WASHINGTON, D.C., USA — The President of the United States was impeached again on Wednesday, making him the only president to be impeached twice in the nation's history.
Oregon has four Democrats in the U.S. House of Representatives: Reps. Suzanne Bonamici, Earl Blumenauer, Peter DeFazio and Kurt Schrader. All four voted to impeach.
Oregon's one Republican congressman, Rep. Cliff Bentz, voted to not impeach. He declined an interview request but did release this statement after the proceedings wrapped up:
“I continue to share the emotions many are feeling in the aftermath of the unprecedented and unacceptable violence this past week. But the current rush-to-judgement impeachment proceedings have only succeeded in dividing our country even more. I voted against impeachment because our focus should be on unifying our nation, ensuring a peaceful transition to the Biden Administration, and working to address the pressing issues facing our country and Oregon's Second Congressional District. I came to Congress to stand up for rural communities across my district by addressing the terrible damage caused by recent wildfires, reforming the laws that govern our water rights, and ensuring we help those hardest hit by the COVID-19 pandemic.”
Two Republican members of Congress from Washington state voted to impeach the president. Rep. Jaime Herrera Beutler from Southwest Washington voted "yea," as did Rep. Dan Newhouse from Central Washington.
The other GOP member from Washington, Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers, voted not to impeach.
Herrera Beutler said in a statement on Facebook Tuesday night she believes Trump violated his oath of office. She drew applause on the House floor for her speech during Wednesday's proceedings.
"My fellow Americans: I rise today to stand against our enemy. And to clarify our enemy isn't the president or the president-elect. Fear is our enemy. Fear tells us what we want to hear, it incites anger and violence and fire. But it also haunts us into silence and inaction," Herrera Beutler said Wednesday. "What are you afraid of? I'm afraid of what people will say and think. I'm afraid of being devalued. I'm not afraid of losing my job, but I am afraid my country will fail. I'm afraid patriots of this country have died in vain. I'm afraid my children won't grow up in a free country. I'm afraid injustice will prevail.
"But truth - truth sets us free from fear. Truth doesn't guarantee bad things won't happen, but it does promise to always prevail in the end. It has no shadows where darkness can hide. With truth comes love, and we could use that right now. My vote to impeach our sitting president is not a fear-based decision. I am not choosing a side. I'm choosing truth. It's the only way to defeat fear," Herrera Beutler said.
Rep. Herrera Beutler is among 10 Republicans who joined Democrats and voted to impeach President Trump on Wednesday.
KGW spoke with Oregon Democratic Rep. Earl Blumenauer Tuesday ahead of the vote.
"It is gratifying to see some Republicans join us," Rep. Blumenauer said. "It's gratifying that the overwhelming majority of the American public wants him gone and I'm convinced there's an excellent chance he will in fact be impeached and his future significantly limited. And it is a graphic illustration of just how far he's gone - how far off the rails - and what the stakes are."
The next step in the impeachment process is Trump facing trial in the Senate. It would take a two-thirds majority to convict Trump and a simple majority vote to ban him from holding future office.
The Associated Press reports that a trial is unlikely to occur before the Jan. 20 inauguration of President-elect Joe Biden.
