Republican comments on the second impeachment of Donald Trump

Donald Trump was impeached while he was still President but the trial was not held immediately because the Senate was not willing to return from recess. The following are comments by Republican members of the House of Representatives who voted for the Impeachment. These Representatives risked their careers and their personal safety to make these statements.

Liz Cheney (R-Wyoming)

"The President of the United States summoned this mob, assembled the mob, and lit the flame of this attack. Everything that followed was his doing. None of this would have happened without the President. The President could have immediately and forcefully intervened to stop the violence. He did not. There has never been a greater betrayal by a President of the United States of his office and his oath to the Constitution."

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Adam Kinzinger (R-Illinois)

"There is no doubt in my mind that the President of the United states broke his oath of office and incited this insurrection…If these actions--the Article II branch inciting a deadly insurrection against the Article I branch--are not worthy of impeachment, then what is an impeachable offense?

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Dan Newhouse (R-WA)

“A vote against this impeachment is a vote to validate the unacceptable violence we witnessed in our nation’s capital … it is also a vote to condone President Trump’s inaction. He did not strongly condemn the attack nor did he call in reinforcements when our officers were overwhelmed. Our country needed and leader, and President Trump failed to fulfill his oath of office.”

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John Katko (R-NY)

“To allow the president of the United States to incite this attack without consequence is a direct threat to the future of our democracy,”
“For that reason, I cannot sit by without taking action. I will vote to impeach this president.”

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The day before the impeachment vote Congresswoman Jaime Herrera Beutler (R-WA) released this statement:

“The President of the United States incited a riot aiming to halt the peaceful transfer of power from one administration to the next. That riot led to five deaths. People everywhere watched in disbelief as the center of American democracy was assaulted. The violent mob bludgeoned to death a Capitol police officer as they defaced symbols of our freedom. These terrorists roamed the Capitol, hunting the Vice President and the Speaker of the House.

“Hours went by before the President did anything meaningful to stop the attack. Instead, he and his lawyer were busy making calls to senators who were still in lockdown, seeking their support to further delay the Electoral College certification. House Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy describes pleading with the President to go on television and call for an end to the mayhem, to no avail. The President attacked Vice President Mike Pence on Twitter while Pence was in a secure room having fled from the mob that had breached the Senate floor threatening to hang him. Finally, the President released a pathetic denouncement of the violence that also served as a wink and a nod to those who perpetrated it: “I love you,” he said to them, “you are special." More hours of destruction and violence ensued before law enforcement officials were finally able to clear the Capitol.

“The President's offenses, in my reading of the Constitution, were impeachable based on the indisputable evidence we already have. I understand the argument that the best course is not to further inflame the country or alienate Republican voters. But I am also a Republican voter. I believe in our Constitution, individual liberty, free markets, charity, life, justice, peace and this exceptional country. I see that my own party will be best served when those among us choose truth.

“I believe President Trump acted against his oath of office, so I will vote to impeach him.”
https://jhb.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=402082

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The Republicans in the Senate decided to let Trump off now that he is out of the White House.

Senator Mitch McConnell's office released the following comments about the impeachment trial:

"January 6th was a disgrace.
"American citizens attacked their own government. They used terrorism to try to stop a specific piece of democratic business they did not like.

"Fellow Americans beat and bloodied our own police. They stormed the Senate floor. They tried to hunt down the Speaker of the House. They built a gallows and chanted about murdering the Vice President.
"They did this because they had been fed wild falsehoods by the most powerful man on Earth — because he was angry he'd lost an election.
"Former President Trump's actions preceding the riot were a disgraceful dereliction of duty.
"The House accused the former President of, quote, 'incitement.' That is a specific term from the criminal law.
"Let me put that to the side for one moment and reiterate something I said weeks ago: There is no question that President Trump is practically and morally responsible for provoking the events of that day.
"The people who stormed this building believed they were acting on the wishes and instructions of their President.
"And their having that belief was a foreseeable consequence of the growing crescendo of false statements, conspiracy theories, and reckless hyperbole which the defeated President kept shouting into the largest megaphone on planet Earth.
"The issue is not only the President's intemperate language on January 6th.
"It is not just his endorsement of remarks in which an associate urged 'trial by combat.'
"It was also the entire manufactured atmosphere of looming catastrophe; the increasingly wild myths about a reverse landslide election that was being stolen in some secret coup by our now-President.
"I defended the President's right to bring any complaints to our legal system. The legal system spoke. The Electoral College spoke. As I stood up and said clearly at the time, the election was settled.
"But that reality just opened a new chapter of even wilder and more unfounded claims.
"The leader of the free world cannot spend weeks thundering that shadowy forces are stealing our country and then feign surprise when people believe him and do reckless things.
"Sadly, many politicians sometimes make overheated comments or use metaphors that unhinged listeners might take literally.
"This was different.
"This was an intensifying crescendo of conspiracy theories, orchestrated by an outgoing president who seemed determined to either overturn the voters' decision or else torch our institutions on the way out.
"The unconscionable behavior did not end when the violence began.
"Whatever our ex-President claims he thought might happen that day... whatever reaction he says he meant to produce... by that afternoon, he was watching the same live television as the rest of the world.
"A mob was assaulting the Capitol in his name. These criminals were carrying his banners, hanging his flags, and screaming their loyalty to him.
"It was obvious that only President Trump could end this.
"Former aides publicly begged him to do so. Loyal allies frantically called the Administration.
"But the President did not act swiftly. He did not do his job. He didn't take steps so federal law could be faithfully executed, and order restored.
"Instead, according to public reports, he watched television happily as the chaos unfolded. He kept pressing his scheme to overturn the election!
"Even after it was clear to any reasonable observer that Vice President Pence was in danger... even as the mob carrying Trump banners was beating cops and breaching perimeters... the President sent a further tweet attacking his Vice President.
"Predictably and foreseeably under the circumstances, members of the mob seemed to interpret this as further inspiration to lawlessness and violence.
"Later, even when the President did halfheartedly begin calling for peace, he did not call right away for the riot to end. He did not tell the mob to depart until even later.
"And even then, with police officers bleeding and broken glass covering Capitol floors, he kept repeating election lies and praising the criminals.
"In recent weeks, our ex-President's associates have tried to use the 74 million Americans who voted to re-elect him as a kind of human shield against criticism.
"Anyone who decries his awful behavior is accused of insulting millions of voters.
"That is an absurd deflection.
"74 million Americans did not invade the Capitol. Several hundred rioters did.
"And 74 million Americans did not engineer the campaign of disinformation and rage that provoked it.
"One person did.
"I have made my view of this episode very plain.

Although he released these comments Mitch McConnell voted to acquit. He said that Trump cannot be convicted now that he is out of office. Many scholars, including many conservative scholars disagree. Basically McConnell let Trump off on a technicality.

"There is no doubt this is a very close question. Donald Trump was the President when the House voted, though not when the House chose to deliver the papers.
"Brilliant scholars argue both sides of the jurisdictional question. The text is legitimately ambiguous. I respect my colleagues who have reached either conclusion.
. . . . "The Senate's decision does not condone anything that happened on or before that terrible day.

Seven Republicans and all the Democrats in the Senated voted to convict.

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Comments

Pricknick's picture

congress critters get back to their real job...working for all americans?
Damn. I almost laughed myself to tears on that one.
Do you know the difference between our government and oral sex?
Oral sex is much better than getting screwed by your government.

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14 users have voted.

Regardless of the path in life I chose, I realize it's always forward, never straight.

CS in AZ's picture

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5 users have voted.

@CS in AZ
He keeps enlarging my view of the outrageous.

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5 users have voted.

The violent mob bludgeoned to death a Capitol police officer

Suffers from the slight defect of being completely untrue - autopsy revealed no sign of trauma at all and official word now is Officer Sicknick died from a stroke.

More about that at Revolver.news.

"The leader of the free world cannot spend weeks thundering that shadowy forces are stealing our country and then feign surprise when people believe him and do reckless things.

Shadowy and not-so-shadowy forces have been stealing (or acquiring at bargain basement prices) the country for decades. Trump's 'crime' was to have pointed out the obvious and attempted to do something about it.

Trump should perhaps have done more, or more quickly, than he did to try and call off the rioters (not that all of those who entered the Capitol deserve to be called such) but the basic impeachment claim that he incited - in any criminal sense - the Capitol incursion is absurd - the Democrat managers did not even make a serious attempt at making a credible claim of direct incitement - it was propagandistic guilt by association theater.

And somehow, we don't hear much about 'mostly peaceful' Trump supporters despite probably 99 percent of those that turned out for Trump's speech that day not participating in forcing their way into the Capitol, fighting with police, etc. - much in contrast to how liberals characterized the riots of last summer, including nightly attacks on federal buildings in Portland that continued for a month or more. Didn't hear much howling about insurrection *then*, did we?

And don't expect to see many, if any, of those Republicans who voted for impeachment around the next time they have to face an election - not an issue for Burr - retiring Deep State icon - or McConnell - just re-elected - but the rest of them had best start lining up lobbyist or CNN talking head gigs.

By the way - if Trump supporters (presumably even the black, Asian, Latino ones) are all White Supremacists... why has there been barely a mention from them of the fact that an unarmed white woman was killed by a black cop? More to the point, why has there been almost no information forthcoming about any of the deaths associated with the Jan. 6 events?

Edit - to note that Sicknick's death may have been the result of exposure to pepper or bear spray, which may have been from protestors, who may have been actual Trump supporters...

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Lookout's picture

more division, continued distraction, and COVID stimulus delayed. Anyone not seeing this as the eventual outcome simply wasn't looking or was naive. No offense ST, everyone is entitled to an opinion. TDS is powerful. Most of my friends suffer its effects.

On the positive side, Trump can run again...perhaps dividing the rethugs...cause I sure hope the Peoples Party divides the dim(wits) and (perhaps) they won't be able to accuse us of electing a rethug.

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14 users have voted.

“Until justice rolls down like water and righteousness like a mighty stream.”

RantingRooster's picture

failed the America people and are incapable of "doing the right thing", putting the country first.

The House's obsession to keep Trump from running again was, imho, a huge mistake.

They clearly had an open and shut case for "violating his oath of office". As soon as the, shall we say, peaceful demonstrators breached the 1st perimeter fencing, and physically forced their way through, their "legal" status changed from peaceful demonstrator, to one of a violent criminal, or dare I say, under the PATRIOT ACT, Enemy Combatants!

With violent criminal's attacking our nation's capital, what did Trump do to "protect and defend the constitution" he swore when he was elected? Not a damn thing.

Stop and think for a moment, what did the Senate do? I mean, did they all not swear a similar oath of office, to protect and defend the constitution? While our nation was reeling from the capital attack, they themselves did nothing.

Sure impeachment articles originate in the house, but these senators, did nothing. Their oaths of office demands they protect and defend the constitution. But they did nothing. They watched it unfold on TV. Maybe made a phone call or two, but other than that, nothing.

Think for a moment, all those there that day that swore the same oath. They did nothing. Well, the Cops that didn't allow the violent criminals just walk past them, well they were fulfilling their oaths, and while Cops are not my favorite people on earth, a lot of them took their oaths seriously and I have to commend them for that act of bravery, in the face of a violent mob.

Both houses failed the American people to "protect and defend the constitution". But this seems to be par for the course. They should all be escorted at gun point, to prison.

Once again TDS wins the day as the spoiled brat walks free. It's disgusting.

I wonder if Trump will pick Eric Prince, prince of the PMC complex, to be his running mate in 2024? Heck, I wonder if our country will exist in 2024...

Crazy

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C99, my refuge from an insane world. #ForceTheVote

snoopydawg's picture

@RantingRooster

lots of time before it broke into the capital so why were Pelosi and Pence taken away at the last minute? Remember the black officer turned them away from where Pence was just being removed and it was a close call. But why was it so close? More dramatic? Nah i'm just being cynical.
I don't think Trump will run again. Not when he can't use Twitter. That's half the fun for him. But whomever got the impeachment stopped will be behind whomever does I bet.

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Which AIPAC/MIC/pharma/bank bought politician are you going to vote for? Don’t be surprised when nothing changes.

RantingRooster's picture

@snoopydawg Every military commander of the US armed forced watched, as well all did, this unfold while their Commander in Chief was derelict in his duties and did nothing to protect and defend the constitution as required by his oath of office.

What did they do besides look on in bewilderment, as if a deer in the head lights?

That's a failure no one is taking about.

There is a crisis of leadership because there is a crisis of no accountability.

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C99, my refuge from an insane world. #ForceTheVote

Bisbonian's picture

@RantingRooster , about how this would affect next year's budget. Very distracting, indeed.

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"I’m a human being, first and foremost, and as such I’m for whoever and whatever benefits humanity as a whole.” —Malcolm X