Will Trump Impeachment Talks Begin After Comey Testifies To Senate?


Fired FBI Director James Comey is expected to testify publicly soon, where he could make bombshell statements on his interactions with President Donald Trump.

Comey is reportedly testifying before Senate as early as next week, a source told CNN on Wednesday. The subject of his testimony will be on Trump’s pressuring him to end the FBI’s investigation of General Michael Flynn, who retired after it was discovered that he was talking to the Russian ambassador about lifting the country’s sanctions and then lied about the nature of his conversations to Vice President Mike Pence.

A date has not been worked out for Comey’s testimony, though he is expected to speak with the Senate Intelligence Committee, who are investigating Trump and his team’s ties to Russia. Comey is not expected to discuss details of the FBI’s investigation during his testimony, but he could make claims about Trump’s eagerness to shut it down, according to CNN.

Even if Comey’s testimony isn’t the silver bullet for Trump opponents looking to see charges brought against him, the source close to the situation suggested that the former FBI director is ready to reveal as much as he can.

“The bottom line is he’s going to testify,” the source stated. “He’s happy to testify, and he’s happy to cooperate.”

Former FBI Director James Comey [Image by AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster]

Comey’s upcoming testimony comes at a rough time in Trump’s presidency as polls suggest there is a growing desire for impeachment. A poll from Politico/Morning Consult was published this week revealing that those for a Trump impeachment has risen from by five percentage points. Morning Consult Co-Founder and Chief Research Officer Kyle Dropp said that Trump’s recent trip overseas might not have had much impact on those hoping impeachment proceedings would begin.

“If President Trump was hoping his foreign trip would shift the conversation away from scandals, he may be out of luck,” Dropp said. “Over the last week, support for beginning impeachment proceedings among voters rose from 38 percent to 43 percent.”

Even if there are no impeachable offenses against Trump, 54 percent of those who favor starting the impeachment process think he should be taken out of office regardless. As the poll states, this majority thinks Trump “has proven he is unfit to serve and should be removed from office, regardless of whether he committed an impeachable offense or not.” The poll reveals that only 43 percent of those who hope for impeachment proceedings actually believe he has committed crimes.

Meanwhile, 45 percent do not want to see Congress make any steps towards impeaching Trump, which Politico reports is down from 46 percent the previous week. The dividing line between Democrats and Republicans shows through here, with 71 percent of left-leaning voters favoring a Trump impeachment and 76 percent of right-leaning voters opposed to the idea.

Donald Trump at the Joint Session of Congress [Image by Jim Lo Scalzo – Pool/Getty Images]

The likelihood of Trump impeachment proceedings beginning anytime soon is unlikely, according to some experts, because of the Republican-controlled Congress. Dr. Daniel Savage of Northeastern State University spoke with the Tahlequah Daily Press recently about how there would need to be a big motivating factor for the GOP to turn against a Republican president.

“Because Republicans control every branch of government, it is unlikely they would move ahead with the process unless Republican voters abandon the president in droves. We don’t see that happening yet. His approval ratings are low, but he is maintaining the 35-40 percent support that indicates that voters who strongly identify with the Republican Party have not abandoned him yet. If his approval ratings were to dip below 30 percent, then we might see some action from Republicans in Congress in an attempt to protect themselves.”

Two former presidents were impeached by the House of Representatives — Andrew Johnson and Bill Clinton, though both were later acquitted by the Senate.

[Featured Image by Evan Vucci/AP Photo]

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