South Dakotans will see 'a constant testing of the waters' on impeachment messaging

Lisa Kaczke
Argus Leader

President Andrew Johnson didn't have Twitter to speak to his supporters in real time during his 1868 impeachment.

The impeachment inquiry into President Donald Trump's actions in Ukraine isn't the first attempt to remove a president from office in the United State, but it is the first one to take place in the age of social media and a diverse media landscape.

The full impact of that is unknown at this point, but members of Congress know millions of people could see them in viral video clips if they get the right soundbite and residents can curate the information sources they frequent about the impeachment, said Joel Johnson, chair of Augustana University's Political Science Department. 

"It's so much about the public messaging of these hearings, trying to change those in wavering districts or swing states to come over to your side," he said.

More:How S.D. politicians are trying to turn an impeachment 'Witch Hunt' into campaign cash

Impeachment is a political process where a crime doesn't need to be on the books to begin and a lot of strategy goes into an impeachment process, he said. People will see "a constant testing of the waters" for strategies as Congress moves through the process, he said.

"What is an unacceptable use of power? That's something that's not clearly defined in statute law," he said.

Questions to think about

While watching the impeachment process unfold, Johnson suggests that South Dakotans consider two questions: Do Trump's actions rise to the level of an abuse of power that should cause the president to be removed from office? And looking long-term, would you want future presidents to be bound by the same standard? 

The U.S. Constitution and Federalist papers are his suggested reading about impeachment, as well as founding father Alexander Hamilton's writing about executive power versus the power of the House of Representatives. But overall, Johnson reminds South Dakotans that an attempt at impeachment is a sign of the vitality of the Republic because the separation and balance of powers continues.

"This is a long-lasting debate in our Republic. How powerful should the Executive be compared to the Legislature?" he said. "Right now, we're seeing a test of wills between the two branches."

Political impacts

The next year could see two parallel narratives converge: South Dakota's congressional may have to vote on impeaching the president in Washington, D.C., while two-thirds of the delegation may be ramping up their 2020 reelection campaigns in South Dakota.

The diverse media landscape makes it easier for residents to segment themselves and "if you look at an online news source on the left and on the right, it's almost like you're not talking about the same event," he said. That provides a challenge for candidates running for office, especially in swing states, because they have to choose whether to focus on the base's interests or to try to bridge the divide to reach a broader group of voters, he said. 

The opinion of voters, especially moderates in swing states, on whether their congressional members are using their time wisely with the impeachment inquiry is more important than the inquiry's outcome when considering its impact on the 2020 election, he said. 

More:Impeachment testimony ends with some uncertainty on what happens now

The impeachment has a narrow focus on whether the president should be removed from office, but there are a lot of political effects that can flow from that narrow focus, he said.

"All these politicians in Washington, D.C. are thinking about all the different effects," he said.

South Dakota will have more influence in an impeachment vote in the Senate, if it occurs, because it's equal to all other states with two votes rather than in the House, where South Dakota only has one vote, he said.

In a non-swing state like South Dakota, the safest way for the congressional delegation to handle the impeachment is to tell residents about the work Congress could be doing instead of spending time on the impeachment hearings, while residents are hearing a message in the background that the impeachment is going to fail in the Senate anyway, he said.

In a district where a congressional member's party majority ensures they aren't politically vulnerable, they can operate as a partisan who only represents their political bloc's interests in Congress, he explained. But they have to ensure they're always in line with their political base because they'll pay the political price if they attempt to cross the aisle, he said.

As South Dakota's sole House member, Dusty Johnson has to represent a diverse set of opinions in the entire state and within his Republican base, which makes his job more difficult than a congressional member representing a smaller, more cohesive district, Joel Johnson said. That can open Dusty Johnson up to a primary challenger or, on the other hand, win him more support from independents.

"He has to think holistically. What would be overall the best decision for South Dakota? That's not always easy to do and you are going to anger people, no matter what you do," said Joel Johnson.