To say that the mainstream media is super excited about Comey's forthcoming testimony would be a bit of an understatement. The idea that the former FBI Director may offer up the first piece of tangible evidence that Trump committed a potentially impeachable offense has stoked outright hysteria at the likes of CNN and MSNBC. CNN even went so far as to describe the hearing as "Washington's Super Bowl"...
...and has been updating their audience, days in advance we might add, on the 700 different ways they'll be able to tune into the live hearing scheduled for later this week.
Beginning at 9:45 a.m. ET, live coverage of the testimony will be on CNN and streaming on CNN.com, the CNN app on phone and tablet, and on mobile devices. You can also watch it on your Apple TV, Roku, and Amazon Fire TV with the CNNgo app, CNN's Facebook Page and via Apple News.
But while pretty much every mainstream media outlet is on the edge of their seats praying for Trump's downfall to play out on live TV, Charles Krauthammer of Fox News is a bit more skeptical, if not just a bit more realstic. Speaking with Fox's Brett Baier, Krauthammer pointed out that Comey is masterful at protecting his own ass and would never slip up to the point of alleging outright obstruction because he would be "indicting himself for not resigning, for not making a statement, for not bringing it out in the open."
“Here there is one question — did the president obstruct justice? That’s what everybody is waiting for. I don’t think there’s anything of great interest other than that.
And his answer I think is going to be obvious. He will navigate to a point where he says, ‘Well, there might’ve been some pressure but it’s not obstruction.’ Why? Because if it were obstruction, then he is indicting himself. For not resigning, for not making a statement, for not bringing it out in the open.
So he can’t say it’s obstruction which is what everybody who wants to see Trump destroyed is waiting to hear. So what we will hear is something navigating in between and saying ‘Well, it wasn’t really pressure, he was speaking on behalf of an associate, a friend. It could be interpreted in various ways.’ That’s what I think is going to happen and that’s why I think it’s going to be a bust.”
Forward to the 3:10 mark for the relevant Krauthammer commentary:
So what say you..."Washington's Super Bowl" or total "Bust"?
And the "manage expectations"-fest continues with ABC citing sources that will stop short of saying the president interfered with the agency's probe into former national security adviser Michael Flynn, a source familiar with Comey's thinking.
“He is not going to Congress to make accusations about the President’s intent, instead he’s there to share his concerns,” the source said, and tell the committee “what made him uneasy” and why he felt a need to write the memo documenting the conversation.
Although Comey has told associates he will not accuse the President of obstructing justice, he will dispute the president’s contention that Comey told him three times he is not under investigation.