Why are Democrats hesitating on impeaching Donald Trump?
Strategic calculation and scandal overload have held back the president's critics
The US House Intelligence Committee chairman has warned that Donald Trump could be impeached if he pressured his Ukrainian counterpart to investigate former US vice president Joe Biden.
Talk of impeachment seems to have surrounded Trump since the day he became US president and it is intensifying. Presidential candidate Elizabeth Warren and New York congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio Cortez have called for Democratic leadership to pursue impeachment immediately.
So why have party leaders not taken this step? House speaker Nancy Pelosi is one Democrat who has argued against the move. Pelosi believes that impeachment needs to be a bipartisan process, and that without the support of Trump’s Republican colleagues, impeachment would be an empty threat that would harm Democrats in the 2020 presidential elections.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Impeachment proceedings in Congress can lead to a president being removed from office, but Democrats would need support from Republicans who control the Senate. With few Senate Republicans speaking out about the recent revelations, Pelosi’s misgivings could be proven legitimate.
This means, says the Washington Post, that for most of 2019, the Speaker has “put the brakes on impeachment”.
There is also a sense of fatigue among some of Trump’s opponents, with so many reasons to impeach that they are left overwhelmed. As David Leonhardt of the New York Times says, the Ukraine scandal is just one of many pointers that Trump “is the president of the United States, and he is a threat to virtually everything that the United States should stand for”.
Democrat trepidation over impeachment is a longstanding obstacle. In August last year, Democrats expressed concern that even talk of impeachment would cause Republican Party voters to rally around Trump at the November mid-term polls.
However, the tide could be turning. The Washington Post reported at the weekend that Democratic members of the House “believe their reticence to move forward on impeachment emboldened Trump to act egregiously”.
Democrat Adam Schiff told CNN on Sunday: “If the president is essentially withholding military aid at the same time that he is trying to browbeat a foreign leader to do something illicit, to provide dirt on his opponent during a presidential campaign, then that (impeachment) may be the only remedy that is co-equal to the evil that conduct represents.”
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
Netanyahu's Rafah attack vow snarls truce deal
Speed Read Hours before the truce deal was to be finalized, Netanyahu said Israel will invade Rafah regardless
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Today's political cartoons - May 1, 2024
Cartoons Wednesday's cartoons - beware of governor, biting debates, and more
By The Week US Published
-
Democrats defang GOP speaker ouster threat
Speed Read Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene said she will force a vote to remove House Speaker Mike Johnson
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
'Can we — the people who have bought so much already — really keep buying more?'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
By Harold Maass, The Week US Published
-
'Presidential debates are more performance art than actual ways to inform'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
By Harold Maass, The Week US Published
-
Trump, DeSantis meet for first time since primary
Speed Read The former president and the Florida governor have seemingly mended their rivalry
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Justices set to punt on Trump immunity case
Speed Read Conservative justices signaled support for Trump's protection from criminal charges
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
'Biden is smart to keep the border-security pressure on'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
By Harold Maass, The Week US Published
-
Arizona grand jury indicts 18 in Trump fake elector plot
Speed Read The state charged Mark Meadows, Rudy Giuliani and other Trump allies in 2020 election interference case
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
'Voters know Biden and Trump all too well'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
By Harold Maass, The Week US Published
-
Who will win the 2024 presidential election?
In Depth Election year is here. Who are pollsters and experts predicting to win the White House?
By Justin Klawans, The Week US Published