House Republicans
Liz Cheney, the only Congressman from Wyoming, entered the US Capitol only five years ago. She is now the Chairman of the Republican Caucus, the third highest job in the House Republicans. Meteoric rise doesn’t quite describe Cheney’s ascension to power in a body where longevity is the path to influence. But Liz Cheney doesn’t just represent Wyoming. She represents President Ford’s Chief of Staff, the first President Bush’s Secretary of Defense, and the second President Bush’s Vice President. She is the daughter of Dick Cheney. The full weight of his career and power in the “old” Republican Party is fueling her rise.
Dick Cheney is best remembered for his “cold, hard” visage in the immediate days after 9-11. Speaking from his “undisclosed location”, Cheney was the sharp-edged blade behind the Bush response to the attacks. And while his attitude may be to blame for the excesses of the US Government response, particularly the CIA dark sites where prisoners were tortured and killed, it solidified his position as the leader of the “neo-cons” in the Party.
And his daughter, either through genetics or example, has inherited his gravitas.
Cheney’s Statement
On Tuesday Liz Cheney, Republican Congressman from Wyoming, Chairman of the Caucus, and daughter of Dick Cheney said this about Republican President Donald Trump:
“Much more will become clear in coming days and weeks, but what we know now is enough. The President of the United States summoned this mob, assembled the mob, and lit the flame of this attack. Everything that followed was his doing. None of this would have happened without the President. The President could have immediately and forcefully intervened to stop the violence. He did not. There has never been a greater betrayal by a President of the United States of his office and his oath to the Constitution. I will vote to impeach the President.”(CNN)
Senate Republicans
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell is called “the turtle”. Like a turtle, McConnell is often quiet, hiding his intentions beneath his “shell” of silence. And like a turtle, he moves inexorably in a single direction, with no obstacle enough to deter his motion. McConnell has taken some pride in another nickname, “the Grim Reaper”. Dozens of bills, passed by the Democratic House of Representatives, have “died” on McConnell’s desk. He refuses to bring them to the floor for debate, or a vote, or even to refer them to committees. He has stood as a single roadblock to progressive legislation.
McConnell doesn’t send signals very often. His tactic is more one of quiet surprise. But when the New York Times and CNN report what McConnell is “thinking”, it’s likely not a mistake. It is Mitch McConnell’s way of communicating to someone, in this case, the President of the United States.
“Senator Mitch McConnell has concluded that President Trump committed impeachable offenses and believes that Democrats’ move to impeach him will make it easier to purge Mr. Trump from the party, according to people familiar with Mr. McConnell’s thinking.” (NYT)
Nixon
I was just graduated from high school in the summer of 1974, painting houses to earn some money as I waited to begin my freshman year at Denison University. July of that summer was one of political tumult. The Supreme Court ordered the “White House tapes” be revealed, and America heard the voice of the President of the United States, Richard Nixon, obstruct justice, plan bribes, and prove all of the worst charges of the Watergate conspiracy.
After the tapes came out, Nixon was still the President. The House of Representatives began the process of impeachment, with the House Judiciary Committee under Congressman Peter Rodino holding hearings on the impeachment proposals. Meanwhile, rumors emerged from the White House of a President, deep in his “cups”, speaking to the Presidential portraits on the walls. America was vulnerable and the nuclear codes were still within Nixon’s reach.
After the committee confirmed the resolution, sending it to the floor of the House for debate and vote, a few Republican leaders went to see Nixon in the White House. Senate Minority Leader Hugh Scott, House Minority Leader John Rhodes, and Senator and former Presidential candidate Barry Goldwater didn’t tell the President to resign. What they did make clear was that Nixon’s support against impeachment was gone (ARZ). No one would stand up for him. Nixon was a lawyer, and well aware of the consequences of impeachment and conviction, particularly the financial impact of losing his Presidential pension and perks. The next day, Nixon resigned from office.
Entrenched in his Defiance
Thanks Hallie Jackson of NBC News – that’s the perfect phrase!
Mitch McConnell sent his quiet signal. Liz Cheney painted hers in giant letters on the wall. Even Kevin McCarthy, the Republican House Minority Leader, is said to be polling his friends as to whether he should vote for impeachment or not. While no one feels welcome to walk over to the White House for a conversation with Donald Trump, they cannot signal him more clearly. His support still exists, but the number of his supporters are dwindling. And Trump’s powerful tool used to bludgeon Congressmen and Senators into line, the “Tweet”, is no longer available.
Donald Trump has only a few days left as President. As Nixon once said, “every fiber of his being” is telling Trump to stay and fight. Trump, like Nixon, not only faces impeachment and possible (and with McConnell maybe probable) conviction. It’s not just finances, though Trump definitely could use the money now, with even Deutsche Bank cutting ties. It’s also the legal consequences, with Trump facing Federal charges for insurrection with a ten-year possible prison term. And while Trump has fallen out with his Vice President, Mike Pence, there still is a “deal” to be made: a resignation for a pardon.
Don’t hold your breath. “Entrenched in his defiance” is an apt description of the President, who is listening to no one but his own “gut”. And the “gut” is saying: “ I can’t be a loser”.
