worth pointing out that the point of the impeachment was to hinder trump in cheating in 2020, and it was pretty successful in that. 1

impeachment and hearings around impeachment made it clear Trump was desperate to manufacture evidence about Hunter Biden and Ukraine. when he did exactly that, news media did not react the way they did with Clinton email.

forewarned, social media aggressively prevented viral tweets lying about Biden and Ukraine, including ones by Trump. mainstream media wouldn't touch it, and discredited it when it appeared. progressive media didn't pile on either...

instead of allowing fash curious dipshits like Greenwald to launder the bullshit, Intercept told him he was bieng a fascist tool, and he walked.

maybe that all happens without impeachment. but I wouldn't bet on it. even if Rudy's obviously a clown, the reaction if the Ukraine stuff suddenly surfaces in October is a lot different than knowing about it since beginning of the year.

obviously Rs completely failed in their duty to the country and our democracy in refusing to vote for removal, or to allow testimony and evidence.

but it wasn't a failure. it helped expose Trump and insulate our democracy against his machinations.

which seems like an important lesson for Dems going forward trying to decide whether to prosecute trump. there is value in holding people accountable even if you can't convict.

specifically, Trump is going to be around and is threatening to run in 2024. investigations seem important both to hold him accountable and to ferret out bad actors and his ongoing plans to harm the country.