Renewable Revolution

Am watching cable news @ 9:09AM. Sondlund's opening statement has bee released, and it appears he's blowing them all in to save his own ass.

9:00 a.m.
Sondland acknowledges there was a ‘quid pro quo’
https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/impeachment-hearings-live-updates/2019/11/20/66ec806a-0b20-11ea-8397-a955cd542d00_story.html#link-KZV4NMP744YFBOXXP3NSFZLQNQ

Sondland planned to testify Wednesday more bluntly than he had before that Trump and his personal lawyer Rudolph W. Giuliani sought to condition an important White House invite for Ukraine’s new president to demands that his country publicly launch investigations that could damage Trump’s Democratic political opponents.

“I know that members of this committee have frequently framed these complicated issues in the form of a simple question: Was there a ‘quid pro quo?’” Sondland planned to say, according to prepared remarks. “With regard to the requested White House call and White House meeting, the answer is yes.”

Sondland, the U.S. ambassador to the European Union, also planned to tell the House Intelligence Committee that while he never knew for sure if the White House had frozen nearly $400 million in security assistance as part of the pressure campaign against Ukraine, he operated as if that were the case.

“In the absence of any credible explanation for the hold, I came to the conclusion that the aid, like the White House visit, was jeopardized,” Sondland said. “My belief was that if Ukraine did something to demonstrate a serious intention” to launch the investigations Trump wanted, “then the hold on military aid would be lifted.”

Thom  Hartmann covers Republicans' pretzel logic response to Sondland pretty well. I watched a lot of it. There was a lot of legerdemain from the Republicans AND Sondland , to be sure. However, Sondland did end up being cornered by a smart Democrat into admitting, begrudgingly, that Trump was the "dealer" that "dealt the cards" Sondland was "given". That is a big deal because it delegitimizes (i.e. makes a mockery of, calls bullshit on, etc. - you get the idea) all the Republican mendacious efforts to throw absolutely anybody under the 'MOTIVE for the Ukrainian Scam' bus but the BOSS (i.e. Trump), who was the main beneficiary of making it happen. Trump dealt the cards to all the "players". I'm sure the political cartoonists will have a field day with Trump's "card table".



50 views•Nov 20, 2019


Thom Hartmann Program
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Quid Pro Quo, Bribery Or Extortion, Republicans are trying to say these all describe different crimes, the thing is, Trump is guilty of all of them!
 
Thom Hartmann reveals how to break free from Republican spin around Gordon Sondland's testimony and the impeachment process in general.

Republicans are trying to make it look like the impeachment inquiry has nothing on Trump through a careful twisting of facts, this is how to counter their arguments.

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