‘It’s going to get worse’: Former Party Campaign Adviser Rick Wilson Explains Why The GOP Wants To ‘tear the Band-Aid off sooner’ On Impeachment

“A dead fish never smells better a week later.”

By Matthew Chapman
Raw Story (10/8/19)

On Tuesday’s edition of MSNBC’s “All In,” Never-Trump GOP strategist Rick Wilson highlighted the Republican strategy to protect President Donald Trump from impeachment: Trick Democrats into holding the vote too early, so Trump and his inner circle won’t have as much of an opportunity to blurt out incriminating facts or obstruct justice.

“I saw someone make the point today that the reason Republicans are trying to press Nancy Pelosi for a vote now is they think the politics of this will get worse the longer it goes,” said anchor Chris Hayes. “And the vote margin now — if they can lock in a vote impeachment inquiry now, it would look good for them. What do you think of that?”

“A dead fish never smells better a week later,” said Wilson. “It’s going to get worse and have more political consequences as time goes by. That’s why they’re rushing.”

“These guys recognize, also, Donald Trump is the greatest advocate and argument for impeachment,” continued Wilson. “He keeps doing things in broad daylight that are impeachable. They keep doing things to obstruct Congress. They keep doing things to reveal the depths of his malfeasance on these foreign calls. And so none of the Republicans right now bravely pounding their chests saying ‘Do it now, do it now,’ really want it to happen at all, but they’d rather try to tear the Band-Aid off sooner and pop this bubble of anticipation, and if Democrats are smart, which is always an open question when it comes to these hardball maneuverings, they’ll delay this, stretch this.”

“The reason these numbers are moving in the polling, [is] the numbers have moved with independents and soft Republicans,” added Wilson. …

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(Commoner Call by Mark L. Taylor, 2019. Open source and free for non-derivative use with link to www.thecommonercall.org )

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‘The Tide Has Shifted’: New Poll Shows Nearly 60% Of Americans Support Trump Impeachment Inquiry

“We spent all summer getting the shit kicked out of us back home,” said one Democrat.

By Jake Johnson
Common Dreams (10/8/19)

A new Washington Post/Schar School poll released Tuesday showed a majority of Americans approve of House Democrats’ impeachment inquiry into President Donald Trump, a dramatic jump in support for the proceedings in the wake of the whistleblower complaint over Trump’s talks with Ukraine’s leader.

The survey found that 58 percent of Americans—including 80 percent of Democrats and 30 percent of Republicans—say House Democrats were correct to launch a formal impeachment inquiry into Trump, who pressured Ukraine’s leader to investigate former Vice President Joe Biden and his son Hunter.

The poll also showed 49 percent of Americans believe the House should call for the president to be removed from office, which would require conviction by the Senate.

“The tide has shifted on impeachment,” tweeted pollster Matt McDermott.

According to the Post, the survey findings “indicate that public opinion has shifted quickly against the president and in favor of impeachment proceedings in recent weeks.”

“Previous Post-Schar School or Post-ABC News polls taken at different points throughout this year found majorities of Americans opposing the start of an impeachment proceeding, with 37 percent to 41 percent saying they favored such a step,” the Post reported. “The recent revelations appear to have prompted many Americans to rethink their position.”

The rapid movement in public opinion toward support for an impeachment inquiry follows a major and abrupt shift inside the Democratic caucus. Within days of news that Trump pressured Ukraine to investigate Biden, support for impeachment among House Democrats jumped from a slim majority, with approximately 160 members in favor just two weeks ago, to over 220.

Progressive activists have been credited for keeping the heat on lawmakers to hold Trump accountable for his misconduct, and advocacy groups are continuing to mobilize to ensure House Democrats follow through with their inquiry.

“August had been a challenge for the party’s rank-and-file,” The Intercept‘s Ryan Grim reported last month, “as activists and angry citizens back home browbeat them at town halls, grocery stores, and local events for the party’s unwillingness to impeach President Donald Trump. ‘We spent all summer getting the shit kicked out of us back home,’ said one Democrat who received such treatment.”

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