Below is my column in The Messenger on the decision of Hunter Biden to defy Congress in a press conference outside of the Capitol Building. Remarkably, this spectacle was coordinated by Rep. Eric Swalwell (D., Cal.) who presumably knew that Biden was going to violate the congressional subpoena. So Swalwell (a former impeachment House manager) helped facilitate a possible criminal act in refusing to share appear in an impeachment inquiry.
Here is the column:
Congress is often a theater of the absurd, from Rep. Jamaal Bowman (D-N.Y.) pulling a fire alarm before a major vote to former Rep. George Santos (R-N.Y.) being, well, a member of Congress at all. However, none of that compares to what unfolded on Wednesday as Hunter Biden stood outside Congress and defied a subpoena as being “beyond the absurd.” What happens next could be even more bizarre.
Hunter was under a subpoena from the House Committee on Oversight and Accountability to appear for testimony. As I previously wrote, he had two choices: He could appear and either testify or invoke his right to remain silent. The only thing that he could not do is what he did — just refuse to go into the hearing room. Yet, there he was, with counsel Abbe Lowell by his side, holding forth with a public press conference while refusing to appear in the closed-door deposition being held in the building behind him.
By staying on the Senate side of the Capitol, Hunter guaranteed that the House sergeant at arms did not pull him into the hearing room. Ironically, that would have been a better option than his blowing a raspberry at the committee and then speeding away.
Many pundits immediately claimed this was a clever move because the subpoena was not really enforceable until the House voted on the formal impeachment inquiry a few hours later.
I disagree. As I noted in my testimony in the first impeachment inquiry, there is no requirement for a formal vote to initiate an impeachment inquiry. Indeed, that is precisely what then-majority Democrats did with the impeachment of then-President Donald Trump. While I encouraged the House to hold a formal vote on the inquiry, it is not constitutionally required.
Moreover, this is an oversight committee which has independent authority to issue subpoenas. The subpoena was issued not only by the Oversight Committee but by the Judiciary Committee. It was issued under three different authorities, including Rule 12(g) of the Oversight Committee which allows for subpoenas “in the conduct of any investigation or activity or series of investigations or activities within the jurisdiction of the Committee.”
In holding this spectacle, Biden and his legal team committed another unforced error. This one could prove as costly as pushing for an obscenely generous plea agreement and then telling prosecutors to “rip it up” in July.
Few people expected Hunter to testify in the deposition. The evidence against him is overwhelming, as shown in his second federal indictment on tax charges. He and his uncles were allegedly engaged in one of the largest influence-peddling operations in history involving millions of dollars from various foreign sources. Hunter simply could have done what prior witnesses have done: Go in and take the Fifth. That is what attorney and former IRS official Lois Lerner did — twice — when House Republicans wanted to ask her about the Obama administration targeting conservative groups.
It was a no-brainer that someone appears to have radically over-thought on the Hunter Biden legal team.
Hunter can now be held in contempt of Congress. That will force the hand of Attorney General Merrick Garland, who aggressively pursued Trump figures for contempt, including former Trump adviser Steve Bannon. Despite some of us writing to the contrary, Bannon claimed his lawyers told him he did not have to appear before a House committee. He was swiftly charged and convicted by Garland’s prosecutors.
In this instance, the contempt case would go to the U.S. Attorney in D.C., Matthew Graves, who previously declined to assist in bringing tax charges against the president’s son. Yet by pulling a Bannon, Hunter now faces the expectation in many circles that he will get the full Bannon treatment from Garland.
There is another possible cost to this move. Fox News quoted White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre saying that President Biden “was certainly familiar with what his son was going to say,” which suggests that the president spoke with his son before his act of contempt and discussed his statement. If that is true, it was a breathtaking mistake. One of the four most obvious potential articles of impeachment that I laid out in my prior testimony was obstruction. There already are questions over special treatment potentially being given to Hunter in the form of alleged felonies being allowed to expire, warnings about planned federal raids, and sweetheart deals.
In addition, President Biden has enlisted White House staff to actively push challenged accounts of his conduct and attack the House Republicans’ investigative process. Such acts could legally bootstrap prior misconduct into his presidency under abuse-of-power allegations.
If this latest allegation is true, the president was speaking with his son about committing a potentially criminal act of contempt. Hunter was refusing to give testimony focused not on his own role but on his father’s potential role in the alleged influence peddling. The House can pursue evidence on that conversation and how the president may have supported his son’s effort.
With his bizarre public display, Hunter has opened a new potential front for prosecution. If the same law is applied the same way as it was to Bannon, Hunter could find himself indicted within a few weeks.
In Bannon’s case, the subpoena was issued at the end of September. He was held in contempt by the House in October and indicted in November. It took just four days of trial to convict him.
Indeed, President Biden himself has maintained that defying subpoenas cannot be tolerated. When subpoenas were issued to Republicans during the House’s January 6 investigation, Biden declared: “I hope that the committee goes after them and holds them accountable criminally.”
That is precisely what Republicans will now expect from Garland in Hunter’s case. In the meantime, the House did not lose anything that it expected to get from Hunter. It will now move to secure the testimony of a circle of associates surrounding both Hunter and his father. At the same time, the National Archives has finally agreed to give House investigators tens of thousands of emails reportedly involving the president.
As expected, in a floor vote late in the day, not a single House Democrat supported getting answers to these questions through an impeachment inquiry. They unanimously opposed any inquiry even though 40% of Democrats have said in polling that they believe the president has acted illegally or unethically regarding his family’s business deals. (Overall, 70% of those polled held that view.)
Hunter, however, just tripped another wire that could seriously complicate matters not just for himself but for his father. Perhaps that is why, when dramatist-scholar Martin Julius Esslin devised the term “theater of the absurd,” he described it as “part reality and part nightmare.”
Jonathan Turley, an attorney, constitutional law scholar and legal analyst, is the Shapiro Chair for Public Interest Law at The George Washington University Law School.
Ignoring subpoenas and laughing at “Contempt of Congress” is a lesson taught so well by the G.O.P.
Ah, again folks fail to see how this works, why so stupid people???
First, KJP’s claim will actually be this: “Look, the truth is, the White House was briefed on the possibility of MAGA violence against Hunter Biden as he expressed his first amendment right to free speech, at the Senate not the House, due to safety concerns. The President never knew what his son, a private citizen, would do or say. This notion of a conspiracy to defy the unlawful order to appear is being perpetuated by Trump Republicans in an attempt to smear the Biden family name.”
“As for Presidential Candidate Swallwell, he was there to express his first amendment right, as a citizen of the Democracy, and not as an advocate for Hunter, and any connection to the event was there to coordinate the capital police to make sure the threats of violence against Hunter by alt right white supremacists were addressed by capital police and did not result in another J6 horror.”
There will be no emails, as those are of a private nature and not subject to any right to see or read. And, voila, the whole thing goes away, because KJP said there is no there there.
This is how it works, in fact, it is how it has always worked. Next up, Joe knew nothing about the Colorado “ruling not ruling” and expresses his deep commitment to the democratic process. When asked about his specific statement saying he was going to do EXACTLY this, “keep Trump off the ballot legally” the answer will be “look, the truth is, the President was speaking metaphorically, not literally, and, as a deeply spiritual man from a coal mining family who barely survived the cold winters, he’s fully committed to see all people have a right to vote in the most fair way possible.”
And, voila’ all done.
“If the same law is applied the same way as it was to Bannon, Hunter could find himself indicted within a few weeks.”
Hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha!!!
Turley has become pathetically predictible. Well, fair is fair, so all of those Republicans who refused to cooperate with the J6 Committee investigation of a matter of direct importance to the continuation of American democracy should go first–starting with Jim Jordan.
And, the economy IS great–the stock market hit a new record high, the Trump caused inflation due to his stupid tariffs and tax cuts for the wealthy is going down, unemployment is very low, and there’s no evidence the JOE Biden did anything wrong. Trump is still a big fat liar, misogynist, xenphobic racist who is under indictment for 91 felony charges. No one cares about any “pee tape”.
John Say: The proof of the pudding is in the eating. You claim Joe Biden is guilty of “abuse of power” and “bribery”(12/18@12:53). So where is the proof? Do you know something that has alluded Jim Comer? He has had a year to come up with any evidence to back up those charges but so far has come up empty handed. After going through thousands of pages of Hunter’s bank records what has Comer come up with? Hunter and family members have made millions in business deals in Ukraine and China. Not illegal and in a different non-dystopian world they would be applauded for their business acumen. And selling the “Biden” name is also not illegal.
Comer is claiming Joe Biden was a beneficiary of those millions in profits. In early December Comer released some of Hunter’s bank records which he claimed showed “influence-peddling” and “corruption” by the Biden family. The bank records showed Hunter paid his father about $4,500. As it turns out intrepid reporting revealed those transfers were repayments for the purchase of a truck! Comer’s claim was debunked. And those repayments occurred when Joe Biden was a private citizen. And this was Comer’s “smoking gun”?
What Comer doesn’t want to talk about is that in 2019, when he was a member of the House, he loaned his brother, Chad, $200,000. His brother repaid the loan with land swaps–using a shell company. Any chance Congress will investigate that “influence peddling” and “corruption”?
So let’s cut to the chase. Where is the meat? Where is the evidence YOU have that Joe Biden was bribed with $5 million in cash or that he, in your words, “participated in schemes to obtain money from foreign actors in return for exercises of the Federal power vested in the Vice President”. Come on John. No more insinuation and innuendo. Put up or shut up!
There is substantial evidence in many areas that I posted to you earlier today. You are unable to deal with any replies to your mistakes or lies. The evidence is in transcripts, interviews and other evidence.
Why does Dennis refuse to comment on the evidence already provided?
S. Meyer,
To do so, comment on the body of mounting evidence, would be admitting the body of evidence exists. But he continues to deny it does in fact exist.
It is such a large body of evidence, the good professor points out the need for a impeachment inquiry. Rightfully so. The Republican committee should point out, point by point all the evidence for all to see. Of course only the truly devote Biden cultists will deny the obvious evidence we all see with mental gymnastics, word salad and out right lies.
We are already seeing that nearly daily here on the good professor’s blog.
The question is to what absurd lengths will they go as more evidence is presented or found.
Dennis suddenly goes mum. He can’t deal with all the evidence that is put before him so that I will provide just one bit of evidence.
https://justthenews.com/sites/default/files/2023-12/Hunter%20Biden%20to%20Joe%20Biden%20bank%20transfer.pdf
This evidence needs to be explained. If it isn’t, then it needs to be investigated. If records are withheld or blacked out, and Biden refuses to let the appropriate parties review the evidence, then the House needs to make an impeachment inquiry to get it since that type of action has more leverage.
Well Denise, since you want to play this game….
The Biden crime clan has set up multiple shell companies. Not sure what their SIC codes are… but clearly they do nothing but move money.
That itself isn’t illegal, until it is. Meaning that its not illegal to move money per se… unless the funds are from illegal activities or are unreported.
Hence the SARs. Now the SARs themselves do not represent any illegal activity. Ask anyone who’s sold a house. That generates a SAR because of the size of the cash flow. Yet when you investigate the SAR it could show illegal activity.
Now this is what has been investigated. Not just by the House, but by the IRS and FBI.
Also identified is the obstruction by Biden and their allies .
So while you cherry pick and try to pawn off their explanations as true.. even when there is confirmed evidence (or in some cases lack of supporting evidence) to show that its false… the reality is that they have Hunter dead to rights.
Where some in the Senate have said… there isn’t a clear and direct link to Joe Biden, and then the issue of Biden taking an action while POTUS.
That remains to be seen.
Joe Biden is compromised by both China and Ukraine.
Digging a bit deeper you can make the case he’s as dirty as sin.
-G
Elvis bug sockpuppet and also the same person posting all of the anonymous “no it isn’t” comments
VVVVVVVVVV
Why Hunter Fails To Play Outside Rightwing Bubble
Donald Trump is facing a backlash for repeating a remark at a political rally on Saturday where he said undocumented immigrants to the United States are “poisoning the blood of our country”.
Trump made the comments at a rally in Durham, New Hampshire, attended by several thousand supporters.
Trump’s comments come days after he warned that if he is re-elected next year he declared that he’d act on immigration like a “dictator” – but only on the first day of his term. He has since floated the idea of building a network of immigrant detention camps, and “begin the largest domestic deportation operation in American history”.
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2023/dec/17/trump-denounced-anti-immigrant-comment
…………………………………………
The comparisons to Hitler are no longer mere cynicism. Trump is really talking like Hitler and people need to know.
And here Trump is proposing concentration camps for the undocumented. Yet the undocumented could include any one of 11 million people who have been in this country since the Reagan amnesty back in the 1980’s.
So this idea we should be focused on Hunter Biden seems like a joke! Hunter Biden isn’t threatening a dictatorship or talking ‘poisoned blood’.
Interestingly you keep telling us all what people think.
Yet, in reality that is not true.
Trump is doing fine. Biden is tanking, and people do not like Hunter.
If you want to know what Trump is saying – that is quite easy – all his appearances are available for free streaming multiple places. Go to Rumble or Youtube or … Listen to what he has to say and decide for yourself.
Most of us are not so stupid that we beleive this idiotic nonsense from the left wing bubble.
You have alienated nearly everyone outside the left wing bubble.
Very few people are listening to you, to the MSM to the NYT, to democrats, to the left.
You have been caught in far too many lies.
You can fool some of the people all of the time
all of the people some of the time.
But you can not fool all of the people all of the time.
John Say,
I generally make a point of “just scroll past,” comments like brandrunner, but had to read it to understand the context of your comment.
Your comment was spot on.
So Trump is a Nazi, The 4 years from 2017-2021 never happened. We did not have peace, prosperity. a secure border.
During that time we lost all our rights. Trump interned blacks and gays and leftists in concentration camps in the same way the NAzi’s did with Jews and FDR did with the Nisei.
Do you bother to listen to yourself ?
Trump did not do that stupid Reichstag speech that Biden did in 2022.
Trump did not either privately or as president work to censor people. That was Biden and Obama.
Trump calls people he does not agree with names. He does not jail them, or silence them.
The american people actually know Trump – we lived through 4 years of Trump,
and we lived through 4 years of Biden.
And what those like you are scared of is that if you can not terrify enough of this with your nonsense – People are certain to pick another 4 years of Trump over 4 more years of Biden.
None of this is hard. While we can know what Trump actually said – without relying on deceptive left wing nut quotes,
the FACT is mostly we do not need to pay attention to what Trump says – just as we do not need to pay attention to What Biden says.
We KNOW what each of them have done as president.
We KNOW which president used government to target political enemies.
We KNOW which president used law enforcement to target parents protesting at school boards.
We KNOW which president has used law enforcement to target Catholics.
We KNOW which president has used law enforcement to target Pro-life protestors.
We KNOW which president has used govenrment to censor politics he does not like.
We KNOW which president has used Government to favor freinds and cronies and punish enemies.
We KNOW which president has actually lied – OVER AND OVER AND OVER.
We KNOW which president is a failure.
And that is just the short list.
You are desparate. Because you KNOW that you can not win a free and fair election on the issues, on policies.
And you are doing whatever you can to lie, abuse power, deceive people, cheat, …
You are terrified of the certainty that you WILL lose power and that Trump and Republicans may treat you as you have treated them.
We know — both Trump and Biden are shameless liars and demagogues. Both harbor self-delusions as a defense against responsibility-taking. Both are weak men, and have weakened our country morally and spiritually. It’s past time to reject these losers, and move forward.
“It’s past time to reject these losers, and move forward.”
PbinCA, I understand you dislike both leaders, but in the last election, who did you vote for? Probably Biden. Did he do a better job than Trump? John Say already provided a good deal of comparison between the two, so perhaps you can defend Biden’s record compared to Trump’s.
One thing is sure. You can always call both losers, so you don’t have to admit Trump was the better President by far. Are you up to comparing Biden to Trump on the issues? I don’t think so.
With your record of voting for a terrible President, Biden, what makes you think your next vote will be any better? What will happen is you will pick a loser, and once again, instead of looking into the issues, you will defend yourself by saying they were both losers.
John Say,
Former Sec of Def under Obama said in an interview, that world leaders watched what Trump did. Not what he said or tweeted.
Also of note, there have been a flood of renewed, “Trump is Hitler!” like op-eds, posts, even dumb comments here on the good professor’s blog.
As you noted, none of the “Trump is Hitler!” like predictions they claimed would happen, happened during Trumps first term.
Rounding up illegal immigrants? Seeing as how over 100 people on the FBI terror watch list have been caught coming across the border, how many slipped past? FBI director Wray testified he was very concerned about another 911 like attack as a result of our Biden open southern border.
And just in the past few days, some guy was caught on the US side with a AK-47, a hand gun, and 10 IEDs.
The question I have is who our enemies or frendemies want to win in 2024?
Based on actual evidence of actions taken during the Trump admin and the Biden admin, I would say Biden.
Biden’s domestic, foreign, and economic policies have all been disasters.
You are correct, Upstate.
The Dems on this list are intellectually bankrupt and debate policy or compare the Republican Trump over the Democrat Biden. That is why Brandrunner, a pea brain, calls in his best buddy Hitler, and a more intelligent PbinCA tries to equal them out by calling both losers.
S. Meyer,
I would also ask what is their definition of “loser.”
Neither are perfect, far from it.
But when objectively comparing their first two terms, one is obviously better than the other and by far.
I do not recall his name but a Big Tech CEO even said the same about the Trump admin once you get past the MSM narrative.
When the pig was stinking up our White House, he turned around Obama’s successful economy into the worst recession since the Great Depression. Because he’s stupid and a narcissist, whose ego can’t allow him to defer to others who know more than he does, he badly botched the pandemic, making it far worse than it had to be by lying about the seriousness, pushing fake cures and refusing to abide by public health measures like wearing masks. Hundreds of thousands of Americans died unnecessarily as a result. When he couldn’t bully China, he started a trade war, which resulted in shortages of consumer goods and computer chips–Biden has gotten that turned around with the Chips Act that will domesticate computer chip production. Trump’s ethical and moral defects have been public knowledge for years–he has a well-earned bad reputation for cheating people, for assaulting women and for racism, proven by the consent decree he agreed to in a housing discrimination case and for losing money in business–6 bankruptcies. Republicans gerrymander because they have to–most Americans do NOT agree with their agenda, which includes banning all abortions and incarcerating migrants, instead of being willig to work with Democrats for a viable solution–they are using border issues for political capital, which is immoral. Biden also turned about the damage done to America’s reputation by Trump alienating our EU and NATO allies. Trump HAD to cheat in 2016 by accepting help from Russia, and he tried to cheat again in 2020, but got caught. Just HOW many lives have been disrupted by the ego of that fat hog? How many of his supporters went or are going to jail because of his Big Lie that they were stupid enough to believe? Ashli Babbitt is dead because she believed the Big Lie. Capitol Police officers were assaulted, beaten and injured–does the pig care about any of these people? Has he ever apologized or offered compensation to his victims, including the family of Ashli Babbitt, for the damage he did by lying about losing in 2020? How about the insults to our military and honored dead–calling them “suckers” and “losers”? The REAL “suckers and losers” are Trump supporters who fall for the lies put out every day by alt-right media. Trump’s crimes are public information–we’ve all seen what he did and the lies he told. There’s been NO evidence that JOE Biden did anything wrong, but desperate Republicans keep lying, calling him a criminal, accusing him of being bribed–all without any evidence. And the gulllibles believe it. That’s what’s stunning.
You Gigi are living in an alternate reality! Biden is an embarrassment to America & it’s citizens. King Charles leading him around like.the senile old man that he is! You really trust such a person to be making deals & statements with foreign countries? He can’t even exit a stage, needs notes on where to sit, to stand, what to say. He’s BO’s front man for his 3rd term. I challenge your duplications of MSM’s same old talking points. They just latch onto a catchy phrase & repeat it over & over again. Go to the Federal Register & read all the E.O.’S & memorandums & tell the whole world he was able to come with such ideas & language that I am sure he couldn’t even read properly. Then go to the Tax foundation & see proof of his 2 trillion deficit post pandemic vs President Trump yes President not fat man! Everyone benefited from President Trump’s tax policies & getting rid of ridiculous overwhelming regulations of a glutinous FAT government. Truth be told a smart fat man, (though I don’t see it) is far better than a senile man telling Americans they’re a threat to democracy, racists etc., when he hasn’t even been truth to the oath of office. I bet you don’t even know it’s Republican Rule in a Representative Constitution as we have that makes such a democracy work. Straight up Democracies never last long because they do not represent the people. I never have or will consent to being governed by such a lying career politician as he is! Therein lies the power our consent to.be governed. We the people need a redress of his government, you know the one with 2 sets of laws?
This country needs to run like a business & not a charity. Tell me was has he done for the good of families, homeless Americans & how many more have become homeless under his policies? At 91 my mom had to give up her home because she could no longer afford to pay the bills & the extra interest having to be paid on all. A home she had for over 60 yrs. Worked till age 84 & just 2 yrs to pay off. It was all she worked for her entire life raising 4 kids on her own when my father died when I was 3. She never took a dime of food stamps, welfare, reduced lunches, not a dime of governments cradle to grave BS. She set a good example for her kids, as I am the only one left of 5 I’ve had to take her into my home & care for her soon to be 3 yrs now! Looking forward to your review of real talking points after reviewing the above mentioned sites. One being that of the White House!!
Very bizare argument.
Napoleon said Never interrupt your enemy when they are making a mistake.
If as you claim Trump and Republicans have really lost touch – you should cheer them on.
You should be begging republicans to double down.
As shown by this comment, the Left’s brilliant electoral strategy has shifted since 2020. Then it was the association of Trump’s name with Putin. Now it is the association of Trump’s with that old standby, Hitler. Is Genghis Khan next?
Edwardmahl,
During the 2016 election cycle, “Trump is Hitler!” cries from the left were very common.
Now, as polls show Trump leading more and more, the cries return!
It is the same old narrative that just shows their desperation.
The funny thing is, the Democrats have proven themselves to be more in line with fascists than anyone else.
All Hail Plankton!
“The comparisons to Hitler are no longer mere cynicism.”
No, they’re mere stupidity.
I dont recall Hitler having an illegal immigration problem.
Of course you’re suggesting he’ll gas the 15 million biden has let it….
Grow a pair, dude, u sound like a kunt.
“Why Hunter
Fails To Play Outside Rightwing BubbleIs above the law.By the way, nice cut and paste from The Guardian
(No left wing bubble here)
“So this idea we should be focused on Hunter Biden “
Straight from the left wing bubble, gaslight district.
No one is focused on Hunter, you 3rd grader. The focus is Joe.
Context is an important thing. When marginalizing the Jews, prior to murdering them, Hitler changed the context of Jewish history and actions, just like you are doing now, Brandrunner. That makes you a Nazi, along with all the Democrats protesting against Israel asking, like Hitler, to exterminate the Jews.
Being stupid and a Nazi, Brandrunner, are not your likable traits.
“Trump is proposing concentration camps for the undocumented. “
Brandrunner continues to lie just like the Nazis. Brandrunner loves emulating Hitler and wishes to be more like him. Instead of discussing immigration reform, he tries to destroy the character of other people.
Brandrunner, you are a Nazi-type, a liar, and an individual with no character.
S. Meyer,
Good point.
Also, the good socialist Democrats are chanting “From river to sea!” on college campuses everywhere. They have displayed acts of violence against Jews here in the US. Antisemitism is way up. Some 20% of those 30 and younger do not believe the Holocaust did not happen, or was over hyped.
Rounding up illegals who may have anti-Jew, anti-America to the point of willing to engage in violence, and of course the criminal element may not be a bad idea.
Just recently a upstanding illegal immigrant was caught at the border with a AK-47, a hand gun and 10 IEDs. Whatever would he need those for?
9 Israeli soldiers killed in Gaza City ambush in sign Hamas resistance is still strong -LA Times
If Israel were waging war like every other nation, it would not have lost these nine young men. This loss proves Israel is not using indiscriminate bombing, and that comes at the expense of their soldiers. (Shakdi should recognize the truth.)
Poor Dennis. All thats left it appears is to whine about the Republicans tactics. Lmao
While he cheers on the election interference and persecution of political enemies.
Hey Dennis, do you stand with the 30%, like brandrunner, who think bidens not a crook and the pee tape is real
@Seth,
That unfortunately is not proof.
You will take casualties for many reasons.
Israel’s military is well trained for urban warfare.
The claims of indiscriminate bombing have been long debunked. At first there were claims of carpet bombing.
(Until you explain to the person what is meant by carpet bombing…)
Then they claim Israel is using Willie Peet. Until you explain to them that they are using white phosphorous for illumination and not as a munition.
Then you hear the dead and dying baby claims. Much hard to disprove, until you start asking questions.
Not sure how this has anything to do w Hunter… but ok.
-G
G, a ‘what if’ can never be proven to the ignorant or antisemite but can provide ideas so that others can think about the situation rationally. This OT post involved prior discussion and something I wanted Shakdi, in particular, to see. I forgot the OT: before the posting.
You say this discussion is about Hunter. Is it ever (about the topic)? The debate is nothing more than generic denials and lies from the left in response to a proper discussion of the day’s subject. That is not a discussion. It is merely a denial of the truth so that time can pass and the following discussion appears. When news involving prior denials arises, it should be placed in the day’s post or recent ones but need not be where the debate first started. Otherwise, the pause created by denial becomes a tool for the left.
Jonathan: For once I agree with “Thinkitthrough”: “It’s to the Republican benefit to drag this affair well into 2024 so that it will have as much impact on the 2024 election possible” (12/17@11:42). Bingo! Comer’s impeachment inquiry is not about finding “high crimes and misdemeanors” because he has yet to find any crimes committed by Joe Biden. It’s about serving the political interests of DJT. Comer knows he has nothing to take to the House for articles of impeachment. So I think Thinkitthrough has it about right.
But that is not what the Founders had in mind when they put the impeachment clause in the Constitution. It was only reserved only for “high crimes and misdemeanors” by a President. Lacking any proof of that the MAGA Republicans in the House have perverted the whole purpose of the impeachment clause. Apparently, Thinkitthrough thinks that is a good thing.
Dennis – the correct phrase is ” treason, bribery and other high crimes and misdemeanors.” It is probable that bribery can be established in connection with the extortionate elimination of Victor Shokin. But it is not clear any longer that the literal standard of the Constitution controls. In the first impeachment of Trump, the Demos returned two Articles: Abuse of power; and Obstruction of the Congressional investigation of the first article. Neither of these charges are crimes. The first is so vague as to be meaningless. The second is a dispute as to executive privilege, which was never resolved. Thanks to your Demo friends, we are in a place where almost anything be described as an impeachable offense.
Dennis two things can be true at once.
You are absolutely correct that the major republican goal is to weaken Democrats and specifically Biden.
It is also true that as VP and possibly as President Joe Biden has abused his power, and has participated in bribery.
Republicans are not stupid – They can impeach Biden, they can force a Senate Trial. But there is very little possibility fo Removing Biden from office. That does not prohibit republicans from trying. But the political reality today is that the Various house committees now coalesced into the impeachment committee have no power beyond investigating and recomending impeachment.
Probably little more than a 505:50 short at getting a vote to impeach. and near zero probability of winning a Senate Trial against Joe Biden.
But the political reality that they can not succeed does not prohibit them from trying.
And stranger things have happened.
Most of us look at you and understand that you would be making excuses and telling us there is no there there if we had Video of Zolechevsky handing Joe Biden 5M in cash.
Super majorities of americans understand Joe Biden participated in schemes to obtain money from foreign actors in return for excercises of the Federal power vested in the Vice President.
Absolutely House Republicans are seeking to make as much political hay as they possibly can of that.
And they are doing quite well.
Biden is in a great deal of trouble – and the democratic party with him. It is already too late to replace him without significant harm to the prospects of democrats. And that problem gets worse with each day.
The Wise thing for Democrats to do right now, would be what Baker and Goldwater did with Nixon and tell him that neither they nor the rest of the party is going to continue to try to protect him and that he should resign now.
Frankly, Biden does NOT need to resign. He just needs to withdraw his candidacy – much as LBJ did. He should have done so sooner.
Democrats do not have a viable candidate – but that is their problem – and it would have been less of a problem a year ago than today.
Biden should have dropped out long ago.
But this gets worse. I am not so confident as Turley is that Garland is going to prosecute Hunter for contempt of congress.
Nor do I mostly care. Garland has burned his reputation to ash. This was a man nominated to the supreme court – that is rarefied air.
While he lost that oportunity as a consequence of politics – Democrats have only themselves to blame for politicizing supreme court appointments, regardless he held the respect of even those who thwarted or opposed his nomination.
But his conduct as AG has ruined his good name. And his problems are getting worse by the day.
Another separate set of information regarding DOJ targeting of Latin Mass catholics has been made public.
Garland is purportedly under a great deal of presure NOT to prosecute Hunter for anything – much less contempt of congress.
The stress between Garland and Biden is growing.
Garland has traded his integrity to protect Joe Biden and it is my impression that is NOT something he is happy about.
As Turley has pointed out – there was an excellent basis – that still remains for appointing a Biden Special Counsel long ago.
That inexplicably did not occur.
In instance after instance the DOJ handling of conservatives and those on the left at every level has been radically different
People are not stupid.
The house of representative IS a political body. They have no law enforcement power. They are free to engage in political investigations.
The DOJ is NOT.
Bribery is not only a crime – it is explicitly cited as grounds for impeachment in the constitution.
As is obstruction of Justice.
I would guess there will ultimately be atleast half a dozen articles of impeachment.
Bribery and obstruction of justice are already a given.
At the same time – I am not sure there will be an impeachment.
But there most certainly will be an impeachment inquiry – as there should be.
Biden could announce in January that he is not running. That will likely end the inquiry.
Biden could resign. That will end the inquiry.
Biden could die before there is a vote to impeach him. That would end the inquiry.
None of these are likely – but the odds while not 50:50 are still large enough to think about.
Finally – and most likely House Republicans could just run the inquiry straight through to the election.
That accomplishes all their goals.
The only reason for actually voting on articles of impeachment are to force a trial in the Senate.
We do not at this moment know for certain that President Biden was involved in Hunters decision not to testify.
But the evidence we currently have – remarks by his press secretary say that he was.
That is obstruction of justice. Fortunately for Joe – KJP is even stupider than a Biden and it will be easy for people to beleive she spoke of things she did not actually know.
But we ALSO have Rep. Swalwell involved – and he really has no defence against obstruction charges.
He secured the place for Hunter to speak immediately prior to his required attendance at the house, and he did so in a means that assured that the house Sargent of Arms was not coming out and dragging him in to the hearing. Rep. Swallwell assisted Hunter in violating the law – that is obstruction of justice.
Do you expect a prosecution ? I do not.
The founders specifically had bribery in mind when they drafted the constitution – we KNOW because they wrote that in the constitution.
I would further note that we have had many impeachments in US history – we actually KNOW what constitutes High Crimes and misdemeanors”
Obstruction of justice meets that standard.
Further we have had the two recent impeachments of Trump which have permanently altered the standard.
the framers did not intend impeachment to be used for maladministration, they did not intent it for political differences and they did not intend it for inconsequential offenses. They did intend it for bribery, abuse of power, obstruction of justice, all of which apply to Joe Biden.
That said Democrats in 2020 and 2021 made it clear that the Framers missed something with respect to limitations on the power to impeach.
They failed to provide an enforcement mechanism. There is no court that a president can appeal to and argue that what he is accused of is not a constitutionally impeachable offense. Without such oversight the constitution has essentially granted limitless impeachment power to the house.
Should the house impeach for purely political reasons ? No. But it is the voters that get to decide if that is the case.
The HOUSE GOP can impeach for whatever reasons they chose. Answerable only to the voters – as Chenney and Kinsinger and … learned.
The same is true of current house republicans. Voters in 2024 will get to decide if they did a service to us all by exposing the misconduct of the Bidens, or if we are offended by their blatantly political conduct.
There is absolutely nothing that Republicans are doing to Biden that Democrats did not do to Trump – twice over – with the following exceptions.
Republicans have a far better case against Biden.
Republicans are doing a far better job of sticking to normal order and process.
They actually voted for an impeachment inquiry. They had hearings before – mostly in public.
They are going through the formal impeachment process step by step.
They do not have to.
The vote last week could have been a vote to impeach as Pelosi did not a vote for an impeachment inquiry
John Say,
Well said.
Compare and contrast the two proceedings by the differing parties and the Republicans by all appearances are following law and order.
And the people see it.
” because he has yet to find any crimes committed by Joe Biden. “
Refer to JTN for there is significant evidence crimes were committed. You wish to pretend these things do not exist, but they do and that is why the hearings are necessary. It need not be an impeachment inquiry but Biden’s lies and obstruction has made such an inquiry necessary. Blame Biden and no one else.
—
Joe Biden has made false statements as president and while running for president about his family’s foreign dealings.
Joe Biden and his campaign engaged in an effort to deceive voters in the 2020 election by falsely portraying Hunter Biden’s FBI-seized laptop as Russian disinformation
Joe Biden was part of “the brand” that his son Hunter Biden sold for millions of dollars in payments to foreigners in an influence peddling scheme
Joe Biden changed U.S. policy when he withheld $1 billion in U.S. aid to Ukraine to force the firing of a prosecutor investigating his son
A question of ongoing obstruction
Joe Biden’s home as a “crime scene”
The New Ten commandments from Red Hat (IBM)
For those who hate James O’Keefe and the former Project Veritas., James is very much alive and a new brand of journalism is thriving.
Go James!
Sorry Professor Turley. While I agree with your assessment of the legalities, the reality is, the Executive Branch no longer represents the people. Instead, President Biden and his minions will do whatever it takes to tilt the playing field in favor of himself and his family. The two-tiered system of justice is on full display. To the extent that the crooked Garland so-called “Justice Department” files a lawsuit against Hunter for FTA (which I doubt will occur), the President will just pardon his son for all of his violations of Federal law. Of course, this may doom the President as far as his re-election hopes. Good. My prediction is this: the Democrats will do a “bait and switch”. As soon as President Trump’s Republican nomination is locked in, the Dems will throw Biden overboard and choose another candidate — probably either Newsom or Whitmer.
Obama (M)
SOCIAL MEDIA MIND CONTROL
IT CAN’T HAPPEN HERE, IT CAN NEVER HAPPEN HERE
___________________________________________________________
Why is 12% of the population “product placed” in 100% of the scenes on TV and in movies?
Answer: Communist (liberal, progressive, socialist, democrat, RINO, AINO) brainwashing, propagandizing, and indoctrination.
Why did Zuckerburg censor content revealing that leaked emails from Hunter Biden’s laptop showed the then vice-president was helping his son’s business dealings in Ukraine.
Answer: Comrade General Secretary Christopher “We Will Stop Him” Wray and the FBI ordered him to.
Congratulations, Professor. You’ve created the dumbest, most-bickering, off-topic comment section on the web. Most of these people don’t appear to even read your articles anymore and just come here to throw pies at each other. I guess it saves their parents money they’d otherwise have to spend on babysitters.
You go full retard often ?….asking for a friend.
Why did Svelaz (Dennis, Wally, Gigi, Green Anonymous 🏳️🌈) delete his @andredc9999 Twitter account.
Did he pray his gay away?
But wait, there is more!
Svelaz used the sockpuppet name on Reddit (you better sit down for this folks)…….
https://www.reddit.com/user/Barebacktwinkslut/
hahahahahaha
sick mofo!
So, Can Rep. Eric Swalwell (D., Cal.) now be impeached as well for aiding in the commission of a criminal act?
Impeachment is remedial, not punative. The current state of constitutional law is that the members of congress are not subject to impeachment.
But they are subject to expulsion – which is easier.
Regardless Swalwel’s actions are obstruction of justice.
More specifically they are Obstruction of an official proceding. Which DOJ have prosecuted over 300 times in the past 2 years.
Though I would note for those thinking 18 US 1512(c) is going to survive the supreme court – which did decide to hear this.
The J6 prosecutions only survived by virtue of a very messy 3 way split amoung the DC court of apeals that was so very bad that after that deciscion DOJ stopped prosecution “obstruction of an official proceding”.
Even DOJ knows they overstepped.
OT
THEY “RIG” AND “FIX” ELECTIONS, DON’T THEY
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“I’ll have those n—–s voting democrat for 200 years.”
– Lyndon Baines Johnson
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“[I’ll have those Mexicans voting democrat for 200 years].”
– Barack Obama / Joe Biden
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The American Founders legislated (i.e. Naturalization Act of 1802) that immigrants could enter to work, but that immigrants must be free and white to become citizens and vote.
Dennis McInlyre
I have the missing binder, if you want to add it to your collection along with the pee tape!
Jonathan: The Q in this comment is whether the FBI recovered all the top secret docs from Mar-a-Lago? Maybe not. Many media outlets are reporting that a binder containing highly classified docs on Russian interference in the 2016 election has gone missing. The binder was last seen in the WH during the last frantic days of the administration. An aide to Mark Meadows testify before Congress and said she is “almost positive it went home with him”–meaning DJT.
So where is the binder? Could DJT have removed the binder to a secret location so it could not be recovered by the FBI? What would be his motive? A key might be in the fact that during his entire presidency DJT protected Putin. He called the Kremlin leader a “genius”. In a statement on Friday Demitry Peskov, Putin’s press secretary, suggested the Kremlin hopes DJT will be re-elected next year.
There there you have it. Would DJT welcome Russian interference in the 2024 election–as he did in 2016? Most likely. If DJT is re-elected he will continue to protects Putin over the war in Ukraine. And the binder? It will never see the light of day. Scratch my back and I’ll scratch yours. That’s how two autocrats act with each other!
Dennis
WTF are you smoking? Where do you dig this crap up? HRC and the DNC are the one’s found to have colluded with Russia, not President Trump. Biden is the one that withheld classified documents without legal authorization while raking in millions at ChicomUB, HRC is the one that had classified documents on an unauthorized home server and hammeted her blackberrywhile under a subpoena to produce.
The missing binder from Trump administration was briefed to the intelligence committee as an intelligence breach in 2022. Its factual, Biden’s documents were found and returned immediately. Trump lied about having his docs whick prompted the search of M.A.L.
Can you link us to that the minutes from that briefing?
I didn’t think so
Biden’s documents. were never lost. He knew at all times that he had them. He took them, then transported them, then divided them and transported different parts to different places. When his own attorney “found” some of the cache, Biden suddenly got religion.
“Its factual, Biden’s documents were found and returned immediately.”
False. Classified documents were found at Penn Center by workers moving documents in March 2022. NARA was not notified until late October. The Documents were sent to a Biden law firm in Boston for several months – where lawyers who did not have security clearances tried to work out what to do.
And that is just the tip of the iceberg on the coverup of Biden’s mishandling of Classified documents.
Classified Documents dating back 20 years that had to have been removed from the Senate SCIF have been found at Biden’s home.
Are you going ot claim that Biden accidentally removed them from the SCIF ? And then completely forgot about them for 20 years.
While it is not being repoirted – Biden has an email scandla far larger than Hillaries.
VP Biden was using a private email account to send as many as 30 emails per day as VP – 80,000 in total. No one has reviewed these for classified information yet, but the likelyhood they do not contain classified information is low.
Joe emailed government information. He emailed about his dealings with Hunter.
We have emails from Hunter to Burisma that either contain incredibly lucky guesses or classified information regarding US intentions in Ukraine.
THE POWER – UTTERLY, CATEGORICALLY AND EXCLUSIVELY
______________________________________________________
Article II, Section 1
The executive Power shall be vested in a President of the United States of America.
_________________________________________________________________________________________
The President alone wields the executive branch power of classification, declassification, disposition, and archiving of materials.
The legislative branch has no legal basis to usurp any aspect, facet or degree of the power of the executive branch.
No legislation usurping the power of the executive branch is constitutional.
No legislation usurping the power of the executive branch to classify, declassify, dispose of, and archive material is constitutional.
Dennis….I have the binder!!!! With the pee tape!!!
Do you want them?
Of course a mythical empty binder has gone missing.
Aparently you are clueless – the Collusion Delusion was a HOAX.
Do you understand how stupid this is ?
Do you think that there is any classified doc in the entire US govenrment that does not have multiple copies in many places ?
I am sure the Kremlin hopes DJT will be re-elected – nearly the entire world does.
Aparently even many left wing Pro Hamas under 30 nitwits do.
Why – because the world was as peace.
Because it is highly unlikely that Hamas would have pulled the stunt that has resulted in a bloody mess for Gazans.
The global violence we are seeing is the consequence of the Bad policies and weakness of Joe Biden and democrats.
Democrats have been fawning over Iran for the past 20 years. In what world would anyone think that is a good idea ?
Anything that empowers Iran results in more terrorism.
Every president during Putins tenure Except Trump has pushed NATO expansion. Russia has gone to war against neighbors contemplating joining NATO every time the subject has been brought up. Obama talked about Ukraine joining NATO – Russia invaded Crimea. Biden talked about Ukraine joining NATO – Russia invaded Ukraine. Bush and Georgia – same thing.
Trump talked about NATO starting to take responsibility for itself – not about Expanding NATO. No war.
Biden was correctly perceived as a weak president – that triggers wars.
Biden could not have a more ProRussia.ProIran energy policy than he does.
Trump said nice things about Putin – and then did what was best for the US – which often F#$Kd over Putin.
The only election interference we have actual proof of is that of the FBI/DHS/CIA in favor of democrats.
If there was actual evidence of Russian interferance in US elections – House and Senate democrats, the FBI/CIA/DHS, Mueller the world press would have been all over it.
Lets pretend that you are correct – and some bidner documenting Russian interferance in the 2016 election exists – or existed.
And that the only copy was purloined by DJT while leaving office.
Do you think that CIA has lost all the raw intelligence that created that document ?
Do you think that people inside CIA/DHS/FBI would not have leaked the evidence long ago ?
Do you think that during the past nearly 8 years the world media would not have found SOMETHING ?
The only “russian” that Mueller managed to lay a glove on was a female Russian College student and Gun nut who may have slept with ranking NRA leaders. OH the horrors – and the plea deal ? Plead guilty and we will let you out of Jail where you have been in solitary for a year and return home to Russia immediately. Does that sound like some great Russian election conspiracy ?
The moon landing was real. The collusion delusion was a HOAX.
Your a tin foil hat conspiracy nut.
It is Hillary Clinton’s campaign that was actually caught conspiring with likely Russian agents.
Jonathan Turley on Swallowswell
https://redstate.com/nick-arama/2023/12/16/jonathan-turley-has-a-few-things-to-say-about-eric-swalwell-helping-hunter-biden-blow-off-subpoena-n2167630
As first reported by the Washington Examiner, Swalwell used his official position to reserve the space for the press conference and lent his assistance to Hunter in refusing to appear before the House committees investigating his father, President Biden. It was a curious role for a former House impeachment manager to play in assisting in the obstruction of an impeachment inquiry of three House committees.
Of course, Swalwell has argued for the rounding up of anyone who aided and abetted the unlawful conduct during the Capitol riot on Jan. 6, 2021.
Indeed, in 2021 Swalwell sponsored a resolution exploring whether dozens of Republican colleagues could be expelled under the 14th Amendment for aiding and abetting an insurrection by “making unsubstantiated claims of systematic election and voter fraud.”
Swalwell did not simply facilitate a crime, he went out of his way to associate himself with it.
Swalwell surely knew that he was helping Hunter in defying a subpoena and obstructing the investigation into Joe Biden. He not only helped set up the press conference but made sure that he was in the camera frame behind Hunter for every network audience. He presumably utilized congressional staff to assist in this effort.
In taking these actions, Swalwell encouraged and facilitated the contempt of Congress. While his conduct may not warrant a criminal charge, it certainly warrants action from the House.
One member was particularly passionate in 2018 in calling for contempt sanctions against Steve Bannon: “If they don’t force him to answer legitimate questions, they will be ceding Congress’ authority, and we’ll be setting a very, very dangerous precedent that people can just tell Congress what they will and will not answer, and will show no resolve to use our subpoena power to get to the bottom of what’s going on.”
That was Eric Swalwell.
Do you really think Swalwel and Hunter are going to be held accountable for their deeds? I don’t think so. Independent Bob.
Context and history
https://apnews.com/article/steve-bannon-donald-trump-subpoenas-merrick-garland-house-elections-ea316d27da03c1c2ac467e34fefaf1da
House votes to hold Trump ally Steve Bannon in contempt
WASHINGTON (AP) — The House has voted to hold Steve Bannon, a longtime ally and aide to former President Donald Trump, in contempt of Congress for defying a subpoena from the committee investigating the violent Jan. 6 Capitol insurrection.
The House vote sends the matter to the U.S. attorney’s office in Washington, where it will now be up to prosecutors in that office to decide whether to present the case to a grand jury for possible criminal charges. It’s still uncertain whether they will pursue the case — Attorney General Merrick Garland would only say at a House hearing on Thursday that they plan to “make a decision consistent with the principles of prosecution.”