What would the impeachment of President Trump mean for you?

Updated: Dec. 10, 2019 at 5:52 PM CST
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BATON ROUGE, La. (WAFB) - Democrats took a major step Tuesday, Dec. 10 towards impeaching President Donald Trump, announcing they’ll charge the president with at least two high crimes. But as Congress fights over the Executive Branch, some experts are questioning how they have time to take care of your needs at home.

But what would impeachment mean for you?

Two charges against President Trump are sure to dominate the next two months in federal politics.

“We will do it differently in the Senate," said Senator John Kennedy.

Kennedy has repeatedly called the process “rigged,” arguing the president has not been given a chance to defend himself.

“I think that no one is above the law, but nobody is beneath the law. I’ve been very disappointed at the absence of due process in the House of Representatives," Kennedy said.

But the hearings people have seen on TV are not a trial; that begins in the Senate during the first week of January of 2020. While that’s going on, constituents are left wondering what Congress can accomplish amid the knockdown, drag out over trump. In 2019, just 78 bills have become law, compared to nearly 300 the last time the House and Senate were controlled by different parties.

“Approval of Congress is generally fairly low. This is, in some ways, unremarkable, even as it’s a remarkable time for the country," said LSU political communications professor, Josh Darr.

Darr notes the House did pass a major trade agreement Tuesday, Dec. 10 and it has handled its most basic responsibilities, like the budget, at least temporarily. But nearly 400 House-passed bills are stuck on Republican leader, Mitch McConnell’s, desk. Darr says that doesn’t make impeachment any less important.

“While it’s not about passing policy, it is about how government works and whether it works. All that Schoolhouse Rock civics class stuff that we learned about checks and balances and separate but equal is really at stake here," Darr said.

The House is expected to decide on impeachment before Christmas, and Darr says it probably won’t change voters’ minds, but it will fire them up for the 2020 election.

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