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Wile E. Coyote’s Latest: “Whistleblower”
The falsely styled “whistleblower,” a possible felon within the intelligence community who is seeking to subvert our Constitution, with the complicity of (fellow) Democrats and their Trump-loathing TruCon lapdogs, is already blowing up in “Wile E. Coyote’s” face.
President Trump had a wonderful time in his sit-down press availability with the Australian Prime Minister. He spoke plain truths: that the “fake news” media represented in the room had just had one of their worst weeks and was now doubling down to discredit themselves even further.
Andrew McCarthy on the “Trump whistleblower” claim, cautiously laid out the law and some of the agreed-upon facts:
In my view, Chairman Schiff’s claim, based on IGIC Atkinson’s interpretation of the statute, is wrong. Section 3033 does not apply to a president’s negotiations with or commitments to foreign powers, or to a president’s sharing of classified information with foreign powers. To repeat, the statute applies to intelligence activities by government officials acting under the authority of the DNI. If I am right, the Trump administration should not be accused of law-breaking for declining to follow Section 3033, even if the whistleblower had an “urgent concern” in the ordinary understanding of that term.
[…]
…Consistent with this principle, the Justice Department has long adhered to the so-called “clear statement” rule: If the express terms of a statute do not apply its provisions to the president, then the statute is deemed not to apply to the president if its application would conflict with the president’s constitutional powers. Section 3033 does not refer to the president. By its terms, it applies to intelligence-community officials. And, in any event, it may not properly be applied to the president if doing so would hinder the president’s capacious authority to conduct foreign policy.
At least when a Republican is in the White House, progressives are enthralled by laws that, in effect, empower bureaucrats — here, “intelligence professionals”– to second-guess and otherwise check the president’s power to direct the executive branch. That is not our system.
[…]
The president has the power to conduct foreign policy as he sees fit. The Congress has the power to subject that exercise to thorough examination. The clash of these powers is a constant in our form of government. It is politics. For once, let’s find out what happened before we leap to DEFCON 1.
As it happens, John Solomon, writing at The Hill, has done the virtual and real shoe-leather work. His analysis, based on hard evidence and quotes other reports and pontifications missed, fills in the “missing piece to the Ukraine puzzle“:
…Giuliani’s contact with Zelensky adviser and attorney Andrei Yermak this summer was encouraged and facilitated by the U.S. State Department.
Giuliani didn’t initiate it. A senior U.S. diplomat contacted him in July and asked for permission to connect Yermak with him.
Then, Giuliani met in early August with Yermak on neutral ground — in Spain — before reporting back to State everything that occurred at the meeting.
That debriefing occurred Aug. 11 by phone with two senior U.S. diplomats, one with responsibility for Ukraine and the other with responsibility for the European Union, according to electronic communications records I reviewed and interviews I conducted.
When asked on Friday, Giuliani confirmed to me that the State Department asked him to take the Yermak meeting and that he did, in fact, apprise U.S. officials every step of the way.
Notice the specific dates and identifiable actors. This set of claims is subject to fairly easy confirmation or falsification. Notice how different this looks, with senior State Department personnel apparently worried about their usual agents acting honestly. This worry is borne out by the fraudulent “whistleblower” leak.
The Ukrainians, in turn, are always right to worry. They are wedged between larger powers with no history of backing Ukraine’s sovereignty. Obama greenlighted Putin’s expansionist ambitions right from the opening days of his first term, when he canceled missile defense systems for allies in Central and Eastern Europe.
Where McCarthy only admits to knowing of claims that Vice President Joe Biden directly coerced Ukraine on behalf of his son, Joe was feeling so sure of himself that he openly boasted into a live microphone, on camera. Biden, at the Council on Foreign Relations, was among friends:
In June of 2019, ABC News caught Joe Biden on the street, questioning him about his and his son Hunter Biden’s family practice of business and politics:
So, this is not right-wing talking points. Why would the current leadership at State want to use Giuliani? How about a pattern of obstruction by political and “career” staff? More from John Solomon on Ukraine reporting U.S. corruption [emphasis added]:
Why would Ukraine want to talk to Giuliani, and why would the State Department be involved in facilitating it?
According to interviews with more than a dozen Ukrainian and U.S. officials, Ukraine’s government under recently departed President Petro Poroshenko and, now, Zelensky has been trying since summer 2018 to hand over evidence about the conduct of Americans they believe might be involved in violations of U.S. law during the Obama years.
The Ukrainians say their efforts to get their allegations to U.S. authorities were thwarted first by the U.S. Embassy in Kiev, which failed to issue timely visas allowing them to visit America.
Then the Ukrainians hired a former U.S. attorney — not Giuliani — to hand-deliver the evidence of wrongdoing to the U.S. attorney’s office in New York, but the federal prosecutors never responded.
The U.S. attorney, a respected American, confirmed the Ukrainians’ story to me. The allegations that Ukrainian officials wanted to pass on involved both efforts by the Democratic National Committee to pressure Ukraine to meddle in the 2016 U.S. election as well as Joe Biden’s son’s effort to make money in Ukraine while the former vice president managed U.S.-Ukraine relations, the retired U.S. attorney told me.
…
Ukrainian officials also are discussing privately the possibility of creating a parliamentary committee to assemble the evidence and formally send it to the U.S. Congress, after failed attempts to get the Department of Justice’s attention, my sources say.
Such machinations are common when two countries are navigating diplomatic challenges, and, often, extracurricular activities with private citizens are part of the strategy, even if they are not apparent to the American public.
So, now the latest lawless bureaucrat’s attack on the Constitution is unraveling, giving reason to talk about Joe Biden and his son Hunter, who was thrown out of the Naval Reserve after being caught using cocaine through a periodic unit drug test. All uniformed members of the military, in all components, are supposed to be tested on a random basis, at least once every 12 months. It took some real arrogance on Biden’s part, some incredible sense of entitlement, to think he could get away with snorting blow…arrogance bred from his old man helping him shake down governments for dough, apparently.
As the weekend started, the story only got better:
“Trump Didn’t Mention Foreign Aid ‘Quid Pro Quo’ During Call with Ukrainian President: Report” — credit to National Review for some truth-telling.
President Trump didn’t mention an offer of providing foreign aid to Ukraine during a recent call with president Volodymyr Zelensky, the Wall Street Journal reported Friday.
Trump urged Zelensky to launch an investigation into Vice President Joe Biden’s son on eight separate occasions during the July call but did not make an offer of foreign aid in exchange for the opening of a probe, as has been widely speculated.
John Hinderaker aptly summarized the situation: “TRUMP VS. THE MEDIA, PART 2,563,901 [WITH COMMENT BY PAUL]:”
Here, Joe Biden revealed the real scandal. A Ukrainian prosecutor was investigating a company in which Hunter Biden was involved, and Joe bragged that he had gotten Ukraine’s government to fire the prosecutor by threatening to cut off $1 billion in loan guarantees. That, folks, is a real scandal, and a real abuse of executive power.
[…]
I don’t agree with Paul that it was improper for Trump to ask Ukraine’s Zelensky to deal with his personal lawyer, Rudy Giuliani, on the investigation rather than going through the usual diplomatic channels. By this time, Trump is well aware that the usual diplomatic channels are bitterly hostile to him. I don’t blame him for wanting to avoid them under these sensitive circumstances. His caution was borne out, apparently, when a Democratic Party loyalist embedded in the bureaucracy leaked news of Trump’s conversation with Zelensky anonymously, under the absurd guise of being a “whistle blower,” a pose that the press has, of course, enthusiastically adopted.
Paul Mirengoff, a Trump hater who fights back from complete TDS to occasional lucid objections about bureaucrats behaving badly, offered a game response, already weakened by the John Solomon story linked at the top of the Power Line page:
It seems to me, though, that on any set of facts the choice between injecting Rudy Giuliani into this matter and having it handled through normal diplomatic channels is a false one. Mike Pompeo, the Secretary of State, is anything but bitterly hostile to President Trump. He and those in his innermost circle could have handled the matter without bringing in any Democratic loyalists.
This is nonsense, not responsive to the facts offered by Solomon and Mirengoff’s fellow Power Line contributors. Secretary Pompeo has no “innermost circle” that can be trusted. Then things got even worse for those who cannot abide The Great Big Ugly Man who came up and tied his horse to them. Brit Hume reports succinctly:
Here’s a “new revelation” in this article: the whistleblower complaint is based on hearsay. From the article: “The whistleblower didn't have direct knowledge of the communications, an official briefed on the matter told CNN.” https://t.co/rPPVRD88Qp
— Brit Hume (@brithume) September 21, 2019
Now the Washington Post is on to insinuating a quid-pro-quo linkage, by President Trump, of foreign aid to Ukraine investigating the admitted Biden actions. This is classic projection and bold distraction from the offal storm rising against the Democrats. It is just icing on the cake that people like Bill Kristol and David French are deciding to surf that wave.
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The failure to address Biden’s actions sets @billnelson‘s credibility meter to zero.
When the previous administration used their power to block an investigation by a foreign government, then it most certainly IS the job of the new administration to tell the Justice Department to get off their asses and investigate.
So no, it’s not only NOT an abuse of power by Trump, it’s practically mandatory for him to order the investigation, under the laws of the United States.
For that matter, someone needs to be starting up a serious investigation of Joe Biden for interfering with the Ukranian prosecutor’s job in the first place.
Fair enough.
You fundamentally misunderstood the Constitution. The DOJ has no independent authority. Repeating a mantra of “serious abuse of power” doesn’t make it real. Sorry.
When you go to the “the other did just as bad”, then you have surrendered your argument.
Biden was VP, Trump is Pres. That makes Trump’s deed worse.
And one could understand protecting your child, but for political gain, it is still worse.
You may be a Trump supporter but you cannot defend everything he does. Every member of the administration wakes up every day dreading the recent series of tweets.
Now, consider this:
Giuliani’s first move was to deny. Then he confirmed the request. So, he lied initially. As did Pres. Trump (fake news?). And when the transcript comes out, and it has to, we will see the actual facts.
As you know, or should know, that same pesky Article I of the Constitution of the United States leaves the VP with no actual executive authority, except when the president dies or is incapacitated. So VP Biden was acting under President Obama’s authority in Ukraine. Same holds for the dirty deal in China, where VP Biden flew Hunter on Air Force Two. VP Biden “negotiated” on behalf of Obama inside the core executive function of foreign affairs. Hunter Biden got a billion dollar deal worked out, feathering the Biden family nest quite nicely.
https://nypost.com/2019/05/11/the-troubling-reason-why-biden-is-so-soft-on-china/
I am sorry that the Great Big Ugly Man came up and tied his horse to you.
I’m sorry, but you need to drop the “Never Trump” jazz – it’s not working for anyone right now, especially you. It makes you say crazy things.
Biden was VP, and BROKE THE LAW. By his OWN WORDS.
Trump is President, and is TELLING THE PEOPLE WHO WORK FOR HIM TO ENFORCE THE LAW.
Not only is Trump not “worse,” he’s correct.
And I can say that there have been some hints about dubious behavior of our diplomatic staff in Ukraine going back to the Obama Administration and then the current information regarding the inability of Ukrainian officials to get information delivered to proper officials in the U.S. I saw something where some information was sent to the U.S. Attorney, Southern District of New York and nothing. Anyone here with some details that match any of this?
See the John Solomon article in the Hill, linked and quoted in the OP.
While Article I doesn’t give the VP much Constitutional power, the office still has a fair amount of it, just from splash damage alone. “I can make a phone call to some friends and cost you a billion dollars” is powerful enough.
And if Biden was acting for Obama at the time, it just links Obama to the same dirty deals, and the Democrats won’t let that happen any time soon. We’ll hear enough of it in a few years, when some of these people near retirement age and decide to write their memoirs, but not right now, while they’re still pretending ol’ Barry is “scandal-free.”
This, a Rudy Giuliani tweet, is the kind of stuff I was talking about that I had heard regarding actions by U.S. Embassy staff in Ukraine and other State Department actions uncovered by those interested in the Mueller Report, but never showed up in American press or tv.
NEW FACT: One $3million payment to Biden’s son from Ukraine to Latvia to Cyprus to US. When Prosecutor asked Cyprus for amount going to son, he was told US embassy (Obama’s) instructed them not to provide the amount. Prosecutor getting too close to son and Biden had him fired.
26.9K12:22 AM – Sep 23, 2019
Following on my last comment, I am convinced that Foreign Service Officers might be a really troublesome category of bureaucrats for President Trump because of his focus on real changes in foreign policy, especially with regard to military actions and trade. Trump’s different view of Russia at a time when there was conflict with Ukraine could then account for some of the odd stories that come out of the State Department people as relates to Ukraine.
Biden broke no laws, nor did Trump. Both men’s actions were wrong. Biden has to deal with this, but Trump is the president. And you now have the president asking a foreign government to pursue an American citizen. There is no allegation that Hunter Biden broke any American law, he is free to make whatever money he can. And there is not an plan for the DOJ to investigate Biden’s action, the US had been pressuring the Ukraine to clean up corruption for 6 months prior and the former prosecutor was seen as a road block in this effort.
But Trump is the president, and for the president to use US foreign policy in a personal political vendetta is simply wrong. And Trump has never communicated to the DOJ to initiate any investigation, for they would not do so.
This will hurt Trump immensely. It is simply wrong.
I also read this. But it is not confirmed.
And what information? That a Ukrainian company hired Hunter Biden’s firm and paid them a lot of money in the hopes of gaining favor with a possible future president? What would a federal prosecutor do with this info? Nothing. Both are private citizens and until Biden is in office and there can be seen a quid pro quo, there is nothing to investigate.
Remember when Billy Carter got a gig as a consultant for the Libyan government? Embarrassed the president, but no law was broken. Trump’s extended family is also cashing in on their position.
Again, whatever Biden may or may not have done, does not excuse or lessen the severity of Trump’s actions.
Yeah, he actually did.
He used his position to get someone fired so his son wouldn’t go to prison, and to protect himself from corruption accusations.
That is illegal, and you denying it repeatedly won’t work.
Sure it will. He has not been found guilty of anything and he never will. you are asking the wrong questions.
You’re confusing “more corruption” with “innocence.”
And we already know what he did.
So stop trying to excuse Slow Joe for being a crook – we’ve known that for a long time. You’re just making yourself look worse, for excusing it.
He is not a crook. He is a Democrat. Stuff like laws, rules, morals do no apply to them.
That’s like saying “that’s not a garbage truck, that’s a different kind of garbage truck.”
I agree there. But, if Trump did what is alleged, it was stupid but not illegal. The optics are lousy particularly during an election year. However, we still have to keep in mind that we have yet to hear the phone call and read the transcript as all we know at this point is what we read or hear from the press.
This was in my twitter feed about an hour ago, posted by “Joe M”
@StormIsUponUs
The swamp just did what Q legally could not: force evidence into the public record showing how Obama’s gang of thugs hid Hillary’s Crowdstrike server in Ukraine to cover up her email espionage, and use the country as a satellite for their attempted coup on Trump. Thanks. #TREASON
Well said Willow Spring, well said.
…and what the Ukrainian President says.
“The only one person by the way who can put pressure on me … is my son, who is six years old.”
So this whole thing just blew up in the Democrats’ faces.
Now, they’re stuck with a “controversy” that only points to Joe Biden and the Democrats.
And they’re forced to investigate it, officially.
Says it all:
From John Hinderaker at Power Line:
I would add the TruCon lapdogs usually yap on signal from the Democratic Party reporters and spokesmen. A classic trademark and image comes to mind:
My point was that Biden, if he was not just blustering in Ukraine, was necessarily acting for Obama. You are right on point about the palace guard around Obama, and I’ll push it further. The obscure and distract campaign must be run until Michelle Obama is elected in 2024 and reelected in 2028.
What the Ukrainian president should have done, when he challenged Biden’s authority and Biden told him to call Obama and ask, would have been to call Obama and ask. But to also make sure that Obama knows you have the entire American news media on hold waiting to hear his response to the question of whether he is demanding the firing of a prosecutor who is investigating his VP’s son, under the pressure of losing $1 billion. I think at least some of the media would have been interested.
Okay fine, Fox News.
If she doesn’t run for public office soon (Senator, at least), she can kiss that goodbye. Every day the Obamas spend outside of Washington sees their legacy among the Democrats erode even further. Some Dems are already taking pot shots at Obama for his failure to actually do anything useful in office.
Senators have records. Records are bad. Besides, then she looks like Hillary. Building a brand through speaking tours is a better strategy for Michelle Obama.