Kaptur Votes to Impeach President Donald J. Trump for Inciting an Insurrection Against the United States

Statement

Today, Congresswoman Marcy Kaptur (D-OH), the longest serving woman in the history of the House of Representatives, voted to impeach and remove from office President Donald J. Trump for the incitement of a violent insurrection against the United States:

"The decision to impeach a President is a grave one -- it is a vote that no Member wishes to cast in their lifetime," said Rep. Kaptur. "In my nearly four decades of service in the House of Representatives, I have voted to impeach a President only twice -- both times during President Trump's term in office. The criminal invasion of the U.S. Capitol last week created this unprecedented moment in U.S. history when liberty lovers must respond in the strongest legal manner."

"Members of Congress take an oath to defend our Constitution against all enemies foreign and domestic. During my service, U.S. Presidents of both parties understood their duty to our Constitution, until now. I frequently reflect on the incalculable bravery and sacrifice of those Americans who came before us, who, from the battlefields of Antietam to the beaches of Normandy, fought and died to ensure that not only would freedom and liberty live on in these lands, but so too would our Union itself."

"During these last four years, our beloved country has become divided to an extent not seen since Reconstruction -- a division so powerful that the daily business of our Congress has ground to a near halt, at severe expense to the People's work. This is occurring because of the severe breakdown, political divisions, and incitement exacerbated by lies and conspiracy theories recited at length by the President himself. He has belligerently refused to accept the results of this past election. With a clenched fist, he and his allies continue to spew divisive vitriol claiming no institution in this country, from the free press to independent election officials, can be trusted -- that the only person worthy of the American people's confidence is Donald Trump himself."

"A week ago today, that division boiled over, culminating in a vicious attack by a mob on the U.S. Capitol, a place that holds national and international significance as the temple of liberty and representational democracy. Members, staff, and the Vice President, who were working to certify the election results of the 2020 Presidential Election, were forced to flee for their lives as a mob of violent insurrectionists broke through the doors and windows of the Capitol, desecrated the halls, and violently attacked Capitol Police, killing one and injuring over 50. The invaders, many in paramilitary attire, called for the execution of the Vice President, the Speaker of the House, and other Members. Some carried law-enforcement style handcuffs, bear spray, and firearms, while others erected a gallows outside and placed pipe-bombs nearby. All the while, President Trump failed to take any meaningful steps to call off the attack, despite calls imploring him to do so as the events played out on live television. The attack was explicitly incited by Donald Trump as he dispatched marchers to the Capitol "to fight.' His incitement of the attack represents quite possibly the most significant example of complete moral failing by any President in American history."

"To impeach a President is a weighty decision. Today, the decision was clear. President Trump is guilty of inciting a violent insurrection against the United States in its most sacred home of liberty. He should thus be immediately removed from office and prevented from ever holding federal office again."

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