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Jun 6 2020

Massive Crowds of Supporters Line Streets to Greet President Trump in Maine – President Trump Remarks During Puritan Medical Products Event…


Posted originally on The Conservative tree House on June 5, 2020 by 

Crowds of enthusiastic supporters lined the streets cheering as President Trump traveled through Maine to arrive at Puritan Medical Products to deliver a speech thanking the industry and company for their efforts to produce vital medical equipment.

Workers at the event wore white T-shirts with a green logo on the back that read: “Saving The World One Swab At A Time,” as President Trump delivered his remarks. The theme remains “Transition to Greatness.”  [Video Below – Transcript ADDED]

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[Transcript] – THE PRESIDENT: Thank you very much. Appreciate it. We had some crowd coming in. I don’t know, you have a lot of people up here. A lot more than people think. And they’re great people, and they like Trump — that, I can tell you.

No, we had — (applause) — we had a lot of people. We got off Air Force One, and we came, and the roads were packed. Five deep; ten deep, in some cases. I have to be very careful because I have the fake news back. They’ll say, “It was only two deep.” (Laughter.) “There were some areas where it was only one deep.” And they’ll end up putting me on the front page.

But we had some fantastic crowd, and I just want to thank you all. You’re very special people. And this is a great plant, and it’s doing a phenomenal job. Thank you very much. Appreciate it.

I also want to thank Scott. I’m thrilled to be back in the magnificent state of Maine. As you know, you treated me very nicely in the last election, 2016. You treated me very nicely. I needed the one point. Now I’d like to win the whole state. Could you mind, please? Okay? (Applause.)

Maine and Nebraska — they cut them in half and they say, one way or the other — I don’t know, you have the double. That’s okay. But this one we had tremendous, tremendous turnout, and we did very well in both parts, actually. But it’s a great state. And we just solved a big lobster, fishermen problem. We gave 5,000 acres of water, and we gave you your rights back. (Applause.) It was taken away by the previous administration, and it was disgraceful.

So with a stroke of the pen, your fishermen like me maybe even more than you like me. Okay? It could be — could be. But it was a great thing.

But I just want to say hello to the hardworking men and women of Puritan Medical Products. Great company. The incredible workers of this company have carried on the noble tradition of American manufacturing excellence for more than 100 years. Now our nation has turned to you as we massively increase our unrivaled testing capacity.

We’re at — as an example, 20 million tests. Germany is at 4 million. South Korea, which you heard so much about — they’re doing a good job — they’re at about 3 million. We’re well over 20 million. Very shortly, we’ll be well over 20 million tests.

Remember this: When you have more tests, you have more cases. I say to my people: Every time we test, you find cases because we do more testing. So if we have more cases — if we wanted to do testing in China or in India, or other places, I promise you, there’d be more cases.

But we’re doing a great job with the testing. And you’re doing a fantastic job in getting out the swabs.

On behalf of the entire nation, I want to thank you. You’re building a big addition right alongside. You know that. So you’re going to have a lot more jobs coming here in a very short period of time.

Puritan is one of the only manufacturers in the world producing the high-quality medical swabs that are crucial for the rapid testing, and every swab you make at Puritan is proudly stamped with a beautiful phrase, “Made in the USA.” Do you like that phrase? (Applause.) Beautiful phrase.

Thanks to the testing capacity that you’re making possible, our country is reopening and our economy is recovering like nobody would have thought possible. I guess you all saw the news today, right? It was unbelievable.

Earlier today, it was announced that the U.S. economy added 2.5 million jobs in May. It was supposed to lose 9 million, you know, during this period — transition period. I call it “transition to greatness,” but it’s coming a little earlier than I thought, and that’s okay. I don’t like to be wrong on the other side, but earlier is okay. But it was supposed to be 9 million.

If you watch — I don’t know if anybody watches the business shows, but I’m watching this morning, and they thought it was a typographical error because it was supposed to be nine. And before the show — or during the show, they’re predicting. It comes out, the job numbers — the very famous job numbers — and it comes out, and — 8:30 in the morning, and I’m looking forward to seeing what’s going on. And turn it on, and they’re predicting: “No, I think it’s going to be more than 9 million jobs lost,” during the period prior to going back up. And another one said, “No, 8.5. No, 11. No, 10.” You know, all geniuses. (Laughter.)

And now it’s 8:30, you hear a bell go off, and the woman gets it, in this case, and she’s going, “Well, it’s only 3 million jobs lost.” And then a couple of seconds later, she goes, “Wait a minute, this isn’t jobs lost; this is jobs gained.” And it’s almost 3 million jobs gained. And she thought she had a typographical error, and what happened was incredible. I mean — and the market went through; it finished very, very high — almost, I guess, around 900 points up.

And our stock market is booming, and our jobs are booming. And, you know, you just have to look at a place like this. You just have to get off the plane and ride here, and you see the spirit of Maine and other places — other places. (Applause.) It’s amazing. It’s amazing.

So we absolutely shattered expectations. And this is the largest monthly jobs increase in American history. American — think of that: That’s a long time, right? By far. I think it’s more than double or about double of what our highest was before.

So this is the largest monthly job increase in American history. How about that? And we’re going to have a phenomenal next year. We’re going to have a tremendous couple of months prior to the election, on November 3rd. A very, very important day. It’s going to be a very important election because the only thing that can screw it up is if you get the wrong President and they raise your taxes, and they open up your border so that everybody pours into our country.

COVID or non-COVID — you used to never hear of COVID, but now we have COVID to add to the list of other things. So, we have a wall that’s over 210 miles long already going up. We’ll have 400 miles — (applause) — 400 miles by the end of the year, maybe more than that. And we’ll be finishing it off very early next year with 500 miles of wall in the most treacherous places. And it’s been an amazing thing. We have — we’re setting records on our border right now for — for holding people out. We don’t want people coming in. We want people coming in through a legal process and through merit — and that’s what we’re doing — where they can help our country.

But economists forecast that the unemployment rate, as I said, would be about 19 percent, and they were hoping for 20 percent, the opponents of ours. They’d rather have things be bad so they can try and win an election. So they were hoping it would be 20 percent. Instead, it’s 13 percent. That was good. That — we made up a lot of time, a lot of distance. It’s really great. (Applause.) Even I was surprised by this one. This was better than I thought. I thought it would be okay, but I didn’t know this. It means you were much ahead of schedule. And don’t forget, that doesn’t include New York, New Jersey, and many other states — and, by the way, your state. When are you going to open the state up?

AUDIENCE MEMBER: Open up!

THE PRESIDENT: No, seriously, you’re going to miss your whole — you know, you do 40 million people in tourism, and you have a governor that won’t let you open up. What’s she doing? What’s she doing? I don’t know that much; I just know you’re great people.

You know what I know about Maine? I know you’re great people. But you have — this is like — you know, they say December, for Tiffany’s, that’s their big month, right? This is your time. This is your big month. This is your Christmas, in terms of tourism, your dollars, when you — how can you be closed? I mean — and I see it all the time. Everybody wants to have Maine open, so I figured I might as well say it while I’m up here. You ought to get the state open, Governor. (Applause.) Open the state.

Got a lot of — you have a lot of angry people in Maine about that. I mean, they think — I say, “What are you doing? That’s a strange one.” Some, I understand a little bit more, but this one is not one that should be closed. You’re missing a lot of money and a lot of everything and a lot of people and a lot of spirit. Get it open.

We added 1.2 million leisure and hospitality jobs; 464,000 construction jobs; 424,000 education and healthcare jobs; 368,000 retail jobs. And listen to this one: Remember, the previous administration said, “Oh, there’ll not be any more manufacturing jobs in our country.” I say, “Excuse me?” Two hundred and twenty-five thousand manufacturing jobs, and that’s during a pandemic. (Applause.)

And we had the greatest economy in the history of our country. You know, we had a — an economy, the likes of which we’ve never had. We had almost 160 million, which was the highest number we’ve ever had, by far. African American, Hispanic American, Asian American — the greatest employment and unemployment numbers we’ve ever had.

Greatest stock market numbers. And we’re very close to those numbers, which is pretty amazing. That means that these geniuses on Wall Street, and also a lot of people with 401(k)s — you have 401(k)s?

AUDIENCE: Yeah!

THE PRESIDENT: Oh, you’re going to only vote for Trump, because otherwise, those 401(k)s are going to be worthless. (Laughter.) That’s a big incentive. (Applause.) That’s a big incentive. (Applause.) That’s a big — nah — well, it is. Look, it’s bad things. The only way you’re going to end it is stupid policy, because I built it once, now I’m building it again. We had to close it down. We did the right thing. We closed it down and we saved millions of lives.

But now we opened it up, and it’s opening up to a bang. We’re going to have better — this next year will be better, I think, than any year we’re ever had. That’s how I feel about it. And I’ve been saying it for a long time. The year coming up.

America’s economic comeback has begun. The next year is set to be a year, and — I remember I said it, but it’s going to be an amazing year. For you, it’s going to be great. Your new site is going to be open. It’s a big area that you’re building, and your expansion at Puritan.

But I’m grateful to your leadership team, including Timothy Templet, Scott Wellman, and David Perkins — great people, fantastic people — (applause) — for welcoming us. We have — these are tremendous people. These are great — really, loving people. They’re doing something very important. When you think about what they’re doing, their product is superior. It’s terrific. And it’s made in the USA, and that’s — I shouldn’t tell you this, but I use it every other day. (Laughter.) I go like this. I say, “Is that a Puritan, please?” (Laughter and applause.) No, it’s great product. (Applause.)

But we’re also joined by Secretary of Health and Human Services Alex Azar, who’s doing a great job. Thank you, Alex. (Applause.) And Secretary of Interior David Bernhardt. (Applause.) We just left — we just that meeting with David Bernhardt and Peter Navarro, who’s right here. Peter — stand on up, Peter. (Applause.)

Mr. Congressman, would you please stand up? Come on. We did a thing. (Applause.) We did a — we passed a bill together, right? One of the most important things, Right to Try. Do you know what Right to Try is? That’s where we have the most advanced medical people in the world — labs and everything else — and labs, in many cases, that you work with.

And we have a case where somebody was very sick and they’d go to Asia, they’d go to Europe, they’d go all over the world looking for a cure. You know, they were terminally ill or very sick, very ill. If they didn’t have the money, they’d go home and die. They’d go home. But we have tremendous things coming along, and yet you have to go through a process of testing.

And I said, when we have a situation where somebody is terminally ill, or in that category, we want a right to try our labs. They shouldn’t have to go to Europe and Asia. They shouldn’t have to go all over the world to look for a cure. And we call it the “Right to Try.” You have a right — and it was complex because the drug companies didn’t want it because of liability. The country didn’t want it because they didn’t want to get sued. The insurance companies didn’t want it. The labs didn’t want it because they didn’t want to have anything bad happen to them in terms of what they had to put on — so, you know, on their — on their schedule.

So we said Right to Try. So they have the right to try. They sign a document. They waive the liability. The results — I don’t know if you know, but the results have been unbelievable. The results have been absolutely unbelievable. I mean, we’ve had some great things. (Applause.) So — great. One of the many things we’ve done. But every person here today is playing a vital role in the greatest national industrial mobilization since World War Two. We’ve marshaled the full power of the U.S. government and U.S. industry to defeat the invisible enemy.

And it is indeed an enemy. Should have been stopped in China. Came from China; should have been stopped in China. They didn’t do that.

We’ve delivered over 1.5 billion pieces of personal protective equipment to doctors and nurses on the frontlines. We slashed through red tape to speed the development of vaccines. And vaccines are coming along incredibly well. Wait until you see them. Therapeutics.

And we partnered with private-sector leaders, such as Puritan, to build the largest and most advanced testing capacity on the face of the Earth, like this one.

At this single factory, you quickly ramped up production to produce nearly 20 million foam-tip swabs each month. Then, in April, my administration invoked the Defense Production Act to help you scale up even more. Under a 75-million-dollar public-private partnership, Puritan will soon double production to 40 million swabs per month. That’s a lot. That’s a lot. That’s why we’re beating the world. (Applause.)

And ultimately, you’ll triple production to an astounding 60 million swabs a month, an amazing achievement of American industrial strength. To accomplish this tremendous increase, you partnered with another legendary Maine institution. You’ve never heard of this, I’m sure: Bath Iron Works. Right? (Laughter.) Builder of some of the most powerful warships in the United States Navy for over 135 years. They do a great job.

Under the Defense Production Act, Bath Iron Works is now producing the complex machinery you need to manufacture tens of millions more swabs. And we’re all profoundly grateful to the amazing workers at Bath Shipyard and the executives. They’re really working very closely in many ways, including the building of ships.

Here at Puritan, you’ve already hired 200 new employees with full benefits. And when your new 95,000-square-foot factory in Pittsfield comes online, Puritan will hire an additional 150 Maine workers. Made in the USA, right?

Powered by the dedication of the men and women in this room, America has become the world leader in coronavirus testing. The United States has completed more than 19 million tests, the most anywhere in the world, by far, as I said. You’re now over 20 — 21, almost.

Thanks to you, our country has conducted more tests than all other countries in the world combined. Other than that, you’re not doing very well. (Laughter.)

No, if you listen to the fake news, it’s like, well — you know, I give them a number: “We did 20 million.” “Why didn’t you do 40?” (Laughter.) “Trump should have done 40.” If we did 40, they’d say, “Should have done 100.” Ay-ya-yay, what I have to put up with. (Laughter and applause.) True.

And, you know, when we took over, the cupboards were empty. I always say “the cupboards,” meaning the stockpile. We had very little. And we became now the king of ventilators, also. We’ll have to talk to Puritan. You want to make some ventilators? (Laughter.) We don’t need them. We’re making thousands a week. We have 11 factories, plants. We had practically none, and we saved thousands and thousands of lives.

Ventilators are very hard because they’re big, they’re expensive. I say it’s like making a car, in a certain way. High technology, right? And we’re now making thousands of ventilators a week. And we are at a point where we’re actually helping other countries. We’re sending ventilators to other countries — Nigeria, 200 ventilators. And then they called and we sent them eight hun- — we have a thousand going to Nigeria. Italy, France, Spain. Many, many countries. Russia — we’re sending some to Russia. It’s good for relationship. It’s good for everything.

And we’re knocking them out, and, you know, people aren’t able to just — you can do a swab, even though it’s not that easy, but a ventilator takes a long time. It’s the greatest mobilization, as I said. I mean, greatest since World War Two. It’s been really amazing.

And I’d love the people of the administration, but I’d also like to have our people that work on it, even our — the people of our country to get credit for these things. You know, we got geared up; we did so well. Then you heard about ventilators. There hasn’t been one person in the entire country, from the beginning of this horrible plague that came in — the plague; it’s what it is. There hasn’t been one person that needed a ventilator that didn’t get it. And we started off from a very low platform. They needed, desperately, thousands and thousands of ventilators.

But when you think of it, not one person — with all of the size of our country and all of the people that were sick — not one person, not one that needed a ventilator didn’t get it. I think it’s an incredible achievement to Mike Pence, to all of the people that work in the administration, and to all of the people that went and worked so hard to produce them. (Applause.) Amazing.

And the testing, the same thing. We get — whether it’s Abbott Laboratories or any of the many plans — Roche — we have this incredible testing capacity. We started off with zilch, nothing.

So they’ve done a fantastic job. The whole team has done a really great job, Peter. Wouldn’t you say? Been very amazing.

I want to take a moment to recognize just a few of the hardworking patriots — and that’s what they are — of Maine, who were instrumental in this colossal effort that you’ve done at Puritan.

Angie Buscher. Where is Angie? Come on, Angie. Come on up here. (Applause.) She’s an operator in Puritans laboratory kit manufacturing area, where she’s been working 10 hours a day, 7 days a week for the health of our nation. She’s highly respected. I think she’s very good. Maybe I should hire her. Let’s bring her back. (Laughter.) Let’s bring her back to Washington.

Please, say a few words. Please.

MS. BUSCHUR: I have worked at Puritan for the past 21 years. Since the coronavirus hit, we have spent every day making millions of swabs that helped save lives and helped people save the world. I am so grateful to this company and for the chance to serve our country, that the best way we can pay back is to work harder.

Ever since the President started us helping us grow, we have been so happy and excited to produce even more that I don’t want to stop until the job is done. The President has done so much to support us, and we are all so grateful to know he is fighting for us. Thank you for your leadership, Mr. President.

THE PRESIDENT: Thank you, Angie. Appreciate it. (Applause.) Thank you very much, honey. Let’s — let’s take a picture. Come on. Get over here, Angie. Thank you, darling. I’m not supposed to do that, but it’s okay. What can I — what am I going to do? Say, “Angie — don’t do that, Angie”? (Laughter.) Thank you very much. Great job, Angie.

We’re also joined by Tracy Porter. He has worked here at Puritan for over 40 years — (applause) — and he’s your lead shipping and packaging technician. Tracy, come on up and say a few words, please. Tracy. (Applause.) Forty years. Looks too young to say 40 years, I can tell you. Fantastic, Tracy.

MR. PORTER: Thank you, Mr. President.

THE PRESIDENT: Forty years?

MR. PORTER: Actually, it was 31 years. There was a — a mistake, but that’s fine.

THE PRESIDENT: Okay.

MR. PORTER: Yeah, we all mess up. (Laughter.)

THE PRESIDENT: I feel better. I’m looking at you, I say, “How is that 40 years?”

MR. PORTER: Oh, I appreciate that.

THE PRESIDENT: Thank you very much.

MR. PORTER: Thank you. More often than not, when we see news of a crisis in the world, we — we lament that few of us have any chance to changing the outcome. Today, we find ourselves blessed with this opportunity to make a difference.

During this recent push to make medical products, we’ve received many letters of thanks from all around the country and kind words of encouragement from our local community.

Just prior to this tragic outbreak, we were working — already working long hours, filling orders for customers who’ve been very good to us — customers like Becton, Dickinson; Hologic; and Quidel, just to name a few. A lot of my coworkers and I were expressing a wish for more machines so we could fill orders faster, and maybe keep our customer’s price down. Well, it looks like we’re going to have enough equipment now. (Laughter and applause).

We look forward to working with two great Maine companies like Cianbro Construction and Bath Iron Works. And I want to thank you, Mr. President, for making it all come together.

THE PRESIDENT: Thank you very much. (Applause.) Great job. Thank you very much. He’s — even 31 years, he’s — good head of hair he’s got, too. (Laughter.) Good head of hair you have. (Applause.) Thank you, Tracy. Keep looking good. Keep looking good. Keep healthy, everybody in here. Keep healthy.

With us as well is Derek McKenney, the senior manufacturing engineer at Puritan and a project manager for the new manufacturing plant — which is a big deal — coming on line. Derek, please come up and say a few words. (Applause.)

MR. MCKENNEY: Thank you, Mr. President.

THE PRESIDENT: Hi, Derek. Thank you very much.

MR. MCKENNEY: Good afternoon. I’m Derek McKenney, senior manufacturing engineer and second-generation employee of Hardwood and Puritan Medical Products. My mother has been with the company for 35 years, and I spent my childhood — (applause) —

THE PRESIDENT: Wait a minute. Wait a minute. That’s really your mother?

MR. MCKENNEY: That’s my mother. (Laughter.) I spent my childhood —

THE PRESIDENT: Good genes. (Laughter.)

MR. MCKENNEY: I spent my childhood playing in her office, so I — I’ve been around since about kindergarten.

I was lucky enough to be able to go gain education and experience across the U.S. before returning to my roots here in Guilford, Maine. In the last three years, I’ve been presented with many amazing opportunities to make a difference in the world with Puritan’s critical products.

But nothing compared to that day on March 12th when we got the call from the White House Task Force. From that day forward, I’ve been part of a team who’s chosen to rise up and serve their country and the American people. We have worked tirelessly around the clock and through the weekends for the last 12 weeks to provide the testing supplies required to keep Americans safe.

On July 1st, we’ll start production at our second manufacturing facility with the ability to produce 60 million COVID swabs per month. (Applause.)

This project would normally take 18 months to complete, but in a truly unimaginable feat, it will be operational in 8 weeks. It wouldn’t be possible without the total and complete support of the federal government and the dedication of the phenomenal workforce here in the great state of Maine. (Applause.)

This company and all these people are what make the United States of America the greatest country in the world. God bless you all. (Applause.)

THE PRESIDENT: Come on, get over here. Let’s take a picture. Get over here. Come on. Come on. Come on, mom. Come on, mom, get in here.

MS. MCKENNEY: Thank you so much, Mr. President.

MR. MCKENNEY: Yeah, thank you.

THE PRESIDENT: Beautiful. Did he do a good job, mom?

MS. MCKENNEY: He did an awesome job.

THE PRESIDENT: I think he did. He’ll be running for office next year. Watch. (Laughter.) Thank you very much, Derek. Appreciate it. Great job.

And thank you all. The remarkable testing capacity that each of you has made possible, it’s not only helping our nation to defeat the virus — that horrible, horrible, terrible, disgusting, angry virus — it’s paving the way to get America safely and responsibly back open for business, and that’s what we’re doing right now. We’re doing it right now. It’s happening very quickly, a lot quicker than people thought.

Our strategy for a phased and gradual reopening protects our most vulnerable citizens — and you know who they are; we’ve learned a lot about that — especially in the nursing homes, while allowing younger and healthier Americans to get safely back to work and go to school. I think, in the fall, you’re going to see the schools all open and in great shape.

The best approach to protect the health of our citizens is to focus our resources on safeguarding those at highest risk, while allowing those at lowest risk to go and resume economic activity, including education.

A key element of our effort to reopen, revitalize, and rebuild America greater than ever is bringing critical industries back to our shores.

As the workers of Maine know well — and that’s for many decades — Washington politicians shipped away your jobs, outsourced to your supply chains, and offshored your industry. It’s probably the number-one reason I’m here today, although I was going to say another politician — probably, they wouldn’t be here. They wouldn’t bother with it. To me, it’s very important. I had to save your fishing industry. It was so easy — so easy to do, if you want to do it.

But we — we really talked about this for a long time. Our companies would leave us. They’d fire everybody, pay no taxes. They’d go to another country. They’d make the product. They would sell it into our country with no tax, no nothing — while we ended up with no jobs, empty buildings, empty factories. You had them in Maine all over the place.

But we’re changing all of that. We’ve made tremendous trade deals now. Tremendous trade deals. The U.S.-Mexico-Canada deal is an incredible deal. Incredible deal for our country. And many other deals. We just signed a deal with China, but unfortunately, in that case, the ink wasn’t even dry, and all of the sudden, the plague came in — and so I view it a little bit differently, perhaps.

But they’ve been living up to the deal. They’re buying a lot of — a lot of things. They never had any deal. They just came in and took advantage of the United States. Took out hundreds of billions of dollars a year. So they don’t do that anymore, but it’s a terrible thing that happened.

But as the global pandemic has shown, once and for all, the United States must produce essential equipment, supplies, pharmaceuticals, and technologies for ourselves. And we cannot rely on China and all of these other countries that, in bad times, take advantage of us and rip us off. We don’t do that anymore. We’re moving things back into our country.

That’s why the United States is now engaged in a great national effort to bring industries, factories, and jobs back to America where they belong. We want them back here. Just like you’re doing it, we have other — other places all over the country. Of course, they’re not as good as Puritan, but they’re pretty good. (Laughter.)

And I’m committed to ensuring that our country will be the world’s premier pharmacy. It’s going to be a pharmacy, drugstore, and medical manufacturer. We don’t make our medical products here. We don’t make our drugs here that we need — our desperately needed prescription drugs or otherwise.

In my administration, we live by two simple rules: Buy American and hire American. (Applause.)

So, just in ending — I mean, I say: For centuries, the people of this great state have fished the oceans and farmed the fields and worked the factories that have supplied and sustained our nation. And then they went through a very bad time — a very bad time. Right here in Guilford, generations of proud Maine patriots have poured out their heart, sweat, and soul for this country, making the critical products produced by Puritan. And now Puritan is doing better than it’s ever done, I guess, by a factor of a lot, right? Right?

You know, they call themselves “associates.” See, in the old days, they’d say they were the boss. (Laughter.) Now they’re associates. They’re very smart. I say, “Oh, that’s very smart.” But they’ve done a great job as associates. You’re all associates.

Each of you now carries on this extraordinary legacy and exceptional heritage, serving our nation at this very historic time. This is a historic time. This is a very important time for our country. You see what’s going on. But a lot of good things are going on. A lot of things are going on. A very big thing happened, though, today, when we saw numbers the likes of which we’ve never seen in the history of our country. Good timing. Because people look at that, and they say, “Hey, this country is great. We’ve done things that nobody else has ever done.” It was good to — good that they see that, right? Good timing.

You and your families are making momentous contributions to the vitality of our country, helping us reopen, rebuild, and most importantly, saving lives. The workers of Maine have always been loyal to America. And while I’m your President, this government will always be loyal to you.

Just ask your fishing industry, “How’s Trump doing?” Because they can’t even believe what happened today. (Laughter.) Five thousand square miles of ocean that you couldn’t touch. They just wrote it off — President Obama. He signed. You couldn’t use it anymore. They took it away. I gave it back. With your help — (applause).

By the way, I said, “Why’d they take it away?” Nobody knew. You know, it’s okay to take it away if it means something. I mean — but nobody knew.

With your help, we will vanquish the virus, we will get our nation back to work, and we shall build our glorious future with American hands, American grit, and American pride. And I want to just thank all of you for being here. You’re very special people. This is a very special place. And it’s a great state. And thank you very much.

And get that other half, by the way — get that other half to go with Trump, okay? (Laughter.) You — you, I don’t have to worry about. And I think they’ll be there, too. Because there’s a very, very important election coming up — the most important. It’s amazing what’s happened, and you’ve been a big part of it.

Thank you very much. Congratulations to everybody. Thank you. (Applause.)

END 4:42 P.M. EDT

Dan Scavino

✔@DanScavino

President Trump arrives in Guilford, Maine! 🇺🇸

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Jun 5 2020

Nitric oxide: A possible treatment for COVID-19?


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Re-posted from the Canada Free Press By  —— Bio and Archives—June 4, 2020

Nitric oxide: A possible treatment for COVID-19?
Nitric oxide has played many starring biochemical roles.  Now, multiple clinical trials across the US and Canada are testing whether inhaled NO can protect the lungs of people with COVID-19. Researchers think the gas’s power to boost oxygen levels in the lungs may speed recovery for people infected with the virus and prevent them for requiring mechanical ventilation. Hints from lab studies also suggest that the gas may have virus-killing properties. 1

In 2003, during the severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) epidemic caused by SARS-COV-1 coronavirus, people in Beijing who received inhaled NO recovered faster than those who didn’t get the gas, with treated patients’ blood becoming oxygenated and their lungs clearing faster from signs of pneumonia. Follow-up lab studies in cells showed that NO interfered with virus’s ability to fuse with host cells and replicate.

Nitric oxide was named ‘Molecule of the Year’

The genomes of SARS and COVID-19 overlap 85-90%. Researchers say the similarity between the two viruses is so close that they anticipated NO would destroy viruses. 1

Currently, 11 trials in total are testing NO against COVID-19, six of which are multicenter randomized controlled trials. One trial is testing whether the gas can protect health care workers who are exposed to COVID-19 patients
from infection. The workers will inhale the gas at the beginning and the end of their shifts.

So far, the laboratory evidence of NO’s ability to kill COVID-19 is preliminary at best but its worth looking at the past history of NO and its benefits. 1

An unlikely wonder drug is the unstable free-radical NO (nitric oxide) gas, which is found in cigarette smoke and smog.  Almost thirty years ago no one would have dreamed how important nitric oxide is within our bodies. Now, it is being implicated in everything from memory to blood pressure.

NO was named ‘Molecule of the Year’ by Science magazine in 1992. Editor Daniel E. Koshland, Jr., wrote, “In the atmosphere it is a noxious chemical, but in the body in small controlled doses it is extraordinarily beneficial.”  2

Observed effects of NO in the human body on physiological systems and diseases

In 1998, the Nobel Prize for Medicine was awarded for discovery concerning NO as a signaling molecule in the cardiovascular system. Tiny puffs of NO mediate an extraordinary range of biological properties in our bodies, ranging from destruction of tumor cells to control of blood pressure. 3

In the body, NO is extremely short-lived. It exists for about six to ten seconds before it is converted by oxygen and water into nitrates and nitrites. 4

Here are some observed effects of NO in the human body on physiological systems and diseases: 5

  • Lungs. NO reduces blood pressure in the lungs without affecting the pressure in the rest of the body.
  • Heart. It has been known for a long time that nitroglycerin, which chemically releases NO can relax blood vessels near the heart and increase blood flow.
  • Cancer. White blood cells may use the NO that they release to fight tumor formation.
  • Brain. NO mediates intercellular communication in the brain.
  • Diagnostic analysis- Some inflammatory diseases can be diagnosed by analyzing NO production by the lungs and intestines.
  • Impotence. Studies of the role of NO in penile erection led to the development of Viagra.
  • Alzheimer’s disease. The role of NO produced by the body in neurodegenerative diseases also is being studied.
  • Others. Some of the most dramatic potential applications of NO are in parasitology and tropical diseases. NO may help treat sickle cell anemia. 6

Nitric oxide supplements boost health and performance

Healthline reports 5 ways nitric oxide supplements boost health and performance: 7

  • Erectile dysfunction
  • Muscle soreness
  • Blood pressure
  • Exercise performance
  • Diabetes

A recent review summarized research showing the beneficial effects of nitrate consumption on blood pressure, arterial stiffness, platelet function, and cerebral blood flow. 8

What foods boost nitric oxide? Vegetables, notably leafy green vegetables and beets, contain nitrate, which can be converted in the body to nitrites and then to nitric oxide. Studies have shown that beet juice can help lower elevated blood pressure, which has been attributed to the ability of its nitrates to boost nitric oxide. 9

So, with all these positive results from NO perhaps it might help in the fight against COVID-19.

References

  1. Alla Katsnelson, “Multiple clinical trials test whether NO gas can treat and prevent COVID-19,” cen.acs.org, May 20, 2020
  2. D. E. Koshland, Jr., “The molecule of the year,” Science 258, 1861, December 18, 1992
  3. C. Djerassi NO, Penguin Books, 1998
  4. S. H. Snyder & D. S. Bredt, “Biological roles of nitric oxide,” Scientific American, 266, 68, May 1992
  5. A. K. Taylor, “Nitric oxide—from pollutant to product,” Chemical Innovation, 30, 41,April 2000
  6. D. Christensen, “Nitric oxide may help treat sickle cell anemia,” Science News, 157, 78, January 29, 2000
  7. “5 ways nitric oxide supplements boost your health and performance, healthline.com, accessed June 3, 2020
  8. Lauren C. Blekkenhorst et al., “Nitrate, the oral microbiome, and cardiovascular health:  a systematic literature review of human and animal studies,” American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 107, 504, April 1, 2018
  9. Jeanine Barone, “Why nitric oxide is so important,” berkeleywellness.com, May 4, 2018
May 27 2020

Comrade Crazy – Governor Gretchen Whitmer Claims She is Being Victimized By Citizens of Michigan…


Posted originally on The Conservative Tree House on May 26, 2020 by 

Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer addressed the issue of her husband attempting to use his position to get their personal boat prepped and in the water prior to Memorial day so they could enjoy the holiday. The Michigan governor said her husband was joking when he told the boat storage operator he was the husband of the governor and asked if that would move him up in the line of requests.

Additionally Governor Whitmer highlights how the citizens of Michigan are victimizing her; including scary men who have surrounded her home while carrying “automatic weapons.” Whitmer says the COVID-19 virus has created an undue hardship on her and her family, and she is burdened by hurt feelings and wounded sensibilities.  Whitmer personifies what happens when left-wing moonbats are allowed to gain political power.

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Additionally (below), Whitmer denies reports that her family violated her own stay-home orders and traveled to their second home. She insists her husband only traveled to their second home to rake leaves by moonlight for one, or, well, maybe two days… or something.

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On a positive note.  Whitmer will never be Biden’s VP selection.  Whitmer carries a personality trait found in many moonbats; every time she opens her mouth she is becomes even more unlikeable.

May 27 2020

President Trump Remarks Discussing Protections for US Seniors With Diabetes – 4:15pm ET Livestream…


Posted originally on The Conservative Tree House on May 26, 2020 by 

Today in the Rose Garden President Trump is delivering remarks specific to the protection of US seniors with diabetes and pre-existing medical conditions. Anticipated start time 4:15pm ET  [Livestream Links Below]

WH Livestream Link – Fox News Livestream Link – FBN Livestream Link

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May 27 2020

Ric Grenell Declassifies Wiretapped Flynn-Kislyak Transcripts, and “Other Russia Probe Origination Documents” – Leaves Release Option for Incoming DNI Ratcliffe…


Posted originally on The Conservative Tree House on May 26, 2020 by 

As one of his last actions before leaving his post, former Acting Director of National Intelligence Richard “Ric” Grenell has declassified the transcripts of the wiretapped phone conversations between former National Security Advisor Michael Flynn and Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak.

Additionally, it appears that Grenell has declassified some of the origination documents from the CIA and U.S. intel community that were manipulated in the assembly of the Intelligence Community Assessment (an aspect of particular importance to USAO John John Durham).  As we suspected Ric Grenell is leaving the decision, and timing for their release to incoming DNI John Ratcliffe.

WASHINGTON DC – Richard Grenell has declassified a new batch of Russia probe documents on his way out as acting director of national intelligence, leaving the decision on whether to make those files public up to newly sworn-in Director John Ratcliffe.

The documents include transcripts of phone calls that then-incoming National Security Adviser Michael Flynn and then-Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak had in December 2016, during the presidential transition period.

Grenell said publicly last week that he was in the process of declassifying those files, after House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff, D-Calif., asked that he do so.

Fox News has learned that the declassification review of those transcripts is now complete, and it will be left up to Ratcliffe on whether to release them publicly.

Fox News has learned that Grenell also completed the declassification review of other documents related to the origins of the Russia probe — including one that a senior intelligence official told Fox News was “very significant in understanding how intelligence was manipulated to support launching the Russia investigation.”

The official could not provide further details on that newly declassified document, but said that it will also be up to Ratcliffe to decide whether to make it public. (read more)

If Grenell has declassified the Flynn-Kislyak transcripts, it’s almost certain that he’s declassified ALL THE TRANSCRIPTS – including those the former administration and politicians did not expect he could recover, and did not want to see released.

May 27 2020

Ric Grenell Hits Senator Mark Warner With Sunlight Hammer as He Exits Role as DNI….


Posted originally on The Conservative Tree House on May 26, 2020 by 

Oh my, acting DNI Ric Grenell was/is buckets of brutally honest awesome.

In a departing letter to SSCI Vice-Chair Mark Warner, Grenell responds to a Warner inquiry demanding justification for his blitz of sunlight and naming of unmaskers.

Specifically pointing to the release of names that unmasked Trump administration officials Grenell notes “the decision to declassify the names of individuals who sough to unmask the identity of General Flynn poses absolutely no risk of compromise of either sources or methods.”  Grenell also tells Warner, “cherry picking certain documents for release while attacking the release of others that don’t fit your political narrative is part of the problem the American people have with Washington DC politicians.”

The Daily Caller has compiled a partial list of Grenell’s accomplishments to include:

— Directed the IC to change the way they protect the identities of U.S. citizens contained within intelligence reporting

— Completed the IC review of 53 transcripts from the House Intelligence Committee’s investigation into alleged Russian collusion in the 2016 election and made the transcripts publicly available

— Declassified previously redacted footnotes from the Justice Department Inspector General’s report into the origins of the Russian collusion investigation

— Declassified a list of government officials who requested the unmaskingof National Security Advisor Michael Flynn

— Replaced FBI with ODNI as the primary group responsible for briefing presidential campaigns on information derived from national intelligence

— Declassified former national security adviser Susan Rice’s email to herself regarding a January 2016 Oval Office where progress on the Russia investigation was discussed

— Declassified additional transcripts in ODNI’s possession for potential public release by incoming DNI John Ratcliffe

(READ MORE)

And even that list doesn’t include the declassification of the Rosenstein/Mueller scope memos and several more important contributions during his tenure.

Grenell’s greatest contribution as DNI was personifying a belief that government, including the intelligence apparatus, works for the people; and as a direct result the intelligence apparatus has a responsibility to provide sunlight upon all aspects of their function that does not impede national security.

The way to keep politics out of intelligence matters is to keep as much of their activity as public as possible.  Sunlight is the best disinfectant.

I hope we see more of Ric Grenell in another capacity soon.

 

May 27 2020

Kudlow: American Economy, Workers and Consumers Poised For Great American Comeback…


Posted originally on The Conservative Tree House on May 26, 2020 by 

White House economic adviser Larry Kudlow weighs in on reopening of U.S. economy in a post-pandemic country. White the second quarter economic data has more bad news yet to be assembled and reported, the U.S. economy, workers and consumers are poised to make a Great American Recovery.

The U.S. stock market is looking forward and climbing in response to the economic reopening; while -as expected- many blue state governors are intentionally attempting to hold back their economies and planning for a federal bailout to cover their revenue shortfalls. Remove the possibility for a bailout and those governors will be forced to join the reopening.

Kudlow also appeared on Fox News this morning.

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May 27 2020

Kayleigh McEnany White House Press Briefing – 2:00pm ET Livestream


Posted originally on The Conservative Tree House on May 26, 2020 by 

Today at 2:00pm the fantastic White House Press Secretary, Kayleigh McEnany, is holding a press briefing in the Brady Room.  UPDATE: Video Added

White House Livestream – Fox News Livestream – PBS Livestream – FBN Livestream

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May 19 2020

Understanding Obama’s Liberal ‘Freedom Warriors’


Obama’s conceited Trump attack meant to kill his presidency before his inauguration

Kelly OConnell image

Re-Posted from the Canada Free Press By  —— Bio and Archives—May 18, 2020

Understanding Obama's Liberal 'Freedom Warriors'

Introduction: Becoming A Hero

All kids fantasize about saving humanity, though most outgrow it. Yet, Obama’s vast “Freedom Warrior” army cling to these dreams. Most Obamatons tend towards agnosticism. Some become ‘leftist rebel bureaucrats—believing themselves an undercover Che Guevara with a pension. Many toiling for Federal paychecks are actually quite liberal. And, given the right motivation, will pursue amazingly unethical and illegal actions to service their beliefs.

Unmasking Dead Enders

This theory is the most plausible explanation for Obama loyalists gathering to battle Trump before he entered office. When a serious group of professionals suddenly goes rogue, there must be profound reasons. That reason was saving us from a fate worse than death – Donald John Trump.

Obama Reeling

A terrified Obama now stumbles, attacking Trump’s coronavirus response. Meanwhile, buddy Judge Sullivan cooks up toxic Gen Flynn poison to finish off this patriot. Why? Because that’s the kind of bovine-excrement the incompetent anti-Trump Army wastes their time upon.

I Leftism’s Background & Secret Rebels

Tracing the modern motif of liberal government worker as secret rebel, consider the bloody French Revolution. An anti-religious massacre with countless murders of Catholics and Huguenots. Afterward, science and humanism replaced God. For all future leftist rebellions, this became outline as Karl Marx taught Marxists must fight for world revolution to redistribute wealth.

Marxist Revolutions

“Marxism” officially banished religion, seeking world domination and a property-free state. Marx’s infamous Communist Manifesto ends with these chilling lines:

The Communists disdain to conceal their views and aims. They openly declare that their ends can be attained only by the forcible overthrow of all existing social conditions. Let the ruling classes tremble at a Communistic revolution. The proletarians have nothing to lose but their chains. They have a world to win.

Leftism always favored a revolutionary road to utopia. Achieving greatness means sacrifice for a Communist/ socialist society. For no life exists after this one.

II. Trump as Devil Incarnate

But why did American liberals claim Trump a Satan? Historically, leftists mortally fear losing power. After all, few naturally hardcore Marxists exist. Insecurity led USSR Marxists to try to craft permanent power. They dissolved parliament, legal statutes and opposition parties. So Lenin’s group was the Bolsheviks, aka “majority,” but actually a tiny minority. Combining Marx’s tyrannous ‘Dictatorship of the Proletariat’ with a terror state to enforce permanent rule, ditching democracy, constitutionalism, rights and Rule of Law. With full-blown leader worship, the state devolved into humanist religion, with  the Communist Manifesto as Bible, the Party a priesthood, and supreme leader as Pope

Trump v. Obama Messages

Trump represents robust Americanism, is patriotic, unafraid to engage leftists and built on “America First” nationalism. Trump’s platform astounded leftists, antagonizing Obama’s cult. Eight years into steering US policy towards socialist evolution, Barack’s “forced descent” rankled traditionalists, but thrilled progressives. Example, recall Barack’s “We Can’t Drill Our Way Out!” anti-oil campaign?

Obama’s relentless US downgrading, habitual apologizing, and indifference as president communicated America’s best days lay behind. Like a hospice maître-d’, Barack was giddy about traditional America’s demise. Then Trump ran, and damn well must be taken out at the knees if he pulled off a miracle and gained the Oval Office. And so, the infamous FBL backup plan was born.

III. Worldview of Modern Leftists: Globalism

For modern leftists and Obamatons, the Communist Revolution continues into Globalism – the final frontier. The chief anger of Obama’s minions is abandonment of Globalism. Further, Trump confronting Obama and China during coronavirus doesn’t bode well here.

Globalism: Socialism on Steroids

Theodore Roosevelt Malloch stated, “Globalism” is one world government run on democratic socialism and world citizenship.” His Globalism blueprint is mind-numbing: Forced peace results when religion is made extinct. Borders disappear since only one state exists. “Illegal alien” is a nonsense term. Wealth confiscation creates equality via redistribution.  All humans are “entitled to all of the same economic, social and legal privileges of citizens the world over.”

Reminiscent of Hillary’s promise to open up to all North and South Americans, 600 million people:

“My dream is a hemispheric common market, with open trade and open borders, sometime in the future with energy that’s as green and sustainable as we can get it, powering growth and opportunity for every person in the hemisphere,” Clinton reportedly said to investors in a paid speech she gave to Brazilian Banco Itau in 2013.

Law passed by world parliament, enforced by global entities. Democratic Socialism equals ending political parties to end partisanship. As power is centralized, Global Warming and other environmental disasters will be solved. Universities will purvey one unifying truth while teaching various subjects. What far leftist wouldn’t get weak at the knees at this program as it encapsulates all of Marx’s dreams.
Malloch warns,

“The true end of globalism is the eradication of nations, patriotism, popular sovereignty, any attachment to families, churches or civic associations, and the emergence of a “New Man” (Person): cosmopolitan, rootless, atheist, and willing to follow the dictates of globalist ideology.”

CONCLUSION

Obama’s conceited Trump attack meant to kill his presidency before his inauguration. A stupid idea which still caused Trump profound harm. The real purpose was to salvage plans to save mankind. Charming, but many historic groups had crazy beliefs and tried to convert others. Most failed. Here, America got lucky not suffering worse from these imbeciles. But even sincere cultists must be punished as a lesson for any future hare-brained conspirators.

May 9 2020

MUST READ – Full Interview Transcript of AG Barr Discussing Dropping the Flynn Case…


Posted originally on The Conservative Tree House on May 8, 2020 by 

Q: Does the new evidence show that the counterintelligence case against General Flynn was simply left open to lay a trap for lying?

BARR: Yes. Essentially.

As customary CBS only broadcast a small snippet of the interview between CBS reporter Catherine Herridge and U.S. Attorney General Bill Barr.   The full interview is muchlonger and much more interesting than the edited narrative broadcast by CBS.

When you read the conversation you will immediately notice why CBS refused to broadcast it, and why the segment that did air was so brutally edited.

Some of the interview answers will provide hope for those who want to see justice delivered. However, there are also cautious answers that should be considered when formulating an opinion of AG Bill Barr’s ongoing intention.  Below is the transcript.

[Transcript] Catherine Herridge: Attorney General Barr, thank you for speaking first to CBS News.

Attorney General William Barr: Hi, Catherine.

♦ Q: What action has the Justice Department taken today in the Michael Flynn case?

BARR: We dismissed or are moving to dismiss the charges against General Flynn. At any stage during a proceeding, even after indictment or a conviction or a guilty plea, the Department can move to dismiss the charges if we determine that our standards of prosecution have not been met.

As you recall, in January, General Flynn moved to withdraw his plea, and also alleged misconduct by the government. And at that time, I asked a very seasoned U.S. attorney, who had spent ten years as an FBI agent and ten years as a career prosecutor, Jeff Jensen, from St. Louis, to come in and take a fresh look at this whole case. And he found some additional material. And last week, he came in and briefed me and made a recommendation that we dismiss the case, which I fully agreed with, as did the U.S. attorney in D.C. So we’ve moved to dismiss the case.

♦ Q: So this decision to dismiss by the Justice Department, this all came together really within the last week, based on new evidence?

BARR: Right. Well U.S. Attorney Jensen since January has been investigating this. And he reported to me last week.

♦ Q: Does Judge Sullivan have a say?

BARR: Yes. Under the rules, the case can be dismissed with leave of court. Generally, the courts have said that that provision is in there to protect defendants, to make sure the government doesn’t play games by bringing a charge and then dismissing it; bringing another charge, dismissing it. But he does have a say.

♦ Q: But is the Flynn case effectively over today from the Justice Department’s point of view?

BARR: We think the case against Flynn for false statements should be dismissed, as far as the Department of Justice is concerned.

♦ Q: And depending on the judge’s decision, could charges be brought against General Flynn in the future for other actions he took during the presidential campaign or during the transition?

BARR: Well, no charges like that have been brought. And I’m not gonna speculate about what charges there may be.

♦ Q: All of that said, General Flynn pled guilty to lying to federal investigators during his interview in January of 2017. And Flynn admitted in court, quote, his “false statements and omissions impeded and otherwise had a material impact on the FBI’s ongoing investigation into the existence of any links or coordination between individuals with the campaign and Russia’s efforts to interfere with the 2016 presidential election.” Does the fact remain that General Flynn lied to federal investigators?

BARR: Well to constitute a false statement, you need two things. One, you need a false statement, lie. And then it has to be material to a legitimate investigation. And I think on the question of lying, it’s as Comey, Director Comey said just a few months after this episode, he said it was a closed question. And that, while you might make that argument, it was a very closed question.

But it’s on the question of materiality that we feel really that a crime cannot be established here because there was not, in our view, a legitimate investigation going on. They did not have a basis for a counterintelligence investigation against Flynn at that stage, based on a perfectly legitimate and appropriate call he made as a member of the transition. So.

Let me just also say that when he pled, the issue of materiality is related to whether the government has a bona fide investigation going on. And that’s information that’s really within the control of the government. The individual party would really not have that information. So as new information just became available that has a bearing on whether there was a legitimate investigation, that requires us, our duty, we think is to dismiss the case.

♦ Q: Does the new evidence show that the counterintelligence case against General Flynn was simply left open to lay a trap for lying?

BARR: Yes. Essentially.

They had started a counterintelligence investigation during the summer, as you know, related to the campaign. But in December, the team, the Crossfire Hurricane team, was closing that and determined they had found nothing to justify continuing with that investigation against Flynn.

On the very day they prepared the final papers, the seventh floor, that is the director’s office and the deputy director’s office up there, sent down word they should keep that open. So that they could try to go and question Flynn about this call he had with the Russian ambassador.

Let me say that, at that point, he was the designated national security adviser for President-Elect Trump, and was part of the transition, which is recognized by the government and funded by the government as an important function to bring in a new administration. And it is very typical, very common for the national security team of the incoming president to communicate with foreign leaders.

And that call, there was nothing wrong with it whatever. In fact, it was laudable. He– and it was nothing inconsistent with the Obama administration’s policies. And it was in U.S. interests. He was saying to the Russians, you know, “Don’t escalate.” And they asked him if he remembered saying that, and he said he didn’t remember that.

♦ Q: What should Americans take away from your actions in the Flynn case today?

BARR: Well, as I said in my confirmation hearing, one of the reasons I came back is because I was concerned that people were feeling there were two standards of justice in this country. And that the political and that the justice, or the law enforcement process was being used to play political games. And I wanted to make sure that we restore confidence in the system. There’s only one standard of justice. And I believe that this case, that justice in this case requires dismissing the charges against General Flynn.

♦ Q: Are the actions you’re taking today bigger than the Flynn case?

Well, I think they are bigger because I hope that it sends the message that there is one standard of justice in this country. And that’s the way it will be. It doesn’t matter what political party you’re in, or, you know, whether you’re rich or poor. We will follow the same standard for everybody. Was there a crime committed, do we believe a crime was committed? And do we have the evidence to prove it beyond a reasonable doubt? And we don’t think either of those standards were applicable here.

♦ Q: Has this been one of the most consequential decisions that you have made as attorney general?

I don’t know. I let other people judge that. It’s certainly – I feel good about the decision because that’s what we’re here to do. We’re here to do what’s right.

♦ Q: Not what’s easy.

Right.

♦ Q: Was it an easy decision?

BARR: It was an easy decision, yes. I think easy because once I saw all the facts and some of the tactics used by the FBI in this instance and also the legal problems with the case, it was an easy decision. You know, one thing people will see when they look at the documents is how Director Comey purposely went around the Justice Department and ignored Deputy Attorney General Yates.

Deputy Attorney General Yates, I’ve disagreed with her about a couple of things, but, you know, here she upheld the fine tradition of the Department of Justice. She said that the new administration has to be treated just like the Obama administration, and they should go and tell the White House about their findings. They and, you know, Director Comey ran around that.

♦ Q: When the special counsel report was released last year, you were accused by critics of putting your thumb on the scale in the president’s favor. Are you doing the president’s bidding in General Flynn’s case?

No, I’m doing the law’s bidding. I’m doing my duty under the law, as I see it.

♦ Q: President Trump recently tweeted about the Flynn case. He said, “What happened to General Flynn should never be allowed to happen to a citizen of the United States again.” Were you influenced in any way by the president or his tweets?

BARR: No, not at all. And, you know, I made clear during my confirmation hearing that I was gonna look into what happened in 2016 and ’17. I made that crystal clear. I was very concerned about what happened. I was gonna get to the bottom of it. And that included the treatment of General Flynn.

And that is part of John Durham, U.S. Attorney John Durham’s portfolio. The reason we had to take this action now and why U.S. Attorney Jeff Jensen came in was because it was prompted by the motions that were filed in that case. And so we had to sorta move more quickly on it. But John Durham is still looking at all of this.

This is one particular episode, but we view it as part of a number of related acts. And we’re looking at the whole pattern of conduct.

♦ Q: The whole pattern of conduct before?

BARR: And after.

♦ Q: And after?

BARR: Yeah, the election.

♦ Q: After the election? Okay. You talk about the importance of timing in this decision. What was the evidence that helped you decide this issue?

BARR: I think a very important evidence here was that this was not a bona fide counterintelligence investigation – was that they were closing the investigation in December. They started that process. And on January 4th, they were closing it.

And that when they heard about the phone call, which is – the FBI had the transcripts too – there’s no question as to what was discussed. The FBI knew exactly what was discussed. And General Flynn, being the former director of the DIA, said to them, you know, “You listen, you listen to everything. You know, you know what was said.”

So there was no mystery about the call. But they initially tried some theories of how they could open another investigation, which didn’t fly. And then they found out that they had not technically closed the earlier investigation. And they kept it open for the express purpose of trying to catch, lay a perjury trap for General Flynn.

They didn’t warn him, the way we usually would be required by the Department. They bypassed the Justice Department. They bypassed the protocols at the White House and so forth. These were things that persuaded me that there was not a legitimate counterintelligence investigation going on.

♦ Q: You know you’re gonna take a lot of incoming, as they say in the military, for this decision. Are you prepared for that?

BARR: Yeah, I’m prepared for that. I also think it’s sad that nowadays these partisan feelings are so strong that people have lost any sense of justice. And the groups that usually worry about civil liberties and making sure that there’s proper procedures followed and standards set seem to be ignoring it and willing to destroy people’s lives and see great injustices done.

♦ Q: Just to be clear, you said this was your decision.

BARR: Uh-huh.

♦ Q: Did you consult or discuss the decision in any way with President Trump?

BARR: No.

♦ Q: Did you advise the White House that you had made this decision?

BARR: No. They were aware, because of the schedule, that the Department would be saying something in court. And I said that we’d make up our mind what to do and file, you know, sometime before Monday. File our responses to what was going on in court. But other than that, no.

♦ Q: So the White House became aware of the decision when it filed today?

BARR: Yes.

♦ Q: Not earlier?

BARR: No.

♦ Q: No. Okay. A lot of records have come to light. You talk about the records for closing the Flynn case. Were those new records to you? Because–

BARR: Yes.

♦ Q: –of Jensen? Okay. All right. In addition to those records, there are handwritten notes from January 24th, 2017. This was the day of Michael Flynn’s interview. And the writer states, “What is our goal? Truth, admission, or to get him to lie so we can prosecute him or get him fired?” Is that a routine, by-the-book conversation between senior FBI officials?

BARR: Well, as many people point out, you know, it’s not unusual. In the course of a bona fide investigation, when you’re doing a criminal investigation or a counterintelligence investigation, that has a basis it’s not unusual to have an interview with someone and expecting that they might lie. But here’s what’s different here is that there was no underlying investigation that was legitimate. And the whole exercise was just about creating the lie.

♦ Q: But that language, does it bother you at all?

BARR: Well, my understanding is, just looking at the documents, the way I interpret them, is there was a disagreement. And that one of the agents, one of the senior agents felt that “Let’s not be game playing here. We have the transcript. Show him the transcripts and find out what you wanna find out.”

Instead of instead of, you know, essentially reading excerpts and saying, “Do you remember saying that?” which seemed to be all for the purpose of trying to catch him in something that could be called a lie. But, again, because the FBI knew about the call, there was nothing wrong with the call, the FBI has the transcript of the call, whether or not he remembered saying something is not material to anything.

♦ Q: Who at the FBI was driving this?

BARR: Well, this particular episode, it looks like the impetus came from the seventh floor.

♦ Q: The seventh floor is Director Comey.

BARR: I believe it’s Director Comey and the deputy’s office.

♦ Q: Based on the evidence that you have seen, did senior FBI officials conspire to throw out the national security adviser?

BARR: Well, as I said, this is a particular episode. And it has some troubling features to it, as we’ve discussed. But I think, you know, that’s a question that really has to wait an analysis of all the different episodes that occurred through the summer of 2016 and the first several months of President Trump’s administration.

♦ Q: What are the consequences for these individuals?

BARR: Well, you know, I don’t wanna, you know, we’re in the middle of looking at all of this. John Durham’s investigation, and U.S. Attorney Jensen, I’m gonna ask him to do some more work on different items as well. And I’m gonna wait till all the evidence is, and I get their recommendations as to what they found and how serious it is.

But if, you know, if we were to find wrongdoing, in the sense of any criminal act, you know, obviously we would, we would follow through on that. But, again, you know, just because something may even stink to high heaven and be, you know, appear everyone to be bad we still have to apply the right standard and be convinced that there’s a violation of a criminal statute. And that we can prove it beyond a reasonable doubt. The same standard applies to everybody.

♦ Q: It sounds to me like one of your objectives is to never allow the Justice Department to be used as a political weapon. That’s what you’re saying you think happened here?

BARR: I think, yes. I think there was an aspect of that. And I think, for the last several decades, the Department has been used more and more, or the efforts have been made to draw the Department into that. And I think it’s very important that that not happen.

People, you know, we should choose our leaders through the election process. And efforts to use the law enforcement process to change leaders or to disable administrations are incendiary in this country and destroy our republic.

♦ Q: Before we move on to some separate questions, many of these records should have been provided to Flynn’s defense team long ago. Do you still have confidence in FBI Director Christopher Wray?

BARR: Well, you know, Chris Wray has always supported and been very helpful in various investigations we’ve been running. He cooperated fully with Durham, cooperated fully with Jensen. But, you know, there are a lot of cases in the Department of Justice and I don’t consider it the director’s responsibility to make sure that all the documents are produced in each case. So I don’t– I wouldn’t say that this has affected my confidence in Director Wray.

♦ Q: Does Director Wray have what it takes to make the changes at the FBI?

BARR: Yeah, as I’ve said, you know, he’s been a great partner to me in our effort to restore the American people’s confidence in both the Department of Justice and the FBI. And we work very well together. And I think both of us know that we have to step up. That it’s very important to restore the American people’s confidence.

♦ Q: Does he have his arms around the gravity of what happened in 2016 and 2017?

BARR: I think he does.

♦ Q: Newly declassified footnotes in the Horowitz report suggest that the Steele dossier was likely the product of Russian disinformation. And there were multiple warnings to the FBI at that time, yet they continued to use that. How do you explain that?

BARR: I think that’s one of the most troubling aspects of this whole thing. And, in fact, I said it in testimony on the Hill, I can’t remember if it was my confirmation, that I said I was very concerned about the possibility that that dossier and Steele’s activities were used as a vector for the Russians to inject disinformation into the political campaign.

I think that is something that Robert Mueller was responsible for looking at under his charter, which is the potential of Russian influence. But I think it was ignored and there was mounting indications that this could very well have been happening and no one really stopped to look at it.

♦ Q: These are very smart people who were working in the special counsel’s office, and in senior levels of the FBI. So what drove them here?

BARR: Well, I think one of the things you have to guard against, both as a prosecutor and I think as an investigator, is that if you get too wedded to a particular outcome and you’re pursuing a particular agenda, you close your eyes to anything that sort of doesn’t fit with your preconception. And I think that’s probably the phenomenon we’re looking at here.

♦ Q: You know more about the investigation since Horowitz, since December. Do you see more evidence of personal or political bias today?

BARR: You know, I’m not gonna, again, get into reaching a conclusion at this point till I see everything. There’s certainly more information that has come out that, you know, points in that direction. But I haven’t reached a final conclusion.

♦ Q: Before we just move onto to a couple of off-topic questions, the last thing most Americans remember about General Flynn is that he resigned, was fired. And that he admitted lying to the FBI. Does the fact remain that he lied?

BARR: Well, you know, people sometimes plead to things that turn out not to be crimes. And as I said, the question of lying, you know, it’s something he would know about. On its face, as Director Comey said, it’s not so clear. But the question of materiality is not something he would know about. That’s something that the government knows about. And we have now gotten into it, drilled down, obtained new information. And the Department of Justice is not persuaded that this was material to any legitimate counterintelligence investigation. So it was not a crime.

♦ Q: Before we leave this topic, is there anything that you would like to add?

BARR: No.

♦ Q: Okay. Just on COVID-19. Some of the news of today. The valet at the White House has tested positive. Have you had any exposure or interaction with this valet?

BARR: I don’t think I have, no.

♦ Q: Do you have a view on whether the president, the vice president should self-quarantine or be separated?

BARR: No, you know, I don’t have a view on that. I don’t know about how close they were physically or what the medical advice is the president gets. But we’re tested pretty regularly when we’re over at the White House to visit.

♦ Q: Every day, every other day?

BARR: It depends how frequently, though at least once a week, but sometimes, you know, if you’ve been around and could have been infected, you can get further testing.

♦ Q: The president said that he’s urging the Supreme Court to overturn the Affordable Care Act when it’s taken up in the Supreme Court later this year. What’s your position? Is that something the Justice Department will continue to back?

BARR: Yes. You know, we had an opportunity, all the stakeholders in the administration, to discuss this, and the Department is going to be taking the position as the president states.

♦ Q: Even if that means stripping millions of Americans of their health care in the middle of a pandemic?

BARR: Well, the case isn’t gonna be argued until October. And the president’s made clear that he strongly supports coverage of preexisting conditions. And there will be coverage of preexisting conditions. And, you know, he expects to fix and replace Obamacare with a better health care system.

♦ Q: If governors continue to limit the size of gatherings, including religious services, what further action is the Justice Department prepared to take?

BARR: Well, I think initially, you know, at the very beginning of the crisis, before we knew very much — and while, in some places, the infection rates were skyrocketing and threatening to overwhelm our health care system, you know, the initial limitations may have been defensible. But as time goes by, it’s harder to justify those kinds of blanket restrictions on religious practice.

I think, if people can follow social distancing by leaving space, wearing masks and so forth, there has to be accommodation to religious practice. The Department has already entered a few cases around the country where there have been these sweeping prohibitions against religion where there were comparable secular activities are not controlled the same way.

♦ Q: On the Bureau of Prisons– currently 2,100 inmates and over 360 Bureau prison staff have tested positive for COVID-19. Will you make universal testing available to the inmates and the staff?

BARR: I think over time, we’ll be testing and perhaps get to that point. You know, we got, right at the beginning, I dealt with FEMA and I was able to get some of the Abbott machines. And we’ve been building up our testing capacity. And we’re doing more and more tests.

And, you know, we’ve been trying to keep our inmates as safe as we can. We let a lot of inmates who are older and don’t pose a threat to the community, we’ve put them on home confinement to get ’em outta the institutions. So we’re taking every measure we can to protect those inmates.

Generally speaking, historically, the infection rates roughly, from what I’ve seen, are comparable inside the institution (SIC) as they are in society at large. And we’ve been able to prevent our prisons from becoming Petri dishes where they sweep through with the same lethality that they have in, you know, nursing homes and so forth. It takes a lotta work, and the Bureau of Prisons has been working hard on that.

♦ Q: In closing, this was a big decision in the Flynn case, to– to say the least. When history looks back on this decision, how do you think it will be written? What will it say about your decision making?

BARR: Well, history is written by the winner. So it largely depends on who’s writing the history. But I think a fair history would say that it was a good decision because it upheld the rule of law. It helped, it upheld the standards of the Department of Justice, and it undid what was an injustice.

♦ Q: Uh-huh.

BARR: I mean, it’s not gonna be the end of it.

♦ Q: What do you mean, it’s not the end of it?

BARR: Well, I said we’re gonna get to the bottom of what happened.

♦ Q: And later this year, do you expect a report from U.S. Attorney John Durham? Or do you expect indictments?

BARR: Well, as you know, I’m not gonna predict the outcome. But I said that we’re certainly — there probably will be a report as a byproduct of his work. But we also are seeing if there are people who violated the law and should be brought to justice. And that’s what we have our eye on.

♦ Q: And that would include individuals involved in the Flynn case?

BARR: I don’t wanna get into particular individuals.

♦ Q: Attorney General William Barr, thank you very much for joining us here at CBS News.

Barr: Thank you.

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