Weekly Chat (Non-Osprey), 17 November 2019

Good Morning.

Ah, that was a test, as I'm finding it difficult to gain access.

Just been watching an item on the TV about the rescuers of the wildlife in the Aus fires, a man is on who has a specially trained dog trained to find distressed animals and help rescue them - she Is very like our Bonnie! Have seen similar dogs in the past used as sniffer dogs in airports, etc.

I too have been having yet more problems getting on to this site.

LINDY I saw that lovely article on BBC Breakfast. It was so clear how much he loved his dog and good she could be used to help koalas.

Every time I post I wonder if its going to post!

Still very cold here - dashed out for my haircut then dashed back again!

Less cold here, today. I have just been doing very boring domestic chores!
AQ - yes, it's strange having a 52 year old son when you are 47....
I have been following the news about the fires. :-(

Morning all:  Still glued to TV here.  Don't know if Diane or bjane were watching TV impeachment coverage this morning, but the main witness was Dr. Fiona Hill, former Russian advisor to the Trump administration, who resigned this August.  She's a Brit (hurray!), daughter of a County Durham coal miner; became a US citizen in 2002.  She was a dazzlingly articulate, smart and knowledgeable witness. Brilliant woman with an uncanny knack of turning questions around so that they not only backfired on the questioner, but educated us all as to how foreign policy works (or at least is supposed to work).  Haven't seen anything like that before....  They're winding up now and I'm heading to the garden with lunch.  Phew.

Hope everyone else is fine and also that the site will stop creating problems for some folks!

Annette - I'm sorry to sound like a dim Brit (which I am!) but what happens after the current hearings finish? I thought it was something like a court case, with a guilty/not guilty result. But I don't think that's so now. Can you give me - and any others who are quiet onlookers to what is happening - a quick run-down of how impeachment works?

(PS: Not sure I understand British politics either, especially at the moment ...)

Pat O and anyone interested: It looks like Annette has gone to work in the garden, so I will answer your question. I hope that's okay with you and Annette. 

Here's the procedure for impeachment of a president in the United States: 

(1) Members of Congress believe that the president is guilty of "Treason, Bribery, or other High Crimes and Misdemeanors," according to the Constitution. The president must have:

* committed a crime, or

* abused or exceeded the powers of office, or

* engaged in behavior incompatible with the function or purpose of the office, or

* misused the power of the office for his own purpose or personal gain. 

(2) A committee in Congress conducts an investigation, including hearings. If they believe that the president has committed an impeachable offense, then they prepare Articles of Impeachment (the list of crimes and/or misconduct).

(3) The members of the full House of Representatives vote on the Articles. If a simple majority (51% or more) of the House members vote yes, then the president has been officially "impeached."

(4) Then the Senate conducts a trial of the president. The Chief Justice of the Supreme Court presides over the Senate trial. 

(5) At the end of the trial, the Senate votes on whether or not to convict the president. If two-thirds of the Senators vote guilty, then the President is convicted and removed from office. 

Impeachment in the House does not remove the president. Only conviction in the Senate results in removal. In this current case, the House of Representatives is dominated by Democrats, and Trump is expected to be impeached. However, the Senate is dominated by Republicans, and it's unlikely that they will convict him. They could, but I personally don't think they will. 

Hope that's all clear.