No Confidence!

In parliamentary systems the Prime Minister can be removed from office by a vote of no confidence that does not require hearings or trials. Removing a President of the United States from office is not that easy, but make no mistake about it the Republicans in Congress have cast their votes of no confidence in President Donald Trump. In passing the bill regarding sanctions against Russia this Republican Congress has made it clear that even members of the President's own party have no faith in him when it comes to dealing with Russia or Russians. The financial ties Trump and the people closest to him have with Russian oligarchs combined with Trump's fawning admiration of Vladimir Putin are troubling to say the least. The few members of congress who did not vote to protect America from Trump's obsequious behavior are guilty of a dereliction of duty, and I stand by that statement knowing full well how unusual it is for a political party to limit the power of their President, particularly in the area of foreign affairs.

Now lets address the subject of the investigations conducted by the Special Counsel and by Congress. Those investigations are going beyond looking into Russia's interference in our election and who may have aided and abetted the Russians. Special Counsel Mueller is looking closely at the financial entanglements mentioned above because those financial connections are conflicts of interest that will probably explain why Trump seems so eager to do Putin's bidding. The question now is how far will the Republicans go to protect this country from an incompetent President who is determined to squelch the investigations and hide the truth. Many Republican Senators are telling Trump not to fire Attorney General Sessions, and at least some of them are also telling him not to fire Special Counsel Mueller. But are there enough Senators who are willing to toss Trump out of office if he does fire Mueller? And what about the House? How many Republican members of Congress are willing to impeach Trump for obstruction of justice if Trump does fire Mueller?

The vote of no confidence mentioned above is encouraging, but an anxious nation wants to know what it will take to get the Republican Party to do the right thing! Donald Trump is presiding over (some would say under) the most dysfunctional White House ever. The recent staff shake ups are not going to solve that because the problem starts with President Trump! In the very short time he has been in office he has already demonstrated an unwillingness to accept the responsibility for anything that happens on his watch. He praised the Republican Representatives for passing a health care bill that would have thrown tens of millions of people off of their health care plans, and then he called that bill “mean” when it became apparent that those millions and others vehemently demonstrated their displeasure. This is a President who has no loyalty to anyone or any institution. He has already thrown Jeff Sessions, Reince Prieibus, and every member of congress who voted for that horrible bill under the bus! In light of Trump's behavior it is difficult to imagine anyone placing Trump's self interest ahead of the interests of this nation. And the interests of this nation are served by the investigation being conducted by the Special Counsel.

Republican Senator Lindsey Graham said “...he intends to introduce his bill next week with the support of 'all' the Democrats and some Republicans. It would require 'judicial review' if a special counsel is fired while investigating the president or his staff. 'Judges will have to look and see if the reasons stated meet the statutory definitions,' he said.”

The passage of Mr. Graham's bill would avoid the question of impeachment for now. The results of the investigation would then determine whether that question is revisited and whether impeachment is warranted! The problem is that Mr. Graham's noble bill will require a veto proof majority! I am hopeful but not optimistic about Congress passing the bill with the majority needed to override Mr. Trump's veto.

So get active my friends! We have dodged the repeal of Obama care bullet for now because of the protests. We must keep demonstrating and fighting. We must insist in the strongest possible way that our Representatives and Senators pass Mr. Grahams bill with a large enough majority to defend us from the dangerous behavior of this incompetent, imperial President!