On March 8th of this year, I wrote a blog titled, "Yoda: 'Time for impeachment now is not'"
(Which can be read here - https://thekind-heartedsmartaleck.blogspot.com/2019/03/yoda-time-for-impeachment-now-is-not.html). In said post, I noted several reasons why Democrats should not go through impeachment proceedings. This was before the Mueller Report was released. Now that said report has been released, I'd like to subtly revise my previous sentiments.
Donald Trump has, without question, committed impeachable offenses. The Mueller Report laid them out for Congress. Now it's time for Congress to actually do its job and hold the president accountable for his misdeeds. So the real question is, how do we go about that? Many scream, "Impeach him!" Yes, that may sound great, but it's much easier said than done and I think we'd be remiss if we didn't approach the subject matter with both caution and precision.
Many seem to be of the mindset that if a president gets impeached, he or she is removed from office. That's not true. While the Democratic-led House could and probably would successfully impeach President Trump, as all it needs is a simple majority to do so, Donald Trump would not be removed from office until the Republican-led Senate confirms the House's impeachment with a two-thirds majority. So if we went through the impeachment proceedings today, the chances are extremely high Donald Trump would be impeached and remain in office, because the House would vote to impeach him and the Senate would not be confirm it.
In addition to that, just roughly 40% of the public want the president impeached. In order to prevent political repercussions by starting the impeachment process, that number must increase.
Over the past four decades, the Republican Party has been far superior at branding than the Democratic Party. Look no further than the Affordable Care Act (ACA), or as many GOPers refer to it, Obamacare. Even before the bill started being implemented, the GOP, through branding, sunk the ACA's approval rating below 40%. Democrats need to start driving the narrative on impeachment. Every day, we hear Trump and his supporters shout to the heavens, "No obstruction! No collusion!," which I have to believe, courtesy of the mere-exposure effect, drives impeachment approval down. If Democratic leaders want to change that trend, they need to stop twiddling their thumbs, pussyfooting around, and expecting the public to read all 400+ pages of the Mueller Report and research the impeachment process. Hold numerous hearings to hold those at the top accountable and get the truth out into the open. Consistently make appearances on news shows to tell the public about the contents of the Mueller Report, the impeachable offenses Donald Trump committed, and that impeachment does not mean removal from office. Drive those impeachment approval numbers up, and once they reach 50%+ and the narrative has shifted in the Democrats' favor, that's when you'll see an increasing number of people contacting their senators, telling them it's time to impeach the president and confirm the impeachment, so that Donald Trump is removed from the Oval Office.
Math isn't currently on the side of removing Trump from office, so in order to make it so, we have to go through all the necessary steps. As pain-stakingly time-consuming as that may seem, it's really the only chance we have to both successfully removed Donald Trump from office and win the 2020 presidential election.
(Which can be read here - https://thekind-heartedsmartaleck.blogspot.com/2019/03/yoda-time-for-impeachment-now-is-not.html). In said post, I noted several reasons why Democrats should not go through impeachment proceedings. This was before the Mueller Report was released. Now that said report has been released, I'd like to subtly revise my previous sentiments.
Donald Trump has, without question, committed impeachable offenses. The Mueller Report laid them out for Congress. Now it's time for Congress to actually do its job and hold the president accountable for his misdeeds. So the real question is, how do we go about that? Many scream, "Impeach him!" Yes, that may sound great, but it's much easier said than done and I think we'd be remiss if we didn't approach the subject matter with both caution and precision.
Many seem to be of the mindset that if a president gets impeached, he or she is removed from office. That's not true. While the Democratic-led House could and probably would successfully impeach President Trump, as all it needs is a simple majority to do so, Donald Trump would not be removed from office until the Republican-led Senate confirms the House's impeachment with a two-thirds majority. So if we went through the impeachment proceedings today, the chances are extremely high Donald Trump would be impeached and remain in office, because the House would vote to impeach him and the Senate would not be confirm it.
In addition to that, just roughly 40% of the public want the president impeached. In order to prevent political repercussions by starting the impeachment process, that number must increase.
Over the past four decades, the Republican Party has been far superior at branding than the Democratic Party. Look no further than the Affordable Care Act (ACA), or as many GOPers refer to it, Obamacare. Even before the bill started being implemented, the GOP, through branding, sunk the ACA's approval rating below 40%. Democrats need to start driving the narrative on impeachment. Every day, we hear Trump and his supporters shout to the heavens, "No obstruction! No collusion!," which I have to believe, courtesy of the mere-exposure effect, drives impeachment approval down. If Democratic leaders want to change that trend, they need to stop twiddling their thumbs, pussyfooting around, and expecting the public to read all 400+ pages of the Mueller Report and research the impeachment process. Hold numerous hearings to hold those at the top accountable and get the truth out into the open. Consistently make appearances on news shows to tell the public about the contents of the Mueller Report, the impeachable offenses Donald Trump committed, and that impeachment does not mean removal from office. Drive those impeachment approval numbers up, and once they reach 50%+ and the narrative has shifted in the Democrats' favor, that's when you'll see an increasing number of people contacting their senators, telling them it's time to impeach the president and confirm the impeachment, so that Donald Trump is removed from the Oval Office.
Math isn't currently on the side of removing Trump from office, so in order to make it so, we have to go through all the necessary steps. As pain-stakingly time-consuming as that may seem, it's really the only chance we have to both successfully removed Donald Trump from office and win the 2020 presidential election.
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