Taegan Goddard alerts us to an article in the Wall Street Journal that avers that the leaders of the Democratic Party are dismissing the idea of impeachment. (Sorry no link. WSJ is subscription-only.) Goddard quotes—

Democratic strategists remember the fallout Republicans suffered among swing voters in 1998 amid their bid to oust Mr. Clinton. The National Republican Congressional Committee sank $10 million into a last-minute advertising blitz focused on Mr. Clinton's character, only to lose five seats and see House Speaker Newt Gingrich pressured to resign.

The "Democratic strategists" must be very young indeed to have created such a false analogy—if they're sincere. The Clinton impeachment was a transparent effort by the Republicans to unseat a popular President over what most people deemed a quibble.

The analogy for the impeachment of George Bush is not the Clinton impeachment but the Watergate hearings. Those hearings effectively did impeach Richard Nixon and forced him to resign or face formal impeachment proceedings. The hearings also left the Democrats in an even more powerful position.

George Bush is no longer a popular President, and if hearings leading toward impeachment were held, I would expect an outcome along the lines of the Nixon Presidency. George would resign in a heart beat. Despite the hype, staying to fight is not his style—at least when he's the one doing the fighting. Bill Clinton he ain't!

Related post
Rep. Conyers works toward Bush impeachment (12/21/05)