November, 12 2019, 11:00pm EDT
"Lead with Moral Courage," National Advocacy Groups Publish Draft Articles of Impeachment and Urge Congress Act as Representatives of the People
Drafted by Free Speech For People, and published by a coalition including By The People, CREDO Action, Free Speech For People and Women’s March, the articles of impeachment cover the full range of Trump’s abuses of power.
WASHINGTON
A coalition of national advocacy groups representing millions of people released draft articles of impeachment that address the full range of Trump's abuses of power to be a framework for Members of Congress as public hearings begin this week.
Titled "Impeachment For the People," the articles call for an expanded scope that will ensure Congress fulfills its constitutional duty to protect our democracy, root out corruption, enforce the rule of law, guard our national security, defend the communities Trump is threatening, and start delivering the promise of our democracy to all their constituents. They include:
Abuse of power to target political adversaries, critics, and the press;
Corruption of electoral processes;
Abuse of office to promote discrimination, hostility and unlawful violence,
Corruption and self-enrichment;
Obstruction of the administration of justice and Congressional inquiries; and
Misuse of armed forces and abuse of emergency powers.
The articles of impeachment have been drafted to track the language of relevant legal standards, previous articles of impeachment against other federal officials, and/or other congressional resolutions since 2017.
In a preamble urging Congress to act as representatives of the people, the national groups write "Every day Donald Trump remains in office is another day he subverts our democracy, endangers our lives, and betrays our country for his personal gain. The Constitution provides the people, through their representatives in Congress, the tools to stop such a lawless, unfit, and dangerous president: impeachment in the House and removal in the Senate. We deserve leaders who will step up with the courage, heart and principled clarity this moment requires."
"Trump's offenses related to Ukraine are not an aberration -- they are the latest examples of him subverting our democracy to advance his own interests. If we don't address the full magnitude of criminality, bigotry, and corruption, Trump's abuses of power will become the new normal," said Alexandra Flores-Quilty, Executive Director of By the People. "These articles of impeachment are necessary to stop what we cannot tolerate and are a first step toward achieving a democracy that works for all of us. Now, our elected representatives must make a choice: will they fulfill their constitutional duty by impeaching for the people or will they betray the country by protecting a dangerous and lawless President."
"We welcome the impeachment proceedings concerning Trump's efforts to bribe and extort Ukraine using hundreds of millions of dollars of taxpayer money to leverage foreign assistance in his reelection bid," said Ben Clements, Free Speech For People Board Chair. "But this brazenly lawless action was the direct result of Congressional failure to hold Trump accountable for the smorgasbord of impeachable offenses he committed to secure the 2016 election and on a daily basis throughout his presidency. Trump's lawless and abusive self-dealing, obstruction, racism, bigotry, incitement to violence, and subversion of the Constitution is well documented and well suited for expedited proceedings in the House. If Congress is serious about defending the Constitution and our democracy and restoring the rule of law now and for future presidents, it must address these egregious and dangerous impeachable offenses and it must move efficiently and urgently toward a vote on comprehensive articles of impeachment."
"Donald Trump has committed multiple impeachable offenses which don't just threaten our democracy, but threaten people and communities across the country on a daily basis," said CREDO Action Co-Director Heidi Hess. "If House Democrats sweep those offenses aside in favor of a 'narrow' impeachment, they will be missing an opportunity to lead with moral courage toward an American democracy that makes its promise of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness real for every person who calls the United States home -- across race, gender, sexuality, religion, country of origin and class. The people want articles of impeachment that are broad, forward-looking and grounded in moral values. Members of Congress should take note of this framework from the people as public hearings begin."
The call to broaden the scope for impeachment corresponds with the beginning of public hearings in the House and polling that shows large public support for expanding impeachment to address additional abuses of power beyond those connected with the Ukraine scandal.
The coalition of advocacy organizations endorsing "Impeachment for the People" articles of impeachment includes: By the People, CREDO Action, Free Speech For People, Courage Campaign, Democracy For America, Equal Justice Society, Mainers for Accountable Leadership, March For Truth, Movement School, Presente, Progressive Democrats of America, Revolving Door Project, and Women's March.
Read Impeachment For the People here.
Free Speech For People is a national non-partisan non-profit organization founded on the day of the U.S. Supreme Court's ruling in Citizens United v. FEC that works to defend our democracy and our Constitution.
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