Read Rep. Al Green's Speech Calling for President Trump's Impeachment

Mr. Green: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I rise today with a heavy heart. I rise today with a sense of responsibility and duty to the people who have elected me, a sense of duty to this country, a sense of duty to the Constitution of the United States of America. I rise today, Mr. Speaker, to call for the impeachment of the President of the United States of America for obstruction of justice. I do not do this for political purposes, Mr. Speaker. I do this because I believe in the great ideals that this country stands for — liberty and justice for all, the notion that we should have government of the people, by the people, for the people. I do it because, Mr. Speaker, there is a belief in this country that no one is above the law, and that includes the President of the United States of America. Mr. Speaker, our democracy is at risk. Mr. Speaker, this offense has occurred before our very eyes. It is perspicuous. It is easily — easy to understand. Mr. Speaker, we’re talking about a president who fired the FBI director who was investigating the President for his connections to Russian involvement in the President’s election. Mr. Speaker, this is not about the President firing the FBI director because he was investigating someone else, it’s because the FBI director was investigating the president himself. And after firing the director, he went on to let us know that he considered the investigation when he fired him. And then he tweeted language that would be intimidation or a warning, an admonition very strong to say the very least. Mr. Speaker, we cannot allow this to go unchecked. The president is not above the law. It is time for the American people to weigh in. Mr. Speaker, the American people are a part of this democracy. This is a participatory democracy. The American people don’t participate on Election Day only. The American people participate daily, and this is your day to act. This is your day. I’m speaking to the American people. It is time for you to act. It is time for you to let us know where you stand. I’ve seen a poll that indicates that a majority now of those who are being polled are for impeachment. And I’ve seen another poll that says a plurality of those. Whether it’s a majority or plurality, let’s let the America people weigh in. The American people should speak up, speak out, stand up so that we will get a sense of what the American people want. This is not something to be taken lightly. And I do not. I think that this is one of the highest callings that a member of congress has to address. I believe that this is where your patriotism is shown, where you demonstrate to the American people where you really stand. So I take this stand. It’s a position of conscience for me. And I have not talked to another person in congress about this. Each member of congress has to make his or her own decision. So this is not about my encouraging other people to do things other than the American people. This is about my position. This is about what I believe. And this is where I stand. I will not be moved. The President must be impeached. For those who do not know, impeachment does not mean that the president will be found guilty. It simply means that the House of Representatives will bring charges against the president. It’s similar to an indictment but not quite the same thing. Once the president is impeached, then the Senate can have a trial to determine the guilt or innocence of the President. Whether he is guilty or not guilty, to be more specific. But the House of Representatives has a duty that it can take up and that is of impeachment. I stand for impeachment of the president. How can you weigh in? You can contact my good friends over at Free Speech for People and at this organization they have a petition, the petition would allow you to weigh in and become a part of the nearly one million people who have already said the president ought to be impeached. You can weigh in at ImpeachDonaldTrumpNow.com. And believe me, if a plurality of the people are saying it now, and that’s the poll that I really put my emphasis on, the one that says plurality believes that the president should be impeached, more than 40%, I think that can grow. I assure you once you weigh in, American people, there will be a difference in the attitudes about this. I want to thank you, Mr. Speaker, for this opportunity because but for this opportunity you might not hear my voice. I am a voice in the wilderness, but I assure you that history will vindicate me. I assure you that righteousness will prevail. I assure you that no lie can live forever and truth crushed to earth will rise again. I yield back my time.