Capitol Beat OK

On Wednesday, January 13, President Donald Trump became the first United States president to be impeached twice. He was charged with ‘incitement of insurrection,’ in conjunction with the overrun of the U.S. Capitol on January 6.

Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, D-California, had given Vice President Mike Pence an ultimatum to invoke Section 4 of the 25th amendment within 24 hours or the U.S. House would precede with impeachment.

Pence said he wouldn’t invoke the 25th. After little debate, the vote to impeach was 232-197 with 10 Republicans joining all the House Democrats, with 4 Republicans not voting on the resolution. All 5 Oklahoma House members voted against impeachment.

Four observations:

First, impeachment is a ‘political,’ and not a legal, action.

While seldom used in the past, Democrats have used it twice in one year.

Alan Dershowitz, one of Trump’s lawyers at his first impeachment, but who endorsed Biden for election in 2020, said, “Trump has not committed a constitutionally impeachable offense.” Dershowitz said the Democrats had ‘weaponized’ the impeachment process, which is not its purpose.

During her speech presenting the charges, Speaker Pelosi, D-California, quoted Abraham Lincoln and the Bible. “He (President Trump) must go. He is a clear and present danger to the nation that we all love,” she said.

U.S. Rep. Tom Cole, R-Moore, spoke on the floor Wednesday. “I can think of no action that is likely to further divide the American people than the action we’re contemplating today,” Cole said.

Now the articles move to the Senate, where Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-New York said he will push to convict Trump, even after he is gone from office.

Why? Because a conviction would prevent Trump from seeking federal office.

Second, why do the Democrats (and some Republicans) want Trump out of politics?

They claim its because of his loud mouthed, shoot from the hip, in your face behavior but that is just part of it. The establishment fears the movement Trump has created – one that puts America First. They hate his policies as much as they do his personality. What they fail to understand, it that whether Trump is the leader of the movement or not, Washington has likely changed forever.

Third, an effectual, successful movement is greater than one man.

Donald Trump is clearly a cult of personality. There may not be a populist to ever recreate what he has done. His ability to fire up people who haven’t been engaged in politics/government is unprecedented. But the truth is many involved in the MAGA movement have zeal but not according to knowledge.

If they stay hooked up and their involvement results in changes in government — at all levels — over the next decade in America, then the movement has been successful. The proficiency of an effective movement is it doesn’t die when the excitement dies down.

The accomplishments of the Trump four-year term were impressive:

Appointment of three members of the Supreme Court of the United States, over 200 federal judges confirmed, multiple successes in foreign policy, strong economy, and reduction of government regulations on businesses.

But the national debt under Trump increased at its highest rate ever. The federal government footprint grew by 20 percent. That isn’t conservative.

Republicans need to be objective and realistic and not practice blind loyalty to a cult of personality. A movement is bigger than one person — or it should be.

Note: Steve Fair is Chairman of the Republican Party in Oklahoma’s Fourth Congressional District. His commentaries appear frequently on CapitolBeatOK.com, a news website based in Oklahoma City. Steve can be reached by email at okgot@aol.com . His blot is stevefair.blogspot.com .

Bigger Than One Person: A Commentary