a Republican or Democrat - I beg you to keep digging at the truth and let's let Mother Justice decide.
I would argue that our arrival at this place of corruption an bias is the logical result of 90-years of coordinated public relations and advertising efforts to separate language from evidence in service to money. "Words don't mean anything anymore." is a common refrain because we have lost our ability to differentiate between evidence and the contrived. www.LinguaGalaxiae.com
"What happened to our country?" Nothing much new. What changed as the Trump era arrived (idk exactly why) is that we have better visibility into what happens behind the veil of expert administration and the theater of red-blue politics.
"Who corrupted them and why?" They did it themselves (more-or-less consciously) within a career system that requires it. That's normal.
"Where has true journalism gone?" It's always been a struggle to get the truth of government corruption and incompetence through. I doubt Sy Hersch would say it was easier for him. Millions of Americans follow independent media now so it's probably better now than before.
I shoulda put "expert" in scare quotes.
Yep
You’re saying exactly what I too think. And you do it well Thank you
Mother Justice dances naked for money.
It isn't about who corrupted these officials and agencies, it's what corrupted them. In a word: Money. Think about this for a moment: the 2021 federal budget, which begins on October 1, 2020, calls for spending $4.829 trillion. The scope and size of the federal government and the amount of money it has at its disposal creates incentives for even the most ethical and moral people among us to falter.
Not JUST the federal budget.
There's a LOT of international trade and business going on and most of it is based on slave labor in China.
Like, ACTUAL fucking slave-labor.
Think about that when you stand in line for that new iPhone while wearing your fucken Nikes marveling about how comfortable your feet are.
I’ve lived in China for 6 years. You are full of shite.
It’s not really the amount of dollars that matters. It’s the power to digitally print them for your allies. If the government were unable to debase our currency there would have to be a consensus on spending and it would be significantly lower.
Uhhh, you must be new to America. Have you never read any history of the US. I mean, Watergate, Iran-Contra, the 80's, Clinton's. This story is nothing new.
It sounds like the farcical nature of the original investigations and all subsequent investigations was an open secret. I thought that the Horowitz report was revealing but the reality is so much worse. Thank you for your commitment to the truth and to our Republic.
Thank you, Matt, for helping to bring the truth to this sordid affair. I found the article fascinating with details, etc as I have been following the story since 2017 when Mueller was appointed Special Counsel. You are a courageous journalist whom I greatly admire.
Thank you for this profoundly important article...disturbing as hell
I breathlessly await the Washington Post’s coverage of this development (actually, Erik Wemple might go there). The NY Times probably risks another Slack chat staff revolt if they threaten to pursue this.
I always thought there was some BS in Russiagate; would *you* plot with the Trump team in a way that needed to remain secret? But I’ve been stunned at how almost entirely made up it really is. Sadly, only Republicans will pursue further investigation. And after years and years of Whitewater, Benghazi, election fraud etc, it would be hard to blame any casual observer who thinks it’s just Republicans going after Democrats yet again
“What development?”
Just think what John Le Carre would do with this bunch of greedy bumbling idiots. And heh --how do you like Obama now? What a "piece of work" (nicest thing I could think of)
This information will disappear into a black hole. It will never be reported in any meaningful way by the media outlets of record.
The media have very successfully ignored almost anything of note so far so I'm sure you will be correct in this as well. Merely not reporting the actual news is mild compared to the many, many lies they have published. They truly are the enemy of the people!
Yep. They'll continue driving people apart, change the elections to mail-in and then increase police powers under the guise of fighting a war against infidels they themselves funded and planted.
Maybe some Chinese money needs a banana republic.
We are probably running in different circles. Every voter I know (with the exception of a couple of Trump supporters) still believe the Russiagate story, absolutely. After all, Comey didn't "exonerate" anyone.
They have less influence than they used to, but they are not completely irrelevant in shaping public opinion. They are still quite powerful, particularly at generating hysteria in a large segment of the population. We have several hysterias being fanned simultaneously now, if you haven't noticed.
Holy shit, Batman.
There are reasons to be suspicious and cautious of Schrage, because he is going public so late in the game and has old connections to Trump's Republican enemies. It's conceivable he could be attempting to misdirect ahead of some revelation. I've seen suggestions that he may want to help serve the FBI up as the scapegoat to take heat off the CIA and other intelligence services.
However, Matt Taibbi cut his teeth as a journalist in the hall of mirrors that was Russian politics and oligarch-owned media in the 1990s. He may literally be the one man in America most able see through the fog and get to the truth.
Spot on.
Interesting comment.
The sad truth is many Americans still believe Russiagate happened. As much I oppose T and his policies, it is evident that it was a plot to drive T from office and it failed. It will take either a tv series of a movie by Oliver Stone for people to be deprogrammed from the mass media lies on the left. But I will post this to the New Haven Green Party page for those who can handle the truth. Independent journalism is all we have left in this mad, death spiraling existence.
The disturbing implication is that Schrage felt he had to come forward now, because Durham is going to do nothing.
Yeah, feels that way.
Well, at least we got to see more of what was behind the curtain before they blow it up and make the US a third-world slave ship.
So if this is not to be an “October Surprise,” question - why now?
That is NOT to say, that the truth should not come out. The chips must fall where they may.
And for all the Trumpers in the comments, Trump is still not a good or competent person, even if he is a victim of Intelligence community set ups. His visibly harmful policies and actions, independent of these matters, define him.
Either way, I suspect this is validating to Aaron Mate, Glen Greenwald, Jimmy Dore, Matt Taibbi and others I am sure. And kudos to Matt for getting this out In the public for all to digest.
I suspect Rachel Maddow won’t be calling.
Trump’s sin is wanting to have detente with Russia. The bipartisan War Party cannot continence that in any way. It’s an existential threat to their gravy train.
I think his main sin from the establishment point of view is cutting off the China gravy train.
Bingo.
His policies threaten to upend that gravy boat... the same gravy boat that made people rich enough to afford a trip to Epstein's Pedo Island.
Why now? Perhaps because it was difficult to do sooner given the unprecedented stonewalling that has gone on throughout this entire process.
I don't really think it's October surprise.
Durham couldn't start until Mueller was finished. And, to be fair, this has been coming out in drips for a year plus. The fact that it is going to reach a crescendo at election time is politics as usual
How dare you?!? In the last paragraph, he clearly says this shouldn't be an "October Surprise".
What do you mean "why now"? Didn't you read the article? In 2017, he didn't realize what he was recording. In 2019, he was too busy maintaining the strength in his upper lip to go back and listen. Only now, in 2020, like yesterday, and only at the request of someone else did he decide to review the recordings.
Amen
Matt, please translate this for us. This article is painful to read.
Disagree. Read it carefully and slowly. It is a complicated story but well worth the attention.
I had to read it several times; undermines journalism as we thought we knew it.
Are you serious? You need this spoon-fed to you?
No, I just couldn't take the writing style. It's not Matt's It's Steven P. Schrage's own account. I noticed that Matt did write what I requested after I had made my comment. It's his next post here on Substack.
Fair enough.
I agree. Pain hurts. (I’m a new subscriber – for now.) Matt needs a copy editor.
It's not Matt. It's Steven P. Schrage's own account. I noticed that Matt did write what I requested after I had made my comment.
No, he just needed to report this as one installment in a series of interviews. Q and A.
With links.
Alexander Downer, the guy who gave the “compelling” tip-off to start Crossfire hurricane investigation , is an all-round POS. He’s the closest thing to an Aussie Dick Cheney.
When he was foreign minister, he had the East Timor PM’s office bugged so that Australia gained an unfair advantage during marine boundary treaty negotiations for oil and gas fields in Timor sea https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Australia%E2%80%93East_Timor_spying_scandal
This treaty benefited an oil exploration company called Woodside Energy, of which Downer became a consultant as soon as he was thrown out of office.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-03-06/east-timor-acuses-australia-of-collusion/9519530
Oh .. and he also became director of the Australian subsidiary of Huawei 🤡and is on the Advisory Board of British strategic intelligence and advisory firm Hakluyt & Company 🤣
Thanks to Steven P. Schrage and Matt Taibbi. I look forward to more, but am fearful of a further coverup.
Wow. They are all going down. This is spectacular. Thank you both for having the courage. American heroes.