President Barack Obama is being inaugurated for a second term as President in a few days, but is already being threatened by reckless critics with the idea of impeachment, if he takes action on the economy, gun rights, the war in Afghanistan, immigration, or just about any other issue that causes fury among his critics, including the moronic “Birthers”, who still insist that Obama was born in Kenya, not America.
But the reality is that the threat of impeachment is a “paper tiger”, a totally useless exercise which will not, under any circumstances, lead to the removal of Obama from the Presidency.
The reasons for this conclusion include:
The fact that Obama has done nothing and will do nothing that is truly impeachable, meaning he will not “commit high crimes and misdemeanors in office”.
The fact that the critics know this, but may want to besmirch his reputation, using the same tactics against Bill Clinton in 1998-1999, a development which actually raised Clinton’s popularity and reputation and undermined the Republican Party image and standing.
The fact that removing Obama will not improve the situation politically, as Vice President Joe Biden would continue the same policies and initiatives of the President, and this would give him a leg up for the next Presidential election.
Finally, there is the interesting fact that Obama would have an unusual and ideal situation were he to be impeached, and face a Senate trial. This is that Obama would be the only President facing impeachment who would have a Senate with a majority of the membership being of his own party!
55 Senators are Democrats, and with the need to gain 67 votes to remove, it would require 40 percent of the Democrats and all of the Republicans to remove the President from office, and that will never happen!.
In comparison, Andrew Johnson, Democrat, had 42 Republicans in a 54 member Senate in 1868.
Richard Nixon, Republican, had 57 Democrats in a 100 member Senate in 1974.
Bill Clinton, Democrat, had 55 Republicans in a 100 member Senate in 1999.
So realize that impeachment is a political weapon that only demagogues will utilize, and while a majority of the House of Representatives can vote to impeach on flimsy grounds, and while such an action becomes part of the obituary of that President, there is no threat at all to Barack Obama asserting his powers and leading us for the next four years!