A Washington D.C. jury just shattered Trump's 'Russiagate' dreams — hopefully forever

Everyone but John Durham seemed to see the Michael Sussmann verdict coming. [View in browser]( [Image]( June 2, 2022 THE LATEST [Alternate text] A Washington D.C. jury just shattered Trump's 'Russiagate' dreams — hopefully forever]( by Barbara McQuade To no one’s surprise, a jury this week acquitted attorney Michael Sussmann of charges that he made a false statement to the FBI in 2016 related to Trump's infamous "Russiagate" allegations. It feels like everyone but special counsel John Durham could see this verdict coming, [writes Barbara McQuade](. Indeed, this (mostly doomed) investigation has always had the feel of a vengeance tour, explains McQuade, and an opportunity to change the narrative surrounding Trump, the FBI and the central findings of the Mueller report. "Durham’s indictment of Sussmann shifted the FBI’s role from alleged villain to alleged dupe, portraying the agency as having been victimized by the Clinton campaign to plant a false story about connections to Russia," she notes. "Efforts to rewrite history rely on members of the public to lose track of the details. Fortunately for Sussmann, the jury was paying attention." Read Barbara McQuade's [full analysis](//link.msnbc.com/click/27919285.78373/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cubXNuYmMuY29tL29waW5pb24vbXNuYmMtb3Bpbmlvbi93aHktdGV4YXMtc2Nob29sLXNob290aW5nLXdvbi10LXN0b3AtbnJhLWNvbnZlbnRpb24tbjEyOTU3MDI_Y2lkPWVtbF9tZGFfMjAyMjA2MDImdXNlcl9lbWFpbD1kN2RjNzQ1MTcyOTdiMzk3MWFhMTRkNmYzMzExMzVhMDg3OGY4ZjY0MGZhMWExMDE5ZjE1N2I2NWMxYjVkZDFk/58292da26e4adc7b0b8b4914Bffde99db//link.msnbc.com/click/27919285.78373/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cubXNuYmMuY29tL29waW5pb24vbXNuYmMtb3Bpbmlvbi9jZW5zdXMtb3ZlcmNvdW50cy11bmRlcmNvdW50cy1za2V3cy1jb25ncmVzc2lvbmFsLXJlcHJlc2VudGF0aW9uLW4xMjk1NTgzP2NpZD1lbWxfbWRhXzIwMjIwNjAyJnVzZXJfZW1haWw9ZDdkYzc0NTE3Mjk3YjM5NzFhYTE0ZDZmMzMxMTM1YTA4NzhmOGY2NDBmYTFhMTAxOWYxNTdiNjVjMWI1ZGQxZA/58292da26e4adc7b0b8b4914Bfce8951b in your Thursday [MSNBC Daily](. TOP STORIES [Alternate text] [Katie Phang]( [Why the Johnny Depp trial verdict is bigger than Amber Heard]( The Depp-Heard trial started as a defamation case — and devolved into voyeuristic madness. [Read More.]( [Zerlina Maxwell]( Oops! Tucker Carlson just went after the wrong White House guest]( The Fox News troll meets his match with BTS Army internet trolls. [Read More.]( [Ja'han Jones]( [Another legal setback for Sarah Palin? You betcha!]( The judge didn't mince words when rejecting Palin's request. [Read More.]( [Steve Benen]( House Republicans didn't need another ethics headache — but they just got one anyway]( The past couple of weeks have been a little rough for GOP leaders. [Read More.]( TOP VIDEOS [Alternate text] [All In]( [Tulsa police: 5 dead including gunman after shooting inside hospital]( [Deadline White House]( [Texas state senator says Gov. Abbott is trying to 'bamboozle' the public]( [All In]( ['Is she doing this on purpose?': Chris Hayes can't help but laugh at Marjorie Taylor Greene's latest gaffe]( [Andrea Mitchell Reports]( [Texas artist donates custom caskets for Uvalde shooting victims: 'We're letting these little souls shine.']( MORE FROM MSNBC [Alternate text]   Sunday, MSNBC presents "Devil's Advocate: The Mostly True Story of Giovanni Di Stefano," a three-part Sky Original series following the famed attorney’s journey to disgraced conman. The series explores Di Stefano's rise as a lawyer representing the who's-who of the criminal world, from Charles Manson to Saddam Hussein, and the epic investigation that unraveled his true identity hidden behind schemes, deception, and lies. Watch episodes one and two of "Devil’s Advocate: The Mostly True Story of Giovanni Di Stefano" Sunday at 10 p.m. ET on MSNBC and streaming on Peacock.   Freedom House's annual Freedom in the World survey notes that liberalism has rapidly declined each year for the last 16 years. Its precipitous downturn is more evident now than ever amid waning respect for individual rights, increased growth of autocracies and, most recently, in the seismic Russian invasion of Ukraine. Decades ago, political scientist and professor Francis Fukuyama was one of the preeminent scholars to predict the marked impending fall of liberal societies. He serves as a senior fellow at Stanford's Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies and is a bestselling author of numerous books, including one published in March 2022 aptly titled, "Liberalism and Its Discontents." He joins WITHpod to discuss why liberalism doesn’t always live up to its own principles, challenges from the right and the left and why our democracy will be under continued threat without a revitalized approach at its core. [Listen now](.     [Image] [Image]   [Privacy]( [Unsubscribe](listvar=sub_daily)