My Avoidance of Impeachment

There’s almost no point in talking about or writing about impeachment. Donald Trump isn’t going to be removed and partisans aren’t going to change their minds. Amazingly, the Republicans keep “moving the goalposts” and excusing potential crimes and executive branch contempt of Congress.

Impeachment is an easy process to initiate, but actual conviction and removal from office is difficult.

My bias has been clear: though I suggested Trump could win the White House, I have always thought he was unworthy of the office. However, most presidents have a large portion of the citizenry convinced the occupant is unworthy of the White House. Simply not liking Trump isn’t enough to justify the long and (likely unsuccessful) impeachment process.

Technically, we have impeached presidents for relatively minor acts. The first impeachment was all about popularity, with Congressional leaders trying to unconstitutionally impinge on the powers of the president. Andrew Johnson faced 11 ludicrous charges, including the violation of the Tenure of Office Act, which was surely unconstitutional. Presidents should be free to nominate for appointment and release cabinet officers. Johnson was unpopular with his colleagues, and for that he was impeached… but not removed from office.

Bill Clinton, based on available evidence, broke several laws. He likely committed sexual assault before taking office and engaged in an inappropriate relationship of the sort that would have many other elected officials resign. He lied to a grand jury and he obstructed justice. But, the impeachment of Bill Clinton was also a political act, not one is truly driven by any interest in upholding the law.

The problem facing Democrats today is that voters assume impeachment is political. That Republicans are unified in protecting Donald Trump lends further credence to that suspicion.

Trump (and Clinton) should have faced impeachment for crimes committed, before and after taking office. 

Unfortunately, #MeToo was long after Bill Clinton and too many Democrats dismissed his form of abuse as harmless roguish charm.

Trump’s long list of crimes and poor character should have disqualified him from being elected. His crimes in office surely deserve impeachment.

I realize there will not be a supermajority in the Senate to convict and remove Trump. But, in my opinion, he has violated campaign finance laws, congressional funding mandates, committed obstruction of justice, and given comfort to our enemies. His business interests in Russia and Turkey appear to explain his foreign policy more than any coherent theory of global strategic planning.

Impeachment might happen, but removal won’t happen. It won’t. Not without an earth-shattering revelation. 

How easy and complex is impeachment? The Constitution of the United States reads:

Article I, Section 2:

The House of Representatives shall chuse their Speaker and other Officers; and shall have the sole Power of Impeachment.

That’s it. There are no rules or procedures described in the Constitution. The Speaker and majority simply set up whatever rules they want. The minority in the House has little to no say in this. I’m tired of Republicans claiming rights not mentioned in the Constitution. They are supposed to be the originalists.

Article I, Section 3:

The Senate shall have the sole Power to try all Impeachments. When sitting for that Purpose, they shall be on Oath or Affirmation. When the President of the United States is tried, the Chief Justice shall preside: And no Person shall be convicted without the Concurrence of two thirds of the Members present.

Judgment in Cases of Impeachment shall not extend further than to removal from Office, and disqualification to hold and enjoy any Office of honor, Trust or Profit under the United States: but the Party convicted shall nevertheless be liable and subject to Indictment, Trial, Judgment and Punishment, according to Law.

The two-thirds majority in the Senate is why Trump will remain in office. Impeachment might even help him win re-election with an energized base. Notice that after the president leaves office, he or she can be tried for crimes in traditional courts.

Article II, Section 4:

The President, Vice President and all civil Officers of the United States, shall be removed from Office on Impeachment for, and Conviction of, Treason, Bribery, or other high Crimes and Misdemeanors.

I’m sorry, but Trump is definitely guilty of trying to bribe others. Has he accepted bribes? I wonder about the Trump investments in Russia and Turkey, certainly. The vague language of the passage leaves a lot of questions about what is a crime. So, we look back and recall that President Johnson hadn’t done much, but what he did by ignoring Congress was classified as high crimes. If holding up Congressionally approved aid to an ally isn’t contemptible, I don’t know what is.

I object to the Imperial Presidencies we have seen since Woodrow Wilson. I dislike Executive Orders and regulatory agencies acting as law-makers. Congress should be the first among branches of government, held in check by the executive and judicial.

Trump ignores Congress time and time again. He also ignores the courts and challenges them repeatedly. Why does this not trouble conservatives? Few libertarians or classical liberals defend Trump. We wish conservatives were the originalists they claim to be.

I try to avoid talking about impeachment with other people because the sides are firm in their positions. The best a non-affiliated voter can do is watch and hope that reason somehow prevails and Trump resigns in disgrace. Personally, I doubt he has any sense of shame. To me, neither do many of his supporters in Congress.