"I don't want to see him impeached, I want to see him in prison," Pelosi said . . .

[Vidal]

Speaker Nancy Pelosi told senior Democrats that she’d like to see President Donald Trump “in prison” as she clashed with House Judiciary Chairman Jerry Nadler in a meeting on Tuesday night over whether to launch impeachment proceedings.

Pelosi met with Nadler (D-N.Y.) and several other top Democrats who are aggressively pursuing investigations against the president, according to multiple sources. Nadler and other committee leaders have been embroiled in a behind-the-scenes turf battle for weeks over ownership of the Democrats’ sprawling investigation into Trump.

Nadler pressed Pelosi to allow his committee to launch an impeachment inquiry against Trump — the second such request he’s made in recent weeks only to be rebuffed by the California Democrat and other senior leaders. Pelosi stood firm, reiterating that she isn’t open to the idea of impeaching Trump at this time.

“I don’t want to see him impeached, I want to see him in prison,” Pelosi said, according to multiple Democratic sources familiar with the meeting. Instead of impeachment, Pelosi still prefers to see Trump defeated at the ballot box and then prosecuted for his alleged crimes, according to the sources.

link: https://www.politico.com/story/2019/06/05/pelosi-impeachment-1355435

[donkeypoofed]

1. Ooooooh, watch out for Spanky's scathing tweet any hour now

Thin skinned little weasel that he is.

[4now]

2. I am glad we have Pelosi

[OliverQ]

4. Why? Letting him go without impeachment will destroy the party.

It's a terrible decision.

[Ferrets are Cool]

3. They can't do both?

Why take the chance that America is stupid enough to elect him twice. Hell, America elected bush jr. twice even though he was a known war criminal at the time.

[hughee99]

12. They can either do both or neither. The scenario Pelosi described

Does not exist in reality (where he goes to jail without being impeached) unless her plan is to allow this man she feels should be in jail to run the country for at least another 18 months first. That statement (if accurate) is the equivalent of saying “I hate him more than you do and I’m not willing to do anything about it”

[Nuggets]

14. No

Its the equivalent of saying impeachment may be in the favor of Trump and if the voters have a modicum of intelligence they should understand why by now or they are playing games being slow as pine tar in winter to grasp the concept here.
I want to see him in prison, but apparently many here want to help him escape accountability by immediately impeaching and allowing Trump to be acquitted or pardoned.

This isn’t rocket science and it would be immoral to impeach and allow him to getaway with this scott free.

[hughee99]

15. If impeachment fails, it doesn't give him immunity from prosecution after he leaves office.

If she believes he should be in jail, and they have enough evidence, doesn't she have a responsibility to make the case? If we have the evidence, make the republican representatives vote against charges and the senators vote to "acquit" a man when we can make the case that he committed serious crimes.

[BeyondGeography]

5. So you don't want to do the thing you can do

Ok.

[BlueStater]

6. And if he's reelected, then what?

Don't assume he can't be. This country is a bottomless pit of stupidity.

[appalachiablue]

17. The most asute remark I've seen here in a while.

[MuseRider]

46. I second your comment.

It is astonishing.

[PufPuf23]

20. To not impeach Trump, increases the likelihood that Trump will be

re-elected in 2020.

I would go so far to project that Trump is likely to win re-election in 2020 if not impeached.

Not impeaching Trump is likely to cause a chasm and lower voter turn out within the Democratic party.

Agree about that bottomless pit thing ….

[uponit7771]

22. +1, the party of the impeached has never fared well in elections post impeachment

[Nevermypresident]

42. https://www.democraticunderground.com/100212155160

https://www.democraticunderground.com/100212155160

[Vidal]

24. Not likely

possible, but not likely he'll win reelection if not impeached.

[erlewyne]

51. I do not know how I missed your thread Vidal

but I did. I am a fan of Pelosi. On another thread you mentioned you already
posted this ... thanks, and sorry I missed it.

[Tipperary]

33. Excellent point.

And they’re gonna look pretty stupid then. I fervently hope that he is not reelected, but if he is, I will be waiting to hear from those on this board who argued against impeachment.

[Me.]

7. Politico On House Dems

Clashed, Embroiled, Rebuffed, Turf Battle....

[EffieBlack]

9. Politico on House Republicans:

{crickets}

[mcar]

37. Yep

Media and Democrats should be asking "where are the Republicans?" every day. Instead it's Dems in Disarray, 24/7.

If and when Democrats initiate impeachment inquries, it'll be "are Democrats overreaching?"

[Iliyah]

10. Yes Politico. The same Politico

that had numerous articles like this one during the 2016 elections. They are pro Republican. I'm also seeing this comment "Americans think t-rump will win" in 2020 popping up I guess from a poll that polled 1,000 people.

[Me.]

58. It's The Same As Media Pundits Quoting People They've Talked To Across The Country

aka their friends and relatives

[Hekate]

8. Donny Deutsch thinks the Dems need to rebrand & open a pile of "criminal inquiries" instead

The more he explained himself, the better I liked it.

[watoos]

30. I didn't like Donny's premise,

that the word impeachment was the problem. Trump being impeached would devastate him.

Donny also admitted that it would be easier for Democrats to get subpoenas honored under an impeachment inquiry, especially the grand jury testimony. I doubt that Democrats ever see the grand jury information under regular hearings.

[Vidal]

31. Trump being impeached would devastate him

agree with you there

[SunSeeker]

11. Not impeaching Trump is a huge mistake.

Setting aside for a moment that an impeachment inquiry is the right thing to do and the House's Constitutional duty under these circumstances, even if you are looking at it from a purely political strategy calculation, not impeaching will hurt Democrats and help Trump. Impeachment will not help Trump, it will showcase his crimes like it did with Richard Nixon. That will damage Trump, like it did Nixon:

Richard Nixon’s approval rating was at 65 percent when his impeachment process began and only 19 percent of the public supported his impeachment. By the end, the numbers had flipped: his approval was 24 percent and support for impeachment was 57 percent. 

https://www.gq.com/story/democrats-impeaching-trump

[ALBliberal]

19. Completely agree. We are the party of laws and rules

and order and upholding them. Don’t let him run on “the Dems didn’t impeach me so I’m innocent “!!!

[Vidal]

26. Wait for it . . .

we'll get to "impeachment" and everything Nadler, Schiff, Cummings, et al are doing now is all part of a long game that leads to formal "impeachment" proceedings in the house. But they have preliminary steps to get through first.

[Nevermypresident]

49. +1000

[ecstatic]

13. Both can happen. Just do your job, as required by

the Constitution! I'm not buying this story, BTW. Sounds like bullshit meant to appease and quiet us pro-impeachers down.

[ehrnst]

66. She is doing her job. Her job isn't to issue a poll and do what some people want.

Her job, as she was chosen to do by her peers, is to decide what the best course of action is.

She has far more experience and access to information that either you or I do, BTW.

And this statement is secondhand from people who say that she said it in an offhand way.

[RainCaster]

16. I'm in complete agreement with her! Let's wait.

If the choices are to impeach or wait until he's out of office, I'll wait. Like Nancy, I want to see that SOB in prison. Along with the rest of his grifting family.

[Tipperary]

34. As someone else asked, what if he is re-elected? What then?

???

[JoeOtterbein]

18. So is Nancy saying that Trump belongs in prison, but "please don't make me...

...impeach" him? How does that make any sense?

[cwydro]

23. No kidding.

Smh.

[ehrnst]

67. She made that as an offhand statement in weekly check-in meeting, it's not a policy statement

Pelosi (D-Calif.) told five of her committee chairmen Tuesday night during their weekly check-in about the status of investigations that she would rather see Trump defeated in 2020 and facing charges of a crime after leaving office — than impeached and acquitted by the Republican-led Senate.

“I don’t want to see him impeached. I want to see him in prison,” Pelosi said, according to the officials, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to share private conversations.

"They agreed to keep all options on the table and continue to move forward with an aggressive hearing and legislative strategy, as early as next week, to address the president's corruption and abuses of power uncovered in the report," the spokeswoman, Ashley Etienne, said in a statement Wednesday.

https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/congress/pelosi-reportedly-told-democrats-she-would-rather-see-trump-prison-n1014516

[Richard D]

21. Excellent strategy!

Don't impeach. Hope he doesn't get re-selected in the upcoming election. If he wins, just wait 4 more years to throw him in prison after the statute of limitations run out. Or he dies from hamburders. Or fucks up the country and world beyond any hope of repair.

[Vinca]

25. Amen to that.

[rampartc]

27. trump will be reelected

whether he is impeached or not unless we work hard and get everyone to show up on election day. not only on the west coast and the northeast either.

I will go one farther. trump will be reelected unless we nominate great candidates all down the ticket, candidates who can explain that nihilism is not going to solve our problems,

[Ponietz]

28. The Speaker needs to make the case

for how non-impeachment increases the likelihood of prison for Schlump.
Call me dense, but I don’t see it.

[Vidal]

29. Nancy Pelosi hints at her real plan: putting Donald Trump in prison

From Bill Palmer: worth reading.

https://www.palmerreport.com/analysis/nancy-pelosi-prison-plan-trump/18458/

[watoos]

32. If Trump gets re-elected

that means that Republicans hold the Senate, but it also means we can kiss our democracy goodbye. In the words of former assistant director of counterintelligence for the FBI, Frank Figluzzi, in 5 to 7 years historians may look upon 2019 as the year that Congress gave up its oversight obligations.

If Speaker Pelosi called a 9PM press conference and laid out the grounds for impeachment, it would be powerful and would change the narrative and unite all Democrats.

I keep repeating this because I believe it, Speaker Pelosi was also Speaker in 2010 when Republicans flipped 64 seats and that's why she is putting more emphasis on the politics of impeachment, she doesn't want a repeat of history.

[Vidal]

36. very smart

your comment is right on -- she is looking at the politics and is totally focused on the 2020 election which we must win to keep our democracy.

[Vidal]

35. "once Donald Trump is no longer in office, he'll be indicted"

Per the Palmer Report:

once Donald Trump is no longer in office, he’ll be indicted at the federal level for obstruction of justice. He’ll be put on trial for it, he’ll almost surely be convicted, and he’ll go to prison. The feds at the SDNY have also made clear that they’ll indict Trump for felony campaign finance violations. Even if this all somehow gets derailed, New York State has made clear that it’ll pounce on Trump the minute he’s no longer in office. The question is when that’s going to happen.

https://www.palmerreport.com/analysis/nancy-pelosi-prison-plan-trump/18458/

Nancy has a game plan. She knows Trump can be convicted of crimes. To her the endgame is Trump losing in 2020. Everything she does is focused on that.

[Vidal]

38. In the scenario where Trump loses in 2020 he'll be indicted and arrested in January 2021

this is Pelosi's game plan

[Vidal]

39. What Nick Akerman said last night on TV - impeachment is coming this year

Akerman is one of my favorite analysts. He worked on the Watergate case, and he is very knowledgeable.

He said last night that he thinks the House will start impeachment proceedings against Trump later this year.

He said that the complexity of the case requires people to be better educated on Trump's crimes (which include tax evasion, money laundering, etc) before that step is taken. And that it is happening via the ongoing Judiciary Committee's investigations.

In short: BE PATIENT. All will be revealed.

They have started the impeachment "process" but are not yet calling it "impeachment" --- yet.

[kentuck]

40. This issue is beginning to divide the Democrats.

It seems to me?

Why not let the whole House vote to see if they believe an impeachment inquiry should begin? If the entire House votes to begin the inquiry, then let the House Judiciary and Nadler manage it?

[EffieBlack]

41. Democrats not all agreeing with each other doesn't mean Democrats are divided

It means we're not unthinking robots like the Republicans.

And if you think Dems are divided now, wait to see what happens if they vote to "see if they believe an impeachment inquiry should begin." There aren't enough votes to proceed and if Democrats vote now and defeat a resolution, it would be a disaster.

Pelosi knows that and isn't going to let the "Impeachment NOW or Else" crowd goad her into leading her troops into a sure slaughter.

[kentuck]

43. Exactly!

"And if you think Dems are divided now, wait to see what happens if they vote to "see if they believe an impeachment inquiry should begin." There aren't enough votes to proceed and if Democrats vote now and defeat a resolution, it would be a disaster."

[Vidal]

45. Yes. Disaster.

you are right.

[Vidal]

44. It will fail if brought to a House vote

everything I've read said only about 50 House Dems will vote to impeach. So Nancy won't bring it to a vote until she's sure it will pass. She's doing the right thing.

[beachbum bob]

48. do a practice run on AG BArr, perhaps then democrats will find their courage to go big

[beachbum bob]

47. Pelosi needs to quit being afraid, lets go after Barr NOW for godsakes

[ehrnst]

64. Why do you think she's making decisions out of fear? (nt)

[gordianot]

50. Broke, incarcerated, hospitalized, permanent intervention or any combination.

Trump is already disgraced and the object of scorn.

[Vidal]

52. Broke would be best

that would hurt him the most

[gordianot]

59. I agree!

[brush]

53. We all want him in prison, but if we don't impeach we may very well lose 2020

And of course I mean after public testimony which gets the public on board with impeachment.

[Vidal]

57. Right: After public testimony then everyone will know he's a criminal

then what Pelosi plans is to start calling it "impeachment" at that time.

[jalan48]

54. I'd like to see Trump in prison but the chances of that are zero. Sounds good though.

[Turin_C3PO]

55. Not zero.

State of New York just might indict him when he leaves office. It’s a possibility.

[jalan48]

56. Right-that's out next big hope now that the Mueller investigation fizzled out? It will never happen.

[Vidal]

60. it could happen

nt

[jalan48]

61. We can't even impeach him and yet he might go to prison? It wasn't that long ago Mueller

was connecting the dots and Trump's days were numbered. Now it's Trump might go to prison. Fantasy land.

[Vidal]

62. But once he is no longer president, he could be indicted and convicted of crimes.

nt

[jalan48]

63. When's the last time that happened? We have Impeachment as long as we control the House. That's it.

Imagining something else is just diversion at this point in time.

[ehrnst]

65. It was an offhand remark in a meeting, and reported anonymously.

https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/congress/pelosi-reportedly-told-democrats-she-would-rather-see-trump-prison-n1014516

NBC News confirmed that Pelosi said, "I don't want to see him impeached, I want to see him in prison."

Politico did not characterize the full context or tone of Pelosi's comment, but a congressional aide who was in the room told NBC News that her remark was "consistent with her position that Trump needs to be removed electorally in 2020."

The Washington Post also said two sources told the paper that the meeting was not particularly contentious and that they described Pelosi's comments as offhand.

"They agreed to keep all options on the table and continue to move forward with an aggressive hearing and legislative strategy, as early as next week, to address the president's corruption and abuses of power uncovered in the report," the spokeswoman, Ashley Etienne, said in a statement Wednesday.