Another impeachment of a vulnerable figure would only embolden the president and the Republican Party, and would likely result in much the same outcome as President Trump’s first term.
Congressman Al Green vows to impeach President Trump
Texas Representative Al Green, who filed an impeachment bill during President Trump’s first term, has vowed to do so again within the month.
It is increasingly likely that Democrats will retake the House seat in the 2026 midterm elections or before. In addition to providing an important check on the Republican agenda, control of the House of Representatives would allow Democrats to impeach President Donald Trump.
President Trump has done two things that I think are absolutely impeachable. The first is a gross abuse of amnesty powers, and the second is an illegal drone attack operation against suspected drug smuggling in the Caribbean. But I caution Democrats against becoming too eager to impeach Trump too often.
House Speaker Mike Johnson has warned that President Trump could be impeached again if Democrats retake the House next year. His prediction comes shortly after the defeat of Texas Democratic Rep. Al Green’s attempt to impeach Trump on Dec. 11, beginning a new phase of impeachment negotiations.
If Democrats win a House majority within a year from now, they should exercise their new power with restraint. Another impeachment of a vulnerable person would only embolden President Trump and the Republican Party, and would likely result in much the same outcome as President Trump’s first term.
Impeachment loses its effectiveness when abused for political gain
Impeachment requires a simple majority of the House to indict the president. Removal from office requires at least two-thirds of the Senate to vote to convict the president.
The reason the bar for impeachment and removal is so high is that it is a remedy if the president truly violates his oath and can no longer be trusted with power. Impeachment was never intended as a remedy for bad policy. That’s the purpose of elections. This is an ejector lever that should not be used if the airplane can land safely.
This is not only the constitutional intent of this feature, but also the practical reality. Impeachment should be taken more seriously when there is a legitimate case. This not only increases the likelihood of a bipartisan conviction in the Senate. It would also increase the legitimacy of the case before the American public.
Impeachment is effective only as a means of combating legitimate violations. You cannot arrive at the answer of impeachment and then invent high crimes and misdemeanors to accomplish that goal. If done in the wrong order, the action becomes clearly partisan and undermines the legitimacy of impeachment, even if the basis for it is sound.
When the time came for an impeachment inquiry into President Trump’s actions leading up to and on the day of the January 6, 2021, insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, one of the reasons the impeachment inquiry did not gain enough momentum was that Republicans could rely on the idea that Democrats had pursued impeachment Trump as far as they could think of, although they acknowledge that the main reason was that President Trump was out of office.
Democrats should be wise not to impeach Trump haphazardly.
Given that Democrats are unlikely to win a 67-seat Senate majority and that Republicans are united behind Trump, it is unlikely that Senate Republicans would vote to convict Trump. But unless the economy suddenly improves for most Americans, Democrats will likely have a good chance of taking back the House next fall. This leaves a likely scenario in which Democrats retake the House but not the Senate.
Democrats could then feel the need to retaliate against President Trump and his administration for any actions they take.
An impeachment proceeding initiated by the House is unlikely to result in a conviction in the Senate. The implications of this whole ordeal are simply political. In this sense, it’s almost a given that Congressional Democrats would move forward anyway to gain support from voters.
However, I believe that when Democrats are in a position to exercise restraint regarding impeachment proceedings, they should exercise restraint for the sake of the country.
Certainly, Congressional Republicans are also to blame in this dynamic. Their unwillingness to impeach the president of their own party is disgusting enough as well, and I will certainly condemn them if they refuse to vote in favor of Democrats to impeach on either of the two issues I have outlined.
Unfortunately, given Trump’s widespread support throughout the Republican Party, the onus is on Democrats to introduce articles of impeachment against him. They will definitely be active in any sin.
Hopefully Democrats can learn enough from last time to put aside their partisanship, but I might have laughed while writing this sentence. Otherwise, you are doomed to repeat the same actions and produce similar results.
Dace Potas is an opinion columnist for USA TODAY and a graduate of DePaul University with a degree in political science.
