Donald Trump just took his feud with Mitt Romney to a whole new self defeating level
If only the head of the United States could take a few minutes and read the Constitution or understand anything. President Donald Trump does not know anything about our government or how it works or what it says. In another tweet binge, he has retweeted or tweeted falsehoods, stupidity and nonsense, because it’s a day ending in “y.” But his lack of understanding of the Constitution is horrifying.
For example, check out one of Trump’s latest tweets about Mitt Romney: “I’m hearing that the Great People of Utah are considering their vote for their Pompous Senator, Mitt Romney, to be a big mistake. I agree! He is a fool who is playing right into the hands of the Do Nothing Democrats! #IMPEACHMITTROMNEY”
That is not how any of this works. The Constitution provides for who may be impeached, providing that the “President, Vice President, and all civil officers of the United States” may be impeached. That definition does not include Congressmembers. Their own chamber might remove them, but it doesn’t “impeach” them. For good reason, as it would really be political and they would be attacking and judging their own.
Trump has been tweeting about Romney all day, who had the audacity to state what is reality: Trump has appeared to have committed impeachable offenses. Trump said about Romney: “Mitt Romney never knew how to win. He is a pompous “ass” who has been fighting me from the beginning, except when he begged me for my endorsement for his Senate run (I gave it to him), and when he begged me to be Secretary of State (I didn’t give it to him). He is so bad for R’s!”
Trump should carefully consider attacking members of what will be his impeachment jury. Unlike his hero, Roy Cohn, and tactics of intimidating potential jurors in mob trials, pushing the Senators who will decide your fate is not smart. But then again, the president may be a “smart ass” but is not very intelligent.
Daniel is a lawyer writing and teaching about SCOTUS, and is the author of the book “The Chief Justices” about the SCOTUS as seen through the center seat.