Horror author and producer Stephen King warned on Tuesday that he will do everything in his power to oust his congressman, Rep. Jared Golden (D-ME), should the lawmaker only vote in favor of one article of impeachment against the president rather than two.
The Pet Sematary author warned his congressman on the eve of the House impeachment vote that he will “work with all my might to see him defeated next year” should Golden vote in favor of only one of the proposed articles of impeachment:
If my congressman, Jared Golden, votes for only one article of impeachment, I will work with all my might to see him defeated next year.
— Stephen King (@StephenKing) December 17, 2019
Golden, a Democrat who represents one of the 31 congressional districts President Trump carried in the 2016 election, confirmed on Tuesday that he would vote in favor of one of the articles of impeachment against the president: abuse of power.
He said in a statement:
The House investigation clearly unearthed a pattern of evidence that demonstrates the corrupt intent on the part of the president, his personal lawyer, and members of his administration to leverage the powers of the presidency to damage a political opponent and strengthen the president’s reelection prospects. Given that the south-after investigation from a foreign government, the president’s actions are a realization of the Framer’s greatest fears: foreign corruption of our electoral process, and a president willing to leverage the powers of his office to benefit his own reelection. This action crossed a red line, and in my view, there is no doubt that this is an impeachable act. For this reason, I will vote for Article I of the House resolution to impeach President Trump for an abuse of power.
NEW: Maine’s @RepGolden says he will vote FOR the 1st article of impeachment (abuse of power), but AGAINST the 2nd article (obstruction of Congress)
“Before wielding our awesome power to impeach a sitting president, we first ought to exhaust available judicial remedies…” pic.twitter.com/eVoUcEARs2
— Johnny Verhovek (@JTHVerhovek) December 17, 2019
Unlike many of his Democrat counterparts, Golden does not believe the obstruction of Congress charge has any merit.
“Before wielding our awesome power to impeach a sitting president, we first ought to exhaust available judicial remedies, or — at the very least — give the courts a chance,” he explained.
“If there president were to defy a court order to produce documents or to give testimony in an impeachment inquiry, or if he were to encourage his subordinates to do the same, then a charge of obstruction would be appropriate,” he continued, adding that Trump’s resistance has been “frustrating” but has not “reached the threshold of ‘high crime or misdemeanor’ that the Constitution demands.”
“For that reason, I will vote against Article II of the House resolution regarding obstruction of Congress,” he said.
King’s opposition to the president precedes the Democrats’ recent impeachment efforts. He called for Trump’s removal in December 2018 and referred to him as a “vile, racist, and incompetent bag of guts and waters” over the summer:
Tell your legislators and friends who are Trump supporters that it’s time to put partisanship aside. Trump is a train wreck, and the train he’s pulling is our country. He has to be removed from office.
— Stephen King (@StephenKing) December 24, 2018
I think we all agree that Donald Trump is a vile, racist, and incompetent bag of guts and waters. How happy I would be to tell him “YOU’RE FIRED” next November.
— Stephen King (@StephenKing) July 20, 2019
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