When we made our call for impeachment on September 25, we knew about a single crime. Only the next day did the Whistleblower expose the coverup to that crime — and potentially others. Trump’s defenders are relentlessly attacking the Whistleblower. That’s distraction. They are also misrepresenting the evidence of the crime. That’s distortion. Let’s review the facts:
On September 24, believing that he had made a “perfect call” to the Ukrainian president, President Trump ordered the declassification of the official memorandum of the call and the White House released it to the press, which led to a firestorm of reaction.
On the morning of September 25, Speaker Pelosi said, “The President of the U.S., in breach of his constitutional responsibilities, has asked a foreign government to help him in his political campaign at the expense of our national security as well as undermining the integrity of our elections. That cannot stand.”
We began to get phone calls into the County Party office and other contacts from concerned citizens. After discussion among nearly all of our Executive Committee members (one was unavailable but later concurred in our action), we decided to issue this press release.
Our call for impeachment following appropriate House proceedings to expose any additional evidence was based solely on the memorandum of President Trump’s call (also known as the “transcript” though it is definitely not verbatim). The memorandum documents a blatant abuse of power: Using military appropriations to induce a foreign government to investigate political opponents (the DNC (“Crowdstrike”) and Biden). Subsequently, a whistleblower letter was released — that letter relates to actions to coverup the memorandum, its contents, and potential other crimes. But the evidence in the memorandum of the Ukrainian conversation alone is sufficient for impeachment in our view.
Separately, the Whistleblower’s letter to Congress provides a roadmap to explore the coverup of the Ukrainian conversation and perhaps others. We shall see as the impeachment proceedings unfold.
Trump and his Republican allies are throwing every rotten tomato they can imagine to distract and confuse — because deflection is their only defense. They cannot deny the crime happened. As we go through this process, remember one thing — the President thought this was a “perfect call” and by his own admission, he said what the memorandum of the call documents.
Leadership matters. A CBS News Poll released today shows that Democrats are united in supporting impeachment proceedings. Of those who say they voted for a Democratic House candidate in 2018, nine in 10 feel this inquiry is necessary. Fifty-five percent of Americans — a solid majority — approve of the decision to open an impeachment inquiry. And a plurality, 42-36, say Trump deserves to be impeached over the Ukraine matter by itself.
Share this: