"given Mr. Trump’s open disdain for Ukrainians; “they’re all corrupt and they tried to take me down,” he said in a private meeting last spring."
As in Michael Cohen whose father was an Ukrainian Jew involved with Ukrainian mafia in NYC as was Michael.
"I know and will hire the Best People" (to benefit me not the nation. )
America , you are better than the Trump-Kushner crime family and their abettors …………..aren`t you ??
"Mr. Volker’s departure, which was first reported by The State Press, the student newspaper at Arizona State University, leaves the Trump administration with few senior officials versed in Ukraine’s struggles with Russia."
First, kudos to the ASU student newspaper and its writers for breaking a big story. Long may they prosper!
Second, "leaves the Trump admin with few senior officials versed in...." Here you can put in ANY category of expertise for government work - e.g., EPA officials ignorant of and/or hostile to environmental protection concerns, etc, etc.
Expertise doesn't matter to the Thump admin, since he himself is such a great (and stable) "genius" in all things.
1
Why hasn’t the NYTimes recommended that Trump resign? Small city newspapers have!!
It would be a blessing and save us all from any more of the anguish this president has caused the country. It would be the first and only time I would respect him.
8
Exactly why hasnt the NYTimes asked Trump to resign? Why is their coverage of the Impeachment been so tepid? We readers would like to know.
7
There is nothing in the article that states Mr. Volker did anything wrong. After reading many comments, I want to post a different point of view.
He may have helped Giuliani with contacts with Ukrainian officials to be helpful. He may not have realized what Trump and Giuliani were up to.
There is the possibility he resigned because he came to realize that he had been used. Trump does use people.
9
Guiliani has carried out activities in Ukraine for Trump that have resulted in the impeachment investigation. When a lawyer does this stuff isn't it grounds for disbarment?
8
I wonder how many officials have/will rationalise their conduct by claiming that they did what they did to prevent something worse happening.
What is the American equivalent to "I was a good German" post WW2?
7
The rats are bailing out; the smarter ones first.
I expect that we'll see many more in the coming weeks.
5
Sad to see career diplomats having to deal with the corrupt stench emanating from Giuliani and Trump. You would think that two guys in their mid-seventies with so much influence would understand what's important in life, do as much good for those in need on your way out, but none of that from these two full blown greedy thugs..
7
Volker is smart. He knows Trump will fire him any time via twitter and start blaming him for the mess and he will end up like Manafort eventually. I won’t be surprised if he asks for immunity in exchange for all the information he knows.
15
One almost feels for the soldiers in Trump's toy army tasked to working the dark side to confirm either by hook or by crook, their leader's paranoid delusions his opponents must be just as corrupt as he is - if fact, since their crimes hardly leave a trace, even more so. Imagine, for example, being among those Trump sent to Hawaii to find proof Obama was really born in Kenya, clearly a job of work unsuited to anyone who isn't either a total idiot or a complete charlatan.
19
Can you imagine having all of Trump's phone calls? And his meeting transcript with Putin in Helsinki? And his calls to Putin since then? Can you imagine what Jim Mattis could tell you? What McMaster knows?
12
This story was broken by Andrew Howard, a reporter for The State Press of Arizona State University. Just putting this out there since you have cited the newspaper, but not the reporter, near the very end of this article.
15
Democrats have nothing; heresay
TRUMP 2020
1
And, Republicans have Trump.
5
Does the name Linda Tripp ring a bell? Hearsay got Clinton impeached. This isn't hearsay though. Trump even admitted it.
6
Russian banks hold Trump`s real estate loans transferred from German banks. We wonder haw these loans are being serviced or if there is a "Quid pro quo".
12
Timing is everything. Now is the perfect time for business leaders and the GOP to dump Trump before the 2020 debacle.
Very few of Trump's long term supporters in the business community are willing to make a positive statement now because they have to look after their long term interests and the that of the
country. Trump is now a clear dead weight liability that desperately needs to be cut loose now.
11
What I want to know is: why is Trump’s personal attorney doing any American foreign affairs business at all? Isn’t that an obvious conflict of interest? Client attorney privilege, etc? Why is Galliano involved in any foreign policy discussions? That in itself begs a question. And who is paying him?
18
Not to dismiss this, but I would love to see news outlets develop the main story and stop going down rabbit holes. While interesting, all this breaking news is too much for average readers to keep up with and it adds to the frustration of so many voters who simply tune it out. No wonder Congressfolk can't stay focused. We need to get off this train.
3
@Tasha, There are many of us who want to follow every development carefully. That is why I am so grateful for a free and comprehensive press which will give me a full picture and context for all that is going on. I would feel frustrated and unable to have a well informed opinion otherwise. And unable to properly ask my elected and appointed officials to make certain decisions that I feel are best for the nation. If you don't have the time or inclination, please don't think that therefore it is unimportant to get a full, ongoing report. it's "very " important!
24
Who’s at fault here? The people in charge: the president and the secretary of state, not underlings. It is this administration’s choice to ignore protocol and blur roles. What is Pompeo’s involvement? It doesn’t make sense that Mr. Volker acted without direction. What gives Giuliani the authority to negotiate American foreign affairs? Are we supposed to be grateful to Giuliani for meeting with President Zelensky to resolve trash-talking originating from Trump and his entourage? This debacle has our president’s fingerprints all over it.
14
The Trump crime family extends their corruption world-wide. Witness the USAF stays that are occurring at his golf course in Scotland at taxpayer expense. Ukraine is just the tip of Trump's iceberg. All those notes of his shakedown conversation in the "Top Secret Crypto" file would more than likely show a lot more of his grifting with other Russian and Saudi marks. He is a criminal enterprise, protected by the State Department and Justice heads, Pompeo and Barr.
16
With everything going on in Ukraine (a new president, war with Russia, $400 million in U.S. aid, Kiev without an ambassador...) you would think Mike Pompeo would know what his state department is doing there.
8
Volker joins the small army of men who have thought they could steer Trump away from the shallows. To his chagrin, he has learned what any outsider could have told him: Mission impossible. Everyone who gets in to Trump's orbit by any means is sullied by it. Trump is the personification of Tar Baby. Touch it and find yourself ensnared in filth.
"Lie down with dogs; get up with fleas." Alternatively, "a man is known by the company he keeps."
Trump is the Black Hole.
15
President Trump listens to the new Ukrainian president's urgent request for help in defending his nation against further Russian attack. (Putin/Russia already bit off and swallowed a large chunk.) Trump responds, "Do us a favor though." Get him dirt first on Biden. Large rat caught.
7
It's good that Volker is gone. Barr should resign next. Then Pence. Then Trump.
10
@Amelia:
Totally with you here, except that you've got the order of resignations backwards . . .
3
All the President's Men... begin to fall.
8
Will the NYT be reporting on the timing of Dan Coats' departure (requested to leave by Trump three days after the phone call) in light of these revelations? Can/will Dan Coats be subpoenaed?
8
"Everything Trump touches dies."
10
It's happening! It's happening!
9
Here we have the next incarnation of the Mueller probe.Where as the Mueller probe was off by multitudes of strata from where it began ,the Pelosi probe has turned to press and probe it's creators and a long absent vice President who ,was mostly absent during his tenure except for attempts to legislate in the Ukraine ,off the books. Bidens Ukraine scandal is so incindery something not even the NY Times will begin to touch upon ,but they fill the context with unsubstantiated conjecture of inane plots of the White house which have nothing in common with fact.
2
So Zelensky is the one begging to gets Trump’s ear yet according to the whistleblower Trump is the one pressuring Zelensky to do him the favor? My interest in this story will resume once everyone gets their stories straight.
1
@John Doe
You aren’t following. Zelensky wants Trump’s attention because Ukraine is being attacked by Russia and they need US assistance and he is aware that Trump doesn’t like the Ukraine (strains Trump’s relationship with his boyfriend Putin). Got that much? Then Trump says, oh we’ll help you if you do us a favor...(of course, he doesn’t actually mean “us,” he means “me”) ...quid pro quo, abuse of power, misuse of taxpayer funds, etc., the whole shebang. You don’t see a problem with that? Maybe you should tune back in when it’s all over—it’s going to get even more confusing.
14
Will Volker be our John Dean?
8
I'd like to think that Mr. Volker is a loyal American, but when you roll in the mud with a pig you're going to come up yellow. I wish him well and success in reclaiming his reputation.
6
I keep wondering why people agree to work for Trump. They will pay for that decision with their reputations. Trump is a parasite who feeds off of people’s reputations and good (or bad) intentions, leaving them depleted while he simply moves on to his next host. He is a tornado and everyone else turns into debris in his wake.
9
I’d say how far the mighty Giuliani has fallen, but I’m one of those New Yorkers who never liked our former mayor much, a bully like Trump, egomaniacal like Trump, stubborn like Trump. But I never considered him to be the kind of politician who put personal gain above his country, who would sell out the United States for money and power, but there you have it, Giuliani is an traitor to America.
10
Trump has been totally successful in convincing those americans who cannot handle fact based objective analysis -that any attack on him is "fake news"
Abetted by Fox News he has undermined the credibility of those professional journalists who work assiduously to keep democracy from "dying in the dark "( where the fascist propaganda and manipulation of the rabble sheep can thrive)
His greatest contribution to the grotesque carnival of greed and incompetence and the souless swamp thati is his ugly domain.
This is trump's most foul contribution to the regr
5
Looking at a photo of Rudy...if you look closely and squint a little bit, you’ll swear you’re at the counter at Gringott’s Wizarding Bank
2
The Deep State Whistle Blower form ─was changed to include, or legitimize hearsay and scuttlebutt. Still, the complaint at best is mostly nothing. The “whistle blower" document is a testament to nihility. And the document is characterized by the following exculpations.
“I’m deeply concerned”
“I was told”
“I heard”
“I don’t know…”
“Based on my understanding…”
“I learned…”
All this nothing but a monument to fakery, spin and political propaganda; stuff that the media and Democratic Party politics unfortunately is made up with these days. It’s really an American tragedy to witness what had happened to JFK’ Democratic Party who once asked Americans to “Do not ask what your country can do for you but what you can do for your country...” Most American recognize the Democratic Party’s tragic decline. All of this make me proud to concur with what President Trump has said about all this, “it’s all garbage.”
Yes indeed "betrayal of our national security" and in particular our men and women in uniform.
Trump harmed our national security and put our troops in Europe in great danger by withholding the military aid to Ukraine.
Ukraine troops are fighting for democracy and the freedom of Europe from Putin and Trump alliance.
https://www.voanews.com/europe/ukraine-preparing-more-troop-withdrawals#&gid=1&pid=6
Relatives hold portraits of Ukrainian soldiers killed by Russian artillery near the village of Ilovaysk in eastern Ukraine, during a protests in front of the Russian Embassy in Kyiv, Ukraine, Aug.28, 2019.
https://www.voanews.com/europe/ukraine-preparing-more-troop-withdrawals
7
Volker's resignation shows his support of our national security and allegiance to NATO. Yes indeed "betrayal of our national security" and in particular our men and women in uniform. Trump harmed our national security and put our troops in Europe in great danger by withholding the military aid to Ukraine. Ukraine troops are fighting for democracy and the freedom of Europe from Putin and Trump alliance. https://www.voanews.com/europe/ukraine-preparing-more-troop-withdrawals#&gid=1&pid=6 Relatives hold portraits of Ukrainian soldiers killed by Russian artillery near the village of Ilovaysk in eastern Ukraine, during a protests in front of the Russian Embassy in Kyiv, Ukraine, Aug.28, 2019. https://www.voanews.com/europe/ukraine-preparing-more-troop-withdrawals
5
We're going to be seeing a host of new lawyers on the tube proclaiming their client's innoncence. Might I suggest they adopt the practice of sport teams and stencil their names on their backs so we know who's who. Might also consider stenciling their client's name on the front. Let the game begin.
2
President Trump,
Birnam wood is moving to Dunsinane, beware the (wo)man not born of woman.
2
With Volker’s resignation, Trump can name Giuliani special envoy to Ukraine to cover up the crime.
4
Rats know when to jump from a sinking ship. This impeachment proceeding is demanded by our forefathers’ ideals. Go get ‘em Dems!!!
4
Since Volker is no longer a public servant, does it mean he can make a dramatic entrance, look the circus clowns in the eye, and plead the fifth?
You know, like how Lois Lerner and all those Obama IRS lawyers mocked the congress.
Dear President Zelensky,
Kindly release your country’s recording of your conversation with President Trump.
Respectfully submitted...
4
The "Super secret Server" designation given by his sycophants to his criminal conversations = Rosemary Woods' missing 18 minutes for the modern world.
4
Wow America. The world is watching. Utterly shameful behavior. Have you lost your mind?
6
Rats off a sinking ship.
5
Anybody who agrees to work in an administration run by a 6 times bankrupted, compulsive liar, sexual predator, self proclaimed White Nationalist is either stupid, fatally flawed, or corrupt. Trump displays his personal qualities openly and without shame. Anyone of good conscience, even career diplomats and military members of the Joint Chiefs, should have resigned long ago. No sympathy for unwitting coconspirators. And the same goes for Republican legislators who have supported Trump from day 1.
8
2nd verse of the trump ballad
Same as the first
3
Hats off to the Arizona State University Press, who first broke this story. Come graduation, give that journalist a job!
54
@Jill Miller
What was that saying about “ rats deserting a sinking ship”?
2
I've taken an interest in Ukraine since both parents were born there. I've read many books on it's history and travelled there to meet family members.
I hesitate to say this in such a flippant manner, but if Trump in fact was secretly allied with Putin, he would treat Ukraine exactly as he is.
There are few things Putin would like more than keeping Ukraine a weak and divided country. I strongly believe Putin has a strong influence on Trump.
33
I'm getting skeptical of this whole whistleblower thing. That complaint doesn't look like it came from an individual presenting facts that they were worried about. It looks like something a law firm would write, arguing a case.
It's hard to tell why Kurt Volker would resign right now. It will be interesting as things like this develop to see if this is indeed a setup job.
3
It seems to me that you should stop watching/hearing the Trumpist media in order to see the light ...
5
I've noticed that many career civil servants who join this administration are first praised as "well-respected," "consummate professionals," and "straight shooters" etc. by their peers, politicians and media commentators. But what matters to me is what they do while in their positions of power and influence. A good reputation must be earned and protected every day. I am not giving any member of the Trump administration a free pass because "back in the day" they were honest and ethical.
11
Help for Ukraine was taken out of the Republican platform at their 2016 convention. I think Trump and Putin have been working together on their Ukraine strategy for a long time. If we could read the transcripts of their calls and read the notes of their in person meetings, we would know exactly what the two of them have planned for Ukraine. And how soon Trump plans on getting rid of the sanctions on Russia.
16
The way people in Washington DC abruptly resign, it’s like no one there has mortgages or bills or encumbered with any of the other unpleasantries of life that saddle most of us to jobs we force ourselves to go to everyday regardless of any great overarching principles. No wonder there feels like such a big disconnect sometimes as to what matters to them there as opposed to the rest of us everywhere else in the country.
8
I once woked under an authoritarian administration and recall the responses by otherwise contientious staff. Some forced their heads in sand. Others finally rallied in organized resistance with one paying the price of being public. Sadly, one allied himself with the abusers. The entire episode exacted a high price for the institution and everyone involved. A number of us eventually left the field over our disillusionment. Besides the enourmous cost of endless litigation, I am convinced the country will continue to pay for Trumpism long after he is made to leave.
13
I won’t be at all surprised if Russia sees this as a perfect opportunity to launch an all-out war with Ukraine. The Trump administration in disarray and the State Department gutted of nearly all Ukraine experts. Almost seems like Ukraine is being served up on a platter to Mr. Putin.
14
Mr. Volker may be another victim in the Trump mess but the biggest victim is of course America's interests in that part of the world. It obviously got messed up with the seeking for self political gains of Mr. Trump. He sold America again for his political interest at home.
There are, of course. lots of enablers, aware and unaware, that are not really serving America's interest as much as political interests. I am sure they believe they are just acting within their "role" to "serve". But they end up serving a compromised purpose for this country,
14
Mr. Volker did not resign because he has something to hide. He resigned because his role, a part-time special envoy in a limited capacity to the Ukraine, is effectively over. He was not a Trump administration official; he was a former ambassador, career foreign service, who served under many different presidents.
Many commenting here wonder how he got the position. The state department is filled with such positions — one that comes immediately to mind is the special envoy for religious freedom, former senator Sam Brownback.
Typically, when a new administration comes into office, it may choose to focus on special projects (Ukraine, religious freedom, etc.) and the men and women who serve a special envoys are drawn usually, but not solely, from the ranks of retired career foreign service personnel.
I do not personally know Mr. Volker, but as a former ambassador to NATO, I assume that he is well-versed in the nuances of European centric diplomacy. The fact that his position was part time, and unpaid, is not at all unusual.
Readers here may want to go to the department of state website and look up the roster of such special envoys. They are all listed, along with photos and biographies.
12
I implore the Democratic party, please do not deprive the voters of the opportunity to decide the fate of Mr. Trump. Please let me cast my vote. I can think of no greater rebuke to the person and presidency of Mr. Trump than an overwhelming defeat at the hands of the American people. History will then record that we, the people rejected all that this presidency symbolizes and demonstrated to the world, that as a nation, can be counted on to exemplify the decency and human values on which this country was supposedly founded.
If, instead, his fate is determined by a political body, he may be enshrined as a martyr to a polarized, partisan, divisive system.
If we, the people, cannot be trusted to decide the future of this country, then may God help us.
7
Everything, person, or institution that Trump comes in contact with, is increasingly corrupted over time. Volker was no exception. The revolving door and constant turnover that highlights his troubled administration, as well as, Trump's inability to fill countless, vital government positions testifies to the toxicity of the man as an executive. Given Donald Trumps history of business failures, bankruptcies, broken deals, false promises and corruption charges, the sooner he's removed from office the better it will be for our nation.
9
I think Lincoln’s statue in Washington is shedding tears again. He had a team of rivals so he could get a variety of opinions.
6
Mr. Vollker "concluded that it was impossible to be effective in his assignment given the developments of recent days.” That’s a canned line but using it reflects the ability to see the big picture with a rational perspective. Some in this administration are capable of that; others are not. If and when Mr. Trump, for example, finds himself at the same juncture as Richard Nixon did when he said,
“[The interest of the Nation must always come before any personal considerations….Therefore, I shall resign the Presidency effective at noon tomorrow.”
…do you for a moment think he will similarly act with that national interest in mind?
Mr. Volker strikes me as yet another fundamentally decent person who, solely by virtue of his association with Mr. Trump, found himself drowning in a swamp.
10
All this makes one appreciate even more the recently deceased patriot, Joe Wilson. And what of the younger generation, who never heard of Joe Wilson and his courageous, patriotic sacrifices? I doubt that any school textbook even mentions him in passing.
Fortunately, Wilson's partner in courage, patriotism, and victimization, his former wife Valerie Plame, is currently running for Congress in New Mexico. She is the unusually extremely qualified person who can go to Washington and not be cowed, manipulated, or bought off. She has taken the worst the political establishment could throw at her and tossed it back in their face. That is precisely what Washington, especially Congress, needs more of: people who will stand up for principles, when the going gets tough. It is extremely important to have someone in Congress who has demonstrated she can and will walk the walk, not just talk the talk.
A fitting tribute to Joe Wilson and true American patriotism would be to support Plame, not because she was his wife, but because like Joe, she is the rare individual who has demonstrated she can take the worst Washington politics will throw at you and come back swinging.
For those of you too young to remember Wilson, I would strongly suggest you read yesterday's Times article on Joe.
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/09/27/us/joseph-wilson-dead.html#commentsContainer
12
If trump didn’t do anything wrong no heads would be rolling and he would welcome the inquiry to clear his name.
10
Members of BOTH parties, along with their respective media cheerleaders, are horribly corrupt. There’s absolutely no difference between the two warring factions in that regard. They seek power and influence...and they seek to enrich themselves.
The End.
It is well reported that most Republican Senators and likely House members too detest Trump. I have a secret hope (should I say fantasy) that they will band together about this impeachment and all vote guilty.
7
Mr. Kurt Volker quit the Trump team. This signifies that he has some dignity and ethics.
6
@Tahuaya Armijo
In this upside down world, experience, expertise and knowledge is not important. What is important to the so called republican “base” are the emotional authoritarian cues, and the their simplistic non-sensical beliefs. Fox and friends is a belief system. The only way to put this devil back in the bottle is to have the majority take back the message. The Democrats need to get all adults to testify. The impeachment process should be as long as it needs to be.
9
Sounds like he didn't have Trump's ear like Giuliani, so he was out of the loop. But these conservative Republicans, not matter how they try can't drain the increasing swamp, no matter their good intentions. He made no deal with the devil like others in the administration after their own self-interests.
2
I have long believed that Trump deserved to be impeached and convicted because of his many violations of the emoluments clause for his own benefit as well as for the benefit of his family members. Hopefully, this Ukraine episode will finally bring him down.
However, I suspect that this Ukraine episode will end up also exposing the corruption of Biden and his family members. It will please me if that occurs because I believe that corruption is a core behavior of all politicians regardless of their party, political philosophy, gender, age, or religion.
I am not a partisan of any party. In fact, I think anyone is foolish to be a partisan unless they are a politician or have influence that can get them a personal payoff. Everyone else is just being used by the politicians for their own benefit.
1
Volker is a private citizen now. He can plead the fifth.
If he doesn't know how, call Lois Lerner.
1
The Ambassador appears to be a solitary man of integrity caught up in the turmoil of this administration. If his testimony before Congress reveals what he REALLY knows about this malicious and dishonorable "president" he may well come out of it a national hero.
7
It would seem that Giuliani is now more concerned with protecting himself than protecting the President.
4
I think Mr Trump got caught because he is not a politician.
Volker is the smart one. Probably cutting a tell all deal already. We hope that several people contributed to and wrote the Whistleblower’s account. That would mean a dozen witnesses.
5
Mr. Volker said that “he concluded that it was impossible to be effective in his assignment given the developments of recent days.”
Read:
I am too rational to continue ‘the assignment’ of supporting Mr. Trump’s unlawful demands to get the Ukrainian president to conspire against Mr. Trump’s political opponent and can no longer cover up for Mr. Trump’ irresponsible and treasonous behavior. If in response Mr. Trump choose to call me a rat, I will remind him that rats are first to leave sinking ships, and that rats leave in troves.
6
Decent, honest career professionals are having their careers and reputations destroyed right and left as Hurricane Trump comes into contact with them. State Department morale must be at an all time low.
6
"But he kept working to bring the two presidents together. Finally, the White House agreed to schedule a meeting between Mr. Trump and Mr. Zelensky during the American president’s visit to Warsaw, only to scratch the meeting when Mr. Trump decided to stay home to monitor a hurricane."
Meeting scratched, Sharpie at the ready.
4
I hope Muller is enjoying his retirement.
4
Just a minor technical point: Trump withheld badly-needed military aid from a country that’s fighting to keep Putin out, he did so in order to force them to come up with dirt on a political rival here at home, and together with his staff he lied, misled, and buried information to keep the whole mess away from Congress and from voters.
You’re welcome to run, duck, hide and spray squid ink about the room. But you have zero evidence of anything else, just a lot of demented screaming about Joe Biden and the Deep State.
So, Trump’s probably gonna get impeached. It’ll probably get to the Senate for trial. And the way things are going this week, the way more and more is flying out the White House doors and windows, the way conservative commentators and newspeople on FOX and in Congress are starting to call halt, the way that even a few GOP members of the Senate are starting to say that they are, “very troubled,” in that special way—well, don’t be so darn sure this is going nowhere.
Maybe it won’t. Maybe the Democrats will blow it. But in the meantime, boy howdy is the Right running in circles screaming and shouting like they think it’s all going down the big fat drain.
3
The Whitehouse and Fox spin isn’t working. Too much evidence against the culprits. Pompeo has tried to throw Giuliani under the bus. Giuliani is trying to throw Pompeo under the bus. Trump is throwing everyone under the bus. It’s a mess like most crimes.
7
The more guilty he looks, the more we want to vote for him actually
- Republicans, if you believe the pundits on CNN and the Op-Eds
1
Volcker’s hope was to deactivate an atomic bomb without protection and not end up exposed to Trump’s radioactive entourage. Good luck with that.
3
Dan Coates, his deputy, and Bolton should testify. Don’t forget that John Huntsman ambassador to Russia also stepped down. All resignations at the same time. Fishy?
6
This impeachment is 100% On Target. Trumpet this Administration have been out of hand for far too long. It's time to take Rudy to the cleaners. He has no right to involve himself with a foreign country in our elections.
6
If Trump wasn't going to fire Giuliani before, he probably has no choice now: he pretty much ratted out other members of Trump's team just to save his own skin, and has put his own boss in jeopardy.
2
Any chance all involved were played by Russia?
8
@Eela Thakrar
Exactly. Especially the Democrats. This is the type of outcome the Russians were banking on starting in 2016. the chasm grows even wider.
2
Giuliani said “He should step forward and explain what he did. The whistle-blower falsely alleges that I was operating on my own. Well, I wasn’t operating on my own!" He's right, he isn't operating on his own. He's operating as part of a criminal mob ring currently in power in Washington. He's a thug and a criminal and always has been. Hopefully he will be charged and imprisoned once this mess is fully examined.
9
he's going to make Trump mad - that's why he's stepping down in my opinion
Don't be distracted. It all goes back to Putin, who employs tendrils of corruption to manipulate world leaders and those who surround them.
In Trump he found a willing rube, one who values money above all else, and who is a slave to his own narcissism. Impeaching Trump is a first step, exposing Putin as a threat to the entire world, and supporting those who oppose him should be the ultimate goal.
10
It's all so ominous sounding when the NYT writes about the plot by Trump to seek out dirt, maybe illegally, on Democrats. Is that illegal? I've heard Democrats do that to Republicans?
The trouble is, the evidence reads like a convoluted wanna-be spy thriller that doesn't really make sense when one tries to make it into a rationale for a crime or for impeachment.
It was a good try, though! When do we get to see whether Biden or his son were guilty of corruption?
2
There was nothing there. it's been reported several times by many news outlets.
1
As the rats begin to leave the ship, we'll see who cares enough about our country to be honest and forthright in testimony to Congress. Most rats are not honest and forthright so, I'm not expecting much. In the immortal words of Donald J. Trump, "We'll see"!!!
2
"Insufficiently loyal" not to the Country, but to trump as an individual....
3
Still don't understand all the love criminal Giuliani got after 9-11. He was a major factor the the command center was put in the Twin Towers which as we all know didn't work out to good.
From a 1997 interview..
"Giuliani laughed during Wallace's questions and said that Hauer recommended the World Trade Center site and claimed that Hauer said that the WTC site was the best location. Wallace presented Giuliani a photocopy of Hauer's directive letter. The letter urged Giuliani to locate the command center in Brooklyn, instead of lower Manhattan, because "not as visible a target as buildings in lower Manhattan."
8
‘My word as a Biden...” that I will leverage U.S. taxpayers’ money and abuse my position as Vice-President of the United States of America to enrich my son.
3
@ your evidence?
3
Kurt D. Volker, another CIA asset, exemplifies what it means to be a permanent dweller of the Washington military/industrial/surveillance/propaganda swamp.
Or as the punditry calls them: "well-regarded career diplomat".
Mr. Volker also runs the McCain Institute. Who hated President Trump more than McCain? Wasn't it someone from the McCain Institute that gave the fake Steele dossier to a website called Buzzfeed?
A John McCain buddy shading Trump at this point in time.
Shocking !
Maybe he's the "whistleblower".
But the deep state Intel Community's "Six-ways-to-Sunday" of getting you just struck again. It seems they secretly altered the rules on whistleblowers sometime between May 2018 and August 2019 to include hearsay accounts rather than exclusively first-hand accounts.
Furthermore, The whistleblower statute used here (50 USC sec. 3033) is limited to whistleblowing on activities and/or individuals supervised by the DNI. Neither Trump nor his phone calls are the proper subject of such a complaint.
As the complaint is improper on its face, it seems it’s true purpose was for the US NatSec and its allies in Congress to publicize potentially embarrassing information concerning Trump.
Volker is just one more corrupt government bureaucrat out for himself.
Good riddance.
2
A key piece of information missing from this article is that, aside from his diplomatic activites, Kurt Volker works for BRG Group, a Washington lobbying firm founded by Haley Barbour which counts among its clients ....... the government of Ukraine. Another noteworthy client of BRG is Raytheon, the company that makes the Javelin anti-tank missiles Ukraine was seeking to buy from the U.S. at the time of the Trump call. According to a very detailed and interesting article on nbcnews.com (well worth reading for extensive background information on Volker - link below), it's not clear at this time whether there is a conflict of interest, but until this is fully investigated, suspicion is certainly warranted. Either way, it shows that one cannot necessarily rely on The Times to give you the full picture, even when it appears they are doing so.
https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/trump-impeachment-inquiry/kurt-volker-trump-s-part-time-ukraine-envoy-played-role-n1058871
4
Who needs ambassadors, when we can have Rudy Giuliani flitting about the world, putting out fires and starting others?
7
In the midst of all of this, let us not lose sight of our goal. If your neighborhood is safely Democratic, volunteer in a congressional district that is “in play.” Give time and if possible money to Democratic candidates at every level of government. Help get out the vote. Work to defeat fascism.
7
Let's be clear here. Giuliani was pressuring officials for Biden dirt and denounced top Ukrainian officials BEFORE Volker arranged for him to speak with Yermak.
Rudy is pants-on-fire lying when he suggests that he was acting on direction from State. His actions created the need for State to intervene.
5
Still don't understand all the love criminal Giuliani got after 9-11. He was a major factor the the command center was put in the Twin Towers which as we all know didn't work out to good.
From a 1997 interview..
"Giuliani laughed during Wallace's questions and said that Hauer recommended the World Trade Center site and claimed that Hauer said that the WTC site was the best location. Wallace presented Giuliani a photocopy of Hauer's directive letter. The letter urged Giuliani to locate the command center in Brooklyn, instead of lower Manhattan, because "not as visible a target as buildings in lower Manhattan."
5
So the article clearly states that Mr Volker reached out to Mr Giuliani to meet with the Ukrainians and not the other way around as the banshee's are shrieking.
The Whole Truth? To God or the Constitution: Congress, be sure to have all witnesses REAFFIRM their Oath of Office when swearing in! God may or may not exist, but the Constitution of the United States does exist -- fingers crossed or not. May of us want to see -- on national TV -- Barr, Pence, and all the other inner party members testify to their loyalty -- to us.
Don't forget, and, of course, let that lawyer do the questioning!!
2
“I think the Giuliani that I know would prosecute the Giuliani of today," said Jeffrey Harris, who worked closely with him in the 1980s.
Sums it up nicely
4
Another resignation in the Trump Administration??? Poor Leadership Continues as evidenced by this ridiculous turnover in the Trump Administration.
The GOP and Fox News seem to be ok with this indicator of poor leadership which they would have ostracized Obama for if it were the case.
There will be a many of families regretting their connection and service to the Trump Administration...Deservedly so...Given they knew what they were getting into with such an authoritarian egomaniac.
4
I shudder to think what else will be coming out about crooked acts from this White House. This coming week should be interesting to say the least. “Come on Whistleblowers”.
Stick a microphone in Rudy’s face and he will tell it all (keep talking Rudy). He is so much like Donald Trump, he knows he is going down and he will take others with him.
They will all start turning and telling on each other.
After the Mueller Report Trump thought he had gotten away with all his misdeeds but Nancy Pelosi knew it would only be a matter of time until another one of his crimes surfaced. Never underestimate Nancy Pelosi!
4
Why is Trump calling Saudi Arabia and Putin?
2
Poor Kurt Volker. Yet another decent, lifelong public servant who will now be forever tainted by the stench of Trump.
2
While working in Ukraine for Trump, Volker worked as a managing director of BGR group, a lobbying and investment banking banking firm that worked for, guess who? American Ethane Company, the largest producer of ethane in the United States. Who owns 88% of Ethane? Konstantin Nikolaev. Who did he fund for her NRA misadventures in America? Maria Butina. So connect the dots, Putin, Nikolaev, Butina, Volker, and ...
3
Good people working for nothing? and yet working for our government without getting paid? I'm so nauseous reading about all these minions. They knew full well that they were working for the most corrupt person in the oval office. I feel no sympathy for the so-called intelligent people who freely chose to throw away their careers on Trump. They're all accountable for carrying out a mad man's dirty war against our democracy.
7
“Mr. Volker...now serves as the executive director of the MCCAIN Institute for International Leadership at Arizona State University based in Washington...”
McCain Institute as in John McCain.
The irony of Trump bringing a “McCain” man into his lying lair is striking.
Next Trump will blame McCain for this stupefying disaster.
3
Thanks Trump voters!
You own this.
All of it.
6
Donald takes his cues from Putin.
None of his clumsy attempts to scam the Ukraine happen without Putin's blessing.
4
By all accounts, Mr. Volker is a good man. It is not the rats who are leaving a sinking ship.
1
We may soon know how many loyal staffers are willing to take a bullet for the boss, knowing now, that it is never a reciprocal arrangement.
3
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/ On impeachment, I believe that Trump should have been impeached some time ago, but practical considerations make this issue much more complicated, as I noted before here https://realcontextnews.com/the-impeachment-of-donald-trump-russias-victory/ And let's not forget the main opening chapter in this whole saga, what I call the Russo-American Cyberwar of 2016. See the big-picture you haven't read about in my take here: https://realcontextnews.com/the-first-russo-american-cyberwar-how-obama-lost-putin-won-ensuring-a-trump-victory/ Trump telling the Russians in 2017 he wasn't concerned about election interference is grossly unacceptable after what happened.
3
Well you know what they say about rats and a sinking ship.
Maybe he prove that he's one of the good guys and help to sink the ship.
2
This fish is rotten from the top. Volker was just a tail fin.
3
This is a full blown disaster and embarrassment.
3
The reminds me of the time when Trump had his lawyer pay a porn star hush money and his lawyer went to jail. No accountability ever for the President but those around him pay.
3
The Mueller Report part 2: The Call
Well at least the Democrats are able to do one thing this week. Guarantee Trump's re-election. They should just let the voters pick who should be the next president. This will definitely take away from the Democrat talking points. Put a negative light on biden, all wins for Trump. Basically 50% of America doesn't even believe in this. I guess it's if you can't beat him impeach him
Right, that’s what’s supposed to happen in this country - voters picking who the next president is. Without the President using the country’s resources to bribe other countries for oppo research on his political opponents, that is.
3
Kurt Volker is probably one of many honest, dedicated public servants who have been compromised by a corrupt President Trump and his minions. Volker deserves credit for resigning, to register his disgust with Trump's behavior.
2
Trump and his loathsome cabal of sycophants must be completely despised by those career US intelligence agency and State Department employees who are helping to conduct Trump's illegal graft and grifting operations but are afraid to report it. These are good men and women - patriots - who must feel completely embarrassed by Trump's criminal conduct.
2
Not to be cynical, but isn’t this how politics works? Except in other administrations the message would have been communicated to Zelensky through back channels or an outsider. So it was just sheer stupidity that Trump conveyed the message himself from the phone in the Oval Office and that is what he is being impeached for.
Election interference is here to stay. I am just waiting to see China’s move against Trump during his 2020 campaign.
1
Working for Trump does not generally end well for people. Plenty of examples to cite and few to refute.
39
People, no.
The hidden Lizard Kings of Tau Ceti 7, however....
@Mike
That may well be true. But the real and awful truth is that it requires a certain moral vacuum for anyone to aspire working for Trump in the first place.
5
@Mike Zelensky apparently wasn't willing to do trump's dirty work, and it may not end well for him and his country, either.
Remember when this joke of a "president" pushed the leader of Moldovia in order to get his spot in the photo op? I always thought, that man should have shoved that braying moron off the stage. But maybe Moldovia's leader could smell the Midas touch on trump and wisely chose not to engage.
2
This is what comes of Amateur Hour in the Trump Administration.
Mr. Giuliani, having tossed a career civil servant under the bus of Trump-style corruption, has made Ambassador Volker take the expedient step of becoming a "free agent," thereby freeing him from Executive authority and enabling him to save his reputation via public disclosure. Good job Rudy!
Our President, having spent his entire adult life unjustly enriching himself at the expense of others, and having no inhibitions about continuing in the same vein as POTUS, has subverted the normal channels of government by placing like-minded and similarly incompetent individuals in positions of trust. With AG Barr as his Roy Cohn, and seeing no national security issues in the Ukraine Shake-Down, there's no problem.
Republicans led by Lindsay are ready to defend the indefensible. From my perspective, they've made their bed with Trump so let them sleep in it. In the end POTUS and his henchmen will be taken down by a patriotic whistleblower.
52
@Phil Zaleon:
EXCELLENT comment and observations.
Why the NYT editors do not make your entry here a "Pick" is a mystery and a disservice to you.
Bravo!
3
Trump obviously knows little about Constitutional law and what the duties and limits to presidential powers. Trump has been told by Barr that Article 2 says he can do whatever he wants of course breaking the law is not one of them. Congress has the duty to oversee the executive branch including the president and Trump who has head of the Trump organization answered to no one and was a "dictator" of sorts. THe American president was not intended by our founding fathers to be a monarch despite Barr's wild claims that the president has absolute immunity from any laws or investigations. Testimonies and documents from this sordid episode may well expose the devious and illegal activities of this administration including Giuliani's role as political fixer posing as America's prosecutor vs the Bidens in a foreign country ,a political opponent of Trump. Let's look at the activities of the Trump regime which may have hurt our national security to personally benefit Trump as he seems to think the USA is one of his entities in Trump organization.
27
@REBCO
Let me amend that for you.
Trump knows NOTHING about the U.S. Constitution.
And he has proven time and time again that he doesn't care.
4
@REBCO
The Peach not only doesn't know anything about Constitutional law, he has learned at every step of his life that the law doesn't apply to him, as he's always managed to call it's bluff or evade the rules. Around him, he only tolerates those who never express any criticism or doubt about his impulses.
He thinks that all who present reasons for their acts other than personal power and financial gain are fools -- or liars.
Giuliani's willingness - no, make that eagerness- to put himself out front as Trump's chief court jester - is baffling. Is celebrity the reward? Does he expect a massive financial payoff down the line? His insight seems worse than his boss's.
5
REBCO, how did Donald Trump break the law? I hear a lot of loose talk that he did, but no references to any law or any crime.
1
If Volker is the sacrificial lamb I'm not buying it.
6
@Elizabethnyc:
Please elaborate.
Since the release of the Mueller Report, I have been upset with Nancy Pelosi's hesitance to impeach the traitorous (and likely illegitimate) scoundrel we have squatting in our White House. But I was wrong.
Nancy knew it wasn't the right time. The serious nature and ample evidence that comes with this latest scandal is inarguable.
Even Moscow Mitch will be forced to do the right thing (for once) to survive.
Kudos to your wisdom and experience, Ms Pelosi. The country will be forever in your debt.
45
Special Envoy Kurt Volker's resignation is yet another example of the naive fallacy the honorable can serve the dishonorable.
For over two years the number of former high ranking military officers, government officials and cabinet secretaries who told themselves and the public they were entering the Mr. Trump's malestrom of malfeasance and mendacity to somehow redirect its destructiveness have either succumbed to it or had their reputations shipwrecked and forced to abandon the rafts of their naivety.
24
Trump committed crime in Russian collusion. His son contacted Russian agent; Russian agent provided Trump information. Even all these didn't change our election result, but it doesn't mean Trump didn't break the law. Our constitution is malfunction; it cannot prevent Trump from abusing power. Trump administration runs the country in mafia style; Trump is godfather and republican senators like mafia. Ordinary knows Trump breaks the law, but cannot believe Republicans say it's nothing burger. It's time to abolish the constitution.
9
What is the common thread that unifies so many of these individuals to destroy their reputations, flagrantly violate theirs oath of office to uphold and defend the Constitution if the United States, and become an integral mechanism for the destruction of our institutions. Most were never friends or associates of Donald Trump, would not be business colleagues, nor would they trust him with their wives, or to chaperone their children, invest their money with him.
And who would aspire to raise their children in his mold, to lie, cheat, bully, with too many vile characteristics to list.
And these attributes are evident just watching Donald Trump.
So, what is it that unifies these individuals? Lust for power? Money? Most are already wealthy and can’t take it with them.
What a legacy could be created if they all worked so hard believing in service to country.
All of this behavior is evil and appalling. But the most disturbing is how many follow in his footsteps.
42
@Brylar:
Your comments are spot-on.
There is very little genuine nobility in our government any longer. While there has always been contention between the GOP and Democratic parties (a healthy mechanism to encourage moderate outcomes with respect to Laws and other Bills), ever since the appalling overt, explicit agenda to make President Obama a "one term President " -- based entirely on his race (deniers can deny -- save your breath) this country's Congress has devolved into a toxic We vs. Them, Winner-Take-All mentality. Mitch is Example #1.
Tragically, as we become ever more polarized, entrenched in our views, steadfastly unwilling to LISTEN to one another's ideas and proposals -- with the goal of mutually beneficial agreement -- and continue to criticize and vilify our fellow citizens on the basis of Party, we are ALL becoming the architects of our nation's demise.
Whatever happened to "United We Stand, Divided We Fall"? News flash: that's not a trite slogan, but rather a dire warning.
All Republics eventually fail, disappearing into history's dustbin.
Make no mistake: we're now well down that road -- by our own doing -- and unless we can all grow up and realize that moderation and compromise is the only way to survive, we too shall join in the fate of ancient Rome.
That would be, in the words of our current president . . .
Sad. Bigly sad.
Indeed.
4
His testimony will be interesting; was he earnestly trying to assist the Ukraine to deal with an administration that was playing by entirely different rules? I'm a little confused as to whom he was working for, as a volunteer, and how he viewed his service.
I also do hope that the ambassador who was unceremoniously sacked for being "not sufficiently loyal" is asked to testify about how that act was carried out, since it seemed to be directly tied to the push to get Ukraine to so a public investigation of the Bidens at Trump's direction.
26
“He has a well deserved reputation for fairness, toughness and integrity."
Exactly why it was so necessary to have him resign.
29
@exmilpilot
Yes. It also makes him unsuitable for any political position regardless which party was the corrupt politician who would appoint him.
1
I am tired of reading so many comments from my fellow Democrats who believe that Mr. Trump will get away with this. They cynically believe that there are not 20 Republicans in the U.S. Senate who will put country above party, when faced with the facts and the evidence.
I am not that cynical.
Furthermore, the Republicans are terrified right about now, as they should be. This is an existential crisis for them.
As Spike Lee said, "Do the right thing."
It's really simply, folks.
Be a patriot, and put country over party.
50
@MidtownATL
1. No articles of impeachment were put forth for a vote, so that impeachment can actually begin. They've been in limbo for years, in maybe-impeachment "hearings" that have amounted to nothing.
2. Congress is in recess, because they're tired from yelling on tv. Sure speaks to the "urgency" of the matter.
8
@MidtownATL
47 years ago, the then Republicans did exactly as you expect.
But it is not as easy as you seem to think. Politicians pretty much must be intense partisans to get elected and re-elected. And, the default behavior of partisans is to defend politicians of their party and attack politicians of the opposition party. It is rare either party's politicians will break from their default intense partisanship. It did happen once in 1972 when many Republicans turned on Nixon. But Democrats stayed totally partisan when Clinton was impeached and he was therefore not convicted in the Senate.
Democrat partisans now will try to explain the different behavior of Democrats in 1999 versus Republicans in 1972 as being because Clinton was innocent but Nixon guilty. However, the lockstep totally unified vote to acquit by every last Democrat belies that claim. Surely, at least a few of the 45 Senate Democrats knew that Bill Clinton was guilty of the multiple acts alleged of perjury and obstruction. But still none would abandon their default intense partisanship.
2
@Viv
1.First comes the impeachment inquiry. Then if enough is found, articles of impeachment will be filed. He can be impeached in the House, but still has to lose a trial in the Senate to be removed. I believe that is correct, could be mistaken.
2. The people in Congress that are directly involved in the impeachment process are staying on the job, I believe is what I read.
4
Democrats are hoping impeachment will rally liberal voters in a way none of the candidates or open border policies have done to date. My guess is the House "inquiry" will become the Democratic platform and extend through 2020. "OMG Trump" is not sufficient to get me to vote for the Democratic nominee. If this is actually how it pans out, I will write in a presidential candidate on my ballot.
7
@Lynn in DC
"Democrats are hoping impeachment will rally liberal voters"
No, the House is standing up for the Constitution and the Rule of Law.
This is not a partisan political calculus. This is a patriotic defense of our democratic republic, and the American Experiment.
40
That's the attitude that gets people like Trump elected in the first place. If you're going to do that, why bother voting at all?
34
@Lynn in DC Or perhaps they are simply upholding the Constitution as they swore to do. I will be voting for the candidate with the best chance of unseating Mr. Trump for that same reason.
32
Volker only bailed out:once the building was on fire: It’s truly bizarre how the press has rushed to say that “Mr. Volker, a widely respected former ambassador to NATO”. At the same time, it appears that “Mr. Volker then contacted Mr. Giuliani to ask if he would want to speak with Mr. Yermak, and the mayor agreed. Mr. Volker and Mr. Giuliani had breakfast to discuss Ukraine.” If in fact Volker was a hero, he would have resigned long ago and gone public with the Giuliani meddling to begin with. But, as everything else in the Trump Administration, it’s about personal ambition. No heroics as far as this resignation goes. The building is on fire and he bails out, some hero .
26
@Ted It could also be that Mr Volker did not recognize that he was the "set up" guy which the White House or Giuliani would use to legitimize their real intent, using Mr Volker as a front or window dressing. If things went south, then they could blame him and have him go under the bus. Mr Giuliani, a real New Yorker, learned things well from a Scorsese movie.
2
@Ted
It could also be that he thought that he had the experience and knowledge skills to keep Trump, as represented by Giuliani, from undermining the Ukrainian presidency in it's determination to fend off Russian attacks.
Perhaps his only hubris was in thinking that anyone could "clean up" the Trump act; and there may have been something worthy in his intent
1
All those people who were dancing on top of the Berlin Wall in November 1989 should be quaking in their boots. The American Government has joined forces with the worst of Soviet Russia. We are now committed to help to crush Ukraine, and to restore the personal fortune that Donald Trump squandered.
27
@Sequel Putin and his henchmen are winning...for now. The USA is a big country with 330M citizens; it took time to motivate all those people but, when they are, they did great. Putin will be defeated and America will be great again.
1
I love how people try to justify to themselves that they are joining a corrupt organization in order to “guide it” or to “stave off disaster”, when in reality they are only creating a veneer of legitimacy and prolonging the operation of a corrupt regime.
24
Way to bury that The State Press broke this story! That’s quite the coup and deserves to be much more prominent.
13
@NYCLady
Yes, how about a follow up article about the sequence of events conducted by The State Press.
1
Kathryn,
And you don't think that Joe Biden's son, Hunter, didn't benefit from his being the Vice President's son? He was inexperienced and yet obtained a $50,000 per month position with a Ukrainian company. There certainly was influence involved here. Would your average Joe or Jane quality for a cushy position like Hunter Biden? Hardly.
14
Hunter was an experienced business man, lawyer and an international consultant. He did have experience and acumen beyond being the son of a Vice President. He, also, had a life to live and needed to make a living. I do not understand your barbs at him.
29
@KMW:
Whataboutism; noun:
The technique or practice of responding to an accusation or difficult question by making a counteraccusation or raising a different issue.
31
I think that influence-peddling is a legit political issue for a campaign—and I suspect you lot can’t stand to leave it at that and need to make up these phantasmagorias because you at least dimly suspect that if Trump et al are dumb enough to campaign on family connections, lining pockets, and cronyism, Elizabeth Warren’s gonna mop every deck in America with them.
5
The domino effect fall of bodies and institutions in Trump’s orbit has never been summarized better than in the title of Rick Wilson’s book, “Everything Trump Touches Dies”.
23
Volker only resigns now?
How could he not know that the Trump Administration was working to enlist the help of a foreign government to assist in his 2020 election against his leading opponent?
Why wasn’t Volker a similar State Department whistle blower?
Why weren’t twenty or so people with knowledge of Trump’s or this Administration’s work to pressure this foreign country to assist in influencing our upcoming election similar whistle blowers? Is this Administration corrupt to almost the last individual?
Should Volker be allowed back to a state educational institution, to affect learning minds, if he hadn’t the ethical backbone to alert the press to his government’s illegalities?
240
@SRP We really don't know volker's role in this, do we? He might well be the whistle blower or the whistle blower's source. The fact that he resigned so soon, would indicate that he thought his job was done.
31
@SRP
"Volker only resigns now."
You leave him alone. He worked as a volunteer.
Ukraine ranks #128 in the world in terms of GDP per capita and has to fend off invasions by neighboring Russia. Mr. Volker was trying to help a struggling peoples as were people in the Ukraine similarly caught up in this mess.
To many people in the Ukraine, putting a crust of bread on the table is far more important than the Trumps, Giulianis and Bidens of this world.
48
I would like to add that 35 years ago, and perhaps still today, Prof. Roger Porter was teaching “ethics” at Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government, proferring the guideline that “If you would embarrassed seeing your name associated with it on the front page of The New York Times, then don’t do it, because some day it might very well appear there.”
His son, of course, is former Trump Staff Secretary Rob Porter...
The problem is that nothing embarrasses the GOP anymore. Nothing. Including our GOP legislators and everyone who works for them or votes for them. For a large segment of the U.S. population, we have a death of shame.
(Hey, that sounds like a great book title: “The Death of Shame.” Get cracking political scientists and sociologists!)
18
I feel kind of sorry for Volker. His distinguished career has been sullied because he was triangulated by Team Trump into playing the role of liaison between Zelensky and Giuliani. They needed a patsy to disguise Trump's interest in advancing the Russians' goal of crushing Ukraine. Shameful!
181
@Sequel
"I feel kind of sorry for Volker."
He did it to himself. Any sentient being knows (or should have known) that everything Trump touches dies.
What did he expect?
36
@Sequel
Volker could have refused, could have said no. He didn't and now his "distinguished career has been sullied."
15
@MidtownATL difficult situation for anyone trying to make sure the good happens (in this case aid going to Ukraine) but having to deal with a corrupt administration. A very tough choice for good people working for our Country.
24
As a social scientist, I'll likely teach this particular incident as an example of how authoritarian corruption compromises people, by wearing them down often by a succession of small requests/asks and that once they've agreed to one, the next doesn't seem quite as bad - and that this happens to even seasoned, well-intentioned professionals. Volker was very much in a bind. And he's just one of a large list of professionals soiled by contact with the Trump administration. You can see here too that Ukrainian officials were also concerned and confused by the request about Biden. Rather classic authoritarian case study.
431
@Concerned Mom
Authoritarianism has been demonstrated to be the most significant and reliable predictor of support for Donald Trump. And it explains why the so many on the right find it acceptable to use violence, and even mass slaughter, on anyone who doesn't submit to their leader. It's usually minorities, as we've already seen: African Americans, Jews, Latinos, etc.
58
@Concerned Mom. In fact. This is the way a predator works. Just wear down the resistance of the prey. Trump has got to be charged, tried, and imprisoned.
102
@Concerned Mom
If anyone accepts a position in this corrupt Trump administration they are openly admitting they are ready and willing to violate the law, defy the constitution and ignore their oath of office.
Loyalty to the "Don" comes first.
39
Not much of a surprise that Trump’s approach to governing results in the gutting of the institutions entrusted to him.
Those in Cabinet positions have had an interest in undermining the purposes of their departments. And sycophants like Giuliani persist in the shadows. Meanwhile, as is the case with Volker, Yovanovitch, and many others, longstanding public servants are forced out.
It may be a while before we understand the full costs of this presidency
253
@STG
Maybe, despite himself, Trump is “ draining the swamp.” He just didn’t mean to include himself.
Oops.
8
It is the Democrats who are threatening our national security by demanding documents and phone calls be turned over to them. There may be confidential and sensitive information that should not be made public and could jeopardize our security. The Republicans should be careful what they reveal and I am sure government lawyers are advising them accordingly.
5
@KMW Trump extorted a Foreign leader to get something of value to win an election. Trump hid it by claiming National Security. There are no longer Republicans; only Trump Groupies.
57
@KMW The documents will be reviewed by the congressional committees that requested them and will not be released unless they feel that it is safe for them to do so. When we cannot trust even our congressmen to do the right thing, we are lost.
12
The sheer gall of a Trumpist complaining about releasing top secret info fascinates me. Please go on.
2
It appears a similar situation occurred in China with billionaire Stephen Schwarzman acting as Trump’s extra-governmental envoy.
15
@Heart
Schwartzman was interviewed on Bloomberg this week about "what worries him." His biggest worry is social media, how whenever governments or even companies try to plan or do anything there's a huge social media outcry against it.
I assume he was talking about Hong Kong, Trump, and investment banks. That guy is right to worry, because he's on the wrong side of history.
10
I thought Swarzman was a Democrat.
Since this seems unknown territory to many, a resignation like this is a big fat message to Trump and everybody else. It says, “I tried, but I can’t be a part of this anymore.”
And no, it doesn’t get him out from under one little bit of the legal problems.
You don’t have to hand the guy a medal, but a tad of sympathy and approval might be in order.
19
@Robert No sympathy given. Volker was a former CIA officer, he knew exactly why what he did was wrong, and yet he reported it to no one. UNLESS.....HE is the whistleblower, that is.....
13
I’m still not seeing any of you guys explain “what he did wrong.” Or explain what the heck Jill Stein was doing sitting between Putin and Mike Flynn at that RT dinner, for that matter.
1
Trump and his gang of corrupt clowns leave a slime trail wherever they go, and once again we're seeing a bit of the slime rub off on a dedicated, honorable, and knowledgeable professional.
By all rights, Mr. Volker should come out of this untainted, and I'm proud to see our senator, Chris Murphy, speak out for him. Yes, Mr. Volker will now probably have to testify before several committees, and the Republicans will undoubtedly seek to diminish his reputation. They will not only be backed up by Fox "News", they will also blatantly tell us to "watch Laura at 10 pm."
This truly sleazy and petty plan to diminish Biden's reputation can be judged by the methods it has used.
Joe Biden is a decent guy, but our nation is so profoundly unwell that it will require profound changes to bring it to health. Don't let the clowns win via trashy and illegal actions, that incidentally risk the lives of thousands of Ukrainians.
And don't let them win by labeling as "socialist" mainstream politicians like Elizabeth Warren--who in most of the world's nations is considered a moderate. And guess what? The people in those other nations live longer than we do (we're 43rd in longevity). Childbirth isn't a survival game, as it is in the US, where it's getting more and more dangerous.
Our nation needs deep changes, and what Trump, Mitchell, Giuliani, and the rest are doing demonstrates this loudly and clearly.
30
@sing75
Agreed on all except the Biden comment. I doubt his son is squeaky clean. More likely trading on the status of his father, working his rolodex for lucre in a foreign nation.
2
@DisplayName
Of course, Ivanka , Don Jr., or Eric Trump would never do something like that. Or, would they?
3
@DisplayName, which is fine if it doesnt compromise the USA or its people.
2
“. . . enemies of the President.”
Think about it. The phrase was used to disparage, and to justify eliminating (for consideration, if not in other senses), “top officials” in the Ukrainian government who were/are not on board with our very own Trump’s corrupt and corrupting ways.
In dealing with Ukraine, surely our very own Trump figures he would be dealing with a push-over, if not a patsy. I imagine he anticipated smooth sailing, if not a cake walk.
So. . . this is where we are, folks.
Our very own POTUS is basing our on-going relationship with a much weaker, seriously threatened, almost desperate ally on whether it will do his personal bidding concerning our upcoming national election and slime his likely political rival.
What does that say about America? It comes awfully close to saying we’re a country in which might makes right, and in which winning short-term is everything, regardless of the mid-, and long-term consequences of what we do to secure the short-term “win.”
In other words, we’re losers!
16
With any luck, Giuliana and Barr come out of this with jail sentences as long at Trump's.
36
Thank you Mr. Volker, you at least tried your best to aid the Ukrainians. Unfortunately this Administration only wanted them used as pawns to disparage an opponent of the President.
I do hope your excellent service and reputation remain in tact.
32
Funny, he doesn’t LOOK like John Dean.... but I guess if he stands in just the right light we can see the resemblance.
16
Careful agile rats are the first to sense that the ship is sinking, and still with a chance, immediately leap toward the dock. In the end, as the ship goes down, all that are left aboard are the over-stuffed foolish gluttons with their heads buried ear deep in the barrels of the ship's stores. Cold rushing water and surprised squeals are their last memory.
39
Congress should get Zelensky to cough up what he knows in return for aid and cooperation for his country. This quid pro quo will be supported by millions of Americans.
20
This is so important. Why can't the House put this up to vote so the Senate can dismiss it?
Biden is gone.
Warren is not going to make it.
Buttigieg is on his way to bootlicking the big Democratic donors who dismiss Warren and are thinking of giving to Trump.
If Buttigieg can capture the $$$$$$$$ he might just get the nomination. Think of Buttigieg as Obama from Indiana. I can see it.
4
It’s impossible sufficiently to enjoy the ways Trumpists are flipping out about this. One particularly toothsome bit is their hurling political fantasies at every wall in Christendom.
17
@P&L
This is more important.
By the time this comes up for a vote, any Republican who considers himself an American patriot will no be able to ignore the facts and vote to impeach in both houses.
Then we will be left with Pense who is also neck deep in the mire of this administration, but I think the party can handle him till they are voted out on 2020,
17
@Larry
I fully expect Pence to go down with this ship.
1
COWARD !!! ....the rats begin to scramble & jump ship !!! .....more to come ladies & gentlemen ....
3
Everyone who gets involved in some way with Trump gets sullied in one way or another. He sucks people into his vile, evil world and ruins their reputation.
32
@jfdenver
Yeah, he kinda like a bug zapper. Can't resist the bright light until it is too late.
1
@jfdenver
Yes, there's a book for this too
Everything Trump Touches Dies: A Republican Strategist Gets Real About the Worst President Ever
https://www.amazon.com/Everything-Trump-Touches-Dies-Republican/dp/1982103140/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1569695834&sr=8-1
2
LOGAN ACT! If Juliani was not authorized by the President to conduct the US foreign affairs matters he proudly boasts doing, then according to the State Department and everyone else in the Government Juliani was acting in his private capacity and therefore was (and is) plainly violating the Logan Act. And of course if Juliani was authorized by the President to do what he boasts of doing, then the President is guilty (again) of a felony violation of the campaign financing act. I hope the House will have the good sense to include the 2016 campaign finance violations by Trump (and Cohen) in the articles of impeachment, since those violations are very easily provable from Cohen's guilty plea and from grand jury testimony which must contain corroborative evidence of Cohen's confession (since under federal criminal procedural law a confession must be supported by independent evidence of guilt per the corpus delicti doctrine) -- and since that case has been closed, there is no reason to believe that the federal judge would not release grand jury information upon request by a House impeachment committee).
25
Volker just wants to save himself and must be free to defend himself. Everyone involved knows this will not end well for anyone implicated in criminal enterprise. Everyone will have their escape route planned and in the end Trump will be left holding the bag...maybe as Putin intended.
23
@Cleareye Spot on. He's dirty as the day is long, forget past "reputation" as he's now danced with the Devil (Trump/Putin axis).
1
I could make some pithy political comment about how deep Donald Trump's swamp is, where a dedicated lifelong civil servant has to resign without a word of explanation just to avoid the stink of this corrupt administration from sticking to him. But I applaud his action and am reminded of Bob Dylan's famous line, "You don't have to be a weatherman to which way the wind is blowing." And it is a truly ill wind that is blowing.
29
Do you know what is needed here?
The Democrats need to find a person of very high esteem, who is willing to lie under oath. If they can do that, I think they can swing the Senate. The time spent trying to find that individual before voting on impeachment is well worth it.
1
@P&L
Does Barr qualify as someone of very high esteem? He is willing to lie under oath. Not sure if his lies will swing the Senate though.
7
@P&L
Why would they have to lie, the true accounts we've heard in the last week are very convincing.
16
@P&L
You're either being sarcastic or clueless, I can't tell.
You want someone to commit a crime, lie under oath, in order to impeach Trump?
The implications of your wish are probably true: it would take a liar to make this case for impeachment go anywhere.
Any member of this administration that stays on while Trump lies through his teeth, is doomed. From it looks like there is starting to a mad rush to the exist doors. I think Pompao and Barr should remember what happened to John Mitchell. A sitting Pres. may note be able to be indicted-but not the Sec of State or the AG.
21
The moment has come for the American version of the Division of the Assembly: "the ayes to the right the noes to the left." Where each and every career government employee and political appointee stands will be duly noted by the American public, and by history. Volker's moment of truth is near, but he's only the first who must choose between expediency and ethical behavior.
14
@MCV207 Seems to me he made his choice when he went to work for Trump.
1
Name one person who has been elevated by their association with Trump. Every person associated with Trump ends up being slimed.
The exception might be Trump’s kids, but they live in the same alternate universe of narcissism that Trump does.
I wish I could say that our country will be so much better off without Trump and his band of evil doers, but we’ll still be stuck with his mislead fan club. This is such a terrible time in the history of these United States.
85
@Kathryn Many people have benefited from Trump - the 1%, white supremacists, dictators, Putin's agents, etc.
25
Trump himself has done nothing to increase employment. He’s the beneficiary of Obama’s cleanup of Dubya’s mess.
44
there are more women than men in the country. they are not minorities.
3
When I hear people say, "We shouldn't impeach, it'll only worsen the division in our country," I can only think that what they mean is we should not oppose tyranny, we should allow outlaws to run our government for their personal benefit and that of our adversaries. If we who oppose this criminal "president" would just shut up, we'd have no "division."
Those who remain loyal to this "president" are disloyal to the country. He equated a career intelligence official who performed his duty in service of our country, a "spy." A man or woman working in service of our country is an enemy spy? Who is this "president" working for, if not OUR country? Sabatoging Ukraine, a fledgling democracy that stands between Russia and Europe, is in the interests of Russia. Why does he continue to advance the interests of Russia over the USA?
There are two sides to this crisis: one right, one inarguably wrong. Volker appears to be chosing the right side; we'll know for certain when he speaks truly and honestly, like Michael Cohen finally did, under oath, about all he knows of this treasonous, criminal in OUR White House.
88
@Gustav Aschenbach: The division lies between the "faithful" and those who see no good reason to believe anything that cannot be substantiated.
3
@Gustav Aschenbach Well said. Thank you.
2
Will somebody please explain to me why it is okay for this dude to still be working for his consulting firm, which has interests in Ukraine, and be the US special envoy to that country? Ok, maybe I'm slow to the "This is shocking" party, but it is!
17
@Lily: It is hard to find people who understand something in depth without direct experience with it.
4
@Lily, he's unpaid, and offering his services pro bono. He's an expert on Ukraine. What do you want? A soybean farmer from Iowa who can't speak Ukrainian or Russian?
1
@Lily Are you suggesting that Volker's firm is "crooked?"
Losing the valuable and seemingly level-headed Kurt Volker completes this administration's sweep of Ukrainian-sympathizers to fulfill candidate Trump's campaign promise to 'normalize' US-Russia relations. We must now ask a highly critical question: is Trump just a Russian tool? Even a trained chimpanzee could get a dramatic stock market rise by borrowing a year+ worth of GDP with absolutely no payback plan. We must now face what seems painfully obvious, at least to me; Trump will try anything, including subverting the Constitution to cling to power. And to those fools who think this impeachment inquiry is only about one simple phone call: I got a great bridge to sell you...
38
Two questions to be examined:
1. Why is Giuliani - a private citizen who only serves as 45’s private attorney - performing quasi-diplomatic and problematic conversations with world leaders, orchestrated by 45 and others within the administration and in conjunction with those who have actual jobs in the admin? Like Barr and Volker? Is this not what we have ambassadors and special envoys? Not consigliere like Rudy. Let’s call him what he is: the Tom Hagen of this administration.
And
2. Who is paying for Rudy’s trips abroad to conduct these meetings and lunches and dinners and “perfectly beautiful” get togethers on behalf of 45? I would bet all of my money that NONE of this is being paid for by Rudy it 45 and is somehow being funneled through the White House coffers or through campaign funds. In which case both improper and worthy of investigation.
Tick. Tock. Boom.
61
Volker does NOT have a “real job” in the Administration! This Administration’s Special Envoy is a part/time, volunteer position. He is on the payroll of s consulting firm with interests in Ukraine.
Another dedicated and well-intentioned government official bites the dust, another career wrecked in the wake of the most corrupt President of the United States. Trump poisons everything and everyone around him.
The Trump bus is rolling and Trump will be throwing more bodies in it’s path in the next few weeks.
Even Giuliani isn’t safe.
28
@John Adams It is early to proclaim that Mr Volker has had his "career wrecked". Mr Volker was never an employee of this administration, he was a volunteer envoy. His full time job is as head of the McCain Institute at ASU. We will learn in coming days and weeks (in response to being deposed by the Congress) if Mr Volker is a patriot, who volunteered to help limit the damage of the Trump presidency vis a vis the Ukraine, or if he is just another corrupt Trump toady.
7
Volker doesn't seem to be one of the bad guys, so to speak, but a legit and highly accomplished career foreign service officer who inexplicably couldn't smell the toxicity of Trump and Giulani despite Trump's telling comments and Giulani's obvious role as Trump-serving maverick. By missing huge indicators such as Trump's sweeping, vindictive generality ("they're all corrupt and they tried to take me down") and Giulani's barging into affairs of state as a private citizen, Volker let himself get played for a complete chump.
It's yet another example showing that everything Trump touches dies. Volker's reputation is the latest piece of collateral damage in the downward spiral of the Trump administration's broadly destructive thrash.
More will surely follow, as will mounting evidence of immense direct damage to this country's integrity and institutions.
21
@P. Sherwood exactly! I have actually been feeling better about some of my past lapses in judgment when I see that even someone like Volker can fail to put the pieces of the puzzle together in order.
3
@P. Sherwood poppycock, he fell for the Donny's ongoing con, and was part of his team of enablers & "work force", regardless if he was a careen foreign service officer ....if he was not a coward in the end, he'd stay put on Donny's team and give testimony next Thursday in the same fashion that many commenting here think he will not that he is not on the Donny's team ....I counter that by thinking he will deflect and not answer any direct questions, in essence taking the 5th, and giving the DEMs nothing positive to add to their (our) impeachment proceedings of the worst POTUS in my lifetime ....that said, if he proves me wrong nest Thursday and spills some level of beans that are detrimental to Donny & Barr & Rudy, I'll be pleasantly surprised (but will not eat my hat)
What if your boss, upon whom you are reliant not only for income but for lifesaving healthcare for your family, asked you to invent some lies about the boss's wife and lie in his divorce case? What if this is the only employment you think is available to you to save the life of your family?
What would you do?
Is the boss an illegal and immoral monster?
8
@Christine
Yes, he is. Blackmail in a felony.
And no, I'd rather starve but it wont be necessary because I'd just go to the police and then take over my boss's job while he rots in prison. (aka that's why elections are for....)
Also experience shows that if you fall for a blackmailer once, he/she is going to up the demands over and over again. Ex: "lie for me otherwise I'll have your family shot, and you cant report me because you already broke the law yourself by inventing things about my ex-wife"
(Christine, your example doesn't work anyway because all states now have no-fault divorce...)
Also, your comment hopefully will be obsolete soon if we get health care access for all. But the ACA (aka Obamacare) would also be a help, and the victim's family, once he loses his job, might be eligible for Medicaid, depending on which state he is living (!)
In summary, there is no excuse for Trump and his cult followers.
3
@Christine I think you are describing the slippery slope of moral compromise. That is a great question you pose and I would add-what do we do each and every day as we encounter moral and ethical conundrums (both big and small)?
5
@Christine, yes, the boss is an extortionist, and should be imprisoned. And you, as hard as it may be to do so, should walk out the door.
So interesting about the attempt to bring the president of Ukraine together with Trump. Knowing Trump is in bed with Putin, Zelensky must have been THRILLED. "The friend of my enemy is my enemy..." (Yes, yes, I know it's "the enemy of my enemy is my friend.") Absolutely nutty. We will have to buy some tin soldiers and paint them black or white and arrange them on a ping-pong table to figure this big mess out. Thanks for the great reporting.
10
@Karen Cormac-Jones
People in Ukraine are terrified of a Russian takeover. Putin wants to make Russia great again by reclaiming the countries once under the rule (aka colonial) of Stalin (who Putin is in the process of rehabilitating)
Sorry Karen, your vision lacks empathy, particularly since you forgot the tin figures of innocent civilians, including their children.
The Ukraine mightily suffered under the Soviet Union (aka Russia, as our president explains!), and all civilians suffer during war, particularly children. If the latter survive the violence and the usual lack of food and medical care, they tend to experience PTSD the rest of their lives....
Swamps are often beneficial to healthy ecology.
Trump didn't drain the swamp of Washington DC.
He made it toxic. He dumped his toxic brand into it, complete with manufactured chaos, poor management, lied, deceit, and fascism-lite.
Fred Trump was already senile in his early 70s. This could be the same problem we are witnessing daily.
29
@Moehoward
He drained the swamp and replaced it with a cesspool.
Swamps are often filled with beautiful, vibrant living things.
We all know what is found floating around in a cesspool. Well, that's what we got. And lots of it.
Every story this week depicts a White House in full reaction mode, as if they'd never heard of impeachment.
Trump's ignorance and hubris is his downfall. He was warned to assemble an impeachment team. He relented only so far as to bring on Emmet Flood who'd advised Bill Clinton on impeachment, and then only to focus on his pet obsession, the Mueller report. Once the Mueller report was released, Flood left.
Don McGahn had left a few months earlier. McGahn was the WH Counsel who blocked Trump's earlier efforts to initiate FBI investigations into Clinton and Comey, warning that asking law enforcement to investigate his political rivals would be potential grounds for impeachment.
Certainly the Democratic retaking of the House and stream of almost daily subpoenas has created an atmosphere at the White House that Trump and neophyte loyalists have never lived before: it's a constant tight rope walk under tight deadlines and legal wrangling. This White House doesn't have the staff or the competence to handle impeachment proceedings. They started flat-footed having ignored the chance to assemble a halfway competent team six months ago.
Given Trump's proclivity for bashing former advisors, it may be too late now. Add the fact that Trump is the world's worst client, one who doesn't like to pay his bills, and law firms are turning him down. At one point, Trump was considering Corey Lewandowski to head up his impeachment team. Talk about too little, too late.
35
@CJ
Any team that trump would have assembled would have been useless. He doesn't take advice or listen to his advisors, why would he listen to them? He knows more than all of them.
4
Remember the good old days when the biggest outrage against the President was the way he saluted. Clinton was so attacked by his casual salute he had to go to salute school. W did pretty well at the beginning but made the mistake of saluting while holding Barney. And Obama drew howls of rage when he saluted while carrying a cup of coffee. We've come a long way.
37
@RNS
Yes we have.
Trump at least knew how to salute a North Korean officer (June 14, 2018).
Looks like Giuliani has picked up right where Michael Cohen left off.
Giuliani has been referred to as the "Godfather" for years and it appears this is him in action trying to muscle and extort his way through world politics. Sadly more and more mid-level career Federal and State department employees will become the collateral damage.
Giuliani's train wreak marriage is done and it is clear he now is making obvious mistakes in representing the President..how many and how bad will yet to be seen.
Plus why can't they just leave the smear campaigns to the secret and anonymous 501C groups like the Democrats?
Well it's the way both men have acted their entire adult lives. Intimidation is a dish best served cold and delivered in person.
11
“He now must put country first, and tell what he did and what he knows.”
Kurt Volker, if you are reading this, your resignation and service to the country is respected. You now have a rare privilege to reveal the TRUTH and nothing but the truth to save this country's democracy from spiraling.
If only the cowardly Republicans hiding behind the veil could have the courage.
25
Clearly the Trump Administration is and has been focused on Ukraine because of the conviction of Paul Manafort, and yet most mainstream media outlets have not reported on this obvious fact. The New York York Review of Books reported that Manafort's lawyers have been in constant contact with both the Trump Administration and Trump's personal lawyers -- including Rudy Giuliani -- negotiating a pardon for Manafort if Trump is re-elected. Where is the New York Times regarding this aspect? Manafort isn't even mentioned, though it was his unregistered work on behalf of Ukraine's former president that landed him where he is now, in federal prison.
18
Except for all the articles on that very topic, of course.
I don’t get why people think that refusing to look means things aren’t there, let alone that there’s something seriously wrong with the way that no matter how many investigations get done, they always want more.
Grow out of this thing with do-overs, be my advice.
3
@AACNY
Please provide links to the sources that substantiate your claim that the DNC sought dirt in Trump during the election in Ukraine
Waiting.....
@AACNY
Please try to stay focused on the Activities of our sitting President not the guy running for the job. If you happen to think “No Harm No Foul” for the sitting President, then the guy running for the job gets the same benefit of the doubt. Otherwise the sitting President may surely be Impeached for the impropriety of his actions while the other guy be denied the nomination.
Not sure Trump cancelled the Warsaw meeting with Mr. Zelensky to monitor the hurricane. Seems like he stayed in Florida to play yet more golf at one of his courses.
19
Give credit to student reporter Andrew Howard of The State Press for breaking this story: https://www.statepress.com/article/2019/09/sppolitics-mccain-head-steps-down
17
rats ? ship? what....
7
Why do the "jouralists" at the NYT keep feeling the need to reconstruct the transcripts?
Mr. Trump asked him to “do us a favor, though” and look into Democrats.
Is this proper?
1
But wasn’t it Russia that interfered with the 2016 US election?
1
@AACNY
No he did not. The favor he requested was digging (or inventing) dirt on Joe Biden and his son.....
Meanwhile Russia attacked Ukraine last week, on Trump's watch, and NOTHING was done about it. It garnered few reports in the news here. WHAT exactly is going on with covering this war? https://www.unian.info/war/10693992-donbas-war-update-russia-led-forces-mount-13-attacks-on-ukrainian-positions-on-sept-21.html
185
@Marty Milner I'd like to know that too. Also, how many Ukrainians have died and what other losses did that country incur while the aid was falsely frozen for personal political and corrupt ends. Ukraine faces Russian aggression continually, even a day without aid is damaging.
39
@Ellen M Mc
And I would like to know how many have died and been mutilated while Trump withheld the defensive appropriations.
24
@Marty Milner, What is the primary desire/goal of Russian combat in Ukraine?
Does Russia they want to buy the country like Trump wanted to buy Greenland to own the abundant resources it has? Or take it without recompense or benefits to citizens by force? Why Ukraine?
https://www.google.com/maps/place/Ukraine/@44.4358106,30.7342317,4z/data=!4m5!3m4!1s0x40d1d9c154700e8f:0x1068488f64010!8m2!3d48.379433!4d31.1655799
2
The swamp gas is thick enough to kill
13
During his television interview with Ingraham, Giulani indicated that he had an entire series of sensitive text/phone messages on his mobile phone. Which he then displayed for the television camera. REALLY? This is the kind of poor security practice being used by the person carrying out sensitive international tasks for President Trump?
Further, Giulani is apparently incapable of distinguishing between Volker's response to requests from Ukrainian officials to facilitate contact and formal, authorized requests to act on behalf of the State department and US government. REALLY? This is the person tapped by President Trump to carry out sensitive international work? Someone incapable of recognizing this sort of difference?
During DNI Maguire's testimony to the house intelligence committee, a question arose about Giulani's security clearance. I wouldn't be surprised if we find that Giulani has NO security clearance. And yet, he's out there carrying out sensitive international work for President Trump.
Despite the sensitive situation, the administration removed the respected and experienced ambassador to the Ukraine several months ago. NO replacement has been appointed. The impression I gain from the embassy's web site is that neither the Chargé D’Affaires or his deputy speak a local language.
These are characteristics of the Trump response to a very hot, delicate, important and complicated international situation. Wow.
52
@StatBoy
These reasons and many more are why Trump needs to go ASAP. It boggles the mind that anyone would see this as acceptable. The love of Trump is the root of all evil in this administration.
19
Is it possible that Volkswagen would prefer to give his testimony while not currently an employee?
3
@Alyce
I've been thinking about that too. Perhaps he's thinking that he's freer to tell the truth if he's no longer an "employee" of the Trump Admin.
5
@Alyce Volker was never an employee of the US State Dept. He was a volunteer special envoy. He wasn't paid. The whistleblower's complaint specifically says that Volker was tasked with "containing" Guiliani, not assisting him.
1
Who decides to hold a position like thus for free and why? Doesn't that just prime the situation for potential corruption? Am I missing something here?
10
The departures of Volker and Yovanovitch represent more collateral damage to our foreign policy and to the defense of Ukraine from Russian aggression.
While the focus thus far has been on Trump’s attempts to get foreign aid for his re-election, this controversy must keep Putin smiling.
Indirect proof of this being a huge win for Russia is the absence of complaint about a phone call that included a Ukrainian request for Javelin anti-tank missiles.
7
The wolf--or more accurately, the bear--was literally at Zelensky's door as Putin continued to fuel war from the separatists, hoping to reclaim Ukrainian soil for Russia. The newly installed Ukrainian president must have been desperate for the military aid Trump had so summarily frozen. And the state department couldn't help him, since they were frozen out themselves.
What was Zelensky to do? Was he so desperate he was willing to deal with Giuliani to find out how he could mollify Trump and get what he needed to defend his country? Was he so desperate he was willing to "play ball" even if it meant fabricating dirt on Democrats in exchange for the military aid our president was holding hostage?
By all accounts Volker is an honorable man. Let's pray he will live up to his reputation and tell the world everything he knows about what looks like a far-from-honorable demand by the most powerful president on earth on one whose back was against the wall.
25
Note how diabolical Trump is: He commits an act of corruption, he attempts to get Zelensky to commit an act of corruption, and he claims he is doing so in order to prevent corruption.
4
Volker is only the latest of many more who will jump off this sinking ship. As soon as Republicans realize Trump not only will not be re-elected, but is hurting their own chances of keeping their jobs, they will defect also and try to find a viable presidential candidate for 2020. Impeachment, conviction and removal are coming
16
Pelosi could end up president if 20 republican senators join democrats to find as fact that a quartet of men: Trump, Pence, Barr and Pompeo, conspired to solicit the aid of Ukraine to interfere in the 2020 elections. Even if Barr and Pompeo are exonerated, that leaves Pelosi as the first woman acting President until the 2020 elections. I know I'm dreaming, but it isn't beyond all probability yet.
27
@Edgar Allen Poe
The entire line of succession is frightening.
1
@Edgar Allen Poe
Nightmare at best, Chuckie. Pelosi is a nice lady and probably a great grandma, but a leader she ain't.
I bet Pence will be the next to resign, then....
How do we fill the vacancy of the vice president?
Section 2 of the Twenty-fifth Amendment established a procedure for filling such a vacancy: Whenever there is a vacancy in the office of the Vice President, the President shall nominate a Vice President who shall take office upon confirmation by a majority vote of both Houses of Congress.
And Nikki Haley is appointed by Trump as VP
1
@smithe
Pence will never resign. I suspect that he is secretly hoping that Trump loses his job so he can take over.
4
Fascinating that the school paper scooped the world on this guy’s resignation. Still waiting for the flipper, then, apparently since Volcker looks clean.
4
@Lefthalfbach
Not to short shrift the young reporter one little bit, but Volker is the head of an institute at that university, and as such would likely contact them first.
2
The episode once again brings to light the modus operandi of Rudolph Giuliani. It is akin to that of the Mafia. Resorting to intimidation to get things done is very much a Mafia tactic. So his Intimidation of Ukrainian officials by calling them “enemies of the president [Trump]” should not surprise anyone.
Let's give the Ukrainians the benefit of the doubt: They desperately needed U.S. help in their fight against Russia. They may have thought that Mr. Giuliani was acting on behalf of the president of the U.S., not as an attorney of Trump as a private person. Now that Giuliani has boastfully asserted that he did what he did at the behest of the State Department, we can be almost sure that that was the impression he gave the Ukrainians.
Let’s also give Kurt Volker the benefit of the doubt: As the State Department’s special envoy for Ukraine, he took it as part of his responsibility to accede to a request from the newly elected Ukrainian government to facilitate a meeting between its representative and a representative of the U.S. president. Unless, of course – AND THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT – he knew that Giuliani’s mission was to dig up dirt on Joe Biden and other Democrats. We’ll get the correct picture when the House completes its interview with him.
Impeachment of President Trump is almost a sure thing. Whether he is going to be removed from office will depend upon whether there are enough Republican senators who have the guts to prove to the world that they have spine.
14
@M. P. Prabhakaran Rudy was the lead prosecutor in the historical "Pizza Connection" prosecution in the Southern District of New York, taking down a significant chunk of New York's Organized Crime Families involved in the herione trade. Today, decades later, he is shockingly mimicking the stereotypical persona of those Mob Capos, soldiers he prosecuted, as well as their respective, equally abrasive and bullying, Defense Attorneys.
It's simply a Shakespherean wonder to witness.
11
@Ray
Thank you. That's precisely the point I was making. You are bolder and more direct than I was.
As a private, personal attorney, Mr. Giuliani has no legitimate standing to conduct US foreign policy at any level. Every person involved in facilitating his participation is guilty of sedition, if not outright treason, and deserves appropriate punishment, the president included.
17
Hmm makes me wonder if Moscow Mitch and his refusal to secure our elections is a parallel effort in trump’s grand betrayal? Definitely worth investigating!
20
Volker did what any sane person would do: resign from an unpaid, specially-appointed position because the cost is not worth the benefit. Not by a long shot. The irony of this political circus is that it results in Biden's political fortunes dribbling away instead of President Trump being impeached. What emerges is the easily digestible fact that Hunter Biden was paid $50,000 a month for being appointed to a board co-incidental with his father being Vice-President and in charge of overseeing the Ukraine policy for the Obama administration. That might not be wrong on the face of it, there might be nothing illegal in it, but it smacks of favoritism and privilege. That simple fact will be Biden's undoing because much like the recent Huffman saga, it rankles one's sense of fairness.
5
@Zugzwang While totally in favor of Trump's Impeachment, I would not loose sleep if Biden ends his campaign.There are several Democrat candidates remaining to carry the torch to November 2020.
5
Volker shows vigorous integrity and hints at revulsion in his instant resignation. His account, if he feels free to give it, of what passed between Trump and Selensky at their last meeting, could be crucially revealing. Sitting beside the president in front of cameras, poor Selensky had to say oh no he didn't feel pressure.
The committee's decision to depose is exactly right. It avoids the unreality show of a committee hearing trashed by Republican bullying, and gives space and time for fully pursued answers.
I'll be surprised if Volker doesn't become a determinant in the outcome of this betrayal by the accidental president.
8
I wonder if Giuliani has figured out yet that Trump set him up to be the fall guy on this one. I'm looking forward too seeing what Giuliani will do when he finally does figure it out. He is one of the few who is capable of actually doing damage to Trump if he has an incentive to do so.
In response to that article, the department said in a statement last month that Mr. Volker “has confirmed that, at Presidential Advisor Andriy Yermak’s request, Volker put Yermak in direct contact with Mr. Giuliani.” The statement went on to stress that Mr. Giuliani “is a private citizen and acts in a personal capacity as a lawyer for President Trump — he does not speak on behalf of the U.S. government.”
12
One more factor in the calculus of whether Repubs will give T a pass on this too:
If Pence is deeply enough involved in this that he's also out, the next person in line is Nancy Pelosi.
13
Those in the Whitehouse with actual knowledge of attempting to "cover up" or otherwise hide illegal or other activities should immediately come forward and seek immunity fro m prosecution.
Otherwise, the tier of people..as they begin to "fold' will encompass many who may of thought they were protecting Trump but violating their oath of office in a criminal effort.
Do it now!
7
Kurt D. Volker is a dedicated career State Department employee who is a patriot. Is it any wonder that he opted out of the extended Trump crime family?
9
This is how civilized people protect democracy:
“Kurt was one of the good ones who went in to the administration to stave off disaster,” said Thomas Wright, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution. “They all have to speak out now about everything they know and let the chips fall where they may.”
I won't rest easy until the Senate takes this message to heart. . . and I'm not holding my breath.
9
FoxNew's years long manufactured hatred against Democrats, Diversity and public decorum(aka political correctness) has ultimately created this moment where actual Americans, dressed as Republicans, are willing to subvert our national security, Constitution and morality to Donald J Trump. What a terrifying time to be an American. Our democratic system of government is under assault.
13
To impeach or not impeach. That is the big question. In the mean time “we the people” wait for the lawyers to work on both sides of the isle. In the end, justice shall be done.
3
A talking head pundit on MSNBC last night compared the Trump downfall to the fall of the Berlin wall - one week it was solid and a week later they were dancing on it and tearing it down.
I pray he is right. The cracks are multiplying and we may soon see massive Republican abandonment of Trump - his crimes are too obvious and dangerous to America. A New York Times editorial was terrific in saying Trump will now learn the "majesty" of our democracy.
15
@Paul Shindler
Or more like the toppling of the Saddam Hussein statue in Baghdad. Slowly, torturously leaning, further and further to the ground, but still clinging to an immovable unyielding base. But in the end it falls, and the crowd cheers.
4
Giuliani is a smart/cynical enough guy to understand the game of having someone else (i.e. not him) initiate a contact. By conning Volker into calling him (via the Ukranians) he could then argue for apriori authorization via the State Dept.
A classic set-up.
Only problem is that Pompeo will have none of this, and will likely attempt to skewer Giuliani. One of two things now happens: Giuliani or Pompeo will leave. My bet is that Trump will hang Giuliani out to dry. This is the latter's last swan song, and it will fittingly end on a very bad note.
I hope Giuliani can never eat out in public again without being publicly shamed. He will richly deserve every uncomfortable minute of it.
10
The NY Times reports:
"given Mr. Trump’s open disdain for Ukrainians; “they’re all corrupt and they tried to take me down,” he said in a private meeting last spring."
This is new information for me; I missed the earlier memo that explained Trump's "disdain" for the Ukrainians.
I would be interested in finding out more about this; for example, for how long has Mr Trump felt this way about the country and its leaders?
What efforts did the Ukrainians employ to "take... down" the American president. I missed that story as well.
Most concerning, is the president merely parroting a talking point he picked up from Mr. Putin in one of the "secret" conversations he has had with him, on the phone or in Helsinsky?
This thread about wicked Ukrainians threatening President Trump is one worth pulling on to see where it leads.
13
Like everyone who leaves Trump World, Kurt Volker is leaving with his reputation diminished.
10
Much if not all of this can be seen as a consequence of Mr. Trump's lack of a cohesive foreign policy and his use of public office for private gain. Hundreds if not thousands of positions have never been filled or are held by acting officials rather than Senate-confirmed officials. As Trump said, he'd rather have acting officials, because he has more control over them.
We must continue to investigate why Rudy Giuliani was involved in presumably diplomatic negotiations. Or was he there only to press an investigation of the Bidens to help Trump's reelection campaign?
99
I think for various individuals to resign will be the only positive result of this entire ordeal.
Once House lawmakers’ investigation is complete they can decide whether or not to recommend articles of impeachment to be specifically brought against the president.
The House Judiciary Committee would vote on these charges and then advance them to a vote by the full House.
The House then decides if it officially wants to charge the president on these counts, a move that requires a simple majority to pass.
If those articles pass or those charges are brought forth, the Senate can hold a trial to decide if they want to convict or acquit the president. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell will decide to move forward or decline to do anything about those charges.
To convict the president and remove him from office, two-thirds of Senators, or 67 of them, would have to vote to do it.
Thus far, the House has impeached two sitting presidents but the Senate has not convicted either of them.
Somehow I don't see the third time being a charm.
This entire situation will be like the 2016 presidential results:
Clinton won the popular vote yet Trump won the electoral vote.
The evidence will show and prove Trump's guilt but McConnell will not only give Trump a "get out of jail free" card but more power than ever.
13
@Marge Keller
"The evidence will show and prove Trump's guilt but McConnell will not only give Trump a 'get out of jail free' card but more power than ever."
I disagree. The Republicans hold a tenuous 53-47 majority in the Senate. McConnell will fight to do whatever it takes to preserve his Republican majority, even if it means throwing Mr. Trump under the bus.
Gardner (R-CO), McSally (R-AZ), Tillis (R-NC), and Collins (R-ME) are extremely vulnerable. McConnell himself has a 50% disapproval rating in KY. There are many more Senate seats that could flip blue in 2020.
Senator approval ratings:
https://morningconsult.com/senator-rankings-q2-19-2/
6
@Marge Keller
Is it possible that Congress might vote to impeach, but delays forwarding the articles to impeach to the Senate until after the next general election? Is that legal?
The reason I ask this is that, with the evidence before them, the American people might choose (through a majority of the Electoral College) to put someone else at the Resolute Desk.
Or is my reasoning just creative fantasy?
2
@Marge Keller The responses of US government officials-of either party-will be influenced by their personal character and moral fiber. If our elected representatives can/will put the sworn duty to the country before their 'loyalty' to this flawed individual, their positions will be secure. If not-future elections-400+ days-will be in question. "Now is the time for all good men/women to come to the aid of their country". Who said that? When? Are those words too 'corny' at the present time. Who really believed Trump's 'gamble' as president would go well?
3
Given Volker’s quiet knowledge of, and participation in, the solicitation of foreign assistance to interfere in a U.S. election, isn’t his attempted-career-salvaging resignation now a bit too little too late?
His salary was not even at stake.
Has no one that works for Trump any ethics?
36
@SRP
The novela is heating up and gaining audience. “We the people” will decide it’s end, one way or another.
1
@SRP
I read it differently.
Perhaps he was too cowardly to speak out while it was all happening; but now that the Whistleblower has exposed the situation, he feels that he can express his disgust by resigning (and eventually start talking about what he knows)?
Perhaps he thought that he could lessen the damage being caused by Trump by remaining in the position?
Perhaps he's one of the people who provided the Whistleblower with some of the info in his complaint?
Perhaps he's thinking that he can speak more freely to Congress about what he knows if he's no longer "working" for the Trump Admin? Maybe this prevents Trump from attempting to assert "Executive Privilege" over what he wants to say? Perhaps even if he was too cowardly to speak out while he was in the position, he's realized that the Whistleblower's risky but patriotic actions compel him to do the same?
Unlike many in Trump's admin, people seem to think he's not just a swampy Trump sycophant. And why else would he take a "job" without pay, except that he's invested his career in foreign service and actually cares about Ukraine's plight against Russia's aggression?
For now, I'm willing to give him the benefit of the doubt.
And who knows; maybe he will give Congress explosive testimony that will bring down Trump? (John Dean redux!)
@SRP
<>
Of course not, why on earth would you expect them to??
This is troubling, indeed. Full honesty and clarity is required, and I expect Congress will receive it.
And special thanks to the ASU student newspaper for breaking this story.
55
@Bob Woods
"and I expect Congress will receive it."
What optimism. I expect Bill Barr to obstruct, make up novel interpretations of the law, lie and prevaricate to protect this president. It's worked for them for this long, I don't see why it will be any different going forward.
They were caught flat footed this week, but once they take a breath and get a bit more disciplined you can expect more lawlessness and corruption from this DoJ.
6
Let’s hope that Volker remembers the oath he took to defend and protect the constitution of the United States and calls on his inner Joe Wilson when he appears before congress. America needs patriots at this point in our history.
60
I am reminded of the Trump supporters wearing T-shirts that said, "I'd rather be Russian than a Democrat."
Apparently Mr. Volker is not wearing that shirt.
Senate Republicans, how many of you are wearing that shirt?
It's time to put country over party.
119
When I wake up every morning and seeing the latest antics of Trump's presidency and telling myself it can't get more worse and yet he never fails to amaze me by reaching further down the cesspool to find another means to destroy what is left of the decency of the office of the presidency.
It is at this time I am reminding of a quote by Winston Churchill during the darkest days in WWII when he declared "Now this is not the end. It is not even the beginning of the end. But it is, perhaps, the end of the beginning."
31
Wasn’t it also Churchill who said that the Americans will do the right thing...after they’ve done everything else.
Maybe we are getting there?
6
ive been thinking of Chamberlin waving his agreement with Hitler and saying it would bring "peace in our time". We should have learned what happens when you appease an autocrat determined to build, or in Putin's case rebuild, an empire. Trump is doing even more than we knew to support Putin's hostile take over of Ukraine. I hope you are right, its the end of the beginning of Trump and the damage he has caused the US and the world.
Every day this gets worse, for America and for folks like Volker and Trump. What, one wonders, is the connection between Volker's resignation, his own likely wrongdoing, and his subpoena? One hopes he will tell the truth. Yesterday we learned that Trump, in one of the phone calls that was hidden in this classified system, explicitly said to Putin and Lavrov that he wouldn't mind if they sabotaged our 2016 presidential election. Lordy. Why weren't these phone calls part of the Mueller investigation? What do Mueller and his team think now? Is that a criminal conspiracy yet?
40
Is Mayor Guiliani suggesting that Mr. Volker is the whistleblower or is one those insiders who spoke with the whistle blower about Ukraine?
If either one or the other turns out to be true, who might have told the Mayor? Could the President be the source? or the White House Counsel? or the Attorney General? or the counsel at the CIA? or, maybe, the acting Director of National Intelligence?
3
This is all so very confusing and complicated. You just do not know what is it you have to look first.
Just like Mr. Volker's departure, there are several others, professionals like him, who have left their services.
Something that has become very clear is that our career minded professionals are becoming a vanishing breed. They have much to contribute to our country. It is just that their training, expertise, knowledge and professionalism, is unappreciated.
This is sad.
15
@citizen
"This is all so very confusing and complicated."
Actually, it is all very straightforward. The root of all of Mr. Trump's problems is conflict of interest.
Mr. Trump is incapable of separating his personal life from his campaign from his job as president of the United States.
Hence, as just one example, he sent his personal lawyer Giuliani to engage in foreign policy with Ukraine regarding U.S. taxpayer aid in order to further his re-election campaign and settle a personal grudge regarding Joe Biden. It is all the same to him. Mr. Trump believes he _IS_ the United States.
7
@citizen
Their training, expertise, knowledge, and professionalism is appreciated by the informed citizenry. But is that enough to inspire the next generation?
2
Hoping that, during The Reconstruction, experienced people and young new talent will be motivated to answer the call.
1
It is inconceivable that congressional Republicans would either remain silent or defend what Trump admits he did: support Trump's attempt to extort "collusion" from the president of Ukraine. Knowing full well an appropriation for weapons to defend Ukraine from its nemesis Russian was pending at the time. No quid pro quo Republicans claim: I say NONSENSE.
18
Sadly I don’t share your confidence in this Republican Party. Ronald Reagan is turning over in his grave as these grifters in expensive suits sell out US national security in order to cling to power.
3
It does appear that facts and documents will again leave the frenzied hordes in the lurch.
Why nobody bothered to ask whether there was an open investigation into Biden’s corruption by either the Ukraine or the DOJ or both is beyond me.
All lathered up and no water to rinse off.
1
@Ken Well I don't know who bothered with what but I do know the answer to the question: No.
Sliming folks with innuendo on Fox is easy. Once people are testifying under oath and answering questions, not so much.
6
There was none. Ukraine has already said so!
If DOJ was conducting one, it is almost assuredly a fabricated one, much like the Republicans' effort with Benghazi and Clinton.
1
I knew Volker had way too much character to work with the likes Giuliani and Trump, the lumpen element of American Politics.v
12
@Bobby
It has been shown that classism shares the same roots as racism.
So I object to the term "lumpen" used for Trump and his wealthy ilk. People who work their body off for meager wages often have a better sense of reality than members of our financial elite, particularly people like Trump and Giuliani and the wealthy corporations and their CEOs (and of course all the people born to wealth) that are supporting our present regime.
Otherwise I might agree with your comment
It amazes me how many people choose to work with Trump and his administration. He is a sawmill that completely shreds and destroys the integrity and reputation of everyone in his orbit, leaving him standing. I guess people are very drawn to power no matter how corrupt it is.
27
All this smoke over the past three years, and finally an actual fire is discovered. And yet, we still have one major news network, the bulk of the GOP in both houses of Congress, and all the pliant walking dead supporters who refuse to acknowledge a serious crime by their leader. If they don't die in the fire, it will be by smoke inhalation.
19
@Steve
Or do the fire trucks arrive and save the GOP and the “pliant walking dead supporters,” while melting the witch that caused the fire?
"...Mr. Volker “has confirmed that, [he] put Yermak in direct contact with Mr. Giuliani.” The statement went on to stress that Mr. Giuliani “is a private citizen and acts in a personal capacity as a lawyer for President Trump — he does not speak on behalf of the U.S. government.”"
Hmm, Giuliani is trying to use the fact that Volker made the intro to defend his actions...but, there is clear confirmation (above) that he was acting as a private citizen, yet at the same time plying for dirt on Biden/Dems by using undue pressure at Trump's design. I'm no lawyer, but a private citizen using the power of the U.S. Presidency to enlist foreign aid against a rival candidate sounds awfully illegal to me. Oh wait, I am a lawyer, and it is illegal.
60
When will decent people realize that coming anywhere close to Trump will be their fall and that history will record them as having served a corrupt and stupid administration.
77
I don’t see how the Ambassador did anything wrong; quite the contrary. And there’s been a fair question as to whether one should work in this government and try to limit the damage, or bail, aince January, 2016.
Did you vote?
7
@Robert
Volker was not an Ambassador, he was a Special Envoy to Ukraine. He was an unpaid, part-time volunteer. And what he did was wrong. And, apparently, he knows it.
5
1. Working for Trump.
2. Setting up meetings for Giuliani.
3. Engaging in diplomatic actions outside of channels.
4. Supporting an effort that had been publicly reported on and was privately known that Trump and Rudy wanted dirt on Biden, the DNC, and Hillary.
5. Not being a whistleblower himself.
Lots of things he did wrong.
And, yes, I voted as I am sure the OP did. That seems to be a snarky, ad hominem attack -- even if they hadn't voted, they still have every right to express an opinion about what's going on.
11
“He should step forward and explain what he did,” Mr. Giuliani said on Fox News.
“The whistle-blower falsely alleges that I was operating on my own. Well, I wasn’t operating on my own!”
The lady doth protest too much, methinks.
The Trump Titanic sails on full speed into a sea of icebergs.
Heckuva’ job, GOP.
178
“I think the Giuliani that I know would prosecute the Giuliani of today," said Jeffrey Harris, who worked closely with him in the 1980s.” Nice summary of what Rudy has become
224
@Dutch
Maybe the Giuliani of today is working deep, deep deep undercover?
3
Foes or friends alike are all moving ahead leaving the US behind fighting in the dust in despair and the people's business is kidnapped by this immature boy-king to make his Ego feeling Great Again.
30
Does anyone else feel the eerie parallel to Watergate? Wanted to be like Jackson, looking far more like Nixon.
30
This one IS different... Trump allegedly used foreign aid funds to get a foreign leader to smear a political rival... its a derivation of what Mueller couldn't prove... ITS IS COLLUSION .... actually worse than Russian meddling because Trump initiated it.
73
@Spinach Jam and theft of public funds.
5
Jared Kushner must have been tied up bringing peace to the Middle East, or upgrading the air traffic system, or kanoodling with the Saudi's, so Guiliani is now trump's secret agent man. Why trump's personal lawyer is involved is expected. The consiglieri always tends to the don's business when the mob needs a glimmer of respectability. That Guiliani is now trump's State Department is not surprising either. The State Department is in shambles and has no clue what trump will think of next, or what Putin will want from him.
So we have two doddering men working over foreign countries to get trump re-elected. That's not unexpected either.
What was unexpected was Speaker Pelosi having enough of the corruption and starting the Inquiry.
Time to fight back and make America great again.
77
To the doltish trump supporters and congressional comrades in red who say his phone call was a giant nothingburger, this is but one small example of real world fallout that damages our national security and diplomatic efforts with allies and enemies alike.
One phone call, and look at the sweeping damage.
53
Michael Lewis’ Fifth Risk does a great job highlighting the real risk to
national security posed by the incompetent political hacks and self-enriching poseurs Trump has brought into his Temp Agency Administration - so much for the Businessman President - grocery store owners run a tighter ship!
4
Rudy G.,Rush L.,Shawn H.,Laura I.,many on Foxy herd,Putin of Russia & Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia are the first & foremost advisers of US’s President together with foxtail Republicans in US congressional crowd now in control of our democracy,state affairs and elections. With handful of rogue states voters who aren’t yet ready to grasp wrongs Vs.rights,lies Vs.truths,facts Vs.fictions and personal Vs.national interests & security are in control of election outcomes. The republicans have destroyed the very fabric of bipartisanship seen so far since the contract with America lies throated in very few American minds which is a dangerously hurtful way for Main Street Americans interests. Phytoist.
14
The blame game begins! Everyone around this president has been corrupted. Who will he ruin next?
28
The USS trump is taking in water fast. Its motley crew are confused-- start bailing or jump ship?
26
People have been bailing (or been fired for serving America and the Rule of Law First) from Trump’s Temp Agency Administration for the past three years.
Serving Trump is not the same as serving their country as most sane appointees soon learn.
@Donna: Judging from the sickening corrupt litany of excuses and deflections coming from the Republicans in the House, they've chosen to bail as fast as they can and pretend that they aren't sinking.
https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2019/us/politics/trump-impeachment-congress-list.html
Some cracks in a terrified GOP already on display...
The have "concerns"...
Well better than nothing, but it still not much from cowardly bunch.
Not enough on a grave matters of National Security.
PROFILE IN COURAGE ANYONE???
21
@faivel1: "Concerns" is not quite up to the level of "thoughts and prayers".
1
"Giuliani cancels paid appearance next week at Kremlin-backed conference." Well we got one resignation from state department and the person who caused this mayhem, Rudy Giuliani, was still planning to attend a conference with Putin and Co. The sheer shamelessness of these people is breathtaking. 2 years of investigation of being a Russian stooge and they are still attending conferences with Putin. Just unbelievable. Only the impeachment can stop these criminals. Or jail. Nothing less will stop this criminal cabal.
49
Let's move this scandal to Everytown, America.
Don knows that his neighbor Volodymr was laid off after his workplace closed, so he could lose his house. Don gave Volodymr money in the past, and Volodymr has approached to ask for more money until he finds a new job.
Don owns a restaurant and is annoyed with a competing restaurant owner (lJoe) who’s been drawing away customers. Don hears through the grapevine that Joe’s son Hunter used to work at Volodymr’s old company, and there was gossip that Hunter was involved when the finance department at Volodymr’s old company misappropriated employee pension funds.
So Don tells Volodymr: “If I give you that $10,000 loan, could you do me a favor?” Volodymr says, “What sort of favor?” Don says, “I want you to ask around and provide evidence that Hunter was involved with your old company's pension fund scandal. When that evidence is printed in all the papers and makes Hunter notorious, then I’ll give you that $10,000 loan.” Lenny is desperate for the money, but he knows that Hunter was not part of the pension fund scandal. He tells Don, “Look. Hunter was already investigated and cleared. I can't give you evidence of corruption when there was no corruption!” Don says, “Hey, those are my terms. If you want the 10K, you know what I want.”
This is the president that we have. A slimy, reprehensible heel. If Don thought Hunter really broke the law, he would have contacted local law enforcement--not bribed his desperate neighbor!
43
Dear Mr. Giuliani,
How does it feel to follow in Michael Cohen's footsteps?
36
Meanwhile, look at all the "acting" officials in the Trump administration. Acting White House Chief of Staff Mick Mulvaney. Acting Director of Intelligence Joseph Maguire. The list goes on and on and on.
How many of these actors will be forced to break the fourth wall, when they are subpoenaed to testify before Congress?
23
@MidtownATL
Mick Mulvaney, "acting shadow president" and trump's crooked money man!
2
@msprinker
The saddest thing is that Mick Mulvaney is an intelligent and articulate man, who potentially had many good years ahead of him. (I disagree with his political positions, but I used to have some respect for his political abilities.) Like Icarus, his hubris got the best of him.
Mulvaney hitched his cart to the wrong horse. And he will pay the price. He is now doomed to spend the rest of his professional life as an AM talk radio host with a limited broadcast range that spans a few counties in South Carolina.
2
All of Ukraine may soon be once again part of Russia.
Republicans can then argue who lost Ukraine to the Communists. I have a name for them.
13
Now we know that several people are behind the whistleblower complaint. The super secret server will cough up more secrets soon! Trump is almost certain to lose his election probably even the primaries. Moscow Mitch and Sen. Lindsey Graham are going to be eating alot of “nothing burger” after the election. Too bad they’re too stupid to do something now to save their skins.
17
What happened to Trump's little Dutch boy who should have put his finger in the White House dike to keep all the putrid corruption of the Trumpian swamp from flowing out into the public environs of D.C.? Rudy Giuliani's fingers are too fat, like his brain, and Kelly Ann Conway, despite amazingly heroic efforts, cannot reverse the outpouring torrent of corruption flooding into the mainstream media. How will the Republicans' defense of this president affect their re-election chances ?
10
Most people who shill for Trump end up in jail or on Dancing with the Stars. Maybe Volker is smart enough to realize this. Time will tell if anybody else in the administration is.
14
In the end, I fear we will find many who valiantly tried to serve their country by containing the damage wrought by a President who was serving his own interests instead of the interests of the country.
The ones who cooperate with the impeachment inquiry will show who the true patriots are.
74
The armed confrontation in Ukraine is not with " Russia-sponsored separatists", it is with Russia. This war was not started by any kind of "separatists", nor is separation its goal.
44
Hey, calling all media! Please, please, balance out the impeachment news with news about the amazing slate of Democratic candidates. The current President is facing impeachment yesterday, today and for days and weeks to come as the investigation movies forward. In contrast, let's hear about what the Democratic candidates are doing, and saying to the American people. The majority of the words we are reading are about Trump, including his ridiculous tweets. The majority of the news we are hearing is about Trump. I'd love to hear, to see, to read, in contrast, what Joe Biden, Elizabeth Warren, Bernie Sanders, Andrew Yang, Amy Klobuchar, Kamala Harris, Cory Booker, Tulsi Gabbard, Michael Bennet and all still seeking the Presidency, are doing today, tomorrow and in the weeks and months to come. What a wonderful balance and contrast that would be! Don't make the same mistake in this election cycle as in 2016 - where most of the reporting was on Trump. He likes it that way. Don't continue to be seduced by his outrageous behavior.
58
@TR NJ
Don't forget Mayor Pete.
16
@TR NJ
Don't you think it has to be done to be able to reach as many of his supporters as possible, and I'm not talking about his cult base, more about the people who voted for him, but have a hard time to admit to their mistake, what happened with Ukraine scandal gives them the chance to change their mind.
Plus I'm sure so many things will come out with Putin, and Saudi prince, since it was done on many occasions and placed on secret treasure trove server by his officials.
Brace yourself, the circus is in town!!!
4
The Media made Trump with millions of dollars of free publicity. They are doing it again. Very good point.
2
Kurt Volker is not going to jail to protect trump. How many more will do this in upcoming days?
47
With funds having been frozen for a while, no ambassador to the Ukraine, no top level Ukraine experts within the State Dept., Russia has an easier time pursuing its agenda there.
No surprise that Russia was so eager to help get trump elected.
Perhaps that's one of the things that was discussed between Putin and trump in those secret meetings....
trump isn't only dangerous for Americans - the whole world is reeling.
63
So it begins: as in Watergate, first a trickle of defections, then the spigot opens, as the conspirators realize their legal jeopardy. I can't wait for Giuliani's testimony (he'll claim it's all attorney-client privilege) and Barr's (executive privilege).
Since the defense of Ukraine is connected to Russia, when will Moscow Mitch finally realize that this is truly a matter of national security? Or will he be too busy protecting his wife against investigation into her connections to Chinese shipping? And the rest of the Republicans: hopeless, with Lindsay Graham leading the pack. The Senate Republicans have truly become the collection of "deplorables" during the reign of the Don.
52
Anyone ethical and competent that is serving in this administration will be forced to do things that break the norms. And then forced to do even worse things. And eventually resign.
These are dark times that will hollow out our civil services.
27
It is discouraging to read about the departure of Mr. Volker from the State Department because it appears that he is an honorable, capable, and well-intentioned individual. Maybe if Volker can shed some light on the level of dysfunction and corruption within the Trump administration's Ukraine policy it will hasten the removal of Trump and his kind from office, and help check Putin in his efforts to expand Russian control in eastern Europe.
15
It's never a good sign when they start to leave the ship, and that's exactly what the sudden departure of Trump's envoy for Ukraine, Kurt D. Volcker means.
Aside from the fact that this also indicates a person with intelligence, experience and morals is leaving a post and administration in sore need of one -- it shows just how inhospitable and untenable it must be to work in an environment ruled by the cowardice and whims of a president who will stop at nothing to remain in office.
The last act has begun.
Time for a subpoena.
29
“Kurt was one of the good ones who went in to the administration to stave off disaster,”
this will be on his tomb stone..... along with all the others that came to "serve" and were left in tatters. the acting head of intelligence will be gone soon as well in spite of his friends saying he would never abandon "a mission". where do they get these people??
13
Another indication of the mess Trump and his White House mafia have made in our foreign relations. It is also another indication of why talented individuals who could help our nation navigate the complex process of diplomacy, refuse to work for Trump. It seems that anything this man touches turns into scandal that ruins the careers of trusted and talented persons. Unfortunately, Volker is now another one of those casualties.
12
“Kurt was one of the good ones who went in to the administration to stave off disaster,”
The so-called "good ones", like Volker and DNI McGuire, had to know they were wandering into a radioactive zone bigger than Chernobyl.
The question is why would they trash their careers. Has our government machinery been stuffed with too many chain-of-command types who see their duty as following orders?
10
@Look Ahead
Have you ever worked for, or been friends with, someone who treats others poorly, but you believe that person won’t do the same to you? You may love your job or have a relationship with this individual that dates back to your playground days.
You convince yourself that staying on the job, or maintaining the friendship is the right thing to do because you can mitigate the damage done to others.
Eventually, you do find yourself on the receiving end. It was always bound to happen. So, in a state of semi-shock, you ask, “How could I have been so foolish?” And then you leave the job or end the friendship. I suspect, some form of this has been played out in many of our lives.
I’m not excusing anyone’s actions, simply explaining how people can lie to themselves with the best of intentions.
6
An astronaut in orbit could see that Trump never had a shred of integrity, honesty or competence even before he became the US President.
If power corrupts and and absolute power corrupts absolutely, then the hubristic desire to be near power, even when wielded by the no-good likes of Trump, blinds absolutely.
Volker is, ostensibly, just the latest in a long line of would-be good guys and gals who told themselves that their presence among this Trumpian cabal of scoundrels will "help" or "make a difference" despite what their own eyes and ears tell them, correctly, that a Trumpster Fire of this magnitude can't be saved, not even by them.
Note that Nikki Haley jumped ship long ago. And speaking of Ambassador Haley, is that her I detect waiting in the wings?
23
Folks like Kurt Volker don't suddenly resign. His actions speak almost as loudly as Trump's constant yapping of innocence.
Hopefully others will follow suit like Volker and resign.
May this resignation be the first of many.
32
Very soon the GOP Senators will also al tell 46th that they NOT with his lies, and that is the end of all, forcing him to resign even after the votes in Senate for Impeachment counted.
2
Mr.Giuliani is a private attorney working for Trump.
How much is his salary and who pays it?
23
@vince
What legal work is he involved in that government
attorneys could not perform instead?
6
@Vince
I’d also be interested to know how his trips were financed.
7
@vince Giuliani repeatedly says he is not paid - his company is paid. So the question to Giuliani really should be, "How much does your company receive from Trump and then pay you for your services to Trump?" (And after that, "What is your ownership share of the company?" My bet is that he is 100% owner.)
5
On the subject of "quid pro quo", I would invite people to read pp 291-292 of Mick Herron's "Dead Lions" (2013) describing the attempted recruitment of a putative Russian presidential candidate, which also explains why it may be that Trump and Guiliani were both played:
"...all that mattered was that Pashkin's path be made smooth. Later, debts would be called in, suggestions made as to how Pashkin might repay the kindness of foreigners. Even if no tangible favours were bestowed, simply meeting Webb rendered Pashkin compromised....
" 'I'm here to help. Officially, I don't speak for HMG.' Modest cough. 'But any request you make will find a sympathetic hearing where it will do most good.'
"Cosmetic aid was what Pashkin would want. To be seen in the company of movers and shakers, and reckoned a force in the world. A photo op with the PM, drinks at Number 10, a little attention from the press. Once you were taken seriously, you were taken seriously. If Pashkin's star rose in the west, it would cast light in the east."
10
Quoting from the article...
In response to that article, the department said in a statement last month that Mr. Volker “has confirmed that, at Presidential Advisor Andriy Yermak’s request, Volker put Yermak in direct contact with Mr. Giuliani.” The statement went on to stress that Mr. Giuliani “is a private citizen and acts in a personal capacity as a lawyer for President Trump — he does not speak on behalf of the U.S. government.”
But actually, Mr. Giuliani does speak on behalf of the president, which means he is speaking on behalf of the government, the US shadow government.
17
@Steve That is just what more of us need to understand: Donald Trump acts in his own, personal 'best interest' (as he sees it) even-maybe especially even when he is using the power of his-elected/sworn-office to benefit himself-personally. May Mitch McConnell and his colleagues finally accept that. They can live-keep their positions-for future administrations that are more loyal to the country they 'serve'. They have no reason to support this man at the expense of their party and their country.
It seems not only Guiliani but also Volcker was a free agent in this Ukrainian intrigue. If you're an "unpaid volunteer" setting up meetings with a president's personal attorney and Ukrainian government officers, exactly who in the U.S. government controls your words and actions? Who in government is accountable? You would think Sec. of State Mike Pompeo but he was appointed by and serves at the pleasure of the president who is the subject of this investigation. What a tangled web. Get all the spiders out of our government.
19
Sad day for the Ukraine and for us. I just cannot see how anyone could deal with crazy looking and sounding Giuliani. His eye rolling and gyrating hands and out of touch with reality ideas would make it near impossible. But sanity and expertise are not wanted by Trump, only overt, craven flattery and suicidal loyalty are required it seems.
15
Well at least one of those in the administration and knowledge of the Ukraine affair found a conscience and resigned as soon as his involvement was revealed.
9
Trump's loyalty lies with Russia. That is becoming very clear. His disdain for the Ukraine may be a result of Russian machinations and rumor mongering much like the way they influenced the elections. Now we know that many Trump conversations with Russians and Saudis were locked down. Trump is like the man who came to a pizza joint with a loaded gun based on Russia-backed rumors. He is doing their bidding which is terribly sad for our country and the world.
12
@Greenfield
While I agree with you, I think Trump’s first loyalty has always been Trump.
4
@Dunn Arceneaux
And then Russia after that. The U.S. doesn't even make the top 500 for Trump.
He or she that sings first gets the sweetest deal. I sense harmonies in the making.
People took notice that Michael Cohen went to jail for illegal acts on Trumps behalf, and Trump did nothing.
No one wants to be the next Paul Manafort. Expect him to resurface with information that would cause re-sentencing.
The National Russian Association facing charges on being unregistered foreign agents. Russian monies funnel thru it to the Republican party. And of course the comprat the Russians have on them.
Could the Times be kind enough to print a scorecard, or spreadsheet as this will all become overwhelming shortly.
We just thought it was hard keeping track of Democratic presidential candidates.
5
Morals and ethics are in the dustbin of history.
7
Giuliani is a real piece of work. He spoke to a representative of Zelensky at the request of Volker (our State Department Ukrainian connection) and claimed that he did so because the “State Department asked.”
What he fails to say in his TV interview is that the reason he was asked to do this was because the President gave his name originally and explicitly to President Zelensky as the person to contact to discuss any dirt on the Bidens. (Being the President’s private lawyer, it is highly likely that Trump discussed this how-to dig up dirt on Biden plan with Giuliani.).
It is unlikely that Volker knew that was the origin of the person request and it may also be unlikely that the State Department knew of the President’s conversation which started this go around. Did Pompeo know? Who, if anyone in the State Dept. knew?
Jeez! When government goes rogue it reads like a spy novel.
6
Mr. Giuliani, according to his account of the relationships, is not an employee of the federal government but is President Trump's personal attorney. But he clarified: neither the US nor the President pays him. Then he's not an employee and Trump is not a client (and there is no attorney-client privilege). He's Trump's friend, or maybe just a volunteer but he has no standing. Yet he's sent to pressure Ukraine and attend Putin and Soviet Bloc events as merely a friend of Trumps. He should've just sent Ivanka or Eric. How could things have become so bizarre and so completely unglued?
74
@Lee Newton Jared could have handled this for sure.
5
@Lee Newton he shouldn’t have sent anyone to invite collusion.
10
@Lee Newton
An attorney doesn't have to be paid in order for there to be attorney-client privilege.
I am not surprised he is stepping down.
I hope he lives up to his reputation and voluntarily speaks publicly to Congress --but subpoena him if necessary. I think the public deserves to hear from him.
79
It’s September and last week we all saw the premiere episode of The Apprentice. This season should be a doozy!
23
@Jeff Jones
Ouch
This shows the precarious position that Trump eventually puts everyone in. I guess we can't know at this point why Mr. Volker facilitated that meeting with Giuliani and Yermak, but hopefully, he will be willing to explain under oath. Anyone who stays with Trump eventually gets tainted in some way.
44
@Rick
And now Trump's removal of U.S. ambassador to Ukraine is also emerging as key event in whistleblower complaint.
8
@JM
Yeah, that's another part of the puzzle. I hope that all of these people will be allowed to give their side of the story. I know what I suspect, but too much is just unknown at this point.
2
How is it that Kurt Volker went from being the U.S. Ambassador to NATO in 2008 to being an unpaid volunteer "special envoy" to Ukraine in the Trump administration, while also working in the private sector for a Washington-based lobbying firm and international investment bank and other Wall Street connections since he left public service in 2009? At the very least, it's time to lock the revolving door between high-level civil and military service and lobbying/consulting firms/Wall Street banks. If you work for the American people as a diplomat, you have been well-paid and if you did your job well, you should get a plaque and a gold watch and good retirement benefits. You should not then be able to use that public service to get rich by influencing our government from the outside on behalf of for-profit entities. I believe Elizabeth Warren has a plan for that and it needs to be enacted very soon. Drain the swamp and pave it over so it can't be refilled.
129
@abigail49
I wonder if Volker worked part-time??, on leave from his University job?? in order to jump ship quickly.
I assume he was brought in on an as needed basis to cover for the Trump incompetency, and probably filled the position as a favor to someone else in the administration, or even outside of the administration.
But at bottom, he appears to be a soldier of sorts helping the GOP keep the president's presidential ship afloat.
3
@abigail49 I hope your Liz Warren quip was facetious because she is on record as saying she Wouldn't have a problem with her VP's child working for a foreign entity...Just as she has no problem with her daughter working in the Pharma industry while negotiating supposedly better coverage for Americans
@Moana I don't think we can expect the children, parents, spouses and other relatives of public servants to limit their career choices to avoid a potential conflict of interests. It would be a vast improvement just to prevent former public officials from lobbying.
1
There is a certain kind of fatigue that sets in with the Trump administration. A new low with every breaking news item. It's what we've come to expect. But don't let the cartoon quality of the characters lead to lethargy; the public, the media and congress need to stay with it. It's time for Trump and his crew to be held accountable.
53
As I understand it, Mr. Volker was an unpaid, part-time special envoy to Ukraine and not on the State Department payroll so Giuliani cannot claim that his mission to Ukraine was approved by the State Department. Unless, of course, Pompeo approved it, in which case Pompeo is a coconspirator liable for both impeachment and criminal prosecution.
59
@Christy, One must be aware of the term 'unpaid partime special envoy'; that is a cover designation. .......Mr Volker is an Asset; and he is aware of how 'he can collect rent', just by being in that critical place, for the American Strategic Value and its leverage; Just as Donald Trump; as President , and his name for his business enterprise is collecting ' Rent'......., because he understand the leverage of the office, and his narcissistic sensibilities for going beyond the protocol boundaries of the Presidency.
The disdain he has for the plebians, whose nakedness', he has courted by entertaining their emotional eyes and ears, which keeps them in his silo.
2
Apparently we've redefined "good guys" to include those who facilitate the conduct of foreign policy by a private individual operating in secret.
20
In a just world, this would be but the first of many resignations—starting here and going towards the top.
15
This to me looks like good news for our country. I suspect he resigned knowing that he’d be fired next week after telling Congress what he knows.
15
I read all the articles, watch all the cable channels, including the Trump News Network, except between 7-11pm, and I still come to only one conclusion:
Trump will be impeached but not convicted.
And God help this country if he were to win a second term.
22
@slime2 then do your utmost to ensure it doesn't.
Mobilize. Organize. Donate. Vote.
5
@slime2: Mitch is thinking this over carefully....He and the Republicans aren't loyal to any one person; they just want their party to be in charge. Trump as candidate was a gamble before, is a bigger gamble now. But if the Senate convicts Trump, they can let Pence be a figurehead President for a bit. Mitch and his party congratulate themselves for being so nonpartisian, putting the country first.... Pence does not pardon Trump, doing the right thing....Then the Republicans nominate a rational sounding conservative, kinda religious but not nutty like Mike, anti-abortion, and voila, they might just win again with a chance at two terms.
1
"Now this is not the end. It is not even the beginning of the end. But it is, perhaps, the end of the beginning."
Winston Churchill
He said it all...
Our present American tragedy might carry a bit of silver lining, kind of like here's your chance, get it right this time!
17
I’ve been clinging to another Churchill quote since the 2016 campaign:
“America will do the right thing in the end, because America always does. But only after they’ve first tried everything else.”
9
Very unwise of Volker to enable Drumpf’s machinations at all.
Now he’s going to pay the price for his cowardice, all for an unpaid position.
Just like our parents said: ALWAYS DO THE RIGHT THING.
13
What protection is afforded to a “whistleblower” who does not have first-hand knowledge and works for the CIA? Does the law apply?
1
@Kyle Martin I guy hears about a murder from five different sources, maybe more. All of the sources corroborate each other, the stories add up. You'd rather this guy stay silent about said murder? I'm quite sure the prosecutor would offer him immunity. The real answer to your question though is painfully obvious: Call in all of the officials who apparently do have first-hand knowledge and ask them questions under oath. Very simple. Of course, right now they are all checking with each other and figuring out their story so no one gets the Big Man in trouble. Oh what a tangled web....
1
I find it interesting that the majority of republicans are saying, “there’s nothing there” since all of this information has come to light. I remember they couldn’t wait to impeach former President Clinton for lying under oath about sex acts in the Oval Office. I guess they feel that Trump’s transgressions are somehow less than? I’m a democrat, but I supported Clinton’s impeachment because he lied under oath. No one should be above the law. Trump’s done much worse in my opinion. Maybe Republicans and democrats (yes, I’m talking to those of you who place more value on your elections instead of doing what’s right) should stop worrying about their powerful jobs and start upholding our constitution. Do the right thing.
36
May this be the first of many dominoes to fall. And may Trump, himself, be the last.
14
This could be the first major crack in the Trump wall. This is a man with some character who is not beholden to Trump. He could implicate Rudy and Pompeo directly. And most likely, he knows more about the call that is hidden in the secret vault.
13
"Mr. Volker, a widely respected former ambassador to NATO,"
How long will it take before respected people no longer sign up to have ANY connection with the Trump administration? Being connected with an ignorant conman who looks out for himself is a sure way to become involved in something shady.
17
@Carol Ring Volker may have been "widely respected" while he worked for our government, but check out his Wikipedia bio. For 10 years, he has worked on Wall Street and as a lobbyist.
4
@Carol Ring yup -- and when you like down with dogs you get up with fleas. ugh.
"Mr. Giuliani 'is a private citizen and acts in a personal capacity as a lawyer for President Trump — he does not speak on behalf of the U.S. government.'"
Why is the president's private attorney involved in U.S. foreign policy?
322
@MidtownATL: For the personal interests of D. Trump and family?
21
The president of United States can appoint anyone he wants to to be a diplomatic emissary or special envoy. I would think that anyone reading the newspaper over the last 35 years would know this to be common knowledge.
2
@MidtownATL
Does he have the necessary security clearance?
15
Here’s a random thought. Could Putin, the KGB master, have manipulated the weak-minded Trump with tales of Biden corruption, Hillary’s missing server and other conspiracy blather to eliminate aid or comfort to Ukraine for the benefit of Russia?
136
@P Maris
No doubt. It's a well known fact that KGB officers are particularly intelligent and trained to be able to coerce and manipulate.
What's interesting to me is the following: if it had been a US intelligence officer that would have pulled strings to leave the Ukraine in a precarious position vis-à-vis the Russians...and if said officer had done it at the behest of the Russians; wouldn't we consider that treason?
11
@P Maris
This is implied in the Whistle-blower's report; it reads:
" assist in purportedly uncovering that allegations of Russian interference in the 2016 U.S. presidential election originated in Ukraine, with a specific request that the Ukrainian leader locate and turn over servers used by the Democratic National Committee (DNC) and examined by the U.S. cyber security firm Crowdstrike, which initially reported that Russian hackers had penetrated the DNC's networks in 2016;"
Mr. Putin is interested in getting the focus off of Russia as the source of DNC computer hacks and shifting , or confusing, the story by posing Ukraine as the source of the hack.
Maybe the Intelligence Committee that is leading the Impeachment Inquiry will be able to get all conversations between Trump and Putin and review for the point you raise.
8
@P Maris
Given what we learned from Part 1 of the Mueller Report, I rather doubt there is that much coordination, ability, planning and forethought by Russians who are tasked with the manipulation of our political system.
However, the backstory that goes with how the alleged crimes of the Bidens in Ukraine were revived in the RW media, as a way to plant the seed and motive, that might easily have KGB fingerprints all over it.
4
The rats are leaving the sinking ship.
Bolton.
Coats.
Gordon.
Volker.
Undoubtedly they and others who scurry off will be labelled as traitors. And undoubtedly they may find a need for physical protection because Trump wistfully reminisces about the good old days and the treatment then for spies and traitors. They and others should probably check into the requirements for the Witness Protection Plan.
27
@Tom Q. Rats? I think you could argue that some of these guys were pushed out and some just couldn’t stomach the Trump nutcase behavior anymore. Many more abandoned the ship starting in the early months of the Administration. They recognize criminality when they see it.
NB. In Russia such behavior doesn’t happen often and dissenters are “eliminated” by often convenient accidents, by jailing and by ingestion of radioactive poison.
4
We are now in the principal's office watching the adolescent Giuliani show his phone texts. "I didn't mean to get him into trouble!! It's not my fault he made me do it! I'm not a snitch!" Underneath the mask of concern, the principal is laughing.
33
There is going to be a deluge of resignations from the White House. Dropping like flies. Rats scurrying from a sinking ship of state.
Pretty soon the only people left will be Stephen Miller and KellyAnne Conway.
69
I’m sure Bolton may be thinking he dodged a bullet at this point. But he also should be called to testify to the particulars of this administration’s Ukraine and Russia policies and how they were carried out.
6
@Jane K
Agreed.
I disagree strongly with Mr. Bolton on many policy positions. That said, I do think that he is intelligent, knowledgeable on foreign affairs, and that he honestly believes that his positions are in the best interest of the United States.
1
Giuliani appears to be the consigliere to Trump’s mafia don, which is supremely ironic given that while he was U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York he was instrumental in the Mafia Commission trial in the mid-eighties. It would seem his career has come full circle.
41
@T. Johnson
Would that not give him good instruction on how to perform the role for Trump?
2
Indeed.
It would be interesting to see how 1985 Giuliani would view the actions of 2019 Giuliani.
1
It is hard for me to fathom how humiliating it must be for Mr Volker to have had to stand by Trump’s side at The UN as his last professional act for our country. Please, Mr Volker, make your final act one that brings all the sunshine into this murky cesspool of a White House. Please help us rid ourselves of the very worst thing that has happened to The White House since Andrew Johnson.
98
Every person who works for the Trump administration ends up with her or his work corrupted and reputation or career ruined. Everyone! It is a terrible position to be in for career diplomats like Mr. Volker and Ms. Yovanovitch, who seem to actually want to do a good job and help our country. That is the furthest thing from the mind of Trump, who still seems bizarrely obsessed with deflecting Russia’s role in his 2016 election and abusing his powers to try to rig the next one.
Folks like Mr. Volker are going to run for the exits in the face of being tarnished by this mess, and we are going to learn a whole lot more about all the malfeasance that was perpetrated by Trump, Giuliani and Barr.
40
@David Not true. Sean Spicer is doing well lol
1
"Vice President Mike Pence ... was sent to meet with Mr. Zelensky"
Pence's hands are not clean either.
97
Many of us fear that while America is busy sorting out their internal issues, Putin is advancing his global agenda. It sure seems like America needs training wheels when it comes to chewing gum and riding a bicycle.
51
@Bob
And China is building roads, bridges, making deals about ports of authority around the world with countries who will owe fealty to China.
15
@Bob Even Better, we should rid ourselves of Putin’s errand boy in the Oval Office.
17
@Hypatia
Good Point! Many countries will be taking advantage of America's distraction. Someone knows how to play 3D Chess, and it's not the Russian errand boy.
And I don't deny it's happening. And I say that in my 'Strong & Powerful' voice.
2
Despite the best efforts to portray Mr. Volker in the best light one really must ask two things: 1. At this point can anyone with even a shred of integrity work for Donald Trump? 2. Can any reasonable person believe that anyone in direct contact with Rudi Guiliani not have talked about the president's political agenda, including the methods they would employ to further it vis-a- vie Ukraine?
The days of sunshine patriotism and ambition are long past. If Mr. Volker is as honorable as he is painted here he is obligated to share everything he knows about this sordid business with the House impeachment inquiry specifically and the American people generally.
120
@jmgiardina. You bring up a good point. It then extends to how in the world does the US rebuild it diplomatic teams if all good diplomats did turn tail and run? With all of the empty cabinet posts and all of this turnover--the next president (if that person really has the country's interest at heart) will need to spend years putting out diplomatic fires and cleaning up governmental branches now in complete disarray. They will need to do all of that before they can even begin to set a presidential agenda. The campaign motto would be a very uninspiring "Vote for Me to Pick up the Pieces."
20
@jmgiardina
Well said, thank you. (greetings from La Mesa!)
1
Trump has weakened our strategic alliance (NATO) and damaged our relationships with our traditional allies in western Europe. With his general fomenting of nationalism and Brexit, he's weakening the strategic, economic, and peacekeeping abilities of NATO and the UN. Now, he's undermining the Ukraine's ability to defend itself from pro-Russian forces and had withheld aid.
If Tom Clancy were writing a novel about how a Russian asset in the White House was to act, in advance of a Russian military advance into former USSR territory, it would read precisely like this.
Trump advances Russian interests from our White House. Full stop.
148
@Dan D
Since we're talking about fiction, an impeachment of the president, followed by conviction and removal from office would be a pretty peachy ending to this story. Not sure it's Clancy's style though.
2
I hereby propose the 28th amendment: All future presidents are hereby ordered, during their presidency to do all actions, deeds and submission of legislative proposals that are directly opposite to the risible actions of former President Donald Trump.
22
I wonder how the plan for rebuilding the nation's infrastructure is coming along.
43
@NJ Resident, well, the county just repaved the street behind my building, and added bike lanes. That’s a start.
5
@NJ Resident
And where's that beautiful health care plan Trump promised us?
5
NJ Resident, which nation? The US? Nothing happening here.
2
Defining corruption isn't hard. Sometimes it isn't clear whether specific actions are within the definition. But everything about Trump's interactions with Ukraine, directly or indirectly, stinks of corruption.
32
Senator Murphy’s tweet on Volker: “He now must put country first, and tell what he did and what he knows” is a slap in the face. It certainly appears to me that the unpaid efforts of Volker were always about putting country first.
15
@Midwest Moderate: not getting paid for actions is not necessarily a sign of putting country first. It could very well be actions that are intended to bring personal benefit a little further down the road.
20
As I recall the nation's mayor is not getting paid for his current work. Presumably he gets travel expenses.
4
@Midwest Moderate Your concern is so right but tweet is not bad too like slap in the face. Many Volker like great public servants have turn their faces away to stick to the truths,even under oaths by not answering questions ya invoking 5th. The most recently watched person,though most responsible,respected and decorated navy’s officer who broke the command of chain though was asked how to proceed,whom to report first in 14 days by IGIC heads in forwarding their transmittal investigative report.
The building is in fine a Volker bailed out: It’s truly bizarre how the press has rushed to say that “Mr. Volker, a widely respected former ambassador to NATO”. At the same time, it appears that “Mr. Volker then contacted Mr. Giuliani to ask if he would want to speak with Mr. Yermak, and the mayor agreed. Mr. Volker and Mr. Giuliani had breakfast to discuss Ukraine.”
If in fact Volker was a hero, he would have resigned long ago and gone public with the Giuliani meddling to begin with. But, as everything else in the Trump Administration, it’s about personal ambition. No heroics as far as this resignation goes. The building is on fire and he bails out, some hero .
20
@Ted. Look at this again: Volker trying to do a good job discovers that Trump used him to have the State Dept. pick Giuliani as a liaison for Trump’s plan to get dirt on Biden — not to advance US policy in Ukraine.
Stay and be associated with the secretive corruption or go? What do you do if you are a moral person?
5
So according to Giuliani, Zelensky and Yermak, completely of their own accord, had the idea that to solidify relations with the U.S. and get assistance in their defense against Russia, they wouldn't talk to the U.S. State Department, U.S. military personnel, or White House personnel, but to Rudy Giuliani. And when they made that request to Volker, a career diplomat, Volker thought "Great idea! Let's bypass every State Dept policy and procedure and put them directly in touch with Trump's personal lawyer." Strains credulity, to say the least.
917
Such a scenario is not as far-fetched as you may believe. Whether it is ultimately a prudent or successful strategy is another question entirely. For example, Jared Kushner was put in charge of Middle East peacemaking, effectively bypassing the state department, the defense department, and others in the bureaucracy. Needless to say, that effort does not appear to of been a smashing success.
112
@David H
"Jared Kushner was put in charge of Middle East peacemaking,"
How's that working out?
What was his plan again? Oh yeah, a real estate deal.
Kushner is working on Middle East PIECE alright -- meaning he wants a piece of the action.
137
@jg
Well, but, the article says that Guiliani had been shooting his mouth off about the newly elected Ukranian government, and since they knew that G is one of T’s toadies, maybe they figured G was the fastest route to T. (After all, they’ve had 3 years to see how our so-called president operates.)
Maybe that was the plan all along?
21
How can the Republicans in the Senate stand behind this grotesque conman in the WH?
465
They won’t. When the time comes that there is no more political risk to Republicans, meaning Trump will be sent packing, they will jump ship.
30
@77ads77
Believe me, they will.
12
@77ads77 because back in their home districts there are legion of grotesque con-men-wanna-be’s waiting in the repub party wings to primary them. For them, protecting their cushy jobs is more important than protecting our democracy. Cowards the lot of them.
59
Here’s my promise. If Trump resigns immediately, I will personally forget about everything he screwed up since he was inaugurated in January of 2017.
Others can fret, but I will move on. It won’t bother me that Pence will be president. The Democrats are going to win the White House and the U.S. Senate in 2020 and keep their majority in the House of Representatives. Anyone who doesn’t see that doesn’t understand politics.
We’ll then be rid of Trump, Pence, and the whole rotten, chaotic bunch of complicit enablers who propped up the clown in the Oval Office.
185
@Carmela Sanford I appreciate your sentiment, but as a woman, you should be very afraid of Mike Pence being the president, even for a short period of time. And we won’t be able to forget everything Trump has screwed up because we’ll be paying for it for decades, whether it is the national debt, the state secrets he had shared with bad actors like Putin and Mohammed bin Salman, the damage to our environment, the depleted ranks at the State Department or the damage to our reputation and influence worldwide.
81
@Carmela Sanford. Yes, pence could channel Gerald Ford and pardon trump. Then he could retreat to his penthouse, tweet his days away, and we could move on. Happy!
10
@Carmela Sanford
I, for one, will NOT let bygones be bygones. That is how we got here. Every time a new administration comes in and announces that "the country needs to heal," and pardons or disregards those in the previous administration who betrayed the voters, broke the law, or otherwise engaged in corruption, a "teachable moment" is forfeited. The message remains the same: Do whatever you want. The worst that can happen is a little bad press for a while. With so much to gain, an occasional slap on the wrist is a small price. We lock away petty thieves and leave them penniless, but corrupt politicians and their hangers on, who do far worse harm to far more people, escape largely unscathed. This. Must. Stop.
89
Ukraine, squeezed between two of the worst people on earth, Putin and Trump.
594
@George
Would Russian revanchism end there? How about Poland, so often carved up by Russia? Would Putin go for the former Warsaw pact states, with Boris agreeing to another Yalta?
The GOP would obviously not say 'no' anywhere.
18
@George Yikes, what a nightmare. Analogous to the plight of Poland in 1939.
26
@George How about America? Squeezed between Trump, the corrupt narcissist, and the Republicans in Congress, seeking re-election at any cost, who are defending this epitome of Corruption"
19
I pray that Mr Volker has a conscience (and also Mr Bolton) and they speak the trust instead of hiding behind some executive shed.
Our countries future is at stake. PL don't do Mueller, speak the plain truth.
65
@P2 -- I don't think Bolton has a moral conscience. But he does have a powerful thirst for vengeance. If that's what it takes to get at the truth, I can live with that.
8
@P2
Mueller did speak the plain truth as shown even in his partially censored report that is widely available to any one who cares to read it.
1
Were I Trump's advisor my recommendation would have been to handle this an entirely different way, which, I believe, would have helped him.
Admit the mistake. Apologize. Move on.
The impeachment inquiry would probably proceed anyway, but by denying what cannot be denied and claiming what he did was perfectly ok, Trump and his sycophants are making the situation worse. Americans tend to look favorably on those who admit to wrongdoings, and unfavorably on those who were caught red-handed and still won't fess up to it.
Trump no matter what will have his 35-40% who will support him no matter what. He cannot win next year with these people alone. It was in 2016 the people in the middle who gave him the election. Had he owned this Ukraine fiasco I believe it would have scored well with the middle voters.
It is important to remember that, apparently, much of the first-hand info mentioned in the whistleblower's complaint came from persons inside the white house; and for this reason and the ludicrous off-axis spin being put on it, I think more will come.
This is just the beginning, and it's looking a lot like Watergate.
42
@Marcus Schantz
The reason Trump can’t apologize for this is that he would then have to spend the rest of his presidency apologizing for every other crime he has committed, currently in the act of committing or planning to commit in the future.
4
But he would be admitting to impeachable offenses. Which, come to think of it, he did when he released the memo of the call.
6
@Evan You make a really good point.
I know he will never admit to anything; however, I think the smart political move would have been to do as I suggested, because the most important thing for Trump is getting reelected.
I believe public opinion would have been more positive and there would be much, much less interest in impeachment.
In order to get any votes from the middle, Trump needs to improve his credibility, of which he presently has none. My suggestion would have been a big step to that end.
But Trump is Trump. You can't ask a squirrel to become a horse. He's going to triple and quadruple down no matter what. And he's going to pay for it.
Smart people know Trump has serious problems next year. I expect to see a slow but gradual distancing. Even Fox News has on-air people in open disagreement. And I just read that FN is already having meetings to discuss the network post-Trump.
1
Why on earth should the president’s PRIVATE attorney be in a unique position to help the State Department?
470
@Lawrence Norbert Why are Jared and Ivanka privileged with unique positions as well? Inquiring minds want to know.
108
@Lawrence Norbert, my guess: because he only represents his client, he only has to do his client’s bidding, without regard for what is in the country’s best interest. Of course, his client has sworn to protect and uphold the Constitution ... but when he took that oath he was just “joking around”.
27
@Lawrence Norbert
Because he was never there to help the State Dept, but to work around it to Trump’s political and likely eventually financial benefit.
25
One has to wonder whether Pence and the cabinet secretaries would consider triggering a 25th amendment proceeding to remove Trump before the impeachment inquiry gets too far down the road and starts to implicate them too deeply in Trump's wrongdoing.
51
@617to416 Good point. I suspect that they remember how many of Nixon's people went to jail. But I also wonder if Pence and Trump have already agreed that Pence will pardon Trump the moment he takes office, perhaps in exchange for some lovely resort accommodations in Scotland.
17
The damage done by this administration and the GOP co-conspirators will last a long time. They’ve simultaneously disgraced all three branches of government, while making a mockery of government agencies designed to protect the American people. The bright side is that this nation has survived great rifts in the past. We’ve just got to clear out the cancer and start the healing as soon as possible.
140
Yes. Cancer can be very hard to treat or even untreatable. The damage done to the judicial system is on the level of pancreatic or brain cancer. We must never allow this to happen again. Assuming we get out of the situation we are in.
4
Remove Gorsuch and Kavanaugh too.
7
I would challenge anyone to name a time that has been more dangerous for this democracy. The Civil War was a tragedy and a threat to the Union. But maybe we should have gone our separate ways, Union and Confederacy.
2
Volker - part time, unpaid position?
Why?
47
My understanding is that Mr. Volker is a retired ambassador, a career foreign service officer. I spent 45 years at the state department, and I knew a few such people who returned to the department after they retired to be special emissaries for specific issues. Many of these positions were unpaid, although that was considered an unusual arrangement.
As a former ambassador to NATO, Mr. Volker appears to have been in a very good position to work on issues related to Europe, including Ukraine.
20
And who appointed him? The Ukrainians? Totally weird.
5
He was appointed by the White House, and as a former career ambassador and career foreign service officer, he was easily moved back into state department bureaucracy, where he spent his entire career. There’s nothing weird about it; Indeed, it is a very proper and eminently sensible arrangement, because an experienced official who knows the ins and outs of diplomacy is put back to work. Anyone who has worked in the Executive branch, as I did for 45 years, is familiar with this and it’s a rather ordinary situation.
2
Aargh, maties, we have run aground. Abandon the ship 🚢 of state!
24
Typically, this is what happens when you find yourself working for Donald J. Trump. Hopefully, Volker will show up at the hearing and tell everything he knows.
82
It appears that the narrative of the Democrats condemning Trump and his team are not being totally forthcoming and honest in sharing all the information. Amazing how once the shades are pulled back, just how corrupt and biased our politicians and political hacks really are. The people who suffer the most are the US citizens who watch this charade take place while much needed work and reform is not getting done.
6
@G G Republicans made their own bed. They're the ones who were in charge and elected Trump. Now they must lay in that bed with him. In other words, Republicans held total control of all three branches of government for two years and couldn't get anything done except Moscow Mitch getting ultra conservative judges on the bench. Everything else Trump did was by executive proclamation. Republicans controlled all three branches of government and couldn't get anything done Trump is a loooooooooooser.
18
@G G
Great parody, it's like the onion
7
@G G Republicans made their own bed. They're the ones who were in charge and elected Trump. Now they must lay in that bed with him.
11
I would love to know what the Ukrainian press is writing/saying about all this. I'm sure they are just happy to see their country dragged into the political mess in this country.
14
Poor Mr. Volker has done the calculations and decided that the Secretary of State and POTUS needed a scape goat and 'he was it'. Taking the Jonh Dean highway obviously had a slighly better outcome than a Manafort under the jailhouse forever pathway. As they say, watch out for large rocks falling from the mountaintop and avoid acting in a political coverup. He must have a good lawyer in his corner and doubtlessly listened.
21
Old adage...actions speak louder than words...next case...
4
Imagine the stuff that this guy knows. And the white house can't threaten him and try to control his testimony because he's no longer an employee of trump. Oops. Hurry up, tweet, and tell us what a bad person he is Donald.
56
How many professionals have had their career derailed by Donald Trump?
69
@Michael
Q: 'How many professionals have had their career derailed by Donald Trump?
A: All of them.
9
@Michael Untold numbers. However, at the end of the day, they exercised their free will in making a decision to be a part of this administration.
3
Can Trump legally freeze congressional funds for Ukraine?
11
Depends on whose lawyers are defining “legal”. No, the executive can’t just say, “don’t pay them”, because Congress (theoretically) has the power of the purse. The executive can, however, tie funding up in red tape.
5
We should all be aware of how the impeachment process works.
The House is like a grand jury: if they impeach the President, the Senate is required to serve as the jury, with the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court presiding over the Senate (not Mitch McConnell). The rules are very clear, and you can read them in the Constitution and in the Senate Rules. The part of the Senate Rules that applies can be found at this link from Cornell's Law School:
https://www.law.cornell.edu/background/impeach/senaterules.pdf
Normally, all other business will be suspended during the trial in the Senate, and they are supposed to work on it 6 days per week, every day except Sunday.
Also, see the US Constitution:
Article I, Section 3
…
The Senate shall have the sole Power to try all Impeachments. When sitting for that Purpose, they shall be on Oath or Affirmation. When the President of the United States is tried, the Chief Justice shall preside: And no Person shall be convicted without the Concurrence of two thirds of the Members present.
Judgment in Cases of Impeachment shall not extend further than to removal from Office, and disqualification to hold and enjoy any Office of honor, Trust or Profit under the United States: but the Party convicted shall nevertheless be liable and subject to Indictment, Trial, Judgment and Punishment, according to Law.
30
@Paolo
The Senate is not required to conduct the trial...my hunch is that McConnell will derail that like he has for everything else...now that won't prevent drumpf from saying he was exonerated but it will protect GOP senators from having to cast a vote.
11
@Lisa
Hi Lisa,
I don't think the Senate will have a choice. Please read the link I supplied to the Senate rules about impeachment. It will be presided over by the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, so Mitch McConnell cannot derail it. He must follow the Senate rules, which go into specifics about timing.
If you see anything in the Senate rules that gives McConnell any chance to derail this, please let me know.
respectfully, Paolo
1
The NY Times and other news outlets outlets ought to stop referring to this malfeasance as a “pressure campaign”. It was a “solicitation campaign “. Solicitation is illegal. Pressure is only unethical.
192
Has the swamp ever been deeper?
Or swampier?
46
@Tom From sewer to cesspool?
2
@Tom
It looks like the Trump swamp has become quicksand.
““He should step forward and explain what he did,” Mr. Giuliani said ....””
And what DJT and Giuliani did.
41
The first question that needs to be asked to Mr. Volker should be; did he know of the phone calls to President Zelensky by President Trump requesting information on the Biden family. I will be curious to see if the transcript of the phone call to the President of Ukraine was a surprise to him as well.
308
@RVCKath From the whistleblower's complaint:
"On 26 July, a day after the call, U.S. Special Representative for Ukraine Negotiations Kurt Volker visited Kyiv and met with President Zelenskyy and a variety of Ukrainian political figures. Ambassador Volker was accompanied in his meetings by U.S. Ambassador to the European Union Gordon Sondland. Based on multiple readouts of these meetings recounted to me by various U.S. officials, Ambassadors Volker and Sondland reportedly provided advice to the Ukrainian leadership about how to "navigate" the demands that the President had made of Mr. Zelenskyy."
He couldn't provide advice on navigating Trump's demands if he didn't know what they were. No wonder he resigned, but it may not protect him from prosecution, unless he gets immunity in exchange for cooperation.
93
@RVCKath the article states that he was not aware of it.
3
@Jeanne Prine
That statement came from "one person informed about the series of events". I have more faith in the whistleblower's multiple sources. But it clearly needs to be investigated.
30
Gee, thanks for your service, don't let the door hit your backside on the way out. See you in a few weeks under a subpoena. C'mon down Mike Pompeo. C'mon down Bill Barr.
118
"Mr. Volker, a widely respected former ambassador to NATO, served in the part-time, unpaid position of special envoy to help Ukraine resolve its armed confrontation with Russia-sponsored separatists."
The only way Trump wants to resolved the Ukraine's confrontation with "Russia-sponsored separatists" is by forcing the Ukraine's surrender to Russia. Withholding the military aid authorized by Congress would be a big step in helping Russia achieve this end. It would be just another payment on the debt Trump apparently owes Russia. Hard to know when Volker learned of the failure to authorize payment of the military funding, but if he talked to Giuliani it seems likely Volker knew that Trump was looking for help with his reelection campaign.
149
@Eero
Things are starting to look crystal clear now.
All roads point to Russia.
And Trump is working for Putin.
26
Trump administration officials “scramble”? Mr. Volker has Calculated, correctly, that he can no longer be affective in the role to ATT she was assigned, and thus hasdone the only sensible thing that a person in his position can do. And he is a career diplomat, not an “administration official.”
23
I bet he won’t say a word.
He will take the 5th or he will say everything is some how privilege.
10
@Denise
I think you seriously misapprehend Mr. Volker’s integrity.
Unlike the toadies and loyalist know-nothings that Trump officially appoints as ambassadors to represent HIS interests, Mr. Volker is a trained professional diplomat. He understands Ukraine and the Kafkaesque situation that country find itself in, sandwiched between Putin’s territorial aggression and Trump’s gangster administration.
Given the gratuitous turmoil that Trump (capo di tutti capi) has injected into Ukraine’s already fragile circumstances, Mr. Volker no longer can perform what appears to have been valuable volunteer services there — and I think that’s a shame, for Ukraine, as well as our country.
3
@Denise just like every single guilty person from the Obama days. When will you haters learn that all politicians and all of Washington is corrupt?
The Ukraine issue is serious but I have another concern that I believe will impact the nation and world for a very long time.
I'm tired of reading articles that list people who have left the state department. This article listed several.
It takes decades to establish a viable State Department and once it is in place, it take constant reinforcement as trained professional employees retire. The system is not built to replace numerous numbers of people who decide to resign.
What is happening at the State Department is going to adversely impact our nation for a long time, perhaps more than a decade. The people leaving will be difficult to replace.
942
@Tahuaya Armijo
Perhaps you are describing the harmful impact of “dismantling the deep” state, one of Bannon’s and Trump’s stated goals.
82
@Tahuaya Armijo, exactly what I was thinking. This stable genius and his crew are pushing out the “ Deep State” who are the people who know history, diplomacy, and the citizensbof the countries in which they serve and replacing them with ignoramuses. Very scary and leaves us so vulnerable to other countries’ machinations we will not see coming nor understand.
231
@Tahuaya Armijo
Let's hope many upstanding and competent individuals can be attracted back to government service under President Warren in 2021.
You are absolutely correct, the country needs the kind of intelligent people, experts in their field, who Thump fails to see the value of.
112
It's like pulling a rock away and watching all the hidden critters crawl away. It's beginning to remind me of Seven Days in May. Lots of folk are implicated in the Ukrainian gambit- the more that is unearthed, the more there is to see. The efforts to hide Trump's conversations, the scrambling to find a legitimate rationale for his decision to end military aid to Ukraine are part of a gathering avalanche of lies that are getting harder and harder for Trump and his minions to explain. Stay tuned- this is one narrative that Trump won't be able to control.
306
I just don’t understand how trump’s base can continue to overlook his criminal actions.
100
@John M
We are dealing largely with religious zealots here, I believe.
I think the almost messianic worship of Trump by many of his followers is a religious issue for them. Trump can do no wrong, because of their faith in him. Just like with religion, demonstrable facts are not necessary to sustain the devotion of the devotees, just an inner sense of "this is true!". Of course, sunk cost fallacy plays a role in that it becomes very hard to admit that one made a mistake when you have so fervently and publicly exposed your beliefs to others.
46
@John M Because Trump's base is just that: base. Worthless. What I can't understand is how the Republican senators can overlook his criminal actions. But of course they're part of the base, too.
14
Drip...drip...drip.
Career service officers aren’t going to risk the absolute ruin of their lives for Donald Trump. He was never worth it. Look for others to follow Kurt Volker’s shadow out the door.
427
@Red Sox, ‘04, ‘07, ‘13, ‘18
I read somewhere that Volker was a volunteer, probably on per diem so he is not directly affected monetarily. Maybe his efforts were directed toward helping Trump get a Nobel for peace. Stop laughing!
15
@Red Sox, ‘04, ‘07, ‘13, ‘18
Likely true, but Trump won't care as he believes he doesn't need them anyway, that the "stable genius" is quite capable of running it all without them. We, the nation and our national security are the ones who will pay the long range price for this.
27
Can’t wait to hear him testify.
24
Unpaid and, according to this story, self-appointed:
“Mr. Volker facilitated an entree for Mr. Giuliani with the newly elected government in Ukraine, acting not at the instruction of Mr. Trump or Mr. Pompeo, but at the request of the Ukrainians, who were worried because Mr. Giuliani was seeking information about Mr. Biden and other Democrats and had denounced top Ukrainian officials as “enemies of the president.””
Was he special envoy *before* he began helping Ukraine? Or did that appointment follow his admirable, albeit possibly quixotic, initiative to get mixed up in the mess DJT’s foreign policy work?
Wow. It just feels like this administration was working both sides — the rogue president running roughshod and his own administration scrambling to clean it up. The Ukrainians spinning while trying to hold off Russia. An apparatus at war with itself.
Because our President is BONKERS.
25th amendment.
Seriously.
Look it up.
269
@Clare
The Trump House of Cards is toppling.
Expect more allegations, more resignations and more reputations destroyed as Trump's lackeys race to jump ship.
They can run but they cannot hide.
The Whistleblower's complaint came from a dozen WH staff members who saw shocking wrongdoing and used the him/her as a conduit to warn America.
The whole ugly truth is emerging each day as Republicans scramble to create their wild "talking points" as defense stories.
Of course it always ends up Obama's fault.
If the Republicans won't acknowledge Trump's conspiracy with Putin to undermine the Ukrainian government, they are as guilty as Trump.
The Dems must move swiftly and determinedly to expose and verify these allegations, then vote quickly on impeaching this treacherous con man in the WH.
Let the GOP Senators spend the next year explaining their support for this lying, corrupt Putin-loving con man in the WH.
13
Our country is covered in a chaos named trump. His attempts to run the country like a mob boss are deeply disturbing and my hope is that more whistleblowers will come forward. Unfortunately, like a mob boss, trump is doing his best to intimidate those who may be able to help us. The number of people, qualified and not, who have passed through this administration is alarming. What secrets might they have? What did trump and Putin discuss? To whom is he beholden? His desire to 'win', an empty word used as it relates to him, will be our ruin. The tough guy has left us vulnerable. What a fool.
176
I will start a Go Fund Me for all whistleblowers who speak out- they are heroes and patriots.
They will be worth millions
6
Giuliani had no business in any of this. That’s a crime in and of itself. Let’s hope he’s prosecuted and disgraced forever.
703
Fortunately, there’s no need to hope - he’s already completely disgraced in the eyes of every rational (ie. non- Trumpist) person.
80
@Joe
Up to and including disbarment.
52
@Joe
Place Run-at-the-Mouth Rudy in front of the Congressional hearing for one session and he will proudly spill the beans.
Rudy just can't help himself, he believes he is a national hero.
44
I hope that Mr. Volker's resignation frees him to be transparent and truthful with the investigation. It seems Congress could learn a lot by testimony from Giuliani, too, but I don't see how he--as the president's personal lawyer--could be compelled. Perhaps that's one reason Giuliani was chosen as point man in this corrupt scheme to strong-arm the Ukrainians?
77
@JR80304 Anyone is subject to subpoena.
27
Wonder if Giuliani has ever taken his eyes off a mirror to read up on the crime-fraud exception to the attorney-client privilege?
42
@JR80304
Giuliani seemingly was acting as an agent of the State Department; that should argue against him claiming attorney-client (Trump) privilege.
32
Thank you for your service, Mr. Volker. Your position was impossible. Trump supports Putin not freedom for the Ukrainians. He is unaware of, and unconcerned with, an actual war being fought, the annexation of Crimea, and Putin's attempts to recreate the Soviet Union in some form.
That Trump's phone call with the Ukrainian president was hidden even from the Special Envoy shows consciousness of guilt. That was never about the good of Ukraine, of American interests, or of democracy.
America last.
515
@SMB, Good post; my only comment is: Don't thank Volker for his service.
Every single high-ranking member of Trump's administration (now and in the past) has demonstrated that he/she is unethical, avaricious, and has poor judgment. Every one of them. That includes all department and agency heads, cabinet members, ambassadors, and senior advisors.
No one even remotely familiar with Trump, in 2016 or before or since, has had any ambiguity about his innate evil, deceit, ignorance, and unhinged, narcissistic mental condition. Anyone who signed up, or stayed on, to work in his administration is tainted by this awareness. They could undertake small acts of contrition and redemption, like coming forth with what they know, but the stain is permanent and deep.
Honorable people, those with integrity, honesty, and character, simply do not work in the Trump administration, and they never have.
28
@SMB
The Trump campaign has a new "MRGA" hat as part of their 2020 accessory line.
Making Russia Great Again.
12
@SMB
“America last” indeed!
2
I've lost count of the number of people who signed on to work for this administration only to head for the hills. Who'd have known that associating oneself with a very stable genius would be career suicide?
261
@ARNP
“Everything Trump touches dies.”
76
Speaking of resignations, isn't it time we looked again at how and why DNI Coats and his deputy were respectively fired and "externally-resigned?" Timing seems a little too coincidental.
473
@dbostrom
Coats should definitely be subpoenaed by the House.
56
Coates may be complicit. Leaving the scene of the crime before the crime occurs.
Quite remarkable. And he remains silent. It’s as he never existed.
22
@dbostrom
Yeah, Coats out and Maguire in, just in time for a decision on Whistleblower complaint.
30
My simple question is, why are none of these officials unwilling to go against Trump? Especially when he pretty much immediately insists they do something at least immoral, if not unethical or downright illegal. Something is rotten in the “land of the brave”.
620
@Robert Grant Each and every one of them were likely required to sign a non-disclosure agreement with the explicit threat of being demolished financially.
46
@Robert Grant- Where is Trump's John Dean?
33
It’s all power and greed that drives these types of people Barr, Pompeo, Giuliani & some may be threatened with outing their skeletons in their closets.
69
>>> "Mr. Giuliani has seized on Mr. Volker’s call to him to assert that he was acting at the behest of the State Department."
Well, since an operative appearing to act for the State Department, apparently at the request of Ukrainian officials, approached Giuliani, that seems like a fairly believable explanation, even to those of us who think Rudy is an unusually creepy rat.
Let's not get carried away spinning the story to fit preferred narratives. It is certain that plenty of incontestable facts will emerge to justify condemning any number of actors -- Republican, Democrat & Ukrainian -- in this sordid melodrama.
10
@Douglas,
Don't hide the truth in your obfuscation. Volker was trying to help the Ukrainians avoid crossing Trump because they were alarmed at the Giuliani's dirt mining operations on their soil and against their lawmakers. They wanted some back channel access to stave off this misadventure. Giuliani's activities in the Ukraine, pre-dating the Volker meetings are the problem and the crime. Don't lose sight of that.
247
@Douglas, getting the "both sides" talking points out early this morning, I see. Good luck with that. However, all of this activity appears to be in the service of Russian and DJT's personal interests, which by now is a recognizable pattern with this administration.
84
@John: Your argument, and your apparent belief (along with Greenfield's and, no doubt, many millions of others') is simply not supported by any available evidence.
The desire to see Trump nailed for his entirely-obvious misbehavior has driven large segments of the American public to hysterical and unreasoning rage which appears to be immune to logic or common sense. The very worst and most dangerous element of that hysteria is the rampant Russophobia.
It is quite likely that the current state of relations with Russia is more dangerous -- to us, to Russia and to the world -- than at *almost* any time during "Cold War I."
Americans should really grow up and try to think clearly -- but I have little hope that we will.
2
Time for more of the folks who have seen the crimes of this administration to speak up and tell the truth. Those religious zealots like Pompeo should remember that old saying 'the truth will out'!
192
@EJ
Mike Pompeo isn't a religious zealot. He's a wholly-owned subsidiary of Koch Industries, and he's been placed in our government to serve their interests and not ours.
9
@EJ
Yeah, maybe he might have heard of the exhortation that ...you cannot serve both God and mammon...
2
Mr. Volker, please lay out all you know before the House next Thursday. You can put another nail in this vampire's coffin.
750
@larry bennett A vampire to be sure, but more like Hammer’s Dracula—sure, he’s destroyed in the first movie. He’s destroyed in the sequel, too. And the sequel after that... Dracula’s destroyed a lot. Trump’s high crimes and misdemeanors isn’t one story, but a franchise.
32
@Joseph Charles
Not a silver bullet, garlic, or a wooden stake, Joseph. All it would need is one decent man or woman.
19
@larry bennett -
Volker is no hero.
He went along with Trump’s unconstitutional scheme without whistleblowing himself, only resigning to save his own skin when others showed the courage which he lacked.
His chance to salvage some semblances of ethicality and patriotism is still forthcoming.
We shall see.
10