UPDATE - Cybercom has plans to attack Russia

UPDATE - Cybercom has plans to attack Russia

https://www.thedailybeast.com/us-cybercom-looks-to-target-russian-elite-if-moscow-messes-with-2020-election?fbclid=IwAR05F1c8I_5E-XvgBY5yh7KGxEPGg5DCjVNs4noWZBMCyGnqaCFxrvK9rzc

Now is the time to go off books and take out the bad guys: the Internet Research Agency in St. Petersburg, TheSoul Publishing in Cyprus and all the rest.

They are targeting Democracy everywhere and will cause real and permanent damage to Western Civilization. At Putin's behest they are waging an all out war on the West. It is a fight for survival. It is not a drill.

It has to be off books because our governments are compromised. There will be zero official acknowledgment or support.

You will be on your own, but we really need you.

We beg you: Go into the dark to bring light back to us.

Trump Should Be Removed from Office, CHRISTIANITY TODAY

Mark Galli is editor in chief of Christianity Today.

'In our founding documents, Billy Graham explains that Christianity Today will help evangelical Christians interpret the news in a manner that reflects their faith. The impeachment of Donald Trump is a significant event in the story of our republic. It requires comment.

The typical CT approach is to stay above the fray and allow Christians with different political convictions to make their arguments in the public square, to encourage all to pursue justice according to their convictions and treat their political opposition as charitably as possible. We want CT to be a place that welcomes Christians from across the political spectrum, and reminds everyone that politics is not the end and purpose of our being. We take pride in the fact, for instance, that politics does not dominate our homepage.

That said, we do feel it necessary from time to time to make our own opinions on political matters clear—always, as Graham encouraged us, doing so with both conviction and love. We love and pray for our president, as we love and pray for leaders (as well as ordinary citizens) on both sides of the political aisle.

Let’s grant this to the president: The Democrats have had it out for him from day one, and therefore nearly everything they do is under a cloud of partisan suspicion. This has led many to suspect not only motives but facts in these recent impeachment hearings. And, no, Mr. Trump did not have a serious opportunity to offer his side of the story in the House hearings on impeachment.

But the facts in this instance are unambiguous: The president of the United States attempted to use his political power to coerce a foreign leader to harass and discredit one of the president’s political opponents. That is not only a violation of the Constitution; more importantly, it is profoundly immoral.

The reason many are not shocked about this is that this president has dumbed down the idea of morality in his administration. He has hired and fired a number of people who are now convicted criminals. He himself has admitted to immoral actions in business and his relationship with women, about which he remains proud. His Twitter feed alone—with its habitual string of mischaracterizations, lies, and slanders—is a near perfect example of a human being who is morally lost and confused.

Trump’s evangelical supporters have pointed to his Supreme Court nominees, his defense of religious liberty, and his stewardship of the economy, among other things, as achievements that justify their support of the president. We believe the impeachment hearings have made it absolutely clear, in a way the Mueller investigation did not, that President Trump has abused his authority for personal gain and betrayed his constitutional oath. The impeachment hearings have illuminated the president’s moral deficiencies for all to see. This damages the institution of the presidency, damages the reputation of our country, and damages both the spirit and the future of our people. None of the president’s positives can balance the moral and political danger we face under a leader of such grossly immoral character.

This concern for the character of our national leader is not new in CT. In 1998, we wrote this:

The President's failure to tell the truth—even when cornered—rips at the fabric of the nation. This is not a private affair. For above all, social intercourse is built on a presumption of trust: trust that the milk your grocer sells you is wholesome and pure; trust that the money you put in your bank can be taken out of the bank; trust that your babysitter, firefighters, clergy, and ambulance drivers will all do their best. And while politicians are notorious for breaking campaign promises, while in office they have a fundamental obligation to uphold our trust in them and to live by the law.

And this:

Unsavory dealings and immoral acts by the President and those close to him have rendered this administration morally unable to lead.

Unfortunately, the words that we applied to Mr. Clinton 20 years ago apply almost perfectly to our current president. Whether Mr. Trump should be removed from office by the Senate or by popular vote next election—that is a matter of prudential judgment. That he should be removed, we believe, is not a matter of partisan loyalties but loyalty to the Creator of the Ten Commandments.

To the many evangelicals who continue to support Mr. Trump in spite of his blackened moral record, we might say this: Remember who you are and whom you serve. Consider how your justification of Mr. Trump influences your witness to your Lord and Savior. Consider what an unbelieving world will say if you continue to brush off Mr. Trump’s immoral words and behavior in the cause of political expediency. If we don’t reverse course now, will anyone take anything we say about justice and righteousness with any seriousness for decades to come? Can we say with a straight face that abortion is a great evil that cannot be tolerated and, with the same straight face, say that the bent and broken character of our nation’s leader doesn’t really matter in the end?

We have reserved judgment on Mr. Trump for years now. Some have criticized us for our reserve. But when it comes to condemning the behavior of another, patient charity must come first. So we have done our best to give evangelical Trump supporters their due, to try to understand their point of view, to see the prudential nature of so many political decisions they have made regarding Mr. Trump. To use an old cliché, it’s time to call a spade a spade, to say that no matter how many hands we win in this political poker game, we are playing with a stacked deck of gross immorality and ethical incompetence. And just when we think it’s time to push all our chips to the center of the table, that’s when the whole game will come crashing down. It will crash down on the reputation of evangelical religion and on the world’s understanding of the gospel. And it will come crashing down on a nation of men and women whose welfare is also our concern.'

Judiciary Committee REPORT With Dissenting Views

Introduction below -

 read full report here: [https://docs.house.gov/billsthisweek/20191216/CRPT-116hrpt346.pdf]

Mr. NADLER, from the Committee on the Judiciary, submitted  the  following R  E  P  O  R  T  together with DISSENTING VIEWS [To accompany H. Res. 755]

The  Committee  on  the  Judiciary,  to  whom  was  referred  the  reso-lution  (H.  Res.  755)  impeaching  Donald  John  Trump,  President  of  the  United  States,  for  high  crimes  and  misdemeanors,  having  con-sidered  the  same,  reports  favorably  thereon  pursuant  to  H.  Res.  660  with  an  amendment  and  recommends  that  the  resolution  as  amended be agreed to. The amendment is as follows: Strike  all  that  follows  after  the  resolving  clause  and  insert  the  following:That  Donald  John  Trump,  President  of  the  United  States,  is  impeached  for  high  crimes  and  misdemeanors  and  that  the  following  articles  of  impeachment  be  exhib-ited to the United States Senate:

Articles  of  impeachment  exhibited  by  the  House  of  Representatives  of  the  United  States  of  America  in  the  name  of  itself  and  of  the  people  of  the  United  States  of  America,  against  Donald  John  Trump,  President  of  the  United  States  of  America,  in  maintenance  and  support  of  its  impeachment  against  him  for  high  crimes  and  misdemeanors.

ARTICLE I: ABUSE OF POWER

The  Constitution  provides  that  the  House  of  Representatives  ‘‘shall  have  the  sole  Power of Impeachment’’ and that the President ‘‘shall be removed from Office on Im-peachment  for,  and  Conviction  of,  Treason,  Bribery,  or  other  high  Crimes  and  Mis-demeanors’’.

In  his  conduct  of  the  office  of  President  of  the  United  States—and  in  violation  of  his  constitutional  oath  faithfully  to  execute  the  office  of  President  of  the  United  States  and,  to  the  best  of  his  ability,  preserve,  protect,  and  defend  the  Constitution of the United States, and in violation of his constitutional duty to take care that  the  laws  be  faithfully  executed

—Donald  J.  Trump  has  abused  the  powers  of  the Presidency, in that:

Using  the  powers  of  his  high  office,  President  Trump  solicited  the  interference  of  a  foreign  government,  Ukraine,  in  the  2020  United  States  Presidential  election.  He  did  so  through  a  scheme  or  course  of  conduct  that  included  soliciting  the  Govern-ment  of  Ukraine  to  publicly  announce  investigations  that  would  benefit  his  reelec-tion,  harm  the  election  prospects  of  a  political  opponent,  and  influence  the  2020  United  States  Presidential  election  to  his  advantage.

 President  Trump  also  sought  to  pressure  the  Government  of  Ukraine  to  take  these  steps  by  conditioning  official  United  States  Government  acts  of  significant  value  to  Ukraine  on  its  public  an-nouncement  of  the  investigations.  President  Trump  engaged  in  this  scheme  or  course  of  conduct  for  corrupt  purposes  in  pursuit  of  personal  political  benefit.  In  so  doing,  President  Trump  used  the  powers  of  the  Presidency  in  a  manner  that  com-promised  the  national  security  of  the  United  States  and  undermined  the  integrity  of  the  United  States  democratic  process.  He  thus  ignored  and  injured  the  interests  of the Nation.

President  Trump  engaged  in  this  scheme  or  course  of  conduct  through  the  fol-lowing means: (1)  President  Trump—acting  both  directly  and  through  his  agents  within  and  outside  the  United  States  Government—corruptly  solicited  the  Government  of  Ukraine to publicly announce investigations into—

(A)  a  political  opponent,  former  Vice  President  Joseph  R.  Biden,  Jr.;  and

(B)  a  discredited  theory  promoted  by  Russia  alleging  that  Ukraine—rather  than  Russia—interfered  in  the  2016  United  States  Presidential  election.

With  the  same  corrupt  motives,  President  Trump—acting  both  directly  and through his agents within and outside
the United States Government—conditioned  two  official  acts  on  the  public  announcements  that  he  had  requested—

(A)  the  release  of  $391  million  of  United  States  taxpayer  funds  that  Con-gress  had  appropriated  on  a  bipartisan  basis  for  the  purpose  of  providing  vital  military  and  security  assistance  to  Ukraine  to  oppose  Russian  aggression and which President Trump had ordered suspended; and

(B)  a  head  of  state  meeting  at  the  White  House,  which  the  President  of  Ukraine  sought  to  demonstrate  continued  United  States  support  for  the  Government of Ukraine in the face of Russian aggression.

Faced  with  the  public  revelation  of  his  actions,  President  Trump  ultimately  released  the  military  and  security  assistance  to  the  Government  of  Ukraine,   but   has   persisted   in   openly   and   corruptly   urging and soliciting   Ukraine to undertake investigations for his personal political benefit. These  actions  were  consistent  with  President  Trump’s  previous  invitations  of  foreign interference in United States elections. In  all  of  this,  President  Trump  abused  the  powers  of  the  Presidency  by  ignoring  and  injuring  national  security  and  other  vital  national  interests  to  obtain  an  im-proper  personal  political  benefit.  He  has  also  betrayed  the  Nation  by  abusing  his  high office to enlist a foreign power in corrupting democratic elections. Wherefore  President  Trump,  by  such  conduct,  has  demonstrated  that  he  will  re-main  a  threat  to  national  security  and  the  Constitution  if  allowed  to  remain  in  office,  and  has  acted  in  a  manner  grossly  incompatible  with  self-governance  and  the  rule  of  law.  President  Trump  thus  warrants  impeachment  and  trial,  removal  from  office,  and  disqualification  to  hold  and  enjoy  any  office  of  honor,  trust,  or  profit  under the United States.

ARTICLE II: OBSTRUCTION OF CONGRESS

The  Constitution  provides  that  the  House  of  Representatives  ‘‘shall  have  the  sole  Power of Impeachment’’ and that the President ‘‘shall be removed from Office on Impeachment  for,  and  Conviction  of,  Treason,  Bribery,  or  other  high  Crimes  and  Misdemeanors’’.  In  his  conduct  of  the  office  of  President  of  the  United  States—and  in  violation  of  his  constitutional  oath  faithfully  to  execute  the  office  of  President  of  the  United  States  and,  to  the  best  of  his  ability,  preserve,  protect,  and  defend  the  Constitution of the United States, and in violation of his constitutional duty to take care that  the  laws  be  faithfully  executed—Donald  J.  Trump  has  directed  the  unprecedented,  categorical,  and  indiscriminate  defiance  of  subpoenas  issued  by  the  House  of  Representatives  pursuant  to  its  ‘‘sole  Power  of  Impeachment’’.

 President  Trump  has  abused  the  powers  of  the  Presidency  in  a  manner  offensive  to,  and  subversive  of, the Constitution, in that: The  House  of  Representatives  has  engaged  in  an  impeachment  inquiry  focused  on  President  Trump’s  corrupt  solicitation  of  the  Government  of  Ukraine  to  interfere  in  the  2020  United  States  Presidential  election.  As  part  of  this  impeachment  inquiry,  the  Committees  undertaking  the  investigation  served  subpoenas  seeking  documents  and  testimony  deemed  vital  to  the  inquiry  from  various  Executive  Branch  agencies  and offices, and current and former officials. In  response,  without  lawful  cause  or  excuse,  President  Trump  directed  Executive  Branch agencies, offices, and officials not to comply with those subpoenas. President Trump  thus  interposed  the  powers  of  the  Presidency  against  the  lawful  subpoenas  of  the  House  of  Representatives,  and  assumed  to  himself  functions  and  judgments  necessary  to  the  exercise  of  the  ‘‘sole  Power  of  Impeachment’’  vested  by  the  Con-stitution in the House of Representatives.

President  Trump  abused  the  powers  of  his  high  office  through  the  following  means:

(1)  Directing  the  White  House  to  defy  a  lawful  subpoena  by  withholding  the  production of documents sought therein by the Committees.

(2)  Directing  other  Executive  Branch  agencies  and  offices  to  defy  lawful  subpoenas and withhold the production of documents and records from the Committees—in  response  to  which  the  Department  of  State,  Office  of  Management  and  Budget,  Department  of  Energy,  and  Department  of  Defense  refused  to  produce  a single document or record.

(3)  Directing  current  and  former  Executive  Branch  officials  not  to  cooperate  with  the  Committees—in  response  to  which  nine  Administration  officials  defied  subpoenas  for  testimony,  namely  John  Michael  ‘‘Mick’’  Mulvaney,  Robert  B.  Blair,  John  A.  Eisenberg,  Michael  Ellis,  Preston  Wells  Griffith,  Russell  T.  Vought, Michael Duffey, Brian McCormack, and T. Ulrich Brechbuhl.

 These  actions  were  consistent  with  President  Trump’s  previous  efforts  to  under-mine  United  States  Government  investigations  into  States elections.

Through  these  actions,  President  Trump  sought  to  arrogate  to  himself  the  right  to  determine  the  propriety,  scope,  and  nature  of  an  impeachment  inquiry  into  his  own  conduct,  as  well  as  the  unilateral  prerogative  to  deny  any  and  all  information  to  the  House  of  Representatives  in  the  exercise  of  its  ‘‘sole  Power  of  Impeachment’’.  In  the  history  of  the  Republic,  no  President  has  ever  ordered  the  complete  defiance  of an impeachment inquiry or sought to obstruct and impede so comprehensively the ability  of  the  House  of  Representatives  to  investigate  ‘‘high  Crimes  and  Misdemeanors’’.  This  abuse  of  office  served  to  cover  up  the  President’s  own  repeated  misconduct  and  to  seize  and  control  the  power  of  impeachment—and  thus  to  nullify  a vital constitutional safeguard vested solely in the House of Representatives.


 In  all  of  this,  President  Trump  has  acted  in  a  manner  contrary  to  his  trust  as  President  and  subversive  of  constitutional  government,  to  the  great  prejudice  of  the  cause  of  law  and  justice,  and  to  the  manifest  injury  of  the  people  of  the  United  States.

Wherefore,  President  Trump,  by  such  conduct,  has  demonstrated  that  he  will  re-main  a  threat  to  the  Constitution  if  allowed  to  remain  in  office,  and  has  acted  in  a  manner  grossly  incompatible  with  self-governance  and  the  rule  of  law.  President  Trump  thus  warrants  impeachment  and  trial,  removal  from  office,  and  disqualification  to  hold  and  enjoy  any  office  of  honor,  trust,  or  profit  under  the  United  States.