Katko must vote to impeach Trump (Commentary)
Updated Jan 11, 2021; Posted Jan 11, 2021
Congressional Democrats want to impeach President Donald Trump for a second time over his role in the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection at the Capitol. The commentator calls on Rep. John Katko (right) to support impeachment. (Evan Vucci | AP / Dennis Nett |
By David M. Driesen
David M. Driesen is University Professor at the College of Law at Syracuse University. The views expressed are his own, not those of the university.
Rep. John Katko swore an oath "to support and defend the Constitution . . . against all enemies foreign and domestic." That oath of office requires him to vote to impeach President Donald Trump, who attacked the Constitution by instigating an insurrection.
Trump told a mob organized by white supremacist organizations — which have been preaching overthrow of the government and instigating our most deadly terrorist attacks for years — to "walk down to the Capitol" to "confront this egregious assault on our democracy." The "assault on our democracy" Trump assailed was the recognition of the conclusion of bipartisan canvassing boards and state secretaries of state of both parties that Joe Biden had won the election by some 7 million votes, a largely ceremonial process in American elections.
Trump whipped up a crowd of his most violent followers that day by telling them that the election had been stolen. As Katko has acknowledged, Trump's statements about widespread fraud are lies. An unprecedented 60 lawsuits failed to prove a single case of fraud, let alone the unimaginable operation that could swing tens of thousands of votes in multiple swing states. These are the kind of lies authoritarians the world over use to incite coups and destroy democracies.
Katko faults Trump for inciting violence at U.S. Capitol
Katko said the president crossed a new line Wednesday
Trump's harangue also instructed his mob of extremists to march to the Capitol and to "show strength," because "we're never going to take back our country with weakness." These incendiary words are not words encouraging peaceful protests. And weeks before the rally occurred, Trump invited a riot in the indirect language of a mob boss, saying "be there [on Jan. 6] will be wild." Before that he had told the "Proud Boys," notorious instigators of violence, to "stand back and stand by," priming these thugs for action.
As the assault on the Capitol began, Trump aided and abetted the sedition he instigated by failing to immediately tell the rioters to leave the Capitol. And afterwards, when he finally did tell them to leave (under pressure from Republicans) he told his terrorists that "We love you. You're very special," thereby keeping the connection needed for subsequent violence.
Impeachment is obviously the imperative response to inciting insurrection. It is what impeachment was designed to prevent. But there are several related reasons why Katko must do all he can to secure removal as rapidly as possible.
Katko's oath of office does not permit him to risk a successful coup in Trump's remaining days, even if he thinks the risk small. Trump told his most extreme supporters before the insurrection began that he would "never give up, never concede," which is consistent with a willingness to stage a final coup or disrupt the inauguration. On Thursday, under enormous pressure Trump stated that "there will be an orderly transition of power" on Jan. 20. But Trump lies so often that his word means absolutely nothing.
Most importantly, removal via impeachment bars Trump from ever running for president again. Trump presents the greatest internal threat our Constitution has faced since the Civil War. This incitement to riot represents but the latest chapter in a concerted effort since 2015 to divide America and attack our electoral democracy with vicious lies in order to seize power. If Trump can run again, he will continue his efforts to sabotage and divide America. Before the 2016 election, he told us he would never honor the result of an election he lost, saying "I'll . . . accept the election results if I win." When he won the electoral college vote, he falsely claimed that the popular majority he failed to win reflected some sort of fraud. Before this election he said the only way he would lose is if the election was fraudulent, thereby again conditioning followers to resist a lawful election he might lose. Trump's words and actions tell us that he will foment another insurrection if he loses another electoral bid. To fail to vote to impeach this authoritarian President represents a clear breach of a congressman's obligation to protect and defend the Constitution.
Voting for impeachment requires courage precisely because Trump has succeeded, as demagogues often do, in persuading many constituents to accept an alternative reality. But the history of fascist movements shows that appeasement of mob rule courts disaster. The Framers put the Impeachment and Oath Clauses in the Constitution to get public officials to remove elected demagogues (even those with majority support) who betray our democracy before it's too late. Katko's oath requires a vote for impeachment.
Also in Opinion: Editorial cartoons for Jan. 10, 2021: Riot at the Capitol, Trump presidency in flames