Democratic Representative Al Green of Texas is forcing a House vote this week in what would be the ninth attempt to impeach President Donald Trump since 2017. Green has led six of those efforts. The Texas Democrat, who lost his primary in May and will not return to Congress next year, introduced H.Res. 1486 on August 24.
The resolution accuses Trump of abusing his presidential powers by allowing Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Customs and Border Protection to operate without accountability. It cites the deaths of four people this year: Renée Good and Alex Pretti, who were killed in Minneapolis in January; Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, who was killed in Houston in July; and Johan Sebastián Durán Guerrero, who was killed in Maine. On Monday, Green notified colleagues that he would bring the resolution to the floor as a question of the privileges of the House under Rule IX.
The procedure requires the House to act within two legislative days, setting up a vote before the chamber adjourns Thursday. "Please accept this letter as a professional courtesy to inform you that I will call for a recorded vote on the floor of the House of Representatives on H.Res. 1486," Green wrote to Trump. He accused federal immigration officers of unjustified killings and said Trump was "condoning, supporting, and covering up" them.
As of Monday, no other member of Congress had signed on as a co-sponsor, according to congressional records. House Democratic leaders have not endorsed the resolution. Democratic Representative Hakeem Jeffries of New York, the House Minority Leader, has repeatedly declined to say whether Democrats would pursue impeachment, saying the party's focus is on the cost of living.
Asked on ABC's This Week on Sunday whether Democrats would move on impeachment if they retake the House in November, Jeffries said, "We haven't ruled anything in, and we haven't ruled anything out." White House spokeswoman Lauren Bis criticized the resolution. "This type of garbage is contributing to our law enforcement officers facing a more than 1,300 percent increase in assaults against them," Bis told Newsweek in response. She said ICE and CBP officers "put their lives on the line to arrest murderers, rapists, pedophiles, gang members, and terrorists." Newsweek reached out to Green's and Jeffries' offices for comment on Monday.
Trump has been impeached twice, the only president in American history to face the process more than once. The Senate acquitted him both times. Yet, he said Democrats could pursue impeachment again if Republicans lose the midterms.
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