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Trump claims 'witch hunt'; GOP puts hope in special counsel

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FRAZIER MOORE

ASSOCIATED PRESS | May 18, 2017, 6:37AM

| Updated 4 hours ago.

NEW YORK Roger Ailes, the communication maestro who transformed TV news by creating Fox News Channel only to be ousted from his media empire at the height of his reign for alleged sexual harassment, died Thursday, according to his wife, Elizabeth Ailes. He was 77.

A former GOP operative to candidates including Richard Nixon, Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush and a one-time adviser to President Donald Trump, Ailes also created a TV network that changed the face of 24-hour news. In early 1996, he accepted a challenge from media titan Rupert Murdoch to build a news network from scratch to compete with CNN and other TV outlets they deemed left-leaning.

That October, Ailes flipped the switch on Fox News Channel, which within a few years became the audience leader in cable news. It also emerged as a powerful force on the political scene while the feisty, hard-charging Ailes swatted off criticism that the network he branded as "Fair and Balanced" had a conservative tilt, declaring he had left the political world behind.

By mid-2016 Ailes still ruled supreme as he prepared to celebrate Fox News' 20th anniversary.

But in little more than two weeks, both his legacy and job unraveled following allegations by a former anchor that he had forced her out of Fox News after she spurned his sexual advances. The lawsuit filed on July 6 by Gretchen Carlson quickly triggered accounts from more than 20 women with similar stories of alleged harassment by Ailes either against themselves or someone they knew.

Reportedly, a key witness was Megyn Kelly, the network's superstar personality, whose voice was conspicuously missing in the chorus of women and men at Fox News who spoke up on behalf of Ailes. Their defense did little to staunch the widening scandal. Despite Ailes' staunch denials, 21st Century Fox corporate head Rupert Murdoch and his sons, James and Lachlan, determined that Ailes had to go. The announcement was made on July 21.

Rumors of sexual improprieties at Fox News and by Ailes in particular weren't new. Gabriel Sherman's 2014 Ailes biography, "The Loudest Voice in the Room," reported numerous unflattering anecdotes, including an allegation (denied by Ailes) that he offered one female employee extra money if she would have sex with him.

Before Carlson's bombshell legal action, Fox's roaring success and enormous earnings (with some estimates that it accounted for nearly a quarter of the parent company's profits) insulated Ailes from any suspicion as well as from his past scrapes with the Murdoch sons over who he would report to.

His dismissal was a headspinning downfall and a breathtaking defeat for Ailes, a man who all his life seemed to be spoiling for a fight and was used to winning them.

Ailes was a brawler. And even when he was on the winning side of a battle, he positioned himself as the defiant outsider going toe-to-toe with his bullying nemeses. Brash, heavyset and bombastic, he was renowned for never giving in, for being ever confrontational with a chip on his shoulder and a blistering outburst at the ready.

When he founded Fox News Network, Ailes' stated mission was to correct for the sins of a media universe that was overwhelmingly liberal. Pledging fairness from his employees shortly before the network launched, he was typically tough talking: "Will they hit it every time? Hell, no. Will they try? Hell, yes. Will we be criticized? Hell, yes. Do I care? Hell, no."

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As usual, he had defined the enemy (in this case, his media critics and other presumed foes) before they could define themselves. It was his crowning principle.

This attack-dog style served him well when, at 27, Ailes wangled a job with Nixon, then vying for a political comeback in the 1968 presidential race.

"Mr. Nixon, you need a media adviser," Ailes declared (according to Sherman's biography).

"What's a media adviser?" asked Nixon.

"I am," replied Ailes, having fashioned the job on the spot.

Nixon, whose run for the White House had been dealt a blow eight years earlier in a televised debate against his camera-ready rival John F. Kennedy, was a challenge Ailes eagerly accepted at a moment when, as he realized better than most, TV could make or break a candidate. Concluding that viewers would never warm to Nixon, nor would the media establishment, Ailes struck a winning formula by packaging him in comfortably staged TV town-hall meetings as a man whose intelligence the audience would respect.

The remainder of Ailes' career would draw on various blends of showmanship, ruthless politics and an unmatched skill for recognizing TV's raw communication power before his opponents did, and harnessing it better.

Born in Warren, Ohio, on May 15, 1940, Roger Eugene Ailes described his working-class upbringing with three words: "God, country, family."

Afflicted with hemophilia, he spent much of his early years housebound in front of, and fascinated with, television, and after graduation from Ohio University landed an entry-level position at a TV station in Cleveland that had just started a local talk and entertainment program starring a has-been former big-band singer named Mike Douglas.

Ailes went to work as a production assistant on "The Mike Douglas Show" and rose in its ranks (at 26, he was named its executive producer) along with its rising fortunes as it went into national syndication and moved to Philadelphia.

It was there in 1967 that he and Nixon crossed paths in a meeting that changed both their lives.

After jumping ship from the "Douglas" show to help steer Nixon to the White House, Ailes spent more than a decade as a communications consultant to corporations and Republican candidates. And as a sign of his versatility, he also became a theater producer, with a hit off-Broadway musical, "The Hot L Baltimore," in the early 1970s, and a network boss, helping start Television News Incorporated, a short-lived right-wing TV service funded by conservative brewing magnate Joseph Coors, that seemed to presage Fox News by a quarter-century.

Ailes returned to presidential politics in 1984 by helping President Reagan recover from his disastrous opening debate with Democratic opponent Walter Mondale.

And in 1988, he orchestrated the media campaign for Vice President George H.W. Bush's presidential bid. It was a campaign widely seen as being no less nasty than it was successful.

One indelibly comic image that led to Bush's victory was a commercial that appropriated footage of opponent George Dukakis riding in a military tank looking foolish in a bulbous helmet. Even more explosive anti-Dukakis commercials featured a black felon, Willie Horton. Designed to play on voter fears of Democrats' supposedly soft-on-crime policies, those commercials, while effective, were widely condemned as racist. Ailes denied responsibility for them, though many of his critics were loath to believe him.

Within a few more years, he claimed he had sworn off politics.

In 1993, he joined NBC to run its cable business network, CNBC. He was credited with boosting CNBC's ratings and putting that troubled NBC subsidiary in the black. Meanwhile, he created another network, the talk-and-advice-oriented America's Talking.

"I've gotten over all the cynicism of politics," Ailes told The Associated Press in 1995, although, during that same period, Ailes moonlighted as executive producer of the syndicated TV show that starred right-wing radio sensation Rush Limbaugh.

Then, in January 1996, Ailes resigned from NBC after America's Talking was sacrificed to free up channel capacity for the company's cable-news venture, MSNBC.

Within weeks, Ailes had jumped to what was then known as News Corp., and by fall he launched Fox News Channel against a pair of seemingly indomitable rivals: three-month-old MSNBC, the network with which his former employers replaced his America's Talking channel, and cable-news pioneer CNN.

Even so, by 2002, Fox News had sealed the deal as ratings leader, dominating cable-news competition and tying his rivals in knots in both daytime as well as prime time, where he deployed a murderers' row of hosts led by Bill O'Reilly and Sean Hannity.

Ailes helped make a hot property out of Glenn Beck, and signed a virtual salon of former-and-future GOP big names who found a welcoming platform for party talking points.

Other hires included Gretchen Carlson, who came to Fox News from CBS News in 2005 and was dismissed when her contract expired on June 23, 2016, and Megyn Kelly, an attorney-turned-TV-journalist who joined the network in 2004 and a decade later was arguably the network's biggest marquee name.

From the start, Ailes steadfastly denied any political bias or agenda on the part of his network, whether in its message or its personnel. Politics, schmolitics: "I hired Sarah Palin because she was hot and got ratings," he told The AP in 2011.

Propelled by Ailes' "fair and balanced" branding, Fox News successfully targeted viewers who believed the other cable-news networks, and maybe the media overall, displayed a liberal tilt from which Fox News and Fox Business Channel (which he launched in 2006 against his former business network, CNBC) delivered its audience with unvarnished truth. Thus did he leverage the public's distrust for the media while positioning his networks as the anti-media news-media alternative and he their upright overlord.

"My first qualification is I didn't go to Columbia Journalism School," he boasted to The New York Times in January 2010, and added, "There are no parties in this town that I want to go to."

Though ratings continued to soar, in later years Ailes' power was challenged. He seemed incapable of stopping Donald Trump's rise as the GOP's top contender for the 2016 election. In an early televised debate, Fox network moderators, notably Kelly, besieged Trump with sharp interrogation about his experience, his policies and past comments about women. But the real estate mogul's candidacy was undamaged as he lobbed insults at Kelly and her network for what he labeled unfair treatment.

By summer 2016, Ailes and Trump had seemingly reached detente, with Fox News climbing on the Trump bandwagon and vice versa. It was ironic, then, that Ailes was ousted only hours before Trump accepted the GOP nomination for which Fox had helped pave the way.

With Ailes' sacking, Rupert Murdoch, the parent company's executive chairman, became interim boss of Fox News and Fox Business Network until a successor could be found. But Ailes had been so identified with the brand since its inception that many, both insiders and audience members, were left hard-pressed to envision Fox News without him.

In the meantime, the network's talent lineup took a hit as Kelly left for NBC News and Bill O'Reilly was fired amid sexual harassment charges lodged against him.

Ailes is survived by his third wife, Elizabeth, who had worked for him at CNBC as vice president of programming, and their son, Zachary.

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Roger Ailes, former Fox News CEO, dies at 77 - Santa Rosa Press Democrat

WASHINGTON Rep. Al Green (D-Texas) called for impeaching President Donald Trump from the House floor on Wednesday.

I rise today, Mr. Speaker, to call for the impeachment of the president of the United States of America for obstruction of justice, Green began in a sermon-like speech.

I do not do this for political purposes, he continued. I do it because, Mr. Speaker, there is a belief in this country that no one is above the law. And that includes the president of the United States of America. Mr. Speaker, our democracy is at risk.

Trump is in hot water for, among other things, firing FBI Director James Comey, who had been investigating Trumps campaign and its potential ties to Russian officials who interfered in last years election to help Trump win. On top of that, explosive news reports this week revealed that Trump shared highly classified information with Russian officials during an Oval Office visit last week and previously asked Comey to stop investigating him and his team.

Details are still murky on the latter charge, but lawmakers in both parties have said that if its true, it constitutes obstruction of justice, which is grounds for impeachment. Green says its time to start the process.

The president must be impeached, he said. Impeachment does not mean the president will be found guilty. It simply means that the House of Representatives will bring charges against the president. Its similar to an indictment. ... Then the Senate can have a trial to determine the guilt or the innocence of the president.

The Texas Democrat rattled off a website, impeachdonaldtrumpnow.org, and urged people to sign a petition there saying they agree its time to begin impeachment proceedings. It is ultimately the public, he said, that will decide whether impeachment happens.

I am a voice in the wilderness, Green said, now shouting. But I assure you that history will vindicate me ... I assure you that no lie can live forever.

His dramatic speech was capped off by a warning from the lawmaker overseeing House proceedings: Members are reminded to refrain from engaging in personalities toward the president, such as accusations that he committed an impeachable offense.

Green isnt the first member of Congress to bring up impeaching Trump. At least 16 House Democrats have talked about it, and Rep. Justin Amash (R-Mich.) said Wednesday that if the allegations in the Comey memo are true,they are grounds for impeachment. And Rep. Carlos Curbelo (R-Fla.) said on CNN Tuesday night that the situation described in the memos sounds serious and could be construed as obstruction of justice, which has traditionally been an impeachable offense for U.S. presidents.

In the Senate, Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) has floated the idea, and Sen. Angus King (I-Maine), who caucuses with Democrats, said Congress is getting closer to another impeachment process.

Reluctantly, Wolf, I have to say yes, simply because obstruction of justice is such a serious offense, King told CNNs Wolf Blitzer on Tuesday. And I say it with sadness and reluctance. This is not something that Ive advocated for. The word has not passed my lips in these tumultuous three or more months.

This article has been updated with comments made by Rep. Carlos Curbelo.

See original here:
It's Time To Impeach Donald Trump, Democrat Says On The House Floor - HuffPost

By Walter Dellinger By Walter Dellinger May 16

Walter Dellinger, a lawyer in Washington, is the Douglas B. Maggs professor emeritus of law at Duke University and a former assistant attorney general.

The single best way to maintain the essential credibility of federal law enforcement would be for President Trump to name a Democrat to run the FBI.

There is a rich tradition of hiring someone from the opposition party. Democrat Jimmy Carter named Republican Judge William H. Webster to head the bureau in 1978. In the shadow of the Watergate scandal, Carter correctly concluded that naming a director from the other party would provide needed public confidence that the FBI was above politics.And so it would today.

Democrat Bill Clinton named Republican Louis Freeh as his FBI director. Vice President Al Gore would probably have continued that trend had he become president. (I know from working on transition planning that he was considering three Republican judges as possible heads of the FBI.) Gores judgment, like that of Carter and Clinton, was that having a Republican FBI director would preventany suggestion of partisan favoritism and lend credibility to any investigation that rejected allegations against his administration. And, of course, President Barack Obama extended the term of one Republican FBI head, Robert Mueller, and replaced him with another Republican, James B. Comey, who had served as deputy attorney general in the preceding administration of George W. Bush.

This same logic would also be appropriate for any selection of a special counsel.Attorney General Janet Reno, for example, wisely chose a Republican attorney, Robert B. Fiske Jr., to lead the investigation into the Clintons Whitewater issues.

Of course, there are many nominees from both parties who could inspire confidence: President Gerald Ford, for example, restored confidence in the Justice Department in the aftermath of Watergate by naming as attorney general someone who, although a fellow Republican, was seen as far above politics, University of Chicago President Edward H. Levi. But if there was ever a time it would be useful to continue the tradition of naming an FBI director from outside the presidents party, it is now. A president who has admitted demanding to know from the FBI director whether he was under investigation has created an urgent need for someone to assure the country that he or she could not be a partisan for the president.

On this score, the list of names supposedly under consideration could give pause. Sen. John Cornyn (R-Tex.), for instance, may well be an honorable and able legislator, but why pick someone for FBI director who has been an active political supporter of thepresident, whose campaign is under FBI investigation? Why not a senior judge who is not of the presidents party, or a former solicitor general such asSeth Waxman or a former national security official such as Lisa Monaco? Why not former prosecutor and Republican-appointed Judge David Levi, dean of Duke Law School, a Republican most of his life and now a registered independent (who also happens to be the son of Edward Levi)?

Its true that everything we know about Trump suggests that he isunlikely to appoint someone who doesnt show loyalty to him. But if Americans dont believe Trump can be trusted to make major decisions about an FBI director or other matters in a thoughtful and disinterested way, were lucky to live in a nation of checks and balances.

A half-dozen principled Republican senators can, to a significant degree, influence the direction of the executive branch. Some among them could choose to join with the Senate minority and preclude passage of legislation or confirmations. (They should have, for example, declined to confirm any attorney general nominee without first insisting upon the appointment of a special counsel for the Russia investigation.) And they can, even now, create a list of outstanding men and women from whom the president would be urged to nominate an FBI director. By being passive, these senators own what Trump is doing.

In ordinary times, deference to a presidents choice of executive branch officials is appropriate, and practices such as senatorial courtesy are understandable. But these are surely not ordinary times: Is there any thoughtful person Democrat or Republican who does not fear that our democratic republic may be veering toward a crisis?

The Senate, with its six-year terms, is expected to be a moderating influence that would keep the national government from spinning out of control. Attention Sens. Susan Collins, John McCain, Bob Corker, Jeff Flake, Mike Lee, Lisa Murkowski, Lindsey Graham, Richard Burr, Rob Portman, Ben Sasse, Tim Scott, Lamar Alexander, perhaps others: This is your moment. This is your legacy. This is why we have a Senate.

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Trump should appoint a Democrat to run the FBI - Washington Post - Washington Post

As it stands, the Senate rules allow the FBI director nominee to be confirmed with just 51 votes, so Republicans can confirm any selection with zero Democratic help.

At this point, it's far from a sure-thing strategy -- while there is no shortage or Republicans who have expressed problems with how and when James Comey was fired from the FBI's top spot, there has been no rush to embrace Democratic calls for a special counsel.

"The key here, of course, is getting some of our Republican colleagues to join us," Schumer said. "We're hoping. We're waiting. We understand it's difficult, but I think patriotism and the needs of this country demand it."

The ranking Democrat of the Senate intelligence committee, Mark Warner, made a similar pledge last week.

"If (Rosenstein) doesn't (name a special prosecutor), then I think it's going to be very difficult to solicit a lot of support from Democrats and support from Democrats -- in terms of whoever the President picks to be a permanent FBI director," the Virginia Democrat told reporters Friday.

Another alternative Democrats could pursue is essentially shutting down the Senate -- refusing to grant unanimous consent for hearings to continue or occur two hours after the Senate convenes or grinding floor proceedings to a halt through procedural mechanisms. But at this point, the aide says, that is not the path they are working on.

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Democrats' strategy to block FBI pick: GOP help - CNN

A second House Democrat called for President Donald Trump to be impeached, and he's even come up with a "mantra" to push the cause.

Rep. Al Green, D-Texas, released a statement on Monday declaring Trump should be charged by the House over his decision to fire FBI Director James Comey as well as his recent tweet that suggested the president recorded his conversations with Comey.

Green said that by firing Comey, Trump is obstructing the investigation "of the president's campaign ties to Russian influence in his 2016 presidential election." He said Trump has committed acts that "amount to intimidation and obstruction."

Green said Democrats can succeed at pressuring the GOP-led House to take up impeachment proceedings if the public joins in. "Our mantra should be "I.T.N. Impeach Trump Now," Green wrote.

Green appears eager to spread the word about his proposal. His statement includes a line in red encouraging the recipient to "forward this email to others who may be interested."

Green is not the first Democrat to call for impeachment. Rep. Maxine Waters, of California declared on Twitter in April that she would "fight every day until he's impeached," although she later denied calling for Trump's impeachment.

The House has impeached two presidents; Andrew Johnson in 1868 and Bill Clinton in 1998.

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Second House Democrat calls for Trump impeachment - Washington Examiner