Yesterday, fellow blogger tokyosand published a post that gave the clearest, most concise explanation of how the current government shutdown came to be, and what we need to do about it … how we can use our voices to, hopefully, make a difference. Please take a minute to read this fine post, for it may answer some questions you’ve had, or help clarify what you already know. Thank you tokyosand, for this fine post and for your generous permission to share it with my readers!
Millions of Americans are already affected by the shutdown. Federal employees aren’t getting a paycheck (right at the end of the holiday season no less.) Others are being told their food stamps aren’t guaranteed if the shutdown continues. There is already real damage happening, and it will only get worse.
How did we get here? Why is it still a problem? Is there anything we can do?
How did we get here?
At the end of the 115th Congress, we hit a deadline to renew funding for a third of the federal agencies. Ideally, we’d have an annual budget that took care of all of our agencies for one year, but since Congress hasn’t been able to agree on the budget, we’ve been patching together funding for these agencies with something called continuing resolutions.
Since the President sends his requests for the budget to Congress, having the leaders…
Yesterday, our friend Ellen said she was surprised that I hadn’t played a Sonny and Cher song, for it was the 21st birthday of Sonny’s (Salvatore Phillip Bono) death. Unlike Ellen, who is truly a walking encyclopedia when it comes to music, I don’t carry these details about in my head, so I didn’t know. But, I promised to play one tonight.
I Got You Babe was written by Sonny Bono and at first Cher did not like it …
“Sonny woke me up in the middle of the night to come in where the piano was, in the living room, and sing it. And I didn’t like it and just said, ‘OK, I’ll sing it and then I’m going back to bed.'”
Depending on what side of the fence you stand, this is either a beautiful love song or pure schmaltz. To Sonny Bono, it was sincere – an earnest declaration of commitment and support …
“The lyrics of my songs are very important to me. I never write anything until that very moment when I feel the emotion conveyed in the words I write. I know what it is like to be kicked around because you dress differently. I know what it is like to see the girl you love hurt because a hotel refuses you admission because of your dress. I know what it is like to have that one person stand by you. There are a lot of other people who have experienced these things and I’m trying to put our feelings into words for everyone.”
Sonny went on to enter politics and served as the Mayor of Palm Springs, California, from 1988 – 1992. He then made a bid for the U.S. Senate in 1992, but failed to win the Republican nomination and the seat ended up going to Democrat Barbara Boxer. However two years later, in 1994, he was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives where he served until his death due to a collision with a tree in a skiing accident on January 5th, 1998.
Bono remains the only member of Congress to have scored a number-one pop single on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart.
I Got You Babe Sonny & Cher
They say we’re young and we don’t know
We won’t find out until we grow
Well I don’t know if all that’s true
‘Cause you got me, and baby I got you
Babe
I got you babe
I got you babe
They say our love won’t pay the rent
Before it’s earned, our money’s all been spent
I guess that’s so, we don’t have a plot
But at least I’m sure of all the things we got
Babe
I got you babe
I got you babe
I got flowers in the spring
I got you to wear my ring
And when I’m sad, you’re a clown
And if I get scared, you’re always around
Don’t let them say your hair’s too long
‘Cause I don’t care, with you I can’t go wrong
Then put your little hand in mine
There ain’t no hill or mountain we can’t climb
Babe
I got you babe
I got you babe
I got you to hold my hand
I got you to understand
I got you to walk with me
I got you to talk with me
I got you to kiss goodnight
I got you to hold me tight
I got you, I won’t let go
I got you to love me so
I got you babe
I got you babe
I got you babe
I got you babe
I got you babe
I got you babe
I got you babe
I got you babe
The following is a letter that I have sent to the two senators from my own state, as well as a number of other republican senators including Mitch McConnell, and every other who will face re-election in 2020*. In truth, I question whether our letters are ever seen by the intended recipient, but we have to try. And keep trying. The stakes are too high to give up.
Dear Senator _________________,
Tonight is a sad night for this nation, for it is crystal clear that we do not have a president, but we have a dictator. Further, it is equally clear that said dictator is highly irresponsible with the reins of our government, proving time and again that to him the people of this nation are naught but pawns, tools to be used to expand his own power and wealth.
I write to you tonight, not asking, not hoping, but insisting that the Senate, starting with you, step away from Mr. Trump and become the independent law-making body that the Article I of the U.S. Constitution defines. You often seem to forget that you are not beholden to Mr. Trump in any fashion, but rather are tasked with doing what is in the best interests of this nation and the approximately 328 million people who live here.
Mr. Trump has said that he would be proud to shut down the government, which he did. Now he says he will keep it shut down for months, or even years, and further that he is considering declaring a national state of emergency where there is none. More than 800,000 federal workers are going without pay. Three people have died in accidents in our national parks that might have been avoided if the park rangers had been on duty. The lines outside social security offices are reminiscent of the lines of concert-goers waiting for tickets.
This is the single most irresponsible act that I can recall by any president in my 67 years on this earth. Some federal workers stand to lose their homes. Food stamp offices are essentially closed, with only a skeleton staff. People are going to die, Senator ______________, and those deaths will be on Trump’s shoulders, certainly, but also on yours as long as you continue to support his ignominious demands that the government stay shut down until he is awarded initial funding for what will in all likelihood turn out to be a $70 billion white elephant. The wall is not needed, for immigrants are not our major problem. A president with no conscience is our major problem. Unregulated guns are our major problem. And a boot-licking Senate that puts their own well-being ahead of that of the nation are our major problem.
The problem of the government shutdown is easily enough solved if the Republicans and Democrats in the Senate get off their collective asses and determine that they will work for the good of the nation, pass a veto-proof spending bill in conjunction with the House, and open the government. If you fail in this, I and many others will make a concerted effort to see that you are not re-elected when your current term comes to an end. Please, for a change, do your job!
Sincerely,
Jill E Dennison, taxpayer and voter
*List of all Republican Senators up for re-election in 2020
Whether Trump’s firing of Jeff Sessions was warranted or ethical is not the question. Whether Trump’s appointment of Matthew Whitaker as Acting Attorney General is constitutional is not the question, nor is the question whether Whitaker should recuse himself from the Mueller investigation. The question tonight is whether this nation has become one where ‘rule of law’ applies only to those without wealth & power? I would begin by asking just what gives one single man, Mitch McConnell, the power of life and death over the Mueller investigation?
It’s funny how just the day before, Mitch McConnell wrote that OpEd piece promoting bipartisanship and bemoaning the fact that he didn’t believe democrats would be willing to reach across the aisle … not that Mitchell has ever once reached across that aisle. But now, there is a bipartisan effort by Republican Senator Jeff Flake and Democratic Senator Chris Coons to pass legislation that would offer protection to the investigation that has been ongoing for a year-and-a-half, but McConnell has blocked that legislation. Single handedly he stamped it “null and void”without consideration.
“As you can imagine, I talk to the president fairly often, no indication that the Mueller investigation will not be allowed to finish, and it should be allowed to finish. We know how the president feels about the Mueller investigation, but he’s never said, ‘I want to shut it down.’ … I think it’s in no danger, so I don’t think any legislation is necessary.”
I cry FOUL! This legislation is very necessary and if
Trump can get by with it, he will shut it down in a heartbeat. Just listen to Trump’s latest rant against
Mueller and the investigation …
“The inner workings of the Mueller investigation are a total mess. They have found no collusion and have gone absolutely nuts. They are screaming and shouting at people, horribly threatening them to come up with the answers they want. They are a disgrace to our Nation and don’t care how many lives the [sic] ruin. These are Angry People,including the highly conflicted Bob Mueller, who worked for Obama for 8 years.They won’t even look at all of the bad acts and crimes on the other side. A TOTAL WITCH HUNT LIKE NO OTHER IN AMERICAN HISTORY!”
For the record, Bob Mueller is a registered republican, and
a much-decorated former Marine who served in Vietnam and came home with a Purple
Heart from being shot in the leg.
“I consider myself exceptionally lucky to have made it out of Vietnam. There were many—many—who did not. And perhaps because I did survive Vietnam, I have always felt compelled to contribute.”
Trump mixed up his facts a bit … Mueller was Director of the
Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) for twelve years … eight under President
George W. Bush, and four under President Barack Obama.
The only … the one and only thing that has kept Trump from
taking action sooner was the fact that he cannot fire Mueller directly, Jeff
Sessions, the Attorney General had recused himself, so he couldn’t fire him,
and Rod Rosenstein is a man of integrity and wouldn’t fire him. But now, with Whitaker in the position of
Acting Attorney General, and Whitaker having licked Trump’s boots more than
once already, echoing Trump’s rhetoric about the investigation being a ‘witch
hunt’, the conclusion is obvious. The
only question is ‘when’?
There is no ‘witch hunt’, else Mueller would not have
brought indictments against 32 people and 3 companies thus far, including
Michael Cohen, Trump’s long-time attorney and ‘fixer’, and Paul Manafort, Trump’s
former campaign chairman.
Even Senate Judiciary Chairman Chuck Grassley, another who
has stayed in Congress far too long and is a Trump sycophant, has said that he
would back the bill to safeguard the investigation. Jeff Flake has, perhaps, used the most
important leverage of any in saying that he would refuse to advance any
judiciary nominees until or unless the bill is passed. McConnell really wants
to get as many of Trump’s judicial nominees confirmed as possible in order to
stay in Trump’s good graces, if in fact there is such a thing.
Mitch McConnell has been in the Senate since 1984 …
thirty-four years, and at least 22 years longer than he should have been or
would have been if limits of two or even three terms had been in place. Unfortunately, there is no recall provision
such that the people of Kentucky could vote to recall McConnell from the Senate. However, Under Article I, Section 5, clause 2, of the
Constitution, a Member of Congress may be removed from office before the normal
expiration of his or her constitutional term by an “expulsion” from the Senate
(if a Senator) or from the House of Representatives (if a Representative) upon
a formal vote on a resolution agreed to by two-thirds of the Members of that
body present and voting. Okay, so we all
know that this is about as likely to happen as my cat growing wings, but it
should. If McConnell ever had a
conscience or a soul, he has long since sold it downriver and he does no
service to the people of his state nor to the people of this nation.
If the Mueller investigation is halted, or if it is shackled
in such a way as to render it pointless, then it will serve as proof that Trump
and his minions are all considered to be above the law and have always been,
for the crimes being investigated took place before Trump’s election …
he was not president at the time he and his campaign staff conspired with the
Russians to adversely affect the outcome of the 2016 election. Trump’s lawyers would argue that you cannot
indict a sitting president, so … does that mean that if it were discovered
tomorrow that Trump had killed an entire family and buried their bodies
somewhere under Mar-a-Lago, Trump could not be charged?
Rule of law is defined as …
“The authority and influence of law in society, especially when viewed as a constraint on individual and institutional behavior; the principle whereby all members of a society are considered equally subject to publicly disclosed legal codes and processes.”
The principle whereby all members of a society are
considered equally subject … ALL
members. Is Donald Trump above
the law? If he is, then he is not a
member of this society, therefore cannot be a president, and instead is a
dictator. Can’t have it both ways,
folks. I have attempted to contact Mr.
McConnell by phone and by email to let him know in no uncertain terms that We
The People want this investigation to continue to its logical conclusion,
that we want to know the results, and we want every single person who acted
against the law to be held accountable by a court of law. EVERY. SINGLE. PERSON.
Donald Trump claimed that this election, the 2018 mid-term election, was all about him. He was right, but not, perhaps, in the way he meant it. The very narrow taking of a majority in the House of Representatives was all about Donald Trump … it was a referendum by democrats … a statement that said, “We have had enough.”
Contrary to what many predicted, it was not a sweep, there was no ‘blue wave’. And in fact, at several points it looked rather dim, and I had even written a morning post based on the assumption that the GOP maintained their control over the House — it was a glum post and I was happy to send it to the trash about 2:00 a.m.! There were some mega-disappointments, albeit not unexpected: Andrew Gillum, Stacy Abrams and Beto O’Rourke. At this writing, there is still a slight chance for Stacy Abrams, for the margin is narrow enough that a run-off election might be called for … we can hope, although I suspect the odds are slim.Now, we’ve had a moment of relief … some, no doubt, celebrated with champagne and noisemakers … it’s time to take stock, time to take a sobering look at the reality. The newly elected 116th Congress will not be seated until January 3rd, 2019 … nearly two full months from now. Have you considered what might happen during that two-month period?
I have no inside information and speak only as a decades-long observer of the political scene, and a more recent observer of Trump-antics. As such, it appears to me that the main thing Trump would like to see put to bed before he is actually held to account for his actions in two months, is the Robert Mueller investigation into possible criminal interactions between Trump, his campaign, and Russian manipulators during the 2016 presidential campaign. I will not be surprised to see some staffing changes at the Department of Justice in the next two months.
Trump, in his usual fashion, started the ‘morning after’ with threats …
“If the Democrats think they are going to waste Taxpayer Money investigating us at the House level, then we will likewise be forced to consider investigating them for all of the leaks of Classified Information, and much else, at the Senate level. Two can play that game!”
“They can play that game, but we can play better because we have a thing called the United States Senate and a lot of questionable things were done between leaks of classified information and many other elements that should not have taken place.”
Whoa … wait just a minute … you don’t own the Senate, and they don’t even work for you, Donnie boy! Would somebody please inform him that this is not junior high school???
And later, this …
“According to NBC News, Voters Nationwide Disapprove of the so-called Mueller Investigation (46%) more than they Approve (41%). You mean they are finally beginning to understand what a disgusting Witch Hunt, led by 17 Angry Democrats, is all about!”
Funny, isn’t it, that the mainstream media of which NBC News is a part is “the enemy of the people” and “fake news” until they report something that suits his purposes?
Is there no work for Trump to do … has he nothing better to do than play childish games? Or is he simply petrified of what investigations into his tax returns and his business’ finances since he took office would reveal?
Another sobering thought is that the Senate seats gained by the republicans last night may make a democratic majority in the Senate improbable anytime before 2022 … another four years. It is true that the majority in the House has given democrats an opportunity to insist on some oversight, will put an end to the free ride he has had thus far and hold him accountable for his actions. However, the importance of the Senate should not be downplayed. First, it is the Senate that confirms or denies Trump’s cabinet choices and, even more importantly, Supreme Court nominees. If the republicans hold the majority in the Senate for another four years, it is almost a certainty that Trump will place three more justices on the Court, making 5 of the 9, Trump picks. For life.
Second, it is the Senate that must come up with a two-thirds majority in order to convict and remove Trump from office if the House were to vote to impeach. I keep hearing people say that once there is a democratic majority in the House, Trump will be impeached. He might be, but he will remain in office just as Bill Clinton did. The difference is … consider Trump’s temperament … you think he’s abominable now? Imagine if he were to be impeached, and yet still remain in power.
It is not my intent to spoil the party here, but just to remember that while last night’s win was a positive step, it is not the end of Trump’s reign of idiocy.
Let me start off by saying that this is a rant. I am beyond infuriated as I write this post, and while I generally believe it is better to be well-modulated and rise above the throng, there is a time when white-hot rage needs an outlet. This is one such time. I initially intended this to be a single post, but it went past the limits of what I consider optimal length, so I broke it into two parts. This is Part I, and Part II will follow later this afternoon.
Two stories came to my attention last night, as I was trying to find fun things for my Jolly Monday post (at which I failed miserably). Both stories concern the late John McCain, and I think you will agree that he deserved much better than this.
An ugly person, inside and out …
The Face of Evil — Kelli Ward
Take a look at that face, folks, for that is the face of ugly. That is the face of evil. That is a face I hope never to see sitting in the U.S. Senate. Allow me to introduce Ms. Kelli Ward of Arizona, a candidate for the U.S. Senate seat being vacated by Jeff Flake. This is not the first time Ms. Ward has tripped across my radar, but it is the first time that prodded my mind with a hot poker. In July 2017, when John McCain first announced that he had been diagnosed with brain cancer, Ms. Ward made the following public statement:
“I hope that Senator McCain is going to look long and hard at this, that his family and his advisers are going to look at this, and they’re going to advise him to step away as quickly as possible. So that the business of the country and the business of Arizona being represented at the federal level can move forward… We can’t have until the 2018 election, waiting around to accomplish the Trump agenda, to secure the border and stop illegal immigration and repeal Obamacare and fix the economy and fix the veterans administration, all those things need to be done and we can’t be at a standstill while we wait for John McCain to determine what he’s going to do.” [Emphasis added]
She said she hoped that Arizona’s governor would consider appointing her to fill McCain’s seat. But on Friday, it got even better …
Last Friday, Senator John McCain’s family announced that he would stop treatment for his brain cancer, due to the aggressive nature of the cancer and McCain’s advanced age, 81. He would, as we now know, die the very next day. However, Ms. Kelli Ward took McCain’s announcement on Friday as an attempt on McCain’s part to undermine her senatorial campaign! His timing was inconvenient for her! A staffer, apparently with Ward’s knowledge and consent, tweeted the following …
“I wonder if it were just a coincidence that Sen McCain released his statement on the kickoff day of Kelli Ward’s bus tour or if it was a plan to take media attention off her campaign. I’m not saying it was on purpose but it’s quite interesting.”
And Ward herself chimed in with …
“I think they wanted to have a particular narrative that they hope is negative to me.”
Yo, bitch … life does not revolve around you!!! This man has been suffering from this devastating illness for more than a year, and you expected him to coordinate his death with you, so that it would not interfere with your campaign??? What rock did you crawl out from under???
I hope that Arizonans have a heart, a conscience, and respect for the man who has represented the State of Arizona in Congress since 1983 and will cast their votes anywhere but for Ms. Ward. Her words are unconscionable and show a lack of empathy on a par with that of Donald Trump.
How can people be so unkind, so uncaring, so self-centered? Stay tuned for the next installment …
I was writing an email to a friend last night when a ‘breaking news’ update flashed across my screen: Senator John McCain had died. Just two days prior, the Senator had announced that he had discontinued his treatment, and I knew then that it was a matter of days, but still, the news stunned me.
Many others by now have written posts dedicated to McCain, and anything I will say has almost certainly already been said by others who said it at least as well as I can. For that reason, I debated about writing this post, but I felt I had to. While I may not have agreed with much of his ideology, many of the views he supported, never once did I question his honour or integrity. I always believed that whatever his view, he believed that what he proposed and supported was for the good of the people he represented, and he understood, as few do, that he represented the entire nation, not just those who voted him into office.
When John McCain was asked, in an interview with Jake Tapper last September, how he would like to be remembered, he responded:
“He served his country. And not always right, made a lot of mistakes, made a lot of errors. But served his country. And I hope, could add, honorably.”
Yes, Senator, I believe we can add ‘honourably’.
John McCain served his country honourably for almost all his adult life in one capacity or another. He began his military career in 1960 after completing flight school, but his combat career began in 1967, at the height of the Vietnam War. It was on 26 October 1967 when, while flying his 23rd bombing mission over North Vietnam, his plane was shot down by a missile over Hanoi. McCain fractured both arms and a leg when he ejected from the aircraft, and nearly drowned after he parachuted into Trúc Bạch Lake. Some North Vietnamese pulled him ashore, then others crushed his shoulder with a rifle butt and bayoneted him.Seriously injured, he was shown no mercy by the North Vietnamese, and received daily beatings and interrogations. In mid-1968, still recovering from his serious injuries, the North Vietnamese offered McCain early release because of who his father was: commander of all U.S. forces in the Vietnam theater. McCain refused unless every man taken in before him was also released. Kept in solitary confinement, McCain was subjected to a program of severe torture. He was bound and beaten every two hours. After five-and-a-half years, he was finally released on 14 March 1973.
McCain went on to enter politics, serving in both the House of Representatives and later, the Senate. Since this is a tribute, not a biography, it is not my intent to outline his long service in Congress, but rather merely to note that, while he had the reputation in Congress for being a ‘maverick’, his was often the voice of reason. He was often the one who reached ‘across the aisle’ to work through compromises, and because of this, in recent years he often came under fire from his own party. But through it all, McCain followed his conscience, and though he wasn’t always right, he always fought for what he believed was the right thing for the nation and its people.
This nation and every citizen, both republican and democrat alike, lost a friend and an advocate yesterday. We need more like him, and he will be missed by so many. Former Presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama will give the eulogies at McCain’s funeral. Even in death, he reaches across partisan lines. You did more than your share here on earth, Senator McCain, and you will be sorely missed.
“We swore an oath to support and defend the Constitution, including the First Amendment. Today, every senator upheld that oath by sending a message that we support the First Amendment, and we support the freedom of the press in the face of these attacks.” – Senator Brian Schatz, 16 August 2018
We should not need a Senate resolution to declare that the free press is not “the enemy of the people”. It is rather akin to needing a Senate resolution to declare that parents should not beat their children to death, or men should not sexually abuse women. It is already the damn law! The U.S. Constitution protects the free press, so why do we need a Senate resolution to acknowledge the law? Why? Because we have a buffoon instead of a president who has, for 71 years, gotten what he wants by bullying, and he thinks he can still do that in the White House.
So, while we should not need the Senate to confirm that the press is not the enemy of the people, it is comforting to know that the Senate unanimously voted to confirm, for the sake of the madman in the Oval Office and his blind-faith followers who hang on his every word.
“Resolved, that the Senate affirms that the press is not the enemy of the people; reaffirms the vital and indispensable role that the free press serves to inform the electorate, uncover the truth, act as a check on the inherent power of the government, further national discourse and debate, and otherwise advance the most basic and cherished democratic norms and freedoms of the United States; and condemns the attacks on the institution of the free press and views efforts to systematically undermine the credibility of the press as an attack on the democratic institutions of the United States;and it is the sense of the Senate that it is the sworn responsibility of all who serve the United States by taking the oath to support and defend the Constitution of the United States to uphold, cherish, and protect the entire Constitution, including the freedom of the press.”
The resolution mentions a number of former leaders who have spoken on behalf of freedom of the press:
Benjamin Franklin in 1722 wrote, ‘‘Whoever would overthrow the Liberty of a Nation, must begin by subduing the Freeness of Speech.’’;
Thomas Jefferson in 1786 wrote, ‘‘Our liberty depends on the freedom of the press, and that cannot be limited without being lost.’’;
James Madison in 1789 introduced the freedom of the press in the Bill of Rights to the Constitution of the United States;
James Madison based the freedom of the press on the Declaration of Rights of the Commonwealth of Virginia, which in 1776 declared, ‘‘The freedom of the Press is one of the greatest bulwarks of liberty, and can never be restrained but by despotic Governments.’’;
President Ronald Reagan proclaimed August 4, 1985, as Freedom of the Press Day, stating that ‘‘Freedom of the press is one of our most important freedoms and also one of our oldest.’’;
President Reagan also said, ‘‘Today, our tradition of a free press as a vital part of our democracy is as important as ever. The news media are now using modern techniques to bring our citizens information not only on a daily basis but instantaneously as important events occur. This flow of information helps make possible an informed electorate and so contributes to our national system of self-government.’’;
Justice Anthony Kennedy wrote in International Soc. for Krishna Consciousness, Inc. v. Lee, 505 U.S. 672 (1992), ‘‘The First Amendment is often inconvenient. But that is beside the point. Inconvenience does not absolve the government of its obligation to tolerate speech.’’;
The United States Supreme Court also affirmed the history and intent of the freedom of the press in New York Times Co. v. United States, 403 U.S. 713 (1971), stating, ‘‘In the First Amendment, the Founding Fathers gave the free press the protection it must have to fulfill its essential role in our democracy. The press was to serve the governed, not the governors. The Government’s power to censor the press was abolished so that the press would remain forever free to censure the Government. The press was protected so that it could bare the secrets of government and inform the people. Only a free and unrestrained press can effectively expose deception in government.’’;
Tyrannical and authoritarian governments and leaders throughout history have sought to undermine, censor, suppress, and control the press to advance their undemocratic goals and actions; and
The United States, including the long-held commitment to and constitutional protection of the free press in the United States, has stood as a shining example of democracy, self-government, and freedom for the world to emulate.
That this resolution was passed unanimously without a single dissenting vote even among the boot-lickers on the right side of the aisle, speaks volumes. It tells us that even Mitch McConnell and all the rest are disturbed by Trump’s denigration of the press, and that they understand that the press is the only thing standing between a ‘president’ and a dictator. However, it should be noted that this is only a non-binding resolution, meaning it does basically nothing more than send a message to Trump & Co saying that the Senate supports the free press and does not agree with Trump calling them the enemy of the people. The law already exists in the form of the Constitution … we just need Congress to enforce that law upon the president.
I’ve noticed the almost exponential spread of a misconception being bandied about on social media the past few days and thought it would be a good idea to clarify before there is premature dancing in the streets. The misconception is that if Trump were to be impeached and removed from office, Pence and the rest of his appointees would also be automatically removed from office. Sounds like a truly wonderful idea, doesn’t it? Much as I hate to have to take those happy smiles off your face, I have to tell you folks … it just ain’t so.
I understand where the confusion comes in. Remember that when the Constitution was drafted, the framers were trying to keep it short and simple, for they wanted every man (women didn’t count back then) to be able to read and understand it. If we were writing the document today, lawyers would be involved and it would no doubt turn into a few million words, rather than the mere 7,591 words it is now, including the amendments. So, in keeping the document short and readable, there are some segments that, on the surface, may seem to mean something that they do not. Article II, section 4 is one such:
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.
First of all, it should be noted that while the House of Representatives may formally ‘impeach’ a president, this alone does not call for a removal from office. Remember President Clinton? The Senate basically acts as the jury once the House has voted to impeach, and if the Senate finds the president or other officer guilty with a 2/3 majority, in other words a vote of 67 senators, then and only then is that person removed from office. And only the person convicted of treason or another impeachable crime is removed, not the entire bunch of ‘em.
The tricky word that has given people hope we might do a thorough cleaning of the White House is that word ‘and’. “The President, Vice President and all civil Officers …” Replace ‘and’ with ‘or’, and you get a better picture of what the framers were trying to say.
If you think about it, it wouldn’t make sense to remove the vice president and the rest of the crew from office if the president were convicted and removed from office. In the case of Trump & Co, yes, it might make perfect sense, but in most cases it is highly unlikely that the entire crew was guilty just because the president was. And, can you imagine what chaos it would cause? Just the removal of the president would likely set the nation reeling for years. So no, there is no clean and legal way to “throw da bums out” all at once.
Something else to think about, as we call for impeachment. If the House impeached Trump today, we would still have him as president a year from now, because with the current makeup of the Senate, 51 republicans, 47 democrats, and 2 independents (who generally vote with the democrats), and given the fact that they are not only split along party lines but rent along party lines, there is no way in heck they would garner a 2/3 majority to remove him from office. It’s one of those situations where “Be careful what you wish for …” applies, for in all likelihood there will be only one chance to impeach Trump. Let us not waste it at a time when he will not be judged guilty by the senate and nothing will change except that the process will have wasted a ton of time and money. And frankly, while I really hate to burst everyone’s bubble – including my own – I don’t think that even with the best possible outcome in November, Trump will be removed from office by impeachment. The numbers just don’t add up.
There are 35 Senate seats up for election in November. Of those, 26 are already held by democrats, leaving only 9 seats currently held by republicans that could be switched to democrats. If every seat were filled with a democrat, the makeup of the Senate would be: 58 democrats and 42 republicans. Enough for a simple majority, but not enough for a 2/3 majority.
The only hope, and it is one I still think could happen, is if the evidence that Trump committed treason is so overwhelming that even the republicans in the Senate are ready to shove his patootie out the door. This, of course, would require that they dig deep and find both a pair of cojones and a conscience.
I apologize for bursting everybody’s bubble today, and I still believe that Trump needs to be removed from office and soon, before he does more damage to our system of government and our nation as a whole. But we need to be realistic, too. Sorry …
Now, we’ve had a moment of relief … some, no doubt, celebrated with champagne and noisemakers … it’s time to take stock, time to take a sobering look at the reality. The newly elected 116th Congress will not be seated until January 3rd, 2019 … nearly two full months from now. Have you considered what might happen during that two-month period?
Seriously injured, he was shown no mercy by the North Vietnamese, and received daily beatings and interrogations. In mid-1968, still recovering from his serious injuries, the North Vietnamese offered McCain early release because of who his father was: commander of all U.S. forces in the Vietnam theater. McCain refused unless every man taken in before him was also released. Kept in solitary confinement, McCain was subjected to a program of severe torture. He was bound and beaten every two hours. After five-and-a-half years, he was finally released on 14 March 1973.
So, while we should not need the Senate to confirm that the press is not the enemy of the people, it is comforting to know that the Senate unanimously voted to confirm, for the sake of the madman in the Oval Office and his blind-faith followers who hang on his every word.
