Gabbard: Impeachment Inquiry “Unfortunate, But Necessary”

Rep. Tulsi Gabbard (HI-02), who is also a Democratic candidate for president, released a statement today in support of moving forward with the impeachment inquiry in the House of Representatives.

“Up to this point, I have been opposed to pursuing impeachment because it will further divide our already badly divided country,” she said, “However, after looking carefully at the transcript of the conversation with Ukrainian President, the whistleblower complaint, the Inspector General memo, and President Trump’s comments about the issue, unfortunately, I believe that if we do not proceed with the inquiry, it will set a very dangerous precedent. Future presidents, as well as anyone in positions of power in the government, will conclude that they can abuse their position for personal gain, without fear of accountability or consequences.”

The statement comes on the heels of comments made by US Senators Mazie Hirono and Brian Schatz of Hawaiʻi earlier this week.  She becomes the final member of the Hawaiʻi delegation to support impeachment proceedings for the president.

Fellow Congressman Ed Case (HI-01) released a statement on Tuesday saying, “The allegations that the President pressured a foreign country to investigate a domestic political opponent and withheld foreign assistance as leverage, to go with his Director of National Intelligence’s refusal to produce the whistleblower’s complaint and independent Inspector General’s report to Congress as required by law, go to the core of this or any President’s constitutional duties and our national security.”

He continued saying, “Together with other claimed breaches and the President’s continued obstruction of Congressional oversight, they fully justify Congress reviewing potential impeachment.”

Congresswoman Gabbard said called the situation an abuse of power and said if it is allowed to continue, “…then our society will rot from top down. We will turn into a Banana Republic, where people in positions of power—from the president all the way down to the traffic cop—will feel it’s OK to abuse their power with no consequences.  This is not the kind of country that any of us want to see.”

Rep. Gabbard called it “unfortunate, but necessary,” that she is speaking in support of the inquiry into the President’s alleged abuse of power in relation to his interactions with Ukraine leaders.

“This inquiry must be swift, thorough, and narrowly-focused. It cannot be turned into a long, protracted partisan circus that will further divide our country and undermine our democracy,” said Rep. Gabbard.

In a campaign email, Gabbard said, “Our campaign will remain focused on how we can stop engaging in regime change wars, stop the new Cold War and nuclear arms race, and invest the money wasted on those wars and weapons to meet the needs of the American people. We can’t allow a protracted impeachment process to further divide this country and distract from important issues that must be at the center of the debate in this campaign.”