The Impeachment Hearings have had enough pizzazz for me, I don’t know about you. The fundamental problem with all of this is that… the majority of Americans understand what happened, because Donald Trump and his minions have already admitted most of it. Trump released the hokey transcript of the phone call to Ukrainian president Zelensky. Rudy Giuliani has been spilling his guts out on Fox News for months. Mick Mulvaney admitted to the quid pro quo bribery scheme in a press conference. So yes, the public phase of the impeachment hearings were political theater in the sense that the fundamentals were known and we had the admissions on the record. That being said, seeing hard-working public servants from the national security and diplomatic corps has been EXCELLENT. And the House committee saved its strongest witness for Thursday: Dr. Fiona Hill, a brilliant British-born American citizen who grimly and eloquently explained everything from the Ukrainian “drug deal” to how women are treated in the workplace.
Here’s one of the most remarkable segments, and keep in mind this was part of Dr. Hill’s cross-examination by Republicans!! This was brilliant.
“And those two things had just diverged…” “Gordon, I think this is all going to blow up. And here we are.” Amazing.
Since this is a celebrity gossip blog and since I feel strongly that this entire episode in American politics will one day become a movie, let’s just say for the record that Kristin Scott Thomas has to play Dr. Hill. And Tony Hale has to play Gordon Sondland. Anyway, Fiona Hill should be our Secretary of State.
Also: I guess there will be more to the impeachment inquiry, but it’s all dependent on whether John Bolton testifies, which he won’t do without a congressional subpoena, and blah blah blah. None of this is over.
Photos courtesy of Backgrid and Avalon Red.
So many witnesses and evidence and yet, vile Republicans still don’t care.
It really is down to the rest of America to vote these traitors out of the office.
This is the core problem. They have all admitted to, yet republicans just shrug it off. And Trump’s base dismisses it too. They don’t care about Ukraine, they care about Trump keeping dem immigrants out of Murica.
Makes you wish the red states would just separate, but then 2 weeks later they would be Gillead.
Trump has degraded the WH…….I cannot believe we went from BO to Donald: from a Class act to trash; from an articulate president to someone unable to string complete sentences together
2020 is almost here; November 2020 can’t come fast enough as far as I am concerned.
They’d be worse than Gilead. Did you hear the new anti-abortion law Ohio is trying to pass? It would punish doctors for not trying to reimplant ectopic pregnancies…. which is medically impossible. The possible punishment could be death. Wtf.
There was a former congressman on PBS news last night, the guy who led the impeachment against Bill Clinton. He calmly rambled about how there’s zero evidence of impeachable offenses compared to what he sees/saw as a cut and dried case against Clinton. And that this is all a political farce because the Dems hate Trump. As if the Clinton impeachment wasn’t. It made my blood absolutely boil.
@Rapunzel I live in Ohio and that law terrifies me. We’ve been thinking about having one more child and this seriously makes me reconsider. And the sad thing is this state is gerrymandered so badly that it’s almost impossible to vote these people out.
I’m just so confused about how they are able to shrug it off. I mean, every single one of them have committed offenses that can be officially charged. How is it that they are able to shrug it off? I really don’t understand with regard to the legal process.
@Sierra and @LaraK, this is what I don’t understand (as an overseas observer) about how the impeachment hearings are playing out.
Every time a Republican/KKK/NRA member defends Donald’s traitorous behaviour and his family’s overt corruption and profiteering from his presidency, why aren’t they asked if they’d be defending Hilary or Obama if they did exactly the same thing??
Would they be ok with it if it were Hilary who leaned on a newly elected president to investigate Trump and withheld aid? It’s maddening that so many people think this ok – can’t imagine what it’s like for actual Americans, trapped in his shitestorm.
Greg Sargaent at the Wapo says that we should just think of them as accomplices now. And that’s accurate.
GOPer senators had lunch with the dictator yesterday to set up how the trial will go. Since when does one party conduct ex parte communications with the jury? This is so wrong. I’m not sure how we can stop this. He has the Senate in his pockets. Traitors the lot of them.
I want to her! She was simply amazing.
I love this woman.
There is nothing else to say except to agree with Kaiser that this woman needs to be Secretary of State because the United Sates needs her.
+1
Yes! My admiration for her is endless. Hopefully, there will be more even more experts speaking up too. I think so…
What a badass. This woman is #lifegoals, in so many ways. A great representative for our country, agreed – Secretary of State – yes! And also, Kristen Scott Thomas.
I came here to second Kristin Scott Thomas! Hill was amazing.
President Hill! (I know she can’t be, but a girl can dream.)
She was amazing! One thing about this horrible mess is that we get to see excellent people doing their jobs well.
It’s really depressing to me, actually, to see and hear from these highly knowledgeable and dedicated public servants who have been toiling away for years prior to Trump, who just waltzes in with his ignorance and arrogance and his equally horrible family and tramples on so much hard work. It’s beyond the pale and it’s the gigantic elephant in the room, all day, every day.
That’s the takeaway I plan to communicate to my elected reps this weekend. Even though they are as red-loyal as can be, one of our Senators is rumored to be a possible flip vote.
The TV talking heads claim that public sentiment is a deciding factor, and that polls show it’s sliding away from supporting impeachment/removal(???). I think that has to be a wishful theory.
Thank you Christin!
If your Senator is a Republican, even if they are firmly up Trump’s backside, PLEASE make your voice heard, loud and often. Honestly I think the fear of losing re-election is the only thing that would get through to them.
Yes, Christin, thank you. I am lucky to have two Democrat senators but I do legislative volunteer work in gun violence prevention and I have seen legislators change their perspectives and their votes thanks to resolute constituents.
I loved when she tore Nunes up for promoting the Ukraine conspiracy. He keeps parroting that BS and it’s clear he’s either an asset or an agent for Russia (or wants to be).
If I’m not mistaken the Dutch got legitimate CCTV footage of Russia hacking the DNC. They’ve had a bone to pick with them ( rightfully so) following the missing plane. Like … we have ACTUAL footage of it happening and you have people like Nunes out there trying to shift blame to the Ukraine. Wonder who’s interests that would best serve? -_-;
Also… am I remembering this wrong, or was the RNC not also claiming to have been hacked back in 2017? Why did that go silent?
The conspiracy theories are out of control with Nunes, who is clearly in it up to his neck.
Nunes tomorrow: Clearly, the Dems get a bulk rate discount to hold all their nefarious meetings at the local Hilton. I’ve discovered their agenda…
9 am- Deep state witchhunt impeachment conspiracy summit
10am- Obama Kenyan Muslim prayer circle fundraiser for Sharia law in America.
11am- Clinton pizzagate mixer with special lecture on how Hillary killed Lincoln.
12pm- Communists against Christmas network
1pm- LGBTQ transgender bathroom takeover alliance
2pm- Teachers for socialist indoctrination of students campaign.
And yes, the right really thinks this is what’s happening.
LOLOLOL brilliant 😂
LMAO!!!
Ha. It would be more funny if it wasn’t so deadly serious. That so many people would actually believe that all these officials in the government like Hill have all been conspiring to take down Trump and that Trump and his minions are the ones to be trusted just makes me want to weep and never stop.
I don’t remember if it’s rumor or reported, but I too have heard that the RNC got hacked as well. I think some damaging stuff was uncovered, hence the about face a lot of the Congressmen did.
And look at all the people on the retirement path, too. Very suspicious. Seems like the ones who didn’t want to toe the line knew well enough to not go against Putin’s plans and are just removing themselves entirely.
It was.
She was great, I watched her on and off and she articulated things very well and in a way that most people could grasp. She still has her Northern english accent.
She owned that hearing, everyone seemed to respect her.
DU, Thank you for placing Fiona Hill’s accent for all the the non-UK posters of the Celebitichy commentariat.
She mentioned that her working class accent would have held her back in the UK and that she felt extremely fortunate that it wasn’t the same kind of hindrance in the US. I thought it was really touching.
Lots of planets have a North.😊
https://youtu.be/svi-fBXZzqI
Hahaha – I loved him as the Dr.
She was incredible. she shredded every single R defense. They’re left with “yes this happened, but its not impeachable” which may be enough for them to beat this, but it will leave a stain on US politics for a long time.
Fiona Hill and Maria Yovanovich were brilliant. They are proud examples of why we need more women in government!! Articulate and taking no bullshit. They are my new heroes.
Best quote:
“He was being involved in a political errand, and we were being involved in national security foreign policy.”
Yes, you are absolutely right. Yovanovich has been a public servant for I think over 15 years of public duty with a stellar reputation in addition to Dr. Hill. They are both strong and capable women who don’t take any BS from anyone, no matter who they are. I found it extremely disturbing that Drump was tweeting his disgusting remarks as they or one of them was testifying. Drumpf truly has no morals or ability to be president. I saw on the news that he has gathered his wagon of Republi-CAN’Ts into the Oval Office for a strategy meeting which could be considered as persuasion or pressure to his party.
The one issue that I find most disturbing is that his supporters refuse to listen, digest and understand his impeachable offenses as fact, not fiction. They are truly delusional like their Master of Crimes!
Amazing woman. So was Marie Yovanovitch. And a few of the men too. At times, I have felt my breath taken away at what amazing people we have, who none of us out here even knew, or had heard about. And yet we ended up with the trump crime family. The worst america has to offer. And then we see so much of the best we have to offer, and really it takes your breath away. how did this happen? racism and misogyny. I know. Still. Wow.
Yes, I said something similar above. It’s tragic.
I am nominating these two women for the John F. Kennedy Library Profile In Courage Award. They both deserve it.
Great idea lightpurple – courageous is exactly what they were. In fact all of the witnesses I heard were incredibly courageous. Just trying to their jobs and not only they having to be called in to answer for that crime family, as someone above put it, but what’s almost worse, would be dealing with the republicans at the hearing actually trying vainly to cover his arse. I wonder how they sleep at night?
Dr. Fiona Hill. Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman. Marie Yovanovitch. Notice a pattern? All immigrants, all more patriotic than the entire Republican membership of Congress.
yes
Yes – dedicated to serving, and to the truth. They are true examples we should look up to.
Exactly. Lovely people using their gifts to help everyone. That’s what I thought we were here for. But the money…
I loved the way Dr Hill replied to that questions, she was trying really hard not to roll her eyes.
To continue casting the movie, Jonah Hill could play Cow Suer Nunes and I bet Jim Carrey would love to tear into Gym Jordan.
Omg, I love all the casting. Any thoughts on Elise Stefanik? I assume her role would be small, lol, but still pivotal with the storyline of her getting trounced in the next election.
Anna Kendrick, but she’d have to do the Bridget Jones diet.
Or Elisabeth Moss if AK’s not available. Steve Carrell could nail Schiff.
Ha, love it. Dare I ask…Rudy? Serious prosthetics would have to be used, I’m guessing.
Jeffrey Tambor would’ve been a perfect Rudy, but, well …
And Michael McKean for Individual 1.
Someone completely annoying and unlikeable, like Lena Dunham.
Kristin Scott Thomas for Fiona Hill.
For some reason whenever I see Stefanik’s name I think of her as Elsie. She looks like Sarah Suckabee’s pipsqueak cousin. They look alike.
Michael McKean would be perfect for Individual 1. He literally played a character on a TV show. . .I want to say an old episode of Castle, where he plays a character that you couldn’t help but think of as trump — and of course complete with a vapid, but this time Ivanka looking wife.
Is anyone else terrified that Donald is going to go full batcrap dictator after the Senate acquits him? Like worse than already, worse than we can even imagine? I am reading too many think-pieces this morning about how he and the R-Senators have already mapped out the whole trial, and he knows nobody is ever going to stop him. Seriously- where do we go once the Senate declares this is all okay? And why is it okay for him to keep having lunch meetings with the Republican senators- isn’t that jury tampering somehow?
I think the military is growing more and more disgusted with him. I would be fine with them going in and taking him out. And you can interpret “taking him out” any way you please. I know how I meant it.
His override of the military’s justice system AGAIN regarding the Navy SEAL rank- WTF? How dare he tell the military to “get back to work???” And how did I see no backlash to that whatsoever? Where am I? What is happening?
They should have been disgusted with him from the moment he insulted and attacked a Gold Star family, and it’s only gotten worse from there.
Jerusha: Oh great, a military coup. At the risk of insulting our southern neighbors, we have indeed turned into a banana republic.
@BeanieBean. Fifty-six years ago today, I was sitting at my desk in my dorm room studying for a German test. Sugar Shack was playing on the radio when a sudden bulletin came on, Breaking news from Dallas… I was shocked, bereft, unbelieving. It seemed impossible. If the same thing happened today I’d do a happy dance, I’d go out and celebrate, I’d cheer. So, just hoping something rids us of his foul, evil presence.
BeanieBean – what kind of a racist comment was that?!
This has been my fear as well. I’m fearful of them pulling a Reichstag-type event to cancel the election or declare martial law.
10KTurtle, you have now truly terrified me as that thought never crossed my mind. You are absolutely right!! This will boost his ego to the point of no return to abuse his power more so than before since the narcissistic prick will have vindication that he is untouchable.
Let’s get our warriors out and vote this narcissistic POS out of office for 2020!
I’ve been feeling very scared of this also. Once the Senate acquits him, he will go around crowing about how he was found to be innocent and it was all a set up. Then because there is no way he can participate in any sort of fair election, like having debates, etc., God only knows how he will throw this whole thing into disarray. I do think America will survive this but it may take a long time and a lot of pain to make things right.
I loved her. She was NOT there for Moo-nes’s bullshit, and it was great to hear.
When you have been quietly toiling away at your job, and see something so unethical that you have to speak up…And then, because the highest levels of your “leadership” will not support or acknowledge it, you come forward to do what is right (even if it means resignation).
Absolute patriots.
She just took my breath away. What impressed me most was her thoroughly non-partisan mindset. To think we have such professionals in the field protecting our national security gave me hope again!
Except they are all resigning. I can’t say that I blame them, but I worry so much for our future.
I just e-mailed my red-as-can-be rep and one halfway sane GOP Senator (the other one from our state is a lost cause). They need to hear from voters during this week-long holiday break.
As a follow-up, the lost cause is named Blackburn. Check her tweet from this morning.
No doubt her call volume is going through the roof today, as she sullied Vindman via her tweet.
We had a chance at a great Senator (her opponent, Bredesen). Sigh.
And what a coincidence that Marsha Blackburn (sadly also my “senator”) had as her Campaign Finance Chairman a guy named G. Kline Preston–who is now infamous for introducing Maria Butina’s handler Alexander Torshin to none other that the president of the NRA. That’s why Butina ended up attending the 2015 NRA Convention in Nashville. Blackburn is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Kremlin.
“As long as U.S. is electing foreign-born presidents,” tweeted Tennessee attorney G. Kline Preston IV in 2013, “I propose Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin.”
https://www.thedailybeast.com/pro-confederate-birther-introduced-maria-butinas-handler-to-nra-chief
Blackburn is a waste of space and, to be totally catty, all the work she is having done on her face isn’t helping
I loved that she turned her microphone off when Jacketless Jim Jordan started his shouting diatribe because she knew there wasn’t going to be a question in there anywhere. Classy, intelligent, prepared. I’m so proud of her and all of our foreign service corps for their patriotism and honesty and for doing their duty with such bravery.
Oops! I read Jacketless Jim Jordan as Jackass Jim Jordan, but I guess that fits, too. Maybe even better.
I absolutely hate this Republican lawyer. He shuffles and sifts through his pages throughout people’s responses to his questions, as though they’re barely worth listening to, and occasionally looks up skeptically, with a kind of sneer. Is he really that disorganized? Or is this some kind of power move?
I think it’s both.
Nunes and Jordan are horrible to watch too. They’re both so condescending and stupid, and whine about nonsense and false things rather than asking questions. Much like some past hearings, they’re performing for Trump and Trump alone. And I hope it sinks them all.
They’re performing for the base, too. A number of college-educated people I know from high school were posting on FB how Jordan “owned” the Dems. I guess you can draw that conclusion if you only see an out of context sound bite of him… yelling everything rudely.
@Esmom. Trump U graduates?
Jerusha, NO. Legit universities, with legit careers and seemingly normal lives. Being proud Jim Jordan supporters. I can’t.
I get more of the impression that Castor knows he has nothing to work with and wants to quit. Every time he shuffles his papers, I expect him to toss them up in frustration and say “The GOP is guilty af, I’m out!”
Kristin Scott Thomas for the movie, or maybe Sian Clifford from Fleabag, with Idina Menzel a lock for the Broadway musical adaptation.
She was incredible. I aspire to be even a fifth as eloquent and composed.
I want the Democratic candidate who promises Fiona Hill as Secretary of State! And I’ve already donated to Elise Stefanik’s opponent. Elise, Jim Jordan, Devin Nunes, and the Republican’s lawyer Stephen Castor, all we’re incompetent, angry, and not fit for office. Over and over Castor asked questions that led to answers that hurt the Republicans. Fiona Hill outclassed every one of them in intelligence and patriotism!
Tedra Cobb is her opponent. When the hearings started she had a few thousand followers. After Stefanik’s first appearance, Cobb’s numbers shot up. She presently has 258.6k followers. Jordan and Nunes also have opponents, if anyone here has a few dollars to spare.
This impeachment catastrophe is the fault of the Republicans. I saw one Republican say that what Trump did was “inappropriate,” but this is a teachable moment rather than an impeachable moment. Fuck them. If the Republicans had had any kind of balls to stand up to the POTUS for the last 3 years, they wouldn’t all be in this position. Every single one of them got behind him with every dirty thing he did. It’s their fault, and that’s why they can’t get behind impeachment. They created this monster and have done nothing to control his behavior.
Fiona Hill is an inspiration.
Meanwhile, the Trump Administration standard for women, her royal Corrupt highness Princess Nagini of the most sacred Horcruxed Vagina tweeted a Tocqueville quote about impeachment in defense of her Daddy. Only it wasn’t actually from Tocqueville and it talked of morals. The blithering idiot got the twitter shredding she deserved.
I saw that. She is some kind of piece of work. They day that they all get thrown into the trash bin of history cannot come quickly enough.
She reminds me of Fleabag’s sister, Claire. When she mentioned her mother gave her a bowl cut after a boy set her hair on fire while taking an exam, I pictured it was Claire’s disastrous haircut.
John Lithgow for the admirable Adam Schiff…he would be brilliant! Emily Blunt could also win as the divine Dr. Fiona Hill. God help our country heal from the Cancer of this Presidency and his corrupt family and Administration! Aaaggghhhhhh…H.E.L.P.!!! We need a Super Hero intervention, I’m not sure who is running can rescue us, but I would rather vote for a Chimpanzee than have Trump demoralize the office and America a second longer.
I second everything you wrote. I’ve lost count of how many of Trump’s office holders or associates have been indicted or found guilty. This isn’t just bad luck, it’s the people he is drawn to, and the illegal actors he wants. That cancer started at the head and has been spreading downward since during his campaign. Trump is a grifter and a thug, and I have lost all respect forever for anyone in Congress who carries water for him. There is an opportunity for a few Republicans to attain super hero status and vote for impeachment in the Senate. They would begin the rescue of our country and be on the right side of history.
Seriously, when I read this morning that the Republicans were already planning their sham trial WITH the president? I can’t help but think we are doomed. They are going to fix the 2020 election, and we are all gonna be forced to have that demented goon in the white house until 2024. They are literally going out there and saying the opposite of what is happening. It is gaslighting of unprecedented proportions.
Where do we go from there if our institutions are so easily compromised by money and literally the dumbest, most greedy, most immoral people in this country running it?
I wish she could testify for everybody. She is so lucid and easy to understand as well as rational and human.
This is a wonderful statement from VoteVets.
https://twitter.com/votevets/status/1197923185854955520?s=21
Here’s a handy list of who’s running against some of the most repugnant Rs.
https://twitter.com/janehwbb/status/1197443331476856832?s=21
She was fire. My fear is the intelligent and competent people running our country are leaving or getting fired. And then who is left? Trump and the idiots & criminals he surrounds himself with. Scary times.
For me, the most chilling part of all the testimonies was when Hill, in explaining why it is important to not waver or be seen to waver in our support of Ukraine (i.e., not hold up military funds for domestic political purposes), was when she related the story of what Putin said to the Georgian after they invaded that country: how Russia (unlike the U.S.) keeps its promises.
Wow, how pitiful had that fool made the US look? And the poor Kurds.
She was amazing. She’s brilliant and ran circles around the Republicans. I’m amazed. She is goals