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babylonsister
babylonsister's Journal
babylonsister's Journal
November 13, 2019
Thank you, Dems and Adam Schiff
Thanks for your patience and fortitude in approaching these impeachment hearings with the seriousness they needed and deserved.
I am so proud of them and a bit chagrined when I think of the years I've been here and the many times they were accused of being spineless. That it obviously not the case any more. I salute you! 
November 13, 2019
For some, Trump’s Ukraine scheme carried a life-and-death cost
11/13/19 09:20 AM—Updated 11/13/19 12:01 PM
By Steve Benen
snip//
But David Ignatius looked at this from a slightly different angle in his latest column, noting the life-and-death cost for those on the other end of the Republican’s scheme.
Quite right. Ukraine has been the target of Russian aggression, up to and including Russia taking a chunk of Ukraine by force. It is not an exaggeration to say Ukrainians were desperate to receive American support.
The United States committed military aid to our ally; Congress approved the aid; Ukraine was waiting for the aid; and officials throughout the U.S. government were eager to deliver the aid, knowing lives depended on it.
And then there was Donald Trump – who saw political value in delaying the aid, indifferent to the real-world effects of his abuse.
For some, Trump's Ukraine scheme carried a life-and-death cost
http://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show/some-trumps-ukraine-scheme-carried-life-and-death-costFor some, Trump’s Ukraine scheme carried a life-and-death cost
11/13/19 09:20 AM—Updated 11/13/19 12:01 PM
By Steve Benen
snip//
But David Ignatius looked at this from a slightly different angle in his latest column, noting the life-and-death cost for those on the other end of the Republican’s scheme.
As the House opens public impeachment hearings into the Ukraine scandal, the bottom-line question is dead simple: Did President Trump, for political reasons, manipulate military aid to an ally in a war that has cost 13,000 lives?
When you think about the Ukrainian soldiers on the front lines of this nasty proxy battle against Russia, the debate becomes more visceral and perhaps less confusing. As Ukrainians were struggling with near-daily shellfire, Trump appeared to treat military aid appropriated by Congress as a personal political tool.
When you think about the Ukrainian soldiers on the front lines of this nasty proxy battle against Russia, the debate becomes more visceral and perhaps less confusing. As Ukrainians were struggling with near-daily shellfire, Trump appeared to treat military aid appropriated by Congress as a personal political tool.
Quite right. Ukraine has been the target of Russian aggression, up to and including Russia taking a chunk of Ukraine by force. It is not an exaggeration to say Ukrainians were desperate to receive American support.
The United States committed military aid to our ally; Congress approved the aid; Ukraine was waiting for the aid; and officials throughout the U.S. government were eager to deliver the aid, knowing lives depended on it.
And then there was Donald Trump – who saw political value in delaying the aid, indifferent to the real-world effects of his abuse.
“As you watch the impeachment hearings,” Ignatius concluded, “remember this basic fact: While Trump was playing politics on Ukraine, people who depended on U.S. military aid were getting killed and wounded.”
November 13, 2019
Moscow Mitch McConnell brushes off calls to 'do your duty,' plans to ignore impeachment hearings
Joan McCarter
Daily Kos Staff
Wednesday November 13, 2019 · 10:27 AM EST
A mobile billboard will be following Moscow Mitch McConnell around, telling him to impeach. The message he'll see in Washington, D.C., and get from Kentucky, courtesy of the Need to Impeach campaign: "Moscow Mitch: Do your duty or lose your job."
The campaign has focused on McConnell before, but Kevin Mack, the lead strategist for the group, told Newsweek that "things are different" now that Kentucky's Republican Gov. Matt Bevin has been given the boot by voters in favor of Democrat Andy Beshear. "We believe that ultimately Mitch McConnell cares most about Mitch McConnell, so he will take action to protect himself and that will require him to hold the president accountable," Mack said. Referencing reports that there are at least a couple of dozen of Republicans who would impeach if the ballot were secret, he said, "If Mitch McConnell says vote your conscience, we're going to see a very different vote … we will put pressure on Mitch McConnell to do his job."
In addition to the billboard in Washington, the group is planning actions in Kentucky. It will be amplifying the work of activists from MoveOn and the Bluegrass Activist Alliance in Lexington. Those groups are sending activists to McConnell's office and holding a rally Wednesday afternoon at which state Sen. Reggie Thomas and activist Chuck Eddy will speak, telling McConnell to put country over party.
Meanwhile, McConnell is saying that he has no intention of doing so. Despite the fact that he as leader of the Senate will have the profound constitutional duty of acting as the head of the jury in the impeachment, he's ignoring it. "Tomorrow, I'm going to be paying attention to what we're doing in the Senate," he said Tuesday evening. Which is shoving through rabidly extreme and unqualified Trump nominees to lifetime jobs in the federal judiciary.
Not a good look, Mitch, while the world is watching. Bevin's loss in Kentucky might be more a reflection of how much everyone hated him rather than a Democratic wave, so Mitch might feel safe in blowing off the impeachment. He shouldn't. It also proved that Democrats can win in Kentucky, and someone who is 16 points underwater with his home state voters shouldn't feel so complacent.
Moscow Mitch McConnell brushes off calls to 'do your duty,' plans to ignore impeachment hearings
https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2019/11/13/1899136/-Moscow-Mitch-McConnell-brushes-off-calls-to-do-your-duty-plans-to-ignore-impeachment-hearingsMoscow Mitch McConnell brushes off calls to 'do your duty,' plans to ignore impeachment hearings
Joan McCarter
Daily Kos Staff
Wednesday November 13, 2019 · 10:27 AM EST
A mobile billboard will be following Moscow Mitch McConnell around, telling him to impeach. The message he'll see in Washington, D.C., and get from Kentucky, courtesy of the Need to Impeach campaign: "Moscow Mitch: Do your duty or lose your job."
The campaign has focused on McConnell before, but Kevin Mack, the lead strategist for the group, told Newsweek that "things are different" now that Kentucky's Republican Gov. Matt Bevin has been given the boot by voters in favor of Democrat Andy Beshear. "We believe that ultimately Mitch McConnell cares most about Mitch McConnell, so he will take action to protect himself and that will require him to hold the president accountable," Mack said. Referencing reports that there are at least a couple of dozen of Republicans who would impeach if the ballot were secret, he said, "If Mitch McConnell says vote your conscience, we're going to see a very different vote … we will put pressure on Mitch McConnell to do his job."
In addition to the billboard in Washington, the group is planning actions in Kentucky. It will be amplifying the work of activists from MoveOn and the Bluegrass Activist Alliance in Lexington. Those groups are sending activists to McConnell's office and holding a rally Wednesday afternoon at which state Sen. Reggie Thomas and activist Chuck Eddy will speak, telling McConnell to put country over party.
Meanwhile, McConnell is saying that he has no intention of doing so. Despite the fact that he as leader of the Senate will have the profound constitutional duty of acting as the head of the jury in the impeachment, he's ignoring it. "Tomorrow, I'm going to be paying attention to what we're doing in the Senate," he said Tuesday evening. Which is shoving through rabidly extreme and unqualified Trump nominees to lifetime jobs in the federal judiciary.
Not a good look, Mitch, while the world is watching. Bevin's loss in Kentucky might be more a reflection of how much everyone hated him rather than a Democratic wave, so Mitch might feel safe in blowing off the impeachment. He shouldn't. It also proved that Democrats can win in Kentucky, and someone who is 16 points underwater with his home state voters shouldn't feel so complacent.
November 13, 2019
Posted on Wed, Nov 13th, 2019 by Jason Easley
Jim Jordan Crashes And Burns At Trump Impeachment Hearing
Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH) was supposed to be Trump’s ringer at the impeachment hearing. Instead, he fell flat on his face.
Rep. Jordan hung his hat on the claim that there was no direct linkage between the people involved, Trump, and the withholding of Ukraine military aid.
Jordan tried to use a clarification from Gordon Sondland to discredit Bill Taylor, but what happened was that Taylor read the clarification and said, “And I think this clarification from ambassador Sondland was because he said he didn’t remember this in his first deposition. He wanted to clarify. Mr. Jordan, the way I read this, he remembers it the same way I do.”
Jordan could only sarcastically reply real clear, as his time expired.
https://twitter.com/i/status/1194689444814692354
Jordan is the person who was added to the committee because Republicans thought that Devin Nunes couldn’t cut it. They were correct about Nunes. He has been terrible, but Jordan has been even worse, Jordan sounds hysterical with his yelling of facts and attempts to badger witnesses.
Rep. Jordan is obviously at these hearings to get clips on Fox News that will make Trump feel good. Jordan is in over his head, and when he was promoted to the big stage, the Republican from Ohio crashed and burned.
Jim Jordan Crashes And Burns At Trump Impeachment Hearing
https://www.politicususa.com/2019/11/13/jim-jordan-bill-taylor.htmlPosted on Wed, Nov 13th, 2019 by Jason Easley
Jim Jordan Crashes And Burns At Trump Impeachment Hearing
Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH) was supposed to be Trump’s ringer at the impeachment hearing. Instead, he fell flat on his face.
Rep. Jordan hung his hat on the claim that there was no direct linkage between the people involved, Trump, and the withholding of Ukraine military aid.
Jordan tried to use a clarification from Gordon Sondland to discredit Bill Taylor, but what happened was that Taylor read the clarification and said, “And I think this clarification from ambassador Sondland was because he said he didn’t remember this in his first deposition. He wanted to clarify. Mr. Jordan, the way I read this, he remembers it the same way I do.”
Jordan could only sarcastically reply real clear, as his time expired.
https://twitter.com/i/status/1194689444814692354
Jordan is the person who was added to the committee because Republicans thought that Devin Nunes couldn’t cut it. They were correct about Nunes. He has been terrible, but Jordan has been even worse, Jordan sounds hysterical with his yelling of facts and attempts to badger witnesses.
Rep. Jordan is obviously at these hearings to get clips on Fox News that will make Trump feel good. Jordan is in over his head, and when he was promoted to the big stage, the Republican from Ohio crashed and burned.
November 13, 2019
Posted on Wed, Nov 13th, 2019 by Jason Easley
Impeachment Smoking Gun: Trump Heard In Call Asking About Biden Investigation
Bill Taylor testified that a member of his staff overheard Trump asking about Ukraine investigating Joe Biden in a call.
https://twitter.com/i/status/1194655978442174465
With that bit of testimony, the Republican defense that Giuliani, Mulvaney, and rest of the crew were acting on their own without Trump’s knowledge just went up in flames. The impeachment hearings were expected to be bad for Trump, but so far they have been worse than Republicans could have imagined. Every single Republican defense of this president is being blown to shreds. The evidence is comprehensive and overwhelming.
Republicans are running out of defenses for Trump, which means that the American people can expect the attacks on the investigation itself to accelerate.
Impeachment Smoking Gun: Trump Heard In Call Asking About Biden Investigation
https://www.politicususa.com/2019/11/13/impeachment-smoking-gun-trump-heard-in-call-asking-about-biden-investigation.htmlPosted on Wed, Nov 13th, 2019 by Jason Easley
Impeachment Smoking Gun: Trump Heard In Call Asking About Biden Investigation
Bill Taylor testified that a member of his staff overheard Trump asking about Ukraine investigating Joe Biden in a call.
Taylor said, “Following that meeting in the presence of my staff at a restaurant, Ambassador Sondland called president trump and told him of his meetings in Kyiv. The member of my staff could hear president trump on the phone asking ambassador Sondland about the investigations. Ambassador Sondland told president trump the Ukrainians were ready to move forward. They asked what president trump thought about Ukraine. Ambassador Sondland said president trump cares more about the investigations of Biden Giuliani was pressing for.”
https://twitter.com/i/status/1194655978442174465
With that bit of testimony, the Republican defense that Giuliani, Mulvaney, and rest of the crew were acting on their own without Trump’s knowledge just went up in flames. The impeachment hearings were expected to be bad for Trump, but so far they have been worse than Republicans could have imagined. Every single Republican defense of this president is being blown to shreds. The evidence is comprehensive and overwhelming.
Republicans are running out of defenses for Trump, which means that the American people can expect the attacks on the investigation itself to accelerate.
November 13, 2019
Justice Department withdraws secrecy argument on McCabe files
DOJ attorneys said they were no longer arguing that public release of records about Andrew McCabe would interfere with an ongoing enforcement action.
By JOSH GERSTEIN
11/13/2019 11:54 AM EST
A change to the Justice Department’s legal stance in a suit related to former FBI deputy director Andrew McCabe is prompting fresh speculation about the mysterious state of the Justice Department’s effort to prosecute McCabe over alleged misstatements to investigators about his interactions with colleagues during the 2016 election.
In a brief court filing Wednesday, Justice Department attorneys said they were no longer arguing that public release of records about McCabe would interfere with an ongoing enforcement action. That claim is typically used to withhold records about ongoing investigations or prosecutions.
The move could signal that prosecutors have given up on their quest to charge McCabe, or it could simply be an effort to forestall attempts by a judge to get prosecutors to publicly reveal whether they are still trying to indict the former FBI official.
more...
https://www.politico.com/news/2019/11/13/andrew-mccabe-justice-department-070527
Justice Department withdraws secrecy argument on McCabe files
Justice Department withdraws secrecy argument on McCabe files
DOJ attorneys said they were no longer arguing that public release of records about Andrew McCabe would interfere with an ongoing enforcement action.
By JOSH GERSTEIN
11/13/2019 11:54 AM EST
A change to the Justice Department’s legal stance in a suit related to former FBI deputy director Andrew McCabe is prompting fresh speculation about the mysterious state of the Justice Department’s effort to prosecute McCabe over alleged misstatements to investigators about his interactions with colleagues during the 2016 election.
In a brief court filing Wednesday, Justice Department attorneys said they were no longer arguing that public release of records about McCabe would interfere with an ongoing enforcement action. That claim is typically used to withhold records about ongoing investigations or prosecutions.
The move could signal that prosecutors have given up on their quest to charge McCabe, or it could simply be an effort to forestall attempts by a judge to get prosecutors to publicly reveal whether they are still trying to indict the former FBI official.
more...
https://www.politico.com/news/2019/11/13/andrew-mccabe-justice-department-070527
November 13, 2019
As Trump Attacks, Death Threats Against the Whistleblower and His Lawyers Increase
“Law enforcement is involved.”
David Corn
Washington, DC, Bureau ChiefBio | Follow
In the past two weeks, as the House impeachment inquiry has proceeded, President Donald Trump has ramped up his public attacks on the US government whistleblower who triggered the scandal, and in this stretch the flow of threats, including death threats, directed at the whistleblower and his private attorneys has intensified. According to a source close to the legal team, “threats, including physical harm, and harassment have definitely increased.” The source adds, “Law enforcement is involved.”
Since September 20, Trump has tweeted almost 100 times about the whistleblower. And the pace has quickened in the past week, with Trump zeroing in on the whistleblower on 16 occasions. Trump has assailed the whistleblower as a traitor and deep state operative. In remarks made at the US mission to the United Nations on September 27, Trump compared the whistleblower to a “spy,” and added, “You know what we used to do in the old days when we were smart? Right? With spies and treason, right?” This was a clear reference to execution: This guy deserves to die. In recent tweets, Trump has approvingly quoted his defenders, who have accused the whistleblower of being corrupt and conspiring with Democrats to topple Trump, and Trump has blasted the whistleblower’s attorneys as “fake.” On Monday, Trump tweeted: “the Whistleblower, his lawyer and Corrupt politician Schiff should be investigated for fraud!”
Trump’s remarks and tweets—and those of his amen choir—have arguably placed a target on the whistleblower. On Monday, Joe diGenova, a former US prosecutor who, with his wife, Victoria Toensing, has provided advice to Trump, unleashed a massive amount of vitriol on the whistleblower. During a radio interview, diGenova exclaimed, “He worked at the CIA, and he is part of a political assassination. It’s now underway, and all of the listeners should realize that that’s what this is about. This is a fraud on the Constitution and a fraud on the American people.” DiGenova referred to the whistleblower with a name that has been reported in an online conservative publication (and not confirmed) but then said, “Okay, we won’t identify him.” He added, “his name is as follows: John Wilkes Booth.”
Equating a US government whistleblower, who followed the rules and whose complaint was deemed legitimate by the inspector general of the intelligence community, to a presidential assassin was an extreme and cavalier move. The whistleblower’s legal team does worry that such rhetoric raises the danger level for the whistleblower and for them. When a former Obama administration official was mistakenly identified by MAGAites on Twitter as the whistleblower, he received numerous death threats. Yet diGenova’s inciting performance was not shocking, given that he has referred to the Democrats’ impeachment inquiry as “regicide.” (DiGenova is no neutral observer in all this. He and Toensing have been representing Ukrainian oligarch Dmytro Firtash, who is tied to the Ukraine scandal. They also are lawyers for John Solomon, the former Hill columnist who peddled unsubstantiated allegations regarding the activity in Ukraine of Joe Biden and his son Hunter. And Toensing has worked with Rudy Giuliani to dig up derogatory information on the Bidens in Ukraine.)
snip//
Back in the real world, impeachment is no longer about the whistleblower. His motives, background, political views—none of that matters, given the thousands of pages of testimony and documents that have come out and that depict the actions of Trump, Giuliani, and the rest of the gang. This material, obviously, is not good for Trump and his side. So Trump and his handmaids need to change the channel—and there’s the whistleblower. That’s their target. And they don’t give a damn that when you make someone a target—when you accuse him of mounting a coup, when you call him a threat to democracy, when you compare him to a presidential assassin—that can send a very serious and dangerous message.
David Corn: As Trump Attacks, Death Threats Against the Whistleblower and His Lawyers Increase
https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2019/11/as-trump-attacks-death-threats-against-the-whistleblower-and-his-lawyers-increase/As Trump Attacks, Death Threats Against the Whistleblower and His Lawyers Increase
“Law enforcement is involved.”
David Corn
Washington, DC, Bureau ChiefBio | Follow
In the past two weeks, as the House impeachment inquiry has proceeded, President Donald Trump has ramped up his public attacks on the US government whistleblower who triggered the scandal, and in this stretch the flow of threats, including death threats, directed at the whistleblower and his private attorneys has intensified. According to a source close to the legal team, “threats, including physical harm, and harassment have definitely increased.” The source adds, “Law enforcement is involved.”
Since September 20, Trump has tweeted almost 100 times about the whistleblower. And the pace has quickened in the past week, with Trump zeroing in on the whistleblower on 16 occasions. Trump has assailed the whistleblower as a traitor and deep state operative. In remarks made at the US mission to the United Nations on September 27, Trump compared the whistleblower to a “spy,” and added, “You know what we used to do in the old days when we were smart? Right? With spies and treason, right?” This was a clear reference to execution: This guy deserves to die. In recent tweets, Trump has approvingly quoted his defenders, who have accused the whistleblower of being corrupt and conspiring with Democrats to topple Trump, and Trump has blasted the whistleblower’s attorneys as “fake.” On Monday, Trump tweeted: “the Whistleblower, his lawyer and Corrupt politician Schiff should be investigated for fraud!”
Trump’s remarks and tweets—and those of his amen choir—have arguably placed a target on the whistleblower. On Monday, Joe diGenova, a former US prosecutor who, with his wife, Victoria Toensing, has provided advice to Trump, unleashed a massive amount of vitriol on the whistleblower. During a radio interview, diGenova exclaimed, “He worked at the CIA, and he is part of a political assassination. It’s now underway, and all of the listeners should realize that that’s what this is about. This is a fraud on the Constitution and a fraud on the American people.” DiGenova referred to the whistleblower with a name that has been reported in an online conservative publication (and not confirmed) but then said, “Okay, we won’t identify him.” He added, “his name is as follows: John Wilkes Booth.”
Equating a US government whistleblower, who followed the rules and whose complaint was deemed legitimate by the inspector general of the intelligence community, to a presidential assassin was an extreme and cavalier move. The whistleblower’s legal team does worry that such rhetoric raises the danger level for the whistleblower and for them. When a former Obama administration official was mistakenly identified by MAGAites on Twitter as the whistleblower, he received numerous death threats. Yet diGenova’s inciting performance was not shocking, given that he has referred to the Democrats’ impeachment inquiry as “regicide.” (DiGenova is no neutral observer in all this. He and Toensing have been representing Ukrainian oligarch Dmytro Firtash, who is tied to the Ukraine scandal. They also are lawyers for John Solomon, the former Hill columnist who peddled unsubstantiated allegations regarding the activity in Ukraine of Joe Biden and his son Hunter. And Toensing has worked with Rudy Giuliani to dig up derogatory information on the Bidens in Ukraine.)
snip//
Back in the real world, impeachment is no longer about the whistleblower. His motives, background, political views—none of that matters, given the thousands of pages of testimony and documents that have come out and that depict the actions of Trump, Giuliani, and the rest of the gang. This material, obviously, is not good for Trump and his side. So Trump and his handmaids need to change the channel—and there’s the whistleblower. That’s their target. And they don’t give a damn that when you make someone a target—when you accuse him of mounting a coup, when you call him a threat to democracy, when you compare him to a presidential assassin—that can send a very serious and dangerous message.
November 13, 2019
Nunes Insults Impeachment Witnesses: Congrats on Passing Democrats' 'Star Chamber Auditions'
He's a nasty POS.
https://www.thedailybeast.com/nunes-insults-impeachment-witnesses-congrats-on-passing-democrats-star-chamber-auditions?ref=home
Nunes Insults Impeachment Witnesses: Congrats on Passing Democrats’ ‘Star Chamber Auditions’
Justin Baragona
Contributor
Published 11.13.19 10:42AM ET
At the start of Wednesday’s public impeachment hearings in the House of Representatives, House Intelligence Committee Ranking Member Devin Nunes (R-CA) pointedly insulted the two witnesses: top Ukrainian diplomat Bill Taylor and senior State Department official George Kent.
Elsewhere in his prepared remarks, Nunes declared that “elements of the FBI, the Departments of Justice, and now the State Department have lost the confidence of millions of Americans who believe that their vote should count for something.” He concluded: “It will take years, if not decades, to restore faith in these institutions.”
“Ambassador Taylor and Mr. Kent, I’d like to welcome you here,” Nunes snarked. “I would like to congratulate you for passing the Democrats’ star chamber auditions held for the last weeks in the basement of the capitol. It seems you agreed witting or unwittingly to participate in a drama. But the main performance, a Russia hoax, has ended, and you’ve been cast in the low-rent Ukrainian sequel.”
Elsewhere in his prepared remarks, Nunes declared that “elements of the FBI, the Departments of Justice, and now the State Department have lost the confidence of millions of Americans who believe that their vote should count for something.” He concluded: “It will take years, if not decades, to restore faith in these institutions.”
November 13, 2019
Why Dems see ‘bribery’ among Trump’s potential offenses
11/13/19 08:00 AM—Updated 11/13/19 09:08 AM
By Steve Benen
Ask the typical American what the Constitution says about impeachment, and you’ll likely hear a familiar phrase: “high crimes and misdemeanors.” But Article II, Section 4 of the Constitution actually says a little more than that.
With this in mind, note the phrasing House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) used yesterday during an interview with NPR’s Steve Inskeep, as the Democratic leader described Donald Trump’s scheme to trade military aid to Ukraine for investigations into his political rivals.
snip//
“It’s a nice military aid package we have here with your name on it,” the Republican effectively told his counterpart in Kyiv. “It’d be a shame if something happened to it.”
But Schiff’s reference to “bribery” yesterday goes a step further, suggesting there’s a case to be made that Trump was soliciting a bribe by extortion.
As the proceedings in the House get underway, keep an eye on this angle.
Postscript: A couple of months ago, as the scandal was taking shape, Ian Millhiser wrote a good piece on the possible crimes committed through the Ukraine scheme, and it included a section on Trump’s actions possibly constituting bribery, even under the narrow definition recently adopted by the U.S. Supreme Court.
Why Dems see 'bribery' among Trump's potential offenses
http://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show/why-dems-see-bribery-among-trumps-potential-offensesWhy Dems see ‘bribery’ among Trump’s potential offenses
11/13/19 08:00 AM—Updated 11/13/19 09:08 AM
By Steve Benen
Ask the typical American what the Constitution says about impeachment, and you’ll likely hear a familiar phrase: “high crimes and misdemeanors.” But Article II, Section 4 of the Constitution actually says a little more than that.
It reads, “The President, Vice President and all civil officers of the United States, shall be removed from office on impeachment for, and conviction of, treason, bribery, or other high crimes and misdemeanors.”
With this in mind, note the phrasing House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) used yesterday during an interview with NPR’s Steve Inskeep, as the Democratic leader described Donald Trump’s scheme to trade military aid to Ukraine for investigations into his political rivals.
“Bribery, first of all, as the founders understood bribery, it was not as we understand it in law today. It was much broader,” Schiff said. “It connoted the breach of the public trust in a way where you’re offering official acts for some personal or political reason, not in the nation’s interest.”
To prove bribery, Schiff said, you have to show that the president was “soliciting something of value,” which Schiff thinks multiple witnesses before his committee have testified to in private.
To prove bribery, Schiff said, you have to show that the president was “soliciting something of value,” which Schiff thinks multiple witnesses before his committee have testified to in private.
snip//
“It’s a nice military aid package we have here with your name on it,” the Republican effectively told his counterpart in Kyiv. “It’d be a shame if something happened to it.”
But Schiff’s reference to “bribery” yesterday goes a step further, suggesting there’s a case to be made that Trump was soliciting a bribe by extortion.
As the proceedings in the House get underway, keep an eye on this angle.
Postscript: A couple of months ago, as the scandal was taking shape, Ian Millhiser wrote a good piece on the possible crimes committed through the Ukraine scheme, and it included a section on Trump’s actions possibly constituting bribery, even under the narrow definition recently adopted by the U.S. Supreme Court.
November 13, 2019
That Kushner is full of good ideas. 
Trump administration plans live-streaming border wall construction: report
By Rachel Frazin - 11/13/19 07:44 AM EST
Senior White House officials including Jared Kushner intend to set up cameras to live-stream construction of President Trump's border wall, despite pushback from Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, The Washington Post reported.
“There will be a wall cam, and it’ll launch early next year,” an unidentified senior White House official involved with the project told The Post.
The initiative reportedly aims to increase support for construction of the wall.
But the CBP and the Army Corps of Engineers have objected, saying that construction companies don't want other firms to see what they are doing, four sources told the newspaper. Officials are also reportedly concerned that U.S. crews would be seen on camera violating Mexico's sovereignty because they sometimes cross the border to move their equipment.
If the cameras are placed in certain areas without wi-fi, they will also need their own connectivity as well as people to help keep the lenses pointed toward the construction, the Post noted.
According to the newspaper, Kushner sees the live stream as a way to show that progress is being made on the wall's construction. Trump and others have also reportedly expressed a desire for photos and videos that the president can post to Twitter.
more...
https://thehill.com/homenews/administration/470206-trump-mulls-live-streaming-border-wall-construction-report
Trump administration plans live-streaming border wall construction: report
That Kushner is full of good ideas.
Trump administration plans live-streaming border wall construction: report
By Rachel Frazin - 11/13/19 07:44 AM EST
Senior White House officials including Jared Kushner intend to set up cameras to live-stream construction of President Trump's border wall, despite pushback from Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, The Washington Post reported.
“There will be a wall cam, and it’ll launch early next year,” an unidentified senior White House official involved with the project told The Post.
The initiative reportedly aims to increase support for construction of the wall.
But the CBP and the Army Corps of Engineers have objected, saying that construction companies don't want other firms to see what they are doing, four sources told the newspaper. Officials are also reportedly concerned that U.S. crews would be seen on camera violating Mexico's sovereignty because they sometimes cross the border to move their equipment.
If the cameras are placed in certain areas without wi-fi, they will also need their own connectivity as well as people to help keep the lenses pointed toward the construction, the Post noted.
According to the newspaper, Kushner sees the live stream as a way to show that progress is being made on the wall's construction. Trump and others have also reportedly expressed a desire for photos and videos that the president can post to Twitter.
more...
https://thehill.com/homenews/administration/470206-trump-mulls-live-streaming-border-wall-construction-report
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