Trump's Impeachment: Truth or Dare?

It's been reported that President Donald Trump made a phone call during the summer to Volodymyr Zelensky, who is the president of Ukraine, asking him to provide whatever information he could about Hunter Biden, who used to work for a gas company there.  He also happens to be the son of former vice president Joe Biden, currently the front runner for the Democratic presidential nomination in 2020.  Trump allegedly threatened to withhold American military aid unless the information was produced, which would be difficult for a country like Ukraine, whose neighbor Russia has made themselves at home in the Crimea.

When the story appeared in this country, Trump bragged about it to what he likes to call the "fake news" media, daring Congress to try and impeach him.

Congress took the bait.  Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, who had taken a "wait and see" approach to impeachment while scandals involving Russian election meddling and payoffs to porn stars fizzled while fellow Democrats watched in frustration, has decided she's seen enough.  She's ordered an inquiry into impeachment proceedings  The question is, did Pelosi wait too long?

Trump would be the third president to be impeached.  Andrew Johnson, who had the misfortune of following Abraham Lincoln as president, came within one vote of being removed from office.  Bill Clinton, for whom having "sexual relations with that woman" was considered an impeachable offense, barely survived a Senate vote to convict him.

(You'll notice we didn't include Richard Nixon, whose "high crimes and misdemeanors" during the Watergate era would have certainly qualified him for impeachment, if he hadn't resigned the Presidency first.)

It remains to be seen whether or not the Democratic-controlled House has enough evidence to send Trump to a trial in the Senate, whose Republican majority makes any attempt to remove the President nothing more than symbolic.  It might just be that, with an election year coming up, the Democrats' big gamble results in another four years of Trump if he is cleared.

So what's it gonna be?  No matter what happens, voters still have to do their jobs in November of 2020.

The Emmys: "Game" Over

They tell us we're living in the era of Peak TV.  A wonderful, magical world where--for just a few bucks a day--you can watch almost every TV show and movie your little heart desires, or what taste makers tell you is great, from the comfort of your living room.  One of those taste makers is the Television Academy's Emmy Awards, whose 71st annual festivities were held Sunday in Los Angeles and shown on Fox.

The big winners, as it has been for the past few years, were shows from premium cable and streaming services:  "Fleabag" and "The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel" are on Amazon Prime.  "When They See Us", "Black Mirror"and "Ozark" are on Netfllix.  HBO carries "Barry" "Chernobyl", "Veep", "Last Week Tonight" and "Game of Thrones".  You've heard of these shows, haven't you?  Have you ever watched them?

"Thrones", which in its final season has already won more Emmys than anyone else in its history, won another Best Drama nod (tying "LA Law", "Mad Men", "Hill Street Blues" and "The West Wing" for the most in this category) along with a Best Supporting Actor trophy for Peter Dinklage (his fourth).  Because the series ended on an unsatisfying note for critics and fans, this was pretty much a Lifetime Achievement Emmy for GOT.

"Veep", the Julia Louis-Dreyfus comedy set in the White House, did not share the same love as GOT did during its final season.  "Fleabag" did a near-sweep of the comedy category, with its star Phoebe Waller-Bridge taking home the Best Actress, Comedy Emmy instead of a seventh for Louis-Dreyfus (who remains in a tie with Cloris Leachman).

A few new faces won Emmys this year instead of the usual suspects.  Besides Waller-Bridge, Jodie Comer won Best Actress, Drama for "Killing Eve" (over her co-star Sandra Oh, no less).  Billy Porter won Best Actor, Drama for "Pose", the first African-American gay man to do so.  Julia Garner earned a Best Supporting Actress, Drama nod for "Ozark".  Jherelle Jerome got a trophy for Best Actor, Limited Series/Movie, for his role in "When They See Us".

The other awards went to the following:

• Supporting Actor, Comedy:  Tony Shaloub, "The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel".
• Supporting Actress, Comedy:  Alex Borstien, "The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel".
• Reality Competition:  "RuPaul's Drag Race"
• Actor, Comedy:  Bill Hader, "Barry".
• Supporting Actor, Limited Series/Movie:  Ben Whishaw, "A Very British Scandal".
• Supporting Actress, Limited Series/Movie:  Patricia Arquette, "The Act".
• Actress, Limited Series/Movie:  Michelle Williams, "Fosse/Verdon".
• Movie:  "Bandersnatch" (episode of "Black Mirror").
• Limited Series:  "Chernobyl"
• Variety Show, Sketch:  "Saturday Night Live"
• Variety Show, Talk:  "Last Week Tonight".

We need to talk about the telecast.  The Emmys went hostless this year, in the apparent belief that, if it worked for the Oscars, it should work for them..  Also, Fox happens to be the only broadcast network without a late night talk show, which is where hosts have been coming from in recent years.
Only the initial snarkiness of off-camera commentator Thomas Lennon, the dulcet tones of voiceover Ellen K. and all those plugs for "The Simpsons" (after three decades, Homer Simpson is still Fox's biggest star) and "The Masked Singer" reminded us that we're still watching an awards show.

Almost seven million of you watched the Emmys, the lowest turnout yet.  It faced daunting competition from NBC's "Sunday Night Football" game, ABC's game shows and whatever CBS put on that night. Also, Ken Burns' video treatise on country music continued on PBS stations.

Or maybe you just spent the evening ignoring all those taste makers and binge-watched episodes of "Friends", "The Office" or "Seinfeld".  Those, apparently, are what people actually watch instead of either "Mrs. Maisel" or "The Masked Singer".  Maybe there's only so much Peak TV we can take.

9/11/01: Ancient History?

An entire generation of Americans has grown up since the events of September 11, 2001.  No need to go into the details of what happened that day if you're over the age of 25.  If you're not, then the words World Trade Center, Arab hijackers, Saddam Hussein, George W. Bush, Dick Cheney and Osama bin Laden doesn't mean much to you.

To today's students, all of what became known as 9/11 has been relegated to history books and You Tube.  Just like the Civil War, World War II, the Kennedys, civil rights, the Vietnam War and other touchstones of American history.  It shouldn't be.  Whether they know it or not, the spectre of 9/11 has dominated their childhoods.

We see it in long lines of security everywhere you go.  The war in Afghanistan is nearly two decades old, and the U.S. has yet to find a graceful way out.  Immigration to this country has deteriorated to the point where people fleeing wars, oppression and natural disasters are turned away at the border, just because our current leader thinks "very bad people" might be in the mix.

Recent generations, when they're not busy with their smart phones, are more concerned about making it to adulthood alive.  Not because of terrorist bombs, but because of lone gunmen with more firepower and nerve to take out every human within range.  African-Americans and others take to the streets and highways to protest white police officers who target people of color just because.  The biggest moment of their lives so far hasn't been planes taking down two skyscrapers.  It was the election of Donald Trump as President, which creates its own set of challenges.

Having seen what violence, political corruption, racism and the effects of climate change have done to this country, the youth of America are not taking things lying down.  They are holding rallies, facing down white supremacists, and electing more women to Congress than ever in recent history.  Even Muslim men and women of color, which would have been considered impossible in 2001.

The emotions over what happened in the rubble of the Twin Towers and the wars of revenge that followed in the fall of '01 and the spring of '03 has faded with time, but they shouldn't be forgotten.  It is up to everyone to make sure improving this country is the one thing that would honor the dead.