"To paraphrase Dr. Kissenger, Democratic Trumpophobia is not a strategy, but an alibi for not having one," Vladimir Golstein, associate professor of Slavic Studies at Rhode Island-based Brown University, told Sputnik, commenting on House Democrats' promises to kick off all kinds of investigations into the US presidents starting from January 2019.
According to the academic, "there is no doubt that both parties have skillful operators that can rally the troops, so to speak." At the same time, it is also clear that having lost the majority in the House "Republicans would be put on the defensive."
'Politics is Not a Football Game'
"But what is important to stress is that we are not talking about the football game here, when each team trying to score and outflank its opponent," Golstein underscored. "Governing such a complex country that is currently losing its position of global dominance is a very difficult, if not impossible task as it is. Partisanship and winning all sorts of pyrrhic victories is good for politicians but not for the country."
The point is how the Democrats are going to capitalize on their majority in the House which they gained during the 2018 midterm elections.
"So the leadership of Democrats will interpret their victory of the House as the invitation to further harass Trump and find faults with him. Why? He was elected… The normal political and strategic thinking should be: let Trump expose himself as a total fraud (if he is) and then it will be much easier to win in 2020. But that applies only if you intend to win in order to offer something different, something that would benefit American people," the professor underscored.
'Trump Will Never be Impeached'
The academic is sure that Trump will never be impeached. Why? They need him, the professor said.
"If you just want to use Trump as a scapegoat, and the attacks on Trump as a smokescreen, that enables you to avoid making unpopular but long needed decisions concerning climate, transportation, health, meaningful employment and tons of other serious issues, then Trump is godsend," Golstein suggested.
On November 23, The Washington Post recalled that "twice over the past two years since Trump was elected, Democrats have tried to force votes on impeachment proceedings, winning a high-water mark of more than 60 supporters, far from the 218 needed." It appears that no consensus has been reached by Democrats on that matter so far.
Golstein foresees that Trump will "be harassed and hunted, giving Democrats a chance of new cycle of virtue signaling and posturing, pretending to be ready for 2020."
However, "with such an attitude and shallow policies, Democrats will most likely lose again, which would give them another chance to continue with their avoidance masqueraded as involvement," the professor warned.
"Furthermore, this policy is ideal for milking donors," the academic highlighted. "Let's whip up hysteria, let's start our crusade against Trump and his threats to American Democracy: just cough up more dough. If you are thinking of your corporate sponsors, your donors, and your pockets, that's a very useful strategy, and I have a feeling that Democrats are too mired in their reliance on Wall Street and other outposts of Establishment, to offer anything radically different from that."
Republicans Vs Democrats: Congress Turned Into 'Petty Partisanship'
The Democratic camp still pins its hopes on Special Counsel Robert Mueller's investigation into the so-called Trump-Russia collusion. However, besides "finding some financial irregularities and offenses," or "discovering some hapless Russians posting diverse political messages on the social media," the special counsel has found no smoking gun.
"There is nothing what actually ties Trump to Russia," Golstein emphasised, adding that nevertheless "to continue [Washington's] policies of hard and soft dominance… the establishment needs a bogeyman" and Trump is an "ideal target."
Golstein referred to the fact that on 5 December House Republicans plan to hear testimony by US Attorney John Huber who has conducted an investigation with the Justice Department and FBI into the Clinton Foundation since 2017.
The professor also cited subpoenas issued by the House Judiciary Committee for former FBI Director James Comey and ex-Attorney General Loretta Lynch to testify about their actions during the 2016 presidential run.
"It is clear that Democrats, who'll get in charge in January, will be answering in kind," Golstein stressed. "It all is rather petty and while fueling the passions and ratings, it hardly produces anything constructive."
According to him, the only people who'll be benefiting from this bipartisan battle "are the exploitative mass media and the lawyers and the hard-core party supporters who view politics as the venue to attack and nail another party."
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