Rep. John Ratcliffe (R-TX) faked a phone call when reporters asked him about Trump’s attempts to intimidate Marie Yovanovitch.
Asked if it amounted to witness intimidation, Conaway did not offer a direct answer: “I’m not a lawyer, I’m not familiar with it, but it’s just not something I would do. It’s just not my style.â€
Several Republicans on the Intelligence Committee dodged the topic entirely. Rep. Mike Turner (R-Ohio) refused to answer questions about the tweets as he ducked on to the House floor, while Rep. John Ratcliffe (R-Texas) quickly whipped out his cell phone and began talking into it, even though his home screen was visible and there was no call in progress.
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Republicans don’t want to talk about Trump’s damaging tweets. The House Republican strategy has been to try to portray Yovanovitch as someone who has been treated well after her dismissal. Think of the Republican approach as a no harm, no foul strategy. Their gameplan was blown to a thousand pieces when Trump took to Twitter and began his intimidation campaign.
House Republicans are so scared of having to answer for Trump’s behavior that they fake phone calls to avoid questions. These people were elected to be accountable, but they avoid accountability in the most childish of ways.
Impeachment is going to so badly for Republicans that they are faking phone calls to avoid talking about Trump.
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Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.
Awards and Professional Memberships
Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association
