How Does PDS Feel About Donald Trump’s Impeachment?
February 2, 2020
On December 18, 2019, news channels all over the nation buzzed with the breaking news that, for the third time in the history of the United States, the President had been impeached by the House of Representatives. The impeachment inquiry for the 45th President, Donald Trump, started in September of 2019 after an anonymous whistleblower submitted a formal complaint. He was charged for abuse of authority while being in office and was accused of using his powers to coerce the Ukranian government to investigate his political rival, former Democratic Vice President Joe Biden, and his son, Hunter Biden. In addition, the President has been accused of saying that he would withhold the Ukraine’s aid unless it opened an investigation into Hunter Biden.
Currently, the case sits on the Senate floor, as representatives determine whether or not the President should be removed from office, given the information and investigation provided by the House of Representatives. On Saturday, the Senate (majority Republican) voted 51 – 49 against calling in witnesses and documents to help further both cases. A main witness the House Managers were planning to call was John Bolton, former National Security Advisor to President Trump.
Every impeachment trial in Senate history has had witnesses testify. In fact, every trial in American history has included witnesses. Because that’s what a trial is…Vladimir Putin is laughing at us this week. And John McCain is rolling in his grave.
— senior Tommy Bocian
This impeachment has resulted in mixed opinions along the political spectrum regarding the President’s actions. Many Republicans believe that the president’s actions were permissible as he was using his foreign policy powers to address corruption in another country. As junior Varun Rao emphasized, “Nowhere in the constitution does it mention that abuse of power in an impeachable offense.” Further, many conservatives believe this impeachment acts solely as a ploy to attack the Republican party as the 2020 Senate, House, and Presidential elections approach in November. “The Democrats are trying to construct a narrative in order to divide the Republican Party because they saw how united it has become under President Trump,” said senior Kevin Dougherty.
Even some liberals have expressed some doubt in whether or not Trump will actually be removed. As sophomore Yvonne Wang stated, “I have been following the case a bit, but based of the information that I know, I don’t believe that he will be removed from office.”
On the other hand, many others believe that the President engaged in a form of bribery and quid pro quo by withholding the aid unless Ukraine fulfills his request which is considered to be unconstitutional and a justification for impeachment by the US Constitution. Some that have been following the trial closely, such as senior Julia Chang, believe that “If we care about presidents abusing their office for personal gain—Democrat or Republican, now or going forward—then we need to remove Trump.”
A study by Monmoth University and published by Statista shows that support for Donald Trump’s impeachment is even higher than that for Richard Nixon, who resigned before getting impeached.
“Trump has routinely privileged his self-interest and the indoctrinating of his base instead of the responsibilities of his presidency and the welfare this country,” said senior Zoe Rivera.
Others that are less engaged, such as junior Aidan McChesney, have formed their own opinions as well. McChesney noted, “from the little knowledge I have of the trial it seems like he did [commit a high crime] and should be removed.”
The decision as to whether to acquit Trump or remove him from office will be decided this coming Wednesday.
