A Man of Little Consequence by Geoff Carter

Illustration by Michael DiMilo

By Geoff Carter

We watch Law and Order reruns a lot at our house. It’s kind of the default viewing choice when nothing else is on. It’s a great show; the writing, acting, and direction are top-notch. It’s realistic—or as realistic as TV can get (how can so many beautiful Assistant DAs could possibly work for a prosecutor in real life?)—but the good guys don’t always win, displaying flaws and foibles in the legal system.

One wouldn’t think Assistant District Attorney Jack McCoy, or any TV lawyer for that matter, would have much problem prosecuting an impeachment case against Donald Trump. Even just two months into his second term, evidence of his incompetence, malice of forethought, and destructiveness is damning. One wouldn’t think he’d have a problem.

First of all, what sort of crimes call for impeachment? According to Constitution Annotated, Article II, Section 4 of the Constitution states:

“The President, Vice President and all civil Officers of the United States, shall be removed from Office on Impeachment for, and Conviction of, Treason, Bribery, or other high Crimes and Misdemeanors.“

While the definition of “high crimes and misdemeanors” is somewhat nebulous, we do know the reasons for which some former presidents were impeached. Bill Clinton was impeached for lying under oath about his dalliance with White House intern Monica Lewinsky. President Trump was impeached twice during his first term, first for “foreign interference in the 2020 election” when he attempted to coerce Ukraine president Zelenskyy to open an investigation of his opponent Joe Biden. He was impeached a second time for “incitement of insurrection” after he incited the January 6^th riots at the Capitol. Andrew Johnson’s impeachment in 1868 was politically motivated by his violation of the Tenure of Office Act and his ouster Secretary of War Stanton, in effect restricting presidential power. Of course, none of these presidents were removed as a result of these impeachments—the Senate would need a two-thirds majority to do that.

So, has President Trump committed impeachable offenses during the first two months of his second term? Rep. Dan Goldman (D-NY) has stated he believes Trump has committed “dozens of impeachable offenses” and that “he’s violating the Constitution right, left, and center.”

Trump has issued executive orders cutting off federal funding (a prerogative of Congress), broken the law by firing thousands of federal employees, abolished the Department of Education without the approval of Congress, and tried to abolish birthright citizenship, which is enshrined in the Constitution. These transgressions are just the tip of the iceberg. He has broken the law over and over, suffering—as is usual—no consequences.

Questions have arisen about the legality of his establishment of the Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, and his installation of billionaire Elon Musk—who has absolutely no experience in public service—as its head without the approval of Congress. In short, Trump has gone rogue, doing whatever the hell he pleases with no regard to protocol or the law. And—as usual—he is suffering no consequences.

This executive overreach has been challenged numerous times in the courts, but the Republican majorities in the Senate and House have done nothing to check the executive abuse of power. It’s clear that he’s violated the Constitution numerous times. It’s clear that some executive orders will result in bodily harm and massive human hardship. DOGE has summarily and recklessly fired thousands of federal workers, some of which were rehired days later because the dopes at Musk’s little shop realized their skills were necessary to maintain the government. Trump wanted to get rid of air traffic controllers, nuclear weapons specialists, and veterans.

The president has a criminal history. He is a recidivist, having been convicted felon thirty-four times over. Besides his felony convictions, he was found liable for the sexual assault of E. Jean Carroll in civil court. The House of Representatives January 6^th Committee found him liable for fomenting the Capitol riot. In short, he is a serial lawbreaker.

I could go on and on but to what end? The truth is that if Mr. Trump hasn’t been convicted by now, he probably never will be. Nearly every action he has taken since the beginning of his second term has been an impeachable offense, but, somehow, for some godforsaken reason, Donald Trump is untouchable. He’s bulletproof.

He lies, he dodges, he shucks, he jives, he sidesteps, he stalls, he bullies, and he blusters. He’s gotten out of any substantial punishment for his thirty-four felony convictions; the case against his involvement in the January 6^th Capitol riots disappeared after his reelection—as did conspiracy charges against him in Georgia; and because of his loyal appointee Judge Aileen Cannon, charges of absconding with top-secret documents were dismissed. Numerous alleged sexual assault accusations have come to naught.

Teflon. Nothing sticks to this guy, but this has less to do with the man himself than with his supporters. Donald Trump is backed by some very powerful and influential people. Elon Musk, donor extraordinaire, the Koch brothers, Timothy Mellon, the Adelson family, and a whole coterie of Silicon Valley billionaires have financed Trump and Vice-President J.D. Vance’s campaigns. And these men do know how to butter their own bread—and Trump is the one holding the knife.

The Republican Party, co-opted by Trump, is also in bed with Christian Nationalists. These are the people who are the driving force behind Project 2025, the blueprint for destroying and then overhauling the federal government as a sort of autocratic theocracy—Gilead 2.0. The extent to which the Christian Nationalists have infiltrated the GOP can be seen as an inverse proportion to the effort exerted by the Republican Congress to rein in Trump’s executive overreaches.

So, considering impeachment as a means of protecting our democracy from this would-be king might seem like emptying the ocean with a teaspoon. While the mechanism for impeachment is enshrined in the Constitution, the political will to implement it doesn’t seem to exist—at least at this moment. Donald Trump has—so far—escaped punishment by the courts and by the checks and balances written in the Constitution. So, what’s left?

The people. Trump’s policies are quite unpopular. The massive layoffs of thousands of federal employees, threats to cut Medicaid and Social Security, the abolishment of the Department of Education, and other draconian measures have angered millions of Americans. Trump’s tariffs are threatening to implode the economy, and his threats to annex Canada, take Greenland, and possibly invade Panama have bewildered and frustrated our citizens. His use of the Department of Justice for his personal vendettas against attorneys and

His attempt to rename The Gulf of Mexico would be laughable if it wasn’t so unhinged. Frankly, this sort of behavior (in any other president) might lead to a medical evaluation and possible implementation of the Twenty-fifth amendment. But, as with so many other aspects of the Trump presidency, he gets a mulligan. There have been no consequences.

So, until the Republican Party disenthralls itself from the moneyed interests and Christian nationalists who sponsored Project 2025, (or Democrats regain majorities in Congress) we will have to put impeachment—and any other actions—on hold. As of now, the courts are holding fast against the onslaught of outrageous executive orders and DOGE slash and burns.

The American people are standing up and protesting all across the country, in big towns and small. There have been a small number of special elections since Trump 2.0, all of which have gone resoundingly to the Democrats. Listen. The American people are speaking. They don’t like DOGE; they don’t like Project 2025; they don’t like Elon Musk. A series of recent elections have resulted in resounding defeats for Republicans–a sign of things to come.

Listen. Impeachment—or something more consequential—is coming. Finally.