The Constitution was written by educated and propertied gentlemen (and, of course, Jesus) for the administration of a government run by propertied, educated gentlemen operating with a healthy respect for the process of gentlemanly debate. They could not have known about the AR15 or Donald Trump. Over the centuries, the government was run by men who were not always gentlemen but who, nonetheless, respected the rules for playing the political game. Now, we have devolved to the point where gentlemanly debate is a daily zero sum, god fight. And, all the kings horses and all the kings men...
"Pressure" is nothing! IT is time to be to begin the impeachment process. Trump will scream "witch hunt" and smear every Democrat- aren't we used to his little nicknames by now? We have to be smart enough to take this guy down.
Indeed we have had Stonewall McConnell for the past eleven years. With his inaction, Garland was kept from the highest court, gun control is stalled, the 2020 elections will again be highlighted by Russian interference,. the list is endless. Add impeachment to his list.
3
Calling DC police. High crimes and misdemeanors reported at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. Secure the premises. Crimes in progress. Secure the crime scene.
4
Hypothetical question to the peanut gallery.
If a previous administration had engaged in corrupt behavior with foreign governments, and those governments wished to speak about that with a new administration, should the new administration simply ignore them because the previous administration was full of corrupt Democrats?
Are you asking a question, or making a statement? How does this address the fact that Trump is a thoroughly corrupt and traitorous president?
1
@Smokey
Have you not noticed that essentially everything the Democrats have accused Trump of has been as completely fake as this latest accusation?
Eventually, even you will be sick of being lied to.
Republicans have already shown the past three years that they don't care if the law is known to be broken as long as it's done in their favor.
They've reached a level of hyper-partisanship that could be their end as an educated democracy won't stand long for corruption.
The trick now is removing them from power, as they control three branches of government and the military.
But once that's done, the GOP should be, too.
1
Will there be any lifeboats left on the ship by the time Republicans comprehend that the SS Trump they refuse to abandon is fatally damaged and now sinking?
6
Here’s my prediction: when it becomes clear that DJT has finally managed to turn enough people against him that he will lose the 2020 election, Republicans will finally agree to impeach him (claiming their love of country and the constitution), putting Pence into office. Pence will then win in 2020.
Meanwhile, the Democrats will be caught completely flat-footed because they don’t seem to be running the possible scenarios, and haven’t realized that after Trump ... is Pence.
@D Green Yeah Pence. Very inspiring.
Pence has ZERO chance of winning an election.
Trump sells. Pence doesn't.
@Doug Lowenthal
The whole scenario gives me anxiety; I don’t think our country can survive another 4 years of a Republican in the White House.
it's amusing to hear Democrats say this is a "game changer." you turned your cheek and neglected your duties of impeachment when the president openly admitted to firing Comey for sinister reasons. you looked down at your shoes and neglected impeachment when he had campaign finance laws. you held your breath and neglected your duties for impeachment when he obstructed justice the first time. and now you say indignantly this is a game changer and that failure to comply crosses a line that has not been crossed to this point. give me a break. nothing will come of this. it's political bluster and trying to stall so they can read the room before taking (in)action. the failure of Democrats is disheartening cowardice and enabling the erosion of principles.
2
Trump’s conduct violated 18 USC Section 201(b)(2). This should be cited in the first article of impeachment.
It’s a no brainer.
3
Levitzky and Zablitt had a lovely NYT piece last week. Their article skirted a lesson, relevant to Republicans, in their book, "How Democracies Die."
Transposing their lesson to the 2020 US election: to save democracy, Republican leaders must support the major candidate who opposes DJT. After the Democratic convention chooses Candidate X, those leaders--Mitch McConnell, Kevin Murphy, Mitt Romney, and the retired Paul Ryan--must state words like, "We support Candidate X because DJT has become unfit for office." After all, the Republicans got the judges they want; they got the tax cut they wanted for the 1%.
The Republican leaders can save face in two ways. First, they may support state/local Republican candidates. Second, they may state ". . . DJT has become . . ." rather than ". . . DJT always was . . .". Neither facing-saving move is my first choice; but I'll accept them.
Levitzky and Ziblatt explain that these tactics--this overall strategy--saved democracy on previous occasions in other countries. That's a worthy goal.
1
Here is what William Weld, Republican, said of Trump's action:
“It couldn’t be clearer, and that’s not just undermining democratic institutions. That is treason. It’s treason, pure and simple, and the penalty for treason under the U.S. code is death. That’s the only penalty.”
Geez, all Pelosi wants is a transcript.
5
On top of all Trump's lying and nastiness, he has not done 1 good thing for average Americans. Everything is for him and his greedy, crooked family. He needs to go people.
5
Which Republican Senator will take the path of their long-ago predecessors
Two senators — Margaret Chase Smith (ME) and Ralph Flanders (VT) — broke away from party orthodoxy.
Why? They would not remain silent in the face of Senator Joseph R. McCarthy’s scurrilous anti-communist crusade.
Ultimately they were among twenty-two Republican Senators who voted to censure McCarthy’s behavior.
Possible Republican senators who might have the courage to follow this example: Romney (whom we heard from today, to his credit); Alexander, Collins, Johnson, Kennedy, McSalley, Portman, Sasse, and Toomey.
There is also the case of Senator Arthur Vandenberg, Republican of Michigan, who departed from party lockstep to support a bi-partisan foreign policy during W W II and continuing into the Cold War.
History remembers the foregoing Republicans who stepped over the line of orthodoxy.
3
Watch. The exact moment it’s clear Trump’s presidency is doomed, Senator Graham will morph into his 2015 Republican primary candidate persona, excoriating Trump and everything he reprehensively represents.
4
I have long ago reached a saturation point with Trump's outrageous and possibly treasonous behavior. It is time for Congressional Democrats in both houses to make a lot of noise - offer bills, demand hearings, call for the issuance of subpoenas and then issue contempt citations if the subpoenas are not honored, present rebuttals and place the Republican Stepford wives in a position where they either have to act appropriately (and I won't hold my breath for that) or go on the record that they will not act to rein in the egregious and unlawful acts of this administration. Stop talking around it; move forward or accept the fact that the congressional oversight provided for in the Constitution is just words, which can be ignored at will by an administration run amok.
2
If the Democrats were assertive, they would have issued the subpoena a week ago, passed a resoltion of contempt 3 days ago, and arrested the DNI the first moment he walked into the House. Then they would be prepared to question him and keep him locked up until they were satisfied with the answers. Trump makes a mockery of the USA and its Constitution while the Democrats cower like whipped dogs.
8
if Nancy can conjure up a little conscience and bravery now, the crook may just be thrown out. The "brilliant" founders of our USA were either a shade below brilliant or surprisingly naive. It was quite common in that age for kings to have no particular allegiance to the countries they ruled over, and our democracy was an experiment at the time. Perhaps they thought Congressional leaders like Pelosi would take their Constitutional obligations more seriously. Still, it's a glaring defect of the Constitution. And the OLC opinion must be amended, and would be, if Trump actually shot someone on 5th Avenue.
3
Biden is the one who needs to be investigated, not Trump.
3
@Dawn
Biden was investigated by Ukraine and found not guilty of anything.
Trump is using the power of the government to win an election no matter how illegal it is.
21
Malfeasance by the president earns federal investigation. Retroactive fishing trips regarding a closed inquiry into Hunter Biden’s small business deals in the Ukraine are completely dumb.
13
@Dawn.....Turn off Fox News. Biden does not have the nuclear codes. He can't ask Russia for help. He can't demand quid pro quo's from nations who depend on our foreign aid.
17
Watch Trump deflect, make counter charges, rationalize, distract, entangle. He has only Roy Cohn ‘s reptilian tactics.
Our indignation fatigue is his co-conspirator.
6
If the Democrats don’t impeach Trump,they don’t deserve to be elected.
It appears the only thing that interests them is money.
Fiat money at that.
2
Innumerable leaders have gotten fat on chaos and tricks. History offers up tales of conquest facilitated through cruelty and chaos, physical and mental. The epochs are full of leaders who were arch-thugs eating off gold plates or sitting on gold toilet-seats. The painting of Hannibal Crossing the Alps (a vision of chaos, total mayhem) is etched in visual memory. Roman soldiers are being trampled, Elephants have been forced into high mountains, onto sharp rock, not suitable for the pads of elephant feet, and the whole scene of cruelty surrounded by the loftiness of the Alps - unmistakable symbolism for the pinnacle of conquest: conquering humans as the Natural World...the Alps and controlling the Elephants.
A lot of bullying-type and trick behavior has evolved in the animal kingdom so it's no mystery why humans would not be adept bullies. We grasp at the notion of being protected so the bully, although he may actually harm us, projects strength which we can be tricked into processing as protection. Trump has refined the Art of the Trick. Humans like the idea of being separate from and above the instincts of the animal kingdom - but reality does not readily bear that out. It's nice to think that as modern-educated humans we could cut ties with evolution - but the beat goes on. Bullying and chaos will likely go on and on - even if, occasionally, there appear to be moments of reprieve. Now, it appears that even the attempt for reprieve has been forsaken.
2
Trump makes Nixon look like an amateur. Anyone who can’t call out egregious abuses of authority, is unfit for public office and must be considered part of the problem. That includes Cornyn, Mnuchin, Pompeo and any members of the House and Senate prepared to look the other way. What they’re doing to the nation and the party is shameful. They’ve made “Republican” synonymous with unethical, abusive and lawless.
11
Yawn. In a week, there'll be another scandal, another foreign policy debacle, or a different "tipping point" story. And then the week after, there'll be another one, and then yet another, ad infinitum all the way up to the election.
The House Democratic leadership does nothing except wring their hands and say this is it, really it, the thing that will convince Congressional Republicans and Trump supporters that Trump has to go. That's it: as far as they're concerned, it's up to Republicans and Trump supporters to decide whether Trump goes. They're being unpatriotic by not calling out Trump, so the Democratic talking point goes.
By next week, Nancy Pelosi will issue a sigh of relief that she's dodged a bullet again--- whew, no pressure to hold scary impeachment hearings without Republican support. Now the Democrats can get back to focusing on Election 2020.
The only thing is that Pelosi and the Democratic Party doesn't seem to realize is that the Democratic base is becoming increasingly disenchanted with the depressing combination of humiliating Congressional hearings and fresh Trumpian outrages in the news. I don't want to watch Corey Lewandowski and other Trumpian clowns lie with impunity to Congress.
The Democrats are impotent. They're inept, useless. Why bother voting for a bunch of politicians who can't do anything? Come on, Pelosi/Nadler/Schiff et al: give us a reason to be optimistic.
7
As Nixon had to learn, the cover-up is sometimes worse than the crime.
I know Trump is incapable of learning but are ALL the Republicans incapable of caring about the obstruction of justice in addition to the crimes themselves?
9
The situation is bad and I don’t like to make comparisons, but what would republicans be saying if a president who was a democrat did something like this?
Of course! They would want his or her head!
In the end, the crime itself was not a partisan act. It is a clear violation of the law.
It requires action.
NOW!
Congress should look at it NOT as going after a president. It’s the prosecution of a criminal!
For the sake of the country and as an obligation of their respective oaths of office, trump must be impeached.
6
The Democrats are asking Republicans to join them on a Trump inquiry and not an Ukraine inquiry. An Ukraine inquiry would also look into Joe and Hunter Biden which is the last thing the Democrats want.
2
I have this vague memory of an American candidate for the presidency inviting a foreign power to meddle in our politics, pleading with them, “Russia, if you’re listening, I hope you’re able to find the 30,000 emails that are missing.”
Surely no American president would act in such a way....
8
I keep thinking that if this were Hillary, she would swinging at the end of a rope in front of the capital. The only, ONLY, reason I vote democratic is because there is no choice!
7
Yes, the Democratic party will be completely discredited with voters if it fails to impeach Trump on this brazen abuse of power, compounded by mind-numbing obstruction. And not just discredited with Progressive voters. Moderate Democrats, Independents and Republicans will rightly conclude the Democratic party in Congress is a joke; its members only interested in holding a finger to the wind for their personal reelection prospects. It is an utter miscalculation to believe voters will be inspired in the necessary numbers to come out to the polls to vote for members of such a craven, cowardly, fundamentally unpatriotic party.
3
Republicans are complicit in all the crimes of Trump. We canot impeach all of them. Pity!
11
Common sense - if restored to our political moment- makes clear that an innocent man need not hide the facts.
But Trump seems to doubt an exculpatory process; his tax returns, once promised post-audit, remain secret and this phone conversation with Zelensky cannot be trusted to receive oversight by Congress.
Hmmm. Is the GOP defense that the Donald was unfamiliar with the law? Do they really want to push the nonsense that Trump wouldn’t give allocated funds if he detected any corruption after deals with the Saudis?
Does Trump think we are all idiots?
11
The republican enablers who will not hold trump accountable are potentially complicit in high crimes against America. Is this really the future that they want for their grandchildren ?
9
Do any Americans pay attention to what the Democratic minority leader in the Senate says? Does anybody pay attention?
Let's see, today's travesty: "We have credible evidence that Donald Trump is an axe-murderer!"
Have to sleep on that one...
2
@Nezahualcoyotl
Why do republicans think the president committing crimes is perfectly okay with them?
Pressuring a country to do trump's bidding is a crime when it is to help him get reelected.
Trump was right when he said that he could shoot someone on 5th ave and his supporters would still back him. Republicans don't care about criminals if they are republicans. Quite a traitorous view point from republicans.
Whatever happened to the republicans who actually believed and fought for the law back in Nixon's days?
6
My friend, the problem isn’t that nobody pays attention to the minority leader of the Senate … it’s that nobody pays attention to Trump.
Trump himself has admitted to talking with the Ukrainian later about the charges that Biden misused his influence to help his son.
(Which on its own is the pot calling the kettle black, given the historic nepotism in the current White House, which makes even the Kennedy’s seem like amateurs.)
3
What has gone wrong with the American spirit ?
You have three things to save:
(1) Your democracy.
(2) Your country.
(3) Our world ( from climate change disaster ).
MARCH.
OCCUPY.
PROTEST.
13
The genie is our of the bottle, with regards to the tactics that Trump uses to skirt the law. Any future president will now use these tactics to circumvent the constitution. So, if the Republicans don't want to support the Democrats in this quest to save the constitution, then they will not be able to cry in the future. The Republicans have allowed the constitution to be eroded, hopefully this is the point where they'll say, enough is enough. I hope that the real American population is watching this carnage. We'll find out in 2020.
11
With misconduct in plain view (who needs a transcript or tape when the reality TV star admits that he asked a foreign government for election interference--again), the pro-Trump media actually focus on Biden and the Ukraine. For this event, Biden and his son are irrelevant. The transcript is irrelevant. The quid pro quo is irrelevant. Since Trump admitted that he requested investigation into a political rival, the ONLY relevant issue is whether Republicans are Americans or not. If the Republicans are Americans, they should support hearings and impeachment, as some Republicans did against Nixon.
12
I never thought I would live to see the day that America would sink this low in self esteem and in the eyes of her allies
8
Why on Earth would Senate Republicans join Schumer in demanding the president furnish details about his call to the Ukrainian leader? If they did and then found out something, then they would have to do something about it. This Senate isn't used to doing anything other than approving judges and naming Post Offices. Far safer for them to "see no evil, hear no evil....."
Face it, the less they know, the less they have to do. Besides, there are elections next year. Fund raisers, calls to donors, you know...the important stuff.
6
Another inquiry.
Aren't Americans tired from the last disastrous inquiry?
But the news cycle has been slow since then. It is putting media anchors out of business. You got to throw them a bone, when they are willing to stretch journalistic ethics to be your party's organ.
So another inquiry it is.
So - I gather you support the unlawful actions of the boorish man in the White House? Have you no patriotism? Have you no shame?
8
Shame for Republicans left the station a long time ago. They have no shame, no character, and no decency. The rest of us must remember.
8
@Bhaskar
I remember when republicans actually followed the law, but that was a long time ago.
They went after Clinton for a mere lie about an affair, but a president who lies and commits crimes is met with a shrug and so what.
He was right about his supporters, he could kill and you would still back him.
4
Clearly we need an investigation of both Bidens and Trump, That should include getting the Bidens under oath.
1
@Grace
If Biden has nothing to hid about his activities in Ukraine and China, he should welcome the opportunity to clear the air.
4
The GOP has no morals. They are a RICO action in a criminal conspiracy to defraud the USA. AGAIN. They have abrogated their duty, they have betrayed their oaths, their country the WORLD. They are a cult of terrorists in slavish service to a megalomaniacal demagogue.
13
Can I toss out a wild thought here? Just who is this "whistleblower"? The first thing to determine is who actually did or did not file a report.
Let's not forget how many times Donald Trump called into media under an alias to plant stories about himself.
Who has gained the most so far from this story? Donald Trump. He suddenly has the entire media talking about Joe Biden in a completely different context than last week. And I would not be surprised to discover that there is no "whistleblower", no document, and that this is a Trump concoction. But by then, voters will have made the connection between Sleepy Joe, Ukrainian intrigue, and corruption.
First step is to validate that there is actually a whistleblower and that an actual complaint was filed.
Rather than dig these kinds of facts out, all of our media spent a couple of days speculating on who might have been called, when they might have been called, and what might have been said.
If we replaced ALL of our media with something a step above gossip-queens we would all be better off.
Again, prove that there actually is a whistleblower. I'm skeptical at this point given Trump's past history.
2
@tom harrison
The inspector general stated that the whistleblower was credible and it needed to be address immediately. So yes, there was an actual complaint filed. TRhat has been reported.
Now republicans are making sure the complaint is never seen. Which is what you want also.
Given trump's history, just trying to force a country with a threat of not giving military aid is probably just the least of the actual complaint. Trump lies so often, it's a surprise when he speaks truthfully.
But his base dotes on his lies.
2
If the whistleblower thinks his or her concerns merit urgent attention- and that is obviously the case- he or she needs to personally go to congress. The first attempt to get the information to its lawful recipients has failed. Now it’s up to the whistleblower to take the truly brave step; inform congress directly and fulsomely. Don’t abandon your convictions because they have been illegally thwarted. Please - do the right thing.
5
The purpose of the Whistleblower statute is to provide protection thru anonymity to the powerless when speaking truth to vicious vengeful corrupt leaders.
The law should be enough.
1
Will the Democrats join in on an investigation of Joe Biden's admission that US aid would be withheld unless a prosecutor was fired?
Didn't think so.
2
There’s nothing to investigate. This was US and European policy. Tens of thousands of Ukrainians were protesting for that prosecutors dismissal and Hunter Biden was never being investigated. Everything Trump and Guiliani are alleging is false.
10
@Mike
There is plenty to investigate. What was Hunter Biden doing for his client worth $50K a month? He had no expertise in natural gas or energy.
Perhaps the most surprising, and appalling, thing about the Trump presidency (debacle) is the extent to which this entirely horrible, immoral man is supported by his followers. It appears there are literally thousands, if not millions, of Trumpies who would take up arms and kill their fellow Americans rather than concede what an utter disaster he is. They support him to an extent to which they wouldn’t even support members of their own family. I mean, seriously, who would put up with this kind of behavior if it came from a child, spouse, or crazy uncle living in the guest room? And if you’re a Trump supporter and think that the liberals would do the same for Obama or Hillary (or Joe or any of the others currently running), you’re out of your mind; no politician is deserving of that level of adoration and Democrats are capable of constructively criticizing their own, as they have done consistently in the past (almost to the point of needless nitpicking and in-fighting). It’s way past time for us to recognize, and say loudly and clearly, that Trump and anyone who continues to support him are irredeemably deplorable.
12
@Loren C yes, now lets beat them at the polls decisively. Support your favorite candidate, tell your friends. Maybe post on Fox comments and expose their posters to rational thought. It might work and its good practice.
2
it's a mirror image of what happened in 1930s Germany.
3
Why what a good idea.
Let’s really have an investigation.
Why have the Ukrainians been trying to provide the US with evidence of corruption of US elections?
What do they know?
Sure you want to find out?
Everyone is making this problem much more difficult than it is.
Congress should give Trump an ultimatum: Deliver the whistle blower report to the oversight committees or be removed from office.
Lawsuits and resolutions are unnecessary complications. Direct action is required.
11
The time to put impeachment before the Senate is after the primary season, when the Republican indifference will be fresher in voter's as Trump unwinds ever faster in ways that voters will understand and Republicans cannot ignore. The chances of Trump getting reelected are very small and dropping. It would be better to focus on the long game, regaining control of the Senate and enlarging control in the House by tying the Republicans to him close to the next election, point in time where they cannot rehabilitate their image. Afraid or just befuddled by him. They are following Trump off a cliff. Don't give them time to stop. Pelosi is probably following this strategy knowing better than us the way Senators and Representatives operate.
5
Graham saying it would be good for the country if trump "could" share the information about trump and Ukraine. This is such mealy-mouth clap trap. Of course he "could". That's not the issue. The only issue in this particular case is "will he" share the information, both the transcripts of the call and the Inspector General's full report for the Intelligence Services. "Shall" does not mean, "maybe". "Shall" is 100% clear.
Where are the Dems? Nancy - you are my representative in SF. It's time. This will only show courage to take on this thug. If not, Dems, and you will be seen as cowards, not worthy of running our country. Sorry to be so blunt, but if the Dems are hiding something and are fearful of trump opening up on Dem dirt, so be it. There can be nothing as awful for our grandchildren and the future of our nation and world as trump having another 4 years.
The impeachment timing is perfect now - especially when we / you get to see the real story of this Ukraine madness. You must not let trump get away with anything anymore. We're done, the American people are done. You will never get his base of red meat to open their minds - you must not let the laggards have control. That is truly insane.
2
Watch for republicans saying this is a political witch hunt, but remember this: "This is a whistle-blower complaint that has been labeled ‘urgent’ and ‘credible’ not by Democrats, but by a senior-level Trump appointee"
18
In negotiations,the first step is to make sure everyone is on the same page as to what the assumptions are and what each party’s drivers are -ie. What are we actually talking about and what is the goal of each party in the discussions.
The Dems approach the current version of the Republican Party as if they both want and adhere to a democratic system and expect to work within that system to achieve as much of their respective policies as possible.
The Democrats need to acknowledge that the Republicans no longer align with supporting a democratic system and the Republican advocated “policies” are now subservient to solely holding power as a minority party. The Republican actions and statements align with this.It is only in the context of a democracy under rule of law that the Republicans seem to be contradictory to what the Democrats continue to assume the Republicans are.
If Dems keep working and speaking as if the Republicans are simply wayward on one-off actions or statements, nothing they do will gain sufficient traction. The Democrats should openly ask Republicans if they still believe in and support our democracy. It’s a fair question.If Republicans do not, they should be open about what it is they are striving to replace it with. If Republicans believe in central, one party control, they should say so, as that at least aligns with their actions.
To negotiate, one needs to take into account one’s opponent’s actual beliefs and goals - not what one hopes they are.
3
What has 106 legs and 53 necks and no spine whatsoever?
Trump's treason is only surpassed by the cowardice of every one
of the Republican senators.
12
Congress, and specifically Republicans, by accepting this are setting us up for this to be ok for politicians going forward.
5
Charles Schumer has no bite. The Democrats have no power apparently until Pelosi comes down off her high horse, waves her sword, and yells ‘go get-em’.
5
Here we go again the failing demos and their endless futile pursuit to impeach the president. Rest assure, they will have at least 5 more years to pursue their pathetic circus of impeachment. It is more comical than pathetic. AOC the squad and the bunch of demo losers working so hard to ensure Trump’s re-election 2020.
2
Democrats? You apparently can't read: "This is a whistle-blower complaint that has been labeled ‘urgent’ and ‘credible’ not by Democrats, but by a senior-level Trump appointee"
12
Impeach now. I’m sick and tired of this slow play Nancy.
6
What a joke. Let’s get more information on Joe and his son first.
Show us a spine.
1
McConnell to Schumer, ".... go pound sand, respectfully of course..." Let the voters decide in November 2020 where the President will win both the popular vote and the Electoral College in a landslide around 10 PM EST ignoring California entirely saving the middle class from certain Democrat annihilation.
If the leaked information is accurate, Trump should be impeached.
The single most damning allegation is that Trump wanted a foreign government to provide dirt on Bidden to his private defense attorney and hatchet man for his reelection campaign, not to the FBI or any other law enforcement agency. Asking a foreign government to aid a US election campaign is a crime whether the government helps or not. Investigating corruption is the FBI's job, not Rudy's.
8
So much is riding on this. I’m think we may be living through a constitutional coup of sorts.
I don’t think trump and his regime has any more intention of allowing themselves to be voted out of office than, say Hugo Chavez or Robert Mugabe.
One by one key institutional or constitutional counterweights are being coopted or neutralized (DOJ leadership, Senate majority leadership, SCOTUS etc.). Pace Jon Meacham, we’ve never faced a situation quite like this.
6
Trump is awaiting a dossier from the President of Ukraine. It will be delivered Wednesday. Trump’s nonchalant and combative attitude makes me think that Democrats can expect bad news.
1
@Richard Wright you’re kidding, right?
2
Nope. Trump is acting like there will be an unfortunate surprise for Democrats.
@Richard Wright
Trump always does that and then the bad news is against him and then it is all fake news.
Trump has in the 1st term proven to be the worst and most deplorable president ever.
Have we heard a peep from Sen. Richard Burr, chair of the Senate Intel Committee?
He's on the receiving line, but he's a no-show. What's he up to?
4
Seriously?
Trump is the best thing that ever happened!
To the 1%.
Massive rollbacks of decades worth of business regulations, enormous tax cuts (for the rich)....recharacterizing capital gains as 'inflation adjusted'...
Our plutocrat-enablers will do anything to keep that guy in power - as this is possibly the last hurrah for the "Southern Strategy" ... demographics being what it is, the GOP is soon to run out of old angry/scared white people.
7
Trump stonewalls, the Republicans collude, and those who say we need to see the whistleblower complaint before beginning impeachment are not paying attention. The only way the Democrats will ever see one scintilla of documentation is by aggressively, unequivocally, and explicitly declaring they are impeaching Trump. There is no alternative. In 2018, voters across the country turned on Trump and the GOP. They empowered the Democrats to do the right thing. If the Democrats in The House don’t use the power they were given, why should they expect to be given more power?
7
After Trump is gone, and his record is laid bare, what can Republicans say? That they wished they has said something earlier?
The GOP is mired in the swamp Donald promised to drain. They all sink or swim together.
7
Unless I am mistaking, Pres. Trump also wants these Biden allegations investigated.
@batazoid
So why did Trump want the information given to Rudy, his election campaign hatchet man, and not to the FBI?
8
Because Uncle Joe said this:
“I said: ‘We’re leaving in six hours. If the prosecutor’s not fired, you’re not getting the money,’” Mr. Biden recounted at a 2018 event sponsored by the Council on Foreign Relations.
Then both Joe and Trump did the same thing, used their position in government to use undue pressure on a foreign government
If you impeach Trump based this now, then the Senate will be forced to impeach Biden on blackmailing Ukraine to fire someone when elected.
And Warren, Sanders, Buttlieg, O’Rourke and the rest of the 1%ers cannot win this election.
Your move Democrats.
1
@Autumleaf
My move? Make AOC speaker of the house, impeachment ASAP for Trump. Then Pence. A combined Sanders/Warren ticket crushes whoever the shattered GOP can muster, and we can get back to the business of being a beacon of freedom and justice in the world.
4
I don’t want a transcript of the conversation released I want the whistle blower report sent to congress as the law requires. No one other than Trump administration people have seen it.
All the media reports are pure conjecture, the fact they quashed it leads me to believe it is quite possibly much worse than we think. They may be leaking the least damaging part of the report thinking this will all blow over.
17
It appears to be time for Congress to start the process of punishing people for contempt.
Even if it fails because officials refuse to act, it creates another damning picture of the Trump regime’s fundamental corruption.
It also builds the case for fundamental constitutional and legal reform to protect and enshrine the checks and balances that defend democracy.
11
Schumer is so pathetically weak to plead for help from Republicans to save the nation from a Republican president. If somebody punched me in the face I wouldn’t turn to the assailants buddies for help. It’s spineless hacks like Schumer that are little better than the folks across the aisle. Trump knows he’s up against a feckless clown and is smirking at his weakness. It’s long past time to give the American people a hard choice between a failed despotic oligarchy or what we have at least pretended to be for over 200 years. How did we end up with leaders like these? A pox on them all.
4
I twould take the president a lot more than this to rouse the now disgraced Republican Party.
This should be a wake up call for anyone who thinks fascism could not take hold in our United States of America.
4
This Ukraine thing is going to blow up in Democrats' faces because the inquiry will show all of Joe Biden's abuse of power. That's why he is playing it down but with the recent Warren surge and Joe losing his teeth on the CNN debate, Joe is toast.
3
Why would Trump refuse to turn over the report — as required by law — to protect Biden?
Unlike you and me, Trump knows what what said and what the whistleblower said. That he prefers congress not see it suggests he has something to hide.
4
Democrats be strong. Demand answers
4
How far is too far...? - Stevie Wonder
Treason is the reason in the "Season of the Witch" and is going on full bore at the DNI.
They must be either negotiating in some back room or trying to pound out some armor, with studies, to see what defense might hold back the approaching storms from destroying their dikes...!
The Sea of Change will win.
1
Unfortunately nothing will happen. You are dealing with money and sycophants.
3
I think more to the point top Democrats should be asking top Republicans whether they would consider this behavior acceptable from a Democratic president against one of their front runner candidates. And explain that if they're OK with undermining every last scintilla of norms, they should be careful if they get what they wished for.
3
Top Republicans consider any question of fairness quaint. If they answered honestly, they’d tell you attacking a Democratic president spuriously and defending a Republican president lawlessly are both justified by one reason alone: power.
1
First things first. Congress MUST see the whistle-blower complaint as required by law.
9
Appears the old-school Dems want to give the Reps an easy out in next year's election: an excuse to get rid of The Donald and run somebody different.
Of course, the Reps in the Senate still have to vote to dump Trump, but the evidence is mounting such that a vote to keep Trump could be more harmful in the long run.
Time will tell.
I would urge Democrats to proceed with all deliberate speed but deliberate is the operative word.
We have counted chickens that never hatched too many times.
Trump will say and do anything. Anything. This is going to be a marathon, not a sprint.
2
It could take a year for the courts to sort this out? Why on earth could the Supreme Court quickly step in and steal the 2000 election but this can’t be fast-tracked? Are there any adults in the room?
8
Party over Country has given way to Trump over Party in this house-of-mirrors GOP.
3
At minimum the Republicans should demand that Trump administration share with appropriate House and Senate Committee the whistle-blower complaint and if the complaint does not contain material important for national security it should released for public. Such move will either exonerate Trump and silence the Democrats or will lead impeachment procedure. What is been alleged is no less nefarious than what Nixon did by authorizing the breaking in the Watergate Hotel.
I think most people are misreading the dilemma Speaker Pelosi finds finds herself in: What If We Succeed??
With a year until the election, an impeachment in the House could burn through half that time. But if successful and Trump is convicted in the Senate next Summer, it clears the way for President Pence, "The Man Who Isn't Trump" to waltz into the White House next Fall.
If winning the match means losing the game, why play hardball when you can play spitball and win?
1
@Mel
Wait. How does Pence win?
The IG is authorized to make the determination.
Once the determination is done it is forwarded to the DNI.
Under statute, the DNI is obligated to turn the complaint over to the House and Senate Intelligence Committees.
The DNI failed to do so.
Trump, through the Barr Hagen Law Firm, has blocked law enforcement.
This is obstruction of justice.
While the contents of the complaint are important,
the initial high crime of obstruction is obvious and overt.
8
"Democrats Pressure Republican Senate to Join Ukraine Inquiry"
The Democrats can try to "pressure" republicans all they want, but nothing will change. No, some action needs to be taken to shake the republicans as they have never been before.
Abraham Lincoln has a point on this modern day issue: ""Our safety, our liberty, depends upon preserving the Constitution of the United States as our Fathers made it inviolate. The people of the United States are the rightful masters of both Congress and the Courts, not to overthrow the Constitution, but to overthrow the men who pervert the Constitution." --Abraham Lincoln"
Federal employees, including Trump, members of his staff and appointees and members of congress take an Oath Of Office. None of them have been abiding by their Oath as we have seen repeatedly over the 2 and 1/2 years.
I think it is time to bring up the possibility of the Democrats or a Citizens group filing charges in a Federal Court to enforce the provisions of 18 USC Sec. 912 against Mr. Trump, his federal employee staff and the republican members of both houses of Congress.
2
Trump has already touched the hot stove of foreign influence in a U.S. election, and survived, with help from the republican senate.
Every new outrage unchallenged empowers him for the next outrage, and the next and the next........
If the republicans stonewall, then a "leak" would settle the matter, and the American people will decide who is a patriot and who is not.
3
I keep wondering just WHY did the whistleblower try doing this the legit way when this administration is anything but.
Should have just given a public interview and taken one for the sake of our country.
1
This reminds me of a hearing long ago when a Republican was incensed because someone burned a flag and wanted a law against that.
He was asked, "what if someone burned a copy of the Constitution?"
His reply: "that's just a piece of paper"
Republicans have been pretending to care about America for years, just to get the votes of real patriots. But right now they are standing back while Trump actually burns the Constitution: not the piece of paper, but the contents of the Constitution, and Republicans apparently don't care at all.
Trump may be a Dictator who can get away with shooting someone on Fifth Avenue, but as long as he gives tax cuts to Republicans' wealthy donors and fills the Court with money-is-speech, corporations-are-people judges, the Republicans in Congress really don't care at all about our historic democracy.
2
The reaction to Trump by the press will end this country. You can't throw a hissy fit whenever Trump does exactly what the establishment, the MSM, and the billionaires have been doing since the Dixiecrats couped the 1944 convention to make Truman FDR's successor.
It is too bad there are no academics or newspapers to manufacture some consent for Mr. Trump.
Maybe there are still people in this country who do not support impeachment. Maybe they aren’t the hardcore 35 percent of Trump supporters, though, and having televised impeachment hearings on day after day, detailing in excruciating completeness how the corruption of this administration has bilked the taxpayer to support Trump’s mediocre resorts, prop up the Kushner business, and interfere with our democracy with the help of dictatorships would change public opinion for the average moderate. I know I was with Pelosi’s calculations until a few weeks ago. If the Democrats can’t unite behind the task of holding egregious liar and money grubber Trump to account, that’s pretty sad. If the Republicans in Congress can’t find their way to restore the rule of law because they are afraid they’ll be voted out or lose power, I’m sorry, this is the American Experiment. Thousands upon thousands of our countrymen have paid the ultimate sacrifice to create it, keep it united, and to destroy fascism. You don’t get to be less brave than them.
2
"Senator Mitt Romney, the Republican presidential nominee in 2012, was harsher."
“If the president asked or pressured Ukraine’s president to investigate his political rival, either directly or through his personal attorney, it would be troubling in the extreme,” he said
Mitt Romney's words were not harsher, they were cowardly. Harsher would be to say that Trump's actions were an impeachable offense.
I am quite sure the transcript and recording is being cropped, edited, and manipulated just so to prove our leader's innocence. Nothing to see here, folks.
I can't believe Democrats are again walking into a quick sand of Mueller.
I agree with Sen Graham - that POTUS release relevant portion of the call.
Heck, he released his lawyers, aides to cooperate with Mueller when he could have easily pulled a Nixon Stonewall.
And his public statements make it clear he indeed broached Joe in his call.
As it has been noted elsewhere - his conduct is not abuse of his powers or illegal as in breaking whistleblower statue.
Both Clinton and Obama when signed this into law - their signing statements made it clear that it does not apply to a POTUS.
And folks should remember that we just witheld aid from Afghanistan - precisely because of corruption.
Russia must be laughing that Ukraine - rather than rattling Russia's cage over Crimea - is rattling Democrats into incoherence.
And I predict POTUS is setting Democrats for another fall - just like Mueller when he does release a transcript.
Folks will say - this is it???
There is nothing there there.
@Neil The IG says otherwise...and he has the FACTS!
@Neil
It is a felony for a foreigner or foreign government to interfere in any US election. Soliciting a person to commit a crime is a crime.
1
@Neil signing statements have zero force of law. Zero.
Trump's aberrant criminal behavior and the blind support exhibited by the GOP and administration functionaries is reason to challenge precedent that allows this to happen.
Such challenges will have to slowly wind their way through courts making them unresponsive to our present crisis in leadership.
I believe that goading trump into more and more dysfunctional behavior may have to be the way to get rid of the problem.
Trump will not go gentle into his good night.The only good that can come out of this is damaging information about Biden and/or his son. Anything to weaken his candidacy so that we can a vertebrate President that can bite as well as bark. The Republicans are beyond hope and the "sleeping dog" Democrats need to be aroused from their decades long slumber.
Joe Biden’s son , Hunter , should set an example and release his tax records . That would prove that neither he nor his father improperly enriched themselves in their dealings with the Ukrainian Government . Even if he was frequently impaired by drugs , that doesn’t mean that he wasn’t worth $50,000 per month to a Ukrainian Corporation.
1
Before this incident involving the Ukraine many Americans felt the people who opposed Trump were hyperventilating, shocked and repulsed mostly by his misogyny and lack of "correctness" regarding minorities and immigrants, etc. But now we have a clear act of treason. Are there any Americans left in the Republican party who are willing to defend our Constitution and our flag?
2
They can't even get pelosi to defend the nation
why ask GOP'ers?
Republicans are already knee-deep in complicity.
Why aren't there more republicans like Romney?
One of the problems here is with the courts. Why should it take a year to get a judgment? That's unacceptable. The case should take the express elevator, straight up to SCOTUS, so that we could which of the Justictes, like Lindsey Graham and Mitch McConnell, are traitors to our democracy.
1
Here's the scoop on the Republican Senate and Trump -
They. Don't. Care.
3
Donald Trump is the Republican “meal ticket”.
He may be crazy, but they are getting rich.
There will be no boat rocking here.
1
Why is Ukraine so important to Trump and Putin? It's at the heart of Trump-Russia, as I note here https://realcontextnews.com/how-cohens-and-manaforts-ukraine-ties-tell-the-deeper-story-of-trump-russia-and-the-mueller-probe/ Also, as Giuliani embarrasses himself over Ukraine and Biden, a look at Rudy's own shady ties to Ukraine and the Russian mafia https://realcontextnews.com/rudy-giulianis-kislin-connection-raises-issues-for-his-role-as-trumps-russia-lawyer-exclusive-analysis/ And with Trump using his official power as POTUS in conducting foreign policy to target Joe Biden, we may have his most explicit attempt to make govt into his own personal political tool for hurting his political enemies, part of a trend with him/GOP I note here https://realcontextnews.com/trump-gop-destroying-the-pillars-of-democracy/
3
The party of partisan investigations is now asking for bipartisanship? I'm sure the Republicans will rush right out to do the Democrats' bidding.
7
@Bill "The Party of Partisan Investigations"... Like Kenneth Star's investigation into a consensual sex act? Or 5 years of Benghazi investigations that Republicans LITERALLY ADMITTED were only happening to hurt Hillary Clinton's chances of being elected president?
Is that the kind of "partisan investigations" that you were talking about?
72
The Republicans will do no such thing, because their have sold their souls to Trump, and preserving their own political careers has become more important to them than upholding the constitution that they swore to protect when they took office. They're traitors
36
It is a Trump appointed IG who initially raised this issue and said it is serious, not the Democrats.
39
Congress should start by going after Maguire with the full force of the law.
10
How many times will the GOP go against the country in favor of the small Evangelical Group who support Trump because Trump is willing to sell out Women, Gays, and Minorities?
13
All we want is the truth. Every republican should too.
14
Roy Cohn is in the White House.
10
@sol hurok
Not really. He's Roy Cohn Lite - Intellectual Featherweight.
In 48 hours, President Trump has gone from denial to distraction to admitting he extorted Ukraine to give his personal attorney Rudi Giuliani dirt about a family member of a political rival while Trump blocked delivery of Congressionally mandated military aid for Ukraine to defend itself against Russia's invasion.
This extortion for personal gain started July 25 and went on for months until Congress finally intervened and forced delivery of the military aid to Ukraine.
Now when Trump finally admits he did it, he blows it off as nothing--- so what? what is wrong with that? The answer Trump fails to give is his abuse of government office for personal gain flagrantly violated Title 18 section 201 paragraph 2 of the US Code. Its a felony punishable by up to 15 years in jail. See for yourself: https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/18/201
Meanwhile, Trump's minions and Putin's trolls go pedal to the metal cranking out lies and distractions to hide this crime while Trump commits another forbidding release of the whistleblower complaint about Trump's abuse of office so Congress and the public can see and hear the evidence first hand.
The stonewalling must end Thursday when Congress puts Trump's acting DNI Joseph Maguire on the spot to turn over the whistleblower evidence and testimony. If Maguire still refuses, then the die is cast, Congress must take maximum punitive action against Maguire and immediately begin impeachment proceedings against Trump to enforce rule of law.
8
@Allan Slipher - Friday night, Bill Mahrer predicted what would happen with this story. He said that first Trump would deny it ever happened. Then Trump would admit he did it but nothing wrong. Then, he will admit to something wrong but its no big deal. Then, the Dems will ask for paperwork, the Repubs will ignore it, the Dems will shrug and say, "we tried", and nothing will happen and it will all go away.
1
A call to Congress: Now is the time to impeach Mr. Trump. Now
8
You know what a Republican is, right?
A Republican is someone who looks at Donald Trump and says, "Now there's an honest and smart fellow."
11
Gutless republicans have been complicit with Trump's evil deeds from the getgo.
8
Well, it’s finally starting to get interesting!!! The rubber has hit the road! That stranger Trump once said he could shoot on the street and get away with it, he’s now shot him!
It’s a pure plain crime!
Will one party really choose the party over the country?!
It’s getting exciting!! What will Trump do next, after he gets away with it, if he does get away with it??!!
Get out the popcorn!! Time to enjoy “Above the Law!!”
2
David Leonhardt has an Op-Ed piece in today’s NYT listing 40 factual ways in which the Republican Supreme Leader has already seriously undermined our Republic. As a moderate old white guy (now former) Republican, I have been writing to my cowardly Republican U. S. Senator since the onset of this administration, trying to convince said cowardly Senator to place country before party. Alas, my pleadings have fallen on deaf ears. Why should treasonous actions tip the scale for these moral cowards to actually do the right thing now? Seriously.
394
I too write our Ohio Senator to no avail. He sent an email taking credit for getting the funds to Ukraine released!
3
@David. My Representative and both of my Senators are republicans. I feel your pain. I live in a deeply red state where trump is a hero and saviour. I have been told that trump was sent by god to save this country. I am tired, tired, tired. For this I spent 20 yrs in the military? Only to see the spineless republicans throw away our democracy?
21
@ponchgal
Ohioans should look at from which orgs and which persons the money these pols get for their campaigns comes from. Then they might see more clearly why they are seeing certain decisions (or decisions not to do anything).
2
Schumer and Graham in agreement. Something must be going on.
As strange as those bedfellows are I find it stranger that out of 100 Senators they are the only two speaking out on this. Surely there are others in the upper chamber who are feeling a sense of urgency here.
238
@BC
Senator Graham, our modern-day Vicar of Bray, senses that the ground is shifting under his feet. That is potentially good news.
70
Did you not see Mitt Romney‘s statement “troubling in the extreme” “critical for the facts to come out”
24
@srwdm Mitt Romney, a man who attracts those who seek leaders with strong words and inaction.
28
The law is clear -- the acting director of the DNI SHALL turn over the whistleblower's complaint to Congress. He is breaking the law by not doing so.The House can have him jailed for contempt. That might send a message to the rest of the Republicans who are doing the bidding of the corrupt White House by stonewalling requests for information and documents.
Come on, Speaker Pelosi, put some teeth into your actions!
590
@Blue Girl in Boise The acting director of the DNI is acting after seeking direction from the Justice Department, which issued a ruling that he should not turn over the document. Who should the House send to arrest him and how are they going to enforce a law that Justice says does not apply. The only way to establish the clarity of the law is through the courts. This is hard to hear, I know, but the only way through the Constitutional crises that the President and Attorney General have created is long, grinding and difficult. Only hand to hand combat through the courts will allow the Constitution to be restored. There isn't going to be some Hail Mary touchdown through impeachment or anything else.
33
Your concerns have been noted. Now instead of deflating the will to act could you please lay low and let those who will act do so without all the naysaying?
4
@Blue Girl in Boise
It is the Justice Department that must be brought to task. How sad is this when the Justice Department is unjust!
16
I wish someone could explain why it would take more than one week to straighten out this issue in the courts. Why over a year?
7
Is there anyone among the Republicans in office willing to take a principled stand simply to find out what happened and why the whistle blower felt obliged to come forward through appropriate official channels? He/she didn't leak this.
One milquetoast tweet by Utah's Sen. Romney is not enough.
Please, Republican lawmakers: at a very minimum, get the complaint. This isn't a zero-sum game. This is our country.
7
"Mr. Trump acknowledged on Sunday that he raised corruption accusations against Mr. Biden..." OMG, this creature does not have a shred of decency. And good luck to the Democrat senators asking their Republican colleagues to join them. The Republican senators have proven to be as infinitely shameless as their acknowledged idol. Maybe Joe B might be helpful in reaching out? He thinks he can, LoL!!!
5
@robert: I was just about to say maybe this is a job for Biden and he could prove that he can 'work with' the Grim Reaper and his Very Grim Followers, but you beat me to it.
1
Any day now, I am expecting McConnell to let it slip out that he personally dislikes Trump.
To which Trump will respond that he likes him.
It takes a really low character to recognize another one.
https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/meet-the-press/nbc-wsj-poll-record-share-voters-dislike-trump-personally-democrats-n1057036
2
Time to choose, Republicans: America or Trump. Which one do you serve?
24
Yeah, that'll get far.
4
Enough already. This is a very serious allegation.
Idaho's junior GOP Senator is the Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Jim Risch.
Idaho's senior GOP Senator is a ranking member on the Senate Judiciary Committee, Mike Crapo.
A number of like-minded Idahoans like myself have contacted both.
This is what we demand:
Release the call transcripts and call tapes to the Gang of Eight.
Allow the 'Whistleblower' to testify to the Gang of Eight.
'
Clear it up if can be cleared up.
If it can't be cleared up and if it's proven to be a crime then remove the President by Impeachment.
15
When the GOP recognizes their obligations to the nation rather than to the party they are part of, and not until then, will we get the partisanship necessary to impeach the president.
7
It’s time to reconstitute democracy and the rule of law as understood if not explicitly stated in the constitution. This noble document is not a slick business tax return to be exploited and undermined by loopholes.
I’ve pledged to the United States of America for more than 73 years.
4
This is not really that new.
On May 11th, the Times reported that "facing withering attacks accusing him of seeking foreign assistance for President Trump’s re-election campaign, Rudolph W. Giuliani announced that he had canceled a trip to Kiev in which he planned to push the incoming Ukrainian government to press ahead with investigations that he hoped would benefit Mr. Trump."
Mr G. wanted to meet with Ukraine's president elect to ask him to look into "the involvement of Joe Biden'd son in a gas company owned by a Ukrainian oligarch."
That was in May - and did anyone think that Trump had nothing to do with that aborted mission? Why no "hue and cry" then?
2
Alexander Hamilton stated in The Federalist that high crimes and misdemeanors involve "the abuse or violation of some public trust. They are of a nature which may with peculiar propriety be denominated political, as they relate chiefly to injuries done immediately to the society itself."
So let's go all you GOP judicial "originalists". It's time to start impeachment. This latest episode by Trump - simply withholding the whistle blower information as required by law - is a textbook example of "High Crimes and Misdemeanors" if you have any regard for the founders.
7
What's different this time, there's a tape. Whether it comes out doesn't matter, there will be impeachment hearings. When will Republicans' self-preservation kick in? The ones that don't vote to impeach will surely have a lot to answer for when he is out of office.
5
The Republicans are so completely compromised by Trump that they cannot even call for an investigation of this potential treason.
This would force them to choose between their personal political viability and the national interest.
They've already purged the party of those who would stand up for the country.
5
If there were any evidence that VP Biden used his influence to benefit his son in the Ukraine, DOJ would investigate and get the assistance of Ukrainian law enforcement officials. But there is no such evidence and DOJ presumably refused to assist the Trump campaign to harass Biden. So Trump asked a foreign power to assist his campaign in a way his own Justice Department refused to do, and appears to have held needed military assistance hostage to their agreement to do so. How many criminal laws did that violate?
169
@Steve: And you didn't even mention Rudy and the State Dept./Mike Pompeo! The State Department - OUR State Department set up meetings for Giuliani! How is that eve in the realm of possibilities?
I am at a loss as to know what to do. My country is dying right in front of me, right out in the open and the Republicans will not stand up and because of that, the Democrats will not stand up. All for political reasons, for political survival.
Trump is corrupt. He is stupid. He is a Mafiosi chief whose boss is Putin. He is a liar and a fraud. He is a conman and he has permanently conned 45% of America.
The Constitution is being shredded.
Impeach. Convict. Indict. Convict.
14
@Sophia The people should go down in the street, when they still can do!
2
"DOJ presumably refused to assist the Trump campaign" I wanna hear more about this from the comment above. Would there be a record? A DOJ whistleblower? a?Anything? THAT would be interesting.
2
Now I'm more curious than ever to know what the damaging evidence against Joe Biden is about, and I like Joe. Just like Trump's base who support him regardless, now Joe can have his own too and I can be one of them. Can't wait to be proudly be called deplorable myself.
His son was involved with a Ukrainian gas company. Ta da!
Our leaders lack integrity because our people no longer have any integrity. Voters elect those with like levels of character, or rather, absence of character. Hatred, bias, religion and hypocrisy have replaced reason and political discourse. Congressional Republicans are merely meeting the objectives of their constituents, as base as those objectives may be.
6
Why is this even a story?
Republicans have no intention of looking deeper into this. If the tables were turned, it would be Democrats sitting on their hands.
I understand that you guys have to report the "news"but just print the bare facts. The rest is all posturing by Schumer. The Senate is truly The House of Lords, an old boy's club. They make side deals all the time for political gain and little else.
Without a recording of Trump offering Military aid in exchange for dirt on Biden, this is D.O.A.
Almost anything else can be explained away as peer-to-peer discussions. Trump may have done something a little dicey, but not illegal.
I you follow the talk shows on Sunday, every one of the administration folks were touting the same line: Biden, millions of dollars, druggy son, etc. Even if this is all false, people hear what they heard and go away believing it.
The House is the only recourse and despite all the "crimes" outlined in the Mueller report, there has been little action by them
Trump Is The Teflon Man.
2
Trump is a schemer without honor.
He must be let go.
Save America.
4
America, where ARE your “checks & balances”? I see none - at least none that work.
11
"silent and submissive". A good description of the modern GOP. "Traitorous" is another.
11
Watershed moment for those in office....republicans can’t say details shouldn’t be shared with a straight face...
8
The GOP has become the party of greed and corruption. They have no desire to do anything that resembles ethical behavior. The Democrats are dreaming, unfortunately.
8
The key sentence is: "the courts could take more than a year to sort the case out".
The other quote: "Justice delayed is Justice denied".
We must reform the courts.
11
Republicans who don't choose the high road may or may not be cowards, but their unwillingness to stand up for the American ideal of equal justice for all under the rule of law suggests if the country were at war they'd have to be taken for traitors.
20
Patriotic Republicans will sit on their hands. Patriotic Americans will demand to hear what the whistle blower has to say. You are either one or the other. There is no middle ground.
11
The media just unknowingly helped Trump expose Biden’s corruption. It will probably cause Biden to drop out, and guarantee a Trump 2020 victory. It’s hilarious to watch.
4
“Doing otherwise [by not criticizing & pressuring Trump], Mr. Schumer wrote in a letter to Senator Mitch McConnell, would show Republicans to be 'silent and submissive.'”
The Republicans wouldn’t dare do otherwise, instead they will tow the party-line & remain “silent and submissive.” As Orwell said in “1984” about party-line & submission: “The party told you to reject the evidence of your eyes and ears! It was their final command.”
5
Senators of both parties ought to care about the precedents being set by the executive branch. In more normal times I think there might be bipartisan support for upholding the power of the House. But I suspect the Republican Senators are too worried about what any proper oversight of Trump would reveal. The last thing they want is to be forced to impeach their own party’s president.
5
This latest example of impeachable behavior combined with the Administration's resistance to cooperating with House committees have perhaps provided Speaker Pelosi with an opportunity: "We would have preferred to conduct normal oversight activities, but we now find ourselves obligated to move forward with impeachment simply to get to the truth and fulfill the House's constitutionally mandated oversight obligations." That is, if your response to every request is to stonewall, then you leave us with no other option other than impeachment.
51
@John After watching the disruptive behavior of the Republicans on the committee during the Corey Lewandowski's performance, I have no hope for any Republican decency No pressure can be applied to punks and thugs. In 1963 during the Valachi hearings the members of the mafia were netter behaved The current Republicans in both Houses of Congress mimic their leader all too well. I was for Impeachment Hearings but now I see the game plan by the Trump Republicans is to create chaos in the Hearing Chambers. Nothing will be accomplished unless the Committee Chairmen can kick the bums out. I noticed objections during the Kavanaugh hearings were ignored by Senator Grassley and the Democratic member played by the rules. What do we do when there are no rules?
9
There is a chance that this may come out very well for the Republicans.
Once they realized that Trump is cooked, they will feign dignity and claim the honor of the country is at stake. And if just one of them stands up against Trump now, he or she could be seen as principled, honest person and a prime candidate for the Republican nomination.
My bet, that “honorable man“ will be Romney.
14
@DMO Agreed, Romney could easily come in and save the party and get nominated. And pick another current or former governor as VP, like Hogan, Sanford or Kasich. Center-right might just win against hard left....
1
I always hold out distant hope mitt Romney may do a decent thing with respect to Trump. But I suspect there are about 20 people total who would vote for him.
1
@DMO - I agree with your assessment of Romney. He spoke up because he sees quite an opportunity here to become the party nominee before the next election.
But, he might just be the real deal of a law abiding politician with no thoughts of the presidency and just doing his job.
Seting up these yet invalid attacks on nice guy Joe Biden surely needs a strong response. However it doesn't distract the possibility of which import we tend to repeatedly witness, that he may no longer not only able to carry the ball over the finish line, but find it or pick it up as well.
Democrats need to ask David Cameron about using elections to decide the question of whether they believe their leaders are being influenced by foreign dictators. Half of our country doesn’t believe Trump is using foreign intervention for his political campaign, and half of Great Britain didn’t think Russia was behind the Brexit movement. In our case, in the US, we should not be using an election to decide whether or not Trump should be accountable to the law. Impeach NOW. This should not be a political consideration, it should be a criminal justice decision.
23
Here's what I don't get. I keep hearing that going through the courts to enforce subpoenas will take too long-possibly beyond the election. I disagree. If I was counseling Dems, every time someone refused to comply with a House subpoena on the grounds of executive privilege or because he/she was ordered not to comply by the Trump administration (e.g., head of DNI, Lewandowski, Mcgahn), I'd tell Dems to immediately file a lawsuit along with an emergency motion to compel compliance with the subpoena (seeking an immediate hearing). There would be several grounds for this lawsuit/motion. First, subpoenaed parties do not have standing to raise the privilege. The alleged privilege belongs to Trump, not them. As such, if Trump wishes to invoke privilege, he must go to court to seek a protective order. Second, privileges being invoked are either not supported by or contrary to existing law, or have already been waived (for example, to the extent witnesses already spoke to Mueller about conversations with Trump, they cannot subsequently claim that such conversations are still privileged). Dems must be more aggressive in seeking judicial relief. And if a district court rules against them, Dems should seek immediate review by the Supreme Court such as Trump has done throughout his presidency. Immediate review only requires 4 justices and Democrats still have those justices in their corner. Force the issue.
28
@Jason what is the case and controversy? Who are the named parties and what is the cause of action? How would a district court obtain jurisdiction over the subject matter or the parties?
@Gerald In the case of the whistleblower complaint that is being withheld from Congress, the House would seek an order from the court requiring the DNI to turn over the complaint to the House Intelligence Committee. The statute is clear and the DNI has violated it . . . and given that the statute requires that the House is one of the required recipients of the complaint, it is an aggrieved party with standing. Arguably, any single member of the Senate Intelligence Committee could bring the claim because he/she would also be an aggrieved party.
1
Well two things emerge from all of this:
1) the whistle blower legislation is too weak and everyone knows it
2) expecting sheep to lead is contrary to their nature.
Good luck Chuck!
8
Just go ahead and Impeach for crying out loud. There will be plenty of Clamor from Republicans for 'more information' believe me Joe Biden is in this up to his Eyebrows so why would the Republicans want to bury it?
3
The only way to Trump is through McConnell. Without McConnells protection Trump's support in the Senate would melt to a handful of loyalists.
McConnell is tough enough, but he's not popular. If the props could be kicked out from under McConnell the Trump monarchy would collapse in a New York minute.
13
The US seems to be well on its way to an imperial presidency, where Congress is more of an acquiescent lobby than a coequal branch of government. If a Democrat is elected won't supporters expect their side to exercise power with the same reckless disregard of the Constitution? This is exactly what your Constitution was meant to avoid: it has done a pretty good job until now.
7
The law is clear. The DNI must turn over, to Congress, whistle blower complaints that are deemed urgent by the IG. Interesting to note, as is now the case for many cabinet positions, we have an acting DNI that didn't require Senate confirmation.
14
Republicans can't admit this even though Trump confessed. As soon as they admit one transgression, they have to admit they've known he's been doing this stuff the whole time.
11
It is my understanding that the DNI & Justice Department are breaking laws by not turning the whistleblower complaint over to the House.
I am like Desert guy...No letter. Pelosi, Schumer, Schiff, Nadler, & others should walk into the White House with the press & confront trump in his office with everyone watching. He likes big TV coverage. Let the Nation see this man's response to an in-person request for the law to be upheld once & for all.
Where is the transparency trump keeps saying he has had so much of in this disaster of an administration? There has been no transparency just obstruction.
8
Schumer and Pelosi appear to be pretty spineless. Whenever Schumer is in the same room as Trump, he looks away and always defers meekly. Their motives are good but they are unable to follow up with anything meaningful or concrete. As a hard core Democrat with a 1960’s viewpoint I doubt I would listen to them. It’s no doubt that clueless, corrupt Republicans will not listen.
That being said, all of Trumps misdeeds are no excuse for Republicans to let him have cart-blanche. They have not lifted a finger to establish anything resembling American values of truth, honesty, and transparency. In fact, quite the opposite as they are actively colluding with him by their silence and acceptance.
Republicans need to understand that while they have won the battle, (Trumps Presidency), they have lost the war. In the minds of ALL Americans, the Republican Party is seen as debase, petty, and corrupt. They have absolute no morals and no values that could be considered noble, true, honest, or American.
And this will be their legacy.
Democrats, either you nail Trump to the wall regarding this latest transgression or let it go. But this does not mean you can’t drive the point home leading up to the election. The Republican Party’s collusion with Russian hackers leading up to 2020 should be sufficient.
When you reflect, Republicans really aren’t Americans anymore, they are a foreign entity bent on destroying America and everything it stands for. They are nothing less than traitors.
14
Political jockeying nothing more than that.
2
Yes, I agree with you that the Trump administration is using political jockeying to deflect from crimes they committed.
8
I keep saying to myself, is there a breaking point in which Republican legislators are as disgusted as the rest of us with Trump's corrupt and treasonous behavior? If this isn't it, what is?
11
@nzierler He's given them 2 Supreme Court justices and a massive tax cut for the rich. They don't care what Trump does, as long as they get what they want from him.
If House and Senate Democrats weren't so pathetically inept at messaging they would be admonishing their Republican counterparts with the words President Ronald Reagan (The Great Communicator) used during his 1987 INF Treaty negotiations with former Russian President Gorbachev he borrowed from a Russian proverb;
"doveryai no proveryai"
Translated from Russian to English.....
Trust but Verify
1
The Republican Party has demonstrated an inability to put the nation or the Constitution ahead of their Party Agenda and power. I truly believe Trump could shoot someone in Times Square, as he mentioned in his campaign, and he would be exonerated by a wave of fervent support from his followers and the US Senate. Frankly it is rather disgusting.
8
His downfall will forever be known as Bidengate.
It is so sad that the grand oil party member are following this fool. No one should expect anything substantive from GOP house and senate. Their spine is made of jellyfish. They cannot stand up to Trump.
8
Democrats are making a mountain out of a mole hill.
Nobody cares about this outside the beltway.
2
@KR
Really??? Even beltway Republicans are now taking their heads out of the sand. What a disgrace this president is to
us all.
17
You are good with a sitting President attempting to dig up dirt on their opponent via a foreign government?
11
@jeffk
Absolutely, because Joe Biden's crime must be exposed.
GOP will do nothing; Trump "owns" them
4
The GOP should rename themselves as the Neville Chamberlain Party.
7
"In a letter", "In a letter"...ENOUGH with these stern letters! The Democrats look pathetic and weak. No wonder they can't win critical elections.
274
I’m interested in what other options you would suggest. Tweets?
24
"Oh, we'll sit back and let the voters fix this."
Except we elected them to be our representatives, yes ?
20
@Desert guy
I feel your pain. This is such a travesty of justice -- on the part of the Democrats -- that I guess we just have to accept the lawlessness coming out of the White House. They are simply not willing to act.
If the DNC forces through Biden in 2020, I'm afraid there will be a lot of us who will throw up our hands and simply give up. I'm getting there.
14
Doubtful that Republican senators will publicly pressure the White House to release the full transcript of the call. They may, however, urge the President behind closed doors to release the transcript.
In any event, this looks to be another protracted struggle to get the administration to comply with the law. They'll continue to refuse to agree to the concept of release until they no longer can, then they'll cause further delays with attempts at massive redactions of the text. Same old game of delay and divert.
8
Asking a foreign government to interfere with our internal political processes is treason.
193
@RC
Yes. Trump is giving aid and comfort to Russia in their conflict with the Ukraine by withholding, without explanation, funding to the Ukraine, directly after the Ukraine declined Trump's requesting, 8 times, that the Ukraine subvert American democracy.
USC Chapter 115, §2381. Treason
Whoever, owing allegiance to the United States, levies war against them or adheres to their enemies, giving them aid and comfort within the United States or elsewhere, is guilty of treason and shall suffer death, or shall be imprisoned not less than five years and fined under this title but not less than $10,000; and shall be incapable of holding any office under the United States.
10
@RC Not just asking: making a demand and threatening the foreign power if it isn't met.
8
Justice department says sitting president cannot be charged with any criminal offense. Either they must be proved wrong or impeachment proceedings must begin.
1
Susan Collins, where are you?
12
@Morag: I am working tirelessly to fill my war chest for mu upcoming election. Sorry I cannot be there for you or the country.
Love, Susan
13
@Morag. Collins sold out long ago. She voted for Kavanaugh.
14
@Peggy NH...yes, these days it costs money to be a hypocrite!
Trump is merely continuing to "test the waters" of Congressional action. He is continually pushing the envelope to see how far he can get without Republicans weighing in. Graham and Romney have come close...but more are needed. Otherwise, Trump will continue to stonewall, coverup, hide, tweet his own version of events ( lies) etc., Of course, it's all aimed at his re election and has nothing to do with governing...something he has proven, repeatedly, he knows nothing about.
28
Why can't/won't the Dems go to court and ask for an expedited hearing on whether the DNI must send the whistleblower complaint to Congress? The statute seems clear: the DNI has no discretion whether to do so.
18
@Martin
They have already tried with the IRS and Trump's tax returns. Why they cannot expedite these decisions is beyond belief.
3
@Martin My question exactly. The IG found the threat to be creditable AND urgent. If it's urgent, the harm may already have been irrevocably done.
6
@Karen
The IG also found serious malfeasance in the Comey investigation and in Mueller's investigation.
But nobody cares what IG says when he's not telling you what you want to hear.
2
The gravest concern is that POTUS defied the national interest of the US by withholding military aid to the Ukraine in order to pressure them to give him personal benefits.
38
The behavior by the Democrats has to be the same as the Republicans around the Clinton impeachment. It is just magnified many times over by social media.
That magnification has pointed out the obvious mendacity of the political party pushing the narrative. WJC suffered from being 20 years too early to avoid impeachment
1
We the voters are watching to see who hides in silence, and who stands up for their country rather than this grifter. You are not invisible.
62
Schumer "warned that Republicans would be complicit in Mr. Trump’s actions ..."
Have you not been paying attention since Jan. 20, 2017, Chuck?
24
Let me pretend to be a Republican senator:
“I understand that you are anxious to embarrass this president. But as you say, this rises above any embarrassment. So yes, this needs to be investigated, including the whistleblower statement and transcripts.”
4
"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."
15
Here's a compromise: Have Attorney General Barr review the transcript of the Zelensky-Trump call and give the American people a one-page synopsis of it. That ought to clear things up.
Nyet.
92
@Jay Orchard
Where's the "crying-laughing" emoji when I need it?!
4
@KO. LOL folle once, shame on you but fool me twice shame on me
1
"Over the weekend, Senator Lindsey Graham, Republican of South Carolina and the chairman of the Judiciary Committee, said it would be “good for the country” if the president could share more information about his interactions with Ukraine."
How quaint--and how tame. "Good for the country" would be a laundry list of power abuses corrected, from stonewalling constitutional Congressional oversight to hiding his taxes and keeping conversations with Vladimir Putin out of view.
This is a totally lawless president, who grows more emboldened by the day. The language has to be harsher against Republicans, but even more important would be any actions that would force them to pay a price at the polls for their silence in the face of what amounts to treason on any number of fronts.
31
Schumer wrote a letter..Oooooo
I'm sure McConnell is shaking.
He will give Schumer's letter the attention it deserves.
2
It seems possible that President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine might now have blackmail power over Trump.
76
@Mark Oh no! Not Vlad and Volodymyr?
2
There are many in my opinion who have power of blackmail over this president, given his past history. There must be a black market of such information, which is sold back and forth. Starting with his "business" practices and continuing with his private life and more recently his treasonous behavior. Does anybody believe, for instance, that the sharks at the National Enquirer, who paid hush money on his behalf to women, just sat on that information for many months and did not sell it around? That those who know about his tax frauds are not asking for favors?
1
I fear the Republicans are so deeply involved that they may go on, like Macbeth, because
I am in blood
Stepp'd in so far that, should I wade no more,
Returning were as tedious as go o'er:
Strange things I have in head, that will to hand;
Which must be acted ere they may be scann'd
14
@Nathaniel Brown That's an extremely introspective passage indicating a frank self-analysis, that neither Trump nor the Republican party as a whole could pull off today. Only Hamlet rivals Macbeth in self-awareness.
1
Sometimes I feel sad for these GOP lawmakers, it is like an adult trying to protect the child from putting his finger in the electric socket or the fire. Waking up every morning thinking, what is he going to do today?
10
@Guz: You feel sad "for these GOP lawmakers"? I don't--I feel sad for the country.
3
@ChristineMcM, I feel sad for the country of course but I sure do not want to be one of these lawmakers given all this they have to put up with, I'm sure it is not easy defending a child that comes home with trouble everyday.
Is it treasonous? Is it impeachable? Is it a flagrant abuse of power? Yes
122
@Bruce Egert
Yes. Trump is giving aid and comfort to Russia in their conflict with the Ukraine by withholding, without explanation, funding to the Ukraine, directly after the Ukraine declined Trump's requesting, 8 times, that the Ukraine subvert American democracy.
USC Chapter 115, §2381. Treason
Whoever, owing allegiance to the United States, levies war against them or adheres to their enemies, giving them aid and comfort within the United States or elsewhere, is guilty of treason and shall suffer death, or shall be imprisoned not less than five years and fined under this title but not less than $10,000; and shall be incapable of holding any office under the United States.
2
Pelosi and Schumer make their "principled" warnings based on what they hear within the Beltway.
They are as out of touch as Trump and his Vichy collaborators.
4
Wasn't there something about swearing an oath to protect the Constitution when you got elected?
Are you an American?
60
Please public servants and officers, help your country, leak everything Trump'administration is hiding...those people are gangsters...LEAK LEAK LEAK to the free press
103
@yves rochette
https://www.washingtonpost.com/anonymous-news-tips/
1
@yves rochette He Is the NYT has a similar anonymous drop box? Please provide the link to all.Best
PS:WE shall help the Congress to get infos
1
@yves rochette
Yes! While we still have a free press!
1
The beginning of the end.
Finally.
22
I really wish I shared your optimism.
15
We have forgotten that one of the main jobs of the President is to put country over party and lead the nation. A real leader with integrity needs to emerge from the GOP congressional cesspool. Senator Romney is the obvious candidate for that leadership role. He needs to show that had he won the election he would have been the right choice. Now would be a good time to demonstrate those qualities because the position is vacant.
22
A noble gesture by Minority Leader Chuck Schumer. It will never work.
Mitch McConnell and his Republican scythe-wielders in the Senate are under the spell of Donald Trump. They do not care if their president is culpable of an impeachable offense. They will never vote to convict him. They have the smoking gun that shot someone on Fifth Avenue. So what?
The president just admitted to speaking to a foreign head of state about a possible potential political rival next year. Richard Nixon resigned his presidency for less.
Nancy Pelosi will probably green-light the machinery for the process to begin. The bills will be voted out and go to the Senate. Where they’ll die like blossoms in the desert.
McConnell and Trump (and Vladimir Putin) will laugh all the way to Election Day. And beyond.
14
Pelosi is correct in putting the pressure on House (and ALL) Republicans. If they suppress (synonym OBSTRUCT) the release of this and other critical information necessary for the House to do its Constitutionally-mandated duties, they are violating their oaths of office. They know, as does evidently every American except Barr, that Trump is far from a Unitary President and that he is NOT ABOVE THE LAW.
The more that Democrats fail to unify against this criminal liar’s wrong doings, the more emboldened he becomes and the worse his crimes. Remember, Putin is his hero.
If they want Putin, let them all move to Russia! There is no room for a Putin here.
10
Please indulge my ignorance. If a regular citizen knowingly acted to help someone commit a crime, or helped cover it up, or get away, or refused to admit any knowledge of a crime when the facts showed they possessed it, wouldn’t that mean they were accessories? Are members of the administration or members of Congress of such an elevated class that they cannot be charged as accessories? Is anybody who is in a position to compromise what the President or his stooges deem state secrets immune from culpability? Or was our whole Revolution thing about avoiding taxes on tea and stamps and the supremacy of the Anglican Church?
23
The answer to your second question is Yes. Up until 2012 members of Congress were allowed to participate in insider trading. That is a fact.
5
@George Anastasian
Practically they are still allowed to insider trade because the disclosure requirements are so arcane and untimely that insider trading can occur without anybody being able to notice.
Of course these lax requirements apply only to elected members of Congress/Senate. Their staff were/are examined up the wazoo, down to interviewing their second grade teachers, for "security" reasons.
1
This is yet ANOTHER reason to begin impeachment proceedings against trump. Not sure why this rises to that level more than the myriad of others, but so be it. Whichever stirs the cowardly republican accomplices to finally put country above party is acceptable.
9
Trump got away with it in 2016 because the FBI and Obama administration couldn't seem to believe what they were seeing, that a wealthy white American male would sell out his country's values for a golden tower.
I wrote to Senator Portman years ago to take the Russia investigation seriously and distance himself from Trump. McConnell is complicit in Trump's betrayal of America but some of the Republicans can still act to save themselves and their Party from contamination by his treachery.
26
@Christine The Republican party needs to die completely for American democracy to survive. I wish the the former Republicans would form another party, right now, to challenge the corrupt and evil mutation of the former GOP. It would probably help Democrats chances of sweeping 2020, but set up a rational and honorable party to challenge in 2022 and the future.
7
@Karen
I agree that is probably the only thing that is possible now. But some of them can try to save the Party.
BTW, I mentioned the Obama administration because if they had a mental category block from seeing Trump for what he is, then others too can admit to not seeing it . That includes Republicans and people who voted for him. There is still time to correct the mistake
1
Unfortunately, the democrats have been utterly feckless in their ability to rein in the emerging oligarchy created by Donald Trump and the republican cabal. Consider the track record of systemic abuses. The House refuses to impeach, the Senate wouldn’t convict, Justice won't indict, the FBI won't investigate, witnesses refuse to testify, the IG refuses to blow the whistle, former Sec of Defense and USMC Gen Mattis QUIT rather than call for the 25th amendment, and the Supreme Court won't compel.
Asking the republicans to voluntarily correct their trampling of our democracy is ludicrous & pathetic. In effect, Trump has neutered government, the wily con man is free to run the country as it suits his real estate business.
8
Right after Obama became President, Mitch M. promised the Republicans would do nothing to help Obama and he fulfilled that promise. Now, the Republicans have taken that momentum to a new level of incompetence. Normal human values of truth, goodwill and service are absent from their caucus. Some say the devil is in the details...I would assert that the devil has found residence in the Republican party with rare exception.
The Republican "leadership" is following the emptiness of fear, money, power and the most corrupt President in the history of the country. And...they are doing it front of the world. The Ukraine has higher expectations of their leadership than we do of ours.
43
@HUnow Yeah and "moderate" Susan Collins of Maine is right in there with them
1
Schumer warns Republicans that they might be "silent and submissive" after 2 1/2 years of being silent and submissive. More withering attacks from the Democrats.
11
Demagogues come to power as they are able to smother the truth and facts ,appealing to people's fears and prejudices. Demagogues stay in power by using their power to crush their political opponents and seek to ingratiate themselves with powerful financial interests. Fossil fuel industry is solidly behind Trump and the GOP and Trump carries their water by denying climate change on the world stage. Trump is jealous of Obama's accomplishments pulling us out of the GOP recession ,fighting climate change and worldwide popularity he does not have. Obama has had no scandels ,Trump has had dozens from video sex tapes ,paying off hookers to help his campaign ,using the presidency to enrich his family and recently using his high office to extort a foreign leader to go after his political opponent. Trump may very well shoot folks on 5th ave and AG Barr aka Roy Cohn will defend his crime boss as the "mob lawyer" he has become.
8
Remember that these are the Republicans Joe Biden thinks he can work with.
9
trump republicans have no problem selling out America for their own personal gain - this story is on constant repeat.
11
...Senator Chuck Schumer...warned that Republicans would be complicit in Mr. Trump’s actions....
Sorry, but that horse left the barn long ago.
38
How about asking the Ukrainians for their transcript, recording or read out of the conversation?
10
Repubiclan Senators do not listen to words. They only listen to money.
10
This is why the Democrats are usually the minority party: They hem and haw and delay and are afraid to take decisive action. What more do they need for impeachment? I guess Trump was right about shooting someone in the street and getting away with it. And people -- especially people in the media -- wonder why more people don't vote.
3
Trump has already declared war against the Democratic House. He's not going to back down now. He will stonewall and continue to lie about Joe Biden (if you tell a big enough lie over and over again, people will start to believe it). He's not going to permit the acting director of national intelligence, the whistle-blower, or anyone else to testify.
Trump is practicing brinkmanship. He's forcing impeachment to the forefront, but has nothing to lose by being impeached. He will stonewall the impeachment process, refuse to participate, crow about it, and will count on being acquitted by the Republican majority if a trial ever occurs. He will ask McConnell to delay and stonewall and likely McConnell will agree.
The Democratic path is equally clear. Impeach and put the fate of our country in the hands of the Republican Senate. An acquittal would be the equivalent of a coronation and we will have our first king who will cancel the 2020 election.
12
Until some Republicans decide to finally put the love of their country before the love of their party this is the only move the Democrats have. Impeachment will blowup in their faces with the likes of McConnell and Barr protecting and burying every one of Trumps misdeeds.
6
It should be clear by now to most voters that Trump is going to continue acting anyway he wants without regard to America's reputation or the American voter.
He's a minority president who thinks the U.S.A. is his fiefdom. It's time to impeach.
32
Keep the focus on Republicans in the Senate. The absence of their voices in this discussion should be shouted loudly and clearly.
13
This is almost embarrassing. Senator Schumer should be talking to Nancy Pelosi not his Republican counterparts. If she doesn't see the urgency why should they pretend to care? What makes him think the brick wall he has faced for the last ten years will crumble because of factual evidence of foreign interference in our elections? They are complicit, themselves, in efforts to undermine our democratic election process. The well is dry. The solution isn't to keep going back to it. The response should be the same as it is with voters, keep drilling for new ones.
4
It incenses me that the Democrats have to beg the Republicans to take action when the law states that the "Acting" Director of National Intelligence shall, not may, turn over complaints deemed serious and urgent by the Inspector General to the Congress. There is no choice here. Why can't the majority Democratic House call for an expedited judicial review of this violation of the law?
As we now know there are many loopholes in our system that can be exploited by a President as ignorant and oblivious to the law as Trump and who is supported by a power-hungry party that is more interested in their own jobs than in the country they were elected and took an oath to serve. The current situation can not stand.
10
'his administration’s refusal to disclose the whistle-blower complaint about them, as required by law.' Arrest & prosecute 1ST, litigate later!
4
Who wonders how such a savvy politician as Joe Biden could have been unaware that his son's lucrative activities in the Ukraine - at when Joe Biden actively was involved in setting US foreign policy - was not bound to trigger conflicts of interest ?
The charitable explanation : Joe’s too old to realize what was going on
The not so charitable : Greed ruled over - money for his
grand children
Even more interesting : Repeated attempts to get the Republican dominated Senate investigate the dealings of Hunter Biden (a drug addict, fired from the US Navy for drug use, employed in the Ukraine by a company owned by a powerful member of the Ukrainian government) failed
The charitable interpretation: The Senate likes Joe Biden.
The not so charitable: The investigation would have spread to the dealings of Mitch McConnell’s wife on behalf of her family in China
Let’s face the truth: Corruption runs rampant in US politics - bipartisan
3
@Victor....By all means investigate former Vice President Biden and his son. But the issue at hand is about a whistle blower complaint which alleges that the President of the United States used his office and American foreign policy to coerce Ukraine to damage a political opponent. The Bidens guilt or innocence does nothing to ameliorate Trumps alleged activity.
4
" potentially angering their constituents by appearing to condone a brazen attempt to enlist foreign help to sway the election in his own favor."
Please. What world does this strategist live in? Has he or she not noticed the cult that GOP voters have joined? They will never get angered by anything their supreme leader does.
14
Republicans aren’t going to do anything about Trump. They don’t think he did anything wrong.
8
The thing that could make all of the difference is if the whistleblower bypassed Trump’s lackeys and went straight to Congress. He or she would be at grave risk by doing so, and it’s pathetic that our Congress has hamstrung itself to the point of being irrelevant about the most blatant and consequential breach of law so far by Trump. We can not tolerate this any longer. It’s easy for me to say, but I hope the whistleblower comes forward anyway.
13
@RN Well the least said whistle blower might do is drop a buck on a stamp and envelope.
Democrats barely pay any attention to Schumer. Why should republicans?
The law? Please. Trump has spent a lifetime violating norms, traditions, and laws.
When he actually pays a price for any of his innumerable transgressions, let me know. In the meantime, I have more pressing matters than listening to anything that Schumer and most other useless members of congress have to say. Like watching grass grow.
2
Yes, putting pressure on the elected Republicans is the only move here.
Anyone paying attention knew what Trump was and what he would do in office: abuse his power in his unceasing devotion to his own self interest. He is incapable of acting for the good of anyone or anything other than himself.
The question is, why don't the elected Republicans have any shame? Why are they enabling this? Would it be acceptable to them if a Democratic President was withholding aid to a country because its government refused to gin up dirt on a political rival's son?
Is Mitt Romney the only one with a conscience, or the capacity to feel shame, of the sorry lot of them?
12
We are at a critical point in the direction of our democratic republic and yet the trump supporters, both public officials and private citizens who profess to be American patriots, are silent about alleged abuses of power by the occupant of the White House. What is their real, but hidden agenda?
2
What is really partisan is republican’s refusal to act and do their jobs, unless they see an opportunity for political gain. They need to join the rest of congress in demanding that this complaint be turned over. This is the law and their jobs. They are tying their own hands.
2
It is abundantly clear that Trump feels no obligation to follow the law.
I have come to the conclusion that following the law is not even a consideration for him.
3
Praise be to Chuck Schumer for FINALLY pointing out where the pressure should be applied.
If the House votes for articles of impeachment with a guaranteed acquittal by the Senate, it will do nothing but further divide our nation.
Moreover, the heavy emphasis on the divide within the Democratic party between those who favor impeachment now versus those who are more cautious does nothing more than further GOP talking points.
It is CLEAR that the GOP will do nothing to stop Trump or anything that gets in the way of their transparent agenda to preserve power at all costs.
It is well past time for the Democrats and the media to call them out for who they are. To state it differently, the GOP's nonfeasance advances their malfeasance.
3
Does anyone else find it troubling that Trump is talking about whether or not to release the Zelensky transcript(s) rather than simply releasing the whistleblower complaint to the House and Senate Intelligence Committees? Trump alludes to the need for confidentiality of conversations between world leaders. This is a red herring. And a troubling one.
The whole point of this whistleblower provision is for potential misconduct involving sensitive issues to be evaluated by committees with security clearances and experience dealing with these issues. This is absolutely necessary for oversight of this type of conduct. Releasing the Zelensky transcript(s) would subvert this critical oversight function.
Trump does not want his conduct examined in a deliberative manner by public officials that understand the consequences of his conduct. Throwing this issue into the public domain and allowing the Fox / right-wing media circus to muddy the waters will cause a significant portion of the public to pre-judge the results of Congress’s deliberative review and question any results. This is Trump's goal.
The House and, hopefully, Senate Intelligence Committees should absolutely reject these attempts by Trump. They should insist on the Complaint being released to them and that the White House cooperate with any necessary follow-up investigations by these committees.
32
@Steven S
Could they be stalling so they can doctor or destroy the evidence? HURRY, Pelosi and Schumer!!!
Perhaps the most remarkable feature of this story is not that Trump has taken his cover-up to new depths, but rather that Chuck Schumer, the ostensible leader of Democrats in the Senate, is actually doing something.
Replacing do-nothing, somnolent Schumer as Senate Democratic leader should be a priority for Senate Democrats. We need a Democratic leader who is strong, outspoken, very public, and relentless. Schumer is anything but that sort of "leader" and needs to step aside, the sooner the better.
158
@Porter
And take Nancy Pelosi with him.
The Democrats need to rise to this occasion and if that means getting rid of their so-called leadership to do it, then they, too, need to act accordingly.
The nation is at serious risk here and no one is doing anything about it.
27
@Porter With this situation: (1) probably the most extreme case of serial U.S. presidental malfeasence ever and (2) a complicit senate majority, Shumer and Pelosi need to pick their battles carefully. My faith remains with them.
35
@Porter
stop deflecting to the Democrats
This is all on the Republicans.
As you could see in the Kavanaugh and Lewandowski hearings, the Republicans ignore facts and block any serious action
If you don't give the Democrats the majority (I realize that a majority of us did vote for Democrats, but 2 Senators/state means we are outvoted by empty land) in the Senate, how do you expect them to do anything effective unless Republicans care to try to put the Constitution above their party and donors?
24
I, for one, am not going to hold much credence in the transcripts if they are released by the WH. I seem to recall a video the WH released in the past that was selectively edited to remove a less than flattering segment of the president.
6
The impeachment process calls for articles - plural - of impeachment, each of which is to be voted on independently. Those could include abuse of power: (the Ukraine 'promise'), the ordering of staff to defy subpoenas or speak of conversations with the President; violation of national security, e.g. revealing confidential intel to Russian government officials;
obstruction of justice (10 citations in Mueller Report); and violation of campaign financing law.
There are probably more separate articles that should be included, but each is a strand of spaghetti to stick to a wall, and then the Senate would vote. Only 23 out of 53 Republican Senators are up for re-election in 2020, which means that 30 of those august lawmakers will have jobs through the end of 2022. It's quite possible that four or more of them could be persuaded that they could vote for conviction, which would be enough to remove Trump from office.
Even if he is not convicted, no incumbent has been re-elected after impeachment, and no incumbent in modern history has been re-elected when challenged from within his own party.
Life is about risk and reward; those who sit back and do nothing seldom prosper.
14
@Nat Ehrlich Sorry, Nat, but "the Senate shall have the sole Power to try all Impeachments .... [but] no person shall be convicted without the Concurrence of two-thirds of the Members present."
2
@Nat Ehrlich. Four or more? Conviction requires a 2/3 majority, so 20 Republicans would have to cross. Very unlikely.
2
@Ockham9
My bad. I forgot about the 2/3ds thing.
But still, the Democrats now have to either impeach or look like they have no spines.
Those like AOC who make statements saying this is further proof that the Democratic leadership has been remiss in their duties by not having gone for impeachment earlier are being a bit disingenuous. If Democrats had moved for an impeachment vote when she and some others first wanted, recent revelations likely would have emerged after the vote in the Senate was over and Trump was cleared.
5
Instead of trying to convince the remaining 98 Democratic Representatives to vote for impeachment, Dems should focus on finding 20 Republican Senators who would vote to convict. Whether through thoughtful analysis or pure political self-preservation, the "20" probably exist.
8
I know my republican friends would like their team to win in politics but surely they would like them to do so fairly!
4
@Juliet Lima Victor hah: any idea of fairness by a Republican will have been purged some time ago. the GOP is a party of cheaters (and not ashamed one bit).
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@A J
im talking about my friends who are voters.
"Senator Mitt Romney, the Republican presidential nominee in 2012, was harsher.
“If the president asked or pressured Ukraine’s president to investigate his political rival, either directly or through his personal attorney, it would be troubling in the extreme,” "
Troubling because it flies in the face of the Constitution.
Except modern Republicans have made it clear that they don't care much about the Constitution anymore.
That's America's new reality now.
5
NOW it gets interesting.
In my opinion, the GOP Senate already has been complicit in their silence, all during the most damaging parts of Trump's presidency, such as when he undermined national security.
This train long ago left the station, the GOP Senate are equally as guilty as the president. If they can find evidece that Russian money is behind this (by way of the NRA) then we have some serious cleanup work to do.
3
Senator Schumer says that if Senate Republicans don't demand release of the transcript of the call between Trump and President Zelensky it would show Republicans to be “silent and submissive, shying away from this institution’s constitutional obligation to conduct oversight.” The Republican "silence and submissiveness to Trump" ship sailed long ago. If Senate Republicans don't demand the transcript, they are guilty of colluding with Trump to destroy Constitutional democracy in this country, for which they deserve to be impeached.
3
If you're a supporter of President Trump, imagine the beginning of the article read as follows:
WASHINGTON — The top Senate Republican on Monday called on Senate Democrats to join Republicans in demanding that the administration furnish details about explosive allegations that President Hillary Clinton pressured a foreign leader to help produce damaging information on a leading political rival.
Of course, Senate Republicans will do nothing; it'll be business as usual. And if you're a Trump supporter, spare us any what-about-ism of the Clinton's alleged misdeeds (emails, Clinton Foundation, etc.). That sidesteps the issue at hand right now. Hillary Clinton is not President; Donald Trump is. I don't care whether the President is Democratic or Republican, if what is alleged actually transpired, the transcript of the phone call needs to be released in unredacted form immediately. If Mr. Trump has nothing to hide, as he claims, then there's no problem.
This is a matter of patriotism not party.
18
Schumer is for once leading, but it's Nancy Pelosi who should be taking charge rather than issuing a paper threat. Enough is now known, including corroboration from Donald Trump himself, to have the House vote to authorize an impeachment proceeding. Democrats, myself included, voted to retake the House in 2018 to put an end to what Ms. Pelosi has called Trump's "lawlessness." That moment has arrived and she can no longer dither in defending her new majority members from Trump-leaning districts which probably wanted her also to restrain Trump, and must finally defend the Constitution and simultaneously end Trump's illegal obstruction of justice. The fate of our democracy--it's "rule of law" v. the lawlessness of the "rule of Trump"--is in her hands.
2
The three Republicans attempting to primary Trump were on Morning Joe today. To quote former Governor Bill Weld "‘treason, pure and simple" and he mentioned the death penalty as a possibility for Trump.
Elise Jordan. a former Republican strategist seemed to really enjoy his comment. But I suspect that Democrats are just too polite for hard scrapple politics.
While they all seem so worried about Republicans repeating Beto O'Rourke's "Coming for your guns'" I would love to hear every Democrat quote some of the sound bites coming from the Republicans who are being blocked for challenging Trump in a primary.
1
They are all complicit in this man's illegal behavior since none of these leaders will act on impeachment.
If it had just been that one phone call with Trump being Trump, putting pressure on Ukraine to help him undermine the 2020 election, the whistle blower may not have risked his or her career and potential legal entanglement. There's clearly more there there. But we'll never know unless someone has the moral and political courage to stand up to him.
How in the world can we continue to call ourselves the greatest country on earth when our leaders will not lead, and we allow this corruption to go unchecked? It's time for the House to do its Constitutional duty and initiate impeachment proceedings.
14
Pelosi is smart, and no doubt she's right to be worried that the impeachment doesn't poll well.
But if the White House - and now the Justice Department and the DNI and even private citizens like the obnoxious Lewandowski - feel free to basically flout the law hoping the (now 5-4) Supreme Court will bail them out... what else is left other than impeachment?
This country can't take another year of this.
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@Gabriel Friedman
" what else is left other than impeachment?"
Impeachment is not the same as removal from office
The Republicans will carry on in impeachment hearings the same way you saw them carry on in the Mueller and Lewandowski hearings
The party-over-country Republican Senate will protect Trump
This is in the voters' hands: vote against every Republican and of course against Trump/Pence
3
Democrats should openly make the Republican Party responsible for enabling treason, if they keep stonewalling. I don't know how it would work in the US, but in Germany, a political party that shows hostility to democracy and the constitution can be outlawed and forbidden (didn't quite work yet, but was tried a few times). That would certainly produce some outrage, wouldn't it?
5
The GOP heavy Senate will never impeach their god but perhaps they might agree to look at his bible, study his actions, and listen to his words. They will then use ever possible bit of false reasoning to justify his actions in the belief that his misdeeds are the example they should be following themselves. And if by some twist of fate they lose control in 2020, they will collectively lament their loss and urge united action to regain their power. The devil is in the details.
2
The Senate Republicans will not do anything because they answer to Mitch McConnell and pals. Maybe Susan Collins, if she weren't running for re-election but I doubt it. The Senate Republicans will deny this and call it fake news because.
Mitch McConnell would never support such an inquiry against this president. This president has helped him usher in numerous conservative court appointees and swing the supreme court to the right. They are beholden to Trump, no matter how many laws are broken.
The Republicans spent years investigating Hillary and her emails but they won't batt an eyelash for this corrupt administration.
3
The House Judiciary Committee must lay out all the evidence (subpoena, file suit, hold people in contempt, etc. to obtain it or show more obstruction) and impeach. if the Republicans in the Senate do not remove this cancer, then they should lose their re-election bids.
3
The obvious and obligatory solution:
Open formal impeachment inquiry, including subpoena for the whistleblower complaint.
If it is provided, investigate it and determine if it merits impeachment.
If it is not provided, then impeach for obstruction of Congress.
If Nancy is so savvy, why hesitate?
53
@Jeff
The House can impeach Trump on hundreds of counts of treason, law-breaking, obstruction, enriching himself at taxpayer expense, even shooting someone on Fifth Avenue, but the Republican Senate will keep him in office.
The only way to rid ourselves of this treasonous grifter law breaker would be Dictator is to vote against him and every other Republican in 2020
@Lynn
No question, I will vote against even a Republican candidate for dog catcher for the foreseeable future.
But if the Democrats won't stand up for what is right, and do it in such a way as to make the Republicans OWN their support for this criminal president, then no one should vote for a Democratic dog catcher either.
They have to be smart enough to make the Republicans PAY for their expected endorsement of this traitor.
Stop. Words won't affect the Republicans.
Censure Trumps action's today. Make the Republicans go on record on whether they approve.
39
Though not a member of any party, until John McCain chose Sarah Palin as his running mate in 2008 I always voted solid Republican. Now I cannot see their party surviving. I have been waiting and waiting and waiting to see more Republicans stand up against Trump, the most despicable president our country has ever had, and yet the vast majority of them continue to support him.
If the Democrats do finally impeach him, it is unlikely that enough Republicans in the Senate will vote to remove him from office, but I suspect the political careers of all those who do not support removal will be over.
Trump has gone beyond the pale.
472
@Richard Phelps - I left the party after G.W. and I'm ashamed that it took me that long.
95
@Richard Phelps
You wait and wait for the Republicans to redeem themselves because at its very core, for a long time, the Republican party has been fueled by oil. Specifically, oil-money.
The rest is just window dressing.
When the main motivator is oil, and the rest is window dressing, the illogic will increase until we get someone like DJT. GWB was only a horrid prelude to the circus we have now.
45
@Richard Phelps I left the party after Reagan first term. I saw the writing on the wall then. I knew we would end up here.
30
Democrats in red states: now is the time for you to call and email your Republican senators to pressure them to release the whistle blower complaint, the transcripts of any phone calls, and any related materials in their entirety.
Do not be deceived by Lindsay Graham's apparent request for information. Republicans, if they can, will turn this into a cover up like they performed in the Kavanaugh hearings, releasing information that supports the President, suppressing information that damns him.
These releases must happen immediately, before the Republicans figure out a cover up strategy.
Call your senators, now.
131
@David Baldwin’s I call my Republican Senator and/or write him almost every day. Colorado is purple changing progressively more blue.
1
I can't see what makes this outrage different from any of the others. Calling it a new low in Trump's bottomless pit of corruption -- and in the GOP's tolerance of that corruption -- reveals only that there are yet lower depths to fathom.
103
The GOP never stops to amaze me. They spent years investigating Clinton for her e mail and Bengasie but for this they have no time. They must think the American people are blind.
436
And they’re right. His approval ratings are much higher than any self-respecting electorate would allow.
50
We are not, they should be tougher!
2
Unfortunately, Thomas, it is increasingly apparent that the American people are, in fact, blind.
27
In other words, Republicans would carry on as they have been for years? Works for them when they have as docile and ignorant an electorate as ours.
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