Undecided Dems finally making toughest call
WASHINGTON — Utah Democrat Ben McAdams stepped into a small town city council chamber just outside Salt Lake City and took a deep breath.
“I will vote yes,” McAdams told reporters.
With a tight smile, the congressman made clear, in the heart of rubyred Utah, that he will vote to impeach President Donald Trump.
The scene played out across the nation’s polarized landscape Monday as at least 31 of the most vulnerable House Democrats climbed off the fence and into the ranks of lawmakers who will vote for formal abuse and obstruction charges against Trump this week.
Trump faces two articles of impeachment brought by Democrats. One says he abused the power of the presidency by pressuring Ukraine to investigate Democratic rival Joe Biden. The other says he obstructed Congress by trying to block the House investigation and its oversight duties, thus thwarting the nation’s system of checks and balances.
The votes are crucibles for the Democrats who flipped competitive districts in 2018 and stand for their own reelections next November. At stake is the Democraticcontrolled House.
With the stakes so high, Monday’s announcements on impeachment from the Democrats were tightly controlled, yet in some cases raucously received.
McAdams’ consisted of a press conference, a statement and no questions.
“I will vote yes, knowing full well the Senate will likely acquit the president in a display of partisan theater that Republicans and Democrats in Washington perform disturbingly well,” he said.
The scene was different in battleground Michigan, where Rep. Elissa Slotkin was both heckled and applauded as she declared that she’ll vote for both articles. Her experience as a former intelligence officer, she said, won out over questions about her political future.
“There just has to be some decisions that are beyond the political calculus. It may be that voters decide in 2020 that they don’t want me as their representative. I hope that’s not the case,” Slotkin said at a rowdy town hall in her Detroitarea swing district.
But with much of the attention turning to the Senate trial, the House Democrats already were pivoting to emphasize their work on issues close to home.
“I support the Articles of Impeachment,” said Rep. Joe Cunningham, DS.C., whose Charlestonarea district supported Trump by double digits.
Impeachment is sensitive in Virginia, too. Rep. Abigail Spanberger, a former CIA officer, long insisted on focusing on issues other than impeachment. Then a whistleblower report on Trump’s July 25 phone call with Ukraine’s president revealed a pressure campaign to benefit him politically. Spanberger and fellow Virginian Elaine Luria signed an oped calling for an impeachment inquiry.
“I am driven by facts and evidence to protect the integrity of our democracy,” Spanberger, who represents a Richmond district, said Monday when saying she would vote for both articles.