House Judiciary Committee Ranking Member Doug Collins (R-Ga.) speaks during a committee hearing. (Photo: Zach Gibson/Getty Images)
May 02, 2019
A top House GOP leader Thursday told Democrats Thursday that they should impeach the president.
In an interview with MSNBC reporter Kasie Hunt, Rep. Doug Collins (R-Ga.), the ranking member on the House Judiciary Committee, said that if Democrats want the opportunity to ask administration officials like Attorney General William Barr tough questions, they should bring articles of impeachment against the president.
But Collins doesn't think the majority party has the courage to do that.
"They wanted it to play out this way because they want it to look like an impeachment hearing," said Collins. "But they don't have the fortitude to bring impeachment."
\u201cWATCH: When @RepDougCollins, ranking member of @HouseJudiciary, make case for why Democrats should start impeachment hearings.\u201d— Common Dreams (@Common Dreams) 1556810657
Barr refused to testify in front of the committee Thursday morning, apparently in reaction to committee Democrats' intention to have staff attorneys question him. The attorney general also did not abide by a subpoena from committee chairman Rep. Jerry Nadler (D-N.Y.) for the full, un-redacted Mueller Report.
Collins said that using staff attorneys was a major break from precedent from regular hearings and told Hunt that if Democrats wanted to go down that road, they should take the next step and go for impeachment.
According to Collins, impeachment is the easiest way to have unfettered access to the materials Democrats want.
"If [Nadler] would bring impeachment hearings," said Collins, "he would have access to all kinds of documents, irregardless (sic) of what the attorney general's accommodations have already made for him."
Join Us: News for people demanding a better world
Common Dreams is powered by optimists who believe in the power of informed and engaged citizens to ignite and enact change to make the world a better place. We're hundreds of thousands strong, but every single supporter makes the difference. Your contribution supports this bold media model—free, independent, and dedicated to reporting the facts every day. Stand with us in the fight for economic equality, social justice, human rights, and a more sustainable future. As a people-powered nonprofit news outlet, we cover the issues the corporate media never will. |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
A top House GOP leader Thursday told Democrats Thursday that they should impeach the president.
In an interview with MSNBC reporter Kasie Hunt, Rep. Doug Collins (R-Ga.), the ranking member on the House Judiciary Committee, said that if Democrats want the opportunity to ask administration officials like Attorney General William Barr tough questions, they should bring articles of impeachment against the president.
But Collins doesn't think the majority party has the courage to do that.
"They wanted it to play out this way because they want it to look like an impeachment hearing," said Collins. "But they don't have the fortitude to bring impeachment."
\u201cWATCH: When @RepDougCollins, ranking member of @HouseJudiciary, make case for why Democrats should start impeachment hearings.\u201d— Common Dreams (@Common Dreams) 1556810657
Barr refused to testify in front of the committee Thursday morning, apparently in reaction to committee Democrats' intention to have staff attorneys question him. The attorney general also did not abide by a subpoena from committee chairman Rep. Jerry Nadler (D-N.Y.) for the full, un-redacted Mueller Report.
Collins said that using staff attorneys was a major break from precedent from regular hearings and told Hunt that if Democrats wanted to go down that road, they should take the next step and go for impeachment.
According to Collins, impeachment is the easiest way to have unfettered access to the materials Democrats want.
"If [Nadler] would bring impeachment hearings," said Collins, "he would have access to all kinds of documents, irregardless (sic) of what the attorney general's accommodations have already made for him."
A top House GOP leader Thursday told Democrats Thursday that they should impeach the president.
In an interview with MSNBC reporter Kasie Hunt, Rep. Doug Collins (R-Ga.), the ranking member on the House Judiciary Committee, said that if Democrats want the opportunity to ask administration officials like Attorney General William Barr tough questions, they should bring articles of impeachment against the president.
But Collins doesn't think the majority party has the courage to do that.
"They wanted it to play out this way because they want it to look like an impeachment hearing," said Collins. "But they don't have the fortitude to bring impeachment."
\u201cWATCH: When @RepDougCollins, ranking member of @HouseJudiciary, make case for why Democrats should start impeachment hearings.\u201d— Common Dreams (@Common Dreams) 1556810657
Barr refused to testify in front of the committee Thursday morning, apparently in reaction to committee Democrats' intention to have staff attorneys question him. The attorney general also did not abide by a subpoena from committee chairman Rep. Jerry Nadler (D-N.Y.) for the full, un-redacted Mueller Report.
Collins said that using staff attorneys was a major break from precedent from regular hearings and told Hunt that if Democrats wanted to go down that road, they should take the next step and go for impeachment.
According to Collins, impeachment is the easiest way to have unfettered access to the materials Democrats want.
"If [Nadler] would bring impeachment hearings," said Collins, "he would have access to all kinds of documents, irregardless (sic) of what the attorney general's accommodations have already made for him."
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.