Use 25th Amendment to remove the president
Former Republican and Democratic members of Congress should be asking Vice President Mike Pence to activate the 25th Amendment in response to hopefully what will be a Congressional Resolution passed by the members of the new Congress, making that same request, and not focus on impeachment
If the goal is impeachment and President Donald Trump’s removal in the Senate, so he can’t run again, I think it will fail to get the necessary two-thirds votes in that chamber. He will be impeached but not removed.
If President Trump is not impeached, I do not believe he would get the nomination four years from now, and if he happened to get the nomination, I do not think he would win the general election, unless Democrats nominate a truly poor candidate, which is possible but not likely.
Because there are so few days left, any effort to impeach the president will ultimately have a look of Democrats and some Republicans trying to prevent Trump from being able to run again, even if a significant number of Americans still want him to have that ability. In other words, it will look like the establishment is using the power of impeachment for political reasons, because they fear he could win.
If this becomes a partisan political battle, then in the years to come, House Republicans will return the favor by impeaching a Democratic president when they have the opportunity. And then the Democrats will return the favor, and so on, and we will become more like a so-called Third World country. The ability to impeach a president only takes a simple majority, so it can happen often by whichever party controls the House of Representatives, and it will happen more than it should.
I acknowledge the logic and importance, that because President Trump used his office, after his defeat to Vice President Joe Biden, to overturn the election by inspiring a violent and ultimately deadly coup, that he must be held accountable and pay the price as an enemy of the state, and as a lesson for future generations, but my concern is this. Just as in some
Just as in some developing countries, where supporters of a newly elected president do everything they can to crush and maybe arrest the recently defeated opponent, so their political opponent cannot run again, the same thing could be happening here. The precedence to me is alarming. It feels too much like we are actually becoming a banana republic.
developing countries, where supporters of a newly elected president do everything they can to crush and maybe arrest the recently defeated opponent, so their political opponent cannot run again, the same thing could be happening here. The precedence to me is alarming. It feels too much like we are actually becoming a banana republic.
If Trump is impeached, I suspect there will be significant anger among a segment of the general public and within Congress, making President Biden’s efforts to heal the country, and get things done for the good of all Americans, even more difficult than it already is.
As a strong supporter of Joe Biden, I can’t wait for Jan. 20 and his installation as our new president. As a Congressman I had the privilege of working with Senator Biden for 21 years. He was rarely partisan, and treated everyone with respect, regardless of their party affiliation, how long they had served, or whether they were a member of the House or the Senate. What mattered to him was getting things done. I trusted Joe and was never disappointed.
Bottom line, with so little time left, I truly fear if impeachment becomes the focus, there will be too many Democrats and some Republicans, who will overplay their hand, and ultimately harm the future success of the Biden administration. Given what is at stake, it is not worth the risk. The best effort should be, forget impeachment, activate the 25th Amendment, and move on.
And the best position Presidentelect Biden could take, is for him to publicly say to folks, “The issues facing our country are so challenging and so urgent to overcome. Let’s just move on.” Whether he says this or not, I suspect that is how Joe feels. Let’s just get on with it.
Christopher Shays, a Republican, held elected office for 34 years, first as a state representative in Connecticut from 1974 to 1987, then as a member of Congress for 21 years. He now resides with his wife Betsi in St Michaels, Maryland.