âAt some point soon, Democratic leaders will have to reckon with the fact that the founders created the impeachment power for precisely this moment. That impeachment is their basic obligation. On a practical level, thereâs simply too much time between now and the election for them to avoid the confrontation altogether with stalling tactics. But more importantly if they try to run out the clock, or settle on the claim that impeachment just isnât worth it, they will do incalculable damage to themselves and the country. This is not principally an argument about what constitutes sound political strategyâabout what approach will galvanize whose base more. My biases tell me that impeaching Trump would inspire Democratic voters, and bog Republicans down with endless recitations of their partyâs hideous corruption. My biases tells me that running scared from the impeachment question would deflate many Democratic activists, by signaling to them that the party doesnât really consider Trumpâs presidency to be an emergency after all, and will refuse to hold his regime accountable for its crimes even if the next election goes well. But that could be wrong. The real importance of impeachment at this point is to shelter the country from what Trump and his allies will do if Democrats remain aimless. Democrats arenât really buying time for themselves. They are buying time for Trump to get the GOP back on its horribly dishonest but unified message that he has been exonerated and that the investigation itself was criminal. If Democrats donât pull the country into a debate about impeachment, we wonât get a draw. We will get a debate about investigating the investigators and jailing Trumpâs critics. Cowardice creates a void that Trump will fill with autocratic ambition, and his crooked attorney general will be there to help.â
Democratsâ Impeachment Panic Is Endangering the Country
Trump is precisely why the founders put impeachment into our constitution. In the 90s, partisan Republicans, for partisan gain, abused the process and were punished by voters for their overreach.
Democrats seem to have learned exactly the wrong lesson from that. They seem to have determined that nobody should ever be subject to an impeachment inquiry unless that person shoots someone on live television, and even then maybe they should just talk about jobs, instead.
Voters in the 90s sent Gingrich and his pals packing because we saw through their lies, and knew exactly what they were doing. At this moment, we have a president who has clearly attempted to obstruct justice on multiple occasions, and thatâs just one of the multitude of reasons he should be removed from office. Voters see through Trump (other than the 30-odd percent who make up his base) and see exactly what heâs doing. Voters wonât punish Democrats the way we punished Republicans, because an impeachment inquiry now would be about obstruction and abuse of power, not lying about an affair.
I hope that Democratic leaders and strategists are taking their time, and preparing hearings that will help voters get a clearer look at exactly what Mueller says, which is that it is up to the Congress to decide what the consequence should be for Trumpâs documented, illegal, and unconstitutional acts.
Remember that support for impeaching Nixon didnât become the majority position in the electorate until lots and lots of hearings and hours and hours of testimony had been delivered.Â
Democrats can look into holding Trump accountable for his lies and lawbreaking, while also working on their vision for a better America that works for everyone. Theyâre adults, and they can do more than one thing at a time.
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