The Coming Attempt to Impeach Obama

[DonViejo]

by Michael Tomasky May 12, 2013 4:45 AM EDT

The idea of impeaching Obama is industrial-strength insane. Republicans will probably try anyway, predicts Michael Tomasky.

When the histories of this administration are written, I hope fervently that last Friday, May 10, does not figure prominently in them. But I fear that it might: the double-barrel revelations that the White House hasn’t quite been telling the whole story on Benghazi and that some mid-level IRS people targeted some Tea Party groups for scrutiny are guaranteed to ramp up the crazy. But to what extent? I fear it could be considerable, and the people in the White House damn well better fear the same, or we’re going to be contemplating an extremely ugly situation come 2015, especially if the Republicans have held the House and captured the Senate in the by-elections.

Let me clarify a point that’s been going around. On MSNBC Friday, I broached the I-word. You know the one. Three syllables. Links Andrew Johnson, Richard Nixon, Bill Clinton. I said something like: I have little doubt the Republicans would try to pursue it—something I’ve written dozens of times without readers really batting an eye. But I guess saying it on TV, and on a fateful day, is different. I was on the business end of a small number of angry tweets from liberal readers, and I see that the UK Daily Mail trotted out my statement in a way that made it sound as if I thought it was legitimate.

I didn’t get to finish my thought on television for one reason or another, but here on my home field, as it were, permit me to finish it: I think the notion of impeachment is industrial-strength insane. There is utterly no proof that the President Obama even knew anything directly about the shifting Benghazi responses, let alone did something about them (yes, folks; under the Constitution, the President must do something). And as for the Internal Revenue Service story, from what we now know, those transgressions were committed by IRS staffers in Cincinnati who have never been closer to Obama than their television sets. I always held a squishy spot in my breast for the Daily Mail because of the “Paperback Writer” mention, but as of this weekend they can go stick it up their punter, or whatever it is they say. Impeachment is crazy, the Daily Mail is crazy, and the idea that Obama has any direct culpability in either of these matters is, given what we know today, utter madness. Okay?

But this is my point: utter madness is what today’s Republicans do. You can present to me every logical argument you desire. Benghazi at the end of the day was a terrible tragedy in which mistakes, bad mistakes, were certainly made, and in which confusion and the CYA reflex led to some bad information going out to the public initially, but none of this remotely rises to the level of high crime. The IRS cock-up was just that, a mistake by a regional office. I get all this, and I agree with you.

full article
http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2013/05/12/the-coming-attempt-to-impeach-obama.html

[Enrique]

1. they would have to have a motive for it

it would have to help them win the next presidential election, or the threat of impeachment would have to get Obama to give them something they want.

[rhett o rick]

13. Their motive is that Pres Obama is not a Republican. nm

[Phlem]

28. I don't know about that.

He sure seems like one sometimes.

-p

[rhett o rick]

33. For those that have little reasoning skills (Dems as well as Repukes) it only matters what the

letter designation behind his name is.

[marshall]

49. Nixon was never in danger until his own pary turned on him

If discussion here and elsewhere is any indication, Obama needs to watch his back and reevaluate.

[Douglas Carpenter]

36. Bill Clinton pushed through right-wing policies that Ronald Reagan could only have dreamed of

IT DOESN'T MATTER!! Barack Obama could embrace the entire Tea Party agenda hook, line and sinker and announce that he wants to overturn Roe/Wade, and reinstate mandatory prayer and Bible reading in all public schools - IT DOESN'T MATTER!! He identifies as a Democrat and worse than that - he is an African-American Democrat - Nothing else matters. These guys are nuts. They don't care about policy in any real sense of the word. They just want to tear down that which they think represents the un-America . and a Democrat and especially a black Democrat who as far as most of them are concerned is a gay-Marxist-Muslim-atheist who hates the Boy Scouts, Jesus and America.

[Kablooie]

2. If the Republicans keep the house and take the Senate next year...

Obama will be impeached quickly and eliminated for sure.
And I'm sure there is plenty of imaginary dirt they have on Biden already.

Once Biden is impeached ... Boehner becomes President of the United States with a full Republican congress to support him.

If we lose the Senate, which is very possible, the country may be handed over, lock, stock and barrel to the Tea Party and there will be nothing anyone can do about it.

The only breath of sanity could be the filibuster, handled by Democrats the way it's handled by Republicans today.

Damn it's becoming a scary world.

[Cooley Hurd]

4. I wouldn't worry about it...

They lost pretty big in 2012, and since they've done nothing to rectify the reasons WHY they lost big. 2012 will be another rout.

[pangaia]

6. I agree and have thought about this for..

oh, months...I mean the horror of the corporatist/ fundamentalist/ right-wing insanity.
Bush didn't know how right he was when he said he had hit the trifecta.

This could very well be how we go down...

[BlueDemKev]

38. Senate Conviction Requires a 2/3 Majority (i.e.--67 votes)

Even if the tea-bag controlled House of Reps. voted by a simple majority to impeach Obama, conviction requires a two-thirds majority vote in the Senate. Unless Republicans can find 67 senators willing to vote to remove the president from office, Obama isn't going anywhere.

[Cha]

57. Exactly, BlueDemKev.. thanks for allaying the

fears.

[BlueDemKev]

58. I think there's about a 50/50 chance the House WILL impeach Obama...

They'll find some excuse to push it through, just like they did with Clinton. The righties do not believe that Democrats have any legal right to control the White House. However, as with Clinton, I believe that the public will back the president and see impeachment as nothing more than a politically-partisan act.

[Cha]

59. If they do go ahead with it.. I think it will BACKFIRE

on their collective ass.. Exponentially. They're not doing anything else anyway except Repealing more Obamacare. I say bring it.

We know PBO is not going anywhere just because the gopissants Impeach him in the House of Shame.

[bornskeptic]

7. Conviction and removal from office requires 67 votes in the Senate.

Republicans would have to win every single senatorial election in 2014 to pick up 20 seats. That's not in the realm of possibility. If it did happen, though, rather obviously there wouldn't be enough Democrats to filibuster.

[SteveG]

9. the filibuster does not play in impeachment trials

It takes 2/3rd's vote of the Senate to remove a President. That's 67 votes. The current balance is 55 to 45. Even if the Republicans win all 20 races that brings them to 65, two votes shy of the number needed.

[Kablooie]

10. Ah. I didn't realize that. Whew.

2/3 of the senate seems reasonable for something as serious as removing the president.

My filibuster comment was referring to actions after a successful impeachment. To prevent dismantling healthcare etc.

[rhett o rick]

14. If the Republicans take control of the Senate they will change the stupid filibuster rule. A move

that the Democrats wouldnt do because some of them love the obstruction by the Republicans. They can vote like their constituents want and still not upset their wealthy sponsors.

[bornskeptic]

21. I didn't say it did.

If you read the post I was replying to you will understand what I was saying. I see that if you don't have that post in mind, what I said about the filibuster doesn't make sense. That post suggests the filibuster as our only resort if Obama and Boehner would be removed from office.

[Cha]

19. It has to be 2/3 of the Senate to Remove the President.

[LeftInTX]

25. If Biden is impeached, the VP becomes president

If Biden is president, he will pick a VP.

Nixon impeached, Ford became president.
Ford picks Nelson Rockefeller as VP.
If Ford got impeached, Rockefeller would be president.

[Ter]

54. Not if it was done quick enough

The Republicans could stall for months his VP pick, or impeach them both at the same time. Of course, this is fantasy. No one is getting impeached.

[bornskeptic]

53. It does them no good to take the Senate.

67 votes in the Senate are required to remove a president from office. There is no possible way they could get 67 seats in 2014.

[BlueDemKev]

56. Senate Conviction would require a 2/3 majority (i.e.--67 votes)

No chance unless a bunch of Democrats turn against the president.

[think]

3. No impeachment for major war criminals & the Pugs

want to impeach over talking points regarding Benghazi.

[DFW]

5. Two thirds of the Senate are needed to remove a president from office

That's why Pelosi put impeaching Bush Lite "off the table." There is no way 67 Senators were going to vote to remove Bush from office, so why waste the country's time, and who wanted Cheney in there anyway?

In 1998, everyone knew there weren't 67 Senate votes to remove Clinton from office. The impeachment was to humiliate and embarrass Clinton for the heinous crime of having been elected and re-elected as a Democratic President. If there is ANY serious effort to impeach Obama, it will be for the same reasons. I suspect Bonehead won't go for it this time. He doesn't want to be remembered as having been rolled the way Hastert was.

OK, Republicans don't mind wasting the country's time. Hell, they don't mind wasting anything. But Clinton's coming out of the impeachment fiasco stronger and more popular than ever is something even Republican strategists remember, and they know Obama remembers it, too. The two Davids (Simas and Axelrod) will know how to turn any unsuccessful impeachment effort (and it is doomed from the start) into an advantage for our candidate in 2016. Sane Republicans will not want to give them that chance, not that sanity seems to be a top priority in that party these days.

[rhett o rick]

15. The Republican goal is obstruction and inaction. What better excuse? nm

[emulatorloo]

29. Agreed. They do not give a shit whether Senate votes to remove or not.

[DFW]

44. After all this time

They still have no ideas of their own other than what Fox, the Kochs and Rove feed them.

They remain the party of NO.

[freshwest]

16. 100% correct on all points. Happy Mother's Day to Mrs. DFW!

[DFW]

43. Thanks, Freshwest, I'll pass it on.

She got calls from both our girls, so she's happy:

[URL=.html][IMG][/IMG][/URL]

[Cha]

20. That's what I'm trying to tell people, DFW Frankly, I'm surprised Michael

Tomasky is buying into Fear and the bullshit on Friday. I know of at least 3 Liberal writers who aren't.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/1251304978

[Proud Liberal Dem]

8. I'm afraid that it is probably inevitable that they will try to get him on *something*

As much as I utterly dislike him, I don't think that Boehner wants to go there but he's not *really* in charge, so if the teabaggers in his caucus REALLY want it, he'll probably go along with it. The biggest problems for them as far as Benghazi goes are that a.)there is currently no evidence of any actual crimes that can be linked to President Obama (are there any actual crimes even being alleged?) b.)most average (and maybe even some above-average) people don't fully understand what the ruckus is about- which isn't that surprising given that there's not much, if anything, *there* that's concrete and easy to understand and c.)Impeaching President Obama isn't going to give people jobs, healthcare, or put more money in their pockets, which I know doesn't matter to most right-wingers but they're not really in the majority. But for the fact that we need less chaos and more REAL work getting done in DC, I'd tell the Republicans to please proceed.

[Rosa Luxemburg]

48. Voters will think that Republicans are petty and using up taxpayers' money

Time wasting, obstruction and wasting money is what the GOP wants. People are getting tired of that. They want jobs, good healthcare and a healthy economy not this garbage.

[woo me with science]

11. Perhaps they need some good, juicy One Percent Theater

to distract the masses. Way too much attention being paid to the bipartisan robbing of us all blind these days. This will polarize us into our Red and Blue camps, which they need, and provide lots of distracting material for the news shows while our schools are quietly privatized and the Trans-Pacific free trade assault is approved.

[LeftInTX]

24. Yep

[emulatorloo]

30. Yes, it is all a Secret Plot engineered by Obama to impeach himself.

Last edited Mon May 13, 2013, 01:36 PM - Edit history (1)

[Number23]

34. Sometimes, it's really hard to believe that one isn't joking

I see his comments as the only theater around here. And it ain't good theater either.

[illegaloperation]

12. Go ahead and impeach Obama.

Republicans will looks like partisan jerks right in time for 2016 and won't have 67 votes to remove him anyway.

[freshwest]

17. We still need to keep on top of 2014 to keep their numbers down.

And yes, it will not go well with those tired of the shit that's been flung at this president, either.

[winter is coming]

18. There's method in their madness.

The "OMG, we have a deficit crisis!" meme is growing stale, so they need something else that they and the media can flap about to avoid discussing job creation, infrastructure repair, economic reform...

[TeamPooka]

22. And when Democrats don't try to impeach a President like Bush after Iraq

the GOP just calls us "suckers".
We pay a heavy price for just trying to run the country instead of gerrymandering it.
I want to play the game they do now.
If I ran the party at this point the Next GOP President (if there ever is one) gets everything filibustered by a Democratic minority if we have one of those.
The Patriot Act 2?
Filibustered!
The I Love Puppies Act?
Filibustered!
I'm past the point of a perpetual Fuck You being given to all them at this point.
We need to win everything.
2014-2016.
Local and state are as important as national offices now too.
We need to win and we need to work hard to make that happen.
GOTV!

Note I may feel more compromising later but I can't guarantee it.

[BlueDemKev]

23. The key to winning...

...is we MUST get out EVERY segment of our party base to vote in both the midterms as well as the presidential elections. Minorities and college students are notorious for ignoring midterm elections and underestimating their importance. The 2010 debacle caused lasting effects and enormous barriers to progress. Republicans were able to gerrymander districts in numerous swing-states which will guarantee they will control the House of Reps. as well as the majority of state legislatures for MANY ELECTION CYCLES to come.

DEMOCRATIC VOTERS...GET OUT AND VOTE!! VOTE AS IF YOUR LIFE DEPENDS ON IT--BECAUSE IT DOES!

[TeamPooka]

27. +1000

[madrchsod]

26. they have nothing to impeach him on.....

just another fund raiser for the republicans and more red meat for their attack dogs.

the head of the irs was appointed by a republican.

[Dyedinthewoolliberal]

31. C'mon everybody.......

this is like staring into a whirling blender and thinking 'what would it be like if I stuck my hand in there?'
When focus is upon the WORST possible thing that could maybe happen, everything else fades and we are stuck agonizing over what we 'know for sure' will take place.
I'd say, on this thread, there is a collective grouping of over active imaginations..........
Also I'd like to say it seems like there are times when the President is strangely passive or docile. Which would lend itself to people thinking this could happen. I'm thinking he operates mostly behind the scenes.

[on point]

32. His own damn fault for failing to prosecute the pukes for their bush crimes

Instead of pinning them and completely exposing them he tried to play nicey and so gave them time to re-group and come after him. More foolish spineless dem strategy nonsense

[Pirate Smile]

35. That is ridiculous. But, truly, the Republicans appreciate your cooperation in shifting blame to

Pres. Obama. Bravo. An awesome assist.

[Douglas Carpenter]

37. Only stark raving right-wing nutcases would support that!

[BlueDemKev]

39. And that's exactly what almost all elected Republicans are today

[lindysalsagal]

40. This is really about Hillary: They're trying to weaken the party ahead of time.

They know they can't pull off an impeachment, but they think they can blacken the librul's eye enough to take on Hillary in 2016.

Hillary's not exactly popular among undecideds, so, it just might work, especially if it Chris Chiristie.

There's no point in discussing an obama impeachment. That's not their goal.

[Tseko]

41. I hope they try.

The political shitstorm it would stir up and the massive backfire would be quite entertaining.

[davidpdx]

42. This line says it all:

I think the notion of impeachment is industrial-strength insane.

[Adenoid_Hynkel]

45. This is the new normal: GOP can't defeat incumbent Dem, so they impeach

and find a "scandal" to fit their goal somewhere along the way

[Franker65]

46. Insane notion

Just because of a cover-up? It will be very difficult to prove the White House were lying.

[Doctor_J]

50. the president could have done a great deal to prevent this

Even after Pelosi refused to impeach Bush & Cheney in 2006, Obama could have headed this off by prosecuting them after they left office in shame. He had to know this was coming, yet tried to kiss up to the Repukes instead of obliterating them. I hope we find out some day why he was such a weak Dem and weak president.

[sofa king]

51. I hope they do it.

You know what saved America? What ensured that we have anything left at all today? Impeaching Bill Clinton.

You guys think I'm kidding, but I'm not. Here's a list of a-typical Republican states and their Senate election choices in 1998:

Arkansas: Blanche Lincoln (D)
Louisiana: Breaux (D)
Florida: Graham (D)
South Carolina: Hollings (D)
North Carolina: Edwards (D)
Indiana: Bayh (D)
North Dakota: Dorgan (D)
South Dakota: Daschle (D)

That's right, the Impeachment of President Clinton generated or kept eight Democratic Senators from the former Confederacy and Bible-thumper states.

Every single one of those Senators was necessary to hold back George Bush's fascist tide by just one vote in the Senate. Those eight Senators held back only the very worst of Bush's plans for his first term, but we're still here, dammit. It took Republicans twelve years to get all of those states back into the fold.

We couldn't have done it without the impeachment of Bill Clinton. Only that event was disgusting and unpatriotic enough to generate a counter-push across the Senate board, even in states so ignorant that they are never mentioned today in Democratic politics, which saved our collective asses.

[WovenGems]

52. Dog and Pony Show

Given who else would get wrapped up nothing will come from this but a show.

[Celldweller]

55. silliness

They know that an attempted impeachment would only make him a hero of the left.

So they will cover him with mud for 4 years and leave him an ineffectual and scandal ridden President.

[Lil Missy]

60. I hope they try. n/t