House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.), 58, said he wanted to take a vote to expunge Trump’s two impeachments by what he calls a highly partisan Democrat House. Trump was impeached Dec. 18, 2019 by 83-year-old former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) for a phone call with Ukraine’s 45-year-old President Volodymyr Zelensky in which Trump reportedly threatened to withhold U.S. finding if Zelensky didn’t investigate rumored corruption by 80-year-old President Joe Biden and his 52-year-old son, Hunter Biden. Trump was acquitted in the U.S. Senate February 5, 2020 for the impeachment charge. Votes to expunge impeachments have never been done before in the House, because the Senate has the final say on any verdicrt. McCarthy also wants to expunge the Jan. 13, 2021 impeachemt for “incitement of insurrection,” a charge acquitted in the U.S. Senate Feb. 13, 2021.
Moving to vote to expunge Trump’s two impeachments is more of a symbolic gesture largely because the historical record already shows a vendetta between Pelsoi and and Trump. McCarthy would like to expunge the record of Trump’s two impeachments to demonstrate for posterity that House Democrats weaponized their position to impeach Trump purely for political purposes. When you consider both charges, neither charges meet the Constitutional threshold of “high-crimes-and-misdemeanors, all because Pelosi wanted to punish Trump. How ironic that the first impeachment involved Ukraine, a place Biden’s son earned millions of dollars working on a board of corrupt natural gas company Burisma Holdings. Biden helped Hunter land the job, prompting Trump to ask Zelensky to follow up on any information. Zelensky had about Biden and his son’s ties to the Ukraine government.
Pelosi thought it was inappropriate for Trump to consider withholding funding in exchange for Zelensky producing information about the Bidens. Now that Biden’s president, he’s funding a proxy war against the Russian Federation, spending over $100 billion taxpayer dollars trying to topple the Russian Federation. Biden’s proxy war has practically destroyed Ukraine, sent million into exile and cost thousands of lives. Yet when Trump asked about Biden-family corruption in Ukraine it was considered an impeachable offence. Nothing in the Constitution says asking about corruption is a high-crime-and-misdemeanor. Pelosi didn’t stop with the first impeachment charge, she accused Trump on “incitement of insurrection” for a speech he delivered Jan. 6, 2021 at the D.C. Ellipse. Nothing in Trump’s speech asked any of his one million attendees to vandalize or deface the Capitol
So when the Senate returned another acquittal to Trump Feb. 13, 2021, it showed Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Ut.) breaking ranks with Republicans to impeach Trump on the single charge of “incitement of insurrection.” Romney held Trump accountable for the Jan. 6, 2021 rabble-rousers who vandalized the Capitol. Romney had zero proof that Trump had anything to do with Oathkeepers, Proud Boyes or any other groups or individuals participating in illegal activity at the Capitol. After Trump’s Feb. 13, 2021 acquitta, Pelosi formed June 24, 202 the Jan. 6 House Select Committee to do what nine House impeachemnt managers couldn’t do which was to convict Trump. House Jan. 6 House Select Committee investigated the Jan. 6, 2021 Capitol riots and determined Dec. 22, 202, without proof, that Trump planned and orchestrated the Jan. 6 Capitol riots, notifying the Department of Justice.
McCarthy has more important things to do than beat a dead horse about Democrats Jan. 6 House Select Committee. Trump was acquitted twice in the U.S. Senate recording for posterity that he wasn’t guilty. McCarthy can’t undo the damage done by the House Select Committee, only reflect the fact that Trump was acquitted twice or two impeachments. Moderate Republicans facing tough election fights in 2024 have no intent to signing onto McCarthy’s vote to expunge the House record. “There’s no procedure for expunging an impeachment,” said Rep. Jamiel Raskin (D-Md.), the lead House impeachment manager in Trump’s second impeachment. Raskin concluded, without proof, that Trump planned and orchestrated the Jan. 6 Capitol riots. McCarthy wanted to expunge the impeachments that House Democrats weaponized Article 1 authority against Trump.
Expunging Trump’s impeachment record would have the effect to stating in the Congressional record that partisan House Democrats impeached Trump twice. “It should definitely come to the floor before August recess,” said Rep. Byron Donalds (R-Fl.) a member of the conservative House Freedom Caucus. Wasting House time on a useless vote has no practical affect on the Congressional Record or anything else. “They’re silly,” said centrist Rep. Don Bacon (R-Neb.). When do we expunge a not guilty verdict,” attesting to McCarthy’s problem in getting enough Republicans to go along with any vote. Coordinating with Rep. Jim Jordan’s (R-Ohio) Weaponization Subcommitte, McCarthy hoped to show that House Democrats abuse their Article 1 power to impeach Trump on two occasions. Two Senate acquittals should have been enough to clear Trump.
About the Author
John M. Curtis writes politically neutral commentary analyzing spin in national and global news. He’s editor of OnlineColumnist.com and author of Dodging The Bullet and Operation Charisma.
