The fact that the FOX TV frequent guest s a legal expert, Judge Andrew Napolitano is being highly critical of the former Acting US Attorney General of the US Department of Justice (DOJ) Matt Whitaker’s actions, as being detailed in some news reports, means that this is serious business. The judge has not been reflexively backing Mr. Whitaker who is already infamous for being the republican President Donald Trump’s lackey/ mole embedded in the US Department of Justice.

Mr. Whitaker has been replaced by the recently US Senate confirmed Attorney General William Barr. The grapevine has it, that Mr. Whitaker is still ensconced somewhere in the US Department of Justice.

It seems that President Trump had become a bit frustrated with Mr. Whitaker’s performance as he was not able to do everything that the president was demanding. The president had wanted him to get his stooge installed where his guy could oversee the Southern District of NY’s investigation into the wrong doings of his former personal attorney, Michael Cohen but Mr. Whitaker was not successful. It’s important to note that during a recent US congressional hearing, Mr. Whitaker stated for the record that at no time, did President Trump attempt to exert undue influence over him.

Here is the rest of the story…

On February 19, 2019, Justin Baragona of the Daily Beast has penned the following report, “Fox’s Judge Napolitano: Trump’s Call to Whitaker Sure Looks Like ‘Attempted Obstruction’ of Justice” (“The judge said Trump’s reported call to Whitaker was ‘an effort to use the levers of power… for a corrupt purpose to deflect an investigation into himself or his allies.’)

Excerpts:

“Shortly after the New York Times dropped an explosive report alleging President Trump called then-Acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker to put a Trump ally in charge of the Southern District of New York’s case against former Trump attorney Michael Cohen, Fox News senior judicial analyst Judge Andrew Napolitano said this request amounted to “an attempt to obstruct justice.”

“According to the Times, Trump attempted to exert pressure on his newly installed attorney general late last year. With U.S. attorney Geoffrey Berman having already recused himself from the Cohen investigation due to a conflict of interest, Trump reportedly asked Whitaker to put Berman in charge of the probe. Trump “soon soured” on Whitaker for not being able to make the move happen, per the Times.”

“Speaking with Fox News anchor Shepard Smith on Tuesday, Napolitano noted that Whitaker himself could be in trouble if the story is accurate, seeing as Whitaker previously testified to Congress that the president had never pressured him on any of the multiple Trump-related investigations.”

“There’s two potential crimes here for Matt Whitaker,” the judge stated. “One is actual perjury, lying to the Congress. The other is misleading. Remember, you can be truthful but still misleading.”

The judge, whom The Daily Beast has described as Fox’s “lonely truth-teller” on all things Trump, further explained that while things may not look good for Whitaker, they look really bad for the president.

Napolitano said the president’s reported phone call to Whitaker demonstrates “corrupt intent.”

“That is an effort to use the levers of power of the government for a corrupt purpose to deflect an investigation into himself or his allies,” he pointed out, adding that the SDNY has two ongoing Trump investigations and the Times reported that Trump wanted his ally Berman to oversee both.

(There’s) attempted obstruction,” Napolitano replied. “It would only be obstruction if it succeeded. If you tried to interfere with a criminal prosecution that may knock at your own door by putting your ally in there that is clearly an attempt to obstruct justice.”