House whip James Clyburn resists calls from other Democrats to try impeach President Trump by a phone call in which he pressured the Georgia Secretary of State to “find” enough votes to win the state election. Clyburn said removal efforts so close to the end of Trump’s presidency would be a “waste” of Congress time.
“I would like someone to explain to me how we can process dismissal processes and do all this in 14-15 days. I don’t see how it can be done, and why waste time trying something that just can’t be done? Done? The South Carolina Democrat told Elaine Quijano, CBSN’s “Red & Blue” anchor, on Tuesday.
“I would be advised to stop this activity because it looks like they were violating state and federal laws,” he said. “This is where the research should be conducted.”
Trump’s term ends Jan. 20, when President-elect Joe Biden is sworn in. Mr. Trump, however, has tried unsuccessfully to fight the election result, falsely claiming that there was widespread fraud. The president even pressured Republican Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger to change the vote in his favor, which the Georgian official rejected.
Some Democrats are now calling for a criminal investigation into Trump’s actions. Congressman Ted Lieu of California and Congresswoman Kathleen Rice of New York asked the FBI to investigate the call Monday in a letter.
While Clyburn closed the idea of dismissal, he was more open to possible charges from the Justice Department.
“It all depends on what the charges are,” Clyburn said. “If you are talking about the misuse of his office in relation to these elections, the elections will end. The Electoral College will have done its job and that will be left behind. But if there are other issues that come to the attention of the Department of Justice , I think the Department of Justice should do its job. “
“That doesn’t mean the president has to be involved in that. He wouldn’t be involved,” Clyburn added. “But it means that any court official, including the attorney general, would do what is necessary to pursue justice on behalf of the American people. And so he should do what the Department of Justice will do as an independent body. That is not Biden would have a big enough job trying to overcome this pandemic and trying to get this economy back on track. “
Trump was ousted in December 2019 by the Democratic-controlled House. The Republican-controlled Senate acquitted the president.