House Democrats are continuing with their impeachment inquiry into President Donald Trump whether he and his Republican allies in Congress like it or not. This week, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) asserted Democrats’ determination in a letter to fellow Democratic House members, in which she insisted that the basic reality is that Trump abused its power. Importantly, she added that although Democrats will continue their campaign to enact legislation to benefit the American people, their first “order of business” is to uphold the oath that each member of Congress took when they assumed office, which includes a commitment to protect the Constitution of the United States.
Pelosi wrote, condemning not just Trump but complicit Republicans too:
‘The facts are uncontested: that the President abused his power for his own personal, political benefit, at the expense of our national security interests. The weak response to these hearings has been, ‘Let the election decide.’ That dangerous position only adds to the urgency of our action, because the President is jeopardizing the integrity of the 2020 elections.’
It’s true — the Ukraine plot that a whistleblower uncovered and House Democrats have been investigated centered on again trying to use foreign power to tilt the upcoming presidential election in Trump’s favor. Numerous witnesses have confirmed that he and his closest allies sought to tie the release of already approved military aid and the possibility for a D.C. summit with the Trump team for Ukraine to that country producing dirt on the Bidens, or at least trying to. One recent report in The New York Times even said that the plot got so far that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky was preparing to announce the Biden investigation in a bid to get that aid.
In her letter, Pelosi pointed out that although Republicans have passionately insisted otherwise, the issue does not end with the fact that Ukraine did eventually get the aid without them making that investigation announcement. That aid was released very soon after a whistleblower complaint emerged exposing the Ukraine scheme, and Republicans want us to think that timing is just a coincidence.
Pelosi noted:
‘None of us comes to Congress to impeach a President, but rather to make progress for America’s working families. However, our first order of business is our oath to support and defend the Constitution from all enemies foreign and domestic. As such, we are custodians of the Constitution and, For The People, defenders of our democracy.’
The Washington Post tabulated that in response, Republicans came up with 17 and counting different defenses for the president. 17! That’s not exactly the mark of a side that can simply rely on the reality of the situation to make their case. Their defenses have ranged from allegations of hearsay, a “deep state” conspiracy, and a lack of due process to that Trump’s behavior was “inappropriate, but not impeachable” and that the whistleblower has political bias.
Meanwhile, Democrats continue to accumulate evidence to support theirs. Last week, they hosted three witnesses for public testimony, and they have a large slate of further witnesses lined up for this week.
