ONE ARTICLE OF IMPEACHMENT
CHARGING TRUMP WITH INCITING
VIOLENCE AGAINST THE GOVERNMENT
OF THE UNITED STATES.
JOINING US NOW, DEMOCRATIC
CONGRESSMAN JIM HIMES OF
CONNECTICUT, ALSO A MEMBER OF
THE INTELLIGENCE COMMITTEE.
CONGRESSMAN, I WANT TO ASK YOU
ABOUT SOMETHING WE’VE BEEN
TALKING ABOUT
FOR TWO HOURS.
DO YOU HAVE ANY INFORMATION ON
WHY THE CAPITOL POLICE HAVEN’T
BRIEFED THE PUBLIC ABOUT THE
EVENTS OF LAST WEDNESDAY?
>> WELL, PART OF THE PROBLEM,
NICOLE, IS, OF COURSE, THAT
CHIEF OF POLICE AND BOTH
SERGEANTS-AT-ARMS WHO ARE THE
PEOPLE WHO ARE CHARGED WITH OUR
SECURITY, ALL THREE OF THEM HAVE
RESIGNED, APPROPRIATELY SO, I’M
AFRAID, BECAUSE IT WAS JUST SUCH
A MASSIVE SECURITY FAILURE.
BUT YEAH, YOU WOULD HAVE
THOUGHT, IN NORMAL TIMES, OF
COURSE, YOU KNOW, SOMEBODY, THE
SECRET SERVICE, THE FBI,
SOMEBODY, THE DEPARTMENT OF
HOMELAND SECURITY WOULD HAVE
BEEN IN FRONT OF THE CONGRESS
AND SAYING, LOOK, WE HAVE AN
INVESTIGATION YET TO DO, BUT WE
UNDERSTAND THAT MANY OF YOU ARE
GLAD TO BE ALIVE TODAY, SO WE
WANT TO SHARE WITH YOU
EVERYTHING THAT WE KNOW.
INSTEAD, WE’RE READING ABOUT
INTERVIEWS THAT THE RECENTLY
RESIGNED CHIEF OF POLICE OF THE
CAPITOL POLICE FORCE IS GIVING
TO THE PRESS AND YOU ASK A
REALLY GOOD QUESTION.
IT IS YET ANOTHER INDICATION OF
HOW DYSFUNCTIONAL THE EXECUTIVE
BRANCH IS IN THIS MOMENT, WHICH
IS TERRIFYING WHEN YOU THINK
ABOUT THE FACT THAT WE’RE ALL
GOING BACK TO WASHINGTON THIS
WEEK AND WE WILL ALL BE BACK FOR
THE INAUGURATION ON THE 20th.
YOU’D LIKE TO HAVE BETTER FAITH
THAN WE DO RIGHT NOW.
>> AND I GUESS I ASK THAT
QUESTION WITH THE SAME THEORY
HERE THAT THERE’S SO MUCH ON THE
LINE IN THE NEXT TEN DAYS IN
TERMS OF HOW WE’RE SEEING ALL
AROUND THE WORLD AND IF THE
PUBLIC HASN’T HEARD FROM THE
POLICE FORCE THAT ARE SUPPOSED
TO PROTECT YOU, IF NO ONE KNOWS
CLEARLY WHO’S FUNCTIONING RIGHT
NOW AT 5:25 P.M. ON MONDAY AS
AMERICA’S COMMANDER IN CHIEF.
THERE’S REPORTING THAT IT WAS
VICE PRESIDENT PENCE WHO
ACTIVATED THE NATIONAL GUARD.
THERE’S REPORTING IN MULTIPLE
NEWS OUTLETS THAT WHITE HOUSE
AIDES DO NOT PLAN TO CARRY OUT
ANY OF DONALD TRUMP’S ORDERS IF
THEY DON’T WANT TO OR DON’T
THINK THEY’RE SOUND.
I MEAN, DO YOU HAVE ANY CLARITY
OF, ONE, WHO’S IN CHARGE OF YOUR
SAFETY AND PROTECTION AT THE
CAPITOL, AND TWO, WHO’S IN
CHARGE OF THE COUNTRY’S SAFETY
AS OUR COMMANDER IN CHIEF?
>> I HEARD YOU SAY THIS IS A
CONVERSATION YOU NEVER
ANTICIPATED HAVING.
I’M HAVING THAT SAME SENSATION
RIGHT NOW.
LOOK, THE PROSPECT YOU RAISE IS
A HORRIFYING PROSPECT, RIGHT?
THE ONLY THING MORE HORRIFYING
THAN THE NOTION THAT DONALD
TRUMP REMAINS IN CHARGE OF THE
NUCLEAR CODES, THAT DONALD TRUMP
COULD ORDER A MILITARY ATTACK,
THAT DONALD TRUMP COULD TOMORROW
MORNING PARDON ALL OF THE --
WHAT’S THE NUMBER NOW -- HUNDRED
OR SO PEOPLE THAT HAVE BEEN
ARRESTED FOR TRYING TO KILL
MEMBERS OF CONGRESS, YOU KNOW,
THE ONLY THING SCARIER THAN THAT
IS THE NOTION THAT MAYBE
SOMEBODY ELSE OTHER THAN THE
PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES
DECIDES THEY’RE GOING TO TAKE ON
PRESIDENTIAL POWERS.
I MEAN, THIS IS A REALLY UGLY
MOMENT, WHICH OF COURSE IS WHY,
THOUGH IT IS NOT LIKELY TO
HAPPEN, THIS IS WHY THE
PRESIDENT SHOULD NOT BE
PRESIDENT.
WE HAVE -- YOU KNOW, I’M
THINKING BACK ON SUSAN COLLINS
WHO AFTER THE FIRST IMPEACHMENT
SAID, WELL, I THINK THIS
PRESIDENT HAS LEARNED HIS
LESSON.
AND WHAT WE KNOW IS THAT
WHATEVER IT IS THAT YOU IMAGINE
THAT HE MIGHT DO, HE WILL FIND
WAYS TO SHOCK YOU BY DOING EVEN
CRAZIER THINGS, AND AGAIN, THIS
IS A MAN WITH HIS FINGER ON THE
NUCLEAR TRIGGER, AND THAT’S WHY
OUR HOPE RIGHT NOW, OUR HOPE
RIGHT NOW IS THAT MICHAEL PENCE,
YOU KNOW, WHOSE LIFE WAS PUT IN
GRAVE DANGER, WHO WAS ASKED TO
BREAK THE LAW, MIGHT JUST SAY,
HEY, I’M NOT COMFORTABLE WITH
NINE DAYS OF THE KIND OF
LEADERSHIP GAP, THE KIND OF
VACUUM THAT YOU’RE TALKING
ABOUT.
>> I WANT TO ASK YOU ABOUT
IMPEACHMENT.
WHY DO YOU THINK REPUBLICANS WHO
THINK OF THEMSELVES AS CARING
ABOUT THE COUNTRY’S NATIONAL
SECURITY, SOME EVEN HAVE THE
AUDACITY TO THINK THEY DO THAT
BETTER THAN DEMOCRATS, AND I’M
NOT SURE HOW ANY OF THEM WOULD
MAKE THAT CASE EVER AGAIN AFTER
WEDNESDAY.
WHY WOULDN’T THEY BE FOR
IMPEACHMENT TOO?
>> WELL, THERE’S A VERY --
THERE’S AN ANSWER TO THAT
QUESTION, BUT LET’S ALSO BE
CLEAR HERE.
THERE WERE SOME REPUBLICANS WHO
REALLY STOOD UP, NOT MANY, BUT
NOT ALL OF THEM PARTICIPATED --
I MEAN, THINK OF THIS, NICOLE.
AFTER WE’VE ALMOST ALL, YOU
KNOW, BEEN KILLED BY A MOB, WE
WENT BACK IN SESSION AND I GOT
TO LISTEN TO MOE BROOKS OF
ALABAMA SPEW FIVE MINUTES OF
UTTER CONSPIRACY NONSENSE ABOUT
UNDOCUMENTED ALIENS VOTING IN
THIS ELECTION.
SO, IT IS IMPORTANT TO REMEMBER
THAT IT IS A SUBSET OF THESE
GUYS WHO ARE TRUE BELIEVER, HARD
CORE, CULT-LIKE FIGURES, BUT TO
ANSWER YOUR QUESTION, IF YOU
WANT TO KNOW WHAT THEY’RE AFRAID
OF, LOOK AT WHAT HAPPENED TO
LINDSEY GRAHAM WHEN LINDSEY
GRAHAM TRIED TO WALK THROUGH
REAGAN NATIONAL AIRPORT AND HE
WAS BESET BY A MOB.
I MEAN, THERE’S NO OTHER WORD
FOR IT, BUT A BRUTAL,
DISGUSTING, OBSCENE MOB, AND
HERE’S LINDSEY GRAHAM, WHO
TRADED HIS SOUL TO DONALD TRUMP
FOUR YEARS AGO, AND NONE OF THAT
MATTERED BECAUSE WHEN HE FOUND
THE TINIEST DUST SPECTACLE OF