WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 25, 2019 NEWS BYTES
Here come the Ukrainegate transcript...
Hard to read but it's there |
"to investigate former Vice President Joe Biden, he also urged the foreign leader to look into CrowdStrike, a cybersecurity firm that did work for the Democrats in the 2016 election."Here's coverage of the transcript...
Trump pushed it even further by adding to congratulations for the new Ukrainian leader that he should "speak with U.S. Atty. Gen. William Barr and Rudolph W. Giuliani, Trump’s personal attorney, who was leading Trump’s efforts in urging Ukraine to investigate Biden and his son, Hunter." Here's the scenario...
"Trump has insisted he has done nothing wrong. But the transcript shows Trump urged a foreign government to intervene in the 2020 election against his rival..."
"Trump had already acknowledged that he asked Zelensky to investigate Biden, whose son Hunter had a contract with a Ukrainian gas company. Trump also acknowledged this week that he held up military aid intended for the Ukrainian government in the same period. He has denied that the delay in releasing the aid money was a form of pressure to prompt the investigation."The Democrats aren't satisfied and say there are more questions to be answered. To begin with, the document released Wednesday was only a memorandum of the Zelensky conversation, according to The Washington Post, not a verbatim account. BINGO! There was a cautionary note with the memorandum warning...
"that the text reflects the notes and memories of officials in the Situation Room and that a number of factors 'can affect the accuracy of the record.'”BINGO! again. The WP piece goes on to point out some background on the call and specifics that relate to the conversation. It all boils down to the fact that the American president, who is running for a second term, asks the president of a foreign nation to investigate what he thinks is wrongdoing by his opponent in the election. Although the $400 million in aid promised, but withdrawn just prior to the call to Zelensky, isn't mentioned, at least as far as we know, the implication was always there.
Trump response to transcript: If you want dumb here's dumb...
Is there a transcript of the actual recording? If so, why wasn't that made available instead of the "notes and memories " of those in the Situation Room? This is just a continuation of the ambiguous Donald Trump the American people have had to live with since he entered the White House. So far Speaker Pelosi is moving ahead with impeachment but dealing with such an enigmatic administration will continue to make the effort look like madness at times.