The impeachment inquiry continues
Kaitlyn Lundy, News Editor
Photo courtesy of Pixabay.com.
Since we left off back in October, there have been numerous developments in the impeachment inquiry of President Donald Trump. You can review the first installment of information on the impeachment inquiry here.
During the past month, there has been a lot of headway regarding the investigation in the form of closed-door testimonies. There have currently been 13 from individuals with any connection to the inquiry including Michael McKinley, former adviser of Secretary of State Mike Pompeo (who still has not agreed to comply), Fiona Hill, former Trump adviser on Russia, and Gordon D. Sondland, ambassador to the European Union.
Sondland is an important part of the puzzle because he was involved in the arrangement of Trump’s favor with Ukraine and the implications expected along with the exchange. He initially testified that he didn’t know anything about the quid pro quo (a favor or advantage granted or expected in return for something) in Ukraine. However, since then, he has gone back and been truthful about his role in the matter.
This week, the investigation enters into a new phase and a public one at that. Public hearings will begin Wednesday, Nov. 13 in which the House Intelligence Committee will meet with William B. Taylor Jr. and George P. Kent as well as Marie L. Yovanovitch on Friday, Nov. 15.
As more information is uncovered revealing the presence of quid pro quo, it appears as though Republicans are losing ammunition to protect Trump and his claim of no quid pro quo, CNN reported.
Trump has been extremely vocal on Twitter about the impeachment inquiry against him and has stood by his consistent claim that the initial phone call to Ukraine was “perfect.”
A tweet from him dating Nov. 10 reads, “The call to the Ukrainian President was PERFECT. Read the Transcript! There was NOTHING said that was in any way wrong. Republicans, don’t be led into the fool’s trap of saying it was not perfect, but it is not impeachable. No, it is much stronger than that. NOTHING WAS DONE WRONG!”
Historically, impeachment inquiries have proceeded based on the presence of three or more articles of impeachment sent to the House Judiciary Committee. According to ABC, there has been debate over whether or not to charge Trump with abuse of power because of the pressure he placed on Ukraine to investigate and obstruction of justice due to the administration’s lack of compliance to subpoenas. However, the discussion on the topic was brief and nothing is confirmed yet.
According to the New York Times, “As the impeachment hearings go public this week, the Republicans are hoping to redirect the spotlight onto the Bidens.”
Each political party is trying to direct the blame onto the other side, to cover themselves up from corruption claims. So, even as more information is uncovered revealing a more concrete foundation, there is still the presence of political bias among both political parties.
Mark Roeder, a political science professor at North Greenville University, commented, “I think this is as much about Congressional Democrats as it is about Trump. There are certain Democrats that could lose their seats if they don’t vote for an impeachment of Trump. That’s a big part of what this is about, how many Democrats believe they have to impeach in order to get reelected. How many Republicans believe they can’t impeach in order to get re-elected. And then the ones in the middle.”
As this process continues to play out, it will shape opinions on Trump and even Biden that will affect the 2020 election. Ultimately, the American people will be led to decide who will take place in office based on the slew of information provided during this impeachment inquiry.
