Horn slams Mullin’s proposal to expunge Trump impeachment
U.S. Rep. Markwayne Mullin said Tuesday that the first impeachment of former President Donald Trump should be expunged, a proposal former U.S. Rep. Kendra Horn called an attempt to rewrite history.
Mullin, R-Westville, introduced a resolution attacking the process that led to Trump’s impeachment on Dec. 18, 2019. The resolution says the evidence on which the two articles of impeachment were based “did not meet the burden of proving the commission of ‘high crimes and Misdemeanors’” required in the Constitution.
The resolution, which stands virtually no chance of being considered in the House, which is controlled by Democrats, was introduced as Mullin campaigns for the U.S. Senate seat being vacated by Sen. Jim Inhofe.
Mullin is in a Republican primary field that includes other Trump loyalists; one candidate, Alex Gray, was part of Trump’s national security council, while another, TW Shannon, headed a group called Black Voices for Trump.
Oklahoma primaries are scheduled for June 28. Candidate filing is set for April 13-15.
The U.S. House voted to impeach Trump in 2019 for abuse of power and obstruction of Congress in connection with a phone conversation he held with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zalensky. During the call, Trump appeared to link military aid to the country with an investigation of Joe Biden’s son, Hunter. At the time, Biden was the potential Democratic presidential nominee.
The Senate, which was controlled by Republicans, acquitted Trump on both articles.
Mullin said of his resolution, “While we cannot undo history, we can make it right. This resolution will bring credibility back to the impeachment process and ensure this manipulation never happens again.”
Though the Constitution provides for the president to be impeached, there is nothing about expunging an impeachment, which is a political process, not a criminal one.
Horn, an Oklahoma City Democrat, voted for both articles of impeachment, and was the target of ads funded by dark money groups aligned with Republicans. She was defeated for reelection in 2020 by Oklahoma City Republican Stephanie Bice.
Horn announced this month that she would run for the seat being vacated by Inhofe.
Asked about Mullin’s resolution, Horn said Tuesday, “Oklahomans need a senator focused on restarting our economy and curbing inflation, rather than someone attempting to rewrite history for their own personal political gain.”
Mullin went after Horn on Twitter in 2019 after she voted to allow the impeach investigation to proceed, saying that her vote was the same as voting for impeachment. At the time, Horn had not made a decision on whether to vote for impeachment; she did not respond then to Mullin’s comments.