Quote:Vice President Mike Pence is defending President Donald Trump’s call that foreign governments investigate one of Trump’s leading Democratic rivals.


And Pence is echoing Trump’s private and public urging of Ukraine’s president to investigate former Vice President Joe Biden and Biden’s family. Earlier Thursday, Trump said China should investigate Biden. There’s been no evidence of wrongdoing by either Biden.

Pence tells reporters at an event in Arizona that he thinks “the American people have a right to know if the vice president of the United States or his family profited from his position as vice president during the last administration.”

Trump’s actions have ensnarled the White House in an impeachment investigation by the Democratic-controlled House.

Trump has sought, without evidence, to implicate Biden and his son Hunter in the kind of corruption that has long plagued Ukraine. Hunter Biden served on the board of a Ukrainian gas company at the same time his father was leading the Obama administration’s diplomatic dealings with Kyiv.
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2:15 p.m.
The Pentagon says Defense Secretary Mark Esper wasn’t listening in on the call when President Donald Trump pressed Ukraine’s president to investigate Trump political rival Joe Biden.

[img=840x473]http:://thebengalsboard.com/data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAABAAAAAJCAAAAAAeQfPuAAAAC0lEQVQYGWMYrAAAAJkAAWzZLOIAAAAASUVORK5CIIA=[/img]


Pentagon spokesman Jonathan Hoffman says he believes no one else from the Defense Department was listening on the July 25 call. Hoffman says he doesn’t know whether Esper or others got notes describing the call.

A whistleblower complaint at the center of the House impeachment inquiry against Trump says Trump repeatedly pressed Ukraine’s president to investigate Biden and Biden’s son Hunter, while the White House delayed delivery of military aid to help Ukraine fight Russia-backed separatists.

Hoffman says the Pentagon’s general counsel is asking senior department officials to turn in any documents and records related to the Ukraine issue so they can be reviewed and catalogued.
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11 a.m.
President Donald Trump is calling on China to probe former Vice President Joe Biden.

Trump tells reporters he hasn’t directly asked Chinese President Xi Jinping (shee jihn-peeng) to investigate Biden and Biden’s son Hunter, but that it’s “certainly something we could start thinking about.”

It’s Trump’s requests for Ukraine’s president to dig up dirt on Joe Biden, and as well Trump lawyer Rudy Giuliani’s conduct, that are at the center of an intelligence community whistleblower complaint that’s led to the House impeachment probe.

Trump has acknowledged his message to Ukraine’s president and other officials was to investigate Biden, who’s a 2020 Democratic presidential contender. Trump’s accusations of impropriety by Biden are unsupported by evidence.

Trump and Giuliani have also tried to raise suspicions about Hunter Biden’s business dealings in China. But there’s no evidence Joe Biden benefited financially from his son’s business relationships.

Quote:https://www.yahoo.com/news/after-trump-solicits-biden-investigations-from-china-and-ukraine-fec-chair-post-reminder-that-doing-so-is-illegal-193941937.html

Quote:“Let me make something 100% clear to the American public and anyone running for public office: It is illegal for any person to solicit, accept, or receive anything of value from a foreign national in connection with a U.S. election,” Weintraub wrote. “This is not a novel concept.“

(10-03-2019, 09:12 PM)bfine32 Wrote: You go Ellen Weintraub:


Mitch needs to pull Wild Man aside tell him to shut his mouth or he will pursue Censure.

Quote:On Aug. 28, Andrey Yermak, an aide to Ukrainian President Vlodomyr Zelensky, sent a four-word text message to Kurt Volker, a former U.S. State Department special envoy to Kiev.



"We need to talk."

Yermak followed the tweet with a link to a Politico story titled, "Trump Holds Up Military Aid Meant to Confront Russia."

"Hi Andrey — absolutely. When is good for you?" Volker responded.


Democrats late Thursday released texted messages between top diplomats that they say bolster their claim that President Trump leveraged the prospect of military aid and American influence in an attempt to force Ukraine into investigating former Vice President Joe Biden and his son Hunter Biden regarding their business dealings in the country.


Top U.S. diplomats encouraged Zelensky to conduct an investigation linked to the Bidens in return for a potentially high-profile visit to Washington with Trump, according to emails released late Thursday by House investigators following a 10-hour interview with Volker. Republicans present at the marathon-interview before three House committees appeared confident there was no “quid pro quo” during the Trump-Ukraine call.


Trump has insisted he never pressured Kiev to investigate the Bidens and any request was based on making sure the country made good on its promise to weed out corruption.


Zelensky has said he never felt pressured by Trump.


After the Volker interview, House Democrats released text messages between the top diplomats.


Volker, in a text message on the morning of a planned July 25 phone call between Trump and Zelenskiy, wrote: "Heard from White House -- Assuming President Z convinces trump he will investigate / "get to the bottom of what happened" in 2016, we will nail down date for visit to Washington."


But all that planning started to unravel when Zelensky's aide tried to lock in a date for the Trump meeting before putting out the statement on the investigations. Trump put a hold on military assistance to the country, which was depending on the funds as part of its defense of Russian separatists.


Just over a week after Yermak's message to Volker about funding, Gordon Sondland, the U.S. ambassador to the European Union, and Bill Taylor, the top U.S. diplomat to Ukraine, texted each other. They were discussing the White House's decision to cancel Trump's meeting with  Zelensky in Poland.


"As I said over the phone, I think it's crazy to withhold security assistance for help with a political campaign," Taylor wrote.


"Bill, I believe you are incorrect about President Trump's intentions," Sondland wrote back. "The President has been crystal clear: no quid pro quo’s of any kind. The President is trying to evaluate whether Ukraine is truly going to adopt the transparency and reforms that President Zelenskiy promised during his campaign.”

Quote:"Bill, I believe you are incorrect about President Trump's intentions. The President has been crystal clear: no quid pro quo’s of any kind.”
— Gordon Sondland, U.S. ambassador to the European Union, writing to the top U.S. diplomat in Ukraine

Sondland then recommended stopping the text exchange.


Reps. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, and Devin Nunes, R-Calif., said Thursday’s interview with Volker “undercut” the Democratic narrative that Trump tried to interfere with an election.


“The facts we learned today undercut the salacious narrative that Adam Schiff is using to sell his impeachment ambitions,” Jordan and Nunes said in a joint statement, referring to the chairman of the House Intelligence Committee. “We hope the American people get to read the transcript of today's testimony and see the truth."

(10-04-2019, 09:09 AM)GMDino Wrote: Now we have texts saying Volker and his man in the Ukraine were talking about how Trump would hold back funding and wouldn't meet unless the Ukraine started their investigation into Biden.

Another text says Trump was just concerned about "corruption".

That falls flat given that DJT has mention no other corruption other than Biden's son...an already disproved conspiracy theory.

https://www.foxnews.com/politics/text-message-reveals-top-diplomat-called-withholding-security-assistance-for-political-campaign-crazy



Clearly the two people closest to the negotiations felt that way.  Trump's even a bad criminal.

But Gym Jordan was there to report (quickly) that this complete exonerates the President. (Told ya he'd do it.)

Edit: Link to the text messages

https://foreignaffairs.house.gov/_cache/files/a/4/a4a91fab-99cd-4eb9-9c6c-ec1c586494b9/621801458E982E9903839ABC7404A917.chairmen-letter-on-state-departmnent-texts-10-03-19.pdf

(10-04-2019, 09:15 AM)Belsnickel Wrote: There has been so much that has come up just in a week. It's ridiculous, and Trump can't help himself as he incriminates himself further.

Quote:Probe tied to Biden’s son among investigations to be reviewed by Ukraine prosecutor


KIEV, Ukraine — Ukraine’s top legal official said Friday that his office would review at least 15 high-profile past investigations including a probe into the owner of a natural-gas company linked to former Vice President Joe Biden’s son.


Ruslan Ryaboshapka, Ukraine’s general prosecutor, said during a press conference, that the review is part of a wider audit of cases that were closed or dismissed by his predecessors.


He said the decision to review the cases was not specifically related to the time Hunter Biden spent on the board of Burisma, Ukraine’s largest private natural-gas firm, or allegations from the Trump administration that Joe Biden improperly applied pressure on Ukraine to have an investigation into Burisma halted.


The allegations from President Donald Trump and his lawyer Rudolph Giuliani have played a key role in the impeachment inquiry into Trump by Democratic lawmakers.

Ukraine:Text messages show U.S. diplomats believed U.S. aid was linked to Trump's demand for Biden probe


Ukraine’s previous general prosecutor, Yuriy Lutsenko, closed a money-laundering and tax-irregularity probe into Burisma’s owner, Mykola Zlochevsky, in 2016. The case did not focus on Hunter Biden. There is also no evidence that Joe Biden acted improperly in applying pressure on Ukraine to dismiss Lutsenko’s predecessor, Viktor Shokin. Shokin was widely and publicly viewed by international organizations such as the European Union and International Monetary Fund, and anti-corruption investigators in Ukraine, as an impediment to reforming the country’s culture of graft.

Ryaboshapka said the audit has been planned since he took office one month ago. Friday’s press conference was his first public one since taking up the role.


Impeachment testimony: Intelligence watchdog to testify about 'credible' whistleblower complaint before key House committee

Vitali Kasko, Ryaboshapha’s deputy, told USA TODAY after the news conference that an affidavit by Shokin highlighted in recent days by Giuliani’s office that claims he was fired in 2016 because he was leading a “wide-ranging corruption investigation” into Burisma had no merit.


“Shokin is not a reliable figure,” he said.

(10-04-2019, 12:39 PM)Goalpost Wrote: So Schifff is involved in some controversy regarding his statements and timeline with the whistleblower.

https://thehill.com/homenews/media/464374-washington-post-fact-checker-gives-schiff-four-pinocchios-for-whistleblower

(10-04-2019, 02:39 PM)Belsnickel Wrote: Eh, he said something wrong on television, but what happened wasn't really an issue. Whistleblower tried to go to his bosses and got nowhere. So he reached out to a committee staffer about next steps and after giving a brief outline of the complaint was advised to get a lawyer and file the complaint with the IG. There is a lot of blowing this out of proportion.

(10-04-2019, 03:06 PM)bfine32 Wrote: Some would call that lying.

Quote:It’s easy to see why President Trump’s latest meltdown — on display for all to see in the East Room Wednesday — makes it easy for commentators to say that the 73-year-old man has lost his marbles. He’s “unhinged,” they say with a not-small amount of glee.



You can decide for yourself whether this is so. Meantime, I’ll offer some additional thoughts that may help explain his behavior.


I’ve said this before: Trump spent most of his life as the CEO of a privately held company. Yes, there were those disastrous years between 1995 and 2004 when Trump Hotels & Casino Resorts was a public company (investors lost about 90% of their money) . But, for the bulk of his career, Trump has preferred to run things in private. This means no public accountability, no quarterly 10-Qs or annual 10-Ks to file with the feds. Immersed in this transparency-free zone for half a century, he has always believed that he wasn’t required to answer to anybody. And until announcing his candidacy in 2015, he was right.


And yet Trump still has not learned — much less respected — the essential fact that he has been, for three years now, a public servant. Be it city councilman, or mayor, or all the way up to the Oval Office, public servants are answerable to the public. But 50 years of doing whatever you want and not having to explain any of it is apparently hard to shake. Trump won’t release his taxes, even though all previous presidents have.


We have a government with three separate but equal branches. Trump heads just one of them, the executive branch, but refuses to cooperate with another, the legislative branch. As a private citizen, he called on lawmakers to investigate Hillary Clinton in the extreme. But investigations of him now? That’s a “witch hunt” and “presidential harassment.” It’s all very unfair, he complains. And no one has ever been treated as poorly as him, he adds.


Trump’s half-century of nonaccountability and nontransparency — and his rage that a majority of the American people now demand this of him, as they have of every other occupant of the White House — must be seen in another light, as well.


Trump has seen for decades a loose culture that has enabled white-collar criminals to inflict great damage on the American people and get away with it. Yes, there are exceptions. Going back two decades, the massive accounting scandal at Enron resulted in felony convictions of Kenneth Lay and Jeff Skilling. Lay died before he could be sentenced, but Skilling spent 12 years behind bars. Bernie Ebbers is still in prison for his role in the collapse of telecom giant WorldCom. And, in 2009, Bernie Madoff got a 150-year sentence for the massive Ponzi scheme he’d orchestrated over many years.


But that’s just four people. You know how many people (in this country) went to jail over the near-collapse of the U.S. economy between 2007-09? One. Former Credit Suisse trader Kareem Serageldin got 30 months for artificially inflating the price of subprime mortgages, a financial product at the very heart of the Wall Street collapse.


A judge called Serageldin’s conduct “a small piece of an overall evil climate within the bank and with many other banks.” And yet no one from any other bank or mortgage company that melted down — including Lehman Brothers, Washington Mutual, AIG, IndyMac and Countrywide, to name but a few — ever went to prison for that “evil.” No one. 
In 2012, the Treasury Department estimated the total lost household wealth at $19.2 trillion.


Prosecution of white-collar crime has been falling for years. Susan Long of Syracuse University, who tracks this, says the drop began during the presidency of Barack Obama (officials are criticized as having believed that executives at big banks were simply “too big to jail”) and has continued on Trump’s watch. “This year, federal prosecutors are on track to bring the fewest number of white-collar criminal cases this year in at least 33 years,” the Syracuse professor, an inductee of the National Freedom of Information Act Hall of Fame, tells me, citing government records.


Perhaps this means financial executives are better behaved? Human nature and greed being what they are makes this unlikely: “I think there’s tons more offenses out there than are being prosecuted,” Long says, adding that there are “more crimes out there than there are prosecutors to look into them.”


What does this have to do with Trump? I think that not our country’s taking white-collar crime seriously has helped to culturally normalize it and reinforce in the minds of executives the idea they can violate the spirit — if not the letter — of the law without fear of recrimination. This in turn fuels still more bad behavior while lowering the bar of what voters consider acceptable behavior.


And so we see Trump melting down day after day. Perhaps he’s losing his marbles. But perhaps he just doesn’t get that what he is doing is wrong.



“I hear about the word ‘impeachment,’ ” he told us in his news conference with the president of Finland. “I said, ‘What did I do now?’ ”

(10-04-2019, 03:13 PM)Belsnickel Wrote: Some would. But that implies one was fully aware of details and willfully provided the wrong information rather than speaking incorrectly or misunderstanding a question or what have you.

I have a habit of not saying someone is outright lying and instead talk about them being wrong. I do it with Trump all the time, and I'll do it for Schiff, as well.

(10-07-2019, 06:01 PM)BmorePat87 Wrote: 2nd whistleblower with first hand knowledge.

Trump is calling for Pelosi to also be tried for treason...