Washington Times Commentary: Impeach the President?


Writing commentary in the Washington Times, Jeffrey T. Kuhner says that if Obama signs a healthcare bill which is presented to him through the so-called “Slaughter Solution” he will be violating the Constitution and will have committeed “high crimes and misdemeanors” warranting impeachment.

The Democrats are assaulting the very pillars of our democracy. As the debate on Obamacare reaches the long, painful end, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is confronting a political nightmare. She may not have the 216 votes necessary to pass the Senate’s health care bill in the House.

Hence, Mrs. Pelosi and her congressional Democratic allies are seriously considering using a procedural ruse to circumvent the traditional constitutional process. Led by Rep. Louise M. Slaughter, New York Democrat and chairman of the House Rules Committee, the new plan – called the “Slaughter Solution” – is not to pass the Senate version on an up-or-down vote. Rather, it is to have the House “deem” that the legislation was passed and then have members vote directly on a series of “sidecar” amendments to fix the things it does not like.

This would enable House Democrats to avoid going on the record voting for provisions in the Senate bill – the “Cornhusker Kickback,” the “Louisiana Purchase,” the tax on high-cost so-called “Cadillac” insurance plans – that are reviled by the public or labor-union bosses. If the reconciliation fixes pass, the House can send the Senate bill to President Obama for his signature without ever having had a formal up-or-down vote on the underlying legislation.

Such a move would be in violation of the Constitution, according to Kuhner and others.

The Slaughter Solution is a poisoned chalice. By drinking from it, the Democrats would not only commit political suicide. They would guarantee that any bill signed by Mr. Obama is illegitimate, illegal and blatantly unconstitutional. It would be worse than a strategic blunder; it would be a crime – a moral crime against the American people and a direct abrogation of the Constitution and our very democracy.

It would open Mr. Obama, as well as key congressional leaders such as Mrs. Pelosi, to impeachment. The Slaughter Solution would replace the rule of law with arbitrary one-party rule. It violates the entire basis of our constitutional government – meeting the threshold of “high crimes and misdemeanors.” If it’s enacted, Republicans should campaign for the November elections not only on repealing Obamacare, but on removing Mr. Obama and his gang of leftist thugs from office.

It is time Americans drew a line in the sand. Mr. Obama crosses it at his peril.

Interesting times we live in.

Read the whole article here.

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2 thoughts on “Washington Times Commentary: Impeach the President?

  1. This is seditious treason. The President has a mandate and he is following it. Pure and simple. If you don't like it, move to the Russian Republic! I hear it's worse there.

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  2. Mary P, you are obviously a product of a school system that does not teach civics or the American Constitution. If the President signs a bill that was created without following the Constitution he will be subject to impeachment. Read the Constitution.

    Secondly, I am someone who believes in individual freedom. That is why I oppose the statist in the White House. The Russian Republican has a little less freedom than the US will have if this bill passes.

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