When the top Democrat on the House Armed Services Committee was asked by TIME in May about the prospect of impeaching President Donald Trump, he declined to commit, warning that every impeachment he had witnessed during his decades in Congress had left its target politically stronger.
uncertain
he → ask → target
Five months later, Rep. Adam Smith of Washington is prepared to take that risk.
asserted
Smith → take → risk
With Democrats hoping to reclaim control of the House in Tuesday's midterm elections, Smith says that he now supports impeaching Trump and is inclined to also back proceedings against Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, making him one of the most senior Democrats to endorse such a course.
asserted
him → hop → course
"Trump has become beyond dangerous.
asserted
Trump → become → ?
He is just completely out of control in what he says and how he is governing," Smith told TIME in an interview a week before the election.
asserted
Smith → say → election
"I think we have to try, even if it doesn't succeed."
asserted
it → think → ?
Smith's endorsement is particularly significant because he would be in line to chair the Armed Services Committee if Democrats win the House, putting him at the center of investigations into the Pentagon's handling of the war with Iran, its approach to Ukraine, and military operations in Latin America.
asserted
Democrats → chair → America
His position comes as Democrats prepare for the possibility of reclaiming congressional power with little agreement over how aggressively to confront the President.
asserted
Democrats → come → President
Interviews with more than two dozen Democrats reveal a party broadly convinced that Trump has engaged in conduct warranting impeachment, but deeply divided over whether another attempt to remove him would be an effective use of its authority.
asserted
attempt → reveal → authority
Trump's two previous impeachments ended in Senate acquittals, and even a Democratic victory this week is unlikely to produce anything approaching the two-thirds majority required for conviction.
asserted
victory → end → conviction
Smith, who has served in the House since 1996, noted previously that he was one of the few House members to have sat through three impeachments.
asserted
he → serve → impeachments
"Every single time the person impeached got stronger after they were impeached than before," Smith told TIME in May, arguing that Democrats needed to consider what another impeachment could realistically achieve rather than pursue it simply to demonstrate their willingness to confront Trump.
uncertain
impeachment → impeach → Trump
"I want to make sure that if we're going down that road it's going to help defeat Trump and his poisonous ideology," he said at the time.
asserted
he → want → time
Since then, he says, Trump's increasingly conciliatory posture toward Russian President Vladimir Putin, his decisions involving American support for Ukraine, and his public rhetoric have convinced him that the President's continued tenure presents an extraordinary danger.
asserted
tenure → say → danger
"The Ukraine stuff definitely had a profound impact," Smith says.
asserted
Smith → have → impact
"When I saw how close he was getting to Putin and shutting off support for Ukraine, being more pro-Putin.
asserted
he → see → Ukraine
I mean, that's a big part of it."
asserted
that → mean → it
He also cites Trump's increasingly "unhinged speeches," including remarks about rising gasoline prices amid the war in the Middle East.
asserted
He → cite → East
Smith’s willingness to embrace impeachment puts him at odds with more cautious Democrats who want the party to prioritize addressing the economic concerns that have dominated the campaign, while establishing an investigative record that might ultimately lead to impeachment.
uncertain
that → embrace → impeachment
He acknowledges the formidable obstacles to removing Trump but argues that the political environment has changed since the President's first term.
asserted
environment → acknowledge → term
"I don't think it will be viewed as negatively or as partisan as in the previous two efforts, just because the public is waking up to the con game that Trump put on," he says now.
asserted
he → think → that
Other senior House Democrats are less certain that pursuing impeachment would accomplish much, even if they share Smith's assessment of Trump's conduct.
asserted
they → pursue → conduct
Rep. Jamie Raskin of Maryland, who led the House managers during Trump's second impeachment trial in 2021, says he has "little doubt that the president has committed multiple impeachable offenses," citing what he describes as unconstitutional military action and abuses of congressional spending authority.
asserted
he → lead → authority
But he draws a distinction between establishing grounds for impeachment and deciding whether another trial would be the best use of Congress's time and political capital.
asserted
trial → draw → time
"The question of whether he committed impeachable offenses and whether we are going to pursue impeachment are two different issues," Raskin tells TIME.
asserted
Raskin → commit → TIME
Trump was impeached in 2019 over his dealings with Ukraine and again in 2021 over his role in the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol.
asserted
Trump → impeach → Capitol
Both proceedings ended in acquittal, although seven Republican senators voted to convict him in the second trial.
asserted
senators → end → trial
While some Democrats regarded those efforts as necessary to establish a historical and constitutional record, another impeachment could consume months of congressional attention, galvanize Trump's supporters, and leave voters questioning what the party had accomplished with its new majority.
uncertain
party → regard → majority
Sen. Adam Schiff of California, who led the prosecution during Trump's first impeachment trial, says Democrats should avoid reaching conclusions before knowing the composition of the next Congress and what investigations might uncover.
uncertain
investigations → lead → what
"There's no question he's been engaging in conduct that is very likely impeachable," Schiff told TIME.
asserted
Schiff → be → TIME
Schiff disputes the notion that the earlier impeachment efforts strengthened Trump politically, but argues that Democrats should concentrate initially on investigating corruption that has affected Americans' finances.
asserted
that → dispute → finances
"Our primary focus ought to be on corruption that has raised the cost of living for people," he says.
asserted
he → raise → people
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries has similarly declined to commit to impeachment, saying Democrats "haven't ruled anything in, and we haven't ruled anything out."
asserted
we → decline → anything
He has indicated that investigations should help determine whether the House pursues that course.
asserted
House → indicate → course
Some Democrats are looking toward members of Trump's Cabinet, particularly Hegseth, as potentially more viable targets, reasoning that Republicans who would never vote to remove the President might be more willing to turn against a defense secretary whose leadership has drawn criticism from within their own party.
uncertain
leadership → look → party
"There are Republicans who would support impeaching Hegseth who might not support doing it to Trump," Smith says.
uncertain
Smith → be → Trump
The Defense Secretary has faced mounting scrutiny over his handling of the Iran war, the removal of senior military officers, and the Pentagon's relationship with Congress.
asserted
Secretary → face → Congress
Some Republicans have publicly expressed frustration with his leadership and the department's failure to provide adequate information about the war's objectives, costs, and duration.
asserted
Republicans → express → objectives
A push to impeach him has already taken shape in the Republican-controlled House, although Trump has defended Hegseth, calling him a "great warrior" and dismissing Democratic efforts to remove him.
asserted
Trump → impeach → him
Raskin says that impeaching a Cabinet secretary would be less likely to consume Congress's agenda or raise the same concerns about overturning the result of a presidential election.
asserted
impeaching → say → election
…and 10 more, not listed.
The Aporia
