Press Releases

WASHINGTON, DC — Today, Congresswoman Mary Gay Scanlon, Vice Chair of the House Judiciary Committee, voted in support of the articles of impeachment against President Donald Trump introduced in the House Judiciary Committee.

The Committee voted on two articles of impeachment, including:

· Article I: Abuse of Power

· Article II: Obstruction of Congress

Congresswoman Scanlon offered the following statement:

“When I took my oath of office just over a year ago, I chose to be sworn in on our Constitution. I took an oath to support and defend the Constitution, and to put my country before myself.

“President Trump has failed that test of honor, of unselfish service to the country, of understanding the difference between right and wrong, and above all, of the need to put aside his personal interests when our nation’s security and our values are at stake.

“Over the past few weeks, Congress and the American people have heard overwhelming evidence of the President’s abuse of power and obstruction of Congress.

“I firmly believe that the American people should decide our elections, not a foreign entity. President Trump used the highest office in our government, and precious taxpayer dollars, to pressure a foreign country to interfere in our elections. In doing so, he undermined American’s right to free and fair elections and jeopardized our national security. That is an egregious abuse of power and an impeachable offense under our Constitution.

“Additionally, when he got caught, President Trump tried to cover up his wrongdoing by obstructing Congress’ investigation and our legal system. He refused to produce subpoenaed documents and ordered his subordinates not to appear as witnesses. This is textbook obstruction of Congress, as laid out by our Constitution, and an impeachable offense.

“This is exactly the type of behavior that our Founders feared most. They knew that with the awesome power of the presidency came the risk of a president abusing that power for personal gain. They trusted us — the people — with our republic, and to safeguard the values they enshrined in our constitution.

“As we move forward with the impeachment of President Trump, the question we must answer, as Americans, is whether or not we will accept a president who violates his oath of office and in doing so, betrays the American people.

“A government where the president abuses his power is not ‘of the people.’

“A government where the president pressures a foreign country to undermine our elections is not ‘by the people.’

“And a government where the president puts his own interests before the country is not ‘for the people.’

“This is not complicated. President Trump’s wrongdoing — and the urgent threat that his actions present to our democracy — leaves us no principled alternative but to support these articles of impeachment.

“Our Constitution, our country, and our children depend on it.”