Sunday, September 8, 2019

Bingo!

Congress returns from summer recess this coming week, and the House Judiciary Committee is getting ready to vote on a resolution officially defining the scope of its investigation into President Trump, multiple sources told CNN. The committee has already publicly announced it is considering moving towards impeachment.

[...]

The purpose of taking this step would be to officially grant the Judiciary Committee the authority that it needs to conduct a full investigation and determine whether to vote on articles of impeachment. The language, for example, could allow committee staff counsels to question witnesses, which is not typically done in congressional hearings, and spell out how committee members can review classified grand jury material in closed-door sessions.

[...]

Since the release of the Mueller report in April, Democrats have taken a middle-of-the-road approach. Speaker Nancy Pelosi is reluctant to move forward on impeachment, fearing a political backlash as legislators from swing districts are looking to project a moderate image to hold on to their seats in 2020. Nadler, on the other hand, has been more forceful both in public statements and in court filings, saying that the impeachment inquiry has already begun.

If House Democrats are going to undertake the impeachment process, they must do so with full resolve. To go about it the same way the special counsel's office quietly conducted most of its work behind the scenes would be a huge mistake.

[...]

The middle way on impeachment would give Republicans the fodder they need to argue that their opponents are politically motivated. The investigation process as it is will only continue to sow confusion, rather than turn the public's attention to the actual substance of any potential wrongdoing.

If House Democrats are not prepared to launch a full-throated impeachment process and commit to devoting a substantial amount of their energy to determine whether the President should be impeached, then they should simply move on and focus on their issue agenda instead.

The middle ground doesn't help the public and it certainly doesn't help the party. It simply allows a frustrating period in US history to drag on without any meaningful action and enables the President to continue swinging for the fences without congressional restraint.

  Julian Zelizer, CNN political analyst, professor of history and public affairs at Princeton
Personally speaking, I have no confidence that the Democrats will choose the right way.

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