October 31, 2019: Guess Who's Going to Be Impeached

 

10/31/19: Today’s the day! The U.S. House of Representatives will hold a vote and make it official. 

The impeachment inquiry shall proceed.

Only two other presidents have been impeached.

 

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“I don’t think that would be in accord with our values.” 

John Sullivan

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Yesterday, the president’s defense suffered another dent when John Sullivan, the #2 man at Department of State, testified during a public hearing. Sullivan made it plain that Rudy Giuliani, serving as Trump’s personal lawyer, was responsible for trashing former U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine, Marie Yovanovitch. 

Sullivan, now President Trump’s choice to become the U.S. ambassador to Russia, was testifying at his confirmation hearing. Democrats had a few questions they wanted to ask. Would the Washington Nationals win Game 7? Would President Trump show up for the parade if they did, even at the risk of being booed? (Okay, that’s a joke.) And did Sullivan believe it would be appropriate for the president to demand that foreign countries investigate political opponents?  

“I don’t think that would be in accord with our values,” Sullivan replied.

 

Well, then, did he have any thoughts about Rudy and the role he had played in messing with official U.S. diplomatic policy in regard to Ukraine? You know: in his role as the president’s personal lawyer? Sullivan told senators that Ms. Yovanovitch had served “admirably and capably.” 

Senator Robert Menendez of New Jersey asked the nominee if he thought Rudy was out to “smear Ambassador Yovanovitch or have her removed?” 

“I believed he was, yes,” the witness replied. 

(The New York Times has posted a clip of Sullivan responding to questions, lasting four-and-a-half minutes.)

 

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RUSSIA! UKRAINE!! CHINA!!! A president who (at the very least) welcomed aid from Russia in one election, then suggested Ukraine – or China – help him get re-elected, gets dragged to the brink of impeachment Thursday. 

There is still a remote chance that Donald John Trump’s name will not go down in history as one of only three presidents to be impeached. One would not be wise to bet one’s pension on that outcome. 

If we exclude Nixon, who resigned before he could be impeached, Trump now seems set to join Andrew Johnson, who avoided removal by one vote, 35 for ouster, 18 against, and Bill Clinton who “did not have sexual relations with that woman.” 

But did. 

On a procedural vote to formalize the impeachment inquiry, the House of Representatives voted in favor, 232-196. One former Republican, Justin Amash, joined 231 Democrats in the affirmative. 

Two Democrats joined 194 Republicans in voting no.

 

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OCTOBER ENDS with a new poll out, showing that 56% of Americans say the word “honest” does not describe President Trump. 

An even larger majority, 61%, agree that the president “has little to no respect for America’s democratic institutions and traditions.” 

A second poll shows that 93% of Democrats believe the president has done something either illegal (69%) or unethical (24%) in his interactions with the president of Ukraine. Seven in ten Independents (27% and 43%) agree. Even 36% of Republicans (8% and 28%) smell a skunk in the Oval Office.