If the Ambassador were to need another job, CBS news should take note! A voice of reason in a very turbulent era could be of great value. So refreshing!
The cry of the republicans "Bring forth the Whistleblower" is so insidious! Thank God we have that whistleblower - just as we thanked God for "Deep Throat"!
4
And what on earth is going on with those posters behind the republican committee members? Those are basically Fox news commentaries - why are they allowed to be a visual part of the proceedings, broadcast around the world?
3
CNN, MSNBC and other media outlets (with one exception) please don't continuously replay the carefully crafted, absolutely ludicrous and false statements by the Jim Jordan's, Lindsey Graham's and Devin Nunes's of the world. You are playing straight into their hands and allowing their soundbites to escape into the ether and into the minds of those who are looking for words of denial to cling to. Fact check first, then relegate all lies to the cutting room floor where they belong. Trump controlled the soundbites and airwaves leading up to the 2016 election and he still does. Let's stop this nonsense whether it's from Trump or his army. Thank you!
7
Except he wasn't as halting, he brought to mind Mueller
I was utterly entranced by the voice. So much so, that I felt secure and began sleeping deeply. It was an out of body experience... but then I woke up and realized he didn't say much. IF there is more to come, I'll watch in my pajamas.
Also, please wake me when the "bombshell" goes off; because all Taylor really testified to is that he heard something from someone who heard it from someone else (note the Jim Jordan cross). Taylor also made it very clear that President Trump did not follow orders very well - almost as if the President didn't really understand who was in charge.
To an Establishment/Coastal Elite citizen, Taylor's testimony must have been frightening, even horrifying - in the extreme! - as it outlined, in utter and seemingly endless detail, the fact that the President is charting a course more in line with the promises made to the voters and insubordinately dismissing the "interagency consensus."
Shocking! Absolutely shocking!
And no matter how you spin it, the Bidens need to be investigated regarding Ukraine and China. Hunter took money from entities in both nations while his father was in charge of negotiating with those nations - in his capacity as Vice President - on behalf of the United States. This is not illegal but it APPEARS to be a conflict of interest. It should be investigated and the voters should be able to understand what they'll be getting with a President Biden.
2
@Arthur Taylor While we're at it, let's investigate Ivanka and Jared's dealings, who actually work in the White House with security clearances, and the Trump sons as well. There appears to be some conflicts of interests there and the voters should be able to understand what they are getting from Trump.
16
@Jean Yes we should! I'm all for it.
1
@Jean Lets do that! I'm all for it.
1
I am a retired trial lawyer. Suggest that the house "suspend" public hearings once the currently scheduled witnesses have testified. Reasons: to wait for the courts to rule on requests for witnesses and documents. This is understandable and avoids handing over articles of impeachment to Senate too soon. Also puts pressure on President to release employees and documents.
5
I was stunned. My colleagues and I paused to take in this moment as Ambassador Taylor exuded strength, dignity, composure, reflection and authority. His cadence and calm delivery of the facts was quite credible. We wondered, why is he not the Commander-in-Chief?
5
Ambassador Taylor, when pressed, said "it is wrong".
Murdoch takes this as a challenge - as he always does. A truth to be confounded.
2
After a long time I saw a fatherly figure in our Government who assures you there are still good men left in the Government. Look at the dignity shown by Bill Taylor and that by Jim Jordan and Nunez. Class against rouge behavior. Republicans have made mockery of our constitution, civility, common sense. It’s going to cost us dearly.
17
He sounds exactly like Mitt Romney.
Walter Pidgeon.
1
During Mr. Taylor’s testimony, an MSNBC caption identified him as “Top U.S. diplomat in Ukraine since June.” A label on Fox read, “President Trump dismissed Taylor as a ‘Never Trumper.’”
And on PBS there was no caption...
8
it is a sad fact that bad news sells..its a pervasive presence on all channels that push news as a narrative string unless of course you're tiktok
If Fox Spews indeed did put that label under Ambassador Taylor's broadcasted image shame on them. I'm not surprised though - seems to be "par" for America's Pravda.
6
Darn sham?
Jim Jordan, so cocky and arrogant. And he’s talking about darn shams?
Bet he wouldn’t be so cocky dressed in uniform, serving in the infantry during the Vietnam War.
No comparison between the likes of Taylor and Jordan. The whole country could see it on their own television yesterday. Jordan made a fool of himself....again.
16
Please comment on Russian coverage of the hearings.
5
No one, not even anyone from the "Mike Wallace/Dan Rather School of Journalism," has yet come along to fill the shoes of "Uncle Walter" for the 21st Century.
6
jeez, it’s the first day.
1
Definitely Brokaw
If it turns out in the next election that those voters who believe Trump is unfit are outgunned by those voters that do think he’s fit than the American Republic is in deep doo doo.
4
I was bothered by NYT writers doing a live critique/analysis during the hearing, like this a football game. Comments from these writers, who are supposed to provide objective coverage of the White House and Congress, were filled with sophomoric prattle. One writer called another an "ace correspondent." When a TV camera captured a Times reporter, someone, nearly squealing in delight, wrote "Look, there's someone who works with us!"
Haberman, before the proceedings began, labeled prior testimony given behind closed doors "damning." One, how does she know without having been there, two, even if she had been there, it is inappropriate for a journalist tasked with delivering straight news to attach that sort of label to anything. Let the editorial board and/or Democrats do that. Lots of comments on a witness's bow tie. Who cares what he wore, and bow ties aren't so unusual these days. It came off, the part I read, like a tailgating party with participants having a clear favorite. I confess, I didn't get far or read much of it. A little was plenty more than enough.
This is an example of why so many folks distrust the media and why people scream "fake news." It's beyond obvious that the NYT has it out for Trump, and that's bled overtly into news pages. I don't like him either, but that's not the way to defeat him.
There has been much criticism of student journalists lately. But if they're looking to NYT as an example of how to do things right, no wonder they're screwing up.
3
It is beyond obvious that trump has it out for the American Constitution. Such a traitor.
2
@August West
Perhaps she was referring to the many hundreds of pages of transcripts that have been released in the past several days - and she read them! They certainly were damning. Not "fake news" - read them yourself. The phone call is just the tip of this iceberg showing the trail of presidential extortion. Two things - what else has this president done of similar ilk that no one blew the whistle on and, if not stopped, how can anyone expect that he won't blatantly do so again and again. He apparently sees nothing wrong in asking a foreign country to attempt to find dirt on a potential political opponent. It's illegal!
3
If Steve Carrel doesn’t play Devin Nunes in the movie of this craziness, is life even worth living? ;) I watched it on CSPAN, and the cameras stayed put a little bit longer than the channels with the “Hey Look at Me” talking heads, and observed an extremely insecure Devin. It’s quite sad but also comical. Now I understand a little better why he’s suing a fake cow. His body language reminds me of Steve’s character in Dinner for Schmucks. I think Steve could win an Oscar playing him.
3
@Corrie sorry I spelled your name wrong, Steve CARELL. I’m not one to lay blame, but sometimes I forget how to spell when held captive on cold nights by NyQuil, wine and Netflix reruns... and more wine. Yeah, mostly just the wine. Ok, so it probably has more to do with my Alabama public school education than the wine... but I was serious about the Oscar.
As (I hope) most people in America are aware, the field of candidates running for the office of the President keeps growing. In fact, we are on the brink of setting a record. The highest number of candidates running in primaries (regardless of political party) was in 1972. This noted, I know the field will be whittled down in short order (take that, "Running With Beto" streaming on Amazon). The 2020 Presidential election is almost 12 months away. One might think it is 12 weeks. I believe this is primarily due to commercialism. For example, take Easter, Halloween or Valentine's Day. These holidays are shoved down our throats weeks and months away from the actual date. Notice I didn't even mention Mother's Day or Father's Day. You may be surprised to learn the holiday which has the most money spent is Valentine's Day. This is by a huge margin ($21 Billion, with 2nd place far back (around $17 Billion). Please note: I don't include the winter holidays as they are of a higher order (over 4 times more money spent than the next 8 combined). I've always believed limits should be made to level the playing field. How is the hard part. A first step would be to ban "Super-Pacs" (aka "soft money"). In 2002, the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act (BCRA, McCain-Feingold) was designed to do this. They had been working on it 7 years. Remarkably, the House passed this (albeit a "watered down" version). Today, it has disappeared. All began because of Nixon and Watergate. This has to change.
3
Conservative. An identifier in consistent use that needs to be recognized for its inutility in the current political environment. For as applied to the Republican Party, it represents a Republican Party that once was, the GOP of conservative probity. That Republican Party is no more. A faction once relegated to Party margins, it's right wing extremists who now dominate the Republican Party, comprise its leadership, craft its agenda and represent its dedicated support base. In order to defeat this force destructive to American democracy it's necessary to first acknowledge what it represents. America has been loathe to acknowledge the reality, call out by name what has come down on America, brought to us through a rerouted, deformed Republican Party. Fascism.
9
After reading Mr. Poniewozik's column, I couldn't help but wonder if a woman had given the exact same testimony as William Taylor, her voice would be described as "authoritative" and "credible."
2
@Jeff We will see. There are several in the wings,
1
I believe that will happen Friday.
When acting Ambassador Taylor began his testimony, I too thought I heard Walter Cronkite speaking.
When I heard Dan Rather's voice last night while listening to him speak my brain immediately said; yes, That's Dan Rather. Took me right back to those times
2
The information that MSNBC and Fox"news" had very different captions when Ambassador Taylor testified clearly indicates that Fox"news" is a mouthpiece for the President.
4
Driving home from grocery shopping yesterday and listening to Mr. Taylor’s testimony on NPR, I was brought back to a saner, more informed time when I was a much younger woman and had respect for people in Government who displayed character. Unless and until we bring back the Fairness Doctrine, we will be subjected to “fake news.” What a travesty.
15
SHALLOW
The voice was deep, but hardly reassuring. It strained too hard to articulate what it wanted to say, spoke in halts and fumbles and sputters and hesitations that were infant variations of Joe Biden’s halts and fumbles and sputters and hesitations, and, while projecting its decency, failed to project persuasiveness to all those in the country who need to be persuaded.
What has happened with critical thought when we can no longer identify what is articulate—much less eloquent—and would attribute it to anyone who we “like”? It’s a variation of the way we attribute “superstar” to any athlete having a moment in time rather than a performance of sustained excellence over time. Perhaps it all comes from a Facebook culture of “likes” and “dislikes” that never get beyond facile agreement or disagreement to a deeper appreciation.
And that is the real problem of the country: it’s shallowness. We are not a deep people because we are not a deep culture. We grow shallowness and call it depth, and then attack genuine depth because it exposes our shallowness.
From there, the rest is predictable. From the thrill of Emptiness TV to critics who cannot spot the difference between a straining diplomat and Walter Cronkite to the presidency of Donald J. Trump we are a country with an aggressive adolescent brain in regression. Any day now we’ll hit puberty. God help us when an infant takes charge of the country.
Oh, wait.
7
Very important. We all choose what media that tells us what we ant to hear and they re enforce it. FOX coverage was very different and they did all sorts of things to make sure their message was the one given. The Repub base remains clueless.The Repubs are definitely playing their speeches to the base and using FOX to deliver and edit. Doubt many minds will change.
10
Commendations to Rep. Adam Schiff, who did an excellent job of politely, composedly, and efficiently running the hearing.
25
There are 2 narratives being told. One truthful and honest, the other made up and not believable.
Unfortunately the unbelievable story has a good chance of taking off due to the unmonitored freedom of the Internet, social media, and right-wing hate radio and Fox News.
I give truthat best a 50% chance of winning. Which, unfortunately, may, in the end, still look like losing.
7
I tried watching the hearing on Fox News out of curiosity and couldn’t handle more than half an hour, so I went back to Public Television. I don’t see how we can keep our Republic when such a selective propaganda machine is eating away at our objectivity like a cancer.
35
Jim Jordan, yesterday, did what he set out to do: protect Donald Trump no matter what.
Mr. Jordan ignored the facts and the history of events.
He had a goal - throw as much sand and dust around as he could, so that some people would become confused and lose interest. Many viewers concluded it was all too much.
Alarmingly, many TV commentators also seemed confused by the facts brought forward by Mr. Taylor and Mr. Kent.
There is nothing confusing about the facts.
Donald Trump refused to release almost $00 million dollars in military and security aid -- that Republicans ab Democrats in Congress had voted to send to Ukraine.
The aid finally flowed but ONLY after a whistleblower report surfaced.
Mr. Trump had refused to release the funds until the President of Ukraine agreed to do Trump a favor -- interfere in our 2020 Presidential election to help assure Mr. Trump's re-election.
It's really very simple: It was a shakedown by Mr. Trump to get a personal political benefit for himself
Just ignore Jim Jordan's distractions and pay attention to the facts as outlined by Mr. Taylor and Mr. Kent.
25
The Army-McCarthy hearings had its famous Welch moment (Joseph Welch) --
"At long last, have you left no sense of decency?"
Yesterday's hearing had its Welch moment too (Rep. Peter Welch, D-Vermont):
First Republican quarterback Jim Jordan said: "There's one witness they won't bring in front of us.The guy who started it all — the whistleblower."
Rep. Welch replied:
"I'd be glad to have the person who started it all to come in and testify. President Trump is welcome to take a seat right there."
30
Why is Gym Jordan always so angry?
13
@Pigenfrafyn
Because he has nothing to say....just dissent.
2
Cronkite? Not exactly. More Bill Plante.
Thank you for the article. The republicans have truly sold their souls. Has anyone spoken about the Republican smirks. Ryan was most likely the worst. Thanks be to God he is gone. Jordan not only sat there with a smirk on his face but was histrionic and theatrical. The Republican attorney looked like a used car dealer or a snake oil salesman. Do they attend smirk school. It is so pathetic. How can anyone believe their antics. Even Kellyanne has the smirk. The President doesn't have a smirk, he has a perpetual pout. Where did these people come from. Grow up Republicans. Do your job to defend the Constitution.
17
“I think what people were hearing in Mr. Taylor’s gravelly composure was the voice, not so much of another person, but another time — a time of authoritative voices that a wide audience found credible.”
The good news is that Ambassador Taylor is not a unicorn, or black swan. Our country is still full of people who share Ambassador Taylor’s values. Rather, the change is in the way the press reports and doesn’t report the facts. The fact that the press has consolidated and changed ownership by people with narrow interests. Finally, the unregulated Facebook has been destructive to democracy in this country, the UK and around the world. Matt Zuckerberg must be controlled and democracy unchained. Greed is not an aspirational life value. That the country can relate to Ambassador Taylor’s debunks the observation that he’s from another time - he’s a man of our time.
124
@Ted
It seems to me that twitter is a greater force for evil than facebook. Then again, I am going on second-hand knowledge... ;)
12
@Ted Easiest thing to put an end to Zuckerberg is to not subscribe to FB.
3
While I understand the appropriateness of adding a TV critic's perspective to the many other Times columns on impeachment today, I really, really, really hate that so much of the overall media attention yesterday was about performance and presentation as opposed to the underlying facts.
Hearings are neither theatrical productions nor television docudramas, and there are no special effects. This is impeachment, and our democracy is at stake. Any coverage should reflect both the seriousness and the gravity of these circumstances rather than treat them like an episode of The Apprentice.
172
@JBC
I wish you were right. But we are a television-saturated people and we look for drama, climaxes, turning points, good and evil, not reasoned discourse. Alas, it IS all about presentation. Ask any chef.
6
@JBC
When one side, the rancid GOP, makes it into a soap opera then the good side must offer a rebuttal.
There's nothing else for it. You must admit it was handled with dignity.
13
@JBC Make a point to instruct the Repubs on this. While politicians generally make things too theatrical, the Repubs are lowering the bar to new depths.
12
Ambassador Taylor's voice and delivery had a reassuring, dignified resonance and cadence. He was telling the truth. I thought some of the Republican congresspersons were disrespectful and rude. Representative Castro was superb. He is my new hero. Representative Schiff was tremendous. Congressman Welch from Vermont was forceful and clearsighted. Assistant Secretary of State Kent was honest, forthright and articulate. I watched via PBS and they did a great job. Can't wait until tomorrow.
67
@EM Hurd was the only respectful one. But then again, he’s retiring.
5
Mr. Taylor’s calm detachment while stating just the facts, his unwillingness to get pulled into the GOP’s overwrought and often rambling posturing, and his occasional, quiet looks of utter incredulity made him a hero in my eyes — he is precisely the kind of public servant we need right now, at a time when such service is being undermined and devalued by those who will never understand nor appreciate the importance and dignity of that profession.
Well done, sir. I salute your allegiance to the truth and to the country.
449
@MDB -- Whenever the president says, "All the best people," he always meant/means the opposite.
Having these two brave, strong (articulate!) Patriotic men slip through the trump filter was just a lucky break for we, the people.
11
Hopefully the takeaway from the hearing is that the American audience got to see two career diplomats that were actually qualified for their jobs.
As opposed to the current White House occupant who is not fit or qualified for his job.
142
@Cricket7 One point we do not hear - the anti corruption President of Ukraine was elected AFTER President Obama left office. President Obama was trying to curtail corruption in Ukraine. Trump was the guy in office when Ukraine was becoming successful in their efforts to squelch the corruption! There was NO
reason other than selfish, illegal ones for Trump, and his cohorts, to hold up the bipartisan Congress approved funds.
This little country is fighting for their lives! Trump only cares about Trump. Remember, if he does not win re-election he will face prosecution. It’s all about Trump staying in office till he runs down the time that he could be prosecuted.
I’m glued to the televised Impeachment Hearings as I was during Nixon and Clinton’s hearings. I refer to this year’s Impeachment Hearings as “Watergate on Steroids”. I dearly hope that Democracy wins over the GOP sycophants before the last episode.
18
An actual comparison between Taylor and Cronkite shows barely any similarity. The tendency of some minds to always categorialize regardless of fact shows not much intelligence or percipient ability to make distinctions. Taylor's voice is much more resonant. Their respective vocal qualities are cleaer and individual. However, similarity shows in both men's apparent astute expressed perception of the real world and obvious insights, qualities not often found in public persons. Their clear and conspicuous description of whatever it is they are talking about is without doubt impressive. A suggestion is to actually listen to a report by Walter Cronkite (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dn2RjahTi3M) and William Taylor at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Nn8ya0Jl3g his opening statement.
4
The placards behind Jordan, et al., tell the story well enough. As Republicans decry it as a made-for-tv sham, they're the only ones who brought cheezy placards that are quite obviously intended for tv viewers and serve no other purpose. What's next? Will they all wear matching t-shirts tomorrow?
34
What Poniewozik perceived as a Cronkite-like performance by Taylor, I heard as a quavering and biased rehearsed recitation by Taylor. Like Mueller, Taylor is unfortunately well past his time. Age comes for all of us. And, Taylor might not feel that his prejudices fell into a "Never-Trump" orbit, but it was painfully obvious that he felt a loyalty to Ukraine that went well beyond the best interests of the United States. There is a reason the Obama administration carefully restricted the nature of the aid the United States gave Ukraine. The US under Obama wisely avoided being drawn in to yet another regional, perhaps even civil, conflict.
1
@cricket7
"but it was painfully obvious that he felt a loyalty to Ukraine that went well beyond the best interests of the United States. "
THAT is what you got out of this?
Yes, 'Im accusing you. Is THAT all YOU got out of this?
8
How I wish the Dems would make more of the difference in life choices made by William Taylor and DJT. Taylor went to West Point and graduated 5th in a class of 800, not some military 'style' prep school to whip some discipline into DJT.
Taylor chose to serve his country in Vietnam, not pay some friendly dr. to declare bone spurs.
It is our choice who we believe, but to me there is no choice.
37
@cphnton I'm only replying to this because of the recommendations this comment is receiving. What people who did not live through the Viet Nam era do not understand is that the War in Viet Nam was not perceived as a vast patriotic endeavor at the time. Quite the contrary, the War came to be seen as a fool's errand that was sold to the American People through misrepresentations. Today we see the boomers walking around, rightfully proudly, wearing their Viet Nam service caps through a post 9/11 lens, This was not the nation's judgement at the time of the War in Viet Nam.
6
@cricket7 Still, it is not so much a matter of patriotism but of using privilege to shirk what was a duty at the time. DT had the money and the right contacts to come up with a false excuse; others without money or contacts were not so lucky.
7
@cricket7 What's your point here? Trump got out of service by paying someone to say his bone spurs disabled him. The issue here is conscription, not whether Vietnam was a patriotic war.
5
Ambassador Taylor sounds just like oscar-winner JK Simmons
who does the Farmer’s Insurance ads on TV.
3
Why does Trump think calling a person a "Never Trumper" is a devastating accusation. To me, it implies that the person saw through Trump's lies from the beginning. And there seem to be a lot of these guys.
47
@Charlesbalpha I wholeheartedly agree with you. But Trump's narcissism makes him think that people who oppose him -- HIM! Donald J. Trump -- are the lowest common denominator in society.
6
@Charlesbalpha because he wholly lacks self-awareness. I will make a bet that 60 percent of the country is Never Trumper after the impeachment trial is done. The rest of them think Fox News is Jesus.
3
Honestly, it was downright reassuring to see men of character, dignity, integrity who work in our government. They affirmed that there are still people who place country first and politics second. Sad reality of America today is we have a situation where all of Congress is treated like secretarial staff or a payday loan office. And politicians who allow that to be done got faced down by the simple character assassination of real competence.
There are REAL patriots who work hard every single day doing their jobs and respecting our Constitution. And not only are they not political, they are personally offended by being asked to accede to personal political demands in the performance of their duties. They respect and serve our country as their priority.
GOP has a bigger issue to face than Trump. Their identity is being shilled out for some cheesy "Godfather" movie and they need to decide when to quit being the disposable "extras" in this B-grade parade of bottom tier criminals.
How hard is it to read, understand and respect the oath of office they all affirmed when elected??? They just got a world class tutorial from two men who do not behave like submissive minions and tried to protect our reputation and what we used to stand for.
32
A serious challenge should be mounted to the broadcast license of Fox. Their blatant propaganda violates any objective standard. Their hyper-partisan slant does a disservice to our country. They do not deserve to use the public airwaves with such complete disregard of the public good.
35
@East End
Couldn’t agree more. Is anyone doing such a thing and how can we help?
5
Taylor and Kent displayed so much patriotism, courage, conviction and poise in stating their facts in spite of the GOP efforts to discredit and embarrass them.
Nunes’ opening statement was disgusting to listen to while the rest of the committee’s GOP line of questioning and body language was an embarrassment to the country and for the entire world to see. Instead of the GOP observing our constitutional laws as a whole, they are siding with their party and not country. Can you imagine if this had been former President Obama?
22
Taylor and Kent showed competence and dignity. They were courteous, straightforward and unassailable. The Republicans were reduced to being junk yard dogs, hovering in the alley, trying to link the scraps into something that could be called a meal, a narrative. Nope. Nunes came across as vindictive and snappish. And Jones revelled in his sophomoric riff: taking a particularly thick trail of 'who said what to who' and motoring through it (several times) so it became babble. Transparently juvenile. History will squat.
17
Without Ukraine there is a very different America. I cannot understand the failure to give Ukraine its proper place in the evolution of America. The Ukraine is the birthplace of what we call American film and television. I cannot imagine how important it may be to bring Ukraine back into Western Liberal Democracy. I know it is walking on eggshells but in these days of cynicism the birthplace of Diogenes and America's communication industry is clearly more important than the machinations and political schemes of your kleptocracy.
Legend has it that Diogenes was the first and greatest stand-up comic and his jokes have withstood the test of time.
2
It was nice to see a government official give professional testimony, even when the proceedings were interrupted by a coat-less Ohio clown with a bad comb-over.
29
My very first thought was Tom Brokaw.
1
We are in the age of Marshall McLuhan, when we place emphasis on the medium instead of the message. Watching from here, it is stunning to see the mouth foaming obsequiousness of GOP panelists. They ignored facts, demeaned the constitution article and letter, and abdicated their duty to uphold the rule of law at home and in the Ukraine. Jordan and Nunes are political hacks and it would not surprised me if they paid another midnight visit to the White House to kiss their master's ring...for lack of that other word!!
16
Oh those splendid Republican bookends, surely meant to highlight the best and the brightest of that clueless crew: David Nunes AND Jim Jordan! Such a winning strategy: pretend that snarling will come across as thinking. Sorry, Bad Boys, it ain't working!
16
I now appears that the Republican party has found able successors to their past shooting stars, Darrell Issa, and Louie Gohmert, with the appearance of Jim Jordan, and Devin Nunes.
2
So who will get listened to? The truth or the man-child. As a veteran of a war so many of my fellow countrymen fought and died in and that the orange one fought to avoid I have to believe the truth will out - lies are just too obvious to be accepted by a country full of patriots and commoners.
11
You might want to go back and listen once again to Jim Jordan’s words—they made a very good case for voting not to impeach. And how could a TV critic miss the most dramatic TV moment of the day—the utter silence that occurred when Taylor and Kent were asked at the end of their testimony whether they believed what they witnessed was an impeachable offense. They had many opinions they had freely shared in their testimony but they were speechless on this. A dramatic moment that Dems did not like Ag all.
4
@ehillesum
Kent and Taylor explained that they were there -- under subpoena -- as FACT witnesses.
They explained, more than once that it was not their role to decide what is an impeachable offense and what it is not -- that is Congress's responsibility.
34
@ehillesum I think their silence reflected the fact that they saw themselves as fact witnesses, willing (but not eager) to offer opinions related to the evidence, not as persons judging the ultimate issue of impeachability.
17
@ehillesum It is not the function of diplomats to determine what is or is not an impeachable offense. These public servants appeared yesterday to provide an account for an otherwise shadowed and secret agenda. That a congressman asked the question about impeachability over observed and documented conduct speaks to the constitutional ignorance of the congress member, or at the very least, bad faith questioning.
24
Acting Ambassador Taylor and Mr. Kent were a refreshing change, integrity incarnate, disorienting. Later in the evening I heard former Rep. Elizabeth Holtzman ( another person of integrity ) who sat on the Judiciary Committee that wrote the Articles of Impeachment for Richard Nixon, don't reinvent the wheel Mr. Shiff, follow that precedent, contact Ms. Holtzman and seek wisdom.
11
Nunes referred to the investigation as theater. I agree, his party's performance was theater, bad theater. Made me think of the "Bad Theater" Saturday Night Live skits hosted by Leonard Pinth-Garnell (Dan Aykroyd).
16
It was bugging me too, as to whom Taylor sounded like. Just came to me, the actor Walter Pidgeon, who had a very stentorian voice.
3
@George Murphy
"Stentorian" means very very LOUD.
His voice reminded me of John Lithgow.
2
Watching and listening to these two gentlemen was reassuring and weirdly felt very foreign. When Ambassador Taylor spoke I kept thinking - "he sounds Canadian" - probably because in the age of Trump it is hard to recognize words of truth and authority coming out of the mouths of American government officials. In 3 short years we have fallen so far below what used to be (4 years ago) the norms of a civilized society. We must get back to telling the truth in our public discourse but it was clear yesterday that there are too many Republican Congress members who prefer fantasy and distortion a la Fox News.
51
Last night I turned on PBS to hear what had happened in the hearing. I was miserable after a 1/2 hour of listening, not because of the content of the reporting but the fact that they all talk to fast (except for Judy) and say nothing. What has gone so very wrong there? Are they showing off how much detailed nuance they perceive? Please newspeople, communicate the basics so that we can understand what is going on!!!!
16
My personal perspective on the hearings and the President aside, I choose to watch on C-SPAN. I find that the absence of spin, punditry, banners and commercials makes it much easier to form my own opinion. I strongly recommend everyone to take advantage of and support this outstanding public service.
42
@Andrew
A voice of truth! But over the years we have become addicted to the sound bite, the flashy commercials, the "teaser" news bits, the drama and slant, so that calm, reasoned voices seem distant and ancient. We have been programmed to like and expect shouting, invective, rudeness, insults and foul language. We want a contest. It is them or us and we want TO WIN! We have all become republicans in that sense. Time does march on.
4
I am very heartened by the testimony of Mr. Kent and Mr. Taylor.
Thank you so much for you integrity, service and patriotism. May our parties learn, take note and build upon your leadership.
41
As a retired broadcast journalist myself, I can't believe anyone would link a good TV presentation to Tom Brokaw. Brokaw spoke with marbles in his mouth. At times he was barely intelligible. I respected his journalistic integrity, and he seems like a genuinely nice person. However when he was elevated to the nightly news desk years ago, many of us in the business concluded the old days of excellent enunciation as a requirement were over.
I think Brokaw should find it a compliment to be compared to the delivery of Ambassador Taylor.
15
This performance is nothing more than a depiction of how accountability and maintenance of our form of government should look.
Upon finalization of this House procedure then the Senate will redeem Trump's get-out-of-jail-free card, thus protecting not democracy but unregulated capitalism.
Watch the stock market, there won't be a ripple that isn't choreographed.
21
I hope for the future of the United States the outcome will reflect country over party. We are sadly losing our reputation as a democracy. In my mind the GOP are collaborators and treasonous. To overlook the fissure this president is actively working on daily is done at the peril of all our forefathers envisioned.
67
It is such an American thing for so many people to focus on the nice sound of the witnesses voice. I've seen endless articles and Twitter threads about it. It reminds me of everyone going on and on about how Hamid Karzai dressed so elegantly. That didn't turn out particularly well, regardless of how dapper he looked.
10
@CountryBumpkin Karzai was chosen to be the U.S. puppet leader of Afghanistan because of what he looked and sounded like. That he turned out to be weak is our fault.
Taylor's genuine. Karzai wasn't.
3
Glad I mostly skipped the Kabuki theater yesterday. I listened while walking my dog (about an hour) and it was mostly what I expected.
Mr. Nunes' servile and hyper-partisan behavior in his time as Chairman of the Intel Committee through the current time has endangered our national security and diminished the work of Congress. Until his ascent, the Intel Committee was one of the last bastions of bipartisanship.
While I am here, my Congressman (Rick Crawford- AR 1) is on the committee and is playing the same partisan nonsense. He also confines his appearances to Fox "News" and Fox Business as he is apparently afraid of Rachel Maddow.
71
Yes but Walter Cronkite was a high school graduate.
Cronkite's academic credentials and public service accomplishments pale in comparison to both of these men.
Sean Hannity is also a high school graduate.
Reading the news on radio and television requires and rewards an authoritative sounding confident voice. That is entertainment. It is not journalism.
12
@Blackmamba
In Walter Cronkite's era graduating from "High School" was an accomplishment and carried with it real knowledge and skills. There is no comparison between the ordinary schools of that era and the schools of our time.
63
@virginia @virginia Walter Cronkite left college in his junior year (1935). High School was different in the 1930s; only 40% of adolescents attended high school. Today upwards of 95% of adolescents are in attendance. Those two statistics alone may show why "there is no comparison between the ordinary schools of that era and the schools of our time."
16
@Blackmamba
"Reading the news on radio and television..."
Listening to the United States Congressional Impeachent Hearings requires patriotic committment to the country and constitution and respecting the process. Reporting it in real time without cutouts and obvious presumptions of predisposed narratives is crucial to offering real news to the citiizens who can make up their minds, even if they can't read or write correctly. Even if they didn't finish college or graduate from Wharton School of Business, or get offered a fake university degree from a fake university. If ever an honest dollar was earned, If Trump doesnthat person should be paying attention to these hearings. They are about corruption in the ranks at home and abroad. About reading, however, if Donald Trump doesn't have dyslexia, I'd be surprised, no offense to anyone with the dyslexia condition. It alone does not make you dishonest or cruel.
3
Both these two diplomats went a long way to restoring one’s faith in the way government is supposed to work - long-term professionals who actually carry out the policies of any given administration, but who became so concerned about the underhanded actions of several shadow players blessed at the highest level of the government that they decided Congress had to be made aware, even when their agency blocked them from testifying. History will note that the Democrats took notice.
81
Thank you very much Mr Taylor and Mr Kent for place the interests of the United States of America first and foremost. I appreciate your patriotism to America and the American people as a whole and for your selfless services and sacrifices for America. You both are in fact courageous patriot Americans—true Americans.
106
Is Roger Stone running the PR for these committee Repubs? The signs they erected are juvenile, just like their storming the committee room and getting pizza. Clearly they forgot that repub mantra ‘character counts’; how does one take their input seriously when they behave like this.
91
Fortunately, the “real media” panned away from those juvenile signs as often as possible. I was shocked and appalled that the signs were even allowed into the chamber. Their presence simply proves what thinking minds have known all along; Republicans are willing to stoop to any depth to bolster their false narratives. May justice prevail.
35
@ellie k.
We'll just vote them all out of office.
They do say they who laugh last laugh best.
We will laugh quite heartily at them
8
Taylor has that old time radio voice that lingers over the last syllable of a word with emphasis. We don't hear it much anymore, do we? I didn't hear Walter Cronkite yesterday, but I did hear truthfulness, honesty, humility and presence in the midst of a three ring circus.
162
So, we have a republic, if we can keep it.
Now we'll see if the American people will get involved and instruct their representatives in Washington to do their duty under the Constitution.
66
@Robert FL So said Benjamin Franklin, “Gentlemen we have a Republic if we can keep it.” I may have not quoted exactly what he said, but this is close enough.
11
@Wolf201
"So said Benjamin Franklin, “Gentlemen we have a Republic if we can keep it.”
Actually he was talking a woman at the time and addressed her as "Madam". She seemed to have be better grasp of the important things than most men of her era.
5
Taylor and Kent spoke with authority. The sound was unfamiliar in these contentious times when disinformation and outrageousness hold sway. Funny how those drawn to authoritarianism, Fox News and it’s audience, have so little respect for authority.
97
Unfortunately, the Fox-fed crowd will see a highly selective account of the hearings: Jordan, Jordan, Nunes, Nunes, Jordan, Nunes, Nunes, Jordan, Taylor, Jordan, Nunes, Nunes, Jordan, Nunes...
And their takeaway message will, unsurprisingly, be that it is a witch hunt, Dear Leader has done no wrong (how could He?!), the Democrats are evil, the GOP are saints... In short, the polar opposite of reality.
136
@RickyDick
Who cares?
Never forget the Trump supporters are a minority vote. They may have loud, obnoxious and mean- spirited voices but the intelligent and sane rest pf us are the majority.
And also remember, these same people hated Obama but he was elected twice.
We will prevail.
5
@Butterfly
I sincerely hope you are right! But the national numbers might be deceiving. A minority of voters managed to see trump elected in 2016. Lately, I have seen polls of swing states which showed how well various Democratic candidates would do against trump in those states. I don't remember the details but trump did alarmingly well...
2
@Butterfly
The GOP is running out of road and they know it.
2
What we have here is a failure to communicate. The President and his party of thieves have now been caught in the kitchen amidst their lies and deceptions twisting reality into a convenient dialogue of who dunnit while pointing at the sky. There is no "there" there within the Republican party and for those who follow this fool to the cliff that lies ahead.
70
Ambassador Taylor sounds exactly like the late Senator Lloyd Bentsen (D-TX), Michael Dukakis's 1988 running mate famous for the line (to Dan Quayle), "Senator, you're no Jack Kennedy." Taylor looks a bit like him too.
30
@GJenkins The point with all these comments, is that Mr. Taylor is an honest man with ethics and speaks truth. No matter the tenor of his voice, though I liked that too because we could actually understand every single word.
I knew that our news reporting would go down the sewer once all the anchors started joking with one another. I have nothing against joking, it just doesn’t belong in a place of what should be serious. No more gravitas, the news hour should be serious, not a “reality show."
1
Funny, I listened on the radio and kept thinking he was Tom Brokaw too. The thing that struck me about the two witnesses was how forthright and rightfully proud they are of their work.
113
I think all of American can agree that we've been pronouncing Kiev wrong this whole time.
85
Yes, that pronunciation jumped out at me too!
2
@Victoria I believe (acc. to a Times explanation) that we've been using the Russian pronunciation of Kiev rather than the Ukrainian pronunciation. The witnesses, showing respect to the independence of Ukraine, used the Ukrainian pronunciation.
11
@Victoria
Thanks, I noticed this too. :)
Taylor offered a lot more in credibility than the sound of his voice. Emphasizing the superficial here only helps to cast doubt and lends weight to the shameful Republican manipulations like "theatrical." No wonder no one trusts reporting anymore.
Theatrical is Jim Jordan. I hope his kids if he has them cringe at how ridiculous he appears.
149
Jordan theatrical? Absolutely! With a costume of shirt sleeves and his glasses perched on the end of his nose, he was playing the part of a folksy country lawyer.
35
@Aubrey
It was downright ugly that Jim Jordan asserts that because the aid was released, no crime was committed. The aid was released two days after the WH was made aware of the Whistle blower complaint going to the IG. Des Jordan think we are deaf and blind?
The GOP congressional leadership and their feckless attorney were not there to get to the truth, they were there to create short sound bites to run on Fox TV and talk radio to nourish Trump's brain dead base.
10
@Aubrey
Disgusting Jim Jordan is rehearsing his court theatrics to prepare for his own passionate
"I did not know" excuse as he defends himself in a lawsuit for having knowledge, but not reporting, his sexual predator coworkerfor abusing hundreds of student athletes for years.
1
I am very concerned that while we are doing all this talking about Ukraine, we are about to lose that country to Russia. Take a look at the other story in the Times about that:
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/11/14/world/europe/ukraine-putin-trump.html?action=click&module=Top%20Stories&pgtype=Homepage
If we don't get STRONG bipartisan support for Ukraine right now, we stand a very good chance of the USSR beginning to be reborn. Is that what America really wants? Both JFK and Reagan would be shocked at what's going on with Ukraine.
The Republicans and Democrats should immediately unite in a Congressional Resolution supporting Ukraine, and sending even more military aid.
81
Shakespearean for sure. Is trump mad? Something is rotten in Washington. If this were played on stage it would be an improbable fiction. When shall we three hundred meet again, in thunder, lightning or in rain. When the hurlyburly’s done. When the battle’s lost and won. That will ere Nov. 2021.
29
@David J Hopefully Attica.
1
Interesting note, Mr. Poniewozik, but the voice you heard yesterday wasn't Walter Cronkite's. From the distance of 50 years, what sounded familiar in Taylor's and Kent's account of trumpgate in first day of the Impeachment Hearings was reminiscent of Cronkite's American honesty, decency and apolitical view of facts. The authoritative voice of the old-school news anchor.
54
I immediately thought that Ambassador Taylor sounded like one of his West Point predecessors: General Douglas MacArthur.
13
Trump and the Republicans talk about how this is a "Media Smear," and that the "Media is the Enemy of the People." However, ironically, it is the Media which gave Trump the fame and noteriety that he so desperately seeks and craves to feed his ego. The only problem is that he is unable to orchestrate the outcome of the impeachment hearings the way he did with "The Apprentice" and in his early days as a NYC celebrity figure in the 1970's and 80's. "Live by the Media, Die by the Media."
47
@DCWilson
This is the 100th anniversary of the end of the Creel Committee. This little remembered historical note from the Woodrow Wilson administration advocated the sole purpose of the media was to promote the virtue of the government.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Committee_on_Public_Information
1
Does Mr. Poniewozik find it a bit peculiar that when Adam Schiff began his questioning, Fox, which interrupted its normal coverage to televise the hearing, cut to a health insurance commercial?
It is one thing to have a philosophical perspective that informs the type of coverage given to political events. But Fox does not even make a pretense of impartiality and actively promotes and propagandizes on behalf of Trump’s virtually incomprehensible counter-narrative. Treating Fox as legitimate media offering an even remotely honest perspective of the impeachment proceedings truly does a disservice to journalism.
271
@D. Smith
NBC's Lester Holt closed his news show Wednesday with what was apparently a defense of covering the hearing at all. I can't remember a major news story that needed such a defense. The stench of Fox's sour grapes has seeped further than I realized.
32
@D. Smith
Where is the FCC Fairness Doctrine when the world needs it?
8
@RickyDick Sadly gone the way of vacuum tubes, buggy whips, and increasingly politicians who go into politics out of a sense of public service instead of personal gain.
5
When Bill Taylor was asked yesterday about his military service he said he went to West Point finished 5th in his class of 800 and chose to go into the infantry. He served as a company grade officer in the 101st Airborne Div. in Viet Nam and I had noticed he had a Ranger tab on an old photo. When asked what honors or decorations he got in the military the first thing he said was that he was awarded the Combat Infantryman's Badge. The CIB in army lingo. To all present and former soldiers since WWII that is code meaning he was the Real Thing in the war. A front line combat soldier.
327
@Lawrence
Quite the contrasted with trump, who (in the immortal words of Gen. Mattis) earned his spurs in a doctor's office.
28
@Lawrence
And let's not forget to add to the record that Donald Trump called him "scum" on the day he was deposed.
11
Republicans having depleted their quiver of false statements and challenges, are going to have a tough time sustaining the same talking points. As more and more witnesses reaffirm what was presented the first day, their protestations will sound more
concocted and strained. And I wonder if under these circumstances they will be able to sustain their simulated rage.
60
@Frank Casa
I was thinking this, too, towards the end of testimony. If this is all the GOP has, they don't have a lot for a case.
Daniel Goldman did a fine job of questioning, building the Democrats's narrative piece by piece, interspersed with crazy talk from Nunes, Jordan, et al.
John Ratcliffe was one of the loudest, which was laughable, considering the integrity of the witnesses in front of him and the recent reveal of his own exaggerated resume when he was nominated then withdrawn for Intel Chief.
One of my favorite moments was when Taylor gave Nunes a talk to the hand gesture. Nunes was laying out a litany of reasons why the Ukrainians preferred Clinton over Trump in 2016 (having a preference is not the same as mounting a conspiracy against). Taylor stopped him saying at that time Trump was talking about the legitimacy of Russia's invasion into Crimea. He didn't add any commentary on that, no judgement statement like, well, no wonder, he just let that fact lock into place.
18
@Frank Casa
All they need to do is repeat, repeat, repeat. Repetition sinks into the grey matter of their followers and if you say the same thing 50 times it becomes true.
@Frank Casa
All they need to do is picture being voted out of office and first they'll be terrified then exploding in rage at being forced out of their cushy jobs. Too bad.
1
No, the voice and the testimony reminded me of Robert Mueller’s performance before Congress. Same old unsure bureaucrat forced to testify about a non- event!
4
@Ross Stuart The difference in presentation of those two gentlemen was night and day. Mueller was tentative and sometimes almost feeble. Taylor was assured and composed throughout.
45
@Ross Stuart
You wish! Taylor did what Mueller failed to do, declare the president guilty of misconduct deserving of impeachment.
59
@Ross Stuart
It is so unfortunate that Trump supporters cling to ridiculously far-flung folly. Inventing plot lines; pretending the president has not committed a crime; the totally bogus assertion that Ukraine ultimately received their Congressionally approved assistance, therefore there was no wrongdoing. Boggles my mind as a retired career Army officer. But as they say, facts are a stubborn thing. Sorry Trumpers, no matter how much chaff, flack and other diversions you toss into the air in an effort to confuse the public, the facts remain that Trump tried to shake down the Ukrainians. Trump did this to discredit the Biden's and most likely to embarrass President Volodomyr Zelensky, weakening him in the eyes of the Russians. Interesting how Trump continually provides support to Putin. Trump derides our intelligence services on stage next to Putin; Trump props up Putin in Eastern Syria and in Libya, allowing the former KGB officer inject Russian influence and control in opposition to US policy. Since, in my opinion, you say ridiculous things, I will proffer that Trump is a traitor working at the behest of the Kremlin.
9
The Fairness Doctrine was repealed in 1987; there is no assurance that it would have completely avoided the polarization of citizenry we see now, but it would have provided some antidote to the bizarre alternative-fact universe that the Republican party currently occupies.
125
It’s difficult to choose who has done more damage to our politics; Republicans or Fox News? Both seem determined to profit rather than fulfilling their obligation of public service. Many will equivocate and claim that Democrats and other media does this too, but it’s just not true to the extreme extent coming from the “conservative” side. The resulting lack of trust in these institutions may not be fixable. The same may be true of our country.
170
@No labels Thank you for articulating my feelings and fears with such precision.
19
@No labels They go hand in hand, if as a nation we can survive them then there is hope.
4
@No labels
The GOP and Fox: a symbidiotic relationship.
5
William Taylor is a Statesman, one we can all be proud of. His steady voice, detailed analysis, and knowledge of the Ukraine, helped us all to understand the "regular and irregular" diplomacy taking place.
Thank Mr. Kent also for his opening statement, a first class history lesson comparing our country's beginning and this young Democracy being undertaken by the Ukrainian people.
282
@cherrylog754 Thank you for your comments. I agree with your analysis; I especially enjoyed the history lesson some of which I knew, but so much I did not.
27
@cherrylog754 well said. I really think that examining our our history is what will save us. Not just our Revolutionary War history, but our Civil War history too. Trumpism is the confederacy rebranded in that it is based upon the idea that some people are more valuable than others. We are better than this.
6
It's clear that no Trump supporter is going to be swayed by facts that undermine their position. It's equally clear that no House Republican is going to stand up to Trump. Get through these hearings and call the vote. Impeach him. Put the Senate in the hot seat to convict or not. There may be some surprises there.
179
I am so proud of the American diplomats who testified yesterday. They courageously placed their oath to the country ahead of personal gains, such as a book deal.
Mattis, Haley, Bolton, etc, etc, etc - not so much.
356
@AM Murphy Yes, yes! The list of those who are protecting their personal position (vis-a-vis book deals and future political aims) is very long. The problem with Bolton not stepping forward to testify means that we won’t hear the most damning evidence from inside the White House. The divulgence of his insights will be the key to selling his book long after these important Impeachment Hearings are over. He captured our attention by calling Giuliani a “hand grenade”. Where is his patriotism? Is this war-monger really afraid of Trump shooting him down? I guess he’s not that brave under fire. Where is his loyalty to our American Democracy? Too little ... too late?
4