ABC News is reporting that it has a recording of Donald Trump ordering associates, including, Lev Parnas and Igor Fruman, to "take her out."
Who is the "her" they are discussing? The sitting U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine, Marie Yovanovitch.
And what exactly does "take her out" mean? Trump is famous for firing people on his show - it actually had the tagline "You're Fired!". So if he meant to fire her, he could have just SAID "fire her."
No, he chose to say "take her out", which in mobster terms actually means kill. Put a hit out. Remove. Silence. Permenantly. Make them go away.
WAS DONALD TRUMP PUTTING A HIT OUT ON A U.S. AMBASSADOR?
Remember, Donald Trump famously said he could "shoot someone on 5th Avenue and not lose any supporters." Was he taking this murder fantasy to Ukraine?
Back to the recording. Sources told ABC News that the recording was made during a dinner at the Trump International Hotel in DC on April 30, 2018. In attendance - Lev Parnas and Igor Fruman. Just a reminder - Trump denies knowing either man, even though there are numerous photos of Parnas with Donald Trump and his family over the years. And this dinner was an "intimate" affair with few attendees at one table. But you know, he doesn't know him (eyeroll).
In the audio, Parnas and Fruman begin by telling Trump that Yovanovitch was "bad-mouthing him". In response, Trump exclaims, "Get rid of her! "Get her out tomorrow. I don't care. Get her out tomorrow. Take her out. Okay? Do it."
Does this sounds like he was trying to get her fired?
Following his demand, numerous people are heard laughing. About firing or murder? Who knows. Either way, it is surely a chilling recording - although at this point we only have the transcript.
UPDATE:
An interesting twist to this: The recording was made by Fruman, not Parnas, according to ABC. Fruman was at one point in a joint defense agreement with Giuliani--unclear if that's still the case. https://t.co/uKlWxDAWSR
— Natasha Bertrand (@NatashaBertrand) January 24, 2020
UPDATE 2:
Tonight, Joseph Bondy (Lev Parnas' lawyer) joined Rachel Maddow's panel, and she played the audio — obtained by ABC News, not Bondy — and it is as bad as you imagined. Bondy points out it's impossible to determine to whom Trump's orders are being directed (Parnas, Fruman, or his staffers,) but it places Trump at the proverbial scene of the crime. ~ Editor
