House panel poised to spell out Trump impeachment probe: sourcehttps://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-trump-impeachment/house-panel-poised-to-spell-out-trump-impeachment-probe-source-idUSKCN1VS0LSQuote
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Democratic-led U.S. House of Representatives Judiciary Committee, criticized for an unorthodox impeachment probe of President Donald Trump, is poised to vote next week on a resolution to formalize the investigation, a person familiar with the matter said on Saturday.
The panel has rebranded what was originally an oversight probe of Trump’s presidency as an “impeachment” investigation, with the aim of deciding by the end of the year on whether to recommend articles of impeachment to the full House.
As early as Wednesday, committee members could vote on a measure that would better define the investigation, according to the source, who spoke on condition of anonymity.
The committee’s current impeachment approach has been criticized by Republicans for avoiding a precedent set during impeachment inquiries against former President Richard Nixon and former President Bill Clinton.
In those cases, inquiries were formally authorized by the full House. This time, Democrats have steered clear of a House vote that could prove risky for Democratic freshmen from swing districts where impeachment is unpopular with voters.
For much of the year, House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerrold Nadler has focused on the findings of former Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation into Russian election meddling in the 2016 presidential election and evidence that Trump sought to impede the probe.
At least 134 House Democrats support an impeachment inquiry, according to a Reuters head count. While that is majority of the party caucus, the number remains well below the 218 votes needed for the House to approve an impeachment resolution.
Since Mueller’s testimony in July, Nadler has broadened the investigation to include allegations that Trump has improperly mixed his business interests with his role as president, dangled pardons to encourage official misconduct and paid money during the 2016 campaign to silence women claiming to have had affairs with him.
Though the new measure is not expected to be introduced until Monday, the source said the resolution would allow staff attorneys to question hearing witnesses, set procedures for closed-door reviews of grand jury material, allow White House counsel to respond in writing to the committee and usher in other changes.
The new procedures could be in place for a Sept. 17 hearing at which Trump’s former campaign manager Corey Lewandowski is scheduled to testify, along with former Trump White House aides Rob Porter and Rick Dearborn.
It was not clear whether the panel would recommend the new resolution for a full House vote.
A more formal investigation could strengthen separate committee lawsuits seeking federal court orders to access Mueller grand jury material and compel testimony from former White House Counsel Don McGahn.
This is beginning to feel like some guy (the Dems) trying to "get a piece" from a normally uncooperative wife, in the dark, while she's sleeping and without waking her.
Or maybe "pin the tail on the donkey". Blindfolded the player (the Dems), just walk around blindly poking here and there... in the "hope" that without cause, they just luckily hit something.
I mean usually in this country, one is innocent until proven guilty. It seems that half of our govt. has forgotten or just chosen to ignore that premise.
Oh noes... Trump won. Let's accuse him of collusion. Now how do we "sell this" to the public. Oh noes, the collusion isn't gonna work... what to do... let's accuse him of obstruction.
Oh damn... that won't work either...the American public wants "proof".
Let's "try" to get him on the emoluments issue, we all know we ALL mess with money like we aren't supposed to, surely we can get him on that. Damn, that's not working, let's go back to the Stormy Daniels thing for the third time, the dumb ass American public won't notice we came up dry on that, twice already.
Since November 2016, I have seen so many laws broken by the Dems, that it really scares me. It makes me seriously wonder what they have in store for the American public, if they win.
Will we also lose the right to be considered innocent until proven guilty? Will we also lose the protections afforded us by the Constitution, the Amendments and the Bill of Rights?
For the life of me, I still can't figure out how the Dems can accuse a president of collusion with Russia, with their only "proof" being that he won the election.
Soon it will be... hey I see you won the lottery... we therefore accuse you of cheating. Hand over that money.
/e Oh look, the Dems putting the guilt before the innocence yet again...
House panel probes fortunes of airport near Trump resort in Scotlandhttps://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-trump-airport/house-panel-probes-fortunes-of-airport-near-trump-resort-in-scotland-idUSKCN1VS0R1Quote
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A powerful House of Representatives panel could soon step up pressure on the Pentagon for documents about an airport near a Trump-owned golf course in Scotland that has benefited from U.S. military purchases since President Donald Trump took office, an aide said on Saturday.
The Democratic-led House Oversight and Reform Committee is seeking information about the Defense Department’s ties to the Trump golf resort in Turnberry and the nearby Glasgow Prestwick Airport, which is viewed as integral to the golf course’s financial success, according to a June letter from Chairman Elijah Cummings and Representative Jamie Raskin to the Pentagon.
The lawmakers are looking into at least two areas. One consists of 629 separate defense purchase orders for fuel at Prestwick totaling $11 million since October 2017. The other involves press reports that the airport has offered cut-rate rooms for select passengers and crew, and free rounds of golf at Turnberry to visiting U.S. military and civilian air crews.
Pentagon officials had no immediate comment.
“Given the president’s continued financial stake in his Scotland golf courses, these reports raise questions about the president’s potential receipt of U.S. or foreign government emoluments, in violation of the U.S. Constitution, and raise other serious conflict of interest concerns,” Cummings and Raskin said in the June 21 letter, which was reviewed by Reuters.
The Constitution bars government officials including the president from receiving financial benefits known as emoluments from foreign or domestic governments, without approval from Congress.
Democrats complained that the Pentagon’s cooperation in their inquiry has been poor, and that it has not produced a single document in the investigation.
“The committee will be forced to consider alternative steps if the Pentagon does not begin complying voluntarily in the coming days,” a senior Democratic committee aide told Reuters in a statement.
The Trump Turnberry golf resort has also received government funding from the U.S. State Department.
The State Department paid SLC Turnberry Ltd, the Trump company that owns the resort, more than $77,000 ahead of a 2018 visit by Trump that occurred between a meeting with the NATO military alliance and a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Trump resigned as director of Turnberry when he took office in January 2017 but continues to hold an ownership stake.
This post was edited by Ghot on Sep 9 2019 05:36am
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