Washington, D.C. (Sept. 24, 2019)—Today, Rep. Elijah E. Cummings, the Chairman of the Committee on Oversight and Reform, issued the following statement:

“As elected Representatives of the American people, we speak not only for those who are here with us now, but for generations yet unborn. Our voices today are messages to a future we may never see.

“When the history books are written about this tumultuous era, I want them to show that I was among those in the House of Representatives who stood up to lawlessness and tyranny. If Senate Republicans choose to close their eyes, put party over country, and forego their duty under the Constitution, the history books will show that too.

“We can now see with our own eyes that the President is jeopardizing our national security. He admitted to personally withholding military security aid that Congress appropriated to help Ukraine counter Russian aggression. He admitted to personally urging a foreign actor to dig up dirt on his political rival. And he personally attacked a whistleblower whose protected information is being withheld from Congress in violation of the law.

“If there is a core lesson President Trump should have learned from the 2016 election, it is this: Pressing a foreign actor to interfere in our national elections is a fundamental corruption of our democracy, an affront to the Constitution, and a grave breach of his oath of office.

“Each member of the House and the Senate must decide whether he or she will stand for the country or cave to this Administration. I pray that each member chooses our country.”

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