Happy Impeachment! Next step is removal. (Trump thread 98)

[TheClaws]

In the last thread, Trump was impeached by Congress. Now the question is when the articles will be sent to the Senate for Trial, as - at this stage - there is no guarantee from Mitch McConnell of a fair trial. Trump clings to his belief that his call to Zelensky was “perfect”.

Previous thread: www.mumsnet.com/Talk/am_i_being_unreasonable/3732056-Trump-and-the-Giant-Impeachment-Trump-thread-97

Has Rachel been...........promoted?

Background.

I don't think she's been promoted since she's already a headliner.

But I do know that the MSNBC anchors' schedules have been messed round with the hearings. Rachel has been on as anchor after the hearings are over when normally she's on around 2-3 hours earlier. And I've see Chris Hayes on an hour or so before he normally is.

I missed most of today (Saturday) as I got a phone call from a friend who needed to talk.

But from what I saw it was just the same old, same old "Don't look there, look over HERE!!!" shit.

I think the (stinky, rotten) 'meat' of their arguments will be Monday.

''twas a death, also, Across. That tends to throw things around.

Pompeo has gone off on one:

eu.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2020/01/24/npr-mike-pompeo-dropped-f-bomb-after-being-questioned-ukraine/4569387002/

The State Department has now issued a statement to say that the reporter (Cambridge educated with a degree in European Studies), pointed to Bangladesh on the map.

Unless the map was seriously re-arranged I really do doubt that Kelly mistook Bangladesh for Ukraine. On a smallish inland sea really doesn't look much like on a sodding great ocean, and the subcontinent of India is hard to mistake.

Maybe Pompeo doesn't know which is which without the names on the map?

But come to that, why did he have a map readily available without any names on it anyway? Wouldn't that be a bit useless for anything but trying to catch out well-educated reporters?

I shall be watching Monday if there's something to watch!

The White House
@WhiteHouse
President
@realDonaldTrump
has unequivocally denounced foreign interference in our elections and accepted the conclusions of the intelligence community.

That's new! I wonder what prompted that?!

MItt Romney says he's "likely" to vote in favour of witnesses
www.newsweek.com/mitt-romney-witnesses-senate-republicans-vote-new-evidence-impeachment-trial-opening-arguments-1484038

So they say. This tweet links to a desperate news conference where they look like a group of sneering hyenas around a carcass.

The Hill @TheHill 1hr

.@RepMikeJohnson: "I've never seen a plaintiff's or a prosecution's case so completely destroyed by a defense opening argument as we saw today."

twitter.com/thehill/status/1221217434754940928?s=21

www.theguardian.com/us-news/2020/jan/26/video-appears-to-show-trump-ordering-marie-yovanovitch-removal-ukraine-ambassador

www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/url-trump-march-for-life-abortion-impeachment-today-a9300971.html

Yeah, the Orange One is on a roll with the anti-abortionists.

His special advisor has just called for "all satanic pregnancies to miscarry."

Trump's spiritual adviser calls for 'all satanic pregnancies to miscarry now'
www.indy100.com/article/trump-spiritual-adviser-satanic-pregnancies-miscarry-abortions-paula-white-cain-9302521

It's not clear to me what she means. But if she's talking about actual humans – maybe ones she doesn't like or who aren't Christian? – then WTF? Seriously? Is there no bottom to this vile madness?

(Paula White-Cain is of course, "pro-life" for non-Satanic pregnancies...)

Lev Parnas' lawyer puts out a recording of Trump saying "get rid of her, take her out", apparently about the US ambassador to Ukraine, Marie Yovanovitch. (TBF, it's choppy bits of tape, so theoretically could be misleading.)

Trump of course says he doesn't know Parnas, and doesn't know much about Yovanovitch.

I really don't imagine Trump was actually ordering a hit as such. As PP said, not his style to get his hands remotely dirty. OTOH, doubt he'd be upset if his invitation to "rid me of this troublesome priest" had tragic consequences.

At least the MSM is now asking what 'Take her out' actually means ...

Meanwhile:

Donald J. Trump
@realDonaldTrump

'Shifty Adam Schiff is a CORRUPT POLITICIAN, and probably a very sick man. He has not paid the price, yet, for what he has done to our Country!'

Year of the ...

'Shifty Adam Schiff is a CORRUPT POLITICIAN, and probably a very sick man. He has not paid the price, yet, for what he has done to our Country!'

I did say that I thought he always accused others of what he was himself, didn't I?

Fingers crossed, then.

He’s such a child. Like a 12 year old playground bully making up rhyming nicknames for people.
He’d soon cry if the Democrats started calling him “Dodgin’ Donald Trump” or “Dishonest Donnie”.

www.theguardian.com/us-news/2020/jan/26/trump-impeachment-trial-senate-what-comes-next

eu.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2020/01/26/trump-impeachment-fox-news-poll/4581020002/

'Half of registered voters and a majority of independents think the Senate should convict President Donald Trump in his impeachment trial and remove him from office, according to a Fox News poll released Sunday. '

This missile attack is the first time the embassy has been directly hit. There are reports of casualties; at least one critical.

Newsflash @BRnewsflash 25min

#BREAKING reports:
#USEmbassy in #Baghdad has informed the Iraqi army that they will respond with military action to the recent rocket attack on the US embassy.

There's an article in the N.Y. Times regarding someone getting a hold of a copy of Bolton' s book. He links Trump, Pompeo and Barr to scheme, stating it's all about Biden and 2016 and not corruption. How on earth are the TOP going to refuse to call Barr now?

Worrying about Embassy in Bagdad.

edition.cnn.com/2020/01/26/politics/bolton-book-ukraine-aid-trump/index.html

I am still trying to come to grips with the idea that the defendant in a trial is assuming he has the right to decide who may and may not give evidence at that trial.

It would be very convenient for almost any criminal if it were the case that he or she could refuse to allow to be heard the testimony of any person who might give evidence for the prosecution.