Gibbs to Vote Against 25th Amendment and Impeachment

Statement

Before this week's votes on impeachment and a resolution seeking the invocation of the 25th Amendment, Congressman Bob Gibbs released the following statement:

"This past week has been intense and traumatic for millions of Americans. The violence at the Capitol, resulting in the death of two Capitol Police officers, was shameful and un-American. Those who perpetrated it must be arrested and prosecuted. It is distressing and unfortunate that we are seeing efforts to shift blame away from those who committed these appalling acts. Congress pressing the Vice President to invoke the 25th Amendment, which was enacted for a very specific set of circumstances, or a hasty impeachment without even an attempt at an investigation are not appropriate paths forward. This is especially so since President Trump committed to a peaceful transition and by the time we vote, it will be less than a week from President-elect Biden taking office.

"There are many people Congress should be questioning about the attack on the Capitol and we should demand to know why we were so unprepared. These questions warrant answers before Congress follows the route we are currently on. The violence of January 6th broke more than just windows and doors. It broke the important social norm of resolving our political differences peacefully. We should not break more norms by further trivializing serious actions like invoking the 25th Amendment or rushing impeachment. We should focus on repairing those norms and moving forward as one nation while Congress investigates the organizational failures that ultimately led to inexcusable violence.

"Every member of Congress will be asked to vote their conscience this week. My conscience leads me to conclude that an impeachment conducted at this pace and in this manner sets a precedent from which we cannot reverse and takes the guardrails off an important Constitutional duty. Therefore, I will not be voting in support of either the resolution urging the invocation of the 25th Amendment or the impeachment of the president.

"With President Trump set to leave office in eight days, President-elect Biden has the opportunity to lead and unite the country as he has pledged to do. Those efforts are not a one-way street, and I will work with him and his administration on the issues where we share common ground and will work respectfully to change his mind on those we don't."

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