Pelosi Considers Impeachment Talk ‘a Gift’ to Trump
“You’re wasting your time, unless the evidence is so conclusive that the Republicans will understand.”
We all know Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi wants control back of her party since Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (NY) and Ilhan Omar (MN) have shown they have no problem rebelling against the establishment.
Pelosi decided to splash them and others with a dose of reality when it comes to impeaching President Donald Trump: Stop.
Pelosi spoke to USA Today:
In an exclusive interview with USA TODAY, Pelosi said some House progressives have “wanted to impeach the president since the day he got elected.”
“You’re wasting your time, unless the evidence is so conclusive that the Republicans will understand,” Pelosi, D-Calif., told USA TODAY. “Otherwise, it’s a gift to the president. We take our eye off the ball.”
The speaker said, instead of impeachment, Democrats needed to stay united in pushing through legislation that they campaigned on, such as addressing rising health-care costs and creating jobs.
“I’m just not going to say it’s all about him,” Pelosi said Monday during a stop in Ferguson with Rep. Lacy Clay, D-Mo. “No, it’s all about you and you and you,” she added, gesturing to an imaginary group of people in front of her.
Pelosi has a point. The Republicans went after President Bill Clinton in the 1990s. They ended up losing the House in the next election while Clinton enjoyed a rise in popularity.
Back in January, Rep. Brad Sherman re-introduced his articles of impeachment from 2017. Then Rep. Al Green (D-TX) introduced his own articles, who justified his actions because Trump’s behavior “is harmful to society.”
Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-MI) started her term in January with a bang when she shouted to supporters that “we’re gonna impeach the motherf***er!”
Ocasio-Cortez touted impeachment for awhile, but has softened her stance in recent weeks:
“She’s always demonstrated leadership that takes all kind of factors into account,” Ocasio-Cortez told reporters on Monday. “Legally I don’t think it’s something that can ever be 100 percent off the table, but if that’s how she feels right now I respect that.”
You cannot just impeach a president. The Constitution requires a president be convicted of “treason, bribery, or other high crimes and misdemeanors.” The House needs to consent along with two-thirds of the Senate. The GOP still holds the Senate.
However, as a libertarian, if they’d rather do this than spend more of my money or pass more stupid bills, I say go ahead and try.
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Historically, the only impeachment that met the constitutional requirements was Nixon once they found the tapes proving that the Oval Office was directly involved in covering up a crime. Johnson was impeached for reasons similar to Trump. Clinton was impeached for perjury during an investigation for a tangential issue.
So Nixon is the only precedent where the POTUS might have been removed from office.
Johnson was impeached for trying to remove Edwin Stanton from the Cabinet, a violation of the Tenure of Office Act.
“the Tenure of Office Act” … which was unconstitutional.
Chousing Trump initially was a lesser evil decision, it turned out, Trump was an excellent choice. I hope that we see many more mavericks displacing traditional politicians.
Damn, I sure wish we had an edit function.
Mr. Justice, I’m certain you meant more conservative mavericks. The lefties are finding out the hard way how many crazy mavericks their idiotic, vicious propaganda has succeeded in creating, vis-a-vis the support being received by aoc, omar, tlaib, et al.
What teen age girl—and make no mistake AOC, Talib and those other freshman congress critters have the emotional and intellectual maturity and knowledge of a not particularly bright 13 year old–ever listened to Mom?
And as for Adam Schiff, Jerry Nadler, James Clyburn and Hank–Will Guam Tip Over–Johnson, they’re not much smarter. And being older and male they have even less excuse to believe the codswallop they ask the rest of us to swallow.
Translation: If there was anything serious to the Russian collusion crap they’ve been peddling 24/7 for the last three years, the Republicans in the Senate would evict Trump in a heartbeat. The Dems have obviously been lying every day, including shifty Schiff, about how serious the evidence is when they have absolutely zip.
Since they have zip, actually going on TV and trying to spin straw into gold is not going to work. It will fail big time, and when it does, the Dem supporters will froth at the lips and refuse to support any of the ‘mainstream’ Dems, while only the screeching leftists will remain electable in the party. They have *promised* a full circus to their screaming deluded voters, and now they don’t even have a monkey to throw poo.
Pelosi’s only chance for political survival is the modified rope-a-dope where they go on TV and complain nightly about the evil Republicans and their nefarious plans, while not actually trying to do anything against Trump that would backfire on them.
Not enough popcorn in the world…
If I am right about Trump, I suspect that at some point Mueller’s life will become an example of “interesting times”.
The ‘Impeach Trump’ internal friction is so high that Pelosi is publicly rebuking the Maoist Red Guard Progressives? Dem’s usually present a united front – unlike republicans like John McCain/Flake/Rubio et al who have no problem wedging knives between the shoulder-blades of their fellow ‘conservatives.’
The New Congressional Revolutionary Progressives are an impatient lot, and simply won’t abide by Pelosi’s Slow Down Approach. They will not throttle-down their rhetoric. In fact, they’re convinced that now is the time to act, and act they will.
I’m not convinced Pelosi can hold that line, but I recognize she has great expectations for Schiff and Nadler to develop a mountain of evidence that will make Republicans vote for their own electoral destruction. That in itself is a concession, something many Democrats will be very irritated about.
It’s just, what is the agenda she believes this is distracting the House from?
The warlock trials were a gift. The diversity or paint by “color” talk was par. The no survivor of planned parenthood talk was progressive. And so many more special and peculiar layers. The impeachment rumbles were the cherry on top.
Pelosi knows the votes to impeach are not there. With Trump’s favorability rating at something like 90% among Republican voters, it will be career suicide for most elected Republicans to vote for impeachment.
Engaging in a showboat impeachment proceeding that will generate tons of media coverage for months yet will be a wasteful and unsuccessful exercise in the end will demonstrate to moderates and independents that Democrats are a bunch of vindictive clowns not interested in law making.
I encourage them to go forward with impeachment.
I consider the current crop of Democrat Socialist candidates a gift to Trump. If the electorate has changed as much as these radical candidates the Republic as founded is done for.
I think, in the long run, Pelosi is better at politics than AOC and other congressladies with only a little over 2 months experience.
You’re not setting the bar very high.
She’s not wrong.
To be a bit pedantic, impeachment by the House would not be a problem. I believe it only requires a majority vote. Pelosi is pointing out that the Senate is not likely to convict since it requires a supermajority, and there aren’t enough NeverTrumpers to join the Dems.
There may not even be enough votes in the House.
With all respect, Mr. Chris, I wouldn’t bet the rent on any loyalty towards the country or the President in the Senate.
So far, the rinos haven’t had to fully reveal themselves. Only a few at a time have been needed to be successful in thwarting the will of the people.
As for the votes in the house…they’ll be there if the dems smell blood. Pelosi and her pals were pretty quick to throw their Jewish supporters under the bus to appease the jihadists,
“Pelosi has a point. The Republicans went after President Bill Clinton in the 1990s. They ended up losing the House in the next election while Clinton enjoyed a rise in popularity.”
Does anyone remember the Democrats winning the House race between 1994 and 2006? I don’t.
I get tired of mantras from establishment pundits who WANT to sit on the base by saying that we lost things we really didn’t to prevent talk for things they use as tools in Failure Theatre to the base.
ummm…Republicans didn’t lose the House after impeaching The Rapist.
They only lost 2 House seats and held the Senate, though barely. and until Jim Jeffords jumped, making it 50-50
and “W” won the Presidency
Pelosi’s greatest gift to Trump (and the rest of the nation) would be for her to leave the living, so Trump could diss the funeral while we sit back and enjoy the insult.
Do ya think, Nancy?
But it’s sure been fun to raise money by threatening impeachment.
Kind of like the neocon crowd’s feigned antipathy for Obamacare and “support” for its repeal.
Both of these ilks (the unhinged left (i.e. most of the Democrat party) and the neocons, mainstream GOP’ers, RINO’s, etc.