Following a week-and-a-half long trial with no witness testimony, Senator Murray said it is clear that President Trump misused the powers of the presidency for his own personal and political gain
Senator Murray: “I believe it is painfully clear the President of the United States has abused his power and obstructed Congress, and he should be removed from office”
Senator Murray: “I ask my colleagues how they want to feel not in this moment, here today—but in years ahead—and as part of our nation’s history… looking back, what will you want to have stood for—this President, or our country?”
ICYMI: Senator Murray Speaks about the impeachment trial on MSNBC– More HERE
From July: Senator Murray’s statement calling for impeachment proceedings – MORE HERE
***WATCH SENATOR MURRAY’S CLOSING STATEMENT HERE***
(Washington, D.C.) – This afternoon, U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA) delivered her closing remarks in the impeachment trial of President Donald J. Trump. During the trial, which began on January 22nd, Senator Murray heard the arguments from the House managers and the President’s defense team, and after deliberating on the evidence presented, declared during her remarks that she will vote to convict President Trump, as the House managers have made a clear and decisive case backed up by indisputable evidence that the President committed impeachable offenses.
Senator Murray first called for the U.S. House of Representatives to begin impeachment proceedings in July, following the release of Special Counsel Mueller’s report and Mueller’s subsequent congressional testimony. One of the few Senators who has previously been a juror in a presidential impeachment trial, Senator Murray called for a fair and thorough trial for President Trump so that all the facts in the case could come to light. Despite strong public support for a fair trial incorporating key witnesses and documents, Senate Republicans opted to adopt partisan rules for the trial and subsequently voted against hearing any witness testimony during the trial.
See some excerpts from Senator Murray’s remarks below:
“The House managers built an ironclad case showing the President abused his power and obstructed Congress in ways that present grave, urgent threats to our national security and to the rule of law. Over the course of their arguments, it became undeniably clear the corruption we have learned so much about in recent months starts at the very top, with the President of the United States.”
“To summarize, the House’s arguments make it impossible to ignore a reality our Founders deeply feared: a President who betrays our national security for his own personal benefit, and disregards the system of checks and balances on which our democratic institutions depend—who believes he is above the law, contrary to the most fundamental American principles.”
“I said in 1999 that if we were to remove a sitting President, none of us should have any doubts. Today, based on the facts we have heard and the distraction and obfuscation offered in response, none of us should have any doubts the President committed the impeachable offenses of which he is accused. What we now know is that the President of the United States demanded a foreign government interfere in our elections to help him win his upcoming campaign, and that truth is indisputable.”
“Today, we should be fearful for our country. We should be fearful for our future, for our safety, and the rule of law if the evidence we’ve heard cannot persuade this body to act on the painful truths before us: our President has betrayed the public trust, flagrantly violated our laws, and proved himself a threat to our national security.”
“I believe, as Representative Schiff said so simply and powerfully, that in America, quote ‘right matters.’ But I also know right matters only because so many people have, throughout our history, stood up for what is right even when—especially when—it may be difficult. Today, each United States Senator is called to do the same.”
Watch Senator Murray’s remarks HERE.
Read the full text of Senator Murray’s remarks:
“M. President, I have been in the Senate now for two Presidential impeachment trials—and I can tell you this is never a situation I want to find our country in.
“Not back then, certainly not today when the odds of bipartisan cooperation, even on responsibilities as solemn as these, are brutally low.
“In spite of this, I called for impeachment proceedings to begin in the House in July of this past year, and I did so because of the gravity of the threats to our democracy outlined in Special Counsel Mueller’s report.
“At the time, I felt that if we did not fully explore those threats, we would fall short of our constitutional duty, and set a precedent of congressional indifference to potentially flagrant violations of our constitution, ones that could jeopardize our core democratic institutions.
“After hearing both sides’ presentations, and reviewing every available source of information and testimony, I believe it is painfully clear the President of the United States has abused his power and obstructed Congress, and he should be removed from office.
“I want to talk about how I reached this conclusion, which I did not do lightly, and take a few minutes to reflect on the consequence of the decision each of us is, individually, about to make.
“Throughout the trial, the contrast between the presentations by the House managers and the President’s defense team could not have been starker, or more damning for the President.
“The House managers built an ironclad case showing the President abused his power and obstructed Congress in ways that present grave, urgent threats to our national security and to the rule of law.
“Over the course of their arguments, it became undeniably clear the corruption we have learned so much about in recent months starts at the very top, with the President of the United States.
“President Trump demanded a foreign government to intervene in our elections for his own political gain, and he did so by withholding American taxpayers’ dollars and ignoring Congressional authority.
“The President’s associates acted with his full knowledge and consent, and he himself pressured Ukraine’s leader, knowing how much Ukraine depends on U.S. support.
“These actions have already made us less secure as a nation. By delaying vital military aide to Ukraine, a key partner, President Trump has emboldened Russia, one of our chief adversaries.
“He has undermined our credibility with other allies worldwide.
“Critically, the President has also given every indication he will continue to put his own interests ahead of American interests—including in our upcoming elections—and has time and time again refused to recognize Congress’s Constitutional authority to oversee the executive branch.
“In addition, information continues to come out further implicating the President, and demonstrating not only his intent to abuse the power of our highest office, but his direct personal engagement in efforts to do so.
“To summarize, the House’s arguments make it impossible to ignore a reality our Founders deeply feared: a President who betrays our national security for his own personal benefit, and disregards the system of checks and balances on which our democratic institutions depend—who believes he is above the law, contrary to the most fundamental American principles.
“The President’s defense did not directly refute those charges against the President, or the thorough case the House presented.
“In fact, the President’s defense only served to illustrate how indefensible the President’s actions are.
“We heard complaints from the President’s defense about the House process, which the President refused to engage in.
“We heard a debunked conspiracy theory about Ukrainian election interference, even though the President’s own advisors repeatedly explained to him that Russia, not Ukraine, interfered in our 2016 election.
“We heard denial of a quid-pro-quo that, as the House managers laid out in excruciating detail, was borne out not only on the President’s July 25th call with President Zelensky, but in hundreds of documents from before and after that call.
“We did not, however, hear any substantive defense of the President’s actions, and tellingly the President’s defense vehemently opposed commonsense requests for the President’s own key aides to testify and for consideration of his aides’ documents as part of this trial.
“If the President was as innocent as he claims, surely, his aides and his Administration’s materials would bear his claims out, and he would want them considered. He and his team do not.
“I said in 1999 that if we were to remove a sitting President, none of us should have any doubts.
“Today, based on the facts we have heard and the distraction and obfuscation offered in response, none of us should have any doubts the President committed the impeachable offenses of which he is accused.
“What we now know is that the President of the United States demanded a foreign government interfere in our elections to help him win his upcoming campaign, and that truth is indisputable.
“And the question is—what do each of us, as individuals, do with that information?
“Sitting here, I’ve been reminded this trial is so much larger than any one of us. Larger than any political party, and much larger than President Trump.
“It is fundamentally about whether we will stand up for the institutions that secure our autonomy as a people—institutions we hope to leave stronger for our children and grandchildren.
“And to go a step further, really, this trial is about freedom in our country.
“Because if the President feels he owes his office to a foreign government, not Americans—then who does the President truly serve? How can he be trusted?
“If foreign governments can skew our elections in their favor, if they interfere with Americans at the ballot box this November, then are Americans truly represented in the White House?
“Is any American really free if a President can owe their election to an entity aside from the American people, and foreign governments can help decide who is in our highest office?
“These questions—and their chilling answers—have led me to my final decision, and I hope others consider them carefully as they make their own.
“I also want to speak for a minute about fear. There are really two different kinds at work in this moment.
“One is fear of political consequences.
“I remember how many members of Congress felt compelled to vote for war in Iraq. The political pressure was palpable.
“Today, that kind of political fear is palpable again. But fear of political consequences must never supersede concern for our country.
“And today, we should be fearful for our country.
“We should be fearful for our future, for our safety, and the rule of law if the evidence we’ve heard cannot persuade this body to act on the painful truths before us: our President has betrayed the public trust, flagrantly violated our laws, and proved himself a threat to our national security.
“So I ask my colleagues how they want to feel not in this moment, here today—but in years ahead—and as part of our nation’s history…
“…as more information continues to come out about this administration—and it will…
“…as we get closer to an election we still have a unique opportunity to help protect…
“…and as we explain this difficult, but pivotal time to our grandchildren.
“Looking back, what will you want to have stood for—this President, or our country?
“I believe, as Representative Schiff said so simply and powerfully, that in America, quote ‘right matters.’
“But I also know right matters only because so many people have, throughout our history, stood up for what is right even when—especially when—it may be difficult.
“Today, each United States Senator is called to do the same.
“Thank you.”
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