The purpose of the Manning Trial!

Okay folks... This thread is NOT a rehash or to break open a can of 'he did, he didn't' or 'he is, no no he isn't'. There are literally a half dozen or more threads in various states of that discussion and most passionate with heated debate.

I'm posting this thread for one specific question and one specific issue.

WHY have this trial for Manning?

We know he has entered guilty pleas on all but the top counts which carry Life for him. He even offered to plea to lesser charges on those if some technical issues like dates were stipulated to. I've never quite understood this.

His guilty pleas already bag him for 20 years. That's a good day by anyone's measure. WHY the pile on with the expense, not to mention further public airing of the evidence they really didn't want headlined to the public the first time??

I believe I found an answer in an Associated Press story just a few minutes ago. I think NOW WE KNOW why this is SO important to TPTB and why, as I suspected, Manning is NOT the point of this. He's secondary to the purpose of getting a conviction here. Yes..... I said secondary to his OWN conviction. How?

This is how:

First Amendment lawyer James Goodale, author or "Fighting for the Press: The Inside Story of the Pentagon Papers and Other Battles," said a Manning conviction on any one of eight espionage counts or a federal computer fraud charge would enable the government to charge civilians, including WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange.

"In Assange's case relative to Manning, they can treat each of them as co-conspirators and prosecute them," Goodale said in an interview.

Source

The path through Manning to Julian Assange has never been a clear one. They've never charged Assange with anything out of the United States because they have never been ABLE TO. The evidence wasn't there which could withstand challenge in open Court to an extradition request.

*IF* they can convict Manning on the pile-on charges, then THOSE open the door to clearly charging Assange and his Wikileaks crew. Maybe others? Wikileaks wasn't the ONLY one who got this stuff, please remember. There were other media outlets who, at the same time, got parts of the same material.



HOW far do they intend to take this for chasing Media and self identified Journalists like Julian Assange? How far into MSM outlets like some London organizations who got intelligence out of this at the same time, do they intend to push?

I'd never had cause to think they may be looking to expand well beyond both Manning AND Assange to jump to bigger fish through one or both of them. I figured Assange was the prize. However, I now find myself pausing for a moment, given the interview quoted above with someone who lives and works in this area of law and theory.



What does everyone think about intentions to dramatically expand the scope of the chase, if they get what they want here? THAT would explain why something seamingly petty and vindictive in nature....really isn't.

Just off the cuff there dear Wrabbit..Think about how many years this has been planned...these sandals I tell ya.

reply to post by SarnholeOntarable

If you suggest Manning, Assange and Snowden are plants? I'd say no way in this life. The puppet masters had their puppets cut their own strings when they weren't looking and tell the audience how the tricks are done.

They're in a bad bad spot ....and I fully expect the Intelligence Community to pull out *ALL* the stops at this point to make all 3 of them sound like they've been agents from day 1. It's the ONLY move they have left. They have nothing else.

The Emperor isn't the only one with no clothes. His whole court looked down to find themselves buck naked. ...but.. they can't get to Assange and everyone around or beyond him without this trial and it's outcome, apparently. Now it makes sense...for the almost comical chase of Assange for what he 'did but didn't do' for charging, yet carefully never formally charging.

If they could have ever gotten Assange onto U.S. Soil for any reason by any means...it wouldn't have mattered, IMO. Like Jose Padilla, charges would have been something to work out in their own time while Assange sat to rot in a hole somewhere. I'm sure he knew that too... Outside the U.S.? Other courts with no love loss for Uncle Sam would have had to agree with charges for extradition. No dice ......unless they get this.

reply to post by Wrabbit2000


ROFL
try to see the funny side
THEY are merely digging their own graves.
Assange and Snowden will probably be droned or seal-teamed; Manning will wind up getting the same treatment Sofia [The Color Purple] received in jail, and what's left of him, of course will be exhibited publicly so as to put the "fear of authority" into any future potential whistleblowers.

THEY are merely digging their own graves.
as the next potential whistleblower, having no peaceful means available, may very well choose to go old testament on the offending parties + fellow travelers and pull an Ehud.

Ehud said, "I have a message from God for you",...

S&F for the find and follow-up