Extortion: Democrats test new charge against Trump
by Byron York
| October 17, 2019 01:36 PM
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In recent weeks, some Democrats have struggled to cite a crime committed by President Trump in the Ukraine affair. While the intelligence community inspector general suggested the president might have violated campaign finance laws, Democrats have generally not specified what law or laws Trump might have broken -- instead pointing out that, beyond treason and bribery, the Constitution does not list particular offenses that qualify for removal from office. The House has wide discretion in deciding what conduct, criminal or not, is impeachable.
Now, however, Democrats appear to be testing a new charge: The president committed extortion.
"We have a crime -- extortion," Democratic Rep. Eric Swalwell told Fox News' Martha MacCallum Wednesday.
"You've already decided there was a crime?" asked MacCallum.
"Yes, that's why we're doing this," said Swalwell. "A crime was committed. We're now looking at the suspect, the president, who confessed to the crime, by the way."
The Democratic idea, apparently, is that Trump withheld U.S. military aid for Ukraine as part of a demand that Ukraine investigate the Bidens and events in Ukraine connected to the 2016 election. That is the alleged extortion to which Trump has "confessed," according to Swalwell.
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