Right after the House Judiciary Committee approved two articles of impeachment accusing President Donald Trump of abuse of power and obstruction of Congress, Rep. Louie Gohmert (R-Texas) flipped the script, saying Democrats themselves were guilty of both accusations they leveled against Trump.
“We voted on a provision — an allegation of abuse of power,” Gohmert noted. “There was an abuse of power at the Department of Justice, there was an abuse of power at the FBI, there was an abuse of power at the FISA court, there was abuse of power in our intel community, there was abuse of power even DOD was paying money to help set up the president,” he said, referring to the Obama administration’s investigation into the Trump campaign in the Russia collusion investigation.
“So there were all kinds of abuses of power, perhaps none more so than in the House of Representatives by the majority,” that is, the Democrats. Indeed, many Republicans have accused Democrats of weaponizing impeachment in order to kneecap Trump for his re-election campaign in 2020.
Jenna Ellis, a constitutional lawyer who now works for the Trump campaign, said Democrats should be expelled from Congress for turning impeachment into a political weapon. She noted Alexander Hamilton’s warning in Federalist 65. The Founders attempted to insulate the impeachment process from partisan politics, warning of “the greatest danger that the decision will be relegated more by the comparative strength of parties, than by the real demonstrations of innocence or guilt.”
Democrats passed both the impeachment inquiry and the articles of impeachment without a single Republican vote, while two Democrats voted against the inquiry. The impeachment effort is almost certainly doomed in the Senate, where Republicans have a majority. Gohmert condemned the clear partisan nature of the impeachment, warning that it sets a precedent that could be used against any president of whom Congress does not approve.
“This is an outrage. It sets the bar for any president of any party for the future, to go through three years of hell like this president has… It’s really unfortunate. This is a sad day for the country,” Gohmert lamented.
“This is really a sad day — a big show … America needs to hear from the witnesses; and, we didn't get to hear from them here. This was a kangaroo court — outrageous to put the country through this!” pic.twitter.com/IhIZqkZ4Rk
— Louie Gohmert (@replouiegohmert) December 13, 2019
Trump Lawyer: Dems Should Be Expelled From Congress for Using Trump Impeachment to Win 2020 Election
Having accused the Democrats of abuse of power, he went on to condemn the way they ran the investigation, denying Republicans the ability to call key witnesses like Adam Schiff, the “whistleblower,” Hunter Biden, and others.
“It’s going nowhere in the Senate, but I really hope and pray the Senate will not just pick it up and dismiss it. America needs to hear from the witnesses. And we didn’t get to hear from them here. This was a kangaroo court — outrageous to put the country through this! And we get a report, and we don’t even get to examine the maker of the report,” Gohmert said.
“They don’t have the right to abuse the process and this was a total abuse of process,” he insisted. “It was a witch hunt. That’s why they could not settle on a charge until they had exhausted that there was no evidence of a crime.”
“If the DOJ and the FBI went after you and your family and your business associates, harassed them, and you find out — as the president did early on — this was all a scam to bring him down, … Then you would be wise, and I’d bet most any attorney would say, ‘Don’t you go, they’re looking for anything, don’t help them crucify you. It would not be smart.’ The president did the right thing. The obstruction of justice was right here,” Gohmert declared, referring to the Democrats on the committee.
“They [Democrats] don’t have the right to abuse the process; and, this was a total abuse of process. It was a witch hunt – that’s why they could not settle on a charge until they had exhausted that there was no evidence of a crime …” pic.twitter.com/bJYnv0oMqj
— Louie Gohmert (@replouiegohmert) December 13, 2019
Follow Tyler O’Neil, the author of this article, on Twitter at @Tyler2ONeil.
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