Trump Confesses, Smoking Gun: "let's investigate!"

By PeraclesPlease on Mon, 09/23/2019 - 4:19pm |

URL:

http://nymag.com/intelligencer/2019/09/trump-demanded-ukraine-smear-biden.html

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Sarcasm by Neal Katyal tweeting NYTimes story updated a few minutes ago @ 11:06pm, by Haberman, Fandos & Crowley:

Nothing to see here. https://t.co/2cgRSfiAXD
— Neal Katyal (@neal_katyal) September 24, 2019

by artappraiser on Mon, 09/23/2019 - 11:14pm

Haberman makes clear that WaPo got a scoop but that they have confirmed the scoop independently in the above NYTimes story:

Confirming the WaPo scoop - Trump told Mulvaney to freeze nearly $400 mill in aid to Ukraine days before the July 25 call >> https://t.co/Ofr6k64Z2i
— Maggie Haberman (@maggieNYT) September 24, 2019

by artappraiser on Mon, 09/23/2019 - 11:24pm

With a l'il help from his NYTimes friends?

Rudy's theory is that he can get the mainstream media to help Trump smear Biden regardless of how unethical the methods. He may be right. https://t.co/lhGkDhOjUW
— Jonathan Chait (@jonathanchait) September 23, 2019

by PeraclesPlease on Tue, 09/24/2019 - 7:14am

SCOOP: Longtime impeachment skeptic @SpeakerPelosi is sounding out members on impeachment, asking if the time has come bc of the Ukraine news/controversy

BIG development.

w/@mikedebonis https://t.co/xwbW4J7efV
— Rachael Bade (@rachaelmbade) September 24, 2019

by artappraiser on Tue, 09/24/2019 - 2:57am

Current headline story @ Politico echoes:‘Seismic change’: Democratic hold-outs rush toward impeachment

And Speaker Nancy Pelosi appears more open to the idea of an impeachment investigation than ever before.

BY HEATHER CAYGLE, SARAH FERRIS AND JOHN BRESNAHAN Updated 09/23/2019 11:09 PM EDT

and this a little earlier

Democratic all-stars line up to back Trump impeachment

Alumni of the Obama and Clinton worlds are joining the pro-impeachment caucus after years of reticence.

BY DARREN SAMUELSOHN 09/23/2019 07:27 PM EDT

by artappraiser on Tue, 09/24/2019 - 3:07am

Seven freshman House members who come from "competitive swing districts" pen WaPo op-ed saying that if true, would be an impeachable offense:

Seven Freshman Democrats pen op-ed urging Congress to impeach Trump if new allegations are true

BY JUSTIN WISE @ TheHill.com, 09/23/19 09:44 PM EDT

A group of seven first-term House Democrats on Monday penned a joint op-ed urging Congress to use all of its powers to determine whether new allegations regarding President Trump's interactions with the leader of Ukraine are true.

The lawmakers, who hail from competitive swing districts and who have experience in national security, wrote in The Washington Post that Trump should be impeached if allegations that he withheld military aid to Ukraine as part of an attempt to get the country to investigate the son of 2020 presidential candidate Joe Biden are true.

"If these allegations are true, we believe these actions represent an impeachable offense. We do not arrive at this conclusion lightly, and we call on our colleagues in Congress to consider the use of all congressional authorities available to us, including the power of 'inherent contempt' and impeachment hearings, to address these new allegations, find the truth and protect our national security," the congressman write.

The op-ed was authored by Democratic Reps. Gil Cisneros (Calif.), Jason Crow (Colo.) Chrissy Houlahan (Pa.), Elaine Luria (Va.), Mikie Sherrill (N.J.), Elissa Slotkin (Mich.) and Abigail Spanberger (Va.). [....]

by artappraiser on Tue, 09/24/2019 - 3:18am

The NYTimes does a House whip count on impeachment, updated 11:30 pm ET on Sept 23

Full List: Who Supports an Impeachment Inquiry Against Trump?

By ALICIA PARLAPIANO, JASON KAO, EMILY COCHRANE and CATIE EDMONDSON

[Whole house]

143 Representatives support an impeachment inquiry

83 No, not now, or undecided

207 Awaiting response

More than half of the 235 House Democrats now support an impeachment inquiry against President Donald J. Trump, according to a New York Times survey and public statements

[....]

Where Democrats Stand So Far

142 support

39 not now or undecided

54 awaiting response

[....]

Where Independents Stand So Far

1 supports

Justin Amash Mich 3

Where Republicans Stand So Far

0 support

44 do not support

153 awaiting response

[.....]

by artappraiser on Tue, 09/24/2019 - 3:36am

McConnell says GOP Intelligence chairman wants to hold closed-door briefing on whistleblower complaint

BY JORDAIN CARNEY @ TheHill.com, 09/23/19 04:48 PM EDT, with video clip of floor speech

[....] Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) disclosed during a Senate floor speech on Monday that Senate Intelligence Committee Chairman Richard Burr (R-N.C.) has been working to get a closed-door meeting on the books for this week.

"Chairman Burr has been working to get the intelligence community's inspector general before the committee this week to discuss the matter," McConnell said.

"The Senate Select Committee on Intelligence has long worked on a bipartisan basis in secure settings out of the public spotlight to conduct critically important oversight of classified and sensitive matters, so I've been disappointed to see our colleague, the Democratic leader, choose to politicize the committee's ongoing efforts with respect to a recent whistleblower allegation," McConnell added, referring to Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.).

A GOP aide confirmed that Burr is working to set up a briefing for the panel with the intelligence community's inspector general and acting Director of National Intelligence Joseph Maguire.

A briefing with the Senate Intelligence Committee would come after the inspector general, Michael Atkinson, declined to discuss the incidents contained in the whistleblower complaint during a meeting last week with the House Intelligence Committee [....]

by artappraiser on Tue, 09/24/2019 - 3:22am

It's likely that Trump pressured Ukraine but the bigger problem is how he was able to. Congress had for years given up more and more of it's power to the president. Both democrats and republicans. At the time they didn't anticipate a president as corrupt as Trump but it still was a problem. Trump is taking advantage of virtually every emergency power he has in ways congress didn't intend but the root of the problem is presidents should have virtually none of those emergency powers.

Congress passed a budget that contained 400 million in military aid to Ukraine. President Obama signed it. Subsequent presidents shouldn't have the power to unilaterally decide to ignore the will of congress. If Trump didn't like the allocations he should have to petition congress to make changes.

by ocean-kat on Tue, 09/24/2019 - 1:12pm

Of course this is all unique, as they've never done anything like this before...
except when they did?

Lost in the Ukraine furor is that Rudy Giuliani last year got paid--while also working as Trump's lawyer--to intervene in Romania's anticorruption drive by attacking an upstanding prosecutor on behalf of a party whose leader is now in prison. https://t.co/wW7ogyQlOr
— Neil King (@NKingofDC) September 23, 2019

by PeraclesPlease on Tue, 09/24/2019 - 4:56pm

Comment moved to moat's new news thread "Congress beings Impeachment Proceedings"

by artappraiser on Tue, 09/24/2019 - 10:29pm

Was going to delete, but who can resist "Congress beings". Our Alien Masters call.

by PeraclesPlease on Tue, 09/24/2019 - 10:54pm

Trump Confesses, Smoking Gun: "let's investigate!"

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