Pretzel Logic- while being a best seller for recording artist Steely Dan, it befuddles a nation when Congress employs it. Pretzel Logic is defined as “twisted or circular reasoning that when dissected is wrong, does not make sense or does not explain the situation rationally.”
I listened all day long while the House conducted impeachment proceedings. You would have to be listening to the actual proceedings as sound bites could not do this momentous event justice. I repeatedly heard that the President “thinks he is a king.” The Constitution forbids titles of nobility (Article 1, Section 8, Clause 8). Our Forefathers deeply agreed that we were not to fall back in the ways of England. I heard many on one side of the aisle refer to this country as a “democracy.” It is not now, nor has it ever been a democracy. It is a Constitutional Republic. (We have been conditioned to accept the word “democracy,” which would change our form of government if we accept this). Mind you, people in the highest offices in this country call it a “democracy.” The signers of the U.S. Constitution are flipping over in their graves. If they could weep, they would.
What I did not hear is a violation of Article 2, Section 4 which says, “The President, Vice President and all civil Officers of the United States, shall be removed from Office on Impeachment for, and Conviction of, Treason, Bribery, or other high Crimes and Misdemeanors.” No evidence was given for any crime.
What convinced me that this impeachment is political is that a fair process did not take place. I want the same process for the POTUS as I wish for you and I. Our country talks a lot about “fairness.” That means you are innocent until proven guilty. You have a right to legal representation. You have the right to face your accusers and give your side of the story. We have a right to a jury of our peers that have been selected by the prosecution and the defense. I expect that in something as serious as impeachment, a fair proceeding would take place. I would see Congress looking for facts, not feelings or misinterpretation about those facts. I wanted to see who would step up and represent the President’s side of the story and the legal position behind it.
You see, if Congress can hold an impeachment that is not in keeping with the Founders’ original intent, they can vote to change the rules for you and I as well. It’s about us- We the People. Never lose sight of that. If you can be “taken out” by a justice system because you are not like-minded, or even liked, for that matter, then justice no longer exists. If one of us isn’t safe, none of us is safe. I realize that there has been “shady” justice done to regular Americans. It should always be our quest, that each one of us is treated equally under the law- not according to how the judge and jury feel. In this case, that’s Congress.
Applying Common Sense Civics and Citizenship: If this Impeachment is not sent to trial in the Senate (Look for managers to be appointed in the House to be present in a Senate trial), then I will be certain that this was at best, a sham, and at worst, an attempt to turn the Constitution on its head.
This is Common Sense Civics and Citizenship.
