“I Have Been Traducedâ€: Trump’s Moves Against Impeachment Witnesses Are Neither Unlawful Nor Unprecedented
Below is my column in the Washington Post on the continuing controversy over the actions taken against impeachment witnesses by President Donald Trump. I recently explained that these actions are not, as claiming on CNN, clear criminal acts of witness retaliation. While I was critical of the moves, this column addresses why they are neither unlawful nor unprecedented.
Here is the column:
“Just because you’re paranoid doesn’t mean they aren’t after you.†Those words, from the fictional Capt. John Yossarian in Joseph Heller’s satiric novel “Catch-22,†could well have come from President Trump. Trump’s move against two impeachment witnesses (and a third man, the twin brother of one of the witnesses) has enraged and struck many as pure retaliation, and has led to calls for criminal and oversight investigations. Yet, while I believe that actions taken against Gordon Sondland, U.S. ambassador to the European Union, and National Security Council staffer Army Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman were wrong, they are both legal and not unprecedented.
https://jonathanturley.org/2020/02/14/i-have-been-traduced-trumps-moves-against-impeachment-witnesses-are-neither-unlawful-nor-unprecedented/