If Trump cannot provide evidence of Illegal Obama Wiretap?

[Revoltingest]

That, I agree with. But, Trump should be held accountable for claims of criminal activity against a US President.

He will certainly be held accountable politically.
But there's a good chance you won't find that satisfying.
It could even just blow over.

 

[Revoltingest]

I'm not sure about that. Trump made a very specific claim. Obama's attorney's could use that to their advantage. Only information relevant to his specific claim would be admitted.

And that could be a very wide ranging investigation, given the imprecision of language.

 

[Revoltingest]

What other reason could there be for Trump not providing any evidence?

Complexity lies in more than just that question.
The accusation might have a firm foundation or a speculative one.
And as we see, government is spying on a great many of us.
We should expect Trump & his associates to be included.
Obama's involvement might be direct, or as one who sets policy,
& not even aware of the details.

I sense that many people who loathe Trump are very hopeful that
his accusation of Obama wiretapping him will lead to his downfall.
They imagine how it could happen. But it looks really unlikely.

 

[Kemosloby]

Trump made it relevant. He should be held accountable for making a baseless criminal claim against his predecessor, don't you think?

They would have to do the investigation to find out if it was baseless.

 

[Stevicus]

Trump has not stated that this accusation was based on a Breitbart article (which is the same as basing a claim on an article in the national enquirer, btw). So, he would have to admit that first. Short of that, congress cannot compel a reporter from the publication to provide any information.

Well, yes, Trump would have to admit where he got his information from, but either way, I believe Congress has the power to subpoena anyone they want. Whether or not they should do that is another question. If the investigation is a dead end, then that's where it has to end. Not much more anyone can do, unless Trump wants to add anything more. Obama can sue, although he might have to wait until Trump leaves office (which might even be before his term is up). Even then, it seems doubtful that he would even bother.

 

[leibowde84]

Obama's involvement might be direct, or as one who sets policy,
& not even aware of the details.

This is just letting Trump get away with whatever he says. This is not what Trump accused Obama of.

 

[leibowde84]

They would have to do the investigation to find out if it was baseless.

That's what they are doing, and they haven't come up with anything. And, we can't let Trump get away with making criminal accusations without evidence. If he accused you of a felony without any reasoning or evidence provided, would you expect congress to investigate?

 

[suncowiam]

Making a reckless accusation isn't really prosecutable.
It's politics as usual.
But were it to be done, Trump's defense could prove discomforting for Obama & others.

For ordinary folks, it is punishable at least in a civil court. Civil courts can also add on punitive damages to ensure it doesn't happen again.

Just because Trump is the president, he shouldn't be allowed to spread lies.

 

[Kemosloby]

At this point, it seems far more likely that Trump would be prosecuted for Libel, as there hasn't been any evidence of Trump's claim being accurate thus far.

My guess is the secret service discovered bugs in Trump Tower, since Trump is president they would scour the building looking for bugs. And if the bugs were government bugs then the most likely culprit would have been the Obama administration.

 

[Revoltingest]

This is just letting Trump get away with whatever he says. This is not what Trump accused Obama of.

Just so you know, I'm in no position to decide Trump's fate.
Nor do I even know what happened behind the scenes.
I'm just speculating on what could happen.

 

[Revoltingest]

For ordinary folks, it is punishable at least in a civil court. Civil courts can also add on punitive damages to ensure it doesn't happen again.

Just because Trump is the president, he shouldn't be allowed to spread lies.

If Trump is lying, then he should be punished.
But in the realm of politics, this will likely be in the form of partisan drama.
Who knows....if it endures, it could affect the 2020 election.
As for civil court, would Obama find it worth pursuing?
It would be expensive, & entail some risk for him.
Monetary damages would be hard for him to establish, so it could be pyrrhic victory.
But he could decide that it's politically damaging enuf to Trump.

 

[Nakosis]

I know....I wasn't asking one.

Either or both Trump & Obama could be lying.
I don't know if we'll ever know.

There's no winning in politics for those who want to make someone accountable. Whatever proof is brought forth, the other side will deny or find someone to discredit it.

I doubt Trump would have anything more than circumstantial evidence. Politicians are pretty good at covering their back-side. Congress will dance around the issue as long as there are political points to be made. Beat the horse until it's dead.

 

[leibowde84]

My guess is the secret service discovered bugs in Trump Tower, since Trump is president they would scour the building looking for bugs. And if the bugs were government bugs then the most likely culprit would have been the Obama administration.

So, why wouldn't Trump just say that? He hasn't even said that there were bugs found.

What makes you believe this about bugs at Trump Tower? Are you assuming that Trump was actually bugged? If so, why?

 

[leibowde84]

My guess is the secret service discovered bugs in Trump Tower, since Trump is president they would scour the building looking for bugs. And if the bugs were government bugs then the most likely culprit would have been the Obama administration.

To me, it seems obvious that Trump just made it up, speculating on what he might have read in a fake news story from Breitbart.

 

[fantome profane]

And as we see, government is spying on a great many of us.

Do we really see that?

 

[Revoltingest]

Do we really see that?

I trust that the Wikileaks disclosures all over the news make that clear.

 

[leibowde84]

Complexity lies in more than just that question.
The accusation might have a firm foundation or a speculative one.
And as we see, government is spying on a great many of us.
We should expect Trump & his associates to be included.
Obama's involvement might be direct, or as one who sets policy,
& not even aware of the details.

I sense that many people who loathe Trump are very hopeful that
his accusation of Obama wiretapping him will lead to his downfall.
They imagine how it could happen. But it looks really unlikely.

I agree that our government has developed the ability to "watch" us. But, common sense would dictate that they wouldn't waste their time without reason. Thus, it seems reasonable to assume that the vast majority of us aren't watched at all.

And, I've seen no evidence beyond wiki leaks that it's really that big of an issue. It doesn't get much more unreliable than wikileaks.

 

[leibowde84]

I trust that the Wikileaks disclosures all over the news make that clear.

Why do you trust wikileaks? Usually they aren't even confirmed in any real way.

 

[Revoltingest]

I agree that our government has developed the ability to "watch" us. But, common sense would dictate that they wouldn't waste their time without reason.

Politics has been a reason before.

Thus, it seems reasonable to assume that the vast majority of us aren't watched at all.

And, I've seen no evidence beyond wiki leaks that it's really that big of an issue. It doesn't get much more unreliable than wikileaks.

Why do you think Wikileaks is unreliable?

 

[Revoltingest]

Why do you trust wikileaks? Usually they aren't even confirmed in any real way.

I trust them more than our government.
It's compelling that what they publish sees no denial.

You're big on having evidence for accusations.
Where's the evidence against Wikileaks?