(This post may contain disputed claims. We make no assertions as to the validity of the information presented by our Opinion Columnist. We are an opinion blog, not a traditional news outlet, and this post should be treated as such. Enjoy.)Adam Schiff made an utter fool of himself during this morning’s impeachment hearings. Immediately after he finished questioning Gordon Sondland, who is United States Ambassador to the European Union, Schiff excitedly stopped the hearing and ran out to make an announcement on live TV. Schiff claimed that we had just heard a “bombshell” from Sondland and that it was all they needed to impeach. Well, that’s when Schiff was caught lying, and he got a rude awakening. Don’t miss this.
Schiff spent 45 minutes questioning Gordon Sondland, who is the United States Ambassador to the European Union and was in the loop working with all the other bureaucrats on Ukraine. It should be noted Sondland comes off very unreliable. He is one of those guys who gets appointed for one reason: he donates millions to a campaign.
Sondland initially supported Donald Trump, but he canceled a fundraiser and repudiated Trump for his attacks on Khizr and Ghazala Khan. In April 2017, it was revealed that 4 companies registered to Sondland donated $1 million to the Donald Trump inaugural committee.
That’s his background. He is no way a “professional diplomat,” neither is he a guy with extensive knowledge of foreign affairs. So, when Schiff and his anti-Trump attorney questioned Sondland this morning, he had no notes and admitted his recollections of events aren’t “so great.”
Still, Schiff stopped the hearing to make wild allegations about Sondland’s testimony.
“I think today’s testimony is among the most significant evidence to date,” Schiff claimed. “And what we have just heard from Ambassador Sondland is that the knowledge of this scheme, this conditioning of the White House meeting, of the security assistance, to get the deliverable the president wanted, these two political investigations that he believed would help his re-election campaign was a basic quid pro quo.”
He continued: “It was the conditioning of official acts, or something of great value to the president, these political investigations. It goes right to the heart of the issue of bribery, as well as other potential high crimes or misdemeanors, but we also have heard, for the first time, that knowledge of this scheme was pervasive.”
Schiff spoke too soon. He was too desperate to make Americans think he now has his “smoking gun.” Under questioning by the Republicans, Sondland then changed his testimony that there was no “quid pro quo.”
At first, under questioning from Democratic counsel Daniel Goldman, Sondland agreed that “the only logical conclusion” was that aid to Ukraine was being held up until Ukraine announced investigations that President Donald Trump had requested into the 2016 elections and into Burisma, a company tied to the Bidens.
But then, Sondland said, “President Trump never told me directly that the aid was conditioned” on the investigations; “I never heard from President Trump that aid was conditioned on an announcement” of investigations; and that “I don’t recall President Trump ever talking to me about any security assistance, ever.”
The Democrats were dumbfounded. Schiff sat there looking like someone just stole his lunch money. Sondland is no smoking gun. Once again, Schiff lied to the American people.
“@RepAdamSchiff’s latest ‘bombshell’ flops, just minutes after he ran to the news cameras to tell us about it. Embarrassing,” tweeted Oversight Committee Republicans.
National Security reporter for The Hill, Olivia Beavers added: “Republicans shooting at heart of where they believe Dem argument is vulnerable. Sondland never heard Trump describe a quid pro quo. Q: Did POTUS ever tell you ‘personally’ about any preconditions for aid to be released? For a White House meeting? Sondland:’No…personally no.”‘
.@RepAdamSchiff's latest "bombshell" flops, just minutes after he ran to the news cameras to tell us about it.
Embarrassing. https://t.co/snYRfe7mZ9
— Oversight Committee Republicans (@GOPoversight) November 20, 2019
But it gets worse for Schiff and Sondland. He also was caught in a big lie about Vice President Mike Pence.
From Pence’s [Chief of Staff] Mark Short: “Ambassador Gordon Sondland was never alone with Vice President Pence on the September 1 trip to Poland. This alleged discussion recalled by Ambassador Sondland never happened.”
Statement from VP Pence’s chief of staff: pic.twitter.com/l3WFXwJX7c
— Guy Benson (@guypbenson) November 20, 2019
“Sondland is a complete mess. He contradicts himself every other sentence, invents conversations that never happened, and offers ‘guesses’ that have been refuted on the record by every witness w/ first-hand knowledge. And this is the best witness Dems have?” tweeted Sean Davis, who is a reporter for The Federalist.
Sondland is a complete mess. He contradicts himself every other sentence, invents conversations that never happened, and offers “guesses” that have been refuted on the record by every witness w/ first-hand knowledge. And this is the best witness Dems have? https://t.co/Nvt9N4duOY
— Sean Davis (@seanmdav) November 20, 2019
All Americans must also be aware that the media is already spinning this, and fake news is in overdrive.
CNN is running a chyron which is a flat out lie: “Sondland: I pressured Ukraine at ‘express direction’ of Trump.'” Time Murtaugh tweeted: “This @CNN chyron is factually wrong. Sondland testified that he NEVER heard President Trump link aid to investigations. In fact, he said POTUS told him ‘I want nothing. I want no quid pro quo.'”
This @CNN chyron is factually wrong.
Sondland testified that he NEVER heard President Trump link aid to investigations.
In fact, he said POTUS told him “I want nothing. I want no quid pro quo.” pic.twitter.com/3C4AgrspUI
— Tim Murtaugh (@TimMurtaugh) November 20, 2019
The Associated Press is also on board spreading fake news about Sondland.
“Sondland quite literally testified that Trump told him ‘𝗜 𝘄𝗮𝗻𝘁 𝗻𝗼𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴, 𝗜 𝘄𝗮𝗻𝘁 𝗻𝗼𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴. 𝗜 𝘄𝗮𝗻𝘁 𝗻𝗼 𝗾𝘂𝗶𝗱 𝗽𝗿𝗼 𝗾𝘂𝗼.’ It is actually the opposite of a contradiction. This is fake news. Be vigilant, everyone. The fake news is on fire today,” tweeted Andrew Clark, who works for Trump’s 2020 re-election campaign.
Clark is referring to an Associated Press report: “Contradicting the testimony of his own ambassador, President Trump says he wanted ‘nothing’ from Ukriane and says the #ImpeachmentHearings should be brought to an end.”
Sondland quite literally testified that Trump told him "𝗜 𝘄𝗮𝗻𝘁 𝗻𝗼𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴, 𝗜 𝘄𝗮𝗻𝘁 𝗻𝗼𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴. 𝗜 𝘄𝗮𝗻𝘁 𝗻𝗼 𝗾𝘂𝗶𝗱 𝗽𝗿𝗼 𝗾𝘂𝗼."
It is actually the opposite of a contradiction.
This is fake news. Be vigilant, everyone. The fake news is on fire today. https://t.co/p8r4H42wTz
— Andrew Clark (@AndrewHClark) November 20, 2019
Even Fox News is caught reporting fake news on Sondland’s testimony. Remember, the ratings for the impeachment hearings are at an all-time low. Americans have moved on. Fox News and every other news agency want Americans to tune back in, thus they report fake news.
“This is fake news. Starr said that ‘this is his [Adam Schiff’s] position.’ He was not giving his own,” Daily Caller reports. They add Fox News’ Jennifer Griffen’s fake news tweet:
This is fake news.
Starr said that "this is his [Adam Schiff's] position." He was not giving his own. https://t.co/NDcgudqizB pic.twitter.com/fHxvg3sO3M
— Daily Caller (@DailyCaller) November 20, 2019
Fox News’ Jennifer Griffen got so much backlash about her fake news tweet, she gave a “clarification.” Too little, too late. Fox News wants their daytime ratings to improve, and they will lie to Americans to get what they want.
“You should probably delete your tweet peddling fake news. ‘Clarifications’ are meaningless when hundreds of thousands of people are still retweeting and spreading the false claim,” Sean Davis reminded her.
You should probably delete your tweet peddling fake news. “Clarifications” are meaningless when hundreds of thousands of people are still retweeting and spreading the false claim. https://t.co/sW46LuNFDz
— Sean Davis (@seanmdav) November 20, 2019
Nothing the Democrats will produce will change the basic facts.
- President Trump did not demand anything of President Zelensky during the July 25 phone call. There was no “quid pro quo,” there was no “bribery,” there was no “high crimes and misdemeanors.”
- Ukraine received the military aid without starting any investigation, without an Oval Office meeting, without doing anything for President Trump.
- Trump told Sondland he wanted nothing from Ukraine to get the military aid. Sondland testified Trump said: “No quid pro quo, no quid pro quo. I want nothing.”
Diplomats’ assumptions, their personal opinions, and second and third-hand conversations are not evidence of anything, but more importantly, they surely are not worthy of impeaching our duly elected president over.
You can’t trust the mainstream media when it comes to these hearings. That’s why it’s so important to have citizen journalists who are willing to report the truth. The Democrats and their media cohorts are spinning this hearing to fit their impeachment narrative. However, Americans have been burned one too many times to trust a damn word they say.
