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Each week of the impeachment inquiry has brought at least one bit of testimony that either confirmed elements of the whistleblower report or opened up new avenues for impeachment investigators.
- Kurt Volker handed over the text messages that showed concern about a quid pro quo.
- Marie Yovanovitch said she was targeted by Rudy Giuliani and stood up for foreign service officers.
- Fiona Hill said that her boss, former national security adviser John Bolton, compared the shadow diplomacy being done on President Donald Trump’s behalf to a “drug deal.”
- George Kent, according to The Washington Post, said Trump soured on Ukraine after talking to Russia’s Vladimir Putin and Hungary’s Viktor Orban. He also backed up Yovanovitch and said he lit flares in 2015 about Hunter Biden.
- Gordon Sondland said Trump told him to work with Giuliani on Ukraine.
Who is Taylor?
What Taylor can tell us
Taylor is expected to be asked about the text messages he sent US Ambassador to the EU Gordon Sondland in September, before the whistleblower complaint was released.
[9/9/19, 12:47:11 AM] Bill Taylor: As I said on the phone, I think it’s crazy to withhold security assistance for help with a political campaign.
[9/9/19, 5:19:35 AM] Gordon Sondland: Bill, I believe you are incorrect about President Trump’s intentions…
From what we’ve learned about the closed-door testimony by career State Department officials, none of them have seemed to try to protect the President. We already know that Taylor was extremely skeptical of the shadow foreign policy Sondland was helping Giuliani execute.
Taylor can offer texture and important context about what led him to repeatedly question Sondland in the messages.
One key question
The messages contain a mystery: Did Taylor intentionally try to put his concerns on the record by texting about them? If they had already been discussed on the phone, why immortalize it and create a paper trail in text?
No-shows
Acting OMB director Russell Vought repeated Monday that his agency will not be cooperating, so testimony from the official who had a hand in delaying funding to Ukraine will likely not occur as planned Wednesday. But on Thursday, a key Pentagon official could give her side of why and how the money meant for Ukraine was frozen.
Trump scoffs at protection for whistleblower
Democrats and the whistleblower’s attorneys have raised questions about the individual’s safety in potential congressional testimony. Trump took the opportunity of the Cabinet meeting to again attack the whistleblower.
Remember in reading the quotes below that despite what Trump says, most of what the individual said has turned out to be true.
“Now you have to say, well do we have to protect somebody that gave a false account?” he asked.
“You know, these whistleblowers they have them like they’re angels. So do we have to protect somebody that gave a totally false account of my conversation? I don’t know. You tell me.”
He also repeatedly compared himself to George Washington because he, like the nation’s first president, is wealthy.
Schumer wants protection plan
Foundational cracks in the GOP? Keep looking
Whispers of discontent
Losing Republicans is clearly something Trump worries about, which he transmitted Monday as he complained about Democrats, who unlike Republicans, he said, are “vicious and they stick together.”
Whispers don’t vote
David smartly pointed out you need a magnifying glass to see cracks in the support for Trump among Republicans since they are almost unanimously behind him in public.
Impeachment timeline slipping
Turns out their timeline could slip further.
Plus, there are several more time-consuming steps as part of the probe, potentially trying to bring in big names like former national security adviser John Bolton, then holding public hearings before a report they’re expected to write with recommendations — all before any votes in the House.
One hard deadline is Election Day 2020. The ultimate question for Democrats could end up being whether they need to follow every lead they discover in order to vote that Trump committed high crimes or misdemeanors.
Pressure on Trump
The GOP is still very much behind him on impeachment, but Trump has had to modulate his position on the pullback from Syria and completely reverse his decision to hold the G7 summit at his golf resort in Florida.
Pressure on Schiff
Democrats have actually tried to pivot in their messaging about impeachment. On Friday, Schiff promised there would ultimately be public hearings and transcripts released. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi published a fact sheet on what the inquiry has learned so far.
Bottom line: It’s clear that even as they race toward impeaching Trump, Democrats are cognizant of the complaint by Republicans that they have abused the process.
What are we doing here?
The President has invited foreign powers to interfere in the US presidential election.
Democrats want to impeach him for it.
It is a crossroads for the American system of government as the President tries to change what’s acceptable for US politicians. This newsletter will focus on this consequential moment in US history.
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