NYT Op Ed Leonhardt "The People vs. Donald J. Trump He is demonstrably unfit for office. What are we

[NRaleighLiberal]

Waiting for?

https://www.nytimes.com/2019/01/05/opinion/sunday/trump-impeachment.html?action=click&module=Opinion&pgtype=Homepage

(long, well written - the headings are below...sorry about the paywall - will paste in the end)

Trump has used the presidency for personal enrichment

Trump has violated campaign finance law

Trump has obstructed justice

Trump has subverted democracy

What now?

The most relevant precedent for the removal of Trump is Nixon, the only American president to be forced from office because of his conduct. And two aspects of Nixon’s departure tend to get overlooked today. One, he was never impeached. Two, most Republicans — both voters and elites — stuck by him until almost the very end. His approval rating among Republicans was still about 50 percent when, realizing in the summer of 1974 that he was doomed, he resigned.

The current political dynamics have some similarities. Whether the House of Representatives, under Democratic control, impeaches Trump is not the big question. The question is whether he loses the support of a meaningful slice of Republicans.

snip - then last two paragraphs

Democrats won’t persuade them by impeaching Trump. Doing so would probably rally the president’s supporters. It would shift the focus from Trump’s behavior toward a group of Democratic leaders whom Republicans are never going to like. A smarter approach is a series of sober-minded hearings to highlight Trump’s misconduct. Democrats should focus on easily understandable issues most likely to bother Trump’s supporters, like corruption.

If this approach works at all — or if Mueller’s findings shift opinion, or if a separate problem arises, like the economy — Trump’s Republican allies will find themselves in a very difficult spot. At his current approval rating of about 40 percent, Republicans were thumped in the midterms. Were his rating to fall further, a significant number of congressional Republicans would be facing long re-election odds in 2020.

[Andy823]

1. Waiting for

Enough republicans in the Senate to do the right thing and help stop the madness. It could be a long wait !

[thegoose]

3. They're pigs at the trough

They won't do anything.

[peggysue2]

2. This is the money-graph

Democrats won’t persuade them by impeaching Trump. Doing so would probably rally the president’s supporters. It would shift the focus from Trump’s behavior toward a group of Democratic leaders whom Republicans are never going to like. A smarter approach is a series of sober-minded hearings to highlight Trump’s misconduct. Democrats should focus on easily understandable issues most likely to bother Trump’s supporters, like corruption.


Which is why Nancy Pelosi has said repeatedly that impeachment is not on the table at this time.

She's a strategist and has been playing this game throughout her career. The House investigations are gearing up as we write; Mueller's team has been granted a 6-month grand jury extension; and Trumpski is becoming ever-more incoherent.

The Democratic Party has the winning hand. We cannot afford to blow it regardless of how eager we are to rid the country of the Orange-Menace. There are a whole lot of people who will go down in this criminal enterprise. We need to allow gravity to work its magic.

Long game for the win.