Extortion: the act of obtaining from a person by force, intimidation, or undue or illegal power
By Glen Reaux
Quid pro quo is Latin for “something for something.” As used in the American lexicon, it means “a favor or advantage granted or expected in return for something” which on its own is not an illegal act. Quid pro quos happen all day, every day in all aspects of life including personal, business, love, religion, family and government. But, according to President Trump who is now battling for the very survival of his presidency and possibly his freedom, the Ukrainian scandal that he is now being investigated for did not involve a quid pro quo. But, the memorandum released by him of the telephone call between him and Ukrainian President Zelenskyy is undisputable proof that a quid pro quo did happen. The quid pro quo consisted of President Trump asking for a favor from the Ukrainian president in exchange for military aid that had already been approved by Congress which Trump had placed a hold on. The aid approved by Congress was for the military defense of Ukraine against an invading foreign power (Russia) that threatens its very existence. It was illegal for Trump to make funding of the aid contingent upon President Zelenskyy agreeing to his demands. This action on the part of Trump is an act of extortion and an act of bribery which is a stated impeachable offense in the constitution. To put it simply, let there be no misunderstanding, in this “Impeachment Inquiry: Quid Pro Quo Means Extortion and Bribery” at the very least. And, the statement by Trump and his Republican minions that no quid pro quo occurred is an attempt to confuse the American people and make it seem that nothing illegal occurred. What Trump did was not a simple quid pro quo. He committed the crimes of extortion and bribery which were facilitated by a nearly year-long conspiracy involving many high-level officials in his administration which included the Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, Secretary of Energy Rick Perry, Vice President Mike Pence, Trump’s personal attorney, Rudy Giuliani and many others.
According to U.S. Law; 18 USC § 3559(c)(2), the term “extortion” means an offense that has as its elements the extraction of anything of value from another person by threatening or placing that person in fear of injury to any person or kidnapping of any person. President Trump wanted President Zelenskyy to create dirt on Joe Biden, his political opponent and the president’s biggest threat to re-election in 2020. There is no doubt that is a thing of value. Ukraine has been at war with Russia since 2014 when Russia invaded and took the Ukrainian state of Crimea. Trump’s hold on military aid to Ukraine has placed the country at further risk from Russia and is a threat to the existence of the entire nation.
United States law also prohibits and offers severe punishment for government officials that commit extortion. U.S. Code § 872. Extortion by officers or employees of the United States:
Whoever, being an officer, or employee of the United States or any department or agency thereof, or representing himself to be or assuming to act as such, under color or pretense of office or employment commits or attempts an act of extortion, shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than three years, or both; but if the amount so extorted or demanded does not exceed $1,000, he shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than one year, or both.
Bribery is also an impeachable offense in the constitution. Article II, Section 4 provides:
The President, Vice President and all civil Officers of the United States, shall be removed from Office on Impeachment for, and Conviction of, Treason, Bribery, or other high Crimes and Misdemeanors.
“Bribery{1} refers to the offering, giving, soliciting, or receiving of any item of value as a means of influencing the actions of an individual holding a public or legal duty. This type of action results in matters that should be handled objectively being handled in a manner best suiting the private interests of the decision maker. Bribery constitutes a crime and both the offer or and the recipient can be criminally charged. Proof of bribery requires demonstrating a “quid pro quo” relationship in which the recipient directly alters behavior in exchange for the gift.”
Currently, Donald Trump is denying that a quid pro quo ever took place. But, proof of the event has been provided in congressional testimony by at least three administration officials including Trump appointed, Ambassador to the European Union Gordon Sondland. The quid pro quo has also been confirmed by the president’s Chief of Staff, Mick Mulvaney who not only admitted it to reporters, he told reporters to “get over it!”
While there is adequate evidence that Trump committed both extortion and bribery, whether or not he is eventually convicted in the Senate, it should depend on the evidence. However, despite the evidence, Republicans have not only launched a campaign to exonerate the president and obstruct the process, Senator Lindsey Graham has stated that he will not even consider reading the evidence. Republican lawmakers have decided that they are going to ignore their oaths of office, become complicit in Trump’s criminal behavior, place party over country and do everything within their power to protect the president from constitutional due process which mandates impeachment and place him above the law.
The strategy of the Democrats in Congress is to simplify the case so that the American people are not overwhelmed by the evidence or the propaganda campaign of Republicans as they were with the Mueller Investigation. In doing so, Democrats are providing public hearings. Also, it appears that they will limit their case to the crimes of bribery and obstruction of Congress of which the President has admitted openly to the crime of bribery although he continues to claim that he has done nothing wrong. But, there is plenty of evidence provided by Donald Trump himself to support cases for other crimes as well.
While it is common knowledge that Trump was aided in the 2016 election by the Russians and that he actively and openly called for election interference from the Russians, he was never prosecuted for these illegal acts due to a justice department rule prohibiting the prosecution of a sitting president. This rule is not found anywhere in the constitution nor has a precedent for this been found anywhere else in U. S. law. The solicitation of aid or acceptance of aid from a foreign power or national is expressly prohibited by campaign finance law. Shortly after Trump’s Ukraine scandal broke news, in defense of his actions, Trump asked China to interfere in the 2020 elections. On October 8, 2019, China declined to interfere in our elections. This totals three occasions where Trump has broken federal law which is proof of high crimes or misdemeanors and are impeachable offenses.
Below is the applicable U.S. campaign finance law statute.
- 30121. Contributions and donations by foreign nationals
(a) Prohibition
It shall be unlawful for-
(1) a foreign national, directly or indirectly, to make-
(A) a contribution or donation of money or other thing of value, or to make an express or implied promise to make a contribution or donation, in connection with a Federal, State, or local election;
(B) a contribution or donation to a committee of a political party; or
(C) an expenditure, independent expenditure, or disbursement for an electioneering communication (within the meaning of section 30104(f)(3) of this title); or
(2) a person to solicit, accept, or receive a contribution or donation described in subparagraph (A) or (B) of paragraph (1) from a foreign national.
(b) “Foreign national” defined
As used in this section, the term “foreign national” means-
(1) a foreign principal, as such term is defined by section 611(b) of title 22, except that the term “foreign national” shall not include any individual who is a citizen of the United States; or
(2) an individual who is not a citizen of the United States or a national of the United States (as defined in section 1101(a)(22) of title 8) and who is not lawfully admitted for permanent residence, as defined by section 1101(a)(20) of title 8.
Trump’s criminal activities don’t stop with bribery, extortion or campaign finance law violations. By withholding funds appropriated by Congress for Ukraine, Trump violated the Congressional Budget Impoundment Act of 1974. This law does not give the president the right to refuse to disburse funds appropriated by Congress without giving Congress written notice which Trump never gave. So, Trump’s claim that he withheld funds from Ukraine due to possible corruption is a lie because he has no such authority. Trump also claims that there was no wrongdoing because the Ukrainians did not know of the hold on the funds. Although the funds were finally released, it would not have happened without a great deal of pressure from Democrats in Congress. Impeachment inquiry testimony by at least two Trump officials has proven that the Ukrainians knew that the funds were being withheld and why. Also, Trump did not release Ukrainian aid until September after Congress pressured Chief of Staff Mick Mulvaney in a letter which stated:
“U.S.-funded security assistance has already helped turn the tide in this conflict, and it is necessary to ensure the protection of the sovereign territory of this young country, going forward,”
Trump has also violated the Whistleblower Protection Act of 1989. The act guarantees anonymity for federal employees who witness corruption, violations of laws, policies or other possible wrongdoings. The law protects the identity of the whistleblower while protecting the employee from retaliation. However, Trump, Lindsey Graham and a host of Republican lawmakers including Rand Paul have called for the release of the whistleblower’s name in violation of federal law. This action would be putting the whistleblower’s life in danger. This past weekend, Trump’s son, Don Jr. tweeted the name of a person suspected of being the whistleblower. The strategy behind the attacks on the whistleblower by Trump and the Republicans is to cast doubt on the credibility of the whistleblower. Since the start of the impeachment inquiry which was prompted by Trump’s open confession to acts described by the whistleblower, testimony by Trump administration officials including several Trump appointees has corroborated every aspect of the whistleblower’s complaint.
The evidence for the impeachment of Donald Trump has been laid out for the public to read in the form of congressional testimony transcripts by members of Trump’s own administration. The House of Representatives still have to complete their investigation and hold a vote on impeachment. Our constitution and our democracy are based upon a system of laws that all men must adhere to, even the president. To assure that “no man is above the law,” the founding fathers, through the constitution provided impeachment as a political solution to removing a sitting president from office, especially for bribery which is the crime that Donald Trump has committed. Trump believes that he is not bound by the constitution. His Republican cronies are either too afraid of Trump to protect our democracy from him, have placed the Republican Party agenda over the country or they are a party to corruption that they have decided is more beneficial to them than their oaths of office. This is in direct contradiction to their obligation to provide their constituents with the constitutional guarantees of equal protection under the law, freedom from tyranny and free and open elections which Donald Trump openly opposes.
Instead of doing their duty, one of the Republican strategies is to convince you that Donald Trump did not do anything wrong. This premise is based upon a belief that you can be convinced that Trump did not have “corrupt intent” in his actions. However, it is a long-standing legal precedent that a lack of criminal or corrupt intent is not needed for one to be guilty or convicted of a crime. There is one simple concept that every law school student learns in his first week of study: “Ignorance of the law is no excuse.” And yes, it also applies to presidents.
During the 2016 election, former Secretary of State Hilary Clinton referred to Trump supporters as a basket of deplorables. Surely, what Republican lawmakers are doing in their support of Trump can be described as nothing less. And, if you are personally supporting Trump because of reasons tied to personal gain or benefit as opposed to judging his actions based upon the evidence, you are proving Secretary Clinton to be right. But beware, if Trump places himself above the constitution, rest assured that you mean nothing to him. Remember, this impeachment inquiry is not about a quid pro quo. It is about the felony criminal acts of extortion, bribery and obstruction of Congress. Unless you stand up to Trump’s criminality and the complicity of Republicans in Congress, your personal gains that you have credited to Trump will be fleeting and far worse things are in the future for this country and everything and everyone that you hold dear.
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