Time to get real: when Democrats get serious, we’ll STOP talking about impeachment.
I don’t mean giving up on it, nor that it’s “politically unwise”, nor yet unwarranted. Yes, it may or may not be politically unwise, it is definitely in order (“If not Trump, who? If not now, when?”), and so yes, I agree: Democrats should not give up on impeachment.
Finally, “inherent contempt” is a wonderful thing to dream of, and is also more than deserved, but is being ridiculed to death already.
BUT
Trump is part of a revanchist GOP wave, a symptom, not a root cause. In addition, he’s tapped the conservative super-id in a way not seen in modern times. In short: the Senate is never going to remove him from office after an impeachment vote in the House. This means that all of the electrons being spilled in anguished argument about impeaching or not-impeaching or investigating… well… it all matters less than Cassandra’s futile exclamations. Yes, it should be done because it’s the right thing to do… but… so is giving a dollar to the addict on the off ramp.
Honestly? I’m beginning to feel a bit of paranoia that the Wall Street Democratic establishment and the news media are playing up IMPEACHMENT!!!!???!!!???!!!???!!! in order to prevent anyone from initiating the very real and much more powerful things that Democrats have within their power.
So, go ahead, make Republicans’ days: argue about impeachment.
There are much harsher punishments: do-able & sooner.
Let’s just start right at the top, shall we? The yearly budget battles will start in a few months, and Democrats can lay down a whole bunch of big markers right from the get-go.
#1. The biggest one is simply this: no appropriations votes for departments that defy Congressional oversight. Remember: the Congressional oversight power flows directly from the Congressional power of the purse. [Check out McGrain v. Daugherty, 273 U.S. 135, 177 (1927) or Watkins v. United States, 354U.S. 178, 187 (1957)] If Congress cannot exercise oversight, it is well within its power to refuse to fund departments. And guess what two departments are the deepest into stonewall mode at the time of this writing? Treasury and Justice! Mnuch is refusing to hand over Trump’s tax returns, Barr is refusing to hand over the unredacted Mueller report. Democrats can point to the mess at the border and simply LAY OFF all Border Patrol agents until they can get effective oversight of the DOJ… starting with the Mueller report.
Hey man, it’s the Unitary Congress to go with the Unitary Executive !
Worried about backlash at the ballot box? Don’t be. There’s never been any proof of voters punishing the GOP for their multiple government shutdowns under Clinton and Obama.
#2 The next biggest one also flows from the budget, or more accurately, appropriations power: only pass appropriations coupled with explicit revocations of presidential emergency powers. In general, every “emergency power” the presidency offers (there are over a hundred of them) is a minor provision in some specific part of the federal code. Here’s the deal: an appropriations bill can legitimately include provisions which dictate how money can and cannot be spent, even if the provision is technically not about dollar amounts. Translation: Congress can revoke (or even temporarily revoke) presidential emergency powers by way of the annual appropriations bills.
#3 State level acts: New York is taking the right tack, and as Trump’s home state they have a lot on him. But… blue states can pass laws to make Trump’s life a whole lot harder. Sanctuary provisions, ballot requirements, or state laws which directly contradict “executive orders”… there’s a lot of scope there, still unexplored.
#4 Impeaching / investigating from the bottom up… why not start by impeaching Kavanaugh and Mnuchin and Devos and … or while you’re at it, use the “inherent contempt” power against people who are refusing to testify? If you must think in terms of impeachment, then start with small realistic “easy targets”. Shoot some fish in that barrel: Barr and his coterie for example. Harder to claim that Barr is too busy to be impeached, or that the voters certified Barr in 2016 or any other silly excuse to avoid impeaching him.
THE US HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES HAS ENORMOUS POWERS… BUT REMOVING THE PRESIDENT IS NOT ONE OF THEM. So, when we’re serious, let’s stop hyperventilating about the wet noodle of impeachment and start thinking about the howitzers of House power.