Before long House Democrats will submit articles of impeachment to the Senate. At some point, the trial involving the impeachment of Donald J. Trump will proceed. Republicans control the Senate and they have made it clear, even before a trial is initiated, that there is no way that they will vote to impeach this president, no matter how much damning evidence there may be against him.
Republicans have, therefore, deliberately forfeited their responsibility under the U.S. Constitution to take part in acting as judge and jury. They are, in effect, saying that what the Constitution says relative to this matter is irrelevant and they will make their own judgments. Their oath of office and promises to uphold the Constitution means nothing.
Watching them during the House hearings one can readily tell that they are paralyzed by fear, almost in a state of panic. They make nonsensical excuses for what Trump did relative to Ukraine, and they can’t figure out how to deal with the various witnesses testifying against him. Why don’t at least some of them speak the truth instead of covering up for him?
They also know full well that if they don’t toe the line and stand by Trump, no matter what, they will feel the wrath of this president’s supporters and their days in Congress will come to an end.
Watching the pathetic Lindsey Graham, Marco Rubio, and others like Rep. Jim Jordan, and their submissive, subservient behavior in kissing Trump’s behind, is enough to make one nauseous. Have they no shame? Quite apparently they have none. Who and what are they? In the minds of many close observers of what is going on, their behavior is nothing less than political prostitution.
So, being fully aware of what Republicans are going to do, Democrats will still go through the motions of presenting the case against this pretend-president, even though they know the process will die in the Senate.
I think that Democrats will present three articles of impeachment. They are 1.abuse of power/bribery, 2. obstruction of justice, 3. Contempt of Congress. They will be supported by very solid, damning evidence. But Republicans will reject them all.
The evidence of his guilt could hardly be more telling. Trump’s July 25th telephone conversation with President Zelensky of Ukraine, in which he slyly offered him $400 million in military aid if he would investigate Joe Biden and his son, was obviously a case of bribery/extortion.
Since Republicans will not carry out their Constitutional responsibilities the people of America will now be given the task of being the appointed judge and jury in this critically important case. To many observers this case is open and shut i.e., meaning that the defendant is, without question, guilty of the charges that have been brought against him.
So one might think that the American people who have seen the House hearings on this issue, after they have reviewed the entire evidence, will pass sentence on Trump in the 2020 election – guilty as charged – and remove him from office.
But that is not a sure thing because this situation is far more complicated. We can’t depend on the majority of eligible voters to fully understand all the elements of this case because a great many have not become fully aware of all the pros and the cons.
Then we also have that 40% of his supporters who have been mind-conditioned by Trump who will never stop supporting him no matter what he does, no matter how twisted his behavior becomes.
Americans need to be the judge and jury in this case, but will they be up to the job? These are historic times, our democracy is in peril and a large portion of Americans, including those who have no use for Trump, apparently can’t even see it happening.
What will it take to wake up these many millions of Americans? The Democrats must finish constructing a foolproof case against Trump. When they present their final conclusions to the American people it must be done in a concise, relatively simple way, not long and complicated, for the American span of attention span isn’t that great.
Next, and very important. The American journalistic profession, from newspapers to radio, and TV must do everything possible to inform and educate the American people about exactly what is going on in this impeachment inquiry to motivate them to get off the sidelines; get involved; then vote.
Unfortunately, these House Hearings are so long and tedious that most Americans will not spend all that time to see what is going on. I suggest that the best way to become informed would be to watch various experts and analysts on your favorite cable news channel discuss the pros and cons after the actual hearings.
The American people will be given the task of acting as judge and jury, examine all the evidence gathered; and then pass judgment, to declare Trump innocent or guilty. Their decision will determine the fate, the very survival of our democracy.
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