Fake History powerlineblog.com/archives/2019/… via @powerlineUS
@powerlineUS The fact that this is the third impeachment proceeding in the past 45 years, and that Trump is the third elected president of the past eight to endure one, undercuts the notion that this impeachment is momentous.
@powerlineUS When Andrew Johnson was impeached, there were fewer than 200 members of the House. His impeachment could not possibly have garnered as many votes as Trump’s did.
The vote to impeach Johnson was 126–47. Thus, that impeachment had much more support than the current one.
The vote to impeach Johnson was 126–47. Thus, that impeachment had much more support than the current one.
@powerlineUS Richard Nixon’s impeachment never came to a vote. Nixon saw that he would be impeached, accordingly, he resigned. Democrats controlled around 240 seats. Thus, even without a single Republican vote, Nixon would have been impeached with more than 230 votes.
@powerlineUS This leaves only the Clinton impeachment. There, the article of impeachment for the crime of perjury garnered 228 votes. It didn’t gain more only because the Republicans held fewer seats then than the Democrats hold now.
@powerlineUS More significant than the raw vote tally in the Clinton case is the fact that five House Democrats voted to impeach the Democratic president. Last night, no Republican voted to impeach the Republican president.
@powerlineUS If the impeachment of Trump is historic, it’s because (1) there was zero Republican support for it and (2) there was no allegation that Trump committed a crime. These are historical firsts.
@powerlineUS No impeachment Congress has ever been dopey enough to refuse a Senate trial — not on any grounds, and certainly not on the grounds that the Senate needs to hear witnesses the House did not hear from due to its rush to get the impeachment over with.
@powerlineUS If Nancy Pelosi wants to make history, that’s the way to do it.
