re: #39 Anymouse 🌹

That’s why impeachment hearings are important.

The US House committees are now conducting the various investigations which can be used for a basis for an impeachment vote if warranted.

What worries me about impeachment is not that it might hand the GOP a weapon going into the 2020 election. What really worries me is if the House conducts the appropriate investigations and it does not find sufficient evidence to warrant impeachment.

All those hanging their hat on impeachment on the left then take their ball and go home, thinking the whole system is rigged (not that a proper investigation did not find sufficient evidence to support articles of impeachment).

All that said, the political ramifications of impeachment (what if this turns out GOP voters, what if this is painted as “political,” &c) should not matter to Democrats. What should matter is upholding the rule of law.

If the evidence indicates there should be articles of impeachment, then political considerations should not weigh on that decision (will we win or lose in 2020).

As for VP Pence, in the event (which seems unlikely) that he should become President, we can deal with that when it happens.

I kind of agree that the rule of law should be upheld, but that could be done by indicting Trump once he is out of office. The single most pressing issue is to make sure the Democrats win control of the federal government in 2020. There will be congressional investigations, but unless Trump’s support in the Senate completely crumbles letting the Senate GOP acquit him will be spun as a great victory by the GOP. So if the hearings produce a collapse in Trump’s support with Republican voters Pelosi could trigger impeachment, but with the election coming up so soon the better strategy may be to let a crippled Trump stay on the ballot and drag the entire GOP down with him next November.