Trump Invokes 1st Amendment Rights in Defending Yovanovitch Tweets

On Friday, the House Intelligence Committee heard the testimony of Marie Yovanovitch, the former US Ambassador to Ukraine. We learned nothing new: Yovanovitch was never in a position to know about any of the conversations in question, and she seems butthurt that the Trump administration didn’t think she was very good at her job.

The Dems' star witness was just asked on record if she had any information regarding @realDonaldTrump accepting any bribes or being involved in any criminal activity.

Her answer was clear: "No."

Game over. Time to end this impeachment charade. pic.twitter.com/wZwdvwuRpI

— Steve Scalise (@SteveScalise) November 15, 2019

In the midst of these six hours that no one will ever get back in their lives, President Trump took to Twitter to share his take, because of course he did.

https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1195356198347956224

IN THE MIDDLE OF HER HEARING.

I’m not going to suggest that this tweet was well-timed, advisable, appropriate, or proper. I WILL suggest that it is FREAKING HILARIOUS and TOTALLY on-brand. To everyone who’s got their panties in a wad over his tweet and timing, I have one thing to say: GET OVER IT. We’ve had three years to get used to this, if you still have the energy to be outraged over every tweet Trump posts, I want to know what kind of caffeine supplement you’re taking because I need one.

Adam Schiff read the tweet to Yovanovitch during her testimony in a play about as intellectually honest as, well, any and everything he’s done up to this point.

“The president in real-time is attacking you,” Schiff said. “What effect do you think that has on other witnesses’ willingness to come forward and expose wrongdoing?”

“It’s very intimidating,” Yovanovitch answered.

I’m no expert, but if you as an ambassador consider <280 characters (that she wouldn’t have known about until after the fact if not for Schiff, by the way) suggesting you’re not very good at your job “very intimidating,” you’re in the wrong line of work.

When asked about it by White House reporters, Trump maintained no wrongdoing on his part: “I have the right to speak. I have freedom of speech just like other people do.”

What this proves is that the very reason that Democrats want Trump impeached is the very reason he won’t be. They don’t like that he’s brash, he’s aggressive, he is, objectively speaking, kind of an asshole. But he’s an effective asshole who gets sh*t done. And the fact that he doesn’t have a filter? As much as it outrages his opponents, it’s the reason he’s still so popular. Any other president in history would’ve been calm, collected, and borderline– if not explicitly– deferent, in the interest of “protecting the integrity of the office.” And they would’ve been eaten alive. Honestly, despite the inappropriateness of some of Trump’s comments and reactions to this impeachment farce, his attitude is (and please excuse the pun) his trump card in surviving this whole boondoggle.