Partisan Jurors


CNN11102019

Here’s your cartoon for CNN’s weekly newsletter, Provoke/Persuade. Please sign up to get these in your inbox every Sunday for the rest of your life.

After Donald Trump is impeached by the House of Representatives, there will be a trial in the Senate. There, every United States Senator (in case you’re a Republican, there are 100 of them), will be a juror. The majority of Republican senators have already made up their minds that Donald Trump should not be impeached. Some argue he didn’t do anything wrong while others say he did but it doesn’t amount to a charge worthy of impeachment. Some, like Lindsey Graham refuse to even hear the evidence and testimony. These Republican jurors have already made up their minds to clear Donald Trump before the trial or even before public hearings in the House have started.

Remember when the administration said it wasn’t complying with subpoenas because the House hadn’t conducted a vote for the inquiry? That seems to be forgotten now that the House did have that vote, and it passed without one Republican voting for it (even though they all demanded the vote), and the White House is still defying subpoenas.

Remember when Republicans complained about the hearings being private? They even crashed one hearing and contaminated a SCIF. Now, the Trump administration is complaining about the hearings going public. If voters have eyes and ears, they’ll see it doesn’t matter what the Democrats do, the GOP will find fault with it.

Graham said he’d be bothered if there was testimony implicating Trump in using taxpayer money to bribe Ukraine and asking them to go after a political opponent. Now that multiple witnesses say Trump did just that, Graham has decided he’s not going to listen to any testimony or read transcripts of it. Back during the Clinton impeachment, Graham said a president defying subpoenas was obstruction and another cause for impeachment. Today, it’s OK if a Republican does it.

In this week’s Time magazine, Jon Meachem writes, “The possible impeachment of Donald Trump is about more than one man. It is a singular moment in American democracy that will try our capacity for reason over passion, fact over faith and principle over tribe.”

The Republicans are making it about one man and showing we don’t have the capacity for reason, facts, or principles. If Congress fails to remove Trump from the presidency, it will be an American failure that will take generations to overcome. It will damage the office of the presidency for decades, if not permanently.

Support the cartoonist.

You can help me continue to create cartoons, blogs, and videos by making a contribution. All support, large and small, is greatly appreciated. You can also support me by purchasing a signed print (8 1/2×11) for $40, or a signed poster (18×24) for $100 by clicking the PayPal button (just include a note if you’re purchasing a print). If you want to support but don’t want to use PayPal, you can send a contribution through the mail (address is on the contact page. Again, include a note for a print). I don’t plan on going anywhere and your support will help guarantee that. Whether you support, can’t. or just choose not to, please know that I am truly thankful that you visit my site and read my work.

You can purchase a signed print of this cartoon.

Watch me draw.

17 thoughts on “Partisan Jurors”

Add yours

  1. I’ve just started reading the testimonies that were released last week. Back when they were private, Repubs complained that Dems weren’t giving the true story of how they went, that the Repubs (especially Ratcliffe) were totally owning the witnesses. Then you had Trump telling Repubs to put out their own version because the Dems were bound to lie.

    Well…So far, in Taylor’s testimony, I’ve found Repubs grilling Taylor on things he couldn’t possibly know, trying to skew his testimony by giving him a Politico article and saying, Wouldn’t that make you think the Ukrainians are trying to interfere in the election? And Schiff calling them out for this, while Taylor replied, I’m supposed to be giving you facts.

    Could this be the Dems lying about what happened in the testimony? Considering how the Repubs acted with Mueller, which was live on television before it was a transcript, I highly doubt it.

    Also, I Googled for information about that Politico article, because if it said what the Repubs said it did, it could change things. What I found was Fiona Hill telling the Repubs that no, the Ukrainians did NOT interfere with the election, and she (unlike Taylor) was in a position to know. I still don’t know what this Politico article actually was about, but I should think Hill’s testimony trumps it (pardon the phrase).

    Then after I read this, the Washington Post put out an article describing what they’d found in the transcripts: Repubs trying to grill the witnesses and steer them toward their pet conspiracy theories.

    This also reminds me of a TEA Party ex-friend telling me, years ago, that instead of going by what the newspaper says, I should do research. Yet I’m pretty sure that his own version of “doing research” meant googling whatever right-wing websites put out, because he got into some pretty wacky conspiracy theories himself. This all tells me that the right-wing doesn’t care about truth these days, just “owning the libs” by whatever means necessary.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

      2. True Story: A friend (well, acquaintance thru Dog Rescue) came to my house to pick up a dog I was fostering and whom she had adopted. We decided to go out for lunch before she drove the two hours back home. Drumpf had declared and sides were already being chosen.

        In the parking lot of the restaurant, the subject came up, as it often did before we all knew better, and she said, ‘I don’t know what he really is, but I figure he’s better than Hillary.’

        Screaming (mentally) and biting my tongue (also mentally), we proceeded with lunch, she took the dog with her and went home.

        Several weeks later, she gave the dog back (and we kept her; she’s a wonderful girl). I told myself, ‘Self, you shoulda listened to your heart back there in the parking lot and refused to give her the dog.’

        Unfortunately, nowhere on the application nor on the home visit form is there question of political views, so I had no choice but to give her the dog . . . and wait . . . .

        I SOOOO want to ask her and several others, ‘Say, how’s your president doing now? You still like him?? Still want to “give him a chance”?’ I found, however, that’s it’s just easier to find new friends . . . and dog adopters.

        Liked by 3 people

      4. Sorry . . . what I meant was that the friend became an EX-friend after 2015 . . .

        Come to think on it, I’ve no ex-friends; just an ex-acquaintance, probably because I have friends with whom I have similar philosophies, and not many of them (friends, not philosophies). In other words, I’m ecumenical in my thoughts and philosophies, but not in my friendships.

        On the several canine lists I’m on and/or maintain, politics is never discussed. So even cyberfriends are carefully vetted, so to speak.

        Liked by 2 people

      5. Yeah, mine became an ex-friend in 2010 because of other reasons. My list of friends goes way back and is full of various politics. I’ve been trying to avoid jettisoning friends because of Trump, because I’d probably lose about half of them. But a few have been so obnoxious on Facebook that I had to either do that, or block them from my political posts.

        Liked by 1 person

      6. Hubby talks into his phone rather than type when he’s on FB, so I hear lots of yelling, etc. To the point where I just stay in my office ’til his tirade is over . . . I’ve never been, nor ever wanted to be, on FB, and that was even years back before this political crap even began. Oh, I was a member for about 15 minutes, looking for someone, and SO. MUCH. STUFF. started coming at me, I quickly deleted myself.

        Liked by 1 person

  2. Here’s a thought . . . Maybe “jurors” should be in quotation marks from now ’til the end of the “trial” – not just for Mr. Jones, but for EVERYone. I mean, they’ve already been suborned, so is there any other term for them? Well, yeah, I know *ssh*les, but I mean, one that can be used out in the world.

    Liked by 2 people

    Reply

    2. I think asking if they like Trump is a good question to determine if they can be doggy daddies and mommies. It goes for business too. Don’t go into business with Trump supporters. I am currently owed over $2,000 by one.

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply

      1. This occurred right after the [in]famous ride down the escalator, and I don’t think we realized completely how bad he was going to be, so liking/not liking drumpf may not have be relevant at that time, but as the president/owner of the rescue organization I work with is a ‘New Yawk Lawyer’ who loathes drumpf, she may approve that as being one of the questions on the apps and home visit.

        Liked by 1 person

      2. “ Don’t go into business with Trump supporters. I am currently owed over $2,000 by one.”

        Sounds familiar somehow.

        Hmmm… Who else do we know that stiffs people that they owe money to?
        Could it be… SATAN?!?!?!…
        Er… I mean… 45*?!?!?!
        (Easy to get confused there.)

        Like

  4. A friend and I had a civil debate whether the Democrats should have gone through with the Impeachment process, given that it is very likely that no Republican will vote to remove Trump. I said that yes, they should go through with this process to it’s completion, even if the outcome is virtually known.

    My argument made the comparison–despite that most cops who shoot unarmed black people are acquitted in court, would you rather the trial occur anyway or simply dismiss such cases? To not go through with the process of seeking justice, or the impeachment process to remove a corrupt president, whatever the outcome may be, is to essentially abandon our virtues and values of justice and oversight.

    Liked by 2 people

    Reply

Leave a comment

Blog at WordPress.com.

Up ↑