Few surprises as Arizona’s delegation votes along party lines
The outcome was clear well ahead of the vote: Arizona’s five Democrats co-sponsored the single article of impeachment against President Donald Trump for inciting an insurrection.
All four of the state’s four Republicans opposed the measure.
As the U.S. House of Representatives delivered another history-making rebuke to President Trump on Wednesday, Arizona’s nine-member delegation voted along party lines on a measure that passed 232197.
Ten Republicans from other states joined with Democrats. No Democrats crossed the aisle. Four Republicans did not vote.
Though the issue had shifted from soliciting foreign interference in the election to inciting a deadly riot at the U.S. Capitol, Arizona’s members, like most other Republicans in the House, ultimately viewed impeachment the same way.
Arizona’s Democratic and Republican members staked out opposite positions.
Before the vote, Democratic Rep. Greg
Stanton argued that Trump needs to be impeached so that the country can move forward with accountability.
“It is a shocking betrayal of his oath of office, and our American values. We don’t know yet if the president will face criminal charges. But we do know he must be held to account,” Stanton said.
As he did on Tuesday, Republican Rep. Andy Biggs again said it was Democrats who were preventing the heated divisions from the election from going out.
“I urge you, please do not — I’m mixing metaphors here — attempt to douse the remaining burning embers of this movement with gasoline,” he said. “No one wants that. I urge you please to reconsider the reckless action in which you engage today.”
Biggs said the impeachment effort would not prematurely end Trump’s presidency but would instead make him a martyr.
Before the historic vote, Republican Rep. David Schweikert was the only Arizona member who had not indicated his view on his usual social media channels. In the end, he voted against impeachment, echoing the same arguments made by many of his GOP colleagues.
“After the despicable events of January 6th, it is more important than ever that the United States Congress do the work of the people and direct our focus entirely on conquering the ongoing issues our great nation is facing,” Schweikert said in a statement. “Today’s vote fails to do that. It divides Congress even further at a time when we should be setting an example for the nation by showing we can put politics aside and put the country first.”
Democrats Stanton, Ruben Gallego, Raúl Grijalva, Ann Kirkpatrick and Tom O’Halleran voted in favor of impeachment. Republicans Biggs, Schweikert, Paul Gosar and Debbie Lesko voted against.
Gosar and Biggs have been prominent in the national debate over Joe Biden’s defeat of Trump in the November presidential election, with both congressmen challenging the integrity of the election. Both Arizona representatives have made baseless claims of fraud.
Ali Alexander, a leader of the “Stop the Steal” election protests nationally, singled out Gosar, Biggs and Rep. Mo Brooks, R-Ala., for planning to put “maximum pressure on Congress” at the Jan. 6 pro-Trump gathering in Washington.
The social media video, which is gaining newfound attention, was taped before the event turned into a riot.
Biggs has denied any involvement with the Jan. 6 riot, while Gosar’s chief of staff did not respond to an inquiry.
Gosar’s social media includes many references to Alexander, and Biggs has appeared at the same rallies and spoke remotely at a “Stop the Steal” rally in Phoenix.
Unlike their initial impeachment effort, the Democrats picked up limited Republican support, with 10 members of the GOP siding with their colleagues across the aisle.
Most notably, Rep. Liz Cheney, RWyo., the third-ranking Republican in the House, broke ranks on Tuesday and said she would vote to impeach.
The matter will next shift to an uncertain future in the Senate.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., refused to change the chamber’s calendar, ensuring impeachment can’t be taken up before Jan. 19, the day before Trump leaves office.
McConnell has reportedly left open the possibility he may vote to convict Trump, which could signal a wider move away from Trump for the GOP. A year ago, Sen. Mitt Romney, R-Utah, was the only Republican to vote to convict and remove Trump over the Ukraine matter.
Since then, Sen. Kyrsten Sinema, DAriz., has not said how she would view the latest impeachment effort. She voted to convict Trump last year.
And Sen. Mark Kelly, D-Ariz., has replaced former Sen. Martha McSally, RAriz., who voted to acquit him. Kelly said last week that he was open to impeachment.
Depending on the timing of the Senate trial, two other Democrats from Georgia will join the chamber and, when they do, Democrats will control the trial. A year ago, Republicans blocked witnesses and new evidence from being heard in the case against the president.
Even so, there were still no signs that Democrats could expect enough support from Republicans to convict Trump, who by then will be out of office.