I was a lousy chess player. My dad, who was in his own right a brilliant man — with a fourth grade education, he studied calculus to get his contractor’s license — beat me regularly. I had zero patience for the game.
One thing I did find fascinating about it, tho, was the psychology behind the play. Feints, bluffs, gambits, all were fine, but the question I always had was “Why that move at that time?”
We’ve seen how in real life, chess can have a profound impact on the world. We’re seeing it play out in real time in Washington, D.C.
You may recall how the chief of staff to Mark Meadows — Trump’s final Chief of Staff — testified to the following:
Ornato told her that Trump had been under the impression he would go to the Capitol after his speech, Hutchinson said. Due to security concerns, Trump was told no. At that point, Trump, in a fit of rage, tried to grab the steering wheel of the armored presidential SUV and then reached for the “clavicles” of Engel, she said Ornato told her.
She said Engel, who was listening as Ornato told the story, did not dispute anything. Trump allies have dismissed Hutchinson’s account as hearsay.
But then this happened:
Hutchinson’s account Tuesday about a dramatic physical altercation between Trump and his top security official on Jan. 6 has come under intense scrutiny after sources told NBC News that two witnesses were prepared to testify under oath that it never happened.
Put a pin in that “testify under oath” point.
The two witnesses who would refute her are Tony Ornato and Robert Engel, whom she mentioned by name during her testimony.
Now, some would say “Someone told me that they experienced…” as hearsay, but legally, it’s not1. To be sure, however, it could be subject to misinterpretation or other miscommunication.
And to be sure, both Ornato and Engel appear to have been close to President Trump in ways that maybe a Secret Service agent should not get. Like the President or dislike him, ultimately your job is to protect his life and person, which implies a certain dispassion must be involved. Even by Hutchinson’s account, they seem to have performed their job admirably.
Or….did they?
Let’s pick up that pin now. Both Ornato and Engel have offered to testify under oath and say Hutchinson was mistaken (or worse).
Here’s where Cheney might be tempted to shout “check”.
See, by testifying publicly under oath, they can be asked questions about other aspects of that day, as well as the President’s activities in the days and weeks leading up to it, or even other events that might tie into the case against Trump indirectly2.
Ornato was the head of the President’s personal detail. Both he and Engel have testified to the committee in closed session (presumably under oath). Ornato was also in charge of tExecutive Office administration, including technology and facilities management, and his charge included the White House, Air Force One and The Beast.
In layman’s terms, he heard nearly everything, and would have been consulted on any surveillance technology like, say, a recording system.
Engel, for his part, confirmed some of Hutchinson’s testimony in his private testimony, parts of which were released to the public. Which leaves us with the following scenario:
Journalist Patrick W. Watson suggested there are three possibilities why Engel did not discuss the alleged incident during his earlier testimony.
"1. He denied the limo incident. 2. He confirmed the limo incident. 3. The limo incident wasn't discussed," Watson tweeted.
"We can rule out #1, since the committee wouldn't leave Hutchinson open to being disproven. So it must be 2 or 3."
In either case of #2 or #3, public testimony by both Ornato and Engel would allow the committee to ask at least one vital question: Why didn’t the agents report a potential coup being plotted?
They are, after all, duly appointed officers of the United States government3 and while their main task is to protect, they are required to prevent crime.
In fact, this had been adjudicated in connection with the Monica Lewinski sham (we presume, the names have been redacted) and the court very clearly states the Secret Service has a duty to report any crime it might even *perceive* much less witness, even if it is being committed by one of it’s protectees.
And to make sure they come out and testify publicly, the committee is egging them on, goading them into the trap that’s already been spung.
Checkmate.
What IS hearsay is “Someone told me that they heard…”
Ornato helped arrange the march over to the church by Lafayette Square, in which peaceful protestors were forcibly shoved back and removed.
Under the auspices of Homeland Security.
Lot of treason going around. I would especially like to have members of Congress convicted of such so they can never hold office again. So disturbing, though, that there are plenty more of these fuckers waiting in the wings. I can sort of understand that people with submissive personalities might want to be "ruled", but by a hot mess like Trump? At least Putin looks ok bare-chested on a horse.