IMPEACHMENT : EASIER SAID THAN DONE

The House Speaker finally gave in and spoke out in favor of impeachment. The fury in the ranks of Democrats could no longer be ignored. Public opinion remains divided but largely stuck in shared disbelief, given the antics of a president who cannot stick to a single, convincing line of defense.

One should beware of underestimating Trump. When cornered, he counter attacks and his bite can match his bark. For now the Republicans stick with their leader. The Democrats are still in need of some discipline and of a more coherent, structured procedural game-plan than the unconvincing approach suggested by Mrs. Pelosi. This upcoming royal battle should be a confrontation and not a melee. 

The future is risky and unpredictable. This outcome remains politically risky and fraught with "unknowns". The usual sloppy Democratic approach does not bode that well for the "containment" of more undesirable opportunistic side-shows. At the end of the day there was no other alternative. Doing nothing would only have increased the disgust and depression which prevail now. So, impeachment became an outcome imposed rather than a rational, informed option of choice.

The Ukraine dossier is a difficult one. It shouldn't become a trap. The story feels like an Eric Ambler scenario. The main players look often more tired and old than pepped up. The moment is somber. This storm might bring to life King Lear's more desperate undoing. The speaker is obviously aware of her role in history and sets a tone which is right in format. The Democrats have to live up to a higher call and not indulge in their usual moral confusion.

Trump was never a man of "destiny". Now that he is wounded the Democrats need to prepare for what is coming and what will be ugly. America will be confronted on a daily basis with dirt, tweets, personal vendetta...in an election year! The system will be under attack on all sides. Trump pays the price for having sold for too long his weaponized souffle for the real thing. After this three year non-stop moral aggression, the body of politics will fight back, finally. The confrontation needs actors who can live up to their task. For now, I don't see any. This play might be a bummer for all, an outcome to avoid.

Alain Locke said that the "American temperament is of all temperaments the least reflective and knows itself so ill ". Sounds today like a self-fulfilling prophecy.