If there is a political price to be paid by Democrats for taking on Trump, Republicans were determined to exact it. As the impeachment unfolded, it led to a party heading into the 2020 election never more obedient to Trump. The Democratic House majority leader, Steny Hoyer, laid the dissembling bare in his speech on the brink of the impeachment vote. Much was made of the Republican calls that followed for Trump to apologize, underscoring how alien the spectacle was, of a Republican daring to reproach the president. “This impeachment has divided this nation without any concern for the repercussions,” said the House minority leader, Kevin McCarthy, the last Republican to speak before Trump was impeached.

Source: The Guardian December 22, 2019 09:11 UTC