Today, Congressmember Karen Bass (D-Calif.) delivered the below remarks on the House Floor:
“Madame Speaker, this is a sad day in US history — when we have to vote on articles of impeachment because Donald Trump has abused the power of the office of the presidency in his attempt to cheat his way to reelection.
“The facts are uncontested:
“Fact #1: The President abused the power of the office by attempting to shake down the President of a country that has been our ally. Trump wanted President Zelensky of Ukraine to dig up and to make up dirt on Vice President Biden because he sees him as the biggest threat to his reelection.
“Fact #2: Trump wanted Zelensky to go before the press and announce an investigation of Bide, hoping the mere announcement would create doubt about Biden and strengthen Trump’s hand in the 2020 election.
“Fact #3: Trump obstructed Congress by engaging in a cover up. Trump has refused to comply with Congressional subpoenas and has blocked current and past employees from testifying before Congressional committees.
“Congress is a co-equal branch of government and one of our central responsibilities is to provide oversight and investigation of the Administration, the very checks and balances the framers built into the Constitution so no one branch would have unchecked power.
“The House of Representatives has no choice but to vote and pass articles of impeachment because President Trump has abused his power and obstructed the ability of Congress from performing our constitutional duty. The urgency to move forward with articles of impeachment is because there is no reason to believe President Trump won’t continue to abuse the power of his office, no reason to believe won’t continue to put his foot on the scale of his reelection and in fact his attorney just returned from Ukraine and in an article just released yesterday in the New Yorker magazine confesses to continuing the effort to interfere in the election.
“In many of our Congressional districts we worry about voter suppression and schemes that purge legitimate voters from participating in the election. Or we worry about Russian interference in our elections. It is a Sad day in America when we have to worry about the Commander in Chief interfering in the election in order to be reelected.
“Elections should be decided by the American people. I will vote for both articles of impeachment, it is my constitutional duty that fulfill my oath of office.
“No one is above the law.”
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