I’ve been saying this to myself at least once a week since Barr was nominated and it never stops surprising me. The good old days of Nov and Dec '16 when we thought Sessions was the lowest low.
There is a lot of chatter about the Dems wanting to get this over and done super quickly and I think that’s a bad idea. I mean, it’s open and shut that he did it, but you want to keep it going long enough that it convinces (hahaha) GOP Senators to convict. And to say it’ll be wrapped up in 2019 is way too premature for my tastes because leaving aside all of the impeachable things we know he’s done up until this week started, the new things coming out this week are expanding exponentially. To say it should be quick is to say that ONLY this one thing matters and not all the other fruits that are shaking out of that corrupted tree this week alone.
If I understand you correctly, yes, I think you’re wrong. Almost as simple as the break-in at the core of Watergate.
Unless you refer to the political risks and calculations by the various stakeholders involved — that’s complex now, for sure (but it was during Watergate, too).
All true, but you’re missing one very important facet of Trumps personality.
He is a crook.
He is a liar.
He is not to be trusted.
He is a moron.
…
He only cares about himself, above all else.
And, because of the last fact, He is, in the end, a coward. He will never do anything that may hurt his orange hide.
I was in the ‘drag it out’ camp until yesterday, because it was quite clear that the minute the House votes to impeach, the Senate would vote to acquit. It seemed incontrovertible that no matter what testimony the House presented and what questions they asked, there would not be twenty GOP Senators who would vote to convict.
And of course acquittal would mean the end of all investigation of Trump. He’s innocent! He’s been fully vindicated! How can you hold hearings about an exonerated man?
But the news about Mitch McConnell declining to defend Trump (as well as urging the release of the call-‘transcript’) has changed my mind. Contributing, too, are the rumors of Lachlan Murdoch considering dropping Fox News support of Trump, as well as the continued “I haven’t had time to read the transcript or whistleblower report” claims of major Republicans.
All this signals the strong possibility that the unseen giants of American politics—the major donors—may have decided that Donald is no longer their boy.
A great deal will depend on the polling. (And on people contacting their Reps and Senators, as has been urged.)
I’m now inclined to the side that says, first, concentrate on Ukraine—concentrate on the shake-down; and second, be thorough on that topic, but be fast. Keep hammering on this through the coming days, even if that means some Dems don’t get to go home to their districts. Do NOT, at all costs, let William Barr become the person in charge of telling this story.
I’m guardedly optimistic.
One major problem with using a long list of Trump’s misdeeds as the basis of impeachment is that too much of that stuff has already been in the public eye, giving Trump’s defenders the chance to solidify the talking points about each violation and crime.
They haven’t yet had that chance with the strong-arm-Ukraine story. And the entirety of that story has been admitted to by Trump.
I’d be in favor of adding more instances of Horrible Phone Call Conduct (maybe) if any of the other calls in the secrets-stash become public—for the same reason—those haven’t been out in the open and therefore no one can dismiss them as Old News that No-0ne But You Sees As Being Wrong (etc.)
Isn’t it amazing and wonderful, by the way, that the Trump-enablers’ attempt to save him from the humiliation and danger of having those phone calls made public—by stashing them in a classified “code-word level” server that no one can access without a record of such access being made—may be the thing that brings him down???
No one can ‘accidentally’ erase its contents; anyone who gets into it leaves a clear record of their entry, so there can be no ‘we have no idea who did it.’
LegalEagle is an Internet lawyer with a website that is designed to help you with learning law. I don’t think he’s ever identified who he is. He also has a Facebook, a Twitter, and a YouTube account. His YouTube videos are generally fluff pieces on legal cases in movie and TV shows, but his latest video is a drilldown of the whole Individual 1/Ukraine case.
Who would be responsible for getting into the Sekret Skwirl Server and doing the forensicking? I assume the FBI?
Talk about optics! Picture it:
A platoon of agents, FBI bolded across blue jackets, removing computer drives from a server rack deep in some White House sub-basement as White Men with crossed arms wear suits and frown impotently from the background.
Mulvaney was destined to be toast, because NO ONE is capable of polishing this turd. LOL LOL
Oh, yes … this is making me laugh and laugh and laugh. Because I’m pretty sure I know what happened here. Barr was always a big fat nasty conservative and I’m willing to bet he considered himself a “law and order” hardass. But then he started watching Fox News. He bought into their line about Trump being the most persecuted president in history. He believed it all and realized he could help. He offered to take the job and to become the presidents protector. He shut down the Mueller report.
Then Trump repaid him by making him his personal enforcer. Now he got caught and I’m laughing.
But here’s something I’m not laughing about. The right wing media is whipping Trump supporters into a frenzy. Trump, as a tactic, is going to do lots of rallies.
There is a concerted effort going within the far right internet to unmask the whistleblower, repeating the slogan “Your President has asked for your help”.
I channel-surfed through Hannity a few night ago and heard something along the lines of “This is it, everyone. You’re witnessing the beginning of a coup. Get ready to rise up, we will NOT let this happen”.
The Democrats need to win this like they needed to win in 2016. The moderate Republicans are key. I’m sure Trump and his supporters are going to do a lot of stupid stuff and moderate Republicans are going to get sick of polishing a new stinky turd everyday.
I think Pelosi needs to make a deal. It probably won’t be popular with the progressive wing, it’s a classic compromise. She should make a promise to a moderate coalition, the Tuesday Group to be specific. Tell them that if they throw their support behind impeachment, she will promise to leave Pence alone. Otherwise, she’ll go after Pence as well and then, to quote Trump, she won’t be speaker of the house anymore. It’s a lot to give up, but I think she needs them and I think they might go for it.
LegalEagle is an Internet lawyer with a website that is designed to help you with learning law. I don’t think he’s ever identified who he is. He also has a Facebook, a Twitter, and a YouTube account. His YouTube videos are generally fluff pieces on legal cases in movie and TV shows, but his latest video is a drilldown of the whole Individual 1/Ukraine case.
I’ve thought this for awhile, too – except I don’t think Moscow Mitch wants Pence as his standard bearer, either. If they leave Pence alone, then they’re stuck with him as their 2020 candidate. Pence has the charisma of wet toast. McConnell’s abrupt turnaround makes me suspicious that quiet discussions have occurred in the cloakroom along the lines you suggest. Pelosi always said she wouldn’t pursue impeachment until Republicans asked her to.
I also think the agreement would be to act quickly, before the Trump cabal has time to regroup and mount a counter-offense – and before Trump goes completely off the rails. He’s running out of track fast.
Barr’s wings should be effectively clipped. He will incur additional legal jeopardy if he tries to oversee or manipulate any part of this investigation. The ghost of John Mitchell must be keeping him company day and night.
I don’t think Moscow Mitch would even mind Pelosi out of the Speaker’s seat and sitting as a lame duck President for a few months in advance of the 2020 election. He can control any Democratic president so long as he holds the Senate. He’d get to run someone who looks normal, like Romney, and will lick his chops as the Dems cast moderate Biden aside in favor of “socialist” Warren.
I hate to say it, but in that match up, Romney wins. It’s where the American oligarchs will throw their money. They aren’t going to back Warren, ever – even as cleaning up corruption in Washington is likely to be a very popular campaign promise with voters. It won’t overcome the taint of “socialist!”
Of course Cadet Fake Bone Spurs is coward-a-go-go aka Wussy Galore. I suspect his highest priority is DON’T DIE IN PRISON. I fear he’d do ANYTHING to avoid incarceration.
We can hope for a soft option. Resignation with immunity. Refuge in Riyadh. Perpetual cruise-ship life… somewhere. We can pray for whirled peas, too. But death and destruction are more likely. THAT is what scoots me into Scared Shitless mode. (A thunderbolt just blasted nearby. I’m too jumpy.)
Moron? Comparison to this shitstain on Earth insults the ‘retarded’. Diminished-capacity folks I know from entertaining at a group home were usually pretty sweet. Few greedy brats.
Oh, yes. I think Romney would wipe the floor with any of the prospective Democratic candidates. Especially after a Trump. I could see a lot of centrist Dems choosing Romney over “socialist” Warren or even Biden.
Fortunately, I think his instincts limit, TO AN EXTENT, his ability to wreak death and destruction. Not entirely, to be sure, but some. There are more things you need other people for than you don’t in upper level politics, and I’m skeptical that there are hordes of people are left in positions of power who are willing to listen to him if he tries anything particularly nasty.
IOW, if he tries to do something where the only person who can possibly benefit (or even just not be hurt) is him, I’m wondering who he can still count on to help him make it happen. On its own, it’s sort of an interesting question.
There’s not much I disagree with you on, and I find your commentary and analysis to be very much plausible. But I just don’t agree with you on the Mittens thing. The Always-Trumpers absolutely will not back Romney. I’m not convinced the rank-and-file evangelicals would just fall in line behind Mormon Mitt again, especially if Pence is still hanging around. And the Industrial Midwest union-type guys? Hell no, they’d sit out before voting for Romney.
So let’s say the oligarchs and their highly-paid turds at Fox News throw their backs out fellating the Romney narrative, they’ll still have pissed off enough of the Always-Trumpers that it just won’t matter, imo. I have relatives that will not turn their backs on Trump between now and November 2020, even if their media sources do their best to tell them to. Especially if the Trump Toadies aren’t ready to let those deplorables go. Just cuz Trump’s not in the WH doesn’t mean he’s not making headlines and creating headaches for the GOP.
And despite being a worthless piece of wet toast, Pence will NOT lay down and simply let someone step into the place his god has laid out for him. Neither will Trump just squeak off into the darkness and live his life out playing “golf” at Mar-A-Lago.
If everything else plays out like you predict, the GOP will be in such shambles that there’s no way they will be able to overcome the black, Latino, suburban, female, white college liberal and youth vote, even in the states of MI, WI and PA.
Warren can win. Especially with a solid running mate pick, which will matter in 2020. Romney? Pence? Not seeing it. They don’t have the charisma that Trump did, but they’ll be covered in Trump’s feces. Yes, even Romney.
The Dems still have their work cut out for them, and need to be smart and strategic in order to win and win decisively, but I think this is their election to lose. [And that sound you now hear is me making the sign of the cross, and I ain’t Catholic so I’m not sure if I’m supposed to be smacking my earlobes this hard.]
FTR: I’ve had a few glasses of wine tonight, so I may need to re-think or re-articulate some stuff at a later date. Which I may or may not do. But Mittens? Nope, not seeing how that gets finagled.
Disobeying a commander’s direct order is mutiny, which is treason in some regimes. Mutineers can be summarily executed during crises like states of war or emergency. Who of Tramp’s minions can be sure that loyalists aren’t nearby, ready to protect and revenge? Loyalists likely see themselves as survivors AS LONG AS they stay loyal.
(I read that as the Red Army closed on Berlin, popular office talk was about the most painless suicide methods.)
Of course, Tramp has been weird with loyalists. That’s the good news. But does American’s future depend on mutiny or coup d’etat, or forstalling them?
Ahh, you’re probably right, electoral analysis is not my strength. I totally agree about smart and strategic, and I don’t think they’re there yet. They need to step it up.
Once again, they’ve let the opposition seize control of the narrative and make it about Hunter Biden and his innocence or lack thereof. They need to take the position that it doesn’t matter because there are appropriate channels for conducting joint investigations of these types of crimes. And those channels do NOT include sending Mutley, President Dick Dastardly’s lapdog, to a foreign country to harass the diplomatic staff.
And they need to talk about Trump’s demand for an investigation of CrowdStrike and the DNC server. Because that stuff is at the Pizzagate level of crazy. Basically the theory alleges that the DNC framed the Russians for the 2016 hack on their servers.
So Trump is doing the equivalent of asking Ukraine to find Bigfoot in exchange for aid. Ask Republican senators about this stuff. Make them squirm.
I think you are mistaking my instruction which I’ve stated twice now. Given this is a fast moving thread, and you are a relatively new poster, I’m going to give it another go before more serious consequences take place. This thread is for discussion regarding the impeachment inquiry. If you want to make baseless speculation which up to this point seems more like ranting, take it to the Pit.
If you continue along this vein, you will be warned and banned from the thread.
