With much pomp and circumstance, House Judiciary Democrats took a step towards solidifying their dreams of impeaching President Donald Trump by formalizing the procedural rules behind their inquiry. But even as they did so, throwing some rather obvious red meat to their impeachment-hungry base of liberal voters, they seemed confused about what it was they’d actually done.
“The resolution before us represents the necessary next step in our investigation of corruption, obstruction, and abuse of power,” said Judiciary chairman Jerrold Nadler (D-NY).
Oh, so you’re moving to bring articles of impeachment against the corrupt, criminal, abusive president?
Erm…
“Some call this process an impeachment inquiry, some call it an impeachment investigation. There is no legal difference between these terms, and I no longer care to argue about the nomenclature,” Nadler said.
Oh…
But he later clarified: “This panel is engaged in an investigation as to whether to launch an impeachment investigation into President Trump.”
Oh, we get it now. You’re investigating whether or not to investigate.
Trump Derangement Syndrome in its final stages, right here.
In his own remarks, Rep. Doug Collins (D-GA) mocked the proceedings as a “giant Instagram filter to make you appear that something’s happening that’s not.”
“The difference,” Collins continued, “between formal impeachment proceedings and what we’re doing today is a world apart no matter what the chairman just said.”
It’s actually a little pathetic, what the Democrats are doing. They don’t have the support of the majority of their House caucus. They don’t have the support of the American people. They don’t even have the support of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. So, because they can’t really go full bore against Trump, they’re playing these little “inquiry-investigation-rules-procedure” game that signals to the base that, no really, we’re hitting this guy as hard as we can. In the meantime, Collins is exactly right. They aren’t doing anything.
“All along they thought people were coming along with them and that the public was happy with this and other members of their own party were happy with this but somewhere down the yellow brick road they looked around and said ‘there’s not all of us here, people aren’t following anymore,’” Collins continued at the hearing.
Precisely. Democrats spent the first three years of Trump’s presidency setting the stage for this moment. Now that it’s here, they’ve lost their nerve – not least because all of their “reasons” for impeaching Trump went up in smoke with Robert Mueller.
It’s sad. But…it’s also a little bit funny.
