Said Adam Schiff, quoted in "Democrats Draw Closer to a Dicey Question: Whether to Impeach Trump" (NYT).
Still, Ms. Pelosi and her allies also run risks in not moving toward impeachment. Voices on the Democrats’ left flank appear to have been emboldened by Mr. Mueller’s report, and will remind party leaders that letting Mr. Trump entirely off the hook for behavior they believe threatens the separation of powers sets a dangerous precedent for the country....
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92 comments:
"...treason, bribery, or other high crimes and misdemeanors."
But let's add "unfit for office."
Could they not just apologize for all the nasty smears, impugning the patriotism of our President, then offer to work with him to better the nation?
Guess not. What was I thinking?
Abuse of power.
Have they just eliminated elections every 4th year.They now seem to want a vote of no confidence in a Prime Minister system to substitute for James Madison's creation.
"Many of us do think the president is unfit for office . . ."
Well, neither the Congress nor political partisans in particular have a veto over the democracy. The electorate think he is fit. So any rejection of is nothing but tyranny.
Do it. Impeach Trump over... he beat Hillary.
letting Mr. Trump entirely off the hook for behavior they believe threatens the separation of powers
There is no "separation of powers" between the Chief Executive and any inferior officer in the executive branch. And Congress suggesting that there is itself is a threat to the separation of powers.
Well, I think Nancy Pelosi is unfit for office. That and a few bucks will get me an overpriced, burned-tasting Starbucks. Same with Adam Schiff's opinion about Trump.
Schiff claimed to have rock solid evidence of collusion. He has a duty to share that information with the United States Attorney General. Failure to do should result in charges of obstruction. And he should be stripped of his position on the House Intelligence Committee.
Today certainly confirmed Althouse's and Adams' views that people are immune to facts and react based on emotion, not reason.
The face of evil. join the resistance.
MUELLER BLOCKADE END.
Fake investigations by committee members will not delay what is about to be unleashed.
Q
They don't intend to impeach, they know it will fail. The intend to unjustly smear Trump in public so that low-information voters will only remember Trump was associated with something sleazy.
And they are going on the offensive because they know Republicans are pussies and less likely to investigate deeply if they are forced to reflexively fall back into their Prevent Defense.
If there are no consequences for this attempted Coup then the Rule of Law has fallen and methods outside the law should be employed.
Like Kavanaugh, there's no intent to ACTUALLY try a case. Innuendo gets the job done.
Pelosi and the handful of political realists that still identify as Democrats know their party has lurched to the Left with the AOC and Omars. They know the crush of Central Americans claiming Asylum at the border is a 50 year shitstorm in the making. They were all for Sanctuary Cities until Trump said he was going to dump 100,009 third world Dreamers into the bluest sanctuary cities in the bluest sanctuary states. The soccer moms in those places would be card carrying members of the alt right before the next election.
To them impeach Trump for being Trump would be a kamikaze mission. Trump was right. This Russia stuff was a hoax. He was 100% cleared of that bullshit. No one could blame him for wanting to fire Mueller or Tweeting that this investigation was total bullshit.
Trump won again.
Related:
HBO: "Though we can understand the enthusiasm for ‘Game of Thrones’ now that the final season has arrived, we still prefer our intellectual property not be used for political purposes"
Love the show but you should have spoken up 20 years ago.
Sucks, doesn't it? Good.
Parody is protected speech; if HBO doesn't get that even the President can do parody, they need better IP lawyers.
Anonymous (yeah, right) said..."Abuse of power."
Such as?
"Could they not just apologize for all the nasty smears, impugning the patriotism of our President, then offer to work with him to better the nation?"
We keep making the mistake of believing these people are just the flip side of our coin. They are not. Assuming they would do what we would in their situation is no longer wise.
"Never interrupt your enemy when he is making a mistake."
Napoleon Bonaparte
We listened to the audiobook, Under Fire, the story of the Benghazi terror attack. My wife was so depessed by it that I had to turn it off. All I could think of, as I listened, was Obama flying to a fund raiser, as those guys fought and died.
This is one of most sensible things Adam Schiff has ever uttered. Good for him. But Nadler has a lotta wackos on the House Judiciary Committee and we haven't heard from him yet on impeachment.
Imposing Socialism on America One State at a Time
Modern Democrats are habitually dishonest, I can't think of a more tiresome group of people. Separation of powers, my ass.
Phases:
1. Mueller exonerates Trump
2. Saner House Dems decline to impeach
3. Investigate the origins of Collusion Hoax
Horowitz IG Report on FISA Warrant
AG Barr investigate the "spying" on Trump campaign
Sen. Graham of Senate Judiciary Committee investigates
Trump declassifies a buncha stuff
Indict McCabe
Indict Strzok
Put the fear of God into Brennan
Mock Comey
4. Election 2020!
Yes it's the Same story from Beirut rules nearly 30 years later, that's why ace Lyons is so on point for both
I got to page 180 or so in the Mueller Report. Will finish it tomorrow hopefully. Others have already largely covered the obstruction portions which is most of what I have left to read, so I can probably just scan through a large part of the last 260 pages. I read the first 180 carefully, looking for actual facts to back up all the assertions made. Facts were not in evidence, apparently.
One of the interesting things was that it is apparent that Mueller's team really wanted to indict the Trump Campaign for the Trump Tower meeting in June of 2016. The theory they outlined was that it was a conspiracy to obtain a thing of value- the "Clinton Dirt"- and that was a conspiracy to violate the campaign finance laws. They make a big deal about how they declined to pursue that because they could prove intent on the part of Trump Jr., Kushner, and Manafort. However, think about it- isn't the real reason they couldn't move forward on this plan was that the Steele Dossier was sitting out there in public as proof that Clinton not only conspired to do an identical thing, but actually did the thing with Christopher Steele and whatever Russians were Steele's sources. In short, Mueller and his angry Democrats were stymied by the Steele Dossier. Poetic justice!
Two links for the coffee drinkers discussing the Mueller Report. The first is to Mark Wauck's site- in the comments of the links, I have posted my own thoughts during the afternoon as I was reading the Mueller report. This investigation is one of the most hilarious things I think I ever read coming out of a government institution, and that is saying something. The second link is one Wauck alerted me to late in the afternoon. Scott Horton is an occasional read for me, but I hadn't read anything in months. Horton is even more scathing in the first 110 pages than I was on Wauck's site. Again, in the first link, my comments run from the beginning until the nd of the comment thread, so scroll down to the comments.
Yancey's thoughts so far.
Scott Horton on the Mueller Report.
The Democrats will not impeach Trump. This report, I think, was written to try to give the Democrats the courage to do so, but unfortunately the report delivers nothing to use for that purpose, and it wasn't for lack of trying, either.
Lizzy burden was more gentle than Scott Horton, who burned a leading company operative, in all but name, when he was up for Baghdad station chief
I only briefly dipped my toe into the 650+ comment thread- mostly because I was reading the report and putting my thoughts on Wauck's site where they would likely not get buried in a deluge of shit.
So, how did Pecan Pie Detective try to spin things? Did Inga show up- I imagine they both did since I can't see 650+ comments occuring without those two.
Hes still paddling in a canoe in the middle of the Atlantic, wauck is a long time bureau veteran with classics training but decidedly heterodox opinions.
The operative involved is the fellow who replaces Michael schwur
You've got to see Inga's couple of comments. They were classic.
Trump has accomplished the following:
1) Lowest unemployment claims in 50 years
2) Highest consumer confidence in 50 years
3) Highest wage increases since 2007
4) Lowest unemployment rate for Blacks and Hispanics EVAH
5) 400,000 manufacturing jobs created; Obozo LOST over 200,000 and said they were never coming back
6) Millions off of foodstamps
7) Syria quiet
8) ISIS destroyed
9) Rocketman quiet
10) America - the world's largest oil exporter - energy independence
What is the Demtard/Media response? Impeach!!!
It's mostly riffs on the python argument clinic.
Oddly enough, many of us also think you’re unfit for office, Mr. Schiff.
I've skimmed around with the report but it's late and I just have a few thoughts before turning in. (I don't do this on just any blog.)
I'm not a lawyer but I'm a pretty bright and I'm struck by how much there is in the report of things being reported . . . and nothing reported (look! The New York Times says somebody said something) was unworthy of some fishing around- especially the chum that it turns out was put out by the DS in the first place.
Mueller totally weasels, repeatedly. I admit I didn't read the whole thing (did I mention I'm not a lawyer?) but did he just invent a distinction between "traditional prosecutorial decision" and (I don't know) "New and Improved prosecutorial decision"?
Complete rabbit-hole.
Narr
Mueller seems pissed that he can't indict Trump for not being good on written tests.
It's like double secret probation, and Mueller is dean wormer.
Inga made three comments only- that is an indication of just how damning the report really was to the Democrats hopes. I guess it was hard to find hopeful stuff to cut and paste.
"Trump has accomplished the following:"
Reviewing your list I realized that almost all of Trump's accomplishments hinder the goals of the Left.
The more he does, the more they don't.
First the Democrats and media beat a horse to death, then they dry humped it. Now Chairman Nadler is organizing a gang rape of that dead horse after Adam Shiff finishes eating out it's ass.
Heh :)
Trump 2020
The more he does
The more they don't
Many of us think that Schiff is a lying scoundrel, but since he isn't my congressman, I can't vote against him.
What was the desired goal, the choice Alan Garcia made, this is how deluded they were. Garcia was a wunderkind at 36, promising to nationalize the banks cause reasons. This brought a challenge from Vargas llosa he was ultimately defeated by Fujimori a heterodox conservative
About 15 years later, he is elected on the right side platform, much more in the classical economics but at some point he got involved with odebrecht the heart of the Latin octopus, that's where his dilemma stemmed from
It's the Brazilian combo of Halliburton bechtel and Schlumberger on steroids.
Have you seen Nadler waddle into a press conference? Not a pretty sight. He moves with the grace and dexterity of a 3-legged, pregnant yak.
Go Nadler!
Yes he makes baron harkonnen look elegant by comparison. Who were the idiots he chose to put him in power, same with Richard 'skin flit' neal.
You want to see crazy:
https://www.newsbusters.org/blogs/nb/curtis-houck/2019/04/19/early-hardball-fun-matthews-goes-apocalyptic-legal-analyst-cries
"Yes he makes baron harkonnen look elegant by comparison."
Good thing it is the middle of the night, otherwise you would owe a new keyboard.
"Many of us think that Schiff is a lying scoundrel, but since he isn't my congressman, I can't vote against him."
We could all send hand written letters to our Congressmen explaining why they should agree to remove him as chair of the House Intelligence Committee.
But realisticly, we won't do that. Not motivated enougb, feels like a waste of time. So we get the government we deserve.
I'll say it again... if the Democrats honestly think they can remove a duly elected President solely because they think they shouldn't have lost an election, they will in fact ignite a Civil War... 50+ percent of the population is not going to lay down and accept their raw, corrupt power grab based on a completely made up political hatchet job... And if they insist on pushing it, things are going to get really ugly really fast...
Blogger mccullough said...
...
Trump won again.
------------------
Bullshit... Until he utterly decimates and decapitates the left's pillars of power, all Trump has managed to accomplish is a holding action... a re-arrangement of units on the battle-field without any real strategic gain or loss... and the longer this continues without any major counterstrikes against the left, the more hysterical and dangerous they are going to become...
They're going to keep ramping up their attacks in both frequency and ferocity until something manages to get through and land a killing blow... Trump needs to put a thermonuclear stake through their demonic heart RIGHT NOW, before they get a chance to regroup and regain the initiative... Something like a formal criminal prosecution of Clinton and Obama...
We're all puss-footing around while the fate of our Republic lies on the edge of an abyss... If they manage to take out Trump, we are all well and truly fooked... They are playing for keeps and we're playing like its dodgeball on Sunday...
Morkoth is correct. Trump needs to go on the offensive. Because these people never, ever stop.
And by go on the offensive, I mean something different from anything the GOP and the officious legacy Buckleymedia is doing to win the war, like replaying their fantasy baseball primary in their new literary magazine.
On Mueller Day, the lead story on the report over at NRO has a total of NINE comments. Ahoy! Abandon ship!
In any cell containing 2 or more rebels, assume 1 informant
- Fenrisulven 3:10
"All I could think of, as I listened, was Obama flying to a fund raiser, as those guys fought and died."
That's so ridiculously partisan.
Haven’t Schiff’s Republican colleagues deemed him unfit to head the Intelligence Committee?
Why does “unfit for office” begin at the White House?
If Congress truly believes unfit for office is an impeachable offense, they should begin in the Legislative Branch and let the American people know when they’re done do we can check their work.
At that point, perhaps a national up or down vote on everyone remaining is in order. That would encourage them to do their work properly.
I want to see James Comey doing the perp walk.
The implications of Mueller's report are stunning. In a country that is so over-criminalized that we all commit three felonies a day, Mueller came up dry on Trump. And it wasn't for lack at looking at the most vague, catch-all statutory theories. I'm surprised a Mueller drone wasn't killed in an avalanche of law books.
They got nothing. Apparently, Donald Trump is the most honest man to occupy the office in years.
Thus is the point where a real Republican Party would stand up behind the President and demand the Dems apologize and begin legislating.
Either they’re a united team, purposely letting the Dems fall all over themselves and look like the idiots they are, or they have no spine and are a bunch of worthless cowards who can’t do anything unless they’re going along with the approved media taking points.
Unfortunately, we know the answer all too well.
I would be surprised if a group of moderate Blue Dog Democrats didn’t quietly pass the word, probably via Steny Hoyer, that it impeachment came to a vote, they would vote to acquit because to do otherwise would mean losing in next year’s election and it would be 2010 all over again. I remember Steny from my days living in the Maryland suburbs of DC, and he is a pragmatic politician if ever one was.
Two things that annoy me about the report I've found over the last evening.
1. The repetition and innuendo that the DNC hacks happened shortly after (but note not immediately after) Trump's joke about her emails, that never mention that the DNC system had been undersiege *for months if not years.* What is more likely -- that the Russians were about to give up and would never have again attempted to breach the various servers, save that Trump gave them a sly wink, or that, as had been their practice for months, if not years and decades, they again performed a routine attempt to steal data?
2. The headline that "Mueller would have exonerated him if he was satisfied with the information he got." Mueller would never have been satisfied; how do I know? We're still arguing over whether firing Comey was obstruction or not, when Mueller knows that Comey lied to the president after being told "don't lie to me again" and that Comey stole government work product of a sensitive or classified nature and leaked it to a friend who had neither clearance nor need to know, to ensure it reached the public. If Mueller were looking for ways to interpret Trump's actions as not criminal, those two facts would remove the "firing Comey" from the obstruction discussion entirely. No other president, CEO or even small business owner, would be expected to keep a disloyal, lying employee who steals your product.
Yes: Trump is an asshole. But, it appears he is an asshole who did not collude or obstruct (even if he may have wanted to).
As I recall, the only thing Trump and the GOP "accomplished" since elected president has been tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans like himself. That's a shameful record to run on in 2020. Friends don't let friends vote Republican.
Fran Waxman said...
"All I could think of, as I listened, was Obama flying to a fund raiser, as those guys fought and died."
That's so ridiculously partisan.
The only 'partisan' thing in that comment was yours, claiming it was partisan. Obama WAS flying to a fundraiser that night, and had no plan to interrupt his fundraising to deal with an attack on our country. All he ever did in this instance was create a lie ("a video caused the attack") to blame someone else for his mistake.
Is this how Mueller imagines the decision to hack the emails again went? "Hey, Sven, did you hear Trump last night?"
"No, comrade, what did he say?"
"He said we should try and steal Clinton's emails."
"My God! Why did we never think of conducting espionage?" And then the Russian hackers shut down Zork and started up GRU reinvigorated by a plan that had never occurred to them before? The deliberate innuendo is maddening because it expects the listener to not know basic things about the case (DNC security was so bad and lax that routine data theft attempts were made and never noticed) to try and trick you into believing the fake thing (Trump was trying to collude with Russia, but just couldn't figure out how. He kept making contacts, but alas, they were just missed connections.)
"As I recall, the only thing Trump and the GOP "accomplished" since elected president has been tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans like himself."
Even the NYT has given up the ghost on that canard. Also:
Damn it. Also: Multiple justices have been a notable accomplishment.
By the way. Notice how Trump's team helps mitigate his worst flaws? Compare that to Obama and Bush who constantly had their worst flaws magnified by their staff picks. There might be some wisdom in having significant management experience. Trump doesn't always listen to his subordinates, but they appear willing to challenge and defy him when he's doing something they don't like. Good hiring choices of people who keep him in check appears to be his saving grace.
As I recall, the only thing Trump and the GOP "accomplished" since elected president has been tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans like himself.
You recall WRONG. Even the New York Times now admits that 90% of all taxpayers go a TAX CUT. By limiting the deduction for state and local taxes the Republicans actually raised the taxes for limousine liberals living in expensive homes in high tax blue states. If you personally did not see a tax cut for 2018, it’s either because you don’t pay taxes at all, or it’s because you are filthy rich.
Blogger Fran Waxman said...
“As I recall, the only thing Trump and the GOP "accomplished" since elected president has been tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans like himself. That's a shameful record to run on in 2020. Friends don't let friends vote Republican.”
“That's so ridiculously partisan.”
Talk about partisan - left wing whack job lies about Trump’s record and his tax cuts, after calling the rest of us highly partisan. At least zing a tries.
Shrug. Went through this circus with Bill Clinton, and there was an open-and-shut case about lying under oath. If it wasn't enough in 1998, it's not enough now.
Just vote him out. Election is in a year and a half.
Matt Sablan said...
By the way. Notice how Trump's team helps mitigate his worst flaws? Compare that to Obama and Bush who constantly had their worst flaws magnified by their staff picks. There might be some wisdom in having significant management experience. Trump doesn't always listen to his subordinates, but they appear willing to challenge and defy him when he's doing something they don't like. Good hiring choices of people who keep him in check appears to be his saving grace.
Right before Trump fires them. Rex Tillerson; Jeff Sessions; Gen. John Kelly; Gen. James Mattis; Gen. H.R. McMaster. Fired, or quit. Gary Cohn. Reince Priebus. Nikki Haley. Don McGahn.
But to your point, Trump has plagued his administration with a bunch of Fox News/reality tv freak show staff picks. Most of whom flamed out or never made it onto the staff. Omaroasa. Scaramucci. Sebastian Gorka. KT McFarland. Steve Bannon. Linda McMahon.
Who among Trump's staff and cabinet have done well? The establishment GOP scions; Betsy DeVos, Elaine Chao, Dan Coats, Mike Pompeo, Mick Mulvaney. (And I'll just bet that not one of them voted for Trump in a primary election in 2016.)
Fran Waxman said... the only thing Trump and the GOP "accomplished" since elected president has been tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans like himself
Frannie is RIGHT!
look out your windows, Sheeple!
Unemployment is at Record high levels!
EVERY SINGLE BLACK MAN AND WOMAN IN THE COUNTRY IS OUT OF WORK AND ON FOOD STAMPS!
EVERY SINGLE HISPANIC MAN AND WOMAN IN THE COUNTRY IS OUT OF WORK AND ON FOOD STAMPS!
We are fighting a Nuclear War with North Korea, and we are LOSING!
Global warming has caused the hottest winter on record, no states received even a inch of snow!
What Adam is saying is that he is impotent. Let's just all accept Schiff's impotence and move on. There's really no point in belaboring the issue of Democrat impotence.
“You recall WRONG. Even the New York Times now admits that 90% of all taxpayers go a TAX CUT. By limiting the deduction for state and local taxes the Republicans actually raised the taxes for limousine liberals living in expensive homes in high tax blue states. If you personally did not see a tax cut for 2018, it’s either because you don’t pay taxes at all, or it’s because you are filthy rich.”
I think that is the problem - the Dem opinion leaders got tax increases, due to the SALT limitations, and are desperately trying to convince the rest of the country to ignore their lying eyes, so that they can get their sacred unlimited SALT deduction back. The problem, of course, is that the rest of the country is tired of subsidizing the failing high tax Blue State model of government. No doubt these Dem opinion leaders don’t know anyone who had their taxes go down, because they don’t know anyone who doesn’t have a SALT problem, thanks to the excessive property prices in their cities. But that is mostly because they don’t know anyone in flyover country.
Chuck still with the standup comedy, he doesn't get how Tillerson was the joker in the deck, coats is unexceptional but not dni has been standout Mulvaney is club of growth rebel and budget hawk
"Inga made three comments only- that is an indication of just how damning the report really was to the Democrats hopes. I guess it was hard to find hopeful stuff to cut and paste."
Actually, I think it was basically one post repeated three times.
Trump's worst crime:
Orange Man Bad!!
This is so glorious.
They've been stoking up their base for the last couple of years.
And now they won't do anything.
They're stuck.
Impeach? Trump will run on it and win bigly.
Don't impeach? Pissed off base stays home. Trump wins bigly.
Thanks, Mueller!
Ruh roh. When you start to lose Schitt....
But as predicted, the pivot to "unfit"..and perhaps all the baggage of pursuing formal impeachment.
Without
Probably Dems token by which to..garner..votes to get the needed Senate majority.
"Talk about partisan - left wing whack job lies about Trump’s record and his tax cuts, after calling the rest of us highly partisan. At least zing a tries."
When the usual right-wing trolls resort to insults and invective, you have to know the truth hurts.
"You all just got a lot richer." - Donald "Scrooge McDuck" Trump
https://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=you+all+just+got+a+lot+richer&view=detail&mid=46718990534397441ADC46718990534397441ADC&FORM=VIRE
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scrooge_McDuck
I would compare Schiff to Joe McCarthy, except that McCarthy was right about some things.
Schiff is the leader of the dead-enders.
Friends don't let friends vote Republican.
You're not my friend.
Fuck off.
Vote Republican.
"You're not my friend.
Fuck off."
You talk to an 85 yr. old woman like that? You're the reason the Rethuglican party should be forcibly disbanded as being a threat to the world. Scum like you should be placed on a work detail on skid row to clean up the reeking urine and feces from winos. Maybe civility is bullshit around here, but most people still reject incorrigible filth like you.
It is not up to some democrats to decide if Trump is fit for office. The people decided that already. One could argue that in fact Trump has accomplished more of his campaign promises than any recent president--rolled back regulations, got us out of the Paris accord, met with N. Korea pres, lowered taxes, increased jobs...just because the dems don't like those things doesn't make him "unfit".
Dear Fran Waxman:
Were I the embodiment of all evil you imagine "Rethuglicans" to be, I would still be less evil than you, for I don't kill babies on purpose.
And shall I begin shoveling the shit from the streets of Seattle or San Francisco?
Also, I am not an R anymore. I have seen the light. I am a Trumpian.
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