House Intelligence Committee Chairman Devin Nunes makes a great point about all the fear and loathing about Russian political interference.
Who was president when all this was happening?
Barack Obama.
Following the indictment last Friday of 13 Russian nationals and three Russian entities for interfering in the U.S. 2016 presidential election, it's worth considering what the president and his intelligence agencies were doing at the time.
The operation began in May 2014, according to Special Counsel Robert Mueller's investigation. Where was the CIA, the FBI and the NSA? Was the Obama administration asleep at the switch?
TRENDING: Greatest Show on Earth: The Hur report hearing
Nunes also points out that Obama failed to act when he warned of Russian "influence operations" around the world – the month before Mueller says this conspiracy began.
"The House Intelligence Committee has been investigating these threats for many years: In 2014 – the year the Russians began their operation targeting the 2016 elections – I warned about Russia's worldwide influence operations," Nunes wrote.
Further, he noted that he said in April 2016 during a CNN interview, in the midst of the 2016 primary season, that the United States' failure to predict Putin's strategy is "the biggest intelligence failure that we've had since 9/11."
Nunes is hardly alone in such criticism.
Republican National Committee Chairwoman Ronna Romney McDaniel accused the Obama administration of losing "sight of Russia during their tenure." She also noted how during the 2012 campaign when Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney, her uncle, said that Russia was America's "number one geopolitical foe," former President Obama "laughed at him."
And let's not forget Obama's infamous live-microphone episode with Russian President Dmitry Medvedev in March 2012 in Seoul, South Korea. Medvedev was pushing Obama on a missile-defense agreement and other issues when he was overheard saying: "On all these issues, but particularly missile defense, this, this can be solved but it's important for him to give me space."
Medvedev responded: "Yeah, I understand. I understand your message about space. Space for you …"
Obama cut him off saying: "This is my last election. After my election I have more flexibility."
Medvedev responded: "I understand. I will transmit this information to Vladimir, and I stand with you."
Then, it cannot be mentioned frequently enough, who was it that sought to hit the "reset" button in Russian-American relations in 2009? It was the Obama administration. It led directly to Russia's intervention in the Ukraine.
Who was it, then, who had been coddling Russia and showing no recognition that the bear was still dangerous?
It was Obama and Hillary Clinton.
It was always Obama and Clinton who had the unrealistic expectations that Russia could be America's buddy.
How is it that President Trump gets the blame for eight years of foreign policy and failed intelligence by the Democrats?
It seems Obama and Clinton willingly turned a blind eye to the threat and that their own intelligence agencies failed miserably. Why is no one investigating that?
And still there has been no evidence of Russian-Trump "collusion" found after a full year of investigations.
Why no interest in the Russian uranium deal orchestrated, with payoffs, to the Clinton Foundation?
Where's Mueller on that? Where's CNN's curiosity? Where's MSNBC's interest – or the Washington Post's or the New York Times'?
None of these Russians are ever going to be prosecuted for these crimes. It's a big ho-hum, at this point. It's like a bad joke. How about figuring out who was behind the lapses in foresight and intelligence in Washington to allow these crimes to go undetected for two years?
Or did they go undetected?