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DonViejo

(60,536 posts)
Tue May 22, 2018, 09:41 AM May 2018

Harvard Law Prof Laurence Tribe Warns Dems Pushing Trump Impeachment: 'You Have to Shoot to Kill'

by Aidan McLaughlin | 9:00 am, May 22nd, 2018

Harvard Law professor Laurence Tribe appeared on CNN’s New Day to discuss his new book, To End a Presidency: The Power of Impeachment, and the #Resistance Twitter influencer warned Democrats against throwing down the impeachment card too hastily.

CNN’s Chris Cuomo noted that Tribe’s book “comes with a note of political caution,” that “Democrats shouldn’t be rushing down the road of impeachment.”

Tribe explained that the impeachment is not about “garden variety crime,” but “abusing the authority that we give to high officials like the president.” The professor went on to give examples of offenses that Trump could commit that would not constitute crimes, but would be impeachable, including failing to protect the country in favor of enriching himself personally.

“But it will be available only if we don’t use it loosely, and ring the bell every time something looks amiss,” Tribe said. “You can’t be the boy who cried wolf and have a viable impeachment power. You can’t use it over and over again against the same president.”

“If you’re going to shoot him, you have to shoot to kill,” Tribe said. “And that requires an overwhelming majority of a bipartisan kind. Otherwise you’re just going to nick the guy, and make him feel empowered and vindicated.”

###

https://www.mediaite.com/tv/harvard-law-professor-laurence-tribe-warns-dems-pushing-trump-impeachment-you-have-to-shoot-to-kill/

Watch video at link above, via CNN.

17 replies = new reply since forum marked as read
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Harvard Law Prof Laurence Tribe Warns Dems Pushing Trump Impeachment: 'You Have to Shoot to Kill' (Original Post) DonViejo May 2018 OP
History manor321 May 2018 #1
Two facts: H2O Man May 2018 #11
Unfortunate imagery, but correct. Orsino May 2018 #2
There are only two Democratic leftynyc May 2018 #3
H.Res.621-Impeaching Donald J. Trump,President of the United States, of high crimes and misdemeanors Exotica May 2018 #7
Yawwwwwnnnnnn leftynyc May 2018 #8
Glad to see actual votes make you yawn. The reply I responded Exotica May 2018 #9
As a campaign issue leftynyc May 2018 #15
Oh, in that case we actually agree, lolol Exotica May 2018 #17
Important safety tip. Thanks, Prof T. Mc Mike May 2018 #4
Sure. Our party would never impeach for spite. Even Hortensis May 2018 #5
When the R's had the majority in the House... yallerdawg May 2018 #6
+1. His crimes must not go unpunished. dalton99a May 2018 #10
We DO have a unifying message for 2018! yallerdawg May 2018 #13
Yes. dalton99a May 2018 #14
Prof. Tribe is correct on this Gothmog May 2018 #12
Yes, there is a process gratuitous May 2018 #16
 

manor321

(3,344 posts)
1. History
Tue May 22, 2018, 09:42 AM
May 2018

He needs to study history. Republicans missed with Clinton, and then won the Presidency in 2000.

H2O Man

(73,561 posts)
11. Two facts:
Tue May 22, 2018, 11:38 AM
May 2018

(1) Anyone vaguely familiar with Tribe knows, without any question, that he is fully aware of the Clinton impeachment and the 2000 election;

(2) The 2000 election was decided by the US Supreme Court, not the voting public.

Orsino

(37,428 posts)
2. Unfortunate imagery, but correct.
Tue May 22, 2018, 09:43 AM
May 2018

Those of us insisting that Dems all call for impeachment now are jumping the gun, no matter how badly Trumpish policy is fucking up the world. There are only a few Constitutional remedies left, and if they are going to work, they have to be done right.

 

leftynyc

(26,060 posts)
3. There are only two Democratic
Tue May 22, 2018, 09:44 AM
May 2018

congresspeople who have mentioned impeachment - why is CNN pretending it's an all out fight for it in the party? Every single race in the midterms is a local race, donnie is not on the ballot and it would be a mistake to pretend he is. Tie the cons to him if they do it themselves but keep it on the issues that matter to those particular constituents.

 

Exotica

(1,461 posts)
7. H.Res.621-Impeaching Donald J. Trump,President of the United States, of high crimes and misdemeanors
Tue May 22, 2018, 10:09 AM
May 2018
https://www.congress.gov/bill/115th-congress/house-resolution/621/cosponsors


Sponsor: Rep. Cohen, Steve [D-TN-9] (Introduced 11/15/2017)

Cosponsor Date Cosponsored
Rep. Gutierrez, Luis V. [D-IL-4]* 11/15/2017
Rep. Yarmuth, John A. [D-KY-3]* 11/15/2017
Rep. Green, Al [D-TX-9]* 11/15/2017
Rep. Fudge, Marcia L. [D-OH-11]* 11/15/2017
Rep. Espaillat, Adriano [D-NY-13]* 11/15/2017
Rep. Grijalva, Raul M. [D-AZ-3] 12/04/2017
Rep. Shea-Porter, Carol [D-NH-1] 12/06/2017
Rep. Jayapal, Pramila [D-WA-7] 12/19/2017
Rep. McCollum, Betty [D-MN-4] 01/29/2018
Rep. Lee, Barbara [D-CA-13] 02/02/2018
Rep. Moore, Gwen [D-WI-4] 02/08/2018
Rep. Lewis, John [D-GA-5] 02/08/2018
Rep. Huffman, Jared [D-CA-2] 02/15/2018
Rep. DeSaulnier, Mark [D-CA-11] 02/27/2018
Rep. Capuano, Michael E. [D-MA-7] 02/27/2018
Rep. Watson Coleman, Bonnie [D-NJ-12] 03/15/2018



and


a second privileged resolution on articles of impeachment, H.Res. 646, sponsored by Representative Al Green, Democrat of Texas

https://www.congress.gov/bill/115th-congress/house-resolution/646



58 Democrats voted to NOT table it

http://clerk.house.gov/evs/2017/roll658.xml

---- NAYS 58 ---

Adams
Barragán
Bass
Beatty
Brady (PA)
Capuano
Clark (MA)
Clarke (NY)
Clay
Clyburn
Cohen
Davis, Danny
DeSaulnier
Doggett
Ellison
Engel
Espaillat
Evans
Frankel (FL)
Fudge
Gomez
Green, Al
Grijalva
Hastings
Higgins (NY)
Huffman
Jackson Lee
Jayapal
Kelly (IL)
Lawrence
Lee
Lewis (GA)
Lieu, Ted
McCollum
McGovern
McNerney
Moore
Moulton
Napolitano
Norcross
Pallone
Pascrell
Pingree
Polis
Raskin
Richmond
Rush
Schakowsky
Sherman
Slaughter
Thompson (MS)
Titus
Vargas
Vela
Walz
Waters, Maxine
Watson Coleman
Wilson (FL)


 

leftynyc

(26,060 posts)
8. Yawwwwwnnnnnn
Tue May 22, 2018, 11:02 AM
May 2018

Procedural nonsense that nobody cares about. How many are RUNNING on impeachment and not local issues?

 

Exotica

(1,461 posts)
9. Glad to see actual votes make you yawn. The reply I responded
Tue May 22, 2018, 11:04 AM
May 2018

to said only 2 had even mentioned it.

 

leftynyc

(26,060 posts)
15. As a campaign issue
Tue May 22, 2018, 11:56 AM
May 2018

only 2 are talking about it. And that's how it should be. NOBODY should be talking about it until the investigation is complete. I would have to hold my nose to vote for anyone stupid enough to run on it.

Hortensis

(58,785 posts)
5. Sure. Our party would never impeach for spite. Even
Tue May 22, 2018, 09:49 AM
May 2018

in Tribe's own days of supporting impeachment it was always understood it's done for proper cause and with sufficient support from the people. Not one party or the other, the people.

I just wonder that a man of his stature and background was so late to realizing how dangerous to our democracy one-sided calls for impeachment could be, but I'm guessing Fox New's calls for Republicans to march on Washington DC helped.

Good. With our angry, divided and confused electorate, an unsupported impeachment effort could cost the Democratic Party the house and senate in November and in 2020 the presidency, the house, the senate and the supreme court, as well as many (hugely important) state governments.

yallerdawg

(16,104 posts)
6. When the R's had the majority in the House...
Tue May 22, 2018, 09:55 AM
May 2018

they impeached Clinton for lying.

It would be unconscionable for this jackass to commit all these 'high crimes and misdemeanors' and get away with it branding it all as a Democratic plot in response to losing an election.

The very least we can do is impeach his ass! Then let's see how he holds up in a Senate trial.

dalton99a

(81,526 posts)
10. +1. His crimes must not go unpunished.
Tue May 22, 2018, 11:31 AM
May 2018

If his perfidy and corruption doesn't qualify for impeachment, what does?

gratuitous

(82,849 posts)
16. Yes, there is a process
Tue May 22, 2018, 12:00 PM
May 2018

And while it's too early to hold a vote on articles of impeachment,* it's definitely not too early to be preparing the ground and planting the seeds for it. Right up until the day he announced he was going to resign, Nixon continued to enjoy a certain level of popularity among his most fervent supporters. To this day, there are people walking around absolutely convinced that Nixon was unfairly hounded from office.

All that is to say that you do get just one shot at it, and impeachment is as much about political and public sentiment as it is about legal considerations of right and wrong. Even with his abysmal poll numbers, Trump is too popular and Congress is currently too supine for the process to result in impeachment and removal from office. We have a lot of work to do in the direction of rallying public opinion. Right now is the time to importune our fellow citizens: How does Trump's abuse of power and obstruction of justice look in any way legal to you? Is his incredible corruption and self-dealing really how a President should be conducting the nation's affairs? Once we have large segments of the populace on board, we can proceed to pressuring Congress. But it's going to take months, at least, because Republicans have the numbers right now, and their own party broadcasting network pimping their line 24-7.

*What? Nobody's drawn those up yet? What's the hubbub about, then?

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