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The White House is continuing to resist an impeachment inquiry led by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and her Democratic colleagues, calling the investigation “legally unsupported [and] constitutionally invalid.”
BizPac Review reports Pat Cipollone, counselor to President Trump, wrote an eight-page critique of the impeachment inquiry where he said it “violates fundamental fairness and constitutionally mandated due process.” He later claimed it was “baseless” and “unconstitutional.”
White House calls Trump impeachment inquiry 'baseless' and 'unconstitutional,' says it refuses to cooperate https://t.co/i8BAa3u3bq pic.twitter.com/5z8MEciO41
— Reuters Top News (@Reuters) October 9, 2019
He added:
For example, you have denied the President the right to cross-examine witnesses, to call witnesses, to receive transcripts of testimony, to have access to evidence, to have counsel present, and many other basic rights guaranteed to all Americans.
You have conducted your proceedings in secret. You have violated civil liberties and the separation of powers threatening Executive Branch officials, claiming that you will seek to punish those who exercise fundamental constitutional rights and prerogatives.
All of this violates the Constitution, the rule of law, and every past precedent. Never before in our history has the House of Representatives — under the control of either political party — taken the American people down the dangerous path you seem determined to pursue.
Put simply, you seek to overturn the results of the 2016 election and deprive the American people of the President they have freely chosen.
Many Democrats now apparently view impeachment not only as a means to undo the democratic results of the last election, but as a strategy to influence the next election, which is barely more than a year away. As one member of Congress explained, he is “concerned that if we don’t impeach the President, he will get reelected.”
Your highly partisan and unconstitutional effort threatens grave and lasting damage to our democratic institutions, to our system of free elections, and to the American people.”
Pelosi did not take kindly to the letter and wrote a rebuke of her own, scolding the White House for their resistance.
“Mr. President, you are not above the law. You will be held accountable,” she said in the letter, per BizPac Review.
In the letter, Pelosi said Trump was trying to “normalize lawlessness” and “make lawlessness a virtue.”
“The President’s actions threaten our national security, violate our Constitution and undermine the integrity of our elections,” the California Democrat continued. “The White House letter is only the latest attempt to cover up his betrayal of our democracy, and to insist that the President is above the law.”
And, per BizPac Review:
“This letter is manifestly wrong, and is simply another unlawful attempt to hide the facts of the Trump Administration’s brazen efforts to pressure foreign powers to intervene in the 2020 elections. Despite the White House’s stonewalling, we see a growing body of evidence that shows that President Trump abused his office and violated his oath to ‘protect, preserve and defend the Constitution.’
“The White House should be warned that continued efforts to hide the truth of the President’s abuse of power from the American people will be regarded as further evidence of obstruction.
“Mr. President, you are not above the law. You will be held accountable.”
