It’s a sad day in America and perhaps for the entire world.
Trump’s defenders love to argue that our founding fathers were afraid of impeachment and that a future Congress would abuse it in a partisan manner. They’re right. This was partisan as every single Republican in Congress voted against it and now the Republican majority in the United States Senate is about to give Donald Trump unchecked powers. Yes, our founding fathers were afraid of the impeachment clause being abused, but they still included it in the Constitution. Why? Because the one thing scarier than impeachment is a president with unlimited powers free to rule as an authoritarian.
Alan Dershowitz argued before the Senate that a president could engage in a quid pro quo for personal political benefit as long as the president believes his or her reelection is in the public interest. According to that belief, Donald Trump can steal an election if he believes he’s the chosen one and being president is in our national interest. Maybe he can just call off the election and imprison everyone who complains as he can rule that’s in the national interest. According to Dershowitz’s argument, Trump can ignore the other two branches. According to Dershowitz’s argument that Republicans are buying, if the president deems it in the national interest, he can lie to a grand jury about receiving oral sex from an intern in the White House and it’s not impeachable.
And here’s the thing, kids. They didn’t just rule that a president can do whatever the hell he wants, whenever the hell he wants, to whomever the hell he wants as long as he deems it’s in the national interest. No. They gave that power to the dumbest, most racist, most vile, most despicable and disgusting fuck ever to occupy the Oval Office. They gave it to a guy who was supported by Russia to steal the White House. They just gave it to a guy who was caught trying to steal the next election.
Democrats argue that since Republicans gave Trump this power, that a future Democratic president will have that power too. That’s not how Republicans see it because if they’re allowed to steal elections, then there won’t be another Democratic president. Look at the courts. Even though the nation is becoming more and more progressive, our courts will be controlled by conservatives for at least the next century. Mitch McConnell’s legacy will be crapping on us for decades. Look at the Senate. More Americans vote for Democratic candidates to fill the Senate, yet it’s controlled by Republicans.
Retiring Republican Senator Lamar Alexander has decided to vote against witnesses in the impeachment trial, which means the trial is probably over and the next step will be Donald Trump’s acquittal. But trust me, not having witnesses means he’ll never be exonerated.
Alexander said, “There is no need for more evidence to prove something that has already been proven and that does not meet the United States Constitution’s high bar for an impeachable offense.”
He also said it was “inappropriate for the president to ask a foreign leader to investigate his political opponent and to withhold United States aid to encourage that investigation” but, “The Constitution does not give the Senate the power to remove the president from office and ban him from this year’s ballot simply for actions that are inappropriate.”
It’s illegal to ask a foreign country for help in your political campaign. Donald Trump didn’t go through the proper channels for an investigation into an American citizen. Donald Trump demanded a quid pro quo in his dealings with Ukraine. He withheld taxpayer-funded military aid to an ally at war with one of our enemies in exchange for an attack on a political opponent. He used taxpayer money to bribe. And none of this is impeachable? He’s guilty but it’s not impeachable?
If what Trump did isn’t impeachable, then what is? So far, asking Russia to help your campaign isn’t impeachable. Having Russians in your campaign headquarters to provide dirt isn’t impeachable. Violating emoluments and collecting payments from foreign nations isn’t impeachable. We already knew being a racist dividing the nation and defending Nazis isn’t impeachable. And now, bribery and extortion aren’t impeachable. During the 2016 campaign, Trump said he could shoot someone on 5th Avenue and he wouldn’t lose any supporters. According to the Senate, he wouldn’t go to jail either. At what point does Donald Trump invite his political opponents to 5th Avenue?
It’s a sad day for America because the cowards in the United States Senate has ruled that there is no longer a need for an America.
~Clay Jones
