Russia is ultimately at the heart of the impeachment
hearings winding their way through the House of Representatives. This was
previewed by Special Counsel Robert Mueller in his report: "Over the
course of my career, I have seen a number of challenges to our democracy, the
Russian government's interference in our election is among the most serious."
This reality, plus a warning about the false counter narrative the president
and the Republicans are pushing, was reinforced by Russia expert Fiona Hill
during her testimony to the Intelligence Committee: "Some … believe that
Russia … did not conduct a campaign against our country … and that Ukraine did …
This is a fictional narrative … perpetuated … by the Russian security services …
"
As we move from the two Articles of Impeachment (Abuse of
Power and Obstruction of Congress) to the trial in the Senate, all eyes should
be on "Moscow Mitch" to watch how he handles the impeachment trial.
The Senate Majority Leader has extraordinary powers to control what happens on
the floor of the Senate. For example, to date, the House has passed more than
400 bills and sent them to the Senate for action. McConnell has blocked all of
these bills from coming to the floor of the Senate for debate and votes. These
include bills requiring backup paper ballots; Facebook, Google, and other tech
companies disclosing buyers of political ads; imposing penalties on any entity
that attacks a U.S. election; and requiring presidential campaigns to report
any offers of assistance from agents of foreign governments.
It was not just blocking the election security bills that
earned McConnell his nickname. When President Obama went to him in 2016 for a
bipartisan statement to the nation about Russian interference in our election, McConnell
declined. In the process he said he would label any such statement by the Obama
administration a partisan (electoral) act. Then, there is the formerly sanctioned
Russian firm making a $200 million investment in a Kentucky aluminum mill. The
project could only go forward if sanctions were lifted. Moscow Mitch and two of
his former staffers were instrumental in those sanctions being lifted.