WASHINGTON — Rep. Shri Thanedar, D-Mich., said he will press forward and force a vote Wednesday to impeach President Donald Trump, defying his own party leaders who are desperately urging him to stand down.
Democratic leaders believe an impeachment vote — destined to fail in the GOP-led House — would be a distraction at a time the party is trying to focus on issues like the cuts to Medicaid that are included in Republicans’ sweeping bill for Trump’s agenda.
They have encouraged Thanedar to skip the House’s vote series later Wednesday, a Democratic leadership source said, since Thanedar needs to be physically present to make a motion on his resolution.
But Thanedar, who is facing a tough prim challenge from the left, said Wednesday afternoon he was undeterred and will force.
“I intend to show up,” he told reporters. “Everybody has their opinions, but that’s what I’m going to do.”
Thanedar introduced seven articles of impeachment against Trump last month, accusing the president of obstructing justice, abusing executive power and corruption, among other charges.
Thanedar has asked for his resolution to be considered “privileged,” which forces leaders in the Republican-led House to bring the measure to the floor within two legislative days.
“So those who are asking me, is this the right time to do it? I say it’s never the wrong time to do the right thing,” Thanedar said at a press conference outside the Capitol Wednesday morning.
The House voted twice to impeach Trump during his first term when Democrats controlled the chamber.
House Republicans are expected to call up the resolution Wednesday evening and then hold a vote to table or kill the resolution.
House Democratic leaders are urging their rank-and-file members to vote to table the resolution.
“I have said before from this podium that this is not the right approach we should be taking,” Rep. Pete Aguilar D-Calif., the chair of the House Democratic caucus, told reporters. “I will join members of the leadership team and vote to table that motion.”
Aguilar said Democrats’ focus “is on health care being stripped away from the American people.”
“That is the most urgent and dire thing that we could be talking about this week,” he said. “Everything else is a distraction.”
Even Democrats’ most outspoken Trump critics have been dismissive of Thanedar’s move.
“[R]ight now, I think our central focus is the fact that Republicans are currently working on cutting 13.7 million Americans from health insurance,” said progressive Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y.
