Kiev, Ukraine, is nearly 6,200 miles from Tulare, Calif. That's a long way from home for Rep. Devin Nunes, R-Calif., who now faces explosive allegations that he and his staff contacted shadowy Ukrainian figures in an effort to betray American democracy.
Text messages released by the House Intelligence Committee last week reveal that a top Nunes aide named Derek Harvey � who on Trump's National Security Council before he joined Nunes' staff � sought direct contact with Ukrainian officials in an effort to smear former Vice President Joe Biden. This developing story about Nunes and his staff should raise serious concerns for all Americans.
"An aide to Rep. Devin Nunes exchanged dozens of text messages with indicted Rudy Giuliani associate Lev Parnas about a search for information on former Vice President Joe Biden from Ukrainian prosecutors," wrote Sophia Bollag of The Sacramento Bee. "The exchanges include repeated references by Nunes aide Derek Harvey and Parnas to Biden. Parnas allegedly helped carry out President Donald Trump's campaign to pressure the Ukrainian government for investigations that would benefit Trump's re-election."
Harvey still works for Nunes.
For months, Nunes has acted as Trump's attack dog, defending the president from accusations that he pressured Ukraine to investigate Biden. Nunes sat in House Intelligence Committee meetings and derided the impeachment proceedings against Trump as a "hoax." Yet he was sitting on a ticking time bomb the entire time. The newly-released texts prove that Nunes' staff also engaged in secret efforts to damage Biden.
Nunes knew the Ukraine allegations were true because his office was involved in the same plot. But he used his position in Congress as a platform to spread lies and mislead the public. During an interview with Fox News last year, Nunes denied any memory of a phone conversation with Parnas. Now that evidence has proven that Parnas spoke the truth, Nunes has backtracked. During a Fox News appearance on Friday, he admitted to a call with Parnas but sought to downplay its significance.
"I remember that call, which was very odd, random, talking about random things," Nunes told Fox. "And I said, 'Great, you know, just talk to my staff,' and boom, boom, boom. Which is normal, standard operating procedure."
Oh, really? Nunes hasn't held a townhall with his constituents in years, yet he expects people to believe his conversation with a now-indicted Ukrainian-American operative was completely normal? We doubt any regular constituent from Nunes' district would have much luck getting the congressman on the phone. Yet some "random" businessman with Ukraine connections had no trouble reaching Nunes on his cell.
We don't know exactly what Nunes and Parnas discussed, but Parnas' texts with Nunes' aide reveal an incisive focus on using Ukrainian connections to find dirt on Biden. President Trump's efforts to pressure Ukraine for a Biden investigation � and Trump's apparent decision to withhold military aid from Ukraine until its leaders agreed to his demand � sparked his impeachment.
Regardless of whether you lean Democratic or Republican, here's an undeniable fact: Nunes lied. He lied to the American people and to his own constituents about the Ukraine allegations, dismissing them although he knew they were true. He deliberately misled the American people by attempting to undermine impeachment hearings that examined an anti-Biden effort in which his own office had direct involvement.
Even if you support President Trump, there's no denying the fact that Nunes' actions have backfired and will only hurt Trump. Knowing his own staff was neck-deep in an effort to smear Biden using foreign contacts, Nunes should have let someone else play defense. (And if Nunes didn't know what Harvey was up to, why hasn't he fired his aide?)
Devin Nunes has betrayed the truth, betrayed the trust of voters and, quite possibly, betrayed our country. We don't know exactly where this new evidence will lead, or what fate has in store for Nunes, but we do know this: The people of California's 22nd congressional district deserve better.
