Waffling on impeach
Top Dems hesitant to move on prez
Key House Democrats trod carefully Sunday about whether they should pursue impeachment proceedings against President Trump — but acknowledged they would follow the “road map” in special counsel Robert Mueller’s report to continue their investigations.
“That’s going to be a very consequential decision and one that I’m going to reserve judgment on until we have a chance to deliberate about it,” Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), chair of the House Intelligence Committee, told “Fox News Sunday.”
Rep. Elijah Cummings, chair of the House Oversight Committee, told CBS’s “Face the Nation, “I can foresee that possibly coming,” but added that he isn’t there yet.
Cummings (D-Md.) said Democrats will use the “road map” Mueller laid out in his 448-page report, which Attorney General William Barr released in redacted form last Thursday.
“I think [Mueller] basically said to us as a Congress, ‘It’s up to you to take this further with regard to obstruction and the other matters that might come up,’ ” Cummings said.
Rep. Jerrold Nadler, chair of the House Judiciary Committee, said a decision can’t be reached until Congress sees the entire report without redactions and hears from Mueller and Barr.
He also intends to call in former White House counsel Don McGahn to testify.
“If proven, some of this would be impeachable,” the New York Democrat said on NBC’s “Meet the Press.” “Obstruction of justice, if proven, would be impeachable.”
Nadler, whose committee would get the ball rolling on the impeachment process, said an inquiry hasn’t begun, but he wouldn’t rule one out.
Schiff pointed out that even if the House voted to impeach Trump — the congressional equivalent of an indictment — the Republican-controlled Senate would likely not convict him.
“I think what we are going to have to decide as a caucus is: What is the best thing for the country?” Schiff said on ABC’s “This Week.”
Mueller’s report found that there was no evidence that Trump or his campaign associates conspired with the Russians during the election. But it wasn’t clear on the matter of obstruction of justice.
In the report, Mueller said that if his team had confidence after “a thorough investigation of the facts that the President clearly did not commit obstruction of justice, we would so state.”
But Mueller released 10 instances where Trump tried to interfere in the probe.
Democrats have been pressuring House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to pursue impeachment, including presidential candidate Sen. Elizabeth Warren (Mass.) and Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (NY), Ilhan Omar (Minn.) and Rashida Tlaib (Mich).
Pelosi sent Democrats a letter last week saying that she will hold a conference call on Monday to discuss their next steps.
Trump dismissed the prospect of impeachment Sunday and insisted he is the victim of a Democrat conspiracy to undermine him.
“How do you impeach a Republican President for a crime that was committed by the Democrats?” he tweeted Sunday evening. “MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!”