Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

I know this must be bad for Joe Biden, I just don’t know how.

You can’t attract Republican voters. You can only out organize them.

They fucked up the fucking up of the fuckup!

Accountability, motherfuckers.

“But what about the lurkers?”

My years-long effort to drive family and friends away has really paid off this year.

A snarling mass of vitriolic jackals

I’d try pessimism, but it probably wouldn’t work.

Usually wrong but never in doubt

I like you, you’re my kind of trouble.

Our job is not to persuade republicans but to defeat them.

Good lord, these people are nuts.

Putting aside our relentless self-interest because the moral imperative is crystal clear.

We are builders in a constant struggle with destroyers. let’s win this.

JFC, are there no editors left at that goddamn rag?

You don’t get rid of your umbrella while it’s still raining.

“Jesus paying for the sins of everyone is an insult to those who paid for their own sins.”

Take hopelessness and turn it into resilience.

Despite his magical powers, I don’t think Trump is thinking this through, to be honest.

When I decide to be condescending, you won’t have to dream up a fantasy about it.

The party of Reagan has become the party of Putin.

Eh, that’s media spin. biden’s health is fine and he’s doing a good job.

A last alliance of elves and men. also pet photos.

Red lights blinking on democracy’s dashboard

You are here: Home / Politics / Impeachment / Impeachment Trial – January 28, 2020

Impeachment Trial – January 28, 2020

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Let’s see what kind of lies and smears the Republicans can come up with today. And whether they take note of John Bolton’s book. The commentary from lawyers yesterday on my Twitter feed was that a good lawyer incorporates new material into their argument. Once again, I probably won’t be watching most of it.

Reader Interactions

45Comments

  1. 1.

    Anya

    I am surprised their whole argument was not “Obama did it!!!” Garbage president and his garbage hires. I just can’t…

  2. 2.

    RedDirtGirl

    Well, it’s slow at work right now, so I guess I’ll give it a try. Already have a headache brewing, though, so prolly won’t last long.

  3. 3.

    donnah

    I watched much of the House Team and thought they were brilliant. I managed to listen to some of the Republican response last night, but if ears could gag, mine would have. Dershowitz is a clown and I am not going to be able to listen to any of it today.

    Bolton’s info is key and having General Kelly state his support for Bolton adds to the weight of that.

    I don’t know how this goes forward, but I’m glad that the Democrats are standing firm and keeping their eyes on the prize.

  6. 6.

    HalfAssedHomesteader

    “Let me tell you what Joe Biden did!…. [8 hours later] … and that’s why this is all Joe Biden’s fault.”

  7. 7.

    Anya

    When the time comes for senators to interrogate the lawyers, I hope one of the Dem senators has a list off all the brothers, spouses and children of senior adminatration officials and senators sitting on boards or financially benefiting from their relative’s position and to ask Trump’s lawyers, we didn’t Trump investigate any of them.

  8. 8.

    guachi

    Why is Philbin talking about things that aren’t part of this impeachment (bills of attainder and maladministration)?

    Trump is being impeached for abuse of power and obstruction of justice, two things well-established as reasons you can impeach a President.

  9. 9.

    HalfAssedHomesteader

    @donnah: Much of Dershowitz’s arguments were straw men and arguments from authority. The rest were just plain mischaracterizations of the facts.

  10. 10.

    Jeffro

    Somebody wake me just before the part where Colonel Jessup angrily admits he ordered the Code Red.

    Anyway, Republican Senators, sorry but we’re just not gonna let you have it both ways anymore. We’ve finally figured out how to hold YOU accountable for Mr. Innocent’s behavior, since you won’t do it.

  13. 13.

    guachi

    Wow, Philbin continues to not be good.

    Claims the President has vast power in foreign policy and, therefore, can’t abuse power if he contradicts established US policy. Because US policy is whatever the President says.

    Completely misses the point (probably intentionally) that establishing that Trump was going against policy is a way to establish that Trump was working on his own and a political hit job against his opponent wasn’t US policy.

    He’s actually making the case against Trump – that it was TRUMP’S abuse of power and not that of the US Government as a whole.

  16. 16.

    hitchhiker

    Thanks for the commentary, jackals. I can’t bring myself to look today after a bad decision late last night to read Jonathan Turley’s turgid prose about the Dershowitz performance.

    I can accept that bad people win. I can’t accept that intelligent people debase themselves in public.

  17. 17.

    Marcopolo

    OT but not as OT as if I posted it in the pet calendar thread:

    HOUSE REPUBLICAN LEADERSHIP used a closed party meeting this morning to concede they are in the midst of a full-blown fundraising crisis, after the @DCCC outraised the @NRCC by $40 million in 2019. Individual Dem candidates are also smoking their Republican opponents.— Jake Sherman (@JakeSherman) January 28, 2020

    I’ve mentioned before that D fundraising in 2019 was robust. This is confirmation. I also want to note that having a bunch of well-resourced down ballot candidates/races is another great way to get folks to the polls on election day. If for some reason we wind up with a meh D Prez nominee (or at least they are someone who leaves you wanting), find a US Senate or House race, or a state senate or house race, or a local mayor or councilperson election where you really like the candidate and give them 110%.

  18. 18.

    Marcopolo

    Edited to delete a double post.  Weird.

    But I will also note that apparently the RNC is paying all the expenses for Trump’s impeachment defense team.  Glad to see the money going there instead of towards elections.

  20. 20.

    zhena gogolia

    That Joni Ernst clip where she gloats about how this is hurting Biden makes me want to vomit.

    It has also made me go all in for Uncle Joe. He’s my candidate now. About to set up a monthly donation.

  24. 24.

    the Conster

    @zhena gogolia:

    Same.  There’s no way that they’re doing everything they can to dirty up Biden while coddling and promoting Bernie by playing this 11 dimensional chess.   Trump is a feral animal when it comes to sensing danger, and the threat to him is Biden/Obama coalition Dems.  GOPers have all the oppo they need to bury the socialist old fraud – he didn’t need to get another country to dig it up.

  25. 25.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    @rikyrah:

    Katy Tur on twitter:
    Voters at the Biden event say they saw this. “She gave it away,” one told me. “This is all about hurting Biden in the election.”

    Biden has really good ad people, hopefully they can figure out how to get this into thirty seconds

  28. 28.

    Z. Mulls

    It was weird hearing a Republican lawyer say “Democratic Leader Schumer” rather than “Democrat Leader”….they are slipping….

  30. 30.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    @the Conster: I can’t find it now but somebody linked to a tweet this morning from the Daily Caller (Tucker Carlson) about how the “Democrat” Party is out to screw Bernie again

  31. 31.

    the Conster

    @Jim, Foolish Literalist:

    It’s not very subtle, but the Bros will nod their heads right along and agree with Tucker Carlson, Trump, Hugh Hewitt and Kevin McCarthy like it’s just another day in up is down Bernieworld.

  33. 33.

    Kraux Pas

    @the Conster: It appears to me that they’re doing all this to ensure Biden is the nominee. They’re trying to provoke a defensive reaction from Democrats. The Iran assassination had the same goal. They wanted national security issues foremost in our brains.

     

    YMMV here tho

  35. 35.

    Captain C

    @Frankensteinbeck: I would bet that a lot of them have a high burn rate for cash, and that a good chunk of that is for various bad decisions that they can’t get out from under (gambling, divorce due to some kind of bad behavior, a history of stupid large purchases, and so forth).  Specifics vary for each individual.

    It’s really not much different from the crew in Goodfellas, who had to keep stealing and committing other crimes in order to support their various bad habits and profligate lifestyles.

  37. 37.

    Baud

    @Kraux Pas:

    @the Conster:

    Right.  Trump didn’t secretly try to push Ukraine to announce an investigation into Biden in order to help Bernie become the nominee.

    Unless…..maybe Trump is the whistleblower!

  38. 38.

    MisterForkbeard

    @the Conster: I’ve already seen this. They’re literally saying that “even republicans know Bernie is getting screwed by the DNC and the Establishment” with literally no reflection about the situation at all.

    Honestly, all those really bad TV shows  where the heroes act to fuck themselves over because an obvious villain is lying to them suddenly look a whole lot more plausible.

  39. 39.

    MisterForkbeard

    @Baud: This.

    They’ve taken concrete steps to damage Biden. None to damage Bernie.

    They have pushed divisions in the Democratic Party, usually to Bernie’s benefit. That they’re sometimes obvious about it doesn’t change that fact. Likewise, the Iran Assassination is reportedly much more about Trump wanting to be ‘tough’.

    The evidence is pretty clear that they would rather run against Bernie but will weaken Biden as much as they can.

  40. 40.

    PenAndKey

    @MisterForkbeard:The evidence is pretty clear that they would rather run against Bernie but will weaken Biden as much as they can.

    This. The lack of attacks against Bernie shows that they’re holding their ammo, not that there isn’t any. Taking the strongest person out at the start of a fight is a solid move, and while I might consider Trump and company to be morons of the highest calibre, there are plenty of them who are also thugs who understand how to brawl. Politics, if just the way the GOP conducts it, is basically brawling.

  41. 41.

    Zelma

    I just gave my first contribution to Biden.  And I may give more later tonight.

    The thought that Bernie might win in Iowa and gain momentum is appalling to me.  He is the Republicans preferred candidate because they’ve got so much stuff on him and they’ll use every bit.  This country cannot survive another four years of Trump.

    If he does win (and even if he doesn’t), this should be the end of Iowa as the first contest.  Let them hold their undemocratic caucus every year.  Just make sure that no Democratic candidates participate.  A state that does not resemble the country at all should not have an outsized role in selecting a candidate.  And that goes for New Hampshire too.

    Gonna go find out what Kelly said.

  43. 43.

    brantl

    @hitchhiker:

    I can’t accept that intelligent people debase themselves in public.

    What intelligent people? They’re republicans, have you lost your mind?

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