Once it hits the fan, it is hard to deny — the stink lingers…
We all have heard that “sh#t happens.” The phrase describes the inevitability of bad things occurring that are beyond our power to control. The words ooze diffidence: “s#it happens. so get over it.” After Mick Mulvaney trotted out that defense and it failed to pass muster, Republicans are now changing strategies. The House Impeachment hearing featured very believable, and seemingly unassailable witnesses, who served at the scene of the crime. Republicans responded with two overmatched inquisitors who forgot to flush.
Republican congressmen and women have decided to deny that #hit even happened, and if it did, we should just hold our noses, cover our eyes, and block our ears as they throw the inevitable against their wall of denial to see what sticks. First up was Congressman Nunes who flung lies and conspiracy theories in order to attempt to discredit the testimony of Messers. Kent (no relation to Clark) and Taylor. Next up was Gym Jordan, the former Ohio State wrestling coach who may well be practicing for his own main event in the near future. Jordan with his inimitable fast-paced cadence that dazzles with bullshi# what he can’t prove with facts, demanded to hear from “the whistleblower.” This is the same witness whose complaint he and his colleagues deemed unacceptable because he or she received the information forwarded to the Inspector General second (or third or fourth) hand. Meanwhile, the witnesses-at-hand were clearly reporting damaging testimony to the committee first-hand. In his zeal to demonstrate his fancy footwork, Jordan forgot to cover his flank and was taken down by Democratic Representative Peter Welch who shot for the leg and scored a takedown of Jordan with his patented “zinger” move with this exchange:
Jordan:
“Now there is one witness, one witness they won’t bring in front of us, that they won’t bring in front of the American people, and that’s the guy who started it all, the whistleblower,”
Welch:
“President Trump is welcome to take a seat right there.”
That quick! With deft humor laced with irony, Jordan and the Republican argument were pinned. The testimony of the witnesses they refuse to believe only proved the president more venal, more impeachable, less fit to hold the office he besmirches daily. They would not find their legs from that point on. New facts were entered into the case showing Trump’s relentless pursuit of the Bidens and his alliance with Russian interests. In a phone call with EU Ambassador Gordon Sondland in which Trump could be overheard to admit the gist of his crime aloud-in a crowded restaurant- it happened! Trump’s presidency now relies upon that same ambassador, who is scheduled to testify before the committee next week and who has admitted that before he told the truth he lied in earlier testimony, to deny the truth again. For the Republicans yesterday, the “sh#t” really happened, they won’t get over it as the stink of their treachery filled the room. And to be sure, nothing stuck!
Originally published at https://www.dailykos.com on November 14, 2019.
