“The fact that we have spent so much time talking about Russia, you know, has been a distraction”

The Democrats’ obsession with Russia-Trump collusion conspiracy theories has been long on innuendo, and short on facts.

Connecticut Senator Chris Murphy has been a leader in spreading the innuendo.

During a February interview with CNN, Murphy warned it’s “as scary as it gets”:

Sen. Chris Murphy said Tuesday that President Donald Trump’s latest words comparing the United States to Russia are “as scary as it gets.” “This is as scary as it gets and they need to get to the bottom of what this is all about,” the Connecticut Democrat told CNN’s Alisyn Camerota on “New Day.” “What is this strange relationship between Putin and Trump? And is there something that the Russians have on him that is causing him to say these really bizarre things on an almost daily basis?”

Despite the smoke, there is zero evidence of a fire. By early May, Murphy was admitting as much but still pushed the innuendo:

Sen. Chris Murphy (D., Conn.) admitted Tuesday on MSNBC that Congress does not have a “smoking gun” proving President Donald Trump’s campaign colluded with the Russian government. “So, I don’t know. We certainly don’t have a smoking gun today, but it seems that this story is unfolding only in one direction,” Murphy said on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe.” … “Do you believe there’s been collusion between the Trump campaign and Russia from what you know?” Geist asked Murphy. Murphy indicated that while he does not have direct evidence of collusion, it is likely that future evidence will point in that direction. “Every few weeks, we get new evidence that suggests that there was more, not less, coordination than we previously thought between the Trump campaign and the Russian government,” Murphy said. “I have a feeling that there is a number of additional chapters here that haven’t been told, but no, today we don’t have that direct, clear evidence of collusion between Trump himself, high levels of the campaign, and the Russian government,” Murphy added. “But we certainly seem to be getting closer to that moment.”

Now Murphy is having regrets, after the devastating Democrat loss in the Georgia special election.

Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., said Wednesday morning that Democrats have spent too much time arguing about Russia in Washington, an issue that real voters don’t care about. That was Murphy’s reaction after Democrats failed to win the seat in the 6th District in Georgia. “I think what it means is the Democrats have to be hyper-focused on an economic message that tells people that the Republican Party is all about economic growth for millionaires and billionaires, and the Democratic Party is about economic growth for everybody,” he said on MSNBC. “The fact that we have spent so much time talking about Russia, you know, has been a distraction from what should be the clear contrast between Democrats and the Trump agenda, which is on economics,” he added…. “I have to say, they are never talking about issues like Russia,” he said. “They are not talking, frankly, about what’s on cable news at night.”

The mention in the segment to Robert Costa of the Washington Post was to this interview in which Costa mentioned that outside D.C. people are not focused on Russia:

“One other takeaway as I leave Atlanta is the Russia issue, and President Trump’s handling of these investigations, the special counsel. When I’m in Washington, that’s a consuming issue for Democrats. It alarms even some Republicans,” Costa said “On the ground in Georgia, moderate suburban Republicans were not talking about Russia,”

It’s *almost* like the Democratic Party is a creature of the D.C. and NY media bubbles.

Because the midterms are over 16 months away, Democrats have time to adjust. Maybe they’ll get “lucky” and Special Council Robert Mueller will find some sort of collusion.

Absent some blockbuster from the Special Counsel, Democrats have done themselves substantial damage. People are tuning them out, and are not taking them seriously.



