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[Pages H5041-H5042]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
IMPEACHMENT INQUIRY
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from
Connecticut (Mr. Himes) for 5 minutes.
Mr. HIMES. Mr. Speaker, my colleagues on both sides of the aisle know
that I shy away from sharp partisanship in favor of the negotiation and
compromise required for law to be made.
I marvel every day at how rarely the pragmatic common sense of the
American people is given voice in this Chamber. But, Mr. Speaker, there
are moments for calculation, for prudence, for compromise, for the
careful weighing of competing interests, and there are moments for
clarity and conviction.
This is such a moment. The time has come, Mr. Speaker, for the House
of Representatives to begin an impeachment inquiry into President
Trump. From the moment of his inauguration, this President has shown
contempt for the truth, has attacked our institutions, and has ignored
the Constitution he swore to defend.
He has refused the oversight which is Congress' long-established
right and duty. In recent weeks, he has refused to comply with
subpoenas, he has ordered administration officials to refuse to
testify, and he has asserted executive privilege of unprecedented scope
with respect to attempts to alter the Census.
That we have not slouched closer to autocracy is due to the strength
of the democratic safeguards and protections that we have built and
defended for two-and-a-half centuries. Most Americans sense the danger
and have reacted, most recently, by electing a House of Representatives
with the power and desire to check this President. The President has
persistently refused to acknowledge or acquiesce to that power.
Mr. Speaker, the Framers of the Constitution placed the power of
impeachment, not in the courts, but in the Congress so that this body
might consider not just the facts and the letter of the law, but the
broader interests of the Republic. I have, until now, been conflicted
about those interests.
Impeachment, along with the right to declare war, is the most awesome
power of the Congress. The politics of impeachment are messy and
uncertain and might, in the short run, serve the President's narrow
political interests.
But look at where we are today. Republicans in this Chamber cheer, or
justify, or stand woefully silent in the face of behavior for which
they would have impeached a Democratic President many times over. Our
best and most proven ideas cannot get even a hearing in the United
States Senate. Unless we restore respect for the law, respect for
truth, and respect for common decency, we cannot hope to solve any of
our other pressing problems.
The American people should understand that opening an impeachment
inquiry is not removal of the President. Given the behavior of the
United States Senate, that outcome is probably out of the question. An
impeachment inquiry will be a fair consideration of the facts that the
American people must understand with both sides fairly and openly
represented.
Mr. Speaker, I know that I will be asked if my motive today is to
pressure the Speaker of the House whose leadership of this Congress has
been superb. It is not. She leads us today in the epic mission of
defending our democracy. That mission requires a vigorous debate and
competing ideas, but it also requires care, discipline, and a measure
of deference.
I represent the people of southwestern Connecticut, the Constitution
State. From my house, I can walk to the hill where General Israel
Putnam made a daring escape from the British cavalry in 1779, so that
Americans would never have to answer to a tyrant for their opinions,
politics, or religious beliefs.
Just up the road is the town of Ridgefield where General David
Wooster and 20 young patriots died in April of 1777 so that Americans
would be spared ever living under a capricious and arbitrary power.
Mr. Speaker, there are moments for careful calculation, for weighing
political expediency and conflicting interests, and there are moments
for clarity and conviction. This is that moment.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Members are reminded to refrain from
engaging in personalities toward the President.
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