WASHINGTON\u2014House Democrats voted late Oct. 21 to set aside a Republican motion to censure House Select Committee on Intelligence Chairman Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) \u201cfor conduct that misleads the American people.\u201d<\/p>\n
The resolution was introduced by Rep. Andy Biggs (R-Ariz.) and was tabled on a vote of 218\u2013185, thus effectively killing it, at least for now.<\/p>\n
Earlier on Oct. 21, President Donald Trump appealed to House members, in a tweet, to \u201cCensure (at least) Corrupt Adam Schiff! After what he got caught doing, any pol who does not so vote cannot be honest \u2026 are you listening Dems?\u201d<\/p>\n
Schiff has been Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosis (D-Calif.) lead actor in the impeachment inquiry against Trump she announced Sept. 24, based on a whistleblower complaint alleging that Trump threatened during a July 25 telephone call with Ukraines President Volodymyr Zelensky to withhold U.S. military if the latter didnt reopen a corruption investigation of the business dealings there of Hunter Biden, former Vice President Joe Bidens son.<\/p>\n
Trump released the complete transcript of the call the day after Pelosis announcement, saying the document demonstrated he made no such threat.<\/p>\n
Pelosi and Schiff have continued the impeachment inquiry largely behind closed doors, while rejecting increasingly angry demands from House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) and House Minority Whip Steve Scalise (R-La.) for a formal House vote to authorize an official impeachment procedure.<\/p>\n
If the House voted to authorize the procedure, as it has done in all three previous presidential impeachments, it would be centered on the House Judiciary Committee and would include Trumps lawyers.<\/p>\n
Republicans would also be able to call witnesses and issues subpoenas, important due process actions the current process under Schiff and the intelligence panel doesnt permit.<\/p>\n
As expected, Pelosi and House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) instructed Democrats to vote for tabling the Schiff censure motion, which would kill it. The first tally announced showed no Democrats voting with Republicans against tabling the resolution.<\/p>\n
Even if the House ultimately impeaches Trump, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) and Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) have made clear a motion to convict Trump would fail in the upper chamber.<\/p>\n
Among the censure resolutions charges are that during a nationally televised hearing on Sept. 26, Schiff \u201cpurported to relay the content of the phone call to the American people\u201d by creating \u201ca false retelling of the conversation between President Trump and President Zelensky,\u201d instead of reading directly from the transcript.<\/p>\n
Schiff later conceded his version of the call transcript was a \u201cfable,\u201d and the censure resolution describes it as an \u201cegregiously false and fabricated retelling had no relationship to the call itself.\u201d<\/p>\n