Wednesday afternoon the House defeated Texas Democrat Al Green's motion to begin impeachment proceedings against Señor Trumpanzee, 364-58 with 4 Democrats-- Joaquin Castro (TX), Terri Sewell (AL), Carol Shea-Porter (NH) and Marc Veasey (TX)-- voting "present."Generally speaking, it was the progressives who voted to start impeachment proceedings and conservative Democrats like Kyrsten Sinema (Blue Dog-AZ), Ami Bera (New Dem-CA), Collin Peterson (Blue Dog-MN), Tom O'Halleran (New Dem-AZ), Dan Lipinski (Blue Dog-IL), Charlie Crist (Blue Dog-FL), Lou Correa (Blue Dog-CA), Darren Soto (New Dem-FL), Debbie Wasserman Schultz (New Dem-FL) and Jim Costa (Blue Dog-CA). The congressmembers ready to start impeachment hearings:
• Alma Adams (D-NC)• Nanette Barragán (D-CA)• Karen Bass (D-CA)• Joyce Beatty (D-OH)• Bob Brady (D-PA)• Mike Capuano (D-MA)• Katherine Clark (D-MA)• Yvette Clarke (D-NY)• Lacy Clay (D-MO)• Clyburn (D-SC)• Jim Steve Cohen (D-TN)• Danny Davis (D-IL)• Mark DeSaulnier (D-CA)• Lloyd Doggett (D-TX)• Keith Ellison (D-MN)• Eliot Engel (D-NY)• Adriano Espaillat (D-NY)• Dwight Evans (D-PA)• Lois Frankel (D-FL)• Marcia Fudge (D-OH)• Jimmy Gomez (D-CA)• Al Green (D-TX)• Raul Grijalva (D-AZ)• Alcee Hastings (D-FL)• Brian Higgins (D-NY)• Jared Huffman (D-CA)• Sheila Jackson Lee (D-TX)• Pramila Jayapal (D-WA)• Robin Kelly (D-IL)• Brenda Lawrence (D-MI)• Barbara Lee (D-CA)• John Lewis (D-GA)• Ted Lieu (D-CA)• Betty McCollum (D-MN)• Jim McGovern (D-MA)• Jerry McNerney (D-CA)• Gwen Moore (D-WI)• Seth Moulton (D-MA)• Grace Napolitano (D-CA)• Donald Norcross (D-NJ)• Frank Pallone (D-NJ)• Bill Pascrell (D-NJ)• Chellie Pingree (D-ME)• Jared Polis (D-CO)• Jamie Raskin (D-MD)• Cedric Richmond (D-LA)• Bobby Rush (D-IL)• Jan Schakowsky (D-IL)• Brad Sherman (D-CA)• Louise Slaughter (D-NY)• Bennie Thompson (D-MS)• Dina Titus (D-NV)• Juan Vargas (D-CA)• Filemon Vela (D-TX)• Tim Walz (D-MN)• Maxine Waters (D-CA)• Bonnie Watson Coleman (D-NJ)• Frederica Wilson (D-FL)
Pelosi, Hoyer and Crowley led the Democrats against impeachment. So why did so many Democrats buck their leaders on this? In the end, essentially, it came down to what Frank Schaeffer wrote on his blog Wednesday. "Alabama," he wrote, "makes us uncomfortable, because it’s an accurate mirror of what lurks nationwide. Let’s thank Trump, Roy Moore and the GOP: They have proven forever that white American evangelicals are not a religious group at all but a cult dedicated to demagoguery, scapegoating, and the demonizing of fellow citizens, zealotry, suspicion and tribalism. And with delusions about religion in America exploded also goes delusions about our nation’s exceptional 'calling.' Steve Bannon, alcoholic racist Nazi domestic abuser supports Roy Moore, racist bigot xenophobic alleged pedophile. And Trump supports them both- enabled by white American Evangelicals: the 'base' of America’s embrace of expedient evil. American Exceptionalism? Not so much. Thank Trump for proving that far from being exceptionally good, let alone 'God-chosen' we are exceptionally stupid."
At a time of planetary stress on God’s Creation it’s Trump’s evangelicals who lead Trump’s fervent promotion of a fossil-fuel America, coal mining, pipelines, and fracking and the rejection of the very idea of climate change let alone stewardship.How can I describe the Trumped evangelical movement my family were leaders in? This way: Christians are in the grip of self-delusion of the kind that compromises the conscience and allows for an unstoppable descent deeper and deeper into the abyss of lost faith in goodness, virtue, beauty and kindness, yes and lost faith in Jesus.Elections used to be about politics and policy. With Trump in the White House we are now in a war for the soul of America. In 2018 our job isn’t to “win” an election but to-- quite literally-- decide if we even want a country at all.One other thing: It really is time to “Put Christ back in Christmas.” Whomever you think Jesus was-- Son of God, prophet or deluded crazy person-- he did not teach pedophilia, woman abuse, and theft from the poor to give to the rich.We need a Reformation of religion, a revival of beauty, truth and goodness-- and a Christianity that follows Jesus not Ayn Rand.
Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-WA): "There is no question in my mind that Donald Trump has committed serious violations of the Constitution, including of the Foreign Emoluments clause. His administration is reckless and dangerous, and we owe it to the American people to begin a discussion about how to hold this president accountable for the many ways in which he is undermining our democracy. We as a nation must address the crisis that we have in front of us. The American people deserve a public, open debate-- and they deserve the opportunity to make their voices heard... We must make all of our voices heard on this issue. The very future of our democracy is at stake."Another House Dem, a super-progressive, like Pramila, told me that "it’s disappointing to me to see that only 57 of my colleagues have the commonsense to see that Trump deserves to be impeached. I hope that it becomes an issue in Democratic primaries across the country, because I suspect that the elected officials are way behind the primary voters on this one, much like it was with the war in Iraq." I have a feeling he was talking about Democrats like Lipinski, Crowley, Ashford and Wasserman Schultz... not to mention DiFi over in the Senate.Marie Newman is on the verge on replacing one of Congress' worst Blue Dogs, Dan Lipinski, in a Chicagoland district (IL-03). It didn't go unnoticed by her or her supporters that Lipinski voted against opening up an impeachment case against Trump. "Once again," she just told us, "when we need Mr. Lipinski to show leadership he is silent. When working families need a voice, he is silent, when people of color need a voice he is silent, when women need a voice, silence. Demonstrating change in leadership, silence."Meanwhile, down in central Florida, it didn't slip Alan Grayson's attention that aside from every single Republican in Congress, all three of the conservative Democrats representing the Orlando area-- Stephanie Murphy, Darren Soto and Val Demings-- refused to vote to start impeachment hearings. The evidence of collusion and obstruction already is overwhelming," he told us this morning. "Basically, the Republicans are trying to do an 'Obi-Wan' on America:
Stormtrooper: Let me see your identification.Ben Obi-Wan Kenobi: [with a small wave of his hand] You don't need to see his identification.Stormtrooper: We don't need to see his identification.Ben Obi-Wan Kenobi: These aren't the droids you're looking for.Stormtrooper: These aren't the droids we're looking for.Ben Obi-Wan Kenobi: He can go about his business.Stormtrooper: You can go about your business.Ben Obi-Wan Kenobi: Move along.Stormtrooper: Move along... move along.
