I wonder how many partisan polls and focus groups were ordered this afternoon.

11/20/2019 4:28:24 PM

Quote :

"Liz Cheney said a few days ago the quid pro quo was improper. The only direction gop can go from here is that it’s improper but not impeachable. This seems untenable to me. Lying about a blow job is improper but not impeachable you could argue. Lying about bribery and corruption to benefit your campaign is the reason the founders put impeachment in the constitution."

So, I guess the only NEW defenses they can still try at this point would be:

1. Rudy was a rogue actor and Trump had no idea what was going on (highly probable)
2. Create a major distraction so that people are confused (seemingly inevitable)
3. Leak the whistle blower's identity and publicly smear him (hail mary, but wouldn't put it past Trump)

Am I missing anything?

11/20/2019 4:38:04 PM

Perhaps this was mentioned earlier... But Sonlands testimony today, at the very least, bolsters the case for obstruction of Justice articles of impeachment. He testified that the administration blocked his access to documents which would allow sondland to fully prepare for his testimony.

11/20/2019 5:00:07 PM

^^ I'm surprised Barr hasn't dropped his investigation of the investigation yet.

11/20/2019 5:02:05 PM

https://i.imgur.com/t2MryNE.gifv

[Edited on November 20, 2019 at 6:30 PM. Reason : H]

11/20/2019 6:29:20 PM

So the state department released a statement saying that they didn't put a hold on anything? ahhhh.... what?

11/20/2019 7:06:07 PM

^^
https://twitter.com/Zylie/status/1197188208804519936

11/20/2019 7:20:22 PM

I just got to say that watching these hearings has been incredibly exciting. I have been entertained. As some of you may know, my guilty pleasure in terms of garbage reading is CIA and spy thrillers, particularly those taking place in Europe, and seeing these career "State Department" officials provide testimony and obviously giving zero fucks about American politics has been quite rewarding. It's almost like it was lifted straight out of a Pavone Book.

Also, I was very surprised by Sondland's testimony. I did not expect him to be so forthcoming, but in retrospect, the only way to justify his demeanor is to say that he is trying to stay ahead of the game. Good for him. If Trump and the White House are gonna play games, then he can, too, apparently. The dude's got balls.

Nobody expected him to unequivocally state that there was a quid pro quo, and I don't think that anybody expected him to call out the State Department (i.e. WH) like he did. Then, the mother fucker doesn't spend any time in DC and gets straight on a plane to Brussels, as if he literally sent a "catch me if you can" message to Nunes and Trump.

[Edited on November 20, 2019 at 7:42 PM. Reason : k]

11/20/2019 7:40:16 PM

Nunes is pure humor


(gives lesson on inquisitions of the middle ages)

"welcome to act 2 of today's circus" (from the other day)

"hide ya kids"

"and now to schiff for more storytime"

Maloney's performance was impressive.

[Edited on November 20, 2019 at 8:05 PM. Reason : grilled sondland]

11/20/2019 7:54:50 PM

He is talking directly to the majority of people that voted for and continue to support Trump. Most of those people would prolly be ok with making him a king.

[Edited on November 20, 2019 at 8:05 PM. Reason : a]

11/20/2019 8:05:33 PM

11/20/2019 9:02:10 PM

Nunes: gives Sondland the death stare

Sondland: just smiles back

Nunes: Shits his pants and asks for a break

11/20/2019 11:41:34 PM

So what’s up with that Minority day of inquiry nunes was talking about?

11/21/2019 9:40:20 AM

regarding the overhearing a call thing, are republicans just counting on people never having been in a room with someone on a cellphone?

11/21/2019 10:07:39 AM

I just don't understand this impeachment process. What does any of this have to do with Hillary's emails?!

11/21/2019 10:12:23 AM

Lol, Fiona Hill is essentially scolding Nunes and Trump for being Alex Jones type dupes.

11/21/2019 10:16:19 AM

You tell em, Mr. Holmes. Spill them beans.

11/21/2019 10:36:22 AM

Quote :

"Hill: RU govt's role is to weaken our country. Putin and RU security services, aim to counter US influence where Moscow wants to reassert dominance. I say this out of realism. Need to seek ways to stabilize relationships with Moscow. Geared up to repeat interference in 2020."

11/21/2019 10:46:06 AM

these two witnesses have been the clearest so far, hopefully banjoman is watching

11/21/2019 10:57:48 AM

When this is all over, I really hope Sondland gets a legacy project so that people never forget him. A toll road in Jersey would be perfect, but a correctional facility could work too.

Man, Fiona Hill is really making him look bad. At best, she's making him seem like useful idiot; at worst, she painting him as a dirty rat.

[Edited on November 21, 2019 at 11:11 AM. Reason : derp]

11/21/2019 11:06:11 AM

Fiona Hill lol

11/21/2019 11:06:37 AM

haha whoops

11/21/2019 11:11:27 AM

saw this interesting thought on twitter (StTexas trigger warning):

Quote :

" Karoun Demirjian @karoun · 16m Fiona Hill testifies that Trump thought Kash Patel was in charge of Ukraine matters at the NSC. Vindman was in charge of Ukraine though, she said. Meaning it seemed Patel -- a recently former Nunes staffer -- was delivering Ukraine info straight to Trump."

The Patel comment didn't mean anything to me before learning he was a Nunes staffer

11/21/2019 11:12:15 AM

Nunes and his staffers are also involved with Lev Parnas.

11/21/2019 11:40:58 AM

So did Holmes affirm trump said "biden" not "burisma"? I haven't seen anyone clarifying this yet, he said "biden" in his opening statement.

11/21/2019 11:53:08 AM

can't remember, he definitely testified that sondland said biden

both also testified that everyone, including on the ukraine side, knew burisma and investigation meant biden

11/21/2019 12:05:17 PM

Jesus Nunes and the fucking Steele dossier

11/21/2019 1:21:25 PM

It’s all he really had left. Hill is making everyone look so guilty

11/21/2019 1:43:50 PM

Catching up on Hill's testimony, Republican counsel asked if she had coffee with Sondland her last week, it opened her up to clearly explain that Sondland was acting directly on Trump's interests for domestic political tasks

11/21/2019 2:22:40 PM

I don't know for a fact that Rep. Michael Turner drinks and beats his wife and kids, I just know it's true.

11/21/2019 2:29:54 PM

I think that Rep. Mike Conaway may be overdue for his afternoon nap.

11/21/2019 3:22:58 PM

Mr Nunes, what you have just said is one of the most insanely idiotic things I have ever heard. At no point in your rambling, incoherent response were you even close to anything that could be considered a rational thought. Everyone in this room is now dumber for having listened to it. I award you no points, and may God have mercy on your soul.

11/21/2019 4:01:01 PM

Swalwell obliterated Nunes.

11/21/2019 4:08:03 PM

Quote :

"A group of Republican senators and senior White House officials met privately Thursday to map out a strategy for a potential impeachment trial of President Trump, including proceedings in the Senate that could be limited to about two weeks, according to multiple officials familiar with the talks."

https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/white-house-and-republicans-discuss-limiting-impeachment-trial-to-two-weeks/2019/11/21/3e02edf8-0c9a-11ea-a49f-9066f51640f6_story.html

Rest of the article talks about calls for fair process/due process. They're also discussing bringing Hunter Biden to testify which, of course, has absolutely nothing to do with what the impeachment is about.

[Edited on November 21, 2019 at 4:53 PM. Reason : a]

11/21/2019 4:49:23 PM

Everything about David Holmes is turning me on right now. Holy fuck, marry me.

From a fashion point of view, I think that it is very interesting how all of the women have dressed very conservatively for these hearings, and that it is the men that have actually embraced a bit of a creativity in their outfits.

Kent shows up with what will be one of the most talked-about bow ties of this generation.
Nunes appears yesterday with a very articulate pinstripe suit.
Holmes dressed today as if he were auditioning to be the next Bond.

The times are a changing!

Oh, let's not forget Taylor, who showed up in a suit so trim and slim-fitting that he looked like he'd still be ready to engage in active combat.

[Edited on November 21, 2019 at 6:45 PM. Reason : k]

11/21/2019 6:21:20 PM

Troll on

11/21/2019 6:46:55 PM

Actually that was the first semi-thing he’s posted in years, so we should praise his effort— just not the outcome

11/21/2019 7:16:51 PM

and of course, when it looks like the opportune time to start talking about impeachment, Trump finds a way to bring the narrative back to the russia investigation.

Quote :

"Actually that was the first semi-thing he’s posted in years, so we should praise his effort— just not the outcome"

Me being practical and realistic about these impeachment hearings does not equate to me being a mindless trump supporter.

All of the problems that I described before the hearings are still major problems for an impeachment effort.

[Edited on November 21, 2019 at 7:22 PM. Reason : a]

11/21/2019 7:20:51 PM

Totally typed out semi-funny, but I guess I shouldn’t post on my phone.

11/21/2019 8:29:49 PM

GOP seems to have 2 threads they’re following
- Trump hates foreign aid and this was his attempt to save money
- Trump Hates corruption and this was his attempt to root it out

Any others?

First seems obviously wrong because Trump would have released the aide of Zelensky went in front of a mic to trash Biden— couldn’t have hated giving out aid THAT much right?

Second it’s obviously moronic but I can see how it would be difficult to convey to an average person

11/21/2019 10:52:53 PM

The satisfied drake image would be for canceling the aid, locking up Trump, AND investigating Biden.

11/21/2019 11:00:32 PM

Looks like some information on the “oranges” of the counterintelligence investigation and FISA investigation thing is starting to leak out.

First piece is that a lower level FBI lawyer “altered” part of one document (no context leaked) but it had no material impact on the FISA warrant.

Anyway, no surprise that Trump is already tweeting about.

https://twitter.com/nycsouthpaw/status/1197854250786852865?s=21

Twitter link has story from WaPo

[Edited on November 22, 2019 at 7:25 AM. Reason : I honestly expected Comey and/or Brennan and/or McCabe to be indicted so this is meh]

[Edited on November 22, 2019 at 7:29 AM. Reason : X]

11/22/2019 7:22:50 AM

horosho is so far down the rabbit hole he thinks the biden story is real

11/22/2019 8:47:56 AM

trump again confirmed the whistleblower report on fox news this morning saying he wanted to know about the crowdstrike server (which is conspiracy theory created by russia aid russia)
https://twitter.com/joshtpm/status/1197879132706738177

when even steve doocy is incredulous, you've fucked up

[Edited on November 22, 2019 at 9:50 AM. Reason : horosho probably believes the crowdstrike story]

11/22/2019 9:49:46 AM

A lot of people on the outspoken (but not real) twitter left believe it as it absolved Russia of wrongdoing. Just go in to Glenn Greenwald or Matt Taibis mentions and it’s everywhere.

Trump delves in the double dose of stupid though because he believes this but then conflates the DNC hack with Clinton’s private server emails.

11/22/2019 9:56:20 AM

to help out horosho, because he has to be among those that believe it- crowdstrike is an american company located in america that investigated the DNC hack and said it was from russia. they have also traced other hacks, including in ukraine, back to russia. russia doesn't like them. crowd strike isn't the only group that studied the DNC hack and traced it back to russia. crowdstrike isn't owned by a ukranian. the server isn't in ukraine.

everything about this latest trump issue is about advancing his own interests and advancing russian interests.

[Edited on November 22, 2019 at 10:03 AM. Reason : there was someone else here that fell for a bunch of russian misinformation, adultswim?]

11/22/2019 10:01:29 AM

Bondy is Parnas' attorney:

Quote :

"Joseph A. Bondy @josephabondy · 11h Yet Lev grew up in Brooklyn, has no criminal record or Russian Mob ties, and is a proud American citizen. He’s not afraid of #POTUS or polonium, hopes to testify under oath—unlike #RudyGiuliani—and to be subjected to cross-examination under penalties of perjury. #LetLevSpeak "

Quote :

"jackseraphim @jackseraphim1 Replying to @josephabondy This is the problem with the Lev. The WH will deny knowledge of him, he has criminal record including firearm offences, so unless he has hard evidence of wrongdoing they will flatly deny it. He's no Vindman or Hill here, let's be clear, he's someone trying to save his own hide"

Quote :

" Joseph A. Bondy @josephabondy Thank you, Jack. It’s actually other people’s problem. Lev has no criminal record, the evidence of #POTUS knowingly interacting with him is beyond cavil, and he has hard—HARD—first-hand evidence. So, #LetLevSpeak"

congress should hear his testimony

context: among other things, parnas was at the meeting where guiliani pushed ukraine to investigate biden

[Edited on November 22, 2019 at 10:30 AM. Reason : .]

11/22/2019 10:29:07 AM

Quote :

"horosho is so far down the rabbit hole he thinks the biden story is real "

Umm the Biden story is definitely real. We know for a fact that Hunter Biden was on that board while his father was the point person on Ukraine and got the top prosecutor replaced. You are the first person I've ever seen insinuate that as a fake story.

Quote :

"because he has to be among those that believe it"

Your logic is poor because I never said anything about crowdstrike. In fact, I've stated multiple times that Russia hacking the DNC was a good thing and should not be conflated with "hacking the election". The media describes it like that which makes people think voting machines were hacked or at the very least, emails were faked. All Russia did was reveal DNC corruption. I've always loved wikileaks because I'm for transparency. In fact, I think we should have access to most government and campaign related emails. Without the emails, you would still be able to say Bernie fans are delusional about the DNC rigging.

If a tree falls in a forest and no ones there but Russia reveals it, then the tree NEVER EXISTED BECAUSE RUSSIA IS TRYING TO INTERFERE WITH OUR DEMOCRACY.

Russia didn't attack the DNC because Hillary would have been good for America. They helped Trump because he's bad for NATO. People on the left are united with Trump's "america first" crowd on this issue because we all agree NATO is outdated, America needs to reel in its aid, and reel in military activities around the world, stop spending money on the defense of other countries, and put that money towards making our own country better. Sometimes, Russian interests can overlap.

11/22/2019 11:12:43 AM

holy shit, if i'm the first person you've seen correctly point out that its a fake story then you are waaaaay down the rabbit hole

11/22/2019 11:29:44 AM

Quote :

"We know for a fact that Hunter Biden was on that board while his father was the point person on Ukraine and got the top prosecutor replaced."

Ok, I’m being fair to Earl here and this is actually true.

But, it’s so far removed from any context it almost seems he is purposefully being misleading.

1) Biden wasn’t making decisions, he was implementing US and EU policy.
2) The existing prosecutor was NOT investigating Burisma (it was long dormant) and that is one of the EXPLICIT reasons why western policy was to have him removed.
3) The next prosecutor ALSO was corrupt and only now, with a president who seemingly actually wants to tackle corruption is anything potentially going to change.

Quote :

" The media describes it like that which makes people think voting machines were hacked or at the very least, emails were faked."

This is complete lie. Almost every story I’ve seen the entire time has explicitly stated that no votes were changed. In fact, they’ve also stated that they couldn’t conclude if any voters minds were even changed due to the hacked emails or any disinformation... which is crazy. OF COURSE voters minds were changed or at the very least the targeted disinformation focused in particular at African American voters depressed turnout.

[Edited on November 22, 2019 at 11:36 AM. Reason : C]

11/22/2019 11:33:48 AM