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What Pa’s U.S. House delegation said about Wednesday’s impeachment vote
Most of Pennsylvania’s 18-member U.S. House delegation had something to say about Wednesday’s historic vote to impeach President Donald Trump. The remarks below are culled from speeches on floor of the U.S. House or in statements issued by congressional offices.
U.S. Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick, R-1st District: The Bucks County lawmaker is a “no” vote on impeachment. He told the Morning Call of Allentown that “This was never intended to be a legitimate fact-finding mission from the start,” Fitzpatrick said. “This has been so blatantly partisan from day one.”
U.S. Rep. Brendan Boyle, D-2nd District (floor speech): “The heart of the matter is this: will members of this House have the courage to choose fidelity to the Constitution over loyalty to their political party? For the sake of our Constitution and our country, for Americans today and tomorrow, I urge all members to summon the courage to uphold the rule of law and vote yes.”
U.S. Rep. Dwight Evans, D-3rd District (Twitter thread):
1/ I will be voting “Yes” today on both articles of impeachment against President Trump.
No one is above the law in America – that is the principle the House is voting to uphold.
My statement:https://t.co/0UVkH3R2g6#ImpeachmentDay #TrumpImpeachment
— Congressman Dwight Evans (@RepDwightEvans) December 18, 2019
U.S. Rep. Madeleine Dean, D-4th District (floor speech): “When is it ever right for a president to coerce a foreign power to interfere in our elections? When is it ever right for a president to intimidate a foreign leader into announcing false investigations into a political rival? When is it ever right for that president to withhold congressionally appropriated aid to that country at the expense of its national security and our very own, and when is it ever right for a president to block a co-equal branch of government for investigating the scheme to cheat an election? The answer, of course, is never.”
“By our vote today, we are speaking to future presidents, and to future generations. We are declaring that we will not tolerate foreign interference in our presidential elections. Americans alone will determine the outcome.”
U.S. Rep. Mary Gay Scanlon, D-5th District (floor speech): “It’s with profound sadness that I stand here today in support of these articles of impeachment. President Trump’s behaviour is exactly what our founders feared most. They knew that with the awesome power of the presidency came the risk of a president abusing that power for personal gain. They were particularly concerned about an executive who became entangled with foreign governments, corrupted our elections or sought to avoid consequences for his own misconduct in office.”
U.S. Rep. Chrissy Houlahan, D-6th District (Tweet, 12/16):
On both Articles of Impeachment – that of the abuse of power and that of the obstruction of Congress – I will vote to impeach this President. After deep reflection, I believe this is the right thing to do for our nation and consistent with my oath of office. Full statement below: pic.twitter.com/eNVFGG1oM4
— Chrissy Houlahan (@RepHoulahan) December 17, 2019
U.S. Rep. Susan Wild, D-7th District (Statement, 12/18 to the Morning Call): Wild said her votes “were based in law and our Constitution,” and were “made necessary by the president’s conduct.”
“Failure to condemn the solicitation of foreign influence in our elections would have set a dangerous precedent,” Wild said. “Failure to condemn the blanket obstruction of a coequal branch of government would have set an equally dangerous precedent.”
U.S. Rep. Matt Cartwright, D-8th District (12/16 op-Ed): “The evidence, and lack of any rebuttal, point clearly to President Trump’s attempt to use taxpayer funds to bribe a foreign leader for the sole purpose of boosting his own political prospects. In the process, he threatened our national security, jeopardized the integrity of our democracy, and since then has obstructed justice by refusing to obey properly issued subpoenas. I believe there is sufficient evidence of these things to warrant further proceedings. So I will vote to send this matter to the Senate, where at long last we may well hear an innocent explanation for all of it. Despite every indication that Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has prejudged the outcome, I hope he will join us in a serious endeavor to find the truth.”
U.S. Rep. Dan Meuser, R-9th District (floor speech): “Our communities are benefiting greatly from President Trump’s agenda: a booming economy, secure borders, better trade deals and a stronger military. Unfortunately, inside the halls of Congress, Democrats’ obsession with impeachment is all-consuming. Is this how Democrat leadership chooses to represent the people of America, by nullifying the results of the 2016 election?”
U.S. Rep. Scott Perry, R-10th District (floor speech): “This is bitterly and nakedly partisan. My colleagues on the other side of the aisle have made a mockery of this process and this government. They despise the president and are themselves abusing the power of this office, all to settle the political score they were unable to resolve at the ballot box.”
U.S. Rep. Lloyd Smucker, R-11th District (floor speech): “House Democrats have been planning for this day since January 2017. It’s clear that facts have never mattered to the House Democrats. They never planned to work with the president, instead they intended only to fulfil their divisive partisan agenda.”
U.S. Rep. Fred Keller, R-12th District (floor speech): “Today will forever be remembered as a stain on our republic. These impeachment proceedings are not based upon facts, evidence, reason, or any inappropriate or impeachable actions by our president. Instead, the actions being taken by those favoring impeachment are a product of their disdain for President Trump, his America first agenda, and particularly a disdain by the other party for the 63 million Americans that elected him as president.”
U.S. Rep. John Joyce, R-13th District (floor speech): “The people that I represent in south central and southwestern Pennsylvania know the truth. The American people know the truth. This impeachment circus has never been about the facts. This process has always been about seeking revenge for the president’s election in 2016 and attempting to prevent him from winning again in 2020.”
U.S. Rep. Guy Reschenthaler, R-14th District (floor speech): “The Democrats are caving to their far-left radical base and they’re using the thoughts and feelings and assumptions of some unnamed bureaucrats rather than relying on facts and law to impeach a duly elected president … Let me be clear, this is nothing more than a political hit job.”
U.S. Rep. Glenn ‘GT’ Thompson (Twitter post):
My statement on tonight's impeachment vote. pic.twitter.com/M7lIGPR1dI
— Glenn 'GT' Thompson (@CongressmanGT) December 19, 2019
U.S. Rep. Mike Kelly, R-16th District (floor speech): “Today, December the 18th, 2019 is another date that will live in infamy. When just because you hate the president of the United States, and you can find no other reason other than the fact that you’re so blinded by your hate that you can’t see straight, that you’ve decided the only way we can make sure this president doesn’t get elected again is to impeach him … The voters will remember next November what you’re doing this December. This is a terrible time; this is a date that will live in infamy.”
U.S. Rep. Conor Lamb, D-18th District (Twitter Post):
— Conor Lamb (@RepConorLamb) December 19, 2019
U.S. Rep. Mike Doyle, D-18th District (Twitter Post):
Today, I am voting to impeach President Trump because he abused the power of his office by illegally soliciting election assistance from a foreign government and refusing to comply with Congressional subpoenas. The evidence is clear, the law is clear, and Constitution is clear.
— Mike Doyle (@USRepMikeDoyle) December 18, 2019
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