Here’s how Fort Worth area lawmakers voted on President Donald Trump’s impeachment
Fort Worth area House Republicans voted against impeaching President Donald Trump on Wednesday, a week after Trump supporters stormed the nation’s Capitol.
The House of Representative voted 232-197 to impeach Trump for inciting an insurrection at the Capitol, the first time a U.S. president has been impeached twice. Ten Republicans voted to impeach.
Fort Worth representatives voted along party lines, but Republican Rep. Kay Granger of Fort Worth did not vote. She has been in quarantine after testing positive for coronavirus but could have voted by proxy. Granger did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Republican Reps. Ron Wright of Arlington, Michael Burgess of Denton, Beth Van Duyne of Irving and Roger Williams of Austin opposed impeachment. Democrat Reps. Eddie Johnson of Dallas, Marc Veasey of Fort Worth and Colin Allred of Dallas were in favor of impeachment.
On the House floor, Van Duyne called Wednesday’s proceedings a “made for TV impeachment.” Instead, the House should have been working toward additional coronavirus relief, she said.
“Dragging our country through yet another impeachment will only further divide us and neglect real issues the American people are confronting on a daily basis,” she said in a statement.
Veasey argued on the House floor that if an outgoing Democrat president would’ve incited a mob to attack the Capitol, Republicans would be asking for impeachment and Democrats would join them.
“It is time for Republicans to stop caring about their political base and start caring about the future of our democracy,” Veasey said.
Impeachment of Trump will continue to divide the country, Williams said in a statement.
“Speaker Pelosi and House Democrats must reject the impulse to politicize the heinous tragedy that occurred last week and refocus our efforts on delivering results for the American people,” he said.
Both Burgess and Wright said impeachment will divide the country in a moment when unity is needed.
But Allred and Johnson said they believe the way to move forward is to hold Trump accountable.
