Questions tagged [united-states]
Questions relating to the government or the politics of the United States of America
4,220
questions
6
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What was the point of the Smear Campaign on Yovanovitch?
In order to remove Yovanovitch from her post as ambassador to Ukraine, Trump had his lawyers (aka Giuliani) bash her first. (Quote from NPR: "Giuliani, Trump's personal lawyer, and his associates had ...
8
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1answer
196 views
Are there more examples of self-contradictory messages from Trump when he (allegedly) asks for something iffy?
With respect to Trump telling Sondland "I want nothing" (which was used/repeated as a defense by other Trump allies), an opinion piece in the Washington Post claims that this might be a Trump pattern ...
15
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4answers
1k views
Why is Hunter Biden’s position in Burisma not considered a problem?
While I believe the current admin’s attempt to initiate an investigation into the Bidens’ Ukraine dealings was nothing but a political maneuver, what I’m more interested in is why most don’t consider ...
7
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1answer
328 views
What is the lowest percentage of the popular vote that a President has been elected on?
Obviously the US presidential election is not won by popular vote, but by votes in the electoral college. This means that, as in the 2016 election, the defeated candidate can obtain a larger total ...
-1
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2answers
529 views
Can Adam Schiff refuse to testify because of a conflict of interest?
In the upcoming Senate "trial" of Donald Trump, can Adam Schiff reject a subpoena to appear because he presided over the House proceedings? I find it unusual that someone could both officiate in and ...
14
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1answer
2k views
Did the US embassy in Kyiv resist hanging Trump's picture while Yovanovitch was ambassador?
Trump charges that was the case. As the BBC reported yesterday:
President Donald Trump has pilloried an envoy who testified in the impeachment inquiry, claiming she refused to hang his photo in the ...
8
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2answers
389 views
Can the President refuse a subpoena from a Congressional impeachment hearing?
Many Trump supporters remain unconvinced by the testimony that has been given during the impeachment inquiry, and say they want to hear what the President has to say in a formal context (as opposed to ...
12
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3answers
904 views
Has the supreme court ever been asked to hear a case directly involving the president who appointed at least one of the Justices?
At least one of the lawsuits against Trump appear to be headed to a supreme court which includes his appointees. Has anything like this historically occurred, perhaps in a lower court? If so, Did ...
15
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2answers
360 views
Do countries other than the US have politically appointed ambassadors?
I read this question about US ambassadors being appointed without any formal career in the field but because of donations for a campaign.
Apparently in the US there are more or less two ways to be ...
19
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3answers
3k views
Was Nixon right, and if so, to what degree was he right, when he said that “… but when the president does it, that means that it is not illegal.”?
In the comments of this question, I came across this quote from Nixon:
but when the president does it, that means that it is not illegal
My common sense is telling me that logically, there must ...
6
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2answers
1k views
Can the US Senate's Hong Kong bill be treated as foreign interference?
Recently, the US Senate passed a bill about the situation in Hong Kong.
Some core points from the bill:
impose sanctions on Chinese officials
review the special autonomous status it grants Hong ...
3
votes
1answer
198 views
How long does it take for the IRS to finish an audit?
Trump's tax returns have been in the media ever since 2016. He said then that he could not release his tax returns because they were under audit. Three years later, they are apparently still under ...
4
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4answers
458 views
In the Trump impeachment hearings, why are so many witnesses heard?
(As it may be relevant as context, I'm German living in Germany, and I am not associated with one of the parties in the US. I tend to agree more with the Democrats)
In the impeachment hearings for ...
11
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2answers
323 views
Is a presidential tweet an official order or military command?
Today the account @realDonaldTrump tweeted :
"The Navy will NOT be taking away Warfighter and Navy Seal Eddie
Gallagher’s Trident Pin. This case was handled very badly from the
beginning. Get ...
2
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2answers
199 views
HoR witnesses told to report to the lawyers. Why?
Several times now witnesses before the House Select Committee were either told by their superiors or self-reported to NSC laywers. Why and what were the lawyers expected to do?
I may have missed ...
33
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5answers
6k views
Why, in the US, are politicians tried by other politicians?
If I understand correctly, in the United States, charges are currently being brought against President Trump on the suspicion of enlisting the assistance of foreign governments with re-election, in a ...
21
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2answers
5k views
Why are Trump's handwritten notes being focused on in the news?
The news articles appear to focus strongly on those notes that say "I WANT NO QUID PRO QUO" and the like. I appear to be missing the relevance of this, since the news seems to be focusing on the fact ...
9
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2answers
300 views
Have Congressional Democrats asked the DOJ to justify not investigating Trump over Ukraine?
In June 2016, when then-FBI Director James Comey announced his decision not to recommend charges against Hillary Clinton over her use of a private email server, Congressional Republicans criticized ...
5
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1answer
201 views
Have any Democrats embraced any new policies or compromises in an attempt to appeal to conservatives that are unhappy with Trump?
When Trump was nominated as the presidential candidate in 2016, there was a major shift in the Republican party away from classically-liberal small-government party towards a more populist, nativist ...
14
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6answers
3k views
What arguments have been made for not impeaching Trump?
Are there any arguments for Trump not getting impeached, besides the argument that Ukraine actually did not do anything so the quid pro quo never happened?
EDIT: To be clear, I'm not asking for an ...
6
votes
2answers
402 views
Why do American jurisdictions generally prohibit ex post facto laws as opposed to European countries which apply lex mitior (“the milder law”)?
According to Wikipedia article related to Ex post facto law:
While American jurisdictions generally prohibit ex post facto laws, European countries apply the principle of lex mitior ("the milder law")...
3
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1answer
65 views
How can one view the changes made by amendments to bills in Congress?
In this particular case, I am interested in bill S.1838 in the 116th Congress. There is an amendment to this bill called S.Amdt.1246 to S.1838. However, I can't find any information about what changed....
28
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6answers
9k views
Can Vice President Pence be impeached before President Trump?
As I understand, the current vice president Mike Pence is next in line for the presidency should president Trump be removed from office. However, there's some links between Mike Pence and the ...
2
votes
1answer
293 views
Have Senate Republicans called any witnesses that Devin Nunes wanted to testify?
On November 6, Republicans on the House Intelligence Committee led by Congressman Devin Nunes sent a letter to House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff containing a list of witnesses they ...
47
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5answers
7k views
Why is it ethical for Ambassador Sondland to have been given an ambassadorship for campaign contributions?
Ambassador Sondland donated 1 million dollars to Trumps inauguration, and then was appointed to a high profile ambassadorship. He never worked in the government previously, has no credentials, no ...
4
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1answer
228 views
Who is the person deposed on Saturday and “in charge” of the foreign aid, according to Nunes?
In the public hearing of Sondland today, Nunes repeatedly referred to a private deposition (apparently on Saturday) of a person whose name he did not disclose but who is apparently very important ...
4
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1answer
265 views
Did Stephen Miller ever publicly discuss his support for antisemitic organizations?
Recently leaked emails show that Stephen Miller systematically supports and cooperates with groups on the extreme right which promote antisemitism.
Did he ever publicly discuss this cooperation with ...
15
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7answers
5k views
How could hearsay be better evidence than direct?
In this video, Democratic Rep. Mike Quigley can be heard saying "hearsay can be much better evidence than direct", in reference to the Democrats' impeachment inquiry of President Donald Trump. The ...
0
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2answers
238 views
Is there a timeline of the impeachment proceedings against President Trump?
As one would expect, impeachment proceedings pretty much monopolize the media and occupy congress's time. Is there an end in sight to the investigations into President Trump? Whether he leaves or ...
22
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4answers
7k views
Are members of the military allowed to wear civilian clothes when testifying in Congress?
The question is sparked by the attention that media has to military personnel wearing dress uniform when testifying in front of a US Congress committee, calling it "pulling the soldier card" in regard ...
8
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2answers
2k views
Is there a reason to have 2 or more witnesses at the same time during the current impeachment hearings
Is there a reason to have 2 or more witnesses at the same time during the current impeachment hearings ?
For example, in today's morning session (November 19 2019) There are 2 witnesses, Lieutenant ...
7
votes
2answers
252 views
Is door-to-door canvassing common in America?
In the UK, most people can expect to be canvassed at home, in the form of party volunteers knocking on their door and trying to have a conversation with them in order to persuade them to vote for ...
46
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8answers
12k views
Why is it so important who the whistleblower in the Trump-Zelensky phone call is?
As far as I can tell, the anonymous whistleblower report filed by an intelligence officer about President Trump’s interactions with the leader of Ukraine is what got the whole Trump impeachment ...
9
votes
1answer
209 views
What are the implications of the shift of the US position on the legality of Israeli settlements in the West Bank?
The Secretary of State has just announced that the US no longer views the settlements as a breach of international law.
What are the international implications of this decision? Is this a hot topic ...
52
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10answers
14k views
Seen from Europe, why is there a hard separation between Republicans and Democrats in the US?
I live in Germany, and it seems completely strange to see a stable separation between Republicans and Democrats, and even somewhat near half of the votes for each.
I see that the number of two ...
14
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1answer
3k views
Is there a preferred time in their presidency when US presidents pardon the most people?
According to a tally by Thoughco Trump seems to be in the last place as far as pardons issued, compared to all presidents since 1900. But are these stats misleading given that Trump's presidency is ...
2
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1answer
161 views
What percentage approval rating does Trump have among self-described liberals?
I have heard that Trump has an overall approval rating of 42% nationwide based on unbiased polls. I consider this number accurate because it uses many polls to get this number. However, I heard that ...
2
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2answers
118 views
Is there a political angle to Trump's pardon of Rodney Takumi?
It seems a really obscure 1987 case for a presidential pardon:
Two years of probation and fined $250 Working at an illegal gambling parlor
Is there a political angle to this pardon?
4
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1answer
596 views
Can the fact that Trump issued a Do Not Testify be used in impeachment articles? [duplicate]
Can Congress create an article of impeachment for obstruction of justice because President Trump told his people not to come when subpoenaed?
This is different than other questions because I am ...
3
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1answer
256 views
Does Trump's no-testimony directive cover the putative Senate trial as well?
Trump has issued a directive see page 2 that has been used as a reason by some of his (present and former) officials to not testify in the impeachment hearings so far, including Bolton and Mulvaney. ...
1
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1answer
127 views
What is the “drug deal” Ambassador Bolton refers to?
During the course of Trumpeachment hearings, Fiona Hill, Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for European and Russian Affairs, has testified that John Bolton, then National Security ...
asked Nov 17 '19 at 0:48
bytebuster for Long Usernames
8,4026 gold badges25 silver badges70 bronze badges
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0answers
23 views
Are there any statistics on union endorsements for presidential candidates?
LA Times mentioned a few, seemingly mostly for Sanders by the big-membership numbers
On Thursday, United Teachers Los Angeles, the second-largest teacher’s union in the U.S., with roughly 34,000 ...
2
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1answer
97 views
How (un)common is for former US presidents not to endorse any presidential candidate explicitly?
Insofar Obama has steered clear of explicitly endorsing anyone in particular, although his most recent comments have been interpreted as a rebuke of Sanders and Warren.
I wonder: are the any ...
4
votes
1answer
164 views
Which scientific studies are supporting political claim that ethnic diversity is a strength?
Barack Obama:
America’s diversity is our strength. Our immigration system is broken, but we can’t undermine fundamental principles that define us as a nation in order to fix it. We have to stay ...
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2answers
198 views
Why does Mexico support Maduro?
In this article, it says that Russia, China, and Cuba support Maduro, the de facto president of Venezuela that the US and legitimate allies are saying is not the real one. I can somewhat understand ...
10
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7answers
952 views
If Biden weren't a 2020 candidate, would a quid pro quo to investigate corruption be impeachable?
The US government uses quid pro quos (QPQs) regularly to enforce its political will on entities it does business with: hostage negotiating, pushing of ideals, conflict resolution, etc, etc, ad ...
5
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3answers
276 views
Did the Obama administration make any statements on lethal aid for Ukraine?
In today's impeachment hearing, Republicans mentioned a number of times that the Obama administration did not provide lethal aid to Ukraine, even though officials (at least today's witness Ambassador ...
asked Nov 16 '19 at 0:43
JJ for Transparency and Monica
21.8k5 gold badges65 silver badges110 bronze badges
4
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1answer
139 views
How is the April Trump-Zelenskiy call related to the July call?
Today before the hearing (and read out loud by Nunes during the hearing), the Trump administration released notes about an April call between Trump and Zelenskiy
The April call is pretty mundane and ...
3
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1answer
109 views
Why can the Legislative Branch delegate its confirmation authority of inferior officers, but not its impeachment authority of said officers?
Background
In the United States, all "Inferior officers" must be confirmed by the Senate, unless the confiring authority is delegated as per Article 2 Section 2 Clause 2 of the constitution:
and ...
6
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1answer
267 views
What are the negative consequences of returning to the practice of assigning the Vice Presidency to the Presidential Runner up?
From my understanding, the practice was eliminated due to partisanship sometime in the early 1800s. It seems like an excellent way to increase bipartisanship as we are in a more informed and civilized ...
