It’s risky to write about process. Substance is much more gripping. In a murder investigation, it’s more interesting to discover the perp was Col. Mustard, with a candlestick, in the library, than to learn that evidence against the military gent is inadmissible because he wasn’t read his Miranda rights.
So I venture into this letter with trepidation, for my purpose is to touch on the idea that democracy is not about “what” but “how” — process not substance. What makes America democratic is not that we have elections — so did Saddam Hussein’s Iraq — but that voters’ free choice is honored and power is placed, as prescribed by the Constitution, in the hands of the victors. Elected officials make laws, which are then applied equally to everyone.
Which, like everything else in Washington, brings me to impeachment. President Trump is in a world of trouble because he asked Ukraine’s president, not in so many words but clearly enough, to get him dirt on his presidential challenger, Joe Biden. This was foolish, and the Democratic majority in the House must decide whether to impeach Trump for it. It seems certain that they will and that Senate Republicans will acquit him. They might hesitate if there is substantial public support for impeachment, so each will trash the other more fervently than ever in coming months.
But, as I said last week, impeachment was always many Democrats’ goal. The route, not the destination, was in doubt. That’s because many of them, including Trump’s Torquemada, House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff, have never accepted the 2016 election result.
Those who’ve demanded, since day one, that Trump be ousted (because he is illegitimate, stole the election, smashes norms, is a vulgarian, etc.) claim they’re protecting democracy and the rule of law. Many genuinely believe it. But they have undermined faith in those institutions to an extent that President Vladimir Putin, in his Machiavellian scheming, could not have dreamed of while meddling in 2016.
Ousting the voters’ choice to save democracy is like destroying the village to save it. Unconvincing. If you finally find a way of doing it after unceasing tendentious efforts for three years, don’t expect fair-minded people to hop on board your bandwagon. Schiff lying about his contacts with the whistleblower before his complaint was sent to Congress does not bespeak concern for a transparency and fairness of process.
There are parallels across the policy spectrum. If you create a sanctuary city, don’t expect people to believe you’re interested in democratic decisions on immigration. If you want to pack the Supreme Court to get decisions you like, don’t expect people to believe you respect the Constitution. If you impeach a president at whom for years you’ve flung falsehoods and tried to undermine, don’t expect people to believe you have the good of the country at heart. Process counts.
Impeachment is our focus this week, with excellent reads by W. James Antle III, Susan Ferrechio, Rob Crilly, and Jay Cost.
