Your editorial is premised on the debatable assumption that civil servants are the good guys defending the American way, but your perspective is not "local". Trump was elected because his supporters dispute this and do not find civil servants (the definition includes local, state and federal) to be "noncorrupt and apolitical". Every day regular Americans are road blocked by civil servants - from starting a business, to securing a building permit, to planting a field, to communicating with lazy teachers to requirements at the DMV and on. Greed and self interest permeate the ranks of government workers who have a guaranteed paycheck for life regardless of how they perform at their jobs. Seeing teachers in Chicago turn up their noses and strike at a 16% wage increase is an example. Whatever "off the books diplomatic efforts" are cooked up by Trump make no difference to a contractor with a pick-up truck and a mortgage or a nurse in scrubs and a kid in expensive daycare. They want to leave a world to their kids in which they can actually function and earn a living, and not be held up by local, state or federal staffers and diplomats. Yovanovitch seems earnest, but replaceable. P.S. public schools don't teach civics classes anymore.
37
@Sarah --It's not the civil servants behind the counter at the building department or DMV that make the regulations driving people mad. It's the state and federal legislatures. This is why voting is so important, and not just in the national elections. Who is elected to state legislatures, city councils, as mayors and school board members, affect the lives of citizens far more than Trump or Warren or any other president does. Local elections are very often ignored. Then new state laws or city regulations are passed and everyone gets upset. We should all be paying attention to the people who make decisions that can affect our everyday lives. But, don't blame the poor sucker who stands behind the counter and listens to the tirades of people who what laws bent just for them. Those civil servants are just trying to earn a living like you are. Give them a break.
196
@Sarah - are road blocked by civil servants -
Funny how all the examples are "gimme mine". In all likelihood the "regular" Americans are short cutting, rule breaking, rule bending, rules don't apply to me, I'm entitled to special treatment Americans (like Donald Trump) who want something to enrich themselves and have not met the requirements for business license or permits that they just expected those "greedy self-interested government clerks" to just hand over. (Don't you know who I AM?!)
Contractors? Trump, you know, the guy who regularly stiffed "the contractor with a pick-up truck" of the pay they were promised.
That public schools don't teach civics is because the local Republicans beat down local school funding and didn't want things like civics classes where kids would, you know, learn stuff they don't need to flip burgers in their businesses. First civics, and then thinking. As Trump said, he loves the poorly educated.
226
@Sarah >"Greed and self interest permeate the ranks of government workers who have a guaranteed paycheck for life regardless of how they perform at their jobs."<
And you know this how, exactly?
92
Seems as if Kevin "Russians are paying Trump" Mc Carthy is defending the Criminal Trump. Glad to see Traitor McCarthy going down with the ship.
8
"It’s Trump vs. the Country’s True Defenders."
Which are the liberals and their dog-loyal like media (better say propaganda tools)? What a joke. Cheap politics all over, impeachment, Mueller, etc. And still fretting for 2020.
2
Who would you want in your fox hole, Trump or Yovanovitch? We do know who would be most likely to cut and run. We saw that in real-time last week.
11
Trump proves, ad infinitum, that he is a spoiled rich kid who's daddy fixed his life so he never had to do any real work. Ever.
So, all rules that apply to others never have to apply to him, because his daddy told him so.
Not even the Constitution of the country he's the president of.
It's Mussolini's playbook in one form or another every day for Donald J. Trump.
19
Trump is bringing our kids home. First president to protect them from a stupid 100 year war we could never win. Let the Russians get bogged down there with the Iranians Iraqis ISIS Syrians.
2
But Mexico paid for the Wall..NK Denuclarized..the trade war was easy to win !! We now enjoy better more affordable Health Care !! The Swamp's been drained and the deficit is nearly zero !! Now you know why there's a Fox Nation of Trump supporters!! Can't argue with this kind of success !! Apparently you can fool too many Americans too much of the time!! MAGA has turned into a colossal....HOAX !! Worst President and most chaotic and dysfunctional administration in American History !! Mueller and Cohen were right ! Trump is a Con deserving of being Indicted !!
11
The USA served by Ambassador Yovanovitch is not the same nation as that chanted for by the MAGA wearing hordes shouting “USA”.
6
To make This Question very simple:
Who can lead us out of the mess created not only by Trump;
or going back to Reagan...stupid senseless idiocy Trickle Down
voo doo economics.; who can pull this republic back from the
BRINK:
My pick is William Weld..former two term governor of Massachusetts.
Google this candidate for the Republican Primarhy in New
Hampshire: Fiscally conservative and socially progressive
It is up to YOU...Tom Friedman to find out how to put this
NYT back into ; all the news that is fit to print...and
just make it simple...KISS..
1
I don't really know Bolton all that well. His insanely hawkish attitudes aside, can there perhaps be a man of principle underneath?
Now we have respected people like Fiona Hill coming forward along with Marie Yovanovitch, people of such unquestionable integrity may lead to people realizing something is wrong and needs repair.
6
"On Top Of That", Wednesday, October 16, 2019
Press Conference With Italian President Sergio Mattarella October 16, 2019. President Donald Trump Seems More Calm Until Asked About The U.S.
Why Is It That He Is Comfortable With World Leaders But Not With The Media Or The U.S.?
1
The withdrawal from Syria is a continuation of the foreign policy of Putin.
6
'The devil is in the details' and the lack of detail in Trump's attacks make scrutiny difficult if not impossible. Scrutiny is Trump's nemesis and so he substitutes facts with lies, inaccuracies, innuendo, insults, vulgarities and harangues. Unlike Republican Senators and Representatives who cower in Trump's shadow, it's the career civil servants who have the courage to speak out and breach the wall of fear-driven silence. The so-called 'deep state' Americans should fear is real, it's the one within the walls of 1600 Pennsylvania Ave....and 1211 Avenue of the America's - the home of FoxNews, the propaganda outlet for this rogue Administration.
4
Trumpeters say to let the people decide, in the 2020 vote. OK by me, AFTER he is impeached and hopefully removed. The republicans can nominate him again if that’s what they want.
6
It’s Trump and the GOP, who are all traitors to a man, against the Constitution and the citizens of the United States.
Trump called Schumer and Pelosi “commies” in a meeting with them today.
Since we know and should keep recognizing that every accusation the Republicans and Trump make against anyone else are explicit confessions in fact of their own guilt and planned future crimes, we have today yet another piece of evidence of the Republican Party’s conspiracy against the government and people of the United States..... funded by foreign aid, wherever they can find it.
4
As a nation, we have been 'befogged' with the idea … not entirely propaganda and xenaphobia … of our "exceptionalism" -- easily 'sold' because of our occasional exceptionalism … and our weak-kneed, weak need to regard ourselves as 'great' and 'special' … in a world replete with some exceptionally disgraceful nations (as 'determined' by their leaders, not by their 'gen pops').
Nice to see the exceptionalism of Ms. Yovanovitch, Ms. Hill -- even, as 'here' isolated,' John Bolton.
Tragic to witness the exceptionally disgraceful undertakings and character of the 'leader' under whom we are suffering now, and as we have for almost 3 years. (May that end soon. Now would be good. By Jan. 2021 is imperative.)
1
Wow, it took Trump & Co. to make me side with the FBI, CIA, John Bolton and the diplomatic corps. I never thought I would see the day!
5
What a relief! I had thought this complete waste of time impeachment "inquiry", yes we can all roll the eyes at the inquiry, i.e. STRICTLY political theater for the SOLE purpose to attempt to persuade votes in the 2020 election. The votes to actually oust Trump are nowhere in sight and anyone with a half-ounce of common sense knows this. But per a NYT opinion page columnist I can rest assured knowing the Dems conducting the phony "inquiry" are our country's "true defenders." Beyond hilarious! Trump is going nowhere, and this "Trump is doomed any day now" absurd silliness that has been going on for almost THREE years now was VERY long in the tooth two years ago. The election is a year away, obviously, the Dems long ago realized they have a bunch of absolute un-electable zeros, see last nights colown show/debate, so in their blatant desperation their only option is to pull the desperate impeachment inquiry nonsense--true defenders ha ha ha ha. Great entertainment.
1
The US has a remarkably well educated and historically honest federal service and there's ample evidence of genuine devotion to the rule of law and being effective in getting things done, even in waves of ridicule by radio demagogues. Marie Yovanovitch represents the ideal civil servant while Mr. Trump is the poster boy for a schoolyard bully.
4
I think this president thinks he's invulnerable. And in that, dangerous and perhaps fatal.
We're fragile. We are. We have few defences againt a bad leader. Maybe none.
Please stop calling them "Trump supporters" and start calling them "Republicans."
1
"noncorrupt, apolitical civil servants"
What trump calls The Deep State.
1
I think that Hillary was right, these trump supporters are in fact deplorable.
6
It’s not JUST republicans lawmakers who DON’T KNOW the constitution to which they took an oath to “preserve protect and defend”.
It’s the majority of the American public who have been dumbed down and become complacent to the IMPORTANCE of this document of OUR American laws.
That’s why republicans continue to get away with spinning THEIR version of their laws of this country to support the bigot in the Whitehouse.
It’s our CONSTITUTION.
Vote to defend it in 2020
3
What a bad photo. I don't know which is worse - Donald Trump from the front or from the back.
2
Thomas freidman for president. This man is the most brilliant nyt has to offer. Thanks
2
A vote for trump is a vote for Putin. We would be giving America to it’s greatest rival.
4
If what Trump did is so blatantly treasonous, why is this wonderful Democracy with its glorious constitution and amendments so helpless trying to put the whole bunch of traitors in jail? Lock them up already.
1
Trump may deny being Putin's witting or unwitting agent, and "Moscow Mitch" McConnell may bristle at his label; but both men have advanced Russia's interests beyond Putin's wildest dreams:
- Ukraine weakened
- Kurds weakened
- Rift between NATO allies
- Assad strengthened
- Russia's influence in the Middle East increased
- ISIS likely to threaten American interests
- Threat of further refugees to undermine EU unity
- America's global standing diminished
- American political divisions exacerbated
- American economy weakened by trade wars
- Americans encouraged to mistrust their institutions
- US election security compromised
...all at zero cost to Putin himself - and while 40% of Americans continue to cheer the traitors on.
11
So, the left has now given up on the voters, it's decided to align itself with the unelected, embedded bureaucracy? They must really be afraid of a 2020 Trump victory.
I agree with Tom all the way, but I think he’s missing the point. The Republicans aren’t ‘standing up’ to the President because they are representing the folks that vote for them, and these folks don’t want them to ‘stand up’ to him.
1
One of the best columns this journalist has written. So clearly and forcefully stated. If Americans could only read newspapers the way we did growing up in the ‘40’s and ‘50’s. Unfortunately, that is not possible. The news publishing business has shrunk from a newspaper on every porch to a dozen or so Journals of Record in a scattering of big cities. Television news is no substitute unless vivid pictures tell the story. Ironically this story - possibly the most important in the history of the nation - cannot yet be adequately be told with television pictures. If one imagines for a moment the collapse of the Statue of Liberty, that is a hint of what is emerging in real time. The story that tens of millions of Americans are not able to read is the almost certain defeat of our democratic system of government under the direction of a rogue President.
4
That's correct. Almost all the time, the media refers to Democrats, casting this as a purely partisan fight, but it's committees from the HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES that is issuing subpoenas. CONGRESS is protecting its power under the Constitution, even if many of its Republican members are too cowardly to join the battle. I guess they ALL have bone spurs. And we need to abandon that phrase "deep state" which we have internalized from the bad guys. It's public servants, as Friedman notes, people who have committed their life to public service instead of private profit, who are standing up for "truth, justice and what SHOULD be the American way."
6
The contrast between Trumps devotees and normal Americans is not shocking any more. Their numbers, their rabid hatreds, their weirdly distorted versions of everything are expected. They spew mountainous jumbles of rage denial, hatred and selfishness daily, just piled higher and mirrored in media that vomits that content over everyone who still tunes or logs in to see and be shocked. Like a side show that has made it into the big tent, with ratings proportional to its shock value, it is a vast money maker. All founded on the realization that all of fearful really are people no longer needed, nor even welcome, here on earth. They are people with the wrong skills the wrong ideas and the wrong motives, poor political instincts.
They are the soon to be casualties, victims of that inescapable realization, who are finding themselves on the beach in front of an unstoppable tidal wave of waste, toxins, debris and instantaneous obsolescence, against which only immediate transformational change offers any hope of mitigation.
Worse "growth", the miraculous penicillin of Capitalism and Chicago School economics, that once held off the symptoms of excess everything, is no longer working. Growth is toxic in a finite biosphere, and they are the "deplorable" vanguard of the unwanted. The first ones to be drowned, as the waters gets saltier and the sea levels rise. Inside the wall, but it turns out that is not enough. You also have to be really really rich...
This piece is something, and helps to shed light on why Mr. Friedman's beloved regime change project failed so badly. Anyone who read a little more in college would have encountered at least a few of the evidence-based rigorous analyses of bureaucracies and bureaucrats. They are a modern phenomenon, not a democratic phenomenon, as evidenced in terms like "the iron law or oligarchy," "bureaucratic authoritarianism," and so on and so forth. What separates bureaucrats in democracies is they are subject to the will of elected leaders. Otherwise, they would be no different from their deceased counterparts in the defunct Soviet Union. oh, procedures matter in democracy, which constrains the arbitrary rule of elected leaders. This piece of opinion is a sad marker.
Marie Yovanovitch may be the Joseph N. Welch of our day. Mr. Welch, in a series of stern but artfully worded comments on the despicable conduct of Joe McCarthy back in 1954, almost single handedly brought to a close the Army—McCarthy hearings. Her opening statement from last week is an astoundingly beautiful commentary on service to America and Americans. I am so proud to know that people like her have for years been representing our country. The single unfortunate effect of her statement is that Donald Trump understands nothing—and could care even less—about the character of a civil servant such as Ms. Yovanovitch. One of my favorite Joseph Welch quotes from June of 1954, directed at Mr. McCarthy, was this: “If it were in my power to forgive you for your reckless cruelty I would do so. I like to think I am a gentleman, but your forgiveness will have to come from someone other than me.” It summarizes pretty well my feelings about Mr. Trump.
8
Amazingly off track, Sarah. Friedman is not discussing civil servants, in general, rather, Ms. Yovanovitch's abrupt, inexplicable dismissal. Understand the difference? Her capability and performance are unimpeachable.
Further, Friedman points out how this dismissal is inherent in the erratic course the president has ever taken; eg, incorrectly insisting his inaugural crowd was larger than Obama's, though photographs bely that; Asking Mr. Comey to pledge to work for the president alone, as in dictatorships; And prominent among so many other falsifications, his endless abuse of our news media, calling it illiterately, "fake news", a trope picked up worldwide by other authoritarians.
His recent tweet about Turkey's attack on our ex allies the Kurds, following the withdrawal of our troops from Syria, may give direction to the president's actions. He stated: "IN MY GREAT AND UNMATCHED WISDOM..."
This last might typically be considered "joshing" among friends, in another context, but here it bespeaks megalomania, not really a desirable trait, in a leader. The president has yet to exhibit a trace of wisdom. So what or who instigates his course?
In regard to the hackneyed phrase, "the deep state", it refers to the bureaucrats who make this nation function. Without them our form of capitalism Would Not Work. To "drain the swamp" means to dismantle the nation's scaffolding. Trump is hard at work on this project. A grim future awaits us!
6
Apparently, it doesn't occur to many Americans that a civil servant might have primary allegiance to the rule of law or their job rather than to a party or a specific politician.
7
We've all heard a few excerpts from Trump's telephone call with the president of Ukraine. I would love to see some excerpts from Trump's calls with Putin. Surely there is malfeasance and treason against the United States in those conversations. Not to mention the contents of the translator's notes which Trump confiscated and destroyed after a private talk with Putin. Congress should subpoena that translator and discover what treason Trump was so desperate to keep from the public eye.
6
It’s sad that Sarah slanders civil servants at behest of a man who was given 145 million dollars by its father in a way that evaded federal taxes. Who has spent his life as a fairly unsuccessful businessman that used the tax system to offset his loses and stiff working people. And finally a person who while wrapping himself in patriotism took deferments for an injury that he can no longer recall which foot it was during wartime. Sarah I’m sure like many entitled people in this country you feel betrayed because everything hasn’t always gone your way. Next time instead of counting your grievances try counting your blessings.
6
Right once again Tom, and, also once again, preaching to the choir.
If only there was some way for you reach those who do not read the NYT, who do not read anything more enlightening than USA Today or People magazine. Better yet, can you reach those who do not read at all, who get their world view from Rupert Murdoch via Fox News, and are enlightened by AM talk radio (like my next door neighbor)?
I’ve read your books Tom. They have their own place in my library. Now, please use your intelligence, guided by your extraordinary experience, and find a way to engage with these people. They are out there in the millions. And they vote.
3
I served 13 yrs and 7 months in the USAF; I did a war and a coup. After the Air Force I worked as a 911 Emergency Dispatcher/Trainer/Supervisor for 5 yrs. People sometimes thank me for my service to the country and community and I appreciate their thoughts and words. The best way to show thanks is, Get out and Vote. America needs you. The GOP and the dullard in the WH shame the concept of E PLURIBUS UNUM. America deserves your vote, America needs your vote.VOTE FOR AMERICA.
8
Why is the president using profanity publicly? He is so degrading us and dragging our reputation through the mud on so many fronts, I honestly do not understand what his supporters are thinking.
6
The President plays to a flat earther type of view of the world. It is though he still believes that the oceans isolate and protect us and that neither planes, boats, or space ship can cross the divide. In reality, the world is closely intertwined and our role in the world cannot be as isolated or passive as perhaps good faith followers of Trump wishes. Whether Trump understands this and manipulates his public, or is simply the most ignorant and incompetent person to serve as our President does not matter. He cannot really change the world as he pretends, without harming our economy, exposing us to terrorism and other dangers, and even changing our values for the worse.
2
"It is breathtaking that virtually no Republican lawmakers have manifested similar courage — when all they have to lose is $174,000 in salary and free parking at Reagan Washington National Airport."
We all know that manyof our politicians go into office of modest financial means, and, come out of office fantastically wealthy.
Many, many of them. Obama was a neighborhood organizer, and, now? Yes, fantastically wealthy.
So, being on the receiving end of monetary grants to do industry bidding is really what they lose, which, is millions and millions. Really, their is no limit to how much a politician can take in Swiss Bank account deposits to write a law, say, allowing a metals fabricator to dump whatever into a local waterway.
So, don't try to fool yourself or us readers.
2
Mr Friedman, you too, along with other journalist, are part of our defense against the tyranny that our country is currsntly facing. Honest reporting and journalism is one thing that a tyrant like Putin is not use to dealing with in Russia.
I am soon to be 73 years old and this country has never faced such an attack on our freedoms like it has today in my lifetime. My Dad faught in the last battle that seriously threatened our freedoms, World War II. In many ways this fight is more difficult because it is harder to recognize that such a fight for our freedoms are even occurting.
Thank you.
5
October 16 2019
This quote is a must read for the making America great, agaiin.....
"You must pursue this investigation of Watergate even if it leads to the president. I'm innocent. You've got to believe I'm innocent. If you don't, take my job."
Richard M. Nixon
JJA Manhattan, N.Y.
https://www.brainyquote.com/topics/history-quotes
4
When will people realize that the Russians own not just Trump, but likely also McConnell, and Ryan (and probably the whole damn party)? The latter two allegedly coordinated Russian fundraising for various Republicans in the 2016 election cycle. THAT is why the GOP is silent!
7
I blame Nixon for ending the draft. Conscription angered people and disrupted lives, but it sure gave everyone a right to shout, USA, USA, USA.
Now, it's only heard at sporting events. No kneeling allowed.
2
I saw the news coverage of Trump's campaign vulgarities in both Louisiana and Minneapolis. The most fascinating parts of the clips are watching the people behind him as he spews his dirty mouth. They LOVE it! The expressions on their faces are that of rabid glee. I thought I had accidentally tuned in to the Jerry Springer show.
While Trump is running the country as though he is playing a character in a tv series, 35% of our fellow citizens are enjoying the drama not fully grasping the consequences. I suspect it is the same 35% that keeps a show like Jerry Springer still in business. They find hilarity in the crudeness and incivility and equate it to righteousness.
Though ignorance may be bliss, I wonder how much they'll be laughing when foreign powers really get a foothold in this country and they get a taste of mass destruction on our shores.
Let's hope there are far more Ambassador Yovanovitch's in our ranks, than the likes of the self serving McConnell, Giuliani, Pompeo, Pence, Kennedy, Johnson, Gowdy, Mulvany, Trump, et.al. It's our only chance of salvation for our country.
10
I think that by this time we can establish a pretty solid baseline of corruption. Whatever Trump accuses someone else of doing, multiply that by Three and that is what President Donald Trump is responsible for.
I get this number by using President Obama's golfing vs. President Trump's golfing. Then reality star Donald Trump complained ceaselessly about Barak Obama's time wasted playing golf. Yet once in office President Trump plays three times as many golf games as President Obama did, during the same time frame.
So extending that further, multiply any corruption the current president accuses by x3 and you end up with a rough estimate of a projection of his own culpability.
6
Democrats elected the majority of this House of Representatives, a majority that gave these public servants a forum for their words and a mechanism to make those words matter, to hold Trump to account: impeachment. Without the Democrats throughout America and the Democratic politicians who stood for election, none of this would be happening, the Republicans would have buried it. So please Mr. Friedman can you look past your prejudices and give some credit to the many millions of Americans who care about their country and who set the stage for this patriotic drama?
4
Either this country is going to find Patriots, millions and millions of them, Patriots who act to stop Mr Trumps worst ambitions, like ambassador Yovanovitch, like John Bolton and all the others who stood up to Trump and were subsequently removed and replaced with god knows what. We need patriots everywhere to at last stand up and stop all this, because history shows us what happens when people like Mr Trump are not stopped while there is still time. Slowly but surely Trump is removing all the safe guards on his full intention to strip away all the built in protections that keep this country a working democracy. The resistance grows everyday, but its good to know there are such good people acting behind the scenes for our benefit. True heroes.
5
Q: Why don't the True Defenders open the Impeachment Inquiry to a full House vote in order to include Republican members?
A: Because it IS Trump vs the Dems.
2
It is Trump vs democracy and decency. As far as bureaucrats are concerned, My experience tells me that the great majority are skilled conscientious and hard working. I headed a large government state agency before becoming CEO of a large private corporation. I found that government workers every bit as admirable as private employees. Lots of critical comments here by folks who don’t know what they’re talking about.
5
Compellingly expressed and convincingly presented, Thomas Friedman's Opinion accurately and poignantly distils the very essence of the subject matter. Without question the sterling reputation and impeccable integrity of Ambassador Marie Yovanovitch significantly transcends the boorish, paranoiac, and skullduggery antics of the Vietnam war draft dodger and his personal lawyer. Promoting and advancing a clandestine effort of implementing a shadow diplomacy by deliberately undermining official State Department protocols and diminishing established communication procedure reveals the extreme desperation to achieve re-election. Secretary Pompeo refused, or rather, sold out, the ambassador for political advantage as well as job retention. Now the draft dodger and Pompeo have blood on their hands having sold out the Kurds. Beware. What goes around comes around. And, to quote Malcolm X, circa late November, 1963: 'Chickens coming home to roost always made me happy." The Kurds were not just summarily abandoned. The Kurds are now scapegoated as no angels and paid "millions" by the very president who grabbed all the credit about the ISIS caliphate being destroyed by the Kurds. These brave soldiers displayed courage on the battlefield above and beyond the call of duty. Now that the Kurds no longer figure prominently into the geo-political dimensional scheme of significance, these dark complexioned warriors are scorned as immaterial and irrelevant. Excellent piece Tom! Race matters!
7
It is these "noncorrupt, apolitical civil servants," especially Marie Yovanovitch and whistle-blowers from the intelligence community, that are patriots, courageous public servants that are making America great again by revealing the tetrayal of Donald Trump and Rudy Giuliani. Just hope the majority of Americans are paying attention and commit themselves to the Trump mantra of MAGA by ending his presidency in 2020, if Congress does not do it sooner.
6
Unfortunately, few Trump supporters will ever ask themselves "who’s really protecting and honoring “U.S.A., U.S.A., U.S.A.”?
7
QUOTE: “It’s Not Trump vs. the Dems. It’s Trump vs. the Country’s True Defenders.”
Translation: “True Defenders” …of open borders, group think, identity politics, socialism, lawlessness & anarchy…and the destruction of the individual spirit and the American Dream
QUOTE: “Public servants who swore to protect the Constitution also set the impeachment process in motion.”
Translation: An unconstitutional coup d'état by the DEEP STATE to overthrow a duly elected POTUS.
4
Suddenly it is clear.
The White House plan was to assemble and if necessary plant criminal evidence linking 'irrefutably' Biden to Ukrainian corruption.
Then, in Sept 2020, suddenly Attorney General Barr was to reveal all the evidence against the Democratic presidential candidate and show up at a campaign rally to arrest him.
Then, there is not time to prepare another candidate and campaign before November, so Trump cancels the election to protect the country against international corruption.
None of this was suppose to see the light before Sept 2020 - but as it leaks out now, this corruption is deeply layered, carefully planned, highly lucrative, with international cooperation, multiple goals, multiple 'products', multiple locations. We can be fairly sure that this bit of sunlight has probably not stopped most of it.
Unfortunately, those planning this forgot two critical things:
1. Donald Trump's loose mouth and narcissism can never be trusted.
2. Not everyone in the United States government is corrupt or corruptible.
8
Her testimony makes me shake.
3
One of the most incisive articles I have ever read. A clear identification and characterization of the two "sides" of this dispute. Thank you, Mr. Friedman.
8
Excellent, concise and true explanation. The choice continues to be clear.
9
The fact that this lady was removed from her post tends to make her speech a bit bias. But fortunately for her, the writer of this article is just as bias, if not more so. Her length of service in Ukraine means that she probably had knowledge of Hunter Biden's dealings with that Ukrainian gas company. So was she part of the problem?
3
I’ve known many foreign service officers. None would ever have been complicit in what you suggest. They are the best and the brightest.
4
Of course she’s biased it doesn’t make her wrong, incompetent, poorly regarded by peers and invite to testify for 8 hours.
Weren’t Hunter Biden’s activities investigated by the same corrupt prosecutor that everyone wanted removed, and found meritless?
1
Well said, Mr. Friedman!
Ms. Yovanovitch's opening statement is an uplifting testimony of patriotic service and of American values. In contrast, Mr. Trump behaves like a foul-mouthed crime boss who feels protected by a bunch of reckless enforcers surrounding him.
The impeachment is about the rule of law and the defense of our Constitution. The Trump Administration tramples the law by defying Congressional subpoenas and counts on evading punishment because the Department of Justice is headed by an law-subverting Attorney General who seems to have no qualms destroying our democracy.
The stakes could not be higher. Americans should pay close attention, now and at election time.
4
To some of us comes that implacable day
Demanding that we stand our ground and utter
By choice of will the great Yea or Nay.
And whosoever has in him the affirming word
Will straightway then be heard.
The pathway of his life will then be clear at once
And all rewards will come his way.
But he, the other who denies,
No-one can say he lies; he would repeat
His Nay in louder tones if pressed again.
It is his right - yet by such little trifles,
A "No" instead of "Yes" his whole life sinks and stifles.
(free translation from C.P. Cavafy, by Lawrence Durrell)
For ‘he’ and ‘his’ also read ‘she’ and ‘her’, of course!
"Democracy is never a thing done, is always something that a nation must be doing."
- Archibald MacLeish - poet and librarian of Congress
5
It became a cliche to say the Trump wanted to "dig dirt" on Biden as if there was any dirt to dig. I think he wanted dirt to be fabricated and that's what Giuliani and his arrested associates were working on.
9
This is going to come to the 65% of Americans who believe in law and order and the Constitution and the 35% who believe in a white nation and using whatever it takes to achieve. We need to use triage and let that 35% shrivel up and die by voting out the cancer. It will all come down to how many people vote. An overwhelming Trump/GOP defeat in every state might do it but the Trump cultists will still be there. Shun them, ignore them, just walk away from them.
7
Preaching to the choir.
Now, how can you reach those taking the red meat Trump throws?
1
Elected Republicans will not desert Trump because they need his base support. What does that say about elected and base support Republicans? It's simple: they are traitors.
9
Regardless of how righteous Trump's critics are, or how disturbing his words or actions are, or how devastating the evidence uncovered by the impeachment inquiry might be, the odds of his reelection seem to rise steadily. He and his reelection group have been honing their campaign skills, online, on television and in live appearances, and they still have months to build a brutal campaign against someone from among the present candidates, none of whom looks strong enough to withstand the storm that awaits the nominee.
2
@William
Dems are making it rather easy. Warren tacking as far left as she can helps a lot. AOC endorsing Bernie also a boon. Attack on Trump that hurt Biden a real blow to Biden but may actually help Trump. So with Democrats as his Opponent how can he lose?
3
@GregP... are you implying that there is no strength in Truth and the American way? Consider how Trump has shot himself and America in the foot by betraying the Allies, Kurds et Al. The fact that he and his followers & enablers are deplorable does not mean that they are stronger. I do, however, agree that Dems MUST stop ripping each other apart. It is their greatest weakness.
4
What is sad is the very idea that anyone would vote for trump at all. We have learned a lot about the “values” of republicans over the last several years...primarily that hey have none.
1
Trump knows he faces prosecution if he is not re-elected, and is the reason why he often publicly states he may be the president beyond the limit of two terms.
My guess is that when he is impeached and doesn't make it onto the GOP ballot, he will move to Russia as a means to avoid prosecution.
2
@ClydeMallory... think Putin will welcome such a useless individual?
Unfortunately, Mr. Trump and his followers seem to think that the public servants whom Mr. Friedman refers to are agents of "the deep state," a fantastic entity that resembles an organization in a Batman film more than anything else.
1
But there is one word you have left our when describing Trump. It is a word that is increasingly being used- but whose import is still not fully understood by a largely shell-shocked public. That word is treason. There are more than sufficient grounds to accuse Trump of this and make it part of the articles of impeachment.
Besides bribery of foreign officials and giving aid and support to the the enemy- there is every reasonable indication that Trump is and has been pursuing policies that benefit Putin. The list of decisions, public statements, policies is long. It is astonishing that someone like Bolton- whose views I radically disagree with- yet would not now speak out against this President and label him for what he is. Senate Republicans are now complicit in these crimes- and the blood of innocent Kurds and Americans are on their hands. If John McCain was alive he would be joining Democrats on arguing the need for impeachment.
It is time for former Presidents to make this case to the American people as well. Jimmy Carter can pray- but a bit of backbone might help more. And George Bush's and Obama's silence is disappointing at best.
3
@Lowell Greenburg I strongly agree Trump should be impeached. However, please at least look up and understand the legal definition of treason before you accuse anyone of such a crime. Trump has probatively committed quite enough high crimes and misdemeanours that we do not need to be slinging inaccurate charges to impeach him.
High minded odes to deep state patriotism are laughable. Let's be honest, the State Department is chock full of entitled, Democrat partisans who have no interest in fulfilling the agenda of a duly elected President. It's not about their fealty to the Constitution, it's about their fealty to the DNC. The media laughed about the existence of a deep state, now they provide full coverage of the Deep State parade to Congress. The bureaucracy could use an overhaul.
3
Does it resonate with Trump supporters that Roy Cohn was his mentor?
A great article. Thank you.
I am a conservative. However, the rule of law, the Constitution and the values that we share as Americans are far more important than any political ideology. Therefore, I support Mr. Trump's impeachment and removal.
I think the removal question presented to the Senate will come down to these questions: Do you want to have a President who is governed by the rule of Law and the Constitution and an executive branch that is subject to Congressional Constitutional oversight and if necessary, congressional intervention, or a de-facto elected dictator who controls an actual rogue "deep state" that is "absolutely immune" from Congressional oversight? Will you choose the great and unmatched folly of following one man over the great and unmatched wisdom of the framers of the Constitution? Are you willing to exercise the Power given to you by the Constitution to defend and protect that Constitution, in accordance with your oath of office, against one who has violated the public trust and demonstrates, by his words and actions contempt for and/or ignorance of the rule of law and the Constitution or are you going to only protect yourself and your soon to be worthless Senate Seat?
Senators, very few in history are given such an opportunity. Use it well.
14
A great article. Thank you.
I am a conservative. However, the rule of law, the Constitution and the values that we share as Americans are far more important than any political ideology. Therefore, I support Mr. Trump's impeachment and removal.
I think the removal question presented to the Senate will come down to these questions: Do you want to have a President who is governed by the rule of Law and the Constitution and an executive branch that is subject to Congressional Constitutional oversight and if necessary, congressional intervention, or a de-facto elected dictator who controls an actual rogue "deep state" that is "absolutely immune" from Congressional oversight? Will you choose the great and unmatched folly of following one man over the great and unmatched wisdom of the framers of the Constitution? Are you willing to exercise the Power given to you by the Constitution to defend and protect that Constitution, in accordance with your oath of office, against one who has violated the public trust and demonstrates, by his words and actions contempt for and/or ignorance of the rule of law and the Constitution or are you going to only protect yourself and your soon to be worthless Senate Seat?
Senators, very few in history are given such an opportunity. Use it well.
2
It's Trump and the GOP vs logic, reason, truth, compassion, caring, empathy, facts, science, wisdom, sustainability, the Constitution, our allies, the poor, the middle class, reasonable gun laws, women's rights, political norms, reality, etc, etc, etc
6
The word "mole" has traditionally been used for Soviet or Russian agents inserted into US intelligence agencies. It is unavoidable, but true, that Trump is a "mole" in the White House. The President works daily to undermine not only our brave career diplomats, but also our intelligence agencies, our NATO allies, our closest trading partners, the safety of our elections, and now even the morale and safety of the men and women in uniform serving in war zones. Impeachment and subsequent conviction hardly seem adequate punishment.
5
Sadly the "uneducated" base Trump loves and the Republican Party has courted for years prefers simple answers to complicated questions and is now driving the direction of the GOP. At its core are people that believe Earth was magically created in 7 days by a supreme being who must have had nothing else to do that week. Its no wonder then those same people also believe that Trump has all the answers to their problems and is "the only one" that can "easily" solve them. Simple answers for simple people.
The religious right is led by avaricious charlatans that have more in common with Trump's narcissistic ways than Jesus. As long as the money continues to flow into their coffers and their constituents believe a valuable spot in heaven awaits them, the spell will hold. The only solution is to continue tugging at the curtains that conceal their true selfs and reveal the ugly truth. Onward!
9
@Bill
Three semesters of Calculus, Chemical Thermodynamics, Organic Chemistry, Linear Algebra, and Differential Equations all courses I have taken and passed ( hard to fail nowadays sad to say ). So uneducated doesn't begin to describe me. Trump supporter? That one is spot on.
2
@GregP
Where did I say that all Trump supporters are uneducated? Trump and the GOP just happen to love the uneducated ones that vote against their own interests without whom a Republican candidate would rarely get elected. Trump lies...for the sport of it and to soothe his sensitive ego.
4
Thomas Friedman and those who think like him are like spoiled children that throw tantrums and therefore tend to always get their way. Being spoiled jerks is how the Bolsheviks took over Russia. Nobody could stand them so they ended-up running everything by themselves. It's actually a very good, albeit horrifying, strategy for political domination: be a relentless critical, ruthless, bureacratic jerk.
2
At the very heart of Trump is corruption. His corruption is on display daily for the entire world to see and the daily reaction from Fox News, and his base, is that they like his corruption; they seem to revel in it. If your average, principled American ignores his latest mega-corruption in using a foreign country, and tax payer money, against a political opponent, we are at the precipice of destroying our values, and hence our nation as we know it. This is what Ambassador Yovanovitch is saying. We are at a crossroads and Americans need to wake up and pay attention or our democracy will be lost while the country is watching ESPN.
5
When a Democrat replaces Trump, she won't have to look far for a Secretary of State.
208
@writeon1 You mean like Hillary Clinton who lit the fuse of the Syrian civil war and the destabilization of Libya. Or John Kerry who orchestrated the cash to Iran to finance
Iran's terror organizations.
Just wanted to say thank you for this column.
Linking the two statements was brilliant.
And focusing on the details of Yovanovitch's remarkable plea --laying out for the American people the extent of her courage and exemplarity--is a deeply needed supplement to the work of these true defenders.
Truly appreciated.
5
TICK-TOCK, NANCY!!!
Good Job.. you go girl… You keep going girl :-)
I am still convinced that trump is a Russian plant.
6
@Steve, two of his wives are Eastern European..
1
Trumpism has to be the wackiest religion originating in the US yet.
3
A Vote for Donald J. Trump and the sycophantic liar & hypocrite Mike Peace is so clearly a vote for Vladimir Putin! Actions speak louder than words.
4
It's beyond obvious the traitor in the WH doesn't want "public servants" in our government. He only wants people who serve HIM. He's just the Mussolini wannabe that putin maneuvered into the Oval Office to serve HIM. So now we have a temporarily expanding gang of russian crooks operating as if they belong in those positions. They do not.
That the traitor can round up gangs of "free hat people" to populate his nazi-like "rallies" is the most depressing part of our country's current morass. This is the result of our collapsing education system, and our nauseating acceptance of soulless, mindless and thoughtless "reality" television. Do we deserve this? I think NOT.
The lying crook must go.
6
Trump tax returns
https://www.propublica.org/article/trump-inc-podcast-never-before-seen-trump-tax-documents-show-major-inconsistencies
2
Trump's statement that Biden "knew how to kiss Barack Obama's ass" has often been derided for its crudity. Nancy Pelosi said Trump "has become a potty-mouth." But rude language was not the point of that remark. It was possibly the most blatantly racist statement ever made in public by a sitting President. He was calling Biden an N-word lover.
The only time that epithet was used against me, I was warned to regard it as a threat against my life. It happened in Atlanta in 1964, a day or so after three civil rights workers were murdered in Mississippi. I was working on the Chevrolet assembly line, and my crime had been to shake hands with an African-American sociology professor during the lunch break.
That term does not refer to people like Thomas Jefferson and Strom Thurman who fathered children by African-American women. That expression of inter-racial contact is perfectly acceptable. N-word lover is an accusation that a white person is a race traitor by advocating that people of color are human beings with the same "inalienable" rights as white people.
It is a racial dog whistle, and his audience loved it. Trump's statement was not about Biden or Obama. Like the birther movement, it was about burnishing his credentials as a white supremacist.
10
"He was only a good vice president because he understood how to kiss Barack Obama’s ass.” - Trump on Biden.
Well, at least we are clear now on what makes Mike Pence a good vice president.
10
@Robert Henry Eller what a great cartoon that would make!
2
“He was only a good vice president because he understood how to kiss Barack Obama’s ass.”
Trump would certainly know about that since his vice president is the leading kisser of all time, along with the other derrière kissing members of his administration. It’s the premiere requirement to be in his administration and he rants about loyalty to himself all the time. Along with all his other repulsive qualities he is a raging hypocrite.
10
It's past time for Republicans to stop encouraging their followers to believe there is nothing worse than a Democrat, not a pedophile, not a murderer, not a corrupt wannabe godkingemperor.
Enough already. Everyone knows some good Democrats, even in deep red country. We are your neighbors. We stand for a government that cares for everybody. Our ideals may seem extreme - health care and decent schools for all, living wages, some restraints on high-powered killing machines - but there is nothing evil in that.
There is evil in giving power to greedy corrupt entities that don't care if they poison the very water, earth, and air you breathe. There is evil in making money with unsafe working conditions or slave labor conditions.
341
Thank you, Ambassador, and thank you, Tom.
3
The Republican party is approaching systemic moral bankruptcy. The first symptoms appeared with Nixon, his crooked cabinet and aides. The body GOP is now close to septicemic.
That includes our fellow citizens who are addicted to the Fox/Limbaugh koolaid and are A-ok with Trump & co's constant lies, cheating (Merrit Garland), divisive politics, bigotry, subversive foreign policy, and criminal behavior (obstruction of justice, emoluments, tax evasion ...). Please man up and take in some news from some other sources! You need to get deprogrammed, asap.
5
Thank you, Mr. Friedman. I wish more papers showed us the back side of this clown, since that is the part of him he has been showing the nation and the world.
The yellow color from his hair runs all the way down his back.
5
If we showed this column to the "red hats" and forced them to read it - they wouldn't understand what Mr. Friedman is getting at. Because they love Trump's crudeness and nastiness. It's feature, not a bug.
2
The ambassador serves the government of the people, by the people, and for the people. Trump and his deplorables want a government of white people, by white people, and for white people. As Trump himself would say, Sad!
3
I rarely write comments to articles like this, but felt compelled to do so after reading Tom Friedman's column. It brought me to tears, thinking of the discrace this President has brought to our nation.
If only those people devoted to the charlatan in the White House would read it, perhaps the veil would finally be lifted from their eyes.
I cannot help but recall the words of the Gold Medal father who held up a copy of the Constitution that he kept in his pocket and said of Trump "You have sacraficed nothing and no one."
8
It occurs to me that Republican is a poor choice of title for a party that is clearly enabling Trump to turn this country into a theocracy ruled by a monarch. The party of Trump, McConnell, Pompeo, Barr, and Kavanaugh should retitle themselves as what they truly represent, The Oligarchs for Monarchy.
230
@An informed reader -trump wants to create an autocracy=One Supreme Leader with NO checks or balances.
10
"We also believe that, in return, our government will have our backs and protect us if we come under attack from foreign interests. That basic understanding no longer holds true.”
Where are all the cowardly Gowdy-ite Benghazi screamers now? They who falsely raged about Washington-based "deep state" State Dept. handlers not supporting the ambassador and staff on the ground? Why are they not supporting this ambassador.
Oh that's right, one of them is now the corrupt Secretary of State, one has been spouting nonsense about the impeachment inquiry, and another was just rejected as the "President"'s new lawyer under a cloud. Two are not seeking reelection (why?) and one supported a measure to eliminate the independence of the Office of Congressional Ethics.
5
Couldn’t be more stark. One side gives informed, reasoned arguments. The other replies with vulgar schoolyard taunts.
4
Mr. Friedman, you keep preaching to the converted. But it's the convertible in swing states who matter, few though they may be. You helped explain the Mideast. Why don't you go to the U.S. Midwest and explain that? (The Mideast has nothing on that, apparently.) Throwing your hands up with exhortations of "how can anyone vote for Trump?" explains nothing, and moves nothing.
Mr. Friedman, you were on Time Magazine's list of most influential people. You announced King Abdullah's peace plan. Now your column is mostly quotes from others. What happened to your game? Please, go on the ground in states that matter, and tell us how to get win over actual people who live there -- not people you wish did.
2
@Ilya Shlyakhter’s Was, when you listen to news’s headlines you realize it has nothing to do with ordinary American lives. Media is obsessed with news from the Middle East which has zero impact on our lives. Except when it comes to sending our kids to fight those wars, over there. I guess we will never learn..despite Vietnam, despite Iraq. Lesson being not to meddle.
1
Against all enemies, foreign and DOMESTIC.
5
Too late for these fine words now, Tom.
The time for this was during the summer of 2016.
All these depredations were predictable and knowable at the
time. His low and retrograde nature was known.
Let's be clear!
2016 WAS THE FIREWALL!!!
(not shouting, but loud emphatic truth telling)
Once breached there was no good way out.
We haven't hit bottom yet, either.
I've often posted that two years was the limit the nation could endure the rot and slime of the Trump admin, holding out hope that the 2018 result would at minimum stop Trump's decent into fascism, but also inspire the GOP to help in that effort. He hasn't even slowed down, and the Mueller report was taken as permission to do more bad.
Look around the corner, kids; Trump will not be leaving the White House of his own volition, period.
It's gonna be a game of 'Make Me!'
The Dems better start figuring that one out now.
(Oh yes, the GOP won't be helping you.)
Didn't happen that way.
3
Never associate the word logic with the American voter.
3
Up until now I have avoided saying what I am about to say. I have searched for fairness in my mind and tried to give people the benefit of slight doubt. But after reading Friedman's words I am now more convinced then ever, that the current President of the United States, for whatever reason, is a traitor to this Nation. Vladimare Putin must be very proud of his accomplishment.
7
It is "breathing" that virtually no Republicans have manifested similar courage as did our former ambassador to Ukraine.
Really?
Where have you been these past two years and eight months, Mr. Friedman?
What would be "breathtaking" is if the obverse were true: Republicans would publicly state what they've known well before he won the nomination:we have a corrupt, ignorant, lying president who should be impeached and removed from office.
You're not naive, Mr. Friedman. Why would you be surprised that after all the terrible criminal behavior you've witnessed through his tenure in office, we've heard nothing from his party?
Most of us expect nothing!
1
Hats off to Ambassador Yovanovitch, a true patriot, and with the courage to stand strong...and show how petty and disloyal the current vulgar bully in the Oval Office is, tearing apart our diplomatic core just because he can, abusively, to satisfy his own ego and the ambition to re-assault the presidency next year. Shame on us if we let him. What a disgrace is Donald J. Trump to this democracy, which he is trampling with glee. Let's wake up folks, do what's right!
5
Well, The "deep state" seems to have teeth in their bite. Insult them enough and they will fight back. Trump did not realize what he was doing as he attacked them. Yes, they do deserve lots of credit for exposing the crazy man and his thugs.
1
Brilliantly put.
And Trump, both in the Ukraine matter and in his consistent support of Vladimir Putin, at America’s expense, fulfills every definition of sedition and treason.
4
Mr. T has violated, again and again, the very oath he took on inauguration day. He, more than any other person serving Americans today, is a traitor.
5
Trump = MRGA.
Make Russia Great Again.
(Credit to Mayor Pete for the revision.)
3
Might a Democratic candidate for president announce that if he or she is elected, he or she will make whole any American diplomats who lost their jobs for standing up for American values?
1
Thanks so much for this piece. It's truly difficult to understand how Trump continues to enjoy Republican party support. But equally worisome that with each passing day, parents with the values of the former ambassador's parents, denied refugee or asylum status, will not raise children like her in the U.S.A.
8
@Peter - " how Trump continues to enjoy Republican party support."
He has released what has been bottled up for all these years under respectable sounding people and ideas. He is the Republican party. Given permission to be who they are. Free at last! Free at last to be who they have always been.
1
Thank you for laying out the comparison between Trump and Yovanovitch. I don't know how anyone who reads this piece can simply ignore what is happening to our institutions and the people who help keep them functional.
At some point, Trump's voters need to determine what type of country they want the US to be.
9
Thomas sees these agents of the deep-state bureaucracy as his political partners.
What a shame that the journalistic tradition in our country was completely exploded when this era came along because a journalist in Thomas' shows would be railing against the creeping rule-by-elites that our Founders fought and bled to prevent ever happening.
The fear among insiders that Nixon would tear down their empires was even spotted by the NY Times during Nixon's 1972 race - the race that scared all the East Coast elites because he had a SOLID message from the voters backing him up.
Now comes Trump promising - and DOING - what Nixon dared speak about, and of course, no tricks are being spared in the war to get rid of him, even secret meetings with witnesses where only the juciest leaks can be used to manipulate those hearing the news.
Trump has no allies in D.C. to speak of, but he will always have the voters. Thomas' false ''public servants'' are the most committed people against Trump and the taxpayers' victory.
May they always fail.
I am confident Mr. Friedman's column will be included verbatim in future history and civics texts that aim to clearly and constructively interpret these troubled times.
7
I am confident Mr. Friedman's column will be included verbatim in future history and civics texts that aim to clearly and constructively interpret these troubled times.
1
This shows that it is the immigrants, like Ms Y and, for that matter, my great grandparents who came to this blessed land during the latter 1800s, that are the true believers in democracy. They are devoted to our constitution because the places they came from afforded no such protection. Conversely, it is the nativists, decendants of the original Anglo Saxon immigrants, who begrudge anyone who does not look like them and who are willing to sacrifice the constitution and our democracy in order to protect their pristine ignorance and bigotry.
4
How do we manage to break the self imposed cone of silence that Republican lawmakers are hiding under? It is their complacency, not that of the weak minded at trump's rallies, that matters right now. Congress is the legislative branch, a co-equal to that of the Executive. The body must start behaving in a responsible manner. Without it, America is doomed.
3
Ambassador Yovanovitch's words brought tears to my eyes and I'm not even an American.
I agree to some extent with @Ard that education (evidence based, scientific kind) needs to touch more American lives, but I don't agree with their "push that America down" sentiment. The focus on sound education for all and uplifting of the poor and reducing income inequality has to be a goal in itself rather than a means to an end.
What I am dumbfounded by is how the entire GOP continues to support this immoral president and his divisive and dangerous politics? Surely there are enough well educated people in that party. Why are 99.9% of them spineless? Statistically, given how many Americans are upstanding citizens, there must be at least a handful more in the GOP who will stand up for the ideals of this country. Where are they? What more are they waiting for? I am tired of journalists on CNN telling me that off camera Republicans are complaining about Trump. They are trying to have their cake and eat it too. Call them on their hypocrisy now!
3
Ambassador Yovanovitch's words brought tears to my eyes and I'm not even an American.
I agree to some extent with @Ard that education (evidence based, scientific kind) needs to touch more American lives, but I don't agree with their "push that America down" sentiment. The focus on sound education for all and uplifting of the poor and reducing income inequality has to be a goal in itself rather than a means to an end.
What I am dumbfounded by is how the entire GOP continues to support this immoral president and his divisive and dangerous politics? Surely there are enough well educated people in that party. Why are 99.9% of them spineless? Statistically, given how many Americans are upstanding citizens, there must be at least a handful more in the GOP who will stand up for the ideals of this country. Where are they? What more are they waiting for? I am tired of journalists on CNN telling me that off camera Republicans are complaining about Trump. They are trying to have their cake and eat it too. Call them on their hypocrisy now!
1
Brilliant. I wish more people would read this. I would encourage everyone to send the link to this piece to your friends and family.
8
Putting the two statements together and then asking which one we agree with is about as clear as one can get.
8
Excellent piece.
If any one of Trump's supporters spent three decades in a career and was unjustly fired like Ms. Yovanovich was, they'd think it was awful. And yet they cheer for the man who fired her.
I don't understand what's wrong with them. Whatever happened to decency and honor?
11
One of the enduring themes of the Trump administration is that their efforts to help America are being fought and resisted by the "Deep State." What the whistleblower, Ambassador Yovanovitchand the Inspectors General demonstrate, and as you point out here, there is no "Deep State" but an enoromous cadre of dedicated, talented, professional civil servants who serve the country, not the President.
Before the 1870s the vast majority of Federal jobs, from postal chief, to highway building foreman were all patronage jobs. After a public outcry against all the corruption this system engendered, there was a decade long fight to establish a Civil Service System. This apolitical meritocracy is the foundation of American good government. For Trump and his cronies, they wish to go back to a time when all Federal employees serve the President not just professionally, but politically as well. This is a truly frightening and unpatriotic agenda - by no means America first, but merely Trump first.
14
Sadly, where you see dedicated, career civil servants, the right sees only "unelected bureaucrats" and "deep state operatives." I see it as part of the greater loss of American belief in any kind of expertise. Too many people think a political appointee is no different than someone with decades of education and experience.
13
@April - It's funny that the right never complains about unelected people like Stephen Miller or the Trump kids.
8
The Democrats leading the impeachment inquiry would do well by emphasizing that career civil servants have been coming forward, at great personal risk, to present evidence of illegal acts by Mr. Trump and his cronies. These people are not, and have never been, partisan political actors. The entire Congress, not only Democrats, should heed the blowing whistles.
12
The main, the sole qualification for a Democratic candidate is not their policy positions. It is their ability to defeat Trump.
Candidates should use the debate platform to explain a specific strategy to defeat Trump. Promise to deliver Florida, Michigan and Wisconsin by offering The Green Party input into the platform and the appointment of their candidates to cabinet positions such as Sec of Interior and head of EPA. Green's acceptance can help the environment rather than resigning them to act as a spoilers for the Repubs. Such a coalition cold be offered in return for not fielding a presidential candidate in this time of extremis.
Offer to include Kasich or other Republican moderates (if they can be found) in one's administration. Offer to put people from hunting associations and gun stores in committees to find a way to form gun safety policies.
These actions would win votes regardless of whether the Greens or Kasich accepted.
I want to know how they can win, not listen to a policy debate, approve one-liners or judge on style points.
2
“The dogmas of the quiet past are inadequate to the stormy present. The occasion is piled high with difficulty and we must rise with the occasion. As our case is new, we must think anew and act anew. We must disenthrall ourselves, and then we shall save our country." Lincoln
3
...and McConnell and his band of loyalists stand firm. Patriots, indeed!
1
Trumpism is just opportunism that exploits the one issue voters that believe deeply in right to life, lower taxes, me first, white superiority,right to own any gun.
Trumpism was exposed by Guiliani who as fixer who simply let Trump be Trump and participated in hunting for proof of conspiracies using that countered the narrative of the Mueller report. Instead of being chastened by the Mueller report Trump was emboldened.
Its good to know that the so called deep state that brings justice to Trump may just be ordinary patriotic hardworking federal employees.
1
Excellent. You are not pushing your thoughts; you are letting the actors speak for themselves. It's obvious that the "president" loses the match. He has reached such low levels of behavior that we, responsible citizens with analytical conscience, have no more words. Thank you for lending yours.
5
Now, to hear from their counterparts in the rest of trump's cabinet.
It is an abomination that the entirety of Trump supporters believe it is the Democratic Party that is corrupt and is trying to take down this administration by coup disguised as impeachment.
And, Biden does not help this perception when, as he did last night in the debate, he refuses to answer a simple question about his political judgment.
While I disagree that career diplomats so far are risking everything by appearing before Congress under subpoena (they would be risking more if they refused to appear) they surely have no axes to grind, having served for many years under both parties.
This whole episode in American history stinks of putrid corruption. That Republicans in Congress refuse to support these career diplomats who have served us all just shows how self-interested they all are.
4
Thomas Friedman has nailed it by presenting that the true heroes of the Constitution are the apolitical civil servants, that is, the Whistleblower(s) and State and Intelligence Department employees that have and will come forward. Friedman correctly points out it’s not the Democrats that are bringing charges of Trump’s Ukraine Constitutional violations but the very foundations of the Presidential Whitehouse staff. This is fresh new insight into the way forward for the unsavory political attacks Trump launches daily before the sun rises.
Here’s what Democrats should do. Stand up tall, speak loudly on how Trump’s own team has turned against him. Trump’s own team is out to oust him and Republicans in Congress can rush to the aid if the country and demand him to resign before the Republican faces the ire of the electorate. There is no good news on the horizon for Trump and we all know it. Just like ice turns to water in the heat and suddenly drains away, that’s what will happen with Trump’s support. Republicans best get on the lifeboats in the ensuing flood and plan for the post-Trump era.
3
I blame Reagan for this "war" on the deep state. His throw away rhetorical line about government being the problem has become a GOP meme that fails to understand how organizations, as vast as our government, work. Bureaucratic structures and tools are absolutely necessary to efficiently and effectively operate our government. The alternative, which at the turn of the century many urban areas suffered from, were state and local government run by party hacks---or in contemporary times--what our white house looks like right now.
8
I often find myself disagreeing with Friedman, but in this column he clearly, compellingly makes a clear case for why our nation's future is in serious danger. Well said!
One minor point that is worth mentioning: Referencing our elected Congress: Friedman says "when all they have to lose is $174,000 in salary and free parking at Reagan Washington National Airport."
It would be wonderful if that were the case. However, as we have seen from recent history, nobody goes to Washington and comes back without million dollar connections and income. Our elected officials are the targets of lobbyists and grifters from the day they are elected, and nearly every single one becomes entangled in the dark web of influence dollars. This cannot and will not be changed until we see serious campaign finance reform----something I do not expect to see in my lifetime.
17
Speeches are often studied in all schools. Every student needs to study the speeches Trump gives at his rallies. The question is, ¿should it be in the Language Arts class or in Civics?
2
Little wonder why Trump and his cronies spread "deep state" conspiracy theory crackpottery.
People who exist in government solely to tend to their personal economic interests must attack the facts advanced by true patriots in the ad hominem.
Senate Republicans could learn something from these true patriots - if they could stop waving flags and thumping Bibles for the briefest moment. They will not.
2
"Only I can fix it."
"Lock her up."
"Build that wall."
Those were his only real promises, his only real policy proclamations, the core of his campaign.
And yet the media carried his rallies like they were real news
He was covered as if he were a legitimate presidential candidate.
He won.
Now the media is trying to figure out how to undo this disaster.
Go figure.
5
I'm always wisecracking that Tom Friedman is the only human being on earth that knows everything, without any doubt. Today, his wisdom is revealed as he points out - a tiny bit too high-mindedly - that it is Democracy's invisible Serfs who try hardest and best to protect our nation's once-refined and superior position in the known universe with few fatal decisions to mar that reputation. I urge you to read "It’s Not Trump vs. the Dems. It’s Trump vs. the Country’s True Defenders. . . Public servants who swore to protect the Constitution also set the impeachment process in motion." It is poetry from Mr. Friedman.
The most important thing for Congress and State legislators to do right now is to stop use of Computer voting machines and rush, immediately, to allocate funds to photocopy 150 million ballots before November 2020 and provide funding to pay our best senior citizens to "count ballots by hand and with pride like they once did" I am sure that at least some multi-billionaires will provide their salaries.
Otherwise. all the work that our unseen heroes have done, to tell the truth about the rotten decay of our Democracy, will be wasted. Now that corporate avarice and dirty politicians have murdered our system we must spend the next five years raising it from the dead.
Truly.
3
The Constitution gives presidents, not ambassadors, authority to determine foreign policy. Neither Marie Yovanovitch’s removal nor President Trump’s request that Ukraine resume its investigation of Joe Biden and Hunter Biden’s dealings in Ukraine damages U.S.-Ukrainian relations. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky readily agreed to Trump’s request. At a recent press conference, Zelensky said “There was no pressure or blackmail from the U.S.”
In her prepare statement to the House Intelligence Committee, Marie Yovanovitch said, “I want to categorically state that I have never myself or through others, directly or indirectly, ever directed, suggested, or in any other way asked for any government or government official in Ukraine (or elsewhere) to refrain from investigating or prosecuting actual corruption.” This could be taken to mean that she did not oppose restarting the investigation, but it could also mean she opposed the investigation because she did not consider it a case of “actual corruption.”
@William Case Investigating corruption is fine. "Investigating" your political opponents is not. And the president of Ukraine is still in the bind he was before - he does not want to alienate Trump.
2
@RMS
It may be "wrong," but it is not illegal. The Obama administration investigated the Trump campaign during the 2916 election.
You are dead wrong. Soliciting opposition research from a foreign country is against US Federal Election law. It also likely violates the emoluments clause because it was a using his public office for personal benefit to Donald Trump, and not to the Office of President.
This piece really cuts to the heart of what is happening to our Country under the Trump administration and backed by republicans. Under Trump, 'truth' has no meaning. 'Ethics' isn't in the dictionary. 'Decency' is nowhere to be found. 'Empathy and Compassion' disappeared in 2016. 'Self, I, me, my, mine,' are in abundance and backed by lies, innuendo, name calling and behavior which can best be described as 'childish,'
History will judge harshly all who participated in this mess of an administration and those who support it.
5
Thank you, Thomas. This is excellent.
4
It is clear that one of the benefits of a capitalist society is that a company like Fox News, which is essentially a reincarnation of Pravda from the 1970s, makes huge amounts of money.
Their hosts all have 7 figure plus salaries, and I am sure live a much better life than their counterparts in the state news agencies in China and Russia. They need to be careful, if we keep electing people like Trump, it won't last for ever.
It would be fun to see one of the Democratic candidates start to refer to Fox News as Pravda and see what kind of headlines it generates.
2
Ambassador Yovanovitch's words need to be said and heard as many times as it takes to get to Friedman's point. Civil servants, not only the Democratic Party, want this president to be brought to understand his actions do indeed have consequences. Nixon said if the president does it, it is not illegal, to David Frost I believe. Trump shouts it at his rallies, the circus in town wherever he is. I simply cannot get over the fact that this began in the Ukraine with Manafort, that sterling character, and now again we are in the Ukraine. Bigger puppet strings from above from the master puppeteer, Putin and his big pal, Trump.
3
When I first saw the accompanying photo of Marie Yovanovitch marching into congress I captured it and made it my screensaver. Before she said a word her face said it all. Reading her words has brought me to tears. Mahalo, Ms. Yovanovitch, from the depths of my heart has hurt so deeply for my country. Your face will forever be the one I see when I hear the words “speaking truth to power.”
7
The problem is that the lunatics are now in charge of the asylum. If you ask a Trump supporter the question you pose, the answer would be that the ex-ambassador is using hoity-toity big words to look down on and denigrate the true Americans of this country. The Trump folk are relishing that they have the chance to vent their bigoted spleens all over the rest of America. They want to tear down the established order because they think that only then will they stand a chance to take back what they think has been unjustly stolen from them by the "others." Time will tell whether enough people care enough to stop the descent into autocracy.
7
The reason Trump, et al, including Fox News, is successful with their conspiracy theories and lies is because Americans are, generally speaking, incredibly ignorant about everything except their shopping malls and a few bible verses. The Republican agenda is now almost complete: gut public education to keep the lower classes ignorant, gullible, and poor; elect a reality show madman and failed "businessman" trust-funder to execute the agenda they all, deep down, really want (albeit while they clutch their pearls in mock shock and horror); and collude with the snake-oil salesmen Evangelical leaders to lead their blindly faithful flock to back the most un-Christian of presidents, Senates, and party agendas in the history of the USA.
10
Our "acting" president is right - the Dems can't win on election day. That's because trump and his Republican-Russian collaborators have corrupted it in their favor leaving Dems no choice but to impeach him. Our Constitution seems to have been voided the day he took office.
Putin's Russia, trump and Republicans ARE the "foreign and DOMESTIC enemies" referred to in the oath to the Constitution they've rendered impotent.
Republican's oath is to protect and defend the trump from all accountability, hence their campaign against "disloyal" civil servants who's oath and loyalty is to the Constitution instead.
"It’s Trump vs. the Country’s True Defenders." Actually it's trump, his Republicans and entire base of collaborators, supporters and enablers serving trump and against the country's true defenders and the rest of us.
No doubt which speaker Republicans want their kids to learn civics from. I'm tired of excusing 1/3 of the country for their intellectual dishonesty and depravity as demonstrated by their continued support for a truly depraved man.
At the PLEASURE of the president they character assassinate, destroy careers and steal pensions from top counter-intelligence officials defending this country from Russia, circulate depraved videos of trump slaughtering Americans, news organizations and non-Republicans off of Fifth Ave, while caging children to die, stabbing allies in the back after sacrificing 11k fighters on OUR behalf and leaving our troops surrounded by enemies.
3
When we have created legal standards to define what’s right Vs.wrong by nailing subsequently the moral standards to win cases in courts,we lost the god given directions to lead our lives and imprisioned gods/goddesses creating symbolic religious shrines for them. Now the future of humanity is under tight control of vastly politicized justice system in most corrupt nations except few countries so far. One most shining star was US so far which is under worst attack since DJT Presidency after W.Barrs appointment as AG.
The employers who knowingly hires corrupt bankruptcy expert with multiple business bankruptcies on resume shouldn’t expect anything better than fast approaching chapter 11 danger for entire nation! God bless US all.
As bad philosophers and ignorant in the causality of the capitalist economy ( because Marx is communist ) , Americans are fooled by Trump. All of them . The democrats are not able to perceive that Trump is just a pantin manipulated by forces that are much bigger and machiavellist than himself is capable of moving .
It is “breathtaking” that virtually no Republicans have manifested similar courage as our former ambassador to Ukraine.
Really? Where have you been these past two years and eight months?
What would be “breathtaking” is if the opposite were true: Republicans would publicly state what they know: we have a corrupt, ignorant lying president who should be impeached and removed from office.
Mr. Friedman, you’re not naive. Why are you surprised that after all the terrible, criminal behavior we’ve witnessed through his entire term in office we’ve heard nothing from his party?
Most of us expect nothing.
2
Many have commented on the fact that the so-called Republican party is deeply complicit in Trump's clumsy attempt to subvert all that we hold dear as a nation. And that is true, probably to save their jobs, but also to hide the fact that the NRA funneled Russian money into their campaign chests.
But the grisly truth is that the president, vice president, chief of staff, attorney general and secretary of state are all directly tied to a stupid scheme based on a fantasy. Barr flying all over the world for one-on-one's with foreign leaders, selling the president's Putin-inspired fantasies? Pompeo throwing our entire department of state under the bus to appease the president's Putin-inspired fantasies? The president throwing our own troops and Kurdish allies under the bus because the "president" of Turkey told him to, probably to protect the value of Trump Towers in Instanbul?
And that doesn't count the insane, irrational rollback of regulations on air and water quality, denial of anthropomorphic climate change that is devastating millions of people, family separations, caged children -- the list is too long. He has unleashed the very smallest, petty people to run roughshod over our nation's people and natural resources.
For one pathetically weak, self-absorbed loser from Queens.
Let our dedicated civil servants save the country, please.
2
I really tried to understand why anyone would vote for Donald Trump. One of my sisters did saying after the election, "I really think he will make America great again." My brother voted for him as well based on one thing. "Benghazi! Clinton is guilty!" My other sister, like me, voted for Clinton (While we really wanted Sanders.) So, I read books about Trump voters and their lives. I do think the Democrats dropped the ball in regard to these people, their lives, and the fact that many of them still suffered from the 2008 crisis. They were taken for granted, and I feel desperate for a change. Clinton offered more of the same, Trump offered change. Well, they got change. They also got dishonesty, lies, probable criminal actions, and crude narcissistic leadership. They have gained absolutely nothing from this administration. And yet, they still buy into the mythology and the messiah-like illusions. Hence, I'm sorry things didn't go well for them, and I'm sorry the democrats took them for granted, however, I find them to be suckers of the lowest order. These people are cowards who have no idea what America is, means, or represents. They voted for him, and I can see their point in that action. But with what has happened since his election has dimmed America, and they silently accuses to his ugly language, lies, and contempt. If Republicans really want to show they are Americans, they need to find a better path as opposed to this corrupt Pied Piper. He is leading them down a hole.
1
Civil servants aren't elected officials. The President of the US decided what is in the countries interest. He is elected to do that. Institutional integrity doesn't Trump that.
That's why Congressional oversight is critical. The public who elects the President needs transparency so they can make informed decisions when electing the next President.
The obstruction of Congressional oversight in our Constitutional democracy is the real crime. You can't have a democracy with an electorate that can't make informed decisions.
Elected officials make policy and decide who carries it out.
1
"It is breathtaking that virtually no Republican lawmakers have manifested similar courage — when all they have to lose is $174,000 in salary and free parking at Reagan Washington National Airport."
And this is the heart of the matter. An entire political party has turned its back on the constitution and the country. For some who've become embroiled in the corruption there may be more at stake than just the loss of salary and perks. One cannot help but wonder what incriminating information they fear will surface if they betray Trump.
The task for all patriotic Americans is to support a Democratic candidate running for the House and/or Senate across the nation. It is vital Republicans are removed from power from the Senate if we are to have any chance of returning to something resembling a democratic republic. Donations, volunteer, but get personally involved.
1
"It is breathtaking that virtually no Republican lawmakers have manifested similar courage — when all they have to lose is $174,000 in salary and free parking at Reagan Washington National Airport."
And this is the heart of the matter. An entire political party has turned its back on the constitution and the country. For some who've become embroiled in the corruption there may be more at stake than just the loss of salary and perks. One cannot help but wonder what incriminating information they fear will surface if they betray Trump.
The task for all patriotic Americans is to support a Democratic candidate running for the House and/or Senate across the nation. It is vital Republicans are removed from power from the Senate if we are to have any chance of returning to something resembling a democratic republic. Donations, volunteer, but get personally involved.
"It is breathtaking that virtually no Republican lawmakers have manifested similar courage — when all they have to lose is $174,000 in salary and free parking at Reagan Washington National Airport."
This is a terrific piece and Thomas is correct in asking which speech would we want our children to read. However, the quotation above is a talking point that needs to be removed from the question of why the Republicans will not take a stand. That salary is a pittance to what the job is really worth. The expense account, all the perks, the power, and the opportunity to enrich oneself and family members in the process. The only good thing about the Trump presidency is he is exposing how deep corruption runs among these leaders and their donors. It is not all republicans as the Hunter Biden issue has proven. Maybe it is time to investigate all of these people and their families. We could start with Justice Thomas' wife.
1
So Peter Strzok and Lisa Page types in government are a good thing? Partisan watchdogs and whistleblowers coming to the rescue if voters make a mistake? For 3yrs we've had 'deep state' leaks to media outlets crying wolf veering from collusion to now Ukraine and dozens of others between with nothing tangible resulting from it.
We don't need deep state heros attempting to overturn elections.
2
@Lane
The Deep State is a non existent invention of Trump and friends. The purpose is simple; it is to confuse the public. This is a typical Putin tool.
While I tend to agree with everything Thomas Friedman has to say, his arguments are based upon logic and reasoning. However, neuroscientists have found that people make decisions based upon their emotions and then rationalize them. As such, people's decisions are driven and even determined by their personal biases, which also shape and impact their beliefs, assumptions, expectations and values. Such things are formed as a result of people's personal backgrounds and life experiences. The question not whether or not such things are impacting people's decision-making, but how much their lack of self-awareness is skewing their perception of things and therefore causing them to make poor choices, regardless of their intellect.
Our personal backgrounds have to do with our parents and how they raise us. Our life experiences have to do with everything we experience in our lifetime, including people we befriend, our sources of news, etc.
If our parents didn’t teach us to see things from other people’s perspectives, we either need to take it upon ourselves to learn such things or we live in a false reality that our perspective is the only perspective. This is why self-righteousness is the opposite of emotional self-awareness, which is the foundation of emotional intelligence. And, emotional intelligence helps to reduce and otherwise keep biases in check. Along these lines, a study recently found that people with lower emotional intelligence are more likely to hold right-wing views.
2
Thank you for making this impeachment issue clearer. Public servants brought the issue forward, starting with the whistleblower, followed by many other brave federal staff. The House Democrats are acting legally, appropriately, in response to those concerns. The Republicans, are in a quandary. They can’t counter by “ pounding the law”., nor the facts, so, in desperation, they pound the table.
Mr. Friedman’s critical point needs frequent repetition. The initiators, catalysts of this inquiry are a collection of brave patriotic public servants, not the Democrats.
6
"Trump and his enablers at the state-directed Fox News want to portray this as just another partisan fight — between Trump and his Democratic rivals — in the hope that the public will shrug and say, 'There they go again.' They don’t want Americans to understand that this fight is about guarding the most cherished norms and institutions that define us as a nation." The right's fallback position has always been to promote everything as just another political fight, a position implicitly endorsed by the press in their preference for false equivalencies...less work in finding the real truth that way.
1
As I am a substitute teacher in mostly elementary classrooms, I often recite the pledge of allegiance to our flag. As I stand with my hand over heart these days I am troubled that these young citizens are being betrayed by their elders. We pledge our allegiance to the republic, not the president.
These students will eventually know the truth and become cynical of our leadership. Very discouraging.
2
Why is it, Trump being the disaster he is said to be, that we do not hear a single syllable expressed about a Republican candidate opposing him in a presidential primary? Is there not a single Republican who recognizes the danger to the nation in another four years of a Trump presidency? Or, viewed slightly differently, is there not a single Republican who seems capable of gaining support for a presidential run?
9
Haven't read the piece yet. Just wanted to comment on the picture. Oh, to see the back of trump as he's marched to jail...a dream come true.
5
So why are public servants allowed to make requests to spy on people? Samantha Powers and FISA? The ex Ukraine ambassador and Obama appointee asking for people to be "monitored"?
2
Donald J. Trump is a pandemic on our society. His racism, narcissism, coarseness, ignorance, sense of entitlement, and acting as Putin's emissary are an embarrassment. Do the GOP legislators hate their Democratic counterparts, and the values that Democratic legislators espouse, more than they care about our nation as a collective? I do not get Trump's appeal and control over the GOP.
9
The ambassador is a great American and a great servant of the people. Donald Trump is a grating president and a servant of his only God MONEY!
5
This shows how Ms Yovanovitch's opening statement was so incredibly well written. When a writer with Friedman's credentials simply references her opening statement in his opinion piece.
3
On January 20th 2017 in front of our whole country Donald Trump put his hand on a bible and said, "I do solemnly swear that I will faithfully execute the Office of President of the United States, and will to the best of my Ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States."
This was just the latest lie in a life strewn with lies, but it was his first lie as President.
He has brought nothing but shame and increasing danger to our country since.
13
Where’s the discussion of Qatar investing in Kushner’s white elephant Park Avenue property or Ivanka’s favorable licensing agreements in China? Trump comes off as strangely disinterested regarding Hunter Biden. It’s as though Trump wanted the appearance of “dirt” without having to turn over many stones. Ukraine seems to be a place where gobs of money could be made. It’s inconvenient that Trump’s associates were on the take. I guess their corruption was less corrupt?
2
Trump is President because neither political party provided an acceptable alternative to the "True Defenders," which is to say the silent majority in the middle of the political spectrum. And the Dem party is hell-bent to fail again. Elizabeth Warren and her ideas are a departure from what True Defenders stand for and Friedman and others will wring their hands and wonder what went wrong. Answer: they did.
Yet another clear message to all American citizens. Ms Yovanovitch has shown the difference between those who are devoted to the USA and folks who are not. We are at a turning point in American History. How can any true American not see the difference between those who love our country and those who are quickly moving to destroy the world's oldest democracy? Donald Trump and his henchmen must go.
3
I know there have been countless articles about and interviews with Trump supporters in an attempt to explain his popularity, but I still don't understand why anyone would applaud his profanity and vulgar comments. How is it that anyone looks at him and sees a leader? I know some Trump supporters and they are nice people. But, they go to these rallies and become a mob of fanatics, cheering the words of an angry, rage-filled incompetent who uses them as a sounding board for his paranoid ravings. I don't get why they do it. The Trump supporters I know would never use the language he does, but I imagine at a rally they would be clapping and laughing and cheering with the rest of them. These normal people are somehow turned into zealots. How does that happen? And, why do they let themselves be used to prop up this sorry man's ego?
9
@Ms. Pea
I think Trump is what they wish they could be. Rich, ignorant and crude and able to get away with it. He's their American dream.
@LauraF
Couldn't be further from the truth. He actually cares about the American Worker. Wants to make things better for Americans First. That is why we support him. It cannot be any simpler than that. Obama wanted to lift the whole world up. Even if he could do that, no way to raise the tide for billions and not lower the waterline for hundreds of millions of Americans. If you are a Globalist it is a reasonable sacrifice. Millions of Americans see their fortunes decline but multiples more around the world get lifted up. Trump would never make that choice and that's why he is in the Oval Office today. That is why he is re-elected in 2020. Unless I win the Powerball won't ever be rich and not trying to pretend I am by supporting Mr. Trump. He has my back and I have his.
Plain facts in plain language that plain folks can understand: wonderful column, Mr. Friedman.
There's nothing really complicated about Trump. He isn't a symbol of something or a human analogy of the voices of the 43 million who voted for him. He's just Trump. He's the guy who came in second in the election but was shoved into first place, much to his own dismay. Just a phony baloney who paints his hair orange so he can pretend it's gold.
6
It’s Trump vs. the Country’s True Defenders
It should be noted that the Country’s True Defenders are not the "Second Amendment people" who claim to be while they actually side with tyranny, corruption, and treason, but rather people like Marie Yovanovitch who stand up to tyranny and corruption as did the Patriots in 1776.
7
Indigenous people’s day is also National Whistleblowers Day as the veil was lifted on Columbus’s “discovery” of someone / something outside of his own realm.
1
Well, I worry for our democracy, because I wouldn't put Friedman's question (Trump vs Yovanovitch) to a vote. Americans are no longer a sober bunch, willing to make serious decisions. "Adulting is hard", "you do you", "don't care what other people think" are all common mottoes that didn't exist 50 years ago when Friedman was growing up in Minnesota. Americans are only too happy to let Trump fight like it's a big ugly football game where we all end up concussed. Speaking of which, did you see the 'big game' the other day? Or what about the 60 garbage shows on Netflix that we all binge watch? Lock your doors, sit on the couch, order more Chinese garbage from Amazon, and heat up your meal delivery.
5
Excellent and important column Tom Friedman. The Republicans are digging the grave of their party none too soon.
2
L'etat ce n'est pas Trump, no matter what his acolytes think and how loud they may yell.
This country is made of better stuff, and we'll prove it on election day of 2020, if indeed Trump is still in office.
3
The silence from Republican Senators is deafening.
7
Mr. Friedman's accurate analysis of our National dilemma will never break through the bubble that covers Trumplandia and protects the believers from facts or truth.
In their rancid world Ambassador Yovanovich is a traitor because she did not cede to the demands of Dishonest Donald and his band of Merry Criminals.
7
Thank you, Tom Friedman, for shining a spotlight on the good, the bad, and the ugly here in our beloved America. In the battle for our nation's soul, between good and evil, we can hope that more patriots like Marie Yovanovitch will come forward and take back command of our country!
6
Veni vidi vici.
He saw the sheep of the world, he saw the tyrants in the world take over their national flocks and he liked what he saw.
Trump is practicing in the real world the fantasy children have when they dress up in adult clothes.
He wants to be king but he is mad as hatter.
Our problem is the fanlike devotion to his act that his followers suffer from. Odd that his supporters in the south mimic the enslavement they desire in the other.
Hegel writes a few choice sentences on the subject of the master/slave relationship. They are worth a read.
4
Spot on. I continue to be amazed at some Americans' fondness for Trump, whose value system is contrary to every tenet supported by Constitutional norms. I truly believe that this man, who has been described by some as a "thug", deserves impeachment, removal, and incarceration.
5
"It’s Not Trump vs. the Dems. It’s Trump vs. the Country’s True Defenders." That is the truth.
4
Right. I would agree with you pulling out of Syria was bad, but he's been a better defender of this country than any Democrat has ever been. And this group is the worst.
1
Without sounding glib, I really think releasing a photo of Trump's bald, flabby self walking around the White House screaming at walls could change Trump Country's love affair with the grifter. Hmm. Maybe not.
1
There is one thing we, and Trump, and the Republicans, all agree on : contempt for those in his base of support. Republicans in their bones know how to hide their contempt, Trump knows without effort how to exploit his contempt, and Democrats trip all over themselves to avoid showing their contempt. Democrats should instead turn away and conduct their campaigns in the America we were raised to believe in before Trump, where they likely have a winning majority.
1
There are 62 million Americans who have loudly proclaimed through their support of this illegitimate president that they want to see our country's democracy destroyed. They want to 'burn it all down' and believe that a con man like trump can rebuild it in a way that benefits only them.
They want all of us who love this country, in spite of our faults, who want to continue to strive for a more perfect union, to be removed from this soil, so they can create what? A country that openly embraces white supremacy? Or transactional politics with a winner take all philosophy?
I've never been exactly clear on what they envision for my country, but it sure isn't a democratic republic striving to form a more perfect union.
7
The differences between a patriotic ambassador and a self-centered squatter in the presidential seat are laid out as clearly as day here.
And yet... The millions who support the so-called president will never see, hear or read of this difference, because they live within the bubble of unofficial state media, Fox "News," owned by Australian billionaire Rupert Murdoch.
It's quite clear exactly who the real "enemy of the people" is in this tragedy.
8
Thank you, Mr Friedman, once again, for an astute and moving essay. Unfortunately, Trump and his allies/supporters/base care little about diplomacy, the country, tradition, the world, or certainly sentence structure and tact -- their strong suit is attack, insult, irrationality, and brain stem emotion and a nationalist defensiveness that borders on, well, borders.
"...loyal and talented public servants" put others and country above their own ego. And Trump is ego on a truckload of steroids who sees himself as untouchable monarch. If liberals are snowflakes, he's a wounded and besmirched butterfly leading the flock into the mud. U.S.A. truly means nothing to them.
1
The GOP sells itself as the pro-life Party yet it promotes the death penalty and obstructs measures to control the threat of gunfire. It is the Party of Christian values, yet it puts innocent children in cages and beds them under foil blankets on cold, concrete floors. It is the Party that wraps itself in the flag of patriotism, yet it outsources the nation’s foreign policy to Moscow and Ankara. It is the Party of freedom and liberty, yet it systematically erodes a woman’s dominion over the destiny of her own body, including her right to decide whether or not to bear children.
The hypocrisy is as obscene as it is puzzling. Yet we accept it as normal. We pretend that the Republican Party protects our principled values while it behaves exactly the opposite. The GOP offers nothing constructive, uplifting or visionary, yet it commands the votes those who are driven by fear, anger and bigotry.
This is the mountain that progressive optimism must scale against the force of persistent regression.
7
As an American abroad I can only say that I am ashamed by what is happening in the USA. I have never felt really secure while visiting relatives who live in some un-safe cities but now the USA that I have known is selling out its’ own citizens and civil servants. It is beyond revolting.
2
The deep state that Trump rants about is simply the state, patriotic public servants who realize the clear and present danger he poses both domestically and abroad. In an analysis titled "The Back Story," the Economist magazine details how Manafort first manipulated and profited off corruption in the Ukraine, then Giuliani dived in with the help of two Russian-Ukrainian mobsters, now residents of Florida but with ties to the Russian Mafia in Odessa, since arrested by the FBI. The most benign explanation of Trump's involvement is that he was played for a sap by Giuliani and corrupt Ukrainians. The more sinister explanation is that Trump was in on it from the start.
https://www.economist.com/briefing/2019/10/12/from-paul-manafort-to-donald-trumps-fateful-phonecall
2
Friedman's Bureaucratniks...
History teaches that the difference between war and compromise is the personal relationship between two individuals. When they are strangers, war is more likely as the decision is merely an abstraction of institutions. Private, candid conversations between leaders are essence of peace.
Today, the machinations of the Democrats have destroyed this right of the Presidency for generations to come. They have aided and abetted espionage on the Presidency by Bureaucratniks - a double-edged sword which will turn against them in the next skirmish.
(Most Bureaucratniks remain politically loyal to the institution which first employed them)
The problem, unfortunately, with Mr. Friedman's comparison of Trump's speech with that of the ambassador's is that forty per cent of the American electorate like his attack dog take no prisoner's approach just fine, and wouldn't understand a civic's class teaching the Constitution if they walked into one. Impeachment will only succeed if and when some of Trump's hard core supporters begin to see that the office of the President should be held higher than the man they elected.
7
"... and the country is healed afterward" will never happen if Trump is removed for a phone call through a flawed and secretive procedure.
Who of these patriots is standing up for fair treatment and consistency with prior impeachment proceedings? Nobody, because it is take Trump (and anyone else he appoints) out by any means necessary.
It's sad to see you on this bandwagon.
Get ready to rumble.
@Tim A phone call? a flawed and secretive procedure? Why not hold your fire, and see how this develops - rather than go into it with opinions already formed and not willing to listen to anything else.
It is now an investigation - as prescribed in the Constitution itself. If nothing turns up, nothing further will happen.
4
While translating a book from the Latin, of a long dead empire, i discovered almost as if written in code to future generations the answer to why so many continue to support Trump in contrary to the evidence. For it has happened before, many times, society has a habit of picking the biggest bully to run the whole show. I came across the following quotation from one who stood on the sideline and watched the cheering crowds go by and the blustery man they worshiped.
" There seem to be many who crawl."
4
Unless there is a miracle and record breaking voter turnout in November 2020, I see DJT winning the second term. His base are very very loyal and so are the big GOP donors.
2
There is absolutely no doubt who the good faith actor is here. The bigger mystery is how to penetrate the clamped minds who boarded the Trump train and have persisted in tuning out logic and facts. It is a baffling and chilling study on meglomania and fealty.
8
Donald Trump was elected, in part, by promising to disrupt the status-quo. He has been faithful to that promise by destroying all that America and the presidency represents. He has unraveled numerous environmental and consumer protections, worked to destroy relationships with our long-time allies, and defiled the Office of the Presidency through his behavior. The list of examples of this are virtually endless and have been well documented elsewhere. But all of this “disruption” completely lacks any intention to build upon what so many have dedicated their lives to over the past 250 years. To honor the countless civil servants past and present who have toiled to make this country what it is, Mr. Trump’s administration must be brought to an end, or all they have done will be for naught.
9
A person I have known for decades was named ambassador to a little country by Trump because she and her husband had been loyal to him for years and they made a lot of money together. Okay, that's the way it works, but between the three of them I doubt they will even read this valuable Opinion about Ambassador Yovanovitch let alone understand how our great and powerful country can help the little country advance in the world.
3
It has been clear for quite some time that Trump wants to emulate dictators, and wants to allow and practice Kleptocracy. We keep saying the same thing over and over, stating the obvious, and doing nothing to protect the country.
So as we sink further and further, it might be time to move out of the country. We are awfully passive to Trump and the GOP who all seem to support Plutocracy and Kleptocracy.
2
Excellent as usual, Mr. Friedman. After reading this and other of your spot-on columns, I remember two key facts that keep my faith in this country sustained. The first is that more Americans voted against Trump than for him. And second, since leaving the mayor's office, Rudy has never been elected to any position.
4
After the 2012 Presidential election, the Republican Party undertook a post mortem evaluation that recommended they strive to open up and be more inclusive of minorities and youth if they were to survive and compete effectively in the future. They chose a different direction. The Trump Administration lied to the Courts about the origins of a voter suppressing question on the 2020 census. The only major voter fraud in the 2018 election was a North Carolina the Republican Candidate found to have hired a consultant to harvest and alter absentee ballots. The Republican drawn Congressional District maps in North Carolina were found to have been drawn to racially discriminate with surgical precision. It has been noted that if faced with the choice between winning and jettisoning democracy, the Republicans will chose winning. The Federal Election Commission is left toothless in the face of this outlandish behavior and is hardly taken seriously by either side after the Supreme Court's ruling in Citizens v. United.
Now it seems to be fair game to involve foreign governments in our electoral process and use the government to enrich the President's private businesses. What is being lost is that this isn't "The Deep State" that is rising up against this. It's those striving to actually honor the lives that have been sacrificed and those devoted to helping America achieve its ideals for more than 240 years.
Enough. It's time for adults to take back our government.
7
Trump's speeches -- if you could call them that; they're more like rants -- do not rise to the level the presidency should demand. I recoil in horror that this is the person who "leads" us. It's more like he's pulling us down into the mud with his attacks and denigrations. And notice, his sentence structure seldom deviates from "they are this" or "he is that" or "it is so and so" -- his weak verbs betray a weak argument.
9
Yes, and again yes, but I strongly suspect that most Trump supporters, at all socioeconomic levels, find the act of reading difficult.
9
The US has been fortunate to have public servants like the Ambassador. Mr. Friedman was wise to let her words speak for themselves.
Our luck ran out when we elected Trump.
8
Once 70%-90% of Americans (Republicans, Democrats, and Independents) realize the truth and the gravity of Mr. Friedman's comments, and the other 10-30% have been beaten back to their dens, we can begin the long road to recovery. Let's hope this time of clarity comes before a disaster from which the US cannot recover.
8
Yovanovitch's statement embodies the America that I want back. It was stolen from me in 2016 when Trump was elected by probable foreign interference. What has happened to America in the past three years makes it clear that this country as we have known it is being destroyed from the inside out. I am heartened by the testimony of faithful and courageous public servants over the past few days. These folks, along with the Americans who support them, may be able to turn back the Trump tide in the 2020 elections and put America back on the path to recovery of its values. To make this happen, Americans will have to turn out in droves to vote for candidates who will return this country to its proper footing. Can we do it? The next year will give us the answer.
15
What is the purpose of pigeonholing people as defenders or offenders of freedom and democracy? One’s reputation is made by other’s decisions predicated by personal actions. How is our country’s reputation molded by Warren Harding’s or Franklin Pierce’s decisions? They led our country at one time, but did they add to our reputation over time? A 30 year veteran of the Department of State may very well be judged by historians for demonstrating what it means to be an American citizen and how lucky we are to have had the fantastically talented group of men to be alive together who had the knowledge, ideals, and respect for each other to debate, compromise and draft a document like the Constitution that has been used worldwide as the blueprints for democracy. Imagine convening a Constitutional Congress today: resulting in increased CO2 emissions from all the hot air, and a blank document mirroring the minds of many Americans who wondered how we ended up here.
As a retired federal employee, I love reading this piece. It is completely spot on. Thank you Madame Ambassador for representing us so well.
17
Yes indeed
My first impression upon reading this piece was "Wow" it so clearly lays out what America is and can be. The contrast between the two protagonists was extraordinary. Thanks to Mr. Friedman.
18
While running for the presidency, Trump promised that as commander in chief, he would not broadcast in advance his actions aimed at enemies of our country. What he didn’t tell us that his impulsive moves would also be a surprise to our own military as well as those serving in the upper echelons of the administration.
8
@Lesothoman
He didn't have to broadcast them. He's already discussed them in meetings and phone calls.
It is astonishing to see the damage that the current occupant of the White House has been able to inflict in less than three years and still retain the support of many Americans and his own party. I have worked in the federal govt for the last seven years. Before that, I worked for over 30 years in the corporate world. I had the honor of working with some exceptional people in both spheres. I can honestly say that some of the most talented and dedicated workers I have known, work for our government. Most are well aware that they could make more money in the private sector but remain fiercely dedicated to their mission. They are used to suffering through administrations that are not friendly to the mission that they hold dear. This time it really is different. I hear the buzz that many career track feds are reconsidering their career choice. What Marie said is true; possibly irreparable damage is being done. The people I am referring to are all top shelf. Any employer would vie for them
11
The US should not condition foreign aid on the help of that government against the partisan foes of the party in charge of the Executive Branch.
However, if US foreign aid in the past was conditioned on corruption in favor of the other political party, the one that was then in charge of the Executive Branch, that is not an off limits privileged topic. That is just a crime.
Much of the crime was in Ukraine, and under Ukraine laws. It would have to be pursued there. The evidence is there. Much of the legal authority is there. Pursuing that is right, even if the target squawks and makes excuses. Yes, Ukraine prosecutors have ALL been corrupt. The whole place is corrupt.
Giulani is a jerk. He always has been. He was never America's Mayor and he always was nauseating in his misused of the 9/11 events. Present critics of Trump are very late to realize that. That is not a defense of Biden.
Ukraine is in a war over Donbass. Ukraine is in the wrong, in everything that got the Donbass trouble started.
Ukraine is in the wrong in large part because it listened too much to the US urging it to do wrong. I mean Hillary's State Dept, and Her personally, along with Amb. Pyatt and Her personal Asst. Sec. Nuland.
We dumped them into this, in our pursuit of violating all our promises at the end of the Cold War. The "You didn't get that in writing" crowd are despicable. The best people in our foreign service always said so, and so have the foreigners we say we admire, like Gorbachev.
2
Interesting and hardly reductive to employ 'truth' in a headline.
But if one were to deconstruct the word 'truth' we find that it has very despotic characteristics and has been employed throughout time (Greeks & Romans) as a political weapon.
Just like appeals to 'morals' the 'spirit' and to the 'soul 'of US citizens are evasive abstractions, and metaphysical to boot - the jewel in the crown for the winning argument is that one is the purveyor of 'truth' that quasi religious monarch of all virtues. Perhaps one would be better advised to reflect on the despotic nature of truth as employed in Politics.
I trust no one will be offended by this snooty barb from across the water but surely both sides of the US Political divide, locked in their increasingly impending cultural war, could do with a little more reflection and a little less certainty.
I still remember how during Obama’s tenure he inspired young people to join civil service. Both my kids joined public service. His administration also proposed student loan forgiveness for these dedicated public servant. Alas, trump administration has done everything everything they can to discourage our youth to join public civil community service. Instead he has bashed these very same institutions. Now my kids will be forever saddled with student loans for their adult lives, unless they become trust funders. As parents we can only dream about it.
4
It is depressing and tragic that patriots like Ambassador Yovanovitch are drowned out by our crass, crude President, his enablers, and his mulish supporters.
10
What Trump supporters are really chanting when they yell out USA, USA is we hate liberals we hate liberals. Most if asked probably could not actual define what liberal thinking is?
8
If you disagree with what you are asked to do you resign
After that you inform the public
2
Is Trump fit to lead?
No.
Bashing public servants such as Ms Yovanovitch and agencies such as the FBI. the CIA and off the record chats with putrid authoritarians is really sick and inept.
Vision of a Russian journalist wandering and laughing around a deserted US military base is nauseating.
Happily I am not an American voter and I have no culpability for Trump.
I note that my Australian family members fought and died with Americans.
7 thousand miles away.
A pen flourish in history.
Does Mr Trump malign civil servants sworn and security checked to engage with war veterans to assist them in their recovery from physical mental and physical carnage?
The Veterans such as Senator McCain were not heroic.
You vote.
Some cannot.
Australians, Kurds find it hard to vote by brilliant red poppy.
Mr Trump is absolutely yellow.
Roy Cohn is not the worst New Yorker.
3
As a nation, we need to give some serious thought to alternate methods of removal from office. Impeachment, even when it removes a president from office, takes too much time. A loose cannon like Trump can do a lot of damage in that time. And he is! Subverting our foreign policy, precipitating the slaughter of our allies, directing daily kidnapping of immigrant children at our borders. And that's only the stuff that we know about.
The Mueller report detailed a multitude of impeachable offenses that occurred early in Trump's term of office, yet impeachment proceedings are only now beginning. And Trump is allowed to continue and even escalate his damaging behavior during the impeachment process.
We need alternatives that will limit the damage, and that can be carried out more quickly, like a recall election, or vote of no confidence.
Trump is creating carnage every day. And short of armed rebellion, we are powerless to stop it. We need something better than impeachment.
8
There is every other columnist and then there is Thomas Friedman. The best.
3
This is civil war rhetoric.
2
I've come to hate the chant "USA, USA, USA".
The rallies have become more and more deranged. They scare me.
I think of my Uncle Al, a 97 year old WWII veteran who slogged thru Europe in Patton's Army eventually helping liberate several concentration camps.
He mourns what America has become.
25
This manipulated reasoning of the Trumpists is just another building block on the road to fascism. Fealty to him is not fealty to the US Constitution.
I attended a brilliant lecture by Madleine Albright described the rise of fascism as a "process", not an ideology. In this case, trumpism knows no ideology except blind loyalty to the leader.
The more a corrupt leader can entangle his cohorts into doing his bidding, the easier it is to assume absolute power--he needs the consent of the governed.
These public servants and State Department career professionals aren't going quietly into that dead night. They are rising up, testifying facts, and exposing the inherent treason that permeates the Trump administration hell-bent on hollowing out agencies to facilitate his assumption of raw power.
29
The flippancy, and even cynicism, by which GOP leadership shrugs off these ever more revealing allegations as stemming from leftist, anti-Trumpian sentiment disturbs me a great deal more than even the immediate facts, which are alarming to say the least.
The message that I decipher coming from the collective is one of a barely coded, unapologetic and sneering "ends-justfies-the-means" dismissal.
If I read it correctly, by all appearences this crises will prove to be all-consuming before it is resolved and potentially existential in it's ramifications for our democracy. Or, even worse, the entire Trump phenomenon, including the fully co-opted party is hell-bent on unilateral, authoritarian rule, in association with global strongmen.
8
Louder!
3
Simply - YES. Another great one, Tom.
4
The hooting, yelling and cheering crowds at Trump's rallies clearly think his prancing, preening, insult- casting stand -up act is a laugh riot. Sadly it's unlikely that they will read or hear Ms. Yovanovitch's statement.
9
'Public Servants' includes Supreme Court Justices. Recently Kavanaugh said something to the effect that the President of the US can, basically, ignore the US Constitution or the part(s) he wants to ignore. Rule of Law out the window per the privileged and spoiled servants of the GOP.
So, our guardians of the the Constitution are shifting their loyalties to the devil and his minions, at least 5 of them. Will Roberts stand with RBG? Not sure he has the nerve. Trump, Barr, and Pompus are vindictive and will attack any and all who disagree.
On the bright side, we have such public servants as Pelosi and Schiff who are giving those loyalists a forum for the truth to come out. Marie Yovanovitch and others risk it all for the US. Heroes all.
10
Were I to be elected President, I would consider nominating Yovanovitch to be Secretary of State. She has such a clear mind about things, and a very strong commitment to America. It would be refreshing to have a real professional in the position instead of the slimy, self-promoting aspirant to the Presidency we have now.
652
@Max Dither Agree. She shows respect, intelligence, and eloquence. We've got a monster in the White House. I used to be Republican. Trump changed that.
37
@Max Dither Absolutely. A real professional, who stays true to the oath she took. A rarity in today's political environment. Well stated.
23
@Max Dither American diplomatic personnel have thought they knew more than elected presidents for decades - probably, centuries.
They have regularly displayed they haughty disdain for the leadership in D.C. and gleefully joing any cabal or insider trick to damage any leaders who have all of our concerns at heart.
Those named by one party to their position are very often prejudiced beyond hope of getting along with anyone from the other party.
I think the Democrats have trouble understanding the concept of loyalty . . .
1
@Michael Livingston’s
I don't understand how you define loyalty. One does not need to be loyal to the person in the White House, yet one can stil be loyal.
Yovanovitch is clearly loyal to the country, and she is clearly not loyal to Trump.
7
@Michael Livingston’s
Loyalty is earned. Loyalty is freely given. Some, however, believe that loyalty can be demanded, that is an obligation, that punishment and retribution can be meted our for insufficient loyalty. Those people are bosses, not leaders. Leaders inspire, bosses fear.
2
Sir, loyalty to a crime boss and loyalty to a higher purpose, such as the Constitution and the people of the United States, are as different—as darkness and light. Since age 17 to my present age 71, I have owned my own businesses and have in a positions of service and advice to people in political power in the larger world. My cardinal rule is always tell the truth as best as one knows. Otherwise people in power will make decisions on falsehood and vanities, it turn causing harm to the greater good. Should one think of loyalty otherwise, there are always openings among the drug cartels and despots.
2
You people need to cut Donald some slack. He didn't make the call to remove troops from Syria, Vladimir did.
5
The president's coarse and demeaning description of Joe Biden's service as Barack Obama's vice president accurately describes Mike Pence's own job description and why he remains as his unworthy sidekick. Pence embodies what every Republican in office is today, a craven and hypocritical impostor whose sole purpose is to bow down to a man who would be America's king.
Marie Yovanovitch proudly served her country for more than three decades and was recalled by the president for no reason. Rudy Giuliani swore to serve the political and financial interests of an unworthy Chief Executive by painting Ms. Yovanovitch as incompetent and unhelpful as the American ambassador to the Ukraine.
Ms. Yovanovitch is an American profile in courage, which is what the country needs more of in today's toxic climate to right itself as a beacon of democracy and hope in order to rid itself of a president who swore an oath to serve, protect and defend only himself.
9
Why bring on an impeachment investigation now rather than wait for the voters (the more "reasonable" of the GOP party lines)? This article is one of the answers.
With the Fox Propaganda Ministry and "social media" spreading lies, and many people believing them rather than doing the homework essential to maintaining a Constitutional democracy, the truth needs to be gotten out clearly and acted upon.
"Democracy dies in darkness"...and laziness and ignorance.
5
The Democrats need to articulate a message that is simple clear factual and easily understandable.
Any ? about " impeachment" should FIRST be answered by
"we only want the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth"
"those who are innocent freely volunteer documents and witnesses to support their innocence "
Now to answer your question.....
We vote We WIN
2
Now, John Bolton can speak truth to power.
We'll be waiting to hear more about Trump's amoral dysfunction --- the governing cancer of our time.
We've had enough. It's time. The line has been drawn.
2
An outstanding column, Mr. Friedman. Thank you for publishing the very eloquent testimony by Ms. Yovanovitch. I’m sorry her remarks have not been more widely repeated.
8
Paying off the Kurds to do our fighting is used to keep our casualties to near zero thereby eliminating any questioning of justification for attacking a foreign nation who never posed a risk to the US. This is the greatest threat to mankind US using Stealth Air Force/Naval warfare to attack targets with precise missiles with almost risk free results. Then pay off a tribal group like the Kurds to fight with promises of a autonomous state within a state is the final solution to skirt Congressional requirements to make war. Consider if we had this stealth warfare back in Vietnam we'd still be bombing them - endless risk-free war the perfect final solution.
2
Friedman, paragraph five: "if Trump is removed from office (impeached) and the country is healed afterward, it will only be because a majority of Americans understand that this is a fight between Trump and noncorrupt, apolitical civil servants whose norms and institutions make America’s government so envied and respected around the world."
Here is Yovanovitch in her opening statement to the House impeachment investigators, one of Friedman's noncorrupt apolitical civil servants: “For the last 33 years, it has been my great honor to serve the American people as a Foreign Service officer, over six administrations — four Republican, and two Democratic. I have served in seven different countries, five of them hardship posts, and was appointed to serve as an ambassador three times — twice by a Republican president and once by a Democrat. Throughout my career, I have stayed true to the oath that Foreign Service officers take and observe every day: ‘that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic,’ and ‘that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same.’”
My question is this: What is first a noncorrupt apolitical civil servant, and second, how does such a person support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies foreign and domestic and bear true faith and allegiance to the same? Friedman takes it as self-evidently understood if not easily implemented. But can it even be understood?
"Alas, Secretary of State Pompeo did nothing to protect her."
Ah yes, the amazing disappearing Secretary of State. The more we learn about the corrupt takeover of the State Department, the more it calls attention to the fact that it's leader appears to be missing in action. The administration has two invisible Mikes right now, Pence and Pompeo: the know-nothing twins.
7
The sad fact is that none of this matters to Trump supporters, a group which includes most prominently, the GOP members of Congress who continues to follow Trump in lockstep.
Little Marco, Lying Ted, Low Energy Jeb, Mad Dog, Truly Wierd Rand Paul, Mr Magoo, Jeff Flakey, Original Bush ....et al. Is there any chance that any of you will join Democrats to put country ahead of party? Are a few tax cuts (albeit 'uge) worth this?
4
I suppose we must ask our selves, which serves us better, impeaching this rogue or voting out this scoundrel? I think the House must impeach him!
2
I hope we have the good fortune to see Ambassador Yovanovitch in another position further serving our country.
4
The lessons of Richard Condon’s books, The Manchurian Candidate and The Emperor of America are coming true. Will the US ever be able to restore the trust and respect of its allies and world community of freedom loving people?
2
Bravo to Friedman.
The coming election is only peripherally about taxes, foreign policy, infra-structure, or medical care. What is really at stake is the future of American Democracy, the rule of law, and the potential corruption of our Constitution. [Not to mention the viability of planet Earth for our species.]
Sadly, I can no longer accept acquaintances of mine that do not understand this into my inner circle of friends.
5
After all the chaos and dysfunction Trump has caused since the Primaries...I can't believe there are still any Trump supporters left! What are they supporting...failed policies and dysfunction? MAGA? Where is it?? Trump likes to appropriate different music for his rallies. Maybe there should be a play on the All State Commercial...by the Dems...Vote Blue in 2020 and avoid Mayhem like Trump !! Are you in good hands ? Mayhem is Everywhere...so Vote for a Democrat !!
1
OK. Trump is bad. Finger wag.... call him a Bad Boy.. More finger wag. OMG look what he is doing. Still more finger wag. Pelosi’s index finger must be sore by now. As a religious person, she is sure he will be righteously punished in the next life. Yep he will Nancy.
It's been so obvious for over a year that Trump has been trying to run a shadow government. I feel that when the forces that be get a really good look at the spending by his administration there will be hell to pay. The Senate Republicans must know this. Putin has something so evil on Trump that he would sell out our country. He's already got a head start.
2
Trump diehards see the testimony of these civil servants as evidence that there is a swamp. One problem--there is a swamp, but the real creatures are Trump and his cronies who have waged war on the basic rules and norms that are there to uphold confidence in our government. Since Trump took office, all too often we have found ourselves asking questions we shouldn't even have to ask. One of those questions is whether Trump is putting his own interests ahead of his oath. You can't ask that of these witnesses.
7
Trump is a stand up comedian at his rallies. He doesn't have any shame one way or another. Watch the crowd of people behind him - with rare exception most are enjoying the show.
We shouldn't have elected him. I also worry about the level of education in this country - people can be really ignorant and on top of it, such people feel that we the elites have let them down. I don't get it.
5
So now unelected government employees are the correct and true setters of policy? Ridiculous.
This is pretty much the definition of deep state resistance to the a Trump Administration.
2
@Truthbeknown, extorting a foreign nation for personal political means isn't policy, it's called abuse of office. Furthermore, it's a crime.
5
@Truthbeknown
Otherwise known as deep state adherence to the constitution. Rudy and his good fellas were neither elected nor government employees.
1
@CA John
Is that right? Was it a crime when Democrats did the exact same thing? More than once? Or was that just protecting the integrity of an investigation? Can't be one for Democrats and something else when Trump does it can it? Oh, that's how things work now? Sorry to tell you its not. But knock yourself out with the pretend Impeachment Inquiry. Voters just love seeing people denied their due process. Almost as much as they like being guilty unless they can prove their innocence.
Listening through all the noise of Trump and his supporters, the one thing I clearly understand is that his supporters (the average folks who voted for him) voted for change. They voted against Hillary. They wanted a Washington that served the people; served the White majority; serve their Christian beliefs. They saw Trump as an honest businessman; flawed but willing to take Washington on. They still see him in that light. They are bolstered by the likes of Limbaugh and Hannity, and most of Fox news. Of course, Trump and his Republican backers continue the narrative of the belittled Mr. Trump fighting for the right. Until Trump's evil nature is clearly on display, and unquestionable, these voters will continue to support him. They see his actions as just taking care of the "deep state" that they want destroyed. He is their Christian soldier!
1
@Patrick Stevens, his evil nature is so obvious and unquestionable it is, at times, difficult to figure out what his supporters don't see. That is until you look at his racist and misogynistic behavior.
Your article should be read today by every high school/civics teacher and every college professor in every liberal arts course as the starting point for an open discussion of the current American political scene. But I fear it will not be sufficiently shocking to the Trump core. His supporters, astonishingly, welcome his profanity, his hate filled rants and his sexist, racist and homophobic innuendos. We live in a nation where Trumpists are far more concerned with religion, racism, anti-LGBTQ attitudes and nattivist policies than the democratic institution that allowed America to become a bastion of freedom and hope. You and half of America see what is taking place. The other half observes, but fails to care. But please don't give up the fight. Your insightful articles are certain to impact some fence sitters.
4
It takes good people to insure that good government survives the periodic scandals that plague it. If the Republicans are not up to the task, then I am not sure who can be.
"Alas, Secretary of State Pompeo did nothing to protect her."
There's nothing more to be said about him other than good riddance when he goes.
The whistleblower(s) & Yovanovitch have done your country a massive service.
I think that more subpoenas are going to be complied with following the examples being set. Some might be driven to comply to protect themselves &/or to be on the right side of history, other's simply because it's the right thing to do.
To me, motive doesn't matter so long as the information comes out.
Trump's going to be impeached, that's a given now. The contortions Republican Senators will put themselves through at his trial are going to have to be really inventive.
2
The voters are the final line of defense. Yet if Trump goes, 30% of voters seem to prefer a circus and conspiracy theories to facts.
Some of us who despise this toxic man would
prefer a military coup to this madness, but that would take our nation into even more uncharted waters.
What Trump's isolationist defenders ought to understand is that he is in fact an internationalist in his dealings. The problem (for all of us) is that his international dealings are focused on his individual interests and apparently often corrupt.
1
If it isn't clear that Trump's decision to pull our troops out of Syria and betray our allies the Kurds, was on the direct order of Putin, then you are simply being willfully ignorant and blindly partisan. Trump has done catastrophic damage to our reputation as a country that could be counted on to fulfill our commitments. When our soldiers are sent into danger, who can they count on to have their back, now that America under this President is cannot be counted on to reciprocate?
Add this to the already treasonous invitation to foreign actors to interfere in our elections. His most recent invitations give ample credence to the belief that he in fact conspired with Putin to attack our election system in order to win election, and if we ever get to see the suppressed evidence and testimony, it will go from speculation to confirmation.
That the Republicans, who all swore an oath to protect and defend America from enemies both foreign and domestic, continue to turn a blind eye, speaks to their cowardice and self-interest that they've placed above their duty and the interests of the people they're supposed to serve.
As to whatever words spew out of Trump's mouth, a good rule of thumb is to simply turn them 180 degrees to find the actual truth. He has taken the Big Lie and put it on steroids. That he is supposed to be the leader and moral compass of our nation is like saying the devil should be pope.
4
@Kingfish52
If it isn't clear that Putin does not direct any actions of Mr. Trump you are the one being willfully ignorant. Far too many examples of decisions made by Trump that are not in Putin's interest for that to have truth to it at all. You are the one doing Putin's bidding pal. He wants this kind of discord. That was and is his goal. To undermine the fairly elected President of the United States No Matter Who It Is.
Pelosi, Schiff, etal must frame Trump’s actions as a threat to our national security. The president has a right to fire ambassadors. That’s not a crime. But dereliction of duty is.
3
So Mr. Friedman this was one of your better articles. It is so true and at the same time so disheartening that 40% of republicans think trump can do no wrong. I just do not understand why. I have given up trying to because every time I do it comes back to fear. It disturbs me that fear of immigrants can paralyze peoples thinking. We are all immigrants and each of those immigrant classes had been deemed unworthy when they arrived and each one proved them wrong. Fear is not what America is all about. Fear has lead trump to abandon Syria. Who would have thought that America would turn and run. Just drop everything and leave. How can anyone defend that. Their are proper ways to leave. This was not one of them, it does not make any sense at all. trump is a coward hiding behind his supporters, and his main supporters are not American. They are foreign leaders of ill repute. USA, USA, USA, indeed.
1
I get it that Trump has no personal boundaries and is prepared to burn the house down if his interests are served that way. The thing that I don’t get is Fox. They are not stupid people so they answer the following question “On balance, are we better off with Trump than the Democrats after the next election?” with a “Yes”, with all the implications which that presents. To them The Democrats are a greater danger than Trump.
I found that astounding and it leaves me almost speechless. I don’t understand their thought processes and motivations. Is it just the warm inner glow of being on the “in” team or are they just doing what is good for ratings and forget about everything else?
I am hoping that one day Mr. Friedman might enlighten me/us because I am perplexed and he is the great explainer. Please, Mr. Friedman, peer into the heart of darkness and tell us what you see.
Capitalism is amoral and so is Trump, the quintessential amoral capitalist devoid of any moral compass. It must be wonderful to cruise through life without a conscience inconveniently nagging and holding one back from true greatness...until it isn't.
2
Sometimes our culture collides with reality. We revere the meme of Superman fighting for "Truth, Justice and the American Way" right along side Mom and apple pie. In the famous comicbook "What's So Funny about Truth, Justice and the American Way?", published in 2001, Superman takes on The Elite, a group of individuals with enormous powers who use them violently and repeatedly against terrorists and other criminals with extrajudicial killings. They are supported by about one-third of the population. Superman bests them (of course) but in a manner designed to show the pointlessness of hatred and vengeance.
Inked 15 years before our current president's rise, the lure of the vigilante and the authoritarian was laid bare revealing a base of unshakable support among the populace. The parallels are striking with our situation today.
We do owe a debt to those whose serve us faithfully like Amb. Yovanovitch. But I do wonder about one thing. Lauding "Truth, Justice and the American Way" can also be interpreted differently. Truth and justice are unalloyed good. But listing the American Way separately can connote it is different from both truth and justice in a fundamental but inchoate way. Within our country lies the kernel of its destruction which can bubble up from the ooze in the likes of Father Coughlin, Huey Long, Bull Connor, Joseph McCarthy and our current president.
We need each Marie Yovanovitch just as a lighthouse acts to guide our ship of state to safe harbor.
Thanks for giving the heartfelt statement of Ms Yovanovitch more attention, as well as the courage of the career civil servants and their loyalty to the Constitution, thus to the USA. Trump's supporters are misled, especially by Trump himself. Fortunately most of the rest of the country understands this, and, I hope, we, in the rest of the country can find some way of accepting them as misguided, not evil. I suspect the majority of them are people who believe the President, that is the office of the presidency, should always be supported, some have been sucked in by Trump's very effective stage performances and believe that he has answers to their concerns. What is not forgivable, not acceptable, is that the Republican Congressmen and Congresswomen do not defend the Constitution and continue to support Trump. Their cowardice is deep. In their next election campaigns the people will have a chance to make a judgement.
Unfortunately, Tom the people chanting USA USA USA in those Trump rallies are neither going to read your columns nor listen to similar arguments. We hope a decent majority of our country sees what is happening and votes this man and his enablers in Congress out.
2
This is simply a case of good vs. evil, hyperpartisanship at its worst. It tore our nation apart once and hasn't really stopped since then.
Its breadth and depth have increased to embrace our most formidable sworn enemies who have gladly
joined forces to divide and conquer our democracy for the personal greed, ignorance and incompetence of someone who was illegitimately elected to the highest office in the land, then surrounded himself with parasitic sycophants whose complacency and complicity are appalling.
Fueled by a base of the basest, committed to dismantle our government, our society and our values, this juggernaut of autocratic evil, if not checked now, will definitely destroy our nation.
Fortunately, there are still quite a few heroes who still possess the
courage and integrity to challenge these enemies.
Thank you for this column.
I agree.
This is about Trump more than it is about Republicans versus Democrats.
No matter what party you belong to, you cannot be true to our values and uphold the Constitution while supporting Trump.
If you are a religious person, you can't be faithful to the teachings of your religion while supporting Trump.
If you are honest in your business, you can't support Trump.
If you pay your taxes - one of the two duties our nation asks of it's citizens (the other is voting), you can't support Trump.
If you believe in the Rule of Law, you can't support Trump.
If you believe in the basic values that make us all Americans, no matter your race, gender, age or income, you can't be true to them while supporting Trump.
Trump is unfit for office.
Not because he's Republican, but because he's Trump.
Americans need to ask themselves if they want their children to grow up and be Trump. Exactly like Trump.
Dishonest, racist, misogynistic, cruel, ignorant, narcissistic, crude Trump.
Is Trump the person you want your child to be?
And then ask yourself is Trump's America the America you want? A dishonest, racist, misogynistic, cruel, ignorant, narcissistic, crude America? Is that the America you want for your children?
Vote Democratic in 2020.
Every office, every seat.
3
I didn't have to read the two different speeches to know who the true American is, but I appreciate Mr. Friedman's work here. Half of America has never once confused Trump for a true American defender of the Constitution. The other half of America rejects science and facts. Somehow, the second half has a massive PR machine that outwits the first half.
1
@Anthony the machine exists to manipulate that other half. It is much harder to generate such profit from discerning individuals. We get ignored, or sidelined when we get to vocal or too close to the facts.
I can't overstate the stupidity & perfidy of Giuiani taking working for the interests of Russian nationals and accepting cash that could only come from Putin to further Russia's attack on our country. Giuliani worked for these Russian interests while he was the personal lawyer and the confidante and influencer of the US President. He took Russian money and worked to defeat democracy in the Ukraine, Turkey and in the US while he advised the president.
I can't overstate the stupidity & perfidy of Republican lawmakers and cabinet members supporting the man favored by Russia to most damage America.
How does that tax break taste along with the blood and betrayal of Kurds and the separation of children from their mothers?
What did they expect? Russia knew Trump would harm America. Republicans did not? Stupidity, ignorance or willful blindness is required to not anticipate the harm to America for the benefit of Russia Trump has delivered.
1
Trump has his faults, but this over the top infantile response will backfire. Pompous hacks who have never accomplished anything is not the solution. Easy victory for the Republicans unless there is a competent alternative
1
Yes, Trump there is a “deep state” and thank God, or whomever one thanks, for it. It is the men and women in the government, the military, the judiciary, the press and the public at large who believe that America is not a chant or a patch or a flag. Rather America is a fledgling experiment in democracy whose objective is to prove that courage, values, compassion, knowledge and hard work can triumph over self-interest, greed, corruption and authoritarianism. Today that experiment is facing its greatest challenge in my three quarters of a century lifetime. Trump and his acolytes are the absolute antithesis of what makes America great. Hatred, bigotry, obsessive self-interest, jingoism and ignorance are the stuff of other dark places, not America--or so we thought until now. In Trumpism we are witnessing an attempt to deny “our better angels” and instead embrace and then loose our darkest fears and insecurities. What embarrassed us as a nation pre-Trump now many find not only normal but indeed the righteous path. The political parties, our self-correction mechanism, are failing us. The “deep state” patriots are under constant attack. Hard as it may be, look beyond your personal travails, rise and defend the ideal that so may have fought and sacrificed for. Wake up America.
2
$174,00 and free parking at the airport probably represents a very small percentage of their compensation. Being elected to congress is analygous to a golfer winning the Masters. An example is the former high school wrestling coach and Speaker of the House from Illinois who raised millions, after leaving office, to pay ransom. It is all documented in the press. Just imagine the take while in office.
4
I chose Marie Yovanovitch.
Thank you Madam for being a true American patriot in all your years of honorable service for our Country. If Donald J. Trump possess even an ounce of your true patriotism and of honestly placing America first before his own selfish ambitions, then perhaps we could all put up with his many inconsistencies and unfitness to be our current President of the United States. He doesn’t and we no longer can. When all is said and done, our U.S. history will not be kind to his overall presidency. The last two weeks of his foreign policy blunders in the Middle East, and the outright damming testimony concerning the inner workings of his dysfunctional administration, is further proof that he and his minions have got to go for the survival and good of our great country and it’s fragile democracy, and let us as a nation, pledge not to make the costly mistake of ever electing such an dishonest individual as our leader again.
3
Cowardice, greed, and complicity always fosters and enables the power of a leader of an illegal enterprise. Institutional crimes are harder to recognize than those of embezzlers, stock manipulators or drug dealers but John Bolton spotted the culprits in the Ukraine affair and used, fortuitously, a more colorful term, “drug deal”, to highlight the seriousness of their dangerous “institutional” crime. While his term “drug deal” is factually inaccurate in describing the presidentially led Ukraine-extortion conspiracy, “drug deal” is, nonetheless, metaphorically on target as a symbol of the paralyzed state of GOP leaders in their silent complicity with the Criminal In Chief. Their lust to retain office is a form of greed and cowardice which has drugged and muzzled them in the face of political danger. Ultimately, of course, in a democracy, we try to trace anti-social malignancies to their sources; for example, poverty and discrimination disabling the urban downtrodden. What infects and paralyzes the moral sensibilities of the GOP primary electorate needs to be more sympathetically examined and incisively analyzed, but let’s hope Bolton’s use of the alarming term “drug deal” helps convince the more stubborn supporters of the President of the seriousness of the situation.
1
Trump is no brilliant political mastermind, but a confidence man who relies on his instincts to manipulate. He has done what demagogues do; he’s exploited people’s sense of disgust and indignation by telling them that it’s alright to blame, that the liberals stealing your Christmas and the socialists stealing your taxes and the Chinese and Mexicans stealing your jobs will be punished with humiliation and the end of social programs and tariffs and walls respectively. He shouts it and tweets it brazenly and cocksure, now laced with profanity, like an angry dunk spouting angry drunk-man truths at the end of a bar— the acceptable place for such indignant and ill informed babble where it might be well received. Because he inherited a good market, and perhaps provided it a temporary shot in the arm with free goodies for the big business as Republican Presidents always do, some aspects of the economy look good for the moment. Thus, Trump’s supporters will conflate his babble with what they see or are told is going well. Sooner or later, we’re going to hit the recession that comes at the heels of a Republican presidency guided by trickle-down, and Trump’s lack of any real economic acumen will be laid bare for those who still might believe. Whatever shine on this divisive, corrupt, profane, and pathological man will be gone.
3
Setting the verbatim statements of President Donald Trump and Ambassador Marie Yovanovitch side by side was a simple, but brilliant, device by Thomas Friedman.
The battle in this impeachment inquiry and in any subsequent presidential election involving Donald Trump truly is a contest between the smarmy corruption and selfishness of the ignorant, brutish Trump and the noncorrupt, apolitical public servants like Ambassador Yovanovitch who love our country and serve it year after year with great courage, skill and wisdom.
If the American people allow Mr. Trump and his equally avaricious and unpatriotic cronies like Rudy Giuliani to survive this process, after having ignored our Constitution and the rule of law, it will do irreparable harm to our representative democracy.
3
The tone, tenor and demeanor of this column is manifestly different than others by Mr. Friedman and other columnists. He does not support an opinion by stretching individual facts into paragraphs of his own beliefs. He allows the principles on each side of a chasm that divides us to stand or fall by their own words with the reader drawing their own conclusion. And it’s hard to not agree with that of Mr. Friedman. The power is in the relative subtlety of the approach. Bravo!
2
Palace intrigue in this WH gives nothing away to the French Court 0f Louis XVI. The lieutenants get sacked and courtiers get heads removed for any number of whims of the Aristocracy. Let them eat cake! by golly. The US was invented to eliminate that abuse, heck it has been eliminated in all Europe. The Aristocracy is dead or impotent. Or is it?
We have a President and administration run pretty much like a monarchy. One cannot discount the possibility that this could be an efficient form of governance, yet it has been relegated to the dust-bin of history, replaced with "democracy" of sorts. And these events seem to indicate why that is, it is great danger to have a monarch that is impaired, deranged or one that lacks honor, loyalty or wisdom.
Either we have become poisoned with something, or there is some terrible anger at something that some people have, that is not all that clear, but poses an existential threat to our nation.
1
Trump is a poorly educated career criminal, comparing him to civil servants with advanced degrees, decades of experience, loyalty, integrity and honor who truly respect and love our nation, causes many to wonder how we’ve managed to sink so low.
5
The contrast is black and white. America -- start paying attention to what is happening. Trump, and his enablers, are moral outrages. But we do have some real patriots on hand. Thank goodness.
1
To paraphrase Benjamin Franklin," we have a republic, if we can keep it."
So it falls upon us, right now at this crucial time in our nation's history to act.
Go!
1
All of this is fine and well, but the people who read this already know it, and agree.
The chanters of ‚USA USA’ don‘t want the US as a beacon of light. I almost think they much prefer the harsh glare of a watchtower.
That scares me.
1
Perhaps Tom, and each of us, need to ask ourselves who are the people in those rallies chanting “USA, USA”.
Who are the tens of millions - about 40% of the country - who support the man Tom describes as undermining America.
If we look clearly, those chanting, excited, energized faces should be as terrifying to us as anything Trump says.
3
Fully agree, but I am afraid that the author is preaching to the choir. I would love to read this on Foxnews or another outlet that is read by Trump supporters instead of in the echo chamber that is the NYT and its audience. How to communicate across the divide of a bifurcated nation?
Trump is at best a poorly educated career criminal. Our hope lies with the well educated, experienced, professional, ethical, individuals
You know, if Putin has a dossier on Trump, at least you can make the excuse - not that it is excusable - that he has done all the terrible things, the latest abandoning the Kurds to the wolves and handing the Middle East over to Russia.
W, really Cheney, got in the the Middle East snake pit wrong, for sure. But Trump is trying to get out wrong. Two wrongs don't make one right. I hope the bipolar America has learned this hard lesson.
If Trump does all the terrible things without being blackmailed by Putin, then there is no excuse at all. But what about his supporters. So we know the immediate Republican powerbrokers have chosen power over anything else. Moral decency has been out the window a long time ago. Now, it is not even party over country. Every rat for itself!
But what about the voters who picked Trump, nevermind there were 3 million fewer people voting for Trump in 2016, what are they thinking now? One farmer said he voted but won't again for Trump on CNBC. Never is too late. Still, it will take a lot more than 4 years to repair this 4 years
It is enlightening to see women, Marie Yovanovitch and Fiona Hill, standing up to the good old boys in Washington who appear to be for sale to anyone who has the money. it is time for a woman President.
Ask a Trump supporter and they will say Trump. The people at Trump's rallies are driven by hate and fear, they really don't care what happens to the standing of the USA. They wallow in their racism and bigotry.
1
Those true defenders are career employees of the US Government... a group of individuals who have been denigrated since the late 1970s when Reagan declared that GOVERNMENT was not the solution, it was the problem... Fast forward 40 years and we now have a POTUS who is solving the problem by ridding himself of those pesky career employees and replacing them with political hacks like Rudi Giuliani and his cronies... and in doing so has made Reagan's assertion true....
For all you Americans with short attention spans in need of bite sized but compelling information, all you need to know about Trump is that he is a TRAITOR. It sums up his actions, his attitude and his character in one word.
We have learned by now that most Americans need things explained as simple and definitive as possible. Trump is a traitor. It defines his head, his gut and his heart.
His endless list of transgressions; to norms, to morality, to law, to decency, to institutions, to truth, to his country, to the planet and to almost all other people (minorities, women, disabled, foreigners, the poor, middle class and all who he has done business with) can all be characterized as treason. Consistently, sooner or later, for his own personal gain, he betrays everything that he touches. He is a traitor.
Marketing 101: make it informative, emotional and above all simple. Head, heart and gut. Democratic strategists, are you listening?
exactly. trump and his cult ( no other word for his supporters and followers although traitors might also suffice) vs America and what we can be. America can never be great with trump mismanaging the Oval office.
so true thomas friedman!
let’s hope that the american people have the courage to now openely support the civil servants who are defending democracy and hereby even risking their jobs... it is high time to misunderstandably show the republicans that the majority of americans do not want to be part of a mean, illegal, inhuman and rassist country
I have a feeling that their is much more than just Rudy and Ukraine, I can’t believe this is the only criminal use of the office of the presidency by Trump, the fact that all the calls Trump has had with Putin were put on a seperate secret server tells you all you need to know.
Somewhere....I need to express that the Dem. Debate was a
Good introduction to 12 dedicated aspirants....and a Roast of Trump on the Side.
perhaps the west wing should have a daily recitation of our pledge of allegiance before they practice their duck, cover and run drills. Did my 4 yrs and pay my taxes, I vote for the deep state.
"this impeachment process was not set in motion by the Democratic Party. It was set in motion by civil servants — whistle-blowers from the intelligence community, now supported by National Security Council staffers and diplomats."
This is the Democratic message for 2020. Say it, twit it, email it, shout it from rooftops. And Vote.
1
Great article. I agree with it's premise. Holding the president accountable through the impeachment inquiry and (if he gets to it) the election is vital.
Mainstream national media attacked decent and honorable Republicans in the past several election cycles ruthlessly. Now we're faced with a vulgarian who actually deserves those same epitaphs but the media has made those epitaphs meaningless.
If you believed this paper and other respectable media, Mitt Romney was a terrible person who bullied a gay kid, hates his pet dog, killed a woman by denying her health care, and despises almost half the country. He was reportedly out of touch - hilariously so - for pointing out that Russia is a strategic rival. People knew better about his charecter. Mitt was vindicated in how he sees the world.
McCain was a posterboy for the media, except when he had an actual shot at the presidency and ran against Obama. see the 22 SEP 2008 article in this paper "McCain Camp Takes Issue With Times Coverage."
So while I'm with you on this, NYTimes. Trump is a disgrace. Understand why people have long since turned the traditional media off and our media landscape further fragmented.
2
Yes to this opinion piece, a thousand times yes. America, hear this.
1
Thank you Tom for pointing out the obvious.
Patriotism is being tested today as never before.
"It is breathtaking that virtually no Republican lawmakers have manifested similar courage — when all they have to lose is $174,000 in salary and free parking at Reagan Washington National Airport.'
This has been my reaction to the obsequious obeissance shown by Trump's fellow party members towards this hollow man. You'd be forgiven for thinking their support was contingent on multi-million dollar salaries and perks galore. It's baffling that grown men and women who swore fealty to the United States of America have instead chosen fealty to Donald J. Trump.
Yesterday, I received several attacks by a "reader" (unless they were Russian bots) claiming I represented the "deep state" trying to reverse his 2016 vote.
Steve Bannon, not Trump, created this deep state myth that career public servants were united to take down the president.
What a pathetic argument in support of a man who has abused his power for personal gain since Inauguration Day.
3
Thank you Mr. Friedman for a great column and thank you NYT for publishing it!
One could not find a more stark contrast than what you have quoted here, by Trump and Yovanovitch, in descriptions of their interests and their different views.
One is cultured, educated and philosophically sound.
The other is like eighth grade locker-room braggadocio.
Of course, Trump's base is not reading Friedman/NYT.
Black has become white, white is now off-color.
Nothing is the same now.
Arguably the finest and most important piece Tom's written.
And where is "Moscow Mitch" and the entire GOP Senate majority in all of this?
What arm-twisting, back-room deals are being struck with Tweety behind closed doors and via multiple daily phone calls are being hatched in order to preserve their own power and personal careers over our democracy?
Is Tweety buying their silence with promised campaign funds and joint political events in exchange for not moving forward expeditiously with a trial should Tweety be impeached?
Keep a close eye on each of the GOP Senators over the next several months - pay attention, watch, listen, read and attend closely to their actions to see who among them continues to enable Tweety's vile self-dealing, and who stands up for America.
3
Trump needs to always be in crisis mode. He has a hundred crisis he can engineer at any moment. He would lose his bearings if things were quiet.
For people would see him for what he really is. Nothing. More chaos, more crisis, more he feels at ease.
2
Another great opinion piece from Friedman but I had this lingering sense of discomfort at the reflective question he poses to the reader at the end, asking them to assess two positions based on the exerpts of the transcripts. Knowing 99% of the readers will all be in full agreement on the answer (as reflected in the comments) I could not help but feel a rising sense of claustrophobia as we all resolutely build the walls of our collective echo chamber. The real question should be how do we get such a well reasoned opinion piece to be read and heard by our fellow American’s who will never be exposed to it, so tightly enclosed as they are in their own echo chamber? It’s psychologically comforting for us all to read the views of those who make sense of the world in a similar way to ourselves but am I the only one who has a gnawing feeling of futility that increasingly accompanies it? The real reflective question for me that arises from this piece is how do we break the echo chambers that have cocooned our society to the point where 40% of those who should be exposed to the logic of this peice will never see it, nor increasingly, be even open to consider the importance of why this piece needs to even written at all.
10
Not even in his wildest dreams could Putin have imagined the multiplier effect of his decision to corrode the US elections in Trump's favor.
One day in the future I am sure someone will finally find out what did the Russians have on Trump.
In the nightmarish (but not implausible) scenario Trump gets a second term, Putin and all the other dictators will play him like a fiddle.
7
We are indebted to all the committed and courageous civil servants, like Ms. Yovanovitch, who serve during the administrations of both parties with the ultimate goal of serving the United States
They seem to be the real heroes and heroines of our efforts to put a check on this reckless and immoral president and the politicians who are supporting him.
8
Thoughtful article where one has to wonder about the unseen and unreported damage to our institutions. Our democracy exists because institutions and those who serve in them. A democracy cannot exist in only one individual (even if he/she is the President) or rely purely on good well. I wonder how long it would take us, if ever, to recover from the harm and damage done to our institutions and our democracy?
5
At the core of this is not the Trump collision with civil servants but the work of a small group of people in government working for the love of a Constitution written for the people versus a nation in which too many of us have never learned to understand that love or how to practice it. Democracy dies not of malfeasance but of ignorance and neglect.
5
When (if) this is all over, Trump cannot be allowed to go twittering into retirement, he cannot be pardoned like Nixon. Instead he must be exposed and diminished. America needs to show that the rule of law prevails.
8
“It is breathtaking that virtually no Republican lawmakers have manifested similar courage — “
That history will award valor to the foreign service and intelligence officials who bravely came forward is assured.
That same history should condemn the venal and weak Republicans to it’s dustbin.
Trump should call ahead to his Istanbul Towers and let them know he’ll be there for an extended stay, en famille, hopefully very soon.
8
Alexander Hamilton argued that impeachable offenses were those that involved abuse or violation of the public trust. That’s an ambiguous category that doesn’t necessarily require violation of any criminal statute, but rather depends on the judgment of the electorate and its representatives.
As Hamilton noted, impeachable offenses “are of a nature which may with peculiar propriety be denominated POLITICAL, as they chiefly related to injuries done immediately to the society itself.”
The current environment is highly charged politically, with divided loyalties and extreme polarization. In this context, the question whether the president violated his oath of office and whether his actions constitute grounds for impeachment will be resolved – as Hamilton expected – not by a legal process in the courts. Instead, it will be resolved through the political judgment of the people’s representatives in Congress.
2
"... they have shown remarkable courage to risk their careers, and maybe more, to call out the president for violating his oath."
We should think long and hard about why more of us do not step up -- facing life head-on -- in the same way these whistle-blowers have done. It is never wrong to do the right thing. All it takes is perspective ... and courage.
What do we really want ... and why? What are we most afraid of? We cannot fear the answers to these questions.
The best among us are those willing to sacrifice themselves for others. That will never change.
3
Mr. Friedman,
While Republican politicians are a lost cause, (they have a lot more than their salaries to protect, don't forget those multi-million dollar lobbying jobs waiting), I wonder how you would reach those cheering crowds that follow the orange man without question.
What would you recommend? I have not seen anyone else come up with an answer to the right-wing media blitz that blankets a large swath of the country.
6
@Marc I was wrong about no one knowing. In the NYT today Ian Haney López, wrote an op-ed that explains what should be communicated, tested statements about class that are effective with both white and non-white communities. All that is needed now is an effective way of communicating those messages.
"It is breathtaking that virtually no Republican lawmakers have manifested similar courage — when all they have to lose is $174,000 in salary and free parking at Reagan Washington National Airport."
I think this is naive. Congresspeople are in positions of power, and we all know what they decide makes big money for their powerful constituents, and corporations. Especially Republicans.
3
Of the many hopes I have for the future of this democratic nation, here are two. I hope concerned civil servants are preserving evidence of the misdeeds of Trump appointees in preparation for submitting this evidence to a succeeding administration that will be genuinely interested in promoting the welfare of the population as a whole. I hope the officials who have weakened, subverted, or ignored the rules and regulations of their agencies to which they were appointed will ultimately receive the treatment they deserve, including jail time where warranted.
4
@fgros: How about equal weight votes for everyone in federal elections?
I'm getting very tired of reading about what a great democracy this stinking system of voter nullification is.
Ambassador Yavanovitch is an American hero deserving the Medal of Honour no less than the military hero on the physical battlefields. The enemies, after all , are some foreign and some domestic.
10
At last, at long last we are hearing the voices of brave and principled Americans who are devoted to the American government and our ideals.Every day since Trump entered the Oval Office has been a time fraught with chaos and obvious ignorance of American law and constitutional government.We knew there were loyal employees but Trump worked hard to silence all dissent and discredit anyone who would oppose him.Thank goodness for the impeachment hearings which are allowing the voices of heroes and heroines to be heard.Those who worked hard to honor their oath to preserve and protect the Constitution are finally be given a chance for their stories to be told.Bravo to all of them.
9
I just retired from SSA after 43 years.
For 39 of those years, I lived with the words of a second-rate actor, turned savior to millions that "government can't fix the problem. Government is the problem."
A few years later, I watched as 16 co-workers were pulled from the rubble in Oklahoma City because government went from being "the problem" to being the enemy. They went to work to do innocuous tasks to help regular Americans who pay dearly for those services. Now we became partisans in a war.
To undo the New Deal, government had to be made an enemy. To get voters to reject their own interest in fairness and justice, government was made into a force for evil. Career civil servants, who unlike the hacks that were voted into office or were political appointees, believed in their mission and the oath of loyalty to their country and Constitution.
However, in the guerilla war to convert the state from for, of and by the people to a mix of both a source of paranoia and a vehicle of enrichment via a system where influence was sold to the already well off, the Deep State was born.
The Deep State requires all parties to be guerilla fighters. Rather than non-partisan actors with a sense of devotion to duty, we become mirror-images of the hacks that oppose the very idea of what we do, allegedly for our own power and gain. We must be debased to the level of the lapdog they are.
All for the ability to convince millions that they are surrounded by enemies only "we" can save you from.
34
@Tom What you have written is very astute . The seeds for what has evolved were sown by reagan republicans - in our bones we knew something wasn't right .
4
@glaw thank you both, going from new deal to deep state took a plan and a trap we fell in to, now how to get out?
1
@Tom
Beautifully stated.
"second-rate actor" - and they love him.
Not unlike Trump today.
Your comment should go viral.
Thank you for highlighting and connecting the dots so convincingly, Mr. Krugman. Unfortunately, it is unlikely that Trump’s core supporters will ever see your column and, therefore, won’t be persuaded by it. Similarly, Senate Republicans will dismiss it as lefty rhetoric unworthy of honest consideration.
As for Trump, he will continue on, for as long as he is allowed, with his alt-reality, anti-American behavior.
The only acceptable place for him and his aiders and abettors is not in the big white house on Pennsylvania Avenue. It’s in a federal big house with six by eight foot rooms.
6
Although this is a very good article, highlighting the corrupt president currently in the white house, it would be very refreshing to have one, just one article or opinion not claim XX is the envy of the world. I have never read, over heard or in any other way been informed of said envy. In stead I have read and heard much about the greed (money is end of all endeavor), selfishness (why should I pay for health care for others?) and backwardness (racism and religious conservatism) of US society.
Perhaps in stead of extolling US greatness, a sobering look inwards would benefit america greatly.
8
After reading this article it became crystal clear to me who and what truly leads the free world. I hope that this has not all been irreparably damaged.
1
Mr Friedman your point is well taken. Many career diplomats serve the country well. There is a reason perhaps foreign policy direction is not vested in them but the President.
Running a shadow diplomacy should be investigated and exposed. It won't be the first or last time this happened.
I listened to the two hour rally in Minnesota. As an independent i was amazed to see a sold out concert. Like a Rolling Stones concert. And people seem very happy and pleased. And i saw the protestors outside threatening the peaceful concert goers and full of hate.
We have known about the way Trump speaks before he got elected. He did not pretend to be a nice guy and said nice guys as President, giving great speeches in the last few decades have sold out our nations interests. There is a author who wrote the book about a flat world and he aided in that cause too, flattening out the heartland of America. And a VP Biden who supported many trade deals and his son took advantage of his dads position to exploit it.
2
Definition of the “end justifies the means”
—used to say that a desired result is so good or important that any method, even a morally bad one, may be used to achieve it
@Farmer Actions speak louder than words. Specially for those wanting to put food on the table than the beltway pundits. The economy speaks for itself. Lowest unemployment in 50 years including minorities and women.
All true. Unfortunately, and even sadder, is that for many Americans, or more importantly, voters and Republicans in positions of authority, all of Friedman’s points aren’t nearly as important as tax cuts, deregulation and judge appointments.
4
Great column. And an excellent juxtaposition of a career civil servant whose "crime" was doing her job and serving her country with our President who is, well, not doing either.
11
What Mr. Friedman says is absolutely correct. We, the country, owe our soldiers and foreign service workers a huge debt of gratitude for the non-partisan work that they do. In fact, the entire federal bureaucracy is working more or less on automatic pilot. Most of the work of the federal government, at least the parts that The Donald and his followers haven't sabotaged, is getting done. And that is something to be proud of.
But it is disheartening to consider that many people are unsure as to whether The Donald can be defeated in 2020. Can the democrats get their act together to take the White House or the Senate in 2020?
If there ever was a time for the democrats to come together for the good of the country, this is it. And will all democrats turnout on election day? That is another question. Remember that some democrats could see no difference between Ms. Clinton and The Very Stable Genius in 2016. The democrats always overthink and overintellectualize things.
What we need is for all of those people who see The Donald as the walking catastrophe that he is, to turnout on election day 2020 and vote for the democratic candidates for the presidency and senate.
6
@Aubrey Additional comments:
Most of The Donald's faithful will not be swayed by appeals to facts or reason. I know that there are democrats who want us all to get together and sing kumbaya and say that political dysfunction is the fault of both parties.
But I hate to tell you that many of The Donald's followers love him because he hates the same people they hate. They love Fox, Rush, Coulter, and company because they reinforce views which his followers already have.
The only way to overcome The Donald is to vote on election day. Many democrats seem to want to stay away from actual, real-life politics. But in this case it is unavoidable. In politics, the only way to change things is to win elections.
2
Good article. Trump projects his own failings onto others. Few have noticed that his rantings about the "Deep State" are really about Trump's attempts-- since the campaign-- to set up a rogue government serving his own personal and business interests at the expense of our intelligence services and the civil service. That is what the lesson of the testimony of these civil and intelligence service operatives (read: whistleblower) is -- I'd respectfully suggest, the topic of a future article, Mr. Friedman.
4
A great column by Mr Friedman. Unfortunately, the people you cite at the end of the article chanting "USA, USA" as the President destroys our values and ignores the Constitution are probably not getting the message that Mr Friedman and Ambassador Yovanovitch are so forcefully advancing. How do we turn these reasoned arguments based on our values and our Constitution into the glib, easy to digest lines that the otherwise incompetent President seems to be a master at formulating? I wish I had the answer to that. But thanks to Mr Friedman and so many dedicated public servants for keeping alive the values that have sustained our country through so many challenges over so many decades.
13
I would like to thank Ambassador Yovanovitch and other serving government professionals who have the courage to stand up and be counted in the defense of our constitution. We, the American people, must thank them for their service to our great nation. Without them, we might be lost.
12
What GOP agit-prop calls "the deep state" the rest of us call dedicated public servants committed to the ideals of our nation. Who know the law quite a bit better than The Donald and his creepy Russian contacts.
Our nation was designed to resist madmen and dictators through many means. One of our checks and balances was a Federal government carefully isolated from the ebb and flow of party politics and popular agendas. The GOP has been doing all it can to destroy that, leaning more and more toward temporary "acting" department heads under directives to destroy entire departments and support Trump alone; cramming courts, and similar attempts to hijack authority. But the experienced, dedicated professionals are beginning to fight back, and God bless them.
If it's a question who to cheer for, cheer for the Meullers and Yovanovitches. Trump and his flunkies are trying to bury them, but the Mycroft Holmeses of government--the Real American Government--resist, with knowledge, experience, understanding, and the integrity and standards of the best our system has had to over for generations, under both parties: the cream of our civil service.
7
"to bear true faith and allegiance"
inherent in these words is the understanding
that there is something outside yourself that comes first
and that something bestows meaning and honor to your life
and that is the wellspring from which values develop
and humanity flourishes.
Donald Trump hasn't a clue.
9
For unexplained reasons Trump is beholden to Putin. Trump has never criticized Putin and seems to melt before Putin in one on one meetings. This would clearly explain his recalling an American ambassador who put American interests ahead of Russian strategic objectives. Yovanovitch is a true American hero and a future American president should recognize her exemplary service by awarding a Medal of Honour. God bless this fine lady.
7
I'm beginning to think that Trump is so hopelessly out of his element, that as events careen increasingly out of his control, he does the only thing he knows how to do: weaken and eviscerate the entity he is dealing with -- the US government, in this case -- and transform it all into his own shady business.
11
Note to Tom Friedman: There's no question that Yvonovitch's comportment and her quoted statement puts Donald and his merry band to shame (if they were capable of shame), as does her clarity of purpose, service, and professionalism. But you've got to agree that once someone is convinced that it's all partisan and never anything more (usually because it's just easier than understanding anything more) EVERYTHING is viewed through that lens.
And that includes how they view Opinions in the NY Times.
Yeah, it's okay, really, because your argument is based on right and wrong, and right and wrong are irrelevant in an "everything is partisan" world.
It's just much easier for these people to support Trump than to have to admit that they aren't really in favor of equality for all, or in favor of enforcing any other Constitutional guarantee that isn't perceived by them as in their interest.
In other words, you're right. It's just going to take a lot of these kinds of Opinions in all kinds of forums to defeat Trump's agenda now and his voters' decision-making process.
12
The most underrated workers in the United States are the civil servants at every level of government.
Civil servants are characterized as lazy, overpaid, and contributing to higher taxes. None of which is true.
Thank you for reinforcing the importance of this group of government employees.
8
From a different perspective, I don't view the newest whistleblowers as courageous, pure-hearted public servants whose objective is to rid our political system of corruption, and to uphold the Constitution. On the contrary, the scheming, conniving Democrats have stooped to new lows to ensure their party comes out smelling like a rose, despite the prickly, thorny contention within their own ranks. Once socialism becomes a reality, so goes democracy and freedom. If its socialism you wish for, look to the Democrats, but it will drag our country to the brink.
1
@November-Rose-59 Your perspective is different...from reality. In your "different perspective" a career diplomat suddenly morphs into a scheming, conniving Democrat. Why? Because what she said was harmful to one Donald Trump.
In your alternative reality any criticism of Trump makes one a scheming, conniving democrat. To you, He is beyond any legitimate criticism.
That is utterly un-American. It is an attitude appropriate to a full fledged dictatorship. Which you would unquestionably endorse if it was with a Republican as dictator. Why? Because it would mean that your side had "won".
This ain't sports feller. Winning isn't everything. Sigh. I don't think you're capable of understanding.
3
@November-Rose–59
Which Democrats exactly do you think are in favor of socialism? Socialism, as most of us understand it, is a system under which the government controls the means of production. Who exactly among the Democratic candidates has announced a desire for the government to take over General Electric, General Mills, or General Motors? Bernie Sanders calls himself a socialist with a bit too much abandon; he doesn’t understand what illiterate Americans think that means. It’s fairly certain that he doesn’t support the government’s taking over the means of production. When people like me hear other Americans talking about “the Democrats want socialism,“ we have a terrible sinking feeling about American education and the literacy level of most Americans. We feel like we’re living in the 1950s, when anybody you didn’t like you called a Communist. That Americans can be so illiterate and ill-informed as to speak of social democrats as socialists is among the most terrifying phenomena of the modern era. I live in a country where a remarkable number of people have gone from merely ill-educated to dumbfoundingly stupid. It’s why we’re afraid for the country’s future; our fellow citizens know only knee-jerk words and talking points and virtually nothing about the reality of politics and government. It’s scary, and explains a good deal why, aside from racism, they vote for Donald Trump. God help us.
2
@November-Rose-59
What makes you think that these people coming forward to tesitfy to Congress are Democrats?
Statistically, among federal employees, only 28 percent identify as Democrats.
This president is trying desperately to become an autocratic despot. The paranoia around the possibility that the USA will become a “socialist” nation is keeping many people from seeing just how corrupt this current president is.
“Socialism" has replaced “Communism" as the bogeyman of this time, and that is not good.
1
Thanks, Thomas, for pointing out the comparisons! Civil servants [and military personnel], are rightly, as you point out, required to take the same Oath as the President. The solemnity of the Oath is inspired, because Our Constitution is invoked; therein lies the basis of the many strands of commitment which bind together Our Commonweal. These are noble, time honored, time tested realities, void of partisan parlor tricks, or slick political slippery slopes. Hearts and minds are inspired, rather than reckless, cynical self-esteem, driven by personal financial gain. By turning their collective gazes away from Trump's denial of his own Oath of Office, Republican legislators and political appointees are repudiating their own Oaths, which is truly indicative of Dereliction of Duty, for which they must be held accountable. The modern day moral equivalent is clear: Spielberg's recent movie on Lincoln would end rather differently, with Southern Secession, Lincoln dying an old wealthy man, having been bought off by pro-slavery interests, the Union no more... At least that clergyman who recently opined that Trump's impeachment would rend Our Country asunder who'd have long since been preempted!
2
Thanks, Tom. You nailed it. It is tragic and terrifying that more of our citizens can’t comprehend your point, which should be utterly obvious to all. Perhaps in your next column you can address ways to increase the awareness of all our fellows who chant at the Trump rallies?
Some of them are my family members, by the way. They seem unreachable through my own efforts.
Maybe better education, especially regarding good government and citizenship, for the next generation?
6
Well stated, Mr. Friedman. What has made the United States envoy of the world, is devotions of individuals such as Ambassador Yovonovitch to upholding values of their country, and certainly not the actions of those who are ready to sell their country down the river for self interest.
2
Constitutionally, the president has every right to his own ambassadors. An Obama appointee, Ms. Yovanovitch had a reputation for disloyalty to the Trump administration. Whether that reputation was well-founded is irrelevant.
As for civil servants leaking on Trump, they are antibodies, all right -- and can be ousted for violating the well-known rules of confidentiality. We haven't yet heard much of anything warranting such leaks, unless you consider partisanship a legitimate ground for leaking. The people who are really challenging the constitutional order are those like Comey, Brennan, Clapper, McCabe, the Ukraine "whistleblowers," and the rest of that self-impressed, self-righteous crowd. When IG Horowitz's report issues, we will see more about the real story.
The replacement of Yovanovitch is nothing. Mr. Friedman's piece calls into question Mr. Friedman's understanding about how the constitutional order is supposed to work. Ambassadors and bureaucrats are not elected. Trump was elected. As is oft said, elections have consequences. I didn't vote for Trump, but I respect him for withstanding constant attempts to undermine his presidency, basically from day one. Such attempts are not good for our country.
4
Dave, please take some time to read my response to Thomas' article. The Constitution is at stake. Oaths taken are extremely important, transcending partisan interests. Try to think about what you write, rather than acting like some partisan ditto head, reaffirming fake press releases intended to distort a fundamental set of truths...
3
David Oedel,
Electing Trump President did not turn him into an anointed king. To work toward your own reelection is not a crime, to abuse your office and solicit help from a foreign government is breaking our laws. It is not the ambassador or the whistleblower who are violating their personal oath of office to protect our country and constitution, it is Trump and his minions.
Blue wave 2020 !
3
#David Oedel
Your comment perfectly illustrates Friedman's observations in re those who would blindly support Trump for their own financial or parochial interests, ignoring the Constitutional checks and balances which are supposed to protect us from the likes of Emperor Trump. He no more deserves the respect due a President of the United States of America than would Imperator Nero Cladius Divi Claudius filius Caesar Augustus Germanicus.
2
Ambassador Yovanovich served honorably as a civil servant to the American people for 33 years. During that time she was Ambassador under 2 Republican Presidents and one Democratic President. Her stellar career stands in sharp contrast to the current self-serving Trump administration filled with people like Mr. Trump, Mr. Pompeo, and Mr. Mulvaney. Mulvaney bragged that moving the USDA was part of the "grand plan" to cut government and hollow out our public institutions.
Bringing Ambassador Yovanovich back from her post without cause other than her efforts to stop corruption, is another attack on the government workers who diligently serve our nation regardless of political party. It also threatens our important State Department that should focus on real diplomacy over the ridiculous attempt to rebrand the Dept of State as having "swagger" according to Secretary of State Pompeo.
We need to impeach and remove Trump and his cronies as soon as possible to save our democracy as one would expel worms from our body politic to save our Republic.
7
Mr. Friedman,
An excellent column. Your choice to contrast Trump at his rallies and the letter written by Ambassador Yovanovitch was perfect.
I have read that letter several times and, reading portions of it again here, it is just as inspiring as the first and, also, just as shocking because it is rightly a "j'accuse" letter to the President of the United States. And yet, the Republican Senate does nothing.
Thank you again for this fine article.
8
I too keep questioning why no republicans stand up to trump, or why some flip so easily from detractors to rabid supporters overnight. My conclusion is Trump more than likely has dirt on a lot of them, and has communicated either explicitly or implicitly that he will use it at any sign of betrayal. They are therefore scared of standing up to him. Perhaps this combined with the rather more obvious factor that they care more about their careers and the GOP staying in power than principles.
11
What a beautifully written essay . I’m touched by Ms. Yovonovitch .
Wonderful writing
8
Over the years I’ve been acquainted with several foreign service officers abroad, and have always been impressed at how seriously they take their responsibilities as representatives of America, wherever they serve. Regardless of the regularly changing occupant in the White House, they always seemed very clear-eyed that their first allegiance was to America, its institutions and the Constitution. Exercising admirable professional reserve, they would rarely, if ever, engage in discussions concerning domestic politics.
For Trump, Guiliani, Pompeo and others to attempt to politicize civil servants like Ms. Yovanovitch and Ms. Hill and turn them into the president’s personal apparatchiks could not be more dangerous or treasonous.
10
In my adult life, every President has given me reason to be proud. Even Presidents I haven't voted for: Reagan's "tear down that wall!" Bush standing in front of Muslim Americans after 9/11. I may not have voted for them. I may disagree with them on just about everything else. But, each term has yielded a moment of pride.
And now? I am hopeful. It will not be what the man in office will do. He is beyond hope. It will be what the Office will do. It will be what -- and I really like this term, Mr. Friedman -- the True Defenders will do. They are the heros, this time round.
13
Thank you for mentioning how members of Congress are holding onto their salary as if it’s more important than the fate of the country they swore to serve.
It’s a concept I’ve been pondering lately – – that many patriots have given their lives for their country, when members of Congress won’t even consider giving up their salaries for their country- - and unlike a life, they can always get another job.
25
It can’t just be the salary. It makes no sense. They could make more outside of govt service. It’s either love of power, or there is well hidden graft, or both, that they won’t part with.
10
It’s not the politician’s salary they fear giving up, it’s the power. All federal politicians are on some level narcissists - they have to be, to feel they should be among the few to dictate law for millions of people in the most powerful nation in the planet. But I feel like that narcissism has historically also been mostly tempered with a deep sense of the seriousness of serving the people, and making life better for as many of them as possible. I feel like this generation of GOPers, raised on Ayn Rand and libertarianism and its exaltation of selfishness, almost uniformly no longer possess that emotion. It is all a raw power grab, unbound by decency — an endless feeding of the ego, with the biggest egomaniac, possibly of all time, as their standard bearer. They’re not in it to make life better for anyone, they’re in it for the venal joy of playing the people for suckers and enriching themselves. And they’ve gamed the electoral system with gerrymandering and voter suppression to make it ever more difficult for the majority to put their egos in check.
1
@Linda L
It is not the salary, it is the bribes!
1
In an era with so much to lose we must all become defenders of the Constitution. These government officials, and others before them, are showing the character and commitment we all need. So, let’s gird our loins and have at it. Call your Congressional offices, write letters, participate in legal protests and keep read, or reread, the Constitution.
7
If the Ukraine is so corrupt, why would the president want an ambassador there under 6 different presidents need her help? If her efforts were so feeble to stop the corruption, she was there too long. If she was not part of the crimes committed, she surely wasn’t a solution. Her removal should provide fresh eyes. Ones not accepting the status quo.
1
Jay, it’s not an Ambassador’s job to end corruption in a foreign country. Just as it’s not the President of the United State’s job to use the power of his office to withhold already approved & much needed military funds to Ukraine until the time that President of Ukraine agreed to help Trump get re-elected by digging up dirt on his Democratic rival! In case you didn’t believe the whistleblower’s account, Trump went out on the White House lawn, proudly admitted to the essence of the call & asked China to also investigate Biden & his son! There were millions of eyes watching his corruption and it is an impeachable offense!
2
@Leslie Hayes That ambassador help negotiate a treaty during the Clinton Administration that addressed sharing investigative resources, aid in prosecutions, and reciprocal extradition. How come all the corruption still existed? If you read the transcript, he never asked to dig up dirt on Biden, or his son. He said he heard accusations Biden blackmailed the previous President of Ukraine to fire a prosecutor investigating Burisma. Trump said it looked bad, and asked him to look into it. Biden bragged about firing the prosecutor in public. He bragged of withholding a billion dollar aid guarantee if he wasn’t fired in 6 hours. That sounds like blackmail, right? Everything Trump did was covered by a treaty passed by congress. For all you know, Trump could get information exonerating the Biden’s, allowing Democrats to choose a candidate with a cloud over him now.
Very powerful.
"It is breathtaking that virtually no Republican lawmakers have manifested similar courage." The reference was to Mr. Bolton but it could have also referred to Ms. Yovanovitch and others willing to testify.
They are not only courageous but also honest, moral, ethical and true Americans -everything Trump, Giuliani and every single Republican in Congress are not.
15
Good points, except this one: “noncorrupt, apolitical civil servants — whose norms and institutions make America’s government so envied and respected around the world”. This is laughably ignorant. It’s great the US has some apolitical civil servants with sound norms. But US stands almost alone among developed democracies in having a Government whose top echelons are riddled with political appointees and donors. The UK, Canada, Australia and New Zealand don’t do this. Nor do most of the European countries that come to mind. Nor Japan. The US State Department resembles African and Third World countries in that so many ambassadors are dubious political appointees. So no, while some aspects of US governance are admired elsewhere- eg. having a Congress with strong oversight powers, and strong whistleblower and freedom of information laws - your federal civil service system doesn’t have much respect among advanced democracies.
5
I'd like to know, did someone conduct a survey among the citizens of "advanced democracies" regarding the U. S. federal civil service system?
Our children’s civics classes? No one teaches civics anymore, one main reason so many of our fellow citizens are so ignorant about our government or Constitution.
12
@Bob Jones
I attended high school from 1957 to 1961 and one of the required courses was called " Government." We learned basic things like the terms of U.S. Senators and Congressmen and other relevant facts. Our instructor even taught the left/right spectrum and one feature that the extreme left and the extreme right will result in an autocracy.
What's happening in present day America? Not yet, but Trump is clearly wishing for an autocracy with him as the first autocrat of the good ol' USA.
2
History will record the failure of the Republican Party
To defend the nation against a demonically flawed President who destroyed the past, present and future of America.
15
We know where republicans align in this fight for America. It ain’t with the ambassador. We are in this fight because of the Republicans. Donald Trump is the leader of the Republican Party for a reason. Trump’s words are an expression of the soul of the Party. And that is truly what frightens us all. There is no magic wand to wave this away.
20
What is so sad - well, so much is sad - but what is particularly sad is that there are young people in this country whose early years will be spent growing up with Trump as President. Trump is all they know. It used to be that “President of the United States” was something to shoot for. Now, what they see is an ignorant, crude, hostile liar yelling and riling up crowds with ugliness. And, a lazy man with no empathy who golfs after mass shootings and climate disasters.
Can you imagine what life will be like if this President gets four more years in which to further degrade the norms of our country? He degrades the norms of what it means to be a decent human!
He has to be impeached. The young need a world where they see wrongs being righted. And Trump is wrong in ways too numerous to mention. There must be consequences. What message do we send if there are no consequences?
66
@Kathryn -- There are 18-year olds now deploying to Afghanistan who were born after that war started. There have been features on them in one of the military papers.
This has been written up in the same way as they highlight planes older than their crews, or in the case of the B-52, a plane once flown by the grandfather of its current pilot.
Think of it as military humor.
4
@Kathryn
The bigger problem is that some of the young people may believe that this is what it takes to succeed, even as President. The next "Donald Trump" may be staring admiringly at at that image right now, practicing his profane rant.
2
These state department professionals who are speaking out are true patriots. If only we had someone like Ms. Yovanovitch as our President instead of 45, we might have a better chance of keeping our democracy alive.
We ARE going to have to try everything possible to keep this democracy alive. Our country is sick with the cancer of hate and fascism. God help us.
22
All I can say is it's amazing things have come to the point where so many Americans still support or believe or accept a president who is so nakedly corrupt, crass, and dangerous. But it does indeed feel like we are turning a corner finally, thanks to these awesome civil servants who are true patriots...patriots in deeds, not just in words. HIstory will revere them and will treat Trump and his enablers harshly. A big thank you to them.
43
There is one message that Democrats, independents,Libertarians,Greens and even the Republicans left who can think for themselves need to keep repeating- Trump and his base are false patriots. They in no way, shape or form are interested in what is best for our country. Trump and his base are either out for only their own self-interest (i.e. Trump, his billionaire pals, all the Republican senators and congressmen and other assorted hangers-on) or they are so bitter over their miserable lives that, instead of trying to remedy their situation, they buy into the Fox state pundits that it's all the result of these "others" and that all they really need to do is restore the country to the 1950's society and everything will be fine.
13
@Philip Greider -- I think Obama really did seek what he thought to be the long term best interests of the whole country, as best he could.
So did Jimmy Carter.
Nobody else has since LBJ quit in 1968, and he was driven out by making such as liar's mess of Vietnam while trying to do good domestically. None since. None.
3
When DJT and his ilk are in our country’s past we will be very grateful for the first individual that came forward to speak up loudly and clearly. Grateful as well for those who followed.
Personal integrity has no price and cannot be traded. It is an absolute to be guarded dearly.
9
As a Minnesotan, I was horrified by Trump's anti-Somali American and anti-refugee statements and even more horrified that the crowd at the Target Center roared with approval.
39
@Michael -- I've been horrified by Democrats across the country who compromise with that particular evil.
I've seen them try to leverage it for their own benefit, or that of their donors, or just the idea of moderation.
The man actually defeated by AOC reacting with the grace I expect. Since then, it has been all down hill from Democrats. Of course, at the bottom of that hill were the Republicans -- this isn't said in defense of any of them.
2
@Michael
America knows there are good people in Minnesota.
Many who regularly attend these lynch mob rallies are paid, and bussed in from other parts of the Country.
Yet wackadoodle AM radio hatemongers like to scream about how victims of mass shootings and natural disasters are frauds and 'crisis actors'.
2
I can almost imagine Trump taking his grifting to the next level by stating that "the constitution was really, really GREAT for the first couple hundred years of the country, even though it was hand-written by people wearing silly triangular hats, but its getting a little long in tooth, isn't it? Many people are telling me it's time to move on..."
7
@Rory -- Only Trump says that?
How about the Second Amendment?
How about two Senators per State to protect regional interests?
It takes a very narrow view of facts to put that critique in Trump's mouth alone.
2
Trump’s master has said words to that effect.
This time in our nation's history, this time of trials and tribulations, presents a great opportunity. We can now see the weaknesses in our system of selecting and electing presidents as well as the excessive powers of the presidency that many of us, including long time Washington reporters like myself, did not know were there.
We have to seize this chance to reform the processes. The highest honorific and powerful post in America, the presidency, is up for grabs and this is good, to a point. It gives us the possibility of electing "wild cards" like Jimmy Carter and Bill Clinton. Yet, this looseness, this freedom and randomness, is also is the problem.
We have been lucky through most of our national history. We've had some duds as president, we've had a few who brought their personal demons to the office but, in the main, we've had good to great people serving. We see now, in knife sharp, startling detail, that it is possible for our luck to run out.
Changing the way the primaries work is one option, perhaps with more of a role for political parties. Eliminating or greatly reforming the Electoral College so that a "winner" is required to also get over 50% of the vote is another. Democratizing the US Senate to allow more representation for more populous states is another to be considered.
The time is now to consider this and more.
10
@Doug Terry -- A reform meant to ensure the winner gets over 50% of the popular vote must also ensure that vote does not all come from just a few parts of the country. That wide regional spread of acceptance is also important.
I don't say that in defense of a popular vote loser. I say popular vote winner alone is not enough.
That could in practice mean we don't get a winner. Plan B could be a revote, or the House, or something else.
It is important that a few big states not be seen to impose a President widely disliked across a vast sweep of the country. This is every bit as important as counting the entire popular vote equally.
No, California and New York, cannot between them pick a President, but many popular vote proposals would produce that.
We need some idea better than, "So what, we are from California or New York."
2
@Doug Terry -- As to a role for the parties, that is a double edged sword.
Lack of party role gave us Trump.
Too much party role gave us Hillary. It almost gave us Jeb as her opponent.
For every McGovern-type candidate who can't win, there is a fix-is-in system candidate who can't win, maybe more.
What we have seen is that there is a problem for which neither extreme provides an answer that works.
3
@Mark Thomason Thanks for your thoughts.
The argument that California and New York (don't forget Texas, the second largest state by population) would decide who gets to be president is an argument being advanced by the right wing today to shutdown any discussion of changes. In that case, it is essentially a matter of "fear those liberals!" which is a standard tactic. Turn this idea on its head: do these three states NEVER get to pick who is president because the rural states must be represented?
I am not impressed with the idea that the states themselves, as government entities, need to be represented. This was a great concern 240+ years ago because the states were reluctant to be subsumed by the federal enterprise. Essentially, the states allow local cultural/social differences to live peacefully in a big and varied country (a good thing, generally) but I ask this: how many people choose where they live based on local laws?
Another point to consider: if the popular vote nationally were to count, how many millions more people would be encouraged to turn out and vote? Republicans in California, New York, Democrats in Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Mississippi. In short, it could transform our politics and be a jolt to civic participation.
1
Yep! There's a pretty big divide between what's considered ok and what's consider not ok. A major gulf regarding our notion of 'basic right and wrong'. A concept that used to be taken for granted. To the writer's point, however, the only group that still labors under this notion of rules and regulations, social, cultural, political 'norms' as our media refers are in fact, public servants. Long an exploited and demeaned group by the political right since the 80s. They have waited long enough to be vindicated. Once we've rid ourselves of the Trump cancer afoot, my hope is that all who wish will be reinstated, same grade and salary level, picking up where they left off -- scientists, State Dept. personnel, DOJ, FBI agents, et al with our heartfelt gratitude. I remain hopeful that we can recover as a nation. But, we can never again be as blindsided and politically naïve as our current mistake betrays us to be.
7
God help us all. Ambassador Yovanovitch served our country with distinction and is heralded by anti-corruption crusaders in Ukraine. She's fluent in Russian and has years of diplomatic experience. She is exactly the kind of dedicated foreign service officer we need working in our, and the democratic world's interest. Trump throws her under the bus. It's high time for us to do it to him.
57
@Stephen Holland -- I doubt you ever heard of her until she attacked Trump. I doubt you know anything at all about her other than that she just attacked Trump.
That sort of thinking is being used to rehabilitate John Bolton and a cabal of neocons and hawks. It is the wrong path.
The right path is principled political leadership with real policies beyond I'm-not-him. Bernie, Warren, Gabbard, and some others are examples. They exist.
All we need is to listen, instead of fixate on what is used as cover to re-elect the donor favorites.
3
Mark, why is it important that’s she worked in foreign service for 30 years and uhh we never heard of her? Why would we know the names of those ambassadors willing to uproot their families to represent the US in foreign countries?
The important part of this story is that she not only “_atracked we will now try know & remember her name is that she stood up to Trump’s obstruction of Justice, as he refuses to cooperate w Congress and more importantly forbidding people involved
1
@Mark Thomason I just learned of her resume and it's impressive That, and the fact that she is supported by Ukraine reformers (and I don't buy into the counter narrative that theses are all neo-fascists), makes me think that she's on the right side of this thing. She's not John Bolton or a neocon so far as I can tell, but even Bolton had the sense to know that something is rotten in the bowels of Trumpville.
It is Trump against the Deep State, and the Deep State is committed to the rule of law and has taken an oath to uphold the Constitution. Trump is in the middle of leading a slow-motion coup d"etat against the Constitution, supported by the Vast Right-Wing Conspiracy. The Conspiracy (whose strategy was outlined by Supreme Court Justice Powell) thought it would be leading the coup but is standing with Trump so far even though he has pushed the conspirators out of leadership roles.
5
@sdavidc9 -- I'm afraid that yes, it is "Trump against the Deep State."
However, the Deep State is an indefensible evil, every bit as bad as Trump, and far more difficult to be rid of. Obama couldn't overcome it in 8 years of battling The Blob.
I am troubled by Trump.
I am troubled by the FBI and CIA and Intelligence Community leaping out of their proper role to prevent a presidency. Comey and Brennan and Clapper are as bad to my eyes as Trump.
The wars we are in, the endless prison-industrial complex of our society, and a great many other of our evils are all the Deep State.
The Hidden Establishment that can't be questioned and can't be stopped is not an American ideal. It is what we are supposed to avoid.
Of course, we don't avoid it with the Orange One, that isn't a defense of him. But Ancien Regime is not excused by what it fights.
2
It is Trump vs Dems, Tom. Every candidate on that stage tonight would be an incredible improvement over this corrupt and incompetent president.
But after the nominating prices is over, will all of these very opportunistic people wanting to be president unite to defeat Trump outweigh whatever bitterness they encounter in getting to the general election.
We can’t blow it this time.
8
@JT FLORIDA -- Some would be as bad as Trump. One or two might even be worse, doing the same things with more competence.
We need better than not-Trump. Much better. That is where too many of our problems are hiding right now, their smokescreen.
2
That's a lot of red meat thrown at the Times impeach-at-all-cost crowd.
I don't where Friedman gets the idea that Trump's opponents are "noncorrupt, apolitical civil servants." Many are, to be sure. But many are not. The polarization of American politics has visibly taken its toll.
In September 2018, the Times published an Op-Ed article by an unnamed Trump Administration official titled "I am part of the resistance inside the Trump Administration." The official claimed that “unsung heroes” on his team were “working diligently from within to frustrate parts of his agenda and his worst inclinations.”
The piece came a day after Bob Woodward reported efforts by aides to surreptitiously block the president when they judged he was acting dangerously.
So why is it any surprise that Trump believes that there are career civil servants who are bent on sabotaging his policies? Friedman may mock conspiracy theories, but sometimes paranoids have real enemies.
Can Friedman assure us that the Ukraine "whistle-blower" had no political motivation? Didn't he violate Talleyrand's advice of "above all, not too much zeal?" He didn't personally hear the conversation, but none of his informants concluded that they had a duty to tip off Adam Schiff.
The behavior of Comey, McCabe and Ohr hardly inspires confidence that they are apolitical civil servants.
For the sake of our democracy, don't let's give civil servants the idea that they are its true defenders.
4
@Ian Maitland
The piece was about one excellent civil servant. There are many others.
10
@Ian Maitland
For every watered down 'threat' of a Democratic political partisan you describe, there are a dozen nihilistic Neocons and Republican quislings willing to destroy American democracy in order to ensure their continued place at the taxpayer funded government trough.
If your 'R' candidates can't win an election, they're quite happy to burn down the system.
8
Your point about Comey? He almost single handedly made Trump president ... you are suggesting now that he somehow was a Democrat all along? Be hard to convince HRC of that
Trump and his supporters will turn us into an autocracy- where the great leader is adored and saluted by his followers, and where anyone who opposes them is vilified.
He foments hatred and division. We need to get rid of him immediately.
8
Just this phrase "true defender" makes me twitch in discomfort. It is the phrase, the fascists and communists used too. It is like the phase speaking for the unheard people. Because this is what Trump can claim with his simplistic rallying cries.
To put some convoluted speeches, which i rather like to read calmly in some secluded spot than in a campaign rally to pitch up as a tally chart for being a "true defender" makes me twitch again. This is not what Trump does on his rallies, these are not some cultural events for some complacent intellectuals. Please honor the people with limited ability to thoughtfulness, these are citizen too, and they want to and have the right to participate in the public affairs.
Do not make the mistake to tell the people, that you and your kind are the one to lead, because you are superior. This is what the soviets had been, soviet is the russian word for council.
Rather ask yourself, what messages, what kind of participation does it need for the people, who can not afford to spend their lifetime in intellectual splendor. If you can not figure that out, you are not a "true defender" of the nation, than your are just another self proclaimed aristocrat.
1
Oh please.
Accountability is not some sort of fluffy concept for intellectuals- it is the deal in a democracy.
7
Bravo, Tom.
1
The man has got to go. Also, how is it possible that we allow the Fox State TV to continue? What are we going to do to not permit fraudulent advertising and fake news and propaganda to continue. Our democracy will not survive if such a large segment of the population is feeding on lies.
Sigh...
18
@Tateez
You would have to repeal, or at least extensively modify, your First Amendment. Hell will freeze over first.
Thank you Mr. Friedman. An exceptional, clear and precise column on where the roots of this impeachment began and where explicit testimony on the corruption being exposed is growing by the day. Your words, and the direct statements of our loyal civil servants, lie in complete contrast to the deceit being shouted out at the presidents cult rallies, on tweets and propped up by Fox News. The light of truth is starting to shine on those that would corrupt our democratic republic for personal gain.
9
Yes, it is the career civil servants rising to protect the Constitution against its destruction by the Trump machine. But it is not a fight that the civil servants can win without active support of a majority of the American public. Trump is a very successful media manipulator, and will successfully label this as a Deep State conspiracy. Pelosi is doing well to hold the impeachment inquiry the way she is - that will help increase Trump negatives. However, the Dems have to speak to the fears of the Trump supporters before they can increase their positives
2
Thanks to a public service whistleblower, we now know that Trump and the Republican Party endorse "it's ok" for any elected representative to either publicly or covertly request Ukraine, Russia, China, etc., to render assistance in obtaining and publishing Trump's tax return. What's good for the goose is good for the gander.
1
Again we are reminded that being an American has nothing to do with whiteness, ancestors, salutes, pickups, pulpits, apple pies or even birthplace: it is something so much greater.
28
Years from now; when Donald Trump is mercifully just a very bad memory; it may well be that the people who saved American democracy were the public servants who did what millions of people around the world do every day without fanfare. Their jobs. No Tweets; no blaring Breaking News headlines; no egomaniacs looking for personal fame or fortune. Just quiet dedicated men and women who knew right from wrong...and in the end simply did the right thing. Would that not be refreshing and a testament to how common decency beat the madness we see out of the White House under Trumpocracy. If that sweet day comes to pass; and I believe it will; let every American and those who believe in democracy around the world give THANKS to such men and women who in a moment of truth; spoke TRUTH to Power. That is something teachers for generations to come could teach the children of America with pride. When it did seem the Constitution was being under assault like never before; We the People saved the day. May it be so!
46
@Greg Hodges
Donald Trump may indeed, one day, be a bad memory but the conditions that created him and helped his rise will still exist. Mend your country and its society or his avatar will surely rise again. And on each rising it will gain more strength until you can no longer defeat it.
May the gods have mercy upon you and the world.
Dear Mr. Friedman,
I don't always like your articles. A bit too pedantic for my tastes but this one is spot on, especially when you ask the question about who would you want your kids to emulate. I ask that to Trump supporters all the time, reminding them that adore and reward Trump for behavior they would smack their kids for. I'd like to say I can't for the life of me understand why anyone would vote for Trump but The answer is pretty clear to me and that is racism. Trump represents a great white hope, perhaps the last vestige of white rule in this country. That powerful motivator causes many like farmers to support him even if it isn't in their interest. Everyone will be so much better off if he loses.
9
“For the last 33 years, it has been my great honor to serve the American people as a Foreign Service officer, over six administrations — four Republican, and two Democratic. I have served in seven different countries, five of them hardship posts, and was appointed to serve as an ambassador three times — twice by a Republican president and once by a Democrat. Throughout my career, I have stayed true to the oath that Foreign Service officers take and observe every day: ‘that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic,’ and ‘that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same.’”
- Marie Yovanovitch
Donald Trump isn't fit to shine this great American woman's shoes.
America must reject this complete Presidential disgrace of a tiny man.
136
@Socrates
One positive aspect of all of this is the opportunity for the general public to see and (maybe) appreciate the character and dedication of the vast majority of public servants. I was one for 35 years and can testify that our goal was always to do the right thing. The nonsense always originated with the politicians.
5
He’s not on our side. Never has been
10
I watched this brave Foreign Service Officer and Ambassador stride to the House hearing and read her introductory statement with pride. As a former Federal Service employee I understand her stance and I applaud it. I hope I had her strength of character in the scuffles I had. The venality of today though takes almost divine will power. It is a Manichean struggle. But we will be behind the likes of Yovanovich.
9
Hannity is reporting tonight that Pelosi will not call for a vote on impeachment because she doesn't have the votes. If so case closed. Time to move on.
1
To be clear-Speaker Pelosi has now, and has had those votes. It’s a long game this Impeachment inquiry. When nearly every day this president & his clown car administration step on their own feet, Speaker Pelosi maintains a calm controlled approach. A master of leadership and a profile in courage. Where’s Leader McConnell - he could do the same and put country over party to end this charade.
6
@tmauel
I stopped reading your comment after the first four words, “Hannity is reporting tonight..."
1
Of course, the premise of this entire editorial is ridiculous, surprisingly so for Thomas Friedman.
The "deep state" or "blob", as Obama called it, consists of bureaucrats at the intelligence agencies, State Dept., and DoD that have built long careers around the central concept of establishing and maintaining a unipolar, globalist Pax Americana system.
The D.C. "blob" isn't committed to the Constitution, it is committed to a Pax Americana global system that is no longer sustainable.
They aren't actively working against Trump to protect democracy. They are undermining him because they disagree with his nationalist America First worldview.
The "blob" considers itself separate from and superior to elected officials. They aren't humble servants. They are haughty masters.
2
@John Even if everything you've written is true, Trump still needs to go. He has created his own deep state enabled by the GOP (Looking the other way) and installing an AG who is also looking the other way (The Mueller Report) and interpreting the Constitution to dovetail with WH prerogatives.
Blowing off subpoenas should be met with fierce consequences. There won't be any consequences as long as there is Barr's DOJ. The House relies on the DOJ to enforce subpoenas. You can count on it, Barr won't be locking up any WH officials or aides who refuse to testify.
This is a textbook dictatorship. Trump has found a way to be above the law and he's getting away with it...for now.
7
You are describing Trump and Giuliani.
5
This is bigger than Democrats vs. Trump.
The battle is more basic than patriots vs. the Opportunist in Chief.
We are witnessing the battle of good against evil.
12
Thomas,
Your columns are always spot on and clearly articulated in a way that breaks through the fog of misinformation. ( You can see what a lousy writer I am). But you get the point. Thanks for the daylight.
3
Tom,
You have written an inspiring story of courage and character of a remarkable woman. You are the best and I hope this story is widely shared.
3
The rabid crowd (how many of them were paid to attend these lynch mob rallies?) will never hear Ambassador Yovanovitch's words, because they won't be reported on Pravda USA Channel, aka FOX News.
7
Unfortunately none of the defenders agree with other defenders. Will the real defender be the choice of the Democrats?
It's pretty obvious. Trump and his followers think loyalty to him is patriotism. Not So.
They even have state-TV to twist facts for his benefit.
Everyone else thinks patriotism is our public servants upholding their oath to our Constitution, the 3 branches of government balancing and checking power, and citizens taking their role seriously to weigh issues based upon facts and ethics and voting.
We owe nothing to some guy whose family arrived 5 minutes ago relatively speaking, who baselessly divides the country for his own benefit, and who lies.
Yovanovitch was a hero for standing up when so many won't.
1315
@Kay Johnson
The Personality Cult state model, in which blind loyalty to the named political object of worship becomes synonymous with every form of virtue, is also something Trump acquired from his Russian masters.
Brave Americans have come forward to stand in the way of that juggernaut. If we support them, we will have gotten off easy (relatively speaking); we will have saved the USA, and validated the Founders' trust in the People.
Thank you, Thomas L. Friedman. "Antibodies" perfectly sums it up.
This cancer can be beaten!
128
@Kay Johnson -- It is pretty obvious that opponents of Trump think opposing him reflexively and no matter the topic is automatic patriotism.
The Syria war was a mess. It had been from Day One. The very idea of it was bungled. It only got worse.
This may not be the best way out. It is however out, which is the way we need to go.
We went into Syria, and stayed, only to help Israel. We did not go to help the Kurds. If we'd meant to do that, we'd have done it in the 20 years we ran Iraq's no fly zone over the Kurds. We didn't, not a bit of it.
The ISIS was created by US operations, funded by our "allies" in the Gulf. It is another example of blow back, the same as al Qaeda. They compete with each other to be the bigger blow back. We did not go in to stop what we started by going in.
The people now taking over in Syria all also fought ISIS and al Qaeda, as much as we did. ISIS is not revived because another of its many enemies takes the lead.
The Kurds are wonderful as a people and a political entity. We can help them. We can do that by being supportive of them in all of their autonomous regions.
The Kurds don't believe in government. Their ideology is extreme libertarian, mixed with the Islam of the local mosque. It is local. It is bottom up. Such people can live with autonomy, more than could any other form of society. They are against big leadership, even their own. So support them in local power against the State. Do that with business and visas and money, not guns.
7
@Mark Thomason
Trump is not the center of our democracy as you are implying - the Constitution is.
Measuring a public servant and believe it or not, Trump is a public servant, by their oath, is the deal.
55
In front of the world, Trump took a phone call from a Turkish strongman and instantly ordered some of America's finest - Special Forces soldiers serving on the line in Syria - to slink away with their base with their tail between their legs, betray their comrades in arms, and abandon their mission to defeat ISIS.
Apparently he wasn't satisfied with simply demoralizing and undermining America's first defenders, our law enforcement, foreign service, and intelligence professionals. Now he's turning our military commitments - sealed in the blood and sweat of volunteers - into worthless posturing and deceit.
It's appalling that some consider this brazen cowardice "tough" leadership.
1497
@Neander
And worse, Trump tricked the Kurds with an enhanced security agreement wherein they dismantled their hardened forward positions just a few weeks ago.
58
@Neander ….How can Trump do something like this without approval from his military advisors and Congress??
19
@Neander
Absolutely!
First abandoning the Kurds.
And then in the next breath tRump commits thousands of US troops to Saudi Arabia and MBS because "they will pay for sending troops".
When has our military ever been bought and sold like mercenaries?
Transactional military might.
Disgusting.
May Foggy Bottom be the beginning of the end.
71
Spot-on commentary, personalizing exactly what's at stake, the future of our constitutional democracy, as well as our dignity as a nation. America deserves, and the world needs, so much better. Impeaching Trump is a necessity, like treating cancer. It's not about hating him (or a disease) but of restoring health.
741
@Tashi So, is it going to take a rebellion to oust him from power. Rational discourse doesn't seem to work. In spite of his many 'crimes' he remains untouched. His countless lies go unchallenged. Every time he opens his mouth and utters one, there should be a loud public outcry that he substantiate it.;"his feet should be held to the fire."
24
@Tashi "There's a cancer in the White House." - John Dean. "There's a hand grenade in the White House." - John Bolton. Not much changes.
23
@Tashi Impeaching Trump is just the beginning of restoring our country to health. Faith in our government has been at a low ebb since Reagan and his "government is the problem" stance. We have to start electing people who believe in the government and will stay true to our constitution. We the people need to believe that we are all in this together even though we may have different points of view. We must tolerate rather than obliterate.
15
For all the grifters and ideological extremists Mr. Emoluments has installed in his administration, there was also a kind of personnel time bomb waiting to go off. Civil servants, foreign policy professionals as well as some political appointees. Soon they’ll have no choice but to tell what they know, and there’s nothing Trump can do to stop it.
At its core, this has become a fight between noncorrupt, apolitical foreign service professionals — whose norms and institutions make America’s government so envied and respected around the world — and Giuliani and Trump and their pals, who care only about serving themselves and their conspiracy theories.
Time for the public to stand up & demand accountability for in your face obstruction & criminality.
Time for the House to censure immediately, investigate thoroughly, & impeach repeatedly.
631
@joemcph
America to Donald Trump: Tick Tock
6
A bit ironic civil servants and a few political appointees have stripped bare the essential Trump. A faux populist arrogant totally unprincipled man elected to lead dragging the nation down daily even hourly. The GOP at autopsy revealed no heart and no courage a willing host for a virulent infection. The party of Lincoln dead on table unwilling to admit a mistake.
762
@texsun
"a willing host for a virulent infection"
Excellent post. Perfect line - GOP is a willing host!
32
@texsun A mistake...a daily, repeated mistake.
5
@texsun Republican are simply following an old Chinese proverb:
"He who rides a tiger is afraid to dismount"
They watch those for falter and fall off, only to be mulled. So they keep riding.
8
Excellent article. I'm a big fan of giving the quotes by the players and then letting the reader decide who seems more credible. You have a well spoken government official. Oops...former government official. I'm sure she will have some private sector opportunities being offered. As for the other government fellow...time will tell.
In general, sure.
But you miss the point that "America" is also the one represented by Trump and his supporters. That authoritarian America has always been here, and it is a grave mistake not recognize how real it is. There are no "true country defenders". The offenders happen to be part and soul of the country as well. I know, sad, but real.
And of course, impeach fast and hard, and push that part of the country down. And follow through with education, that the more mediocre the education and the more segmented the country the easier for the Trumps or Putins or Republicans of the world to manipulate it.
355
@Ard There are huge amounts of commentary for many essays, complaining about American education, but the people who are blindly supportive of the president were in school decades ago. Most recent graduates abhor current power figures.
17
@Bob Hillier I couldn't agree more. A spot on commentary. The civil split in America is wide and deep, and rooted in blind fears and hatreds that go back centuries. Education is vital. Not schooling. Education. What little hope I have for truly brooking differences lies in education. Thank you for your comment. May we find solidarity in the nation, somehow, despite the grave gaps in our understanding and acceptance of each other.
24
Ard,
"There are no true defenders" Your statement undercuts your solution. The ambassador is holding to her sworn oath. A high standard she was taught to hold at school and her home. When someone like the ambassador is truly defending our rule of law standards. then she is a true defender. She doesn't need our appreciation or accolades. It is our role to hold her up as an example to others. Why bother educating anyone to these standards to then dismiss them when they exhibit that courage?
26
In the midst of every authoritarian, nationalistic wave of hatred and destruction throughout history, there has always been decent and honorable people fighting for truth and justice. And they have often lost their lives for it and in the end, been proven to be on the right side of history. The only question for our republic is whether we as a nation will simply stand by and watch the destruction unfold until there is nothing but ruins, or be counted right now and end the madness before more damage is done. It is no longer an exaggeration to think that this president and Republicans in Congress are actively trying to undo the country, whether for their own benefit, or the benefit of our enemies. They leave our extraordinary civil servants no choice but to defend our constitution and institutions, even if it means attacking the people who now run those very institutions. They are our heroes at this moment in history. And we must not let them down.
606
@D.N. "Decent and honorable people" seem to be our only hope, because of the timidity of the Democrats thinking about the next election, instead of defending the Constitution.
2
We are certainly not doing our part, staring listlessly at our screens instead of rallying against corruption, loudly, en masse. Where is our Joshua Wong? Where is our Martin Luther King? This is the most dangerous time we have ever faced as a country.
Not a penny of mine to so called resistance groups like MoveOn since they refuse to do this.
Specialty groups (climate, pro choice, gun control) need to focus their energies on ending this corrupt, fascist regime. NOTHING will happen until this monster is removed.
1
It's hard to remember a time in recent history when a sitting U.S. President went out of his way to make enemies not only of the country's neighbors and allies, but of the entire country itself.
We're seeing that now with Donald Trump.
Not a day, sometimes even an hour goes by without some random tweet or announcement proclaiming his rage against someone or something that didn't adhere to his agenda.
This is especially unsettling when it involves those who not only know the laws and limitations of the U.S. Constitution, but those who take very seriously their role to defend it.
That's why it's frightening to hear the Commander-in-Chief speak of treason and treachery when it comes to his political opponents -- and those Americans who do not subscribe to the ways of his party.
It doesn't get much closer to authoritarianism than that.
And there's no reason to doubt this is not what the Founding Fathers had in mind.
These are scary times.
Not only does Donald Trump and his administration hold themselves above the law, but in contempt of it.
They don't respond to House subpoenas.
They don't answer any questions, and even more alarming is the fact that they prohibit anyone from doing anything other than the same.
With Trump in control of a narcoleptic and compliant Republican Senate, Justice Department and the Supreme Court, there's no end to the amount of sanctioned damage he could further inflict on our nation.
And there's no sign it will end any time soon.
Strange days indeed.
7
I was stunned last night to read John Bolton's description of Rudy Giuliani as "a hand grenade." I immediately understood that National Security Adviser John Bolton had been cashiered because he had run afoul not of the president but of the president's personal attorney. Mr. Bolton sat in on the call and heard the president put the arm on the newly-mined Ukrainian president.
I have loathed John Bolton from the bottom of my soul since his stint on the W. team. I never trusted him and, somewhat self-righteously, judged him as a "war-monger" and regime-changer, especially when it came to Iran. Now, I'm filled with doubt--and some guilt. His very alarm and his instructions to Fiona Hill were those of a patriot committed to the principles of this country. One does not have to agree with an official but one must respect--even admire--a serving officer who understands that the office of the presidency far outweighs the importance of the individual who happens to temporarily fill it.
My heart goes out to Marie Yovanovitch. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo should have harshly lectured the president about his decision to recall his ambassador. But no; the Secretary is not serving America, he is serving the current office-holder. No one who has paid attention in Civics class does not understand that the president is the head of the American government; but he (or she) is not a permanent fixture and must adhere scrupulously to his oath.
If one's oath is falsely sworn, what's left?
1227
@Red Sox, ‘04, ‘07, ‘13, ‘18
A stopped clock is right twice a day. Bolton has been right exactly twice: about Trump vis a vis Ukraine and about North Korea’s untrustworthiness.
Bolton helped sell the Iraq War - about which he’s never looked back, despite the bloodshed and inferno scenes visible to all with open eyes - and the notion of an ‘Axis of Evil.’ Bolton still wants outright war on Iran and has conspicuously brought our nations to the current impasse. He was a cruel joke of a UN Ambassador, treating the title just as disrespectfully as did Nikki Haley, making as much a mockery of diplomacy as does Donald Trump.
You weren’t self-righteous to see him for what he is. He and Trump deserved each other. May each man now lead to the end of the other’s political career.
Thanks for what you wrote. Take care.
126
@NM The has difference between Bolton and Trump is that Bolton appears to be acting out of a genuinely held ( and disturbingly wrong) belief about what is good for this Country
But Trump is acting based on action he believes are good for Donald Trump. He has no inteteret in anyone or anything else. That’s why practically anybody looks good by comparison. Heck I recently Risimg out of Hate about the transformation of David Dukes godson from the heir apparent to the White Nationalist movement into a fierce believer in racial equality and and a huge critic of the movement he grew up in. And I found myself thinking on several occasions how Duke despite being absolutely despicable was better ( more self reflective, less egocentric, capable of being a good friend) than the man who sits in the highest office in the land.
64
@Red Sox, ‘04, ‘07, ‘13, ‘18 Sir Red Sox, you have written my thoughts exactly when it comes to John Bolton. Of all "the president's men," I would have never predicted that he would be on the side of patriotism toward our nation, democracy, and the Constitution. Personally, his demeanor alone use to frighten me. That and his hawkishness. But apparently within, there is an ethical soul after all. Maybe there IS a light at the end of this long, dark, eerie tunnel. Maybe for those who pray, it does work. Or just maybe this country of ours is made up of more good people than not.
26
We were lucky to have her in Ukraine; we are beyond fortunate to have her in DC and testifying about what it means to be an American; and I trust that Ambassador Yavanovitch will be representing this country in the future, in another posting. I cannot think of anyone who could more truly and appropriately describe herself as being an American; I'm proud to hear her, and I'm grateful that she has invested her talents and her energies on our behlf.
965
@CalypsoSummer
"I cannot think of anyone who could more truly and appropriately describe herself as being an American"
Yes, She and Sally Yates. Talented, strong, courageous and admirable ladies.
61
@Blanche White
And don't forget Christine Blasey Ford.
20
@JM
I don't.
Total respect, admiration and gratitude for Dr. Blasey Ford and Miss-rs: Sally Yates and Yovanovitch.
15
Friedman is absolutely correct. Donald Trump has created a presidency that is totally unhinged from all conventions. Trump is a Republican solely because there was no lane available in the Democratic party. He shares no ideological principles with conservatives and the GOP other than adopting a pro-life stance after spending his entire adult life supporting pro-choice. That is the single issue keeping his presidency afloat. As long as he shows the Christian Right/Evangelicals he will not waver, they will have his back and overlook any criminal or immoral behavior. Even though enraging Pat Robertson and most Republican senators by abandoning the Kurds, they will protect him from removal despite their tacit revulsion for this man. What may bring him down are the dedicated patriots in the State Department who are braving the desperate wrath of their boss to tell the nation that Donald Trump is the single greatest threat to our constitutional democracy.
10
Politics seems to have turned into a sporting event, the liberal team versus the anti-liberal team. Shouting USA came from the Olympics I believe. That chant has been adopted by the anti-liberals as if USA was equivalent to white Christianity. To Trump's supporters he represents white people, people of the religious right, and many believe he is being used by God to take on the liberals, pretty much ignoring everything in the Declaration of Independence and Constitution as if they were simply pieces of paper with contained a bunch of words and not central to the foundation of this country.
6
Our government and its services have been supported by millions of hard working people including our military which protects the country. Trump has caste suspicion on all of them with his shot gun them support of a baseless deep state theory which specifies nothing, but gives him a hook into his crowds and followers. That Trump uses this approach undermines our nation and its government. It is almost impossible to disprove something as amorphous and baseless to those who want to believe it. As things are going trump will be all alone as he faces impeachment deserted by those who will no longer stomach his endless lies and corruption.
2
Thank you for service, Ms Yovanovich. We have been so lucky to have had you working for America’s interests and it is dreadful that the Trump administration has removed your principled expertise in favor of their corrupt self interest.
11
In the beginning,,,,,,, the right to vote was extended to white property owning white males. I wonder if, today, we ought to require passing an intelligence test.
2
I just have to say that this photo by Mr. Winter of Ms. Yovanovitch arriving at Capitol Hill is a masterpiece of American photography.
5
Comparing apples and orange ...
3
Someone once said that communities & nations have the government they deserve... read that again & mull on it.
Either enough people haven’t lost their decency or.. oh well. Tragic
4
The unbelievable thing is that there are still Americans who support Trump after he has been shown to be liar, racist, dictator to be etc. Are they supporting him because they have an extra $5 in their paychecks? Pretty cheap.
3
Amen.
1
My new name fr the Republican Senate Caucus is McConnell's Cowards.
4
Our country is being sabotaged. Our U.S. President does not want a wall to keep immigrants out. He wants a wall to keep U.S. citizens in.
I can only imagine in 1983 and separating from my husband and living back home with my parents until 1994 after President Richard Nixon passed away and returning to Michigan from Ontario, Canada where my parents retired. How would it have resulted those ten years prior homeless in the U.S.?
Thank you for this insight. Our diplomats and military are truly profiles in courage and always are the saviors of our freedoms and democracy. For their service and courage we cannot fail in removing the cancer from our presidency and chart a new course for liberty and once again become the beacon of hope in the world.
4
"It’s Not Trump vs. the Dems. It’s Trump vs. the Country’s True Defenders."
The country's true defenders, Thomas, are those who have read and understand the Constitution of the United States of America. Plenty of public servants have taken an oath to uphold and defend that document, but most of them have never read it much less understand it. That includes Republicans and Democrats alike.
The GOP has demonized the idea of the government superstructure for many decades, as well as career employees.
To quote from a very early Obama campaign controversy, the chickens have come home to roost.
But it's too early to call John Bolton a hero. Not until he talks freely and openly to the impeachment enquirers, tells the public what's so crazy about this way of conducting foreign policy, and makes it very clear that THIS IS ABOVE IDEOLOGY.
8
Having resided in a number of western countries over the last 20 years I don't believe this is an accurate statement by a long shot, far from it. " whose norms and institutions make America’s government so envied and respected around the world"
5
As a former Republican, I have no doubt that Trump is the worst President in modern history, probably in all of our history. But as someone who, at age 18, left a blue state that turned red, I have a gut feeling of what the country needs.
It's not the Democrats forming a circular firing squad. It's Biden saying he'll serve only one term and choosing a more liberal running mate. The only question...is it Warren or someone younger? He would win, and in four years, the nation could choose the path forward.
Will this happen? It's virtually impossible. And Trump could win again--to the detriment of our country and the entire world.
12
Great article and so accurate. It is getting very insane here. I forgive you now for supporting George W Bush in Iraq now. People like the whistleblower and the ambassador are what will only help to hopefully save our democracy. It won't be easy.
9
There is little to add to this column. Thomas through the powerful and eloquent words - and example - of Marie Yovanovitch has shown that, indeed, there is still good and selflessness within our government. Think about the whistle-blower against whom at this moment in time Trump's White House is opening up an "investigation" to discover who this "spy" is. Because of a corrupt and evil man residing in the People's House, this man or woman's life is at risk just by standing up for our Constitutional democracy. To paraphrase Adam Schiff just several hours ago, there are more brave and courageous souls stepping up to defend you, me, and a threatened nation. These last several years have been one nightmarish and egregious act after another by Trump and his team of scoundrels. But is that the proverbial light we see at the end of a long and twisted tunnel? Is that hope we sense on the horizon? From the bottom of my heart, I want to thank Marie, Fiona, the whistle blower(s), and those future good and decent souls who will help save us from a most evil Trumpian regime.
48
"Whose speech would you want to read to your children’s civics class"
Speech? Civics class? Mr. Friedman, your age is showing.
In all seriousness though, how can you compare a politician and a professional diplomat? One has to to pander to an entire electorate. The other has to pander only to her employers, who happen to be the Secretary of State and (alas) the President. They do not speak the same language. Why would you expect them to do so?
Were Ms. Yovanovitch to decide now to run for office, I am sure that she would sound very different.
Memory in politics is short.
Who remembers the sacking of General Stanley McChrystal? For insulting the staff of the President. The General was a soldiers soldier. A true patriot and successful general.
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/barackobama/7856321/Barack-Obamas-firing-of-Stanley-McChrystal-showed-weakness-and-will-backfire.html
And his successor? How did that work out? Classified information to his biographer mistress, but he was let off with a misdemeanor.
Too much pathos Mr. Friedman.
3
Watch videos of JFK. You will see a president that was intelligent, well read, eloquent, and polite. JFK was a politician, and proves your thesis about how they speak and act incorrect.
12
@Robert And just when was he president? And when did he campaign? 1960? 60 years ago? Before media took over in real-time campaigning and even then Mr. Nixon lost votes for having a 5 o'clock shadow. I concede your point were it 1960. It is not. Things have changed. Mr. Kennedy was elected more for his Camelot court and good lucks and political machine than for his taste in literature.
3
@Joshua Schwartz - Say what you will about JFK, but he had one quality that contemporary politicians have practically driven to extinction: he inspired us. The ability to inspire - indeed, to lead, even - is timeless.
I miss having a president I can be proud of, much less respect, even if our political views differ. But at this point, I might even settle for one that didn’t embarrass me every single day with a hateful Tweet, an outright lie, or some shameless con.
5
I'm often critical of Mr. Friedman's political views, but in this column he has done the country proud with his eloquent defense of Ms. Yovanovitch and just plain decency. I was moved by his last paragraph,
"...In both Minnesota and Louisiana, Trump supporters chanted “U.S.A., U.S.A., U.S.A.” at his red-meat lines. Read these two transcripts and then ask yourself, who’s really protecting and honoring “U.S.A., U.S.A., U.S.A.”
Well done sir, well done!
17
It would be great if the "USA" chanters were trying to drown out Mr. Trump when he makes his disgusting unfounded attacks, but sadly they can't recognize that he is a threat to all patriots, including themselves, if in fact they truly are. There are public servants and there are Trump servants. Trump has always been the latter and that has not changed since he took his oath of his office. We can only hope that future history books in school will describe Trump accurately to students.
6
U.S.A. is spelled Donald Trump.
Trump exists for himself and only himself. When his people chant U.S.A., what they really mean is Trump, Trump, Trump.
America is an idea based upon a set of ideals. Trump is an egomaniac who attacks everything that isn't him. His people love him for that. Trump is their destroyer. They revel in the destruction he inflicts.
Trump keeps destroying because that makes the crowds chant with ever greater ferver.
Trump doesn't have any use for career diplomats and civil servants. Of course and unless they behave like they are his puppets and treat him as the dictator he truly wants to become. And his people love him for it.
9
We had a demonstration when Greta was in town that attracted half a million people. That may not sound like a lot of people for New-Yorkers but, up here, that’s a lot.
My point is that writing letters is not enough.
13
@Skiplusse half a million is impressive, be it in NY or PQ
2
Deep in my heart and experience I empathize with Marie Yovanovitch, a patriot and hero.
I learned in high school that "ratting" on ones peers is a socially disastrous thing to do, even if is the right thing. If exposed one must move to another state and hope the experience doesn't catch up with you.
The Ambassador lived up to her oath of office and lost her job and her career over it. By American social standards of at least 40% of American voters she should have done Mafia Don's bidding and stayed quiet or lied. But she blundered. She came forward and told the truth.
In honesty, who will hire her now. She's not a team player. She doesn't understand loyalty to the mob boss. I'm actually serious. We have a serious moral and ethics problem in this country. Ms. Yovanovitch should be given a medal -- along with the other whistle blowers and employees that will testify against the Administration mob -- yet, in fact she may have difficulty finding a job.
I personally was a coward. I blew the whistle once and found that the world doesn't protect whistleblowers. (The laws are a joke.) The next two times I silently quit my job because I couldn't afford to be an unemployed, and unrecognized hero.
13
why did 63 M people vote for Mr Trump ?
why did 100 M people chose not to vote in 2016 ?
How will there be change that is rationale, patriotic, forward thinking, and positive if we cannot answer these questions ?
37
@ZEMAN
Sixty-three million people were desperate. One hundred million people could not support either candidate. The Democrats need to consider this at the primaries.
1
As a happy, straight, educated, married white, financially successful male, with four great daughters, and one fine golden lab; who voted for Presidents Obama and Trump, please understand the “liberal”
comments in the NYT (just today) have slandered me by calling me:
- racist;
- privileged;
- misogynist,
- ignorant;
- homophobic;
- traitorous;
- evil;
- hateful; and
- greedy.
Surprisingly, I don’t find today’s Liberals to be tolerant of opposing views, and the constant attacks and defamation will not cause me to leap with joy into the voting booth to support the Democratic candidate.
4
@Happy Republican
Happy,
It's still a free country (at least for now...)
Do what you want, vote how you want.
But if the shoe fits....
17
@Happy Republican Just don't let your daughters listen to this joker or his tweets and you'll be fine. But someday, they'll read the history books and you'll probably tell them you never voted for this fool.
23
@Happy Republican tell me how you can go from voting for Obama to Trump. But really, you are being personally attacked? How is that?
17
I’ve often considered the spectacle that is a Trump rally very similar to Wrestlemania. Only now, I see a distinction: I believe that at least a few of the attendees at Wrestlemania realize that what they came to see is phony.
100
@Dan315
You yourself may not be:
racist;
- privileged;
- misogynist,
- ignorant;
- homophobic;
- traitorous;
- evil;
- hateful; and
- greedy.
But Donald Trump certainly is. Why would you vote for such a person?
84
I sincerely hope Democrats will put forth the requisite breathe to amplify the hypocrisy of the "patriotic" congressional Republican. They've all taken the oath to "...protect and defend the Constitution against ALL enemies, foreign and DOMESTIC", but don't seem at all interested in honoring that oath. If only they act out of a fervent desire to uphold their oath of office, they would be equally outraged by the threat posed by Trump's recklessness. For them to not be outraged is tantamount to complicity that would have them be every bit the threat to this country as Trump. We don't need highly paid public servants not recognizing the 2 ton pink elephant in the room when to do so puts this country in danger of being trampled out of existence.
5
A great contrast to highlight - a true public servant vs a criminal president. It's too bad it will never appear on Fox 'news', the republican propaganda channel.
18
Trumpism is showing us that a great many voters, concentrated in the GOP, do not believe in the Constitution, do not believe in a pluralist society with individual freedoms. They want a dictator, but imagine it will be a dictator whom they can either control or who is on their side. They fail to see that it is the other way around, that Trump is playing them as marks in his con game.
77
Thank you for publishing these excerpts, Mr. Friedman. The words and the voices clearly illuminate the characters of the respective speakers. One is a patriot and a professional; the other is a want-to-be despot and a fool.
27
My mother grew up in Falls Church, VA and worked in a government office after she graduated from college. I am so
thankful to her for instilling in me a great respect for the workings of our government. In this election cycle, I believe that we the people will kick the fake news cycle out.
Jeff Zucker, nice try. You can be the one of the first to go.
You should have watched the movie, Network !!!
Does not end well for the ratings addicts.
4
Trump supporters read this "whistle-blowers from the intelligence community, now supported by National Security Council staffers and diplomats" and automatically think the Deep State is our to get their dear leader. Seriously, how do you get past that narrative?
12
I don’t think you can get past it. The best option is to work around it. Stir people who didn’t vote last time from their apathy. Go door to door to help rally people to the polls. Anyone still supporting Trump is not going to be persuaded at this point. The only alternative is to outnumber them on Election Day. Remember, they are loud and their man is in power. But they remain the minority.
8
It is so hard to believe how much we've "progressed" since President Obama was in office.
5
Trump and the republicans hate democracy, plain and simple. They lie, cheat, and steal wether it be elections, votes, and wages. The real fools are the blue collar workers electing them.
How many trump voters can find Benghazi on a map?
27
We knew what Trump was before he ran. His interviews with Howard Stern where he talked about STDs being "his Vietnam." Where he talked about his wife's constipation. Where he bragged about his infidelities.
We knew what he was from his 60 Minutes interview where he was trying to get a widow evicted from her house because it was in the way of his casino. I remember watching the interview and Trump complaining that her house was ugly and his building would be beautiful. Why would anyone want to have an ugly house when they could look at his big, beautiful building.
Trump has always been for Trump and only Trump. He didn't take his marriage vows seriously. Why would he take his vow to protect and defend the Constitution seriously? We knew what he was for decades. We saw this coming.
152
@Linda
You saw this coming: then you treated his rants and rallies as comic relief. If you did not vote, if you did not drive others to vote, you are as much responsible for Trump as any of his followers.
1
@Linda
Which marriage vows?
That's right, all of them.
OK, so the willfully ignorant are having their day in the sun. No one can say that their stupid, FOX TV-based view of the world hasn't been allowed to command center stage. At what point, however, do we say, "Enough is enough?"
It's past time for the grown-ups to stop the spreading anarchy that is the by-product if the Trump infection.
9
The Constitution is clear: "The President shall be removed from Office on Impeachment for, and Conviction of, Treason, Bribery, or other high Crimes and Misdemeanors."
One hopes that the Articles of Impeachment being drafted by the House would include charges on all three counts:
1. Treason - asking foreign powers to intervene in US politics for personal gain.
2. Bribery - using funds of the US treasury (taxpayers' dollars) to curry favor with foreign powers.
3. High Crimes and Misdemeanors - negligence in the death of Jamal Khashoggi, and countless cases of profiting from misuse of power.
So, come on , America! Step up and reclaim your honor!
31
@John Kell
America sold its honour for a"mess of pottage" several administrations ago. Too many Americans do not even remember what it is!
1
My God, he's the President of the United States, doesn't he have better things to do? Doesn't he have more pressing matters than dealing with this level of election fraud? Couldn't this deception wait since everyone involved, including the president (I'm assuming), knew that the charges were fraudulent to begin with? This is like Nixon insisting he be allowed to attend the burglary. Those who have closed themselves off from listening to anything negative about Trump are missing out on the most unbelievable, horrifically frightening and historically eventful time in American history. And the saddest part of all is that you'll be left out of the happy ending.
4
Mr. Friedman, an edit to the title of this column.
It’s Not Trump vs. the Dems. It’s Trump vs. the Country’s True Patriots.
38
In Rudy Giuliani, Donald Trump has found his Oliver North.
Rogue foreign policy---at the President's whim, contrary to the expressed will of Congress, undermining the basic principles of the Constitution, and violating the Presidential Oath of Office.
78
The frightening thing is not actually Trump. It is his supporters in their millions.
237
@Lefthalfbach Right. I can hear them all say, "she's just another one of the 'elites'".
15
Agreed. When I see their faces it makes me ill.
11
@Lefthalfbach This Philadelphian has it right--Trump's followers are so much a part of the problem, especially the Christian fundamentalists who support this hatemonger. How people who claim to be followers of "the Prince of Peace" can support such an anti-Christian being is so amazing. Think back to the 2016 Republican Convention and the hate that characterized that despicable gathering. Nothing said about enhancing life in this country. Rather, the sick, "Lock her up!" chants, day after day. A recent national poll revealed that 22 % of US adults can not name even one of the three branches of our national government and another 14 % can name only one. That's one-third of the adult population. I can't help but think that a disproportionate number of these folks are Trump's most loyal supporters.
9
I agree with everything in this column, but isn't it incredibly easy to identify some awful things that Trump has said at his rallies, or on twitter, or anywhere else?
4
Historically, this is to me unmatched in my 67 years . It is also the most important concern . What it comes down to for me is,
What do you love more, the Constitution or what Donald Trump is offering. I’m concerned as I have ever been concerned before.
103
Thank you for writing the most eloquent and powerful essay about the power of We, the People, as represented by the civil servants who are speaking truth to power.
100
Whew, this is breathtaking, both the writing and the moment in history. The ambassador's statement is just about perfect in every way, every citizen should read it. Leaflet DT's rallies with copies of it.
240
@mmelius
Owing to the failure of America's education system; most of the attendees at a Trump rally could not read, let alone comprehend, the ambassador's statement.
5
His rallies? Naive. It’s not red meat so there will be no interest and it will be called fake news. Very sad. These folks are thriving and living vicariously through trump and can’t do anything or risk slipping from his grasp
Cognitive dissonance in action. They are too deep into his megalomania to extract themselves.
4
It’s true: “Stupid is, as stupid does.”
7
Mother's and fathers, point to Ms Yovanovitch and tell your daughters and sons that she is who they should want to be when they grow up.
192
"A bullying and cruel boss, Trump has spent his entire life managing on the basis of caprice and intimidation ... he made a habit of imposing awful demands of his underlings ... Trump has found himself in the position of needing experts and experienced hands who, as accomplished individuals with their own reputations to safeguard, were not so easily cowed ... Unable to adapt, Trump has churned through top aides at a record pace ... Consider the record turnover in the upper reaches of the administration and you'll have some idea of what awaits the president and the nation. A Pandora's box full of Trump's enemies has been opened, and monsters he created are pouring out." (Michael D'Antonio, CNN, 15Oct2019)
I am reminded of another wannabe tyrant: "The increasingly paranoid Richard loses what popularity he had ... He soon faces rebellions led first by Buckingham and subsequently by the invading Richmond ... Richard is visited by the ghosts of his victims, all of whom tell him to 'Despair and die!' ... He awakes screaming for 'Jesus' to help him, slowly realizing that he is all alone in the world ... " (Wikipedia, synopsis of "Richard III" by Shakespeare)
40
Given that Republicans - both politicians and voters - don't give 2 cents about ethics, morality or integrity, it is in fact Trump vs. The Dems.
The Republicans are like free riders. They will barge into to your home, invade your kitchen, destroy your living room, leave your bathroom in tatters and then walk out the door leaving you to clean the mess until the next time they barge into your home....
Then they will talk all day long about why many homes look like they are in desperate need of repair.
66
Does it feel good to wallow in mud? Yes, I suppose, if you are dusty, dry and hotter than heck.
Trump's rallies are a big, loud mud-wallowing moment for his fans. He is shameless, and offers lies and slander in large buckets.
Will these folks ever go back to a gut-check on the level of their reservoir of civic duty and wide compassion?
I don't know. I do know that the robust statement of ambassador Yovanovitch isn't likely to make their pulses race. A great shame, but, it seems, having lots of red meat malice doesn't glut Trump's faithful.
We need to hold fast to that which is good. The man who made the vile insults of Biden is an avatar of evil. If we fail to shake him loose from his current seat, our ship of state is headed for a foaming reef.
89
Trump is a TRAITOR. Somewhere, Benedict Arnold is laughing.
Thanks, GOP/NRA Party. 2020.
64
Beautifully written--less is more. Yes, between the two, who would any parent or grandparent want to be the teacher and, if some loved one was in harm's way, the commander.
Growing up (now 74), I was given a view of the greatness and grandeur of the founding and so forth, also as in America the Beautiful. Today, you don't have to walk or drive too far from where you live to see whether America is Beautiful.
Trump stands for tarnish. The faults in the constitutional fabric have been exposed. Nothing lasts. What's next?
12
@John
You ask, "What's next?"
What's next is to repair the faults in the constitutional fabric.
Ours has never been a perfect nation. It is true that Trump is a unique threat to our democratic institutions. But I cling to the belief that it is not too late. Not yet. The institutions that lie at the core of our nation have withstood storms before.
We have an opportunity to change course in 2020. We have an opportunity to repair our fabric.
Or we can descend into an Orwellian nightmare of right is wrong and dark is light and always remember that Big Donald loves you.
16
I'll believe that when I hear conservatives repeating the phrase "It’s Not Trump vs. the Dems. It’s Trump vs. the Country’s True Defenders." Friedman is only Republican light on foreign policy.
1
If Trump and his FOX TV enablers had their way, every employee of the Federal Government, a/k/a waht they refer to as the "Deep State," could be fired by the incoming President and should be fired for not doing the President's bidding without question. So speeches by former Ambassador Yovanovitch do not show courage - they show treason. If Republicans allow this blatant disregard of the Constitution to continue they are the ones who are committing treason.
46
@Jay Orchard
"could be fired by the incoming president"
Yeah, it used to be that way. Thank goodness for the Pendleton Civil Service Reform Act of 1883.
22
Shouldn't those supporters een chanting "U.S.S.R., U.S.S.R."?
83
@Mark Esposito And singing, "You don't know how lucky you are. . .Back in the USSR" That is what living in the USA is starting to feel like.
4
@Mark Esposito
Well, the t-shirt says it all: I'd rather be Russian than American.
The fact that Trump supporters shout U.S.A. while Trump shreds our constitution, our laws and our norms just reminds me that his crowds act more like professional wrestling fans than serious political thinkers. There have been times in my life when I realized that humanity was going in a different direction than the one I was comfortable with. I've been skeptical of popular entertainment, popular music, facebook, twitter, dating apps, electronic games and computers in general. Not sure if any of these things have been a net positive or if they will end up resulting in unintended consequences of negativity. All those can be held at bay for the time being because the most consequential problem facing us today is our new politics. Degrading in tone, subject and vocabulary, if this becomes the new normal, I don't need to guess about the effect on civilization, it will end it. I've taken the changes in society with a shrug and crossed fingers but if Trump isn't impeached, I will never again be able to trust another election, another politician or my fellow Americans. When did America lose the simple, yet essential, ability to tell when someone is not sincere, truthful or smart. Now all you kids get off my lawn.
169
@Rick Gage - As Abraham Lincoln said, you can fool some of the people all of the time.
And remember LBJ's contemptuous, understanding remarks about the lowest white man? That's who packs into Trump's rallies. They don't care about right vs wrong, or patriotism vs treason, or honesty vs villany. They're drunk on hate and revelling in the opportunity to scream insults at scapegoats.
It's a problem. . .
53
@Rick Gage
Look at videos of some of the Nazi rallies in Germany in the 1930s, then watch videos of Trump rallies. If it doesn't scare you, you're a lot braver than I am.
1
With Nixon, it was a "cancer on the presidency"...with Trump, his presidency is the cancer.
154
I think we are at a key point in our nation’s history.
Both sides of the political debate need to realize the “bad news” is not necessarily “false news”,
Both sides need to think carefully as to who to believe and who not to believe.
Me?? I want facts and I don’t want deception!
If we cannot even agree on the truth, how can we recover and heal?
10
A plain, simple and heroic column by Tom Friedman.
Republicans just can't seem to understand the Constitution they pretend to protect as their deplorably corrupt lowlife of a President completely besmirches the Presidency, the country,
and its reputation every day.
What Trump has done in Ukraine is treasonous.
Trump's repeated obstruction of justice in the 2016 election investigation was impeachable.
Trump's 2016 campaign manager Paul Manafort helped rig a Putin favorite in the Ukrainian presidential election before Manafort repeated the exact same corrupt exercise here in the USA with Trump.
Trump has attacked intelligence agencies, federal employees, diplomats, journalists, facts and reality since his disgraceful inauguration.
The House of Representatives needs to interview more diplomats, more civil servants and more whistleblowers so that Americans can plainly see what kind of immoral, nationless man Donald Trump is.
It took a long time for the nation and Republicans to understand that Richard Nixon was an impeachable crook.
It's time to repeat the exercise for crooked Donald Trump, a man who's hidden behind his father's money, his lawyers, his accountants and his lies his entire life.
America is a decent country with decent people.
It doesn't deserve a deplorably indecent miscreant juvenile delinquent who just flushed our noble allies the Kurds down his toilet of incoherence and authoritarian madness.
Wake up, Republistan.
Trump is a traitor to America.
1556
@Socrates
While I agree with your position on the administration; can we please quit using the word treason where its not applicable? Regardless of what box you want to apply to your current political standing the allegation of said treason cannot apply without the legal requisite of a declaration of war. Lets not act as stupid as the resident of 1600.
24
@Socrates
You see it played out all over the world. In Europe 17th Century cast away towns displaced by movements to more modern cities. The industrial revolution casting aside rural communities for wealth. And now the Social Justice Democrat saying forget you to those modern suffering the same transition to the future.
You're the philosopher, wake up, this never ends well.
5
@I am Sam
Treason, plainly speaking - not legally speaking- is also the action of betraying someone or something.
Trump practices treason daily, and you don’t need a war to be a traitor to your country.
374
Le's SCAPEGOAT Trump, not his followers. Trump the con man, Trump the huckster, no wonder you were taken in.
3
It has always amazed me that conservatives seem to always have two somewhat positions on government employees - They are incompetent or are part of some deep state conspiracy. For some reason they never conclude that if they are incompetent it is highly unlikely they could also be malevolent.
In my experience most government employees I have met honestly want to serve our country. They give up some of the rewards they could have in the private sector in return for jobs that are often dangerous (military for example), or drudge work. And at the end they get a small pension.
We should consider requiring national service for young adults to give them some exposure to these folks.
46
@John Please don't wish the draft on the young people of this country.
@RwMoss
One of the worst things this Country did was to eliminate the draft.
We would pay a lot more attention to politics if we had skin in the game, whether it's our own skin or that of our children. We might really, then, be able to call ourselves citizens instead of consumers.
When wars are out of sight, out of mind, we just shop away and live frivolous lives.
4
@RwMoss I think it is interesting that you assumed that "national service" equals military service. For some reason, Americans have come to fetishize the military, to the point that we think we need to constantly thank soldiers -- but only soldiers -- "for their service." In my travels, I have never seen this in other countries; it seems to be uniquely American.
I long for the day when a baseball game pauses to honor someone from Doctors Without Borders, the Peace Corps or UN missions, rather than a soldier. Or an embassy employee from a dangerous part of the world.
National service could include any of those, and arguably contribute more to our nation and world than the military.
4
I wish the important Points of Truth made in Mr. Friedman's article could somehow be communicated to Trump supporters, who are probably not NY Times readers.
58
@MR Oh absolutely. The tripping point is the idea that any thought could be "communicated" to a Trump voter. The 40% view Donald as a deity who is above wrong, who is the country, and against whom any criticism is treason (he said so).
7
@MR
Or, like President Duh-nald Trump, not even readers at all.
(it's very complicated, there's a lot of words on that page!)
2
@MR
Unfortunately, anyone who still supports Trump is surrounded by such a dense bozone layer, truth and facts bounce right off. Fox News, however, seems to penetrate with no attenuation at all.
I really appreciate your writing this. I hope many people read it. Yovanovitch vs. Trump.
The question you asked:
"Every American should contemplate their remarks, which I excerpt later, and then ask two questions: Whose speech would you want to read to your children’s civics class and which speaker do you think represents the America you want to see evolve and leave to your kids?"
should be what every American asks. Thank you again for asking it, and showing us two possible answers.
13
Powerful, powerful. Has there ever been a more clear-cut choice between right and wrong? Usually, there’s a gray area. Not here. This president is a flat-out criminal.
393
i think the gist of this column is that one of these people is a skunk.
and, of course, i apologize to skunks for putting them in the same category as this odious potus.
120
Thank you, Tom. My daughter is a foreign service officer and a loyal, hard working American so I have a personal stake in this situation. What's happening here is nothing less than a treasonous betrayal of our beloved nation and our democracy. I check Fox News website everyday and there is precious little of this story which is reaching the cult of 45. We must stay strong, stay vigilant, and not let this national nightmare wear us down. Fight this monstrous evil with every fiber of your being. We need all hands on deck. This is the end game for our democracy.
396
I thank your daughter for her service.
14
@Progressive Christian
I thank you for your post, your strong words imploring "we must not let this national nightmare wear us down" is powerful. A once-proud American, now exasperated at 65 yrs old, the urge to take advantage of my acquired Canadian citizenship pulls at me.
Do I stay and 'fight-the-fight' or leave the country out of exhaustion?
15
Every day my heart breaks at the Trump camp's enormous appetite for naked deception.
40
I just cannot understand the level (diminishing as it seems) of support for a truly despicable person like Trump. I would love for the "deplorables" to have to live as they would like to subject others. But, then again, thinking beyond their noses is not what people of that ilk are known for.
35
If you believe Trump, Giuliani, and Steven Miller, she is part of the deep state.
1
@tanstaafl Yes, you would. But have any of those three have a track record of telling true statements.
Nope. So you wouldn't believe their assertions about the deep state, right?
10