I’m on the fence.

It’s not that Trump doesn’t deserve impeachment – he surely does, simply because he violates the oath of office every day. All his governing, his tweeting, his appointments and priorities are to the benefit of his personal comfort and wealth, not the nation. He violates his Oath in lying constantly about what he’s doing. He violates it by betraying our people in favor of enemies like Putin and Kim Jong-un, and our more unsavory allies like Mohammad bin Salman.

And all of that’s even before you get to the possible obstruction of justice, emoluments or inappropriate acceptance of help from Russians (and others? there’re probably others *sigh*). Robert Mueller’s hearings before the House Judicial and Intelligence committees happened 3 days ago, and the case against Trump and his minions is, if not more fully explained, is more solidified.

So.

To impeach or not to impeach? I know I’m not alone in figuring out how to straddle this fence, and when it’s time to step down to the ground on one side or another.

The constitution asks us to bring Trump up for impeachment. It compels us to save the Democracy. In the back of my head, the founding Fathers are looking on in horror, begging us to Do The Right Thing.

And yet we are blocked – at this time – by the Senate, specifically by McConnell. For the House to vote for impeachment is no guarantee of removal from office; it might even make some of the hard core Republicans dig in their heals.

The conditions of our time demand he be removed as quickly as possible, because Trump is violating laws, upsetting institutions, and gutting both the structure and ideals of our government. Anything that could possibly boost Trump’s likelihood of winning another four years in the White House has to be avoided at all costs. An impeachment process that fizzles could help him more than it hurts him in 2020.

I’ll note here that for months I have had a strong suspicion that where we see different messaging on impeachment or any other issue coming from different factions within the House, Pelosi is managing that with the precision of a professional dog walker with 12 dogs on the leash.

I think she’s fostering, rather than trying to damp down the different voices of the Democratic members. The Squad (*flinch*) has strong opinions on Issue A? great, says the Pelosi in my mind: go out there and use your messaging This Way. You other more moderate reps? you employ your messaging in That Way. I truly believe that she encourages different viewpoints, and manages them to attain legislative goals. She is the master strategist, playing 3 dimensional chess more than Obama ever did.

So, I understand, and support what I think Pelosi is saying when she speaks to building a strong case for impeachment. At this time, there is almost no hope that the Senate would take up a trial. Impeachment in the House can only be helpful, useful, damning if Trump’s crimes are specifically, methodically laid out with irrefutable documentation and testimony supporting it. With that, his removal would be assured by a public that would never vote for him. If enough voters rally for the Democratic nominee, Russian ratfucking of our election process (hopefully?) wouldn’t be able to tip the scales.

So, for now, I come down on the side of Yes, Impeach! but let Pelosi pace it. I have to assume she knows more about what is going on than I could ever possibly know, and that she’s perfectly suited to managing the three, or five, or eleventy seven ring circus that is the reality of our times.