It seems House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) has backed her party into a corner. Should they vote on impeachment or not? That is the question that begs for an answer. The Democrats have long said that they have the votes. They are in control of the House and are running the impeachment mantra at the expense of everything else. So why no commitment? Are there some Democrats who are perhaps not too keen on the idea? Is it possible that there are some moderate Democrats who actually prefer using critical thinking skills and want to hear facts before deciding?
That was neither the approach Rep. Adam Schiff (D-CA) took nor the approach that Nancy Pelosi opted for. She announced, on her own, that they were going forward with the impeachment inquiry over the Ukraine phone call even before they knew what was in it. That sure seemed like a case of “Hang him first, and then we can get to the trial.”
Maybe the speaker has overplayed her hand. And perhaps Adam Schiff has become more of a liability than an asset. He has been very upfront with his disdain for the president and has repeatedly called for prosecution, impeachment, removal, or jail time…all on secret information that only he seems to have. Secret information that never materializes.
With President Trump forcing Pelosi’s hand, she is feeling the repercussions of her decision. Already the Democrat’s latest attempt to remove Trump has resulted in a casualty. Their frontrunner, Joe Biden has all but been thrown under the bus by his party in the reckless rush to impeach the president.
Then there is the theory that the impeachment vote might upset the apple cart of Democrats in regions that Trump carried. There is a real possibility of a backlash on those Democrat representatives that vote to impeach the president on such frivolous grounds.
What is really going on is a media war. The Democrats don’t want to have to go on record trying to remove a sitting president. It is much better for them to try their case in the press. Following precedent and holding a full House vote, as was done in the Nixon and Clinton impeachments, would result in a strictly partisan split. What the Democrats are doing now is changing the rules. They now are saying they don’t need to vote. They don’t need the full House to even take it up. They can just go forward on their own. That would do nothing to advance their cause and might help the Trump administration with loads of ammunition against them.
I can hear it now, or imagine the tweets: This is strictly partisan. The country doesn’t want this. Only the radical socialist AOC and her squad want this. Democrats are not serious, they want to create talking points for friendly media. The claims could go on ad nauseam.
No, a vote on impeachment is not in the Democrats’ best interest, and they know it. All they are doing now is throwing one empty claim after another at the wall, hoping something will stick.
That sure is a hell of a way to run a country.
