ANTI-IMPEACHMENT

By Madison Popovic, Senior

Time must be spent wisely. Trump is focusing on the upcoming election and the Democrats should be doing the same. Instead, they are attempting to remove Trump from office and, in turn, wasting time. The impeachment inquiry targets a phone call between President Volodymyr Zelensky, president of Ukraine, and Trump. This has caused a schism within the U.S. as many believe that it is ridiculous to continue with impeachment proceedings, while some claim that it is reasonable to proceed. However, the impeachment process is time-consuming and not likely to accomplish anything noteworthy.

The phone call that has caused a national uproar occurred on July 25. A report made by an anonymous whistleblower claimed that Trump asked President Zelensky to investigate Joe Biden and Hunter Biden; this is the main impeachable offense. However, this impeachment process has been a fishing expedition, and the president’s opponents claim to have found other offenses. President Trump sought to change foreign policy with Ukraine. Although this is within the president’s power, some Democrats claim otherwise. In an article for the New York Post, John Podhoretz said,  “First, the foreign policy Trump chooses to advance shouldn’t be involved in any discussion of impeachment. He is the president. Executive-branch policy is his and his alone to decide.”

The president has the right to change foreign policy and it does not matter the way in which they modify it. In the same article, Podhoretz said, “Ditto for the way in which that policy is made and carried out. The idea that there is something impeachable in using back-channel figures to implement foreign-policy changes is ridiculous.”

This issue has divided the nation as the impeachment process continues to escalate. Dan Balz and Emily Guskin said, in an article published by The Washington Post, “37 percent of  Americans said Congress should open an impeachment inquiry that could lead to Trump’s removal, with 59 percent opposed.” Alongside this, 82 percent of Democrats are proponents of impeachment.

The current efforts to impeach Donald Trump are futile as the energy of the Democrats is being wasted. In an article for NBC News, Ashley Pratt said, “The Democrats need to focus their political efforts on defeating Trump and preventing a second term.”

The evidence to impeach Trump may be enough to allow this inquiry to escalate to the Senate. However, the Senate is dominated by Republicans. In an article for FiveThirtyEight (a website owned by ABC News), Amelia Thomson-Deveaux mentioned that, “…provided the House did vote to impeach, Trump’s trial in the Senate would likely not begin until January 2020.”

Politics is messy and full of biased individuals who, at times, will not rest until their opponent experiences their downfall. In typical political fashion, the Democrats have launched their personal vendetta against Trump without thinking of the long term consequences.

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PRO-IMPEACHMENT

by Camilla O’Keefe, Senior

To impeach or not to impeach. Democrats in the House have been pushing for impeachment, while many Republicans have called the inquiry nonsense and a mere waste of time. Surprisingly, there are many liberals who are also against impeachment, even though they strongly dislike the president. However, if the president did, in fact, abuse his power, for that he should be impeached.

Earlier this September, an unknown whistleblower filed a complaint about a phone call regarding Trump and the Ukraine. President Zelensky asked for military aid, and Trump agreed and abused his power. He asked the foreign power about the country’s rumored possession of a Democratic server and to investigate one of his main political rivals: Joe Biden and Biden’s son.

Despite his candidness about his involvement with the Ukraine, Trump denies that he abused his power and that it was a mere, “quid-pro-quo,” deal. But is it really a mere, “quid pro quo,” deal? After all, dozens of witnesses, such as U.S. special envoy Kurt Volker, described in the ongoing impeachment inquiry that it seemed as if he would withhold much-needed military aid funds to Ukraine unless an investigation was launched. Out of fear that they would not receive the aid needed to protect their country from Russia’s brutal attacks, the country gave in and launched the investigation he requested (which was not even based on factual knowledge). After the news came out that he did such a thing, Trump became angry at the media for exposing the dry truth. He even had the audacity to say, “All…must remember what they are witnessing here-a lynching.” Our president, our commander-in-chief compared his consequences for his abuse of power to a hate crime.

However, as much as I and many others would rejoice seeing him impeached, Democrats need to also be prepared for the worst possible outcome, which is also quite likely: Trump will not be impeached. According to FiveThirtyEight, only 46.3 percent of Americans support impeachment and 45.6 percent do not. If he is not impeached, he would surely use his victory in the upcoming election, and that will only make him more favorable to voters.

Trump should be impeached, plain and simple. Corruption has no place in the seat of the Commander in Chief. Corruption has no deserved space in the White House.