On Impeachment
Jan. 5th, 2018 01:37 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
livingdebI just called my Representative and asked him to start the impeachment process for our president. We have impeached two presidents (and this would have also happened to Nixon if he hadn't resigned), but that's only the first step. The House impeaches, the Senate convicts. The Senate has never convicted. In one case (Johnson), it reminded me of the great-athlete defense. They didn't want to sully the reputation of the presidency. In this case, I feel that impeachment would do a lot to revive the reputation of the US presidency. (Nevertheless, my rep "supports the president.")
I recently told a friend that there were six reasons to impeach Trump, he asked me to enumerate them, and I said I would do so here. "Six" was an estimate.
The Nation said in November that five articles of impeachment had been proposed. I will summarize them here and give you some of my thoughts.
I. Obstruction of Justice
* Directly and via subordinates, working to delay, impede, and conceal information from an investigation into possible Russian interference with the election (e.g., Flynn misled Pence about his discussions with the Russian ambassador, Trump demanded Comey’s loyalty and asked him to let Flynn go, then fired him because he was investigating Russian interference)
* Directing or endeavoring to direct law enforcement, including the Department of Justice and the Federal Bureau of Investigation, to investigate and prosecute political adversaries and others, for improper purposes not justified by any lawful function of his office, thereby eroding the rule of law, undermining the independence of law enforcement from politics, and compromising the constitutional right to due process of law.
Clinton was impeached (though not convicted) for obstructing justice for a woman who was sexually harassed. Trump is obstructing justice for the entire country.
II. Violating the Foreign Emoluments Clause (you can't, "without the Consent of the Congress, accept ... any present, Emolument, Office, or Title, of any kind whatever, from any King, Prince, or foreign State.")
He is refusing to divest or place his assets into a blind trust; his attorney has acknowledged his businesses receive funds from foreign governments.
* The Embassy of Kuwait held an event at the Trump International Hotel ($40,000–$60,000)
* The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia used the Trump International Hotel ($270,000)
* Groups promoting Turkish American relations as part of a convention at the Trump International Hotel ($30,000)
* Rents from tenants at Trump Tower owned by foreign states
* Industrial and Commercial Bank of China paid rent at Trump Tower and extended credit to him
* The Abu Dhabi Tourism and Culture Authority paid rent at Trump Tower
* Istanbul provided licensing deals with two Trump Towers there - "I have a little conflict of interest, because I have a major, major building in Istanbul." - Trump
* Century Properties in the Philippines, owned by a foreign government official, has paid him rents
It does seem a lot tougher for an international businessman to become president than for people in other fields. There is such a thing as a "blind trust." I don't know what it is, but I don't see how you could not know that your hotels are getting money from foreign powers or benefiting from policies you propose. Anyway, he's not even using blind trusts.
Any one of these payments is a violation. I wouldn't necessarily care except a) foreign diplomats are shifting their D.C. hotel and event reservations to Trump International Hotel to curry favor, so not only is he still getting this money, he's getting even more, and b) not only does he not worry about it, it seems like he is abusing his power by making promises in exchange for money. You are not supposed to use public office for your own personal benefit and he is doing so, on a grand scale, on purpose, and possibly to the detriment of others (like when he promised Russia he'd get their sanctions removed).
III. Violating the Domestic Emoluments Clause (you can't accept any payment beyond your salary from the US or any state)
Refusing to divest or place his assets into a blind trust gets him into trouble here, too.
* He has caused the US government to spend money at businesses in which he has an ownership interest including golf carts by the Secret Service and lodging at Mar-a-Lago for the National Security Council; he seems to be spending the majority of his time at these businesses
* He has chosen to continue owning businesses that receive government subsidies and tax breaks
IV. Undermining the Independence of the Federal Judiciary and the Rule of Law
He "has engaged in a pattern of conduct designed to undermine the authority of the federal judiciary to carry out its constitutional responsibilities."
* Calling a US District Court judge a “so-called judge.”
* Abusing pardon power - Pardoning former Sheriff Joe Arpaio for criminal contempt of court.
Of course presidents have the power to pardon, but by pardoning contempt of court, he takes away an important court power. Plus, presidents usually pardon people who have later been found innocent, whose sentences were ridiculously long and they've already served a long time, stuff like that, not the lowest scum of the earth like Arpaio.
V. Undermining Freedom of Speech
(I got additional information from The Atlantic.)
* Repeatedly calling press organizations “fake news.” [I would call this slandering those organizations since in most cases the news was true.]
* Responding to news coverage he dislikes by advocating that the freedom of the press be abridged by bureaucrats and legislators - "It’s frankly disgusting the way the press is able to write whatever they want to write and people should want to look into it."
* Calling the press a public enemy and a target of his “drain the swamp” agenda
* Responding to protected speech he dislikes by calling for a punitive government and other responses, e.g., "If a player wants the privilege of making millions of dollars in the NFL, or other leagues, he or she should not be allowed to disrespect" [Woah, there's a pot calling the kettle black.]
* Inciting violence (this is not protected under free speech)
Basically, he wants to be allowed to say and do whatever he wants, but everyone else should say and do only things that make him look good, as if he is a dictator.
And I'll add:
VI. Undermining Freedom of Religion
* The Muslim ban.
VII. Breaking Laws
* Retaining his ongoing lease of Washington, D.C.’s Old Post Office, in which the Trump International Hotel is located, violates an explicit clause in the General Services Administration lease contract providing: “No . . . elected official of the Government of the United States . . . shall be admitted to any share or part of this Lease, or to any benefit that may arise therefrom . .. .”
* Using his executive power to shrink national parks, but that power is not granted by the Antiquities Act. And he did this after refusing to respond to freedom of information requests.
VIII. Treason
* Choosing appointees for the express purpose of destroying the agencies to which they are appointed
* Taunting North Korea--multiple times--or as someone else has said, "recklessly threatening nuclear war against foreign nations, undermining and subverting the essential diplomatic functions and authority of federal agencies, including the United States Department of State, and engaging in other conduct that grossly and wantonly endangers the peace and security of the United States, its people and people of other nations, by heightening the risk of hostilities involving weapons of mass destruction, with reckless disregard for the risk of death and grievous bodily harm."
I don't want history to say we made a horrible mistake or even that fortunately Trump died from a heart attack early on. I want it to show that our democracy and dictator-prevention strategies work. But apparently, our current Congress has no problem with wanna-be dictators so long as they're benevolent (in their eyes) and/or still haven't taken that much power.
I recently told a friend that there were six reasons to impeach Trump, he asked me to enumerate them, and I said I would do so here. "Six" was an estimate.
The Nation said in November that five articles of impeachment had been proposed. I will summarize them here and give you some of my thoughts.
I. Obstruction of Justice
* Directly and via subordinates, working to delay, impede, and conceal information from an investigation into possible Russian interference with the election (e.g., Flynn misled Pence about his discussions with the Russian ambassador, Trump demanded Comey’s loyalty and asked him to let Flynn go, then fired him because he was investigating Russian interference)
* Directing or endeavoring to direct law enforcement, including the Department of Justice and the Federal Bureau of Investigation, to investigate and prosecute political adversaries and others, for improper purposes not justified by any lawful function of his office, thereby eroding the rule of law, undermining the independence of law enforcement from politics, and compromising the constitutional right to due process of law.
Clinton was impeached (though not convicted) for obstructing justice for a woman who was sexually harassed. Trump is obstructing justice for the entire country.
II. Violating the Foreign Emoluments Clause (you can't, "without the Consent of the Congress, accept ... any present, Emolument, Office, or Title, of any kind whatever, from any King, Prince, or foreign State.")
He is refusing to divest or place his assets into a blind trust; his attorney has acknowledged his businesses receive funds from foreign governments.
* The Embassy of Kuwait held an event at the Trump International Hotel ($40,000–$60,000)
* The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia used the Trump International Hotel ($270,000)
* Groups promoting Turkish American relations as part of a convention at the Trump International Hotel ($30,000)
* Rents from tenants at Trump Tower owned by foreign states
* Industrial and Commercial Bank of China paid rent at Trump Tower and extended credit to him
* The Abu Dhabi Tourism and Culture Authority paid rent at Trump Tower
* Istanbul provided licensing deals with two Trump Towers there - "I have a little conflict of interest, because I have a major, major building in Istanbul." - Trump
* Century Properties in the Philippines, owned by a foreign government official, has paid him rents
It does seem a lot tougher for an international businessman to become president than for people in other fields. There is such a thing as a "blind trust." I don't know what it is, but I don't see how you could not know that your hotels are getting money from foreign powers or benefiting from policies you propose. Anyway, he's not even using blind trusts.
Any one of these payments is a violation. I wouldn't necessarily care except a) foreign diplomats are shifting their D.C. hotel and event reservations to Trump International Hotel to curry favor, so not only is he still getting this money, he's getting even more, and b) not only does he not worry about it, it seems like he is abusing his power by making promises in exchange for money. You are not supposed to use public office for your own personal benefit and he is doing so, on a grand scale, on purpose, and possibly to the detriment of others (like when he promised Russia he'd get their sanctions removed).
III. Violating the Domestic Emoluments Clause (you can't accept any payment beyond your salary from the US or any state)
Refusing to divest or place his assets into a blind trust gets him into trouble here, too.
* He has caused the US government to spend money at businesses in which he has an ownership interest including golf carts by the Secret Service and lodging at Mar-a-Lago for the National Security Council; he seems to be spending the majority of his time at these businesses
* He has chosen to continue owning businesses that receive government subsidies and tax breaks
IV. Undermining the Independence of the Federal Judiciary and the Rule of Law
He "has engaged in a pattern of conduct designed to undermine the authority of the federal judiciary to carry out its constitutional responsibilities."
* Calling a US District Court judge a “so-called judge.”
* Abusing pardon power - Pardoning former Sheriff Joe Arpaio for criminal contempt of court.
Of course presidents have the power to pardon, but by pardoning contempt of court, he takes away an important court power. Plus, presidents usually pardon people who have later been found innocent, whose sentences were ridiculously long and they've already served a long time, stuff like that, not the lowest scum of the earth like Arpaio.
V. Undermining Freedom of Speech
(I got additional information from The Atlantic.)
* Repeatedly calling press organizations “fake news.” [I would call this slandering those organizations since in most cases the news was true.]
* Responding to news coverage he dislikes by advocating that the freedom of the press be abridged by bureaucrats and legislators - "It’s frankly disgusting the way the press is able to write whatever they want to write and people should want to look into it."
* Calling the press a public enemy and a target of his “drain the swamp” agenda
* Responding to protected speech he dislikes by calling for a punitive government and other responses, e.g., "If a player wants the privilege of making millions of dollars in the NFL, or other leagues, he or she should not be allowed to disrespect" [Woah, there's a pot calling the kettle black.]
* Inciting violence (this is not protected under free speech)
Basically, he wants to be allowed to say and do whatever he wants, but everyone else should say and do only things that make him look good, as if he is a dictator.
And I'll add:
VI. Undermining Freedom of Religion
* The Muslim ban.
VII. Breaking Laws
* Retaining his ongoing lease of Washington, D.C.’s Old Post Office, in which the Trump International Hotel is located, violates an explicit clause in the General Services Administration lease contract providing: “No . . . elected official of the Government of the United States . . . shall be admitted to any share or part of this Lease, or to any benefit that may arise therefrom . .. .”
* Using his executive power to shrink national parks, but that power is not granted by the Antiquities Act. And he did this after refusing to respond to freedom of information requests.
VIII. Treason
* Choosing appointees for the express purpose of destroying the agencies to which they are appointed
* Taunting North Korea--multiple times--or as someone else has said, "recklessly threatening nuclear war against foreign nations, undermining and subverting the essential diplomatic functions and authority of federal agencies, including the United States Department of State, and engaging in other conduct that grossly and wantonly endangers the peace and security of the United States, its people and people of other nations, by heightening the risk of hostilities involving weapons of mass destruction, with reckless disregard for the risk of death and grievous bodily harm."
I don't want history to say we made a horrible mistake or even that fortunately Trump died from a heart attack early on. I want it to show that our democracy and dictator-prevention strategies work. But apparently, our current Congress has no problem with wanna-be dictators so long as they're benevolent (in their eyes) and/or still haven't taken that much power.