So... let's just summarize the Republican talking points regarding the impeachment:
- Republicans feel that the testimony being held behind closed doors during the initial grand jury testimony was wrong.
- You know, the testimony that is generally performed behind closed doors prior to a trial? The trial itself comes AFTER the person has been charged with a crime. If the House votes to impeach the President, that vote is them charging the President with a crime.
- Republicans feel that it was important to let the President, or his lawyers, cross examine witnesses and face his accusers.
- It is typically after you have been charged with a crime that you cross examine the witnesses and have the right to face your accuser. I've never heard "I want to face my accuser" as the response to being questioned by police before a charge is made. So, again, slow your roll.
- Republicans say that without the whistle blower coming forward, there is no way to judge the case.... oh, and that the whistle blower can't be believed because they don't have first-hand knowledge... I mean, if the latter is so critical, why does the former even matter?
- First off, you also keep telling us to just read the transcript. We did and that is essentially one of the witnesses.
- Secondly, let's say there are 10 witnesses to a crime. One of them talks to a friend and that friend goes to the cops to let them know the crime was committed. If 7 of the 10 witnesses then get brought in by the cops and they testify to what they witnessed... what does anything about the friend matter?!?
- Speaking of witnesses, Republicans are complaining that those coming forth now are still not close enough to the President... they're just the ambassador to Ukraine, and similar level, who were directly going between the White House and Ukrainian officials
- Ok, but you've told everybody with more direct connections to the President not to testify so how about you let them testify instead of saying "we don't think you're bringing enough of the evidence that we're withholding from you."
- The President says there was nothing wrong
- I'm amused by this but it can hardly be considered a surprise given that ...
- virtually everybody has told him that it's wrong to accept political aid from a foreign power and yet he keeps saying that it's totally reasonable and that everybody does it.
- he lies about everything. The size of the crowd at his inauguration, how people behave around him (all those people crying during an event we have a video recording of which show NOBODY crying), whether he has reason to believe Russia tampered in the election (first he said he had no reason to believe they did and then he "clarified" that he meant to say "he had no reason to not believe they did"... yeah, that's a helpful clarification and one that's totally believable... you could have just said "I was just told x by Putin but believe my team" rather than "I was just told x by Putin and I have no reason to believe anything else")
- Republicans point out that there can't be a quid pro quo because the Ukrainian President never ended up giving Trump what he wanted but we did end up giving Ukraine the funds. Ok, this is the hardest one. It's the most reasonable one I've heard... thus why I saved it for last. It also happens to be the one I've heard the least, which tells you something about the messaging of the Republican party on this matter... why try a rationale response when you can lie or use irrational responses?... but let's try to figure this out, shall we?
- Alright, so... if I go into a bank and pull out a gun and tell the bank teller to give me $1,000... and someone apprehends me... I still can be charged and convicted for attempted bank robbery. My getting caught doing the illegal thing and prevented from getting the outcome I wanted doesn't prevent the illegal thing from happening in the first place. Essentially, what I'm saying is that, even though Trump was essentially forced to send the money to Ukraine, the month that he had been directed by Congress to send to Ukraine... even though he sent it days before the Ukrainian President was scheduled to go on TV... the fact that he was caught doing this and forced to send the money doesn't stop us from recognizing that he was trying to do this. Interesting information on his being forced to release the money came out a few days ago: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-11-09/state-department-freed-ukraine-money-before-trump-says-he-did In addition to this, the investigation into the situation started roughly at the same time as the Ukrainian President was scheduled to announce the investigation.
