NATIONAL HARBOR—It was supposed to be Rep. Devin Nunes' moment. American Conservative Union chairman Matt Schlapp introduced Nunes, a California Republican and chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, as "a very courageous politician." He even had an award waiting for him backstage.

But right as Nunes appeared onstage to close out CPAC 2018, Congress released the 10-page "Schiff memo," a rebuttal to Nunes' own contentious memo from earlier this month that alleges partisanship and abuse of power within the DOJ and FBI. The Democratic memo derides the Nunes memo as "a transparent effort to undermine those agencies, the Special Counsel, and Congress' investigations."

Nunes told a thinning crowd inside the Potomac Ballroom, "We actually wanted this out," the "we" being his Republican majority.

The Democratic memo. House.gov

It was a strange ending to CPAC 2018, which had lost most of its momentum after an hour-long speech from President Trump on Friday morning that tackled everything from arming school teachers to why people jog. Rather than address the minutiae of the Democratic memo, Nunes seemed to call for a broader investigation into the FBI and DOJ.

Nunes is one of those members of Congress who has become known for approximately one thing, in his case, it's his four-page memo. Nunes' memo alleges that the FISA warrant needed to surveil former Trump associate Carter Page was obtained on account of information within the salacious Steele dossier, which was partially funded by the Clinton campaign and the Democratic National Committee. Near the end of the memo, however, Nunes acknowledges that it was information regarding a different Trump associate, George Papadopoulos, that sparked the Russia investigation in July 2016, thus undercutting his Carter Page argument.



Getty Images

Rep. Adam Schiff, the ranking member of the House Intelligence Committee, maintains that the Nunes memo is deeply flawed and politically motivated. Despite pushback from the law enforcement community, President Trump declassified the Nunes memo and ordered its release on February 2. While some speculated that the Nunes memo would derail the Russia investigation—and potentially lead to the dismissal of Special Counsel Robert Mueller—the investigation keeps moving forward.

At CPAC, Nunes spoke out against what he sees as a lack of standards among left-leaning journalists and lamented a larger "collapse" of the media in general, saying that journalists do nothing except chase clicks. "My friends like to tell me I’m now clickbait for the mainstream media," Nunes said.

"My friends like to tell me I’m now clickbait for the mainstream media." -Rep. Devin Nunes

On Friday, former Trump adviser Rick Gates entered a guilty plea on charges of money laundering and lying to the FBI. The bar chatter around D.C. is that Gates has or soon will divulge information on former Trump campaign manager Paul Manafort, who was also indicted on charges of money laundering and conspiracy. If Gates is indeed spilling secrets to Mueller, and if Mueller flips Manafort, the distance between Mueller's team and President Trump shrinks.

Trump still believes that the Russia investigation is politically motivated from the top down, and that Mueller will be unable to prove collusion. It's important to remember the difference between "collusion" and "conspiracy," and that only the latter is a federal crime.

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I never said Russia did not meddle in the election, I said “it may be Russia, or China or another country or group, or it may be a 400 pound genius sitting in bed and playing with his computer.” The Russian “hoax” was that the Trump campaign colluded with Russia - it never did! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 18, 2018

Mueller may not even have the word "collusion" up on his white board. From what we've seen so far, Mueller appears to be focusing on other alleged crimes among members of the Trump campaign, namely money laundering, conspiracy, and obstruction of justice.

Shortly before leaving the stage, Nunes was presented with the ACU's "Defender of Freedom" award and received a standing ovation.

And then, not an hour later, the halls were quiet—fewer MAGA hats, fewer billowy khakis. The business cards had changed hands. The various conservative media outlets along broadcast row had mostly packed up their microphones and gone home. It's a dreary, gray Saturday as clouds hang over the harbor and the final shuttle buses prepare to depart for D.C.'s Union Station. Nunes will head home with his award, but he'll also have to answer questions about Schiff's memo for days to come.

John Hendrickson Deputy Editor John Hendrickson is the Deputy Editor of Esquire.com, where he oversees the site's 24/7 news operation as well as all politics coverage.

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