 "Donald Trump")
Republican lawmakers from the US House of Representatives have warned the Democratic Party against pursuing the impeachment of outgoing President Donald Trump for his role in Wednesday's breach of Capitol by pro-Trump supporters at Capitol Hill.
"I'm opposed to impeachment. I think at this point in time, it's more important to focus on healing and doing a peaceful transition of power as the president himself has conceded where we are and impeachment just inflames those that believe this election has been stolen. And it's time to move forward," Representative Tom Reed from New York told The Hill.
Another GOP lawmaker said they felt that impeachment could further inflame extremists' worst instincts, stating that they need to affirm that they are taking voters' concerns about the security of elections seriously and dispel conspiracies to build confidence in the democracy.
The Hill reported that House Democrats have indicated they are prepared to move forward with articles of impeachment as early as next week if Vice President Mike Pence does not invoke the 25th Amendment to remove Trump from office.
House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy on Friday released a statement calling for unity and a smooth transition of power.
"Impeaching the President with just 12 days left in his term will only divide our country more. I have reached out to President-elect [Joe] Biden today and plan to speak to him about how we must work together to lower the temperature and unite the country to solve America's challenges," he said.
McCarthy added, "The coronavirus is still coursing through our communities, businesses and workers are facing unprecedented stress, and children are falling behind. Threats from adversaries such as Russia, China, and Iran are increasing. As leaders, we must call on our better angels and refocus our efforts on working directly for the American people. United we can deliver the peace, strength, and prosperity our country needs. Divided, we will fail."
Speaker Nancy Pelosi said on Friday night that if Trump does not resign she has directed the Rules Committee to quickly take up a motion to impeach Trump as well as legislation to create a commission that can declare that the president is "unable to discharge the powers and duties of his office."
Chaotic and violent scenes erupted at the Capitol on Wednesday as supporters of Trump stormed the building to protest the Electoral College vote, forcing a lockdown and various confrontations with police. At least five people died in the melee.
Wednesday's violence came hours after Trump encouraged his supporters to fight against the election results as Congress was certifying Biden's victory in the November vote.
(Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
