The Townhall : What If Hillary Were Elected and then Faced Impeachment

"Wicked smart" -- that's how President Obama described Hillary Clinton to Politico yesterday. If Obama had just said "wicked," many would agree. When he was asked if Sanders’s underdog campaign reminds him of his own, Obama said, “I don’t think that’s true.” He said : “Bernie came in with the luxury of being a complete long shot and just letting loose. I think Hillary came in with the both privilege - and burden - of being perceived as the frontrunner… You’re always looking at the bright, shiny object that people haven’t seen before - that’s a disadvantage to her.” Obama contrasted Clinton's pragmatism and experience with Sanders' idealism and liberalism. He said Clinton's experience taught her to "campaign more in prose than poetry." In one week, we'll have the Iowa caucus results and know whether Obama helped Hillary in her desperate effort to stop the Bernie Sanders freight train. ~~~~~ Clinton squared off on Sanders Monday in an Iowa Townhall put together hastily by CNN and the Democratic National Committee in what some called DNC Chair Debbie Wasserman-Schultz' effort to boost Hillary's sagging poll numbers. An indication of how serious a threat Clinton faces from Sanders was her Townhall attack on him about foreign policy and healthcare -- and questioning his ability to carry out his proposals. The ghost of her 2008 Iowa primary loss against then-Senator Barack Obama haunts her -- he wounded her campaign and she never recovered. This week, Clintonland will go all-in to damage Sanders, who now has a real chance of winning in Iowa and beyond. Because Sanders is almost certain to win in New Hampshire, an Iowa victory would give Sanders a 2-0 lead over Clinton, a scenario that would shake up the Democratic Party's world. To win in Iowa, Sanders needs new caucus-goers, especially young millenium voters, and a big turnout from all liberal Democrats. And he needs to keep on talking in real language to real people about real issues. As for former Maryland Governor Martin O’Malley, because the Iowa Democrat caucus rules require votes for candidates getting less than 15% in the first round to be given to another candidate who hit the 15% threshhold -- he polls at 5% and will not reach the threshold -- his supporters will either join one of the two major candidates or go home -- as O’Malley himself might do after Iowa or New Hampshire. ~~~~~ Now...Let's imagine. Imagine Hillary Clinton is elected and has been President for a year when growing scandal finally envelops her presidency and prompts a constitutional crisis that ends in impeachment. White House aides and Cabinet officers are compromised. It becomes clear that Clinton has misled them personally, as well as the country, when she angrily denied hiding classified emails on her private server as Secretary of State, lied to the FBI about it, lied to Congress about her Benghazi cover-up, and used her position as Secretary of State to give favorable treatment to foreign governments in return for their contributions to the Clinton Foundation. What would happen? America would be gripped in a tug of war between wanting to preserve the first woman's presidency and being appalled by that President's pattern of unethical conduct. The country would for the second time freeze up under a Clinton presidency. The angry partisanship of 1998 would re-emerge. The nation's business, reputation and world leadership would be put on hold. Whether Hillary Clinton survived or not, great damage would have been done to America once more. ~~~~~ Dear readers, think about that as you evaluate the Iowa Townhall. Iowans, think about that as you caucus on February 1st. American Democrats, think about that as you choose your 2016 presidential standard bearer. Is one person -- who is half of a fading political dynasty -- worth more than the honor of America ??