＜prologue＞
I started a blog called “The Baby Boomer Generation’s Miscellaneous Blog”（Dankai-sedai no garakutatyou:団塊世代の我楽多（がらくた）帳） in July 2018, about a year before I fully retired. More than six years have passed since then, and the number of articles has increased considerably.
So, in order to make them accessible to people who don’t understand Japanese, I decided to translate my past articles into English and publish them.
It may sound a bit exaggerated, but I would like to make this my life’s work.
It should be noted that haiku and waka （Japanese short fixed form poems） are quite difficult to translate into English, so some parts are written in Japanese.
If you are interested in haiku or waka and would like to know more, please read introductory or specialized books on haiku or waka written in English.
I also write many articles about the Japanese language. I would be happy if these inspire more people to want to learn Japanese.
my blog’s URL:団塊世代の我楽多（がらくた）帳 | 団塊世代が雑学や面白い話を発信しています
my X’s URL:団塊世代の我楽多帳（@historia49）さん / X
On February 27, the same day as the “Second US-North Korea Summit” was held, President Trump’s former legal adviser, Mr. Cohen, gave bombshell testimony that was extremely damaging to President Trump, and was broadcast on television across the United States. He has agreed to a “plea bargain” with the FBI.
This is a major blow to President Trump, who was trying to score points through “diplomatic negotiations with North Korea” and increase his approval rating, and depending on how things go, it is possible that an “impeachment trial” may be held.
１．Testimony from former attorney Cohen
On February 27, Cohen (defendant), former personal lawyer for President Trump, testified before Congress and harshly criticized Trump, calling him a “con man, a fraud and a racist.” He also said he was “ashamed to have worked for Trump for 10 years.”
The main points of the testimony are as follows:
(1) Cohen was instructed by President Trump to illegally pay “hush money” to an actress with whom Trump was having an affair
(2) During the 2016 presidential election, Trump knew in advance that information damaging to Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton had been published on the whistleblower website WikiLeaks.
(3) During the 2016 presidential election campaign, Trump instructed Cohen to negotiate the “Trump Tower construction plan” in Moscow, but Cohen received tacit instructions from Trump to lie about the plan.
(4) Although he is unaware of any direct evidence of the alleged collusion between the Trump campaign and Russia in the presidential election, he “suspects” that Trump was involved in the collusion.
２．What is the “impeachment trial” of the US president?
(1) Provisions of the United States Constitution
Article II, Section 4 of the United States Constitution states:
“The President, Vice President, and other Officers of the United States shall be removed from Office on Impeachment for, and on Conviction of, Treason, Bribery, or other high Crimes and Misdemeanors.”
(2) Presidential impeachment procedure
① A majority of House members agree to impeachment.
② The Chief Justice of the Supreme Court presides over the impeachment trial in the Senate, and more than two-thirds of the 67 or more members present in the Senate must vote in favor.
If the above two conditions are met, the US President will be removed from office.
(3) Presidents who have been removed from office by impeachment
No president has ever been removed from office by impeachment.
However, there have been two presidents who were impeached but then “acquitted.” These were the 17th president, Andrew Johnson, and the 42nd president, Bill Clinton.
Johnson’s impeachment was due to “discrimination against blacks,” while Clinton’s was due to “inappropriate conduct with Monica Lewinsky, who was a White House intern.”
There have also been two presidents who were nearly impeached, but did not undergo impeachment procedures. These were the 10th president, John Tyler, and the 37th president, Richard Nixon.
It is unclear what caused Tyler’s impeachment, but Nixon’s was due to the “Watergate Scandal.”