Bear with me here. Today Bill Taylor’s statement made it clear that he was in fact very concerned there was no quid pro quo.
After the call with Ambassador Sondland on September, I expressed my strong reservations in a text message to Ambassador Sondland, stating that my nightmare is they the Ukrainians give the interview and don't get the security assistance. The Russians love it. (And I quit.).” I was serious.
Trump was extorting Ukraine. Trump was shaking down Zelinski. Demanding the dirt on Biden. Demanding phony investigations. Demanding public statements from Zelinski. Extorting a country at war by holding up aid ostensibly until his demands were met.
But, Bill Taylor did not believe Trump was ever going to provide the security assistance. Trump, he realizes is doing Putin’s bidding and Putin wants Ukraine squashed. Trump had no intention of ever releasing the money. That’s why Trump wanted the public statement.
Trump’s plan was to shakedown Ukraine and then renege on the deal. He would succeed in both feathering his political plans and screwing his benefactor’s adversary. And, lots of Ukrainians would die.
Quid pro quo means something for something. This was no quid, only quo. Nothing for something. No quid pro quo.
That is why Bill Taylor was so animated. He cares deeply about Ukraine and what it means to US national security. He writes:
First, if Ukraine succeeds in breaking free of Russian influence, it is possible for Europe to be whole, free, democratic, and at peace. In contrast, if Russia dominates Ukraine, Russia will again become an empire, oppressing its people, and threatening its neighbors and the rest of the world .
Donald Trump intends to hand Ukraine over to Russia with disastrous consequences for the US and the free world. That is what is at stake here. That is why Trump must be removed from office.