January 25, 2025 • 46 mins
From Pelosi initially withholding the articles of impeachment to Mitt Romney’s rank-breaking vote, here’s a look back at the Trump impeachment saga.
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Speaker 1 (00:01):
You're listening to comedy Central impeachments.
Speaker 2 (00:06):
It's the constitutional way of saying, by Felicia.
Speaker 3 (00:15):
That's probably presidential harassment.
Speaker 4 (00:20):
President Trump has been accused of threatening to hold back
military aid to the Ukraine if leaders there failed to
investigate former Vice President Joe Biden.
Speaker 5 (00:29):
The President pushed eight times for an investigation into Joe
Biden at the time of the call, that Trump administration
was withholding two hundred and fifty million dollars in military
aid to Ukraine that Congress had already approved.
Speaker 1 (00:42):
Yeah, this is huge.
Speaker 2 (00:44):
Donald Trump is accused of holding back military aid approved
by Congress for Ukraine unless they helped him dig up
dirts on Joe Biden.
Speaker 1 (00:53):
Which, if true, would be devastating.
Speaker 2 (00:56):
It's an abuse of power, it's extortion and maybe worst
of all, asking a foreign country to middle in America's election. Yeah,
which is the one thing that if you were Donald Trump,
you should stay.
Speaker 1 (01:06):
Away from, right, because they had just beaten the Russia case.
Speaker 2 (01:10):
It would be like if the day after Michael Jackson
got a quitted up touching kids, he.
Speaker 1 (01:14):
Was like, let's celebrate some slumber party at my hand.
Speaker 2 (01:19):
Of the one silver liner of any Trump scandal is
that if you just wait long enough, eventually he'll just
spool the beans himself.
Speaker 6 (01:27):
The conversation I had was largely congratulatory with largely corruption.
All of the corruption picking play were largely the fact
that we don't want our people like Vice President Biden
has done creating to the corruption already in the Ukraine.
Speaker 7 (01:47):
There was no pressure put on them whatsoever. But there
was pressure put on with respect to Joe Biden. What
Joe Biden did for his son, that's something they should
be looking at.
Speaker 1 (01:59):
We all heard that right.
Speaker 2 (02:00):
Trump has said there was no pressure except for the
pressure to get dirt on Biden. That's the only pressure
we're talking about. On Monday, the Ukraine scandal blew up.
On Tuesday, the Democrats opened an impeachment inquiry. On Wednesday,
the transcript of the call came out, and today the
big news is that the secret whistleblower complaint that kicked
(02:23):
this whole thing off has finally been released.
Speaker 8 (02:26):
The House Intelligence Committee has just released the whistleblower complaint.
This is the second paragraph of that complaint from the whistleblower,
who says, in the course of my official duties, I
have received information from multiple US government officials that the
President of the United States is using the power of
his office to solicit interference from a foreign country in
the twenty twenty US election.
Speaker 1 (02:47):
That's right.
Speaker 2 (02:48):
The whistleblower's complaint has accused the president of soliciting foreign
interference in America's election, which is really bad for Trump.
What's even worse is that this entire complaint is only
nine page is long, which means people might actually read it. Hell,
if it had a few pictures, Trump himself might even
read it. Trump and his defenders are saying that the
(03:09):
whistleblowers a count as fake all right, because they say
that the whistleblower is basing all of this on secondhand information,
he didn't hear the cause and he hasn't seen anything himself.
They also point out that the president of Ukraine himself
said yesterday that he never felt any pressure from Trump,
although if you actually watched the Ukrainian president say it,
(03:31):
you might come up with a different impression.
Speaker 9 (03:34):
If he felt any count from President comp to investigate
Joe Biden and under Biden.
Speaker 10 (03:39):
I think you read everything, so I think you read texts.
Speaker 1 (03:45):
I I'm sorry, but I.
Speaker 2 (03:48):
Don't want to be involved to democratic open Elections of USA.
Speaker 1 (03:55):
No, you're here. That we had I think, good cool,
he was normal. We spoke about.
Speaker 10 (04:03):
Many scenes, and so I think and you read it
that nobody pushed it pushed me.
Speaker 11 (04:11):
Yes, no pressure, Okay, okay, I don't want to contradict
the president, but I don't think the translation of that
was no pressure.
Speaker 2 (04:25):
That man seemed like he was under intense pressure. I
mean he actually said that I don't want to get involved.
I mean, that's not a comfortable phrase you ever say
when you're just comfortable.
Speaker 1 (04:34):
How are you feeling? I don't want to get involved?
That's so comfortable.
Speaker 2 (04:39):
You can ask him that question in front of Trump.
It's like asking the hostage how he's being treated while
the kidnapper is right next to him. How are they
treating me? Oh it's it's amazing.
Speaker 1 (04:49):
Yeah. Uh. Last night they even gave me toilet paper.
I love it here.
Speaker 2 (04:58):
The big news today is that the White House has
taken its fight with Congress to the next level, officially
sending word that it will not participate in any aspect
of the impeachment probe.
Speaker 1 (05:11):
Yeah, which is crazy, Like Trump can't.
Speaker 2 (05:13):
Just declined to participate, Like this is not the Vietnam War,
and this new tactic, this new tactic threw everything for
a loop, because you see, today was meant to be
the big day when Congress would hear testimony from Gordon Sundland,
Ambassador to the EU, and Jeff ros Stunt double. But
just before the CSPAN camera started rolling, the White House
(05:33):
pulled the plug.
Speaker 12 (05:35):
We'll following breaking news this morning, and it's moving quickly.
The White House blocking EU Ambassador Gordon Sunland from testifying
to Congress just minutes before he was supposed to appear
on Capitol Hill. He was set to testify behind closed
doors as part of an ongoing impeachment inquiry into President Trump,
specifically about his interactions with Ukraine. Democratic House Intelligence Chairman
calling the move to keep Sunlance from speaking, the lawmakers
(05:55):
quote strong evidence of obstruction at the.
Speaker 2 (05:58):
President's behest and pulled out of this impeachment hearing, which
is a big deal because although many people haven't heard
of Gordon SONLND, it appears that everything Trump wanted from
Ukraine went through him.
Speaker 13 (06:12):
Even before President Trump spoke to the President of Ukraine,
Gordon Sondland, the US Ambassador to the EU, had been
pushing the Ukrainians to commit to investigations mister Trump wanted.
Speaker 2 (06:24):
And the reason Congress is so intense on having son
and testify isn't just because he was at the centre
of the Ukraine scandal, right, It's also because he has
text messages that show what was going on behind the scenes.
Speaker 14 (06:36):
Text messages given to Congress show Sundland and another diplomat
discussing a possible link between investigations and aid to Ukraine.
Speaker 15 (06:45):
On September ninth, Bill Taylor, the top US diplomat to Ukraine, texts,
I think it's crazy to withhold security assistants for help
with a political campaign. Sonlid responds, I believe you were
incorrect about President Trump's intentions. The president has been Chris
still clear. No quit pro quos of any kind, adding
I suggest we stop the back and forth by text.
Speaker 14 (07:06):
Taylor text Gordon Somlin. Are we now saying that security
assistants and White House meeting are conditioned on investigations?
Speaker 15 (07:13):
Someone responds, call me.
Speaker 1 (07:17):
Okay.
Speaker 2 (07:18):
I don't know if these guys are guilty or not,
but you have to admit those texts look hella suspicious. Yeah,
because the only time you say stop texting let's talk
on the phone. Is when something shady's going down, right,
It's twenty nineteen. No one talks on the phone. The
only reason to talk on the phone at all is
to wish your grandmother a happy birthday, or to commit crimes,
(07:40):
or to commit crimes with.
Speaker 1 (07:41):
Your grandmother on her birthday.
Speaker 2 (07:46):
Now, for the first day of the public hearings, the
Democrats chose to call two witnesses, Bill Taylor, the acting
ambassador to Ukraine, and George Kept, senior State Department official
and townsperson in the nineteen fifties musical.
Speaker 16 (07:58):
Once I arroved in Kiev, I discovered a weird combination
of encouraging, confusing, and ultimately alarming circumstances. According to mister Morrison,
president Trump did insist that President Zelensky go to a
microphone and say he is opening investigations of Biden and
twenty sixteen election interference. Ambassador Somlon tried to explain to
(08:21):
me that President Trump is a businessman. When a businessman
is about to sign a check to someone who owes
him something, the businessman asked that person to pay up
before signing the check. I think it's crazy to withhold
security assistance for help with the political campaign.
Speaker 2 (08:37):
What did you mean when you said you thought it
was crazy?
Speaker 16 (08:39):
It was illogical, It could not be explained. It was crazy.
Speaker 2 (08:44):
Hmmm, unexplainable, illogical crazy. That's the description Bill Taylor gave
of Trump's actions. It's also the title of Trump's new memoir,
Same thing.
Speaker 1 (08:54):
Yes, it's my full story, and it's a coloring book, folks.
You gotta love it.
Speaker 2 (08:59):
What it was congres When Jim Jordan's turn to ask questions,
his big arguments was that none of this testimony should
count because it was all a game of telephone.
Speaker 17 (09:08):
You weren't on the call, were you the president? You
didn't listen on President Trump's call and Presidentlessy's call. I
did not. You never talked with Chief of Staff Maulvany,
I never did. You never met the president. That's correct.
This is what I can't believe. And you're their star witness,
you're their first witness.
Speaker 1 (09:22):
You're the guy.
Speaker 17 (09:23):
You're the guy based on this, based on I mean,
I've seen I've seen church prayer change that are easier
to understand than this.
Speaker 1 (09:31):
That's a good point. Good point, Jim Jordan.
Speaker 2 (09:34):
These guys don't have firsthand knowledge of what Trump was
doing with Ukraine.
Speaker 1 (09:37):
So why are they the ones testifying.
Speaker 2 (09:39):
I mean, maybe it's because the White House has blocked
all the people who do have firsthand knowledge from testifying.
Speaker 1 (09:45):
That's a good point, Tramper, that's a good fine, thank
you me.
Speaker 2 (09:48):
All of today, Jim Jordan's only focus was making it
seem like this entire process was somehow a sham. But
it all backfired when he tried to turn the focus
to the whistleblower.
Speaker 17 (09:59):
Now there is one witness, one witness that they won't
bring in front of us, they won't bring in front
of the American people, and that's the guy who started it all,
the whistleblower. Nope, I say to my colleague, I'd be
glad to have the person who started it all come
in and testify. President Trump is welcome to take a
(10:19):
seat right there.
Speaker 2 (10:25):
This congressional hearing was filmed in front of a live
studio audience, you know, by congress standards, that was a
pretty good slam.
Speaker 17 (10:31):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (10:32):
The only way it could have been better is if
the congressman was like, seriously, President Trump is welcome anytime.
Speaker 1 (10:36):
In fact, I've actually got his invite right here.
Speaker 2 (10:39):
Man man, Man, Man Man, and This testimony was a
pretty big deal because for the first time the American
public heard from non partisan officials about how the president
abused his powers for personal gain. And even though millions
of people I mean talking about these hearings over on
Fox News, their analysis of this impeachment is man. There
(11:02):
is not a single person outside the Washington, DC beltway
that gives a damn about what happened today.
Speaker 1 (11:09):
It's boring, the total snooze fest. It was kind of
boring to watch on television. It was really just a
huge dut. There wasn't anything sexy about it.
Speaker 18 (11:16):
There was not some big new piece of information that
came out.
Speaker 19 (11:19):
With Richard Nixon, there was a break in with Bill Clinton,
there was sex in the Oval office.
Speaker 1 (11:26):
Yeah. With Trump, it's a phone call to Ukraine.
Speaker 20 (11:29):
There's no burglary, there's no break in, there's no tapes,
there's no dress, there's no sex.
Speaker 1 (11:33):
It's not a sexy scandal. Russia was sexy. This has
no intrigue whatsoever. Whoa, whoa, whoa.
Speaker 2 (11:40):
You're saying Trump's impeachment is boring and unsexy. You know,
if Trump hears that, it's gonna piss him off, right,
He's gonna come.
Speaker 1 (11:48):
Out like my engagement will be the most exciting ever.
Speaker 2 (11:52):
I'll break into a hotel and best believe I'll just
all over this dress.
Speaker 1 (11:56):
Don't make me do it. Don't make me do it, Aging.
Speaker 21 (12:04):
Trevor.
Speaker 22 (12:05):
This whole thing has me so mad. Look, if these
allegations are true, then our president, and forgive me for
using the N word. Here is a complete nincome poop.
Speaker 1 (12:17):
Oh, you have me nervous for a second. Yeah, I agree,
I agree.
Speaker 2 (12:21):
I think everyone is angry that the president abused his
power like this.
Speaker 22 (12:25):
Okay, take it easy, madau. I'm mad because our dim
shit president can't even get impeached. Right, he's wasting his
one impeachment on taking down Joe Biden. Joe Biden will
take down Joe Biden. The guy's already gaffed himself out
of two elections. Look, when it comes to Biden, all
(12:46):
you have to do is just wait it out and
go away. You know, he's like a cold or my
parole officer.
Speaker 1 (12:53):
That guy is so obsessed with me. Actually, I think
that's legal. So wait, DESI, you don't think Trump abused
his power?
Speaker 22 (13:01):
Well no, if anything, he didn't abuse it enough. Look,
you only get one impeachment, you gotta make it count.
Presidents used to understand that. Andrew Johnson defied Congress Richard
Nixon had the Saturday Night massacre. Bill Clinton got a
bj in the Oval Office head mouth candy, the old
(13:23):
pac Man.
Speaker 1 (13:25):
Yeah, you know, I get it. Okay, okay.
Speaker 22 (13:36):
My point is Trevor Trump has blown it. He might
get impeached for gossiping on the phone like a little bit.
Speaker 2 (13:48):
During the impeachment hearings last week, you may remember we
learned about a call at a restaurant between Trump and
an EU ambassador Gordon s Well. Now a diplomat who
overheard that call is spilling all the beans to Congress.
Speaker 1 (14:01):
Quote.
Speaker 23 (14:02):
While Ambassador Sonland's phone was not on speakerphone, I could
hear the President's voice through the earpiece of the phone.
I then heard President Trump ask so he's going to
do the investigation. Ambassador sonlnd replied that he's going to
do it, adding the President Zelenski will do anything you
ask him to. President's voice was very loud and recognizable,
(14:22):
and Ambassador Sonln held the phone away from his ear
for a period of time.
Speaker 2 (14:27):
Yeah, that's right, David Holmes testified to Congress that he
overheard a call where Trump explicitly asked for Ukraine to
dig up to it on. Joe Biden and the diplomat
overheard this conversation not because Trump was on speakerphone, but
because Trump is a human speakerphone and he's like, I'm
calling about the criminal conspiracy.
Speaker 1 (14:48):
You know what, I can't hear you. Let's stress the speaker.
Speaker 2 (14:51):
I'm calling about the criminal day. There are a lot
of damning details in this testimony, but my favorite part.
My favorite part was when Sonland talked about just how
much the President of Ukraine was willing to help Trump.
Speaker 23 (15:04):
I heard President Trump then clarify Ambassador Sonlon was in Ukraine.
Ambassador Sonlon replied, yes, he was in Ukraine went on
to state President Zelensky loves your ass.
Speaker 2 (15:15):
Oh, okay, Zelensky loves Trump's ass. A few days ago,
Fox and US was saying impeachment wasn't sexy enough.
Speaker 1 (15:22):
Now we got ass played.
Speaker 2 (15:28):
This morning, impeachment took yet another major step forward when
Nancy Pelosi speak of the House and sober Lucille Bluth
gathered up all the flags she could find for a
major announcement.
Speaker 12 (15:41):
Tound speaker Nancy Pelosi announcing to the country and to
the world that articles of impeachment against President Trump will proceed.
Pelosi telling the American people that Trump has left the
US Congress with no choice but to move forward.
Speaker 24 (15:55):
Sadly. That was confidence and humility, with allegiance to our
founders and a heart full of love for America. Today,
I am asking our chairman to proceed with articles of impeachment.
Speaker 1 (16:10):
Oh my god, Oh my god, Oh my god. They
finally proposed articles of impeachment. I mean, I knew when
they reserved that hearing room that this would be it.
Speaker 2 (16:20):
But you never know until it really happens.
Speaker 1 (16:22):
I'm like, god, I'm so happy for you guys.
Speaker 2 (16:25):
And I know this sounds weird, but I'm actually proud
of Donald Trump. Yeah, because he's getting impeached, but I
didn't think he would make it three years.
Speaker 1 (16:34):
I'm not gonna lie.
Speaker 2 (16:36):
Like Trump getting this far into his presidency without being
impeached is a lot like when a dog accidentally drives
a car into a tree.
Speaker 1 (16:42):
Yeah, the dog crashed, but he made it like eight blocks.
That's impressive. I don't even know how he put it
into drive. He barely knows letters now There was a
big debate.
Speaker 2 (16:51):
Within the Democratic Party about how many articles of impeachment
to bring against Donald Trump, but in the end they
decided to strike with surgical precision.
Speaker 25 (17:00):
President Trump now facing two charges, as the top Democrats
of the key committees stood together to announce it all
this morning, Abuse of power and obstruction of Congress.
Speaker 9 (17:11):
Democrats have decided to narrow the scope of impeachment to
the two articles of impeachment that they believe are the
easiest to prove and backed up by the most evidence.
Speaker 4 (17:21):
Because we are operating in a universe where Republicans are
challenging some of the most basic facts, Democrats want to
make this case as airtight as possible.
Speaker 2 (17:32):
Yes, only two articles of impeachments, abuse of power and
obstruction of Congress, which means the Democrats are showing a
lot of restraint because I mean, let's be honest, Trump
has done enough crazy shit to Marrit two thousand articles
of impeachments. Yeah, there was obstruction of justice from the
Mola report, using the presidency to enrich his businesses, the
porn star payoffs, flag molestation, the time he looked directly
(17:53):
into an eclipse, and of course having done Junior I mean,
that's impeachment on its own.
Speaker 26 (17:59):
So so the good news for Trump is that he's
only facing two charges, although in a way that's also
kind of sad for him because Nixon had three.
Speaker 2 (18:11):
Articles wrote against him, Bill Clinton had four, and Andrew
Johnson had eleven, which means Trump will have the smallest
impeachments of all time.
Speaker 1 (18:21):
You know, that's gonna make him insecure. It's gonna be like,
it's not.
Speaker 10 (18:23):
About the size of impeachment, it's about the friction of
the convention.
Speaker 8 (18:32):
President Trump said, to become the third president in American
history to be impeached.
Speaker 27 (18:36):
This is a moment that will go down in history.
This will be written about in the history books.
Speaker 4 (18:41):
This is going to go down in the history books.
Speaker 2 (18:43):
The forty fifth president of the United States got impeached. Well,
you guys might be cheering, but when Democrats in the
House tried to cheer last night, Nancy Pelosi shut it
down real fast.
Speaker 28 (19:01):
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi maintaining control of her caucus with
a glance and a gesture alone at one point yesterday.
Speaker 29 (19:08):
On this thoughte, the Ya's are two hundred and thirty.
The na's are one ninety seven. Present is one article.
One is adopted.
Speaker 2 (19:29):
Damn Nancy didn't want to hear any gloating last night.
She killed that celebration, guid Did you see that that
kind of look would send the champagne cock back into
the bottle?
Speaker 1 (19:39):
That that's how intense I was. They were like poop whoop.
Speaker 2 (19:45):
So there's no doubt that impeachment will hurt Trump's legacy bigly,
but it also seems like it's hurting his feelings.
Speaker 21 (19:53):
President Trump incensed, lashing out in a scathing six page
letter to the House Speaker, calling the teachment process outlined
by the Constitution an illegal, partisan attempted coup.
Speaker 30 (20:05):
He's just fired off a tweet. Can you believe that
I will be impeached today by the radical left? Do
nothing Democrats? And I did nothing wrong? A terrible thing.
Read the transcripts. This should never happen to another president again,
Say a prayer?
Speaker 1 (20:19):
No, Is it just me?
Speaker 2 (20:22):
Or does it seem like? Trump went through all the
stages of grief in one tweet? It was like denial,
I can't believe I'm getting impeached, Anga, I did nothing wrong.
Speaker 1 (20:32):
Depression, this is a terrible thing. Acceptance. I guess we
can only pray.
Speaker 2 (20:39):
You may remember that after Trump was impeached back in December,
Nancy Pelosi didn't post the obstacles.
Speaker 1 (20:45):
On to the Senate.
Speaker 2 (20:46):
Instead, she chose to hold onto them, tight, tight, to them.
Mike Pency's sphinx in a room with two women. Yeah,
temptation often passes through the back door. But today, after
a month of tension, Pelosi finally announced she's handing the
articles over to the Senates so that they can hold
(21:07):
the trial. And I don't know what was going on
with Nancy today, but at her press conference she seemed
a little spaced out.
Speaker 29 (21:14):
Good morning, everyone, This is a very important day for us.
And as you know, I reference temporal markers that our
founders and our poets and others have used over time
to place us in time, to emphasize the importance of time,
because everything is about time.
Speaker 2 (21:38):
Yeah, And speaking of timing, it feels like Pelosi's edibles
just kicked in at the wrong moment there. I think
the point Pelosi was trying to make is that she
feels that after a month of waiting, now is the
right time to pass impeachment to the Senates. But handing
over the articles of impeachment isn't as simple as handing
over your mom to a nursing home. No, an occasion
(21:58):
like this calls for a little ceremony.
Speaker 31 (22:01):
They are going to be marching the articles from the
House Chamber through the Statuary Hall, through the Rotunda, along
the second floor of the Capitol, past the old Senate Chamber,
through the Ohio Clock Corridor, and then eventually to the
Senate Chamber.
Speaker 20 (22:17):
Those documents now are being taken from the House of
Representatives through Statuary Hall. They'll be going into the Capital
Rotunda to the Senate to present the articles of impeachment.
Speaker 32 (22:28):
Mister President, I have been directed by the House of
Representatives to inform the Senate. The House has passed HS
seven nine eight, a resolution appointing and authorizing managers for
the impeachment trial of Donald John Trump, President of the
(22:49):
United States.
Speaker 2 (22:50):
So we're all just going to pretend nobody invents an email.
Just as an aside, what was up with that graphic?
What was that from the news come. We don't need
to see an arrow making love to the Senate Chamber
to understand how people enter a room. They're walking across
the building. It's a straight line, it's a whole way
we get it.
Speaker 1 (23:11):
So now.
Speaker 2 (23:12):
So, now that the Senate has the articles of impeachment,
the big fights is now going to be about whether
or not the trial will include new witnesses and new evidence,
because you see, just yesterday we learned new details about
Trump and his shady dealings with Ukraine.
Speaker 33 (23:28):
The new evidence collected by congressional investigators comes from Lev
Parnas and associate of Trump's personal attorney, Rudy Giuliani. Fifty
nine pages of records, including text messages, emails, and handwritten notes,
including one scrawled on hotel stationary that reads, quote get
Zelensky to announce that the Biden case will be investigated.
(23:49):
And there's a letter from Giuliani requesting a meeting with
Ukraine's then president elect Zelensky, emphasizing Giuliani was working in
his capacity as personal counsel to President Trump and with
his knowledge and consent.
Speaker 2 (24:03):
No, seriously, they wrote down the plot of their crime
and then kept it.
Speaker 1 (24:08):
That is a literal paper trail. Why would you do that?
What were they just hanging around?
Speaker 11 (24:13):
Like?
Speaker 1 (24:13):
You have to keep the receipts, Like, isn't that taxes? No, No,
it's for crimes too. You have to keep them.
Speaker 2 (24:19):
Only Donald Trump would hire henchmen who are also into scrapbooking,
like they're like a bunch of criminal Martha Stewarts, you know,
also known as Martha Stewart's. Trump's impeachment trial is set
to begin next week, and as with any impeachment trial,
the Senate will serve as the jury. So this afternoon,
(24:39):
all the senators were sworn in by Supreme Court Chief
Justice John Roberts, and then they signed their names one
by one in what's known as the oath Book. Was
a really solemn moment and also the first time ever
that anyone's ever asked for Ted Cruiser's autograph. Now, the
one big question hanging over this trial has been will
(25:00):
publican sentences allow new witnesses to testify? Well, apparently some
of those witnesses aren't waiting to find out. Which is
showing up on TV right and the conversation everyone's talking
about right now is Rachel Maddow's interview with Lev Parnas,
an associate of Rudy Giuliani and a man with seven
different hairstyles all at once. Now, Parnas is important because,
(25:24):
unlike some previous witnesses who only heard about what was
going on. He claims that he was working closely with
Rudy Giuliani to get dirt on the Bidens. So if
those other people smelled the borshe he actually made it.
And now he's telling all of America how it went down.
Speaker 34 (25:40):
President Trump knew exactly what was going on. He was
aware of all my movements. I wouldn't do anything without
the consent of Rudy Giuliani or the President.
Speaker 35 (25:50):
Are you saying specifically, and I want to sort of
drill down on that that the President was aware that
you and mister Giuliani were working on this effort in
Ukraine to basically try to hurt Joe Biden's political career.
Speaker 1 (26:01):
He knows about that.
Speaker 34 (26:03):
Yeah, well, it was observed about Joe Biden, Hunter Biden.
It was never about the corruption. It was never was
strictly about the barisma, which included Hunter Biden and Joe Biden.
Speaker 2 (26:14):
That's a big deal coming from Rudy Giuliani's right hand man.
This would be like if Luigi went on Rachel Maddow
Like Mario doesn't care about the princess.
Speaker 1 (26:24):
He just a laugh to murder Tarteles. He wants to
kill all of them. He's a very sick man. It'll
be huge. Now.
Speaker 2 (26:35):
Now the White House, the White House has responded to
this interview saying that pon Us is a liar. They
say he's only saying this because he's been indicted for
campaign finance fraud, and so now he's trying to get
a light of sentence like a Ukrainian Takashi six nine.
And Trump has gone one step further, saying that he
doesn't even know what a left par Us is, much
less that he gave him instructions to get dirt on
Joe Biden, to which pawn Us is now responding picks
(26:59):
it did happen.
Speaker 36 (27:00):
The President of the United States said he didn't know you.
Speaker 1 (27:03):
I don't know those gentlemen.
Speaker 7 (27:05):
Now as possible, I have a picture with him, because
I have a picture with everybody, I don't know them.
Speaker 34 (27:10):
I welcome him to say that even more. Every time
he says that I'll show him another picture, he's lying.
He's lying.
Speaker 2 (27:16):
I hope when Parnas does release the pictures, they just
get steadily more incriminating. You know, it'll be funny for
like at first they just had a party together, you know,
then the next picture they're riding together on Space Mountain.
Then eventually, like all pictures will just end up with nudes.
You know, that's where it's gonna go. Yeah, and Trump
will be like.
Speaker 1 (27:34):
That doesn't mean anything. I take nudes with everyone. So
many news. So, the third.
Speaker 2 (27:44):
Presidential impeachment trial in American history began today, and because
impeachment is such a momentous occasion, the Senate had to
kick things off with a formal proclamation.
Speaker 22 (27:56):
The US Senate is about to take on and historic
and perhaps grueling task, the impeachment trial of President Donald Trump.
Speaker 13 (28:11):
Here ye hear ye, hear ye.
Speaker 37 (28:13):
All persons are commanded to keep silent on pain of
imprisonment while the Senate of the United States is sitting
for the trial of the articles of impeachment exhibited by
the House of Representatives against Donald John Trump, President of
the United States.
Speaker 2 (28:29):
Hey ye hey ye, hey yey is one of those
phrases that has to be shouted.
Speaker 1 (28:34):
Certain phrases have to be shouted, like make some noise
or you're not even my real dad got to shout
certain things.
Speaker 2 (28:45):
And despite the asmr intro, Trump's impeachment trial is already.
Speaker 1 (28:50):
Filled with drama.
Speaker 2 (28:51):
Just look at the all star defense team president Trump
put together. All right, this is an insane team that
Trump collected. Is god can star the lawyer who is
famous for doing the investigation that led to Bill Clinton's impeachments.
And it's got Alan Dershowitz who's famous.
Speaker 1 (29:05):
For defending O. J. Simpson.
Speaker 2 (29:07):
So these lawyers are perfect for Trump because they have
experience with super guilty people and super hawney presidents.
Speaker 1 (29:13):
It's great, it's a combination.
Speaker 2 (29:15):
But I will say this, Trump's lawyers may want to
polish up the defense strategy because things have already gotten
off to a rocky start.
Speaker 28 (29:23):
The president's legal team offering the first glimpse of their
defense that the president did nothing wrong, did not commit
a crime, and that even the Democrats argument of abusive
power does not rise to an impeachable offense, something one
of his lawyers, Alan Dershowitz, maintained over the weekend.
Speaker 3 (29:39):
The articles of impeachment are two non criminal actions, but.
Speaker 21 (29:43):
Many constitutional scholars disagree. Trump's lawyer, Alan Dershowitz himself once
argued the opposite during the Clinton impeachment.
Speaker 37 (29:51):
So it certainly doesn't have to be a crime if
you have somebody who completely corrupts the office of president.
Speaker 1 (29:57):
This is really interesting.
Speaker 2 (29:58):
What he said in the nineties was in fact correct,
and what he's saying now is also in fact correct.
Speaker 36 (30:05):
Previously you said it doesn't have to be a crime
if the guy, if the if the person in office
completely corrupts the office of president. Now you're saying criminal like,
So you're not so corrupting the office of the president.
Is that in your criminal lights or criminal like?
Speaker 1 (30:21):
No, no, it's not.
Speaker 23 (30:22):
And that was reject that was rejected by the were wrong.
Speaker 1 (30:25):
I say you were wrong back then. I was saying that.
I'm much more correct right now, having done much research
because that and the ise.
Speaker 6 (30:32):
I didn't do the research back then because that wasn't
an issue.
Speaker 1 (30:35):
I've done the research now. I wasn't wrong. I am
just far more correct now than I was now.
Speaker 2 (30:42):
Wait what I wasn't wrong. I am just far more
correct now than I was then. That is one of
the most original lines I have ever heard in my life. Now,
that's a great line for a lawyer. But thank god
this guy doesn't work on a bomb squad, because.
Speaker 1 (30:58):
That would be a disaster.
Speaker 2 (30:59):
He would just be like, cut the yellow wire, wait,
cut the red one, already cut the yellow one. Yeah,
well I wasn't wrong about yellow, but the red one
is more correct.
Speaker 1 (31:09):
Don't worry. We're not gonna die. We're just gonna be
less alive.
Speaker 38 (31:16):
If Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has his way, the
vote to convict or acquit President Trump will come sooner
rather than later. McConnell presenting his proposed trial rules that
break from the Clinton model.
Speaker 21 (31:29):
Mitch McConnell releasing his long awaited blueprint. Each side will
have twenty four hours over just two days to make
their opening statements. It means Senators could have to sit
for twelve hour sessions, part of the Republican push for
a faster trial, but Democrats say Republicans are trying to
hide the president's misconduct in the dead of night.
Speaker 19 (31:49):
He could force presentations to take place at two or
three in the morning. The McConnell resolution will result in
a rush trial with little evidence in the dark of night,
literally the dark of night.
Speaker 2 (32:04):
You know, for a guy who shares so much DNA
with turtles, McConnell sure wants to move fast.
Speaker 1 (32:10):
You know what I feel like.
Speaker 2 (32:10):
I feel like McConnell will be the worst person to
go on a date with you know, because he seems
like one of those people who would order the appetizer,
the main course, and the dessert all at the same time,
you know, just to rush things along.
Speaker 39 (32:21):
And just we're like, yeah, bring us the spike, the
half far Sunday on the track. We're getting the track
with all formality. We're just gonna smash.
Speaker 2 (32:30):
Today was the day that Democrats began to lay out
their case against the president, but last night fights were
already breaking out about whether this trial should even be
happening in the first place.
Speaker 40 (32:43):
Opening arguments begin early this afternoon, and we're expecting a
very fierce debate over why the president should and shouldn't
be removed from office. Republicans want this all over by
the State of the Union address in two weeks. Democrats say,
not so fast.
Speaker 30 (33:00):
Why are we here?
Speaker 41 (33:03):
Are we here.
Speaker 1 (33:04):
Because of a phone call?
Speaker 42 (33:05):
We are here, sir, to follow the facts, apply to law,
be guided by the Constitution, and present the truth to
the American people. That is why we are here, mister secular.
And if you don't know, now you know.
Speaker 1 (33:28):
And if you don't know, now you know. That's right,
that's right.
Speaker 2 (33:34):
Congressman Hakim Jeffries just quoted Biggie on the floor of Congress.
Speaker 1 (33:39):
The only thing, the only thing I wish is that
he'd used the entire line. That would have been amazing.
Speaker 2 (33:43):
It was like, if you don't know, now you know, nigga.
Speaker 1 (33:47):
Because if that happened, black people would have been out
celebrating in the streets. It would have been MLKDA.
Speaker 2 (33:52):
Part two, all of us out there like you know
very well who you are.
Speaker 1 (33:58):
But I gotta say, man, hip hop has come a
long way. Think about it.
Speaker 2 (34:02):
In the eighties and nineties, it was considered gangster music,
and now it's being quoted in an impeachment trial.
Speaker 1 (34:07):
Huh. That's how far hip hop has come. Think about that.
That's insane. Hip hop just keeps up.
Speaker 2 (34:15):
I bet it's only a matter of time before, like
Mitch McConnell responds with a rap lyric of his own, He's.
Speaker 39 (34:20):
Like, mom, my name is Metch and I don't have
a draw. I love the Senate and saying ma.
Speaker 1 (34:27):
Now.
Speaker 39 (34:29):
Now.
Speaker 2 (34:29):
The reason the things got so heated yesterday is because
Democrats tried ten different times to get new witnesses and
evidence into this impeachment trial, and the Republicans shot them
down each and every time. There hasn't been that much
rejection in DC's and Stephen Miller went speed dating.
Speaker 1 (34:44):
Now.
Speaker 2 (34:45):
One of the main witnesses Democrats really hope will testify
is former Trump advisor and grumpy Captain Crunch John Bolton.
But when the President was asked about it this morning,
he had a list of reasons why he doesn't want
Bolton to testify.
Speaker 7 (35:00):
In regards to the proceedings going on in the Senate.
Speaker 10 (35:02):
Are you absolutely against John Moulten testify?
Speaker 3 (35:05):
The problem with John is that it's a national security problem.
You know, you can't have somebody who's at national security.
And if you think about it, John he knows some
of my thoughts. He knows what I think about leaders.
What happens if he reveals what I think about a
certain leader and it's not very positive, and that I
(35:26):
have to deal on behalf of the country, it's going
to be very hard. It's going to make the job
very hard. He knows other things.
Speaker 17 (35:32):
And I don't know.
Speaker 3 (35:33):
If we left on the best of terms, I would
say probably not.
Speaker 2 (35:38):
You know, you know one thing I enjoy about Trump
is that he will give you every excuse all at
the same time. All Right, He'll start with the fake excuse,
but then he'll just keep going until you learn the
real reasons.
Speaker 10 (35:50):
Just like sadly, we can't hear from Bolton because it's
a national security there. And also you'll reveal what I
think about other world leaders, and also he hates my guts,
and also he'll be in the crimes that I committed.
Speaker 18 (36:04):
So many reasons.
Speaker 43 (36:06):
Breaking overnight bombshell, former National security advisor John Bolton ready
to turn on the President as news leaks from his
explosive new book about what he claims really happened with Ukraine.
Speaker 13 (36:17):
Bolton says the President told him that he wanted to
continue freezing three hundred and ninety one million dollars in
security assistance to Ukraine until officials there helped with investigations
into Democrats, including the Bidens.
Speaker 14 (36:31):
President Trump signaling that he is going to paint John
Bolton as a disgruntled former employee. Take a look at
his tweet from earlier today. He says, if John Bolton
said this, it was only to sell a book.
Speaker 2 (36:43):
Wow, this is a big deal because we now know
that if Bolton testifies, he would say that Trump personally
told him that he wanted to hold up aid to Ukraine.
Speaker 1 (36:52):
Until he got dirt on the Bidens, which is the
whole thing. This is the heart of the entire impeachment thing.
Speaker 2 (36:58):
So I don't know how Senator Publics can justify not
hearing from Bolton now, like there's no reason. Imagine an
eyewitness to a murder wanted to testify and the judge
just refused. You know, I was just like, your honor,
I saw this man, and I saw the crime firsthand.
Speaker 1 (37:12):
Be like, I up, no spoilers, no spoilers. I want
to see how it adds. And by the way, is Trump?
Speaker 2 (37:21):
Is Trump really gonna argue that John Bolton is just
another disgruntled employee because I don't know about you, but
he sure seems to have a lot of disgruntled employees.
Speaker 1 (37:32):
Like how come nobody ever leaves the White House gruntled?
Speaker 2 (37:35):
He's like, thank you, mister President, I am so gruntled
to have worked with you. So Bolton's book has thrown
a big, hairy curveball into this impeachment trial. But believe
it or not, the Bolton revelations aren't the only big
new piece of evidence because remember Lev Parnas, Yes, Rudy
Giuliani's right hand man, and the count from Sesame Street
(37:56):
well after Parnas said that he worked for Trump to
get dirt on Joe Biden, Trump repeatedly claimed he has
no idea who this man is. And that's even though
they've they've repeated more photos together than Mariah carry and
Christmas trees. So now the question is is Trump lying
about not knowing Paras or is part US lying about
(38:17):
knowing Trump.
Speaker 1 (38:18):
Well, it turns out upon Us has the receipts.
Speaker 27 (38:22):
Breaking overnight the release and an explosive new audiotape that
reportedly features President Trump speaking to Igor Fruman and Lev
Parnas at a dinner in twenty and eighteen.
Speaker 18 (38:33):
On the tape, a voice identified as Parnass can be
heard telling Trump that the ambassador to Ukraine was bad
mouthing him.
Speaker 34 (38:41):
Yeah, she's basically walking around telling everybody, Wait, he's going
to get impeached. Just wait, I mean it's incredible.
Speaker 5 (38:49):
Get get her out, to take her out, Okay.
Speaker 34 (38:55):
Thanxscellent' do it.
Speaker 18 (38:56):
President Trump has repeatedly said he doesn't know Lev Parnas,
but on the tape they talk in detail about Ukraine.
Speaker 2 (39:03):
White House Press Secretary Stephanie Grisham said the gathering doesn't
mean the president knew of or even remembered lab Parnes.
Speaker 9 (39:10):
The president sits at many many dinners, at many many round.
Speaker 24 (39:13):
Tables with people that he does not know.
Speaker 2 (39:16):
Yeah, the president has many many dinners, sometimes.
Speaker 1 (39:20):
All on the same nights. Come on, guys, I'm sorry.
Speaker 2 (39:24):
You just can't keep pretending that Trump doesn't know this guy, right,
Because first they said Trump wouldn't remember.
Speaker 1 (39:32):
All the people he takes photos with. Okay, I understand that.
Speaker 2 (39:35):
Now they're saying Trump can't remember all the people he
has private dinners with.
Speaker 1 (39:39):
What's next they're gonna be like, Look, the president gets
matching quid pro quote back tattoos with a lot of people.
He can't be expected to remember all of that this afternoon.
Speaker 44 (39:52):
In a stunning argument when a president, Trump's top lawyers
claimed any president has almost unlimited power, that his election
is in the public interest, and so he said, Trump
cannot be impeached.
Speaker 2 (40:04):
Every public official that I know believes that his election
is in.
Speaker 34 (40:08):
The public interest.
Speaker 1 (40:10):
And if a president does something which he believes will
help him get.
Speaker 6 (40:15):
Elected in the public interest, that cannot be the kind
of quid pro quo that results in impeachment.
Speaker 2 (40:25):
Ladies and gentlemen, we have finally arrived. First it was
there was no quid pro quo. Then it was maybe
there was a quid pro quo, but it was to
help the country, not Donald Trump. And now it's like
a man, the Donald gonna do what the Donald gonna do.
Your little bitch ass does need to shut the hell up. So,
(40:47):
just to be clear, the Trump team's argument is now
that anything Trump does to get himself re elected is
fine because his re election, in his mind, is good
for the country.
Speaker 1 (40:57):
And then it's not impeachable anything.
Speaker 2 (40:59):
Yeah, so Trump can elude, Trump can obstruct and it's
all good. Hell, he can even lock all the Democratic
candidates in a room with Eric. Yeah, just be like,
at some point one of you will eat the other
and either way.
Speaker 1 (41:09):
I wait.
Speaker 2 (41:14):
There is no denying that this weekend was a big
one for President Trump, and not just because the chef
andd mar Lago made boob shaped burgers. No, it was
big because Republican senators stopped witnesses from testifying at Trump's impeachment.
Speaker 1 (41:28):
Trump, and it wasn't for the reason that you might think.
Speaker 27 (41:32):
This weekend more senate Republicans admitted the president's actions were
wrong and bad, but they insist not impeachable.
Speaker 45 (41:40):
I agreed he did something inappropriate, but I don't agree
he did anything akin to treason, bribery, high crimes, and misdemeanor. Well,
I mean, if you have eight witnesses who say someone
left the scene of an accident, why do you need nine?
I mean it's a question for me, was do I
need more evidence to conclude that the president did what
he did? And I concluded no.
Speaker 2 (42:02):
After months of claiming Trump did nothing wrong, many key
Republicans have now settled on Look, man, it was bad,
but not kicked the guy out bad. Yeah, Republicans basically
treat Trump like white people treat their dogs, you know,
short top, all the furniture pooped on the floor, and
but the neighbor's kid.
Speaker 1 (42:18):
But who can stay married? A dead face? Who can
step married? Dead face? He just wanted a qui quo.
He wanted a who who went too? You want a jo?
Speaker 2 (42:33):
Today was the final day in the impeachment trial of
Donald Jumbalia Trump, and no big surprise, he was acquitted
by the Republican run Senates, which.
Speaker 1 (42:43):
Was never in doubt.
Speaker 2 (42:45):
Yeah, don't boot vote see impeachments.
Speaker 1 (42:51):
Was it was known like everyone knew where this was going.
Speaker 2 (42:54):
This This was like a movie where you can guess
what was gonna happen without even watching it, you know,
like Titanic. Okay, it's a ship that's going to sink
or Sophie's choice. Some lady has to decide which dude
she's gonna bone.
Speaker 1 (43:04):
I get it, I get it. So with the outcome,
never in doubts.
Speaker 2 (43:07):
The only real drama today was whether any Republicans would
dare vote against Donald Trump. And it turns out there
was one man with binders full of courage.
Speaker 39 (43:18):
Republicans.
Speaker 20 (43:19):
Senator mit Romney emotionally announced on the Senate floor that
he will break ranks and vote to convict and remove
President Trump.
Speaker 46 (43:27):
The president asked a foreign government to investigate his political rival.
The President's purpose was personal and political. Accordingly, the President
is guilty of an appalling abuse of public trust. With
my vote, I will tell my children and their children
that I did my duty to the best of my ability,
(43:47):
believing that my country expected it of me.
Speaker 1 (43:50):
That is shocking.
Speaker 29 (43:53):
That is.
Speaker 1 (43:56):
Shocking.
Speaker 2 (43:58):
Who would have thought that the most badass Republican in
the Senate would end up being a Mormon dude named Mitz.
Speaker 1 (44:06):
And I gotta say, Mitz, you proved everyone wrong.
Speaker 2 (44:09):
The haters said you were as radical as a glass
of skim milk, but they were wrong.
Speaker 1 (44:12):
Mitt your whole milk, my man. That's why whole milk fan.
Speaker 41 (44:20):
Now.
Speaker 2 (44:20):
Other than Romney, another Republican senator who was considered on
the fence was also about Trump was Susan Collins of Maine.
Speaker 1 (44:27):
Right, but she decided that we.
Speaker 2 (44:29):
Don't need to throw Trump out because she thinks he's
already been scared straight.
Speaker 35 (44:34):
There are some senators who could have cross party lines.
Speaker 25 (44:37):
Senator Susan Collins will not be one of them.
Speaker 13 (44:40):
I'm voting to a queed.
Speaker 14 (44:42):
I believe that the president has learned from this case.
Speaker 19 (44:47):
What do you believe the president has learned?
Speaker 13 (44:49):
The president has been impeached.
Speaker 29 (44:52):
That's a pretty big lesson.
Speaker 41 (44:54):
However, during a TV anchors lunch at the White House yesterday,
Trump responded to questions about collins comments, saying he had
done nothing wrong and that is conversation with Ukraine's president.
Speaker 35 (45:05):
Quote was a perfect call.
Speaker 2 (45:07):
Man, Donald Trump would be the hardest person to defend
in courts.
Speaker 1 (45:11):
He'd be like, your honor, my client has learned his lesson. No,
I haven't his days of selling drugs are over. Who
wants cokain.
Speaker 2 (45:24):
Because clearly Trump hasn't learned a lesson. If anything, He's
learned that he can do whatever he wants and Republicans
will let him get away with it, but.
Speaker 1 (45:34):
First they're gonna shake their heads.
Speaker 25 (45:36):
Mmm.
Speaker 2 (45:37):
So basically, thanks to Senate Republicans, Trump is now free.
He can just run through laws like he's got that
super Mario invisibility style.
Speaker 1 (45:44):
That's what he can do.
Speaker 2 (45:45):
Yeah, he's invincible, except Trump is more powerful than Mario
because in this case, the turtles are on his side. Basically, basically,
President Trump is off the hook. He's completely off the hook,
and you know what that means. He's gonna let loose Tonight.
He's gonna eat fifty burgers, bang a porn starck, and
then he's gonna do something crazy.
Speaker 1 (46:05):
Explore more shows from the Daily Show podcast universe by
searching The Daily Show wherever you get your podcasts.
Speaker 5 (46:12):
Watch The Daily Show weeknights at eleven ten Central on
Comedy Central, and stream full episodes anytime on Paramount
Speaker 30 (46:18):
Plus Paramount Podcasts
You're listening to comedy Central impeachments.
Speaker 2 (00:06):
It's the constitutional way of saying, by Felicia.
Speaker 3 (00:15):
That's probably presidential harassment.
Speaker 4 (00:20):
President Trump has been accused of threatening to hold back
military aid to the Ukraine if leaders there failed to
investigate former Vice President Joe Biden.
Speaker 5 (00:29):
The President pushed eight times for an investigation into Joe
Biden at the time of the call, that Trump administration
was withholding two hundred and fifty million dollars in military
aid to Ukraine that Congress had already approved.
Speaker 1 (00:42):
Yeah, this is huge.
Speaker 2 (00:44):
Donald Trump is accused of holding back military aid approved
by Congress for Ukraine unless they helped him dig up
dirts on Joe Biden.
Speaker 1 (00:53):
Which, if true, would be devastating.
Speaker 2 (00:56):
It's an abuse of power, it's extortion and maybe worst
of all, asking a foreign country to middle in America's election. Yeah,
which is the one thing that if you were Donald Trump,
you should stay.
Speaker 1 (01:06):
Away from, right, because they had just beaten the Russia case.
Speaker 2 (01:10):
It would be like if the day after Michael Jackson
got a quitted up touching kids, he.
Speaker 1 (01:14):
Was like, let's celebrate some slumber party at my hand.
Speaker 2 (01:19):
Of the one silver liner of any Trump scandal is
that if you just wait long enough, eventually he'll just
spool the beans himself.
Speaker 6 (01:27):
The conversation I had was largely congratulatory with largely corruption.
All of the corruption picking play were largely the fact
that we don't want our people like Vice President Biden
has done creating to the corruption already in the Ukraine.
Speaker 7 (01:47):
There was no pressure put on them whatsoever. But there
was pressure put on with respect to Joe Biden. What
Joe Biden did for his son, that's something they should
be looking at.
Speaker 1 (01:59):
We all heard that right.
Speaker 2 (02:00):
Trump has said there was no pressure except for the
pressure to get dirt on Biden. That's the only pressure
we're talking about. On Monday, the Ukraine scandal blew up.
On Tuesday, the Democrats opened an impeachment inquiry. On Wednesday,
the transcript of the call came out, and today the
big news is that the secret whistleblower complaint that kicked
(02:23):
this whole thing off has finally been released.
Speaker 8 (02:26):
The House Intelligence Committee has just released the whistleblower complaint.
This is the second paragraph of that complaint from the whistleblower,
who says, in the course of my official duties, I
have received information from multiple US government officials that the
President of the United States is using the power of
his office to solicit interference from a foreign country in
the twenty twenty US election.
Speaker 1 (02:47):
That's right.
Speaker 2 (02:48):
The whistleblower's complaint has accused the president of soliciting foreign
interference in America's election, which is really bad for Trump.
What's even worse is that this entire complaint is only
nine page is long, which means people might actually read it. Hell,
if it had a few pictures, Trump himself might even
read it. Trump and his defenders are saying that the
(03:09):
whistleblowers a count as fake all right, because they say
that the whistleblower is basing all of this on secondhand information,
he didn't hear the cause and he hasn't seen anything himself.
They also point out that the president of Ukraine himself
said yesterday that he never felt any pressure from Trump,
although if you actually watched the Ukrainian president say it,
(03:31):
you might come up with a different impression.
Speaker 9 (03:34):
If he felt any count from President comp to investigate
Joe Biden and under Biden.
Speaker 10 (03:39):
I think you read everything, so I think you read texts.
Speaker 1 (03:45):
I I'm sorry, but I.
Speaker 2 (03:48):
Don't want to be involved to democratic open Elections of USA.
Speaker 1 (03:55):
No, you're here. That we had I think, good cool,
he was normal. We spoke about.
Speaker 10 (04:03):
Many scenes, and so I think and you read it
that nobody pushed it pushed me.
Speaker 11 (04:11):
Yes, no pressure, Okay, okay, I don't want to contradict
the president, but I don't think the translation of that
was no pressure.
Speaker 2 (04:25):
That man seemed like he was under intense pressure. I
mean he actually said that I don't want to get involved.
I mean, that's not a comfortable phrase you ever say
when you're just comfortable.
Speaker 1 (04:34):
How are you feeling? I don't want to get involved?
That's so comfortable.
Speaker 2 (04:39):
You can ask him that question in front of Trump.
It's like asking the hostage how he's being treated while
the kidnapper is right next to him. How are they
treating me? Oh it's it's amazing.
Speaker 1 (04:49):
Yeah. Uh. Last night they even gave me toilet paper.
I love it here.
Speaker 2 (04:58):
The big news today is that the White House has
taken its fight with Congress to the next level, officially
sending word that it will not participate in any aspect
of the impeachment probe.
Speaker 1 (05:11):
Yeah, which is crazy, Like Trump can't.
Speaker 2 (05:13):
Just declined to participate, Like this is not the Vietnam War,
and this new tactic, this new tactic threw everything for
a loop, because you see, today was meant to be
the big day when Congress would hear testimony from Gordon Sundland,
Ambassador to the EU, and Jeff ros Stunt double. But
just before the CSPAN camera started rolling, the White House
(05:33):
pulled the plug.
Speaker 12 (05:35):
We'll following breaking news this morning, and it's moving quickly.
The White House blocking EU Ambassador Gordon Sunland from testifying
to Congress just minutes before he was supposed to appear
on Capitol Hill. He was set to testify behind closed
doors as part of an ongoing impeachment inquiry into President Trump,
specifically about his interactions with Ukraine. Democratic House Intelligence Chairman
calling the move to keep Sunlance from speaking, the lawmakers
(05:55):
quote strong evidence of obstruction at the.
Speaker 2 (05:58):
President's behest and pulled out of this impeachment hearing, which
is a big deal because although many people haven't heard
of Gordon SONLND, it appears that everything Trump wanted from
Ukraine went through him.
Speaker 13 (06:12):
Even before President Trump spoke to the President of Ukraine,
Gordon Sondland, the US Ambassador to the EU, had been
pushing the Ukrainians to commit to investigations mister Trump wanted.
Speaker 2 (06:24):
And the reason Congress is so intense on having son
and testify isn't just because he was at the centre
of the Ukraine scandal, right, It's also because he has
text messages that show what was going on behind the scenes.
Speaker 14 (06:36):
Text messages given to Congress show Sundland and another diplomat
discussing a possible link between investigations and aid to Ukraine.
Speaker 15 (06:45):
On September ninth, Bill Taylor, the top US diplomat to Ukraine, texts,
I think it's crazy to withhold security assistants for help
with a political campaign. Sonlid responds, I believe you were
incorrect about President Trump's intentions. The president has been Chris
still clear. No quit pro quos of any kind, adding
I suggest we stop the back and forth by text.
Speaker 14 (07:06):
Taylor text Gordon Somlin. Are we now saying that security
assistants and White House meeting are conditioned on investigations?
Speaker 15 (07:13):
Someone responds, call me.
Speaker 1 (07:17):
Okay.
Speaker 2 (07:18):
I don't know if these guys are guilty or not,
but you have to admit those texts look hella suspicious. Yeah,
because the only time you say stop texting let's talk
on the phone. Is when something shady's going down, right,
It's twenty nineteen. No one talks on the phone. The
only reason to talk on the phone at all is
to wish your grandmother a happy birthday, or to commit crimes,
(07:40):
or to commit crimes with.
Speaker 1 (07:41):
Your grandmother on her birthday.
Speaker 2 (07:46):
Now, for the first day of the public hearings, the
Democrats chose to call two witnesses, Bill Taylor, the acting
ambassador to Ukraine, and George Kept, senior State Department official
and townsperson in the nineteen fifties musical.
Speaker 16 (07:58):
Once I arroved in Kiev, I discovered a weird combination
of encouraging, confusing, and ultimately alarming circumstances. According to mister Morrison,
president Trump did insist that President Zelensky go to a
microphone and say he is opening investigations of Biden and
twenty sixteen election interference. Ambassador Somlon tried to explain to
(08:21):
me that President Trump is a businessman. When a businessman
is about to sign a check to someone who owes
him something, the businessman asked that person to pay up
before signing the check. I think it's crazy to withhold
security assistance for help with the political campaign.
Speaker 2 (08:37):
What did you mean when you said you thought it
was crazy?
Speaker 16 (08:39):
It was illogical, It could not be explained. It was crazy.
Speaker 2 (08:44):
Hmmm, unexplainable, illogical crazy. That's the description Bill Taylor gave
of Trump's actions. It's also the title of Trump's new memoir,
Same thing.
Speaker 1 (08:54):
Yes, it's my full story, and it's a coloring book, folks.
You gotta love it.
Speaker 2 (08:59):
What it was congres When Jim Jordan's turn to ask questions,
his big arguments was that none of this testimony should
count because it was all a game of telephone.
Speaker 17 (09:08):
You weren't on the call, were you the president? You
didn't listen on President Trump's call and Presidentlessy's call. I
did not. You never talked with Chief of Staff Maulvany,
I never did. You never met the president. That's correct.
This is what I can't believe. And you're their star witness,
you're their first witness.
Speaker 1 (09:22):
You're the guy.
Speaker 17 (09:23):
You're the guy based on this, based on I mean,
I've seen I've seen church prayer change that are easier
to understand than this.
Speaker 1 (09:31):
That's a good point. Good point, Jim Jordan.
Speaker 2 (09:34):
These guys don't have firsthand knowledge of what Trump was
doing with Ukraine.
Speaker 1 (09:37):
So why are they the ones testifying.
Speaker 2 (09:39):
I mean, maybe it's because the White House has blocked
all the people who do have firsthand knowledge from testifying.
Speaker 1 (09:45):
That's a good point, Tramper, that's a good fine, thank
you me.
Speaker 2 (09:48):
All of today, Jim Jordan's only focus was making it
seem like this entire process was somehow a sham. But
it all backfired when he tried to turn the focus
to the whistleblower.
Speaker 17 (09:59):
Now there is one witness, one witness that they won't
bring in front of us, they won't bring in front
of the American people, and that's the guy who started it all,
the whistleblower. Nope, I say to my colleague, I'd be
glad to have the person who started it all come
in and testify. President Trump is welcome to take a
(10:19):
seat right there.
Speaker 2 (10:25):
This congressional hearing was filmed in front of a live
studio audience, you know, by congress standards, that was a
pretty good slam.
Speaker 17 (10:31):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (10:32):
The only way it could have been better is if
the congressman was like, seriously, President Trump is welcome anytime.
Speaker 1 (10:36):
In fact, I've actually got his invite right here.
Speaker 2 (10:39):
Man man, Man, Man Man, and This testimony was a
pretty big deal because for the first time the American
public heard from non partisan officials about how the president
abused his powers for personal gain. And even though millions
of people I mean talking about these hearings over on
Fox News, their analysis of this impeachment is man. There
(11:02):
is not a single person outside the Washington, DC beltway
that gives a damn about what happened today.
Speaker 1 (11:09):
It's boring, the total snooze fest. It was kind of
boring to watch on television. It was really just a
huge dut. There wasn't anything sexy about it.
Speaker 18 (11:16):
There was not some big new piece of information that
came out.
Speaker 19 (11:19):
With Richard Nixon, there was a break in with Bill Clinton,
there was sex in the Oval office.
Speaker 1 (11:26):
Yeah. With Trump, it's a phone call to Ukraine.
Speaker 20 (11:29):
There's no burglary, there's no break in, there's no tapes,
there's no dress, there's no sex.
Speaker 1 (11:33):
It's not a sexy scandal. Russia was sexy. This has
no intrigue whatsoever. Whoa, whoa, whoa.
Speaker 2 (11:40):
You're saying Trump's impeachment is boring and unsexy. You know,
if Trump hears that, it's gonna piss him off, right,
He's gonna come.
Speaker 1 (11:48):
Out like my engagement will be the most exciting ever.
Speaker 2 (11:52):
I'll break into a hotel and best believe I'll just
all over this dress.
Speaker 1 (11:56):
Don't make me do it. Don't make me do it, Aging.
Speaker 21 (12:04):
Trevor.
Speaker 22 (12:05):
This whole thing has me so mad. Look, if these
allegations are true, then our president, and forgive me for
using the N word. Here is a complete nincome poop.
Speaker 1 (12:17):
Oh, you have me nervous for a second. Yeah, I agree,
I agree.
Speaker 2 (12:21):
I think everyone is angry that the president abused his
power like this.
Speaker 22 (12:25):
Okay, take it easy, madau. I'm mad because our dim
shit president can't even get impeached. Right, he's wasting his
one impeachment on taking down Joe Biden. Joe Biden will
take down Joe Biden. The guy's already gaffed himself out
of two elections. Look, when it comes to Biden, all
(12:46):
you have to do is just wait it out and
go away. You know, he's like a cold or my
parole officer.
Speaker 1 (12:53):
That guy is so obsessed with me. Actually, I think
that's legal. So wait, DESI, you don't think Trump abused
his power?
Speaker 22 (13:01):
Well no, if anything, he didn't abuse it enough. Look,
you only get one impeachment, you gotta make it count.
Presidents used to understand that. Andrew Johnson defied Congress Richard
Nixon had the Saturday Night massacre. Bill Clinton got a
bj in the Oval Office head mouth candy, the old
(13:23):
pac Man.
Speaker 1 (13:25):
Yeah, you know, I get it. Okay, okay.
Speaker 22 (13:36):
My point is Trevor Trump has blown it. He might
get impeached for gossiping on the phone like a little bit.
Speaker 2 (13:48):
During the impeachment hearings last week, you may remember we
learned about a call at a restaurant between Trump and
an EU ambassador Gordon s Well. Now a diplomat who
overheard that call is spilling all the beans to Congress.
Speaker 1 (14:01):
Quote.
Speaker 23 (14:02):
While Ambassador Sonland's phone was not on speakerphone, I could
hear the President's voice through the earpiece of the phone.
I then heard President Trump ask so he's going to
do the investigation. Ambassador sonlnd replied that he's going to
do it, adding the President Zelenski will do anything you
ask him to. President's voice was very loud and recognizable,
(14:22):
and Ambassador Sonln held the phone away from his ear
for a period of time.
Speaker 2 (14:27):
Yeah, that's right, David Holmes testified to Congress that he
overheard a call where Trump explicitly asked for Ukraine to
dig up to it on. Joe Biden and the diplomat
overheard this conversation not because Trump was on speakerphone, but
because Trump is a human speakerphone and he's like, I'm
calling about the criminal conspiracy.
Speaker 1 (14:48):
You know what, I can't hear you. Let's stress the speaker.
Speaker 2 (14:51):
I'm calling about the criminal day. There are a lot
of damning details in this testimony, but my favorite part.
My favorite part was when Sonland talked about just how
much the President of Ukraine was willing to help Trump.
Speaker 23 (15:04):
I heard President Trump then clarify Ambassador Sonlon was in Ukraine.
Ambassador Sonlon replied, yes, he was in Ukraine went on
to state President Zelensky loves your ass.
Speaker 2 (15:15):
Oh, okay, Zelensky loves Trump's ass. A few days ago,
Fox and US was saying impeachment wasn't sexy enough.
Speaker 1 (15:22):
Now we got ass played.
Speaker 2 (15:28):
This morning, impeachment took yet another major step forward when
Nancy Pelosi speak of the House and sober Lucille Bluth
gathered up all the flags she could find for a
major announcement.
Speaker 12 (15:41):
Tound speaker Nancy Pelosi announcing to the country and to
the world that articles of impeachment against President Trump will proceed.
Pelosi telling the American people that Trump has left the
US Congress with no choice but to move forward.
Speaker 24 (15:55):
Sadly. That was confidence and humility, with allegiance to our
founders and a heart full of love for America. Today,
I am asking our chairman to proceed with articles of impeachment.
Speaker 1 (16:10):
Oh my god, Oh my god, Oh my god. They
finally proposed articles of impeachment. I mean, I knew when
they reserved that hearing room that this would be it.
Speaker 2 (16:20):
But you never know until it really happens.
Speaker 1 (16:22):
I'm like, god, I'm so happy for you guys.
Speaker 2 (16:25):
And I know this sounds weird, but I'm actually proud
of Donald Trump. Yeah, because he's getting impeached, but I
didn't think he would make it three years.
Speaker 1 (16:34):
I'm not gonna lie.
Speaker 2 (16:36):
Like Trump getting this far into his presidency without being
impeached is a lot like when a dog accidentally drives
a car into a tree.
Speaker 1 (16:42):
Yeah, the dog crashed, but he made it like eight blocks.
That's impressive. I don't even know how he put it
into drive. He barely knows letters now There was a
big debate.
Speaker 2 (16:51):
Within the Democratic Party about how many articles of impeachment
to bring against Donald Trump, but in the end they
decided to strike with surgical precision.
Speaker 25 (17:00):
President Trump now facing two charges, as the top Democrats
of the key committees stood together to announce it all
this morning, Abuse of power and obstruction of Congress.
Speaker 9 (17:11):
Democrats have decided to narrow the scope of impeachment to
the two articles of impeachment that they believe are the
easiest to prove and backed up by the most evidence.
Speaker 4 (17:21):
Because we are operating in a universe where Republicans are
challenging some of the most basic facts, Democrats want to
make this case as airtight as possible.
Speaker 2 (17:32):
Yes, only two articles of impeachments, abuse of power and
obstruction of Congress, which means the Democrats are showing a
lot of restraint because I mean, let's be honest, Trump
has done enough crazy shit to Marrit two thousand articles
of impeachments. Yeah, there was obstruction of justice from the
Mola report, using the presidency to enrich his businesses, the
porn star payoffs, flag molestation, the time he looked directly
(17:53):
into an eclipse, and of course having done Junior I mean,
that's impeachment on its own.
Speaker 26 (17:59):
So so the good news for Trump is that he's
only facing two charges, although in a way that's also
kind of sad for him because Nixon had three.
Speaker 2 (18:11):
Articles wrote against him, Bill Clinton had four, and Andrew
Johnson had eleven, which means Trump will have the smallest
impeachments of all time.
Speaker 1 (18:21):
You know, that's gonna make him insecure. It's gonna be like,
it's not.
Speaker 10 (18:23):
About the size of impeachment, it's about the friction of
the convention.
Speaker 8 (18:32):
President Trump said, to become the third president in American
history to be impeached.
Speaker 27 (18:36):
This is a moment that will go down in history.
This will be written about in the history books.
Speaker 4 (18:41):
This is going to go down in the history books.
Speaker 2 (18:43):
The forty fifth president of the United States got impeached. Well,
you guys might be cheering, but when Democrats in the
House tried to cheer last night, Nancy Pelosi shut it
down real fast.
Speaker 28 (19:01):
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi maintaining control of her caucus with
a glance and a gesture alone at one point yesterday.
Speaker 29 (19:08):
On this thoughte, the Ya's are two hundred and thirty.
The na's are one ninety seven. Present is one article.
One is adopted.
Speaker 2 (19:29):
Damn Nancy didn't want to hear any gloating last night.
She killed that celebration, guid Did you see that that
kind of look would send the champagne cock back into
the bottle?
Speaker 1 (19:39):
That that's how intense I was. They were like poop whoop.
Speaker 2 (19:45):
So there's no doubt that impeachment will hurt Trump's legacy bigly,
but it also seems like it's hurting his feelings.
Speaker 21 (19:53):
President Trump incensed, lashing out in a scathing six page
letter to the House Speaker, calling the teachment process outlined
by the Constitution an illegal, partisan attempted coup.
Speaker 30 (20:05):
He's just fired off a tweet. Can you believe that
I will be impeached today by the radical left? Do
nothing Democrats? And I did nothing wrong? A terrible thing.
Read the transcripts. This should never happen to another president again,
Say a prayer?
Speaker 1 (20:19):
No, Is it just me?
Speaker 2 (20:22):
Or does it seem like? Trump went through all the
stages of grief in one tweet? It was like denial,
I can't believe I'm getting impeached, Anga, I did nothing wrong.
Speaker 1 (20:32):
Depression, this is a terrible thing. Acceptance. I guess we
can only pray.
Speaker 2 (20:39):
You may remember that after Trump was impeached back in December,
Nancy Pelosi didn't post the obstacles.
Speaker 1 (20:45):
On to the Senate.
Speaker 2 (20:46):
Instead, she chose to hold onto them, tight, tight, to them.
Mike Pency's sphinx in a room with two women. Yeah,
temptation often passes through the back door. But today, after
a month of tension, Pelosi finally announced she's handing the
articles over to the Senates so that they can hold
(21:07):
the trial. And I don't know what was going on
with Nancy today, but at her press conference she seemed
a little spaced out.
Speaker 29 (21:14):
Good morning, everyone, This is a very important day for us.
And as you know, I reference temporal markers that our
founders and our poets and others have used over time
to place us in time, to emphasize the importance of time,
because everything is about time.
Speaker 2 (21:38):
Yeah, And speaking of timing, it feels like Pelosi's edibles
just kicked in at the wrong moment there. I think
the point Pelosi was trying to make is that she
feels that after a month of waiting, now is the
right time to pass impeachment to the Senates. But handing
over the articles of impeachment isn't as simple as handing
over your mom to a nursing home. No, an occasion
(21:58):
like this calls for a little ceremony.
Speaker 31 (22:01):
They are going to be marching the articles from the
House Chamber through the Statuary Hall, through the Rotunda, along
the second floor of the Capitol, past the old Senate Chamber,
through the Ohio Clock Corridor, and then eventually to the
Senate Chamber.
Speaker 20 (22:17):
Those documents now are being taken from the House of
Representatives through Statuary Hall. They'll be going into the Capital
Rotunda to the Senate to present the articles of impeachment.
Speaker 32 (22:28):
Mister President, I have been directed by the House of
Representatives to inform the Senate. The House has passed HS
seven nine eight, a resolution appointing and authorizing managers for
the impeachment trial of Donald John Trump, President of the
(22:49):
United States.
Speaker 2 (22:50):
So we're all just going to pretend nobody invents an email.
Just as an aside, what was up with that graphic?
What was that from the news come. We don't need
to see an arrow making love to the Senate Chamber
to understand how people enter a room. They're walking across
the building. It's a straight line, it's a whole way
we get it.
Speaker 1 (23:11):
So now.
Speaker 2 (23:12):
So, now that the Senate has the articles of impeachment,
the big fights is now going to be about whether
or not the trial will include new witnesses and new evidence,
because you see, just yesterday we learned new details about
Trump and his shady dealings with Ukraine.
Speaker 33 (23:28):
The new evidence collected by congressional investigators comes from Lev
Parnas and associate of Trump's personal attorney, Rudy Giuliani. Fifty
nine pages of records, including text messages, emails, and handwritten notes,
including one scrawled on hotel stationary that reads, quote get
Zelensky to announce that the Biden case will be investigated.
(23:49):
And there's a letter from Giuliani requesting a meeting with
Ukraine's then president elect Zelensky, emphasizing Giuliani was working in
his capacity as personal counsel to President Trump and with
his knowledge and consent.
Speaker 2 (24:03):
No, seriously, they wrote down the plot of their crime
and then kept it.
Speaker 1 (24:08):
That is a literal paper trail. Why would you do that?
What were they just hanging around?
Speaker 11 (24:13):
Like?
Speaker 1 (24:13):
You have to keep the receipts, Like, isn't that taxes? No, No,
it's for crimes too. You have to keep them.
Speaker 2 (24:19):
Only Donald Trump would hire henchmen who are also into scrapbooking,
like they're like a bunch of criminal Martha Stewarts, you know,
also known as Martha Stewart's. Trump's impeachment trial is set
to begin next week, and as with any impeachment trial,
the Senate will serve as the jury. So this afternoon,
(24:39):
all the senators were sworn in by Supreme Court Chief
Justice John Roberts, and then they signed their names one
by one in what's known as the oath Book. Was
a really solemn moment and also the first time ever
that anyone's ever asked for Ted Cruiser's autograph. Now, the
one big question hanging over this trial has been will
(25:00):
publican sentences allow new witnesses to testify? Well, apparently some
of those witnesses aren't waiting to find out. Which is
showing up on TV right and the conversation everyone's talking
about right now is Rachel Maddow's interview with Lev Parnas,
an associate of Rudy Giuliani and a man with seven
different hairstyles all at once. Now, Parnas is important because,
(25:24):
unlike some previous witnesses who only heard about what was
going on. He claims that he was working closely with
Rudy Giuliani to get dirt on the Bidens. So if
those other people smelled the borshe he actually made it.
And now he's telling all of America how it went down.
Speaker 34 (25:40):
President Trump knew exactly what was going on. He was
aware of all my movements. I wouldn't do anything without
the consent of Rudy Giuliani or the President.
Speaker 35 (25:50):
Are you saying specifically, and I want to sort of
drill down on that that the President was aware that
you and mister Giuliani were working on this effort in
Ukraine to basically try to hurt Joe Biden's political career.
Speaker 1 (26:01):
He knows about that.
Speaker 34 (26:03):
Yeah, well, it was observed about Joe Biden, Hunter Biden.
It was never about the corruption. It was never was
strictly about the barisma, which included Hunter Biden and Joe Biden.
Speaker 2 (26:14):
That's a big deal coming from Rudy Giuliani's right hand man.
This would be like if Luigi went on Rachel Maddow
Like Mario doesn't care about the princess.
Speaker 1 (26:24):
He just a laugh to murder Tarteles. He wants to
kill all of them. He's a very sick man. It'll
be huge. Now.
Speaker 2 (26:35):
Now the White House, the White House has responded to
this interview saying that pon Us is a liar. They
say he's only saying this because he's been indicted for
campaign finance fraud, and so now he's trying to get
a light of sentence like a Ukrainian Takashi six nine.
And Trump has gone one step further, saying that he
doesn't even know what a left par Us is, much
less that he gave him instructions to get dirt on
Joe Biden, to which pawn Us is now responding picks
(26:59):
it did happen.
Speaker 36 (27:00):
The President of the United States said he didn't know you.
Speaker 1 (27:03):
I don't know those gentlemen.
Speaker 7 (27:05):
Now as possible, I have a picture with him, because
I have a picture with everybody, I don't know them.
Speaker 34 (27:10):
I welcome him to say that even more. Every time
he says that I'll show him another picture, he's lying.
He's lying.
Speaker 2 (27:16):
I hope when Parnas does release the pictures, they just
get steadily more incriminating. You know, it'll be funny for
like at first they just had a party together, you know,
then the next picture they're riding together on Space Mountain.
Then eventually, like all pictures will just end up with nudes.
You know, that's where it's gonna go. Yeah, and Trump
will be like.
Speaker 1 (27:34):
That doesn't mean anything. I take nudes with everyone. So
many news. So, the third.
Speaker 2 (27:44):
Presidential impeachment trial in American history began today, and because
impeachment is such a momentous occasion, the Senate had to
kick things off with a formal proclamation.
Speaker 22 (27:56):
The US Senate is about to take on and historic
and perhaps grueling task, the impeachment trial of President Donald Trump.
Speaker 13 (28:11):
Here ye hear ye, hear ye.
Speaker 37 (28:13):
All persons are commanded to keep silent on pain of
imprisonment while the Senate of the United States is sitting
for the trial of the articles of impeachment exhibited by
the House of Representatives against Donald John Trump, President of
the United States.
Speaker 2 (28:29):
Hey ye hey ye, hey yey is one of those
phrases that has to be shouted.
Speaker 1 (28:34):
Certain phrases have to be shouted, like make some noise
or you're not even my real dad got to shout
certain things.
Speaker 2 (28:45):
And despite the asmr intro, Trump's impeachment trial is already.
Speaker 1 (28:50):
Filled with drama.
Speaker 2 (28:51):
Just look at the all star defense team president Trump
put together. All right, this is an insane team that
Trump collected. Is god can star the lawyer who is
famous for doing the investigation that led to Bill Clinton's impeachments.
And it's got Alan Dershowitz who's famous.
Speaker 1 (29:05):
For defending O. J. Simpson.
Speaker 2 (29:07):
So these lawyers are perfect for Trump because they have
experience with super guilty people and super hawney presidents.
Speaker 1 (29:13):
It's great, it's a combination.
Speaker 2 (29:15):
But I will say this, Trump's lawyers may want to
polish up the defense strategy because things have already gotten
off to a rocky start.
Speaker 28 (29:23):
The president's legal team offering the first glimpse of their
defense that the president did nothing wrong, did not commit
a crime, and that even the Democrats argument of abusive
power does not rise to an impeachable offense, something one
of his lawyers, Alan Dershowitz, maintained over the weekend.
Speaker 3 (29:39):
The articles of impeachment are two non criminal actions, but.
Speaker 21 (29:43):
Many constitutional scholars disagree. Trump's lawyer, Alan Dershowitz himself once
argued the opposite during the Clinton impeachment.
Speaker 37 (29:51):
So it certainly doesn't have to be a crime if
you have somebody who completely corrupts the office of president.
Speaker 1 (29:57):
This is really interesting.
Speaker 2 (29:58):
What he said in the nineties was in fact correct,
and what he's saying now is also in fact correct.
Speaker 36 (30:05):
Previously you said it doesn't have to be a crime
if the guy, if the if the person in office
completely corrupts the office of president. Now you're saying criminal like,
So you're not so corrupting the office of the president.
Is that in your criminal lights or criminal like?
Speaker 1 (30:21):
No, no, it's not.
Speaker 23 (30:22):
And that was reject that was rejected by the were wrong.
Speaker 1 (30:25):
I say you were wrong back then. I was saying that.
I'm much more correct right now, having done much research
because that and the ise.
Speaker 6 (30:32):
I didn't do the research back then because that wasn't
an issue.
Speaker 1 (30:35):
I've done the research now. I wasn't wrong. I am
just far more correct now than I was now.
Speaker 2 (30:42):
Wait what I wasn't wrong. I am just far more
correct now than I was then. That is one of
the most original lines I have ever heard in my life. Now,
that's a great line for a lawyer. But thank god
this guy doesn't work on a bomb squad, because.
Speaker 1 (30:58):
That would be a disaster.
Speaker 2 (30:59):
He would just be like, cut the yellow wire, wait,
cut the red one, already cut the yellow one. Yeah,
well I wasn't wrong about yellow, but the red one
is more correct.
Speaker 1 (31:09):
Don't worry. We're not gonna die. We're just gonna be
less alive.
Speaker 38 (31:16):
If Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has his way, the
vote to convict or acquit President Trump will come sooner
rather than later. McConnell presenting his proposed trial rules that
break from the Clinton model.
Speaker 21 (31:29):
Mitch McConnell releasing his long awaited blueprint. Each side will
have twenty four hours over just two days to make
their opening statements. It means Senators could have to sit
for twelve hour sessions, part of the Republican push for
a faster trial, but Democrats say Republicans are trying to
hide the president's misconduct in the dead of night.
Speaker 19 (31:49):
He could force presentations to take place at two or
three in the morning. The McConnell resolution will result in
a rush trial with little evidence in the dark of night,
literally the dark of night.
Speaker 2 (32:04):
You know, for a guy who shares so much DNA
with turtles, McConnell sure wants to move fast.
Speaker 1 (32:10):
You know what I feel like.
Speaker 2 (32:10):
I feel like McConnell will be the worst person to
go on a date with you know, because he seems
like one of those people who would order the appetizer,
the main course, and the dessert all at the same time,
you know, just to rush things along.
Speaker 39 (32:21):
And just we're like, yeah, bring us the spike, the
half far Sunday on the track. We're getting the track
with all formality. We're just gonna smash.
Speaker 2 (32:30):
Today was the day that Democrats began to lay out
their case against the president, but last night fights were
already breaking out about whether this trial should even be
happening in the first place.
Speaker 40 (32:43):
Opening arguments begin early this afternoon, and we're expecting a
very fierce debate over why the president should and shouldn't
be removed from office. Republicans want this all over by
the State of the Union address in two weeks. Democrats say,
not so fast.
Speaker 30 (33:00):
Why are we here?
Speaker 41 (33:03):
Are we here.
Speaker 1 (33:04):
Because of a phone call?
Speaker 42 (33:05):
We are here, sir, to follow the facts, apply to law,
be guided by the Constitution, and present the truth to
the American people. That is why we are here, mister secular.
And if you don't know, now you know.
Speaker 1 (33:28):
And if you don't know, now you know. That's right,
that's right.
Speaker 2 (33:34):
Congressman Hakim Jeffries just quoted Biggie on the floor of Congress.
Speaker 1 (33:39):
The only thing, the only thing I wish is that
he'd used the entire line. That would have been amazing.
Speaker 2 (33:43):
It was like, if you don't know, now you know, nigga.
Speaker 1 (33:47):
Because if that happened, black people would have been out
celebrating in the streets. It would have been MLKDA.
Speaker 2 (33:52):
Part two, all of us out there like you know
very well who you are.
Speaker 1 (33:58):
But I gotta say, man, hip hop has come a
long way. Think about it.
Speaker 2 (34:02):
In the eighties and nineties, it was considered gangster music,
and now it's being quoted in an impeachment trial.
Speaker 1 (34:07):
Huh. That's how far hip hop has come. Think about that.
That's insane. Hip hop just keeps up.
Speaker 2 (34:15):
I bet it's only a matter of time before, like
Mitch McConnell responds with a rap lyric of his own, He's.
Speaker 39 (34:20):
Like, mom, my name is Metch and I don't have
a draw. I love the Senate and saying ma.
Speaker 1 (34:27):
Now.
Speaker 39 (34:29):
Now.
Speaker 2 (34:29):
The reason the things got so heated yesterday is because
Democrats tried ten different times to get new witnesses and
evidence into this impeachment trial, and the Republicans shot them
down each and every time. There hasn't been that much
rejection in DC's and Stephen Miller went speed dating.
Speaker 1 (34:44):
Now.
Speaker 2 (34:45):
One of the main witnesses Democrats really hope will testify
is former Trump advisor and grumpy Captain Crunch John Bolton.
But when the President was asked about it this morning,
he had a list of reasons why he doesn't want
Bolton to testify.
Speaker 7 (35:00):
In regards to the proceedings going on in the Senate.
Speaker 10 (35:02):
Are you absolutely against John Moulten testify?
Speaker 3 (35:05):
The problem with John is that it's a national security problem.
You know, you can't have somebody who's at national security.
And if you think about it, John he knows some
of my thoughts. He knows what I think about leaders.
What happens if he reveals what I think about a
certain leader and it's not very positive, and that I
(35:26):
have to deal on behalf of the country, it's going
to be very hard. It's going to make the job
very hard. He knows other things.
Speaker 17 (35:32):
And I don't know.
Speaker 3 (35:33):
If we left on the best of terms, I would
say probably not.
Speaker 2 (35:38):
You know, you know one thing I enjoy about Trump
is that he will give you every excuse all at
the same time. All Right, He'll start with the fake excuse,
but then he'll just keep going until you learn the
real reasons.
Speaker 10 (35:50):
Just like sadly, we can't hear from Bolton because it's
a national security there. And also you'll reveal what I
think about other world leaders, and also he hates my guts,
and also he'll be in the crimes that I committed.
Speaker 18 (36:04):
So many reasons.
Speaker 43 (36:06):
Breaking overnight bombshell, former National security advisor John Bolton ready
to turn on the President as news leaks from his
explosive new book about what he claims really happened with Ukraine.
Speaker 13 (36:17):
Bolton says the President told him that he wanted to
continue freezing three hundred and ninety one million dollars in
security assistance to Ukraine until officials there helped with investigations
into Democrats, including the Bidens.
Speaker 14 (36:31):
President Trump signaling that he is going to paint John
Bolton as a disgruntled former employee. Take a look at
his tweet from earlier today. He says, if John Bolton
said this, it was only to sell a book.
Speaker 2 (36:43):
Wow, this is a big deal because we now know
that if Bolton testifies, he would say that Trump personally
told him that he wanted to hold up aid to Ukraine.
Speaker 1 (36:52):
Until he got dirt on the Bidens, which is the
whole thing. This is the heart of the entire impeachment thing.
Speaker 2 (36:58):
So I don't know how Senator Publics can justify not
hearing from Bolton now, like there's no reason. Imagine an
eyewitness to a murder wanted to testify and the judge
just refused. You know, I was just like, your honor,
I saw this man, and I saw the crime firsthand.
Speaker 1 (37:12):
Be like, I up, no spoilers, no spoilers. I want
to see how it adds. And by the way, is Trump?
Speaker 2 (37:21):
Is Trump really gonna argue that John Bolton is just
another disgruntled employee because I don't know about you, but
he sure seems to have a lot of disgruntled employees.
Speaker 1 (37:32):
Like how come nobody ever leaves the White House gruntled?
Speaker 2 (37:35):
He's like, thank you, mister President, I am so gruntled
to have worked with you. So Bolton's book has thrown
a big, hairy curveball into this impeachment trial. But believe
it or not, the Bolton revelations aren't the only big
new piece of evidence because remember Lev Parnas, Yes, Rudy
Giuliani's right hand man, and the count from Sesame Street
(37:56):
well after Parnas said that he worked for Trump to
get dirt on Joe Biden, Trump repeatedly claimed he has
no idea who this man is. And that's even though
they've they've repeated more photos together than Mariah carry and
Christmas trees. So now the question is is Trump lying
about not knowing Paras or is part US lying about
(38:17):
knowing Trump.
Speaker 1 (38:18):
Well, it turns out upon Us has the receipts.
Speaker 27 (38:22):
Breaking overnight the release and an explosive new audiotape that
reportedly features President Trump speaking to Igor Fruman and Lev
Parnas at a dinner in twenty and eighteen.
Speaker 18 (38:33):
On the tape, a voice identified as Parnass can be
heard telling Trump that the ambassador to Ukraine was bad
mouthing him.
Speaker 34 (38:41):
Yeah, she's basically walking around telling everybody, Wait, he's going
to get impeached. Just wait, I mean it's incredible.
Speaker 5 (38:49):
Get get her out, to take her out, Okay.
Speaker 34 (38:55):
Thanxscellent' do it.
Speaker 18 (38:56):
President Trump has repeatedly said he doesn't know Lev Parnas,
but on the tape they talk in detail about Ukraine.
Speaker 2 (39:03):
White House Press Secretary Stephanie Grisham said the gathering doesn't
mean the president knew of or even remembered lab Parnes.
Speaker 9 (39:10):
The president sits at many many dinners, at many many round.
Speaker 24 (39:13):
Tables with people that he does not know.
Speaker 2 (39:16):
Yeah, the president has many many dinners, sometimes.
Speaker 1 (39:20):
All on the same nights. Come on, guys, I'm sorry.
Speaker 2 (39:24):
You just can't keep pretending that Trump doesn't know this guy, right,
Because first they said Trump wouldn't remember.
Speaker 1 (39:32):
All the people he takes photos with. Okay, I understand that.
Speaker 2 (39:35):
Now they're saying Trump can't remember all the people he
has private dinners with.
Speaker 1 (39:39):
What's next they're gonna be like, Look, the president gets
matching quid pro quote back tattoos with a lot of people.
He can't be expected to remember all of that this afternoon.
Speaker 44 (39:52):
In a stunning argument when a president, Trump's top lawyers
claimed any president has almost unlimited power, that his election
is in the public interest, and so he said, Trump
cannot be impeached.
Speaker 2 (40:04):
Every public official that I know believes that his election
is in.
Speaker 34 (40:08):
The public interest.
Speaker 1 (40:10):
And if a president does something which he believes will
help him get.
Speaker 6 (40:15):
Elected in the public interest, that cannot be the kind
of quid pro quo that results in impeachment.
Speaker 2 (40:25):
Ladies and gentlemen, we have finally arrived. First it was
there was no quid pro quo. Then it was maybe
there was a quid pro quo, but it was to
help the country, not Donald Trump. And now it's like
a man, the Donald gonna do what the Donald gonna do.
Your little bitch ass does need to shut the hell up. So,
(40:47):
just to be clear, the Trump team's argument is now
that anything Trump does to get himself re elected is
fine because his re election, in his mind, is good
for the country.
Speaker 1 (40:57):
And then it's not impeachable anything.
Speaker 2 (40:59):
Yeah, so Trump can elude, Trump can obstruct and it's
all good. Hell, he can even lock all the Democratic
candidates in a room with Eric. Yeah, just be like,
at some point one of you will eat the other
and either way.
Speaker 1 (41:09):
I wait.
Speaker 2 (41:14):
There is no denying that this weekend was a big
one for President Trump, and not just because the chef
andd mar Lago made boob shaped burgers. No, it was
big because Republican senators stopped witnesses from testifying at Trump's impeachment.
Speaker 1 (41:28):
Trump, and it wasn't for the reason that you might think.
Speaker 27 (41:32):
This weekend more senate Republicans admitted the president's actions were
wrong and bad, but they insist not impeachable.
Speaker 45 (41:40):
I agreed he did something inappropriate, but I don't agree
he did anything akin to treason, bribery, high crimes, and misdemeanor. Well,
I mean, if you have eight witnesses who say someone
left the scene of an accident, why do you need nine?
I mean it's a question for me, was do I
need more evidence to conclude that the president did what
he did? And I concluded no.
Speaker 2 (42:02):
After months of claiming Trump did nothing wrong, many key
Republicans have now settled on Look, man, it was bad,
but not kicked the guy out bad. Yeah, Republicans basically
treat Trump like white people treat their dogs, you know,
short top, all the furniture pooped on the floor, and
but the neighbor's kid.
Speaker 1 (42:18):
But who can stay married? A dead face? Who can
step married? Dead face? He just wanted a qui quo.
He wanted a who who went too? You want a jo?
Speaker 2 (42:33):
Today was the final day in the impeachment trial of
Donald Jumbalia Trump, and no big surprise, he was acquitted
by the Republican run Senates, which.
Speaker 1 (42:43):
Was never in doubt.
Speaker 2 (42:45):
Yeah, don't boot vote see impeachments.
Speaker 1 (42:51):
Was it was known like everyone knew where this was going.
Speaker 2 (42:54):
This This was like a movie where you can guess
what was gonna happen without even watching it, you know,
like Titanic. Okay, it's a ship that's going to sink
or Sophie's choice. Some lady has to decide which dude
she's gonna bone.
Speaker 1 (43:04):
I get it, I get it. So with the outcome,
never in doubts.
Speaker 2 (43:07):
The only real drama today was whether any Republicans would
dare vote against Donald Trump. And it turns out there
was one man with binders full of courage.
Speaker 39 (43:18):
Republicans.
Speaker 20 (43:19):
Senator mit Romney emotionally announced on the Senate floor that
he will break ranks and vote to convict and remove
President Trump.
Speaker 46 (43:27):
The president asked a foreign government to investigate his political rival.
The President's purpose was personal and political. Accordingly, the President
is guilty of an appalling abuse of public trust. With
my vote, I will tell my children and their children
that I did my duty to the best of my ability,
(43:47):
believing that my country expected it of me.
Speaker 1 (43:50):
That is shocking.
Speaker 29 (43:53):
That is.
Speaker 1 (43:56):
Shocking.
Speaker 2 (43:58):
Who would have thought that the most badass Republican in
the Senate would end up being a Mormon dude named Mitz.
Speaker 1 (44:06):
And I gotta say, Mitz, you proved everyone wrong.
Speaker 2 (44:09):
The haters said you were as radical as a glass
of skim milk, but they were wrong.
Speaker 1 (44:12):
Mitt your whole milk, my man. That's why whole milk fan.
Speaker 41 (44:20):
Now.
Speaker 2 (44:20):
Other than Romney, another Republican senator who was considered on
the fence was also about Trump was Susan Collins of Maine.
Speaker 1 (44:27):
Right, but she decided that we.
Speaker 2 (44:29):
Don't need to throw Trump out because she thinks he's
already been scared straight.
Speaker 35 (44:34):
There are some senators who could have cross party lines.
Speaker 25 (44:37):
Senator Susan Collins will not be one of them.
Speaker 13 (44:40):
I'm voting to a queed.
Speaker 14 (44:42):
I believe that the president has learned from this case.
Speaker 19 (44:47):
What do you believe the president has learned?
Speaker 13 (44:49):
The president has been impeached.
Speaker 29 (44:52):
That's a pretty big lesson.
Speaker 41 (44:54):
However, during a TV anchors lunch at the White House yesterday,
Trump responded to questions about collins comments, saying he had
done nothing wrong and that is conversation with Ukraine's president.
Speaker 35 (45:05):
Quote was a perfect call.
Speaker 2 (45:07):
Man, Donald Trump would be the hardest person to defend
in courts.
Speaker 1 (45:11):
He'd be like, your honor, my client has learned his lesson. No,
I haven't his days of selling drugs are over. Who
wants cokain.
Speaker 2 (45:24):
Because clearly Trump hasn't learned a lesson. If anything, He's
learned that he can do whatever he wants and Republicans
will let him get away with it, but.
Speaker 1 (45:34):
First they're gonna shake their heads.
Speaker 25 (45:36):
Mmm.
Speaker 2 (45:37):
So basically, thanks to Senate Republicans, Trump is now free.
He can just run through laws like he's got that
super Mario invisibility style.
Speaker 1 (45:44):
That's what he can do.
Speaker 2 (45:45):
Yeah, he's invincible, except Trump is more powerful than Mario
because in this case, the turtles are on his side. Basically, basically,
President Trump is off the hook. He's completely off the hook,
and you know what that means. He's gonna let loose Tonight.
He's gonna eat fifty burgers, bang a porn starck, and
then he's gonna do something crazy.
Speaker 1 (46:05):
Explore more shows from the Daily Show podcast universe by
searching The Daily Show wherever you get your podcasts.
Speaker 5 (46:12):
Watch The Daily Show weeknights at eleven ten Central on
Comedy Central, and stream full episodes anytime on Paramount
Speaker 30 (46:18):
Plus Paramount Podcasts
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