Thursday, November 21, 2019

What were the "bombshells" on the impeachment inquiry open hearings"i

Update 12/3/19
House Intelligence Committee report to House Judiciary Committee 
https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/trump-impeachment-inquiry/read-full-text-trump-ukraine-impeachment-inquiry-report-n1095036?fbclid=IwAR0Ai0u_wVnUX_YDwkpZFF8qd92E7a5S3c_cIlMOkbt35YDedvF9lMx2C7M

Update: 11/23.19
https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2019/11/23/20979143/giuliani-lev-parnas-devin-nunes-biden-investigation-impeachment-inquiry
Nunes had been doing work in Ukraine on Bidens.

Update: 11/27/19
https://www.cnbc.com/2019/11/27/trump-knew-about-whistleblower-complaint-before-ukraine-aid-released.html

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11/24/19  Testimony by State Department and the US ambassador Bill Taylor to Ukraine  November 13 confirmed  Trump used withholding military aid as a threat to force the Ukraine president to go before microphones and announce he would re-open investigations into the Bidens and find  evidence that Ukraine, not Russia, was to blame  for the 2016 US presidential election interference. In fact. Amb. Sondland, one of the schemers, testified that Trump did not require Zelensky to go through with the investigation, just to announce it. That was the purpose. The dead end investigations into Hillary Clinton's emails and Ben Ghazi hurt her badly. It should work against Biden, too...right?  That latter issue, that Ukraine, not Russia, hacked the DNC server is a conspiracy theory that contradicts the findings of Mueller,'s investigation,  all of the US intelligence services, and a bi-partisan Senate committee findings, not to mention they found it was a propaganda initiative of Russian intelligence services. . NSC expert on Russia matters, Fiona Hill, calls the claim that Ukraine, not Russia,(Cloudstrike) invented and advanced by Russia." It is fiction", she testified in open hearings.. 
https://www.axios.com/impeachment-hearing-fiona-hill-trump-ukraine-testimony-49fbce41-bf1c-4b02-964c-701196d30d5c.html

https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/sondland-trump-only-wanted-ukraine-to-announce-investigation-into-biden-not-a-real-inquiry

"The US uses withholding favors and aid often to get foreign governments to agree to US foreign objectives; Mulvaney: just get over it"
Numerous testifiers in both the deposition and public testimony..in fact, all, testified that Trump had never made fighting corruption in general in Ukraine as a mention in regard to the "quid pro quo" as being a legitimate use of his powers.  What all reported was that only corruption mentioned had to do with Bidens and Burisma.  As Ambassador Sondland reported after an overheard conversation with Trump while on his unsecured cell phone in a Kyiv restaurant, and verified by at least two first-hand witnesses and to some extent by Sondland himself, was that the President did not give a s....t about Ukraine; it was the big stuff.  Bidens".  Laura Cooper of the Pentagon testified that the stipulations placed on the release of the military aid to Ukraine, including acting on corruption, had been satisfied as of May and the aid could have been released after going through some administrative hoops could have been released in mid-June. July 18 the President via Mulvaney froze the disbursement with no reason given.  There were indeed inquiries to her staff around mid-July from Ukraine embassy wondering where their money for Javelins was.  They were aware of the freeze. It was not until later in summer that the weapon's freeze was connected to the pressure on Zelensky in addition to the Oval Office meeting and was verified by Sondland by August 31.


Taylor was the successor to Ambassador Maria Yovanovitch who Trump had removed in May. Ambassador Yovanovitch testified November 15 she had known Rudy Guiliani had been active in Ukraine seeking her removal.  Yovanovitch's testimony revealed she was recalled and smeared for her efforts to rein in corruption in Ukraine that targeted a corrupt prosecutor who was a pal of Rudy Guiliani's circle of Ukraine contacts.


On November 21, in open hearings in the House, Will Hurd, retiring GOP representative from Texas, presented what will be the best argument the GOP Senators can use to vote against the conviction of Trump. After hearing the devastating evidence that indeed there was a "quid pro quo" , even verified by Amb. Gordon Sondland, one of the participants in the scheme, first hand, it does not rise to a reason to remove Trump. This is a judgment call. The Senators need to ask: why not? What are the rules going forward? Will this mean the standards set for future presidents that it is ok to ask foreigners to intervene in our own elections, in spite of laws forbidding that, and is it ok for future presidents to use taxpayer and Congressionally appropriated money for their own personal political benefit in order to pressure foreign leaders to help his re-election. Where do we draw the line on acceptable presidential behavior.


Zelensky had been reluctant to interfere in US domestic politics, fearing he would jeopardize bi-partisan support in the US Congress. Ambassador to the EU Gordon Sondland in Wednesday, November 20 open hearing confirmed the quid pro quo, using exactly those words: Trump would give the Oval Office meeting Zelensky wanted to have for Trump to confirm continued America’s support of Ukraine, but only if Zelensky would commit to the investigations. Sondland's significance: first had knowledge as a participant in the scheme. This was no hearsay or circumstantial evidence. This was from the participant's horse's mouth. However, Sondland was slow to realize the military aid/Javelin release also was dependent on Zelensky’s agreement to investigate the two conspiracy theories and announce it publicly. He did understand that at the end of August. He was also slow to grasp that every time Burisma investigations re-opening meant Hunter and Joe Biden's activities. Under questioning, Sondland agreed opening the Biden investigation would benefit Trump in 2020. The issue that it was Ukraine, not Russia, that interfered in the 2016 elections, contradicts the findings of Mueller,'s investigation, all of the US intelligence services, and bi-partisan Senate committee findings. Sondland also said all of the president's men, Pence, Pompeo, Mulvaney, etc. were in on the scheme. It was not just Rudy Guiliani going rogue; it was the mainstream of Trump and his closest advisors who were part of it. Laura Cooper, the point person in the Department of Defense, also testified that her staff had received inquiries from the Ukraine embassy on July 25 asking about the money for the javelins, indicating that Ukraine knew about the July 18 freeze on javelin money far earlier than the GOP charged. The
significance is that it shuts holes in the GOP argument that there was no quo there, i.e.how could
Ukraine knows that the release of the military aid was being used as the extortion hammer. They did know. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JdIIMXibXoc Laura Cooper testimony 11/20

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 There was also evidence Guiliani had been trying to get evidence against the Bidens since late 2018, before the election of Zelensky in April 2019. 

 Trump released the aid within 48 hours of the Whistleblower's complaint reaching Congress with public exposure of Trump's July 25 call. In that call in he asked Zelensky for "favors though "in response to Zelensky saying he was ready to buy Javelins, anti-tank missiles, critical to Ukraine's defense against Russian tanks. Trump referred Zelensky to Guiliani for followup.
GOP defense seems to be no harm no foul since Ukraine got the aid, but an attempted crime is subject to prosecution, as well, respond Democrats. The harm done was to throw doubt into Trump's commitment to Ukraine and emboldening Putin's power and attempt to control eastern Europe's former USSR's satellites. The GOP is claiming all evidence has been supplied by second-hand knowledge and hearsay, while Trump has attempted to keep anyone with direct knowledge from testifying. He has failed. First-hand witnesses have emerged , especially the participant in the scheme, Gordon Sondland, and Trump's own words are the best evidence against him. 
Another GOP defense is that Trump may have done wrong, but not wrong enough to warrant impeachment or removal from office. Prior impeachment attempts involved coverup and lying of a break-in to Democratic National Committee (Watergate/Nixon) and Clinton's lying about a sex affair with an intern.  This impeachment process and inquiry hearings concern national security and defense in the face of Russian aggression that could result in future hotter conflicts. If this is not enough to justify impeachment/trial what is or ever will be?

https://www.wsj.com/articles/ukraine-inquired-about-aid-on-same-day-as-trump-zelensky-call-official-testifies-11574295133

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