As 2020 approaches, as one of the most volatile election years in recent history, both parties in American politics are pulling out all the stops in order to gain an edge on their counterparts. On September 24, Speaker of the House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi announced a formal impeachment inquiry into President Donald Trump. This is a complete 180 from her stances prior and came as a shock to many.

As it turns out now, it may have been a sizable mistake.

Democrats must shy away from impeachment and focus on policy in order to win over the American population as to avoid a repeat of 2016.

American politics can be likened to an intense game of chess. As one side makes a move, the other attempts to make a countermove and predict what direction the opposition will take with it. This has become a destructive process as elected officials end up battling each other for power instead of listening to the people they were elected by.

This very situation is rearing its ugly head in our politics right now. Recently, a whistleblower came forward and, essentially, accused Trump of blackmailing Ukraine for information on Joe Biden. This report sparked the aforementioned formal impeachment inquiry into the president. Following that announcement, in a tweet, Trump announced,

"I am currently at the United Nations representing our Country, but have authorized the release tomorrow of the complete, fully declassified and unredacted transcript of my phone conversation with President Zelensky of Ukraine. You will see it was a very friendly and totally appropriate call. No pressure and, unlike Joe Biden and his son, NO quid pro quo! This is nothing more than a continuation of the Greatest and most Destructive Witch Hunt of all time!"

As this article is being written, the transcript is being thoroughly analyzed by the media. And from the information we have now, no explicit blackmailing appears to have occurred.

If this is all there is to see, it will do incalculable damage to the Democratic Party's chances in 2020. But it is not too late to salvage the trust of the people. Democrats should move away from trying to impeach the president at every turn as it is only causing more damage to their reputation and instead prove their merits with policy. With majority control in Congress, it is possible to show the people their good will and enact policies that reach across the aisle and improve the lives of their constituents.

Now is the time to take the high road instead of trying to remove a duly elected president and prove once and for all that they serve the people — otherwise 2020 will just be a repeat of 2016.