From: Doug Otto
Columbus
As expected, the president is emboldened by his victory in the Senate over his impeachment.
In his warped mind, President Donald Trump actually believes that he was exonerated when, in fact, he only received the benefit of inexplicable kowtowing by 52 Republican sycophants.
A little research has led me to know that impeachment is not limited to one time. The truth is that there is no limit to the number of times a president can be impeached.
None other than life-long conservative George Conway, husband of the oft-seen Kellyanne, wrote this week in the Washington Post that the House should impeach Trump again. This time for removing Army Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman from the National Security Council staff.
Vindman testified against Trump during the House impeachment hearings. Certainly, this action along with the rest of his childish vindictiveness such as firing Vindman’s twin brother for no other reason than he is Vindman’s brother is an abuse of power and thus grounds for impeachment. And how about his intervention in court decisions to heap greater punishment on his enemies and give his friends unjustified breaks? Abuse? You bet.
Remember that commission of a crime as we know it is not necessary to be included as an article of impeachment.
Before I advocate that Congress act, there is one extremely unlikely condition that should be in place. Congress must have assurance that at least 20 Senators have finally had enough, agree that Trump has to go, and will gather enough courage to vote that way.
For this change to take place, Trump would have to do something so egregious that no one could turn their back on it.
An unbelievably low bar has been set for Republican acceptability, so the new offense would have to be a dandy.
The crimes and misdemeanors I pointed out above will not get it done. I can’t imagine what the new atrocity might be, but I do know that this president thinks that there is literally nothing he can’t do, and there is no adviser that can stop him. Undeniable treason might qualify as a last straw.
The chronically naïve Senator Susan Collins said after the acquittal that she thinks the president has learned his lesson. When questioned as to what he learned, his answer was that democrats are crooked.
Obviously, no lesson learned.
So what do we do? I believe timing is important and that we should not be contacting our representatives until Trump has committed that potential last straw.
If this doesn’t happen before the election, we all must vote for whoever runs against Trump.
I don’t mean voting for a third-party candidate or leaving the top spot on your ballot blank because you don’t like either candidate as happened often with Hillary Clinton.
To me, this is not a Republican-Democrat issue. I have never cared about party politics. It is a vote to save our democracy because another four years of this administration will ruin our nation forever.
