Despite Boehner's Blaming Dems, Clear Record of Republicans Pushing for Obama Impeachment
from the DCCC:
Jul 29, 2014
House Republicans Refuse to Rule Out Impeachment
As Republicans barrel forward with their expensive taxpayer-funded lawsuit, political observers are asking whether House Republicans continue their reckless political theatre and pursue Act II: impeachment? With the third-highest-ranking Republican Steve Scalise refusing to rule out impeachment, House Republicans in competitive races around the country are pushing for impeachment.
At the same time, House Democrats are hard at work, doubling down on middle class priorities like equal pay for equal work, keeping good jobs in America and affordable education.
“As if this reckless lawsuit isn’t wasting enough taxpayer money, several House Republicans are openly debating the idea of impeachment, even as the clock is ticking on critical middle class priorities before Republicans let Congress go on a 5-week vacation,” said Josh Schwerin of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. “While House Republicans barrel forward with their highly unpopular lawsuit and open the door to impeachment, Americans are clear: they want House Republicans to focus on middle class priorities – not political drama better suited for a soap opera.”
BACKGROUND:
Republican Candidates Support Impeachment
Marilinda Garcia (NH-02): President Obama “has Many, Many Impeachable Offenses.” “When asked if she would vote to impeach President Obama Garcia said, “I would..He has many, many impeachable offenses it seems to me in terms of his disregard for our Constitution alone.” New Boston Republican Committee Debate, 2/06/14
Gary Lambert (NH-02): Would Not Close Door on Supporting Impeaching President Obama. “You heard me how I feel about winning, so first I gotta see whether or not that would work, whether or not we could win. Then I’ll evaluate it at that time…I’m with you on this but we gotta keep our eye on the ball.” New Boston Republican Committee Debate, 2/06/14
Ryan Zinke (MT-AL) Pledged to Support Impeaching President Obama. “During the debate, held May 27, tea party activist and fellow House candidate Drew Turiano asked Zinke whether he would support efforts to impeach Obama […]’And then I do believe we can put the president on the run. He's had six years of doing his will to this country, and I believe that's intentional dismantling of American power both domestically and abroad,’ said Zinke. ‘So is impeachment in the cards? Let's hope we have the votes.’ Turiano, not completely satisfied with Zinke's response, replied, ‘Is that a yes or a no?’ ‘Yes,’ said Zinke.” Huffington Post, 6/02/14
Republican Incumbents Push Impeachment
Rep. Steve Scalise “Refused to Rule Out a Drive to Impeach President Barack Obama.” “The third ranking Republican official in the House refused to rule out a drive to impeach President Barack Obama during an interview with Fox News Sunday.” MSNBC, 7/27/14
Rep. Jeff Denham: Would Not Discount Impeachment. In August 2013, Denham said: “If our Commander in Chief that was reelected in this country decides to break the Constitution it is a challenge to hold him accountable. And he’s done it several times now.” When asked if he would support impeachment, Denham said: “Impeachment is a, is a very serious issue. I think that you have to prove that the leader of the free world has done something that is so far against American beliefs that, and this trust that he’s been sworn into that you remove him. You know I think that him trying to move beyond these phony scandals is something that opens the door for us to investigate further. IRS targeting people, targeting individuals, targeting political organizations is a huge issue that we’re going to hold him account on. But the biggest issue for me thus far in this presidency has been Benghazi […]So depending on how far these investigations go we could get into a scenario where the president has broken the law.” North Valley Tea Party Club, 8/14/13
Rep. Kerry Bentivolio: It Would be “Dream Come True” to Impeach President Obama. “Rep. Kerry Bentivolio, R-Mich., Monday said it would be a ‘dream come true’ to write a bill to impeach President Obama after constituents asked what he is doing to stop the president from ‘doing everything that he's doing against [the] Constitution.’ ‘If I could write that bill and submit it, it would be a dream come true,’ Bentivolio said at the Birmingham Bloomfield Republican Club Meeting. ‘I feel your pain. I stood twelve feet away from [the president] and listened to him. I couldn't stand being there, but because he is president I have to respect the office. That's my job, as a congressman. I respect the office.’ Bentivolio, a former Santa Claus impersonator and reindeer farmer, went on to say that he has already asked various lawyers and scholars to advise him on ‘how [he] could impeach the president of the United States.’” ABC News, 8/21/13
Rep. Steve King: House will Impeach President Obama if He Acts on Immigration Reform. “Rep. Steve King (R-IA) believes the House of Representatives will immediately begin impeachment proceedings if President Barack Obama unilaterally grants work permits and amnesty to millions more illegal immigrants by the ‘end of summer’ […]’From my standpoint, if the president [enacts more executive actions], we need to bring impeachment hearings immediately before the House of Representatives,’ King said. ‘That's my position and that's my prediction.’” Breitbart, 7/26/14
Rep. Jason Chaffetz: Impeaching President Obama a Possibility. “Rep. Jason Chaffetz says President Barack Obama's handling of the government's response to the Benghazi terrorist attack could be an impeachable offense and vows to continue digging at the "lies of highest magnitude" from the White House. ‘It's certainly a possibility," the Utah Republican said Monday when asked about impeachment. ‘That's not the goal but given the continued lies perpetrated by this administration, I don't know where it's going to go. ... I'm not taking it off the table. I'm not out there touting that but I think this gets to the highest levels of our government and integrity and honesty are paramount.’” Salt Lake Tribune, 5/13/13
Rep. Michele Bachmann: Option of Impeaching President Obama Should Not be Dismissed. “Bachmann stopped short of saying that Obama should be impeached, but when asked, said that option shouldn’t be dismissed. ‘As I have been home in my district, the 6th District of Minnesota, there isn’t a weekend that hasn’t gone by that someone says to me, ‘Michele, what in the world are you all waiting for in Congress? Why aren’t you impeaching the president? He’s been making unconstitutional actions since he came into office,’ Bachmann said.” Politico, 5/16/13
Rep. Blake Farenthold: House has Votes to Impeach President Obama. “Rep. Blake Farenthold thinks the House of Representatives has the votes to impeach President Barack Obama in response to an inquiry about the authenticity of the president’s birth certificate, but said at a town hall meeting he doesn’t think it would be the best approach. ‘A question I get a lot, ‘If everybody is so unhappy with the president, why don’t you impeach him?’ Farenthold, a Texas Republican, said at a town hall meeting Saturday according to a video posted on YouTube. ‘I’ll give you a real frank answer about that, if we were to impeach the president tomorrow, we would probably get the votes in the House of Representatives to do it.’” Politico, 8/12/13
Rep. Steve Stockman: “I’m Considering Filing Articles of Impeachment Against Barack Obama.” “Mr. Stockman said Mr. Obama has repeatedly broken his oath of office to uphold the Constitution, and in response, he’s seriously mulling legal action. ‘I’m considering filing Articles of Impeachment against Barack Obama,’ he wrote on his website, as reported by The Blaze.” Washington Times, 1/30/14
Rep. Jack Kingston: Congress Will Start Looking at Impeaching President Obama “Very Seriously.” “Rep. Jack Kingston (R-Ga.) declined to comment this week when asked whether he supports impeaching President Barack Obama, but in a radio interview two weeks ago, he said it was a very serious possibility […] ‘Not a day goes by when people don’t talk to us about impeachment. I don’t know what rises to that level yet, but I know that there’s a mounting frustration that a lot of people are getting to and I think Congress is going to start looking at it very seriously.’” Huffington Post, 7/16/14
Rep. Randy Weber: “The President Deserves to be Impeached.” “‘The president deserves to be impeached, plain and simple,’ Rep. Randy Weber (R-Texas) said at an event hosted by the Heritage Foundation.” The Hill, 7/15/14
Rep. Joe Barton: Impeaching President Obama “Debatable.” “Rep. Joe Barton (R-Texas), who voted to impeach President Bill Clinton in 1998, said that doing the same for Obama was ‘debatable.’ ‘I think it's debatable. I certainly think the president has gone out of his way to not enforce some of the laws that the Congress thinks he should be enforcing,’ Barton said.” The Hill, 7/15/14
Rep. Michael Burgess: Impeaching President Obama “Needs to Happen.” “Impeaching President Barack Obama ‘needs to happen,’ Rep. Michael Burgess (R-Texas) told a local tea party group, the Fort Worth Star-Telegram reported Tuesday. Burgess spoke, the paper said, in response to an attendee’s suggestion that the GOP-controlled House use impeachment to stop Obama from ‘pushing his agenda.’ ‘It needs to happen, and I agree with you it would tie things up,’ Burgess reportedly responded. ‘No question about that.’” Politico, 8/09/11
Rep. Ted Yoho: House Should Threaten to Impeach President Obama. “Rep. Ted Yoho (R-FL) told colleagues that the House should pass legislation with new steps to secure the border, and tell Obama if he didn't implement it, they would impeach him. ‘He either enforces the laws on the books—as he was hired and elected to do—or he leaves Congress no option. This is not our choice, this is the President's choice and I would advise him to uphold the law on the books,’ Yoho said in a written statement after the meeting.” Breitbart, 7/25/14
Rep. Paul Broun Backed Impeaching President Obama. “Rep. Paul Broun, a GOP candidate for U.S. Senate in Georgia, indicated during a tea party-sponsored candidate forum this weekend that he would support the impeachment of President Obama. Candidates at the Gilmer County GOP forum, including Broun, were asked by a questioner: ‘Clinton was impeached for perjury. Obama has perjured himself on multiple occasions. Would you support impeachment if presented for a vote?’ Broun, along with two other candidates, Derrick Grayson and Eugene Yu raised their hands, according to video of the event obtained by ABC News (watch video above). Neither Rep. Phil Gingrey nor Rep. Jack Kingston attended the forum.” ABC News, 2/03/14
Rep. Louie Gohmert Pushed Impeachment of President Obama. “Rep. Louie Gohmert (R-TX) on Tuesday amped his recent impeachment rhetoric by claiming that President Barack Obama was ‘getting close to a high crime and misdemeanor’ […]Gohmert also repeated his recent warning that if Republicans force the U.S. to default on its debt by refusing to raise the debt ceiling then it ‘would be an impeachable offense by the president.’” Raw Story, 10/15/13
Rep. Lou Barletta: House Probably has Votes to Impeach President Obama.“Rep. Lou Barletta says the House ‘probably’ has the votes to impeach President Barack Obama. ‘He’s just absolutely ignoring the Constitution, and ignoring the laws and ignoring the checks and balances,’ the Pennsylvania Republican said of Obama on the Gary Sutton radio show on Monday. ‘The problem is, what do you do? For those that say impeach him for breaking the laws or bypassing the laws — could that pass in the House? It probably could. Is the majority of the American people in favor of impeaching the president? I’m not sure.’” Politico, 6/17/14
Copyright © 2014 Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee
related:
Boehner Caught In A Lie While Blaming Democrats For Obama Impeachment Talk
http://www.politicususa.com/2014/07/29/john-boehner-caught-massive-lie-blaming-democrats-obama-impeachment-talk.html
= new reply since forum marked as read
