If 2018 is to be a Blue Wave election, Democrats are warned to focus on what new initiatives they will offer. They're told not to focus on this criminal White House or to talk about impeachment. Ignore the man behind the curtain. Talk about what you'll do differently.
Perhaps this is what the polls tell them, or what past experience says. But the reality is that ignoring the very real and present danger at the helm of our government is a surrender. Republicans have no qualms about attacking Hillary Clinton or Nancy Pelosi -- women in power offend them. Yet Democrats should ignore the greatest threat to our democracy in our lifetimes?
We have a corrupt, anti-democratic, incompetent, traitorous liar in the White House. We are watching the undoing of our environmental protections, our diplomatic corps, our civil rights, our influence around the world, our consumer protections, even our national parks. Corporate profits have completely eclipsed the public good in decision making. Democrats should ignore that?
Americans do have impeachment on their minds and support for it is growing. But what Republicans understand well and Democrats seem not to is that talking points change minds. Think about the effectiveness of Republicans over the past months undermining the Department of Justice, FBI, and Mueller investigations. Republican voters used to be faithful supporters of law enforcement. Then Republicans in Congress began their relentless attacks and now 73% of Republicans believe the FBI and DOJ have been unfair to the president. When Democrats go public with their concerns about this administration, they can swing the poll numbers regarding impeachment too.
We have an impeachment process. It has been used twice, neither time for crimes as heinous as what we are seeing on a daily basis now. We have a real and present danger and politicians have a responsibility to save the country from it. There are three possibilities for what Democrats running for office are thinking:
I for one am appalled at today's Congress for not defending our country against the anti-democratic forces, the incompetence, the support for dictators around the world, attacks on our free press, and the Russian influence over our White House. And as cowardly and traitorous as I see Republicans behaving today -- putting their own careers above country -- I am disappointed in Democrats who will not speak up against this threat either.
Adolf Hitler gained power in 1933. For the next five years, he faced little to no public opposition. By 1939, it was too late. Maybe Trump is more Mussolini than Hitler, but the echoes of fascism are real. Opposition leadership is essential. If not Democrats, then who?
Perhaps this is what the polls tell them, or what past experience says. But the reality is that ignoring the very real and present danger at the helm of our government is a surrender. Republicans have no qualms about attacking Hillary Clinton or Nancy Pelosi -- women in power offend them. Yet Democrats should ignore the greatest threat to our democracy in our lifetimes?
We have a corrupt, anti-democratic, incompetent, traitorous liar in the White House. We are watching the undoing of our environmental protections, our diplomatic corps, our civil rights, our influence around the world, our consumer protections, even our national parks. Corporate profits have completely eclipsed the public good in decision making. Democrats should ignore that?
Americans do have impeachment on their minds and support for it is growing. But what Republicans understand well and Democrats seem not to is that talking points change minds. Think about the effectiveness of Republicans over the past months undermining the Department of Justice, FBI, and Mueller investigations. Republican voters used to be faithful supporters of law enforcement. Then Republicans in Congress began their relentless attacks and now 73% of Republicans believe the FBI and DOJ have been unfair to the president. When Democrats go public with their concerns about this administration, they can swing the poll numbers regarding impeachment too.
We have an impeachment process. It has been used twice, neither time for crimes as heinous as what we are seeing on a daily basis now. We have a real and present danger and politicians have a responsibility to save the country from it. There are three possibilities for what Democrats running for office are thinking:
1. The president does not deserve impeachment and should complete his term, regardless of the damage done to the country and the world.
2. The president should be impeached but it would be politically damaging to say so during a campaign. In this case, the candidate will wait until after November to act, perhaps relying on the Mueller investigation for validation. However, this denies voters their say.
3. The president should be impeached and it is proper to advocate for impeachment during a campaign. In December, 58 Democrats did speak up for articles of impeachment filed in the House. But 126 did not.We do need that Blue Wave. We need to flip both houses of Congress in November. According to Lambrokes (international gambling site), the odds are good.
I for one am appalled at today's Congress for not defending our country against the anti-democratic forces, the incompetence, the support for dictators around the world, attacks on our free press, and the Russian influence over our White House. And as cowardly and traitorous as I see Republicans behaving today -- putting their own careers above country -- I am disappointed in Democrats who will not speak up against this threat either.
Adolf Hitler gained power in 1933. For the next five years, he faced little to no public opposition. By 1939, it was too late. Maybe Trump is more Mussolini than Hitler, but the echoes of fascism are real. Opposition leadership is essential. If not Democrats, then who?
You are right about Trump’s danger. But the source of the problem is that a great many people like what he says, and more yet like some of what he says but wish he said it in a nicer way. There is no clear consensus for impeachment, alas. If there were anything close to it then GOP officeholders would not back Trump. But they do.
ReplyDeleteImpeachment talk is interpreted as Democrats wanting a period of political chaos, not a nice clean surgical removal. Most voters don’t want chaos. Bottom line, the GOP voters are not ready, so the officeholders aren’t, so the issue isn’t yet ripe. It would backfire.
Peter Sage, Medford, OR
Peterwsage.blogspot.com
Thank you for your insight, Peter. I do believe that if Democrats engaged in the discussion more frequently, voters would respond. They could use the term "impeach" or simply escalate criticisms of the White House. Unfortunately, we're altogether too timid. As for political chaos, can it get worse?
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