As the Democrat controlled House of Representatives barrels toward impeaching President Trump before Christmas, the Associated Press published a news article that paints Democrats as victims of a Republican offensive as public support for impeachment has stalled.
A victim of the Republican impeachment offensive.
AP tweeted this description of the article: “Right now, Republicans are wielding impeachment mostly as an offensive weapon, and Democrats are generally playing defense or changing the subject as 2020 congressional races rev up. It’s unclear how potent the issue will be by Election Day.”
Right now, Republicans are wielding impeachment mostly as an offensive weapon, and Democrats are generally playing defense or changing the subject as 2020 congressional races rev up. It’s unclear how potent the issue will be by Election Day. https://t.co/yonM29cDP3
— The Associated Press (@AP) November 30, 2019
For the nearly three years of his presidency, Democrats and liberals in the media have been maneuvering to impeach President Trump over anything that might hold up in the court of opinion because they refuse to accept that he defeated their candidate, Hillary Rodham Clinton. With the Ukraine phone call, they thought they finally had him. But as their false narrative of corruption has been exposed as a gossipy policy dispute by Deep State conspirators and Rep. Adam Schiff (D-CA), support for impeachment has flatlined along sharp partisan divides with independents not persuaded to impeach. As Republicans seek to hold Democrats accountable after three years of a relentless assault using bogus scandals falsely accusing Trump of treason, bribery, obstruction and collusion with foreign governments, Democrats are now reported to be the victims.
Republicans aim to use the House drive toward impeaching President Donald Trump to whittle down Democrats’ majority by dislodging vulnerable incumbents from swing districts loaded with moderate voters.
It could work, especially in Democratic-held districts Trump carried in 2016 with throngs of independent voters who polls shows are closely divided over his removal. Or it could flop, in an era when news zooms by so swiftly that today’s concerns may be eclipsed in 11 months and many people are more focused on pocketbook issues such as health care costs.
“It will be part of the mosaic, but hardly the overriding issue,” GOP pollster Whit Ayres predicted about impeachment’s impact next November. “It will have faded by then and it will also have simply reinforced the preexisting attitudes and made them more intense.”
What’s clear is that for now, Republicans are wielding impeachment mostly as an offensive weapon and Democrats are generally playing defense or changing the subject as 2020 congressional races rev up. House Democrats will be defending their 233-197 majority, with four vacancies. Republicans will try preserving their 53-47 Senate control.
…After an initial uptick in support for ousting Trump over his efforts to pressure Ukraine to seek dirt on his Democratic political rivals, voters’ views have jelled.
About 9 in 10 Democrats support removing Trump and similar shares of Republicans back him, while independents are roughly evenly divided. Trump seems certain to be impeached, or found worthy of removal, by the Democratic-led House but likely acquitted by the GOP-majority Senate and kept in office.
Last fall’s elections left Democrats in control of 31 seats in districts Trump carried in 2016. GOP lawmakers hold just three seats in districts Democrat Hillary Clinton won. Democrats also outnumber Republicans 62-30 among freshmen, who are often more vulnerable targets…
As AP articles do, this article contains some valuable horse race information on what the two parties and outside groups are doing targeting vulnerable office holders with impeachment as a 2020 campaign issue. However, the framing of Republicans wielding impeachment as an offensive weapon against the Democrats is rich.
As one observer noted, “”Republicans are wielding impeachment mostly as an offensive weapon”? Democrats have been using impeachment as a weapon since January 20th, 2106. (sic) It started 19 min after Trump’s inauguration.”
"Republicans are wielding impeachment mostly as an offensive weapon"?
Democrats have been using impeachment as a weapon since January 20th, 2106.
It started 19 min after Trump’s inauguration.
— BadgerBob (@BadgerBob81) November 30, 2019
A more accurate election analysis would note that going into 2020 Trump and the Republicans have a stellar record of accomplishment to run on while the Democrats have a record of accomplishing nothing but obsessing over impeachment by any means.
The AP article ends with one hard truth, though. It quotes Republican pollster Glen Bolger on the fate of any swing state Republican senator who votes to remove Trump from office:
“You can’t vote for removal,” Bolger said. “You’ll have just totally collapsed your base, your ability to raise money, to get volunteers.”
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