No, Congress would not be helpless to act. If they were convinced it was an act of corruption, they could and should impeach.
As someone else pointed out here, essentially Congress hold all the cards. They can impeach the president or any appointed executive branch member. They can impeach any and all judges of the Federal courts. They can abolish all federal courts except for the Supreme court. Congress can set the number of justices on the supreme court.
Congress can abolish any Federal agency that is not mandated by the constitution, such as DOJ or it’s minor functionary, the FBI. Congress could abolish the CIA. Congress can zero out the budget of an agency they feel is out of control.
And last, Congress can override a presidents veto, and start the process of a constitutional amendment..
So it’s very rare that you can accurately say...”and congress would be helpless to act”.
Not according to the article:
In Clinton’s case, however, the conduct underlying this hypothetical indictment occurred prior to her taking office. The House of Representatives, as far back as 1873, has determined that a person cannot be impeached based on conduct prior to them holding office. In other words, House precedent says a President Hillary Clinton could not be impeached as president for crimes related to the e-mail server or the Clinton Foundation.
In 1873, the House of Representatives considered impeaching the Vice President for crimes committed before he took office. After considering the matter, the House determined impeachment was only proper for crimes committed while in office.
From this vantage point it certainly appears that most, if not all of the things ailing society can be largely attributed to congress failing to act, or acting in ways inimical to their sworn oath of office.
Judicial impeachment should be fairly routine if not common, for just one example. Yet it almost never happens. They’ve also exempted themselves from the laws and policies that are forced on everyone else. An absolutely huge and all powerful yet unelected bureaucracy, delegated and ceded by congress, often governs our everyday lives, the products we buy, can’t buy, or are forced to buy. Then they want to claim spectator status, all the while hoping you can’t connect the dots.
“So it’s very rare that you can accurately say...”and congress would be helpless to act”.”
They must be talking about the Republican controlled congress.