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For Immediate Release
December, 12 2019, 11:00pm EDT
Contact:
David Vance (202) 736-5712 or dvance@commoncause.org
Common Cause Presses House to Impeach and McConnell to Recuse from Senate Trial
Statement of Karen Hobert Flynn, President of Common Cause
WASHINGTON
Common Cause commends the House Judiciary Committee for approving two articles of impeachment against President Trump. These articles reflect the overwhelming evidence against President Trump that was collected despite obstruction of the investigation by the White House. We are disappointed that the Republican members of the committee chose to ignore the compelling evidence before them and uphold their oath of office. We encourage all House Members to impartially review the evidence before them and keep in mind their constitutional duty to hold the executive branch accountable and vote for these two articles when they're expected to be voted on by the full House of Representatives next week.
Today is a somber yet necessary step to uphold the rule of law and prevent President Trump from continuing to shred the Constitution. President Trump's impeachable offenses go far beyond these two articles approved today by the House Judiciary Committee. As we outlined in our recent report entitled, "Patterns of Deception: Obstruction, Corruption, and Abuse of Power: The Nonpartisan Case for Removing President Donald J. Trump from Office," there are at least nine articles for which he should be impeached. One major impediment to this Impeachment Inquiry is that the Trump Administration obstructed the investigation by refusing to turn over evidence and blocking key administration officials with first-hand knowledge of the Ukraine matter from testifying.
Furthermore, Senator McConnell's comments last night that he is "going to coordinate with the President's lawyers" and that "there's no chance the president's going to be removed from office" show that he is not suited to lead the Senate impeachment trial. No judge would allow any potential juror who made similar comments about coordinating with a defendant's attorneys, as well as pre-announcing one's decision, to serve on a jury. Senator McConnell must therefore recuse himself in the expected Senate impeachment trial.
To view this statement online, click here.
Common Cause is a nonpartisan, grassroots organization dedicated to upholding the core values of American democracy. We work to create open, honest, and accountable government that serves the public interest; promote equal rights, opportunity, and representation for all; and empower all people to make their voices heard in the political process.
(202) 833-1200LATEST NEWS
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