Trump's bitches.I’m going to go out on a limb and suggest that the temporary closed-door nature of the hearings actually works in favor of Republicans, not against them. It’s the only thing they have left to cast doubt, however absurdly, on the damning information that’s already right there on the record.
And it allows them to convey to the Audience of One — and his followers — that they are fighting the good fight on his behalf, without their self-ascribed effectiveness actually being subject to outside scrutiny.
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As the Ukraine scandal grows exponentially more dangerous for President Trump, his public loyalists are adopting a clever little strategy that has two purposes.
The first is to create a sense of chaos to discredit the whole impeachment process and to misdirect the public away from the damning fact-record that’s being established right now for all to see.
The second and less obvious purpose is to demonstrate to Trump, who is in a rage over Republicans’ failure to adequately defend him, and to his supporters, who will demand that Republicans defend him to the death, that they are actually being fearsomely, mercilessly effective on his behalf.
WaPo
Republicans have argued, variously, that they are being excluded, that Trump is being denied fair treatment, and that the whole process is being concealed from the American people. But journalists have effectively demonstrated that many Republicans who stormed the hearing actually have the right to enter the proceedings, and that many others have actually availed themselves of the opportunity to participate and question witnesses.
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[A new Wall Street Journal editorial] quotes Rep. Lee Zeldin (R-N.Y.) claiming this about [ambassador Willian] Taylor: “Much of his leaked opening statement collapsed, but Schiff keeps the public in the dark on that!”
The “leaked” opening statement, of course, was the full opening statement, but put that aside. The Journal editorial then notes that “What we don’t know is how Mr. Taylor responded to questions” about what he knew firsthand, adding: “If the evidence against Mr. Trump is so damning, then why not make it all public now so the American people can judge for themselves?”
You see, Zeldin wants you to know that the withering cross-examination skills of Republicans like himself debunked what you think you learned from Taylor in his already-revealed opening statement. The point here isn’t just that the already-known and deeply damning details in Taylor’s testimony should be seen as suspect, simply because House Republicans say so. It’s also that the effectiveness of House Republicans unmasked this, and Democrats are trying to conceal it.
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Yes, of course the transcripts should be released, and of course the American people should have all the facts. But that will happen; that the initial investigative phase is private is eminently defensible.
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Indeed, the very same witnesses Republicans claim they have reduced to a puddle of incoherence will likely undergo open questioning once the inquiry moves into its public phase. The Post reports that Democrats hope to do this by mid-November, and that it will likely include open questioning of Taylor and other key witnesses.
[...]
But for Trump’s most ardent loyalists, this simply won’t matter. If and when publicly revealed testimony does not exonerate Trump, they’ll simply lie to the contrary, and treat the fact of public release as the hook to claim that the Democratic coverup has been exposed, counting on their massive propaganda apparatus to amplify that story line. This is exactly what happened with the Nunes memo — it was a total fiasco, yet Republicans widely pretended it was deeply revelatory.
...but hey, do what you want...you will anyway.
UPDATE:
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