A Realist’s Guide to Impeachment
An impeachment of President Donald Trump is both deserved and dangerous. That it’s deserved is clear from each day’s news reports. The danger is getting lost in the rush of events.
It’s unlikely that impeachment will find 67 votes in the Senate for removal. The process will almost certainly end with Trump acquitted, and acquitted in a reelection year. The political consequences of acquittal are obviously unpredictable but could be favorable to Trump’s reelection: Trump supporters may be mobilized, Trump opponents demoralized, and Democratic presidential candidates distracted from issues that may be more potent at the voting booth.
Meanwhile, impeachment is likely to do Trump less and less political harm the longer it lasts. As—the shock was still fresh. But the Comey firing, the racist tirades, the —those were all once shocking too. Then they blurred into the avalanche of Trump awfulness. Trump is protected by the sheer number of his high crimes and misdemeanors. He will certainly commit more, and then these latest risk being buried.
