Tag: Trump abuse of power

GOP tries to connect dots on Biden and Ukraine, but comes up short

Washington Post logo“Did you know that Joe Biden called Ukrainian President Poroshenko at least three times in February 2016 after the president and owner of Burisma’s home was raided on February 2nd by the state prosecutor’s office?”

— Rep. Devin Nunes (R-Calif.), senior Republican on the House Intelligence Committee, in a question directed at witnesses at the impeachment inquiry, Nov. 19, 2019

“It is my understanding that on February 4, 2016, the Ukrainian Prosecutor General’s Office, under the direction of Prosecutor General Viktor Shokin, announced the seizure of property from the Ukrainian natural gas company Burisma Holdings’ founder, Mykola Zlochevsky. The seizure occurred pursuant to a raid on Mr. Zlochevsky’s home on February 2, 2016.”

— letter from Sen. Lindsey O. Graham (R-S.C.), chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, Nov. 21, 2019 Continue reading “GOP tries to connect dots on Biden and Ukraine, but comes up short”

Trump impeachment battle plays out in politically pivotal suburbs

Democrats are plotting a 2020 strategy that relies heavily on suburban voters moving away from the Republican Party of Trump.

It was a mostly pro-impeachment crowd at U.S. Rep. Dean Phillips’ town hall meeting in suburban Brooklyn Park last month. A retired DFL legislator from Minnetonka drew applause from many of the 200 people when he urged Phillips and his fellow Democrats in Washington to “regain the authority” in the impeachment process underway against President Donald Trump.

But Phillips, a freshman who unseated a long-serving suburban Republican last year, was measured in his response. “I didn’t run for Congress to impeach a president,” he told the group. Phillips reminded his constituents he was slow to back the impeachment inquiry — “I resisted a lot of calls from the left to come out many months ago.”

The political verdict on the impeachment push by the House’s Democratic majority will depend in large part on the response of voters in suburban congressional districts increasingly at the fulcrum of national elections. Phillips, who won his suburban Hennepin and Carver County district on a message of political unity, must now reconcile his desire for bipartisanship with support for an impeachment inquiry that’s split Washington along party lines.

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House Intelligence Committee sends report on Trump and Ukraine to judiciary panel, paving way for possible articles of impeachment

Washington Post logoThe House Intelligence Committee sent its report on President Trump and Ukraine to the House Judiciary Committee on Tuesday, paving the way for possible articles of impeachment.

The report, which states that the president “sought to undermine the integrity of the U.S. presidential election process, and endangered U.S. national security,” was approved on a party-line vote.

The report also hints strongly at charges of obstruction of justice, among other crimes, but does not recommend specific articles of impeachment.

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Lev Parnas gave House Intelligence recordings of Trump and Giuliani: report

AlterNet logoAs Democrats in the U.S. House of Representatives move closer to considering which articles of impeachment could be used against President Donald Trump, one GOP name that continues to come up in connection with the impeachment inquiry is Rudy Giuliani — Trump’s personal attorney, former mayor of New York City, and a strong proponent of the Ukrainian government investigating former Vice President Joe Biden and his son, Hunter Biden. And the House Intelligence Committee, according to ABC News, is in possession of audio and video recordings as well as photos that include both Giuliani and Trump and could be relevant to the House’s impeachment inquiry.

The recordings and photos were obtained because of a House subpoena of Giuliani associate Lev Parnas, who was recently arrested — along with fellow Giuliani associate Igor Fruman — on campaign finance charges. Federal prosecutors allege that Parnas and Fruman illegally  funneled foreign donations to political candidates in the United States, and both of them have pled “not guilty.” Continue reading “Lev Parnas gave House Intelligence recordings of Trump and Giuliani: report”

House Intelligence report says Trump abused power

The Hill logoDemocrats on the House Intelligence Committee on Tuesday unveiled the much-awaited findings of their weeks-long impeachment investigation, laying out in blow-by-blow detail the basis for their allegations that President Trump abused the power of his office.

The 300-page report does not recommend specific articles of impeachment — leaving those decisions to the Judiciary Committee — but it paints a damning portrait of Trump’s dealings with Ukraine and all but asserts that those actions warrant his removal from office.

Most of the narrative outlined in the report was previously known, revealed during weeks of interviews with more than a dozen administration officials with a window into Trump’s dealings with Kyiv.

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Republicans are now living in a Trump fantasy world that was cooked up by the Kremlin

AlterNet logoThe following is from page iii of the House Intelligence Committee’s Minority Report on the Ukraine investigation, written by Republican staffers.

The thing that stands out for me is the bit about a “difference of world views.” For example, the Republicans exist in this world:

Aaron Rupar

✔@atrupar

REP. RANDY WEBER (R): Is CrowdStrike in part owned by a Ukrainian?

CHRIS CUOMO: No!

WEBER: … … really?

CUOMO: Yes!

WEBER: That’s not the information that we have.

CUOMO: You have bad information!

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‘The president’s scheme unraveled’: Here are some highlights from the House Intel Committee’s impeachment report

AlterNet logoFollowing an abundance of testimony, the House Intelligence Committee has released a detailed, in-depth impeachment report — which lays a strong case for impeaching President Donald Trump.

In the report, House Intelligence notes that Trump “pressed” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to “do a political favor.”

“President Zelensky followed this advice during his conversation with President Trump,” the report notes. “President Zelensky assured that he would pursue the investigations that President Trump had discussed — into the Bidens and 2016 election interference — and, in turn, pressed for the White House meeting that remained outstanding. Trump’s representatives, according to the report, “ratcheted up pressure” on Zelensky — and the report goes on to say that Ukrainians “inquired about the president’s hold on security assistance.”

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Pressure grows on House GOP leaders to hold line ahead of impeachment trial

The Hill logoSenate Republicans say GOP unity during the upcoming House Judiciary Committee impeachment hearings will be critical to setting the tone ahead of a likely Senate trial.

Sen. Mike Braun (R-Ind.) said if House Republicans unanimously vote against impeachment, that would make it “less likely any senator would jump ship.”

One senior GOP senator said that if House Republicans stay unified against articles of impeachment, the Senate Republican Conference will do the same.

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Trump Praises Sen. Kennedy For Spreading Kremlin Propaganda

Donald Trump on Monday thanked a Republican senator for appearing on national television and spreading Russian propaganda.

“Thank you to Great Republican @SenJohnKennedy for the job he did in representing both the Republican Party and myself against Sleepy Eyes Chuck Todd on Meet the Depressed!” Trump tweeted Monday morning, referencing Kennedy’s appearance on NBC’s “Meet the Press” with host Chuck Todd.

In his appearance, Kennedy wrongly claimed that Ukraine was “meddling in our elections.”

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Pelosi faces tough choices on impeachment managers

The Hill logoSpeaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) is beginning to send out feelers to gauge if members are interested in serving as impeachment managers, a high-profile role that will put those chosen for it in a political spotlight.

Pelosi’s office has quietly reached out to some members she believes could serve as managers, while others have pushed their own names forward, multiple sources tell The Hill.

Unlike the past two modern impeachment inquiries into sitting presidents that only included House Judiciary Committee members as managers, sources say they believe Pelosi may shake things up by adding managers from the House Intelligence Committee.

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