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TI1 is simply the “short-hand” for Trump Impeachment One.
Unfortunately, the lawlessness of MAGA-world’s “Loathsome Leader” will no doubt result in several such abbreviations, to mark so many “shock-weary milestones” — when those future chapters of American History, finally get written.
Assuming a Free Press lasts that long to document the long-term damage an Orwellian Fox News has wrought. Assuming that Facts will one day again matter, once the smoke and venom clears, after all the hateful strongmen wreak their vane-glorious, power-grabbing schemes … (hopefully to no avail).
Case in point:
The Trump-Ukraine “transcript,” explained
This really looks like evidence of a damning quid pro quo.
by Zack Beauchamp, vox.com — Sep 29, 2019
[...]
The context for the call is important too. According to a Washington Post report, a week before phoning Zelensky, who had just assumed office, Trump ordered chief of staff Mick Mulvaney to suspend $400 million worth of US military aid to Ukraine (the aid was unlocked in September). So you have a new leader of a country locked in conflict with much more powerful Russia speaking to one of its principal international benefactors, which has recently suspended military aid.
After a few pleasantries early in the call, Trump brings up this military aid unprompted. He goes out of his way to compare US assistance to EU aid to Ukraine. “I will say that we do a lot for Ukraine. We spend a lot of effort and a lot of time,” he tells Zelensky. “Much more than the European countries are doing and they should be helping you more than they are.”
[Volodymyr] Zelensky agrees, telling Trump “the United States is a much bigger partner than the European Union and I’m very grateful to you for that.” This is true, at least when it comes to military aid — which means Trump really does have leverage here.
The Ukrainian leader then makes a request for the US to increase its military assistance, specifically by selling his country more Javelin anti-tank missiles. This is the pivot point in the summary, so I’m going to quote it in context:
ZELENSKY: I would also like to thank you for your great support in the area of defense. We. are ready to continue to cooperate for the next steps. Specifically, we are almost. ready to buy more Javelins from the United· States for defense purposes.
TRUMP: I would like you to do us a favor though because our country has been through a lot and Ukraine knows a lot about it. I would like you to find out what happened with this whole situation with Ukraine, they say Crowdstrike ... I guess you have one of your wealthy people. ... The server, they say Ukraine has it.
[...]
Let’s see … Faux Leader Trump in that July 2019 call, just committed extortion and blackmail, in exchange for Campaign-interference from a foreign country. Those are hardly the actions of a trusted ally, to help build your defenses. Far from it.
Putin-loving Trump was threatening to withhold that vital defense, unless some trumped-up, made-up investigations were started by Ukraine, all with the intention of damaging his political rival Joe Biden.
And let’s not forget the back-story behind Crowdstrike. Rudy was spinning quite the tall-tale about them … all without a shred of evidence (as is par for their deranged golf course of misinformation) ...
CLAIM: The FBI only relied on the word of a cybersecurity firm, CrowdStrike, to determine that Russia hacked the emails of the Democratic National Committee.
AP’S ASSESSMENT: False. CrowdStrike provided forensic evidence and analysis for the FBI to review during its investigation into a 2016 hack of DNC emails.
THE FACTS: Social media posts are wrongly claiming that the FBI failed to review evidence in the hack of the DNC’s computer network before concluding that Russia was responsible for the breach.
The claims circulated widely on Twitter and Facebook after the White House released a rough transcript of a July phone call President Donald Trump had with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy in which he asked Zelenskiy to investigate CrowdStrike.
CrowdStrike is the private U.S.-cybersecurity firm that first helped the DNC identify the malware on its system in 2016 and later traced it back to Russia. The company has identified hacks for major clients that also include the National Republican Congressional Committee and U.S. government.
The FBI never took physical hold of the DNC’s computer system. Instead, it reviewed a wide range of computer forensic evidence provided by CrowdStrike, which is common practice in such investigations.
“With regards to our investigation of the DNC hack in 2016, we provided all forensic evidence and analysis to the FBI,” the firm said in an emailed statement to The Associated Press. “As we’ve stated before, we stand by our findings and conclusions that have been fully supported by the US intelligence community.”
[...]
apnews.com — Sept 26, 2019
So by trying to discredit the CrowdStrike forensic evidence — with Zelensky’s exhorted help — Trump was hoping to muddy his links to Russia and their 2016 Election interference. They were hoping to “blame it on Ukraine” — the 2016 Russian-led Election misinformation effort.
Vox goes on to explain this strange linkage of “Weapons for a CrowdStrike Investigation” like this:
Trump seems to be floating a conspiracy theory, promulgated by his attorney Rudy Giuliani, that it was actually Ukraine that hacked the Democrats — and then tried to frame Trump and Russia for it. [… in contrast to what Mueller documented.]
But Trump seems to be asking Zelensky to investigate the DNC emails anyway, presumably because it would make him look good politically and allow him to suggest the Democrats were part of a conspiracy that’s out to get him.
www.vox.com
Thankfully, Volodymyr Zelensky ultimately didn’t go along with Trump’s extortion demands. Thanks to the outrage of Democrats, and reporting of a Free Press — the Trump Administration was forced to supply Ukraine with the much needed defensive aid. Aid that had already been approved by the Congress — not Faux Leader Trump.
That fool BLOCKED the aid to extort a foreign leader to interfere in the next U.S. Election.
Eventually Trump would get impeached for these anti-democratic and unlawful actions. Unfortunately though, all of the Trump-loving GOP Senators (except one), fell in line behind their Fake Leader — and voted to acquit. Despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary for Trump’s Abuse of Power, with respect to Ukraine.
Little did we know at the time, that that GOP-approved Abuse of Power was just the warm-up act, for the horrific Trump-incited Insurrection Chapter that was to come.
A tyrant-coddled is a tyrant emboldened.
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So the next time some history-recreation project tries to salvage Trump’s reputation, as being “tough on Russia,” as the lone “serious provider of Ukraine defense” — just remind them what Trump Impeachment One was all about (TI1). That it was about a Trump-ordered weapons blockade, to set up his extortion of Ukraine, in exchange for political interference.
He doesn’t look like such a “Champion for Freedom” in that Impeachment spotlight. No matter how many times, his blackmailed-inductees into MAGA-world politics, try to rehabilitate his image.
THAT is one endless war — that truly is a lost cause. Just look at the “raw materials’ they got to work with. A “profile in courage” is nowhere to be found, in that wreckage of what is Fake Leader Trump’s political resume.
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We were warned.
Adam Schiff Closing Argument — Jan 23, 2020 link
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Never again. Never forget.