• Quick note - the problem with Youtube videos not embedding on the forum appears to have been fixed, thanks to ZiprHead. If you do still see problems let me know.

House Impeachment Inquiry

Status
Not open for further replies.
slyjoe said:
I agree with an addition.

There is currently an Impeachment inquiry going on. This is not Impeachment. But the Republicans are all in a twist because it's not in public. How many inquiries and/or investigations are conducted in public?
Click to expand...

...and of course if it was being conducted in public, they'd be complaining that allegations were being made before definitive proof had been provided.

Of course they really want is for the President's accusers to be named publicly so that their reputations can be destroyed - likely with half-truths an falsehoods.
 
Segnosaur said:
So it looks like at least some Republicans are still behind Trump on the whole impeachment thing...

From: https://thehill.com/homenews/house/...aring-to-break-up-trump-impeachment-testimony
House Republicans stormed a closed-door hearing Wednesday morning to protest Democrats' impeachment inquiry, breaking up the deposition of a top Defense Department who was testifying about President Trump's dealings with Ukraine.
Click to expand...


I was just about to post the same: https://www.washingtonpost.com/poli...9b1fd8-f51a-11e9-8cf0-4cc99f74d127_story.html

I'm not sure I understand what the point of this is.
 
Upchurch said:
So it looks like at least some Republicans are still behind Trump on the whole impeachment thing...

From: https://thehill.com/homenews/house/4...ment-testimony
House Republicans stormed a closed-door hearing...
Click to expand...

I was just about to post the same: https://www.washingtonpost.com/poli...9b1fd8-f51a-11e9-8cf0-4cc99f74d127_story.html

I'm not sure I understand what the point of this is.
Click to expand...
Most likely a distraction, pure and simple.

Although the hearings have been closed to the public, what we have heard has been very damaging to Trump. Now, instead of pointing out "Person X provides evidence against Trump", we are now talking about the GOP stunt. (And if they can somehow paint themselves as "fighting the power", all the better for them. Just like those 60s-era protests.)
 
Upchurch said:
I was just about to post the same: https://www.washingtonpost.com/poli...9b1fd8-f51a-11e9-8cf0-4cc99f74d127_story.html

I'm not sure I understand what the point of this is.
Click to expand...

I'd actually understand it if ONLY democratic members were allowed in. But that's just not true. Everyone on the House Intelligence Committee is allowed to be present, and that includes nine Republicans (plus 6 others for this hearing). Its a lie that the dems are keeping everything secret. They are feeding misinformation to low information voters BS, ie almost every Trump supporter, and this is showboating.
 
lobosrul5 said:
I'd actually understand it if ONLY democratic members were allowed in. But that's just not true. Everyone on the House Intelligence Committee is allowed to be present, and that includes nine Republicans (plus 6 others for this hearing). Its a lie that the dems are keeping everything secret. They are feeding misinformation to low information voters BS, ie almost every Trump supporter, and this is showboating.
Click to expand...

The article I read said something like a quarter of the Republicans in the House are on one of the 3 committees and are allowed in the closed door meetings. They're also allowed equal questioning time as the Demmies.
 
The Constitution doesn't recognize political parties as a thing. Outside of just... for appearances sake (which isn't a non-factor to be fair) nothing says we have to maintain any fairness or balance of power between them.
 
JoeMorgue said:
The Constitution doesn't recognize political parties as a thing. Outside of just... for appearances sake (which isn't a non-factor to be fair) nothing says we have to maintain any fairness or balance of power between them.
Click to expand...

The Supreme Court decided that we don't - at least when it comes to voting.
 
JoeMorgue said:
The Constitution doesn't recognize political parties as a thing. Outside of just... for appearances sake (which isn't a non-factor to be fair) nothing says we have to maintain any fairness or balance of power between them.
Click to expand...

What's your point?

The Constitution was written as a set of rules to keep the political process as fair and efficient as possible. Should we not be concerned about a political process that is manifestly unfair just because the Constitution didn't take political parties into account?
 
JoeMorgue said:
The Constitution doesn't recognize political parties as a thing. Outside of just... for appearances sake (which isn't a non-factor to be fair) nothing says we have to maintain any fairness or balance of power between them.
Click to expand...

Actually, the Constitution says we do need to maintain some fairness between them. Specifically, freedom of speech and freedom of association require it. While the Constitution doesn't necessarily call out political parties as such, political parties were well-understood and widespread at the time, and had been going back at least 2,000 years. I think the Constitution properly takes for granted that people will be getting together to debate policy and agree on a cooperative strategy to advance their political agenda, and that this kind of activity should be guaranteed free and fair for all. That said, I don't think such basic principles of freedom extend to the state being required to prop up a political party out of "fairness".
 
Last edited:
The Don said:
...and of course if it was being conducted in public, they'd be complaining that allegations were being made before definitive proof had been provided.
Click to expand...
I'm not a big consumer of political news because I get frustrated with the spinning - from both people quoted and the media outlets themselves - so maybe this has been addressed and I missed it.

Question: When GOP was doing preliminary hearings in Clinton's potential impeachment, were initial depositions open to the public?

I thought someone had rebutted Trump's histrionics by pointing out this *is* part of due process - the part analogous to a grand jury proceeding which is not open to the public and in which the defense does not call witnesses and does not get to cross-examine prosecution witnesses.

Seeing as how the GOP is trying to shut down this process, is that obstruction of justice? Witness tampering etc.?
 
The Republicans storming the hearing were brought snacks, presumably so they wouldn't get cranky before their nap times.


Snacks have been brought in for the protesting Republicans remaining in the room, including Cheez-It crackers, a source familiar with the situation tells CNN.

A group of Republicans stormed the House room where Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense Laura Cooper was about to testify. They shouted at Intelligence Committee Chair Adam Schiff and criticized the process of the Democratic-led impeachment inquiry.

The protesting representatives are not on the three committees leading the impeachment inquiry, and are therefore barred from today's testimony.
Click to expand...
 
Minoosh said:
I thought someone had rebutted Trump's histrionics by pointing out this *is* part of due process - the part analogous to a grand jury proceeding which is not open to the public and in which the defense does not call witnesses and does not get to cross-examine prosecution witnesses.

Seeing as how the GOP is trying to shut down this process, is that obstruction of justice? Witness tampering etc.?
Click to expand...

From the way I understand it, I'm positive I'll be corrected if I'm wrong, the impeachment of Clinton didn't go this same way. Starr delivered his report with the investigative process already completed, and that's what the House used to draw up the impeachment and vote on it. In this case, they just have the whistleblower complaint and they are now doing the investigating rather than having a completed report to work off of.

I don't believe the two processes have much in common.
 
Belz... said:
Not sure bringing snacks is much of an issue.
Click to expand...


They also ordered pizza. I suppose it shows that they have no intention to follow the rules, leave, and let the hearing proceed.


It’s unclear when the hearing will still start again since the members won’t leave the room.

What's happening right now: The GOP members are sitting there eating pizza.
Click to expand...
 
Armitage72 said:
They also ordered pizza. I suppose it shows that they have no intention to follow the rules, leave, and let the hearing proceed.
Click to expand...

They know he won't be convicted. The issue is spin, and nothing else.

Trump's presidency might go down as legitimising criminal activities at the highest level. That's end-of-democracy level stuff.
 
Belz... said:
They know he won't be convicted. The issue is spin, and nothing else.

Trump's presidency might go down as legitimising criminal activities at the highest level. That's end-of-democracy level stuff.
Click to expand...

If I was Pelosi, I'd order the Capitol Police to arrest them like any protester interfering with a Congressional hearing.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

Back
Top Bottom