The United States House of Representatives votes to impeach President Donald Trump for a historic second time on Wednesday stating he incited an insurrection against the government.
The impeachment comes an exact week after the U.S. Capitol riots on Jan. 6 that left at least two dead and countless injured.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi says in a speech on the House floor on Wednesday the President is a clear and present danger.
“We know that the President of the United States incited this insurrection,” Pelosi says, “this armed rebellion, against our common country.”
UTRGV Associate Professor of Political Science Natasha Altema McNeely explains the seriousness of an impeachment process.
“When the process is engaged in the U.S. House of Representatives it’s believed that the elected official that the articles are being brought against committed a crime,” McNeely says. “And that a majority of the elected officials in that particular chamber, so the House, recognize it as such.”
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell says in a statement posted to his website, the Senate will begin when he and his colleagues are reconvened Tuesday and adds he hopes Congress and the executive branch focus on the transition of power coming this Wednesday.
McNeely says the announcement is a strategic move from Senator McConnell.
“We see that he has a lot of political calculations to make,” She says, “and for that reason, I’m not surprised he’s at this point and being hesitant and not even being hesitant, but just saying like he’s just not going to reconvene the Chamber.”
Hidalgo County Democratic Party Chair Norma Ramirez says it’s the Senate’s job to do the right thing, regardless if before or after Inauguration Day.
“I think whoever is sitting at the Senate at the time, it’s their obligation to do the right thing,” She says. “I think McConnell just doesn’t want to have it under this administration.”
Ramirez says the delays are often to pass the ball of responsibility to someone else. She also says it is the duty of an elected official to do what’s right.
“Sometimes it may even cost us our election but that’s what it’s all about,” She says. “It’s about protecting our democracy, protecting our voters, our constituents, the Constitution regardless of how many people throw rocks or do wrong things to you.”
U.S. Rep. Henry Cuellar, D-Texas, responds to what he believes the state of the nation leading up to the Capitol riots means in our place in history.
“I think that tells us we are very divided,” Rep. Cuellar says. “That tells us that we have to think about we cannot put party before, we cannot put emotions before the values of the democracy that we have as an American.”
He also wants to remind people we have to come together as a nation.
“What happened to the old days when we had disagreements and they were civil disagreements,” Rep. Cuellar says. “Now, people cuss at you, people yell at you, now people threaten you. I mean what happened to the civil discourse we used to have?”
The congressman recalls a time when President Ronald Regan and House Speaker Thomas “Tip” O’Neill would disagree on matters but come together at the end of the day.
“They had disagreements in the day but afterward they would get together, have beer, smoke a cigar and they got together,” Rep. Cuellar says. “Now, people just don’t do that anymore… Now, the disagreements not only in Congress, just in society in general…that’s not who we are as a county. We’re better than that, much better than that.”
Cuellar says although we are in difficult times, he offers a message of what he is confident we will see in the days moving forward.
“We saw chaos that we’ve never seen before but out of the chaos, we will see strength rise,” He says. “We will see unity come out of that. We will see a commitment to the constitution, to the laws, to America, to all of us as Americans”
Vaquero Radio contacted Hidalgo County Republican Party Chair Adrienne Peña – Garza, Cameron County Republican Party Chair Morgan Graham, Cameron County Democratic Party Chair Jared Hockema and U.S. Rep. Filemon Vela, D-Texas, for comment this week but all were unavailable as of this time.
Inauguration Day will be noon Wednesday, January 20. For full story coverage and other stories, visit utrgvradio.com
For Vaquero News, I’m Justin Elizalde.
