Statement from the Majority Leader-designate Chuck Schumer:
NEW: Schumer calls for Trump’s impeachment and removal pic.twitter.com/xXVZG0LR5q
— Shane Goldmacher (@ShaneGoldmacher) January 7, 2021
Good for him! Is it just a brush-back, or are they serious? According to MSNBC’s Kyle Griffin on Twitter, House Dems are circulating articles of impeachment.
On the other side of the aisle, the rats are swimming as fast as they can to avoid getting sucked under when the SS Trumptanic disappears beneath the waves:
- This morning, Acting Homeland Security Director Chad Wolf called on Trump to denounce the pro-Trump mob that attacked the Capitol, and Trump promptly withdrew Wolf’s DHS nomination.
- According to Axios, Trump banned Pence’s chief of staff, Marc Short, from the White House because he thinks Short talked Pence into defying Trump.
- Bill Barr said Trump’s conduct during the insurrection was a “betrayal of his office and supporters.”
- Drunk driver/social secretary Stephanie Grisham resigned as Melania Trump’s chief of staff.
- Mick Mulvaney tapped out.
Josh Marshall has a resignation roundup, including several smaller fry, here. According to CNN, Trump’s whiny, weak-tea pledge to ensure a peaceful transfer of power (issued at 3:49 AM on his caddie’s Twitter account) was made to forestall a larger wave of resignations.
All this talk about 25th Amendment solutions and impeachment will have Trump feeling even more embattled and humiliated. 12 days is an eternity with a decompensating narcissist in the White House, and the Chad Wolf clap-back signals that Trump is on a rampage.
If Jarvanka wasn’t a useless blob of silicon and hair gel, they’d raid EPCOT’s international actor troupe and lure their dumb cockwaffle daddy/boss to Palm Beach for a fake 12-day global summit. Alas, we’ll have to muddle through the endgame on our own, dog help us.
Open thread.
Rosalita
Impeachment is a toothless waste of time. They need to remove him, especially because of the number of resignations, he will be unsupervised for two weeks…
germy
Thread:
SiubhanDuinne
“Cockwaffle” remains just about the best ever word in the history of words.
Mathguy
I first read it as “decomposing narcissist.” Might fit better.
germy
oldster
“If they don’t fight the bully, then I will.”
Oh really? When? Did you put any time-line on that? How long are you going to give them to protect you from doing your job?
I’m sorry — although this is better than nothing, it’s not a lot better than nothing. He knows Nancy’s number. They can reconvene any time they want. And they should.
Also: saying “if the VP doesn’t pull the trigger, then Congress *should* intervene” — that is just unacceptable weak-sauce. Say “Congress *will* intervene”, or gtfoh. Yeah, I “should” do something about this problem. I should floss more, too.
I know they had a hard day yesterday — seriously, I am in awe of Nancy’s stamina, given how wrecked I am, and given how much more she went through. But they need to set some dates. Announce that you’ll be in session on Monday, Jan. 11, and bringing articles on that day if Pence doesn’t do the right thing. Otherwise, it’s just big talk that makes you look small.
Four Seasons Total Landscaping mistermix
Impeachment is tough. On the one hand, I wish the House was still in session and we were having immediate hearings by oversight committees on the Capitol Police and social media, etc. That should happen even if their hearing rooms smell of diabetic old white male urine and stale McDonald’s farts.
On the other hand, if they were in session, we’d have articles out by the end of the day. Then, McConnell would take it up and they’d go to trial, and Cruz, Hawley et al would use the moment to defend the great leader and get more cred for 2024.
dmsilev
Much as I appreciate a well-crafted insult, I’ve decided I’m done. I can think of no worse description for him than “Donald Trump”.
dmsilev
@Four Seasons Total Landscaping mistermix: Can’t Pelosi call the House back pretty much whenever she wants?
germy
Elizabelle
@germy: I was cringing over NPR’s coverage late yesterday afternoon and the wholly inadequate Mary Louise Kelly.
And then caught a few moments of Marketplace where — on hearing that the National Assn of Manufacturers had suggested looking at the 25th Amendment and the host said something like “wow, that’s incredible.”
Not the insurrection. Talking about the 25th Amendment.
In fairness, I missed the rest of that show, so maybe my take is misleading …
bbleh
Aw none of it is serious. It’s zero-risk theater to cover their rapid exits and disappearance. They feel safe saying these things and circulating Actual Documents with Weighty Words (!) because all the elections are done with and Trump and the Cult have gone 0 and 3, and because there is still a market for High Dudgeon. But Congress is out of session until the inauguration, Pence is still a lickspittle whose only (slim) hope for a political future includes support from the Cult, and given that half the Cabinet is merely “acting,” at least one of them not even legally, one has to wonder whether invoking the 25th is even technically possible. (Adding @oldster: yeah, that.)
Practically, one hopes that, in the meantime, the uniformed military and the remaining non-Cult bureaucrats are quietly locking all the serious files and codes away and then “forgetting” they went home with the keys in their pockets, and the ongoing social-media bans will limit the ability of the Child-in-Chief to stir up too much more trouble.
Amir Khalid
I’m pretty sure Mitch doesn’t want his résumé to say that, as Republican Senate majority leader, he threw a Republican president out of office. It’s why he recessed the Senate to the 19th, and why he had his wife quit Trump’s Cabinet.
SteveinSC
Start impeachment proceedings immediately! The Constitution on pardons, Article Two (Section 2, Clause 1): “…except in Cases of impeachment.” They might not get much done but that would prevent pardoning his co-conspirators and his mob opening them to future prosecution.
cain
@Four Seasons Total Landscaping mistermix:
I think a lot of Dem politicians worry about “distraction” they want to focus on the policy and make things better and see some of this as show boating.
But it isn’t showboating – federal crimes have been committed – I saw at least one photo with one democratic congresswoman in complete panic. That whole thing could have been life threatening – they could have shot people and the national guard was no where to be seen at that time.
I don’t understand why some don’t see this as the near death miss it is…
(ok, the first para might have been a strawman, but it has been stated before that Dems prefer policy rather than this stuff)
Calouste
@germy: Holy crap, he was wearing his work badge around his neck. After the terminated him for his participation in the insurrection, they should terminate him again for sheer stupidity.
germy
formally censuredarrested.Four Seasons Total Landscaping mistermix
@dmsilev:
Yes, but they’re out until 1/19. As a practical matter, members have probably left DC and they wouldn’t be able to get them back until say, Monday. If they had a desire to act quickly, they wouldn’t have adjourned.
germy
@Calouste:
Dumb and proud.
cain
@Amir Khalid:
Also dangerous – he’s seen their rage and know that they can easily come to his home.
Leto
@SiubhanDuinne: it’s one I used quite a bit in my military career and it was always effective. Jackwagon and cockwaffle.
Parfigliano
I guarantee the media will all find their spines Jan 20. No more obedient stenography then.
Chyron HR
@Rosalita:
“Oh well if they’re actually going to hold an impeachment vote then I don’t want them to do it anymore.” Never change, folks.
Hildebrand
I honestly don’t care how they do it – I just want someone to get moving on a process.
Likewise, I want a censure resolution for Hawley and Cruz, at the very least. I’d love to see them kicked to the curb, but I’ll take censure, because those two need to be officially branded as toxic for the rest of their careers.
H.E.Wolf
@oldster:
CBS is preparing to cover Speaker Pelosi’s weekly press conference in a short while. I’ll interested to hear what she says.
[ETA: link]
[2nd ETA: nothing happening yet]
cbsnews.com/news/nancy-pelosi-press-conference-capitol-watch-live-stream-today-01-07-2021/
SteveinSC
@dmsilev: And there is a new Senate 50/50, not the old one to try the impeachment. High crimes and misdemeanors don’t even have to be against any law. The Congress says what it is and convicts as it wills.
Parfigliano
@germy: Fuck em.
Roger Moore
@Elizabelle:
Honestly, it is incredible that the National Association of Manufacturers is talking more sense on politics than most of the news media.
Four Seasons Total Landscaping mistermix
@cain:
This is a little harsh but on the right path, I think. I’d put it like this: the older generation (Pelosi, Hoyer, etc.) are focused on legislating. A couple of things about legislating. (1) It requires the skills of compromise and conciliation. People can’t be good at everything, and they’re not as good at confrontation as the newer members. (2) The first thing legislators do is count the votes and the votes are not there in the Senate, so it’s not nuts to give Pence a chance first.
Elizabelle
@H.E.Wolf: That’s good to hear.
Elizabelle
@Roger Moore: And the federal government.
geg6
@Amir Khalid:
There’s no evidence she quit. It was rumored she might, but she hasn’t.
germy
Kattails
Whatever it takes to neutralize Trump in the shortest possible amount of time. All my reps have been called multiple times. I really should call Chris Sununu as well; as a Republican governor he should have some influence somewhere. As Chris Hayes pointed out, the idea that Trump is just going to sit around like a good boy, and is not planning the next outrage, is not worth entertaining. Might want to check on Mary Trump and Bandy Lee’s twitter accounts to see what they’re thinking. Lee is a forensic psychiatrist who’s been advocating for Trump’s removal for some time now. OK, Lee is saying that inaction send the message of PERMISSION TO ESCALATE.
John Brennan asks if those in power are “waiting for a disaster of unimaginable proportions to take place before they come to their senses”.
oldster
Here’s a member of the House leadership, saying he “should” be impeached:
twitter.com/RepJeffries/status/1347245549188239360
I agree! So do it!
I hope this drumbeat of “should”s is leading up to actual action. I’ll listen to Nancy and hope for the best.
Starfish
@Rosalita: Impeachment means he can’t run again so he can’t suck the oxygen out of the next election.
Bruce K in ATH-GR
@Four Seasons Total Landscaping mistermix: Plus the adjournment was probably already baked into just about everybody’s schedules, especially with travel being the cast-iron pain in the neck it’s been for the past year. The interval between certification and inauguration is normally slow time, after all.
Barbara
@Amir Khalid: Did she actually quit or just threaten to quit. I heard it was the latter.
Aha, just saw the announcement. So she is leaving. No real additional thoughts, other than, I think you are right.
geg6
@geg6:
And dang if she didn’t just do it.
Betty Cracker
Two phone alerts just now:
Elaine Chao (Mrs. McTurtle) will resign. (Good!)
Biden will nominate RI Gov Raimondo as commerce secretary. (Bad! Or at least that’s my first impression. I don’t know much about her except that she endorsed Mike Fucking BLOOMBERG during the primary.)
Punchy
Bravo.
Roger Moore
@SteveinSC:
Not quite. We won’t get the 50/50 Senate until the election results from Georgia are certified.
Amir Khalid
@geg6:
I stand corrected. But it seems to me that Mitch would rather his wife stayed out of invoking the 25th Amendment on Trump, should things take that turn.
Leto
Apparently Schumer plans to fire the current Senate Sgt at Arms when he becomes leader.
Elizabelle
@Amir Khalid: That’s my guess too.
Fuck Mitch McConnell and his dark, dark soul.
Leto
@geg6: @Amir Khalid: empty words from an empty person. Stood by for 4 years and it doesn’t fucking matter. It’s all empty words just like the bullshit up top. Michael Beschloss summed it up best:
Roger Moore
@Leto:
As well he should. There needs to be a thorough housecleaning in Capitol security, and it needs to start at the top.
Kent
As in the fish rots from the head ? Yep, very apropos.
germy
McConnell and Chao. I just can’t picture it, if you know what I mean. Not even cuddling.
Punchy
@Calouste: He’s the kind of fired employee that the rest of the company has to issue the “if you see this guy again on campus, run and seek shelter” email warning.
Baud
Boston Mayer Marty Walsh is Labor Secretary. Any info on him?
ETA: White guy, but supposedly tight with unions.
catclub
@Punchy: Matt Pottinger is one of those who resigned. He was on NSC staff, and apparently he was very important in early cv19 task forces, getting needed attention to the pandemic early. He was getting great press today on Fresh Air
Kent
Netflix House of Cards is probably the better model. No cuddling involved.
Kattails
Michael Beschloss saying that in the final 14 days, Trump could declare martial law, start an unnecessary war, or use nuclear weapons. THEY CAN FIGURE THIS OUT. THERE ARE PATHS. Arrest, or mental health hold.
Bruuuuce
MSNBC reporting Chao has resigned
Old School
@germy:
Why would you even want to?
Baud
@Leto:
Michael Beschloss would fit in well here.
germy
@Kent:
Never saw an episode. Is it something horrible?
catclub
Also expecting a Franken unit of obstruction, lawsuits and delay. I hope I am wrong.
germy
@Old School:
My mind often wanders to places it shouldn’t.
The Moar You Know
@SteveinSC: where are we going to get the extra 17 votes needed for conviction? 50 isn’t enough. It’s not a simple majority vote.
Leto
@Baud: I really like him, and his Twitter feed is actually full of useful info (which is like a complete 180 from most of the Twitterverse).
Jim, Foolish Literalist
ETA: Not like there was a good chance of it with her, but…..
Elizabelle
Andrea Greenspan tongue bathing Elaine Chao.
moonbat
@dmsilev: Weren’t you the one telling me the other day Nancy should just ignore the felony committing, treasonous man sitting in the White House and focus on our bright legislative future? That impeachment is a waste of time?
And I said something like you leave this guy in office and he’s going to try to overthrow the next government and stay in the White House?
I thought that was you.
Rosalita
@Starfish: Ah — wasn’t aware of that fact. Thank you. If only we could impeach all his spawn too…
Calouste
@The Moar You Know: I think with Schumer and Jeffries calling for impeachment, they must think there is some momentum, and 67 Senate votes are not completely out of reach.
Elizabelle
Elaine Chao is doing this for the demoralized people at DOT. — Mrs. Greenspan
Brachiator
Trump is still a clear and present danger to the country. Even if he is quiet for the next two weeks, he will inevitably kick up a fuss again as a former president. It is not just that he will continue his grift, or even mount an actual challenge for 2024, it is that he will keep harping on the lie that the 2020 election was fraudulent and he will continue to encourage sedition.
Trump never abandons a nutty idea once it has taken hold in his infantile psyche. He always lets it fester and keeps returning to it. He has fallen back on the low cunning of his survival skills to maintain his grip on the presidency, but it is dangerous to give him any opportunity to escape.
Think Napoleon after his first defeat.
Trump and his vile family need to be neutered in some way that would make it impossible for any of them to engage in any future political activity.
Or you just roll the dice and note that you will have to deal with Trump again in the future.
MisterForkbeard
@catclub: Can’t be justified and won’t happen. Franken got delayed because the results were super close.
These aren’t. They’re WAY outside the recount range and not even any real accusations of fraud. The media and everyone else is already reporting this as “Dems take the Senate”, and it’s baked in. They’ll get in around the 20th at worst.
Leto
@Elizabelle: Was hearing this and just kind of went into a mini-rage, swapped over to CNN where some 70 y/o white dude was talking about how if congressional leaders would use their “moral authority’ to pressure Trumpov out and I just started yelling. Lots of yelling. Avalune asked me what’s up, and it was more yelling. JFC they’re all worthless. They’re all republican rehabilitation shows. Jesus fuck.
germy
@Elizabelle:
Every time Mrs. Greenspan appears on TV to share her views, a chyron should appear under her, explaining her husband was buddies with Ayn Rand and was one of the people most responsible for the collapse of the U.S. economy.
Jay C
@catclub:
Maybe: but I think you will be proved wrong in this case: I believe Georgia election law (which we are all WAY-too-familiar with by now), provides for one requested recount by any of the candidates in an election: as we saw in November, that process only takes up a few days: and once the SoS certifies the (original/audited/recounted) results, the election is a done deal. And then Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock can head off to DC to get sworn in. There is, of course, the possibility of legal suits: but as we’ve seen, those seem not have gotten very far.
Elizabelle
@Leto: @germy:
Andrea Mitchell Greenspan makes me hurl.
Happily: Joe Biden up now. Says he will not speak on 25th Amendment today.
japa21
@catclub: Once Georgia certifies they have to be seated. Franken didn’t get certified due to all the recounts, lawsuits, etc. Georgia has already shown they will certify even if lawsuits are ongoing.
MisterForkbeard
@Elizabelle: Ugh. No, Elaine Chao went along with everything Trump did and didn’t push back at all.
She’s getting out now to give herself cover and to avoid having to take a 25th amendment stance. That’s all it is.
Elizabelle
@MisterForkbeard:
Precisely. But Andrea shitwad will never accurately report that. Not at this juncture, anyway.
SiubhanDuinne
@Betty Cracker:
I seem to recall that efgoldman had a pretty low opinion of her.
hueyplong
It’s nonsense to say that E Chao’s resignation reduces the chances of the 25th being invoked.
It doesn’t change things at all, because if she’d been willing to be in on an invocation, she would have stayed.
The truth is that it’s 13 days to go, white-knuckling all the way.
clay
If a bunch of cabinet members resign, how does that affect the 25th Amendment process?
prostratedragon
@Jim, Foolish Literalist: A little while ago before this dropped, Jeh Johnson was on tv speaking dismissively of people who want to resign now, after having stayed around through all his bullshit for four years, and just when the need for active restraint is greatest. He didn’t specifically mention the 25th, but I’d bet that was on his mind.
MisterForkbeard
@Elizabelle: It’s the same with Romney. I mean, good on him for his speech, his impeachment vote and one or two other things. But he’s complicit as well, and he’s been allowing this shit to happen silently while he merrily goes on confirming ridiculous judges who believe every single thing the dead QAnon terrorist woman believes, crushing COVID aid, halting voting or election security, etc.
They’re all bad. Romney is slightly less bad.
SteveinSC
@The Moar You Know: Well, the Constitution doesn’t say “impeached” only “impeachment.” Let these assholes struggle to in the courts to decide past tense verb or noun.
Betty Cracker
@Jim, Foolish Literalist: There’s no chance of the 25th, IMO, but resignations humiliate Trump, so I’m all for them.
Uncle Cosmo
Only if he’s convicted, and then only if he is disqualified by (majority) vote of the Senate after that. Mi dispiace.
Searcher
I mean, of course you launch the nukes.
You always take the extra soap and shampoo home from the hotel, right? And even the hair net and shoe polish kit you are absolutely never going to use?
Same deal.
Searcher
@Betty Cracker: Not a Senator, so ¯\_(ツ)_/¯.
It is hilarious to me that Secretary of Commerce is a step up from RI Governor.
SteveinSC
@Uncle Cosmo: Well we would let the republican Senators stand up and be heard. See if they will remove a deranged, seditious president to save the country from whatever is left in trumps bag of tricks. To do nothing is to give opportunity for Gotterdammerung.
Kent
House of Cards is the story of a ruthless DC political couple who spend most of the series circling each other like two velociraptors while both seeking the presidency. Not one tiny bit of cuddling involved.
I think that is a better picture of the McConnell-Chao marriage than some Hallmark Channel Christmas cuddle-fest.
Kent
The Commerce Department is a vast agency with 50,000 employees and offices across the entire United States.
It includes NOAA, National Weather Service and the National Hurricane Center and Satellite Service. It includes the Census, Small Business Administration, Patent Office, NIST, and a whole bunch of other smaller technical agencies. It is probably 4-5 times larger than the entire state government of Rhode Island.
And serving as Cabinet Secretary puts you at the very center of power in this country where the nation’s top decisions are made, and in the direct line of presidential succession.
Yes, it is a big step up from governor of Rhode Island
That said, as a former Commerce employee (with NOAA) I find her to be an uninspired and troubling pick. But I don’t really know that much about her. My vague notion is that she is some sort of hedge fund finance type. But I could be wrong.
Gravenstone
@germy: I’m sure they’re both quite capable of cuddling – huge piles of cash.
Jerzy Russian
@SiubhanDuinne:
Along those lines, I will be forever grateful to Jared Kushner for making me aware of the word “gormless”.
debbie
Penn
As was pointed out by someone else somewhere (I no longer remember where) there can’t be a peaceful transfer of power. Yesterday was part of the transfer of power and it wasn’t peaceful. That ship has sailed, this transfer is irrevokably not peaceful.
No One You Know
@Parfigliano: There won’t be Republicans whose feelings were hurt? And will need to be placated by worshipful interviews by NPR and others who think both Both Siderism is a modern Fairness Doctrine?
I’m betting on that. Division sells ads. I think mainstream media is only slightly less of a problem than FaceBook and Twitter when it comes to selling an anti democracy point of view, whether watered down or full-strength (cf. Breitbart, Newsmax, or or your favorite pundit at ABC/CBS/NPR, to say nothing of some of MSNBC’s hires). Who doesn’t want a slave audience who will believe, and buy, anything they’re told as long as it makes them the only Real Americans?
Not that I’m bitter, or anything.