TWGB: This Isn't Fifth Avenue, Though

One of the things that shouldn't escape notice from this week's news was that Trump's lawyers made an interesting claim that led to (I guess) to a reductio ad absurdam argument being read for real, which is that Trump really could shoot someone on Fifth Avenue, and not only not be indicted (a DOJ stylesheet item, courtesy of the OLC going back several years, not to be taken as law, mind you) but probably not even be investigated, thank yew very much, to which I would say "Really, out loud, where the people would hear, you said this argument, William Consovoy?"  Checks and balances, anyone? The separation of powers can't possibly mean that the law is powerless to stop an unlawful act of a president. That system would be bound for failure. 

Which is basically what was laid out when a federal district judge gave explicit voice to the idea that the idea that a president was immune for investigation and indictment made no sense over the issue of whether Trump's tax returns could be kept from local investigation. Of course, the president in his person shouldn't be above the law--we don't have kings here. It's also been determined that the Mueller grand jury testimony should be given to Congress. This settles (well, for now) the issue of whether the House proceedings are legitimate, and classified them as in effect, judicial and not political. The House has the power via the Constitution, without any direction as to process, which makes these process arguments out here look even dumber than they already were. 

But this is where we are in the current contretrumps: the great refutations. For example, it was not just Bill Taylor who explicated that there was a quid pro quo, but Ambassador Gordon Sondland did as well. Independent reporting from the news media indicates that Volodimir Zelenskyy felt pressured regarding what he should do with respects to Trump's apparent demands of an investigation into Biden even before taking office. We also know now that Ukraine was aware of the interruption in aid sooner than was previously indicated from Taylor's testimony. We also know Trump wasn't that concerned about corruption in general, because he cut funding to programs to fight corruption. 

It really looks like the president was extorting a bribe from another world leader. It really looks like he wanted to use taxpayer funds approved by Congress to elicit a personal favor benefitting his re-election campaign from Ukraine. More than this, though, trade help to Ukraine was also apparently being held up, reinforcing the idea that the White House (Trump) was using whatever power available to leverage an outcome Trump wanted. This would be something former NSA John Bolton would directly have knowledge of, which should prove for interesting questioning if/when his date for an impeachment inquiry deposition comes through. (I also am very interested in what we can get from Don McGahn regarding Trump's constant obstruction of justice and very bad ideas in these regards. I am sure Trump thought White House Counsel literally meant "taxpayer-funded in-house defense attorneys".)

In other, weirder news, Giuliani's butt dial indicates that the shadow foreign policy needs money and has something to do with Bahrain, which bothers me because of the human rights abuses in Bahrain, and also that Giuliani can just dial up someone for a hundred thousand or so dollars for whatever. Foreign policy ops that are so-called "American", but not with congressional approval, or any appointed person, and independent money, just the president's tacit approval? That's some straight up Logan Act shit, right? I don't think flashing a screenshot of texts with the State Department is going to fish Trump's personal lawyer out of the soup here. And I don't think we should consider Giuliani a great source or trust people who use sources like him, or diGenova and Toensing, as anything but propaganda, either. 

Despite how Trump wants to run his administration, we just aren't on Fifth Avenue, and no, it shouldn't be okay for him to shoot anyone, or even just think it's okay to shoot his mouth off. His actions are representing a great nation, and I think he's letting us down for his grift, like his brother's company's contract. Or big tax cuts for machers like Dan Gilbert or Mike Milken. 

I don't know exactly how Trump ran things from Trump Tower. But Pennsylvania Avenue isn't Fifth Avenue.  He needs to be held accountable.