No matter how it’s spun, a U.S. president being impeached is downright awful. Just look at how defensive and angry Republicans, like Texas’ Reps. Dan Crenshaw and Louie Gohmert, have been about the whole process.
The House of Representatives will be voting on the articles of impeachment on Wednesday and will most likely vote to impeach Donald Trump, making him one of only three presidents in U.S. history to be impeached.
The historic vote comes days after the release of the House Judiciary Committee’s 658-page report charging Trump with two articles of impeachment, abuse of power and obstruction of Congress.
It also follows months of investigation by House Democrats who found clear, factual evidence– hours of key testimony from State Department officials– of Trump pressuring Ukraine to find dirt on Joe Biden. Few Republicans even try to dispute the facts of what Trump did. And they don’t propose any mechanism for accountability.
House lawmakers began solemnly debating the charges early Wednesday morning. In their arguments, Democrats warned that if Trump’s actions were left unchecked it would threaten the country’s constitution and democratic values. Republicans issued complaints about procedure and said Democrats were trying to undo the results of the 2016 election.
A total of 216 votes out of 233 Democratic House members are needed to send the articles of impeachment to the Senate. All 13 Democratic House members from Texas are on board, including freshmen and swing district Democrats Reps. Collin Allred of Dallas and Lizzie Fletcher of Houston.
Texas’ two U.S. Senators, John Cornyn and Ted Cruz, have been staunch allies to the president throughout the impeachment process and are almost assuredly expected to vote against the articles despite the overwhelming evidence and the fractured Texas electorate.
A full House vote on both articles of impeachment is expected Wednesday evening.
Stay tuned for more updates
