Yesterday's QOTD quoted a CBS News report that a confidant of crime family boss Donald "The Dumb Don" Trump had warned Republican Senators that their heads "would be on a pike" if they voted against him in the impeachment trial. Then, in Rep. Adam Schiff's masterful closing argument last night asking Republicans to show moral courage, he mentioned the quote, after saying he didn't know if it was true or not.
Well, wouldn't you know Senate Republicans would latch onto this, the tiniest excuse, to fall in line with Moscow Mitch McConnell's coverup, especially these two empty pantsuits:
“That’s not true,” Susan Collins said several times on the floor, shaking her head when Schiff cited a news report saying WH warned senators that a vote against Trump means “your head will be on a pike.” Risch also said aloud: “That’s not true.” Cotton laughed when Schiff said it— Manu Raju (@mkraju) January 25, 2020
“He was doing fine with moral courage until he got to the head on the pike. That's where he lost me,” Murkowksi said, per @jeffzeleny. “He’s a good orator you got to give him that ... He was moving right along ...and then he got to a couple places and it was just unnecessary.”— Manu Raju (@mkraju) January 25, 2020
Some selected responses:
It is a beloved bad-faith move by GOP senators to feign outrage over some perceived slight to justify falling in line. But even assuming story is entirely false, how on earth would Schiff saying this bear on decision about whether to call witnesses or vote to convict president? https://t.co/vU1fhx5Uqs— Susan Hennessey (@Susan_Hennessey) January 25, 2020
No one in media should fall for this. @lisamurkowski et al. are just looking for any excuse not call witnesses or hold a fair trial. It’s indefensible that @RepAdamSchiff’s innocuous comment offends the @SenateGOP more than Trump’s illegal behavior & abuse of power. #HeadOnAPike https://t.co/HwPKXKCLA3— Maya Contreras (@mayatcontreras) January 25, 2020
On the same day that audio is released of President Trump telling Lev Parnas "to get rid of her" regarding an American Ambassador, @lisamurkowski is finding it hard to believe that Trump (or his aides) could've threatened someone?— Nick Vucic (@npv708) January 25, 2020
Give me a break.
A question about the fake GOP outrage about @RepAdamSchiff citing CBS's "head on a pike" reporting.— Greg Sargent (@ThePlumLineGS) January 25, 2020
Why aren't the Sens directing their outrage at CBS? Why aren't reporters who are pretending the GOP outrage is real asking Sens why they're raging at Schiff, and not at CBS?
"I was about to convict and then the manager said 'head-on-a-pike,' and, well, he lost me.”— Michelangelo Signorile (@MSignorile) January 25, 2020
That’s really not going to work.
"We were truly persuaded by Schiff's compelling oratory, and we were finally ready to approach this vote with an open mind--maybe even call witnesses. But now we're outraged because he mentioned a major news outlet's story. Got that? Be sure you write 'outraged' is what we said." https://t.co/EUPnifvQO2— Walter Shaub (@waltshaub) January 25, 2020
And, finally,
Adam Schiff did not lose any Republican senators tonight. They were never going to change their minds, and he knew it. His goal was to expose them as cowards, and he succeeded.— Jack Pitney (@jpitney) January 25, 2020
So, the moral cowards are who we always knew them to be, and they're just going through the motions now until they can acquit the most dangerous, incompetent, un- American person ever to hold the office of president.
(Murkowski isn't running for re-election this year, but of course Collins is. You can contribute to her most likely opponent, Sara Gideon, here.)
