There is a debate going around Washington these days. Should we try and impeach President Trump because of his clearly illegal, heinous actions in the past, or should we wait until the next election because an impeachment effort might bring sympathy to the embattled President, resulting in another four years of plundering of the United States?
This has been a struggle for the Democrats.
The way business has been done in Washington has continued to become more and more political because of the nature of our democracy and its growth into adolescence. The numerical growth of the population and the interplay of new forces (i.e. media) have changed the equation.
The solution so craved by most Americans is a reinforcement of one of its core values: actions have consequences and our legal system will be as fair as possible to punish those who are bad actors. I have faith that this is true. And, the Donald Trump free ride will end one day.
What we don’t want is a political solution like the end of the Nixon presidency. Nixon should have gone to jail.
The balance between what must be done politically and what must be done from the perspective of historical American values, is what this is all about.
It is ironic that the law-and-order party, the Republicans, have shown that they are only interested in law-and-order if the other party must pay for their crimes. They are only interested in American values when it benefits themselves as political actors.
The progressive party, the Democrats, have shown a willingness to act politically by not pursuing impeachment.
Doesn’t anyone stand by their core American values?
Doesn’t anyone believe that people should be held accountable because it benefits the nation by sustaining one of its core values, regardless of the impact on their political party?