Last year, President Donald Trump was impeached after holding up congressionally approved military aid to Ukraine on the condition that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky investigate the business dealings of then-candidate Joe Biden's son, Hunter.
The move was largely seen as a corrupt effort to hold funds for the country hostage in order to dig up dirt on former Vice President Joe Biden, who was considered the frontrunner for the Democratic nomination.
House impeachment leader, Congressman Adam Schiff (D-CA), warned in the Senate's impeachment trial this past February:
"What are the odds that [Trump] will continue trying to cheat? I will tell you: 100 percent. If you have found him guilty and you do not remove him from office, he will continue trying to cheat in the election, until he succeeds."
Schiff's warning got a grim vindication on Sunday when the Washington Post released a taped call featuring Trump and Georgia's Republican Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger.
For weeks, Trump has berated state leaders in Georgia, which went blue in a presidential election this year for the first time since 1992. He's peddled baseless claims that these officials certified a corrupt election, but the votes have been counted no fewer than three times and signature audits found no evidence of widespread voter fraud.
Nevertheless, the President continues to falsely insist that Democrats coordinated widespread nationwide election fraud that tipped the election to President-elect Biden.
In the call, Trump urged Raffensperger to "find" the 11,000+ votes he needs to win.
Listen to the damning clip below.
Trump to @GASecofState: So look- all I want to do is this. I just want to find 11,780 votes... So tell me Brad, what are we gonna do?... I think you're gonna have to say you're gonna re-examine it... You have a big election coming up.#TrumpTapes pic.twitter.com/9CqMDf3LDN
— Padma Lakshmi (@PadmaLakshmi) January 3, 2021
Trump said:
All I want to do is this. I just want to find 11,780 votes, which is one more than we have because we won the state. ... A lot of people think it wasn't a mistake. It was much more criminal than that."
Trump repeated the demand numerous times throughout the hour long phone call and floated the possibility that Raffensperger could face criminal charges if he stood by the integrity of the state's results.
Even with just over two weeks left in Trump's chaotic presidency, the corruption confirmed in the tape revived calls to impeach the President again, and the calls are coming from unexpected figures.
In an interview on MSNBC, former Republican Congressman David Jolly (R-FL) urged the House to impeach Trump again.
Watch below.
BREAKING: Attorney and Former GOP Congressman David Jolly Says House Judiciary Committee Should Vote to Impeach Donald Trump This Week on the Basis of the "Trump Tapes" pic.twitter.com/AtekoetG9q
— Seth Abramson (@SethAbramson) January 4, 2021
Jolly said:
"Convene the new House Judiciary Committee this week. Play the audio tape, authenticate it, take an up or down vote on whether or not the President should be impeached. That is a political process within their jurisdiction."
He continued:
"What stands on the line in this moment, Lindsay, is not just Donald Trump. It is the integrity of the House of Representatives as an institution, whether or not they will allow this behavior to go checked or unchecked. ... We want action. Hold the President accountable."
Throughout Trump's first impeachment, House Democrats emphasized that it was their Constitutional duty to levy articles of impeachment against Presidents who misuse their power, even if a Republican-led Senate all but guarantees the President won't be removed from office.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) first announced the impeachment inquiry into the President's Ukraine phone call in September of 2019. The saga ended when Trump was acquitted by the Republican Senate in February of 2020.
With only 16 days left in Trump's presidency at the time of writing, it's unclear whether Democrats in the House—burdened by a slimmer majority after the 2020 election—will embark on an effort that took six months to complete the last time.
But if Twitter is any indication, many Americans would support the move.
I can't see that the House has any other choice! They must do their duty and adher to their oaths of office. This will not go away. https://t.co/AbfTL0N6PW
— Greg McCombs (@lmnopGregory) January 4, 2021
abslutely. Stand up. https://t.co/LfUxYrWy16
— lalah hathaway (@lalahhathaway) January 4, 2021
I agree 100%. Hold Trump accountable @SpeakerPelosi https://t.co/3C1RLZTpXR
— Diane Harris (@DhLadylaw) January 4, 2021
Absolutely! This should happen swiftly and decisively, if we want to protect our precious Democracy. https://t.co/agSqqpxaLO
— Nikki (@nikjl) January 4, 2021
I wholeheartedly agree! https://t.co/EWQ3Y2h61K
— james neal (@PixelLoki) January 4, 2021
Well yes, that's the logical thing to do. https://t.co/7GTgKKq6SA
— Meg (@Lefty824) January 4, 2021
But many still doubt House Democrats will pursue the effort, since the end of Trump's presidency is already imminent.
I wish they would. I doubt they will. https://t.co/fT2LDeDrMf
— Jackie Dishner (@bikelady) January 4, 2021
I mean, he inarguably needs to be impeached. They've tried once, and they've got another 15 days to try again. But I doubt it'll go anywhere. https://t.co/HKI9DVu57Q
— Samwise 又 (@_hauntedthought) January 4, 2021
The distance between Could, Should, and Will is very very far in Congress. https://t.co/Hjwgzx2bJS
— Gab (@gabpdx) January 4, 2021
Just before the call was released, multiple Republican Senators announced they'd be backing House Republicans objecting to congressional election certification on January 6th based on Trump's voter fraud lies.
