Americans won't credit Democrats in Congress for instead concentrating on issues that matter to them
...if Democrats avoid holding impeachment hearings against Trump. In my mind that is the fallacy behind the logic of avoiding those hearings now. Unless the Senate takes up the legislation that the Democrats pass in the House (which it hasn't so far and is even more unlikely to do as the next elections approach) Democratic legislative efforts in the House get little publicity, and what publicity it does garner quickly gets buried by the latest drama emanating from the White House. House Democrats have already passed significant legislation this year but most of the public fails to realize it, because those bills enter a black hole as soon as they head to the Republican led Senate. Since Democratic legislation stands no chance to pass the Senate there is virtually no daily coverage of what Democrats move through the House now, nor will there be. That doesn't mean those bills don't matter, or that those efforts are meaningless. But Congressional Democrats can't turn the public spotlight away from countering Trump and onto their legislative agenda regardless of how much they may want to.
What they can do is create a legislative record that all of our Congressional candidates can reference during their campaigns for Congress in 2020. The votes they took, the stands they made. But Democrats will need to bring up those accomplishments and those votes themselves in local town hall meetings and during local debates. That record can be built whether or not Democrats impeach Trump. We can walk and chew gum at the same time.
Regardless, the Democratic House legislative agenda will not become the subject of much national political news in the era of Trump, not with Republicans in control of the Senate. If we could force Trump to veto our bills that would be different, but we can't, since they will never reach him. What will dominate national news are the national presidential campaigns, both those of the Democratic candidates and of Donald Trump. That and every single tweet from the Liar in Chief. Our Presidential candidates have plenty to say on the issues, Democratic policy alternatives to Trump will be aired, they will be debated. The legislation that Democrats pass in the House can and will be referenced in that context, and that holds true whether or not the House moves to impeach Trump. We can legislate AND uphold the Constitution. We should do both.
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