Nunes Fiasco Obviously Coordinated By Trump

Despite the mainstream media's reluctance to reach any conclusions, let's just say what they and everyone else now knows. Trump obviously ordered and coordinated the whole Devin Nunes fiasco. The New York Times report that two White House officials, Michael Ellis and Ezra Cohen-Watnick, were the sources and enablers that Nunes used to get access to the information on incidental surveillance collection that in some way exonerated Trump's claim of Obama's wiretapping just confirms what everyone already suspected.

Cohen is a lawyer who works on national security in the White House and Watnick is senior director for intelligence for the National Security Council and has access to virtually all intelligence. Watnick was originally brought in by Michael Flynn and Flynn's replacement, H.R. McMaster, wanted to oust him when he took over because he was supposedly in over his head. But Watnick's job was saved by Bannon and Trump. Cohen worked for Nunes on the House Intelligence Committee up until just a few weeks to go. Apparently the information was so important that Nunes had to rush and brief the President on what his own National Security Council already knew.

Earlier this week, Sean Spicer insisted to the press that "it made no sense" for anyone in the White House to be the source of Nunes' information. That would normally be true unless, of course, the White House was trying to hide the fact it was the source. You might remember that, in his interview with Tucker Carlson, Trump claimed that the administration would be "submitting things before the committee very soon," an apparent reference to the House Intelligence Committee investigation headed by Nunes. Then, when Nunes made his subsequent announcement, Trump commented that he "felt somewhat vindicated" in his claim that Obama "wiretapped" him.

I know that we have no concrete evidence that Trump specifically coordinated this fiasco and I can understand the media's reluctance to say so. But it really is the only plausible explanation left. And the ridiculous reason for this whole charade is so that Trump would not have to apologize for his original and baseless tweet. And it has once again proved that Spicer and the administration are congenital liars who have no care or shame when they are caught out. On the other hand, this disaster has also had the additional benefit of postponing damaging testimony from Sally Yates, but that will only be temporary.