Robert Mueller’s Israel problem

By Jordan Schachtel, CONSERVATIVE REVIEW

As the Mueller probe drags along into year two of its supposed investigation into Russian meddling in the 2016 election, a disturbing pattern has emerged. The special counsel has become obsessed with the state of Israel. The former FBI director is deeply suspicious, to the point of total paranoia, that there is a grand conspiracy involving the Trump campaign and transition officials as potential agents for the Israelis.

George Papadopoulos, the Israeli spy?

On Monday, the Daily Caller reported that Mueller had allegedly coerced Trump campaign adviser George Papadopoulos to plead guilty to lesser charges, after threatening that he would be prosecuted as an Israeli spy.

There isn’t much public evidence to suggest that Papadopoulos has substantial ties to Israel. Born to Greek immigrants, he has made a career of working on eastern Mediterranean energy issues. He has advocated for the very uncontroversial position that there should be a closer diplomatic and economic bond between Israel, Cyprus, Greece, and the United States. Nonetheless, the prospect of being prosecuted under the Espionage Act is terrifying, as a conviction carries a lengthy prison sentence.

While it is supposedly investigating Russia’s activities in 2016, the Mueller probe’s alleged Papadopoulos threat is just one of many instances in which the special counsel has instead exhibited a hyper focus on Israel-related activities.

Gen. Michael Flynn and Israel

In December, Gen. Michael Flynn pled guilty to making false statements to the FBI. Notably, one of the charges levelled at the decorated general was that during the transition period, he communicated with the Russian ambassador to the U.S. about a coming vote concerning an anti-Israel resolution at the United Nations. Although the mainstream media and the Left accused him of breaching protocol, a transition team reaching out to world powers prior to entering office is not illegal or unusual. In fact, it’s a standard, smart practice.

President Obama was notoriously hostile to Israel, so much so that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reportedly called the incoming Trump administration and asked if they could rally for the defeat of the vicious U.N. resolution. The resolution passed anyway, thanks to U.N. Ambassador Samantha Power’s abstention.

Nonetheless, Mueller found it necessary to charge Flynn for misleading the FBI about his conversations with the Russian ambassador about the resolution. Additionally, as the special counsel probe drags on, evidence has emerged that Flynn did not in fact mislead the FBI about his conversations.

Jared Kushner and Israel 

In November, reports emerged that Mueller was scrutinizing efforts made by Jared Kushner, a senior aide to the president, and his efforts to combat the anti-Israel U.N. resolution during the presidential transition period.

Just as Gen. Flynn had every right to defend Israel, so did Kushner. Yet Mueller’s team seemingly carried on for months with a dedicated effort to examining Kushner’s Israeli ties. As Mueller was digging into Kushner, targeted hit pieces reporting exclusive information from the Mueller probe landed in leftist outlets such as the Washington Post, NBC News, and the New York Times.

Flashback: Mueller tries to “tempt Jews” to betray USA

Mueller’s suspicions of Israel — and Jews as a whole — go back to his early days as the FBI director.

In 2004, the Mueller FBI alleged that a massive Israeli spy ring was operating out of the Pentagon. The stunning revelations sent shockwaves throughout the intelligence community, and it was followed by endless editorials painting Israel as a nefarious actor seeking to undermine the United States.

Yet it later turned out that the allegations were completely bogus. There was no Israeli spy ring, but rather, what appeared to be a deliberate attempt to target Jews for prosecution. There were several disturbing instances of the Mueller FBI running sting operations attempting to “tempt Jews” to betray their country. “All turned down the offer,” according to the Washington Post. Mueller’s attempts to lure Jews into a trap failed. The botched operation confirmed the troubling reality that elements of the U.S. intelligence community remained attached to anti-Semitism.

Mueller sends a team to Israel 

Last month, Mueller sent a team of investigators to Israel in an attempt to track down the activities of at least two Israeli social media and consulting firms. Mueller’s prosecutors have seemed to suggest in leaks to the media that the Israeli firms may have colluded with the president to secure his victory.

However, both companies have flatly denied that they ever even worked with the Trump campaign in an official or unofficial capacity, yet Mueller devoted massive resources to flying his team over to Israel to investigate the matter.

The Trump-Russia dossier and its backers have their own Jewish conspiracies

If Mueller is indeed relying upon the rumors gathered in the political opposition document (which was financed by the Clinton campaign) known as the Trump-Russia dossier (and reports suggest that he is), his attempts to uncover a series of grand Israeli and Jewish conspiracies shouldn’t come as a surprise.

According to the dossier, Russian Jews and Jewish organizations are integral to the supposed links between President Trump and the Kremlin. As Lee Smith lays out in an article for Tablet magazine, dossier producer Glenn Simpson has made it clear in his public testimony that he believes there is an ongoing “secret Jewish plot to undermine American democracy.”

To this day, not a single major allegation in the dossier has been confirmed.

Old habits die hard

The evidence is not on his side, but that hasn’t stopped Mueller from sending agents halfway across the world to chase down leads garnered from politically motivated sources. As his career track record shows, this isn’t the first time Mueller has played the Israeli agent card. The first time, Mueller’s delusions ended up making a hugely embarrassing saga for the FBI. Now one year into the Mueller probe, his special counsel has yet to find evidence for any grand Israeli plot.