A key GOP lawmaker spearheading the effort to impeach Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein told Hill.TV he won’t force a vote on the matter before the August recess – but may force a vote in the future.
“We seem to have some consensus with the Speaker’s office, with [House Judiciary Committee] Chairman [Robert] Goodlatte (R-Va.) and a number of us who feel like enough is enough, so I think we’ll see real movement, no privilege resolution today,” said Rep. Mark Meadows (R-N.C.).
Meadows, who introduced articles of impeachment against Rosenstein on Wednesday night, spoke with Hill.TV shortly after talking with key GOP leaders in a scrum on the House floor during the first series of votes on Thursday morning.
On Thursday, he backed off the impeachment threat and said he would pursue contempt proceedings against Rosenstein instead – for now. Meadows and his fellow co-sponsors believe Rosenstein has failed to comply with document requests from Congress.
The Freedom Caucus Chairman said he had a “very good conversation with leadership,” adding that his fellow nine co-sponsors are “going to try to use one last ditch effort to try to give DOJ and the FBI the benefit of the doubt and hopefully they can comply with the document request.”
Others in the GOP conference, including Oversight and Government Reform Committee Chairman Trey Gowdy (R-S.C.), are skeptical of the effort.
“I’m kind of of the predisposition of Mr. Gowdy that if you’re going to offer Articles of Impeachment that the misdemeanor or high crime has to be clearly laid out,” House Intelligence Committee member Rep. Tom Rooney (R-Fla.) told Hill.TV, noting that he “will look at” the impeachment resolution.
Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.), who joined the impeachment resolution effort Thursday morning, said whether or not the House votes on the resolution will be based largely on what lawmakers hear during the five-week August recess.
“I think that’s going to be the topic of discussion throughout August at townhalls … pressure will build,” Massie predicted. “It really comes down to the chairman of the Judiciary Committee … there was a little conference on the floor just now, so we’ll see what comes of that.”
– Molly K. Hooper
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