Trump Is in 'Deep Trouble,' Presidential Historian Predicts As Poll Shows Half of Country Wants President Impeached

Presidential historian Douglas Brinkley predicted that President Donald Trump is in "deep trouble" after a recent poll showed that 50 percent of respondents want the commander-in-chief impeached and removed from office.

Brinkley, who is a professor of history at Rice University and a best-selling author, made the remark during a Friday interview with CNN, in which he discussed the network's latest impeachment poll that showed that support for the president's impeachment and removal remained steady at the end of November compared to October. However, there has been a significant jump since the spring, when only 36 percent supported Trump's impeachment.

CNN anchor John Avlon pointed out that looking back at previous impeachment proceedings for President Richard Nixon and Bill Clinton, the trend was different. Polls in support of Nixon being impeached remained below 50 percent until August of 1974, the same month Nixon resigned. In the case of Clinton, support for impeachment never rose above 35 percent.

CNN presidential historian Douglas Brinkley on a recent poll showing 50% of Americans support impeaching and removing Trump from office:

After Congress votes, "you're going to see that movement grow even more... He's a base politician. He doesn't know how to turn this around." pic.twitter.com/wR9iCB4Jho — New Day (@NewDay) November 29, 2019

"It just tells you what deep trouble Donald Trump's in," Brinkely assessed, responding to Avlon's comments. "I mean, when you have 50 percent of the country wanting you – not just impeached – but removed from office, and the game hasn't even gotten fast yet," the historian continued, "I think when the vote's taken by Congress to impeach him, and he's wearing the eye on his chest, you're going to see that movement grow even more."

Brinkely said that the poll results "tells you he doesn't have a lot of friends. He's a base politician. He doesn't know how to turn this around." The academic went on to say that he thinks the "charges of corruption [against Trump] are just deep and real." He also suggested that the impeachment proceedings could hurt the president in the 2020 election.

Although the recent CNN poll shows half the country supporting Trump's impeachment and removal, there is a steep partisan divide. While the vast majority of Democrats want Trump out of the White House, most Republicans do not believe he should impeached, let alone removed from office.

Other national polls vary as well, with some showing less and others showing greater support for the president's impeachment. A Reuters/Ipso survey published this week showed that 47 percent of respondents support impeachment, while 40 percent opposed it. An Economist/YouGov poll was slightly higher, with 49 percent in favor, while 42 percent were against. But November polls by Quinnipiac and CBS News showed 54 percent and 53 percent of respondents – respectively – were pro-impeachment.

Although it appears increasingly likely that Trump will be impeached by the House of Representatives, which is controlled by Democrats, most analysts believe it is unlikely he will be removed from office by the Republican-controlled Senate. As a two-thirds majority vote is required for a president's removal from office, 20 Republican senators would have to join with every single Democrat and Independent in the upper chamber of Congress in voting for the president's removal in order for it to pass.

Some analysts do believe, however, that if public opinion shifts significantly above 50 percent in support of Trump's removal, GOP senators may turn against the president.