So what was the ‘Stop the Steal’ attack on Congress all about?
Does this mean Mike Pence can live, after all?
“The American people just spoke, and they just changed administrations. … Americans are “smart enough to pick a new administration if they don’t like the old one, and they just did.”
— Bruce Castor, former President Trump’s lead impeachment trial attorney 02-09-21
A First Amendment right to foment insurrection?
A President has rights but also responsibilities. The First Amendment prohibits government from suppressing speech but a President IS the government. He takes an oath to uphold the Constitution, not subvert it. “In their defense brief,” observes Jonah Goldberg, “Trump’s lawyers claim that his remarks egging on the crowd on Jan. 6 are protected under the First Amendment. They’re probably right. But so what?”
Keeping America ashamed
The president of a corporation has every freedom to go on TV to declare that his company’s products are defective. But the board of his company could — and would — fire him according to whatever procedure they liked. If the head of the Smithsonian invited a mob to protest outside the Air and Space Museum and the mob ransacked the place because of lies he told them, the regents wouldn’t await a legal verdict before firing him. …
Impeachment is about self-government, not criminal behavior. Yes, crimes can be impeachable, but as James Madison explained, impeachable acts don’t have to be criminal.
House impeachment manager Jamie Raskin quoted the sainted Justice Antonin Scalia: “You can’t ride with the cops and root for the robbers.”
About that Time magazine story
Of “The Secret History of the shadow campaign that saved the 2020 election” — the article that RITOs claim “proves” The Big Fix — Erick Erickson writes:
People seized upon the story to continue to perpetuate outrage over a stolen election and claiming this was the proof. If you read the story, they didn’t really steal the election. They strategized and they outmaneuvered Republicans. That’s not theft, that’s incompetence on the Republican side. There’s no theft or fraud, there’s just nothing more than crafty campaigning. …
They raised lots of outside money to go educate voters on how to vote absentee. [but] You had Donald Trump telling everyone that the Democrats were going to steal it through absentee balloting and to not go vote absentee. In states like Georgia, where typically Republicans have an absentee voting advantage, the Democrats crushed it somewhere around four to one.
• Antifa didn’t storm the Capitol — We are reminded of Virgil Sollozzo’s words to Michael Corleone: “You give me too much credit, kid. I ain’t that smart.” All that Trump swag?
• Real Republicans are distancing themselves from Trump — Sen. Kevin Cramer, R-North Dakota, an ally of the former President, said Wednesday “it would be harder” for him to support Donald Trump for reelection in 2024 “given what’s happened.”
• Mitch McConnell won’t whip votes for Trump, undecided on his own vote for conviction, National Review reports. The day after the insurrection, the Republican leader said from the floor: “The last time the Senate convened, we had just reclaimed the Capitol from violent criminals, who tried to stop Congress from doing our duty. The mob was fed lies. They were provoked by the President and other powerful people. They tried to use fear and violence to stop a specific proceeding of the first branch of the federal government [the legislative] that they did not like.”
• 6 January 2021 — Will be another of those dates that live in infamy, alongside 9/11 and 7 December 1941.
• The Ukraine impeachment cheapened the process. That one was a farce — Ukraine should investigate the Bidens! But it diminished this impeachment. The boy crying wolf might finally have seen a wolf.
Blaska’s Bottom Line: The Republican party cannot claim the moral high ground, cannot continue its pro-freedom agenda and the good work of the last four years — indeed, cannot survive — without repudiating the unconstitutional insurrection Trump fomented up to and on 6 January 2021. Mike Pence, it is time to speak out forcefully, for the sake of our party. Tommy Thompson? Anyone?
Education
Blaska Policy Werkes 
Waiting to read the words that made Trump supporters, such as myself, riot, dress funny, break windows and murder five people.
If there’s a hanging in Washington Trump is the victim.
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Because he lied about losing the election? (Even his impeachment attorney admits he lost.) Did you just up and decide to break windows on your own, out of the blue? Tell me more about your murders.
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Bu bu bu…. so they didn’t happen? Not the words of incitement? Not five murders?
Why next you’ll be saying that Trump did not incite them, or that there were not the widely reported five murders and an attempted, unarmed violent overthrow of our government really did not happen.
I’ll grant you though that someone moved Speaker Nancy’s podium, wore a buffalo suit and implored capitol police to do their job.
And scared AOC into a memory of a sexual assault while fearing for her life.
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No worries, Mr. Blaska, the Senate has voted to proceed with impeachment of a private citizen, further shredding what’s left of the Constitution. The Party wants to ensure he can’t run for office ever again, so they have to come up with some kind of Bill of Attainder. Of course the Constitution prohibits such things, but who really cares about Constitutionality any more, aside from a few Deplorable cranks?
Maybe we should make impeaching Trump into an annual ritual! Do it every year for the next 4 years, and then after President Harris wins election or re-election, carry it on for 4 more years.
What say you, Mr. Blaska? What will it take to satisfy YOUR hate?
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Hate? I’m not the one who wants to hang Mike Pence or shoot Nancy Pelosi. Trump was impeached for his actions while President. The Constitution does not provide a get-out-of-jail-free card for Presidents who attempt to overturn an election defeat and fail.
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Hate?
Yes, hate.
I’m not the one who wants to hang Mike Pence or shoot Nancy Pelosi.
Neither is Bad Orange Man. Do you seriously propose holding leaders responsible for the actions of a few, or even one, follower?
Trump was impeached for his actions while President.
Correct. But that isn’t enough the haters and RINO’s. You require yet another impeachment. Will this one be enough, or if he’s not punished enough what will you want then? How about a Bill of Attainder denying Trump by name from every holding any office again, would that satisfy you? Or do you want more? Hanged, drawn and quartered, perhaps?
What exactly do you want, Mr. Blaska? What will it take to slake your hate?
The Constitution does not provide a get-out-of-jail-free card for Presidents who attempt to overturn an election defeat and fail.
Non sequitor. You should read the actual Constitution some time, and quit relying Rachel Maddow-style interpretations.
What exactly do you want to happen? I get that you have a huge ball of anger directed at anyone who dares to not hate Bad Orange Man as much as you do, but what else do you want?
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I want accountability. I want justice. Trump was not some street corner preacher. He was President of the United States who tried to frustrate the orderly transfer of power that has been the hallmark of our nation since 1801. He attempted a coup.
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Article I, Section II of the Constitution states that the Chief Justice preside over the impeachment of the President. I know that Blaska wants justice, but in the United States we have lawful procedure which must be followed. “Blaska-style Courts of Justice” don’t belong in our Republic and cannot possibly result in fair, constitutional justice.
If President Trump violated any criminal law government could arrest him and bring him to trial. But that would open opportunities for discovery and transparency and I am certain it would interfere with the persecution of Donald Trump.
Like most Neo-Bolsheviks, Blaska views the Constitution as a mere set of suggestions when it interferes with the party’s agenda.
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Impeachment is not a criminal procedure.
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Strange…. it did for Hillary.
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WOW! Didn’t know you were a Constitutional Scholar, you should have published more as most the Constitutional Scholars believe it is indeed constitutional to impeach an out of office federal official.
An annual ritual, according to the truth, there were no witnesses or evidence allowed at the first impeachment trial for trump, a trial with out evidence or witnesses is a sham.
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Consult the experts on who must sit over the impeachment. Assemble your scholars and read the words. None are over two syllables.
Further proof that, beyond the fact that they have no chance of majority vote in the senate, TDS Sufferers only want to be able to say he was the only president to be impeached twice.
Had he won it could have been four or five.
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And the only President to foment an insurrection because he refused to concede his election defeat.
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ANYONE who truly believes that the 3-hour beer belly putsch on Jan. 6, in which at least 2 Trump supporters unfortunately lost their lives in the riot, rises to the level of Pearl Harbor and 9/11 really needs to take some deep breaths and go for a walk. Maybe a warm glass of milk and an over the counter med. Turn off CNN, MSNBC and the other mind programming 24/7 channels. Get a grip. Still insisting it was Pearl Harbor or Sept. 11? Fercripessakes, get some counseling already.
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If you think the hyperbole is bad now, just wait. Specifically, wait till you hear the knock on your door at 2:00 a.m. and discover that you’re the latest target of Operation Enemy Within, the FBI having discovered you once wrote pro-Trump postings on–oh, I don’t know–Blaska’s blog, maybe? All the incendiary rhetoric about Pearl Harbor and Sept. 11th is just the warm-up to purges that will rival Stalin’s–if there’s one thing lefties are good at it’s revenge.
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Pearl Harbor and 9/11 were attacks ON America. September 6 was an attack from within. Lincoln in 1838:
“Shall we expect some transatlantic military giant to step the ocean and crush us at a blow? Never! … At what point then is the approach of danger to be expected? I answer. If it ever reach us it must spring up amongst us; it cannot come from abroad. If destruction be our lot we must ourselves be its author and finisher.”
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They’re going to cancel Lincoln pretty soon, you know. Maybe they’ll impeach him retroactively for not being antiracist, or woke, or for documented utterings he himself (not some random supporter) said that are anti-Black. Maybe for war crimes too (flattening the South).
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Like conservatives cancelled republican politicians who voted for America over trump’s fantasy.
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Oh please. That isn’t even close cancel culture which is rampant among sectors over which “progressives” have a near monopoly. (And frankly many of them who directly and actively participate in canceling others probably lose sleep at night worrying that they will themselves get canceled some day. )
No it’s the Despicable Lefties who have perpetuated the scourge that is cancel culture in this country. Why, even — mon Dieu — the French are concerned that their beloved France is THREATENED by Woke American Cancel Culture.
French intellectuals! Sacre bleu! When you’ve lost them, that’s 3 steps beyond canary in a coal mine territory.
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-9242453/amp/Out-control-woke-leftism-cancel-culture-threat-FRANCE-French-politicians-say.html
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Well Russia did it once and got clean away with it. AND installing a Russian agent as the president.
Now this all happened while Joe and O were pres. and vp and was obviated during Trump’s watch apparently.
The current impeachment reminds of when Speaker Nancy walked by a Tea Party protest and saw all these swasteekas (sic) and the poor congress critter get spat upon by racists.
We must always believe such charges when made by Democrats.
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And let us not forget the Schiff/Smellwell rules of evidence when it comes to Trump.
Because justice, accountability.
Now when proof emerges that Trump subverted the FISA court, FBI, CIA and DOJ to spy on US citizens and reverse the results of our election THEN I’ll say he should be impeached.
Because I’m not a Democrat and I become less of a Republican every damn day of the Washington Party Flying Circus.
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MXP, Don’t give up jes’ yet. If we quit quarrelin’ about news in the past-tense, there’s plenty o’ hope fer 2024.
Trump had every hope and expectation except he just would not dummy up 6 mos. prior to the election. ALL his unemployment numbers, immigration stats -and more, were backed up by solid numbers. Shoulda been a shoe-in. But he kept narcissism in the forefront.
The ultimate narcissism was January 6th. That’s gonna leave a mark -a HUGE mark on his legacy.
So: let’s just get to work!
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“The ultimate narcissism was January 6th. That’s gonna leave a mark -a HUGE mark on his legacy.”
I wouldn’t be so sure.
According to a recent CBS / You Gov poll (not exactly a conservative outfit) conducted February 5 through 8, 70% of Republicans would either join or consider joining a political party formed by Trump.
Doesn’t sound like enthusiasm has waned for this president.
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His legacy shall be judged by ALL, not just 70% of the Republican party….
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Not narcissism. Ego. Often seen to go with strong leaders assailed by ankle biters.
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So we agree, Bush should have been impeached, to bad the Chairman of the House Judiciary Committee at the time was the clueless Sensenbrenner.
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Clueless? Glass houses….
Reverse accusation.
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I hope you all know that this impeachment is a distraction.
Turn your gaze towards Biden. Loss of thousands of good-paying jobs, reduction in energy independence, allegiance to China (Hunter is doing quite well, I hear), amnesty for illegals including violent felons, imminent Obama-era micromanagement of law enforcement, wussification of the armed forces.
Do we really want to waste out time on an impeachment that in the end, does absolutely nothing to move this country forward?
We’re going to remain deadlocked on this issue. Doubt any minds will be changed. In the meantime, I think most of us can agree that a Biden agenda is disastrous for our nation.
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It’s all just distraction theater when Rome is burning!
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Who do YOU think will be our profile in courage?
Evan McMullin, of course, with the brand new NeverTrumper party. Because he was such a powerful candidate in 2016.
https://www.ksl.com/article/50105376/dozens-of-former-republican-officials-including-evan-mcmullin-in-talks-to-form-anti-trump-third-party
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