IMPEACHABLE OFFENSES

Andy Levin

The time delays in waiting for the courts to decide whether President Donald Trump can continue stonewalling oversight by ordering people not to testify before House members has prompted Congressman Andy Levin (D-Bloomfield Township, Franklin, Beverly Hills, Royal Oak, Huntington Woods and parts of Macomb County) to lend his voice to those calling for an impeachment inquiry to begin – as long as he has a bipartisan coalition. “I feel if we follow our current path, with five different committees investigating, it’s just too slow, and it’s not fair to the American people,” Levin said. While he has always maintained that Trump has been violating the Emoluments Clause of the Constitution, intertwining his business with government dealings, the results of the Mueller Report, along with conversations with fellow members on the Judicial Committee, convinced him that “on 10 or more occasions the President did obstruct justice or sought to obstruct justice.” He said his announcement for an impeachment inquiry is “a practical evolution – how can we uncover the information? I think impeachment hearings are the best way, just like with the Watergate hearings (in 1973). The American people deserve to get the information directly, not just from a 400-page document.” Rather than just initiating proceedings, his goal is to build a consensus with fellow Democrats, like Reps. Haley Stevens (Birmingham, Bloomfield Hills, Rochester Hills, west Oakland and western Wayne County) and Elissa Slotkin (Rochester, Rochester Hills, north Oakland, parts of Livingston and Ingham counties), who are still urging caution, as well “reaching across the aisle to engage Republican colleagues about the urgent need to protect our democracy.” Oakland County’s other member of the House, Congresswoman Brenda Lawrence (D-Southfield), has now also announced that she is supporting the start of impeachment hearings.