House impeaches Trump—again
What happened
House lawmakers voted to impeach President Donald Trump for a second time this week, on a charge of “incitement of insurrection,” with 10 Republicans joining Democrats in a historic 232-197 vote. The House charged Trump with inciting supporters to attack the U.S. Capitol, and also cited other efforts to “subvert and obstruct” the certification of the election results, specifically detailing a Jan. 2 phone call in which Trump demanded that Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger “find 11,780 votes.” The House moved to impeachment after Vice President Mike Pence refused to invoke the 25th Amendment and remove Trump from office. Rep. Liz Cheney (D-Wyo.), the third ranking House Republican, said Trump “lit the flame of this attack,” and that there had “never been a greater betrayal by a president.” An unrepentant Trump said his comments before the insurrection were “totally appropriate” and warned that impeaching him was “causing tremendous anger” among his supporters.
The Senate remains in recess until Jan. 19—and will not reconvene beforehand. A Senate conviction, which could include language barring Trump from holding office again, requires a two-thirds vote. Several Republicans have signaled they could vote against Trump, including current Majority Leader Mitch McConnell. President-elect Joe Biden asked the Senate to split time between the upcoming trial and his agenda and nominations. “We’re going to have to do several things at once,” said Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), who will take over as majority leader.
Trump’s grip on Republicans is clearly “fizzling out,” said Greg Sargent in The Washington Post. Not only did 10 Republicans in the House vote to impeach, but McConnell, a key Trump ally for most of his term, is reportedly pleased that Democrats impeached Trump and told GOP colleagues he will decide whether to convict based on “the legal arguments.” McConnell is said to blame Trump for costing Republicans the Senate, and feels impeachment will make it easier for the Republican Party to move on.
Yes, “Trump must be held accountable” said Kaylee McGhee in WashingtonExaminer.com. But impeachment is more trouble than it’s worth. “Like it or not,” 74 million people voted for Trump and most still believe his lies about election fraud. Removing him from office would only strengthen their belief the government “is out to get them” and drive them deeper into “Trump’s web,” when the goal should be extricating them from it as quickly as possible.
Impeachment still may not be the best strategy to keep Trump from holding office again, said Bruce Ackerman and Gerard Magliocca in The Washington Post. There’s a less divisive, simpler—and more effective—means of sanctioning Trump. The 14th Amendment was passed in 1866 to prohibit former Confederate officers and officials from holding office. To invoke it the Senate would need only a simple majority rather than two-thirds demanded by impeachment.