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You’re Fired! “The Very Real Possibility of President Donald J. Trump’s Impeachment”

October 10, 2019 by  
Filed under Money, News, Opinion, Politics, Weekly Columns

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(ThyBlackMan.com) It may be a little confusing trying to follow the exact nature of the proceedings involving inquires into President Trump’s impeachment inquiry. It seems everyday a new development emerges. Since the 2016 election, a cloud of mystery has hovered over the Trump administration. Colleagues and pundits have either resigned, or have been fired from key positions. The latest scandal may be the final catalyst in long line of contentious acts by this administration that could give witness to an actual impeachment of a sitting president. Rumors swirled after Trump’s 2016 successful presidential campaign on Russian interference in the election process. Currently the latest complaint alleges Trump and others conspired to enlist the aid of foreign powers to potentially impact the outcome of the 2020 election process.

Here is what we know so far

According to the Washington Post, a United States Intelligence whistleblower complained, in detail, on efforts made by President Trump and his personal attorney Rudy Giuliani to pressure Ukraine government officials to investigate former Vice President Joe Biden and his son Hunter’s business dealings in the Ukraine. Hunter Biden sat on the board of Burksma Holding – a Ukrainian gas company – where he received $50,000 a month during the time Joe Biden was the active VP of the United States. Another private equity firm founded by Hunter Biden reportedly received $3.4 million from the same company. Trump alleges that Ukrainian prosecutors investigating BH was fired due to pressure from Joe Biden. Weeks before the actual whistleblower complaint became public, one of the CIA’s top lawyers made what could be viewed as a criminal referral to the Justice Department about the whistleblower’s allegations. Other CIA general counsel members appointed by President Trump came to the conclusion that a potential crime had occurred.

During the first months of 2019, President Trump’s personal lawyer  Rudy Giuliani met with Ukrainian Prosecutor Yuri Lutseko to persuade him to investigate whether the Democratic National Convention and the U.S. Embassy in Kiev worked with Joe Biden to close a criminal probe into Hunter Biden’s business dealing the country. Current Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky and multiple Ukraine officials also met with Giuliani. In early July, Trump directly requested the Office of Budget and Management withhold up to $400 million in security assistance.  On August 14, 2019, CIA’s general counsel Courtney Simmons Elwood “participated in a conference call with top national security lawyer at the White House and the chief of the Justice Department’s National Security Division. On the call Elwood and John Eisenberg, the top legal advisor to the White House National Security Council thought the allegations merited examination by the DOJ.”

What You Need to Know

  • Mike Pompeo, Secretary of State, missed Friday’s deadline (October 4, 2019) to turn over requested documents under congressional subpoena.
  • President Trump called for the impeachment of Mitt Romney, via Twitter on Saturday, October 5, 2019, after the Utah senator criticized the president for urging Ukraine and China to investigate his political rival, Joe Biden.
  • House Democrats, as part of the ongoing investigation, subpoenaed the White House.

House Oversight Chairman Elijah Cummings subpoenaed the White House for Ukraine documents. His actions where the direct result of officials in the Trump administration failure to comply with requested materials. The subpoenas were issued after consultations with House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff (D-CA) and House Foreign Affairs committee chairman Eliot Encel (D-NY). On the same day, Intelligence Community Inspector General Michael Atkinson gave closed door testimony. Also, former Ukrainian diplomat Kurt Volker testified for over nine hours providing lawmakers with text messages that detailed how U.S. ambassadors worked to persuade Ukraine to investigate.

  • Trump publicly called on China to examine the Bidens as well arguing, “China should start an investigation into the Bidens, because what happened in China is just as bad as what happened with Ukraine.” It remains unclear what the president is referring to.
  • Justice Department Officials, as well as the whistleblower complained that Barr knew about Trump’s efforts to involve Ukrainian officials with the 2020 election. Also, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi accused Barr of being a part of the cover-up. Pelosi told CNN, “I do think the Attorney General has gone rogue – he has for a long time.”

What’s Next?

On Sunday, October 6, 2019, George Stephanopoulos, ABC news anchor reported that a second whistleblower, described as an US intelligence official, came forward with first-hand knowledge of allegations declared in the first complaint, and was also interviewed by the head of the intelligence internal watchdog – Michael Atkinson. This new development appears to bring the possibility of Trumps impeachment a little bit closer to become a reality.

Staff Writer; Gustavus Betts

One may connect with this brother on Facebook; G. Betts and Twitter; Gustavusb.

 


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