Maddow Scores Memo, Stinchfield Goes Missing | Winners & Losers in Today’s Green Room

MSNBC’s Rachel Maddow exclusively obtained a Justice Department memo extending a Trump-era policy that places restrictions on investigations into candidates in an election year.

The memo was first authored by then-Attorney General Bill Barr in 2020 and renewed by Attorney General Merrick Garland in May 2022.

The policy prohibits opening an investigation into a declared presidential candidate or members of their staff if the probe was not pre-cleared by the attorney general.

Maddow shared the document with viewers on Monday night, noting that it highlights the importance of forgoing “partisan politics” in decisions regarding investigations and criminal charges.

“Department employees must also adhere to the additional requirements issued by the Attorney General on February 5, 2020, governing the opening of criminal and counterintelligence investigations by the Department, including its law enforcement agencies, related to politically sensitive individuals and entities,” the memo states.

Maddow, the first to disclose the news publicly, later observed that the memo was written as former President Donald Trump flirts with another run for office.

The anchor also admitted she was “kind of surprised” by Garland’s decision to extend the policy, as it was established by Barr while he was working for Trump.

“Well, former President Donald Trump has had the delightful experience of the Jan. 6 investigation essentially rolling out a real-time, primetime criminal referral of him to the justice department,” she said.

Newsmax’s Grant Stinchfield has been missing from the network following a recent schedule shakeup.

Before his disappearing act, Stinchfield was the go-to-guy for the most insane take on the internet.

He once claimed Democrats wanted Russian victory in Ukraine, and prior to that, suggested that the invasion was a hoax.

Mediaite’s Jackson Richman even declared him “too unhinged for cable news,” and Newsmax seems to agree.

Stinchfield has been missing from the network since last month, when Newsmax changed its lineup to place former Fox News anchor Greta Van Susteren in the 6 p.m. slot.

The move forced Sean Spicer’s showto 5 p.m. and gave Eric Bolling a primetime show, as he took over Stinchfield’s 8 p.m. slot.

While the network said Stinchfield would move to weekends following the shakeup, he has not been on air since his show’s final broadcast on June 13.

According to the Daily Beast, Newsmax management has been silent to staffers regarding the network’s plans for Stinchfield.

An insider, however, revealed that Stinchfield was unhappy to lose a primetime slot he held since August 2020.

“He was not happy,” the insider said. “Few of us were surprised. His show regularly had bad ratings despite having great producers on the team. His show just came off as radio on TV which is boring and not compelling.”

Ouch.