“It depends on what the meaning of ‘is’ is.” Remember the defining moment of the Clinton impeachment, indeed, perhaps the defining moment of his Presidency? Clinton’s rationalization to the grand jury about why he wasn’t lying when he said to his top aides with respect to Monica Lewinsky, “There’s nothing going on between us”?:
“It depends on what the meaning of the word ‘is’ is. If ‘is’ means is and never has been, that is not—that is one thing. If it means there is none, that was a completely true statement . . . Now, if someone had asked me on that day, are you having any kind of sexual relations with Ms. Lewinsky, that is, asked me a question in the present tense, I would have said no. And it would have been completely true.”
Huh? It’s hard to swallow this Presidential word salad. But this is nothing compared to choking daily, even hourly, on the impeachment defense of the Current Occupant of the Oval Office (COOO).
Yes, I have dutifully watched most of the impeachment trial, even at times, aimlessly taking notes. This morning I read over those notes, and got rather sick to my stomach tracking the evolution of COOO’s impeachment defense. Why? Depends on what the meaning of truth is.
In October, when this scandal/scheme all blew up, COOO himself bellowed out/tweeted several excuses:
It was a perfect phone call!; Yes, I may have mentioned Biden, but look at Hunter; Other countries must begin to pay their fair share for military aid; NO QUID QUO PRO!; The whistleblower is a spy; Schiff co-wrote the whistleblower complaint; It’s a HOAX!; It’s my right under the Second Amendment!
And then the defense offered the following to the Senate and the American people:
Read the transcript!; The Ukrainians felt no pressure!; The Ukrainians were not aware the aid was being withheld!; No harm, no foul — they eventually got the aid; The Ukrainians have had no better friend than COOO!; This is massive interference into an election; AND (WAIT FOR IT) . . . even if he DID DO IT, the charges do not meet the criteria for impeachment.
See the evolution? It was a perfect phone call . . . and even if it wasn’t it’s not impeachable. And in between the words, “perfect” and “not impeachable” is not a word salad, but bullsh!t spaghetti. Throw everything against the Senate Chamber and see what sticks.
A lot of this B.S. is stuck on the souls of the Republicans in the Chamber. Have they no shame that many Americans believe the following?:
If the President walked down 5th Avenue and shot a Senator, he would be acquitted 53-47. If he shot a Republican Senator, he would be acquitted 52-47.
Yes, a storm’s a brewin’, Republicans, and actually may already be here. But move along, folks, there’s nothing to see here.
All post photos taken by Sharon J. Anderson
Apparently, the impeachment Q&A session continued WAY past my bedtime, so I woke up to the news that one of the President’s lawyers opined yesterday that it is within the law for a President to accept information from a foreign government about a opposing Presidential candidate as long as the information is “credible.” OMG.
And I actually witnessed the I-can’t-bear-to-retire-and-no-longer-get-publicity-lawyer, Alan Dershowitz opine that a President can do anything he/she wants to get re-elected “so long as they believe THEIR RE-ELECTION IS IN THE PUBLIC INTEREST”. OMG.
Who in the hell determines what is “in the public interest”?
Anyone else following these impeachment proceedings? Just curious to know if I am the only person — who believes that COOO is a profound threat to our democracy and a complete monster — watching. No judgement intended. It’s a lonely endeavor, but I think that it’s my responsibility as a citizen, particularly if I have the time to watch.
Trust me, I’d rather be reading, writing, walking, laughing and cleaning the toilet.
Look at me, my beloveds — COOO could be acquitted as early as tomorrow.
What happens when Bolton’s book comes out in March and we find out that Ukraine was just a drop in the COOO shit bucket?
And it’s mind-numbing to see how quickly the conservative right has abandoned their former poster boy, John Bolton.
This is scary stuff. Maybe that’s why I watch — it’s like watching a train wreck or, forgive me but these images have come to me while watching, the Twin Towers collapsing. Democracy is collapsing.
This perspective from an Atlantic article by Lawrence Goldstone entitled, “The Case Against Impeachment Has Nothing to Do With Impeachment”:
“What is being fought over on the Senate floor is as old as the nation itself. It has little to do with abuse of power, the Bidens, Ukraine, or a president stonewalling Congress. This is a struggle far more fundamental to American governance: the survival of what in recent years has become a cornerstone of the conservative movement—white-minority rule.”
The last paragraph in the article:
“As another presidential election nears, with American demographics trending more and more nonwhite, one need only observe the transparent schemes of voter suppression or glance at Fox News or listen to talk radio to realize that the ruling white, conservative minority perceives itself as under dire and imminent threat. It is thus easy to see why Mitch McConnell is so beloved on the right. He and his Republican colleagues are fighting not so much to keep Donald Trump in office as to shore up their reign, which, in their minds, might never be reclaimed once surrendered. They are all-too aware that Vice President Mike Pence simply does not evoke the passion that Donald Trump does, and the risk, if Trump were removed with the help of Republican senators, of that passion turning to rage against their own could easily cost Republicans both the presidency and the Senate. Under these circumstances, asking McConnell and other Republicans to voluntarily cede power because of the inconvenience of a president violating the Constitution is a fantasy. Rather, they will overlook any crime, any abuse of power, lest their rule be lost.”
To quote sanctimonious Jay Sekulow in his closing argument about the fallacy of the House Manager’s case: “Danger, danger, danger.”
A link to the entire article:
https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2020/01/case-against-impeachment-has-nothing-do-impeachment/605698/
Sharon, thank you for your thorough and thoughtful handling of this dark time. We need you and people like you to keep reminding us of the underlying core behind this wholehearted support of this COOO, this fear that whites may lose their grip on power. This fear that’s driving this “let the Muslims be damned, let the brownish immigrants at the southern border be damned,” and now, “let the Palestinians be damned.” I think if it weren’t for this fear, and the slavish evangelical insistence that our country should mirror their particular, narrow understanding of the gospel, we would not be in this dreadful state. But we are in it. Where has our sense of freedom and justice for all gone, and for that matter, watching this COOO, where has our dignity and insistence on truthfulness gone? Again, thank you for making me/us face the terrible trough into which we’ve fallen.
I don’t have much contentment pointing out this “terrible trough,” Carol. A lot of folks are hiding their heads — and souls — in this trough, aren’t they?
I appreciate your mentioning evangelical hypocrisy. Several years ago, I was proud to be an evangelical. Now, I’m ashamed.
I’ve been watching the impeachment Q&A — and Schiff called the President’s defense “Constitutional madness.” Still, they spew out their dangerous b.s. — which is aborting democracy.
I’m so discouraged. COOO is going to be acquitted and the madness will be unleashed unabated.
Thank you, Sharon, for your thorough account. I’ve mostly been taking in the highlights (or lowlights) of each day’s coverage and have sometimes opted out to watch the Australian Open instead.
Regardless of the outcome of this impeachment trial, we the people must dedicate ourselves to work our asses off to elect a NEW President and Senators in 2020. I’ve headed back to the gym in order to build my stamina for the heavy lifting which must be done to get America off of her beautiful ass and into the voting booth!
Preach it, sister!
Just want to say that I love you.
😘❤️