Pelosi: to impeach Trump or not to impeach Trump, that is the question
There’s been a lot of discussion about what Pelosi meant when she said this about impeaching Trump:
But since you asked, and I’ve been thinking about this: Impeachment is so divisive to the country that unless there’s something so compelling and overwhelming and bipartisan, I don’t think we should go down that path, because it divides the country. And he’s just not worth it.
Here’s my take:
(1) She’s just “been thinking” about it. She can always do some more thinking and change her mind.
(2) She’s on record as being against dividing the country. Pretty funny, that. Nancy Pelosi, the Great Uniter.
(3) She’s setting yourself up as a “good cop” to AOC et al’s “bad cop.”
(4) She’s belittling Trump as of no import. Note she says he’s not worth it, not that it’s not worth it to impeach him.
(5) Despite the extra diss of “he’s not worth it,” a la #4 above, the impeachment process itself probably isn’t worth it unless the impeachment forces can convict Trump in the Senate, and they don’t have the votes for that. It’s been my opinion for a long long time that they won’t impeach for that reason, and although I could be wrong, I haven’t changed my opinion. Impeachment without conviction can be seen as a divisive waste of time and backfire on the impeachers, and a vindictive move rather than a valid response to “high crimes and misdemeanors” that don’t seem to be there.
(6) The Mueller report probably isn’t going to provide the Democrats with the longed-for evidence of said “high crimes and misdemeanors.” It was always the idea that it might, and that enough Republicans might get on board to convict Trump in the Senate.
(7) Impeachment also is not worth it because it would put in place a President Pence. Pence may be many things, but he’s much less of a lightning rod for campaign hate, which is what the Democrats plan to go on in 2020. They feel they can defeat Trump, so why remove him and elevate Pence and have to come up with a whole new strategy to defeat him—or, if he chose not to run in 2020, some other Republican? They’ve been demonizing Trump for two years, and they believe they’ve paved the way for a resounding defeat no matter who they run.
My opinion?
Neo is complicating this unnecessarily. The Mueller Report won’t have the evidence to support an impeachment and this is just Sour Grapes.
Roy Nathanson:
Never underestimate your opponents.
Nothing Pelosi does is simple, and this is not “just” sour grapes.
Nancy wants to stay Speaker. She has an insurgency on her hands. An insurgency of fools and scoundrels like AOC and her Svengali, Chakrabati.
Pelosi’s in a perilous position between having to watch her back, on the one hand, and trying to get the Democratic Party to behave sanely (all things being relative), on the other.
It’s basically an impossible task.
Of course Trump is to blame….
But Pelosi can always rise to the occasion and declare herself “victim” (which may put her internal adversaries off balance, at least temporarily).
She’s right that impeachment might be suicidal for the Dems’ hopes of holding the House in 2020. Whether she can control her caucus and prevent them from going off the edge is an open question.
“Pence may be many things, but he’s much less of a lightning rod for campaign hate, …”
Oh man, haven’t you heard the whispers at the left-wing water cooler? They think Pence is practically a holy-roller that would institute human sacrifice as President. But more importantly, the hate campaign is always directed at the holder of the reins of power.
Great post though.
Meanwhile, back at the ranch, the New York electorate has on mature reflection decided the state need’s our analogue of Marilyn Mosby in the Attorney-General’s chair. She’s announced a fishing expedition contra the Trump Organization today. I hope we have some real judges left in New York.
My oversimplified explanation.
The Uniparty lost to Trump, the ultimate outsider.
The Clinton Crime Family in their media and cultural echo chamber really believed they could drive him to resignation or fatal error. They are still trying.
The young educated non-STEM elite is swamped with student debt and no prospects. Government jobs controlling others in a Socialist Utopia is something to believe in.
The Trump economic recovery is real (at least it looks like it in Texas where it is impossible to hire anybody good) but cannot provide jobs for the educated non-STEM elite, leaving them as the equivalent of Two Broke Girls.
Young non-STEM college graduate adults in the coastal enclaves really are screwed. There really is nothing for them to do that will make good money. They don’t believe in capitalism, which to them is crony capitalism, all they have ever known, and see government as their only hope. When AOC said if you don’t have a job you are left to die she defined their lived experience.
The traditional Democrat Party is left with only identity politics of victimization. Their traditional base outside the coastal enclaves will vote for Trump. A new alignment and a new goal is needed beyond victimization. Is Andrew Yang the voice of their future? He is unelectable, but the only one with a total solution.