House Republicans derail impeachment effort against IRS commissioner

[IsailedawayfromFR]

Republican leaders managed to derail impeachment of IRS Commissioner John Koskinen on Tuesday, forcing the debate back to a committee for more study, where it will die when the Congress adjourns at the end of this year.

It was a quiet end to a saga that had bedeviled GOP leaders for more than a year, dating back to revelations that Mr. Koskinen misled a congressional investigation looking into the tea party targeting scandal and former IRS senior executive Lois G. Lerner’s lost emails.

Conservatives had been agitating for impeachment, saying Mr. Koskinen must be punished for defying a subpoena and providing inaccurate information.

Some Republicans have sought a lesser penalty, such as censure, while Democrats have said the entire impeachment drive is misdirected. Those two sides joined forces Tuesday in a 342-72 vote that sent the debate back to the Judiciary Committee.

“Members have different opinions about what to do,” said Rep. Bob Goodlatte, chairman of the committee, as he asked lawmakers to give him a chance to sort things out.
http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2016/dec/6/john-koskinen-irs-commissioner-spared-impeachment-/

The reason why so many voted against the ingrained establishment.

Ryan is symbolic of what we need to defeat.

Our Constitution means nothing if we do not implement what our Founders included within it.

[corbe]

                       'Let Him HEAL!!!!' (screamed the Jubilant Crowd)   

 

[Bigun]

Gutless cowards! 

[Frank Cannon]

Wow. The GOP folding. What a shock.

Let's hope Donny finally damages the party so bad that the whole thing can be flushed down the toilet and forgotten.

[RetBobbyMI]

And this is why people voted to support the GOP?   . Dumb!!!

[Night Hides Not]

In my opinion the GOP leadership was in on the attack on the Tea Party.  So they have to do this to cover themselves.  If it had been establishment Republicans who were targeted, this would be different.  But they always viewed the Tea Party as the enemy.  This entire episode is shameful.  We the people have lost our government.

The Tea Party will again be their enemy in 2018, but with a twist. Millions of us will stay home in November, and let the Democrats retake Congress. In Texas, Cruz will win re-election, but Cornyn will retire in 2020 after enduring just two years in the minority. Ergo, Ted will become the senior senator from Texas.

If Trump and the Republicans show progress by passing tax and immigration reform, and axing thousands of punitive and costly regulations, then the Tea Party will be the Pubbies' friend, and they'll strengthen their hold on Congress.

[rodamala]

#NeverRepublican

[libertybele]

The Tea Party will again be their enemy in 2018, but with a twist. Millions of us will stay home in November, and let the Democrats retake Congress. In Texas, Cruz will win re-election, but Cornyn will retire in 2020 after enduring just two years in the minority. Ergo, Ted will become the senior senator from Texas.

If Trump and the Republicans show progress by passing tax and immigration reform, and axing thousands of punitive and costly regulations, then the Tea Party will be the Pubbies' friend, and they'll strengthen their hold on Congress.

 

[Night Hides Not]

Thanks liberty, but my predictions usually are

[Maj. Bill Martin]

There were never going to get a conviction on him anyway.  He's going to be gone with the new Administration anyway, so what's the point of spending the time/effort now?

Had Hillary won...different story.  You fight just to keep the point in front of the public, because you're not going to be able to pass anything anyway with Hillary as President.

[INVAR]

I'm laughing at the idiots who insist that the GOP will be able to hold Trump's feet to the Conservative/Constitutional fire.

They cannot and will not even uphold the rule of law as it currently exists, or punish those who have engaged in corruption, fraud and treason.

Why any sane person imagines they will be able to steer Trump into doing the right things is beyond insanity.

[Oceander]

There were never going to get a conviction on him anyway.  He's going to be gone with the new Administration anyway, so what's the point of spending the time/effort now?

Had Hillary won...different story.  You fight just to keep the point in front of the public, because you're not going to be able to pass anything anyway with Hillary as President.

Sort of like the pitiful excuse for Trumps repudiation of his solemn vow to go after Clinton.

[Maj. Bill Martin]

Sort of like the pitiful excuse for Trumps repudiation of his solemn vow to go after Clinton.

Uh, no.

We're talking about impeachment, right?  That isn't a criminal sanction -- all it accomplishes is to remove someone from office.  But, the IRS Commissioner serves at the pleasure of the President anyway, so Trump can fire him day one if he chooses.  So it seems like a huge-ass waste of resources and time to go through an entire impeachment/conviction process -- which will fail anyway and therefore be spun by the media as exoneration, when he can be removed from office without impeachment in six weeks anyway.

That's different from the possible criminal penalties that can be imposed on Hillary even if she is not in office.

[Night Hides Not]

As much as I'd like to see Koskinen impeached, I'd rather Congress get to work on tax reform and immigration. There's a small window of time, and we know that Congress can't walk and chew gum at the same time.

[Emjay]

There were never going to get a conviction on him anyway.  He's going to be gone with the new Administration anyway, so what's the point of spending the time/effort now?

Had Hillary won...different story.  You fight just to keep the point in front of the public, because you're not going to be able to pass anything anyway with Hillary as President.

Yes, I agree.  Pointless victory at this time.

[kevindavis007]

I hate to say this, but if he is going to be gone soon, moving forward with impeachment would be pointless.

[Smokin Joe]

The Tea Party will again be their enemy in 2018, but with a twist. Millions of us will stay home in November, and let the Democrats retake Congress. In Texas, Cruz will win re-election, but Cornyn will retire in 2020 after enduring just two years in the minority. Ergo, Ted will become the senior senator from Texas.

If Trump and the Republicans show progress by passing tax and immigration reform, and axing thousands of punitive and costly regulations, then the Tea Party will be the Pubbies' friend, and they'll strengthen their hold on Congress.

In essence the TEA party and other third party former GOP will have become a swing vote, and now we will count.

[Smokin Joe]

#NeverRepublican

I will do what I have always done, with the exception of 'holding my nose' a few times. I will vote for the person most likely to restore the Constitutional Republic, to reduce Government intrusion, regulation, and expense, who will support the government which governs least.

[Night Hides Not]

In essence the TEA party and other third party former GOP will have become a swing vote, and now we will count.

Let's hope so.

[Maj. Bill Martin]

There is always time for justice.  This needs to happen for the sake of the republic.

The problem is that impeachment is not justice.  Even if successful, all it would have done is remove a guy from office a couple of weeks before he'd have left anyway.  So what's the point?

Punishing him criminally is a separate issue, and one over which the House has no authority anyway.  If anything he did rises to the level of criminal conduct (and I don't know that one way or the other) than the DOJ would have to pursue it.  And that obviously wouldn't happen until after the inauguration anyway.