November 14, 2019

Pelosi: Impeachment Testimony Was Evidence of Trump’s “Bribery”

The House speaker outlines why Wednesday was so devastating for the president.

Xinhua/ZUMA

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In spite of all the incriminating evidence presented at the first day of impeachment hearings on Wednesday—the testimony of two seasoned diplomats about President Donald Trump’s efforts to pressure a foreign government to interfere in the 2020 election, the bombshell revelation of a phone conversation implicating Trump—some of the media were unimpressed.

“The first two witnesses called Wednesday testified to President Trump’s scheme, but lacked the pizzazz necessary to capture public attention,” an NBC analysis claimed. A Reuters correspondent dismissed the hearing as “consequential, but dull.”

Enter Nancy Pelosi.

Speaking to reporters at her weekly press conference on Thursday, the House speaker delivered a withering verdict on Wednesday’s hearing and its implications for the president. 

“The devastating testimony corroborated evidence of bribery uncovered in the inquiry and that the president abused power and violated his oath,” she said, a significant escalation in her language to allege Trump’s abuse of power.

This moment, in particular, is sure to infuriate Trump:

 

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WE CAME UP SHORT.

We just wrapped up a shorter-than-normal, urgent-as-ever fundraising drive and we came up about $45,000 short of our $300,000 goal.

That means we're going to have upwards of $350,000, maybe more, to raise in online donations between now and June 30, when our fiscal year ends and we have to get to break-even. And even though there's zero cushion to miss the mark, we won't be all that in your face about our fundraising again until June.

So we urgently need this specific ask, what you're reading right now, to start bringing in more donations than it ever has. The reality, for these next few months and next few years, is that we have to start finding ways to grow our online supporter base in a big way—and we're optimistic we can keep making real headway by being real with you about this.

Because the bottom line: Corporations and powerful people with deep pockets will never sustain the type of journalism Mother Jones exists to do. The only investors who won’t let independent, investigative journalism down are the people who actually care about its future—you.

And we hope you might consider pitching in before moving on to whatever it is you're about to do next. We really need to see if we'll be able to raise more with this real estate on a daily basis than we have been, so we're hoping to see a promising start.

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