Several members of Connecticut’s congressional delegation were quick to endorse the articles of impeachment unveiled Tuesday morning by the leadership of the Democratic party. Describing President Donald Trump’s behavior as “gangsterlike,” Rep. Jim Himes said he feels particularly strongly about the second article, obstruction of Congress.
“If you’re comfortable with a president saying, ‘no, I will not produce a single document; no, I will produce no emails; no, I will not allow anyone who works for me to appear,’ what you’re doing is you’re endorsing a system that does not include checks and balances, and that’s a pretty horrifying thing,” he told Connecticut Public Radio.
Himes calls this response a “radical departure” from past precedent. “This is really not a complicated thing. Congress has almost an absolute power to request documents and emails and testimony from people in the executive branch. Without that we can’t do oversight.”
The articles also accuse Trump of an abuse of power over his alleged effort to block aid to Ukraine in exchange for an investigation into one of his top political opponents.
Third District representative Rosa DeLauro also endorsed the articles, saying many witnesses have confirmed the abuse of power in testimony to the House Intelligence Committee.
“As with many of my colleagues, I have been reluctant to call for impeachment because I feared it would further divide the country, be perceived as overturning the 2016 election, and go to the United States Senate where Republicans would acquit President Trump regardless of the evidence,” she said in a statement. “But the president’s unchecked actions mean Congress had to act to stop his abuse of power and obstruction of Congress.”
Sen. Richard Blumenthal tweeted that the articles of impeachment are “searing.”
“House leaders seek to stop Trump’s ongoing brazen, blatant abuse of power. Our solemn Constitutional duty requires us to act,” he said.
Hearings before the House Judiciary Committee are expected to continue next week.
