Is It Merry Impeachmas or Happy Impeachmas?

Madam Speaker Pelosi delivered the gift Democrats have been wishing for the last few month's or should I say years? It's been a tough since Donald's election as it seemed the left couldn't get a win. There seemed some minor victory's here and there. The tide didn't seemed to tilt until the midterm elections last year. The first inkling that things were going to be different was the lead up to last years shutdown over the budget that seemed to begin after Speaker Pelosi and Senate Minority leader Chuck Schumer that seemed have Donald flustered. 

Before this fateful meeting Donald seemed almost impervious to attacks or rebuffs. He, like many people including myself, had underestimated Speaker Pelosi. Even a year later I don't think Trump has recovered his previous standing. Just over a year later he stands impeached by the House of Representatives over his handling of Ukraine aid and obstructing Congress in the investigation. What a years difference. He is impeached for as long as our country stands despite what his misinformed followers might believe or tell you. 

This is still just a mere victory in a war that is still going on. Barring a miracle he won't be removed by the Senate. The real hope lies in next Novembers election. Rebuke at the ballot box will be the best way to eradicate this infection upon our republic. 

Thank you Madam Speaker Pelosi for a wonderful year and giving us hope!

One For The History Books

Saul Loeb / AFP - Getty Images

It seemed almost inevitable since Donald was elected that he would eventually be impeached. Between emoluments, Muslim bans, family separation, Russian influence in the election, those elusive tax returns, stiffing cities on security costs for his rallies, paying off porn stars to hide affairs and this is just the tip of the iceberg. This is indeed an historical occasion being just third to be impeached by the House of Representatives. Nixon would have been but he skipped out before they could do that even do that part as he would almost certainly been removed also. President Andrew Johnson missed removal from the Senate by one vote in 1868. 

Even though his removal by the Senate seems unlikely Impeachment will forever be a scarlet asterisk next to Trump's name in history books and everyone know Donald is all about his name as he attaches it to everything. For however long our republic stands the Impeachment mark will be attached to his name and you know this has to bother Donald who is obsessive about his brand and name. The 6-page grievance letter(said to be penned by sycophant Stephen Miller) he sent Speaker Pelosi the day before the vote is a testament to how badly this bothers Donald.

Initially many like I may feel some joy in this but it also balanced out that I wished this hadn't come to this. People are enjoying the moment because finally the President who is a defiant bellicose narcissistic bully who finally got his due. He is the obnoxious rich snob in every other 80's comedy who is defeated in the end.

Better Off Dead (1985)

This is but one battle in a war that is not done. It could be likened to battle of Gettysburg during our Civil War which it wasn't end but turned out in retrospect to be a turning point. They'll be more battles and defeats but this one will be the biggest one they'll talk about in history books.

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Are We There Yet?

Recently I finished “The Final Days” by Woodward and Bernstein(All the President’s Men) telling of President Nixon’s final days in office in the summer of 74. I could not help but draw parallels and perhaps some lessons to be learned in today’s current political climate. After Robert Mueller’s testimony more democrats came to support impeachment. Some gave the estimate to be about 107 in the House of Representatives which represents about half the Democratic caucus. Although this is a significant amount it is still not enough to impeach. 

I believe there certain thresholds have not been reached yet and two in particular come to mind,  a smoking gun and congressional support (or lack of depending on viewpoint). I don’t believe we have reached either of these despite the already strong case against President Trump. 

In Nixon’s case it was the fatal tape of June 23, 1972 of him and Halderman(Chief of Staff) formulating a plan to have the CIA interfere with the FBI’s investigation in the Watergate burglaries of the DNC the week before. This clearly showed obstruction of justice and that he had been lying since then (about two years) about his knowledge of this happening. Nixon had been fighting a losing battle against releasing this and other tapes for quite some time until the Supreme Court decided unanimously he had to release them. 

I think may thought the Mueller Report would be the smoking gun but it has not been. Although it shows a lot of behavior and actions were deplorable an undeniable smoking gun was not found. A smoking gun is more or less something that is an agreed upon event or item. That threshold has not been met. 

That brings us to the second part, congressional support. Nixon’s Impeachment only became imminent because his congressional support had severely eroded by the summer of 74. Even before the release of the smoking gun tape Articles of Impeachment had already been voted on and passed by the House side of Congress. The only this that held in question was the Senate where it would need a two thirds majority to remove the President. The final nail in the coffin was when Congressional leaders, including conservative icon Senator Barry Goldwater, met with Nixon to inform him of how few still supported him he’d likely be removed from office if Impeachment went thru its full process.

Fast forward to today only about half the Democratic caucus support impeachment at this time in the House of Representatives. Obviously with Senator Mitch McConnell’s tight grip in the Senate they would never convict Donald Trump should it even get that far.

This means we are not anywhere near impeachment as of this writing. Speaker Nancy Pelosi is obviously aware of this too. Investigations are continuing despite blockages from the White House. A break thru or “smoking gun” may appear at any moment. It’s tempting to rush but even Nixon’s downfall came after two years after the ill-fated Watergate burglary. We are just into the 8^th month of Democratic’s controlling the House. Investigations take time.  Given Trump perchance for laziness and incompetence it’s more than likely to find more glaring examples of corruption at some point. The Resistance must be patient.

The Final Days by Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein

The Final Days by Carl Bernstein
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This is a behind the scenes look at the final days of the Nixon Administration. A quick background summary is that in 1972 burglars were caught breaking in into Democratic National Committee located in Washington D.C. . Eventually the the burglars were connected to the White House and Nixon. Much of this is covered in Bernstein and Woodwards more well known book(and movie) All the Presidents Men.

This book picks up in mid 1974 about the time the famous tapes were an issue before the Supreme Court because Nixon had refused to turn them over. These tapes are recordings of conversations and phone calls Nixon had started recording in 1971. Nixon tried various tactics like releasing only transcripts of tapes and then only certain tapes. Finally after a fruitless battle in the Supreme Court he was ordered to release them all. It was with this final tape release the now famous "smoking gun" tape that showed he had been lying since nearly the beginning about a cover-up. It was after that his support in Congress crumbled and impeachment proceedings were being started. Rather than going thru a certain impeachment and removal from office that could take months of turmoil and distraction he resigned in August 1974.

The book has a slow pace at first as it builds up to the impending finally. It does pick up towards the end as the drama builds. Nixon spends a lot of time fluctuating whether to resign or fight until the end the last few days.

The book still feels relevant today given current political climate and talk of impeachment. This kind of gives an idea of what it may take for it to happen again. It's not quite as easy as some may think. I recommend this for political junkies and 20th century U.S. history buffs.

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The Fifth Risk by Michael Lewis

The Fifth Risk by Michael Lewis
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Unlike many other books about the Trump administration which take aim at Donald's actions and words this book instead takes a look at the inner workings of government. It paints a picture of a picture of incompetency or the very least a lack of knowledge of the what the departments in government actually do and how the benefit all of us.

The author takes an in depth look at few government departments and takes in in depth look at them. He looks at how the department of Agriculture funds food stamps and school lunch programs for families in need. Or how important it is that the Department of Energy keeps track of (and maintains) our nuclear arsenal and the materials that make them. How the Commerce Department is one of the worlds biggest collectors of weather data.

One gets the feeling that the incoming administration was caught off guard in winning and still hasn't taken seriously the concept of managing these vast departments. I think this lack of knowledge of how much our government does and either a lack of awareness or appreciation for what is being done is a pervasive outlook of a lot of Americans. In short our government does more good than you may be aware of.

The book is relatively straight forward reading style and is not too long. Although it gives relative statistics and facts it does not overwhelm you with too much information which could make for heavy reading and cause one to lose interest and attention.

As I said before this doesn't take direct aim at the President himself but takes a look at how his management style(or lack of) and how it can affect how our government is run. For gossipy tales of Trump's awfulness from former staffers , leaky aides or whoever you'll have to look elsewhere.

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Nixon 'Tricky Dicky' Part 1 of 3

Nixonland: The Rise of a President and the Fracturing of America by Rick Perlstein

Nixonland: The Rise of a President and the Fracturing of America by Rick Perlstein
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This is an interesting and in-depth look at the Nixon Presidential era. This though paints the picture from the beginning of Nixon's recovery from 'loser" status around 1966 to his 1972 shellacking of George McGovern in his reelection. It only touches upon the beginnings of the "Watergate" scandal, which eventually brings him down. The book breaks down the parts by election cycles and the part Nixon played. First is the 1966 midterm, then his 1968 victory for president, the 1970 midterms and finally his reelection in 72.

The author paints a broad picture of the political workings and shenanigans behind the scenes. He also tells of the cultural and social upheaval going at the times which contributed to Nixon's rise to power. So it's not just about Nixon but what was going on at the time which included, civil rights, segregation, Vietnam War, inner city riots, upheaval at political conventions and the tragic assassinations of Martin Luther King and Robert Kennedy. Sometimes the author seems to go a long side trips but he eventually ties it back into the main story.

It's a good book if you're curious about the tumultuous times of the latter half of the 60's. It also gives an interesting insight into the Nixon era(prior to Watergate). You can also see the beginnings of the political party divide that still lingers in today's hyper partisan political climate.

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Shutdown Day 22: Crisis of the Heart

Today we hit the record for government shutdown as Federal employees are missing paychecks, trash piling up at national parks and a political impasse with no end in sight. Donald's been throwing out the idea of declaring a "National Emergency" to get past Speaker Pelosi's firm "No" for a border wall. 

He even made lame attempt at a "Oval Office" appeal which was really just a flat teleprompter speech that was absolutely nothing new accept reaffirm his base which is all he cares about anyway. He did make one curious phrase of a "Crisis of the heart, crisis of the soul" which may just describe the last few years. Of course these words were not Donald's and I doubt he took any deeper meaning from them than just words on the screen. He's not capable of deep thought. 

An article that hit home was one by George Packer of the The Atlantic of his visit to Lincoln Memorial this week. It sort of hit home because I had visited there this last summer and found it very moving. A key point was Lincoln's quote that "If destruction be our lot, we must ourselves be it's author and finisher" also "As a nation of freemen, we must live through all time, or die by suicide." It's an eleoquence and deep thought that seems to be lost these days in our beloved nation. It also emphasizes that our finish will not come from the outside but from within.

 

It does feel though as as our country is going thru a crisis of the heart.

The Hangover from Donald's Address last night

Ann Telnaes/The Washington Post 

 

The address was a big nothing-burger after all the hype. Donald was stiff and unconvincing and he was, as it turned out, just placating his advisors. What was the purpose of this? It was shameful the  major networks carried it in the first place. This was more about a failed campaign promise and re-election in 2020 than some "crisis of the heart" as Donald put it last night.

It's a sad state of affairs that over 800,000 workers are either furloughed or workers are missing paychecks because of a racist symbol and his ego. It's ironic that for someone who plays a tough guy he kisses the ass of those on the right. He cries "poor me" about a crisis he created and even was proud of(at least he was at first).

Nothing has changed as we heading to break the government shutdown record of 21 days with no end in site. 

Welcome to Don't Drink The Orange Covfefe

Welcome to Don't Drink The Orange Covfefe. To get one thing out of the way is that if you are Donald Trump fan you probably won't like it it here. There will be bias here. So complaining about that will be a waste of our time.

I started this blog many months ago and and immediately went into bloggers block(same as writers block accept it's on line). Where to start? How to start? What to write? What to focus on? Serious or not serious? You get the picture. Things happen so fast these days with our current state of politics as soon as you pick something to focus on something some other outrageous thing has happened. It's like letting a dog run outside with a dozen squirrels running around.

I'm not a hardcore news junkie but I try to keep at least one eye on current events especially when it comes politics. I read more than watch cable or network news. I'll watch clips of shows on YouTube occasionally. I love late night hosts cause they can cut thru the crap unlike serious news anchors can or will.

Over my adult voting history since the days of Reagan I've voted for both sides of the isle though these days it's predominately to left. I'm not a hardcore Democrat but pretty close to it.

I'm a middle aged blue collar worker who is a divorced Dad. I have two awesome sons 10 and 16.

What should one expect here? Simply put its just my take on current events which will include personal rants, essays, and some commentary. Also included will be memes, editorial cartoons, interesting articles, Youtube videos and etc.. Thanks for coming by and I will be adding fresh content very shortly.