Mulvaney Helped Trump Extort Ukraine. Why Did CBS Hire Him?

I wrote Monday that I was tired of trashy behavior from America’s public figures. 

That goes double for unconscionable support for treasonous crooks and corrupt liars in high places. I’ve had it with businesses who back those who have tried to destroy this country. 

Right now, I’m looking at CBS News 

Maybe CBS wants a piece of the Fox “News”/Newsmax/Alex Jones/Bannon pie. Other than hankering after a few of the brainwashed true believing followers of these outlets I can see no reason for the networks’ recent employment of Mick Mulvaney to “comment” on current events. I just don’t think that tenure as Trump’s point man and overall stooge in what was a world-class attempt at extortion is a fitting curriculum vitae for any responsible job. 

Mulvaney was one of Trump’s Chiefs of Staff and he also headed up the Budget Office under Trump. He is infamous for the part he played in Trump’s attempt to extort the government of Ukraine into smearing Biden. Trump subsequently withheld military funding that had been authorized by Congress from Ukraine as part of his extortion attempt.

Mulvaney went on national tv and acknowledged that Trump had tried to coerce President Zelenskyy to participate an illegal quid quo pro of making up “evidence” to smear Biden in exchange for Trump releasing the military support which Congress had already voted to give to Ukraine. Mulvaney justified this action by telling the American public that this is the way things are done. 

Trump was subsequently impeached by the House for this blatant abuse of power. The Republican Senate refused to even allow witnesses in their “trial” of Trump. Every single Republican senator except Mitch Romney voted in support of Trump’s use of tax payer money to attempt to extort a foreign government to help him smear his potential political opponent so he could win election. 

Lt Colonel Alexander Vindman testified under oath during the House impeachment hearings that Mulvaney “coordinated the plan” to extort President Zelenskyy for Trump. Lt Colonel Vindman and his brother were both subsequently fired from their positions and force-marched out of their offices. Lt Col Vindman was forced to resign his commission and leave the military due to harassment that was said to be orchestrated by the Trump White House. This abuse of Vindman for testifying against him was yet another abuse of power by Trump. 

Mulvaney went on national tv and justified Trump’s illegal abuse of power by saying that Ukraine and presumably President Zelenskyy were “corrupt.” He added that they had refused to aid Puerto Rico after the hurricane that ravaged the island because Puerto Rico was “corrupt” too. 

This refusal to aid Puerto Rico resulted in the documented deaths of American citizens at Trump’s hand. Trump, predictably, tried to lie his way out of responsibility for these deaths. I think that his refusal of military aid and behavior, both toward Ukraine and NATO, were lead ups to the invasion and war that has killed and is killing so many people in Ukraine. 

Looking back, it’s almost comical for men like Trump and Mulvaney to be slandering a man like Zelenskyy. Trump took a wrecking ball to the greatest democracy in the history of the world and tried to end it by staging a coup and making himself a dictator. Both he and Mulvaney tried to use military aid that was paid for with our money — yours and mine — to extort Volodymyr Zelenskyy, a man who is willing to die rather than abandon his country. 

It’s a preposterous spectacle for a lowlife like Mulvaney to stand up and call someone of the caliber of Zelenskyy “corrupt.”  

This attempt by Trump to use American taxpayer money to coerce a foreign government to help him in his campaign was both illegal and immoral. It’s just one of the many abuses of power and corruption that he engaged in. 

Mulvaney was evidently just as corrupt and immoral as Trump. 

So why is CBS putting him on air to spread more of his trashy, immoral, dishonesty? Do they have any standards at all about who they hire? 

As I said, I’m tired of the trashy behavior from prominent people in this country. I’m tired of preachers, priests and bishops who don’t care about morality. I’m tired of politicians who perform for their media and lie and do absolutely nothing useful for America and Americans. I’m tired of “news” networks spewing out propaganda, including, as a few of them are doing, acting as mouthpieces for Putin. 

Now we’re faced with the network that gave us Cronkite forcing us to watch the mewlings of a man who made his bones by being Trump’s boy in the most sordid and destructive administration in American history. Donald Trump and his Republican minions almost ended American democracy, and their coup attempt has not ended. 

Never before in the history of this country has an American president refused to step down when he lost an election. Trump tired to sieze our government, and the Republicans in Congress lined up to help him. 

Mulvaney was Trump’s boy. He helped Trump use military aid to Ukraine that was voted on by Congress and paid for with money that belongs to We the People to extort President Zelenskyy into illegally helping him smear Joe Biden because Trump was afraid to run against Biden in an open and fair election. 

Trump was evidently right in his assessment of the morals and character of Mick Mulvaney. But he erred seriously when it came to Zelenskyy. President Zelenskyy refused to be extorted, even though the military aid was desperately needed. 

This is the same Zelenskyy who has stayed and fought when his country was invaded instead of running. 

Character matters folks. It especially matters in a leader.

Mulvaney participated in the great race to the bottom that has turned the Republican Party into a seditionist nut bin. His work in the White House in service to Trump — as opposed to work in service to the people of the United States of America — damaged our country, weakened Ukraine and contributed to the situation that led to the bloodshed taking place in that country right now.

Why has CBS News decided to make a man of Mulvaney’s character, or lack thereof, part of their public face? I can not think of a single good reason.