{"id":452443,"date":"2022-05-25T06:44:26","date_gmt":"2022-05-25T03:44:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/sussmanns-defense-is-laughable-or-hes-a-terrible-lawyer\/"},"modified":"2022-05-25T06:44:26","modified_gmt":"2022-05-25T03:44:26","slug":"sussmanns-defense-is-laughable-or-hes-a-terrible-lawyer","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/sussmanns-defense-is-laughable-or-hes-a-terrible-lawyer\/","title":{"rendered":"#Sussmann&#8217;s defense is laughable &#8212; or he&#8217;s a terrible lawyer"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_85 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-custom ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Table of Contents<\/p>\n<label for=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6a417e18a62ff\" class=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-label\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #dd3333;color:#dd3333\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #dd3333;color:#dd3333\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/label><input type=\"checkbox\"  id=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6a417e18a62ff\" checked aria-label=\"Toggle\" \/><nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-1'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/sussmanns-defense-is-laughable-or-hes-a-terrible-lawyer\/#%E2%80%9CSussmanns_defense_is_laughable_%E2%80%94_or_hes_a_terrible_lawyer%E2%80%9D\" >&#8220;Sussmann&#8217;s defense is laughable &#8212; or he&#8217;s a terrible lawyer&#8221;<\/a><ul class='ez-toc-list-level-2' ><li class='ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/sussmanns-defense-is-laughable-or-hes-a-terrible-lawyer\/#Truth_is_obvious\" >Truth is obvious<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/sussmanns-defense-is-laughable-or-hes-a-terrible-lawyer\/#No_campaign_waiver\" >No campaign waiver<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<h1><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"%E2%80%9CSussmanns_defense_is_laughable_%E2%80%94_or_hes_a_terrible_lawyer%E2%80%9D\"><\/span>&#8220;Sussmann&#8217;s defense is laughable &#8212; or he&#8217;s a terrible lawyer&#8221;<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h1>\n<div>\n<aside class=\"single__inline-module alignleft\">\n<\/aside>\n<p>Defense attorneys for Clinton campaign lawyer Michael Sussmann have portrayed their client as the paragon of patriotic professionalism.<\/p>\n<p>Yet to believe his defense to the felony false-statement charge brought by Russiagate special counsel John Durham, you\u2019d have to conclude that Sussmann is the most unethical lawyer in Washington, DC.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Sussmann is accused of insisting that he was not representing any client in September 2016 \u2014 the stretch run of the heated presidential campaign \u2014 when he peddled to the FBI bogus evidence of a supposed communications backchannel between Donald Trump and the Kremlin. Sussmann was bringing the information only because he wanted to \u201chelp the bureau\u201d protect the country, he told the FBI\u2019s then-<a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/general\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"3\" title=\"General\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">general<\/a> counsel, James Baker, in a text message.<\/p>\n<p>Sussmann has no real defense to the charge. The evidence is so overwhelming that he was representing the Clinton campaign at the time of his meeting with Baker that Sussmann does not challenge it. Moreover, the information he provided to the FBI \u2014 Internet data explained by white papers \u2014 was compiled by another client, tech executive Rodney Joffe, who was hoping for a cybersecurity job in the anticipated Hillary Clinton administration. Joffe worked on the materials in conjunction with \u00adFusion GPS, the information outfit retained to dig up dirt on Trump by top Clinton campaign counsel Marc Elias, who was then Sussmann\u2019s law partner.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"683\" src=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/05\/Politics-2.jpg?w=1024\" alt=\"Former FBI general counsel James A. Baker, who received Alfa-Bank information from Michael Sussmann departs United States District Court for the District of Columbia following a full day of giving testimony on Thursday, May 19, 2022.\" class=\"wp-image-22400766\" srcset=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/05\/Politics-2.jpg?quality=75&amp;strip=all&amp;w=2048 2048w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/05\/Politics-2.jpg?quality=75&amp;strip=all&amp;w=1536 1536w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/05\/Politics-2.jpg?quality=75&amp;strip=all 1024w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/05\/Politics-2.jpg?quality=75&amp;strip=all&amp;w=512 512w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\"\/><figcaption>Sussmann told Former FBI general counsel James A. Baker in a text that wanted to \u201chelp the bureau\u201d protect the country.<\/figcaption><figcaption><span class=\"credit\">Ron Sachs \u2013 CNP<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Truth_is_obvious\"><\/span>Truth is obvious<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>It\u2019s obvious that Sussmann was representing the Clinton campaign and Joffe when he said he wasn\u2019t representing anyone. For conviction, prosecutors must show that a statement was not only false but also material. On this, though, the evidence is also irrefutable.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>For obvious reasons, the FBI needs to know the motivations of people who proffer information. As a former longtime Justice Department lawyer, Sussmann knew this. Indeed, he lied precisely because he knew that if he had honestly told Baker the information was partisan opposition research he was providing to the FBI on behalf of the Clinton campaign, his gambit would have been dismissed as a ploy to enmesh the bureau in electoral \u00adpolitics.<\/p>\n<p>So what is Sussmann\u2019s defense?\u00a0<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1024\" height=\"834\" src=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/05\/1399092605.jpg?w=1024\" alt=\"Executive Producer Hillary Rodham Clinton speaks on stage during &quot;Below The Belt&quot; New York Premiere at Museum of Modern Art on May 24, 2022 in New York City. \" class=\"wp-image-22400772\" srcset=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/05\/1399092605.jpg?quality=75&amp;strip=all&amp;w=2048 2048w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/05\/1399092605.jpg?quality=75&amp;strip=all&amp;w=1536 1536w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/05\/1399092605.jpg?quality=75&amp;strip=all 1024w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/05\/1399092605.jpg?quality=75&amp;strip=all&amp;w=512 512w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\"\/><figcaption>Though he was working for Hillary Clinton\u2019s campaign, Sussmann claims his actions with the FBI were not connected to the presidential hopeful.<\/figcaption><figcaption><span class=\"credit\">Cindy Ord\/Getty Images<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>He claims that, although he may technically have been representing the Clinton campaign during that time frame, he was not really representing the campaign in connection with the FBI meeting.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>He insists that campaign officials would have been opposed to his bringing the Trump-Russia information to the bureau because they wanted it to be promoted by the <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/social-mediaa\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"1\" title=\"Social Media\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">media<\/a> \u2014 a strategy Hillary Clinton personally <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/download-scripts-themes-apps\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"9\" title=\"Download Scripts &amp; Themes &amp; Apps\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">app<\/a>roved. Going to the FBI, on this rationalization, would have been counterproductive because the bureau would lean on the press to delay publishing until agents had time to investigate.<\/p>\n<p>Consequently, we\u2019re to believe that Sussmann went to the FBI against his client\u2019s interests, because of his own patriotic concerns for national security.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1024\" height=\"683\" src=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/05\/Trump-Russia-Probe-1.jpg?w=1024\" alt=\"Michael Sussmann, a cybersecurity lawyer who represented the Hillary Clinton presidential campaign in 2016, leaves federal courthouse in Washington, Monday, May 16, 2022.\" class=\"wp-image-22400786\" srcset=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/05\/Trump-Russia-Probe-1.jpg?quality=75&amp;strip=all&amp;w=2048 2048w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/05\/Trump-Russia-Probe-1.jpg?quality=75&amp;strip=all&amp;w=1536 1536w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/05\/Trump-Russia-Probe-1.jpg?quality=75&amp;strip=all 1024w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/05\/Trump-Russia-Probe-1.jpg?quality=75&amp;strip=all&amp;w=512 512w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\"\/><figcaption>Sussmann is on trial in federal court in Washington, DC, for one count of lying to the FBI in September 2016.<\/figcaption><figcaption><span class=\"credit\">AP\/Manuel Balce Ceneta<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>This is a laughable defense. Enticing the FBI into investigating the Trump-Russia allegations would have made the story more attractive to the media and more explosive for the \u201cOctober surprise\u201d objective of the Clinton campaign \u2014 an election-eve story that the FBI suspected Trump of being a Putin plant.<\/p>\n<p>But put that aside. Under professional ethics standards, a lawyer has a duty of fealty to his client. Thus, as the American Bar Association\u2019s rules put it, \u201cthe lawyer\u2019s own interests should not be permitted to have an adverse effect on representation of a client.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<aside class=\"single__inline-module alignright\">\n    <\/aside>\n<p>If Sussmann truly believed that his visit to the FBI, purportedly motivated by his own selfless patriotism, was against the Clinton campaign\u2019s interests, then his ethical obligation was to disclose his intention to his client and obtain a waiver allowing him to go ahead with the meeting.<\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"No_campaign_waiver\"><\/span>No campaign waiver<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>Of course, Sussmann didn\u2019t seek permission and he didn\u2019t obtain a waiver from the Clinton campaign. To believe Sussmann\u2019s defense, then, you\u2019d have to believe he is without scruples \u2014 precisely the opposite of the image his attorneys have projected.<\/p>\n<p>We shouldn\u2019t puzzle long over this. It is utter nonsense.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Sussmann didn\u2019t violate the ethics rules because his visit to the FBI was absolutely in the Clinton campaign\u2019s interests. That\u2019s why Sussmann billed the campaign for his visit to Baker. And it\u2019s why, eight days before the election, Hillary and her then-adviser (and now- Biden national security adviser) <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.presidency.ucsb.edu\/documents\/statement-from-jake-sullivan-new-report-exposing-trumps-secret-line-communication-russia\">Jake Sullivan tweeted:<\/a> \u201cWe can only assume that federal authorities will now explore this direct connection between Trump and Russia.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>If Sussmann is acquitted, it will be because he lucked into being tried in Washington, DC, where the jury pool runneth over with partisan Democrats. He\u2019s got nothing else.\n                        <\/p><\/div>\n<blockquote><p><strong><span style=\"color: #ff6600;\">If you liked the article, do not forget to share it with your friends. Follow us on\u00a0<span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><a style=\"color: #ff0000;\" href=\"https:\/\/news.google.com\/publications\/CAAqBwgKMLG0nwswvr63Aw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\">Google News<\/a><\/span>\u00a0too, click on the star and choose us from your favorites.<\/span><\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\">For forums sites go to <span style=\"color: #ff9900;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/forum.buradabiliyorum.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Forum.BuradaBiliyorum.Com<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>If you want to read more <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/news\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"2\" title=\"News\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">News<\/a> articles, you can visit our <span style=\"color: #ff9900;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/news\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">News category.<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><span style=\"color: black;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/2022\/05\/24\/sussmanns-defense-is-laughable-or-hes-a-terrible-lawyer\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Source<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;Sussmann&#8217;s defense is laughable &#8212; or he&#8217;s a terrible lawyer&#8221; Defense attorneys for Clinton campaign lawyer Michael Sussmann have portrayed their client as the paragon of patriotic professionalism. Yet to believe his defense to the felony false-statement charge brought by Russiagate special counsel John Durham, you\u2019d have to conclude that Sussmann is the most unethical&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":452444,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/05\/sussmann-3.jpg?quality=75&strip=all&w=1024","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[70897],"tags":[129578,4941,20101,72944,4975],"class_list":["post-452443","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","tag-5-24-22","tag-donald-trump","tag-fbi","tag-hillary-clinton","tag-russia"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/452443","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=452443"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/452443\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/452444"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=452443"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=452443"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=452443"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}