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Dont get your hopes up about impeaching President Donald Trump.

Sorry to be a Debbie Downer during a week in which we all watched with semi-horrified delight at the increasingly speedy political suicide of Trump and his people. But no matter how much treachery he manufactures, the congressional Republicans will never, ever impeach him. Even given his latest series of unforgivable crimes, including obstruction of justice, abuse of power and flagrantly betraying our intelligence partners, the GOP doesnt care. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell especially doesnt care no matter how much the Democrats scream on the floor of the Senate, he doesnt care.

The only possible route for Trump to be ousted from the presidency is for him to voluntarily resign. Certainly, Republican leadership could ultimately coax him in that direction, as they did with Richard Nixon. But we have no indication whatsoever that Trump, unlike Nixon, really cares about what his party whether that means McConnell, House Speaker Paul Ryan or the rest of the Trumpian enablers on Capitol Hill has to say.

While there will certainly be sane Republicans who will flirt with the impeachment option, getting our hopes up only to be dashed, there wont be nearly enough to generate a successful vote in the House. Worse, the Senate Republicans under McConnell will never vote to convict him. Ever. The requirement for two-thirds of the Senate to vote guilty would currently require 19 Republicans to vote with every single Democrat (plus the two independents). For the sake of reference:During the denouement of President Bill Clintons impeachment, the Republicans managed to whip only45 votes to convict on one count, and 50 votes on another. Not even close.

Reality aside, Trump damn well should be impeached immediately.

At the very least, there should be more outrage right now significantly more. There should be viral impeachment scuttlebutt inside nearly every D.C. corridor of power over the fact that Trump allowed two high-level members of a foreign government, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and ambassador (and reputed spy recruiter) Sergey Kislyak, into the Oval Office. The meeting was subsequently photographed, showing the president palling around and laughing with the Russians. Compare this to Trumps chilly summit with German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who, by the way, is being heralded as the de facto leader of the free world during the Trump crisis. All this despite the nearly incontrovertible fact that Russia deliberately tried to undermine our most sacred democratic institution: our presidential election.

For the sake of argument, forget collusion. Forget whom the Russians were fighting for. We know almost for certain that the Kremlin is waging an undeclared cyberwar against the United States. This is abundantly obvious. Its a war that continues now, as you read these words. Its not difficult to grasp that the mission of the war is to illustrate to the world the vulnerability of American constitutional democracy. And its working.

This cant be repeated enough: Were engaged in a new kind of war against Russia, with the commander in chief as well as millions of unwitting Americans serving as enemy combatants. We were attacked bottom line.

Yet in the tsunami of coverage this week and last about the Russians and especially now that weve learned Trump blabbed highly classified intelligence to Lavrov and Kislyak within apparent earshot of a TASS photographer during the meeting its been more or less overlooked that Trump welcomed enemy agents into the Oval Office. While there, they appeared to interact with the president of the United States like old college buddies the troika of co-conspirators with their unnaturally purple faces contorted in laughter, as if they had just finished telling their favorite fart jokes.

Youre probably old enough to remember how former President Barack Obama was excoriated by Fox News and the networks sugar daddies in the GOP when he was spotted saluting a Marine while holding a cup of coffee in the same hand. Remember the notorious tan suit? Remember when far-right bloggers learned Obama liked arugula salads and gherkins in his egg salad? Remember when Obama was caught chewing gum? Jesus H. Christ Trump met with an undeclared enemy of the U.S. and exactly nothing has been reported indicating that Trump even mentioned the cyberattacks, much less scolded the Russians to their bloated faces. We know why, of course. We dont, however, know why there isnt more public outcry about the very existence of the meeting, given the war.

In the age of Trump, its easy to miss the forest for the trees. There are so many layers of corruption being piled onto the slag heap that its nearly impossible to keep track of everything with only the most egregious offenses gurgling to the surface. In this case, however, the gigantic Cyrillic gorilla in the room is that Russia is at war against America, and Trump doesnt care. He doesnt care about stopping it. He doesnt care if hes seen palling around with the enemy. He doesnt care about saying anything to Lavrov, Kislyak or Putin because he thinks they like him and our desperately lonely president loves anyone who pretends to like him. On top of everything else, Trump is actively trying to obstruct the investigation into the extent of the attacks by firing acting Attorney General Sally Yates, New York U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara and FBI Director James Comey. (Check your Twitter feed: There mighthave been another firing while youre reading this.)

Again, the best we can hope for is that Trump will fire himself. Look to the end of the Nixon presidency, by way of the end of Sarah Palins governorship. Hell, Im sure Fox News would be thrilled to have him take over the Steve Doocy spot on Fox & Friends, and Im almost certain Trump would enjoy that gig more than the one hehas. But we need to ask ourselves why anyone, regardless of party, would support a president who so flagrantly gave aid and comfort to the enemy. Maybe Robert Mueller, the special counsel appointed on Wednesday to oversee the Trump-Russia investigation, will tell us more. As forimpeachment I wouldnt hold my breath.

Read the rest here:
Cool your jets, liberals: The impeachment of Donald Trump is a ... - Salon

Coulter Counters CNN: 'Liberals Are Violent Animals' CNSNews.com (blog) Conservative pundit Ann Coulter blasted CNN Correspondent Jake Tapper for his attack on President Donald Trump on Wednesday. In a commencement speech at the Coast Guard Academy in Groton, Conn., Trump cited himself as an example of someone ... and more »

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Coulter Counters CNN: 'Liberals Are Violent Animals' - CNSNews.com (blog)

The federal Liberals are looking to push more of the billions they plan to spend on infrastructure in the next decade directly into flood mitigation, hoping to avoid repeats of disasters in Quebec and Ontario this month.

Infrastructure Minister Amarjeet Sohi said the idea the Liberals will promote to provinces, territories and cities is to agree to spend the money over and above the $2 billion already set aside to help local governments defend against natural disasters like fire and flooding.

The move could potentially save the government hundreds of millions annually in disaster relief payments, which are expected to rise over the coming years.

In a report last year, the parliamentary budget officer estimated that payments through the disaster financial assistance arrangements could increase to more than $900 million a year over the next five years, including $673 million a year for flooding. Both costs are well above past averages paid out from the fund.

Through funding agreements with provinces and territories, Sohi said the government wants to negotiate language around dedicating resources towards flood mitigation and other disasters.

Its a concern and we definitely want to have those conversations with provinces and territories.

The push for more disaster funding will be part of what Sohi calls a green lens that local, provincial and territorial governments will use on proposed infrastructure projects before they can be approved for federal funding.

Sohi said the lens puts the focus on reducing greenhouse gas emissions during and after construction, as well as mitigating the impact of severe weather to reduce the cost of disasters on communities.

Not only the human cost and the pain, the anxiety that it causes and the disruption of life for people, but also the economic cost to clean up afterward and the impact on the overall economy. This is part of our broader infrastructure plan.

Sohi made the comments during a roundtable interview this week with The Canadian Press.

The green lens will be part of the second phase of the Liberals infrastructure plan, which is to dole out $81.2 billion on new, large-scale projects in cities and provinces over the next 10 years.

The money will flow only after provinces and territories sign funding agreements with the federal government, which will take months to conclude because of the size and scope of the plan.

The Liberals are banking on the infrastructure spending to prod economic growth to help boost federal finances that have been plunged into years of deficits partly because of the infrastructure plan.

Federal officials have been wrestling with how to frame the requirements in the upcoming funding agreements to make sure the money spurs more projects, known as incrementality in federal parlance, and not have provinces and cities replace planned spending with federal dollars.

Internal government documents show that municipalities in Ontario in particular have pushed the government to recognize their long-term capital plans as meeting the federal requirement for incrementality.

A January briefing note to Sohi ahead of a meeting with the Association of Municipalities of Ontario recommended the minister reiterate the governments position that federal funding should not have the unintended negative consequences of displacing investment by the provinces or municipalities over time.

The Canadian Press obtained a copy of the document under the Access to Information Act.

Sohi said the Liberals may provide some flexibility in the funding to allow for refurbishment projects, rather than new builds.

Under Phase 2, the long-term plan, we will be supporting more new infrastructure. There will be some flexibility to rehabilitate the existing infrastructure, but these will be new plans or plans that they (cities) have in place, but there is no funding attached to it. These will be the new projects that we will fund.

Originally posted here:
Liberals want to put infrastructure cash into flood mitigation: Sohi - The Globe and Mail

OTTAWA Federal Conservatives will seek today to find out why a request for $3.8 million a year to help families with autism is being ignored by the Liberals.

The Tories are set to use time set aside for opposition motions to call on the government to come through with moneyfor the Canadian Autism Partnership.

The funding would be used for a more co-ordinated approach to research, early detection, diagnosis and treatment for the estimated 1 in 68 Canadian kids with the neurological disorder.

The Liberals had received a pitch for the cash $19 million over five years ahead of this year's budget, but turned it down much to the disappointment of autism advocates and affected families.

Among them is Conservative MP Mike Lake, whose son has autism, and who has raised the issue in the Commons repeatedly over the years.

In the House of Commons Wednesday, he pressed the Liberals anew but Health Minister Jane Philpott said the government already supports autism research.

"One of the best ways that the federal government can support advancements in autism spectrum disorders is to support research and we have done so in a significant way," she said.

The day the Tories are using to pressure the Liberals on the subject is called an "opposition motion" in official Parliamentary parlance. The motions are often used to push the government to come around to the Opposition's point of view.

But it's not the only pressure Lake and others are applying.

Their campaign is also been helped by an advocacy group called Global Citizen, which uses social media to try and convince governments to act on social issues.

The group put out a call to action on the autism partnership and thousands of tweets have followed, directed at both Philpott and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.

Among those lending their name to the cause are Hockey Night in Canada's Elliotte Freidmen andhockey star Hayley Wickenheiser.

While the Conservative motion will be debated today, it not expected to be voted on until the Commons returns from a one-week break on May 29.

The Canadian Press

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Conservatives merge old, new tactics to pressure Liberals over autism funding - rdnewsnow.com

To the editor: President Trump saying to FBI Director James Comey, I hope you can see your way clear to letting this go, to letting Flynn go. He is a good guy, is the cause of all the hysteria? (Comey memo says Trump asked him to drop FBI investigation of Michael Flynn, May 16)

It sounds like something I would say about a likable coworker who found himself or herself in trouble.

Trumps use of the word hope would indicate that it was not an order but rather an expression of concern. The president obviously understood that it was up to Comey to determine whether or not the investigation into former National Security Advisor Michael Flynns contact with Russian officials should continue.

As Flynn is still under investigation, we can assume that no great injustice has occurred. People need to get a grip.

Nathan Post, Santa Barbara

..

To the editor: So here we go again. We have elected a president who has no idea of how to go about the job, and we are aghast when he demonstrates it.

Enough of our electorate, a minority strategically located in certain states, participated in a knee-jerk decision to bring in an outsider, and we are now in a dangerous mess. Our members of Congress are ill-equipped and disinclined to do anything about it. In a Groundhog Day existence, they wake up each day either looking for blood or looking the other way, depending on their party affiliation.

Dont expect anything to change, because our dangerously deficient leader is far too narcissistic to seek competent help, assuming he even knows where to look for it.

Alan Abajian, Alta Loma

..

To the editor: Despite his administrations descent into incompetence, Trump continues to enjoy the support of most people who voted for him. Its almost as if they take pride in remaining deluded.

Still, I predict that Trumps credulous base inevitably will succumb to what might be termed the Nixon distancing syndrome.

In 1972, President Nixon won reelection by 18 million votes, the largest ever margin of victory. Yet after Nixon resigned in disgrace two years later, voters who would admit to having backed him were difficult to find.

Once Trump leaves office, it may be even harder to find someone who voted for him.

Gene Martinez, Orcutt, Calif.

..

To the editor: Sometime last week, my stomach quit churning with worry about what the Trump presidency means for the country and the world.

Now Im queasy contemplating what Mike Pence can accomplish as president with the Republican Congress.

Carole Cooper, Manhattan Beach

..

To the editor: Thank God for the free press. Its taken on the job that the other branches of government should be doing: protecting the Republic.

Nato Flores, Los Angeles

Follow the Opinion section on Twitter @latimesopinion and Facebook

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Get a grip, liberals the Comey memo does not show Trump committed obstruction of justice - Los Angeles Times