Elijah Cummings Says He Is ‘Trying To Be Fair’ To Donald Trump: ‘I Haven’t Called For His Impeachment’
Democratic Rep. Elijah Cummings of Maryland said on Saturday that he is “trying to be fair” to President Donald Trump, Politico reports.
During a speech at his home district in Baltimore, Cummings — who has been enduring vicious and relentless attacks from Trump — reminded the audience that he is against impeachment.
Only if the administration defies court orders should an inquiry be considered, according to Cummings.
“There may be a time where impeachment is appropriate. One of the lines for me when and if the administration disobeys court orders. Then we have no choice, so we will see,” he said.
“Remember, I’m not — I haven’t called for his impeachment, and I’m trying to be fair to him, too. I want to be fair. That’s why we need to do our research.”
Trump has been attacking Cummings for days, describing his district as a “disgusting, rat and rodent infested mess.”
As previously reported by The Inquisitr, the president’s attacks on Cummings began after the congressman criticized the detention centers on the southern border.
Condemned as racist by Democrats, Trump’s attacks on Cummings follow similar remarks aimed at four congresswomen of color: Representatives Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York, Ilhan Omar of Minnesota, Rashida Tlaib of Michigan, and Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts.
The remarks have not led to impeachment, but the House of Representatives passed a resolution officially denouncing the president’s comments.
Although Cummings remains opposed to impeachment, many other Democrats in the House do not. As CNN reported, the party has reached a milestone, with half of the caucus — 118 House Democrats — supporting an inquiry.
As CNN notes, the fact that the momentum of the party is moving toward impeachment is putting more pressure on Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who has remained adamantly opposed to aggressive action. She has instead argued for what she claims is a better, more methodical approach, frequently opining that impeaching Trump would be too “divisive” for the country.
Majority of House Democrats favor starting impeachment proceedings https://t.co/B2TGW5Gf7B pic.twitter.com/Ck5Ns7HbCl
— Reuters (@Reuters) August 3, 2019
However, none of the Democrats running for president has made impeachment a core issue of their campaign. In fact, the vast majority of White House hopefuls have steered clear of the issue, focusing on policy proposals.
Pelosi and other key Democrats are also facing intense pressure from voters.
According to Newsweek, polls conducted in the aftermath of special counsel Robert Mueller’s congressional testimony show that a majority of Democratic voters supports impeachment; 67 percent of Democrats think an inquiry would be a good idea, according to a Hill-HarrisX poll.
Although a majority of Republicans remains opposed to impeachment, their opinion has also changed. Following the Mueller testimony, support for an inquiry grew to 17 percent among Republicans.
