Diane Neal sees cause for Trump impeachment but says Mueller probe must be completed
HURLEY, N.Y. >> Independent congressional candidate Diane Neal says there appears to be ample cause to begin impeachment proceedings against President Donald Trump but that no action should be taken before special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation is complete.
Neal said in an interview this week that there is little doubt Trump and his family are making money from foreign entities by virtue of occupying the White House, which would be a violation of the emoluments clause of the Constitution.
The emoluments clause bars people who hold a federal office from receiving any gift, payment or other things of value from a foreign country or its leaders.
“I think he’s had a lot of violations of the emoluments clause,” said Neal, a Hurley resident who’s running for New York’s 19th Congressional District seat. “I don’t think he should be able to profit. I worry about things like all of the Chinese patents and licences that [Trump’s daughter] Ivanka’s been getting. I don’t think that people ... from the president on down should be able to personally profit from public service. It defeats the purpose of public service.”
Asked about the possibility of impeachment, Neal said: “I’m all in.” She added, though, that “the guys that are running the [Mueller] investigation are incredibly smart, and they know a lot more than we do, and I don’t think prejudging them is a good idea. So I think as long as their investigation is undisturbed and uncorrupted, we have to wait and see what happens, what they discover, and only then can you make a judgment about what’s in the best interest of the country.”
The Mueller probe is focused primarily on whether the Trump campaign colluded with Russia to influence the outcome of the 2016 U.S. presidential election.
Neal said she doesn’t think “jumping to any conclusions is a good idea for anyone.”
But Neal, a TV actress who once was an offscreen judge for Trump’s reality show “The Apprentice,” says she has little doubt Trump is using his position for personal gain.
“He’s definitely done things that are questionable,” she said. “A lot people in entertainment do these things where they start foundations, like the Trump Foundation. I’m very selective about who I’m working with as far as foundations and charities because a lot of people use them ... as a way to shuffle money around, take resources from other people and use them for personal purposes, and that’s abhorrent and that’s something that really makes legitimate foundations look bad.”
Neal said Trump’s approach to self-dealing is “very much in the style of a lot of people in Congress at the moment. Most of them are lobbyists and lawyers and people that invest in other companies that they legislate on, and none of that’s good, so he’s not alone there.”
Neal is one of three candidates trying to unseat first-term U.S. Rep. John Faso, R-Kinderhook, who has said he has not seen evidence of any illegal activity by Trump but is willing to consider information provided by the Mueller investigation.
Democratic candidate Antonio Delgado, like Neal, has said Trump’s actions could merit impeachment proceedings but that the Mueller probe must play out before he takes a firm position.
Green Party candidate Steve Greenfield has said he fully supports initiating impeachment hearings based on public information, including the use of Trump Tower in Manhattan by foreign representatives.