Impeachment Probe Roils Washington
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MLB MILITARY FACES Nationals sweep Warning issued Actor Giancarlo Esposito Phillies for berth after ‘Joker’-related brings his passion to in NL playoffs shooting threat ‘Godfather of Harlem’ role Back page Page 2 Page 18 Study: Army’s new warfighting plans face obstacles in Europe » Page 3 stripes.com Volume 78, No. 116 ©SS 2019 THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 26, 2019 50¢/Free to Deployed Areas Impeachment probe roils Washington Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy PHOTO ILLUSTRATION BY NOGA AMI-RAV/Stars and Stripes Dems launch inquiry; released transcript shows Trump pushed Ukraine to investigate Biden BY LISA MASCARO, The president’s words set the param- Trump spent Wednesday meeting with RELATED MARY CLARE JALONICK AND JULIE PACE eters of the political debate to come, with world leaders at the United Nations, a re- Associated Press Democrats saying that it laid the predicate markable split screen even for the turbu- Poll shows majority for an impeachment inquiry and Trump lence of the Trump era. On his schedule: WASHINGTON — President Donald dismissing it as a “nothing call.” Yet the a meeting with Ukrainian President of Americans against Trump repeatedly pushed Ukraine’s presi- rough transcript clearly shows Trump’s Volodymyr Zelenskiy, whose contacts with dent to investigate Democratic rival Joe willingness to engage a foreign leader on Trump are now central to the impeach- impeachment Biden, according to a rough transcript of a matters directly related to his reelection ment inquiry. summer phone call that is now at the cen- Investigation pushes prospects. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who ter of Democrats’ impeachment probe into The new impeachment probe plunges launched the impeachment inquiry after Trump. nation to political brink a deeply divided nation into an election months of resistance, said Trump’s call In the conversation, Trump told his year clash between Congress and the com- with Zelenskiy amounted to a “shakedown” World reacts warily Ukrainian counterpart, “I would like for mander in chief. The probe injects deep un- to benefit his campaign. She declared, you to do us a favor.” He urges him to work certainty into the 2020 election campaign to news of probe with Attorney General William Barr and and tests anew the nation’s constitutional “Congress must act.” Rudy Giuliani, Trump’s personal lawyer. system of checks and balances. SEE IMPEACHMENT ON PAGE 10 Pages 10-11 PAGE 2 F3HIJKLM •STARS AND STRIPES• Thursday, September 26, 2019 MILITARY Warning issued on ‘Joker’-related threat BY J.P. LAWRENCE from loner to killer, the Guardian Stars and Stripes newspaper reported. That attack, in Aurora, Colo., Military commanders in Okla- left 12 dead and 70 injured. homa were warned of the po- Sandy Phillips, whose daughter, tential threat of violence at the Jessica Ghawi, was one of 12 peo- theatrical release of the upcom- ple killed in the suburban Den- ing “Joker” movie, though law ver theater, told The Associated enforcement officials are not sure Press she and four others sent which theaters may be affected. the letter to Warner Bros., ask- An Army Criminal Investiga- ing the studio to lobby Congress tion Command memo issued Mon- for gun control, support survivor day put commanders at Fort Sill, programs and end any contribu- Okla., on notice about an intelli- tions to politicians backed by the gence bulletin that said a Texas National Rifle Association. law enforcement agency working The Aurora theater was re- with the FBI had discovered “dis- modeled and renamed after the turbing and very specific chatter shooting, the AP reported. An in the dark web” about the pos- employee at Century Aurora and sible targeting of an unknown XD, reached by telephone by the theater for a mass shooting dur- AP Tuesday, said there were no ing the Oct. 4 release. immediate plans to show “Joker” An image of the memo was at the theater but referred calls posted briefly to the popular Air Force amn/nco/snco Facebook for comment to Cinemark spokes- page before being removed Tues- man James Meredith. day. The command, which is also The Batman movie just hap- known as CID, confirmed its au- pened to be a blockbuster open- thenticity to Stars and Stripes. ing at the time the shooter, James “Out of an abundance of cau- Holmes, intended to commit the tion, our Fort Sill office distribut- crime, George Brauchler, the 18th Judicial District attorney ed the memo to internal military NIKO TAVERNISE/Warner Bros. personnel at Fort Sill,” said CID who prosecuted the case, told the spokesman Christopher Grey. Joaquin Phoenix stars in the upcoming movie “Joker.’’ A threat of violence at the movie’s scheduled Denver Post. Holmes was con- The memo was based on in- Oklahoma opening prompted the Army Criminal Investigation Command to issue a warning. victed of murder and sentenced formation in a bulletin from the to life in prison without parole. Texas Joint Crime Information warning about the “Momo Chal- make the Army community aware vals. But it has also come under Meanwhile, “Joker” director Center, Grey said. lenge,” though it had been widely of the susceptibility of children as fire for purportedly glamorizing Todd Phillips has responded to An official at the Texas center, debunked as a hoax. … internet and social media plat- its villainous and violent main the controversy surrounding his who declined to be named to dis- Still, CID issued the warning form usage increases,” he said at character. film, including some critiques cuss the matter freely, called the because the challenge, which the time. “We have a significant Families of the victims of a arguing that it could inspire threat “valid,” but said there was purportedly involved a series role in preventing crimes and 2012 shooting at a screening violence. no specific location mentioned. of increasingly dangerous tasks threats to our Army.” of the Batman film “The Dark “I would just argue that you CID has in the past issued leading up to suicide or self-harm, The warning comes as the up- Knight Rises” delivered a letter might want to watch the movie,” warnings based on information “still has potential holding power coming movie, which focuses on Tuesday to Warner Bros., the stu- Phillips told the website IGN. from civilian agencies about mat- over young and impressionable the eponymous villain from the dio behind both that movie and “You might want to watch it with ters that were found to not to be children” online, Grey told Stars Batman comics, played by Joa- the “Joker,” criticizing the latest an open mind.” serious threats. Earlier this year, and Stripes via email in April. quin Phoenix, has been winning film portrayal for its “sympa- [email protected] the command issued an internal “The warning’s intent is to awards at pre-release film festi- thetic” take on the villain’s rise Twitter: @jplawrence3 T O D A Y IN STRIPES American Roundup ............ 17 Business .......................... 21 Classified ................... 19, 23 Comics ............................. 22 Crossword ........................ 22 Faces ............................... 18 Opinion ............................ 20 Sports .........................25-32 Weather ........................... 21 Thursday, September 26, 2019 •STARS AND STRIPES• F3HIJKLM PAGE 3 MILITARY Army’s warfighting plans face obstacles in Europe BY JOHN VANDIVER the London-based Royal United Services Stars and Stripes Institute. The top priority in the Army’s effort to An Army strategy to work closely with upgrade its arsenal, for instance, is devel- allies to fight future wars could be at risk oping long-range precision fires crucial for if the capability gap between the U.S. and countering Russia. some European militaries is allowed to “The intent is to deploy fires in Europe widen, a new study suggests. able to outrange Russia’s Iskander short- The Army outlined in a report called range ballistic missiles to strike railways, “Multi-Domain Operations 2028” its plan ammunition dumps and infrastructure to rapidly deploy and integrate all elements critical to Russia’s Integrated Air Defense of American military power — from tra- System in the event of conflict,” the report ditional ground and air combat to newer said. JOANNA GAONA GOMEZ/U.S. Army warfighting zones such as cyber, space and The weapons would be central in future information operations — in the event of warfare, but the “political ramifications of An AN/TWQ-1 Avenger missile system fires at a moving target in Utska, Poland, on conflict with powers like Russia or China. reintroducing these systems to Europe may June 17 . A report by the Association of the U.S. Army’s Institute of Land Warfare The plan focuses on how to penetrate so- be significant,” the report says. warns that a capability gap between the U.S. and its allies could derail a strategy for phisticated enemy defenses and ensure the Allies may be concerned that new de- fighting future wars. U.S. and its allies can maneuver, resupply ployments would set off an arms race, risk and reinforce troops. aggressive messaging from Russia about matic clearances to accelerate troop move- such as information and cyberoperations, But there are problems with the strategy, its nuclear capabilities and ultimately ments in a crisis, but there are still no but to be effective that would require access the new study, titled “European Allies in make European populations feel they are universal guidelines. to cyberinfrastructure of foreign states. US Multi-Domain Operations,” has found. potential targets. “In this climate, gaining At the same time, military capability Providing access to the U.S. in peacetime “There is a risk that if the U.S. does not permission to base LRPF (long-range pre- gaps are widening between the U.S. and its to conduct cyber-reconnaissance “would engage its allies early … U.S. capabilities cision fires) on European territories may allies, and training isn’t keeping pace with be politically sensitive,” according to the will diverge from allied systems, making be difficult,” the report says.