‘Not heard in the transcript.’ Ratcliffe rails against impeachment in Judiciary hearing

Rep. John Ratcliffe continued his campaign against the impeachment inquiry in the Judiciary committee’s first impeachment hearing Wednesday.

The Texas Republican is one of the few members of the Intelligence Committee, which held five days of public impeachment hearings in November, who also serves on the Judiciary Committee, which is now charged with evaluating the Intelligence’s Committee’s findings and potentially drafting articles of impeachment against President Donald Trump.

Ratcliffe began his questioning time by charging Democrats with constantly changing the grounds for their impeachment inquiry.

“There has been this ever-changing, constantly evolving, moving target of accusations,” Ratcliffe said. “The July 25 phone call started out as an alleged quid pro quo, and recently became an extortion scheme, a bribery scheme, I think it’s back to a quid pro quo.”

He made the same case in comments to McClatchy a few weeks ago, claiming that the goal posts for the impeachment inquiry were constantly changing.

The July 25 phone call prompted the impeachment inquiry into the president. In the phone call, Trump asked Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to investigate former vice president Joe Biden’s son’s involvement in a Ukrainian company. Democrats allege that Trump conditioned congressionally-approved military aid on the announcement of those investigations.

The Intelligence Committee completed its impeachment investigation in November. Wednesday’s hearing was the first impeachment hearing conducted by the Judiciary committee, led by Chairman Jerrold Nadler, D-New York, and Ranking Member Doug Collins, R-Georgia.

The committee invited four witnesses, all law professors from around the country. Three were invited by Judiciary Democrats — Noah Feldman of Harvard University, Pamela Karlan of Stanford University and Michael Gerhardt of the University of North Carolina. One expert, Jonathan Turley of George Washington University, was invited by Judiciary Republicans.

Ratcliffe went on to question Turley on Wednesday about alleged bribery present in the Trump’s July 25 phone call.

Turley answered that he did not see evidence of a request from Trump for investigations by Ukraine in exchange for military aid.

“We unfortunately keep on hearing the word circumstantial and inferential and that’s what’s so concerning,” Turley said, referring to the fact that there was no quid pro quo by Trump and that no one has testified to hearing Trump condition U.S. military aid on political investigations.

“So, it is not heard in the transcript,” Ratcliffe said, “You know that no witness has testified that they either heard President Trump or were told by President Trump to withhold military aid for any reason.”

Ratcliffe also asked Turley about Democrats’ charge that Trump obstructed justice by defying congressional subpoenas in the impeachment inquiry.

“If you want a well-based and legitimate impeachment case, [but] set this abbreviated schedule, demand documents, and then impeach because they haven’t been turned over … I think that is an abuse of power,” Turley said.

Rep. Louie Gohmert, the only other Texas republican on the Judiciary Committee, used all five minutes of his questioning time on Wednesday not to ask any questions, but to make a point about the witnesses called before the committee that day.

He did not ask the witnesses any questions, but he did rail against their presence and against the Intelligence Committee’s majority report, which was submitted Tuesday night to the Judiciary Committee to inform the Judiciary Committee’s potential articles of impeachment.

“We need some factual witnesses,” Gohmert said. “We don’t need to receive a report we didn’t have time to read before this hearing.”

Gohmert was not the only GOP member of the Judiciary Committee to use up his time without asking questions. Reps. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, and Steve Chabot, R-Ohio, also argued for Republican talking points during their time, rather than asking questions of the witnesses.

Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee is one of the few Texas Democrats on the Judiciary Committee. She used part of her questioning time to describe how she felt the president abused his power over Zelensky in withholding military aid during Ukraine’s active war with Russia.

“I’m reminded of my three uncles who served in World War II,” she said. “I can’t imagine them being on the battlefield needing arms and food and the general says, ‘Do me a favor.” We know that general would not say ‘Do me a favor.’ And so, in this instance, the American people deserve unfettered leadership and it is our duty to fairly assess the facts and the Constitution.”

This story was originally published December 4, 2019 at 5:18 PM.