Amid growing calls for the impeachment of President Donald Trump, Vermont’s two U.S. senators are taking a more cautious approach than some of their peers.
Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) and Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) in recent days repeated their previous demands that the House initiate an impeachment inquiry, but neither would explicitly call for the president’s impeachment or removal from office.
In an interview with Seven Days Wednesday afternoon, Leahy said it was “extremely urgent” that the House investigate whether Trump pressured Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to dig up dirt on former vice president Joe Biden. “This Ukraine episode is very, very disturbing,” the senator said, referring to allegations that Trump withheld military aid to Ukraine as he sought assistance in besmirching a political rival.
Leahy declined, however, to call for the impeachment of the president. “No, I said I support what [House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.)] is doing: beginning the impeachment inquiry,” he said. “Impeachment’s gonna be up to the House.”
Vermont’s senior senator said he would not “prejudge” the outcome of the House’s investigation without all the facts. And he noted that, if the House were to impeach the president, the Senate would be charged with conducting a trial and determining whether to convict him and remove him from office. “As one who would have to be a juror in any case brought by them, I’ll wait and see what they do,” Leahy said of the House.
Speaking in Iowa on Tuesday, Sanders also had strong words for the president. He called Trump “the most corrupt president in the modern history of this country” and said he believed Trump had likely obstructed justice, improperly profited from the presidency and misused military funding for political purposes. “Enough is enough,” he said during a presidential campaign event.
When he was later pressed by reporters on the subject, Sanders said it would be “irresponsible” to commit to conviction before reviewing the evidence, according to BuzzFeed News. “I believe that there are impeachable offenses. That’s my view. But my view is not good enough,” he said.
Sanders also voiced concerns that if Senate Republicans stood by Trump and declined to convict him, the president would frame the result as political vindication. “I think that is a fact that has to be taken into consideration,” he said.
The third member of Vermont’s congressional delegation, Rep. Peter Welch (D-Vt.), has taken a more assertive approach. He called for Trump’s impeachment in July and did so again this week as Pelosi signaled support for an inquiry.
“Throughout his presidency, [Trump] has established a clear pattern of disregard for the rule of law and our constitutional system of checks and balances. And he has repeatedly violated his oath of office to preserve, protect and defend our Constitution,” Welch said in a written statement on Tuesday. “I continue to support his impeachment.”
During a press conference in New York City on Wednesday afternoon, Trump attempted to turn the tables on Leahy and two Democratic colleagues, accusing them of pressuring the Ukrainian government to investigate Trump. He was referring to a May 2018 letter that Leahy, Sen. Robert Menendez (D-N.J.) and Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) sent the Ukrainian prosecutor general expressing concern over published reports that the government was refusing to cooperate with special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation of the president in order to curry favor with Trump.
“In the letter, they implied that their support for U.S. assistance to Ukraine was at stake and that if they didn’t do the right thing, they wouldn’t get any assistance,” Trump said at the press conference. “Gee, doesn’t that sound familiar? Doesn’t that sound familiar?”
The senators did not, in fact, threaten to withdraw funding for Ukraine in their letter, as they noted in a joint statement on Wednesday.
“The Ukrainians were justifiably concerned that Trump would exact revenge by blocking security assistance if they did not act in his political favor,” Leahy, Menendez and Durbin wrote. “It turns out that was truer than any of us could have imagined. Yes, we were worried that the President of the United States would abuse his office and leverage U.S. security assistance for his own personal agenda back in 2018. It looks like we were right then and we are right now.”
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Might I suggest that when you reference a document or article — here, the letter from Leahy, Menendez and Durbin — that you include a link to it so that readers can actually see what it says?
When is Leahy going to acknowledge he himself wrote a letter to Ukraine asking them to investigate Trump last May?! The hypocrisy is astounding!! Hey heres an idea, why dont you actually do something to help the people of Vermont. Maybe if they put half the energy and effort of these ridiculous witch hunts into doing something productive, Lake Champlain might not be a giant sewer.
https://www-m.cnn.com/2018/05/04/politics/robert-mueller-ukraine/index.html?r=https%3A%2F%2Ftownhall.com%2Ftipsheet%2Ftimothymeads%2F2019%2F09%2F25%2Fdems-sent-letter-to-ukraine-asking-for-investigation-to-trump-n2553705
Hi John!
The letter is linked in the article when it is first mentioned, it’s the highlighted green text “a May 2018 letter.”
Sorry! There are plenty of articles on it if you do a search but it was just referenced in the Washington Post also:
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2019/09/24/democrats-investigation-might-do-more-hurt-biden-than-trump/
I see Leahy did a lame tweet about it, basically saying I know you are but what am I!
I’ve come to realize that these investigations have little to do with the truth just more of the same: “Trump is (insert adjective).” If it were about corruption Joe Biden would end his campaign immediately. Clearly he threatened to withhold $1billion of the prosecutor (coincidentally investigating the Ukrainian company paying his son $80k a month) wasn’t fired. It reeks of hypocrisy and frankly, I’m done with the blatant lies.
Sanders sais “the most corrupt president in the modern history of this country”
Welch said Trump has repeatedly violated his oath of office to preserve, protect and defend our Constitution,”
Have these 2 even read the Constitution?? It sure doesn’t seem like it…
Let’s get technical. Corruption Sanders know a lot about, could say it’s his middle name. Here is a man who called a bank and told them to approve of his wife’s loan for the college ( that she bankrupt), this is a man who instead of playing a Senator, he travels all over on our dime to promote his so-called book..Travel all over trying to run for president. For someone who is screaming “Climate Change,” he sure is flying all over. But guess it’s alright for him… He knew from day 1 he was going to run for president again. He lies a lot.
If anything there are a lot of democrats who needs to be impeached. and also some republicans, like Scott who calls himself a republican. Sanders who calls himself an Independent. He’s a democrat !
“Last year, Vermonts senior senator himself attempted to restart a Ukrainian investigation into a 2020 candidate – one Donald J. Trump. He even suggested U.S. aid to Ukraine was hanging in the balance.”
http://truenorthreports.com/statehouse-hea…
https://www.foreign.senate.gov/imo/media/d…
It would be so great if people wrote in full sentences, with periods at the end of one and capitalization at the beginning of the next. It would be so great if people used standard English grammar. It would be so great if people used standard English punctuation. It would be so great if people used standard English spelling, or used the spell check program.
Donald Trump has done the country a great service. He has finally exposed the Republican Party for who they truly are: xenophobes, homophobes, bigots, white nationalists, and scientifically obtuse. They are not “Christian” or “patriotic”. They no longer believe in the US Constitution, they only believe in a Trump/Putin style fascism. They don’t want to pay taxes for anything. They think that “liberties and freedoms” means they can do whatever, whenever to whomever. with no consequences or responsibilities for their actions. I’m surprised they even stop for traffic lights and stop signs anymore as this is just more “government intrusion and regulations”. They are lawless.
If Obama had paid off a porn star prior to the election those “family values” Republicans would’ve impeached him on his first day in office, but they give Trump yet another free pass. Their “family values” are inbred.
Congress must do its oversight duties and investigate all of Trump’s problems, from emoluments to rigging the national security clearances for his kids, to his being an un-indicted co-conspirator in the campaign finance scandal that sent Mike Cohen to jail, to this latest shakedown of the Ukrainian President and trying to cover that up.
Republicans are illegitimate now, they have no moral, ethical or legal standing and should be ignored, much less indulged. They have sold their soul to Trump for cheap and they should pay the price for this.
Pelosi dragged her feet on impeachment. By doing so she may have made it impossible to do a thorough investigation.
At least Nixon had the decency to resign ( as long as Ford pardoned him). Trump is too vain and greedy to leave.
How deep is the deep end of the ‘deep state’? It appears to be virtually bottomless.
Top Romney Adviser Worked With Hunter Biden On Board Of Ukrainian Energy Company
https://thefederalist.com/2019/09/26/top-r…
The Deep State is doing xxxx. Classic denialism.
Bernie Sanders is doing xxxx. Classic deflection.
Party over country for the true patriots.
It be Trump. It be Biden. It be Leahy. It be Sanders. Its be not so great.
Thanks for the link Gillian. If it was there before, I missed it.
Unsurprisingly, Trump’s characterization of the letter is an outright lie: “In the letter, they implied that their support for U.S. assistance to Ukraine was at stake and that if they didnt do the right thing, they wouldnt get any assistance.” In fact, the letter never mentions US assistance at all. There is nothing that suggests or implies anything about aid. Indeed, reading the letter, one would never even know that there IS aid from the US to the Ukraine. The closest the letter comes to Trump’s false description is this sentence: “Ours is a relationship built on a foundation of respect for the rule of law and accountable democratic institutions.”
Nor did the letter ask the Ukrainians to “investigate Trump.” Instead it asks them to stop blocking the Mueller investigation if indeed they are doing so. The letter closes with 3 questions, the first of which is this: “Has your office taken any steps to restrict cooperation with the investigation by Special Counsel Robert Mueller?” The next 2 questions hinge on the first.
The letter is 1 and a half pages. Those interested should read it. But the notion that there is any parallel between this letter and Trump’s phone call is totally outrageous. About the only thing they have in common is that Ukraine and the US were involved in both cases.
Our two Senators are prime examples of a need for term limits.
Trump will NOT be impeached by the senate, even the house is wavering. In reality this is just another attempt by the democrats to find a way to discredit Trump since they don’t have a viable candidate they think can take the white house. When they are seen through their lies then it just makes Trump stronger and have a better chance of getting reelected. Maybe they should focus on the job they were elected to do.
“this is just another attempt by the democrats to find a way to discredit Trump”
He discredits himself.
“Maybe they should focus on the job they were elected to do.”
Which under the Constitution includes oversight of the Executive Branch — which has become totally lawless. Like telling a foreign government that if they want to receive the aid that they were already granted by Congress (both Democrats and Republicans) they will first have to assist Trump’s hatchet man (Giuliani) in finding dirt on Trump’s domestic political opponent.