The debate of about the size of the Covid Relief bill is a healthy and welcomed one. At long last, we are starting to hear discussion about policy, and Republicans are making the argument that the country needs to move on and not go through with the second impeachment of former president Donald J. Trump. There within, as the Bard would say, lies the rub.
How can you discuss policy when you voted not to impeach a president who incited an attack on the Capitol of The United States in an attempt to overthrown a free and fair election, wiping out over two-centuries of the peace transfer of power? Until there is a full accounting of what happened and it is presented to the Senate, how do Democrats negotiate in good faith with Republicans?
It's commendable that Senator Bill Cassidy (R-LA) said he is keeping an open mind in considering all the evidence during the impeachment trial. He also explained that his vote on whether the impeachment was unconstitutional and should therefore not move forward was one that was 'taken in a moment in time,' despite there being precedent for impeaching cabinet officials, of which the president is one, after they have left office. We won't prejudge and say that if Senator Cassidy doesn't vote to convict, etc., as to give that benefit of the doubt. However, until this is resolved it's difficult to negotiate in good faith with any Republican in the Senate that caste this vote, outside of Senator Romney (R-UT), Murkowski (R-AL) and others.
[Aside: It was four short years ago that we all thought Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL) would emerge as the standard bearer for a Republican party prepared for the future. Today? Hardly. He didn't even want to run for reelection last time around and now he's all in on Trumpism.]
As a matter of policy, Ms. Kumar drove home a very good point on the Covid relief package, which is if you view this bill through the lens of disaster relief, the amount comes more clearly into focus. State and local municipalities have been hit hard by the continuing stress of the pandemic, not to mention over ten million Americans who haven't returned to work and the healthcare system writ large.
However, if you view it from that justifiable lens, one can reasonable ask how increasing the minimum wage helps this particular disaster. Targeted lens, targeted approach. As a stimulus bill, you can widen that lens. Large and targeted would probably come in at about $1.45 trillion, which is an insane number in and of itself, but it's necessary to bring centrist Democrats on board like Senators Joe Manchin (D-WV) and Kyrsten Sinema (D-AZ) because given what we outlined above, 'taken in a moment in time' to use a phrase, Democrats have to regulate themselves when it comes to spending. As an interesting side note, the Republican governor of West Virginia recently gave an interview in which he said that Congress should go big. Republican governors saying 'go big' and Democratic senators wanting to spend less are all good things, but there is a lingering open wound on our democracy that needed attending to first and that is impeachment.
As for the Republican Party, before today's program we knew we'd be saying something about House minority leader Representative Kevin McCarthy (R-CA), but we weren't sure how we were going to phrase it. Enter Representative Adam Schiff (D-CA). "Kevin McCarthy stands for nothing except for his pursuit to become Speaker of the House... He has no values." Well, OK then, we'll work from that.
This week Republicans in the House took two votes, one secret ballot and one on the floor of the House. The secret ballot was to decide as to whether to keep Rep. Liz Cheney (R-WY) in leadership, which they did by a two-to-one margin despite her vote in favor of impeachment. The other on the floor was to strip Rep. Marjorie Taylor Green (R-GA) of her committee assignments because of threats of physical and mortal violence against Democratic members of Congress. Republicans voted that down.
This directly speaks to the aforementioned Mr. McCarthy and his utter incompetence and lack of principle as a leader and 'standing for nothing' as Mr. Schiff described is coming into stark relief. If he truly was the leader of his caucus, say like a Mitch McConnell, they'd all be on the same page... In whatever book, hopefully non-fiction. Instead, Mr. McCarthy is sycophantically sitting in the backseat of the car while the persona non grata former president drives the car. As David French mentioned, that influence cannot be sustained in silence. Be it that that silence is welcomed.
The other problem as Michael Steele described is 'on the ground' with the state legislatures that are controlled by Republicans who are all-in on Trumpism and censuring lawmakers who have spoken out against the former president and his actions. In other words, there within lies the crazy.
However, as the saying goes, one catastrophe at a time and we cannot relieve this disaster as long as there is still this festering wound on our democracy.
See you on the other side of the trial, or maybe half way through...
Panel: Anna Palmer, Punchbowl News; Anna Teresa Kumar, Voto Latino; David French, The Dispatch; Michael Steele, fmr. Republican Party Chair
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