Now, I’m curious how all of this will play out in the end. Would Trump be impeached, and Mike Pence would just take over from there immediately? Will all of his appointees be allowed to remain in their positions?
I know very little about the American Impeachment system, as you can probably tell.
No one really knows, but ordinarily that would probably be the case. Pence taking over would at least be predicated on the idea that his hands are clean on this issue, which I doubt is the case. We’re all going to see just how deep the rabbit hole is on this.
I have a nagging feeling that Trump will escape any real charges so that the Republican party and the American political system as a whole can save face.
By nagging feeling, do you me a look at our history with Nixon?
I don’t really give a fuck what happens to Trump after all this, I just don’t want him in power. He’s destabilizing the whole world.
Even if Mueller’s investigation were to show that Pence was involved, and/or the entire election should be invalidated because of Russian meddling, there are no mechanisms that would “undo” the 2016 presidential election.
Regardless of what the investigation reveals, we’re stuck with this administration. Pence might be president, or if he goes down, Paul Ryan would be second in line.
I’m am 100% OK with a Ryan presidency.
I wasn’t specifically addressing you, I was just making a general comment. Not here, but I’ve seen people posting in other places with completely unrealistic expectations that the Mueller investigation is somehow going to roll back the entire Trump Administration, including nominees. That’s never going to happen.
The chances that Trump doesn’t finish his term are extremely low IMHO
Our best real hope is a loss of confidence in him and the GOP leading to Democratic gains in Congress and an inability to do too much further domestic damage…
I’ve heard somewhere that at least in 2018, that’s a pretty tough ask, just because of how many democrats are up for reelection and how comparably few republicans are.
The Senate will be hard to take back much less lose a seat or two, however the Republicans seem to be making all the right moves to make it so we either stay the same or D may even pick a seat up.
The House is very much in play except for Gerrymandering. The tide could be so big that it overwhelms the computer generated districts.
On the subject of gerrymandering, Gill v Whitford was argued on about a month ago. The full transcript is available at the link above. (I really really really hate this new transcription service SCOTUS uses. the margins are bigger than the text)
The case for relief is a pretty good one and kinda targeted at conservative Justice Kennedy. To make a long story short in an older case Vieth v. Jubelirer Justice Kennedy basically said (paraphrased) “I see we have a gerrymandering problem here, but I don’t see a workable standard the court can apply, and therefore we must do nothing”
This new case presents exactly that, a workable, material, and neutral standard the court can apply in the form of the efficiency gap. It’s gonna be quite some time before we find out what the court does. And it could do a great many things.
I wait with bated breath.
Republicans in the House have introduced a bill to remove Mueller from the Trump-Russia investigation. Nominally this is over the Uranium One Deal, pretty much the definition of political bullshit that is a complete non-issue.
Louie Gohmert is one of the three republicans behind so you know it is complete bullshit.
“Paradise Papers” leak shows more ties between Trump administration and Russia.
What’s the bet that Assange/Wikileaks condemns the paradise papers, as he/they did with the Panama Papers when they showed information embarrassing to Russia?