⏩ Hayes to Pelosi: Focus inquiry on Ukraine,

WASHINGTON — When it comes Democrats’ impeachment strategy, U.S. Rep. Jahana Hayes, D5th District, has concerns. On Thursday, she took them to the most powerful woman in Washington, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.

Hayes believes Democrats’ impeachment inquiry should focus solely on President Donald Trump’s contacts with Ukraine. The firstterm representative said she worries that too much Democratic energy has spent on “protecting the frontliners” — Democrats from competitive districts like Hayes’ own.

“I am a frontliner — but our conversations can’t be about if this is in the best interest of the frontliners,” Hayes said in an interview Friday. “No, we have to do what’s in the best interest of the American people.”

Hayes was the last of Connecticut’s congressional delegation to announce her support for an impeachment inquiry. She described her decision as “a struggle.” It holds major implications for her reelection and, as Hayes emphasized, how history looks back upon her and this Congress.

“I do have concerns for where this is going,” Hayes said.

Hayes shared her concerns with Pelosi in a closeddoor meeting with other freshman lawmakers from purple districts on Thursday, she said.

Hayes said she had a call earlier in the week with all freshman Democrats to discuss strategy and “best practices” for dealing with the unfolding impeachment inquiry.

For Hayes, that means a narrow target: the Ukraine episode, not a wideranging probe into the president’s finances, taxes and 2016 campaign.

It’s a strategy Pelosi and other Democratic leaders have come to back over the past two days. Meanwhile, Trump has called the inquiry a partisan “witch hunt” spurred by Democratic fears they will lose in 2020.

In an interview Friday, she called the Trump administration’s push for a Ukrainian investigation of former Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr. and his son a “fundamental shift.” This effort was revealed in a whistleblower complaint released to the public Thursday and a reconstructed transcript of a July 25 call between Trump and the president of Ukraine released Wednesday.

The White House acknowledged Friday that, due to National Security Council orders, a transcript of the call was moved to a more secure computer system — a point flagged by the whistleblower as a possible attempt to limit access to it. Hayes said this made her concerned about a “coverup” — a word Pelosi has used repeatedly.

Whereas earlier calls for impeachment were based on wrongdoing that was “subjective,” this episode is “objective,” Hayes said.

Trump was “looking to withhold Congressionally appropriated funds from a strategic partner for political gain,” she explained. “The Ukraine event, the events of this past week kind of sealed it for me,” she said.

Although Rep. Jim Himes, D4th District, came out in favor of an impeachment probe in June — before the Ukraine revelations — Himes now agrees the inquiry should narrowly target the administration’s contacts with Ukraine, his spokesman Patrick Malone said.

“You can’t pull politics entirely out of the impeachment process but we have to try,” Himes said earlier this week. “And that has implications for timing. It also has implications for what articles should look like. In my opinion, articles should be very narrowly focused on abuse of power and other truly impeachable offenses.”

Himes, whose district was previously held by a Republican prior to his election in 2008, shared worries that impeachment would impede work on other issues. He sits on the House Intelligence Committee which is at the fore of the Ukraine probe.

“I am 110 percent comfortable with the decision I made in June, but I am conscious of the fact that there is some downside to it as well,” Himes said. “It’s not clear to me that it’s necessarily politically helpful and I do worry that we’re going to spend too much time talking about this and not enough time talking about health care and retirement and education.”

Himes and Hayes emphasized they were not happy about pursuing impeachment. Hayes warned activists against celebrating the decision.

“I hope my colleagues aren’t celebrating about it or excited about it because there’s nothing good about it,” Hayes said. “It’s not good for Democrats. It’s not good for Republicans. It’s not good for anyone.”

Hayes left Washington for two weeks of recess spent in her district on Friday. She plans to hold town halls to hear from her constituents on this and other issues, she said.

“My district is 5050,” Hayes said. “I represent a lot of people who did not vote for me and a lot of people who still don’t support impeachment, and I need to hear from them as well.”

Jonathan Wharton, an associate professor of political science and urban affairs at Southern Connecticut State University, predicted that Hayes’s “swing district” would give her “mixed reviews” on her support for impeachment. But Wharton, who worked for former U.S. Rep. Chris Shays, R4th District, during the impeachment of former president Bill Clinton, said while it’s early, her fate could hinge on how well she listens to her district, not her party.

“How far will Jahana Hayes go in terms of being partisan?” he asked.