Monday Reading

As always, please go to the links for the full articles/ op eds.

Far from being responsible for the killing of Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, Dolt 45 nearly sabotaged the raid:

President Trump knew the Central Intelligence Agency and Special Operations commandos were zeroing in on the location for Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the Islamic State leader, when he ordered American troops to withdraw from northern Syria earlier this month, intelligence, military and counterterrorism officials said on Sunday.

For months, intelligence officials had kept Mr. Trump apprised of what he had set as a top priority, the hunt for Mr. al-Baghdadi, the world’s most wanted terrorist.

But Mr. Trump’s abrupt withdrawal order three weeks ago disrupted the meticulous planning underway and forced Pentagon officials to speed up the plan for the risky night raid before their ability to control troops, spies and reconnaissance aircraft disappeared with the pullout, the officials said.

Mr. al-Baghdadi’s death in the raid on Saturday, they said, occurred largely in spite of, and not because of, Mr. Trump’s actions. (our emphasis)

Let that sink in while you contemplate how he's managed to put our country on the wrong side of so many geopolitical issues, just as if he was operating as an asset of some hostile foreign autocrat...

Speaking of hostile foreign autocrats, this is the regime Dolt 45 aligns with, over our former loyal Kurdish allies:

UN chemical weapons inspectors have announced they are gathering information following accusations that burning white phosphorus was used by Turkish forces against children in Syria earlier this week.

The Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) said on Friday morning that “it was aware of the situation and is collecting information with regard to possible use of chemical weapons”.

The Kurdish Red Crescent said in a statement that six patients, both civilian and military, were in hospital in Hasakah with burns from “unknown weapons” and it was working to evaluate what had been used.

When you're engaging in genocide, you're not terribly particular about the weapon of mass destruction that you use.

Turning back to the impeachment inquiry, a key witness not known for being forthcoming spilled a large bean during private testimony:

Ambassador to the European Union Gordon Sondland confirmed to House impeachment investigators during his testimony on October 17 that there was a quid pro quo in President Donald Trump’s dealings with Ukraine, according to Sondland’s lawyer.

The Wall Street Journal reported on Saturday night that the lawyer, Robert Luskin, had told the outlet his client had answered in the affirmative when a House member asked if Trump’s demand that Ukraine investigate 2020 Democratic candidate Joe Biden and Ukraine’s alleged election interference in 2016 in exchange for a White House meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky amounted to quid pro quo.

Luskin said that in Sondland’s response to the question, the ambassador “cautioned that he wasn’t a lawyer but said he believed the answer was yes,” in the Wall Street Journal’s words.  (our emphasis)

We're not lawyers either, but it was a quid pro quo.

Also, a major court ruling bolsters the House's hand in the impeachment inquiry:

In an important development, a federal district court in Washington, D.C. has pointed the way to a possible resolution of the standoff between President Donald Trump and the House of Representatives over the legitimacy of the impeachment inquiry. The court’s ruling signals that at least part of the judiciary is prepared to help resolve the emerging constitutional crisis — by deciding in favor of Congress and against the president.

The court was not directly addressing Trump’s refusal to cooperate with the House inquiry, but rather the House Judiciary Committee’s request for otherwise-secret grand jury testimony generated as part of Robert Mueller’s investigation. Yet in an unwise attempt to block the Judiciary Committee from getting that testimony, the Department of Justice argued that a House committee can’t conduct an impeachment inquiry without a resolution passed by the whole House. That’s the same argument that Trump’s White House counsel has deployed to insist that the entire impeachment inquiry is unconstitutional — and that as a result, Trump doesn’t have to cooperate.

The district court squarely and convincingly rejected the Department of Justice’s argument. This result strongly indicates that other judges in the D.C. district court would similarly reject that argument if and when Congress asks them to enforce its subpoenas against Trump administration officials.

In case you missed it yesterday,  Jake Tapper provided a good rebuttal to Cadet Bone Spurs' and his flying monkey brigade's scurrilous attacks on former Ambassador to Ukraine William Taylor for his truth- telling:



Last, as usual, we would recommend a visit to Infidel 753's link round- up for a compendium of links to a wide range of items from across the internet.  (It happens to be where we found the story about Turkey's possible use of chemical weapons against the Kurds in Syria.)  You might also give the same worthy person a helping hand while he's going through a tight time financially.  Thank you!