Star Impeachment Witness Slams Trump!

DJ October 23, 2019

13 2 minutes read

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The most anticipated star impeachment witness testified against Donald Trump before 3 House committees on Tuesday and delivered a damning deposition that almost certainly has ‘The Donald’s’ nerves in knots on Wednesday.

Politics
Bill Taylor, the top US diplomat in Ukraine, provided 10 hours of credible testimony behind closed doors to the House Intelligence, Oversight, and Foreign Affairs committees. This star impeachment witness provided the most critical evidence to date, testifying that Donald Trump was hell-bent on seriously withholding military aid to Ukraine until it publicly declared it would launch investigations against former Vice-President Joe Biden and his son Hunter, in order to help his reelection goals.

Top Impeachment Witness

Interestingly, this fatal bit of information was only part of Taylor’s hour-long opening statement and it prompted audible sighs and gasps from several lawmakers present.

Taylor then went on to stick a knife into Trump’s hopes of avoiding guilt with several other lethal gems:

“There was an irregular, informal channel of US policy-making with respect to Ukraine, one which included then-Special Envoy Kurt Volker, Ambassador Sondland, Secretary of Energy Rick Perry, and as I subsequently learned, Mr. Giuliani,” Taylor said of the Trump attorney’s rogue operation to get ‘The Donald’ to push Ukraine into pursuing investigations into his political opponents.
“Ambassador Sondland told me that he had recommended to President Zelenskyy that he use the phrase, ‘I will leave no stone unturned’ with regard to ‘investigations’ when President Zelesnkyy spoke with President Trump,” Taylor said of the conversation that took place before Trump’s call.
“Ambassador Sondland told me that President Trump had told him that he wants President Zelenskyy to state publicly that Ukraine will investigate Burisma [Hunter Biden’s company] and alleged Ukrainian interference in the 2016 US election,” Taylor testified. In direct contrast to Trump’s version of events, the star impeachment witness then added that he was aware military aid funding would not come until Zelenskyy “committed to pursuing the Burisma investigation.”
“President Trump did insist that President Zelennskyy go to a microphone and say he is opening investigations of Biden and 2016 election interference and that President Zelenskyy should want to do this himself,” Taylor testified as proof of quid pro quo.
“The push to make President Zelenskyy publicly commit to investigations of Burisma and alleged interference in the 2016 election showed how the official foreign policy of the United States was undercut by the irregular efforts led by Mr. Giuliani, Taylor added.” Or, in other words, despite the bipartisan effort Taylor and other legitimate US officials had designed to reassure Zelenskyy that the US policy toward Ukraine would remain unchanged, Rudy Giuliani designed a counter-narrative to undermine the official authority of the US in order to protect Trump’s own domestic political agenda.

Top Impeachment Witness

Kurt Volker, the former US special envoy for Ukraine, recommended Taylor to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo for the post in May. Taylor then met with Pompeo, State Department Counselor Ulrich Brechbuhl and Volker, who each vouched for his character and decided that he was the perfect man for the job.

Now, here’s the million-dollar question: will Taylor’s damaging testimony advance the House impeachment inquiry and turn public sentiment and GOP political protectors against Trump?

Only time will tell.

OK WASSUP! discusses Politics:
Star impeachment witness testifies.

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DJ October 23, 2019

13 2 minutes read

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Truthiz1

Sr. Member

October 23, 2019 9:38 AM

With Bill Taylor’s mountain of evidence against Donald Trump, expect ‘The Donald’ and his henchmen to attempt to smear this star impeachment witness in the hopes of delegitimizing his testimony. However, make no mistake. Bill Taylor is no partisan politician. In fact, he is a Westpoint graduate and a career diplomat with 50 years of service who had to be convinced to take the Ambassador to Ukraine job under Trump in the first place. […] Exactly right DJ. Taylor is no partisan hack. The man has a stellar reputation. But as you noted, that won’t stop Trump and his ‘henchmen’ from trying to tear Taylor’s reputation to shreds. They are after all, totally corrupt and have absolutely NO shame. But here’s the deal. Taylor’s testimony presents a a Real problem for Trump. Trump knows it. Trump’s hardcore supporters know it (but they don’t care). The Repubs on Capitol Hill know… Read more »

October 23, 2019 9:42 AM

‘This is Actually One of the Most Significant Points From Bill Taylor’s Statement’ Excerpt: Bill Taylor, the acting ambassador for Ukraine, had been pushing for a phone call between President Trump and Ukraine’s President for some time. The call finally happened on July 25, 2019. Taylor finally learned of the call on September 25, 2019. That is the day the transcript of the call went public. Taylor learned of it and its contents from press reports. It is an issue that Democrats and some Republicans will focus on. The man who really wanted that call to happen did not learn of it until it went public two months after it happened. Not only that, but no one in the White House thought it was important to tell the ambassador to a country what the ambassador’s boss said to the president of that other country. That is rather unheard of for… Read more »

October 23, 2019 9:48 AM

Resurgent Reader: Taylors testimony is about as bad for Trump as testimony could ever possibly get from a witness. Coming on the heels of Mulvaney screwing up that press conference, the blow is twice as bad as it would otherwise be. McConnell backing away from Trump probably has at least something to do with recent polling which shows a substantial uptick in support for impeachment. And as more Senators back away, Trump is left to flail which probably drives support for impeachment higher still. That turns into a self-reinforcing cycle, which will destroy Trump if it’s not stopped. There’s a hard core of Trump supporters who wouldn’t abandon him even if he murdered a prostitute, but that’s nowhere near enough to save the Senate or help Trump win reelection (assuming he lasts that long). […] Resurgent Reader: For me, what this really comes down to is being consistent about the… Read more »

October 23, 2019 9:50 AM

‘Taylor’s Damning Testimony’ Excerpt: {The full statement} reads like the testimony of an honest man pushed to the brink. Whether or not you agree with US policy on Ukraine, this is a shocking behind-the-scenes account of the total hash Donald Trump and Rudy Giuliani have made of US foreign policy towards that country. If what Taylor testified is true, then they corrupted our foreign policy. Trump certainly demanded a quid pro quo, just like Mick Mulvaney said he did. Leaving aside the morality and legality of that act, you have to read the full Taylor statement — seriously — to appreciate the impossible position this White House puts US diplomats, foreign policy, and national security staffers in. We cannot run a government like this. We cannot have Rudy Giuliani running a shadow foreign policy. To me, the most amazing thing about this debacle is how stupid and unnecessary it is.… Read more »

Wil

Guest

October 23, 2019 11:03 AM

CNN:
Taylor said he was told that “everything” Ukraine wanted — from a one-on-one meeting between Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to hundreds of millions in security aid — was dependent on publicly announcing an investigation that included Burisma, the company that hired Biden’s son Hunter, and Ukraine’s alleged involvement in the 2016 election.

Taylor’s explosive testimony is likely to add fuel to Democrats’ impeachment inquiry into Trump and Ukraine, with Democratic lawmakers leaving the closed door session before three House committees declaring Taylor’s testimony was damning for the President. The testimony also undercuts White House assertions that there was no “quid pro quo” tying security assistance with the opening of an investigation, as Taylor says he was told repeatedly that the two were linked.

October 23, 2019 11:26 AM

CNN:
The second-ranking Republican leader, Sen. John Thune told reporters moments ago that “the picture coming out” of Bill Taylor’s testimony about a qui pro quo “is not a good one.

“The picture coming out of it, based on the reporting that we’ve seen, I would say is not a good one,” he said. “But I would say also that until we have a process that allows for everybody to see this in full transparency, it’s pretty hard to draw an hard and fast conclusions.”

Reply to Wil

October 24, 2019 10:25 AM

Hey my apologies Wil. Yesterday I somehow overlooked this info shared by you when I shared literally the same info below. Gotz to slow down when reading and responding…..lol

Mr.BD

October 23, 2019 1:09 PM

Just like DJ said Trump came out today calling Taylor’s testimony a coordinated smear campaign. Then Repubs followed right along to defend him. How does this fool expect anybody smart to think everything said against him is some made up lie and he never does nothing wrong? This is a big deal and Taylor might have given them everything they need to draw up a full impeachment.

Reply to Mr.BD

October 23, 2019 2:22 PM

‘How does this fool expect anybody smart to think everything said against him is some made up lie and he never does nothing wrong?’

BD that fool knows that Everybody (including his supporters) knows he’s Guilty as heck. And The House IS going to impeach his corrupt, lying azz. BUT he’s counting on Senate Repubs to remain so terrified of his base that Mitch and the boyz won’t abandon him no matter how much indisputable evidence comes to light.

October 23, 2019 2:28 PM

‘Republicans gripe about ‘rigged’ hearings after bombshell Ukraine testimony’ But Senate Majority Whip John Thune acknowledged the picture being reported is “not a good one.” Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.), the No. 2 Senate Republican, bashed House Democrats for not making public the testimony of William Taylor, which rocked the GOP argument that the president did not engage in a quid pro quo with the Ukrainian government. But Thune also conceded on Wednesday that the first round of details could be damaging after Taylor, the U.S. envoy to Ukraine, testified that Trump refused to release military aid and hold a White House meeting with the Ukrainian president unless he probed Trump’s political opponents. “The picture coming out of it based on the reporting we’ve seen is, yeah, I would say it’s not a good one,” Thune told reporters. “But I would say also, until we have a process that allows for… Read more »

October 23, 2019 2:45 PM

‘Impeachment deposition delayed after Republicans storm proceedings’

The Republicans’ STUNT comes after Trump called on the GOP to ‘get tough’ on the inquiry.

According to people familiar with the matter, some GOP lawmakers brought their cell phones into the secure area — a significant violation of House rules. Another person said the room had to be fully swept for potential security breaches, and Democrats said the Republicans compromised national security by bringing electronics into a secure area.

Republicans said House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) was threatening GOP lawmakers with ethics violations. Schiff was also consulting with the House’s sergeant at arms, while Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense Laura Cooper — who appeared for her deposition Wednesday morning — was still waiting to testify behind closed doors. […] -Politico

October 23, 2019 2:48 PM

They are desperate. Ain’t NO doubt about that!

But their stunts won’t keep the Truth, the whole Truth and nothing but the Truth from coming out.

Molly

October 23, 2019 2:57 PM

Republicans said they wanted the facts. Well, the facts were presented yesterday via Bill Taylor’s testimony. The stunts from Republicans at this point are nothing more than political folly and they should all be ashamed of themselves.