St. Mary Parish’s representative in Congress said Tuesday that he plans to vote against impeaching President Donald Trump after last week’s protest against the certification of presidential electors turned violent.
Democrats planned a vote Wednesday on whether to impeach Trump, accusing him of inciting the protestors to commit insurrection. Impeachment is the equivalent of an indictment. Conviction and removal from office would require a two-thirds vote by the Senate, which is considered unlikely with only a week left in the president’s term.
Tuesday night, the U.S. House was also debating a resolution calling on Vice President Mike Pence to begin the process of removing Trump from office under the 25th Amendment. National media are reporting that Pence says he won’t take that action.
U.S. Rep. Clay Higgins, R-Lafayette, released a statement Tuesday:
“I do NOT support the removal of President Trump through impeachment nor the dubious ploy to invoke the 25th Amendment. These are acts of political vengeance and only serve to further divide our country.”
Another Louisiana representative, Steve Scalise, R-Metairie, also said he’ll vote for neither impeachment nor the resolution supporting 25th Amendment action. Scalise posted this statement on his congressional website.
“Like many Americans, I am deeply upset and outraged over the domestic terrorism we witnessed last week in our nation’s Capitol. It is clear that tensions in our country are dangerously high. It is incumbent upon leaders to be focused, first and foremost, on uniting our country and ensuring a smooth transition of power to the Biden administration over the coming days. The sheerly political and divisive actions House Democrats have put on the Floor this week to attempt to remove President Trump from office, just days before his term expires, are contrary to the unity we need and would in fact further fuel the dangerous tensions we are seeing. I will not vote in support of these divisive actions.
“While it is clear we must address all the actions that motivated last week’s anarchists to riot at the Capitol, a rushed impeachment that hasn’t even had a single hearing is clearly not the appropriate or practical way to do so and would set a dangerous precedent.
“For the sake of our nation, the House must get back to working on behalf of all American families who are counting on us to come together. All Members of Congress need to work towards calming down the rhetoric and creating a positive path forward.”
While invoking the 25th Amendment and Senate conviction are considered unlikely, a split has developed in the House Republican leadership.
Scalise is the House minority whip, a position that is normally important in bringing members in line with positions favored by a party’s leadership.
But House Republicans said they won’t whip GOP votes against impeachment.
Liz Cheney, R-Wyoming, who chairs the House Republican Conference, said Tuesday that she’ll vote for impeachment.
“Much more will become clear in coming days and weeks, but what we know now is enough,” Cheney said in a statement on her congressional website.
“The President of the United States summoned this mob, assembled the mob, and lit the flame of this attack. Everything that followed was his doing. None of this would have happened without the President. The President could have immediately and forcefully intervened to stop the violence. He did not. There has never been a greater betrayal by a President of the United States of his office and his oath to the Constitution.
“I will vote to impeach the President.”
