Take the time to actually read the transcripts of the witness testimony, listen to the testimony for 30 minutes or so, not just the sound bites. Think logically and rationally and look at the big picture. Put the pieces together. Rep. Jim Jordan and the rest of the Republicans don't want you to put it all together. They don't want you to see the pattern, they don't want you to see that the whole atmosphere was corrupted by a president who didn't care about foreign policy except how it personally benefited him.
The phone record of the July 25th call was bad enough. Despite Trump claiming that it was "perfect" we have a foreign leader obviously sucking up to Trump, praising him and claiming to have learned from his example. This is without question the leader of a smaller, weaker nation, a nation that needs the support of the United States, trying to get in the good graces of a head of state who can help him against Russia. Just before Trump starts talking, Zelensky thanks Trump for selling Ukraine military equipment. Trump...now pay attention to what comes next...mentions how Ukraine hasn't done much to help the United States and asks that "you do us a favor though" and brings up (1) a debunked conspiracy theory about the DNC server (which isn't missing) being hidden in Ukraine and (2) asks that Ukraine open an investigation into Joe Biden and his son Hunter. Zelensky then immediately agrees to do this. At the time, although not mentioned in the phone call, Trump was withholding Congressionally allocated military aid to Ukraine and was stalling on a White House visit by Zelensky. If it's not clear enough to you, Zelensky desperately needs the military aid to defend his country and desperately wants the White House visit to bolster his reputation and show Russia that Trump has his back. He is very much a little guy who needs something badly from the big guy. Trump also needs something. He had just heard that former Vice President Joe Biden was running for president in 2020 and most polls showed that he could beat Trump. Ukraine opening an investigation into Biden would almost certainly hurt him as the primaries approached. Before the investigations could start, Zelensky needed to appoint a new chief prosecutor. Two months go by...and the whistle-blower's complaint makes its way to Congress.
The Trumpublicans want you to believe that none of this matters because the investigations didn't happen, the aid was released and there hasn't been a White House meeting. Think! When was the aid released? Two days after Congress received the complaint. Why didn't the investigation happen? Zelensky hadn't appointed his new prosecutor yet. Why no White House meeting? Because no investigation had happened. After mid-September none of the things discussed in the phone call or behind the scenes came to pass...not because Trump hadn't asked for them or that Zelensky hadn't agreed to do Trump's bidding...but because they got caught!
If that wasn't enough, we've had a parade of witnesses from various corners of the diplomatic corps testifying that, at Trump's direction, ambassadors, envoys and sundry State Department personnel were coordinating with Rudy Giuliani, Trump's personal lawyer to turn the State Department and diplomatic corps into an arm of the Trump campaign. Literally everyone who had any connection to Ukraine was aware of what was going on. Some went to their superiors and were told to shut up. Others tried in their own way to get things back on track. But everybody knew that the direction from the president was to put personal whims ahead of United States national interests.
Trumpublicans have been attempting to remove things out of their larger context. Witnesses who were several layers of bureaucracy removed from the White House were asked if they had ever spoken with the president. When they responded that they hadn't, the questioner acted as if it was a big "gotcha" that proved that there was nothing wrong going on. In addition to the argument that since no investigation had taken place there was no "quid pro quo" (ignoring the fact that soliciting a bribe is the problem, and that problem doesn't disappear when the bribe doesn't materialize) they are now claiming that the witnesses are a bunch of un-elected bureaucrats who are trying to set foreign policy that is the purview of the president. While it is broadly true that the president is responsible for setting foreign policy, Congress is a partner in that responsibility. It is not true that a president can "do whatever he wants". He cannot turn government officials into his personal employees; they work for the United States government, they are not personal servants of the chief executive.
The various witnesses saw different parts of Trump's scheme. A few, like Ambassador to the European Union Gordon Sondland, were privy to Trump's thinking and his goals. Most were following orders that were passed down the chain of command. Just about all were disturbed at the role Giuliani played, sometimes working with the diplomats, sometimes without their knowledge, often at cross-purposes. More than a few of these witnesses, like Ambassador Sondland, are Trump appointees (who he no says he "barely knows" and derides as not being true Trumpists), most are career diplomats who have served loyally in both Republican and Democratic administrations.
Despite Gym Jordan's fast talking, yelling, interrupting and insulting witnesses (and reporters), despite Trump's tweets that it's a hoax, and that the Democrats are "human scum", out to get him, despite the "see no evil" stance of most Republicans, it is obvious that Trump abused the power of the office and engaged in what amounts to extortion and bribery. And if you refuse to see it, then I guess we know just how stupid you have to be to believe that Trump is innocent.
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