This program consists of two parts.
Part 1: We interview Scott Braddock, editor of the Quorum Report .
We discuss the Bonnen scandal in Texas. Now that the recording of his meeting with Empowered Texans has been made public, he has announced that he will not be seeking reelection. This presents a potential to change Texas politics, and move it leftward. Trump, in Texas this week, continues to say that “Texas is not in play” for 2020, but Karl Rove, who is also in Texas, and is the face of “old Republican party” says that if current trends continue, Texas will have a Democratic Speaker in 2021. “Plano (a suburban area) is the new face of Texas, and it is Democratic. Cornyn could lose his reelection. The topics of interest for Texans now are local issues such as school funding, property taxes, and, most importantly, guns. The criminal investigation of Bonnen continues. In 2018, candidates who were associated with Empowered Texans lost at the polls. We also discussed the importance of robust, honest journalism as a guardian of democracy.
Part 2: We interview John Nichols, of the Nation Magazine.
The topic we focused on is the impeachment of Donald Trump. It is becoming obvious that DT knows nothing about how government works. Having experience as a business person did not prepare him for how to manage government, and how government personnel work. Specifically, that everyone takes contemporaneous notes of meetings and discussions. DT learned how to avoid prosecution, but when misdeeds occur among government officials, the standard of proof is different, and the history of actions is important, rather than individual events. And the history is kept by the government employees. Nichols recommends that when articles of impeachment are collected, there should be at least three different areas: the activities with Ukraine, obstruction, and breach of the emoluments clause. McConnell is viewed by Trump as being his main shield against conviction and removal from office. DT is inviting impeachment now, perhaps as a way of defeating the Democrats finally. It’s not clear if McConnell will actually fall in line, though he is delaying to get his current Republicans past the filing date for reelection. There are several senators who are vulnerable.
