WASHINGTON, D.C., October 4, 2019 – In the latest edition of Yeomans Work, AFJ Senior Justice Fellow Bill Yeomans writes that Trump thinks he could “stand in the middle of Fifth Avenue and shoot somebody” without losing any supporters – and he’s betting he can get away with asking the Ukraine and China to interfere with our democracy, too.
“Trump is standing in the Oval Office with the smoking weaponry of the presidency aimed at the heart of our democracy,” writes Yeomans. “Trump’s bet is that he’ll get away with it; that he is not constrained by the constitutional guardrails that limit a president.”
Yeomans writes that it’s not a question of if the House will file articles of impeachment, but when and how. “The House, therefore, must construct and present to the public a sufficiently compelling case for impeachment to make it politically untenable for Republicans in the Senate to vote as a bloc to truncate the proceedings.”
Yeomans continues: “Common wisdom has long held impeachment futile and politically unwise because the Senate would not vote to remove Trump. The political wisdom argument was always suspect. As Trump breaks the law in public, flails viciously at and lies about those seeking to hold him accountable, and watches his administration unravel, the futility argument is growing far less convincing.”
Yeomans Work focuses on the challenges to the justice system in the era of Trump. Bill Yeomans is available for media interviews. His opinions are his own and do not necessarily represent the positions of Alliance for Justice. For booking inquiries, contact Megan Simons, Communications Manager, at megan@afj.org or at 202-464-7361.