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On Sunday, Last Week Tonight tried something a little different. As host John Oliver put it, For one week and one week only, the show Last Week Tonight is actually going to talk at some length about the last week, tonight. Compare this with the week before, whensave for a brief monologue about James Comeys dismissalOliver spent the majority of his time discussing dialysis. Why the sudden, rare shift toward the topical? The reason we unfortunately have to do that, Oliver said, is the last seven days have been absolutely insane.

And so, for more than 20 minutes, Oliver recapped it all. Most of his material, naturally, has already been dissected multiple ways by multiple late night hostsbut Olivers most salient point is one that, for the most part, the other hosts did not have time to address. He answered the question thats probably on more and more Trump detractors minds: how possible is impeachment, and where would that leave us? Sadly, Olivers verdict pours a massive bucket of ice water on the heads of anyone who has been on the edge of their seats with anticipation.

If you are hoping for impeachment or a resignation, it is worth taking a quick peek at the presidential line of succession, Oliver pointed out. Because Trump going would be fantastic, but remember that would give us President Mike Pence. And let me remind you how our prospective next president sees himself.

Cue multiple clips of Pence calling himself a Christian, a conservative, and a Republican, in that order. As Oliver put it, Pence is a hard-line conservative whose record on countless issues offers little to recommend him to liberals who dont like the policy decisions theyve seen under Trump. And by the way, if youre telling yourself, Well, maybe Trumps impeachment could take Pence down as well, well, think about what that would mean, Oliver continued. Because then wed have President Paul Ryanthree words I always knew Id have to say, but I didnt really expect to have to say it quite so soon.

But even those considerations are likely premature, Oliver argues, because impeachment is a long-shot for several reasons. The majority of the Republican-controlled House would have to vote to impeach, and then two-thirds of the Republican-controlled Senate would have to vote to convict. Sure, it really feels like Trumps presidency is reaching the end of the linebut as Oliver notes, that sentiment isnt exactly new. Havent there been many last straws already?

It seems like when it comes to President Trump, hes always approaching the end of the line, but it never seems to come, Oliver said. As if for him and him alone, the line is drawn by M.C. fucking Escher.

And while Trump detractors have been enraptured by his scandals, Oliver notes that his administration has, in fact, also made significant moves in the policy arena that bring grave implications. Jeff Sessions moved to lengthen drug sentences, Oliver noted, undoing Obama-era criminal-justice reforms. Just tonight, it came out that Trump is going to propose slashing Medicaid and other safety-net benefits. And tomorrow in court, the administration may decide to end key Obamacare subsidies, which, if that happens, could immediately unravel the Obamacare insurance market.

The only comfort Oliver could provide was a pretty meager one: Trump still doesnt seem to be having fun as president. In fact, he occasionally seems to miss his old life. I now have something in common with Donald Trump, Oliver quipped, because I, too, preferred my previous life before he became president.

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Left, by Lucas Jackson/Pool/Getty Images; right, by JEWEL SAMAD/AFP/Getty Images.

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By NICHOLAS KAMM/AFP/Getty Images.

Pool

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SAUL LOEB

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John Oliver Has Bad News for Liberals Praying for Trump's Impeachment - Vanity Fair