Дружба

[tijd]

Прошлая неделя завершилась геройским поступком сенатора Джефа Флейка, который настоял на проведении расследования ФБР прежде голосования в Сенате за утверждение Бретта Кавано в Верховный суд.

Решение Флейк принимал сам и несет за него ответсвенность, но этот день стал также звездным часом для сенатора Криса Кунса.

Coons told CBS News' Nancy Cordes that he was surprised and disappointed when he learned Flake had released a statement saying he would vote to confirm Kavanaugh, unleashing an expletive in front of reporters when a reporter showed him the headline on a phone. Coons then reworked his planned speech to the committee, in part to appeal to Republicans like Flake who were on the fence about Kavanaugh's confirmation. In a measured speech to his colleagues on the committee, Coons condemned the rank partisanship that had infected Kavanaugh's confirmation process, and quoted his Senate predecessor and the former Judiciary Committee chairman, former Vice President Joe Biden.
"I want to share one thing he said to me when I began my service here, which was: 'It is always appropriate to question another senator's policies, it is always appropriate to question another senator's priorities, but it is never appropriate to question another senator's motives,'" Coons said. "And there has been far too much of that that's happened in this process, in a way that will frankly make it very difficult for us to take off our partisan jerseys and at some point get back to the important work of finding solutions to the real challenges facing this country."
He said that after he gave his speech to the committee, Flake called him to the anteroom outside the hearing room to talk about his decision.
https://www.cbsnews.com/amp/news/jeff-flake-brett-kavanaugh-fbi-probe-today-elevator-protest-chris-coons-2018-09-28/

Следуя примеру своего предшественника Джо Байдена, Кунс долго и целенаправленно развивал дружеские и джентльменские отношения с республиканскими коллегами, особенно со своим сверстником Флейком.

Coons’ affinity for compromise doesn’t mesh with the combative posture Democrats have taken under Trump. But if Coons can survive a liberal base that has sometimes lashed him for his bipartisan tendencies, he has a chance to become one of the Senate’s historic deal-makers - a role once filled by the former vice president whose name is on the Amtrak station through which he often commutes home.
https://www.politico.com/story/2018/05/08/chris-coons-senate-dealmaker-democrats-republicans-569144

Наконец настал день, когда это пригодилось.

Chris Coons gets emotional when discussing Flake's decision: "He and I do not share a lot of political views but we share a deep concern- Sorry. Senator Flake and I share a deep concern for the health of this institution and what it means to the rest of this world." (via CBS) pic.twitter.com/A33aoE2S1p
- Kyle Griffin (@kylegriffin1) September 28, 2018

Senator Chris Coons tells the full story of what happened in the anteroom today with Jeff Flake to @nancycordes. Attempting my best @SopanDeb impression through @EllenUchimiya's legwork pic.twitter.com/dtNhWfQYYO
- Alan He (@alanhe) September 29, 2018

Примечательна роль Рода Розенштейна, хотя рассказы об ней различаются. New York Times сообщает, что Кунс и Флейк разговаривали с Розенштейнрм вдвоём.

Mr. Coons and Mr. Flake squeezed into an oversize phone booth - a few still exist on Capitol Hill - to make the call. They needed privacy rather than a landline, so held a cellphone on speaker between them. Mr. Rosenstein told them the F.B.I. could complete a background check in a week, although it was unlikely to unearth much more than was already known.
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/09/28/us/politics/jeff-flake-kavanaugh-confirmation.html

В репортаже CBS (со слов Кунса) говорится, что Кунс отошёл в сторону, чтобы позволить Флейку переговорить с Розенштейном конфиденциально.

Soon afterward, Flake said he wanted to speak to FBI Director Christopher Wray. He ended up talking with Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein for what Coons estimated was about 10 minutes. Coons had left him alone for the conversation, but when he returned, Flake was no longer by himself.
"They had a long conversation. You know, by the time I got back 10 minutes later, there were three Republican senators and staff really beating on him, really leaning in and -- making their best arguments," Coons said.
https://www.cbsnews.com/amp/news/jeff-flake-brett-kavanaugh-fbi-probe-today-elevator-protest-chris-coons-2018-09-28/



Розенштейн хорошо знаком с Кавано - они оба работали в команде специального прокурора Кена Старра над расследованием Билла Клинтона. Но если Розенштейн методично следовал закону, Кавано отнесся к делу с энтузиазмом политического активиста.

Президент Буш пытался назначить Розенштейна, как и Кавано, в федеральные судьи, но его назначение было заблокировано демократическими сенаторами из Мэриленда, которые высоко оценивали Розенштейна, но предпочитали оставить его в своем штате в роли генерального прокурора.

President Bush nominated Maryland's top federal prosecutor last night to a seat on the nation's second-highest court based in Richmond, Va.
U.S. Attorney Rod J. Rosenstein, 42, of Bethesda had been linked to the judgeship on the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for more than a year before the White House announcement.
But Maryland's two Democratic senators, who have long opposed such a nomination, immediately renewed their objections in what some political observers characterized as a major blow to Rosenstein's chances to reach the federal appeals court. In response, Rosenstein asked for a fair hearing on his selection.
"I am proud to have spent my entire legal career in nonpartisan public service in my home state of Maryland and in our nation's capital," Rosenstein said in a statement last night. "I understand that judicial confirmation is a political process.
"The most a lawyer can ask for is a fair hearing. I have faith that I will receive a fair hearing."
http://articles.baltimoresun.com/2007-11-16/news/0711160144_1_rod-rosenstein-attorney-in-maryland-court-of-appeals



Между тем нож на Розенштейна точит не только Трамп, но и его "цепные псы" в Конгрессе. Они договорились встретиться с ним приватно.

Leadership has agreed to call Rod Rosenstein before Congress, for a closed door hearing with our panel investigating, so he can explain his alleged comments on "wiring" POTUS--as well as other inconsistent statements.

If Mr. Rosenstein fails to show up, we will subpoena him.
- Mark Meadows (@RepMarkMeadows) September 28, 2018

“As part of the House Judiciary Committee’s joint investigation and oversight responsibilities, we’ve invited Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein to come in for a private meeting in the coming weeks. We are working with the Justice Department on details and will relay more information about the meeting soon. There are many questions we have for Mr. Rosenstein, including questions about allegations made against him in a recent news article. We need to get to the bottom of these very serious claims.”
https://judiciary.house.gov/press-release/goodlatte-calls-for-meeting-with-rosenstein/

Демократы возражают, но пока тщетно.

There is no such thing as a “closed, private hearing.” The @HouseGOP cannot be left alone in a room with DAG Rosenstein. They will not stop until theIr attempt to undermine Mueller’s investigation is complete. I will demand that @SpeakerRyan give us access to that meeting. https://t.co/tYqdD8FNYi
- (((Rep. Nadler))) (@RepJerryNadler) September 28, 2018



Возвращаясь к друзьям Флейку и Кунсу, можно вспомнить о том, как после печально известной встречи в Хельсинки они предложили совместную резолюцию Сената.

Resolved, That the Senate-
(1) commends the Department of Justice for its thorough investigation into the interference in the 2016 United States presidential election, which resulted in the indictment of 12 intelligence officers of the Government of the Russian Federation;
(2) agrees with the assessment of the United States intelligence community that the Russian Federation interfered with the 2016 United States presidential election, and rejects the Russian Federation’s denial of such involvement;
(3) reaffirms its position that the Russian Federation must be held accountable for interfering in the 2016 United States presidential election;
(4) calls upon relevant committees of the Senate to exercise congressional oversight, including prompt hearings and the release of relevant notes and information, to better understand the impact of the recent summit in Helsinki, Finland, on the foreign policy and national security of the United States; and
(5) calls for the immediate and full implementation of mandatory sanctions provided for in the Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (Public Law 115-44; 131 Stat. 886), which passed the Senate 98-2, to deter and punish election interference by the Russian Federation.
https://www.coons.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/flake-coons-introduce-resolution-reaffirming-support-for-us-intelligence-community-will-call-for-unanimous-senate-support-tomorrow

Резолюция была оперативно заблокирована республиканским руководством.

Senate Majority Whip John Cornyn (Texas) blocked a resolution on Thursday that would have lent the Senate's support to the intelligence community's assessment that Russia interfered in the 2016 presidential election, which was offered up in the wake of President Trump’s Monday meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Sens. Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.) and Christopher Coons (D-Del.) tried to pass their resolution by unanimous consent, which requires the sign off of every senator.
But Cornyn objected, saying senators should focus on passing new sanctions legislation and warning that they should work through the committee process.
https://thehill.com/homenews/senate/397880-gop-leader-blocks-resolution-backing-intelligence-community-on-russia