I sit on the House Intelligence Committee -- impeachable offenses have been committed
By Denny Heck
Special to The Times
For only the fourth time in our history, the U.S. House of Representatives is conducting an official impeachment inquiry. As such, this is not completely unchartered territory but close to it. Next to declaring war, it is the most serious thing Congress can do. As we proceed, there are fundamental questions to be asked and answered. What and why we are doing this? What’s at stake or why should you care?
It all started with a whistleblower complaint regarding President Donald Trump’s July 25 phone call with the president of Ukraine. In that call, the president solicited assistance for the 2020 election by requesting manufactured dirt on one of his potential political rivals, former Vice President Joe Biden. He also offered a quid pro quo for that assistance as clearly captured by his statement: “I would like you to do us a favor though …” The whistleblower, an intelligence community professional whose identity is unknown, rightfully asserted that this brazen attempt to solicit foreign interference not only undermines our elections but our national security as well.
This then prompted the initiation of the official inquiry by the House. It is being led by the Intelligence Committee, on which I sit, in collaboration with the Foreign Affairs and Oversight & Reform Committees.
This process is roughly analogous to the three distinct steps in a criminal justice proceeding. First is the investigation phase, to determine the facts. That’s what is happening now. Just as police detectives begin by questioning key witnesses and gathering evidence, the committees are holding interviews and requesting records. Democrats and Republicans have equal time to interview the witnesses. The transcripts of these interviews will be made public and some of the witnesses will likely come before committee in a public hearing. The second step will be to decide whether to proceed with articles of impeachment. This is the equivalent of a charging or indictment decision in a criminal case. That will likely take place in the Judiciary Committee in full and open hearing. If the articles are voted out of committee, the next part of that phase would be an open debate and vote on the House floor. If passed, only then would the third and final step take place, which would be an open trial before the U.S. Senate and a vote on whether or not to remove the president from office.
https://www.seattletimes.com/opinion/i-sit-on-the-houses-intelligence-committee-and-i-believe-impeachable-offenses-have-been-committed/
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