The impeachment of President Trump is losing popularity in polls. As the impeachment itself is nothing more that an election year stunt, this is significant. (READ: Support for Impeachment Is Starting to Burn Down.) As I’ve posted, Nancy Pelosi seems uncertain of how to bring this exercise to endgame because the only visible one is a bipartisan vote against impeachment and a similar bipartisan rejection of impeachment in the Senate. This will make it clear that impeachment is nothing more than a Democrat effort to overturn the 2016 election because they are angry that they lost to a man they still think is a buffoon. (READ: Nancy Pelosi Likes Impeachment So Much That She Has No Plans to End It). Yesterday, a focus group of Democrat-leaning voters in districts that were flipped from Red to Blue in 2016 indicated that voters were not happy with the Democrat focus on impeachment (READ: Democrat Dark Money Group Sounds Red Alert on Impeachment’s Impact on the Democrats in 2020).

As they say, the plural of anecdote is not data but anecdotes can sometimes explain were data may go. Two Democrats voted against starting the impeachment inquiry, Jeff Van Drew of New Jersey and Collin Peterson of Minnesota. Van Drew has now given an interview which might be the canary in the coal mine for impeachment.

Listen to Democratic Congressman Jeff Van Drew (D-NJ) yesterday explaining why he will vote against impeaching Trump. It is so refreshing to see a Democrat leader who is standing for truth and principle and not politics. He mentions others having concerns too. pic.twitter.com/bxUa3ToTIA

— Joseph Montalto (@Joey_Montalto) November 19, 2019

MARIA BARTIROMO: We’re expecting an impeachment vote sometime in December. How will you vote?

REP. JEFF VAN DREW: I would imagine I’ll be voting “no.” Now, I always have a codicil if there’s something new, something we haven’t heard, something that really rises to the level of treason or a high crime, that would be different. But we don’t see that. We see little different variations, hearsay, discussions that somebody heard something that somebody else said. Impeachment, as you know, our founding fathers had vigorous debates over whether they would even allow impeachment in the Constitution. You don’t disenfranchise voters, millions upon millions of voters. Voters choose their leaders in America.

BARTIROMO: Are you hearing from some of your colleagues in some of the states that President Trump won that they may also vote “no?” Are you hearing some concerns amongst your colleagues or are you sort of a lone wolf in all of this?

REP. VAN DREW: I don’t know how other folks will vote, because in all honesty, originally, I thought there were going to be a few more, not that it matters to me if I’m one or I’m 101. I do what I believe is right. There is some discussion among some of them quietly, privately, of concern, certainly. What I’m hearing out in the street is with most people is, they’re kind of tired, they’re kind of worn out, they’re kind of bored, most folks, and they really want to move on. Unless there’s something new and amazing, we know the end game here.

This is significant because it indicates that dissatisfaction exists within the Democrat caucus on this abuse of the impeachment process and that dissatisfaction has reached a level where a Democrat will go on FoxNews and talk about it. The clear implication is that there are many more less vocal members with the same view. And I think that the background for Pelosi’s rather incredible letter saying that the voters can’t be entrusted with the 2020 election is, in fact, this Sunday interview by Van Drew (READ: Nancy Pelosi Tells Democrats That Impeachment Is Important Because the Voters Can’t Be Trusted to Make the Right Decision in 2020). It is an answer to Van Drew’s point about disenfranchising voters.

In the current House, the GOP needs about 19 votes to actually defeat a vote on articles of impeachment. I don’t know that is possible. But what Nancy Pelosi doesn’t have the luxury of is losing 5 or 10 votes while the GOP uniformly rejects impeachment. That would clearly label impeachment as a purely partisan action and I don’t think voters would forgive that in November…and I know that President Trump won’t let them.

“Congressman Van Drew (D-NJ) SLAMS Democrats for ‘fracturing the Nation’ with Impeachment probe. ‘We already know how it’s going to end.” @FoxNews

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 18, 2019