House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff (D-CA) called the Republican impeachment rebuttal a document intended for an audience of one in the Oval Office.
Chairman Schiff said in a statement provided to PoliticusUSA:
The Minority’s rebuttal document, intended for an audience of one, ignores voluminous evidence that the president used the power of his office to pressure Ukraine into investigating his political rival by withholding military aid and a White House meeting the President of Ukraine desperately sought. In so doing, the President undermined our national security and the integrity of our elections.
Tellingly, the Minority dismisses this as just part of the President’s ‘outside the beltway’ thinking. It is more accurately, outside the law and constitution, and a violation of his oath of office.
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Trump’s attempt to extort Ukraine wasn’t outside the beltway thinking or “blunt businessman talk.” It was a potentially criminal act with the intention of forcing a foreign government to interfere in a presidential election to help Trump win reelection.
The Republican report didn’t try to defend Trump. It was a repetition of the president’s excuses and talking points. As Schiff pointed out, the report ignored the evidence that Trump undermined both US elections and national security.
The GOP report didn’t help Trump, but it will make the perpetually needy and insecure president feel defended, which was the true intention of the lie-filled fluff that House Republicans tried to pass off as a serious document.
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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
