A petition called Impeach Trump Now is circulating and gaining in popularity as U.S. citizens call for a Trump impeachment. Americans who didn’t vote for U.S. President Donald Trump and have been angrily demonstrating using the phrase and hashtag #NotMyPresident are undoubtedly signing the petition. It’s unclear just how many of those who did vote him are already feeling voter’s remorse — and it’s been less than a month since he was inaugurated.
Meanwhile, Twitter users are tweeting furiously about a TrumpImpeachmentParty, while bookies assign growing odds that he will be impeached before his first term is over.
Impeach Trump Now petition gaining steam
It certainly sounds like those betting on an impeachment could be right, as Harvard Law Professors Tamara Piety and Lawrence Lessig have set forth the legal grounds they see for it in an online petition, which is circulating on Twitter but has its own website. So far, more than 860,000 people have signed it. If it surpasses 1 million signatures, then it will mean that nearly of the U.S. adult population is calling for a Trump impeachment.
The U.S. Census Bureau estimated in 2013 that there were about 242.5 million adults in the country, with the total population pegged at about 316.1 million. Of course it’s possible that non-U.S. residents are signing the petition, but the size and number of protests against Trump’s presidency in the U.S. indicates just how livid he has made the American people in such a short time.
“From the moment he assumed the office, President Donald Trump has been in direct violation of the US Constitution,” the petition starts off. “The President is not above the law. We will not allow President Trump to profit from the presidency at the expense of our democracy.”
This looks like grounds for a Trump impeachment
The petition states that what’s happening right now is “far worse than Watergate.” The law professors state that Trump is profiting from the presidency because he has refused to give up ownership and income streams from his businesses. He has openly admitted that he has conflicts of interest in Turkey where he owns two Trump Towers and thus can favor the country, making things better for the Trump Organization. And that’s not the only country where he may have conflicts of interest between the country he serves and the business he profits from.
“Crucially, some of these business arrangements violate the U.S. Constitution’s Foreign Emoluments Clause, which provides ‘[N]o Person holding any Office of Profit or Trust under [the United States] shall, without the Consent of the Congress, accept of any president, Emolument, Office, or Title, of any kind whatever, from any King, Prince, or foreign State.'”
It then goes on to list other business arrangements the law professors believe are violations of the clause. The petition also calls for an investigation into whether Trump is violating the Stop Trading on Congressional Knowledge Acct of 2012, which is basically like insider trading, but from the point of view of the President.
Other petitions calling for a Trump impeachment
The Impeach Trump Now petition isn’t the only petition calling for a Trump impeachment. Although it has the most signatures, there are at least two others. In fact, the number of people calling for him to be impeached could be nearing half the country’s population, although there is probably some overlap in signatures, and again, some non-U.S. residents are probably signing them too because he’s pretty much ticked off most of the world already.
The one on Change.org has more than 219,000 signatures and was entered by The Million American Petition. This petition is different than the one from the Harvard law professors because it’s calling for impeachment on suspected violations of the USA Patriot Act for allegedly conspiring with Russia and “tampering with the results of the 2016 election.”
The petition calls him and his administration “an immediate threat to national security.” In addition to impeaching Trump, it calls for removing Vice President Mike Pence and “all civil officers appointed under his rule, pending the results of his administration’s investigation.” It blasts Trump’s speech against immigrants, citizens of color and Muslims and claims he violated state law in 34 states. The petition accuses him of cyber-bullying as well.
A group of Care2 activists posted another petition on ThePetitionSite.
“From his cozy relationship with Russian leader Vladamir [sic] Putin, to his myriad conflicts-of-interests arising from his business dealings, to his apparent disregard for the U.S. intelligence community, it’s clear Mr. Trump is not only unfit but also unsafe to serve as president,” the petition states (emphasis theirs).
Referencing an unverified document, it alleges that Russian President Vladimir Putin “cultivated Trump for five years” by collecting blackmail material with “intimate details of the President-elect’s sexual activities.”
Brits are betting on a Trump impeachment
It seems that the odds of a Trump impeachment are growing too, as people in Britain are actually placing bets on it. In fact, there’s a nearly 50/50 chance that the 45th President of the United States will be impeached before his term ends in 2021, according to British bookie Ladbrokes.
MarketWatch reports that right after Trump won the election in November, the odds of him staying in office for his full term were 3/1, or a 25% chance of him leaving. Now it’s been nearly a month since he took the oath of office, and the odds are now 11/10, or a 47% chance of him resigning or being impeached. A spokesperson for Ladbrokes told MarketWatch that each day brings a new controversy about the President and “punters are putting two and two together and backing him to leave.”
Paddy Power, another bookie, places the odds of a Trump impeachment this year at 4/1 and the odds of him resigning at 15/8. William Hill places the odds of him being impeached in his first term at 2/1.
Trump impeachment hashtag trending
Twitter users are also talking about impeaching Trump, as one of the top trending hashtags right now is #TrumpImpeachmentParty. Aside from funny tweets about bringing pizza to the party, many others reference his taxes, which he has long refused to release.
I think if the past 48 hours are any indication @realDonaldTrump is clearly hiding something in his taxes. #TrumpImpeachmentParty
— Miles James Tepatti (@mtepatti15) February 15, 2017
I’ll bring the pizzas #TrumpImpeachmentParty
— Banks Bvhks (@bvhks) February 15, 2017
When Obama hears about the #TrumpImpeachmentParty. pic.twitter.com/tQxCPHYzNN
— Ademola K. (@KingSK88) February 15, 2017
#REMINDER: History Is Watching.#TrumpImpeachmentParty #BenedictDonald #wednesdaywisdom pic.twitter.com/yekuqKnsrP
— Eric Wolfson (@EricWolfson) February 15, 2017
Maybe someone should inform @realDonaldTrump that his Twitter feed can and will be used against him. #TrumpImpeachmentParty
— The Daily Edge (@TheDailyEdge) February 15, 2017
