There has been a lot of talk about impeaching Obama in recent weeks. Strangely enough, much of it seems to be coming from the President himself. Many are pointing out that the whole subject is nothing more than crass politics on both sides.
There is certainly a political calculation to impeachment. I actually believe that if an impeachment trial would occur, there would be Democrat Senators that would vote to impeach – especially as facts came out. Sadly, I believe that there would be enough Republicans that would bail out that even with the Democrat votes there would be a failure to convict.
A big part of the problem of bringing impeachment today is that we are reaping the price of the Clinton impeachment. Of all the things Clinton could have been impeached over, perjuring himself in a sex scandal was entirely the wrong case to make. I said then, it doesn’t matter whether it was true. What matters is that DC is not going to convict anyone for business as usual and all that will result is that Congress’ impeachment power will be tainted. Welcome to 2014.
Trust me. That is what will happen at this point if impeachment charges are leveled just now. Facts won’t matter. All that will be reported other than the race card is a rehash of the Clinton impeachment/witch-hunt. Obama certainly knows this. That is why he is trying to push the issue now. In addition to the damage a failed impeachment would do the country, it’s his best Hail Mary to try and keep control of the Senate. So now? Politically, we have to wait.
Another aspect of this is the public. Because of the above, the only way there will be an impeachment – even IF we get the Senate – is if the public outcry is loud enough to demand it. Congress does not have the courage or conviction. If they are to show either, then we, the people, have to provide them with it. If you want to impeach after November, then we need to start making the case of his offenses now.
Remember, we’re dealing with a bully. We should nationalize this election as a move to stop Obama and reverse his policies – and I don’t mean (just) healthcare. As the pressure mounts, you can be assured he will do something that will both justify and force Congress to impeach. He won’t have a choice; it will be either cross the line of tyranny publicly or have his “legacy” undone. His ego won’t allow the latter.
As far as people arguing that this is all about party – and I’ve seen them on both sides – party has little to do with it. We are talking about deposing a head of State. Even though we are using the legal and Constitutional means to do so, that isn’t something enacted lightly. Because of the Clinton impeachment debacle (and that puts it nicely, in my opinion), a failure this time will weaken Congress enough that it will be irrelevant for the foreseeable future.
To those who see this as a “damn the torpedoes, full speed ahead” issue, there’s much more at stake than petty revenge or party politics. What is at stake here is the integrity of our separation of powers and whether the Presidency is entitled to dictatorial powers.