On December 18, 2019, House democrats impeached the President of the United States. The charges have never been used in a court of law, because they are not crimes. The charges are abuse of power and obstruction of congress. In two of the previous impeachment proceedings, Richard Nixon was accused of obstruction of justice and Bill Clinton was accused of perjury.
The precedent that House democrats used for the impeachment of President Donald Trump was President Johnson’s impeachment in 1868. This impeachment was full of political animus and hatred for the man that occupied the White House. There is an important distinction between the two, however, seven members of the party opposite that of the president’s voted to acquit him. In 1867, Congress passed a law that they knew President Johnson would break. When he removed the Secretary of War from his position, they impeached him for breaking the law that they had passed for this purpose. Seven republicans voted to acquit him because they knew that the President was in his authority to remove a Secretary of War from his own cabinet. They knew that Congress was wrong for impeaching a president simply because they didn’t like him, his policies, or his actions.
This, however, is exactly what we are seeing in our nation today. House Democrats claim that they were “sad,” that it was a “somber occasion” to impeach a president. However, immediately after Speaker Nancy Pelosi announced the “first article is adopted” there was cheering from democrats in the House chamber. Rep. Jim Clyburn, a democrat, announced on Dec. 19 that President Trump should “be hung” after the trial in the US Senate. Speaker Pelosi has announced that she will be withholding the impeachment from proceeding to the Senate until she can verify that it will be a “fair trial,” read Speaker Pelosi and democrats get their way. The American people are well aware of the corruption within Washington which is exactly why we elected President Donald John Trump and why we will re-elect him on Nov. 3, 2020.
William Deaton
Cordova
Editor’s Note: This letter to the editor first published the name President Lyndon Johnson in the second paragraph. This is an error introduced in editing. The original letter writer wrote only “President Johnson.” We have reverted the name to the writer’s original intent. The Cordova Times is committed to accuracy. If you suspect an error, please email share@thecordovatimes.com.
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