Rep. Liz Cheney of Wyoming became the second House Republican to announce support of the impeachment of President Donald Trump after a congressman representing New York’s 24th congressional district became the first.
Rep. John Katko of New York was the first House Republican to announce support Tuesday afternoon.
“On January 6, 2021 a violent mob attacked the United States Capitol to obstruct the process of our democracy and stop the counting of presidential electoral votes. This insurrection caused injury, death and destruction in the most sacred space in our Republic,” Cheney said in her statement
“Much more will become clear in coming days and weeks, but what we know now is enough. The President of the United States summoned this mob, assembled the mob, and lit the flame of this attack,” she continued.
“Everything that followed was his doing. None of this would have happened without the President. The President could have immediately and forcefully intervened to stop the violence. He did not,” Cheney said.
“There has never been a greater betrayal by a President of the United States of his office and his oath to the Constitution,” she added.
“I will vote to impeach the President,” Cheney concluded.
Katko, a former federal prosecutor, gave similar reasons for his support of impeachment.
“To allow the president of the United States to incite this attack without consequence is a direct threat to the future of our democracy,” Katko said in a statement. “For that reason, I cannot sit by without taking action. I will vote to impeach this president.”
Prior to the announcements, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) reportedly told people close to him that he believed Trump had committed impeachable offenses over his encouragement of the rioting at the U.S. Capitol.
Democrats have drawn up an article of impeachment that accuses the president of inciting an insurrection.
Trump was first impeached by the Democrat-controlled House in December 2019 on two articles of impeachment related to a controversial call the president made to the president of Ukraine. The Republican-controlled U.S. Senate voted against convicting and removing the president.
Here’s more about the effort to impeach Trump again:
House Democrats to begin impeachment process of Trump for ‘incitement of insurrection’ | WNT
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