#2914 (1/21) "The Show Trial Begins"

"THE SHOW TRIAL BEGINS" - Cal  Thomas: Jan 21, 2020; 

https://townhall.com/columnists/calthomas/2020/01/21/the-show-trial-begins-n2559812

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     The contrast could not have been starker. One picture showed House Speaker Nancy Pelosi smiling as she signed (with numerous pens) two articles of impeachment against President Trump. She passed out the pens like souvenirs to fellow Democrats. They were embossed in gold with her signature and rested on silver trays. The other picture was of President Trump signing phase one of a new trade deal with China.
   Which picture depicted events of greater long-term benefit to Americans? Unless you are a rank partisan out to remove President Trump from office by whatever means, the obvious answer is the China trade deal.

    .... Democrats insist the Senate trial be "fair." How is it fair when House Democrats continue to leak documents they hope will damage the president and influence senators to vote for his removal from office? Some Democratic senators, who will sit in judgment of the president, have already declared him guilty.

   It is politics at its worst and opens the door, as some of the Founders warned, for "normalizing" impeachment. Historical background is always helpful and so I consulted the National Constitution Center, a private, nonprofit organization and a leading platform for constitutional education and debate, where I found this: The "high crimes and misdemeanors" language (in the Constitution) remains controversial today. In two essays... Neil J. Kinkopf and Keith E. Whittington looked at the Founder's vision: "The Framers meant for the phrase 'high crimes and misdemeanors' to signify only conduct that seriously harms the public and seriously compromises the officer's ability to continue. If the phrase is given a less rigorous interpretation, it could allow Congress to influence and control the President and the courts..."
   The article continues: "When the Founders wanted to ensure accountability, they mostly relied on elections and the voters to hold government officials responsible for their actions," said Whittington. " But what might fall into the category of 'other high Crimes and Misdemeanors' was still quite unclear." 

   Trump's call to Ukraine's president, which is at the heart of the impeachment articles, does not meet the standard of seriously harming the public or compromising the president's ability to do his job as shown by the China trade deal and the USMCA trade agreement between the U.S., Mexico and Canada, both signed and passed days after impeachment.

   That the Government Accountability Office says the president "broke the law" by withholding $250 million in military aid to Ukraine, aid Congress had approved, doesn't help the president's defenders, but does it rise to the level of a "high crime and misdemeanor"? Senators will decide. But they should recall that in 2014 the GAO ruled President Obama's prisoner deal to exchange Guantanamo Bay detainees for deserter Bowe Bergdahl violated federal law. Obama was not impeached.

   Speaker Pelosi summed up the true motives of Democrats when she said that regardless of what the Senate does, impeachment will be a "permanent stain" on President Trump's legacy.
In fact, the stain will be on Democrats. It is Democrats who have plotted ways to reverse the will of voters who elected Trump. It is Democrats who fear he will be overwhelmingly re-elected in November.

 [italics and colored emphasis mine]
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"The Senate Impeachment Trial: 8 Things You Need to Know" - Thomas Jipping / Elizabeth Slattery/ January 20, 2020;https://www.dailysignal.com/2020/01/20/the-senate-impeachment-trial-8-things-you-need-to-know/ 

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PRAYER MATTERS:

"To clasp the hands in prayer is the beginning of an uprising against 
the disorder of the world. -  Karl Barth

"Prayer is inviting God into a seemingly impossible situation and trusting/resting in His love and grace to accomplish His perfect will in His perfect time and for His greatest glory. Intercession is  one of the great privileges AND responsibilities for EVERY believer."- Stan

World-Wide Prayer Requests:

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Praying Through the Open Doors World Watch List for persecuted believers:https://www.opendoorsusa.org/take-action/pray/monthly-prayer-calendar/

The start of a new year is about new beginnings and setting goals— what has God called each of us to this year? At Open Doors, January reminds us of the importance of clarifying our vision, to see clearly what God has for us to do. We’re calling this effort 2020 Vision—an opportunity to see what the people of God are going through around the world; and then to stand with them in prayer and support. Will you join us? January | 2020 World Watch List

This week, pray with us as we focus on Christians living in countries on the World Watch List and bring you the prayers of your sisters and brothers who follow Jesus, no matter the cost. 

 January 21 | SRI LANKA -  At least 176 children lost either one or both of their parents in the 2019 Easter Sunday bombings. Pray that Jesus draws each of these young ones to Himself.
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