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July 30, 2014 10:08 AM UTC

Ixnay on the Impeachmentay

  • 44 Comments
  • by: Colorado Pols

MPeach

As our friends at "The Fix" report today, Congressional Republicans appear likely to commence the shooting of the feet before they head home for the August recess tomorrow:

They were doing so well. Right up until House Speaker John Boehner decided to file a lawsuit against President Obama for executive orders he maintained were unconstitutional.

The lawsuit, which the House is expected to authorize before heading home for a five-week August recess on Thursday, has opened up the Pandora's box of impeachment — with a large push from the White House– that now has the potential to undo much of the good political work Congressional Republicans have done this year.

Yes, Boehner has pooh-poohed impeachment as a "scam" propagated by Democrats to raise money and energize the party's somewhat lethargic base. (I'm not sure about the word choice of "scam" but Democrats quite clearly see political opportunity in the House lawsuit and are moving to take advantage.) The problem for Boehner is that while he has been adamant about impeachment never being on the table, there are others within the party — led by former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin — who have and will continue to call for Obama to be removed from office. And, the lawsuit — assuming the House authorizes it — provides, for this impeachment crowd, a news peg by which to promote their views…

…The genie is out of the bottle for Republicans at the moment. They need to figure out a way to stuff it back in — and quick — or run the risk of making the election, at least in part, about them. And that's what they've spent the last seven months assiduously trying not to do. [Pols emphasis]

You don't need to see polling data to know that this is a disastrous move for Republicans. House Speaker John Boehner has been trying, meekly, to disrupt any talk of "impeachment," but filing a lawsuit against President Obama probably burned away the last bit of brake pad left on this runaway truck. If House Republicans authorize moving forward with Boehner's lawsuit tomorrow, as they are expected to do, Members will return home to their districts having to answer the question of impeachment over and over again.

For a Congress that is already dealing with historically-low approval ratings and a do-nothing image (remember, the Colorado legislature will have worked more days in session than Congress in 2014), attempting to impeach President Obama 16 months before the next Presidential election will only add to their image of ineptitude. While it probably won't be enough for Democrats to win back control of the House, the "impeachment" word may very well cripple the hopes of candidates such as Rep. Cory Gardner in 2014.

Americans already think that Congress doesn't do anything worthwhile — so, naturally, Republicans want to cement that image.

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44 thoughts on “Ixnay on the Impeachmentay”

  1. They were doing so well? . . . WTF?

    This House GOPer motto ought to be: "Do nothing. But, if you gotta' do something, do something incredibly stupid!"

    1. Well in terms of momentum for taking over Senate and with all competitive House races. They were perceived as having a big enthusiasm advantage to translate into a big funding advantage. Between the suit and the demands for impeachment Dems have been energized and the GOTP is directly responsible for drumming up surging  funding for Dems. Probably not what they had in mind.

      Boehner knew that impeachment talk was a political loser but he can't control the wackos. So while rejecting impeachment he sought to placate the impeachment thirsty base with the suit. Instead Dems were able to point to the suit and say it clearly opened the way for impeachment while many GOTP pols and the most popular GOTP talking heads cooperated by increasing the volume on the impeachment demands. 

      Boehners attempt to spin it to Dems creating the whole impeachment controversy has no credibility when people hear rightie celebs calling for impeachment all over TV, radio and the internet. Naturally Dems have taken advantage by hyping the threat and why not? It's a great fund raiser. 

        1. Today in GOP criminality-

          State Senator Steve King and recent frontrunner for Mesa County Sheriff ondicted on 5 counts, including three felonies.

          Bob McDonnell, one-time 'rising star' of the GOP, at his second day of try on public corruption charges.

           

          1. hmm, keyboard issues…or human error.  'indicted' and 'trial' (not 'try').

            My favorite is Cory Gardner voting to spend taxpayer money and further inflate the debt, burdening future generations and neglecting more pressing needs to pursue a political stunt that ultimately won't go anywhere. I started the day happy that Tank might try to sue to get the RGA to fess up how they let some New Jersey RINO come in here and put his rather hefty thumb on the scale, and ended it happy that Cory Gardner just followed the other useless House lemmings off a cliff.  

          2. McDonnell's defense is truly one for the law books.  He and his (estranged?) wife are claiming that a conspiracy was impossible due to the sorry state of the marriage.  Apparently he was unable to satisfy her —- at least financially — driving her into the arms of the vitamin salesman who lavished the McDonnells with expensive gifts!

             Another example of those family values on display in the Grand Old Party.  I wonder if they're going to blame this split up on Hillary Hall and the licenses she's granted.

             

        2. Obama most certainly did not initiate the whole the impeachment thing. Your side handed it to the Dem side. Don't blame Dems for making tasty lemonade out of the lemons you so generously provided. Try telling your Palin/Tea Party wacko wing to shut up if you don't like it. Dems will go on raising funds on it (they'd be fools not to) until they do. wink

          1. Its Obama's fault for not just ignoring the batshit caucus (except during the election) lke the GOP 'leadership' so desperately wish they could.

  2. They are strangling the second of Obama's clear electoral mandates.

    While at the same time smearing Obama and furthering the myth that this is an every day, both-sides-do-it, routine disagreement, they frustrate the clear will of the voters and citizenry. Here:

    The examples of Americans being united in heated agreement during Obama's second term have been numerous: 

    * 83 percent want to "either lower student loan interest rates, or keep them at current levels."

    * 81 percent think obesity is a big problem in society.

    * 79 percent call for immigration reforms.

    * 75 percent agreed with Obama's 2011 decision to withdrawal U.S. troops from Iraq.

    * 71 percent support raising the federal minimum wage from $7.25.

    * 69 percent agree that global warming represents a "serious problem facing this country."

    * 69 percent favor extending long-term unemployment insurance.

    Yet Republicans, who lost the White House in 2012 and lost seats in both houses of Congress, have blocked all attempts by the White House to address those issues.

    And note there are additional topics where a clear, catapulting movement towards a strong consensus is underway:

    * 55 percent support gay marriage (up 15 points in five years).

    * 55 percent favor legalizing marijuana (up 20 points in six years).

    So no, America isn't made up of a cauldron of partisans who engage is endless trench warfare. On issue after issue there's plenty of broad agreement. Republicans ignore that for political purposes and are mostly successful.

    Or maybe AC will find a cartoon that disputes this…

  3. The presidents' speech today was a gem. He may have taken one too many shots at Congress, but you can hardly blame him.

    The GOP is continuing to move into an ever smaller circular firing squad, and, gun nuts that they are, just can't seem to keep from squeezing the trigger. Gun related metaphor, de rigueur.

  4. Wait until the summer of 2015. The last two years are the worst for presidential scandals.

    And don't rule it out! In my opinion Obama has committed high crimes.

        1. Well, for a while, he was guilty of TTH…trying too hard….to get Republicans to lift a finger to help govern this nation and fix some of our toughest problems. But , gladly, I see he has recovered from that.

      5. denverco – You know the lying asshole doesn't have any facts but his opinion means the world to him and if it is his opinion that the moon is made of green cheese than by God that's what it is made of and no rock samples are going to change his opinion.

        It's my opinion that this fool will never produce any facts to show what he has based his opinion on.  None.  Oh for the days when true conservative roamed the land and were tethered to reality.

    2. Hey Moddy, why don't we start another senseless war?  I'm sure we could lure Darth Cheney out of retirement along with Rummy so they can enjoy their twilight years with one more mass murder escapade!

      They might actually try to dust off our nukes to really do "Shock and Awe" right!

    4. Mod, Two reasons Impeachment will not happen.

      1. It requires a 2/3 vote in the Senate.  We will have 52 or 53 votes not 67.

      2. Joe Biden would be President.

       

      1. Here's the other reason (and the only one that really matters):

        He has commited no high crime, nor misdemeanor. 

        Governing while Democrat is not an impeachable offense. 

        1. The only reason I did not favor impeaching Bush and Cheney was precisely because I feared it would start a never-ending cycle of bringing each succeeding presidency to a close with impeachment proceedings.

          Guess I underestimated the virulence of whatever disease has infected today's Republican Party

          1. Well, none except GWB . . . 

            (governing while black)

            . . . but that's only a crime in certain . . . ummm . . . "rarified" . . . inexcusably dumbass . . .circles. 

          2. A novel approach. Consider everybody potentially guilty of something unless you're sure they're not.  Not our system but interesting, hmmmm?

        3. They don't need a crime to impeach a president.  Clinton was impeached over a third-rate blow job.  Frank Underwood is old enough to remember 1974 when the Dems on the House Judiciary Committee exercised great restraint and rejected those articles of impeachment which dealt with policy disputes (bombing Cambodia, impounding funds) and focused on the criminal activity of Richard Nixon.  What a difference between the two parties…..

      2. Yes, but the thought of Biden as president has a certain appeal for some in the GOP.  Impeach Obama and you get rid of him PLUS you keep Hillary away since Biden would run as an incumbent.  For the racists and misogynists in the GOP, that's considered a win-win situation.

        1. Except it's all Kabuki since, even if the Rs take the Senate, they aren't going to have the two thirds needed to convict. So they know they aren't going to get rid of him. No Biden incumbency for 2016.

          It's strictly political theater. The grown ups think it hurts more than helps since it's such a great fund raiser for Dems but they can't make their wackos shut up about it. Accusing Dems of making it all up just to raise money doesn't work with the wackos continuing to carry on about it every chance they get.

  5. Bring it on! In fact, I think the Centennial State’s very own Cory Gardner should be one of the floor managers for the GOP impeachment articles! Last time the GOP went down this road was in ’98. It led to the Dems netting 5 House seats (in the 6th year of a president’s term) and the resignation of Newt Gingrich and Bob Livingston.

    1. No you recall history wrong grasshopper.  

      After Newt sucessfully impeached the tratorous Clintons and drove the family forever from fame, fortune and world affairs, he ascended to the White House where he personally wrote letters to millions of children telling them they would no longer get free school lunches unless they mopped some floors first.  The economy bloomed, crime dropped with all those busy janitor-apprentices, and a "Pax Gingrinchian" reigned over the land.  

        1. True, and the $60M in US tax dollars that Newt and Kenneth pissed away investigating some hanky panky. Talk about your Congressional stimulus–did you read the Starr Report?   

  6. I can't imagine why any Democrat would be against throwing peaches at the president. The last time they tried it, there was a massacre of Republicans at the next election. So I'm all for it. If they want to give away their electoral advantage to put the cherry on thier 2012 loss, bless their pointy little heads. BTW, Speaking of peaches;Duke that was delicious! The wife and split it; half for my breakfast and half for her lunch. 

    1. I would loved to have given you more, but i only had those two. They came from a tree in my yard…I love nature….yum..

      Sure was fun talking to you and your wife. Next time I am in the Big City, I will let you know. The food at Rosa Lindas was great…

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