Quote:
Originally Posted by detbuch
So quid pro quo is OK when the full US government (whatever that is) wants to do it, but if the chief executive of the government (who is responsible for foreign relations and represents the government in those relations) wants to do it he should be impeached?
But if a US President (who represents a government that professes to want to eliminate corruption in Ukraine and assure that such corruption doesn't interfere with future elections) supposedly gives a quid pro quo offer to help in exposing such corruption, he should be impeached?
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The Trump team asks us to believe that the Trump administration’s concern was with corruption – specifically involving Joe Biden’ son, Hunter.
Is there any other example of this administration expressing dissatisfaction with corruption?
Where was concern about corruption in the Philippines?
In Egypt?
In Turkey?
In Russia?
In Saudi Arabia?
Trump has gone out of his way to excuse corruption – and worse – on the part of all of those nations.
Trump praised the Philippines’ Duterte for his war on drugs, though that war has included the extra-judicial killings of thousands. Trump Tower Philippines is the “definitive landmark” of Manila, the capital city.
He lauded Egypt’s al-Sisi (president till 2034), overlooking widely-reported human rights abuses.
He suggested that we lacked moral standing to criticize Turkish president Erdogan’s handling of a coup attempt. “When the world sees how bad the United States is and we start talking about civil liberties, I don’t think we are a very good messenger.” In December 2015, amidst a heated presidential primary, Trump said in a radio interview he had “a little conflict of interest” in Turkey. He was referring to Trump Towers Istanbul, a pair of Trump-licensed conjoined towers that received a warm welcome from Turkish President Tayyip Erdoğan in 2012.
Challenged to justify his kind words for Vladimir Putin, whom the interviewer described as “a killer,” Trump was phlegmatic: “There are a lot of killers. You think our country’s so innocent?” The Russian government granted Trump six trademarks in 2016. Four of the Russian trademarks were approved for renewal on Nov. 8, 2016, the day after Trump’s election, including a trademark for Trump Tower.
When it became undeniable that Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad Bin Salman had ordered Washington Post contributor Jamal Khashoggi to be chopped up into small pieces, President Trump noted that the Saudis have promised to buy a lot of American military equipment.
“Saudi Arabia, I get along with all of them. They buy apartments from me. They spend $40 million, $50 million,” Trump said at a 2016 campaign rally, “Am I supposed to dislike them?”