Lieu Describes Capitol Riot, Sponsors Articles Of Impeachment

CALABASAS, CA — Congressman Ted Lieu, who represents an L-shaped district along the coast to Palos Verdes and much of the Santa Monica Mountains, announced last week that he drafted Articles of Impeachment against President Trump.

Lieu, who has represented California's 33rd District since 2014 and was handily re-elected in November, drafted articles with Rhode Island Representative David Cicilline and Maryland Representative Raskin. The articles were introduced Monday, and as of Tuesday had attracted 217 sponsors, according to a tweet by Cicilline.

In a Los Angeles Times op-ed, Lieu describes how he and Cicilline decided to draft the articles as mobs of angry Trump supporters stormed the Capitol last Wednesday. "It was there, sheltering in place, fearing what a mob incited by Trump would do next, that congressman Cicilline and I decided that we were going to try to impeach the president. Again," Lieu wrote in the op-ed.

Lieu describes being in his office in the Capitol building Wednesday at around 1:15 when Capitol Police entered and told him and his chief of staff to evacuate immediately. Lieu said they told him that police recommended he remove the pin on his suit jacket to disguise the fact that he was a member of Congress.

"In that moment, we didn't know how far the mob was willing to go, and who might be harmed," Lieu wrote. "I texted my wife and my parents to let them know I was safe and in lockdown."

Lieu said he worked late into the night drafting the four-page resolution, which charges that President Trump committed high crimes and misdemeanors by "inciting violence against the Government of the United States," and the Constitution forbids anyone who has engaged in "insurrection or rebellion against" the United States from holding office in the United States.

"[Trump] also willfully made statements that, in context, encouraged - and foreseeably resulted in - lawless action at the Capitol, such as: "if you don't fight like hell you're not going to have a country anymore,'" the resolution, which can be viewed on Lieu's Twitter page, continues.

"Future generations need to know that Congress acted swiftly and forcefully after insurrectionists attacked our Capitol," Lieu wrote in The Times. "Trump's domestic terrorists were trying to keep him in office through violent means. We cannot pretend Jan. 6 didn't happen. If our response were merely sternly worded press statements, we would embolden more violent actors to try to overthrow our democracy in the future."

Lieu has tweeted similar remarks numerous times since last Wednesday, and appeared on several cable news programs to advance this view.

Inciting an insurrection, 18 U.S. Code § 2383, is a felony.

No one is above the law. Not the President, not the President’s attorney, and not any Member of Congress.

The @FBI should investigate anyone who may have violated 18 U.S. Code § 2383, including Members of Congress. https://t.co/XVYdomPFFP
— Ted Lieu (@tedlieu) January 11, 2021

Numerous other Democratic politicians from around the Southland, including Adam Schiff, Katie Porter, and Brad Sherman, have signed on. The House will vote on impeachment Wednesday, where it is expected to pass handily. All Democrats are expected to vote in favor of impeachment, and since Tuesday, after Trump denied any responsibility for his role in incting the mob - saying his Jan. 6 remarks were appropriate and calling impeachment a "ridiculous" "witch hunt" - as many as 10 Republican House members are expected to vote in favor of impeachment. As of Tuesday, Wyoming Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wy), the number 3 ranking House Republican, and Illinois Rep. Adam Kinzinger have confirmed that they will vote in favor.

On Tuesday, the Los Angeles City Council introduced a resolution in support of impeachment, something it did the first time Trump was impeached in 2019. The resolution was introduced by Council President Nury Martinez and Councilmen Marqueece Harris-Dawson, Paul Koretz and Mitch O'Farrell. The resolution, whose passage date is unclear, called Trump a "clear and present danger to the stability of our nation."

• 'A Threat To National Security': Ted Lieu Calls For Trump's Oust
• 'We Barricaded For 6 Hours' Rep. Katie Porter On Capitol Attack
• 'They Were Banging At The Doors' Rep. Correa Talks Capitol Scene
• Southland Leaders Respond To Capitol Hill Crisis, Violence