On CNN Saturday, Democratic strategist Maria Cardona pushed back hard on Republican strategist Alice Stewart's notion that President Donald Trump's actions aren't worthy of impeachment.
"Do you expect, Alice, that there will be some consequence that Republicans will have to pay, as the former senator [Jeff Flake] suggests, for not even acknowledging that what the president did was wrong?" asked anchor Victor Blackwell. "Impeachable or not, that it was not wrong?"
"The reason that we have members of the GOP and the House and the Senate so in line with this president is because there is no underlying crime, and that is quite obvious," said Stewart. "I personally am one of those that believe there were some inappropriate things said on the call, but it has not risen to the level of impeachment. It did not get proven in the House in my mind and in Republicans' minds. That is exactly why we are standing firmly behind this president. And look, the only consequence that will come of this is Democrats, for focusing so much time and attention on an effort that the American people are split 50-50 on."
"What this is going to do, this will embolden Trump's base and embolden a lot of independents who are frustrated with this process," added Stewart. "They will support this president. And if there are any consequences, Victor, if there needs to be any, then voters will vote him out of office next year, but I don't see that happening."
"Maria?" said Blackwell.
"I think that's exactly what's going to happen, and I also don't think history will be kind, as I said in my piece in The Hill this past week, to Republicans or to this president," said Cardona. "Look, even my friend Alice just now could not defend the president. They cannot defend this president. What they try to do is defy the facts, and that's exactly what Jeff Flake was talking about. Or they deflect from them by spewing other fabrications and lies and conspiracy theories that been debunked."
"The American people are not stupid," Cardona continued. "Trump and the Republicans are treating the American people as if they were stupid. That's why impeachment numbers are as high as they have ever been for any other president that has been impeached. Now this president has been impeached. He's the third president who has that dubious honor. Like it or not, he's going to go down in history as such, and history will not be kind to the Republicans who have looked the other way and let him act criminally, unethically, and corruptly."
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