Yesterday, NPR broadcast a deeply disturbing segment on how things are going to work or fail to work in congress. The segment is about a recent hearing in the House of Representatives. The hyper-partisanship, rage and mutual hate on display here is no less bitter than what Americans got to see in the Michael Cohen hearing last week. There is no obvious reason to think that this situation will change any time in the foreseeable future. The democratic-republican divide prevents any cooperation whatever, at least on 'political' matters such as investigating Trump. It is fair to see this situation as a test of the robustness of liberal democracy with our republican form of government versus an encroaching authoritarianism that envisions a different form of government.
The segment was produced by the This American Life program that NPR airs. The 34 minute segment, New Sheriffs in Town, described the planning and execution of the House Judiciary Committee's first public hearing on activities related to President Trump. Their first witness was intended to be acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker.
The segment is here: https://www.thisamericanlife.org/669/scrambling-to-get-off-the-ice/act-one-2 The transcript is here: https://www.thisamericanlife.org/669/transcript
The open hearing was planned for weeks. Whitaker was told far in advance of questions the committee wanted to raise with him. The democrats wanted the hearing to show Americans what they think was going on. They believe that Whitaker was a hatchet man to protect Trump from Special Counsel Mueller's investigation, which potentially amounts to obstruction of justice. On the other hand, republicans on the committee claimed the hearing was not warranted and they wanted to hear from people they hate including Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein. Republicans believe Rosenstein is pny out to get Trump for no reason other than pure partisanship.
The last two years of republican inquiries been focused mainly on investigating alleged wrongdoing by pro-democratic officials in the FBI and the Department of Justice. Their inquiry into activities by Trump, his campaign and Russia were insincere at best and almost non-existent at worst.
Republicans opposed and delayed the meeting as much as they possibly could. The republican strategy was to discredit the Hearing and witness testimony so that half the country will believe it is a partisan sham and of little or no importance regardless of the evidence. The Department of Justice also acted to neuter or completely derail the hearing as much as possible. Shortly before the hearing, the DoJ told the House committee that Whitaker would not testify unless democrats pledges in writing not to issue a subpoena if they believed that Whitaker was refusing to answer questions during the hearing. That nearly caused the hearing to collapse.
Democrats caved in and made the pledge. They were desperate to get Whitaker's testimony before the American people. Republicans in the House and the DoJ were desperate to block Whitaker's testimony before the American people, and failing that, to limit it as much as possible to irrelevant fluff.
Cooperators in the House over time
Advantage republicans: Judiciary Committee chairman Jerry Nadler's strategy in questioning Whitaker was to raise questions with yes or no answers in an attempt to get at key points and to be clear about it. However, with no threat of a subpoena to force answers out of him, Whitaker's strategy was brilliant and as effective as it possibly could be under the circumstances.
The republicans won.
Here is how Whitaker did it. Instead of giving yes or no answers to questions, Whitaker deflected, obfuscated and spent as much precious time as possible not saying yes or no. Each committee member had only 5 minutes. That is so little time as to be ridiculous for a heraing like this with a hostile witness, but that the stupid rule the House pretends to do its job under.
Here is the relevant transcript:
Narrator Zoe Chace: Everyone's vote on adjournment is painstakingly read out loud. That's four minutes less hearing, classic minority party stalling tactic. Also literally, Collins [republican ranking member] doesn't think we should be having this hearing. Whitaker opening statement, Nadler moves to questions. Right off the bat, Nadler's tactic of yes or no, Mr. Whitaker, gets mixed results.
Jerry Nadler: Well, it's our understanding that at least one briefing occurred in December before your decision not to recuse yourself on December 19 and Christmas Day. Is that correct?
Matthew Whitaker: What's the basis for that question, sir?
Nadler: Yes or no? Is it correct?
Whitaker: I mean, I--
Nadler: It is our understanding that at least one briefing occurred between your decision not to recuse yourself on December 19 and six days later, Christmas Day. Is that correct? Simple enough question, yes or no?
Whitaker: Mr. Chairman, again, what is the basis for your question? You're saying that it is your--
Nadler: Sir, I'm asking the questions. I only have five minutes, so please answer, yes or no.
Whitaker: No, Mr. Chairman. I'm going to-- you were asking me a question, it is your understanding-- can you tell me where you get the basis?
Nadler: No, I'm not going to tell you that. I'm don't have time to get into that. I'm just asking you if that's correct or not. Is it correct? Were you briefed in that time period between December 19 and Christmas Day? Simple question, yes or no?
Whitaker: Congressman, if every member here today asked questions based on their mere speculation--
Nadler: All right, never mind. At any point--
Whitaker: You don't have an an actual basis for your questions.
Nadler: Yes or no.
Narrator Chace: Whitaker plods slowly through every answer, taking time to pull his tiny glasses on and off his face and regularly declining to answer. Congressman, thank you for that question. Congressman, I know this is an important issue to you. And then even when he does answer, the answers are swaddled in weird, half non-answers.
Whitaker: Mr. Chairman, as I said earlier today in my opening remarks, I do not intend today to talk about my private conversations with the President of the United States. But to answer your question, I have not talked to the President of the United States about the special counsel's investigation.
Nadler: So the answer is no, thank you. To any other White House official?
Chace: The effect of this is that it's really hard to tell what really went on while Whitaker was AG, which part matters, and importantly, who's being unreasonable-- Democrats for yelling yes or no at him, or Whittaker for being obstinate? Does he know stuff and he's hiding it? Does he not know stuff, and they're berating him? I truly cannot tell.
In that exchange and the entire hearing, Nadler, the democrats and democracy clearly lost. It wasn't mixed results as Chace called it. It was a total win for Trump, Whitaker the republican party and populist authoritarianism. The American people and democracy got nothing much out of Whitaker or the hearing except a major self-inflicted wound (assuming the American people are at least partly responsible for this mess, and maybe they are).
Chase goes on to point out that the only way democrats could even make their points so that the American people could understand why there was any hearing at all was to use their precious time to describe what it was that Whitaker did and thus why they wanted him to answer their questions.
Democracy vs authoritarian kleptocracy: This is how federal governance is going to play out for the foreseeable future. The hyper-partisanship raises the question of whether democracy can survive or whether some form of corrupt Trump-populist authoritarianism will slowly engulf and destroy democracy. Given how this hearing played out, one can see the advantage that relentless authoritarianism, aided by tactics such as obstructionism, plausible deniability, doubt and dark free speech, including lies of omission (deflecting questions), has in view of weak, seemingly ineffective defenses of democracy. Time will tell how this war plays out. With any luck, the defenses will turn out to be stronger than they appear from this debacle.
B&B orig: 3/4/19
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