4950

The President Makes the “Strongest Possible Case” for Impeachment: “[a] President commits ‘high Crimes and Misdemeanors’ where he exercises official power to obtain an improper personal benefit, while ignoring or injuring the national interest. Such an abuse is especially abhorrent where it involves a betrayal of the national interest through foreign entanglements or an effort to corrupt our democracy. Any one of these violations of the public trust justifies impeachment; when combined in a single course of conduct, they state the strongest possible case for impeachment and removal from office.”

We Must Proceed Expeditiously: “There is an instinct in any investigation to seek more evidence, interview more witnesses, and turn over every remaining stone. But there also comes a point when the evidence is powerful enough, and the danger of delay is great enough, that inaction is irresponsible. We have reached that point here…That threat is not hypothetical. As noted above, President Trump has persisted during this impeachment inquiry in soliciting foreign powers to investigate his political opponent. The President steadfastly insists that he did nothing wrong and is free to do it all again. Every day that this Committee fails to act is thus another day that the President might use the powers of his office to rig the election while ignoring or injuring vital national interests. In Chairman Schiff’s words: ‘The argument why don’t you just wait amounts to this: Why don’t you just let him cheat in one more election? Why not let him cheat just one more time? Why not let him have foreign help just one more time?’”

The Strength of the Evidence and the Quality of the Case: Collectively, the evidence gathered…is consistent, reliable, well-corroborated, and derived from diverse sources. It paints a detailed picture of President Trump’s scheme. To the extent that the Committees did not obtain additional documents — or additional testimony from witnesses with personal knowledge of the relevant events — that is a direct consequence of the President’s unprecedented, categorical, and indiscriminate order that the entire Executive Branch unlawfully defy duly authorized Congressional subpoenas…The record stands firmly on its own two feet. Indeed, President Trump has not stonewalled the entire impeachment inquiry so that he can protect a hidden trove of exculpatory evidence…

4951

President Trump abused the powers of his high office through the following
means:
(1) Directing the White House to defy a lawful subpoena by withholding the
production of documents sought therein by the Committees.

(2) Directing other Executive Branch agencies and offices to defy lawful sub-
poenas and withhold the production of documents and records from the Commit-
tees—in response to which the Department of State, Office of Management and
Budget, Department of Energy, and Department of Defense refused to produce
a single document or record.

(3) Directing current and former Executive Branch officials not to cooperate
with the Committees—in response to which nine Administration officials defied
subpoenas for testimony, namely John Michael ‘‘Mick’’ Mulvaney, Robert B.
Blair, John A. Eisenberg, Michael Ellis, Preston Wells Griffith, Russell T.
Vought, Michael Duffey, Brian McCormack, and T. Ulrich Brechbuhl.

These actions were consistent with President Trump’s previous efforts to under-
mine United States Government investigations into foreign interference in United
States elections.

Through these actions, President Trump sought to arrogate to himself the right
to determine the propriety, scope, and nature of an impeachment inquiry into his
own conduct, as well as the unilateral prerogative to deny any and all information
to the House of Representatives in the exercise of its ‘‘sole Power of Impeachment’’.
In the history of the Republic, no President has ever ordered the complete defiance
of an impeachment inquiry or sought to obstruct and impede so comprehensively the
ability of the House of Representatives to investigate ‘‘high Crimes and Mis-
demeanors’’. This abuse of office served to cover up the President’s own repeated
misconduct and to seize and control the power of impeachment—and thus to nullify
a vital constitutional safeguard vested solely in the House of Representatives.

4952

Look like staffers being more principled than the elected.

4953

I have seen the idea floated that the House not send the impeachment papers to the Senate. Not decided what I think about that, but I’m leaning towards thinking it might be a good idea.

(Title for this piece on Reddit is the much more appropo “The Oath Breakers.”)

Spoiler: There’s a better chance of returning a probe from a black hole than their suggested remedy. Still the piece clearly and logically spell out the farce that these Republicans have made of the Constitution.)

4954

If impeachment isn’t referred to the Senate, then the process just dies in the House, doesn’t it? Isn’t it better to put the Senators on record supporting the crook in the White House? Either way we are stuck with Trump.

Also, Lyndsay Graham, Christ: “I am trying to give a pretty clear signal I have made up my mind. I’m not trying to pretend to be a fair juror here.” Points for honesty… I guess?

4955

Yes, I don’t really grasp how holding it helps. Better to force the Senators to vote. If you want something else to hold over his head, you’ve got the Mueller report, you have emoluments, and you have the very next crime he commits in 3…2…1.

You can impeach him between now and the election for any number of things. Have the intel committee start subpoenaing every Mueller witness, because in those cases the WH has already waived privilege.

4956

Lindsey Graham gets nega points for being in violation of his oath of office. Yet again.

4957

According to twitter-law (not related AFAIK to woke twitter), the House can sit on them indefinitely. And yes, either way we’re stuck with trump. Simplest argument I’ve seen is it deprives the GOP from the “trump acquitted” tongue wagging (since they have so blatantly corrupted the process.) Others have suggested that the articles can then be superseded when trump inevitably commits further impeachable offenses. Either way you’re probably right and it’s moot regardless.

4958

This is dumb though because the tongue wagging for “the corrupt democrats didn’t even impeach him!” will be just as bad.

Edit for quick semi-related aside:
I had a fun professor back in the day, who was my adviser so we spent a fair deal of time together. One time I was talking about my fiance (now wife), about how I wasn’t sure if I could do something or other because I was pretty sure she would complain about it. He looks at me with a face that tells me he’s giving me real sage wisdom and says “The amount a wife complains is static, the only thing that changes is what they’re complaining about.”

My wife would probably argue, quite fairly, that this advice is bullshit, but I think it certainly applies to the right wing outrage machine.

Republican tongue wagging shouldn’t drive democrats.

4959

Yeah, trying to play around GOP talking points is a fool’s errand IMO.

4960

Wholeheartedly agree, but my concern is the media (e.g.:


4961

Hey man, our species had a good run. We made it to the moon. Maybe the cockroaches will get to Mars.

4962

Gluugsnergluug was the first squid on the moon in 2973412

download

4963

Kerbals already beat cockroaches there.

4964

Can we recruit him for the Space Force as well? Looks like he can fire multiple ray guns at once!

4965

I say we just advance to the Singularity and let the rogue AI’s take over…

terminator_skynet_logo_30891

4966
4967

That’s funny!

4968

If you like Rudy Colludys
And dancing in the rain

4969

It’s “and gettin’ caught in the rain”. C’mon man.