Dems to unveil 2 articles of impeachment
Witness testifies Trump poses 2020 election ‘danger’
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump’s efforts to “cheat to win an election” are a threat to national security, the top Democratic investigator testified Monday as the House Judiciary Committee pushes ahead with articles of impeachment.
In an acrimonious daylong hearing, Democrats outlined their case against the president, saying Trump’s push to have Ukraine investigate rival Joe Biden while withholding U.S. military aid ran counter to U.S. policy and benefited Russia as well as himself. Trump and his allies railed against the “absurd” proceedings, with Republicans defending the president as having done nothing wrong ahead of the 2020 election.
The outcome, though, appears increasingly set as Democrats prepare at least two articles of impeachment against Trump. A Judiciary committee vote could come as soon as this week.
House Democrats are expected to unveil two articles of impeachment against Trump this morning that will focus on abuse of power and obstructing Congress and would be voted on by the House later this month, according to three officials familiar with the matter. The officials, speaking on the condition of anonymity, cautioned that the plan had not been finalized.
The day that began with a protester accusing the panel’s chairman of treason grew only more rancorous from there. Republicans repeatedly tried to grind down the proceeding with objections, forcing committee chairman Rep. Jerry Nadler, D-N.Y., to wield his gavel to silence members arguing over one another.
“You need to call balls and strikes the right way,” Rep. Doug Collins, the top Republican on the committee, told Nadler, accusing him of steamrolling opposition. When Nadler continued whacking the gavel, Collins mocked him, saying “bang it harder.”
“President Trump’s persistent and continuing effort to coerce a foreign country to help him cheat to win an election is a clear and present danger to our free and fair elections and to our national security,” said Dan Goldman, director of investigations at the House Intelligence Committee.
Republicans rejected not only Goldman’s conclusion as he presented the Intelligence Committee’s 300-page report on the Ukraine matter, but his very appearance before the Judiciary panel. In a series of heated exchanges, they said Rep. Adam Schiff, chairman of the Intelligence Committee, should appear rather than send his lawyer.
“Where’s Adam?” thundered Collins of Georgia. “We want Schiff,” echoed Trump ally Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla.
Republican counsel Stephen Castor argued that Democrats have searched since the inauguration for a reason to impeach Trump.
“Democrats went searching for a set of facts on which to impeach the president,” Castor said. They settled on the Ukraine call, he said, referring to the July 25 conversation in which Trump pressed Zelenskiy to open the investigations.
“To impeach a president who 63 million people voted for over eight lines in a call transcript is baloney,” Castor said, adding that Trump did not act with “malicious intent.”
At times the counsels appeared to be examining different evidence. Barry Berke, a Democratic lawyer, asked Castor to confirm that Trump wanted Ukraine to probe Biden, the former vice president who is a potential opponent in next year’s election.
“I don’t think the record supports that,” Castor said.
Berke was incredulous, pointing out the request was reflected in the White House memo summarizing the July 25 call between Trump and Zelenskiy. Castor was unmoved, saying, “I think it’s ambiguous.”
Berke turned to Goldman, the Democratic lawyer testifying alongside Castor. “I don’t think there’s any other way to read the words on the page than to conclude that,” Goldman said.
From the White House, Trump tweeted repeatedly, assailing the “Witch Hunt!”
The hearing set off a pivotal week as Democrats march toward a full House vote expected by Christmas.
In drafting the articles of impeachment, Speaker Nancy Pelosi is facing a legal and political challenge of balancing the views of her majority while hitting the Constitution’s bar of “treason, bribery or other high crimes and misdemeanors.”
A crucial decision will be whether to include an obstruction charge from special counsel Robert Mueller’s findings as some liberals want or keep the impeachment articles focused on Ukraine as centrist Democrats prefer.
Nadler was blunt as he opened the hearing, saying, “President Trump put himself before country.”
Nadler said the case against Trump is clear after “multiple officials testified that the president’s demand for an investigation into his rivals was a part of his personal, political agenda, and not related to the foreign policy objectives of the United States.”
Collins said Democrats are racing to jam impeachment through on a “clock and a calendar” ahead of the 2020 presidential election.