General Discussion
Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsWaPo: Yes, there is something the House can do to punish Trump right now
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2019/09/21/yes-there-is-something-house-can-do-punish-trump-right-now/
Many Democrats have made the case that this is impeachable behavior on Trumps part. Many others including House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) point out that impeaching Trump would be a futile gesture, because the Republican-led Senate would never vote to remove him from office. Those who are resisting impeachment also raise a valid concern that, whatever the merits, the backlash over a drawn-out impeachment proceeding could actually help Trump win a second term.
This argument will continue, with new fuel being added by the administrations refusal to turn over a whistleblowers complaint regarding the Trump-Zelensky conversation. It is hard to see how it could possibly be resolved before we are well into the 2020 campaign season. But there is something the House could do right now, an idea that I have raised before: censure the president.
The procedure for doing so is pretty straightforward, as spelled out in a recent report by the Congressional Research Service:
Should a House committee report a non-Member censure resolution, the full House may consider it by unanimous consent, under the Suspension of the Rules procedure, or under the terms of a special rule reported by the Committee on Rules and adopted by the House. 17 If widespread support exists for the censure resolution, unanimous consent or the Suspension of the Rules procedure may be used. Otherwise, the resolution could be brought to the floor under a special rule reported by the Committee on Rules. All three of these parliamentary mechanisms require, at a minimum, the support of the majority party leadership in order to be entertained.
In other words, a censure resolution could be brought to the House floor with support from Democrats alone, and it would not require any action on the part of the Senate.
riversedge
(70,299 posts)Miles Archer
(18,837 posts)I say go for it.
FBaggins
(26,757 posts)Id say the chances are good... but a censure vote comes at the end of an investigation and effectively closes it out.
PoliticAverse
(26,366 posts)Congressional Research Service:
(.pdf) https://fas.org/sgp/crs/misc/R45087.pdf
dweller
(23,661 posts)i can't remember exactly, so much info political and
personal coming at me 24/7... i'm in info overload...
✌🏼
Mme. Defarge
(8,042 posts)That reminds me of a clever little device a French entertainer tried to use with me when I was much younger and cuter. He taught me to say, Tu nauras pas dû. Translation: You shouldnt have done that. Then, whenever he tried to do something naughty I could just say, Tu nauras pas dû and we were both off the hook.
standingtall
(2,787 posts)of a censure too and rightly so.
The Velveteen Ocelot
(115,836 posts)It has no effect and it won't do anything to stop Trump's criminality and corruption. It might just embolden him even more because it has no effect.
uponit7771
(90,364 posts)slumcamper
(1,606 posts)bucolic_frolic
(43,281 posts)House Republicans could go on record defending Trump, if they don't have bone spurs for the day.
lunatica
(53,410 posts)and the Senators start to see clearly that theyre going to lose their majority, many will be quite willing to do something about Trump.
Never underestimate the greed for power or self interest. They dont have the conviction of their duties to this country. They have the convictions of thieves and liars. As soon as they sniff their own downfall their tune will change.
tavernier
(12,400 posts)I spit on your shoe.
These people cant be shamed because they thrive on it.
ismnotwasm
(42,008 posts)Makes sense