Start impeachment inquiry now ! Best tweet from Larry Wiley

[Laura PourMeADrink]

Link to tweet

?s=20

[Heartstrings]

1. Where's our Atticus Finch? nt

[Laura PourMeADrink]

3. Yes..And where is our Bobby or Ted Kennedy or Mario Cuomo.

[watoos]

2. Thank you for this post,

There are so many reasons why an impeachment inquiry makes sense. Just the fact that the impeachment process will devastate Trump (according to his book writer) is enough to get it started.

With an impeachment inquiry Barr/Trump won't be able to control the narrative. Trump/Barr are preparing to roll out a witch hunt scenario with crooked FBI agents, a complicit Christopher Steele who worked hand in hand with Hillary to lie about Trump. Trump plans on putting Hillary on the 2020 ballot.

Or we can stay the course and have hearings with John Dean and retired federal prosecutors and wait to see if the courts will rule before the election.

The argument to wait or to not impeach is that we trust Speaker Pelosi. That is a strong argument, but what if she is wrong?

[cwydro]

10. This. nt

[G_j]

4. K&R

[TruckFump]

6. Listening to Tribe on AM Joy

Tribe is right on!

I love ya, Nancy, but Tribe is totally correct -- let Nadler start the inquiry.

[StarfishSaver]

9. When I left my law firm to become a law professor, I was thrilled to be able to think and analyze

and explore and dissect in ways I couldn't do as a practicing attorney with clients and billable hours. It was so freeing!

Not long after, I had lunch with a former colleague who told me about a case he was working on. I used my newfound freedom of thought to tell him how I thought he should handle it, what in my view was the "right thing" to do. He reminded me that he couldn't just do whatever he wanted on the case because he had many competing interests that constrained him from just doing whatever he wanted - the client, the judge, the cost, etc.

I pushed back a bit and he said "It may seem simple to you, but you have the luxury of just thinking about what I should do, while I have the responsibility to actually do it and make it work for a lot of people other than myself and that's a whole different thing." That was an important lesson.

I love and respect Professor Tribe and appreciate his wisdom, guidance and insight on this and many other issues. But he's a professor whose job it is to think and analyze in a safe and controlled environment:/; he's not and never has been a politician whose job it is to do while managing some very complicated external and internal realities, balancing competing interests, navigating some treacherous terrain, with no certain outcomes. So even though his views are really important and useful - and I'm sure the Speaker is taking them into account along with numerous other considerations that he doesn't have to weigh - they aren't sacrosanct.

[TruckFump]

11. Thank you for your comment.

I was in private practice for a long time and I understand many of the constraints and headaches. Now that I am retired -- and for a long time retired -- I enjoy doing work for other attorneys. Especially the young one -- like those who have only 20 years under their belts!

My late law partner was a Clerk on the 9th Circuit and he said that was very different than being a solo practitioner. I envy you being able to teach. I did teach law school for about a year and then retired completely. However, the call of an interesting case usually will get me involved!

[irisblue]

15. Did you mean your comment to sound rude? 🤔

Cuz it surely did

[PufPuf23]

16. You are certainly well-qualified then to spend so much time convincing

those of us at DU against the impeachment of Trump.

As well as you express yourself in writing (as well as your energy) is impressive.

But what harm is there in opening the impeachment inquiry now? Let the process drag on regards timing. Let the public see how Trump et al do not cooperate in the impeachment process and continue to break laws and attempt to subvert the process. Lots of embarrassments for the GOP,

Trump will be weakened and Democratic positions strengthened regards the 2020 elections by the impeachment process.

You say that even the Democratic votes are not there (yet) in the House. But out in real life 80% or more of Democratic voters are for aggressive pursuit of impeachment. Members of Congress and Democratic leadership should be leading the impeachment process not waiting for uprising from the ground that is already there but some folks (like you) deny this fact.

For Pelosi to say Trump belongs in prison but refuses to provide the leadership for impeachment makes no sense and is probably damaging to the effort to remove Trump and for Democratic party unity.

You are putting much effort into your narrative.

[StarfishSaver]

17. I'm not against impeachment and am not trying to convince anyone to be against impeachment

However I do think that timing is critical and believe it's better strategy to conduct multiple investigations and open an official inquiry later. And I also think that, regardless what side of the question anyone is on, it's important that they base their views on correct information and history, which I try to provide when possible.

But, that said, I'm not vehemently opposed to opening an inquiry now if . What I more strongly object to - and push back against here - is drawing conclusions based on a lack of information or insight and accusations that the Speaker of the House and Democratic leadership are a bunch of cowardly, clueless idiots because they aren't doing what laypeople sitting at home yelling at them are telling them to do.

Having spent much of my career working in that space, I well understand how difficult it is to do the right thing while balancing all of the competing interests and navigating information that many in the general public don't know - or don't bother trying to learn. I also understand that this is very complicated and many laypeople don't know all of the ins and outs of congressional and legal procedure and strategy - not because they're stupid or uninformed, but because it's just not common knowledge. I try to explain and demystify this for people by taking my time and carefully laying out how it works. It seems that some people here resent that. So be it. But I believe that many others find it helpful.

One of the reasons I spend so much time and care trying to explain things here is that I want people to better understand the processes, procedures and considerations that go into making these decisions and also to encourage people here to use their own political power more constructively. For example, instead of expending a lot of energy complaining that Speaker Pelosi isn't singlehandedly launching an impeachment inquiry (which she doesn't have the power to do), use their own influence (which they have to a much greater degree than many people assume) to press their representatives to support impeachment. One of the surest ways to make sure we don't have power is to assume we don't and never use it.

So, yes. I'm putting a lot of effort into my narrative. Because I care.

[PufPuf23]

18. I do not think that Pelosi and Democratic leadership are cowardly, clueless idiots.

All I am saying is that there is benefit to starting the impeachment process / inquiry now and let it bleed out over time and have the timing of the vote be strategic.

I may be missing something but we have a the example of GWB, where impeachment was "taken off the table". That decision was a mistake and much of the conundrum we now face was because of that failure.

Congress persons are not listening their voting bases and in any case should be educating their voting base on board the impeachment train.

We all care.

[StarfishSaver]

19. Of course we all care

And many of us are trying to make a difference in different ways. This is one of mine.

And I don't think it's accurate say that to all members of Congress aren't listening to their electorate. one of the things that some people here are complaining about is that the members are listening to their electorate when they think they should go against them and support impeachment.

I'm not sure any of us know that no Members are trying to educate their constituents. That's a pretty broad generalization unless you know what every member is doing in their district. For example, the other day one poster told me that no Members were holding any town meetings... despite the fact that Members were in their home districts and many of them held town meetings.

I really believe that the Democratic leadership and most of the Democratic caucus are all grappling with an extraordinarily complicated situation and are all trying to get it right. And they're trying to do it against a cacaphony of criticism from the right and left, which doesn't make the effort any easier.

[cwydro]

20. Could you please link to where anyone here has

called the Speaker “cowardly and clueless?”

Perhaps I missed it.

[wendyb-NC]

7. Yes, please Congress.

It's time. Thank you for posting.

[Nevermypresident]

8. K & R

[cwydro]

12. K and r.

Last edited Sat Jun 8, 2019, 04:01 PM - Edit history (1)

Thanks for posting this.