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posted by martyb on Tuesday September 24 2019, @01:57AM   Printer-friendly
from the Watergate-or-TeapotTempest dept.

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-49800181

(Note: emphasis in original.)

Why is this important?

Mr Trump's most ardent critics accuse him of using the powers of the presidency to bully Ukraine into digging up damaging information on a political rival, Democrat Joe Biden.

Meanwhile, Mr Trump and his supporters the former vice-president abused his power to pressure Ukraine to back away from a criminal investigation that could implicate his son, Hunter.

Mr Biden is the front-runner for the Democratic nomination to take on Mr Trump next year.

In other words, it is nothing less than the White House at stake.

[...] What happened to the whistleblower's complaint?

After receiving the [whistleblower] complaint, the inspector general informed Joseph Maguire, the acting director of national intelligence, and said the matter was "urgent". The intelligence community whistleblower law says the director has seven days to pass the complaint along to congressional intelligence committees.

That didn't happen.

Instead, Mr Maguire spoke to a lawyer who told him the issue was not "urgent", at least according to legal standards, according to [T]he New York Times.

As a result, Mr Maguire decided that the members of the congressional oversight committees did not need to see it.

On 9 September, the inspector general informed Congress about the complaint's existence, but not the details. Democrats in Congress have since clamoured for more information - including a transcript of Mr Trump's call - but the administration has refused to co-operate.

And that's where things currently stand.

[...] Did Mr Trump commit an impeachable offence?

The constitutional process for handling a president who committed illegal and-or unethical acts is impeachment by a majority of the House of Representatives and conviction and removal by a two-thirds majority of the US Senate.

The US constitution outlines the grounds for impeachment as "treason, bribery, or other high crimes and misdemeanors". When it comes down to it, an "impeachable offense" is whatever a majority of the House says it is.

Inspector General of the Intelligence Community Letters to Congressional Intelligence Committees


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  • (Score: 2) by hemocyanin on Tuesday September 24 2019, @05:25AM (11 children)

    by hemocyanin (186) on Tuesday September 24 2019, @05:25AM (#897976) Journal

    The list of things that would get me to vote for Trump is pretty damn short, but it is getting close.

    I didn't vote for Trump and but for the last three years of unmitigated hate spew from MSM and DNC, I would never have considered voting for him this upcoming election (I've voted 3d party in the last three elections now, once Libertarian and twice Green). The weirdest thing has happened though -- he's getting underdog status and that has raised the chance I vote for him from zero to something higher than zero. I'd vote for Gabbard in a heartbeat but if the DNC picks someone like Kamala the dirty prosecutor, I absolutely would vote for Trump without hesitation. The rest of the bunch, I'd probably just vote 3d party again. Oh, and whatsername -- the sort of new agey religious one -- I'd vote for her just for the laughs. She's a sort of Trump "FU" vote but from the other side.

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  • (Score: 4, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday September 24 2019, @06:14AM (8 children)

    by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday September 24 2019, @06:14AM (#897989)

    Lololol

    You freaks pushing anything supportive of that criminal is just weird to see. Like, are people really this dumb?

    • (Score: 3, Insightful) by hemocyanin on Tuesday September 24 2019, @08:17AM (7 children)

      by hemocyanin (186) on Tuesday September 24 2019, @08:17AM (#898023) Journal

      Remember this old joke?

      A car salesman is showing off a new car with a voice activated radio. He says "country" and country music channel comes on. Then he says to the customer, "you try it". So she says "rock" and a classics station comes on. A short time later, someone cuts her off, and she says "ASSHOLE!" ... and Rush Limbaugh comes on.

      The MSM, it's become 100% DNC Rush.

      • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday September 24 2019, @03:36PM (6 children)

        by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday September 24 2019, @03:36PM (#898179)

        And? MSM sucks but that isn't an excuse for Trump. Try again, maybe try just seeing the simple facts instead of deflecting blame so you can continue your propagandized version of reality?

        • (Score: 5, Insightful) by hemocyanin on Tuesday September 24 2019, @06:29PM (5 children)

          by hemocyanin (186) on Tuesday September 24 2019, @06:29PM (#898238) Journal

          The issue is that MSM/DNC spews so much hate toward him, it becomes impossible to identify anything true. It has also become apparent that it doesn't matter what he does, it will be spun in a negative light. Literally everything. So at this point, when I see media/politicians going on about how awful Trump is, I just roll my eyes. You lot let your hate get ahead of your good sense, kind of like racists do when they fall for the KKK or some shit.

          If you win, it will be a frightening lesson about the coming authoritocracy and so you just might find that people who have been life-long left leaning, or those that are freedom and peace inclined, are not at all excited at what the Democrats have become (some kind of weird pro-war, pro-corporate, pro-wallstreet, sanctimonious scold that calls itself progressive and is willing to resort to ANY dirty trick to get its way). I want no part of that.

          • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday September 24 2019, @10:13PM (4 children)

            by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday September 24 2019, @10:13PM (#898286)

            Ah, Fox news apprentice, got it.

            I see you are capable of independent thought, now TRY IT OUT! Seriously, your logic is that the MSM is too mean??? I thought MSM was full of shit and this not worth considering in any way? Hypocritical tribalism FTW!!!

            • (Score: 2) by hemocyanin on Tuesday September 24 2019, @11:44PM (3 children)

              by hemocyanin (186) on Tuesday September 24 2019, @11:44PM (#898322) Journal

              Not tribal -- I'm looking at what has been going on in the I5 corridor from Portland and northward, and it is clear to me that the Democrat types are engaging in economic warfare against anyone who dares express a contrary opinion. I don't see that happening on the GOP side. I don't see twitter mobs coming to destroy people's ability to make a living from the GOP side of the aisle -- I see it from the Democrat side only. That goes back to the reference I made earlier -- Democrats feel that they are 100% right all the time about all things and that anyone who opposes them are literal nazis. Literal nazis deserve death.

              Maybe Democrats are more rational in other places of the country, I can't speak to that.

              I'm not a republican either -- I'm pro-gay rights (lifelong), pro-abortion (lifelong), anti-imperialist wars (lifelong), pro-workers (lifelong), pro-freedom and privacy (BoR) (lifelong), pro-public healthcare. I'm an atheist, post-grad degree, jewish heritage, long time self-described lefty. I don't know what to call myself any more. The Democrats are going down a path of mob-based authoritarianism (metoo is a prime example), are unwilling to accept that other people can have different opinions and it doesn't make them "literal nazis". And yeah, if you go anywhere right wingers are, you'll hear "libtard" -- but it's an empty insult and nothing more. Make one wrong move with the Democrats, and you're a litteral nazi where it is fair game to assault you, economically destroy you, and I suspect in the near future, to literally kill you. Because Democrats have the moral high ground and everyone else should die. That's close to where we are at.

              • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday September 25 2019, @12:20AM (2 children)

                by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday September 25 2019, @12:20AM (#898335)

                "Democrat types" and you share all the values ostensibly associated with Democrats, but here you are spreading FUD and victimhood without even a single reference. Waging economic warfare? Seriously bad projection you've got there. Or is that what you call boycotts?

                HOW DARE THEY NOT SHOP WHERE I WANT??

                Thanks for the FUD bub.

                • (Score: 2) by hemocyanin on Wednesday September 25 2019, @01:12AM (1 child)

                  by hemocyanin (186) on Wednesday September 25 2019, @01:12AM (#898350) Journal

                  I already linked to the recent Portland lynching of Ristretto Roasters: https://soylentnews.org/comments.pl?noupdate=1&sid=33767&page=1&cid=898261#commentwrap [soylentnews.org]

                  What is interesting is that they went after Nancy's spouse's business because of thoughts *Nancy* had, and did great damage. That's some woke feminism at work. /sarc

                  • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday September 25 2019, @07:31PM

                    by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday September 25 2019, @07:31PM (#898718)

                    Ah, you're a nutter ok. Personally I file such stories under "crazies gotta crazy" like zealots who attack doctors and minorities. Go ahead, take the worst examples and apply them to everyone you don't like, it is the bigot's way!!

  • (Score: 2, Informative) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday September 24 2019, @08:35PM

    by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday September 24 2019, @08:35PM (#898264)

    I actually saw her at the courthouse in Downtown Sacramento. I don't remember the specifics of the conversation, but it was one of those fuck them hard until they pleabargain, they're all guilty of something conversations. Right out in the hallway in front of people awaiting jury selection or trials. Somebody had mentioned her status, but it wasn't until a few years later when I saw her wikipedia picture that I realized that is who it had been.

    She got to congress the same way she rose the ranks of lawyerdom: By being a corrupt heartless asshole more concerned with her career than any of the values America is supposed to but doesn't actually stand for. Not unlike Trump, Biden, Obama, Clinton(s), etc all.

  • (Score: 1) by khallow on Wednesday September 25 2019, @03:59AM

    by khallow (3766) Subscriber Badge on Wednesday September 25 2019, @03:59AM (#898385) Journal
    I still won't consider voting for Trump. Third party all the way.