House Conservatives fear Democrats too much to call for Obama’s impeachment

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Do Democrats ever stop fighting? Do Democrats ever worry about riling up the Republican base such that they will lose an election? Sure, Democrats largely have the media on their side. But even so, they NEVER stop fighting for what they believe in, no matter how hypocritical it may make them look.

But Republicans on the other hand don’t fight. We’ve seen it time and time again with this Republican Congress, capitulating over and over to the Democrats and Obama, giving them nearly everything they want whether it’s a tax increase or a debt ceiling increase or just all the spending they desire.

So it was no surprise that when Sarah Palin called for Obama’s impeachment, that Boehner and others in Republican leadership would disagree so quickly.

But what about House conservatives?

NATIONAL JOURNAL – At their monthly “Conversations with Conservatives” luncheon, six of the House Republican conference’s leading conservative voices rejected the possibility of impeachment outright. For one thing, they argue, there’s not much time left in the term for a lengthy impeachment process. But they also suggested that the consequences of taking that kind of action against the president could be politically dangerous for the Republican Party.

Rep. Raul Labrador, R-Idaho, said he didn’t believe that the president’s actions have yet reached the level of impeachable offenses and argued that the party shouldn’t “even be talking about impeachment at this time.” Asked specifically about Palin’s comments in a Fox News online column titled “The Case for Obama’s Impeachment,” Labrador noted that she, as a former governor, has more leeway to make such bold declarations and does not have to deal with the consequences. “[Palin] doesn’t have the burden of leadership right now, and it’s very easy for her to go on Fox News and make statements that she doesn’t have to be accountable to anybody but herself,” he said.

Rep. Tim Huelskamp, R-S.D., added that political analysts who have looked at the possibility of an impeachment proceeding have found time and again that it would merely rile up the Democratic base, just in time for November’s midterm elections. What’s more, it could turn off independent voters who “right now are leaning our way,” he added. “So if you want to help the Democrats keep control of the Senate, this would be the right way to do that,” Huelskamp said.

Why are Republican more concerned about not riling up the Democrat base than riling up the conservative base? This is a similar argument that was made back when Ted Cruz was calling for the House to control the purse and defund Obamacare. Ted Cruz knew that even if he didn’t outright win the argument, that it’s important to fight to show the American people that there is something worth fighting for. We have principles and if we’re not going to stand up and fight for our principles, then what good are we?

In the same way, the argument for impeachment isn’t just about impeaching the president. I don’t really think Sarah Palin believes impeachment will actually happen. But she understands, like Ted Cruz, that there is more at stake than just the president’s impeachment, that the American people need to know that the president has simply crossed too many lines and it’s time to say ‘no mas’, that it’s time to fight back.

But alas, fear seems to be contagious in the Republican Party and it has a way of filtering down from Republican leadership into those who you would hope wouldn’t be so susceptible.

So once again Republicans are letting the air out of the balloon, proving they are afraid to risk everything and fight for the heart and soul of this country.

Republicans just don’t get it.


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