Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Lindsey Graham appearing over the weekend on “Fox News Sunday,” with moderator/host Chris Wallace, laid the gauntlet down, once again regarding House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s willful slipshod handling of the impeachment inquiry.
A resolute Graham reminded viewers along with the anti-Trump journalist that the House (not the Senate), has the responsibility to bring forth witnesses and prove wrongdoing beyond a reasonable doubt.
“What they’re doing here is they did a railroad job in the House and they’re trying to fix it in the Senate and I’m not going to be part of that,” Graham said.
The South Carolina Republican reiterated once again that House Speaker Nancy Pelosi sat on the articles of impeachment for almost a month, while she and House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff, refused to go to the courts to challenge the Presidents claim of executive privilege by denying National Security Advisor John Bolton and acting White House Chief of Staff Mick Mulvaney, from testifying.
The 64-year old Senator said rather than allowing the courts to decide whether former and current cabinet members should testify House Democrats led by Pelosi pushed through two articles of impeachment, then sat on them for almost a month, the time it might have taken for the courts to render an accelerated ruling on the matter.
“What are we supposed to do in the Senate regarding executive privilege?” Graham asked Wallace. “If it’s going to be invoked, who determines whether or not the privilege applies? Clearly, to me, any President would ask for executive privilege regarding these witnesses.”
Indeed every president has invoked executive privilege since George Washington. Moreover, there’s existing precedent in terms of impeachment, then-President Bill Clinton invoked executive privilege when House Republicans wanted to call Clinton’s senior advisor, Sidney Blumenthal. The issue was litigated in the courts and Blumenthal ended up testifying…that’s the genius behind the three co-equal branches of American governance, in that the court becomes the final arbitrator.
However, rather than seeking a ruling from the court, House Democrats simply slapped the President with an article of impeachment for exercising exactly what former President Clinton invoked.
Graham again reminded viewers that the President had tried to use the same right as Clinton, however, he was rebuked by House Democrats.
“The President has never been able to go to court because they never let him. I’m not going to legitimize a House impeachment process that calls the secretary of state, the chief of staff and the national security advisor of any president and deny them their day in our court to protect those essential national security advisors, come to the Senate and destroy executive privilege because it could never be used in the House,” he explained. “The bottom line is these people were so important to the case they should have called them in the House.”
Wallace then asked Graham; “Will the Senate end up calling witnesses?”
The South Carolina Senator without hesitation responded, “If we call one witness, we’re going to call all the witnesses.”
Adding, “There’s not going to be a process where the Democrats get their witnesses and the President gets shut out.”
Moreover, Graham left a tantalizing option open regarding former Vice President Joe Biden, Hunter Biden, and the whistleblower, suggesting that perhaps the door is open to an investigation by the Senate Judiciary Committee, of which he’s chairman.
“We can look at those allegations of misconduct outside of impeachment,” he explained.
Open an investigation of the Bidens apart from the impeachment BS. Sure looks like QUID PRO QUO JOE is GUILTY AS HELL. I DON’T HAVE MUCH CONFIDENCE IN YOU. I THINK YOU ARE AND ESTABLISHMENT SWAMPER & ALL FLUFF TALK AS YOU PROTECT FELLOW SWAMPERS. As with Kavenaugh you talked BIG & DID NOTHING. IT’S ALL CORRUPT AS HELL.😁
No impeachment for our President let him do his job
Senator Lindsey Graham is right. If the Democrats wanted witnesses they should have called them in the house even if you had to subpoena and try to force them in court. The House Dems want the Senate to do their job but it’s not the Senate’s job to make the House’s case. The Senate should refuse witnesses and documents for their trial.
I agree
We know the Obama crew had concerns about Hunter Biden because of the meetings they held with many Ukrainians and the Whistleblower and the possibility of VP Bidens involvement! The story was squashed by the Obama White House!! BUT. Now it’s coming out!! NAIL BIDEN! Make him testify at this Impeachment! It will be over in minutes for the Dems!!!! If not? Go with a Senate judicial hearing, THEN it will be over for the Dems. Schiff also needs to be put on the stand!!!!!!!
If the democraps and a few RINOs pass the resolution allowing witnesses, Graham had better start the investigations ASAP for all the mentioned names and more.
I agreei
Graham’s response at Clinton’s impeachment versus now should be shown to him while he is interviewed.
This is a bunch of bull. Even if President Trump did what the house accuses him of these are not impeachable offenses. I don’t believe he has committed any unlawful offenses. His job is to protect America in all phases, and that is what he did. And then the Democratic house gets in a rage because it was evident the Bidens were and still are crooks along with most of the house. Drain the swamp!!!
Can someone direct me on how to change parties
I’m so terribly embarrassed by our elected democrats we have in the White House
You cannot tell me there conduct is from stress from being over worked, truth is, to much idle time is the devil’s play,
If those who are engaging in misconduct and corruption, have and honor, dignity, and self integrity, and this nation
Have but one chance, to resign, or they can just go down in history as forever be known the real traders to this country
My hat goes off, to senator Lindsey Graham’s performance, to his great loyalty to our country
To any of our government elected officials who may read my comments
The truth always comes out, the choice is yours
Let the ADULTS in the room (SENATE) run the impeachment now. NO MORE GAMES! Afterwards, Pelosi, Nadler and Schiff need to be removed from office ASAP, PERMANENTLY in HANDCUFFS. This TREASON which they have PERFORMED has gone on LONG enough. Team Trump and his allies 2020.
If you want to see President impeached, just allow witnesses. By the time the dems and the press get through lying about the witnesses the game will be over. You have already caved into their demands once, don’t do it again. Schiff, Shumer and Nadler are controlling the show so far and really don’t care what you say after the fact. You need to close this trial and vote to exonerate President Trump. The word around here is those Republicans who vote with the dems better have a strong war chest because the people in my area are going to go after them in a big way come election time. Enough lies, slander and enuendo.
I wonder if the democrats know that the whole impeachment scam is really really transparent to the rest of americans who’s IQ’s are above 70. Of course those diehard liberal /demo rats who still hate trump for fixing the economy, lowering taxes, reducing regulation, fixing trade agreements ed nts, and calming down north korean have IQ’s so low that many animals have higher IQ’s. They will never figure it out. The rest of america has a d thinks the democrats are pretty damn pathetic. We really need the environmental crowd to start boting green party and a new parties for the “my sexual prevention is most important”, “fake womens issues must be heard”, Hispanic supremacy”, “I’m black so support me”, and “I want everything free” crowd so we can segregate the liberals into the kind of stupid they are.
NO WITNESSES, ! These DERANGED AND DEPLORABLE POLOCKS had their chance now let the TRUE PARTY of the United States have their say ! NO WITNESSES AND ACQUITTAL ! GOD BLESS THE REPUBLICAN PARTY, GOD BLESS OUR PRESIDENT DONALD J. TRUMP AND GOD BLESS AMERICA !!
I would say . . . ALL witnesses! That way we could throw them ALL who are GUILTY in PRISON for Perjury, and SOME for SEDITION and TREASON as well, crimes against the American People and the POTUS as per the U.S. Constitution for operating an ILLEGAL COUP.