. Democrats, Don’t. Bring a Knife to a Gunfight!

. Democrats in the House of Representatives are making a fundamental mistake in their approach to this impeachment inquiry.

. They act as if, even though President Trump is not a normal President, the White House staff is normal in terms of institutional behavior. They appear to believe that staff will protect records that are requested or subpoenaed.

. That could be a catastrophic error.

. As soon as the whistleblower report indicated that records of conversations President Trump had with other foreign leaders existed on a secure server, the very existence of those records was jeopardized. Unless the State Department IG brought them to the Congress on October 2, how do we know they continue to exist?

. Are those records explosive in their content? Vladimir Putin apparently thinks so. As funny as it sounds, he demanded that records of his talks with Donald Trump not be released.

. President Trump already expressed his contempt for the inquiries of both the Intelligence Committee and the Oversight Committee. The White House will not comply voluntarily. Both Committees should issue subpoenas immediately. But there is another step that must be taken.

. The House of Representatives must seek a records preservation order immediately. Do not assume Trump won’t destroy requested records. He apparently feels cornered and is fighting for his Presidency. This may require the Speaker to call for a vote of the whole House to commence a formal impeachment inquiry. If so, then it is time for Democratic. members of the House to man up. It is not a vote to impeach. It is a vote to ask questions.

. Without that vote, and securing a records preservation order, the most important evidence concerning Trump may vanish without a trace.

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