Let’s assume for the moment that Trump was in the right to deny Nancy Pelosi the use of a government jet for her fact-finding trip to Afghanistan. It’s predicated on the argument that the Speaker belonged in Washington to help find a way forward to end the shutdown.
But even if you accept that argument, there is no defending Trump’s decision to out her travel plans to the world. There’s a good reason those plans were kept secret—you do not give advance notice of VIPs going into a battle zone in order to keep bad actors from doing them harm.
Granted, this is a man who had no qualms about outing a covert SEAL mission while out on his photo-op trip to Iraq. But the more I think about it, the more I wonder—doesn’t this, at the very least, meet the real-world definition of reckless endangerment? If it does, then in my mind, we also have to wonder—does this rise to the level of an impeachable offense?
As I’ve turned this over in my mind, the answer to both questions is a resounding “yes.” It’s inconceivable that Trump was not aware of why Pelosi’s travel plans were kept hush-hush. And yet, he saw fit to out them anyway—even with the risk that it posed. All he cared about was owning the libs one more time. As we now know, Pelosi was forced to scrap her plans to fly commercial anyway when the State Department concluded that Trump’s outing of her itinerary made the trip an unacceptable risk.
Imagine if—God forbid—Pelosi had flown commercial, and some bad actor had waylaid her. If it turned out that said actor learned Pelosi was there as a result of Trump outing her travel plans, then there is no doubt that the world would hold Trump responsible. Seen in that light, Trump’s outing of those plans would seem to be the very definition of a high crime.
I’m reminded of the moment that Trump became absolutely, positively dead to me. Back in 2015, Trump plastered Jorge Ramos’ private cell phone number on social media. He should count himself extremely lucky that Instagram and Twitter deleted the post, because if one of Trump’s sansculottes had done Ramos harm before they had done so, nothing could have saved Trump. This is no different.
I’ve been meaning to update my working list of articles of impeachment against Trump for some time. Well, I just got another.
Using the powers of the office of president of the United States, Donald John Trump, in violation of his in violation of his constitutional oath faithfully to execute the office of President of the United States and, to the best of his ability, preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution of the United States, and in disregard of his constitutional duty to take care that the laws be faithfully executed, did willfully, recklessly, and without lawful cause or excuse disclose the secret travel plans of a congressional delegation that was embarking on a fact-finding mission into a war zone in Afghanistan.
Donald John Trump, by disclosing those plans, willfully and recklessly put the health, safety and lives of the delegation in undue danger.
In doing this, Donald John Trump has undermined the integrity of his office, has brought disrepute upon the presidency and the United States, has betrayed his trust as president, and has acted in a manner subversive of the rule of law and justice, to the manifest injury of the people of the United States.
Wherefore, by such conduct, Donald John Trump warrants impeachment and trial, and removal from office.
Can you imagine if a Democratic president had done something like this to a Republican Speaker? It would have been no less petty, no less wrong, and no less dangerous. And, in my view, it would have been no less of an impeachable offense.