Detroit Free Press

EDITOR'S NOTE: Last Thursday afternoon, the Free Press Editorial Board submitted the following query to each of the 14 lawmakers who make up Michigan's delegation to the U.S. House of Representatives, and pledged to publish responses received by the end of the day Friday verbatim:

Do you believe it is appropriate for the House of Representatives to open a formal impeachment inquiry based on (the allegations revealed this week) and/or any other allegations of presidential misconduct that have been brought to Congress’ attention? Why or why not?

Eleven of the 14 representatives responded. Those responses, and the names of the three congressmen who did not respond, appear below:

Rep. Jack Bergman (R-Watersmeet)

1st Congressional District, which includes all or part of 32 counties in the Upper Peninsula and nothern Michigan)

"With both the transcript of the call and the whistle-blower document now declassified and released, we see that this entire story and basis of these claims are entirely second or even third hand rumor. This entire charade is beneath the office we serve in, and Americans must demand better.

"While Democrats focus entirely on ousting President Donald J. Trump, I will remain laser-focused on fighting for the needs of the constituents of the First Congressional District and working together to accomplish our goals."

Rep. Bill Huizenga (R-Zeeland)

2nd Congressional District, which includes all or part of eight counties in western Michigan

Rep. Huizenga did not respond to our query, or to our subsequent attempts to reach his spokesperson by telephone and email.

Rep. Justin Amash (I-Grand Rapids)

3rd Congressional District, which includes all or part of five counties west and south of Grand Rapids

"I continue to support impeachment proceedings.

"Mueller’s report detailed multiple episodes of impeachable conduct by President Trump, and we have evidence—including the president’s public statements over the past week and the memorandum of his July 25 phone call—that the president continues to abuse the office of the presidency."

Rep. John Moolenaar (R-Midland)

4th Congressional District, which includes all or part of 13 mid-Michigan counties)

“Right now, I am working on the issues that matter most to hardworking Michigan residents, including protecting the Great Lakes, building critical infrastructure at the Soo Locks, making a trade deal with our allies, and continuing the strong economy we have in Michigan with four percent unemployment near record-lows.

"Unfortunately, House Democrats have been doing everything they can to try and impeach President Trump since he was elected in 2016. The impeachment announcement by Speaker Pelosi shows Democrats are bending to the socialist wing of their party at the expense of getting important work done for the American people.”

Rep. Dan Kildee (D-Flint Twp.)

5th Congressional District, which includes Genessee County and all or part of four counties to its north

“I believe it is appropriate for the U.S. House of Representatives to open a formal impeachment inquiry. President Trump’s actions have taken us to this moment where the opening of an impeachment inquiry is necessary to defend the rule of law.

"If the President of the United States used his office to pressure a foreign government to investigate a political opponent, it is unlawful and an abuse of power. In doing so, the President has put America’s national security at risk in order to advance his own narrow personal interests. Sadly, this is only the latest action by this President, who has regularly lied to the American people, obstructed congressional oversight and ignored the Constitution.

“An impeachment inquiry will allow the U.S. House of Representatives to focus the efforts of Congress in order to get answers on the President’s behavior and present the facts to the American people. No one is above the law, including the President.

This is a solemn day in our nation’s history. Opening an impeachment inquiry against the President of the United States should always be a tool of last resort, but sadly this is a step we must take to uphold and defend our Constitution.”

Rep. Fred Upton (R-St. Joseph)

6th Congressional District, which includes all or part of six counties in southwestern Michigan

“I’ve been clear – these developments are disconcerting, but this is an arduous process. There are some people who may want to use this to grind our entire government to a halt, but I'm not one of them.

"There’s no joy in Mudville. I remain focused on solving issues that matter the most to the folks of southwest Michigan while continuing to carefully review the facts that emerge before making any conclusions.”

Rep. Tim Walberg (R-Tipton)

7th Congressional District, which includes six southern Michigan counties and most of Washtenaw County\

Rep. Walberg did not respond to our query, or to our subsequent attempts to reach his spokesperson by telephone and email.

Rep. Elissa Slotkin (D-Holly)

8th Congressional District, which includes Ingham and Livingston counties and much of northern and western Oakland County

"I have spent my life working to protect our country. I served three tours in Iraq with the CIA, served in national security positions under Presidents of both parties, and at the Pentagon. And in all of those roles, I took an oath to protect and defend the Constitution. I took that same oath again in January, as I proudly assumed the responsibility of representing the people of Michigan’s 8th Congressional District.

"Driven by this same mission, I believe that the latest allegations against the President, if true, constitute an impeachable offense. The President of the United States allegedly attempted to use the power of his office to pressure a foreign country, Ukraine, into investigating his potential political opponent. Unabashed, the personal lawyer to the President confirmed that he personally pressed the Ukrainian government for damaging information.

"If these allegations against the president true, then Congress has no choice but to consider all congressional authorities available to us, including the power of inherent contempt and impeachment hearings, to protect our national security. We must make exceptionally clear that this behavior cannot stand."

Rep. Andy Levin (D-Bloomfield Twp.)

9th Congressional District, which includes southeastern Oakland County and southern Macomb County

“The White House notes on the President’s call with Ukrainian President Zelensky were truly astonishing, but my feelings then do not compare to my grave concern after reading the declassified whistleblower’s complaint.

“Our commander-in-chief’s behavior is more akin to a mafia don, freely running U.S. foreign and national security policy through his personal lawyer, heedless of official debunking of the wild claims he is chasing, unaware of and unconcerned by the boundaries of the law that are meant to protect the safety of American citizens and safeguard our elections.

“The President has slandered the patriotic public servants who brought this to light, and insinuated that they should be killed.

“Perhaps worst of all, it is evident that the President is responsible for repeated abuses of official records to hide his exploitation of the presidency to support his re-election campaign. Without a doubt, that constitutes a cover-up.

“President Trump’s vulnerability to counterintelligence leverage is deeply disturbing.

“For the sake of the Republic, and our national security, we must expedite our impeachment inquiry with a steady and sober hand.”

Rep. Paul Mitchell (R-Dryden)

10th Congressional District, which includes northern Macomb County and five other counties in Michigan's Thumb

Rep. Mitchell did not respond to our query, or to our subsequent attempts to reach his spokesperson by telephone and email.

Rep. Haley Stevens (D-Troy)

11th Congressional District, which includes a broad swath of Oakland County and the northwest part of Wayne County

“This is a painful moment for our country. In the past I have been reluctant to support an impeachment inquiry, but I now believe that Congress must investigate the President’s alleged unethical and potentially illegal communications with the President of the Ukraine. If these allegations are true, then he must be held accountable.

"This is a troubling and extremely serious circumstance, and fully investigating this matter is the only way to ensure that Congress has all the relevant facts and is able to uphold the Constitution.

"But my work doesn’t stop. On October 25th, as Chair of the Research and Technology Subcommittee, I will be holding a bipartisan hearing in Michigan on ‘smart city’ technology for suburban communities. I remain committed to continuing to work across the aisle to deliver on our shared priorities like lowering the cost of prescription drugs, passing a trade agreement that helps Michigan workers and small businesses, and protecting our communities from gun violence.”

Rep. Debbie Dingell (D-Dearborn)

12th Congressional District, which includes parts of western Wayne County and eastern Washtenaw County

"A whistleblower filed a complaint, and the Inspector General found it to be credible and an urgent potential threat to our national security. We may be divided as a nation, but we can never be divided on the rule of law. Multiple senior national security officials are concerned they were witnessing a pattern of corruption that endangers our democracy.

"‪As a Member of Congress, our fundamental responsibility is to protect our national security and protect the Constitution. This is an important moment; it cannot be ignored. It requires action. We must use all congressional authorities to follow the facts, launch an investigation, and uncover the truth."

Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-Detroit)

13th Congressional District, which includes part of Detroit and adjacent Wayne County communities)

“From the first day of this session, I’ve called to uphold our nation’s law of the land, our U.S.Constitution. This means impeaching the President for his criminal and impeachable offenses. I made this decision early on because the continued lawlessness and king-like activity out of the White House endangers our democracy.

Rep. Brenda Lawrence (D-Southfield)

14th Congressional District, which includes part of Detroit and swaths of Wayne and Oakland counties

“In his report, Special Counsel Robert Mueller laid out evidence that describes several incidents in which the President obstructed justice by either trying to change the scope of the investigation or by attempting to end it altogether. That coupled with his recent admission during a network interview that he sees nothing wrong with accepting assistance from a foreign entity, leaves me no choice but to now request that this body proceed with the process of conducting an impeachment inquiry.

“This Administration has made every attempt to prevent this Congress from performing its constitutional duties of official oversight. They have blocked witnesses from testifying, ignored all subpoenas and refused to turn over documents essential to our investigation. Administration officials have objected to precedents that have been in place for decades making baseless arguments to avoid complying with congressional requests.

“The Trump Administration is challenging the power of a co-equal branch of the U.S. Government, the Congress. An impeachment inquiry would allow us to obtain access to the documentation and perform the oversight required to fulfill our constitutional duties. No one; not even this president is above the law.”