The most important issue confronting the Republicans today?

Do they slow down and look at the facts, or do they continue full-speed ahead, on the Old Partisan Highway?

Do they have a duty and a responsibility to take the time to look at all the evidence fairly and impartially?

Is it important to the spirit of the Constitution, also?

The least that people should expect from these Congressmen and Senators is to be serious about their vote.

"Democrats have been trying to impeach this president since he came down the escalator".

Is that true?

I know many Democrats would have loved to have seen him impeached sooner. But they had no power to get it done.

In fact, when General Flynn, the head of the NSC, lied to the FBI about his contacts with Russians, it was not the Democrats that persuaded Trump to get rid of him. It was the Republicans.

When Comey was fired and a Special Counsel was hired to investigate the Russian connections, it was not the Democrats that hired Robert Mueller or Rod Rosenstein. It was the Republicans.

They should have called for his impeachment but they didn't.

When the Democrats won the midterms in 2018 and took over the House in January of this year, (actually around March because of Trump government shutdown) they had the numbers to potentially impeach. Many thought Robert Mueller would save our Republic. After Bill Barr put his own interpretation on the Mueller Report and refused to release any of it for about three weeks, much of the air was taken out of impeachment talks.

But, true to form, one day after Mueller gave his presentation, Donald Trump was on the phone with the president of Ukraine, attempting to make a deal to get dirt on a political opponent and help him in the next election. As soon as he thought he had been cleared in the Russia investigation, he was back to his old tricks.

Unfortunately, he breathed new life back into impeachment talks. He had withheld taxpayer money that was intended for Ukraine to defend themselves from Russian aggression and he tried to bribe the new leader of Ukraine to go on CNN and announce that he was investigating the Bidens. Then he attempted to cover it up, by creating narratives after the fact.

Then he doubled down, as if he had never done anything wrong. He is still doing it today. Just as the Democrats say, it is a crime in progress.

When he said, " I want you to do us a favor, though...", who was the favor for? It was for him. It was not for "us", the country. He lied once again.

For once in his life, he is going to be held accountable by the House of Representatives, even though almost everyone expects him to be acquitted in the Senate. Still, it is on his record. And it would have been nice if the Democrats had possessed the power to impeach the day he came down the escalator, but it wasn't the case. It has taken over three years for him to overplay his hand. And he is going to pay a dear price in the history books. His brand is tarnished forever.

No man can serve two masters.

The Democrats are giving the Republicans the chance to save their Party and maybe, their country.

In their hearts, they know it to be true. They knew from the beginning that he was bad news.

But, every time he got away with his lies and exaggerations, they surrendered just a little more. Until they were totally committed.

They knew from the time General Flynn lied to the FBI about Russia. They knew when he fired James Comey. They knew when their own Party named Robert Mueller as the Special Counsel. They had seen it all, just like everyone else. They saw all the transgressions.

However, they chose to ignore them.

This is their last chance. They can save their Party for the Conservatives, or they can try to keep the Trump Party? The added bonus is that they might save our country, also?

If they choose to now forget everything they have been shown, it is to the detriment of us all. They cannot escape the complicity.

Anybody can get any poll to say what they want to say, in my opinion.

I could say that I polled 1213 registered voters and 60% of them thought Trump should be impeached and removed. Only 35% thought he should not be impeached.

What would be the purpose in me reporting such numbers in a poll? It would surely be an outlier.

But, in my opinion, any polls at this time about impeachment should be ignored. Anything as important as impeachment should not be left to the whims of uninformed voters. That is why we elect Representatives and Senators. We want informed decisions, not polls.

Until there is an actual vote in the Senate, I cannot help but think it is nothing but a cover-up..

...and a whitewash.

Until I see that there are at least a few Republicans that want a fair trial, I cannot believe otherwise.

The Democrats should not hesitate to call it a cover-up if that is the direction they go.

Why did Giuliani meet several times with Manafort before he went to Ukraine?

Manafort had worked to elect a Russia-friendly President for Ukraine. He was later exiled to Russia. But, Giuliani knew that Manafort was close to a lot of shady characters in Ukraine and he wanted the contacts. He used the contacts to create rumors against the Bidens and Yovanovitch. He wanted to help his client spread dirt on a political opponent. These were the corrupt people that were willing to betray our country if it helped Donald Trump.

One small detail to remember...

The "whistleblower" talked with the Intelligence Community IG and the IG thought it was "urgent" and that the NDI and the House Intel Committee should be informed. The NDI incorrectly took the information to the Bill Barr Justice Dept. AG Barr's intent was to bury the whistleblower report but the IG took it upon himself to inform the Intel Committee.

Otherwise, we may not have known any of this information.

It will take a simple majority of fifty-one to call witnesses.

McConnell can afford to lose two votes if they are all "present". That is their goal on every vote.

We will know a lot about where all the Republicans stand after the first vote is taken in the Senate.

All the votes in the Senate will only require a simple majority except for the final vote for conviction, which requires two-thirds of those present.

How many Republicans will demand a fair and impartial trial?

Profiles in courage on the Democratic side of the House.

Especially amongst those young Democrats that had won in previously Trump districts. They put their jobs on the line for what they believe is in the best interest of this country. It was a very courageous act by all of them.

Unfortunately, we have not yet seen that type of courage on the Republican side of the House. There are many districts where the Republican incumbents are much stronger, yet they refuse to take a stand. Perhaps it is because they think Donald Trump is a great president and he has done nothing wrong? Or perhaps it is because they are fearful of losing their positions, by tweets from Trump, or a primary challenger?

Whatever the reason, the profiles in courage are on the Democratic side.