Impeachment is a moral X-ray of the U.S. government. We are now seeing who facilitates Trump’s abuses of power and who will stand up to stop them. jonathanchait writes
Gordon Sondland during an impeachment hearing on November 20. Photo: Matt McClain/The Washington Post via Getty Images When Gordon Sondland testified at the House impeachment hearings on November 20, having “refreshed” his memory and recalled several incriminating facts that had escaped him the first time around, the ambassador was at pains to explain that he had never supported the scheme in which he had participated.
Plane landers tend to have conventionally conservative beliefs. Sondland is typical. Initially, he supported presumptive front-runner Jeb Bush in the primary, and, during the general election when Trump appeared doomed, he registered his opposition to Trump’s attack on the Gold Star parents Khizr and Ghazala Khan by refusing to take part in a fund-raiser. Trump’s victory seemed to alleviate Sondland’s ethical objections, though.
Barr, who was widely considered a pallid Establishmentarian when nominated for attorney general, is the most surprisingly genuine Trumpist in the administration.
The testimony of figures like Volker and Sondland makes it easy to see how their complicity came to feel, to them, like something close to idealism. The value that was being sacrificed was distant, while the value being honored was near. The president’s paranoia was fixed; working around it was the only choice. What they seem loath to acknowledge, to others or even to themselves, is that their cooperation may have constrained Trump’s abuses of power but, more important, enabled them.
Australia Latest News, Australia Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
'It was no secret': The second 'amigo' Gordon Sondland testifiesGordon Sondland has told two different stories to lawmakers leading the impeachment inquiry against President Donald Trump. Today, he faces sharp questions about which one is right.
Read more »
Why Trump's line on Gordon Sondland is literally unbelievableThe problem with Trump's latest line about barely knowing Gordon Sondland is that it's literally unbelievable.
Read more »
Gordon Sondland Recalls A$AP Rocky Discussion With Trump During Impeachment HearingGordon Sondland recalls A$AP Rocky discussion with Trump during impeachment hearing
Read more »