Friday, November 15, 2019

Trump Impeachment Hearings (Day2) - Marie Yovanovitch

During today's Impeachment Hearing, Day Two, it was nuts listening to Jordan and Stefanik's dialogue, what's with all that melodramatic dripping contempt for our democratic government and it's rules?  

 So now the GOP tells us it's a "performance" to expect the rule of law to be respected and obeyed?  It's "performance" that we're appalled at witnessing our President playing political extortion with an ally's self-defense needs.  What is going on here?  Actually, I do know, the GOP questioners are playing to their bubble and steadfastly ignoring the reality of the facts. 

 What about simple FAIR PLAY.  What about Honest Constructive Debate?  Where both sides are bound by an expectation to be truthful?

Doesn't a sane government require a standard of honesty that applies to all sides?  But all I hear from the GOP is malicious slanderous innuendo, fabricated conspiracy theories, misdirection, and wasting time with ridiculous side stories, oh an the bullying - all justified because of their most grotesque partisan blindspots.

I wish someone would ask the GOP what they think of the other half of this country who believe in science and constructive debates, debates where honesty is expected from all sides?  Where learning and improving is the goal.  What about us?  Where do we go from here?


Watch: Day 2 of public Trump impeachment hearings
Washington Post  |  November 15, 2019
Watch live coverage and analysis from the Washington Post as the public hearings of the Trump impeachment inquiry continue in the House. Former ambassador to Ukraine Marie Yovanovitch will testify. Washington Post reporter Libby Casey will host, joined by Post reporters Elise Viebeck, Amber Phillips, Aaron Blake and more.  
Democrats are trying to build a case that Trump sought to withhold military assistance and an Oval Office meeting until Ukraine announced investigations into former vice president Joe Biden and his son. On Wednesday, William B. Taylor Jr., the acting ambassador to Ukraine, and George Kent, the deputy assistant secretary of state responsible for Ukraine, testified. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) said Thursday their testimony “corroborated evidence of bribery” by President Trump. House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam B. Schiff (D-Calif.), will lead this week’s public hearings, a decision many Republicans have denounced. Public hearings will continue next week. 
Read more: https://wapo.st/33Q3Stl. Subscribe to The Washington Post on YouTube: https://wapo.st/2QOdcqK
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How a bad-faith attack on Schiff made its way from Twitter to Trump’s lips

By Aaron Rupar  |  November 15, 2019

Rep. Elise Stefanik is accusing the House intel chair of treating Republicans unfairly, but all he did was try to enforce the rules.

“Under the House Resolution 660, you’re not allowed to yield time except to minority counsel,” Schiff said.
“You’re gagging the young lady from New York?” Nunes replied, indignantly.
“This is the fifth time you have interrupted a duly-elected members of Congress,” Stefanik interjected, before the hearing proceeded with Republican counsel Steve Castor asking questions.
(In case you’re interested, Schiff was right about the rules — members can defer their five-minute questioning block to another lawmaker, but the 45-minute blocks are only for the two parties’ ranking members and their staff. Stefanik had her chance to ask Yovanovitch questions later.)

This might not seem like a big deal in a vacuum. But within minutes, Stefanik posted a tweet characterizing a situation in which Schiff was merely trying to enforce the rules as one where Republicans were being singled out.
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President Donald Trump Tweets Attacks On Amb. Yovanovitch During Testimony  
MTP Daily | MSNBC


Kelly O’Donnell, Garrett Haake, Michael McFaul and Benjamin Wittes join MTP Daily to unpack Ambassador Marie Yovanovitch’s testimony and the implication of President Trump’s tweet about Yovanovitch during the hearing today. Aired on 11/15/19.

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'Injurious': Trump Attacks Impeachment Witness During Testimony  
The Beat With Ari Melber | MSNBC


As House Dems interviewed Former Ambassador the Ukraine Marie Yovanovitch about President Trump’s smear campaign against her, President Trump launched attacks on her reputation on Twitter. Chairman Schiff and Trump allies consider Trump’s remarks as ‘witness tampering’ and ‘injurious,” arguing Trump added ‘essentially, an article of impeachment real time.’ Former Federal Prosecutor Maya Wiley, Mother Jones’ David Corn and Historian Jon Meacham join Ari Melber to discuss the historic impeachment hearing. Aired on 11/15/19.

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'There Were Some Lies': Fact-Checking The GOP's Impeachment Hearing Response 
MSNBC


Nicolle Wallace and Chris Matthews fact check Reps. Jim Jordan and Elise Stefanik's response the public impeachment inquiry testimony of former U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine Marie Yovanovitch. Aired on 11/15/19.

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Key Takeaways From Marie Yovanovitch’s Hearing in the Impeachment Inquiry.
Peter Baker - New York Times - November 15, 2019

Even as Ms. Yovanovitch was testifying about “the smear campaign against me,” President Trump hurled insults at her on Twitter.

Here’s what you need to know:
  • ‘Shocked. Appalled. Devastated.’: Yovanovitch recalled how she felt threatened by Trump.
  • Trump reinforced Yovanovitch’s narrative, railing against her on Twitter.
  • Unlike Trump, House Republicans generally went easy on Yovanovitch in early questioning.
  • A bad day for Trump grew worse, as his friend Roger Stone was convicted of obstructing a previous congressional inquiry.
  • Hunter Biden made a cameo appearance as Republicans sought to shift attention to his dealings in Ukraine.
  • Yovanovitch tied her personal experience to a broader, and more dangerous, undermining of American diplomacy under Mr. Trump.
  • On the defensive at the White House, Trump sought to show his innocence.
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Pelosi says Trump committed bribery — live updates

     By Grace Segers, Kathryn Watson and Stefan Becket - November 15, 2019

updates on the impeachment hearings

  • A day after the first open hearings, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi says that the president has committed bribery
  • The House Intelligence Committee held its first public hearing of the impeachment probe on Wednesday, featuring testimony from two key diplomats.
  • Bill Taylor, the top U.S. diplomat in Ukraine, testified that he learned a member of his staff overheard President Trump asking about "investigations" the day after the president's July 25 call with the president of Ukraine.
  • Read 8 key highlights from the first day of hearings here.
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Trump impeachment inquiry: highlights from day two – video

What were the highlights?

  • Ms. Yovanovitch described how it felt to be bad-mouthed by Mr. Trump on the July 25 call: “shocked, appalled, devastated that the president of the United States would talk about any ambassador like that to a foreign head of state. And it was me. I mean, I couldn’t believe it.” A person who saw her reading the transcript told her that the color drained from her face, she said. Asked what the words “going to go through some things” sounded like to her, she said, “It sounded like a threat.”
  • As Ms. Yovanovitch testified, Mr. Trump posted a tweet attacking her record as a diplomat in many troubled regions of the world, saying that “everywhere Marie Yovanovitch went turned bad.” Representative Adam Schiff, the Democratic chairman of the committee holding the hearings, read the tweet back to her in real time. “It’s very intimidating,” she said. “The effect is to be intimidating.” Our television critic wrote that it was a “remarkable fourth-wall-breaking moment” and a “real-time meta-confrontation.”
  • Ms. Yovanovitch was unsparing in her criticism of the Trump administration. “Ukrainians who preferred to play by the old, corrupt rules sought to remove me,” she said. “What continues to amaze me is that they found Americans willing to partner with them and, working together, they apparently succeeded in orchestrating the removal of a U.S. ambassador.” She went on: “How could our system fail like this? How is it that foreign corrupt interests could manipulate our government?”

Here’s a quick video recap of some of the biggest moments. Here’s our new podcast, The Latest, on today’s testimony. And if you want to go deeper, here’s our full story on the day’s events, some more key takeaways and Ms. Yovanovitch’s opening statement.
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