Former U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine Marie Yovanovitch is sworn in to testify to the House Intelligence Committee on Capitol Hill in Washington, Friday, Nov. 15, 2019, during the second public impeachment hearing of President Donald Trump’s efforts to tie U.S. aid for Ukraine to investigations of his political opponents. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)
I don’t know if we’ve reached Peak Stupid yet, but we can certainly see it from here.
Dismissed former Ambassador to Ukraine Marie Yovanovitch is currently giving her testimony before Adam Schiff’s kangaroo court. President Trump, being, well President Trump, took to Twitter to let everyone know what he thought of the situation.
….They call it “serving at the pleasure of the President.” The U.S. now has a very strong and powerful foreign policy, much different than proceeding administrations. It is called, quite simply, America First! With all of that, however, I have done FAR more for Ukraine than O.
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 15, 2019
Wow….this is really unprecedented. @realDonaldTrump and Amb Yovanovitch are talking to each other in real time through @Twitter and Television… Something I never thought I would ever see.
— John Roberts (@johnrobertsFox) November 15, 2019
Then we had this:
🔥@BretBaier: “This whole hearing turned on a dime when @realDonaldTrump tweeted about (#Yovanovich) in real time…@RepAdamSchiff read the tweet….intimidating the witness…is a CRIME. Adding essentially an article of #impeachment real time.”pic.twitter.com/4F7quap1NU
— Dr. Dena Grayson (@DrDenaGrayson) November 15, 2019
That was a turning point in this hearing so far. She was already a sympathetic witness & the President’s tweet ripping her allowed Schiff to point it out real time characterizing it as witness tampering or intimidation -adding an article of impeachment real-time. https://t.co/HSCkGMIqmH
— Bret Baier (@BretBaier) November 15, 2019
Expect witness tampering to be an article of impeachment. https://t.co/HtcXcbVgms
— Justin Amash (@justinamash) November 15, 2019
.@NicolleDWallace says President Trump's tweets attacking Yovanovitch are "real-time witness tampering and intimidation."https://t.co/TwE9YJ5hLd
— MSNBC (@MSNBC) November 15, 2019
This is just profoundly stupid. Yovanovitch has already given a deposition. Her oral testimony is just a recitation of it. There is no hint that she was so shaken by Trump’s accurate recitation of the string of disasters she’s left behind her to change her testimony into something else. Beyond that, if anyone is guilty of anything here it is Schiff because Yovanovitch was not on Twitter when Trump sent the knicker-wadding tweet. She only learned about it from Schiff.
INSULTING someone does not = witness intimidation. It's rude (and dumb and poor form and a host of other things) but WITNESS INTIMIDATION?! He already fired her and said "not nice" things about her. Good God y'all. @BretBaier
— Susie Moore (@SmoosieQ) November 15, 2019
Alright. Gotta say this: Trump is a bull in a china shop. His tweets are rude & dumb & he'd do well to zip it. Yovanovitch seems sincere and sincerely hurt over her dismissal and the not-nice things said against her. But, by her own testimony, she was "the tip of the spear"; 1/
— Susie Moore (@SmoosieQ) November 15, 2019
She was stationed in Mogadishu; she describes the role of foreign service employees as often dangerous. I have difficulty believing she — or anyone in that role — is a shrinking violet who wilts at cross words. If so, I question whether they're well-suited to it. 2/
— Susie Moore (@SmoosieQ) November 15, 2019
Trump fired her. He insulted her previously. To assert that him sending an insulting tweet during her testimony = witness intimidation and FOR HER to assert that she felt "threatened" by it is utterly ridiculous. Give me a break, lady. 3/3
— Susie Moore (@SmoosieQ) November 15, 2019
How can Trump’s tweet be obstruction of justice I was told this isn’t a criminal proceeding
— Julie Kelly (@julie_kelly2) November 15, 2019
https://twitter.com/seanmdav/status/1195369569428357120
If Democrats push an article of impeachment for literally tweeting, about his Constitutional powers no less, I don’t think it will be taken seriously outside of DC. https://t.co/cmJx66fQW7
— Mollie (@MZHemingway) November 15, 2019
LOL. @RepAdamSchiff claims, via @CNN, that when Trump explains his decision to fire Yovanovitch, on Twitter, that's "witness intimidation in real time." You're guilty in Schiff's Soviet show trial if you try to defend yourself. #ImpeachmentHearing
— Joel B. Pollak (@joelpollak) November 15, 2019
We see this over and over in this bullsh** proceeding. First we’re told that because it is a political undertaking and not a legal one, that Congress can question witnesses in secret, not Mirandize witnesses, compel the President’s lawyers to break attorney-client privilege, and just about anything else because #OrangeManBad. Then, whenever the White House goes on the offensive, we’re bombarded with utter horsesh** about “witness tampering” or “obstruction” or some other nebulous crap. Prime example:
French 5 minutes ago: "This is a political process and any comparisons to a criminal proceeding are invalid."
French now: "Here's a comparison to a criminal proceeding that completely ignores the political nature of impeachment and why partisan motivations are relevant." https://t.co/1mfJQ0pyHt
— Bonchie (@bonchieredstate) November 14, 2019
I really hope that Schiff does try to make this into “witness tampering” or “intimidation” or whatever nonsense he wants to call it. Because all this will do is make it that much easier for flaky, on-the-fence Senators to quickly dismiss this travesty and it allows the American public to see exactly what is going on in the House.
Join the conversation as a VIP Member