Not everyone at The Wall Street Journal peddled the false points about the Trump-Ukraine phone call that supposedly was going to be the death of his presidency. The allegations were that Trump had some quid pro quo with the Ukrainian leadership, that he wanted them to investigate Biden’s son for corruption, and that he might tie this move with aid to the country (via WSJ):
President Trump in a July phone call repeatedly pressured the president of Ukraine to investigate Joe Biden ’s son, according to people familiar with the matter, urging Volodymyr Zelensky about eight times to work with Rudy Giuliani on a probe that could hamper Mr. Trump’s potential 2020 opponent.
“He told him that he should work with [Mr. Giuliani] on Biden, and that people in Washington wanted to know” if his lawyer’s assertions that Mr. Biden acted improperly as vice president were true, one of the people said. Mr. Giuliani has suggested Mr. Biden’s pressure on Ukraine to fight corruption had to do with an investigation of a gas company for which his son was a director. A Ukrainian official this year said he had no evidence of wrongdoing by Mr. Biden or his son Hunter Biden.
Mr. Trump in the call didn’t mention a provision of U.S. aid to Ukraine, said this person, who didn’t believe Mr. Trump offered the Ukrainian president any quid pro quo for his cooperation on any investigation.
The interactions between the president, Mr. Giuliani and Ukraine have come under scrutiny in recent days in the wake of a whistleblower complaint that a person familiar with the matter said involves the president’s communications with a foreign leader. The complaint, which the Washington Post reported centers on Ukraine, has prompted a new standoff between Congress and the executive branch.
Well, first, the president can say whatever he wants to a foreign leader and it’s not the job of the intelligence community to snitch on the president concerning communications like this. It’s a gross overreach. Anyone who isn’t a semi-mentally defective anti-Trump Democrat could see this from at least 1,000 miles away. This story was trash, the allegations were fake, and it wouldn’t lead to Trump being in hot water. Once again, the Trump White House came out on top. Once again, anonymous and politically biased sources tried to deliver a death blow to the Trump White House. It failed.
In the publication’s op-ed section, columnist Kimberley Strassel, who has torched many of the liberal talking points peddled by the Left in their years-long crusade to impeach Trump, went on a lengthy Twitter thread dissecting the latest spate of nonsensical allegations lobbed at the Trump White House over this phone call. One, Trump was asking Ukraine for assistance in a U.S. investigation into 2016 election meddling, and it was the Ukrainians that brought up Biden. This is another “non-smoking gun.” Also, it proved that everyone got this story totally and utterly wrong.1) Having read DOJ’s Trump-Ukraine release, here’s the real story: This is another internal attempt to take out a president, on the basis of another non-smoking-gun.
— Kimberley Strassel (@KimStrassel) September 25, 2019
2)As to call transcript itself: Trump’s actual “favor” is that Ukraine look backward, to what happened in the 2016 election. This is a legitimate ask, since election meddling looks to have come from both Russia and Ukraine.
— Kimberley Strassel (@KimStrassel) September 25, 2019
3)(Indeed, this is a big enough issue that we find out this morning that U.S. Attorney John Durham is looking at what role the Ukraine played in the FBI investigation.)
— Kimberley Strassel (@KimStrassel) September 25, 2019
4)It is actually Zelensky who brings up Rudy Giuliani—saying they can’t wait to “meet him.” And it is Zelensky who references “that investigation,” as he goes on to promise that “all investigations will be done openly and candidly.”
— Kimberley Strassel (@KimStrassel) September 25, 2019
5)Trump says “good” and expresses worries that a “good” prosecutor was “shut down.” Mentions “Biden’s son” and that Biden bragged he “stopped the prosecution.” Ends that bit with “It sounds horrible to me.”
— Kimberley Strassel (@KimStrassel) September 25, 2019
6)Trump's several references to Giuliani are mostly to say what a great guy he is. He says he will have Giuliani and AG Barr call. He asks Zelensky to speak/work with both.
— Kimberley Strassel (@KimStrassel) September 25, 2019
7)And, never mind, because: DOJ in statement says the President has not spoken to AG about investigating Biden and has not asked the AG to contact the Ukraine. Also, Barr has not communicated with Ukraine—“on this or any subject.”
— Kimberley Strassel (@KimStrassel) September 25, 2019
8)Meanwhile, the IG back in August referred this to DOJ as potential violation of campaign finance law, based on whistleblower complaint. Criminal Division evaluated and determined no violation: “All relevant components of the Department agreed with this legal conclusion.”
— Kimberley Strassel (@KimStrassel) September 25, 2019
9) Whistleblower? Look at this nugget, referenced in the OLC opinion. The IG’s review found "some indicia of an arguable political bias on the part of the Complainant in favor of a rival political candidate.”
— Kimberley Strassel (@KimStrassel) September 25, 2019
10)Media got all this so wrong. And Democrats look all the more partisan and radical to have moved toward impeachment.
— Kimberley Strassel (@KimStrassel) September 25, 2019
And now these clowns want to push impeachment over an allegation shoddier that the Trump-Russia collusion myth? Cancer thy name is Democrat.