We were going to write today about how many Republican leaders are deliberately misrepresenting the impeachment process to the American public to make it seem like Democrats are being very unfair.
Then the Wi-Fi where we’re staying stopped working for a long stretch of time, and we have a slim data plan so we just let it be. And by the time we were able to get back on, we found the excommunicated Republican (now Independent) and long-time Trump foe had already Tweeted this:
Which explains what we wanted to explain. And better than we would’ve. So now we don’t need to.
Right. If you are charged with a crime, and are standing in a police lineup, you don’t get to confront your accuser right then and there. In fact, very often the person picking you out of that lineup is hidden for their own protection. What’s happening now is a little bit different, but also not really that different. The right to face your accuser part happens after you’re indicted, when there’s a trial. That’s the part the Senate’s responsible for. That is not what’s happening right now. The House only decides if there’s enough there there to refer the President to the Senate for possible removal. The trial happens there.
We would only add this: another big lie being sold by Republicans with Trump leading the pack is that Democrats are doing everything behind closed doors in secret. Like it’s highly unusual for Congress to hold closed-door hearings. It’s not. It’s pretty common, actually, especially when considering sensitive material, for Congress to hear closed-door testimony before it hears open-door testimony. That’s what is happening now: it’s part of a process. Open door hearings almost always become political theater. And that’s especially true now.
Yeah, it’s frustrating not to have the whole story laid out in front of you immediately, but it also saves you the pain of listening to Representatives bloviate for hours on end, often without asking many, or any actual questions. Behind closed doors they don’t get the opportunity to puff out their chests and act indignant, which is why they’re resorting to such Trump-approved stunts as storming the hearing room, which did nothing but delay getting to where they say they want to get.
And yeah, Democrats are controlling the process. That’s because they control the House. And that’s driving the President and many of his disciples crazy, just like they revel in driving Democrats crazy over oh, all sorts of things…
Although we hate shoe-is-on-the-other-foot-ism, and we try to refrain from it, we think in this case we can say with certainty what Trump’s Republicans backers would say if the shoe was on the other foot. Because they did say it when Trump first took office and had a majority in both the House and Senate: “we won, you lost…”