On December 18, 2019, the House impeached Donald J. Trump 230-197 for abuse of power and 229-198 for obstruction of Congress. Those were the two highest vote tallies ever in support of Presidential impeachment articles. All impeachment cases in congressional history have come down to what Congress considered to be “High Crimes and Misdemeanors.”
Ironically, the phrase “High Crimes and Misdemeanors” is not defined in the Constitution, leaving it up to Congress to decide what qualifies in any particular case. Historians and legal scholars say it’s generally understood to mean a serious abuse of the public trust. On February 5, the Senate acquitted Trump on both charges. The votes were 52-48 on abuse of power, and 53-47 on obstruction of Congress. No Republicans voted in favor of either article, two Democrats voted against the abuse of power article, and three voted against the obstruction article; Tulsi Gabbard was also running for president and simply voted “present” on both indictments.
Now that Donald Trump is about to resume office as President, Republicans are ensconced by the “Law of the West” where never is heard a discouraging word and the skies are not cloudy all day. Nonetheless, our 47th President will not be successful in making America great again if he must contend with what will undoubtedly be a pugnacious Democrat Party while at the same time fighting resistance within his own party from RINOs who seem incapable of negotiating a commonsense Republican position on important issues. This inability to negotiate workable solutions within the Republican Party has repeatedly given the Democrats the upper hand. Democrats have been much more unified in getting behind their left-leaning policies.
It seems to be in the DNA of some Republicans to “stand alone” from the party, allowing Democrats to pass bills and laws that are extremely damaging to the best interests of the nation. These recalcitrant, obstinate Republicans have been described as “range chickens” by some in their own party because of their inability to come together with their mainstream Republican colleagues. Because of division and pettiness, Republicans have made a habit of losing in both houses of the U.S. Congress. It is certainly time for all Republicans to come together to pass what some might consider imperfect conservative legislation. It is critically important for Republicans to be savvy enough to make winning a habit.
RINOs vs. Trump
who was booted out of GOP leadership after her vote to impeach Trump for inciting what some refer to as the “January 6 insurrection.” Cheney announced, “If you want leaders who will enable and spread his destructive lies, I’m not your person, you have plenty of others to choose from.” She became synonymous with the RINO legacy she clearly earned. And then she was gone, after losing renomination to Harriet Hageman in 2022, a true conservative in both action and words.
In October 2023, a member of the Christian right faction, Louisiana representative Mike Johnson, was elected the 56th Speaker of the House of Representatives, saying, “I have just called President Trump to say this — ‘Stay strong and keep fighting, sir! The nation is depending upon your resolve. We must exhaust every available legal remedy to restore Americans’ trust in the fairness of our election system’.” On December 18, 2024, Trump pressured the House to increase the congressional spending bill and many of the usual suspects, both Left and RINO-right, rallied to condemn his action, despite having remained silent, if not supportive, of such action throughout the Biden Administration.
Trump himself seems comfortable with a full-court political press against RINOs who won’t consent to his way of governing. In a Politico article about Trump’s antipathy toward RINOs, Ally Mutnick, seeing a “hit job” opportunity on Republicans, argues that, “In his first term, Trump was new to politics, and I think he was a lot more deferential to people in the Senate, and I don’t think that’s going to be the case this time around… But Trump’s allies aren’t letting up on Republicans they view as disobedient…”
Just before the 2024 Presidential election, a group of 220 former Bush, McCain, and Romney staffers (RINOs) signed an endorsement for Kamala Harris, urging Republicans to change their voting to favor Harris instead of Trump. Unquestionably, the future of President Trump’s MAGA agenda, and the hopes and aspirations of a majority of American voters, depends on a unified Republican Party.
A Conservative Democrat Lean
With the 2024 election now secure and Republicans holding small majorities in both houses of Congress, it is time to separate the conservative wheat from the RINO chaff either with the idea of bringing them around to the MAGA side or working on unseating them for true MAGA candidates in the next election. A perfect example of this is Trump’s selection of Pete Hegseth for Pentagon chief. Many Republican legislators were initially dismayed at Trump’s choice but have warmed to the candidate after several rounds of meetings with him.
While many of the Republicans were simply expressing their legitimate antipathy with some of the Trump policies, personality and consequently candidates; after four years of Biden’s feckless leadership and consequential Obama-light policies (Bidenomics, feckless foreign policy, and open borders), there is a genuine longing for the MAGA policies Trump instituted during his first administration. It matters very little that certain members of Congress may have preferred more pure conservative principles embedded in legislative policies, because our current Marxist policies have emboldened America’s enemies from around the world and weakened our nation from within.
It is definitely time that we expunge double-speak from the government and demand honesty from our governmental leaders, allowing hard-core RINOS the opportunity to hear the American electorate, “to read the room,” or else return to private life. As Victor Davis Hanson so presciently reported, “One reason so many are welcoming Trump’s return is the universally desperate hope that his election spelled an end to a collective madness at home and its ripples abroad during the last four years.”
Since Trump’s win over Kamala “Cackles” Harris, all but the most ardent RINOs have returned to his aid. Unifying all congressional Republicans would be a good thing for both America and conservatives. It is the quickest and surest way to make America great again.
Kevin Porteus argues “America’s government has a fundamental obligation to adopt policies that protect the society and culture that have made American liberty and prosperity possible. The American people have a right to expect that their government will prioritize their interests over the interests of non-citizens.”
Image: AT via Magic Studio
Jesus Christ is King
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