In the short time that he has been in office, President Donald Trump has sparked a tremendous controversy. This has many wondering if Congress will impeach him. A survey of congressional dialogue reveals phrases like 'in violation of his constitutional oath,' 'obstructed and impeded the administration of justice,' and 'failed the test of moral leadership.' It all sounds pretty serious.

Most Americans disapprove of Trump

The weight of negative American sentiment towards Trump is steady. Things seemed to hit a fever pitch surrounding his comments related to the Charlottesville protests and attacks.

Even some Republicans spoke out against his comments.This Gallup poll reported Trump's job approval rating at around 36%, during that time. Another sore point is Trump's decision to end the Obama Administration's Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals Program ("DACA"). More could be said here, but these are clear examples of why his approval rating is so fragile.

While it is normal for presidents to experience a fluctuation in approval ratings, Trump holds the title of having the lowest approval rating during the second quarter of any president since Gallup began tracking presidential approval in 1945. Trump has the potential to have the lowest approval rating, whenever he leaves office. The point being, if many disapprove of him now, is there a significant likelihood, based on historical trends that this will improve?

The Public Religion Research Institute ("PRRI") revealed that 40% of Americans would support an impeachment of President Trump and he hasn't even been in office for one year.

Some congressmen want Trump removed

Articles of Impeachment have been introduced, but hold on for a bit. The process of impeachment is not so cut and dry.

Article two and section four of the Constitution says that a president can be removed from office when they are impeached (by the House) and convicted (by the Senate). This two-step process has saved presidents in times past. So far, we have had two presidents go through impeachment where the Senate acquitted them. Nixon resigned before he could be convicted.

The congressional majority determines presidential impeachment. Currently, Republicans have a majority in both the House and Senate, which means they could ultimately decide not to impeach Trump. After all, according to the Public Religion Research Institute, only four percent of Republicans believe he should face impeachment as opposed to 58% of Democrats. This sharp divide across party lines might encourage Republicans to not vote for a Trump impeachment.

Impeaching a president is difficult

The impeachable offenses outlined in the Constitution uses the language ‘conviction of, Treason, Bribery, or other high Crimes and Misdemeanors’ which provides lots of latitude to Congressional leaders. While there are currently some House resolutions for Trump's impeachment, time will only tell how far those articles will actually go.

In a press release issued on August 17, 2017, Rep. Steve Cohen of Tennessee, announced that he would be filing articles of impeachment for President Trump, motivated by his failure to condemn the acts in Charlottesville, Virginia appropriately.

Cohen went on to state that Trump, "lacks the ethical and moral rectitude to be President of the United States." Previously, on July 2017, the Resolution of ‘No Confidence in President Donald J. Trump’, was filed. Among the reasons listed within the resolution was Trump’s failure to release his tax returns, firing the FBI Director, James Comey and accepting foreign profits, among other things. This resolution had the support of 29 Congressional members, but no bipartisan support.

While the narrative is compelling, Democrats are still at the mercy of the Congressional majority. The only way to change that is to wait for the mid-term elections in 2018 which will determine who has control of the House and Senate. If impeachment could somehow be accomplished sooner, great, but don’t hold your breath just yet.
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