Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) urged the Senate to “quickly” pursue a trial over the articles of impeachment unveiled by the House on Tuesday, adding that the House should pass the articles as soon as possible.
In a pair of tweets, Sanders said that he would do his constitutional duty and attend the impeachment trial in the Senate even as he campaigns as a candidate for the Democratic Party’s nomination.
“Donald Trump is the most corrupt president in history, and he must be held accountable. I strongly believe the announcement of articles of impeachment are appropriate and necessary, and I call on the full House to pass them,” Sanders tweeted.
“Once the House proceeds to impeachment, Leader McConnell must quickly schedule a full trial in the Senate, where I will uphold my constitutional responsibility as a juror,” he added.
Other 2020 candidates in the Senate including Cory Booker (D-N.J.) and Michael Bennet (D-Colo.) echoed support for the impeachment process on Tuesday, with Bennet tweeting that he would likely vote in favor of removing Trump from office.
“We have to follow due process and the rule of law, but if the evidence of the President’s wrongdoing and abuse of power continues to remain consistent with what we’ve seen, it’s likely I will vote to impeach,” Bennet tweeted.
“The President has made it very difficult for Congress to do the oversight that the Constitution requires and that the American people demand. He’s obstructed and stonewalled at every step of the way, and today’s announcement reflects that,” he added. “This is exactly what the founders were worried about. We don’t elect kings in this country, and nobody is above the law.”
“This is a sad, sobering moment for our country,” Booker tweeted. “This President violated his oath to the American people. Now, those of us who swore an oath to protect and defend the Constitution have a duty to follow ours.”
“I support the leadership House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and House Democrats have displayed during these hearings and this process, and know it will continue in an impartial and sober way,” he continued.
Entrepreneur Andrew Yang, who has focused little of his rhetoric on the matter of impeachment during his 2020 campaign efforts, tweeted support Tuesday for the impeachment efforts but warned that Democrats risked inflaming the president’s base ahead of 2020.
“I agree with proceeding with impeachment – it’s the right thing to do. But there is potential for it to increase polarization and galvanize the President’s base particularly if impeachment doesn’t succeed. We need to provide a new positive vision to move the country forward,” Yang tweeted.
Former Housing Secretary Julián Castro added that he was “pleased” that Democrats were upholding the duty of the Congress to “hold [Trump] to account,” and added that he thought impeachment proceedings should have begun shortly after the release of the special counsel report into the Trump campaign and Russian election interference.
“I called on Congress to begin impeachment the day after the Mueller report was released in April, because it was clear Donald Trump broke the law,” Castro tweeted.
“It’s a solemn day in our nation’s history, but I’m pleased Congress is doing their duty to hold him to account,” he continued.
“We have a dangerous and lawless president who has disregarded the Constitution at the expense of the American people. That demands accountability. Impeachment is a grave act, but we can’t afford to wait,” added former Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick (D), a newcomer to the 2020 race.