Majority Of Independents Think Donald Trump Should Be Impeached, Says Poll
An NBC News/SurveyMonkey survey released Friday reveals that the majority of independent voters, 53 percent, are in favor of impeaching Donald Trump, compared to 44 percent that aren’t supportive of impeachment.
Newsweek reports that 96 percent of independents surveyed disapproved of Trump’s job in the White House compared to just three percent that approved. Interestingly, approximately one-quarter of independents that are against impeachment don’t approve of Trump’s job performance.
The weakened correlation between disapproval of Trump’s job performance and impeachment support is not found among Democrats or Republicans in the survey. Ninety-one percent of Democrats who favor impeachment also disapprove of Trump’s job performance, while the 95 percent of Republicans who are opposed to impeachment also approve of his performance.
As for Americans in general, 49 percent of voters are in favor of impeaching Trump and removing him from office while 49 percent are opposed.
The impeachment probe into Trump was launched at the end of September in response to his phone call with Ukraine president Volodymyr Zelensky, in which he pressured Zelensky to dig up dirt on potential Democratic rival Joe Biden.
As The Inquisitr reported, former White House security chief John Bolton may be testifying in the impeachment probe. According to reports, Bolton is speaking with Democratic-led committees about the president’s actions toward Ukraine. Bolton was reportedly disturbed by Trump’s plan to pressure Ukraine, and his testimony could be bad news for Trump.
“If he does give a deposition, Bolton would join a handful of current and former Trump administration members who have been interviewed this month as part of the Democratic-led inquiry into President Donald Trump’s dealings with Ukraine,” reads the CNN report.
That first example of a closed-door impeachment process came from the Senate trial of Bill Clinton.
In the House Judiciary Committee — where @LindseyGrahamSC served — Republicans had Ken Starr testify publicly but took depositions from several Clinton associates in private. pic.twitter.com/SAr66vAkZw
— Kevin M. Kruse (@KevinMKruse) October 24, 2019
One of the biggest criticisms of the impeachment probe from Republicans is the secrecy of the process. But according to Fox News senior judicial analyst Andrew Napolitano, these complaints are unfounded. He claims that the process Democrats are following is “consistent with the rules” that a “Republican majority” put into place, Newsweek reports.
“As frustrating as it may be to have these hearings going on behind closed doors…they are consistent with the rules,” Napolitano said during an appearance on Fox & Friends.
“When were the rules written last? In January of 2015. And who signed them? John Boehner [the Republican speaker of the House]. And who enacted them? A Republican majority.”
He went on to say that the rules permit secrecy for this level of inquiry, although he admitted he wished he had the opportunity to view the testimony taking place behind closed doors.
