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Jennifer Rubin: The media must expose bad-faith arguments on impeachment
Last edited Mon Jan 20, 2020, 10:23 AM - Edit history (1)
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2020/01/20/medias-obligation-expose-bad-faith-arguments/
By Jennifer Rubin
Opinion writer
Jan. 20, 2020 at 7:45 a.m. EST
<snip>
We have reached the point at which Republicans have failed to discredit any essential piece of evidence Democrats have presented. Arguing that the House wanted to impeach Trump from Day One or that impeachment is “unconstitutional” (an impossibility because the Constitution provides for impeachment under whatever rules the House sets forth), Republicans use retorts that are nonresponsive and incoherent. In sum, after arguing for months that all these people were lying, the White House cannot produce a single witness or document to disprove the central allegations. The lies that Trump told (e.g., no quid pro quo, he wanted to root out corruption) were part of a coverup. The media are obligated to point this out.
The next category of bad-faith arguments concerns the Senate’s apparent refusal to call available witnesses and documents. Here again, the media should point out: Witnesses appeared in every Senate impeachment trial, and the oath senators take is to provide a fair trial. To the extent Republicans complain about the lack of firsthand evidence, they are obligated to allow the House to call acting White House chief of staff Mick Mulvaney, former national security adviser John Bolton, senior adviser to the acting White House chief of staff Robert Blair, Office of Management and Budget official Michael Duffey and Giuliani associate Lev Parnas.
The arguments against calling witnesses are as inconsistent as they are unconvincing, as Trump sycophantic Sen. David Perdue (R-Ga.) revealed on Sunday:
Again, the media’s obligation is to point out that the Republicans’ arguments are inconsistent with precedent, with basic notions of justice and with the oath they took to hold a fair trial. Simply saying “Democrats want witnesses, Republicans do not” is to give Republicans’ arguments credence they do not warrant. This is accurate: “Democrats want witnesses, as has been the case in every impeachment; Republicans want to prevent firsthand testimony of critical events for fear of further incriminating Trump.”
</snip>
By Jennifer Rubin
Opinion writer
Jan. 20, 2020 at 7:45 a.m. EST
<snip>
We have reached the point at which Republicans have failed to discredit any essential piece of evidence Democrats have presented. Arguing that the House wanted to impeach Trump from Day One or that impeachment is “unconstitutional” (an impossibility because the Constitution provides for impeachment under whatever rules the House sets forth), Republicans use retorts that are nonresponsive and incoherent. In sum, after arguing for months that all these people were lying, the White House cannot produce a single witness or document to disprove the central allegations. The lies that Trump told (e.g., no quid pro quo, he wanted to root out corruption) were part of a coverup. The media are obligated to point this out.
The next category of bad-faith arguments concerns the Senate’s apparent refusal to call available witnesses and documents. Here again, the media should point out: Witnesses appeared in every Senate impeachment trial, and the oath senators take is to provide a fair trial. To the extent Republicans complain about the lack of firsthand evidence, they are obligated to allow the House to call acting White House chief of staff Mick Mulvaney, former national security adviser John Bolton, senior adviser to the acting White House chief of staff Robert Blair, Office of Management and Budget official Michael Duffey and Giuliani associate Lev Parnas.
The arguments against calling witnesses are as inconsistent as they are unconvincing, as Trump sycophantic Sen. David Perdue (R-Ga.) revealed on Sunday:
Link to tweet
Again, the media’s obligation is to point out that the Republicans’ arguments are inconsistent with precedent, with basic notions of justice and with the oath they took to hold a fair trial. Simply saying “Democrats want witnesses, Republicans do not” is to give Republicans’ arguments credence they do not warrant. This is accurate: “Democrats want witnesses, as has been the case in every impeachment; Republicans want to prevent firsthand testimony of critical events for fear of further incriminating Trump.”
</snip>
7 replies
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Supporting the rule of law should not be a partisan issue... 
