Thread. And as for the answer to that question, I believe it would be “yes.” Thanks GOP!
By bringing this impeachment case to a Senate that they knew would acquit regardless of the evidence, the Democrats have facilitated the creation of a new, dangerous precedent. Their other option was to allow a clear abuse of power to go uninvestigated and unchecked.
This is the 472nd episode of that Charlie Brown/Lucy gif with the GOP playing Lucy. At some point Charlie's just gonna go into a coma from all of the concussions.
And then the GOP/Lucy can just take her football and go home. Which has basically been the GOP approach to governance since (pick your date...but let's just say Obama's election for convenience's sake).
BTW, I don't mean this as a criticism of the Democrats' strategy regarding impeachment. They had no choice but to use constitutional mechanisms to try to preserve the constitutional system of checks and balances. They've now made the GOP go on record in opposition to that system.
It's now up to us, the voters, to make a choice between two ever more starkly divided options.
BTW, I'm not optimistic that the wrecking ball the GOP is taking to the Constitution is going to make a lick of difference in the election. History and Poli Sci nerds on Twitter are rightfully freaked out by what's happening in the Senate, but most citizens seem uninterested.
People vote on issues they care about, not on a party's faithfulness to the abstract system of constitutional governance mapped out by a bunch of 18th century dudes who wore wigs. Which is precisely why those dudes wrote the Constitution they did...but that's another story.
And when I use that wrecking ball metaphor, I do so self-consciously. A wrecking ball works slowly, taking out one wall at a time, one supporting beam at a time. The structure collapses slowly...one yanked football at a time...until Charlie is dead.
