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Democrats Are Walking Right Into Trump's Trap, NYT Implies Trump Wants The Impeachment Fight


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following such instructions.14 Current and former State Department officials are duty bound to protect the confidentiality interests of the Executive Branch, and the Office of Legal Counsel has also recognized that it is unconstitutional to exclude agency counsel from participating in congressional depositions.15 In addition, any attempt to withhold an official’s salary for the assertion of such interests would be unprecedented and unconstitutional.16 The Committees assertions on these points amount to nothing more than strong-arın tactics designed to rush proceedings without any regard for due process and the rights of individuals and of the Executive Branch. Threats aimed at intimidating individuals who assert these basic rights are attacks on civil liberties that should profoundly concern all Americans.

II. The Invalid “Impeachment Inquiry” Plainly Seeks To Reverse the Election of 2016 and To Influence the Election of 2020.

The effort to impeach President Trump — without regard to any evidence of his actions in office — is a naked political strategy that began the day he was inaugurated, and perhaps even before.17 In fact, your transparent rush to judgment, lack of democratically accountable authorization, and violation of basic rights in the current proceedings make clear the illegitimate, partisan purpose of this purported “impeachment inquiry.” The Founders, however, did not create the extraordinary mechanism of impeachment so it could be used by a political party that feared for its prospects against the sitting President in the next election. The decision as to who will be elected President in 2020 should rest with the people of the United States, exactly where the Constitution places it.

Democrats themselves used to recognize the dire implications of impeachment for the Nation. For example, in the past, Chairman Nadler has explained:

The effect of impeachment is to overturn the popular will of the voters. We must not overturn an election and remove a President from office except to defend our system of government or our constitutional liberties against a dire threat, and we must not do so without an overwhelming consensus of the American people. There must never be a narrowly voted impeachment or an impeachment supported by one of our major political parties and opposed by another. Such an impeachment will produce divisiveness and bitterness in our

14 See, e.g., Testimonial Immunity Before Congress of the Former Counsel to the President, 43 Op. O.L.C. _, *19 (May 20, 2019); Prosecution for Contempt of Congress of an Executive Branch Official Who Has Asserted a Claim of Executive Privilege, 8 Op. O.L.C. 101, 102, 140 (1984) (“The Executive, however, must be free from the threat of criminal prosecution if its right to assert executive privilege is to have any practical substance.")

15 Attempted Exclusion of Agency Counsel from Congressional Depositions of Agency Employees, 43 Op. O.L.C. _,*1-2 (May 23, 2019).

16 See President Donald J. Trump, Statement by the President on Signing the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2019 (Feb. 15, 2019); Authority of Agency Officials To Prohibit Employees From Providing Information to Congress, 28 Op. O.L.C, 79, 80 (2004).

17 See Matea Gold, The Campaign To Impeach President Trump Has Begun, Wash. Post (Jan. 21, 2017) (“At the moment the new commander in chief was sworn in, a campaign to build public support for his impeachment went live ....”).

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politics for years to come, and will call into question the very legitimacy of our political institutions.18

Unfortunately, the President’s political opponents now seem eager to transform impeachment from an extraordinary remedy that should rarely be contemplated into a conventional political weapon to be deployed for partisan gain. These actions are a far cry from what our Founders envisioned when they vested Congress with the “important trust” of considering impeachment.19 Precisely because it nullifies the outcome of the democratic process, impeachment of the President is fraught with the risk of deepening divisions in the country and creating long-lasting rifts in the body politic.20 Unfortunately, you are now playing out exactly the partisan rush to judgment that the Founders so strongly warned against. The American people deserve much better than this.

III. There Is No Legitimate Basis for Your “Impeachment Inquiry”; Instead, the Committees’ Actions Raise Serious Questions.

It is transparent that you have resorted to such unprecedented and unconstitutional procedures because you know that a fair process would expose the lack of any basis for your inquiry. Your current effort is founded on a completely appropriate call on July 25, 2019, between President Trump and President Zelenskyy of Ukraine, Without waiting to see what was actually said on the call, a press conference was held announcing an “impeachment inquiry” based on falsehoods and misinformation about the call.21 To rebut those falsehoods, and to provide transparency to the American people, President Trump secured agreement from the Government of Ukraine and took the extraordinary step of declassifying and publicly releasing the record of the call. That record clearly established that the call was completely appropriate, that the President did nothing wrong, and that there is no basis for an impeachment inquiry. At a joint press conference shortly after the call’s public release, President Zelenskyy agreed that the call was appropriate,22 In addition, the Department of Justice announced that officials there had reviewed the call after a referral for an alleged campaign finance law violation and found no such violation.23

Perhaps the best evidence that there was no wrongdoing on the call is the fact that, after the actual record of the call was released, Chairman Schiff chose to concoct a false version of the call and to read his made-up transcript to the American people at a public hearing.24 This

18 144 Cong. Rec. HI 1786 (daily ed. Dec. 18, 1998) (statement of Rep. Jerrold Nadler).

19 The Federalist No. 65 (Alexander Hamilton).

20 See id.

21 Press Release, Nancy Pelosi, Pelosi Remarks Announcing Impeachment Inquiry (Sept. 24, 2019).

22 President Trump Meeting with Ukrainian President, C-SPAN (Sept. 25, 2019).

23 Statement of Kerri Kupec, Director, Office of Public Affairs, Dept. of Justice (Sept. 25, 2019) (“[T]he Department’s Criminal Division reviewed the official record of the call and determined, based on the facts and applicable law, that there was no campaign finance violation and that no further action was warranted.”).

24 See Whistleblower Disclosure: Hearing Before the H. Select Comm. on Intel., 116th Cong. (Sept. 26, 2019) (statement of Rep. Adam Schiff).

 

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powerfully confirms there is no issue with the actual call. Otherwise, why would Chairman Schiff feel the need to make up his own version? The Chairman’s action only further undermines the public’s confidence in the fairness of any inquiry before his Committee.

The real problem, as we are now learning, is that Chairman Schiff’s office, and perhaps others — despite initial denials — were involved in advising the whistleblower before the complaint was filed. Initially, when asked on national television about interactions with the whistleblower, Chairman Schiff unequivocally stated that “[w]e have not spoken directly with the whistleblower. We would like to.”25

Now, however, it has been reported that the whistleblower approached the House Intelligence Committee with information — and received guidance from the Committee — before filing a complaint with the Inspector General.26 As a result, The Washington Post concluded that Chairman Schiff “clearly made a statement that was false.”27 Anyone who was involved in the preparation or submission of the whistleblower’s complaint cannot possibly act as a fair and impartial judge in the same matter — particularly after misleading the American people about his involvement.

All of this raises serious questions that must be investigated. However, the Committees are preventing anyone, including the minority, from looking into these critically important matters. At the very least, Chairman Schiff must immediately make available all documents relating to these issues. After all, the American people have a right to know about the Committees’ own actions with respect to these matters.

Given that your inquiry lacks any legitimate constitutional foundation, any pretense of fairness, or even the most elementary due process protections, the Executive Branch cannot be expected to participate in it. Because participating in this inquiry under the current unconstitutional posture would inflict lasting institutional harm on the Executive Branch and lasting damage to the separation of powers, you have left the President no choice. Consistent with the duties of the President of the United States, and in particular his obligation to preserve the rights of future occupants of his office, President Trump cannot permit his Administration to participate in this partisan inquiry under these circumstances.

Your recent letter to the Acting White House Chief of Staff argues that “[e]ven if an impeachment inquiry were not underway,” the Oversight Committee may seek this information

25 Interview with Chairman Adain Schiff, MSNBC (Sept. 17, 2019).

26 Julian Barnes, et al., Schiff Got Early Account of Accusations as Whistle-Blower’s Concerns Grew, N.Y. Times (Oct. 2, 2019).

27 Glenn Kessler, Schiff’s False Claim His Committee Had Not Spoken to the Whistleblower, Wash. Post (Oct. 4, 2019)

 

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as a matter of the established oversight process.28 Respectfully, the Committees cannot have it both ways. The letter comes from the Chairmen of three different Committees, it transmits a subpoena “[p]ursuant to the House of Representatives’ impeachment inquiry,” it recites that the documents will “be collected as part of the House’s impeachment inquiry,” and it asserts that the documents will be “shared among the Committees, as well as with the Committee on the Judiciary as appropriate.”29 The letter is in no way directed at collecting information in aid of legislation, and you simply cannot expect to rely on oversight authority to gather information for an unauthorized impeachment inquiry that conflicts with all historical precedent and rides roughshod over due process and the separation of powers. If the Committees wish to return to the regular order of oversight requests, we stand ready to engage in that process as we have in the past, in a manner consistent with well-established bipartisan constitutional protections and a respect for the separation of powers enshrined in our Constitution.

For the foregoing reasons, the President cannot allow your constitutionally illegitimate proceedings to distract him and those in the Executive Branch from their work on behalf of the American people. The President has a country to lead. The American people elected him to do this job, and he remains focused on fulfilling his promises to the American people. He has important work that he must continue on their behalf, both at home and around the world, including continuing strong economic growth, extending historically low levels of unemployment, negotiating trade deals, fixing our broken immigration system, lowering prescription drug prices, and addressing mass shooting violence. We hope that, in light of the many deficiencies we have identified in your proceedings, you will abandon the current invalid efforts to pursue an impeachment inquiry and join the President in focusing on the many important goals that matter to the American people.

Sincerely,
Pat A. Cipollone
Counsel to the President
CC:
Hon. Kevin McCarthy, Minority Leader, House of Representatives
Hon. Michael McCaul, Ranking Member, House Committee on Foreign Affairs
Hon. Devin Nunes, Ranking Member, House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence
Hon. Jim Jordan, Ranking Member, House Committee on Oversight and Reform

28 Letter from Elijah e, Cummings, Chairman, House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, et al., to John Michael Mulvaney, Acting Chief of Staff to the President 3 (Oct. 4, 2019).

 

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A U.S. Defense Intelligence Agency employee was arrested Wednesday on federal charges that he leaked classified national defense information to two journalists – one of them romantically involved with him.

Henry Kyle Frese, 30, a counterterrorism analyst who held a top-secret clearance at the DIA, had started there as a contractor in January 2017 before working at the agency full time.

David Frese was indicted Wednesday on charges that he leaked classified information to journalists.

David Frese was indicted Wednesday on charges that he leaked classified information to journalists. (Alexandria Sheriff’s Office.)

Between April and May 2018, Frese allegedly accessed classified intelligence reports – some of which were unrelated to his job duties – and leaked secret information regarding a foreign country’s weapons system to a reporter, according to court documents.

The documents accused Frese of being romantically involved with one of the reporters to whom he allegedly leaked information.

A criminal indictment said the reporter wrote at least eight articles from five compromised intelligence reports leaked by Frese. It said Frese re-tweeted a link to one of the articles that used the information he allegedly had provided.

 

The first reporter then asked Frese if he’d be willing to speak to another reporter, according to the criminal indictment. Frese allegedly said he was “down” to help the second reporter if it helped the first reporter “progress.”

The indictment also accused Frese of speaking about classified national defense information to the second reporter via his cellphone on Sept. 24, 2019. The disclosures reportedly contained information that "could reasonably be expected to cause serious harm to the national security of the United States."

“As laid out in today’s indictment, Frese was caught red-handed disclosing sensitive national security information for personal gain,” Assistant Attorney General for National Security John Demers said. “Frese betrayed the trust placed in him by the American people—a betrayal that risked harming the national security of this country.”

Neither of the reporters was identified by name in court documents, and the Justice Department declined to provide any additional details about the classified information that was leaked.

U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia Zach Terwilliger, right, accompanied by Assistant U.S. Attorney Danya Atiyeh, left, announcing the arrest of Henry Kyle Frese, a Defense Intelligence Agency official charged with leaking classified information to two journalists.

U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia Zach Terwilliger, right, accompanied by Assistant U.S. Attorney Danya Atiyeh, left, announcing the arrest of Henry Kyle Frese, a Defense Intelligence Agency official charged with leaking classified information to two journalists. (AP)

U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia Zach Terwilliger told reporters Wednesday that an investigation started after it became apparent the classified information had gone public.

Terwilliger denied the Justice Department was trying to send a message to journalists. He said prosecutors were focused on the leaker, not the journalists.

"If you leak info, you will be prosecuted," he said.

Frese was arrested Wednesday at the DIA facing two counts of willful transmission of national defense information to persons not entitled to receive it.

If convicted, he would face up to 10 years in prison on each count.

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Conservatives Troll Trump With 'Photograph' Of Him And Arrested Giuliani Pals

A picture of President Donald Trump with Lev Parnas and Igor Fruman ― two Soviet-born associates of Rudy Giuliani who were arrested this week on federal campaign finance charges ― has already been given the Nickelback “Photograph” treatment. 

And it came from the right, not the left.

Conservative website The Bulwark, which often features anti-Trump commentary from the right, shared this clip from senior video editor Barry Rubin:

The clip, of course, was a reference to a tweet Trump posted last week taunting former Vice President Joe Biden and his son Hunter Biden. That photo showed the Bidens with someone identified as a “Ukrainian gas exec,” but was actually Hunter Biden’s longtime business partner Devon Archer. Archer and the former vice president’s son were on the board of the Ukrainian company Burisma Holdings.

Trump’s tweet was removed when Nickelback filed a copyright complaint. 

The clip, of course, was a reference to a tweet Trump posted last week taunting former Vice President Joe Biden and his son Hunter Biden. That photo showed the Bidens with someone identified as a “Ukrainian gas exec,” but was actually Hunter Biden’s longtime business partner Devon Archer. Archer and the former vice president’s son were on the board of the Ukrainian company Burisma Holdings.

Trump’s tweet was removed when Nickelback filed a copyright complaint. 

https://www.yahoo.com/news/donald-trump-photograph-093155172.html

 

 

 

Is part of his trap?

B/A

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Rudy Giuliani associates charged with campaign finance violations

 

Lev Parnas and Igor Fruman were arrested on charges including conspiracy, making false statements and falsifying records

 

Julian Borger in Washington

Thu 10 Oct 2019 23.08 BST

 

 

 

1398.jpg?width=700&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=97fb9569949c42099d5e0d76ece5a4dc
Rudy Giuliani has coffee with Lev Parnas, one of the two men arrested, at the Trump International hotel in Washington DC on 20 September.
Photograph: Aram Roston/Reuters
 
 
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On 10/9/2019 at 8:06 AM, Shabibilicious said:

 

Don the Con is just adding to his pending counts of obstruction.  Latest polls now have 58% of Americans in favor of impeachment.  Sorry, no link.

 

GO RV, then BV 

Cite the poll or produce the website it comes from. Don't pull numbers out your bum. Or it didn't happen.

 

Hey guys 567% of Americans breathe. True I saw it in a poll. Can't cite the poll though because no link. /s 

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17 hours ago, Theseus said:

Cite the poll or produce the website it comes from. Don't pull numbers out your bum. Or it didn't happen.

 

Hey guys 567% of Americans breathe. True I saw it in a poll. Can't cite the poll though because no link. 

 

October 8th, Newsweek and others.  I've yet to figure out how to post links from my phone.  So yes, I do apologize.

 

GO RV, then BV 

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On 10/1/2019 at 3:57 PM, bostonangler said:

Rudy Giuliani, the president's lawyer, has retained a lawyer.

 

Iam  not surprised you got a ruby and I'll even it out with an emerald. With the mounting  (as you say staggering )number of issues 

Not a good sign when a lawyer has to hire his own lawyer, next we will see a new president coming in to fill the position that is ubnder performing.As long as we are breathing, there is hope. 

there seems to be some favorable winds of change coming that is going to blow some of the trash out of the white house  

 

 

On 10/2/2019 at 7:55 AM, bostonangler said:

I understand that he isn't any different from the rest of the swamp dwellers. I'm just surprised other people don't see it, or they  refuse to admit it...

I would attribute that to not being caught up in a false god ideology.. There is a prett good thread on MSM Mind control, but it examines some of the mechanisms and consequences

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18 hours ago, Theseus said:

Cite the poll or produce the website it comes from. Don't pull numbers out your bum. Or it didn't happen.

 

Hey guys 567% of Americans breathe. True I saw it in a poll. Can't cite the poll though because no link. /s 

 

Made it to my computer.  Here's some links, from the www, not my bum.  ;)  Please keep in mind this information is from the day of my original statement and may have changed, as the impeachment inquiry is fast moving.

 

https://contemptor.com/2019/10/08/58-of-americans-now-support-trumps-impeachment-per-latest-poll/

 

https://www.10tv.com/article/poll-58-now-approve-trump-impeachment-inquiry-2019-oct

 

https://talkingpointsmemo.com/news/trump-impeachment-inquiry-majority-americans-support

 

https://www.newsweek.com/trump-impeachment-58-percent-americans-twitter-trends-washington-post-poll-1463822

 

https://www.celebitchy.com/637508/58_of_americans_support_the_impeachment_inquiry_of_donald_trump/

 

https://www.wthr.com/article/poll-58-percent-now-approve-trump-impeachment-inquiry

 

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2019/10/08/trump-impeachment-inquiry-poll/3905973002/

 

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/live/2019/oct/08/trump-news-today-live-impeachment-syria-turkey-polls-latest-updates?page=with:block-5d9c80398f084ab841734cbd

 

https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/poll-majority-of-americans-say-they-endorse-opening-of-house-impeachment-inquiry-of-trump/2019/10/07/be9e0af6-e936-11e9-85c0-85a098e47b37_story.html

 

GO RV, then BV

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5 minutes ago, coorslite21 said:

You might try google or youtube to solve that problem.....better yet....a grand kid or just any kid......   CL

 

Nah....I'll figure it out in time.  For now I'll simply wait until I have access to a computer to clean up any confusion naysayers may have.  Thanks though.

 

GO RV, then BV

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Just now, Shabibilicious said:

 

On 10/11/2019 at 5:19 AM, bostonangler said:

Conservatives Troll Trump With 'Photograph' Of Him And Arrested Giuliani Pals

A picture of President Donald Trump with Lev Parnas and Igor Fruman ― two Soviet-born associates of Rudy Giuliani who were arrested this week on federal campaign finance charges ― has already been given the Nickelback “Photograph” treatment. 

And it came from the right, not the left.

Conservative website The Bulwark, which often features anti-Trump commentary from the right, shared this clip from senior video editor Barry Rubin:

The clip, of course, was a reference to a tweet Trump posted last week taunting former Vice President Joe Biden and his son Hunter Biden. That photo showed the Bidens with someone identified as a “Ukrainian gas exec,” but was actually Hunter Biden’s longtime business partner Devon Archer. Archer and the former vice president’s son were on the board of the Ukrainian company Burisma Holdings.

Trump’s tweet was removed when Nickelback filed a copyright complaint. 

The clip, of course, was a reference to a tweet Trump posted last week taunting former Vice President Joe Biden and his son Hunter Biden. That photo showed the Bidens with someone identified as a “Ukrainian gas exec,” but was actually Hunter Biden’s longtime business partner Devon Archer. Archer and the former vice president’s son were on the board of the Ukrainian company Burisma Holdings.

Trump’s tweet was removed when Nickelback filed a copyright complaint. 

https://www.yahoo.com/news/donald-trump-photograph-093155172.html

 

 

 

Is part of his trap?

B/A

And the hits keep coming. Seems you can't run or hide from the legacy you create.

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2 minutes ago, adhoc10 said:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

he showed his true colors on the campaign trail and couldn't be impeached until he took the oath.   It is a clear case of seeing the writing on the wall

 

Impeachment is a rather vague process......you can be impeached without breaking any laws that you could be prosecuted for......

 

That said.......I'm still looking for someone to post something actually impeachable that Trump has done.....Mueller went down that rabbit hole ......2 + years.....$30 million.......if he had found anything they would have acted.......

Lots of holes in this Ukraine deal as well........

Show me something concrete....     CL

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