Republican lawmaker 'destroyed' latest impeachment inquiry witness argument: McCarthy

House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., on Tuesday said a fellow Republican lawmaker deconstructed a key part of the latest Trump impeachment inquiry witness testimony in Tuesday's closed-door session.
"In 90 seconds, we had John Ratcliffe destroy Taylor's whole argument," McCarthy said.
The questioning by Ratcliffe, a Texas Republican and member of both the House Intelligence and Judiciary Committees, was an important moment in the hearing, McCarthy claimed.
"We can't really talk about it," he said.
Ratcliffe appeared on Fox News after the testimony and said there were new details brought to light, but said nothing "worthy of impeachment."
McCarthy added House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff, D-Calif., is not allowing lawmakers to speak too specifically about the proceedings, in an interview Tuesday on "The Ingraham Angle."
"Adam Schiff won't let us talk about what happened," he said regarding U.S. diplomat to Ukraine Bill Taylor's closed-door hearing on Capitol Hill. "There is no quid pro quo."
The California lawmaker also claimed the impeachment inquiry process continues to be based largely on testimony from those without first-hand knowledge of the Trump-Ukraine situation.
"The one thing that you find out in this process is all this information is just like that whistleblower... everything is second-, third-, and fourth-hand information," he said.
He criticized Schiff for how he is conducting the proceedings, claiming the relevant Republican lawmakers are unable to view information from the hearings unless they are accompanied by the chairman's staff members.
"What they are doing [is] they are changing every rule we ever had," he said.

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Report: Hunter Biden, business partner profited off his position at oil company

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A new report has alleged that Hunter Biden received tens of thousands of dollars over a year and a half period from Ukrainian energy company Burisma Holdings. Biden reportedly used his position at the company to defer $3.4 million to a company run by his business associate Devon Archer.
Between April 2014 and November 2015, Biden and Archer were each paid $83,000 monthly for “consulting services” between the two firms. The report went on to claim Burisma’s founder hired Biden to protect the company from persecution.
This comes after a former State Department official told Congress this week he raised concerns about Biden’s business dealings in the past. George Kent said he warned White House officials in 2015 about how Hunter Biden’s position could look like a conflict of interest. Vice President Joe Biden was overseeing cancer treatments for his son Beau at the time and Kent’s warning fell by the wayside.
President Trump responded to Kent’s testimony on Friday.
“They brought (Kent) him in as a witness against me…and he excoriated, from what they reported on the news,” said the president. “He excoriated the Obama administration…, saying that has tremendous problems with Joe Biden’s son and the Ukraine.”
Hunter Biden has since admitted that his decision to be a part of Burisma while his father was in office was “poor judgement.” Going into the 2020 election season, both Bidens have sworn to avoid further business dealings and associations with foreign firms. They both deny allegations of any wrongdoing.

Tulsi Gabbard elevated in Iowa by Clinton spat

WEST BRANCH, Iowa (AP) — Hillary Clinton’s suggestion this past week that Hawaii Rep. Tulsi Gabbard is being “groomed” by Russians to act as a spoiler in the 2020 race may have had the opposite effect of what the 2016 Democratic presidential nominee intended: It’s elevated Gabbard’s candidacy and may have inspired even more ardent interest in her campaign among Clinton critics.

On Saturday, Gabbard found fans among the many Clinton skeptics across Iowa, where Clinton barely won the 2016 Democratic caucuses against Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders.

“What is this horrible thing that Hillary said about you?” one person asked Gabbard at a house party in West Branch.

Gabbard responded that “it revealed the truth that I have been experiencing for a long time now — which is that, because I have been trying to bring about an end to our country’s long-held foreign policy of waging one regime-change war after the next . I am labeled as a traitor.”

“This is a message that is being sent to every single American . who speaks out for peace,” she said.

Gabbard’s longshot campaign came under scrutiny this past week after Clinton appeared on a podcast where she did not mention the Hawaii congresswoman by name, but said she believes the Russians have “got their eye on somebody who’s currently in the Democratic primary and are grooming her to be the third party candidate.” There was no mistaking whom she meant.

Although Russian interest in Gabbard is apparent, Clinton produced no evidence that Moscow is grooming or directly backing the congresswoman.

Gabbard’s campaign has been promoted by Russian state-owned media and a number of alt-right websites and defended on Twitter by the Russian Embassy. She’s previously faced controversy and criticism from leaders in her party for her unorthodox foreign policy positions, like her decision to meet Syrian President Bashar Assad.

On Friday and Saturday, Gabbard refused to disavow the support she’s seen from Russian actors and alt-right sites. But she repeatedly said she will not run as an independent or third-party candidate if she doesn’t win the Democratic nomination.

And Gabbard encountered supporters across eastern Iowa on Saturday. During a campaign stop in Iowa City at a University of Iowa tailgate, a man came up to give Gabbard a ushanka-style yellow Hawkeye hat.

“It’s a Russian hat!” Gabbard said with a laugh, before hugging the man and taking a picture with him.

And at the West Branch house party, Gabbard found many Clinton critics who were supportive of her campaign.

Clinton’s comments were “divisive and despicable,” said Patricia McIntosh, 83, a semi-retired university employee who liked Gabbard’s “anti-regime-change message.” McIntosh said: “I have no respect for Hillary Clinton at all.”

Robert Rodriguez, a 35-year-old food delivery driver, drove from Minneapolis to see Gabbard speak. He, too, appreciated Gabbard’s anti-war stance and said Clinton had “sowed division in this primary” with her critique. He also noted Gabbard’s support from some alt-right websites

He asked: “You have people praising candidates for being able to reach across the aisle and garner support from the so-called other side, but Tulsi’s a problem because she has support from the other side? Isn’t that what we want?”

Both Rodriguez and McIntosh described themselves as longtime Gabbard fans and skeptics of the Democratic establishment, and both said they weren’t sure if they’d support the eventual nominee if neither Gabbard nor Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, another anti-establishment candidate for president, didn’t win.

But Gabbard also managed to win over some people who hadn’t been familiar with her campaign, like Jennifer Rogers, a 38-year-old nurse from North Liberty, Iowa, who liked that Gabbard was a military veteran.

“I really like that she answers questions,” she said. “She doesn’t just shout talking points and campaign slogans.” Rogers said she’s been on the fence but “today I’m pretty convinced that I think she’s going to be my candidate.”

Still, it’s unclear exactly what Gabbard hopes to achieve with her unorthodox campaign, as she’s struggled to raise money and hit the polling threshold to make it on the debate stage. She has yet to qualify for next month’s debate.

Gabbard has just three staff members on the ground in Iowa.

Asked whether she plans to add staff in any of the early states, Gabbard demurred.

She said she’s “continuing to use every platform possible to reach voters directly” when asked about her path to the nomination, and wouldn’t predict how she’d finish in Iowa. But she suggested that might not matter — even if she doesn’t have enough delegates to win, “we’re taking this all the way to the nomination.”

US troops leaving Syria will go to western Iraq, defense chief Esper says

All U.S. troops leaving Syria as part of the withdrawal plan recently announced by President Trump will be stationed in western Iraq, Defense Secretary Mark Esper said Saturday.
In addition, the U.S. military will continue its efforts to prevent a resurgence by Islamic State group (ISIS) terrorists, he said.
“Things could change between now and whenever we complete the withdrawal,” Esper told reporters while flying to the Middle East from Washington, according to the Associated Press, “but that’s the game plan right now.”

“Things could change between now and whenever we complete the withdrawal, but that’s the game plan right now.”
— Defense Secretary Mark Esper

The U.S. departure from Syria will take “weeks not days,” Esper said, and involve both aircraft and ground convoys as about 1,000 troops relocate, Reuters reported.
Esper’s comments were the first specific details on where American troops will go as they leave Syria, according to the AP. Fox News reported last week that President Trump said only that troops would be redeployed "in the region."
The 55-year-old Pentagon chief, who assumed the office permanently July 23 after serving as acting defense secretary for about three weeks following the departure of former Defense Secretary James Mattis, said he has spoken to his Iraqi counterpart about the plan to shift the more than 700 troops from Syria into western Iraq, the AP reported.
Esper, who previously served as Army secretary, did not rule out the possibility that U.S. forces relocated to Iraq could still conduct counterterrorism missions inside Syria. But he said those details will be worked out over time.
The U.S. defense chief was traveling as a fragile cease-fire, negotiated by the U.S. and Turkey, was underway in Syria – but according to Reuters some Turkish military vehicles crossed into Syria on Saturday, and Turkish officials claimed aboyt 14 “provocative attacks” had been launched from the Syrian side.
In Iraq, U.S. troops were heading to a country that has seen violent political protests in recent week, leading to more than 100 deaths, Reuters reported.
Trump ordered the withdrawal of most of the U.S. troops in Syria after Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said his forces were about to invade Syria to push back Kurdish fighters that Turkey views as terrorists.
Critics of the president say the plan amounts to an abandonment of the Kurds, who have helped the U.S. military combat ISIS, but Trump argued that the Kurds have not always been the pro-American allies their supporters claim them to be.
“They’re not angels, if you take a look,” Trump said Wednesday. “They did well when they fought with us. They didn’t do so well when they didn’t fight with us.”
Meanwhile, a group of House Democrats, accompanied by one Republican, traveled to Syria neighbor Jordan on Saturday, where they held talks with Jordan’s King Abdullah II and other Jordanian leaders about the Syria situation. Results from those talks were not immediately known early Sunday in the U.S.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Just one Republican in group of US lawmakers with Pelosi on trip to Jordan for Syria talks

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and other U.S. lawmakers announced late Saturday U.S. time that they had arrived in Jordan for meetings with King Abdullah II and other officials regarding the situation in Syria.
Although touted as a "bipartisan" delegation, the group includes just one Republican -- Rep. Mac Thornberry of Texas, ranking member of the House Armed Services Commitee. Thornberry is among a group of Texas Republicans who've announced they won't seek reelection in 2020.
REP. PAUL GOSAR: TRUMP WAS RIGHT TO WITHDRAW TROOPS FROM SYRIA -- WE SHOULD PROTECT US BORDERS INSTEAD
“Our bipartisan delegation is visiting Jordan at a critical time for the security and stability of the region,” Pelosi said in a statement.  “With the deepening crisis in Syria after Turkey’s incursion, our delegation has engaged in vital discussions about the impact to regional stability, increased flow of refugees, and the dangerous opening that has been provided to ISIS, Iran and Russia.”

Pelosi and other members of the U.S. delegation met with Abdullah, who has been king of Jordan since 1999, as well as Crown Prince Al Hussein bin Abdullah II, Prince Feisal bin Al Hussein, Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi and other senior Jordanian officials, according to Reuters.
Jordan is located directly south of Syria. The two nations share a border that is about 233 miles long.
The talks in Jordan come as both Turkey and the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) claim the other side is violating terms of a 120-hour cease-fire brokered by the U.S. and Turkey on Thursday.
Pelosi and Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., criticized the cease-fire deal as a "sham."
President Trump has also taken criticism from some Republicans for his recent decision to pull U.S. troops out of Syria. Critics from both parties contend that the move has left Syria's Kurds vulnerable to attacks by Turkish forces and increased the likelihood of an ISIS resurgence in the region.
But other lawmakers, such as Rep. Paul Gosar, R-Ariz., and Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., have defended the president's move.
In what was seen as a bid to temper some of the criticism, Trump earlier this month announced a pledge of $50 million in humanitarian aid to Syria.
Along with Pelosi, the other Democrats in the delegation are Rep. Eliot Engel, D-N.Y., chairman of the House Foreign Services Committee; Rep. Bennie Thompson, D-Miss., chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee; Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., chairman of the House Intelligence Committee; Rep. Ron Kind, D-Wis., member of the House Ways and Means Committee; Rep. Susan Davis, D-Calif., member of the House Armed Services Committee; Rep. Stephen Lynch, D-Mass., chairman of the House Oversight and Reform subcommittee on national security; and Rep. Elaine Luria, D-Va., member of the House Armed Services Committee.

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Seoul police up security after rally at US envoy residence ( Ungrateful bunch )

In this Friday, Oct. 18, 2019, photo, a detained college student shouts a slogan into a police bus in front of the U.S. ambassador's residence in Seoul, South Korea. South Korean police said Saturday, Oct. 19, they beefed up security at the U.S. ambassador's residence in Seoul after a group of anti-American students used ladders to break into the compound. The sign reads "Stop" (Chun Jin-hwan/Newsis via AP) 

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — South Korean police said Saturday they beefed up security at the U.S. ambassador’s residence in Seoul after a group of anti-American students used ladders to break into the compound.

They were protesting demands by the Trump administration that South Korea pay more to help cover the costs of keeping U.S. troops in the country.

Officials from three Seoul police stations didn’t immediately say whether they will seek to formally arrest any of the 19 university students who were detained Friday afternoon at the residence of Ambassador Harry Harris.

The Seoul Metropolitan Police agency said Saturday the number of officers guarding the residence was more than tripled to 110.

The demonstrators, who broadcast parts of their protest on Facebook, used two steel ladders to climb over the compound’s wall. They shouted anti-U.S. slogans and held up signs that read “The United States has called for a five-fold increase in defense costs!” and “Harris, leave this land!” before police officers dragged them out.

At the time of the protest, Harris was at Seoul’s presidential Blue House attending a reception for foreign ambassadors hosted by President Moon Jae-in.

Harris tweeted about the incident on Saturday, saying, “Big shout out to Embassy guards & Seoul Metro Police Agency for responding to protesters who breached perimeter around my residence. 2nd incident in 13 months in Heart of Seoul. This time they tried to forcibly enter my home itself. 19 arrested. Cats are OK. Thanks @polinlove!,” referring to the Twitter account of South Korea’s National Police Agency.

South Korean police in September last year detained a Chinese woman who had trespassed into the residence, but said she wasn’t making a political statement.

About a dozen leftist students rallied in front of Seoul’s Namdaemun district police station on Saturday calling for the immediate release of the “righteous” protesters.

“You may have the support of foreign powers, capitalists, police and the military, but we have the united voice of like-minded colleagues bound by loyalty!” shouted one of the students.

Another student said South Koreans would see the United States as “nothing but an invader” if it continues to “disrespect” the country with excessive demands on defense costs.

The U.S. State Department has expressed “strong concern” over the illegal entry and urged South Korea to strengthen its efforts to protect all diplomatic missions.

South Korea’s Foreign Ministry criticized the protest, saying in a statement that “any attack or harm inflicted on foreign diplomatic missions cannot be justified under any circumstances.” It said the government will take “every appropriate measure” to protect the facilities.

In a country deeply divided along political, ideological and generational lines, the United States is a source of anger for some leftist South Koreans.

Washington backed the South during the 1950-53 Korean War against the North and still stations about 28,500 troops here, but some anti-U.S. activists view the U.S. military presence as a major obstacle to their goal of an eventual reunification of the rival Koreas.

There was a major security scare in 2015, when a leftist activist slashed the face and arm of then-U.S. Ambassador Mark Lippert on a street in downtown Seoul to protest the annual U.S.-South Korea military drills. Lippert recovered from the injuries.

Friday’s protest came as Washington and Seoul prepare to begin negotiations over sharing the costs for the U.S. military presence. The countries struck a one-year deal in February where South Korea agreed to contribute about 1.04 trillion won ($880 million) for 2019, which represented an 8.2% increase from last year.

Seoul’s Foreign Ministry said Friday that the countries are scheduled to talk in Hawaii on Oct. 23-24 to negotiate a new deal and that Seoul is seeking a “reasonable and fair share of costs.”