I haven’t written a post about President Trump since July 2017. I believed then that his impeachment was “only a matter of time,” and while I was correct in my prediction, I did not expect it to take another sixteen months and a whole other scandal for Democrats to feel emboldened enough to defend the Constitution against this bona fide con-man.
So much shit has happened since my last post, and this impotent excuse for an impeachment seems hardly the most significant, especially when compared to the number of tragedies that have befallen so many families thanks to the policies and actions of this president and his administration.
While I support this impeachment and believe it has a just cause, I supported impeaching this president long before he engaged in a quid pro quo with the leaders of Ukraine.
I supported it when he violated the human rights of Central American refugees.
I supported it when he refused to divest from his business interests and increased his corporate profits through the use of his office.
I supported it when he gave aid and comfort to white supremacists, not only by supporting them with words, but by employing them in key positions in his administration and allowing them to determine the immigration policy of this country.
I supported it when it came to light that he broke campaign finance laws by paying women to remain silent about their extra-marital affairs with him, and that he did so during his campaign for political office.
I supported it when he admitted to taking money donated to his charity and using it for his personal gain.
I supported it when he demanded his FBI Director express loyalty to him rather than to the people’s laws.
I supported it when he asked top intelligence officials to lie to the American people about the existence of an investigation into his campaign.
I supported it when he admitted on national television that he fired his FBI Director because he wanted to stop an investigation into his campaign.
I supported it when he advocated, in a public speech, for police brutality; when he advocated, in a public speech, for mob violence; and when he advocated, in a pardon, for members of the military to commit war crimes.
Unfortunately, while the 2018 election changed the balance of power in the House of Representatives, the Republican majority in the Senate seems willing to piss on the Constitution if it gives them another judge on the bench and another tax break in their pocket.
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My question is: why do national Republican politicians in the House & Senate prefer President Trump over Vice-President Pence? Surely, a Pence Administration would be more effective when it comes to accomplishing Republican goals. Imagine how many of their policies they could have implemented by now if the Executive Branch had its shit together?
What does the Republican party gain by keeping President Trump as its standard bearer? According to polls, President Trump has a favorability spread of -13, while Vice-President Pence’s is -6, which means that while both of them are disliked, fewer people dislike the Vice-President. If the polls are accurate, they suggest President Trump does not give Republicans a significant advantage in the voting booth.
It may be true that President Trump can attract more non-traditional voters than Vice-President Pence, but I suspect he also compels more Democrats to vote than normally would.
It also seems as if this impeachment could be used by the Republicans as an opportunity to rejigger their electorate away from the vitriol instigated by the Tea Party and towards a more judicial use of the nation’s corporate and military might.
I assume Republican Senators are afraid of being “primary-ed” should they vote to find President Trump guilty of the House’s charges, but they should use this vote to persuade more reasonable people to join their party. Think of a Republican party that actually works to further true democratic (small d) and entrepreneurially-friendly values. You know…like Republicans are supposed to do?
In addition, think of how much having a President Pence atop the 2020 Republican ticket would screw up Democratic talking points. V.P. Pence does not have a history of kowtowing to dictators, sympathizing with avowed white supremacists, or being a hardline anti-immigrant, robbing Democrats of those easy points.
All of which begs the question: why do Republicans hate Mike Pence so much?