Appointing and Authorizing Managers for Impeachment Trial of Donald John Trump, President of the United States

Floor Speech

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Mr. COLLINS of Georgia. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

This impeachment process has been flawed from the outset. It resembles not a congressional action; it resembles, more, a Dr. Seuss book, knowing not which way it goes.

On September 24, the Speaker declared at a press conference the House was conducting an impeachment inquiry. However, contrary to the Speaker's decree that we were all of a sudden in an impeachment inquiry, the House did not authorize the impeachment inquiry until October 30 by adopting H. Res. 660.

It was said just a moment ago that the Speaker has been leading the fight for a fair trial in the Senate. I wish the Speaker had been leading for a fair hearing in the House instead of trashing our rules.

For those 71 out of 78 days, from the time it was announced at a press conference to the time we finished, the President was not permitted to participate in these meetings. Think of that: 71 days out of 78 in which we actually did something on impeachment, he was not presented the ability to cross-examine fact witnesses, present counterarguments, no due process at all in those 71 days.

When presented with the opportunity, when it came to the Judiciary Committee, instead of the Judiciary Committee stepping up and actually acting like the Judiciary Committee, the committee of impeachment, we punted.

We had some law professors who already had their basic talking points. He could have cross-examined them. That would have done a lot of good.

Then we could have had witnesses of staffers who testified--again, a lot of good.

Where were the fact witnesses? Instead of the rubber stamp that we were warned about 20 years ago by the current chairman, we became the rubber stamp.

Democrats repeatedly violated House rules and blatantly abused the rules they wrote in H. Res. 660. Even to this day, we will pass this out in violation of H. Res. 660.

They used inflammatory rhetoric haunting them because this is what they had to do.

One Democrat said: I call for impeachment today because it is one heck of an emergency.

Another said: We have a crime in progress. We have an emergency in our national election that is going on right now.

But my favorite, in December: It is a crime spree in progress.

Oh, the hyperbole just reeks in this room.

When we understand this, if it was such an emergency, if it was in lieu to finding a 911 call, then why did we hold this for almost a month? Well, we have been told that it is to help have a Senate fair trial--be damned the House inappropriate process we had.

But even now that the process was bad, I am going to go back, and let's make sure the facts are here because they still haven't changed:

A phone call that was put out in a transcript in which no pressure was applied, there was no conditionality on anything given in that call or since to do that.

There was also nothing given by the Ukrainians to actually get this money that was released, by the way, before--it was actually a statutory deadline of September 31. They did nothing. They got the money anyway.

But the problem is they want the Senate to do their job for them. But that is not how it works. You see, the Speaker--and what I have heard today even from folks giving 1-minutes, Madam Speaker, is this was all they wanted. It was a political impeachment. They have said he is impeached for life.

This shows the true motivation, I believe, of the other side. It is their dislike for this President and the good work he is doing.

So, Madam Speaker, before I reserve here for a moment, this has always been a political impeachment. Even today, on the floor, the talk of the President being forever impeached and this always being a stain forgets the Senate trial.

I hope this ends this political impeachment and this body never sees it again.

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Mr. COLLINS of Georgia. Madam Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from California (Mr. McCarthy).

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Mr. COLLINS of Georgia. Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

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Mr. COLLINS of Georgia. Madam Speaker, I appreciate that. Madam Speaker, is the gentleman from New York ready to close?

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Mr. COLLINS of Georgia. Madam Speaker, there are no other speakers?

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Mr. COLLINS of Georgia. Madam Speaker, there are no speakers? A closing is no other speakers.
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Mr. COLLINS of Georgia. Madam Speaker, I will take it back. Madam Speaker, give me the time one more time.

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Mr. COLLINS of Georgia. Madam Speaker, two facts just came out right here, and again, we are going to hear in just a moment, but they are facts. Undoubtedly the mics are not working on the other side, on the majority side. We have talked about the facts. There is not overwhelming evidence. We have discussed this over and over until we are blue in the face, but it doesn't matter because this is a political impeachment.

This has nothing to do with the facts. We have shown that there was nothing done wrong, but that does not matter. When the train is on the tracks, the whistle is blowing, impeachment matters, and the only thing that matters on the timeline, the only real emergency here is that there is a 2020 election in which the Democrats can't stand to see the fact this President is going to win again. They can't stand the fact of who they have got running, so what do we do? We impeach him, as they said, for life. That is wrong. Vote ``no.''

Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

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Mr. COLLINS of Georgia. Madam Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

The yeas and nays were ordered.

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