[Congressional Record Volume 171, Number 113 (Monday, June 30, 2025)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E635]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]





       McCOLLUM VOTE TO TABLE H. RES. 537 IMPEACHMENT RESOLUTION

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                          HON. BETTY McCOLLUM

                              of minnesota

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, June 24, 2025

  Ms. McCOLLUM. Mr. Speaker, impeachment is the most consequential tool 
Congress has for upholding our duty to defend the Constitution and 
protect the American people from a president who has betrayed his oath 
and engaged in illegal conduct.
  Bringing an impeachment resolution to the floor in the manner it was 
done by Congressman Green undermines the ability of Congress to make 
the serious and very real case for impeachment against this or any 
future president. Impeachment necessitates a deliberate process of 
investigation and thorough documentation of crimes committed against 
the American people.
  President Trump was impeached twice during his first term because he 
proved himself to be unfit to serve in office, and I voted to impeach 
him both times. Before bringing those resolutions to the floor, the 
Democratic Majority in the House committed ourselves to building the 
case, as a prosecutor does for a trial. We conducted a formal inquiry 
during the first impeachment, where we subpoenaed witnesses and held 
public hearings. We produced the evidence to demonstrate that the 
President had abused his power and obstructed Congress.
  When President Trump was impeached a second time for inciting an 
insurrection, the Democratic conference worked together to draft a 
factual and thoughtful impeachment resolution to reflect what Members 
of Congress and our entire nation witnessed on January 6, 2021. When 
the resolution was brought to the floor a week later, almost every 
House Democrat was a cosponsor. I presided over that vote in the House 
of Representatives, with full confidence in the case we were presenting 
to the American people.
  By contrast, the impeachment resolution that I will vote to table on 
June 25th was drafted in isolation by one member, and Representative 
Green introduced it a mere two hours before he came to the floor to 
push it to a vote. It was rushed to the floor with no coordination with 
the larger body of us who are working to hold President Trump 
accountable. It was not a serious attempt to gather the evidence and 
convince the American people of the grave nature of the President's 
violations of the law and the Constitution.
  Currently, the House of Representatives is controlled by the 
President's party, and it is clear that their majority is unwilling to 
take even the most basic step to hold President Trump accountable for 
his illegal and unconstitutional actions. To be clear, the House of 
Representatives has a duty under the Constitution to hold a president 
accountable for illegal conduct. This obligation begins with an open, 
transparent process of Congressional hearings, investigations, and 
subpoenas. The Republican majority controlling this Congress will not 
allow that work to move forward, but a premature and poorly reasoned 
resolution like this hurts our ability to progress on the path to 
accountability for President Trump.
  My constituents can count on me to hold Mr. Trump accountable in a 
manner that is fully transparent and clearly documents his malfeasance 
as the President of the United States.

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