Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is the latest in a long line of people including politicians, lawyers, and Republicans to deny his conversation with Donald Trump was a “quid pro quo” moment. At the epicenter of the impeachment investigation, the phone call between the two world leaders is the linchpin for the Democrats’ case. But despite holding hearings to ascertain Trump’s guilt or innocence, or unearth a scintilla of hard evidence of wrongdoing, the Dems continue to ignore the other major participant in the phone call.
Volodymyr Zelensky
No surprise there.
In a recent interview, Zelensky told the American Democratic Party and the rest of the world that he understands what the now colossally overused Latin term means and he ain’t buying it. He said: “I never talked to the president from the position of a quid pro quo. That’s not my thing.”
Define ‘Quid Pro Quo’
Let’s review what a quid pro quo situation looks like: Hunter Biden, a good friend of substance abuse and political advantages, was appointed to a cushy position with Ukraine’s Burisma Holdings, and he made millions. His father, then vice president, boasted of how he told Ukrainian officials to terminate a prosecutor investigating Burisma Holdings in exchange for a billion dollars in U.S. loans.
Liberty Nation’s Graham J. Noble lays out the problems the Biden family brings to the discussion:
“Certain facts are beyond dispute: Joe Biden’s son, Hunter, in 2014 secured a lucrative directorship with a Ukrainian energy company. The younger Biden’s enormous and highly unusual financial deals with the Chinese are another story altogether but it is worth noting that, everywhere then-Vice President Joe Biden went, his son seems to have benefitted from highly profitable business arrangements.”
Ask any American if that equals a quid pro quo, and the answer would be a resounding “yes.” Insert Trump in place of Biden, and the man would be behind bars. Is what transpired between Trump and Zelensky a conversation on which to hang an impeachment hat? Not according to Zelensky, who said:
“I don’t want us to look like beggars. But you have to understand. We’re at war. If you’re our strategic partner, then you can’t go blocking anything for us. I think that’s just about fairness. It’s not about a quid pro quo. It just goes without saying.”
Joe Biden
The now-infamous chat between Trump and Zelensky has exposed an untenable situation for Joe Biden – who retains the lead by a small margin in the Democratic primary for president. Seemingly struggling in an arduous race, Biden is nevertheless the Swamp’s perfect offering to sink Trump. If the Dem elites sacrifice Joe, they may avoid future finger nibbling, hairy-leg stump speeches, and another humiliating loss in 2020. But the strategic calculation may be that if they admit Joe committed quid pro quo and link that to Trump’s phone call, they might be able to complete the Hail Mary pass and remove the president.
It’s a light-years-away longshot at best and another among the insanely desperate ploys becoming commonplace for the Democratic Party of late. But it won’t surprise the impeachment-exhausted electorate one bit.
As for the diplomatic relationship between Trump and Zelensky, it seems a bit tense but workable. Whereas Zelensky derided the president for calling his country “corrupt,” he defended the call as nothing more than two allies discussing a mutual rival. And that is all in a day’s business at the top of the leader board.
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