No matter how well an elected Republican president performs in office, ever since the Dwight D. Eisenhower administration, Democrats have demanded that the election results be reversed.
Two weeks before the 2016 election, Hillary Clinton tweeted, “Donald Trump refused to say that he’d respect the results of this election. By doing that, he’s threatening our democracy.”
As a Democrat she should know something about not respecting election results.
Since Jan. 20, 1961, when Eisenhower left office, Democrats have introduced impeachment articles against every single elected Republican president.
Eisenhower was succeeded in office by John F. Kennedy. After his assassination 33 months later, Lyndon B. Johnson was sworn in as president and re-elected in 1964. Neither Kennedy nor Johnson was subject to impeachment inquiries.
Richard M. Nixon entered the White House on Jan. 20, 1969, and was re-elected in 1972. In October 1973, the House Judiciary Committee began an impeachment inquiry stemming from the Watergate scandal. Although he had no personal knowledge or role in the events that led to the scandal, he allegedly took steps to cover up the details.
After nearly nine months of investigation and hearings, Nixon resigned from office on August 9, 1974.
He was succeeded by Gerald R. Ford. Although Ford was never the subject of an impeachment investigation, he was neither elected to the presidency nor even the vice presidency.
Ronald Reagan was the next elected Republican president.
In March 1987, halfway through Reagan’s second term, Rep. Henry Gonzales, D-Texas, introduced articles of impeachment based on the Iran-Contra scandal. The effort failed and Reagan’s vice president, George H. W. Bush, was next elected president.
On January 16, 1991, halfway through his term, Rep. Henry Gonzales (yes, the same one) introduced impeachment articles against Bush for initiating Operation Desert Storm. Its purpose was to drive Iraqi forces out of Kuwait, and it lasted slightly more than six months.
The impeachment articles were submitted to the House Judiciary Committee, where they were struck down. Gonzales made another stab at it later and that one also failed.
Bush’s son, George W. Bush, often referred to as Bush-43, faced several impeachment probes, the most significant one brought by Democratic Reps. Dennis Kucinich of Ohio and Robert Wexler of Florida. They jointly introduced 35 articles of impeachment six months before the end of Bush’s second term.
By a 251-166 floor vote, they were referred to the House Judiciary Committee where they gathered dust.
From the moment Donald Trump was elected president, the word “impeach” has been on the lips of many, if not most, Democrats, and for a laundry list of reasons. They include violation of the Emoluments Clause, collusion with Russia, obstruction of justice, and secret dealings with Ukraine.
Within days of Trump’s inauguration, Mark Zaid, attorney for an alleged Trump whistleblower, tweeted, “#coup has started. First of many steps. #rebellion. #impeachment will follow ultimately. #lawyers”
It didn’t take long. Less than six months later Democratic Reps. Al Green of Texas and Brad Sherman of California introduced H. Res. 438, which was tabled. It only escalated from there.
So how did these beleaguered GOP heads of state do?
Nixon established the Environmental Protection Agency, reintroduced relations with China, and worked to achieve “peace with honor” in Vietnam after the Johnson administration’s escalation of hostilities there.
One of Reagan’s first acts was to bring home the 198 U.S. hostages taken by Iran during the Carter administration. He then cut domestic discretionary spending, cut taxes, and increased the military budget. He maintained pressure on the Soviet Union in an effort to put an end to the Cold War, which occurred shortly after he left office.
Domestically, Bush-41 pushed the passage of the landmark Americans with Disabilities Act (the ADA); his successful prosecution of the war to liberate Kuwait from Iraq was his greatest foreign policy achievement.
His eldest son, Bush-43, signed into law broad tax cuts, the Patriot Act, the No Child Left Behind Act, the Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act, Medicare prescription drug benefits for seniors, and funding for the AIDS relief program.
Less than three years in office, Trump has created nearly 4 million jobs and dropped unemployment to a 49-year low. He pushed for massive tax cuts, lifted nearly 3.9 million people off food stamps, and economic growth hit 4.2 percent during the last quarter.
For nearly 60 years Democrats have dishonored the will of the people through attempts to overthrow the elections of GOP presidents. And it didn’t matter what they may have accomplished or by what margin they may have won (Reagan took 49 of the 50 states in his mega-landslide re-election).
Though not her intention, Clinton may have said it best: Democrats refuse to "respect the results" of elections — each and every time.
Michael Dorstewitz is a retired lawyer and has been a frequent contributor to BizPac Review and Liberty Unyielding. He is also a former U.S. Merchant Marine officer and an enthusiastic Second Amendment supporter, who can often be found honing his skills at the range. To read more of his reports — Click Here Now.
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