Justin Amash Has Thrown Away the Scabbard

There's an old proverb I'm referencing: "He who draws his sword against his prince must throw away the scabbard."

At a packed town hall event yesterday in Grand Rapids, Republican Justin Amash (Michigan-3) got a standing ovation as he doubled- and tripled-down on his conclusion that Twitterman has committed multiple impeachable offenses. "My job is to protect the Constitution," Amash said to loud applause.

The 3rd Congressional District of Michigan is rated "solid Republican." The Cook Partisan Voter Index rates it as R+6, which means that in 2018 this district's voting results were 6 percentage points more Republican than the national average. Amash won this seat in the Tea Party wave of 2010, running as a tea partier, and he's easily held it ever since.

What did people expect at this town hall? A phalanx of Trumpists screaming at Amash for daring to oppose The Leader? Booing and hissing from Michigan Republicans who've all signed their loyalty pledge to Trump, probably in blood? That did not happen. Instead, Amash got applause and support for his courage for standing up for the rule of law.

Maybe Amash's bravery can become a thing in the Congressional Republican ranks? On second thought ... naw, ain't gonna happen. Those guys and gals are way too cowed now by Trump to stand up to him. We'd be almost satisfied if the ancient skill of reading got a refresher among Republicans, let alone the courage of calling out abusive power, greed, and lawlessness.

Accusing Justin Amash of being a RINO is just laughable. Accusing him of being "a loser," as Twitterman did, also defies logic, common sense, and a grasp on reality.

Whaaa! A Republican Who Not Only CAN Read But Who Did Read!

Rep. Justin Amash, a very conservative Republican who represents the 3rd District of Michigan, read the Mueller report -- all of it as redacted by A.G. Barr -- and made this string of comments below on Twitter yesterday. Beginning about 24 hours ago, Amash wrote what amounts to what surely will become an historical document -- a declaration of logic and principle now missing from the makeup of (pretty much) all other Republican members of Congress (Lindsey Graham, we're especially looking at you).

You've probably seen the 1st comment in this string, but have you read the whole? And can you appreciate the fortitude it took to write it?

Here are my principal conclusions: 1. Attorney General Barr has deliberately misrepresented Mueller’s report. 2. President Trump has engaged in impeachable conduct. 3. Partisanship has eroded our system of checks and balances. 4. Few members of Congress have read the report.

I offer these conclusions only after having read Mueller’s redacted report carefully and completely, having read or watched pertinent statements and testimony, and having discussed this matter with my staff, who thoroughly reviewed materials and provided me with further analysis.

Barr’s misrepresentations are significant but often subtle, frequently taking the form of sleight-of-hand qualifications or logical fallacies, which he hopes people will not notice.

Under our Constitution, the president “shall be removed from Office on Impeachment for, and Conviction of, Treason, Bribery, or other high Crimes and Misdemeanors.” While “high Crimes and Misdemeanors” is not defined, the context implies conduct that violates the public trust.

Contrary to Barr’s portrayal, Mueller’s report reveals that President Trump engaged in specific actions and a pattern of behavior that meet the threshold for impeachment.

In fact, Mueller’s report identifies multiple examples of conduct satisfying all the elements of obstruction of justice, and undoubtedly any person who is not the president of the United States would be indicted based on such evidence.

Impeachment, which is a special form of indictment, does not even require probable cause that a crime (e.g., obstruction of justice) has been committed; it simply requires a finding that an official has engaged in careless, abusive, corrupt, or otherwise dishonorable conduct.

While impeachment should be undertaken only in extraordinary circumstances, the risk we face in an environment of extreme partisanship is not that Congress will employ it as a remedy too often but rather that Congress will employ it so rarely that it cannot deter misconduct.

Those who haven't read the Mueller Report have no right to attack Rep. Amash's conclusions, especially the Non-Reader in Chief. (You haven't read it either, have you, Virginia Foxx?)

Twitterman went full schoolyard bully this morning, calling Amash a "loser" and "a total lightweight who opposes me and some of our great Republican ideas and policies just for the sake of getting his name out there through controversy." No attempt in that juvenile rejoinder to dispute Amash's logic and his understanding of the Constitution.

"Amash, who has been described as the 'new Ron Paul' due to his Libertarian beliefs, has broken ranks with the Republican party before — and especially against Mr. Trump, whom he did not endorse in 2016. Earlier this year, he was one of 14 Republican representatives who tried to override Mr. Trump's veto over an emergency declaration for the border wall. In March, Amash did not rule out running for president as a Libertarian in 2020." [Caroline Linton]