In this Jan. 14, 2016, file photo, then state Sen. Jeff Van Drew of New Jersey speaks. Van Drew, now a U.S. representative, is skeptical of the impeachment inquiry against President Donald Trump. (Mel Evans/AP Photo)

Democrat Who Voted Against Impeachment Says House Colleagues Are ‘Tired’ and ‘Bored’ of Effort

Rep. Jeff Van Drew (D-N.J.) said that his House colleagues have expressed concern about the impeachment inquiry against President Donald Trump.

Van Drew is one of two Democrats who voted against the impeachment process resolution, which no Republicans voted for.

“There is some discussion among some of them, quietly, privately, of concern certainly,” he said during an appearance on Fox’s “Sunday Morning Futures.”

“I mean, what I’m hearing out in the street is they’re kind of tired. They’re kind of worn out. They’re kind of bored, most folks. And they really want to move on unless there’s something new and amazing. We know the end game here,” he said.

Van Drew said that he would probably vote “no” if the House votes on impeaching Trump but said he’s not sure how other members of Congress will vote.

“Now, I always have a codicil if there’s something new, something we haven’t heard, something that really rises to the level of treason or a high crime—that would be different. But we don’t see that. We see little different variations, hearsay, discussions that somebody heard something that somebody else said,” Van Drew said.

“Impeachment, as you know, our founding fathers had vigorous debates over whether they would even allow impeachment in the Constitution. You don’t disenfranchise voters, millions upon millions of voters. Voters choose their leaders in America.”

Three witnesses testified in public last week, primarily conveying secondhand or even thirdhand information about the actions of Trump relating to Ukraine. Democrats argue Trump effectively committed “bribery” by reviewing military aid approved by Congress as he requested Ukraine look into former Vice President Joe Biden and Biden’s son, Hunter Biden, as well as Ukrainian efforts to interfere in the 2016 election.

President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky hold a meeting in New York on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly on Sept. 25, 2019. (Saul Loeb/AFP/Getty Images)

Ukrainian officials and American State Department personnel have said Ukraine was not aware the aid was put on hold for a review, undercutting the claim.

Vice President Mike Pence’s national security aide, Jennifer Williams, and David Holmes, a U.S. embassy official in Kiev, were among those testifying behind closed doors last week, as secret depositions continue to take place alongside open hearings.

The next open hearings are slated for Tuesday and Wednesday, with former U.S. special envoy to Ukraine Kurt Volker, Williams, National Security Council Ukraine specialist Alexander Vindman, and Tim Morrison, a former National Security Council expert, testifying on Nov. 19.

Gordon Sondland, the U.S. ambassador to the European Union, was scheduled to answer questions on Nov. 20, followed by Laura Cooper, a deputy assistant secretary at the Defense Department, and David Hale, the undersecretary of state for political affairs at the State Department.

Fiona Hill, a former Russia expert on the National Security Council, is scheduled to speak on Thursday morning.