George Kent blew my mind today, in a REALLY good way

[ChubbyStar]

The man was straightforward, composed, articulate, thoughtful, and flat out DECENT. I do not have a television, so I had no visual cues about Kent apart from the NPR hosts claiming he was dapper, I saw a photo of him tonight and he looked just like he sounded. DECENT. I was impressed by him today.

[intrepidity]

1. Trump has so poisoned us that what should seem typical

eg, normal decent humans, now seem extrordinary.

Damn him forever.

[ChubbyStar]

3. I get that...BUT...

George Kent was pretty unflappable today, in a room full of fucking flap.

[intrepidity]

4. Agreed nt

[southerncrone]

6. Yep

[BuffaloJackalope]

11. The GOP also created the environment where dedicated career public servants

are treated with derision, assumed to be either hopelessly naive, or just disloyal & corrupt "deep state" actors completely on the take, or both.

It's all projection on the GOPs part.

[Sogo]

2. I totally agree.

He was an unsung star of the hearing today, IMHO.

[llmart]

5. He exceeded my expectations for how these hearings would open.

The Dems were very, very smart in having him go first.

[lunatica]

7. If you get a chance to see him talk

you’ll like him even more. He listened calmly, answered quickly and strongly. He has a good expression without any indication of feeling nervous or emotional. He comes across as a man who has no fear and nothing to hide. He’s also sharp as a whip and obviously knows what he’s talking about. His confidence is quite evident.

[ChubbyStar]

9. I could hear and feel the "no fear"

It was evident trough out, but it clanged the loudest when he replied to the RePugBullies. Every answer he gave just screamed "I own you, you hurdy gurdy, screeching, poo flinging monkeys." No fucking fear.

[captain queeg]

8. Kent and Taylor were great. That's why FOX is telling it's minions

That the proceedings are boring. They don’t want anyone watching and listening to these guys. For those who have not yet lost their souls, seeing these guys will have an impact.

[ChubbyStar]

10. Truth is better than fiction

[abqtommy]

12. I was very impressed and encouraged by seeing and hearing Kent and Taylor today.

[Duppers]

16. +100

[Leghorn21]

13. I figured he'd be "good", Star

but

DAYAM!!

Mind blown in a most delightful way!! I fkn LOVE THIS GUY!

[ChubbyStar]

14. I took a shine to him myself

[backtoblue]

15. Me too...

[iluvtennis]

17. Both Kent and Taylor have integrity, that's why they were good witnesses

[ginnyinWI]

18. It's refreshing, isn't it.

I was impressed by both witnesses. Decent and dedicated. Not in it for personal gain.

[Judi Lynn]

19. Almost like people from another planet, those two. How proud sane people must be of them.

They stand in such amazing contrast to the foolish Republicans who so desperately tried to seize control and paint their absurd picture of how things are. The wingers looked like escaped lunatics.

Just keep looking for re-runs. I would hope we all will get the chance to see them over and over, and maybe on C-Span, too.

I definitely intend to watch them again, if I can get the chance. Americans never looked better in nearly 4 years, clearly.

[Beringia]

20. Maybe we should send both of them flowers

[BootinUp]

21. Yeah, I liked his intellect, and great job testifying.

Taylor was amazing too.

[OhNo-Really]

22. Kent's Transcript is Fantastic - He unwinds

The Guliani Lutsenko Solomon “The Hill” story Fox has ranted about since March 2019. Kent shares the lies extensively.

Kent’s testimony was a better read than Tom Clancy’s books. There are even LOL moments

https://d3i6fh83elv35t.cloudfront.net/static/2019/11/Kenttranscript.pdf

[Rhiannon12866]

23. Both the news - and the late night comedy shows - are covering the testimony tonight

So check out the V&M Forum to see the actual footage. Even The Daily Show is covering this right now!

[ChubbyStar]

24. Hey Darlin thanks for the heads up

Stay warm.

[Rhiannon12866]

25. I just watched Lawrence O'Donnell and he did an excellent job, I'm hoping that'll be available

And you're right, it's cold and awful out there. I've been under the weather, but I had to show up at a meeting tonight and I couldn't wait to get home. I'm not a fan of winter.

[MFGsunny]

26. Totally impressive that George Kent. Link below to his brilliant opening statement.

http://cdn.cnn.com/cnn/2019/images/11/13/kent.impeachment.testimony_final.clean.pdf

[Rhiannon12866]

27. Just found this from NBC News: Kent Opening Statement

Kent Opening Statement: U.S. Should Not Engage In ‘Politically Associated Investigations’ | NBC News

In his opening statement at the first public impeachment hearing, deputy assistant Secretary of State George Kent spoke about his work with Ukraine and indirectly said that actions by President Donald Trump "undermine the rule of law."

[ChubbyStar]

28. At 11:12 Kent throws down the gauntlet

It was just a beautiful and horrifying moment.

[Rhiannon12866]

29. Glad you got to see it! He was really good!

[ChubbyStar]

30. I'd bet money that dude was the star of his debate team

The Bill Nye look gets me too!

[Rhiannon12866]

32. I was very impressed how both of them kept their composure despite the Republican antics

They both kept their cool and their dedication was obvous. And I agree that he'd be the star of any debate. The Republican disruptors were clearly outmatched today.

[ChubbyStar]

34. Some of the facial expressions Taylor made today were priceless though

I watched a Seth Meyers clip and I was howling. Devin Nunes on the other hand, oh Jesus, I am sorry (not really), that he lived all of Jr. High in the trash can upside down.

[Rhiannon12866]

35. LOL! Seth Meyers barely needed writers tonight

None of them did! Trump and his minions are human jokes that just keep on giving! And Stephen Colbert had Nicolle Wallace as his guest tonight - she was great anchoring the coverage today and I'll post that, as well, as soon as it's uploaded. I started posting the late night shows a couple of years ago since I figured we needed more humor here, these days. And they often have political guests as well.

[ChubbyStar]

36. I never realized what a treasure V&M is

Thank you for posting these fantastic pieces. The cheerleader clip was fucking amazing. Have you watched Seth's Netflix special Lobby Baby? Holy shit, it is GOOD.

[Rhiannon12866]

37. I know! I liked that one, too!

It's not strictly political, but it is "current events," LOL. V&M has long been my favorite. When we moved to DU.3, that (and LBN) were the two forums I volunteered to host. I think it deserves more attention than it normally gets and it's invaluable for DUers who aren't around at certain hours or don't have TV. And I haven't seen Seth's special - I generally post The Daily Show, Colbert and Seth - anything political - and TexasTowelie took over Jimmy Kimmel and any other late night political guests - so I just try to keep up with them, since those are the ones I regularly watch. They help keep me sane after a day of terrible Trump news.

[ChubbyStar]

38. Watch Lobby Baby

Fucking delish. Night!

[Rhiannon12866]

40. Thanks for the heads up!

And get some good rest...

[DeminPennswoods]

31. Liked the way he compared present day Ukraine

to us as a young country struggling for independence. And how all the foreign aid we got during our own Revolutionary War was critical to winning our independence.

[ChubbyStar]

33. Cest La Vie! And Americans learned how to French kiss as well

What a way to celebrate independence!

[Hekate]

39. To my surprise, Kent brought me to tears

I thank the gods there are still such people as he and Taylor serving in government. May we be worthy of them.