Mega-Thread: Impeachment Proceedings & Inquiry of Trump

[Breccia]

You folks ready for an enemy-of-my-enemy-is-my-friend kind of moment?

I think my favorite part was

Normally, the line of succession requires the White House to nominate one of the top three leaders of the department, but all three of those positions are vacant.

You're absolutely right that Trump is poking holes in his own life raft. But let's not forget: he's doing so while miles out to sea. And I'm willing to bet he ate the transponder.

[Skroe]

I think my favorite part was



You're absolutely right that Trump is poking holes in his own life raft. But let's not forget: he's doing so while miles out to sea. And I'm willing to bet he ate the transponder.

Democrats should help by capitalizing on their other weapon: the budget and the ticking clock. Government has to be funded in the next few weeks by passing 12 bills through both houses and getting Trump's signature, or continuing resolution into March 2020 (which will bring about an election year pre-election budget vote, which is something the 2 year deal model is supposed to avoid).

Remember the 2 year deal set out funding levels. And with those levels, the prior years budget as a baseline and just general political compromise, there is a remarkable amount of agreement by Congress as to how America should spend its money. Of the $1.4 trillion-ish discretionary budget (out of a $4.7 trillion overall budget against $3.7 trillion in revenues), all but about $50 billionish is relatively uncontroversial. Take for instance the defense budget. The hangups there? Pretty much how and if the US should pay for and field the W76-2 low yield nuclear warhead, and issues relating to military healthcare, Widows benefits and LGBT-related issues. They're not having an argument over how many missiles or ships to buy, or how many troops the Army should have or anything of that nature. We're talkings that are important for sure, but not earthshattering to the nation. Even the Wall, in a sense, is this. Crucial moral stand, but also "only" $5 billion against $1.4 trillion.

But getting back to what I was saying... there is a massive amount of agreement, and a lot of interest in the Senate and House to compromise to avoid an election year budget fight. Very simply, nobody is interested in another Government shutdown.

Democrats need to play this smart, because it gives them the advantage. They need to agree to a budget that Republicans in the Senate will ABSOLUTELY agree to, but Donald Trump never will. And Wall is the best target for that again. They need to trick Trump (not hard) into orchestrating an election-year shut down over the wishes of both Democrats and Republicans in the House and Senate. And then Democrats paint it as "Trump shutting government to protect himself from investigation and impeachment".

In other words, the budget is a third pressure front for Mitch McConnell, whose first job is to keep the federal dollar spigot flowing to his caucus, which hail largely from moocher states.

Hopefully Nancy Pelosi is ready to act on this. Because if we're thinking about it, surely her team has. There is a beautiful Anti-Trump Bear Trap waiting to be laid by her. She just has to do it.

[Edge-]

https://www.thedailybeast.com/trump-...lomat?ref=wrap

President Donald Trump boosted a tweet Monday promoting a controversial allegation from an indicted Ukrainian oligarch: that a top U.S. diplomat put fabricated information about the mogul in a diplomatic cable.

That diplomat happens to be one of Democrats’ key impeachment witnesses. And that oligarch happens to have a long-standing beef with Joe Biden.

Scott Adams, a Washington, D.C., talk radio host, sent out a tweet Monday night about U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine Bill Taylor, who delivered some of the impeachment inquiry’s most damaging testimony yet. The tweet alleged that Taylor lied about Ukrainian natural gas baron Dmytro Firtash in a cable to State Department headquarters in 2008. At issue was a conversation Taylor had with Firtash in Kyiv that December. Taylor wrote in a diplomatic cable (later published by WikiLeaks) that Firtash told him he had “acknowledged ties to Russian organized crime figure [Semion] Seymon Mogilevich,” one of the most notorious accused mobsters on the planet. According to Taylor, Firtash said “he needed Mogilevich's approval to get into business in the first place,” but had not committed any crimes in the course of his business.

When WikiLeaks published the cable in 2010, Firtash issued a statement on his website disputing its contents. Firtash, the statement claimed,“has never stated, to anyone, at any time, that he needed or received permission from Mr. Mogilevich to establish any of his businesses.”

Earlier this year, Firtash reiterated that defense. Without mentioning any American official by name, he said someone must have fabricated the detail about Mogilevich. Taylor, meanwhile, has defended the State Department’s notes.

The Justice Department appears to side with Taylor; its lawyers have argued in court that Firtash has ties to Russian organized crime. The criminal charges he faces, however, don’t involve any such alleged relationships. Instead, the Justice Department charged him in 2014 with helming a conspiracy to bribe Indian government officials.

Trump’s retweet, however, offers a presidential thumbs-up to Firtash’s side of the story, and raises a new line of attack on Taylor’s credibility for the president’s allies.

Why is the "President" of the United States of America siding with a jailed, corrupt Ukrainian oligarch with ties to the Russian mafia over a US diplomat?

Trump supporters?

Just a question.

[Edge-]

A better question is if he was actually concerned about corruption in the Ukraine, and not dirt on Biden, why is he supporting a corrupt POS like Firtash? Oh, right, because he doesn't care about corruption. He just wanted the dirt.

"As evidence, we cite his official support via a retweet of the jailed oligarch responsible for much of the corruption being investigated. It seems clear via this support that corruption was never his concern."

Seriously, I can't wait for his god-damned Twitter posts to be cited as evidence.

[cubby]

"As evidence, we cite his official support via a retweet of the jailed oligarch responsible for much of the corruption being investigated. It seems clear via this support that corruption was never his concern."

Seriously, I can't wait for his god-damned Twitter posts to be cited as evidence.

Agreed. When this gets to Senate trial it's going to be awesome. I hope they find a way to get him up on the stand to testify.

[Edge-]

https://www.politico.com/amp/news/20...-expert-061763

So...

Vindman, an actual Ukraine expert was shut out of briefings on Ukraine.

Kash Patel, a former Devin Nunes staffer who was promoted to work in the NSC and who Trump somehow believed was the "Ukraine expert" despite having no experience or expertise in the area, instead briefed Trump on Ukraine matters.

And Patel repeatedly fed Trump disinformation, and was protected in his position with Vindman not being allowed to provide accurate briefings to avoid, according to Bolton, "an uncomfortable situation".

[Redwyrm]

Trump’s Russia Nominee Affirms Giuliani Helped Oust an Envoy

whoopsie

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/artic...-hears-nominee

Donald Trump’s nominee for U.S. ambassador to Russia confirmed the assertion from a former diplomat in Ukraine that she was removed after concerted pressure by the president and his lawyer, Rudy Giuliani.

John Sullivan, who’s currently deputy secretary of state, testified Wednesday that he told U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine Marie Yovanovitch that she was being recalled. That followed a campaign by Giuliani who singled her out for what he deemed an anti-Trump agenda.

[kaelleria]

Bill Taylor is willing (and probably will) testify publicly.

https://www.cnn.com/2019/10/30/polit...cly/index.html

[Julez]

Todays News: Donald Trump is ensuring his demise in an unexpected, but EXTREMELY promising way.

Your entire post was off topic and completely irrelevant to the impeachment inquiry.

[Infraction]

[Xeones]

Your entire post was off topic and completely irrelevant to the impeachment inquiry.

The post you partially quoted directly addressed an effort by Trump to circumvent the right of the Senate to confirm appointments. It contains the background of the man, why he might not succeed in a vote, and the behavior Trump is doing that is going to hurt him in his battle with rightful impeachment.

[Molis]

Your entire post was off topic and completely irrelevant to the impeachment inquiry.

Must be a slow day at Fox news if this is all you have

[cubby]

Your entire post was off topic and completely irrelevant to the impeachment inquiry.

I love that you think that. Remind us again who is in charge of the Senate? Remind us again which house conducts the Impeachment Trial? Remind us again who will be wrangling votes for or against impeachment? Remind us again who was shitting on who in Skroe's post?

If you're going to comment on something, at least have the courtesy to read it.

[Skroe]

Your entire post was off topic and completely irrelevant to the impeachment inquiry.

First, I have reported this post of yours. Back seat moderation is against forum rules. So reply to me again at your own peril.

Secondly, my post is perhaps the most on-topic thing you'll read all day. It's all contextual you see. The Impeachement inquiry, the forth coming articles, and the vote on them are merely the vehicle of Trump's destruction. Actually taking down this illegitimate, shambolic Presidency however will not be the result of one or two discrete actions, but rather the Ukraine conspriacy catalyizing other extremely damaing issues with the Trump administration to create a narrative for Republican Senators - who will decide Trump's fate - that they are better off without him.

Or to put it simply, anything that alienates Trump from Republican Senators, Mitch McConnell chief among them, is PRECISELY relevant to impeachement because it is on that basis, and not just "the facts of his actions on the topic of Ukraine" that they will decide his fate.

So Ken Cucinelli, McConnell's long time adversary, being installed in an end-run around the Senate deeply matters and is relevant. Because doing so would open a severe fissure.

So another budget showdown and government shutdown, where Trump goes against the bipartisan spending consensus as expressed in the 2 year budget deal that Trump signed, and in an election year taboot, deeply matters and is relevant.

So Trump's illegitimate, un-American and counter-productive actions in Syria (a topic near and dear to many Senators) matters and is relevant.

All of these matter and are precisely relevant because Trump will be removed on the basis of Senators adding these stressors up and saying "you know what? Ukraine is the proverbial straw that broke the camel's back. Fuck this guy."

So get ready for a lot more like this. We're just getting started.

[Breccia]

House wants Bolton to testify.

Bolton may yet have enough loyalty to his cause to find a reason to refuse, then get subpoena'd. There's also the issue of Executive Privilege. But bear in mind, nothing about what Trump did aligns with Bolton's goals. Bolton has a ton of leverage here.

[Cthulhu 2020]

https://www.thedailybeast.com/trump-...lomat?ref=wrap



Why is the "President" of the United States of America siding with a jailed, corrupt Ukrainian oligarch with ties to the Russian mafia over a US diplomat?

Trump supporters?

Just a question.

Trump supporters have disappeared from this thread entirely. Why? Because moderation properly brought the hammer down on off topic discussion. We're here to discuss Trump's impeachment and nothing else. Their only strategy in this entire thread is to try and talk about Biden or distract to other off topic discussions. They have absolutely nothing to say about Trump's impeachment proceedings, and we all know why. The impeachment is looking grim for Trump, VERY grim, and they have not a single defense tactic or mouthy one liner that can defend him that doesn't involve veering severely off topic.

So yeah, don't expect any noise from the Trumpers in here. Especially not responses to direct questions about just how fucked Trump is.

[Orbitus]

House wants Bolton to testify.

Bolton may yet have enough loyalty to his cause to find a reason to refuse, then get subpoena'd. There's also the issue of Executive Privilege. But bear in mind, nothing about what Trump did aligns with Bolton's goals. Bolton has a ton of leverage here.

Bolton said he would testify with a subpoena, he doesn't want to look too eager to his own party. Which is why he isn't volunteering to testify.

[PACOX]

They built the snowball and now it's approaching the top of the hill (or Hill if you know what I mean). MAGA Hats look on from the sides trying to tell them to turn back, but the point of no return was passed a long time ago. Some try to throw themselves in front of the snowball only to become part of it. Maybe for the better because you don't want to be in its path once it reaches the top.

What's at the top of the hill? A lone turtle and some sheep. Someone tried to tell the animals to move out the way, it's cold and you'll freeze. The animals uttered just one phrase, "but her emails!".

[Orbitus]

This House Rules Committee debate on the resolution has been riveting.

Bet they are all whining about stuff they didn't give Clinton in 98. Like they hypocritical bitches they are.

[Orbitus]

Most of the Republican amendments I've seen are basically just that. Then they vote along party lines and the amendment is shot down.

I know, I was watching the news and saw that they are giving the ability to do things that the Republicans never gave Clinton in 98. And they are whining because apparently it isn't enough. Simply because they want to look like they are the biggest Trump suckers on the planet.

[Skroe]

https://pbs.twimg.com/card_img/11895...jpg&name=small

Top NSC Russia official to step down ahead of impeachment testimony

Tim Morrison, a senior National Security Council official, is resigning his post ahead of his scheduled testimony with House impeachment investigators about President Donald Trump's efforts to press Ukraine to investigate his political rivals, according to multiple people familiar with the matter.

Morrison's name arose during damning testimony provided to lawmakers earlier this month by William Taylor, Trump's top envoy to Ukraine. Taylor said Morrison witnessed a conversation between Trump ally Gordon Sondland — the ambassador to the European Union — and a senior Ukrainian official in which Sondland said hundreds of millions of dollars in military aid to Ukraine hinged on the country's willingness to bend to Trump's demand.

Story Continued Below
"After more than a year of service at the National Security Council, Mr. Morrison has decided to pursue other opportunities — and has been considering doing so for some time. We wish him well,” said a senior administration official.

Story Continued Below
Morrison had been expected to leave the NSC for some time to pursue opportunities in the private sector but the timing so close to his testimony was notable, according to two people familiar with Morrison's plans.

Taylor also described a conversation in which Morrison relayed word from Sondland that Trump had told Sondland directly that Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky should publicly announce the investigations.

House impeachment investigators are exploring whether Trump conditioned nearly $400 million in military aid to Ukraine — and a White House visit for Zelensky — on Ukraine's willingness to investigate former Vice President Joe Biden, as well as a debunked theory that Ukraine, not Russia, interfered in the 2016 U.S. elections.

COMPLETELY FUCKING NORMAL that a guy quits just before he is to testify, right?