Donald Trump Impeachment: Can James Comey’s Firing Lead To Impeachment Proceedings?


As the United States, and the world in general, tries to process FBI Director James Comey’s shocking firing, calls for President Donald Trump’s impeachment have again become deafening. And it appears to be more than just people taking to the streets or to the internet to demand that this happens.

A report from Newsweek stressed that ever since Trump assumed office in January of this year, the 45th President of the United States of America’s tenure has been colored by allegations that his campaign and the Russian government may have colluded to rig the results in his favor. And with FBI Director James Comey having been fired from his job on Wednesday morning, that also represents the firing of the person who is in charge of investigating these allegations. Without Comey leading the FBI, this could galvanize the public to demand that a special prosecutor makes things happen and makes sure the Donald Trump impeachment pushes forward.

According to Vox’s Matthew Yglesias, it still isn’t sure what could happen if it is proven that Trump and his allies had teamed up with the Kremlin and “colluded” to give the Republican Party an edge in last November’s elections. But with Trump having relieved Comey of his duties as FBI director, that’s a different story altogether, as that may amount of an actual impeachable offense — obstruction of justice.

[Image by Zach Gibson/Getty Images]

Vox’s Yglesias stressed that probable cause for a Donald Trump impeachment is “everywhere” at this point in the game, even if it cannot be proven that the President did try to obstruct justice. Media coverage of the James Comey firing also seems to suggest that there was something fishy at play, with allegations such as Attorney General Jeff Sessions supposedly looking for an airtight excuse to sack Comey for the past several months, as the New York Times wrote yesterday. To this end, Vox believes that the mainstays of the Trump Russian drama should offer sworn statements, with legal literature regarding the reasons why Comey was fired also necessary for a “separate investigation.”

“Was it because Trump suddenly decided in mid-May that Comey’s handling of the Clinton emails was unforgivable, or was it because Trump was trying to obstruct justice?

The answer makes a huge difference.”

In the time since James Comey was fired, social media users took to their favorite platforms to call for Donald Trump’s impeachment, with #ImpeachTrumpNow trending worldwide on Twitter, according to Newsweek. This was accompanied by yet another Trump Twitter rant, where the President reportedly promised to replace Comey with someone who could “bring back the spirit and prestige” of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, while also retweeting lists from conservative website The Drudge Report that detailed alleged scandals the FBI was involved in with Comey overseeing the agency.

Activity on the petition website ImpeachDonaldTrumpNow.org also appears to have picked up significantly since James Comey’s firing. Almost two months ago, the Inquisitr reported that the site had reached a milestone 900,000 signatures. As of 6:25 a.m. EDT, almost 959,000 people to date have signed the petition in favor of Trump’s impeachment, or about 8,000 new signatures compared to about 12 hours prior.

[Image by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images]

Even traditionally conservative pundits were suggesting that Donald Trump’s path to impeachment may have taken a huge step with James Comey’s firing. The Washington Post’s Jennifer Rubin, for instance, wrote on Wednesday morning that Congress doesn’t have any choice but to find out why the President fired his FBI director so quickly, without any advance warning.

“That should entail questioning under oath of any persons aware of or involved in the firing process and ultimately an accounting by the president of his own actions.”

Although there has been a renewed cry for Donald Trump’s impeachment following the James Comey firing, one shouldn’t expect impeachment to lead to Trump’s — or anybody else’s — removal from the presidency. Newsweek noted that former Presidents Bill Clinton and Andrew Johnson were previously impeached over a hundred years apart from each other, but were not removed by, nor convicted by the Senate.

Further, recent comments from Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) on Anderson Cooper 360 suggest that America is still “very far” from the possibility of a Donald Trump impeachment, even if the Comey firing could easily lead to proceedings.

[Featured Image by Alex Wong/Getty Images]

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