OPINION - Shields and Brooks 11/29/2019

"Shields and Brooks on impeachment public opinion, shifting 2020 Democratic race" PBS NewsHour 11/29/2019

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SUMMARY:  Syndicated columnist Mark Shields and New York Times columnist David Brooks join Judy Woodruff to discuss the week in politics, including public opinion and legal debate in the impeachment inquiry into President Trump, the shifting race among 2020 Democrats and what we’re thankful for during this holiday week.

Judy Woodruff (NewsHour):  Now here to analyze the politics of this Thanksgiving week, as always, are Shields and Brooks.  That is syndicated columnist Mark Shields and New York Times columnist David Brooks.

Hello to both of you.

Mark Shields, syndicated columnist:  Hi, Judy.

Judy Woodruff:  So, the impeachment process, we are seeing the Judiciary Committee marching ahead, David.

There's a hearing next week where they are going to talk to constitutional scholars about impeachment.  The committee sent a letter to the White House saying the President has until next Friday to say whether he's going to call witnesses and provide evidence.

Meantime, the President is out on the campaign trail saying the whole thing is a witch-hunt, and he's not going to cooperate.

And is he making some progress, because we're seeing the polls show some slipping in support for impeachment?

David Brooks, New York Times:  Yes, especially in swing states.

And so I think the contrast for the coming week will be that the Democrats will be ever more treating this like a legal matter, and Donald Trump will be ever more treating it like a political matter, and them trying to close it in on the exact events and him trying to widen it, see, this is just what they have been doing at me.  They have been — this is an attack on you.

And they will both win.  And the impeachment now numbers are just like every other numbers in our politics, completely divided right down the middle, and with nobody moving on either side.

And so I suspect Trump will see this as a tremendous way to get his base, and Democrats will see the same way.  And we will march forward.  And eventually it'll end.  And then we will turn our attention the Democratic Party, and I'm not sure what will have been achieved.

Judy Woodruff:  His best defense, go out and call it a witch-hunt?

Mark Shields:  David is such a Pollyanna.

Look, Judy, I think continues to slide is just a little bit of an overstatement.

If you think — compare this to Watergate, it took 26 months after the break-in at Watergate, 14 months of hearings, to get to the point where we are now with Richard Nixon.  That was the summer of 1974, one month before he resigned, to the point we are with Donald Trump right now.

And as far as — I mean, you can look at all the polls.  Ipsos does it — has done six since the end of October.  It's gone from 47 percent in favor of impeachment, to 41 against, to 47 percent in favor of impeachment, 41 — 40 against.  I mean, it's been next to — next to no movement.

I just I think that we have, quite frankly, is early stages.  And we're very much in the early stages.  And I think for us to rush — Jeff Horwitt, the Democratic pollster who does The Wall Street Journal/NBC poll with Bill McInturff, the Republican, compares it, the impeachment and conviction in the Senate, as to the criminal part of a trial.

And the civil — the civil trial will be the election of 2020.  Donald Trump may very well be not guilty in the criminal part, but, right now, he's in just terrible, terrible shape looking at November 2020.

Have 47 — 6 percent of Americans who say they would vote for anybody except Donald Trump.  And 34 percent say they will vote for Donald Trump, regardless of who runs against him.

David Brooks:  Yes.

Mark Shields:  So, I mean, he's really just in worse shape than any incumbent in my lifetime.
Judy Woodruff:  So are you saying — and I'm going to turn to David on this.  Are you saying that this is not about impeaching him and removing him from office by the Congress, but doing it — but damaging him enough so that it happens at the polls next November?

David Brooks:  Well, that's not the way it's supposed to be.

Mark Shields:  No.

David Brooks:  It's supposed to be a legal thing to see if he did high crimes and misdemeanors.

I don't — I agree, I think Donald Trump is in serious trouble, more than — more than most of my Democratic friends do.  That having said, in swing states, The Times had a poll that gave everybody anxiety on the Democratic side about two weeks ago showing Trump winning all these swing states.

And we have, surprisingly, shockingly little data on how he's doing in swing states or how impeachment is doing in swing states.  The one thing we do have is a poll that Marquette did in Wisconsin, which was 40 percent support, 55 percent oppose.

And so if that's the way the swing states are reacting, then that's not a good thing, because this is not going to be about looking at how the whole country views this.  This is about how those swing voters are viewing it.

And whether the Democrats want to go and do Watergate style or Watergate length set of hearings, it seems to me that's highly problematic.

I think there's a case, as we discussed last week for bringing in Mike Pompeo, and trying to ask him some questions.  But the Democrats so far seem loath to do this because they want to rush this thing.  And so that — that's just a big philosophical difference.  Do they go big and try to engineer that, or do they say, let's just get this over with?

TRUMP - Impeachment Update

"The latest from the impeachment inquiry, including new transcripts and a court ruling" PBS NewsHour 11/26/2019

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SUMMARY:  More transcripts from closed-door impeachment hearings were released Tuesday, providing new insight into how aid to Ukraine was delayed -- and why.  Meanwhile, a federal court ruled witnesses subpoenaed in the impeachment inquiry must testify, noting that "Presidents are not kings.”  Yamiche Alcindor joins Judy Woodruff to discuss these developments and news from the House Judiciary Committee.

"How Nixon, Clinton and Johnson dealt with the threat of impeachment" PBS NewsHour 11/28/2019

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SUMMARY:  Impeachment is a rare event in American politics.  Amid the past few weeks of public hearings, we have wondered how this episode compares to previous instances of impeachment.  Amna Nawaz spoke with three historians, each focused on a former president who had to grapple with that threat: Peter Baker on Bill Clinton, Timothy Naftali on Richard Nixon, and Brenda Wineapple on Andrew Johnson.

TRUMP - Impeachment Week 11/11 to 11/17

"Mulvaney objected to 2017 Ukrainian aid package, says State Dept. official" PBS NewsHour 11/11/2019

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SUMMARY:  Additional closed-door deposition transcripts from the impeachment inquiry were released Monday.  Laura Cooper, deputy assistant secretary at the Department of Defense, testified during her appearance that her colleagues questioned whether aid appropriated by Congress for Ukraine could legally be frozen by President Trump.  Yamiche Alcindor and Lisa Desjardins join Judy Woodruff to discuss.

"How Rudy Giuliani went from ‘America’s mayor’ to Ukraine business broker" PBS NewsHour 11/11/2019

aka "Rudy Giuliani, Trump MOB Consigliere"

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SUMMARY:  Mentioned frequently in transcripts from closed-door testimonies in the impeachment inquiry, Rudy Giuliani stands at the center of the saga over President Trump’s Ukraine policy.  Giuliani is now the President’s personal lawyer, but he first entered the national spotlight as New York’s tough-on-crime mayor — and later, a consoling figure amid the grief of September 11th.  Yamiche Alcindor reports.

"What to expect as 4th impeachment process in U.S. history goes public" PBS NewsHour 11/12/2019

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SUMMARY:  The House impeachment inquiry will go public Wednesday, with its first open-door hearing on Capitol Hill.  Members of the House Intelligence Committee, both Democrats and Republicans, will have opportunities to question two key witnesses in the ongoing investigation around President Trump’s dealings with Ukraine.  Nick Schifrin joins Judy Woodruff with an overview of each party’s messaging.

"How did we get here? A timeline of the Ukraine impeachment saga" PBS NewsHour 11/12/2019

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SUMMARY:  The impeachment inquiry has moved quickly, with more than a dozen witnesses, nearly 2700 pages of testimony and, now, public hearings.  But how did we get here?  Lisa Desjardins and Yamiche Alcindor take a look back at key events in the Ukraine saga and the previously obscure U.S. officials who will play important roles in the upcoming hearings.

"What William Taylor and George Kent shared during public impeachment hearings" PBS NewsHour 11/13/2019

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SUMMARY:  Wednesday marked the first public hearing of the impeachment inquiry into President Trump, which is looking at whether Trump violated his oath of office and jeopardized U.S. national security by pressuring Ukraine to conduct investigations to benefit him politically.  Yamiche Alcindor, Lisa Desjardins, and Nick Schifrin join Judy Woodruff to review testimony from William Taylor and George Kent.

"Collins says he’s putting House Intelligence ‘on notice’ about rushing impeachment" PBS NewsHour 11/13/2019

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SUMMARY:  Rep. Doug Collins (R-Ga.) is the highest-ranking Republican member of the House Judiciary Committee, which will play an important role in the impeachment process.  He joins Judy Woodruff to discuss his impressions from the inquiry’s first public hearing, including that there was “nothing new” shared by witnesses William Taylor and George Kent, and why Adam Schiff can’t “rubber stamp” impeachment.

"Experts analyze the testimonies of career diplomats William Taylor and George Kent" PBS NewsHour 11/13/2019

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SUMMARY:  For a variety of reactions to the first day of public hearings in the impeachment inquiry into President Trump, Judy Woodruff speaks with Walter Dellinger, acting solicitor general under President Clinton; C. Boyden Gray, former U.S. ambassador to the European Union under President George W. Bush; Mieke Eoyang of Third Way National Security Program; and Michael Allen of Beacon Global Strategies.

"Some key witnesses expected to testify publicly this week" PBS NewsHour 11/17/2019

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SUMMARY:  Eight high-ranking officials, some with first-hand knowledge of President Trump’s conversations about Ukraine, are expected to testify in public hearings this week before the House Intelligence Committee in the ongoing impeachment inquiry.  Emily Bazelon, staff writer at The New York Times Magazine, joins Karina Mitchell for more.

OPINION - Shields and Ponnuru 10/4/2019

"Mark Shields and Ramesh Ponnuru on Trump, Ukraine and ‘quid pro quo’" PBS NewsHour 10/4/2019

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SUMMARY:  Syndicated columnist Mark Shields and Ramesh Ponnuru of The National Review join Judy Woodruff to discuss the week’s political news, including President Trump’s insistence that foreign leaders should investigate the Biden family, how the White House is responding to the subsequent House investigation and the newest fundraising and poll numbers among 2020 Democrats.

Judy Woodruff (NewsHour):  And an update.

Late today, the House of Representatives' Oversight Committee formally notified the White House that it is issuing a subpoena for documents related to the impeachment investigation.

Now to the political analysis of Shields and Ponnuru.  That is syndicated columnist Mark Shields and Ramesh Ponnuru of The National Review.  David Brooks is away.

Hello to both of you.

So, the news just keeps coming.  It's been a week of cascading information about what the President said in a phone call.  And then the President himself, Mark, reinforces this with announcing to the world that he's urging China to look into Joe Biden and his son Hunter.

My bottom-line question for both of you is, is there fire here?  Is there evidence, in your mind, of either a law that's been broken or a violation of the President's oath?  Or is this just smoke?

Mark Shields, syndicated columnist:  I think there's more than smoke, Judy.  I'm not a lawyer, and I don't play one on TV, but there's certainly a strong case to be made that the President openly solicited and sought the intervention and involvement of a foreign government on behalf of his own candidacy, an American Presidential campaign.

And I think, usually, it's the law that's in dispute in these cases of a big argument, rather, about facts.  There's no real argument about facts here.  They're pretty much out in the open.  And the President really opened it up on the driveway on Thursday, when he bid China to come in and come up with information, unflattering, libelous or criminal information, on Joe Biden and his family.

Judy Woodruff:  Ramesh, do you see this as either a law broken or a violation of his oath?

Ramesh Ponnuru, National Review:  We have this tendency to see scandals in terms of hidden events that have to be uncovered.

And so we can't always process when the President says something in public, the way he did with respect to China, when he openly, publicly, with the world watching, said that he wanted China to investigate political opponents, and that his treatment of China in trade negotiations would depend on that.

All of his defenders have been saying, no quid pro quo.  We saw a quid pro quo on national television.

Judy Woodruff:  And, of course, the President said today — made a point of coming out today and saying to the press, no, there's no quid pro quo.  I'm not tying what China does with regard to these investigations to the trade negotiations.

But he did say that yesterday.

Ramesh Ponnuru:  Right.  He said it.

And he — I think he realized that he made a mistake, and he is trying to un-say it.  But it also shows you that he will undercut the defenses that his allies make, which is one reason why a lot of Republicans have been heading for the tall grass.

They don't want to be out there defending the administration with a line that the administration itself might abandon.

Judy Woodruff:  Well, Mark — Mark…

Mark Shields:  No, I think Ramesh's point is salient and right.

There's been a little bit of the old Sherlock Holmes story about the dog that didn't bark, the story of the dog that, when the race horse was stolen, the dog didn't bark in the night, which suggested that maybe it was somebody inside the household who was responsible for the crime.

The dog didn't bark.  There's no Republicans — usually, Republicans — there's a number of Republicans you can count on to be on television.  There's no such term as indecent exposure to them.  If there's a microphone and a camera, they're there.

All of a sudden as Ramesh puts it, they're in the tall grass.  They don't want to.  And the reason is, Judy, that there is no White House strategy.  I mean, it's pretty obvious.

I mean, the difference between this and Bill Clinton in 1998, when Clinton effectively compartmentalized, I'm going about my business, Donald Trump, as one leading Republican said to me this week, ought to be working on prescription drugs.  He ought to be doing that and holding meetings on it, and this and that and the other thing.

And he's totally obsessed with this.  And he — so if you're going to defend him, you don't know what you're going to be defending an hour from now or certainly tomorrow morning.

Judy Woodruff:  Do you see a — did you see a — do you discern a White House strategy in all of this?

Ramesh Ponnuru:  Well, I think, as often is the case with this administration, there is a strategy for holding the President's base supporters.

And that may well be enough, because you need a two-thirds supermajority in the Senate to convict and remove a President from office.  So if you're looking forward to the endgame, just maintaining your base is enough.

I don't see a strategy right now that is trying to change the minds to of people in the middle.

Judy Woodruff:  Meanwhile, Mark, the congressional Democrats, the House Democrats — and we just mentioned another one — they're asking the White House now for documents.

I was told just a moment ago it's White House Chief of Staff Mick Mulvaney, among others.  They're asking for documents as they pursue these investigations.

But they have asked Secretary of State Pompeo.  They have asked Vice President Pence.  This is not — they seem to be moving briskly with this.  What does that tell you?  Is that the smart course?  Should they be taking their time?  What do you make of this?

Mark Shields:  Well, I think events are very much in the saddle.  And I think it's moved a lot faster than anybody anticipated.

If a week ago, you had suggested that the President was going to call for the arrest and trial on treason for the chairman of the House Intelligence Committee this week, and go on at a pace, as Ramesh described, as his negotiation on trade with China on the basis of information on the Bidens, you know, it — so I don't think there's any master plan here, Judy.

And the White House's decision to say, we want a vote on the impeachment in the House, that puts a lot of House Republicans in a bad position.  I mean, do you want to vote against an impeachment inquiry and then get overcome by events, I mean, to put you in a position November of 2020 when you wanted — it looks like you wanted the dust everything under the rug, because, given the velocity with which disclosures are being made, that's a very risky vote for a lot of House Republicans?

Judy Woodruff:  Right.

Do you want to give the Democrats, the House Democrats, a grade on how they're pursuing this?

Ramesh Ponnuru:  Well, I think there have been some errors.

I think that Chairman Schiff's dissembling really about his contacts or his staff's contacts with the whistle-blower was an unforced error.

But I think the key thing going forward, the Democrats have to internalize that the politically smart thing to do is not to constantly be trying to figure out the politically smart thing to do at each step of the process.

They have got to handle this like a serious inquiry for adults and not be distracted by every moment's polls.

Judy Woodruff:  Do you think they're doing that right now?

Ramesh Ponnuru:  I think that they are trying.

I think that Speaker Nancy Pelosi has made a very concerted effort to get Democrats to take a step back a little bit, not be gleeful about condemning this administration, but to rather have a posture of seeing where the facts go.

Judy Woodruff:  Mark, you have been watching this city for a long time.

Do you think this is something the Democrats can get done?  They have said they want to get it done as quickly as possible.  Can they get something like this, the inquiry finished, move on potentially to an actual impeachment vote in a matter of a few weeks or month?

Mark Shields:  I think probably months, Judy.

But, I mean, just take somebody like Mike Pompeo, secretary of state.  They were talking seriously a week ago about him running for the United States Senate from Kansas.  He was the logical inevitable candidate of the Republicans.  I think he's a lot less so today.

I mean, this is reaching out and touching more and more people.  I do disagree with Ramesh on Nick Schifrin and the Intelligence Committee.  I think it's absolutely natural that the whistle-blower, a professional public employee, would go to the staff.

I mean, he has been surrounded by people who have been hostile.  And I think it's very — it's very frank, and we ought to take notice of the fact that the only reason we're aware of what's happened is because of career public employees.

This is not — these weren't political appointees.  These are people who are nameless, faceless, who get attacked by every cheap shot in a political campaign.

But at Foreign Service and at CIA and the Department of Justice — the I.G. was a Department of Justice 15-year attorney.  So, I mean, I think it's time to give some credit to the people who did put their vow of service above their own self-interest.

TRUMP - The Investigation of Abuse of Power

"Trump focuses anger at whistleblower as impeachment inquiry deepens" PBS NewsHour 9/30/2019

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SUMMARY:  President Trump acted as his own defender in chief on Monday, criticizing a whistleblower complaint, as some of his allies tried to argue that Democrats are rushing an impeachment inquiry.  But not all Republicans are defending the President, including his former Homeland Security adviser Tom Bossert.  Lisa Desjardins reports, then joins Yamiche Alcindor and Judy Woodruff for more.

"Pompeo, Democrats clash over whistleblower inquiry and documents" PBS NewsHour 10/1/2019

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SUMMARY:  While Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Tuesday pushed back on demands by House Democrats for testimony and documents related to the Ukraine investigation, Republican Sen. Chuck Grassley defended the whistleblower who filed a complaint about President Trump’s actions.  Lisa Desjardins and Yamiche Alcindor join Judy Woodruff for more developments.

"Why Barr asking foreign leaders for help in probe of U.S. agencies raises concerns" PBS NewsHour 10/1/2019

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SUMMARY:  According to The Washington Post, Attorney General William Barr has been personally visiting with foreign leaders to encourage them to help out with an investigation that President Trump hopes will discredit special counsel Robert Mueller’s Russia probe.  William Brangham talks with Devlin Barrett of The Washington Post to untangle the many threads of the story.

"Democrats warn White House that time is up to produce documents" PBS NewsHour 10/2/2019

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SUMMARY:  Top House Democrats sent a warning to the White House on Wednesday: Stonewalling the impeachment inquiry will be treated as grounds for impeachment itself.  Meanwhile, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo acknowledged for the first time that he was on a July call between President Trump and Ukraine’s president.  Yamiche Alcindor reports, then joins Lisa Desjardins and Judy Woodruff for more.

"How Republicans see the impeachment inquiry" PBS NewsHour 10/2/2019

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SUMMARY:  Do Republicans believe President Trump’s conversation with Ukraine’s leader warrants an impeachment inquiry?  Judy Woodruff gets two perspectives from former Republican Sen. Jeff Flake of Arizona and Chris Buskirk of American Greatness on the potential political ramifications.

"Trump shocks again by encouraging China to investigate the Bidens" PBS NewsHour 10/3/2019

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SUMMARY:  President Donald Trump is facing an impeachment inquiry because he urged Ukraine to investigate former Vice President Joe Biden and his son.  But Thursday, Trump said he would welcome similar involvement from another foreign power: China.  The admission comes as the two countries prepare for trade talks.  Judy Woodruff talks to Yamiche Alcindor and The Washington Post's Michael Kranish.

"Trump is suggesting foreign leaders investigate the Bidens.  Is that illegal?" PBS NewsHour 9/30/2019

COMMENT: I've done a bit of research on impeachment (not only Wikipedia), our Constitution does NOT require that a statuary law be violated to bring charges, it is up to Congress (the House) to define what 'high crimes and misdemeanors' are.

"The notion that only criminal conduct can constitute sufficient grounds for impeachment does not comport with either the views of the founders or with historical practice.  Alexander Hamilton, in Federalist 65, described impeachable offenses as arising from 'the misconduct of public men, or in other words from the abuse or violation of some public trust.'  Such offenses were 'political, as they relate chiefly to injuries done immediately to the society itself.'  According to this reasoning, impeachable conduct could include behavior that violates an official's duty to the country, even if such conduct is not necessarily a prosecutable offense.  Indeed, in the past both houses of Congress have given the phrase 'high Crimes and Misdemeanors' a broad reading, finding that impeachable offenses need not be limited to criminal conduct." - Wikipedia

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SUMMARY:  What are the legal and national security implications of President Donald Trump’s encouraging foreign powers to investigate a potential political rival?  Judy Woodruff talks to Michael Mukasey, who was attorney general under former President George W. Bush, and Carrie Cordero, a former Justice Department and intelligence official who served in both Republican and Democratic administrations.

"Why talking to Ukrainian officials disproves the Trump narrative on Biden" PBS NewsHour 10/4/2019

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SUMMARY:  Ukraine lies at the heart of the impeachment inquiry of President Donald Trump, who has urged the country’s new President to investigate the Biden family.  Special correspondent Simon Ostrovsky, who has reported from the country for years, returns there to speak with officials and activists about what really happened with Joe and Hunter Biden, U.S. aid and Ukraine’s anti-corruption efforts.

THE INVESTIGATIONS - Lewandowski Refusal to Answer

"Lewandowski frustrates Democrats with short responses in House Judiciary Committee hearing" PBS NewsHour 9/17/2019

More of Trump's attitude of being above the law.

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SUMMARY:  Former Trump campaign manager Corey Lewandowski testified before the House Judiciary Committee on Tuesday.  Ahead of his appearance, the White House had instructed Lewandowski to discuss only matters covered in special counsel Robert Mueller’s Russia report -- and indeed, Lewandowski refused to answer numerous questions from members of the committee.  Lisa Desjardins joins Judy Woodruff to discuss.

AMERICAN POLITICS - Whitaker Testimony

"Frustration erupts on both sides at Whitaker’s House testimony" PBS NewsHour 2/8/2019

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SUMMARY:  Acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker insisted Friday he hasn’t “interfered in any way” in special counsel Robert Mueller’s Russia investigation.  His much-anticipated testimony came before a contentious hearing of the House Judiciary Committee, now led by Democrats.  Lisa Desjardins reports.

HOT SEAT - Google vs House Judiciary Committee

Of course the committee members displayed just how clueless they are about how the WEB and social media work.  Hint, search engines gather data by what users are searching for, what they are looking at.  So more searching is done by users looking for liberal information.

"Lawmakers grill Google CEO on concerns of bias, election interference and privacy" PBS NewsHour 12/11/2018

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SUMMARY:  Google CEO Sundar Pichai testified before the House Judiciary Committee in response to criticism over some of the company’s practices.  Pichai faced grilling from the right on allegations of anti-conservative bias in search results, as well as questions from the left on the tech giant's commitment to stopping foreign misinformation and hate speech, among other concerns.  John Yang reports.