In the tradition of the Clintonometer and the Trump Apocalypse Watch, the Impeach-O-Meter is a wildly subjective and speculative daily estimate of the likelihood that Donald Trump leaves office before his term ends, whether by being impeached (and convicted) or by resigning under threat of same.
On Wednesday morning, Donald Trump announced that transgender individuals will no longer be allowed to serve in the United States military—a policy that, it’s believed, could require the expulsion of thousands of service members, including those who are currently deployed in or near combat zones. Trump’s announcement was reportedly a big surprise to the Pentagon; Defense Secretary James Mattis is currently on vacation.
On Wednesday afternoon, reporters asked White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders how and when the new policy would be implemented. Sanders’ response was more or less “We have no idea and didn’t plan for this at all.” To wit:
Q: What happens to transgender servicemembers now? Are they immediately thrown out of the military?
MS. SANDERS: That’s something that the Department of Defense and the White House will have to work together [on] as implementation takes place and is done so lawfully.
And:
Q: So does that mean that those that are now in theater, that are now deployed to Afghanistan, for example, will have to be immediately sent home and discharged?
MS. SANDERS: Again, implementation policy is going to be something that the White House and the Department of Defense have to work together to lawfully determine, and I would imagine the Department of Defense will be the lead on that and keep you posted as that takes place.
And:
Q: And just to follow up on that, what is the timeline for when guidance will be delivered to the Pentagon on how the President’s decision should be implemented?
MS. SANDERS: We’ll let you know when we have an announcement.
Does this seem like a group of people that is really equipped to last three and a half more years in the White House? Sometimes I think that putting the likelihood of impeachment above 50 percent is hyperbolic, but then sometimes there are days like today.
Photo illustration by Natalie Matthews-Ramo. Photos by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images, Win McNamee/Getty Images, Chris Kleponis-Pool/Getty Images, Drew Angerer/Getty Images, and Peter Parks-Pool/Getty Images.
