Former CIA Director Gen. Michael Hayden is back in the news after suffering a stroke earlier this year. Mediaite’s John Ziegler spoke to the retired general and asked him about the Mueller investigation and, of course, President Trump’s policies. Knowing Ziegler, he undoubtedly hoped for some fireworks. He wasn’t disappointed.
Here are some of the “highlights” (or lowlights, depending on your perspective) from the podcast:
Hayden is very worried about the resignation of the UK ambassador to the United States and the fact that Trump consistently treats our closest allies like enemies and some of our worst enemies like allies.
The Mueller report was even worse for Trump than he had anticipated and he eagerly looks forward to what Robert Mueller will say in his congressional testimonies next week.
He ominously concludes that the damage that Trump has done to our institutions so far can be survived, but that the United States, at least as we know it, may not be able to endure two terms of him as president.
This truly is ridiculous. The UK ambassador to the U.S. should have resigned. It’s in principle fine for him to insult the president of the country where he serves, but if those memos are leaked he also should be in trouble. You can’t expect Trump to have serious, thoughtful and frank conversations with a guy who doesn’t respect him.
As for the Mueller report, that’s possibly even more insane. The Mueller report was one big disappointment for Trump-haters everywhere. The special prosecutor concluded that there was no collusion between Trump and Russia. None. Zilch. The president may not have been smart about how he dealt with the investigation, but if there’s no underlying crime, it’s also rather strange to imply you want to go after someone for obstruction of justice (or impeach him based on it) nonetheless.
In other words, the Mueller report showed that although Trump may not be the most sympathetic guy in the world (wow, that’s a surprise!) he’s innocent. No collusion, and no grounds for impeachment. The end.
Lastly, to imply that Trump — all by himself — will somehow destroy America is downright fantastical. The U.S. may very well have the strongest foundation of any nation on earth. This system survived a civil war, Jim Crow, and the civil rights clash in the second half of the 20th century. It’s crazy to suggest that it can’t survive one single president you happen to hate.
What this all means? Simple: we now know that there is no reason — at all — to take Gen. Michael Hayden even somewhat seriously. He served his country well until Trump became the Republican presidential nominee, but once that happened, he completely lost it. The guy is clearly blinded by hate and no longer able to sit back and calmly analyze what’s happening.
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