“Pelosi knows there is a fair chance she could become President after the House Impeachment concludes and the Senate RINOs going along to Convict and Remove.”
LOL. There aren’t the 20 RINOs needed to VOTE to remove Trump. Maybe 3 or 4, but not 20.
Now, don’t get me wrong. There are PLENTY of Republicans who would love to see Trump gone - probably 52 or so out of the 53, but they all know that a vote to remove Trump means that their run in the Senate is over...the next time they have to run, they will either be Primaried out, or they will be Voted out in November (when Republicans don’t show up to re-elect them).
So the only question in the Senate will be whether the Democrats can get to 51 votes (i.e., 4 Republican traitors) as a symbolic victory, because they sure as hell are not going to reach the 67 votes needed to remove Trump.
You ae right, but the caveat is: how things stand now. Once the House Impeachment proceedings get in full throat with the extreme media amplifiers, they could and will try to create a situation where those Senators have little choice but to vote against DJT - perhaps a rock and a hard place situation sort of choice. Opportunities for “Profiles in Courage” abound.
> because they sure as hell are not going to reach the 67 votes needed to remove Trump <
It all depends on what “evidence” Mueller can manufacture. If it is convincing enough - and damning enough - Trump’s support in the Senate could evaporate.
I see that as being unlikely. But back in 1972 who would have thought that Nixon would be toppled?
All they realistically want is the “symbolic victory”. They want to tar a Republican president with the scarlet “I” of impeachment. That way they think they have drawn an equivalency with Sick Willie. They can then claim when someone talks of Slick’s sordid behavior & crimes, “They all do it!”. So political criminality has company! Therefore Slick is exonerated and his legacy is now Lincolnesque. We can now elect to the presidency the “Smartest Vagina in the World!”.
Or Star-chambered.