Even though the impeachment inquiry announced Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) has as its main subject President Donald Trump, the investigation has begun to expand to other members of the administration, including Attorney General William Barr and Vice President Mike Pence, both of whom are now in serious jeopardy and may also wind up being impeached for their role in the unfolding Ukraine scandal.
Let’s take a closer look at how Barr and Pence have entered the spotlight:
William Barr
Thanks to the Washington Post, we now know that in intelligence officials referred Trump’s call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to the Justice Department as a possible campaign finance violation. But the DOJ refused to bring any criminal charges.
You may also recall during Barr’s testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee, the attorney general was asked by Senator Kamala Harris (D-CA):
“Has the president or anyone at the White House ever asked or suggested you open an investigation into anyone?”
A suddenly speechless Barr could only respond:
“….. Ah …..”
Harris followed up:
“Seems like something you should be able to answer.”
Barr:
“I don’t know …….”
.@SenKamalaHarris: Has the president or anyone at the White House ever asked or suggested you open an investigation into anyone?
BARR: ….. ah …..
HARRIS: Seems like something you should be able to answer
BARR: I don’t know ……. pic.twitter.com/8FIqrGzSrm
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) May 1, 2019
If Barr knew about the pressure being applied to Ukraine by Trump or took part in that, he’s part of a larger conspiracy. That’s a crime and an impeachable offense.
Mike Pence
A readout of a September 18 call between Pence and Zelensky released by the administration includes this:
“The Vice President spoke by phone today with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to follow up on their productive September 1 meeting in Warsaw and discussed President Trump’s upcoming meeting with President Zelenskyy next week at the UN General Assembly in New York.
“The Vice President reiterated the United States’ unwavering commitment to Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity. The Vice President commended President Zelenskyy’s administration for its bold action to tackle corruption through legislative reforms, and offered full U.S. support for those efforts.”
That clearly implicates Pence as part of a larger conspiracy, too. As with Barr, Pence can be charged criminally and impeached for his role in the Ukraine scandal.
Former GOP strategist Rick Wilson has said it before and even wrote a book with the same title, and now both AG Barr and VP Pence are learning the hard way the dark wisdom in the line:
“Everything Trump touches dies.”
Barr and Pence have hitched their wagons to Donald Trump. And that means they’re just as screwed as he is.