Rebuking Trump: Impeachment if Necessary, But Not Necessarily Impeachment

National Catholic Register, 15 January 2021

It can then be asked whether the impeachment meets the test of a good symbol. It may succeed in one way but, in the current hyper-partisan environment, fail in another.

The House of Representatives impeached President Donald Trump for “incitement of insurrection,” seven days after the violent assault on the Capitol and seven days before he leaves office. The speed of the impeachment reflects widespread and bipartisan condemnation of Trump’s conduct before, during and after the deadly riot. At the same time, the mechanism of impeachment is a solemn one and its suitability for this circumstance merits careful examination.

Punishment, Protection, Prohibition

Impeachment can be punitive — a just punishment for “treason, bribery, or other high crimes and misdemeanors.” It can be protective, to remove someone from an office where he is actively doing harm. It can be proactive, leading (after conviction in the Senate) to a prohibition on holding future office. 

Given that Trump’s term ends in less than a week, the protective argument is weak. It is unlikely that the matter will be taken up in the Senate before the inauguration of President-elect Joe Biden. That leaves punishment and prohibition as reasons for impeachment. 

There is a widespread consensus that the assault on the Capitol requires the president to be punished for his role in fanning the flames that led to it. Perhaps more serious was his failure to make decisive and quick attempts to stop it once underway. Rep. Kevin McCarthy, House Republican leader, voted against impeachment but proposed an official censure of the president and a commission of inquiry to fully investigate those responsible.

Partisanship and Process

A punishment — and possible future prohibition — depends on bipartisan consensus for its public credibility. This was the case in the 1998 impeachment of President Bill Clinton and even more so in the first impeachment of Trump last year.

In both cases, the general view that it was a partisan maneuver by the House against a president of the opposing party made it appear that impeachment was more about gaining political advantage rather than pursuing justice. 

A bipartisan act —  for example, a widely-supported censure motion — would thus be more likely to be received as a just penalty rather than a party-line vote for impeachment. The fact that the Democratic House impeached Trump last year makes this impeachment appear more partisan. On the other hand, that 10 Republicans voted for impeachment this time makes it less partisan than last year.

For a penalty to be seen as just, the process must be seen as fair. An instant impeachment, without an investigative phase, hearings or sufficient time for debate, does not meet that standard. 

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