Impeachment Thread

[icanhelp1]

Those are two very different things. And no, the president does not have the right to unilaterally choose to withhold aid passed by Congress based on a silly conspiracy theory.

Your typical MO, changing the narrative. I never said "unilaterally", and never said "based on a silly conspiracy theory". Yes he can hold back funding if corruption exist. He, through the OMB is obligated to notify congress of his intent within a certain PERIOD OF TIME ( 45 days ) I believe.. The Dems say Trump held back funding for personal gain, to investigate the Bidens for his personal political gain. Unprovable and speculative at best and certainly not an impeachable offense in the traditional sense, BUT WE'RE NOT DEALING WITH A TRADITIONAL IMPEACHMENT, are we?. Not saying that the optics are great but dem optics are worst, screaming impeachment for 3 years is more detrimental to dems than for what Trump did. Dems are overplaying their hand once again. Every president since Eisenhower has played the same game but Trump BAD is all the Dems have. Dems acting like a presidential candidate can't be or is immune to being investigated for corruption. I guess only Dems are immune from corruption investigations, after all, the DOJ and FBI threw in the towel in on Hillary before the criminal investigation even began. Which is what Trump wanted investigated, the whole 2016 debacle.

 

[BabyBoomer50s]

Quite amusing to see Rep. Schiff and Senator Schumer complaining about process.

 

[KeithD]

Bit of a stretch to assume anyone who will vote for Trump can read, though.

Surely at least at a grade 4.6 level, like Trump does.

 

[KeithD]

Quite amusing to see Rep. Schiff and Senator Schumer complaining about process.

Yes, since there's been no reason for them to expect reasonableness and adherence to American standards and principles from McConnell and the Republicans for a good long time now.

Running up to the election, the book in the public eye on the Senate's handing of the impeachment will be "coverup" and "guilty." Lots of good material for campaign literature. Americans understand what is a rigged up trial and what isn't.

 

[JackLuis]

Nadler destroys McConnell – accuses top Republican of ‘debating whether you should have a cover-up’ in heated speech

House Judiciary Chairman Jerry Nadler (D-NY) Tuesday morning went on the attack against Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, accusing the Kentucky Republican of orchestrating a “cover up” in the impeachment trial of President Donald Trump.

“To be debating whether you should have the evidence admitted, to be debating whether you should allow witnesses, is to be debating whether you should have a cover-up,” Chairman Nadler accused.

There is no question about it. The Rethuglicunts are covering up, like always.

 

[YDB95]

Your typical MO, changing the narrative. I never said "unilaterally", and never said "based on a silly conspiracy theory".

You implied the former and you're simply closing your eyes to the latter.

Yes he can hold back funding if corruption exist. He, through the OMB is obligated to notify congress of his intent within a certain PERIOD OF TIME ( 45 days ) I believe..

But there was - and still is - absolutely no evidence of corruption, and there's also no sign that he intended to notify Congress.

The Dems say Trump held back funding for personal gain, to investigate the Bidens for his personal political gain. Unprovable and speculative at best and certainly not an impeachable offense in the traditional sense, BUT WE'RE NOT DEALING WITH A TRADITIONAL IMPEACHMENT, are we?.

You've got that right. In a traditional impeachment, the Senate majority leader wouldn't openly promise to cooperate with the defendant. But to call what he did "unprovable and speculative" is like saying you don't know for certain it's going to rain when the sky is that purplish-gray color it always is just before a thunderstorm. And it's not up to you or me to decide whether or not it's an impeachable offence, but just out of curiosity, is there anything Trump could do that you would consider impeachable? I kind of doubt it.

Not saying that the optics are great but dem optics are worst, screaming impeachment for 3 years is more detrimental to dems than for what Trump did.

Not if he deserved it, it isn't. Trump has literally been getting away with unethical-at-best, illegal-at-worst practices throughout his adult life (from refusing to rent to minorities to routinely stiffing his creditors to sexual harassment and possibly even rape), and that didn't change when he became president. It was only a matter of time before he did something that clearly was impeachable.

Dems are overplaying their hand once again. Every president since Eisenhower has played the same game but Trump BAD is all the Dems have. Dems acting like a presidential candidate can't be or is immune to being investigated for corruption. I guess only Dems are immune from corruption investigations, after all, the DOJ and FBI threw in the towel in on Hillary before the criminal investigation even began. Which is what Trump wanted investigated, the whole 2016 debacle.

You're joking, right? You think Hillary Clinton wasn't investigated? She was probably subject to more investigations than any politician of the past century at least, and mostly just because people like you spent 25 years screaming about how slimy she was, to the point where otherwise-reasonable people assumed there must be something there. And oh, look: there wasn't!

 

[bodysong]

Team Trump was observed-

dragging a horse that has been dead so long,
that bones flew into the air, and crashed on
the "desks" of everyone involved with the trial,
when beaten in front of the news cameras.

“A lawyer does not stand in front of the Chief Justice
of the Supreme Court and lie,” (Claire) McCaskill said.

“That is a flat lie, a demonstrable lie.”

https://www.mediaite.com/tv/claire-...e-roberts-either-purposely-lying-or-ignorant/

 

[BabyBoomer50s]

Three votes as of 8:00 pm ET. The score is GOP 3, Dems 0. Each contest was won on a 53-47 vote.

 

[KeithD]

Three votes as of 8:00 pm ET. The score is GOP 3, Dems 0. Each contest was won on a 53-47 vote.

that will certainly look consistent in the "coverup" material for the November election campaigns.

Good luck trying to distract from the real issues here.

 

[BabyBoomer50s]

that will certainly look consistent in the "coverup" material for the November election campaigns.

Good luck trying to distract from the real issues here.

But I thought Democrats were taking this action in order to immediately remove the President from office in order to protect the integrity of the 2020 election. LoL.

 

[YDB95]

But I thought Democrats were taking this action in order to immediately remove the President from office in order to protect the integrity of the 2020 election. LoL.

Of course you did.
We're not stupid, we know it's up to the Senate to vote on convicting Trump, and that the Republican majority is extremely unlikely to do that. No, the Democrats took this action because 1) it was the right thing to do, and 2) to put the Republicans on the record as voting to condone Trump's clearly illegal actions.

 

[KeithD]

the Democrats took this action because 1) it was the right thing to do, and 2) to put the Republicans on the record as voting to condone Trump's clearly illegal actions.

Bingo, and Trumpettes are slime balls for claiming not to know Trump is guilty.

 

[JackLuis]

Mick Mulvaney released treasure trove of OMB documents — 2 minutes before midnight

“The files released tonight include emails sent by OMB Acting Director Russell Vought and Assoc Director for National Security Michael Duffey — two key players in the withholding of Ukraine aid — in on the morning of President Trump’s July 25 call with President Zelensky,” the ethics group noted.“The files released tonight include emails sent by OMB Acting Director Russell Vought and Assoc Director for National Security Michael Duffey — two key players in the withholding of Ukraine aid — in on the morning of President Trump’s July 25 call with President Zelensky,” the ethics group noted.

I guess we need to wait until they are read and analysed to find out if it's the Smoking Gun!!!

 

[butters]

Did Roberts not react to being told a direct, provable lie when one of the reps stood up and declared NO republicans were allowed into the SCIF? That the meetings were so private all reps were kept out of the SCIF?

 

[JackLuis]

George Conway goes nuclear on Trump lawyers’ ‘utterly mendacious’ impeachment presentation on CNN

"Liar, Liar, Pants on fire!" or words to that effect!


Chief Justice Roberts admonishes lawyers at Senate impeachment trial

Poppa don't allow no pettifogging obstrufrucatiors in here!"

GOP senators ‘encouraging Trump’ to cheat again by ‘rigging’ impeachment trial: Former ethics czar

Team Trump living up to expectations.

 

[BabyBoomer50s]

Of course you did.
We're not stupid, we know it's up to the Senate to vote on convicting Trump, and that the Republican majority is extremely unlikely to do that. No, the Democrats took this action because 1) it was the right thing to do, and 2) to put the Republicans on the record as voting to condone Trump's clearly illegal actions.

Their stated reason for rushing the impeachment calendar was that Trump was a threat to national security. They couldn’t wait for the courts to adjudicate subpoena disputes, and the nation simply couldn’t wait for the people to render judgement in 11 months. No, they said, Congress needed to remove this President now. Thanks for calling BS on the Dems and setting the record straight. I agree with you. It’s an election ploy.

 

[KeithD]

Their stated reason for rushing the impeachment calendar was that Trump was a threat to national security. They couldn’t wait for the courts to adjudicate subpoena disputes, and the nation simply couldn’t wait for the people to render judgement in 11 months. No, they said, Congress needed to remove this President now. Thanks for calling BS on the Dems and setting the record straight. I agree with you. It’s an election ploy.

You can't have it both ways. You can't say in the same breath that the House committees were lying about wanting to move the impeachment along and that they couldn't wait for the subpoenas to go through the Trump stonewalling court process (when subpoenas shouldn't have been needed at all to get a government employee to testify to a congressional committee). Who do you think you're fooling?

 

[BabyBoomer50s]

You can't have it both ways. You can't say in the same breath that the House committees were lying about wanting to move the impeachment along and that they couldn't wait for the subpoenas to go through the Trump stonewalling court process (when subpoenas shouldn't have been needed at all to get a government employee to testify to a congressional committee). Who do you think you're fooling?

That is exactly what they did. They rushed the impeachment rather than wait for the subpoena dispute to be adjudicated by the courts . Adam Schiff said it again yesterday.

 

[KeithD]

That is exactly what they did. They rushed the impeachment rather than wait for the subpoena dispute to be adjudicated by the courts . Adam Schiff said it again yesterday.

Distracting again from subpoenas not being needed for a House committee to get someone to testify before them and were only necessary because the obviously guilty Trump was using this in a stonewalling tactic.

Who do you think you're fooling?

This is all a coverup. It will be used as such in the coming election, and it will be clearly understood by history.

Trump's screwed. You're screwed.

 

[BabyBoomer50s]

Distracting again from subpoenas not being needed for a House committee to get someone to testify before them and were only necessary because the obviously guilty Trump was using this in a stonewalling tactic.

Who do you think you're fooling?

This is all a coverup. It will be used as such in the coming election, and it will be clearly understood by history.

Trump's screwed. You're screwed.

You are entitled to your opinion, but in our society, we use the judicial system, not porn site forums, to resolve differences of legal opinion.

 

[KeithD]

Screwed. You and the corrupt/criminal/treasonous Impeached Trump are screwed in history. The Senate coverup only adds texture to this.

 

[Dumpington]

KeithD writes: "Screwed. You and the corrupt/criminal/treasonous Impeached Trump are screwed in history."

Trump's presidency has been a series of Trump-victories over the Democratic Party, starting with his unexpected election victory way back on November 8, 2016 - and then continuing with the publishing of the Mueller Report, the Kavanaugh U.S. Supreme Court confirmation hearings, and now this enormously expensive impeachment debacle! Democrats are understandably outraged that passing ObamaCare in 2009 ultimately cost their party its control of the U.S. Senate, and they're FURIOUS that Brett Kavanaugh's confirmation hearings ultimately cost them an additional two senate seats in the 2018 midterms! They CAN'T BEAT TRUMP!

"The Senate coverup only adds texture to this."

Democratic Party U.S. Senators are FRUSTRATED that the House passed two articles of impeachment BEFORE getting enough actual testimony from witnesses! The resulting cover-up by House Dems is hugely embarrassing to the entire party and makes them appear foolish before the American people! Schiff & Pelosi wanted Chuck Schumer to do their job for them, and Schumer is trying to explain to them that he's only the Senate MINORITY Leader!

When the Senate finally VOTES on whether or not to remove President Trump from office, the result will almost certainly be complete VINDICATION for this president, resulting in a huge boost to his re-election effort, along with voter anger over the millions wasted on this clown-show coup!

 

[Jesus_Ateo]

You've got that right. In a traditional impeachment, the Senate majority leader wouldn't openly promise to cooperate with the defendant.

While McConnell's conduct has stirred outrage among those demanding a fair trial—with the impeachment rules sparking the latest McConnell-themed hashtag on social media, #MidnightMitch—journalist Sean Illing wrote for Vox.com that nobody familiar with the Majority Leader will be shocked in the least by what the nation is now witnessing.

For those who don't know McConnell, Illing explained, "know this: He's arguably the most ruthless political operator in American politics and has almost single-handedly broken the Senate." He further noted:

McConnell has reportedly said in private that he wants a short trial with no witnesses called to testify, and he's said publicly that the outcome of the trial is basically already determined. Given what we know about McConnell, this isn't surprising.

In their response to Trump's official answer to impeachment charges levied against him, the House Managers—a seven-member team of House Democrats prosecuting the case against Trump before the Senate and the presiding Supreme Court Justice John Roberts—on Tuesday said the responsibility before senators is fundamental to the oath to the constitution each of them took.

The fact that Trump "continues to insist that he has done nothing wrong" and "that he cannot be held accountable, except in an election he seeks to fix in his favor, underscores the need for the Senate to exercise its solemn constitutional duty to remove President Trump from office," the Managers said in a joint statement.

"If the Senate does not convict and remove President Trump," they continued, "he will have succeeded in placing himself above the law. Each Senator should set aside partisanship and politics and hold President Trump accountable to protect our national security and democracy."

The Democrats held a mid-day press conference Thursday to detail their displeasure with McConnell's proposal:


While Trump and his GOP allies have asserted that the kind of abuse of power for which the president stands accused does not warrant impeachment, the Democrat's prosecution team said such a position is not only wrong, but dangerous.

"That argument would mean that, even accepting that the House's recitation of the facts is correct—which it is—the House lacks authority to remove a President who sells out our democracy and national security in exchange for a personal political favor," the Managers wrote. "The Framers of our Constitution took pains to ensure that such egregious abuses of power would be impeachable."

The seriousness of the charges against the president, and the preponderance of evidence, has led critics of McConnell to only be more outspoken about his central role in helping to run interference for Trump.

"This is not a process for a fair trial, this is the process for a rigged trial," said Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), chairman of the House Intelligence Committee and lead manager for the Senate trial.

Like countless others, Schiff to described what the Senate is doing with one hyphenated word. It's a "cover-up," he said.

https://www.commondreams.org/news/2...tm_source=Daily**0Newsletter&utm_medium=Email

 

[JackLuis]

Republicans are losing — even if Trump will be acquitted: Columnist Max Boot

Conservative Washington Post columnist Max Boot walked through the ways that Republicans are completely failing in their attempt to defend President Donald Trump.

“The beginning of the impeachment trial of President Trump made clear that Democrats have not only the stronger arguments but also the stronger arguers,” wrote Boot. “The House impeachment managers did a masterful job on Tuesday of marshaling the evidence to argue that the Senate needs to hold a real trial complete with witnesses…”

“Trump’s lawyers were far worse. They played a bad hand badly,” the columnist said. “Admittedly, they are handicapped by the inescapable reality that their client is guilty as sin. They can’t seriously dispute that Trump wanted Ukraine to investigate former vice president Joe Biden — the president said as much from the White House lawn. They can’t even dispute that Trump held up military aid to Ukraine to pressure its government into doing what he wanted. Their only defense on the merits is to claim that the president wasn’t concerned with smearing a Democratic rival but with fighting corruption. But that’s an absurd argument to make given that Trump never mentioned fighting corruption in general during his two phone calls with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky — and given that, as my Post colleague Catherine Rampell notes, he is trying to legalize bribery by American companies.”

 

[JackLuis]

Mitch McConnell just gave Democrats a huge gift — by publicly tainting any acquittal of Trump

It seems all but inevitable that the impeachment trial of President Donald Trump will end with Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) mustering the votes to block conviction, no matter what the evidence says and no matter whether Democrats successfully bring in new witnesses and documents.

But McConnell has already handed a victory to Democrats in one key aspect, wrote columnist E. J. Dionne for the Washington Post. His handling of the trial has removed any possibility that impeachment will bolster the president’s approval — and emboldened Democrats to take their case to the American people as hard as they can. Indeed, wrote Dionne, Democrats “owe a debt” to McConnell.

“When he was asked about the GOP’s behavior on impeachment on MSNBC’s ‘Morning Joe’ on Wednesday, Biden offered his verdict with quiet sadness. ‘I think it’s one of the things they’re going to regret,’ he said, ‘when their grandchildren read in history books what they did,'” concluded Dionne. “And many of them may regret it sooner than that, when voters cast their ballots in November.”

"Cover-up Gate!" Right there in the open!
over 11 million people are watching the Trumpublicunts in motion!