A Disturbing Thought on Impeachment

I whole-heartedly agree with people who say that any impeachment of Donald Trump must be on narrow grounds.  We should stick to clearly illegal or unconstitutional behavior and not impeach over mere policy differences.

And yet, the thought of what is an impeachable offense and what is a mere policy difference is disturbing.  Consider:


Mere policy differences, not impeachable:

• Precipitously withdrawing our troops in Syria and leaving the Kurds to be slaughtered.
• Supporting Saudi Arabia's murderous war on Yemen.
• The Muslim travel ban.
• Pressing for a no-deal Brexit with all resultant damage to the British economy.
• Separating parents and children at the border, and detaining asylum seekers until hearing.
• Requiring asylum seekers to remain in Mexico while their applications are processed.
• Attempts to role back protections for Dreamers.
• Gross incompetence in responding to Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico.
• Supporting a repeal of Obamacare that could have stripped tens of millions of people of their health insurance.
• Arguing for the courts to declare Obamacare unconstitutional, strip millions of their health insurance, and take protections from people with pre-existing conditions.
• Seeking to precipitate a fiscal crisis that will force massive cuts to Medicaid, Medicare and Social Security.
• Ending environmental regulations and raising the likelihood that the planet will cook.
• Nor would it have been impeachable if Trump had blundered into a war with North Korea and ended up with West Coast cities being nuked.

Things that might be impeachable:

• Diverting funds from military projects to build the border wall.
• Telling immigration officials to disregard laws and he would pardon them.
• Abuse of anti-trust laws to punish media companies that criticize him.  
• Attempts to fire Robert Mueller and other officials investigating Trump's ties to Russia.

Impeachable offenses:

• Use of federal office the profit Trump Enterprises.
• Possible foreign (and domestic) policy decisions based on personal financial interests.
• Basing foreign policy on other countries' willingness to assist him against political rivals.
• Stonewalling all attempts at Congressional investigation.

Is it overly cynical to say that what our ruling elites do to ordinary citizens, and especially to foreigners, is a mere matter of policy, while what our ruling elites do to each other is impeachable?