Republican Texas Rep. Lance Gooden introduced a resolution Tuesday to remove Democratic New York Rep. Jerry Nadler as Chairman of the House Judiciary Committee as President Trump faces possible impeachment.
As many House Democrats have called to proceed with impeachment, Gooden has called for Nadler’s removal citing his disregard for the House rejection of this summer. “The Judiciary Committee must receive authorization to begin impeachment proceedings, yet the full House denied him this authorization in July by overwhelmingly rejecting House Resolution 498,” a statement from Gooden’s office said. “Despite this, Chairman Nadler has said publicly he is ‘impeaching the president – right now,’ and has clearly initiated the impeachment process, in direct violation of the law.”
Gooden is currently serving in his first term representing the 5th District of Texas and has been a firm ally of the president. “In recent days Democrats have sanctimoniously declared their allegiance to the rule of law. I encourage them to follow those rules and hold Chairman Nadler accountable for breaking them,” Gooden wrote in the statement. “By law, he may not launch impeachment proceedings until the full House votes for him to do so. This attempted coup against a duly-elected, sitting president is unprecedented and must be stopped. I urge the Majority to move immediately to have him stripped of his chairmanship and that any accomplices on the Judiciary Committee not be considered as a replacement.”
Gooden’s resolution echoes an attempt by House Intelligence Committee Republicans to have Chairman Adam Schiff of California removed following comments he made claiming that Trump colluded with Russia both during and after the conduction of the Mueller investigation. “We have no faith in your ability to discharge your duties and urge your immediate resignation as chairman of the committee,” Republican Texas Rep. Mike Conaway said to Schiff in March. Republicans also accused Schiff and other Democrats of leaking information from the Intelligence Committee to the press at that time.
Schiff rebuked the calls for his removal and listed perceived evidence he felt proved Trump’s collusion with Russia, despite the findings of the Mueller report. “I do not think that conduct, criminal or not, is OK,” Schiff fired back at Conaway. “And the day we do think that is OK, is the day we look back and say America lost its way.”
Calls for impeachment from Democrats reached a fever pitch this week after a whistleblower complained that Trump encouraged an investigation into former vice president Joe Biden during a phone call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
