Bill Clinton

Bribery, Abuse Of Power, Obstruction Of Justice, Defiance Of Congress All Impeachment Appropriate Charges Against Donald Trump, Along With Violation Of Emoluments Clause In The Constitution

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The view of this author and blogger, especially after watching the four constitutional law professors today in the House Judiciary Committee hearing, is that Donald Trump should be brought up on impeachment charges on five counts.

Bribery or Attempted Bribery involving the President of Ukraine to do Trump’s bidding, and interfere in the Presidential campaign of 2020.

Abuse of Power, shown in innumerable circumstances and cases.

Obstruction of Justice, regularly utilized.

Defiance of Congress, including refusal to allow testimony by executive branch officials.

Violation since Day One of Trump’s Presidency of the Emoluments Clause of the Constitution, barring any profit while serving as President.

So there should be five counts, with only one needed as enough to impeach, but with all justification, the case against Donald Trump is many times stronger than that against Andrew Johnson and Bill Clinton, and at least triple what it was against Richard Nixon,

Corruption Levels Of Democratic And Republican Presidencies Since 1963

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Fifty six years have passed since Lyndon B. Johnson became President, and in that period, we have had six Republican Presidents and four Democratic Presidents.

Republicans have held the Presidency thirty plus years since 1969, and Democrats have been in the White House for 25 years in that half century plus.

The record shows that Democrats have had a total of three executive branch officials indicted, with one conviction and one prison sentence.

Meanwhile, Republicans have had a total of 120 executive branch officials indicted, with 89 criminal convictions and 33 prison sentences.

To be fair, Gerald Ford and George H. W. Bush each had one indictment, one conviction, and one prison sentence each.

But Richard Nixon had 76 criminal indictments, 55 convictions, and 15 prison sentences, while Ronald Reagan had 26 criminal indictments, 16 convictions, and 8 prison sentences, and George W. Bush had 16 criminal indictments, 16 convictions, and 8 prison sentences.

Meanwhile, Bill Clinton had, after all the investigations and publicity by Republicans in Congress, a total of 2 criminal indictments, one conviction, and one prison sentence. Jimmy Carter had one indictment, and no convictions and no prison sentences, while Barack Obama had ZERO indictments, convictions, and prison sentences.

And then, there is Donald Trump, who already, in less than three years, has seen 6 major figures indicted and convicted and having prison sentences, including Michael Cohen, Michael Flynn, Paul Manafort, Rick Gates, George Papadopoulos, and now, Roger Stone, and many others Russian connected also facing criminal charges that may not lead to convictions because they are in Russia.

And this does not include the many past and present cabinet members and other significant figures who have been caught in corruption, and will, in many cases, face indictments, convictions, and prison sentences in the future, as this administration is likely to surpass all previous Republican Presidents in levels of criminality!

Pete Buttigieg Soars To First In Iowa Caucus Poll

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South Bend, Indiana Mayor Pete Buttigieg has surged to first place in a new Iowa Caucus poll, the Monmouth University poll, an amazing rise for a mayor of a small sized city in a red state. He has gained 14 points since the summer, rising from 8 percent to 22 percent, three points ahead of Joe Biden.

It is time to start seeing Mayor Pete as a serious contender, rather than as a curiosity.

His major negative is that he has almost no support in the African American community, which right now is smitten with Joe Biden, a surprise when one thinks that either Kamala Harris or Cory Booker would have a strong support in that community, and yet does not do so.

Mayor Pete being gay and having a husband will alienate evangelical Christians, who, however, would never vote Democratic in any case.

One might say that having an urban executive government record of 8 years in South Bend, Indiana, is not a plus, but actually, being a mayor is often more on the front lines of what is America than being a Governor of a Southern state, such as Arkansas (Bill Clinton); or as Georgia one term of four years (Jimmy Carter); or two years as Governor (Woodrow Wilson in New Jersey); or four years as Governor (Franklin D. Roosevelt in New York); or no government experience (Donald Trump); or a much shorter one year mayoralty as Grover Cleveland in Buffalo, New York, or Calvin Coolidge in Northampton, Massachusetts, or Andrew Johnson in Greeneville, Tennessee.

American history is full of surprises, so do not write Mayor Pete off, as he might very well be the Democratic Presidential nominee and the 46th President of the United States!

Public Impeachment Hearings Begin Wednesday

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The Donald Trump impeachment hearings begin on Wednesday of this week, and they will be covered fully by the cable networks, the three major networks (which will cancel regular programming), and even the BBC.

Whether it will change any Republican elected official’s mind about the lawlessness of Donald Trump is highly doubtful, and whether it will undermine Donald Trump’s Presidential campaign is also very speculative.

Truth will come out, but American democracy is in crisis, as we have a President who has colluded with Russia, is still colluding with Russia, and now even plans to visit Russia in May of next year, the celebration of Russian communism and nationalism, standing alongside Vladimir Putin to celebrate the end of World War II, and the defeat of Nazi Germany in 1945.

Ronald Reagan and Richard Nixon are turning over in their graves at the sequence of events! And the fact that Mike Pompeo and William Barr are deeply involved in covering up for Donald Trump, and yet remain members of his cabinet, the most corrupt in American history, is stunning. And yet, all of the Republican leaders who pushed the impeachment of Bill Clinton remain unwilling to accept the damage Donald Trump has done, and are condemning their historical reputation to be in tatters, only concerned about their own financial welfare and out to protect their power in Congress!

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?

Finally, The Impeachment Of Donald Trump Is Moving Toward Action, With Likelihood Of Four Articles Of Impeachment

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Finally, the House of Representatives is ready to begin a formal move toward impeachment of President Donald Trump, with the vote to come tomorrow, Thursday.

There are so many crimes and abuses under Donald Trump, but having too many impeachment articles would be counterproductive. Easily, Trump is much more a long list of outrages in office, than a combination of Andrew Johnson, Richard Nixon, and Bill Clinton combined.

It seems clear that four counts would make the best sense:

Obstruction of Justice

Abuse of Power

Contempt of Congress

Violation of the Emoluments Clause

It is likely that the articles of impeachment will occur either before Thanksgiving or in early December, with the Senate trial taking place in January 2020, hopefully resolved before the Iowa Caucuses, the New Hampshire Primary, the South Carolina Primary. and the Nevada Caucuses.

Certainly, by the time of Super Tuesday on March 3, 2020, when 14 states vote, the issue should be resolved, with little chance of gaining a two thirds vote to convict and remove Trump, but it should not be regarded as a long shot. There will be some Republican Senators voting to remove, and with more evidence coming out, it is not beyond the realm of possibility that more Republicans than a few could vote to convict, although to accomplish 20 or more Republicans out of the 53 in the Senate seems unlikely.

14 Weeks Until First Vote In Iowa Caucuses

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As the House of Representatives is working on its impeachment inquiry involving President Donald Trump, the political calendar is starting to close in on many Democratic Presidential contenders.

It is now only 14 weeks until the first Americans vote on 2020, with the Iowa Caucuses taking place on Monday, February 3.

Iowa is not truly decisive on who wins the nomination and the Presidency in either major political party, as the only times that Iowa was a sign of the future was when an incumbent President was not on the ballot, and even then, not very often.

Democratic Party

Walter Mondale in 1984

Al Gore in 2000

John Kerry in 2004

Barack Obama in 2008

Hillary Clinton in 2016

George McGovern in 1972, Jimmy Carter in 1976, Michael Dukakis in 1988, and Bill Clinton in 1992 failed to win Iowa.

Republican Party

Gerald Ford in 1976

Bob Dole in 1996

George W. Bush in 2000

Ronald Reagan in 1980, George H. W. Bush in 1988, John McCain in 2008, Mitt Romney in 2012, and Donald Trump in 2016 failed to win Iowa.

So only George W. Bush in 2000 and Barack Obama in 2008 won Iowa and went on to win the Presidency in the fall of those years.

So do not expect that who wins Iowa will automatically be the nominee for the Democrats in November 2020.

Since 1972, Iowa has been accurate on the Democratic nominee 43 percent of the time, and 50 percent accurate on the Republican nominee.

Iowa is not representative of the nation in its population mix, but it gives a leg up to a few of the candidates, while dashing the hopes of so many others.

A Sense That Pete Buttigieg Is On The Rise As A Moderate Alternative To Joe Biden

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The big winner of the Ohio Presidential debate this past week seems to many to be Mayor Pete Buttigieg of South Bend, Indiana, who is seen as on the rise as a moderate alternative to Joe Biden.

Mayor Pete has been successful in raising large amounts of money in the third quarter, and his debate performance demonstrated his intelligence, his knowledge, and his perception of what Americans want, similar in his understanding of what Americans were looking for as when they voted for Barack Obama in 2008.

He is not promoting “pie in the sky”, massive changes in four years, as Bernie Sanders, and even Elizabeth Warren are doing, knowing full well that the nation is not going to elect a Democratic Congress large enough in majority to do the kinds of path breaking changes that Franklin D. Roosevelt and Lyndon B. Johnson were able to bring about in 1935-1936 and 1965-1966, respectively.

As Pete has said, we first need to recover from the chaos and anarchy of Donald Trump, and to expect the nation to go to the far left, and support a required end of all private health insurance, is simply not reality.

This blogger takes the view that Americans should have a choice of keeping the health care coverage they have, or move toward government control through Medicare, but not force it on everyone over a four year period, and always allow private health insurance as an alternative, left up to the decisions of individual Americans and their families.

A long range goal is extend Medicare in stages, first to those between 50-65, then those in their 40s, then those in their 30s, and continuing on, but again with private insurance allowed if preferred.

And in foreign affairs, Mayor Pete would offer a revival of American respect and responsibility, veering away from the disastrous and reckless diplomacy of Donald Trump, and would restore American rationality and respect among our allies, and recognition that he would not be pushed around by authoritarians as has been occurring with Donald Trump.

A young, dynamic President is needed, and Mayor Pete fills the bill, following in the Democratic Party tradition of John F. Kennedy, Jimmy Carter, Bill Clinton, and Barack Obama. A new generation of leadership is required.

Support For Trump Impeachment Becomes A Majority In Latest Public Opinion Polls

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As Donald Trump makes clear that he will not cooperate in any fashion with the Democrats wanting testimony and documents, support for impeachment and removal from office has reached a majority in public opinion polls, including the Fox News Channel poll.

That never happened with Bill Clinton, and Richard Nixon only two weeks before his resignation in 1974, and Trump is too confident that nothing can happen to him, but it is clear that his refusal to cooperate with a legitimate investigation is undermining public support, and further harms his campaign for reelection.

With suburbanites, educated women, farmers, and many working class whites seeing that Trump is a loose cannon and has harmed many with his insane tariff policy toward China and the European Union, Trump is clearly delusional, and thinks he can survive impeachment by wild Twitter statements, including calling for impeachment of Republican Senator Mitt Romney, and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. His ignorance shows through, as he seems not to understand that only people in the executive and judicial branches of government can be impeached.

His public statements and Twitter feed only are undermining him more by the day, and sealing his fate as a failure as President, never having had a majority in any reputable public opinion poll supportive of him and his Presidency!

Historic Moment As First Impeachment Investigation In 21 Years Commences

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After months and a few years of speculation about an impeachment investigation of President Donald Trump, the die has been cast, and is proceeding forward.

This is only the fourth such case in American history, preceded by Andrew Johnson in 1868; Richard Nixon in 1974; and Bill Clinton in 1998.

Johnson and Clinton were impeached, and then found not guilty by the US Senate, although Johnson was only saved by one vote short of the two thirds needed to convict and remove him.

Clinton had votes in favor of conviction of 55-45 and 50-50, way short of the 67 votes needed.

Nixon resigned after the House Judiciary Committee voted to impeach him on three counts, but before a vote of the whole House of Representatives, which was ready to impeach him. And Nixon had been informed by top leaders of his Republican Party that there was no way for him to gain 34 Republican Senate votes to avoid conviction and removal by a two thirds vote.

This is an historic moment in American history, and how it will exactly play itself out is uncertain, but at least, finally, the Democratic House of Representatives is taking action against the flagrant abuse of power by Donald Trump.