After associates of former James Comey leaked a memo — which allegedly revealed President Trump pressuring the then-FBI director to kill the Michael Flynn investigation — to the New York Times yesterday, a shift in tone has taken place. Analysts started tossing around “obstruction of justice,” so a formal call for impeachment seemed inevitable. Indeed, Rep. Al Green (D-TX) indicated early Wednesday morning that he’d take that plunge, and he delivered the above speech on the House floor while passionately arguing, “I do this because I believe in the great ideals this country stands for … the president must be impeached.”
Undoubtedly, we’ll hear many other Congressfolk weigh in today, and the deluge has already begun. Rep. Justin Amash (R-MI) told reporters, “If Comey memo allegations are true, it’s grounds for impeachment.” He also added that he places more trust in Comey than he does in Trump. Meanwhile, Rep. Adam Schiff (D-CA) of the House Intelligence Committee urged caution. On CNN’s New Day, Schiff said that impeachment is “not something that we should be rushing into or rushing to suggest.”
Rep. Adam Schiff on talk of impeachment: “That’s not something that we should be rushing into or rushing to suggest” https://t.co/FNkX67lkrs
— CNN Politics (@CNNPolitics) May 17, 2017
However, Senator King Senator King (I-ME) felt differently yesterday while speaking with CNN’s Wolf Blitzer. When quizzed about whether Congress is moving toward impeachment, King responded, “Reluctantly, Wolf, I have to say yes.”
.@wolfblitzer: Could we be moving toward an impeachment process?
Sen. King: “Reluctantly, Wolf, I have to say yes” https://t.co/IVLrF5M12g
— CNN (@CNN) May 16, 2017