One by one, Democratic representatives took to the House floor on Wednesday to deliver monologues of sorrow and regret, declaring that they had no choice but to vote to impeach President Trump.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who dressed in black, reminded Congress that the only appropriate tone for the day was one of sadness and disappointment.
“Very sadly now, our founders’ vision of a republic is under threat from actions from the White House,” she said. “That is why today, as Speaker of the House, I solemnly and sadly open the debate on the impeachment of the President of the United States. If we do not act now, we would be derelict in our duty. It is tragic that the President’s reckless actions make impeachment necessary. He gave us no choice.”
Democrats clearly had a choice. In fact, a handful of Democratic representatives chose to break from the rest of their party and vote against impeachment entirely: One Maine Democrat split his vote, and presidential candidate Tulsi Gabbard voted “present” instead of choosing a side.
But the majority voted to impeach Trump, accusing him of abusing his power and obstructing Congress — and they did so gladly, despite Pelosi’s efforts to appear serious.
After the first article of impeachment passed, several Democrats began to cheer — a response that earned a sharp glare from Pelosi:
The Speaker with a look telling Dems not to cheer https://t.co/bMctz65u89
— Jake Tapper (@jaketapper) December 19, 2019
Before the vote had even begun, Rep. Rashida Tlaib, who isn’t exactly known for her discretion, posted a video that is anything but “somber”:
Nancy Pelosi has to be losing her mind.
Her entire plan was to write impeachment off as something she never wanted to do, but these idiots posted videos like this and clapped after the vote. pic.twitter.com/RLGBAjc3pU
— Caleb Hull ??? (@CalebJHull) December 19, 2019
Tlaib lost her smile by the time she reached the House floor and instead cited U.S. veterans’ service as the inspiration for Democrats’ sense of duty. Also, keep in mind this is the same person who declared the new House Democratic majority was going to “impeach the motherf—er.”
There were certainly a few Democrats who took the process seriously. Pelosi was one of them. But to claim that this was a “somber” process worthy of the public’s respect is ridiculous.
It is not an exaggeration to say that many of the Democrats in that chamber had been calling for Trump’s impeachment since 2017, and they were only too happy to fulfill that campaign promise. Let’s not pretend otherwise.
