Illinois congressman sees scheme in Impeachment Report; Trump sees scam
CHICAGO (WLS) -- The impeachment report on President Trump is finished and at 300 pages it weighs in at about four pounds. The report, prepared by Democrats on the House Intelligence Committee, carries far more in political poundage for both sides of the aisle.
The report directly accuses the president of leveraging his office for personal and political gain.
Two political figures closely tied to the report, but from different ends of the political spectrum, on Tuesday offered far different views of the same report.
Northwest suburban Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-IL 8), said the report describes a "serious scheme of wrongdoing." The Donald Trump White House called it a "one-sided sham process."
Regardless of viewpoint, the report is a roadmap for the House Judiciary Committee to determine whether there are grounds for articles of impeachment.
"I think there is overwhelming evidence that that basically points to a very serious scheme of wrongdoing over several months," said Krishnamoorthi, who is a member of the House Intelligence Committee.
The Schaumburg Democrat said Tuesday's report offers detailed proof that President Trump pressured Ukraine's president to investigate political rival Joe Biden and his son Hunter at the expense of U.S. national security, and leveraging the power of the presidency to execute the scheme.
"And he not only did that but he basically conditioned military aid and other coveted official acts on the basis of conducting investigations into his political rival so this is very serious," Krishnamoorthi told the I-Team in an interview from Washington.
President Trump, in London for a NATO summit, brushed aside the impeachment report and continued to defend his dealings with Ukraine.
"There was nothing wrong, nothing done wrong it was a perfect conversation with a very nice gentleman the president of Ukraine the conversation was perfect," said Mr. Trump. "It was two conversations they were both perfect they were transcribed they were both perfect. And this is what you're going to impeach the president of United States on? The Republicans have never been stronger never been more unified the Democrats have gone crazy."
Mr. Trump's personal attorney Rudy Giuliani is all over the impeachment report including phone records that chart frequent calls to White House offices at the height of the alleged Ukraine manipulation.
"What the heck was he doing contacting the office of management and budget so many times especially in August, especially in that time-frame when the military aid was being withheld" Rep. Krishnamoorthi said. "He has no business being in contact that frequently with OMB and it only adds to the the facts that point to him leading a shadow foreign policy in Ukraine."
Illinois other congressman on the intelligence committee, Chicago Democrat Mike Quigley, pointed to the hardening partisan divide on impeachment. In a statement Quigley saying that rather than presenting evidence or attempting to defend the president's actions, Republicans have chosen to repeat Russian conspiracy theories and gaslight the American people into believing that this behavior is normal and acceptable.
The Impeachment Report even invoked the name of Richard Nixon, in a positive way. Democrats, chastising President Trump for instructing White House staff to boycott the House hearings, pointed to Nixon who "agreed to let his staff testify voluntarily in the Senate Watergate investigation."
As for President Trump they wrote: "No other President in history has issued an order categorically directing the entire Executive Branch not to testify before Congress, including in the context of an impeachment inquiry."
The report also listed out the various terms by which the president has referred to the impeachment investigation:
