# The Trump Impeachment Inquiry **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [September 24, 2019, 8:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-impeachment-inquiry/840771 "2019-09-24T20:23:47Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 41
**Author:** ![Snowboarder\_Bo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowboarder_bo/32/229_2.png) [@Snowboarder\_Bo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snowboarder_Bo)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2019, 12:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-impeachment-inquiry/840771/801 "2019-09-27T00:43:00Z")
> [@Sherrerd](#): > > The obvious response is ‘he’s setting up an insanity defense.’ > > But seriously, he knows Trump will throw him under the bus without a second thought. If Trump believes he can save himself by claiming ‘_it was all Rudy, it was all his idea, he made me say those things, he was free-lancing, I never told him to extort the Ukraine president, it was all Rudy_,’ then of course he will do so. > > Giuliani knows this. He’s going to be flailing pretty manically until this is settled, one way or another. IANAL so please, someone correct me if I’m wrong: if Rudy isn’t Trump’s lawyer, there’s no claim of attorney-client privilege, is there? ---
**Author:** ![enipla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/54ee81/32.png) [@enipla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/enipla)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2019, 12:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-impeachment-inquiry/840771/802 "2019-09-27T00:44:42Z")
> [@Ravenman](#): > > I think he just went bonkers over time. There’s some Trump sycophants who are in it for real, some that are putting on an act to maintain political power, and a few who just went bonkers. Rudy is not mentally healthy. And many that will never admit that they got conned by one of the worst conmen ever. And an overlap with those that won’t admit they got conned “At least he’s a racist”. ---
**Author:** ![JKellyMap](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jkellymap/32/15880_2.png) [@JKellyMap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JKellyMap)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2019, 12:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-impeachment-inquiry/840771/803 "2019-09-27T00:50:47Z")
> [@SlackerInc](#): > > I can’t keep up with this thread, so apologies if this has already been posted. > > If you have ever seen “The Godfather”, this is priceless: [https://twitter.com/larrynoble\_dc/status/1176980507667652608?s=21](https://twitter.com/larrynoble_dc/status/1176980507667652608?s=21) Wonderful — grazie. ---
**Author:** ![Fiveyearlurker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/da6949/32.png) [@Fiveyearlurker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fiveyearlurker)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2019, 12:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-impeachment-inquiry/840771/804 "2019-09-27T00:54:32Z")
> [@enipla](#): > > And many that will never admit that they got conned by one of the worst conmen ever. > > And an overlap with those that won’t admit they got conned “At least he’s a racist”. My family are all Trump supporters, and I thought that this event would surely bring them out of it. I thought to some extent that they were pretending. Nope. They are still all in. This is a Biden/deep state coup on the alpha male Trump. Trump didn’t do anything that beta male Obama and evil Hillary didn’t do first, and also Biden now. I genuinely underestimated and thought that they didn’t really believe the stuff they’ve been saying. But, the 24/7 Foxnews in their houses has affected their brains. I was one of these people once, and I know how I talked myself into these same opinions, and I know it was nothing short of a personal epiphany that brought me out of it or I would otherwise be wearing a MAGA hat today. ---
**Author:** ![wguy123](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wguy123/32/3161_2.png) [@wguy123](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wguy123)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2019, 1:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-impeachment-inquiry/840771/805 "2019-09-27T01:02:47Z")
> [@Fiveyearlurker](#): > > I genuinely underestimated and thought that they didn’t really believe the stuff they’ve been saying. But, the 24/7 Foxnews in their houses has affected their brains. I was one of these people once, and I know how I talked myself into these same opinions, and I know it was nothing short of a personal epiphany that brought me out of it or I would otherwise be wearing a MAGA hat today. I’m with you completely. I was raised extremely conservative, started my adult life extremely conservative, and even voted for two different people named Bush (hanging my head in shame). However, I only voted for the second Bush the first go-round. That period was my learning/turning point. I’m hoping this period can be a learning/turning point for plenty others. ---
**Author:** ![enipla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/54ee81/32.png) [@enipla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/enipla)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2019, 1:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-impeachment-inquiry/840771/806 "2019-09-27T01:08:15Z")
> [@Fiveyearlurker](#): > > My family are all Trump supporters, and I thought that this event would surely bring them out of it. I thought to some extent that they were pretending. Nope. They are still all in. This is a Biden/deep state coup on the alpha male Trump. Trump didn’t do anything that beta male Obama and evil Hillary didn’t do first, and also Biden now. > > I genuinely underestimated and thought that they didn’t really believe the stuff they’ve been saying. But, the 24/7 Foxnews in their houses has affected their brains. I was one of these people once, and I know how I talked myself into these same opinions, and I know it was nothing short of a personal epiphany that brought me out of it or I would otherwise be wearing a MAGA hat today. My condolences. I spent a lot of my formative years in central Ill. Right wing as it comes. My mother got us away after her divorce from my father. I visited back a few times, and my take was that they felt “This is what my daddy told me, and if it’s good enough for him, it’s good enough for me”. Translation - Don’t Think for yourself. Parts of my Wife’s family are Trump supporters. Some big time. But they live 1000 miles away. I think I’ve seen some change in their support of Trump. A BIL took down his Trump/Pence Banner (but that was at a birthday party). And a niece has concerns, and I think has dumped Trump. Gives me a glimmer of hope. ---
**Author:** ![KidCharlemagne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ed8c4c/32.png) [@KidCharlemagne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KidCharlemagne)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2019, 1:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-impeachment-inquiry/840771/807 "2019-09-27T01:10:40Z")
> [@Fiveyearlurker](#): > > My family are all Trump supporters, and I thought that this event would surely bring them out of it. I thought to some extent that they were pretending. Nope. They are still all in. This is a Biden/deep state coup on the alpha male Trump. Trump didn’t do anything that beta male Obama and evil Hillary didn’t do first, and also Biden now. > > I genuinely underestimated and thought that they didn’t really believe the stuff they’ve been saying. But, the 24/7 Foxnews in their houses has affected their brains. I was one of these people once, and I know how I talked myself into these same opinions, and I know it was nothing short of a personal epiphany that brought me out of it or I would otherwise be wearing a MAGA hat today. What was your epiphany and how did it come about, if I may ask? Your story might be instructive on how to get others to see the light. ---
**Author:** ![JohnT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnt/32/15048_2.png) [@JohnT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnT)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2019, 1:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-impeachment-inquiry/840771/808 "2019-09-27T01:12:56Z")
My thoughts exactly. Also, don’t worry about convincing your family at this moment\*. Worry about convincing your R Senators and Reps. Call them. Frequently. \*Rumors have the trial around late November, just in time for Thanksgiving dinners with mixed-political families. You can discuss it then. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![KarlGauss](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/karlgauss/32/3713_2.png) [@KarlGauss](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KarlGauss)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2019, 1:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-impeachment-inquiry/840771/809 "2019-09-27T01:21:05Z")
> [@wguy123](#): > > I’m with you completely. I was raised extremely conservative, started my adult life extremely conservative, and even voted for two different people named Bush (hanging my head in shame). However, I only voted for the second Bush the first go-round. That period was my learning/turning point. I’m hoping this period can be a learning/turning point for plenty others. For me it happened [ten years ago](https://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=665422). I finally appreciated the naked Republican hypocrisy[sup]1[/sup], ignorance[sup]2[/sup], and intolerance[sup]3[/sup]. 1 - e.g. ‘keep the government out of our lives’ but mandate invasive personal medical exams to women seeking abortion OR ‘keep the government out of health care but prosecute docs who even broach gun safety with their patients’ 2 - e.g. evolution; climate change 3 - e.g. gay marriage; utter absence of empathy in general (to anyone who’s different from them) ---
**Author:** ![DigitalC](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ebca7d/32.png) [@DigitalC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DigitalC)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2019, 1:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-impeachment-inquiry/840771/810 "2019-09-27T01:22:06Z")
I know you are supposed to call a doctor is an erection lasts longer than four hours, but I think in this instance it’s completely justified. ---
**Author:** ![Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/left_hand_of_dorkness/32/7156_2.png) [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Left_Hand_of_Dorkness)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2019, 1:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-impeachment-inquiry/840771/811 "2019-09-27T01:25:34Z")
> [@Fiveyearlurker](#): > > My family are all Trump supporters, and I thought that this event would surely bring them out of it. I thought to some extent that they were pretending. Nope. They are still all in. This is a Biden/deep state coup on the alpha male Trump. Trump didn’t do anything that beta male Obama and evil Hillary didn’t do first, and also Biden now. > > I genuinely underestimated and thought that they didn’t really believe the stuff they’ve been saying. But, the 24/7 Foxnews in their houses has affected their brains. I was one of these people once, and I know how I talked myself into these same opinions, and I know it was nothing short of a personal epiphany that brought me out of it or I would otherwise be wearing a MAGA hat today. This is why I think that describing Trump as a cult leader is most accurate. He forces people to abandon reason in order to support him; then, if they ever quit supporting him, they have to admit that they abandoned reason, and also have to face pretty severe charges of apostasy from the true believers. The social cost of admitting error is just too great. ---
**Author:** ![raventhief](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/raventhief/32/4_2.png) [@raventhief](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/raventhief)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2019, 1:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-impeachment-inquiry/840771/812 "2019-09-27T01:28:18Z")
> [@SlackerInc](#): > > I can’t keep up with this thread, so apologies if this has already been posted. > > If you have ever seen “The Godfather”, this is priceless: [https://twitter.com/larrynoble\_dc/status/1176980507667652608?s=21](https://twitter.com/larrynoble_dc/status/1176980507667652608?s=21) I can’t keep up either, but Trevor Noah had a piece last night about “quid pro quo” and acting shady. Skip to about 5:30 for the bit about the sopranos. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/ETAX_P8HNNY/maxresdefault.jpg "Trump’s Ukraine Call Released | The Daily Show") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ETAX_P8HNNY) ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2019, 1:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-impeachment-inquiry/840771/813 "2019-09-27T01:47:02Z")
> [@SlackerInc](#): > > I can’t keep up with this thread, so apologies if this has already been posted. > > If you have ever seen “The Godfather”, this is priceless: [https://twitter.com/larrynoble\_dc/status/1176980507667652608?s=21](https://twitter.com/larrynoble_dc/status/1176980507667652608?s=21) I was thinking, “Make him an offer he can’t refuse.” ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2019, 1:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-impeachment-inquiry/840771/814 "2019-09-27T01:50:28Z")
> [@SlackerInc](#): > > I can’t keep up with this thread, so apologies if this has already been posted. > > If you have ever seen “The Godfather”, this is priceless: [https://twitter.com/larrynoble\_dc/status/1176980507667652608?s=21](https://twitter.com/larrynoble_dc/status/1176980507667652608?s=21) The video by itself for those who dot’t want to bother with Twitter: [https://video.twimg.com/tweet\_video/EFV5gPSXUAELp0u.mp4](https://video.twimg.com/tweet_video/EFV5gPSXUAELp0u.mp4). ---
**Author:** ![ThelmaLou](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thelmalou/32/390_2.png) [@ThelmaLou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThelmaLou)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2019, 2:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-impeachment-inquiry/840771/815 "2019-09-27T02:07:57Z")
> [@Skywatcher](#): > > The video by itself for those who dot’t want to bother with Twitter: [https://video.twimg.com/tweet\_video/EFV5gPSXUAELp0u.mp4](https://video.twimg.com/tweet_video/EFV5gPSXUAELp0u.mp4). How about a highlight for those who don’t want to bother with a video. ---
**Author:** ![raventhief](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/raventhief/32/4_2.png) [@raventhief](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/raventhief)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2019, 2:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-impeachment-inquiry/840771/816 "2019-09-27T02:12:20Z")
> [@ThelmaLou](#): > > How about a highlight for those who don’t want to bother with a video. [Spoiler]It’s a scene from the Godfather with actual dialogue from the call memo as subtitles. We are almost ready to but more javelins…I would like to ask a favor though… Mine was a scene from the sopranos, showing the menacing mob guys subtly making their point, and then dubbed with a goofy voice explicitly threatening and calling it “quid pro quo.”[/spoiler] ---
**Author:** ![CarnalK](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnalk/32/486_2.png) [@CarnalK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CarnalK)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2019, 2:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-impeachment-inquiry/840771/817 "2019-09-27T02:12:24Z")
> [@ThelmaLou](#): > > How about a highlight for those who don’t want to bother with a video. It’s dialogue from the memo overlayed onto a “friendly chat” scene from the Godfather. ---
**Author:** ![tomndebb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b9e5f3/32.png) [@tomndebb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tomndebb)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2019, 2:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-impeachment-inquiry/840771/818 "2019-09-27T02:18:26Z")
> [@Thing\_Fish](#): > > You aren’t familiar with Ditka, are you? The response will be “Well, that’s one opinion. Every law enforcement agency in the Western world believes that Shokin was corrupt as fuck, and some guy on Breitbart feels otherwise. Only a partisan extremist would jump to conclusions about which is more likely to be correct!” Let’s let posters submit their own opinions and not try to speak for them. [/Moderating] ---
**Author:** ![RioRico](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f04885/32.png) [@RioRico](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RioRico)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2019, 2:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-impeachment-inquiry/840771/819 "2019-09-27T02:26:14Z")
I sense insufficient fear here. Who believes that Tramp will fade away softly? Who thinks he won’t do his absolute damndest to preserve himself? How far do you fear he can go? Damn far, I fear. I fear his issuing launch orders. I fear, maybe more, an officer replying, “Can’t do that, sir.” Which would be a coup. Sure, global nuclear devastation would be worse, but are those the ultimate options? Or will we get through the near future nicely, peacefully? How? ---
**Author:** ![GIGObuster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gigobuster/32/421_2.png) [@GIGObuster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GIGObuster)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2019, 2:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-impeachment-inquiry/840771/820 "2019-09-27T02:30:58Z")
> [@carnivorousplant](#): > > I was thinking, “Make him an offer he can’t refuse.” I 😃 at this comment from Twitter: "Disgusting to compare this gangster to the president. Don Vito loved his family, adhered to a strict code of honor, and had at least some connection to reality." [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-impeachment-inquiry/840771.md?page=40) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-impeachment-inquiry/840771.md?page=42)