Earlier today, Trump was impeached by the House of Representatives for the second time in his four years in office.
I know, I know, the first impeachment did not actually lead to him being removed from office. Plus, there is now a week (not even) left of his presidency, and already, Republicans in the Senate are stalling efforts to hold the trial.
Still, there might (and I want to emphasize the term might) be a chance that, this time, Trump might actually be impeached.
What's so different this time around than last time?
Well, for one, more Republicans seem ready to take action against Trump. Let's not kid ourselves about Republicans believing in principles or anything. Many of them seemed to support Trump, even while holding their noses (figuratively) while so doing, and in some cases, showing contempt for him. In other words, their loyalty to him, unlike the loyalty of his base, goes only as far as he can provide them with political success. It worked in 2016, when he defied all of the odds and experts by continually surpassing the generally low expectations people had of his candidacy, which most people seemed to feel was an elaborate publicity stunt to sell his brand. But by 2018, people were beginning to have some doubts, especially after some of the downright embarrassing things that he did, which cast some doubt on just how powerful he still was politically.
After all, he is on a losing streak, and no longer seems to be as invulnerable or untouchable in their eyes as he once did. Of course, during the first impeachment earlier this year, it was known that his polarizing brand of politics, which may have been given too much credit in the Republican sweep to power in 2016, had cost the GOP the House in the 2018 election, as well as a shift in momentum among state governments, as well.
But now, it is known that he cost the Republicans the Senate, as well as the White House. And he has become positively toxic for a majority of Americans. Sure, he has a loyal base who feel that he can do no wrong, and that can help Trump loyalists receive the Republican nomination. But in a growing number of parts of this country, being branded a Trump stooge is political suicide. That is particularly true in urban areas, as well as suburbs.
Also, people have grown tired of Trump's antics and actions, and it was this same cumbersome way that he has of talking out of both sides of his mouth, like the con artist that he is and always has been, that certainly contributed in a big way to the insurrection at the Capitol building last week put members of Congress - and in some cases their family members - in actual danger. There were people there with zip ties, intent on making arrests of high-ranking lawmakers. Given the tendency towards violence of these most cultish of Trump supporters (and that's saying something!), we certainly cannot assume that bodily harm, even possibly death, were a real possibility.
And let's face it: a majority - even a vast majority - of Americans seem to have had it with Trump now. Seven of ten Americans were opposed to what happened last week, and the same percentage felt that Trump's actions leading up to the storming of the Capitol were wrong. And 57 percent of Americans, which constitutes a clear majority, now favor the immediate removal of this man from the White House. The reality is that those kinds of political numbers are toxic, and can begin to melt even the icy hearts of Republicans who, previously, had remained loyal to Trump.
For once, prominent Republicans are speaking out against Trump. Representative Liz Cheney of Wyoming (yes, the daughter of former Vice-President Dick Cheney) voted to impeach today. Yes, she is facing the inevitable blow back for going against Trump, and she must have known that it would come. Still, she went ahead and did what she felt was right for the country. Here is some of what she had to say about it:
"Much more will become clear in coming days and weeks, but what we know now is enough," her statement reads. "The President of the United States summoned this mob, assembled the mob, and lit the flame of this attack. Everything that followed was his doing."
The No. 3 Republican in the House added: "None of this would have happened without the President. The President could have immediately and forcefully intervened to stop the violence. He did not. There has never been a greater betrayal by a President of the United States of his office and his oath to the Constitution."
Nor is Cheney the only Republican speaking out against Trump now. Colin Powell, an almost lifelong Republican, said that he no longer could consider himself a Republican any longer. Numerous Republican senators who had previously been going in favor of challenging the election results and backing up Trump's claims finally broke with him and certified Joe Biden's election win. The most famous example is Lindsey Graham, who had been one of the most sickeningly loyal to Trump of prominent Congressional leaders. Once upon a time, when he suspected that Trump would be dead weight that would bring the Republican party down, he was very critical of the man. But then, once he proved to be politically profitable, Graham changed his tune, and was loyal to Trump to a fault. Finally, however, that seems to have changed once again, and Graham stood before Congress and said that Biden had won, and that Trump had offered not one shred of proof to back up his allegations of having had the election stolen from him by massive voter fraud. He was not the only Republican that had once promised to back up Trump's allegations, and then turned around and decided not to delay the process of certifying Biden's win a moment longer.
Now, even Senate Majority leader Mitch McConnell has evidently shown some support of impeaching Trump, holding him accountable for the actions last week that led to the insurrection, and removing him from office.
Admittedly, I still have my doubts, but we shall see. At the very least, it seems that Trump's iron grip on the Republican party as loosened, and dramatically, at that. We shall see whether it is a case of too little, too late, because my own suspicion is that Lindsey Graham was right when he once predicted that Trump rising to the top of the GOP would ultimately backfire and destroy the Republican party and that, moreover, the death of the party would be deserved.
Here are the links to the two articles that I used in writing this particular blog entry, and from which I obtained the quotes used above:
Cheney Will Vote To Impeach: 'There Has Never Been A Greater Betrayal By A President' January 12, 20216:39 PM ET Barbara Sprunt 2017 square BARBARA SPRUNT
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell is 'pleased' at the prospect of Trump being impeached, new report says Grace Panetta Tue, January 12, 2021:
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