Colorado Representatives Cast Votes Along Party Lines As Impeachment Inquiry Moves Forward
(CBS4) - The U.S. House of Representatives is moving forward with the impeachment inquiry against President Donald Trump. After a debate, they voted 232 to 196 on Thursday to set rules for public hearings.
The debate was overseen by Rep. Diane DeGette, a Democrat who represents Colorado's 1st Congressional District and among the Democrats who made impassioned pleas for House members to vote in favor was Rep. Joe Neguse, who represents Colorado's 2nd Congressional District.
"Today is a serious and solemn day for our country. The House's impeachment inquiry has exposed the truth and uncovered significant evidence that the president abused his power," Neguse said.
Rep. Doug Collins, a Republican from Georgia, voted against the measure along with all of the Colorado Republicans in the House -- Rep. Scott Tipton (3rd Congressional District), Rep. Ken Buck (4th Congressional District) and Rep. Doug Lamborn (5th Congressional District).
"This is a travesty. No one should vote for this. This is a sad day. The curtain is coming down on this house because the majority has no idea about process and procedure. They're simply after a president," Collins said.
Rep. Ed Perlmutter, a Democrat who represents Colorado's 7th Congressional District, released a statement after the vote saying as follows:
The evidence clearly shows President Trump extorted a foreign government for political gain - a clear abuse of power, betrayal of national security and corruption of our elections.
This impeachment investigation is moving into the next phase so all Americans can see for themselves the blatant abuse of power and cover up. This is an important next step in the process and reaffirms that any effort by the President or his allies to block the investigation is obstruction of justice. No one is above the law.
Trump quickly tweeted after the vote saying "The Greatest Witch Hunt In American History."
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