Donald Trump Jr. is calling on the conservative movement to take action by calling Democrats in Trump districts who are iffy on impeachment, urging conservatives to “tell them this will NOT STAND” and that “you’ll remember in Nov!”
Trump Jr. made the call for action on Saturday, one day after the House Judiciary Committee voted to advance two articles of impeachment, abuse of power and obstruction of Congress, against President Donald Trump with a party-line vote. The full House is expected to vote next week.
Because Republicans have remained united in standing against their colleagues’ partisan impeachment effort, all eyes are on Democrats — specifically those who represent Trump-won districts. They have been feeling the heat, caught between the Democrat Party’s agenda and the political ramifications supporting impeachment could bring to their bids in 2020.
While poll after poll has indicated that opposition to impeachment is outweighing support, many of these Trump-district Democrats are signaling that they will, in fact, vote in favor of impeaching the president.
“Enough! These Democrats in Trump districts said they were with @realDonaldTrump. They lied! – Now now its time to hear from OUR MOVEMENT,” Trump Jr. wrote on Saturday, providing a comprehensive list of the lawmakers and their office numbers.
“Here’s a complete thread of their handles & phone #s. Call non-stop, tweet at them, tell them this will NOT STAND & you’ll remember in Nov!” he added:
Freshman Rep. Conor Lamb (D-PA), for instance, originally did not “want to say much” about whether he would support impeachment. However, he recently indicated that he will vote in favor.
“The evidence is strong, and it warrants impeachment,” Lamb said, according to WTAE.
“The facts show the president abused his office and compromised our national security,” he continued. “I can’t think of anything more serious than that.”
Rep. Lucy McBath (D-GA), another freshman Democrat representing a Trump-won district, voted in favor of both articles of impeachment in the House Judiciary Committee on Friday.
According to the New York Times’ latest tally, 165 Democrats in the House stand in support of impeachment, and one, Rep. Jeff Van Drew (D-NJ), does not. Nineteen Democrats remain undecided, and 48 have yet to issue a response. Both groups contain the bulk of Democrats representing Trump-won districts.
Rep. Xochitl Torres Small (D-NM), who represents the Trump-won 2nd Congressional District in New Mexico, remains undecided. A recent poll released by the Trump campaign indicated that supporting impeachment could hurt her in 2020.
A majority, 56 percent, in Torres Small’s district oppose impeachment, and more voters, 38 percent, indicated they would be “less likely” to vote for Torres Small if she voted in favor of impeachment, compared to 30 percent who said they would be more likely to vote for her:
The Washington Post reported on Wednesday that Democrats could face “some defections among a group of moderate Democrats in swing districts”:
Lawmakers and senior aides are privately predicting they will lose more than the two Democrats who opposed the impeachment inquiry rules package in late September, according to multiple officials who spoke on the condition of anonymity to talk frankly. Two senior Democratic aides said the total could be as many as a half-dozen, while a third said the number could be higher.
Nevertheless, the final tally remains up in the air.