Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor (DFL) Party Chairman Ken Martin applauded the U.S. House for voting to impeach President Donald Trump, but claimed that it brings him “no joy.”
“The impeachment of any sitting president is a deeply tragic event for our nation. However, through his own actions, President Donald Trump left the House of Representatives with no possible alternative,” Martin said in a statement released Wednesday night.
Rep. Collin Peterson (D-MN-07), a member of the DFL Party, was one of two Democrats to vote against the first article of impeachment and one of three Democrats to vote against the second.
Martin claimed that President Trump “violated his oath to protect and defend the Constitution of the United States when he withheld military aid from an ally to force their government into interfering in a United States election by attacking one of the President’s political rivals.”
“If any president is allowed to wield the power of the United States government to secure his own re-election, our nation will have taken its first major steps away from democracy and towards autocracy,” Martin continued. “It is imperative that we hold Donald Trump accountable for his brazenly unconstitutional and undemocratic actions, lest we risk normalizing such behavior.”
With the exception of Peterson, all members of Minnesota’s Democratic congressional delegation voted in favor of both articles of impeachment, an action Martin applauded in his statement.
“I applaud the United States House of Representatives for taking decisive action to stand up for the rule of law and defend our Constitution,” he concluded. “The impeachment of President Trump brings me no joy, but it was necessary to ensure we remain a democracy where nobody is above the law.”
Minnesota Republican Party Chairwoman Jennifer Carnahan praised Minnesota’s GOP representatives for voting against impeachment.
“195 GOP members of Congress voted against both articles of impeachment tonight,” she said on Twitter. “Tom Emmer, Pete Stauber and Jim Hagedorn stood strong for our country’s freedom and with our president. The Dems sham to overthrow 2016 and preempt a free/fair election in 2020 has gone too far.”
195 GOP members of Congress voted against both articles of impeachment tonight. @RepTomEmmer @RepPeteStauber and @JimHagedornMN stood strong for our country’s freedom and w/our President. The Dems sham to overthrow 2016 & preempt a free/fair election in 2020 has gone too far.
— Jennifer Carnahan (@jkcarnah) December 19, 2019
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Anthony Gockowski is managing editor of Battleground State News, The Ohio Star, and The Minnesota Sun. Follow Anthony on Twitter. Email tips to [email protected].
Photo “Ken Martin” by Ken Martin.
