Former top Democrat says it's time to start an impeachment inquiry into Trump
- Former Democratic Sen. Harry Reid of Nevada broke with his former congressional colleagues and said it was time to open an impeachment inquiry into President Donald Trump.
- "It's not the right thing to do nothing," the former Senate Majority Leader said in an interview with USA TODAY on Monday. "It's not the right thing to jump into impeachment without doing an inquiry."
- Reid suggested that an inquiry would "give the American people a view of what's going on."
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Former Democratic Sen. Harry Reid of Nevada broke with his former congressional colleagues and said it was time to open an impeachment inquiry into President Donald Trump.
"It's not the right thing to do nothing," the former Senate Majority Leader said in an interview with USA TODAY on Monday. "It's not the right thing to jump into impeachment without doing an inquiry."
Reid suggested that an inquiry would "give the American people a view of what's going on."
Reid's comments come amid a growing wave of congressional Democrats who have called for an inquiry. The majority of House Democrats, including Speaker Nancy Pelosi, have either opposed or remained silent on the matter.
Pelosi justified her reluctance to begin the impeachment process and described it as an "easy way out."
"I think I'm an expert on why he shouldn't be president of the United States," Pelosi said during a private meeting, according to unnamed sources cited in a Washington Post report earlier in May. "I think impeachment is too good for him."
"But one person knows more why he shouldn't be president of the United States, and that is Donald Trump," she added. "And he tells us every single day."
The majority of self-described voters in the US agreed with a statement that Trump "committed impeachable offenses," according to an INSIDER poll conducted between May 31 to June 2. Fifty-one percent of respondents said they agreed with the statement and 31% that group said they "strongly agree."
Opening an impeachment inquiry requires the House to vote on whether the Judiciary Committee ought to investigate whether Trump's behavior amounted to "treason, bribery, or other high crimes and misdemeanors."
After the investigation and public hearings, at least one article of impeachment would have to get through a House majority vote. If passed, two-thirds of the Senate would still have to vote to convict the president. At least 20 Senate Republicans would have to cross party lines to vote with Democrats to remove the president.
Democrats have urged for an inquiry in light of a spate of congressional subpoenas that current and former Trump officials have refused to comply with. Some lawmakers theorize that folding the investigations into the impeachment inquiry would likely add to Congress' oversight power and help gather information.