Former CIA Chief Brennan slams Trump

Andrew McCabe was the Acting Director of the FBI during the time between President Trump's firing of James Comey and the confirmation of his replacement, Christopher Wray.  Since then, McCabe has been FBI Deputy Director.  He has had a long, distinguished career at the FBI that spans more than 20 years -- and he was set to retire yesterday.

However, he ran afoul of Trump, and Republicans accused him of improperly disclosing information about the Clinton investigation and then lying about it to investigators.  McCabe has strongly denied doing anything improper, saying that it is part of the Deputy Director's job to give helpful information to the media, and he did not cross any lines of confidentiality.

Trump and Congressional Republicans have painted him as the epicenter of all that they say is wrong with the FBI, part of a cabal out to get the Trump administration, even though McCabe is himself a life-long, registered Republican.

Trump pressured Attorney General Jeff Sessions to fire McCabe.  Instead, Sessions referred the matter to the Justice Department's Inspector General.  The IG issued its report last Wednesday, saying that McCabe did handle the Clinton matter inappropriately and recommended his firing.   I don't know the details, so I can't make an independent judgment on that finding.

What I do know is that the handling of McCabe's firing was highly inappropriate, even cruel.   Here's what transpired.   The decision was up to Sessions.   McCabe had already announced he was retiring, and his last day was to be March 18th -- the first day that he would be eligible for a full pension for his years of service.

Sessions waited until 10 pm on Friday the 16th -- then he fired McCabe, some 26 hours before he would be eligible to get his full pension.

Here was Trump's very unpresidential reaction (by Twitter, of course):
   "Andrew McCabe FIRED, a great day for the hard working men and women of the FBI.  A great day for Democracy.  Sanctimonious James Comey was his boss and made McCabe look like a choirboy.  He knew all about the lies and corruption going on at the highest levels of the FBI."

McCabe has written a response that is both forceful and, by Trump standards, measured and professional.   He essentially says that this is part of an effort to discredit him and the FBI and to undermine the Mueller investigation, because McCabe would have been a witness as to what Comey told him at the time of Trump's attempt to get him to end the Flint investigation, which led to Comey's firing -- i.e., McCabe would be a witness in the obstruction of justice case against Trump.

McCabe also kept detailed notes, like Comey, of any individual meetings he had with Trump.  CNN reports that Mueller already has McCabe's notes about those conversations.

According to reporting by The Hill, Former Attorney General Eric Holder responded to the firing:  "Analyze the McCabe firing on two levels:  the substance and the timing.  We don't know enough about the substance yet,  The timing appears cruel and a cave that compromised DOJ independence to please an increasingly erratic President who should have played no role here.  This is dangerous." -- Eric Holder.

And then, THIS . . . from former CIA Director John Brennan, addressing Trump.
   "When the full extent of your venality, moral turpitude, and political corruption becomes known, you will take your rightful place as a disgraced demagogue in the dustbin of history.  You may scapegoat Andy McCabe, but you will not destroy America.   America will triumph over you."

This is so blunt and condemning that I even doubted whether it was authentic, from Brennan himself.   But it has been reported by both HuffPost and Reuter's;   and Brennan has been very critical of Trump in the past, especially about his attacks on the FBI and CIA.   Earlier this month, Brennan said there was "deep deep worry and concern" about the safety of America under the Trump administration.

WOW.    True . . . but WOW!!!

Ralph

PS:  Several congressmen have offered McCabe temporary jobs in their offices so that he could fulfill finish his federal employment time to be eligible for his full retirement (one or two days).