Democrats shut down talk of impeaching Trump this year
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President Trump briefs reporters at the White House on April 6. Photo: Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images
Even Democrats who have called to impeach President Trump acknowledge there is little chance of it happening unless they retake control of at least one chamber of Congress.
Why it matters: Democratic lawmakers are stuck. They know impeachment won't succeed, but their base keeps demanding they up the ante with drastic acts of anti-Trump resistance.
- "People are pissed and know we have to fight," one senior House Democrat told Axios.
- But Republicans control Congress, and the Senate requires a two-thirds majority to convict a president impeached by the House.
- That has led lawmakers to pay lip service to moves like impeachment and the 25th Amendment in response to the latest Trump outrage, and then focus their attention on more plausible but less flashy tactics.
Driving the news: Rep. Madeleine Dean (D-Pa.) told Axios that while she "called for 25th Amendment and impeachment" over Trump's posts about Iran on Truth Social, she doesn't think it is "the best use of our time."
- "That's not the fight right now," the former Trump impeachment manager said. "Right now we have to end this war and we have to reclaim our Constitutional responsibility."
- Dean added that Democrats should also focus on trying to "bring prices down, bring anxiety down for all Americans."
State of play: Dean's comments came just after she and a half dozen other House Democrats tried unsuccessfully to pass a war powers resolution that would block Trump from resuming hostilities with Iran.
- Trump's comments about Iran this week have led dozens of Democrats to call for his impeachment or removal through the 25th Amendment to the Constutition.
- House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) announced Wednesday that Judiciary Committee ranking member Jamie Raskin (D-Md.) will lead a virtual briefing about the 25th Amendment on Friday.
What we're hearing: A Democratic leadership aide and a House Democrat close to the leader told Axios that Jeffries has given no indication he would get behind a proactive Trump impeachment effort this year.
- The Democratic leader has remained characteristically opaque in his public statements, saying in a Morning Joe appearance on Thursday: "We've ruled nothing out and we've rule nothing in."
- Several House Democrats told Axios they have not received more explicit guidance from leadership on impeachment behind closed doors.
Yes, but: Jeffries has given several clear indications of his lack of zeal for impeachment in general.
- When most of his members got onboard a push to impeach Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem in January, Jeffries told reporters he wouldn't rush the effort until he was sure an impeachment vote could pass.
- He has also pumped the brakes on rank-and-file lawmakers' rogue efforts, with leadership talking Rep. Shri Thanedar (D-Mich.) out of forcing a Trump impeachment vote last May.
- When Rep. Al Green (D-Texas) forced impeachment votes last June and December, Jeffries voted with Republicans to quash the former and voted "present" on the latter.
What they're saying: Several of the other lawmakers who were with Dean at the Capitol on Thursday — all of whom represent safely Democratic districts — echoed her cautious tone on impeachment.
- "There are going to be [people like] Al Green that are going to want to impeach right away, and there's certainly a lot of passion in our base, the people who are calling me want to impeach right now," said Rep. Don Beyer (D-Va.).
- But Beyer said Dean "has the right case" that impeachment "wouldn't likely succeed, so we're not running it."
- Rep. Sara Jacobs (D-Calif.) said "all options should be on the table" but that Democrats shouldn't "move forward with an impeachment that looks political," saying a failed vote "is worse than no impeachment at all."
Several other Democrats echoed Dean's comments that their focus should be on concrete issues like the war in Iran and affordability.
- Rep. Glenn Ivey (D-Md.) pointed to the war powers resolution and the DHS funding fight as top priorities, saying Democrats "need to focus on these two steps first."
- Rep. James Walkinshaw (D-Va.) said if Democrats take the House majority, they should hold "hearings where we lay out the case" for impeachment, but that "priority number one [should be to] put bills on Donald Trump's desk that will bring down costs."
What's next: There may very well be more rogue Trump impeachment votes this year, as well as votes to impeach individual cabinet secretaries.
- "We've successfully run out of town some of his Cabinet secretaries," Jeffries said on Morning Joe. "I believe Pete Hegseth is next, and we're going to keep our foot on the gas pedal to push this guy out."
- But don't expect the kind of concerted, leadership-backed effort to impeach Trump that Democrats mounted in 2019 and 2021 until and unless they win back the House.
