TPM "Dems Will Stay Mum On Impeachment To Avoid Galvanizing GOP Base Before Midterms"

[NRaleighLiberal]

https://talkingpointsmemo.com/news/dems-will-stay-mum-on-impeachment-to-avoid-galvanizing-gop-before-midterms

By Kate Riga
August 23, 2018 7:56 am
The moment Michael Cohen pleaded guilty in court on Tuesday, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi was wrangling her caucus members, directing them to dodge all questions about impeachment until after the midterms, according to a Wednesday Politico report.


Democrats, who feel well-poised to make significant electoral gains this fall, are eager to avoid lighting a fire under Republican voters by casting President Donald Trump in a sympathetic and vulnerable light.

Instead, the party line is to emphasize the corruption oozing from the White House and congressional Republicans’ utter refusal to staunch the flow.

Republicans, on the other hand, are desperate for Democrats to cling to the issue.

Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said during her Wednesday press briefing that impeachment is the “only message Democrats have going into the midterms.”

“I think that the biggest contrast you could possibly make is the message of the Democrats, which is nothing more than attacking the president and looking at cheap political stunts while this White House and Republicans in the House and Senate are focused on doing good things for the American people,” she continued.

Despite the bait, the vast majority of Democrats from all corners of the party seem to be following Pelosi’s marching orders, deflecting impeachment questions in favor of kitchen table issues like healthcare and the economy.

[honest.abe]

1. Smart. The GOP has to lead any movement towards impeachment.

Otherwise it wont work anyway.

[beachbum bob]

2. its ridiculous for any democratic candidate to discuss impeachment a this point and only will

fuel republicans to come out and vote.

Time we stop being STUPID for a change

[JaneQPublic]

5. True. I was lukewarm on Bill Clinton...

...until the GOP began piling on and pushing for impeachment.

Nothing like a well-defined external threat to unify and mobilize a community to action, like voting.

[oberliner]

8. Why were you lukewarm on Bill Clinton?

[JaneQPublic]

9. I wasn't big on his DLC approach

DLC = Democratic Leadership Council, a moderate, pro-biz group back then.

Plus, I supported Jerry Brown in the 1992 primaries, and the two butted heads quite a bit.

[oberliner]

11. I do remember those primaries!

I get where you are coming from. I was a big BC supporter and was a little disappointed in him with respect to the Monica stuff.

[yallerdawg]

3. Maxine Waters pointed out that we can "walk and chew gum at the same time."

We can talk about issues that matter to our Party - and we can promise to do everything in our power to remove the cancerous tumor in the White House.

[brush]

4. The election is less than 3 months off, we can be patient. If we win the House things can change.

[BeyondGeography]

6. Staying mum is not an option

If you’re going to talk about the culture of corruption, how do you do that without addressing how the Republicans from Trump on down are doing everything they can to undermine a US government investigation into foreign interference in an American election?

Nadler shows you how to do that without mentioning the dreaded i-word:

"Yesterday's felony convictions of President Trump's former campaign manager, Paul Manafort, and longtime personal lawyer, Michael Cohen, show this is no "WITCH HUNT" and make it even more unconscionable that Chairman Goodlatte and the Republican Leadership are continuing to sit by and rehash old conspiracy theories instead of taking action. House Republicans may be willing to abet President Trump’s worst behavior, but I am not.

"I call on Chairman Goodlatte to hold immediate hearings on President Trump’s persistent, venomous attacks on the Department of Justice and the FBI. It is clear that the President hopes to hedge against the investigation by undermining the investigators. Yesterday's guilty plea by the President's longtime personal attorney adds further concerns regarding ongoing efforts by President Trump to undermine or impede the investigation by Special Counsel Robert Mueller. What is less clear, however, is how these vital institutions that President Trump and House Republicans consistently attack will weather the storm of this selfish, and possibly illegal, strategy.

"I again call on the Chairman to take up H.R. 5476, the Special Counsel Independence and Integrity Act, which Republican Leadership in the House and the Senate have woefully ignored. The Special Counsel will need our help now more than ever, and this bipartisan measure will protect his work from an increasingly reckless Administration...

https://nadler.house.gov/press-release/ranking-member-nadler-statement-felony-convictions-paul-manafort-and-michael-cohen

The other problem with staying mum (the first one being it’s politically obtuse) is that everyone expects a Democratic House to address impeachment at some point. If you spend the next ten weeks insisting impeachment is not a priority, you do nothing to build a constituency for doing what’s right with Trump. You’re undermining yourself.

[Zadate]

7. Reminds me of an old adage...

You broke it, you bought it.

It is all yours RePukelicans. All you. We are just the 'extras' in the background.

There are reasons for checks and balances after all.

[Gothmog]

10. I agree with this strategy

[JCMach1]

12. Can we at least re-brand it as 'CORRUPTION' and sell it against the whole GOP

WTFU leadership!

[oasis]

13. Don't go for the bait Dems. We need to take care of business first.