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David Brock: Trump's impeachment was once politically risky for Democrats. Not anymore.
NBC NewsThe “I” word has left a sour taste in my mouth since the late 1990s. From the moment of President Bill Clinton’s inauguration, it was painfully evident that House Speaker Newt Gingrich and his band of Republicans — a group I actively aided as a right-wing journalist in the ’90s before changing sides — were thirsty for anything they could find to oust the president. When House Republicans finally got their chance during the Monica Lewinsky scandal, they impeached him.
It backfired.
After their impeachment measure was defeated in the Senate, Clinton’s approval shot to its highest point ever — 73 percent — and Democrats experienced historic success in the 1998 midterm elections. That’s why, even though the apparent evidence against President Donald Trump is plentiful, I've been skeptical of the wisdom of impeachment. In our country’s most recent case, the political consequences were extremely negative for the party that launched the process.
But with the recent revelations of the whistleblower complaint and news reports that Trump allegedly asked Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyto investigate former Vice President (and 2020 presidential candidate) Joe Biden’s son or put in jeopardy its foreign aid, I'm afraid Trump has given Democrats no choice: It’s time for impeachment.
It backfired.
After their impeachment measure was defeated in the Senate, Clinton’s approval shot to its highest point ever — 73 percent — and Democrats experienced historic success in the 1998 midterm elections. That’s why, even though the apparent evidence against President Donald Trump is plentiful, I've been skeptical of the wisdom of impeachment. In our country’s most recent case, the political consequences were extremely negative for the party that launched the process.
But with the recent revelations of the whistleblower complaint and news reports that Trump allegedly asked Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyto investigate former Vice President (and 2020 presidential candidate) Joe Biden’s son or put in jeopardy its foreign aid, I'm afraid Trump has given Democrats no choice: It’s time for impeachment.
I wrote in 2018 that I believed Democrats should not impeach the president just because we won back the House. I thought that impeachment would drown out Democrats’ ability to focus on the kitchen table issues — such as health care and fixing the broken economy — that typically drive voters to our party. And I thought, because of my experience seeing impeachment backfire in the 1990s, it would spell political disaster for our chances in 2020.