Hopefully it’s obvious from the title that this blog is a response to Impeachment: We Might Not Need 67 Senators to Convict Trump. And I think it’s only honest and fair to say that the previous blog is 100% right. Everything in it — assuming we understand the parliamentary interpretation of ‘members present’— is correct. So, this blog isn’t intended to pan the work of that writer or to argue the details of it are wrong; but rather to present the opinion that even if we COULD impeach and convict on a number less than 67, we SHOULDN’T strive or hope for this result.
Here’s why …
The current Republican talking point on impeachment is that impeachment is an effort by Democrats to ‘overthrow the democratic process and reverse the results of the 2016 election.’ This talking point resonates with Republican voters (and it makes sense why it should, he’s the representation of the GOP at this very moment); and on the far right, the defense of the President from an impeachment has even driven some to threaten civil war.
But at the end of the day, the argument that Dems are seeking to overturn 2016 is merely an effective talking point. It’s not, however, the truth: if Trump is impeached and convicted by 67 Senators, it won’t be Democrats that have overturned the 2016 election. It will instead be the Republicans.
At 67, Democrats CANNOT overturn the 2016 election. Only Republicans can do that.
No one knows how a true conviction in the Senate will play in the hearts of Americans who voted for Trump. There’s only historical parallels, but no true precedent. But, we shouldn’t hope to achieve it on a mathematical technicality brought on by the presence of GOP senators in the chamber. Indeed, doing so might only ENHANCE the calls that the process was illegitimate.
Instead, we should continue to pressure the GOP senators who have the most to lose. Their votes are an antiseptic in the conviction of the President that lend legitimacy to the process, thereby bringing the possibility of ending this constitutional crisis.