The third day of public impeachment testimony took place today and both sides of the aisle are claiming victory. This stalemate, however, could possibly be decided during tomorrow’s testimony of Ambassador Gordon Sondland. Amb. Sondland is going to be the first person to testify who can perhaps speak from a first-hand perspective as to what was motivating the President when it came to Ukrainian policy. Recall that Amb Sondland already amended his testimony from his closed-door deposition. This amendment was likely conducted because of the release of transcripts from other witnesses. The Ambassador is basically claiming that others’ testimony refreshed his memory – this or perhaps he doesn’t want to be charged with perjury and was taking advantage of the opportunity to amend? We also know that another State Department official, testified behind closed-doors that he overheard a phone conversation between the Ambassador and the President. Allegedly, the President was only concerned with the Ukrainians investigated the Bidens. Also, allegedly, there were other staffers who could have overheard this phone call. The Ambassador now finds himself in a very delicate situation. The veracity of his initial testimony is already in question due to his amendment. Now, he has to be concerned with making sure he tells the whole truth when it comes to this phone call and other conversations he may have had with the President. Otherwise he may face the real possibility of being charged with perjury; especially if other staffers can corroborate the testimony pertaining to the phone call. All eyes will be on Sondland.
In other news, both chambers of Congress unanimously passed the Hong Kong Human Rights Act. This has been criticized by the Chinese and they claim they will retaliate if this bill becomes law. It will now head to the Presidnet’s desk. Should the Presidnet veto this bill, given the unanimous consent from both chambers, they could potentially override the veto. This throws a big wrench into trade talks – however, we’ve been highly skeptical of any real progress on the trade front. Furthermore, President Trump has been claiming that if there is not a trade deal soon that the tariffs will go up significantly. The markets have not priced in a no-deal. They have been strung along into believing that a trade deal was at-hand. Should there be a no-deal, the markets could correct quickly and significantly. Stay diversified, stay vigilant, and stay with The Kapital News. #Impeachment #HongKong #Truth #Peace #Protests #EndTheFed #Justice #Economy #Politics