OT, but do these people have any effing idea what they’re doing day to day, week to week? Any at all?
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And, in some cases, their immediate safety.
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Your OneWordAnswer™: Yes.
It’s just another shakedown operation. So clearly Brazil needs to give something of value to Trump before he’ll deliver the support. And maybe they did since the Pompeo letter so all’s good.
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As we discussed last night, it would likely be temporary, until a Dem takes over in 2021 and reinstates their benefits, retroactively, and offers them new jobs, if not promotions, plus full exoneration. That’s barely 15 months from now, basically an extended sabbatical. In the meantime, and perhaps even then–or in the increasingly unlikely event that Repubs keep the WH–they can take on better-paying jobs teaching or in the private sector, write books, be paid pundits, etc. All high-level government jobs are subject to political interference, and they know this going in. Sometimes you have to do the right thing instead of the safe thing. It’s called being a patriot. You did that, no?
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You’re batting a thousand this morning, sir.
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No, starting at the very top, they truly are the morons they appear to be.
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She can’t testify, she’s technically still a government employee. Unbeknownst to her, Trump named her Acting Consular-in-Residence to GITMO. She’ll be assigned a cell…er…office…in a few days.
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True, no word on the document part. I suspect not. Still, getting him under oath is a start, and Dems need to have a contempt citation fired up just in case he wants to go Lewandowski on them.
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Vous êtes trop aimable, mon vieux.
I simply predict what the rest of you are going to say, and then I type as fast as I can.
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Honest question that I’ve always wondered about (not sure if you know the answer - willing to hear a response from anyone who does):
Can someone like Taylor resign, testify, then re-apply and be re-hired into the same or similar position when a new administration comes around?
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He should look at it this way, he’d be doing vastly more good by quitting and testifying–or testifying and being wrongfully fired–than by staying on an enabling this shit, while accomplishing nothing in his job because he won’t be allowed to. Patriots do the right thing, almost always. A legal defense fund should be set up to help pay for their legal fees, both now and when they sue for wrongful termination and loss of benefits, so money isn’t a reason for them to stay silent.
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No. In fact, any effort by Pompeo to prevent State Dep’t staff from testifying can be categorized as witness tampering, which carries a three-year prison sentence.
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There’s no legal bar, but it’s neither cost-free nor risk-free.
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He’s apparently 72, so doubt it would apply. In theory, yes, in practice, most of the high-profile people (think Linda Tripp) get blacklisted unofficially and find new lines of work.
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So, you’re a predictive plagiarist, then! I should sue you for stealing my ideas before I’ve even thought of them! How dare you! (I joke, but I bet Donnie WOULD do this.)
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He’s a retired diplomat who was called back into service after Yovanovitch was fired. He has nothing to lose personally. But his leaving would mean that Ukraine would no longer have a truth teller from the U.S.
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I just snag the electrical impulses from the keyboards as they type, and run a script to autofill the “reply” box on my end with the text before they have the chance to hit “enter”.
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Why can’t she? What’s the worst they can do if she does, fire her and take away her earned benefits? She’d sue and win, with damages and legal fees, and reinstatement. 100%. Just like McCabe.
I think with the resignation of the senior guy yesterday and increasing reports of serious revolt inside the State Department, Pompeo might realize he has to lighten up or at least let them make their own decisions. But today’s ambassador and Taylor will inflict serious damage.
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