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In-Depth Interview: If Impeachment Is Based on Russiagate, David Swanson Is Against It

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Longtime progressive activist–and longtime impeachment advocate–David Swanson says if impeachment centers on Russiagate, he opposes it.Swanson is the author of War Is A Lie and Curing Exceptionalism; he manages petition campaigns at RootsAction.org, hosts the Talk Nation Radio podcast, and is a tireless activist and organizer.

Swanson posted these comments just as the Democrats who control the House Judiciary Committee have passed rules for an “impeachment inquiry”.  Swanson has supported impeachment for Trump before he was sworn in, and collected a million signatures in support of impeachment.  But as he observes chairman Jerry Nadler focus on the failed Russiagate narrative, Swanson sees an effort that is doomed to fail and could ensure a second Trump term with greater impunity.

In this lively conversation, we discuss the pro’s and con’s, and Speaker Pelosi’s resistance to impeachment in the hopes of retaining the majority in 2020 for which there is no guarantee.  Swanson ticks off a litany of misdeeds that Trump can be impeached for, and agrees that the Michael Cohen plea deal is a clear case of obstruction, seeing the Democrats’ call for more investigation as a stalling tactic.  He also argues that an attempted impeachment based on Russiagate would be bad for impeachment itself.

We explore the nation that Pelosi may have a clever plan to approve a bill of impeachment close to the 2020 election, forcing any Senate hearings into the lame duck session; Swanson is doubtful.