Congressman Ro Khanna (D., Calif.) declared on MSNBC today that any further military action ordered by the president that is not sanctioned by Congress is a “potentially impeachable offense.” Somehow, I don’t think that will be much of a deterrent to the president.
And here we see the unintended consequence of the Democrats’ decision to move forward with impeachment with no support across party lines. President Trump has already been impeached on two counts; there’s not much difference about adding a third. Democrats in the House of Representatives can impeach the president every month if they like. Perhaps they will. The consequence of it will be minimal until Republican senators indicate that they would vote to remove. Impeachment is now just a gesture of strong disapproval by the House majority: a super-censure.
Meanwhile, Nancy Pelosi has not yet released the articles of impeachment to the Senate; many expect she will do so sometime this week. The Democratic senators who are running for president must be grumbling; the delay merely has ensured that the start of the impeachment trial is closer to the Iowa caucuses and New Hampshire primaries.