In The Washington Post, book critic Carlos Lozada reviews an assortment of impeachment-centered books and asks the question: "[C]ould the American public, already so divided and cynical, regard whatever outcome emerges from that process as nonpartisan and fair?"
When scholars argue that the removal of a president must be bipartisan, they are expressing less an opinion than a historical fact. Nixon still enjoyed the support of roughly a quarter of American voters when he resigned, and he could have counted on some 10 to 15 Republican votes in the Senate, writes Williams College legal scholar Alan Hirsch in “Impeaching the President.” But the public would have accepted his removal, Hirsch explains, because significant numbers of Republicans in both chambers supported it. Similarly, it was the partnership between Sens. Tom Daschle, a South Dakota Democrat, and Trent Lott, a Mississippi Republican, that made the conclusion of Clinton’s Senate trial a somewhat bipartisan undertaking.
In some ways, the Trump era combines the most toxic elements of the Nixon and Clinton episodes: the likelihood of impeachment-level wrongdoing, as well as inflamed — and deeply personal — partisan opposition.
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BLAST FROM THE PAST
On this date at Daily Kos in 2003—Bush’s budget-busting budget:
Keep in mind that even using the White House's optimistic numbers (private economists expect the deficit to top $400 billion this year), that's a $1.08 trillion problem that Bush is leaving behind "to other Congresses, to other presidents, and other generations."
And the kicker? These numbers don't include the costs of a new Iraq war. Given that such a war is a certainty in Bush's mind, why not include the costs in the budget? Because it'll be politically more palatable to do so after the shooting has begun and people are distracted by matters of life and death.
But here's the bottom line:
But perhaps the most dramatic change in recent years in the budget is the erosion in the nation's fiscal picture since a record surplus in 2000. The White House now expects deficits to total $1.084 trillion over the next five years. As recently as 2001, 10-year budget surpluses of $5.6 trillion were forecast.
This is one mess that won't be cleaned up by this Republican president, or his GOP Congress, or this generation. It's the gift that will keep on giving until a Democratic president is forced to clean it up.
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