The GOP Goes All-Shakespeare

No, I didn't watch the "impeachment hearing" (sic) yesterday.  Nor do I intend to in any coming days.  It's just too galling and reprehensible what Republicans are doing.  After nine months of the GOP holding an investigation and finding quite literally nothing, to now hold a "hearing" as if oh, now they'll find new, actual evidence is...well, I'd say "shameful," but it's pretty clear that most congressional Republicans today have long since given up on the concept of shame.  To hold these "hearings" only serves one purpose, to muddy the waters without actual evidence against President Biden and try to protect Trump with his four indictments, in order to move their fascist agenda.

And all this with the government set to shut down in just two days!

It was Shakespearean in the breadth of its repugnant emptiness.  Though more on that at the end.  How unearthly awful was it?  One of the Republicans' own witness, attorney Jonathan Turley, testified that there wasn't enough evidence for an impeachment.  Another of the witnesses, Eileen O'Connor, "left out" that when she introduced into "evidence" an article she had written about how if you were Biden and did this, you'd go to jail, she was referring to Hunter Biden.  (When questioned about her omission, she said she left it out to save on her limited, allotted time.  I believe she saved herself one second.)  And their own third witness didn't support impeachment.  In fact, even Neil Cavuto of Fox (!) said that after having watched the hearing all day -- "I don't know what was achieved over these past 6+ hours." 

Reading social media was difficult, too, since you see so much extreme-right commentary thinking that actual evidence is being introduced against the President.  But sorry, "Hunter Biden" and "if" are not actual evidence about what Joe Biden, in fact, did illegal, let alone as a high crime and misdemeanor.

Even watching the news coverage has been a challenge, and I've avoided most of it.  But there is one bright spot -- highlights of scathing, sarcastic, furious response from Democrats on the committee.  Jamie Raskin, not shockingly, was brilliant in his opening statement as Ranking Member.  

He had probably my two favorite lines of the day.  The best, I think, was -- "Like flying monkeys on a mission for the Wicked Witch of the West, Trump’s followers in the House now carry his messages out to the world."  A close second was -- "If the Republicans had a smoking gun or even a dripping water pistol, they would be presenting it today but they’ve got nothing on Joe Biden.”

His full statement was wonderful, but here are two, particularly-impactful minutes that stood out for me.

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez was superb, as well, in how she took down a smarmy congressman from Florida for using Photoshopped material, and she was prepared for it and had the evidence to use. 

There were others, but I particularly like this from Democratic Rep. Jasmine Crockett from Texas.  It didn't get as much attention as the others, so I thought I'd post two minutes of it here.  She was on fire.  And she has one sarcastic line near the beginning that’s hilarious.  (About the number of times “If” and “Hunter” were used.)
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And all this with the government set to shut down in -- say it together now -- just two days!

It was all so Shakespearean.

It is a tale told by an idiot, full of sound and fury signifying nothing.