Sen. Murray, state House Democrats want impeachment inquiry

Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., backs a House impeachment inquiry. She would be a judge in any Senate trial of President Trump should the House pass an impeachment resolution. Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., backs a House impeachment inquiry. She would be a judge in any Senate trial of President Trump should the House pass an impeachment resolution. Photo: Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call, Inc. Photo: Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call, Inc. Image 1 of / 8 Caption Close Sen. Murray, state House Democrats want impeachment inquiry 1 / 8 Back to Gallery

Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., has joined the state's seven Democratic U.S. House members in calling for Congress' lower chamber to launch an impeachment inquiry on the conduct of President Donald Trump.

Although Murray is a trenchant Trump critic, backing a House impeachment inquiry is an unusual stand for a Senator.

Murray would be a judge in any Senate trial on removing the President from office should the House vote an impeachment resolution.

"I agree with my fellow members of Washington's delegation that, as we have learned more about the gravity of potential threats to our democracy, identified in Special Counsel Mueller's report, it has become clear the House should begin proceedings to determine whether the President's actions necessitate impeachment," Murray said in a statement.

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The statement came on the weekend, beginning a six-week summer break, as four Democratic House members declared support for an impeachment inquiry. They joined Reps. Pramila Jayapal, Adam Smith and Rick Larsen, already lined up for an inquiry.

The backing from Washington's delegation brought support for an inquiry to 103 House members, 102 Democrats and Independent (former Republican) Rep. Justin Amash of Michigan.

"I don't want a government that is corrupt," said Rep. Derek Kilmer, D-Wash., whose Olympic Peninsula district holds areas that voted for Trump.

"I don't want the lesson to my daughters -- or to any Americans -- to be that actions like these are acceptable. Obstructing justice and accepting assistance from foreign governments simply cannot be a standard that we accept."

Rep. Kim Schrier, D-Wash., represents the 8th District, which crosses the Cascades to include Kittitas and Chelan counties and parts of Douglas County. All voted for Trump in 2016. Schrier is the first Democrat to hold the seat, previously held by Republicans for 38 years.

"I have come to believe that stepping up these congressional investigations to the level of an impeachment inquiry will be required to get timely access to the information we need for our national security and national conscience," Schrier said.

"I know the people of the 8th District elected me to protect their health care, fight for their families and protect our environment, and those will always remain my focus . . . But they also elected me to uphold the Constitution and protect our national security interests."

Candidate Trump had a roaring 2016 rally at the Northwest Washington Fairgrounds in Lynden, the stands packed with rural Whatcom County residents. (Bellingham liberals demonstrated outside.)

But Rep. Suzan DelBene, D-Wash., who represents those in the stands, backed an impeachment inquiry on Sunday. "With every act of defiance, he (Trump) continues to disgrace his office and violate the checks and balances that are the foundation of the Constitution," DelBene said.

RELATED: Rep. Jayapal to Congress: 'Begin an impeachment inquiry'

Washington State Democratic Chair Tina Podlodowski, in a Facebook post, left out the word "inquiry."

"It's official: Our Washington Democratic reps ALL stand together for impeachment," Podlodowski wrote.

Not so fast. House members are backing an inquiry, not judging its outcome. Nor are they happy about having to do it.

"I didn't come to Congress hoping to launch an impeachment inquiry against any president," DelBene said in her statement.

Rep. Denny Heck, D-Wash., sits on the House Intelligence Committee, a seat he obtained through the good graces of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who has resisted an impeachment inquiry.

Heck has, by his estimate, listened to "hundred of hours" of testimony in closed and open sessions of Congress, and questioned Special Counsel Mueller last week. He is acutely aware of the politics involved.

"Officially initiating an impeachment inquiry substantally strengthens the legal hand of the House to discover all information," Heck said in a statement Sunday.

"I am familiar with the political arguments against initiating an impeachment inquiry based on findings to date. For example, some suggest the Senate is highly unlikely to convict the president should the House impeach him and that his chances of reelection will therefore be enhanced.

"That may be true. What is truer is that nothing less than the rule of law is at stake."

Impeachment is anguishing for any conscientious member of Congress.

Republican Rep. Joel Pritchard, during the Nixon administration, watched with growing disgust as evidence mounted in the Watergate cover-up. GOP colleagues on the House Judiciary Committee voted to impeach. The Nixon resignation spared Pritchard having to vote.

Murray was in the Senate for the trial of President Clinton, who was acquitted in a bipartisan vote. Murray voted to acquit. Seatmate Sen. Slade Gorton, R-Wash., took a unique stand and cast a vote for "not proven."

Interestingly, in the House, challenger Jay Inslee used Republicans' impeachment excesses to upset Republican Rep. Rick White in the 1998 election. White went back to Congress as a lame duck, and voted for impeachment.