The White House’s record of a July 25 phone call shows Trump demanding Ukraine “do us a favor” after the country’s president Volodymyr Zelensky raised the prospect of further military aid from the U.S.
And just yesterday I was speculating that Trump is indeed stupid and criminal enough to make the quid pro quo explicit . . .
“The official and the payor need not state the quid pro quo in express terms, for otherwise the law’s effect could be frustrated by knowing winks and nods.” Justice White in Evans v. United States, 504 U.S. 255 (1992).
Yeah, but he’s just so nice!
And just think, this is the part that they are not covering up…
How much worse must the IG report be…
Looks like you answered my question before I asked it. Explicit it is.
“We are ready to continue to cooperate for the next steps,” Zelensky said.
Here is the critical question: what were the communications with Ukraine leading up to this call. Guaranteed there was a promise that Ukraine would get their aid if the agreed to cooperate.
It’s even worse than this. Look at the very last thing Trump said before Zelensky brought up the Javelins:
A lot of the European countries are the same way so I think it’s something you want to look at but the United States has been very very good to Ukraine. I wouldn’t say that it’s reciprocal necessarily because things are happening that are not good but the United States has been very very good to Ukraine.
“We’re you’re only friend and we’ve been very good to you but it’s not reciprocal, you’ve done things I don’t like but we’re very good to you” “Yes you’ve been very good, and we’re ready to buy more missiles from you” “I want you to do me a favor”.
You all are too hard on Trump…he was just asking for a favor. I asked my neighbor to water the flowers while I was away last week…same thing. /s
Hang him high.
Zelensky had already mentioned he’d spoken with Giuliani not long before this call.
If this ain't Quid Pro Quo, what is it: Quid Amateur Quo?
— Paul Begala (@PaulBegala) September 25, 2019
I wonder how this transcript is being received in Ukraine right now.
“No Quarter!”
(Sniffit’s ghost)
“It’s perfect it’s perfect it’s perfect. It’s beautiful”. The exposure of president genius’s narcissistic world he lives in.
Quid Con Quo, I’d say.
“I would like you to do us a favor…”
then,
Find Crowdsource server in Ukraine.
Your prosecutor was a very good man and shut down.
Talk about Biden’s son, that Biden stopped the prosecution.
Talk to Rudy and Barr about this.
The IG sends this to DOJ, and DOJ cannot find anything wrong here because “help with a government investigation could not be considered “a thing of value” under the law.” (WaPo)
I particularly like the “BUT I WAS NICE!” defense.
Clearly. white collar crime is only actionable if you are surly, mean, or a Sicilian greaseball.
