Norwalk residents response to potential impeachment mixed
NORWALK — Five days after pro-Trump protestors stormed the U.S. Capitol, talk of impeachment of the president is rife. In Norwalk, opinion on the whether Congress should seek impeachment varies, but residents seem united in their condemnation of the violence which erupted on Capitol Hill last week, leaving five people dead.
Mayor Harry Rilling, a Democrat, said he
supports any decision that will help the country move forward and come together, but wants President Donald Trump to own up to and realize his role in inciting the violence.
“I’m concerned about Trump’s lack of apologizing for what has occurred,” Rilling said Monday. “It’s clear that whether or not he directly caused it, he certainly had a big part of what happened. It’s frightening, when the people who stormed the capitol were looking for Vice President Pence and Speaker of the House (of Representatives) Nancy Pelosi, and if they hadn’t been removed and evacuated quickly what possibly could’ve happened.”
Rilling said he is worried about what the next 10 days leading up to President-elect Joe Biden’s inauguration may hold. All options should be considered, including impeachment proceedings or Vice President Mike Pence’s invocation of the 25th Amendment, Rilling said.
The 25th Amendment, which was ratified in the wake of the murder of President John F. Kennedy, deals with succession of a president or vice president in the event of death, removal, resignation or incapacitation, according to the Constitution.
Section four of the amendment states the vice president and the majority of either the principal officers of the executive departments or Congress can provide the speaker of the house “their written declaration that the President is unable to discharge the powers and duties of his office,” according to the constitution.
What makes a president unable to fulfill their duty is to be determined by Congress, who would then vote on the issue.
Rilling said he would support Pence’s use of the amendment.
“It could’ve been far worse than it was,” Rilling said. “The lack of (Trump) acknowledging responsibility or culpability is concerning to me. The possibility of impeachment is appropriate as well as perhaps Vice President Pence invoking the 25th.”
For lifelong Norwalk resident Jennifer Howland, 65, implementation of the amendment is an obvious next move.
Howland, a writer and editor, said she has no doubts about whether invoking the amendment is the right decision.
“It seems very clear to me that the right thing for the vice president to do is invoke the 25th Amendment because everything I’ve read says we are not in a safe place with the way things have been,” Howland said. “I know the Republicans aren’t in favor of doing that and Nancy Pelosi is going to have to take the next step.”
Despite the inauguration being nine days away, Howland said removing Trump from office is still the best decision.
“The government is designed for exactly this circumstance,” she added. “We have a dangerous and unstable president that needs to be removed from office.”
Howland said she is concerned about the “uninformed mobs filled with delusions” Trump has incited, but is pleased with Norwalk’s response to the protest.
“I feel like people are being safe in Norwalk and people are being pretty sane about the political stuff,” she said.
Norwalk resident Bernard Schaer, 57, also expressed disdain for the violence exhibited Wednesday, but does not believe impeachment or 25th Amendment proceedings are worthwhile given the timeline to Biden’s inauguration.
Schaer, a manufacturing business owner, said he supported the protesters visiting Capitol Hill and voicing their concerns, but his support ended when the protesters began breaking into the Capitol.
“I supported people showing up at the Capitol. I supported the marching to the Capitol. I did not support them breaking into the Capitol and causing violence because you’re in big trouble when you do that,” Schaer said.
Schaer questioned why the Capitol was not better guarded or prepared for the protesters, as the president’s rally on Jan. 6 was planned weeks in advance. He said the event reflected poorly on Trump supporters and did not help the group’s cause.
“I think it really hurt people who voted for Trump,” Schaer said. “What went down set them back tremendously, and I’m not happy about that and not happy about people losing their lives.”
He does not believe the 25th Amendment use would be productive but does see impeachment proceedings being potentially successful. Schaer said either move would be a political ploy to prevent Trump from being eligible for reelection.
“It’s really about the future and has nothing to do with what’s happening now,” Schaer said.