Donald Trump will be impeached if Democrats win the 2018 midterm elections, Texas Senator Al Green promises.
As The Hill reports , Green, who has twice introduced articles of impeachment against Trump (both of those efforts failed), says he will not let up if Democrats take over the House of Representatives after November’s election. And speaking on the floor of the House last week, Green once again made his case for impeaching the 45th president, as The Hill reported at the time.
“You know there’s bigotry emanating from the presidency… I will address it.”
He then went on to point out Trump’s travel ban, Trump’s opposition to transgender people serving in the military, and his immigration policy as reasons for Trump’s impeachment.
Other Democrats, while possibly supporting impeachment personally, have been less than enthusiastic about impeaching him when it comes to speaking on the record. House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi has said repeatedly that any talk of impeachment is a non-starter.
“I don’t think we should be talking about impeachment. I’ve been very clear right from the start.”
Pelosi believes that impeaching Trump before the midterms would be a “gift” to Republicans, essentially angering and energizing the same Republican base that got Trump to the White House.
Other Democrats have suggested other reasons for holding off on impeachment for the time being. As The Hill reported in April, Massachusetts Democrat Senator Elizabeth Warren echoed other Democrats in suggesting that there’s no point in discussing impeachment until after Robert Mueller’s investigation has wrapped up.
“Right now, I believe it is absolutely critical that the special counsel, Mueller, be allowed to complete his investigation in full with no interference from anyone.”
We should be expanding – not limiting – women’s access to reproductive health care. Instead, the GOP is attacking services that prevent unplanned pregnancies, women’s access to STI & cancer screenings, & their right to make their own reproductive choices. https://t.co/oJo8ewgKvY
— Elizabeth Warren (@SenWarren) May 23, 2018
That’s not to say that Trump is immune from impeachment unless and until Democrats win big in 2018. Several Democrats have promised to begin impeachment proceedings immediately if Trump fires Mueller, according to The Hill . Trump has hinted that he’s considering doing so.
It’s important to note that impeachment does not necessarily mean removal from office; it’s just the first part of a two-part process. If Trump is impeached, he will remain in office pending the outcome of a trial in the Senate. There, two-thirds of the senators would have to vote to remove him from office.
In U.S. history, only two presidents have been impeached: Andrew Johnson in 1868 and Bill Clinton in 1998. Neither man was convicted in the Senate, and both went on to finish out their terms in office.