Impeaching Donald John Trump, President of the United States, for High Crimes and Misdemeanors

Floor Speech

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Ms. BONAMICI. Madam Speaker, I rise today in strong support of the resolution offering articles of impeachment against President Donald J. Trump. Our country and our Capitol have suffered a devastating attack in the past week, and the President's role in inciting the violence we experienced has left us no choice but to impeach him.

President Trump, through his words and actions, encouraged and incited the insurrection that occurred on January 6, 2021, when Congress was gathered to certify the results of the 2020 Presidential election. In the days and weeks preceding the deadly attack, President Trump made statements, both on social media and directly to his supporters, repeating false claims that he had won the election and urging supporters to come to Washington, D.C. and ``fight like hell.'' The morning of January 6, he led a rally and sent his supporters to the Capitol with the goal of stopping the certification of the Electoral College, thwarting the will of millions of Americans who voted for Joe Biden, and overturning the 2020 Presidential election. The events that unfolded that afternoon were dangerous, terrifying, unprecedented, and un-American. Armed domestic terrorists stormed the Capitol, leading to several deaths, countless injuries, untold property damage, and a democracy in crisis. Pipe bombs and zip ties were found on and around the Capitol grounds. Videos show Capitol Police officers being beaten by White supremacists. Elected officials in the line of presidential succession, including the Vice President and the Speaker of the House, were essentially hunted by terrorists and forced into hiding. The President did not quell the mob; nor did he offer any empathy whatsoever to his own Vice President or to the hundreds of Senators, Representatives, and staff who were at the Capitol and traumatized. In the following days, Donald Trump failed to take responsibility for the direct attack on the country he is responsible for leading and protecting and continued to incite insurrection by continuing to perpetuate the lie that he won the election.

We are now forced to reckon with the grave reality that the President of the United States directly incited an attack on our government and country, and he must be held accountable. He is wholly unfit for office and must never be able to serve in government again. I commend my colleagues, Representatives Cicilline, Lieu, and Raskin, for drafting this resolution of impeachment. For the sake of democracy, the Senate must now follow our lead, rise to the occasion, and swiftly convict the President of the high crimes and misdemeanors he has committed.

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