The Deep State appears to be up to its old tricks again.
The Washington Examiner reports that Andrew Weissmann, a top prosecutor under former Special Counsel Robert Mueller, wants political operative Roger Stone to be subjected to a grand jury subpoena.
Weissmann wants subpoena
In a New York Times op-ed released on Tuesday, Weissmann made his case for putting Stone before a grand jury, arguing that it is necessary “to get at the truth of why he lied.”
Stone was facing 40 months in prison before President Donald Trump’s recent grant of clemency, as the Examiner also reported. The longtime Trump associate had been convicted on seven criminal counts including lying to congressional investigators about his alleged communication with WikiLeaks to dig up dirt on then-presidential nominee Hillary Clinton, according to Fox News.
Weissmann, along with Mueller and others, is not happy with the president’s decision to commute Stone’s sentence, and he believes that the Department of Justice (DOJ) ought to issue a grand jury subpoena to compel Stone’s testimony.
“Tools to get at the truth”
This comes, according to NBC News, in the wake of rumors that Attorney General William Barr may have also been opposed to President Trump’s grant of clemency to Stone.
“The tools to get at the truth are there and should be used,” Weissmann wrote. “If Mr. Barr does not support their use, we should all ask ourselves why not.”
According to Weissmann, if Stone were called before a grand jury, he would have three options. Two of those options, lying and refusing to comply with the subpoena, could again lead to criminal consequences for Stone.
But, said Weissmann, “Mr. Stone’s third choice — the one that does not carry with it the risk of criminal charges and jail — is simply to tell the truth.”
“More sour grapes”
John Dowd, a former attorney for President Trump, discussed Weissmann’s grand jury suggestion with the Washington Times.
“Weissmann and his dream team failed in their first attempt to manufacture a crime and want to further abuse the process when their sorry effort has been exposed,” he said. “The Stone indictment did not allege a crime by President Trump. So why further abuse the process except more sour grapes? Mr. Durham ought to take a hard look at Mr. Weissmann’s conduct on the dream team.”
There are also two things that must be remembered amid all the noise. Valid reasons existed for the president’s grant of clemency, not the least of which was the apparent bias of the jury forewoman in Stone’s case and the presiding judge’s refusal to grant him a new trial. Furthermore, even though his sentence was commuted, Stone remains a convicted felon, and that is a burden he will carry for the rest of his life.
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