Firing of James Comey...and Sally Yates...and Preet Bahara
 

I think the odds for impeachment just became a lot more favorable. The pattern here is obvious, reprehensible, and frightening. I don't think Pence is an improvement - in many ways he might be worse - but at least he's honest.

(Wasn't Sally Yates wonderful? Gee, maybe Donald can put her in charge of the FBI.)

It all depends of if the republicans step up and regain some sense of legitimacy and do what Huge Scott and Barry Goldwater and Howard Baker did in 1976. I'm not optimistic.

Therein lies the problem. The GOP has by and large turned a blind eye to this to push their own agenda. One would hope this firing would wake them up to the real danger--and remind them their first duty is to their country and not their party--but...

I suspect that Pence has a secret contingency plan on when to pull the plug on Trump, which the Speaker of the House and other top ranking Republicans are in on. All they need are clearly impeachable offenses committed by The Donald. They may have them already, but could be holding their fire until the optimum time.

The Democrats could do a lot of the shovel work in digging up the dirt on Trump (if they haven't done already). But, on the other hand, do they really want Trump out of office? He's probably their best fundraiser since the Clintons. Pence and company in control might actually get some results. The Dems probably won't give the info to the Reps, but the latter can hire hackers to get it. Servers stashed in restaurant bathrooms can be hacked by bright 16 year olds.

Then, one must recall the huge files J. Edgar Hoover had on all the top politicos. Trump's people are likely digging into the dirt Comey probably had on them as I write this.

The whole situation is positively Shakespearean. It could be the best free show in town since Watergate.

As some prominent Boston politico once said, "Politics ain't beanbag."

My distaste for Trump runs as high as anyone's. I voted for Clinton. Didn't even have to hold my nose. But it's worth noting during this news event that most Democrats and liberals feel Comey is an asshole for the way he handled the Clinton email situation, and no small number of them called for his dismissal then. So, all the liberal outrage makes me smile a bit.

Richard

Well said, Richard.

To my mind, and i do speak as a liberal, it's quite possible to believe that Comey abused his power and that his firing is an equally if not perhaps more egregious abuse of power. The two are not mutually exclusive. I think that both events represent sad days for American democracy.

My objection was and remains to the idea that a candidate for president might collude with bad actors - say, Putin - to obtain the Oval Office. I think I set the bar high for impeachment, but that would qualify. Just as Nixon's collusion did.

The trouble with Pence is that he might be competent. I think I'd prefer Donaeld's relatively ineffective buffoonery.

I side with Kant in choosing principle over pragmatism. If Trump committed an impeachable offense, and evidence surfaces, then i want to see that constitutional process take place. Who replaces him should not dictate the process of the law to my mind.
Institutional integrity matters.

And on that note, it's worth noting that Sessions recused himself from all matters pertaining both to the Russia investigation and the Clinton email affair. And then called for Comey's firing. Perhaps the sounds that came out of his mouth in recusing himself were mistakenly interpreted as words in the English language, and he was actually emitting random noises.

Calculating between Trump or Pence only lets the cancer grow. Trump clearly has something to hide. What it is should be found out and if it warrants impeachment and conviction it should be done. I fear his incompetence more than I do Pence's small-mindedness anyway.

As to the idea of liberal hypocrisy, that isn't the issue and to bring it up is to play into the destruction Trump is doing. This isn't typical partisan politics. Hypocrisy has nothing to do with the issue at hand. Democrats are showing some hypocrisy. Big deal. Trump is turning the presidency into a Putin-type regime.