September 26, 2019
Since Adam Schiff revealed the existence of a DNI whistleblower complaint that was withheld from Congress, the facts have emerged at a breakneck pace. In the 48 hours since Nancy Pelosi announced the commencement of a formal impeachment inquiry on Tuesday, the news has been overwhelming, with each day successively crazier than the last.
Yesterday’s release of the “transcript” of the infamous call between Trump and Ukraine President, Volodymyr Zelensky was damning, particularly in light of the fact that Trump had been so convinced it was exculpatory that he had tweeted his expectation that Democrats would apologize “after seeing what was said on the call with the Ukrainian President,”(Source: “‘Do Us A Favor’: The Forty Eight Hours That Sealed Trump’s Impeachment,” by Susan Glasser, The New Yorker, 9/25/19). In addition to blatantly responding to Zelensky’s request for Javelin anti-tank missiles with a request that Zelensky investigate Biden, Trump volunteered the cooperation of both his personal lawyer, Rudolph Giuliani, and U.S. Attorney General, Bill Barr, (Source: “Trump pressed Ukraine’s leader to probe Biden,” by Devlin Barrett, Matt Zapotosky, Carol D. Leonnig and Shane Harris, The Washington Post, 9/25/19).
Yet as damning as the transcript was, the actual whistleblower complaint released this morning was far worse. It not only confirmed Trump’s effort to strong arm Zelensky into helping his campaign by launching a baseless investigation into the Bidens, but detailed how Giuliani was a “central figure” in these efforts, repeatedly meeting with Ukrainian officials at Trump’s behest, acting at cross purposes with the State Department. The whistleblower detailed the complicity of White House officials, who put the records for the infamous July 25th call (as well as other problematic Trump calls) on a separate, secret computer system normally reserved for highly classified, sensitive material (Source: “Unclassified Letter dated August 12, 2019 to Senator Richard Burr and Congressman Adam Schiff.)
It is true that the events revealed over the last several days have been shocking, but in reality, only those insulated from the severe consequences of this administration’s destructive policies are truly shocked. Do you think that any transgender service member who was callously booted from military service by Tweet is shocked that Trump would not think twice about national security if it conflicted with his corrupt and selfish aims? Do you think that any asylum-seeking immigrant whose child was forcibly ripped from their arms is surprised that Trump’s reaction to being exposed was to openly wish for the execution of the whistleblower? Only those Beltway insiders and pundits clinging to a shopworn narrative where there are good people on both “sides,” are surprised. Only those who failed to see how dangerous and reckless it was to give power to a person and a party that refuses to recognize the humanity of anyone who doesn’t look like them, are surprised.
We are in a perilous moment. Not only because a lying sociopath with the nuclear codes will lash out like a cornered rat. Not only because a compromised political party will distort reality and look the other way to keep Trump in power, but also because so many of us crave normalcy. It is perilous because there is a real risk is that we will treat any Republican who abandons Trump now as a profile in courage, rather than a rat leaving a sinking ship. We may simply grab some popcorn and watch the hearings, because we are so exhausted from fighting every day.
Yet, while we’re busy watching sparks fly on Capitol Hill, Republicans around the country are still busy working to suppress Black and Brown votes. Romney’s stern statement that the call between Trump and Zelensky was “deeply troubling,” may be nothing more than a ploy to set up a permission structure for vulnerable Republican senators to vote for impeachment so that they keep their seats and McConnell keeps his Senate majority. Don’t fall for any of it. Keep working, keep organizing, keep donating. Next time they might send a smoother criminal.
Great language in this post. Thank you!