Bill Clinton Impeachment

Supreme Court Once Again Stands Up To Presidential Assertion Of Executive Privilege, And Limits It!

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The Supreme Court of the United States for the third time in 48 years has stood up to a President who asserted “Executive Privilege”, and was smacked down by a court including members appointed by the President who was involved in the Court case.

First, we had US V Nixon in July 1974, having to do with Richard Nixon and the Watergate tapes, which the Court unanimously, 8-0, ordered them handed over to the Watergate Special Prosecutor and the House Judiciary Committee. This led within weeks to the resignation of Richard Nixon. Associate Justice William Rehnquist recused himself from the case, appropriately, as he had worked earlier in the Nixon Justice Department, but the other three Nixon appointees, Chief Justice Warren Burger, and Associate Justices Harry Blackmun and Lewis Powell, joined the unanimous decision.

Next, we had Clinton V Jones, 1997, which involved the issue of whether Bill Clinton could be required to testify in a civil trial while in office, a case brought by Paula Jones against Governor Clinton for sexual harrassment. The Court unanimously, 9-0, including his two appointees, Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Stephen Breyer, ruled that he had to give testimony, and this helped to lead to his impeachment in 1998. So there was no immunity from civil law litigation for acts done before taking office, and unrelated to the office.

And now, we have Trump V Thompson, a lawsuit brought by Donald Trump against the January 6 House Committee investigation of the January 6, 2021 Insurrection, in the name of Chairman Bennie Thompson. So documents to show the series of events leading to the Insurrection are now to be made available to the House committee, as it investigates the wrong doing of the 45th President. This is a major victory, and all three Trump Supreme Court nominees—Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh, and Amy Coney Barrett—voted with the majority 8-1, with only Clarence Thomas in oppostion.

This is a conflict of interest by Thomas, who should have recused himself, as William Rehnquist did in the Nixon case. Since Thomas’s wife was involved in the planning of the January 6 Insurrection, encouraging lawlessness, this should be grounds for removal of Clarence Thomas from the Supreme Court, highly unlikely, but would be appropriate!

Trump Reaction To Impeachment Monitors Andrew Johnson, Very Different Than Richard Nixon And Bill Clinton

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As Donald Trump faces impeachment on Wednesday, one can monitor his behavior as being similar to Andrew Johnson, and very different from Richard Nixon and Bill Clinton.

Trump refuses to take responsibility for his behavior and actions, as was the case with Andrew Johnson in 1868.

Richard Nixon was intelligent enough to realize the game was up, and to resign in dignity, while Bill Clinton profusely apologized for his behavior.

Donald Trump’s behavior has been reprehensible his entire life, but finally, he is being held accountable, and his future obituary will include that he is the fourth person impeached by the House Judiciary Committee, and the third to be impeached by the House of Representatives, and put on trial before the US Senate.

Nothing he can do can escape that fate, no matter the result of the Senate trial!

It’s Official: Donald Trump Becomes 4th President To Have House Judiciary Committee Adopt Articles Of Impeachment

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It is now official!

President Donald Trump has had two articles of impeachment adopted by the House Judiciary Committee, making him the 4th President to face such a situation!

Andrew Johnson in 1868; Richard Nixon in 1974; and Bill Clinton in 1998 preceded him.

Andrew Johnson was acquitted in 1868; Bill Clinton in 1999; and Richard Nixon resigned before the entire House of Representatives could vote to impeach him, which was a certainty, and therefore the US Senate did not conduct an impeachment trial in his case.

The impeachment trial will take place in January, with Chief Justice John Roberts presiding, as previously, Chief Justice Salmon P. Chase in 1868; and Chief Justice William Rehnquist did in 1999.

Republican Party Totally Unprincipled On Trump Impeachment, While Going After Bill Clinton On Flimsier Grounds Twenty Years Ago

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The Republican Party of Abraham Lincoln, Theodore Roosevelt, Dwight D. Eisenhower, Ronald Reagan, and George H. W. Bush has gone totally bonkers, as the 2019 Republican party has demonstrated it is totally unprincipled on the growing evidence of the clear cut obstruction of justice, abuse of power, and other crimes that call for President Donald Trump to be impeached.

By comparison, Bill Clinton was a choir boy, with the worst action he took being engaging in sex in the Oval Office, and lying about it, for which the late 1990s Republican Party impeached him on far flimsier grounds.

Now, we see those engaged in going after Bill Clinton, including Mitch McConnell, Lindsey Graham, Newt Gingrich, and a multitude of other hypocrites, willing to overlook every misdeed by Donald Trump, and sacrifice their reputations to defend a President who deserves no defense.

It is as if a religious cult has emerged, and as if Donald Trump is a God like figure. Republicans are willing to sacrifice their reputation in history, as they will not stand up well in the future for their willingness to bow down to Trump, when he is always willing to throw them under the bus, having no loyalties to anyone, and only concerned about his own selfish, greedy desires to grab more power and destroy the US Constitution.

Will the Republican Party ever come out of its fog and unreal state of consciousness?

The Disgraceful Sycophants For Donald Trump: Rudy Giuliani, Stephen Miller, Kevin McCarthy, Jim Jordan, Lindsey Graham, And More

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History will record in a condemnatory way the long list of disgraceful sycophants who have legitimized Donald Trump’s abuse of power and obstruction of justice.

The leading sycophants include:

Former NYC Mayor Rudy Giuliani, who has gone totally off the rails, and seems clearly to have lost all morality and ethics, amidst signs of dementia.

Stephen Miller, the 34 year old senior adviser for Trump, who has demonstrated his total lack of decency, compassion, and empathy, and is perceived by some as the new modern young Roy Cohn of the Joseph McCarthy era, a Jewish man who shows totally despicable and indefensible behavior, including racism and nativism to the extreme.

House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy of California, who makes Paul Ryan and John Boehner both seem far less objectionable than they actually were, and a total liar and phony who disgraces the Republican Party in the lower chamber.

Ohio Congressman Jim Jordan, a truly obnoxious, nasty and arrogant Tea Party activist who spews forth poisonous propaganda on a regular basis.

South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham, who thought Bill Clinton should be impeached, but now sees no grounds for Donald Trump to be impeached. His former friend, the late John McCain, would be sorely disappointed with his behavior defending Trump,

The list is much more than these five, and now includes Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Attorney General William Barr, both of whom, by their lies and deception and unwillingness to cooperate in the impeachment investigation of Donald Trump, could face legal action and impeachment on their own.

Never has there been so many people willing to sacrifice their careers and reputations to defend a President who is the most unethical, immoral, and cruel person we have ever had in the White House, who now has the gall to say he will never leave the Presidency, implying the end of the 22nd Amendment and democratic elections in the future, as if he is an Emperor or King,

The threat of civil war enunciated by religious right wing fanatics must not prevent the rule of law, and the willingness, if need be, to remove Donald Trump forcibly from the Oval Office in chains and handcuffs if need be, to uphold the Constitution of the United States!

Senator Lindsey Graham, A Despicable Turncoat Against The Principles Of His Friend, John McCain!

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The most shocking and surprising turn of events in the US Senate is that South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham has become a despicable turncoat against the principles of his friend, the late Arizona Senator John McCain.

There were no too better friends in the Senate than Graham and McCain, and both were condemnatory of Donald Trump in the 2016 Presidential campaign, including when Trump said McCain was not a war hero for being captured and tortured for over five years in the Vietnam War.

Graham said extremely critical points against Trump, and yet now, he has transformed totally to be a Trump lackey, including even when Trump still brings up McCain’s name in a critical manner.

Graham sees no obstruction of justice, abuse of power, violation of the Emoluments Clause, or Russian collusion, despite ample evidence of such impeachable crimes.

This is precisely the opposite of 20 years ago, when Graham as a House member, led the charge to impeach Bill Clinton on charges far less egregious than Trump has committed.

Graham was always a bit of a character, but now he has lost all credibility and legitimacy. Hopefully, he can be defeated for his Senate seat in 2020.

Clinton Case And Trump Case For Impeachment Totally Different, Including Clinton Popularity Remained High, And Trump Has Never Had A Majority Popularity Rating!

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As the debate begins over whether Donald Trump should face impeachment by the House of Representatives, even if the US Senate will not convict, it is instructive to examine the Bill Clinton Impeachment and compare it to the proposed Donald Trump Impeachment.

Bill Clinton remained popular through the whole impeachment crisis and after, and yet the majority of the American people did not support his impeachment, based on the Paula Jones and Monica Lewinsky scandals. But the Republican Party played politics, and insisted on impeaching him and bringing him to trial in the Senate, knowing full well that Clinton would NOT be removed from office, and knowing that if he was removed, Al Gore would have become President and had an edge as a sitting President for the 2000 Presidential election.

Donald Trump, on the other hand has never been popular with more than 42-43 percent of the American people, and the support for his impeachment has grown as time has passed, although a majority in polls do not yet support action to be taken, despite the clear cut abuses of power and obstruction of justice being utilized by Trump, including refusal to hand over documents and have people testify before Congressional committees. And the fact that he has earned hundreds of millions of dollars from his properties, violating the Emoluments Clause of the Constitution, is yet another reason for his impeachment, no matter what happens in the Senate.

Democrats know that if Donald Trump were to be removed, Mike Pence would replace him, a horrifying thought, but for the record of history, it is clear that Donald Trump is more abusive of power, and violating the separation of powers and checks and balances, endangering the nation in international affairs, and in retaining the great reforms of Democratic and Republican Presidents since Theodore Roosevelt and through Barack Obama.

There is no acceptable excuse for moving ahead on impeachment, and it is time for Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi to stop worrying about the impact of impeachment, and do the right thing, make Donald Trump accountable under the Constitution for his violation of his Presidential oath to support and defend the Constitution of the United States!

The Record And Views Of Supreme Court Nominee Brett Kavanaugh Could Determine Constitutional Law To 2050!

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Tomorrow, the contentious hearings on the nomination of Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh will begin in the Senate Judiciary Committee.

These will be the most controversial set of hearings since 1987 and Robert Bork, and 1991, with Clarence Thomas.

On both of those occasions, the Democrats controlled the Senate, and Bork was rejected by a vote of 58-42, while Thomas was confirmed by a vote of 52-48.

The effect of Justice Clarence Thomas for the past 27 years has been profound, with many future potential Circuit Court or Supreme Court candidates having clerked for him.

Thomas has been trying to take us back to the Articles of Confederation in many ways, but also admiring Presidential power at the same time.

This is the danger of Brett Kavanaugh, that he would take America domestically back to the Gilded Age, wiping out the New Deal, Great Society, and everything Barack Obama changed.

He comes across on the surface as a pleasant, nice man, but it is all very misleading.

This is a man who worked for Ken Starr in the impeachment of Bill Clinton, and now Kavanaugh has changed his view of Presidential power 180 degrees.

This is a man who worked in the White House for George W. Bush, and helped to plan the idea of an anti gay marriage amendment, that was part of the campaign of Bush in 2004. And now, Donald Trump has used executive privilege to prevent 100,000 documents from Kavanaugh’s time in the Bush White House from being made available, which is another controversy now created, as why should the Senate be unable to examine all pertinent material about a nominee?

This is a man who worked to deny September 11 victims the ability to sue for damages, limiting unsuccessfully that intent.

This is a man who in his Circuit Court decisions has come out against abortion rights, against ObamaCare, against the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, against labor union rights, and willing to support limitations on voting rights.

This is a man who might be able to vote on whether Donald Trump can be indicted or prosecuted, and should recuse himself on any such matters as a conflict of interest, but likely will not do so. Justice William Rehnquist, when new on the Court as an Associate Justice, recused himself from the US Vs. Richard Nixon case in 1974 (after which Richard Nixon resigned), because Rehnquist had worked in the Justice Department under Nixon. So that famous and significant case was 8-0, not 9-0 or 8-1, and at the least, a Justice Kavanaugh should recuse himself from any case involving possible legal action against Donald Trump.

Kavanaugh could affect future decisions on campaign finance, climate change, election gerrymandering, and travel bans, and regulation of guns.

He would also create a right wing conservative Court, unlike any since 85 years ago.

And being only 53, he could be on the Supreme Court until 2050, when he would reach 85 years of age.

This would be the most long range effect of Donald Trump, no matter how much longer he remains in the Presidency, along with the 26 and more Circuit Court confirmations already accomplished by Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, along with Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch.

The Democrats’ only hope would be IF all 49 Democrats hold fast (highly unlikely); Susan Collins and Lisa Murkowksi (both pro choice on abortion) abandoning the party ties on this vote (highly unlikely); and the person who replaces John McCain in the Senate (maybe Cindy McCain) joining the two women Republican Senators in voting against Kavanaugh (highly unlikely).

Supreme Court Nominee Brett Kavanaugh A Very Political Choice, Reminding Us Of Past Political Wars

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Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh comes across as a very nice man on the surface, with a nice family, and a long history and record as a Judge on the Court of Appeals in Washington, DC.

He is smart enough and well spoken enough, but that is not enough for the Supreme Court.

Kavanaugh is a political “animal”, involved in the Ken Starr Impeachment investigation of Bill Clinton two decades ago, and also engaged in the fight to help George W. Bush stop the vote count in the state of Florida in the Presidential election of 2000.

He also has a clear record of opposition to abortion rights as a devout Catholic who wishes to impose his personal views on the nation, instead of promoting “Stare Decisis”.

He also has a record of opposition to the Affordable Care Act.

So both of these important issues are now in danger as a result of his nomination.

Kavanaugh also has stated that a President should not face indictment and prosecution in office, which makes him a likely ally of Donald Trump in any future possibility of pursuing the President for obstruction of justice, abuse of power, violation of the Emoluments clause, and Russian collusion.

It will be extremely difficult to stop Kavanaugh’s nomination, but the Democrats, if they stay united, and if Republicans Susan Collins and or Lisa Murkowski can be convinced to oppose, it can be stopped.

These are very difficult times for progressives, but it is not time to give up, not yet at least!

Kirsten Gillibrand And Other Women Senators Wrong To Force Al Franken Out Of Office Without Ethics Investigation And Clear Cut Evidence Of Sexual Harassment

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New York Senator Kirsten Gillibrand and other women Senators were wrong to force Senator Al Franken out of the Senate, without having an ethics investigation first, with clear cut evidence of sexual harassment and abuse by the Minnesota Senator.

Kirsten Gillibrand acted like a bully in leading the charge in such an aggressive manner, and it will harm her in her quest to become the 2020 Democratic Presidential nominee, which she clearly is desirous of becoming.

This blogger has been skeptical of Gillibrand before, and in 2008, the idea that she would be appointed to the US Senate by New York Governor David Patterson to replace Hillary Clinton, who was becoming Secretary of State, was astounding, as she did not have the best Congressional record of the various people named as contenders for the appointment.

Gillibrand had a very conservative record in her upstate NY district, and then suddenly became very liberal, a situation which seemed suspicious to this blogger.

Although this author said back in 1998 that Bill Clinton should have resigned in the sex scandal which led to his impeachment that year, it was not proper 19 years later for Gillibrand to say that Bill Clinton should have resigned, and in so doing, smacking Hillary Clinton in the face.

It adds to the image of Kirsten Gillibrand as an opportunist, who cannot be trusted to be President, but the possibility of her being the nominee always seemed a long shot.

Now it will be less likely, with her mercenary attitude, and rush to judgment, denying us a Senator, Al Franken, who was one of the stars of the Democratic Party, and helped to cause Attorney General Jeff Sessions to recuse himself from the investigation of Donald Trump, which led to the appointment of Robert Mueller as Special Counsel by Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein.