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[Pages H5588-H5589]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
IT IS TIME TO BEGIN AN IMPEACHMENT INQUIRY
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from
Arizona (Mr. Gallego) for 5 minutes.
Mr. GALLEGO. Mr. Speaker, no President in the history of our country
has ever been subject to as many credible allegations of illegal
conduct as Donald Trump.
Given the serious nature of these crimes and the President's refusal
to cooperate with congressional investigations, it is time for the
House of Representatives to begin an impeachment inquiry.
The Mueller report documented compelling evidence that the President
obstructed justice, including numerous attempts to shut down the
Mueller investigation.
Despite the strong evidence, DOJ policies prohibited the special
counsel from even considering bringing charges against a sitting
President. So, Congress has a responsibility to act where Mueller left
off.
For the past several months, Trump, his Attorney General, and
congressional Republicans have outright lied about the contents and
findings of the Mueller report. The Trump administration has repeatedly
rejected or undermined congressional subpoenas and obstructed the
ability of Congress to get the facts for the American people.
Launching an impeachment inquiry is a necessary step to ensure that
we get to the bottom of Trump's wrongdoing. It honors the process that
our Founding Fathers enshrined in our Constitution to empower Congress
to investigate and hold the President accountable for committing high
crimes and misdemeanors.
I believe that impeachment inquiry should examine the actions and
conduct documented in the Mueller report, but an impeachment inquiry
should not be limited to just those matters. Congress has the
responsibility to investigate the broad range of Trump's conduct as
part of our inquiry.
With all the tweets and daily distractions, we cannot lose sight of
the much broader scope of Trump's alleged wrongdoing: more than a dozen
accusations of sexual assault; campaign finance violations, including
hush-money payments; illegal foreign contributions to the Trump
inaugural committee; illegal misuse of the Trump Foundation charity for
personal and political purposes; welcoming foreign interference in U.S.
elections; mishandling top-secret information; and abusing the security
clearance process for his son-in-law. And we shouldn't overlook how
inappropriate it is for the President of the United States to engage in
constant, daily lying.
The list, unfortunately, goes on and on.
Trump's actions should concern every single Member of Congress and
every American citizen, regardless of what side of the aisle we are on.
This activity and behavior call into question Trump's fitness to serve
as President of the United States and Commander in Chief.
[[Page H5589]]
As a marine and as a Member of Congress, I swore to protect the
Constitution of the United States, and I will not stand by as Donald
Trump erodes the rule of law and our democracy. It is time for Congress
to launch an impeachment investigation against President Trump.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Members are reminded to refrain from
engaging in personalities toward the President.
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