A public AMA with Seth Abramson, a lawyer and former criminal investigator whose top-ranked substack, Proof, is engaged in the most comprehensive investigation of insurrectionist kingpins in US media.
How do we get media and others to STOP referring to members of the GOP as conservative? These people are anything but conservative. They're right wing radicals bent on destroying America as a democratic republic. They're fascists and autocrats and it's very important for that terminology be used to describe the other side, but how do we accomplish that? I'm tired of Democrats being tagged as out of touch extremists/socialists/communists, you name it, when it's actually Dems trying to conserve democracy. How do we get this change to happen??
Whenever I read your writing, I am struck at how detailed, coherent, and comprehensive it is. I don't understand how you can fully absorb and produce the volume and quality of work that you do. How do you organise the facts and then link then together into a coherent narrative?
Wondering if you’ve been following the Epik hack stuff. Looks like Ali Alexander’s dirty fingers were very busy trying to scrub his name from stop the steal pages.
What details re 1/6 are related to tfg's Pentagon personnel changes in Nov 2020? Did those changes facilitate the lack of response to the insurrection?
Do you think that anything disqualifying to a 2024 run for tfg will be in the new book by Woodward? The indictment against Weisselberg? I'm so hoping crime will catch up to the pig before 2023. Hoping that there is hope to keep him out of 1600.
burning question: why did TFG suddenly leave Mar a Lago and abandon his $$$$ new year's eve party? why the sudden return to the WH. had to be something important. Maybe to sign an order prepared by his Defense dept goons? what actions did he take upon arrival? who did he see? Think this is a key to the insurrection plotting and planning by him. Something that was time senstitive. or to do something sneaky before anyone higher up could see it? was it the memo to leave afghanistan on 1/15 that had to be signed? what did he have to do that he couldnt do at mar a lago??? had to be skullduggery.
You’ve probably written about this, but why has not more been made of the letter by Christopher Miller several days before Jan. 6th to hold back police, National Guard? This seems very important.
Hi, Seth! Having watched what’s happening in our country are fully the last several years, it’s clear to me that America is at war, that it is a new kind of warfare we are engaged in, and that our gravest threat is the treasonous Americans working hard to undermine our democracy, and on a much grander and more capable scale than the red scare of McCarthy in the 50’s… if all this is so very clear to me, you and many others, why then is our government apparently so lax in dealing with it now? Can you speculate on what’s holding us back and why?
My Question is about General Milley. He called his Chinese counterpart because the Chinese general "mistakenly" believed that Trump was planning to attack China; however, Milley also gathered all his military people involved in making a decision about an attack and told them not to do anything unless they came to him first.
My impression from this is that both Milley and his counterpart believed that Trump was planning to attack China.
Instead of picking on Milley for contacting his counterpart in order to calm him down, people should try to find out if Trump was actually planning to attack China in order to create a pretext for staying in power.
Seth, has the January 6th commission reached out to you? Have you provided your documents? It seems you have created an outline and all they need to do is follow it! Thank you.
I am not sure at all that Wray is on the right team. He has downplayed right wing terrorism, has not addressed 1/6, did not warn of 1/6, soft pedaled the Kavanaugh investigation. Your thoughts?
Is there something WE can do = to legitimately and seriously put pressure on or raise the interest in prosecutions and legitimate punishment? There is evidence, there are crimes, there are charges but nothing else happens & I know putting together a solid case isn't slap dash but seems that there could be [should be??] a focus on a case that will make the point solidly == even if not TFG - some underling[s] = I can't believe TFG is bright or able enough to do all this on his own - he has subalterns and minions and toadies and they can be got.
What's your overall state of optimism/pessimism that there will be accountability for crimes committed by TFG and the Trump family, Giuliani, Stone, Alex Jones, etc., and could you please explain the most important factors driving that assessment?
Do you think the FBI will further investigate the 4,500 tips regarding Brett Kavanaugh? I am furious about how the trump administration basically stopped any investigation and feel nothing will ever be done unless something is so egregious surfaces when the judiciary committee or FOIA requests unearth it, that it can’t be ignored.
The latest headline I'm seeing these days is that Trump is trying to put Secretaries of State that believe The Big Lie and will actually listen to him when he asks them to commit fraud. If you've heard this, can you rate how concerned you about this?
Also, I am interested in what you think about Stephen King's Dark Tower series, if you've read it. After reading your early Proof articles on metamodernism, I feel as that series went along, it reminded me of some of your articles (and examples you provided - very kind of you by the way).
How do we get media and others to STOP referring to members of the GOP as conservative? These people are anything but conservative. They're right wing radicals bent on destroying America as a democratic republic. They're fascists and autocrats and it's very important for that terminology be used to describe the other side, but how do we accomplish that? I'm tired of Democrats being tagged as out of touch extremists/socialists/communists, you name it, when it's actually Dems trying to conserve democracy. How do we get this change to happen??
Whenever I read your writing, I am struck at how detailed, coherent, and comprehensive it is. I don't understand how you can fully absorb and produce the volume and quality of work that you do. How do you organise the facts and then link then together into a coherent narrative?
Hi Seth!
Wondering if you’ve been following the Epik hack stuff. Looks like Ali Alexander’s dirty fingers were very busy trying to scrub his name from stop the steal pages.
https://t.co/VMOuMcmlx5?amp=1
What details re 1/6 are related to tfg's Pentagon personnel changes in Nov 2020? Did those changes facilitate the lack of response to the insurrection?
Hi Seth,
Do you think that anything disqualifying to a 2024 run for tfg will be in the new book by Woodward? The indictment against Weisselberg? I'm so hoping crime will catch up to the pig before 2023. Hoping that there is hope to keep him out of 1600.
burning question: why did TFG suddenly leave Mar a Lago and abandon his $$$$ new year's eve party? why the sudden return to the WH. had to be something important. Maybe to sign an order prepared by his Defense dept goons? what actions did he take upon arrival? who did he see? Think this is a key to the insurrection plotting and planning by him. Something that was time senstitive. or to do something sneaky before anyone higher up could see it? was it the memo to leave afghanistan on 1/15 that had to be signed? what did he have to do that he couldnt do at mar a lago??? had to be skullduggery.
You’ve probably written about this, but why has not more been made of the letter by Christopher Miller several days before Jan. 6th to hold back police, National Guard? This seems very important.
Hi, Seth! Having watched what’s happening in our country are fully the last several years, it’s clear to me that America is at war, that it is a new kind of warfare we are engaged in, and that our gravest threat is the treasonous Americans working hard to undermine our democracy, and on a much grander and more capable scale than the red scare of McCarthy in the 50’s… if all this is so very clear to me, you and many others, why then is our government apparently so lax in dealing with it now? Can you speculate on what’s holding us back and why?
Do you think any one on the January 6 Commission has read any of your books, tweets or Substack?
My Question is about General Milley. He called his Chinese counterpart because the Chinese general "mistakenly" believed that Trump was planning to attack China; however, Milley also gathered all his military people involved in making a decision about an attack and told them not to do anything unless they came to him first.
My impression from this is that both Milley and his counterpart believed that Trump was planning to attack China.
Instead of picking on Milley for contacting his counterpart in order to calm him down, people should try to find out if Trump was actually planning to attack China in order to create a pretext for staying in power.
Seth, has the January 6th commission reached out to you? Have you provided your documents? It seems you have created an outline and all they need to do is follow it! Thank you.
I am not sure at all that Wray is on the right team. He has downplayed right wing terrorism, has not addressed 1/6, did not warn of 1/6, soft pedaled the Kavanaugh investigation. Your thoughts?
Is there something WE can do = to legitimately and seriously put pressure on or raise the interest in prosecutions and legitimate punishment? There is evidence, there are crimes, there are charges but nothing else happens & I know putting together a solid case isn't slap dash but seems that there could be [should be??] a focus on a case that will make the point solidly == even if not TFG - some underling[s] = I can't believe TFG is bright or able enough to do all this on his own - he has subalterns and minions and toadies and they can be got.
What's your overall state of optimism/pessimism that there will be accountability for crimes committed by TFG and the Trump family, Giuliani, Stone, Alex Jones, etc., and could you please explain the most important factors driving that assessment?
Do you think the FBI will further investigate the 4,500 tips regarding Brett Kavanaugh? I am furious about how the trump administration basically stopped any investigation and feel nothing will ever be done unless something is so egregious surfaces when the judiciary committee or FOIA requests unearth it, that it can’t be ignored.
The latest headline I'm seeing these days is that Trump is trying to put Secretaries of State that believe The Big Lie and will actually listen to him when he asks them to commit fraud. If you've heard this, can you rate how concerned you about this?
Also, I am interested in what you think about Stephen King's Dark Tower series, if you've read it. After reading your early Proof articles on metamodernism, I feel as that series went along, it reminded me of some of your articles (and examples you provided - very kind of you by the way).