Published on
Thursday, January 07, 2021
byCommon Dreams
Omar Trump Impeachment Resolution Charges 'Attempted Coup Against Our
Country'
"The urgency of this moment is real," said the Minnesota Democrat.
byAndrea Germanos, staff writer
President Donald Trump arrives at a rally on January 6, 2021 in Washington,
D.C. (Photo: Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images)
President Donald Trump arrives at a rally on January 6, 2021 in Washington,
D.C. (Photo: Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images)
Rep. Ilhan Omar released on Thursday articles of impeachment against
President Donald Trump, calling the president "the single greatest threat to
our democracy."
The privileged resolution (pdf), co-led by fellow Democrats including Reps.
David Cicilline (R.I.), Ayanna Pressley (Mass.), Jamaal Bowman (N.Y.), and
Veronica Escobar (Texas), comes amid swelling calls for Trump's ouster-using
arrest, the 25th Amendment, or impeachment-in the wake of an extremist,
pro-Trump mob's Wednesday rampage through the U.S. Capitol in a failed coup
attempt.
"Every day that he remains in the office of the presidency-overseeing the
United States military and nuclear arsenal-is a day the safety of the
American people and the world are threatened," Omar (D-Minn.) said in a
statement.
"The very administration officials who have been complicit in his crimes
cannot be relied upon," she continued. "We must impeach and remove him from
office immediately so that he cannot threaten our democracy and the world
any longer or hold public office ever again. Congress should reconvene
immediately to carry out this constitutional duty."
The resolution lists two articles of impeachment, the first of which accuses
Trump of violating his constitutional oath to faithfully execute the office
of President of the United States through an unlawful attempt to overturn
the results of the November election, which he lost to President-elect Joe
Biden. The second article addresses Trump's abuse of "the powers of the
presidency to incite violence and orchestrate an attempted coup against our
country"-a reference to Wednesday's violence in the Capitol.
The resolution further points to Trump's ginning up of the extremists when
he told the crowd before the Capitol was breached: "You'll never take back
our country with weakness. You have to show strength and you have to be
strong," and his comments to the mob after the attack on the building: "We
love you, you're very special."
"Please call the House to order and let's get it done. Today. Right now,"
Omar tweeted, a message directed at House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.).
"The world is watching and waiting for us to act."
Cicilline (D-R.I.) also announced Thursday the introduction of a separate
impeachment resolution. That effort is being co-led by Reps. Ted Lieu
(D-Calif.) and Jamie Raskin (D-Md.) and also points to Trump's Wednesday
incitement of violence. The resolution states that Trump "will remain a
threat to national security, democracy, and the Constitution if allowed to
remain in office."
Progressive groups including Patriotic Millionaires have backed the call for
Trump's impeachment.
In a Thursday statement, Morris Pearl, chair of the Patriotic Millionaires,
assessed Wednesday's violence and chaos by saying that Trump "actively
recruited and nurtured this group of traitors, whipped them into a violent
frenzy, and directed them to attack the Capitol."
"There must be consequences," said Pearl. "They must be immediate. They must
be severe. And they must unequivocally affirm our lawmakers' and this
nation's commitment to democracy and the rule of law."
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