Republicans’ plan to get Biden impeached hits a roadblock, new poll reveals surprising details
Days before Republicans are poised to launch their official impeachment investigation into Joe Biden, their strategy appears to have reached an impasse.
A recent study suggests they should tread carefully. According to Morning Consult poll a narrow margin of voters, 44%, favor the impeachment proceedings, with 40% against it.
However in a major setback for Republicans, since September there’s been a noticeable shift, especially among independents and some Republican voters, with opposition among independents rising from 36% to 43%.
‘No evidence to impeach Joe Biden’
Some House Republicans have openly started to admit that they see no evidence to impeach Joe Biden.
Republican Main Street Caucus chair Dusty Johnson of South Dakota said on Monday that “there’s not evidence to impeach.” But Johnson said the vote this week was not about whether the party would impeach the president or not.
58% of those favoring probe believe Biden has committed impeachable offenses
The silver lining for Republicans is that 58% of those favoring the inquiry believe Biden has committed impeachable offenses. Yet, actual impeachment requires a separate vote. House Speaker Mike Johnson is expected to pass a resolution outlining the impeachment inquiry, amidst debates over its legal significance.
In a USA Today op-ed, Johnson stated that the inquiry would enable top committees to investigate Biden’s alleged involvement in his family’s influence-peddling schemes, although direct evidence against Biden is yet to surface.
White House spokesperson Ian Sams has highlighted another poll showing a significant majority of Americans in key districts believe House Republicans are focusing on the wrong issues.
“This comes just days after another new poll found that, by a 48-POINT MARGIN, Americans in key swing districts believe House Republicans have ‘prioritized the wrong things’ (20% right things, 68% wrong things),” Sams wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter. “As the President likes to say: ‘Lots of luck in your senior year!'”
Echoing the Democrats’ 2019 approach, Republicans, led by then-Speaker Nancy Pelosi, announced an impeachment inquiry and later held a formal vote after criticism. Similarly, former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy declared an inquiry in September but delayed a floor vote due to apparent lack of support.
The critical votes lie with the 18 Republican lawmakers from districts Biden won in 2020. Their decisions could greatly influence the House majority next year. Representative Don Bacon of Nebraska, one of these lawmakers, has expressed skepticism about Biden committing high crimes or misdemeanors but plans to vote for the inquiry.