The Morning Call

Should US House be holding impeachmen­t hearings?

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U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi announced Sept. 24 that the U.S. House of Representa­tives will officially initiate impeachmen­t proceeding­s against President Donald Trump. The allegation is the president misused his position when asking the Ukrainian president to investigat­e a political rival. Do you agree the House should be holding hearings to determine if there is enough evidence to impeach the president?

contents of the transcript in his opening remarks in the hearing. His prior experience in impeachmen­t processes of judges was more discipline­d and neutral.

The action by Pelosi is a clever one. By not having the House vote, the Republican­s have no subpoena power. Sounds like a kangaroo court.

If there was any evidence in the call that the president committed a quid pro quo to help his reelection, an impeachmen­t inquiry could be a considerat­ion. Investigat­ing corruption is not an impeachabl­e offense.

Dennis Killeen West Rockhill Township

ens. In addition, the attempts by the White House to hide the phone conversati­on in a high security computer system seem to confirm a “consciousn­ess of guilt.”

When Americans vote in 2020, they trust that the election will be both free and fair. Trump’s actions could be a violation of this trust and certainly deserve an in-depth investigat­ion an impeachmen­t inquiry would provide.

Rich Israel Bethlehem

wrongdoing‚ criticism of anything and everything, political grandstand­ing and disruption­s to doing the people’s business they were elected to do.

The above, in addition to “somewhat” slanted news coverage, clouds my ability to learn and form an opinion as to what is and isn’t wrongdoing on the part of the president.

It is at the same time pathetic and amusing that the loudest voices claiming that the president is committing illegal acts and demanding impeachmen­t come from the usual political suspects who are far from being of unquestion­able integrity and certainly have agendas of their own.

If, and it is a big if, a fair and unbiased collection of evidence that the president is violating his oath of office can be found and proved, then proceed with the impeachmen­t process as specified in the Constituti­on. If not, the circus needs to leave town.

Mark Porcaro Lower Mount Bethel Township

possible before drafting and voting on articles of impeachmen­t. Impeachmen­t requires a simple majority vote in the House, so we can expect impeachmen­t to be approved if the vote falls along party lines.

What is less clear is whether any offense will be egregious enough to obtain a two-thirds vote in the Republican-controlled Senate. In any event, we can expect increased acrimony, division, name-calling, threats of violence and actual violence — all in the name of advancing the truth. If you self-identify as a Republican and/or conservati­ve, you already believe that the impeachmen­t process is a waste of time and an unwarrante­d political witch hunt. If you consider yourself a Democrat and/or liberal, you believe that impeachmen­t is long overdue. If you are a moderate, you tend to keep your mouth shut and avoid consuming news. After all, folks in the political center are the subject of ridicule and disdain in today’s political climate.

Sadly, we live in a “post-truth” society. We attack the veracity of any fact that does not align with our own preconceiv­ed version of the truth. As children we were taught that truth was objective and something that could be discovered. Today we critique not only opinions, but facts. Our critiques are based on whether we like the news organizati­ons that reported the facts. Regardless of the outcome of the impeachmen­t process, we are living in one of the saddest periods of political history. Thankfully, our nation is strong enough to survive the turmoil that is on the horizon.

John Servis South Whitehall Township

 ?? MELINA MARA/THE WASHINGTON POST ?? U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., is calling for hearings into whether President Donald Trump committed acts that justify his impeachmen­t. If the House voted to impeach the president, he would be tried by the Senate.
MELINA MARA/THE WASHINGTON POST U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., is calling for hearings into whether President Donald Trump committed acts that justify his impeachmen­t. If the House voted to impeach the president, he would be tried by the Senate.

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