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'The answer is yes': Sondland
says there was a quid pro quo
by Susan Ferrechio
{ washingtonexaminer.com } ~ U.S. Ambassador to the European Union Gordon Sondland provided testimony to Congress Wednesday affirming a quid pro quo for Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to secure a meeting and phone call with President Trump... But Sondland, a pivotal witness in the House impeachment investigation, maintained he did not have direct evidence those conditions were directly tied to critical security aid. Sondland, in his prepared remarks to the House Intelligence Committee, said that conditions were set for the Ukrainian president to be granted a phone call and meeting with Trump. Democrats are preparing to draft articles of impeachment that accuse Trump of abusing his office by seeking Ukraine’s help investigating former Vice President loose lips liar-Joe Biden, a top political rival. Democrats say Trump held back security aid to force Ukraine to cooperate. “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 said in his opening remarks. “As I testified previously, with regard to the requested White House call and White House meeting, the answer is yes.” Sondland, who Democrats accuse of withholding information from lawmakers in his closed-door deposition, pinned the effort to extract the conditions from Ukraine on Trump’s personal lawyer, Rudy Giuliani. “Mr. Giuliani conveyed to Secretary Perry, Ambassador Volker, and others that President Trump wanted a public statement from President Zelensky committing to investigations of Burisma and the 2016 election,” Sondland said in his written opening testimony, referring to Energy Secretary Rick Perry and U.S. Special Representative for Ukraine Kurt Volker. Burisma, the second-largest energy company in Ukraine, had hired Hunter Biden, the then-vice president's son, for a $50,000 per month position on its board. “Mr. Giuliani expressed those requests directly to the Ukrainians. Mr. Giuliani also expressed those requests directly to us. We all understood that these pre-requisites for the White House call and White House meeting reflected President Trump’s desires and requirements.” Sondland said he “never obtained a clear answer” for the hold on $391 million in security aid that ultimately lasted 55 days. In his testimony, Sondland said he drew his own conclusions. “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. The block on the aid was lifted on Sept. 11. “By the end of the August, my belief was that if Ukraine did something to demonstrate a serious intention to fight corruption, specifically addressing Burisma and 2016 server, then the hold on military aid would be lifted,” Sondland said in his prepared remarks.
https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/congress/the-answer-is-yes-sondland-says-there-was-a-quid-pro-quo .
Dem Indiana Mayor Arrested
by FBI Over Corruption Probe
By Skye Malmberg
{ westernjournal.com } ~ Dennis Tyler, a Democrat serving as the mayor of Muncie, Indiana, was arrested by the FBI in his home on Monday morning as part of a public corruption probe... “I can confirm an arrest warrant was executed at the home of Mayor Dennis Tyler this morning and he is currently in custody,” FBI Indiana spokeswoman Chris Bavender told Fox News. Tyler has been accused of accepting a $5,000 bribe to award public contracts to a demolition, excavation and construction company, according to the Muncie Star Press. On Wednesday, Tyler was indicted for theft of public funds. He could be facing up to ten years in federal prison and a fine of $250,000. According to the Star Press, seven people in Tyler’s administration have been charged in the corruption investigation. The paper has been reporting on FBI investigations in Muncie since 2016. In 2017, the FBI searched city hall offices during an investigation of a former city building commissioner named Craig Nichols. Nichols was accused of acquiring city contracts for businesses he owned without using a bidding process, according to WXIN. He was charged with 30 accounts of money laundering and wire fraud, pleaded guilty to the charges and was sentenced to two years in federal prison. Tyler has been Muncie’s mayor since 2012. According to The Star Press, he did not run for re-election in 2019. Earlier this month, Republican Dan Ridenour was elected to fill the position...
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White House tweet questions
Vindman's judgment
By BRETT SAMUELS
The official White House Twitter account tweeted out a quote on Tuesday that called Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman. ALEXANDER VINDMAN GOP senator calls impeachment 'sabotage' effort, raises questions about witness on eve of testimony Impeachment guide... The 9 witnesses testifying this week Overnight Defense — Presented by Boeing — Stopgap spending bill includes military pay raise | scumbag-Schumer presses Pentagon to protect impeachment witnesses | US ends civil-nuclear waiver in Iran MORE's judgment into question as he testified on Capitol Hill in the impeachment inquiry. "Tim Morrison, Alexander Vindman's former boss, testified in his deposition that he had concerns about Vindman's judgment," the White House tweeted. The account attached a graphic of a quote from Morrison's deposition illustrating that point. Morrison worked at the White House as an expert on Russia before leaving his position just before his deposition. The tweet reflected the willingness of the president and his allies to target their criticisms on Vindman, who is still detailed to work for the White House as part of the National Security Council. Attacks on Vindman emerged as a theme prior to and during Tuesday's hearing, a risky move given his résumé of military service and his family history. While Trump himself largely avoided personal attacks on Vindman and said he did not know the National Security Council staffer, his GOP allies on the House Intelligence Committee sought to suggest Vindman was undermining President Trump's agenda or was a source of concern among others in the administration. Tim Murtaugh, the communications director for the Trump campaign, tweeted that Vindman "apparently believes that HE’S the one who makes & coordinates U.S. policy." "This may come as a shock to him and the Democrats, but the President of the United States makes U.S. policy," Murtaugh tweeted. "Case closed." Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) similarly questioned Vindman's judgment earlier in the hearing...
https://thehill.com/homenews/administration/471118-white-house-tweets-questions-vindmans-judgment .
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LTC Vindman Admits He Spoke To IC Official
About Ukraine Call — scumbag/liar-Schiff
Interrupts Immediately
by VIRGINIA KRUTA
{ dailycaller.com } ~ House Intelligence Committee Chairman Rep. scumbag/liar-Adam Schiff (D-CA) abruptly cut off his star impeachment witness, Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman after he admitted to speaking with an intelligence official about the July 25 Ukraine call... Ranking House Intelligence Committee member Rep. Devin Nunes (R-CA) asked Vindman, “Lieutenant Colonel Vindman, did you discuss the July 25th phone call with anyone outside the White House on July 25th or the 26th and if so with whom?” “Yes. I did,” Vindman responded. “My core function is to coordinate U.S. Government policy and I spoke to two individuals with regards to providing a — some sort of readout of the call … Not in the White House. Cleared U.S. Government officials with the appropriate need to know.” When Nunes asked Vindman what agencies these officials were from, the witness replied that he spoke with Deputy Assistant Secretary of State George Kent as well as an intelligence official. Nunes then asked which agency the intelligence official was from, prompting scumbag/liar-Schiff to interrupt, claiming he needed to “protect the whistleblower.” “Please stop,” said scumbag/liar-Schiff. “I want to make sure that there is no effort to out the whistleblower through these proceedings. If the witness has a good faith belief that this may reveal the identity of the whistleblower, that is not the purpose that we’re here for. I want to advise the witness accordingly.” Nunes said to Vindman, “You testified in the deposition that you did not know who the whistleblower was…How is it possible for you to name these people and then out the whistleblower?” The witness replied, “Per the advice of my counsel, I have been advised not to answer specific questions about members of the intelligence community.”...
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In Latest Pro-Israel Move, Trump
Administration Declares Settlements Do Not
Violate International Law
by algemeiner.com ~ The United States on Monday effectively backed Israel‘s right to build settlements in the West Bank, declaring they did not violate international law... The announcement by US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo was a victory for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who is struggling to remain in power after two inconclusive Israeli elections this year, and a defeat for the Palestinians. Pompeo noted US statements about the settlements in the West Bank — which Israel took control of from Jordan during the 1967 Six-Day War and the Palestinians seek as part of a future state — had not been uniform, pointing out Democrat President Jimmy Carter in 1978 found they were not consistent with international law and Republican President Ronald Reagan in 1981 said he did not view them as inherently illegal. “The establishment of Israeli civilian settlements is not, per se, inconsistent with international law,” Pompeo told reporters at the State Department. The announcement marked the third major instance in which the Trump administration has sided with Israel and against stances taken by the Palestinians and Arab states even before unveiling its long-delayed Israeli-Palestinian peace plan. In 2017, Trump recognized Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and, in 2018, the US formally opened an embassy in the city. And in March, Trump recognized Israel’s 1981 annexation of the Golan Heights in a boost for Netanyahu that prompted a sharp response from Syria, which once held the strategic plateau. Trump’s move might have been designed to help Netanyahu as he struggles to stay in power. Israeli politics is deadlocked after two inconclusive elections this year. Former military chief Benny Gantz’s centrist Blue and White party emerged neck and neck with Netanyahu following a September vote, and both leaders have struggled to put together a ruling coalition...
https://www.algemeiner.com/2019/11/18/in-latest-pro-israel-move-trump-administration-declares-settlements-do-not-violate-international-law/?utm_content=news1&utm_medium=daily_email&utm_campaign=email&utm_source=internal/ .
scumbag/liar-Schiff Pledges To Remove Trump
From Office In Speech … Should He
Be Removed As Chair?
by Wes Walker
{ clashdaily.com } ~ The Democrats promised Americans that they could expect a process that was fair and impartial, one that would follow the facts where they lead. Is scumbag/liar-Schiff’s speech proof that they have a very different agenda?... That failed Screenwriter, scumbag/liar-Adam ‘Shifty’ Schiff can’t help but showboat. He’s a clout chaser of the lowest order. Without Trump as a foil to rage against, he’s a relative nobody in a safe seat in a dark blue district. He has little to offer in who he is as a person or legislator, but he will gladly use his position security clearance and deep-state connections as leverage in trying to take out a duly-elected president. By being the ‘champion’ of the Left’s cause, he gets to become an instant celebrity in the eyes of the Leftists he wants to impress. But that doesn’t always work out so well. Just ask Mr ‘Basta’ Avenatti, the washed-up Creepy Porn Lawyer. And of course, he played the drama queen. He couldn’t resist. With Tom Petty’s “I Won’t Back Down,” playing as he entered, scumbag/liar-Schiff was greeted by the party faithful with lengthy cheers and applause. “You will forgive me if I’m a bit exhausted, it’s been an eventful week,” he deadpanned. “But you’ll forgive me also if I begin on a more somber note than is traditional to begin a convention. Our democracy is at risk, more so now than at any time in my life.” scumbag/liar-Schiff, who chairs the panel leading the impeachment hearings, told the crowd the most profound threat to democracy is not from Russia or China. “The greatest threat to the life and the health of our democracy comes from within,” he said, describing Trump as someone who admires strongmen, but doesn’t respect the Constitution. If we’re going to talk about abuses of power and threats to democracy we should refer back to Bill Barr’s excellent speech describing dangers the Founders saw in an unchecked Legislative body.
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