Trump Resigning Before Impeachment? House Democrat Believes President Won’t Last Full Term

Talk about President Donald Trump resigning on his own accord has been heating up, what with allegations of collusion with Russian officials to rig the 2016 elections having hounded him from his first day as U.S. President. And in a recent interview, a senior U.S. representative said that there is a strong likelihood that Trump might resign before he can be impeached by Congress.

According to a report from the Independent, Rep. Jackie Speier (D-CA) brought up this possibility, as she noted that the President’s attempts to pardon family members or fire Special Counsel Robert Mueller might result in Congress voting for his impeachment. However, she added in her interview with Radio 4’s Today that Donald Trump might resign before any possible impeachment attempt takes place.

“I have always thought that he was never going to fulfill his full term,” said Speier, who is part of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence.

A report from CNN cited a “person familiar with the matter,” reporting that Mueller, whom Trump had put in charge of investigating the Russian collusion charges, had issued grand jury subpoenas in relation to Donald Trump Jr.’s alleged communication with a Russian lawyer at his father’s Trump Tower last year. According to the Independent, this could signal a “new, more serious phase” in the investigation, with the revelation applying even more pressure on Donald Trump to resign.

As Jackie Speier sees it, it might be time for Congress to start seriously considering impeaching the President, due to the above report and others.

“It is not something that would be happening any time soon but if the President were to act precipitously at any of these situations, pardoning his family members, taking actions to try and get rid of Mr. Mueller, I think those would be tipping points and could end up in the House calling for impeachment.”

Reports of Robert Mueller’s alleged grand jury activity came at around the same time the U.S. Senate introduced two new bills designed to prevent Mueller from being removed by Trump as Special Counsel, according the Independent. This is interesting, as the President’s defense lawyers have reportedly been looking at the possibility of conflicts of interest within Mueller’s team, including contributions to Hillary Clinton and other prominent Democrats.

As noted by CNN, Trump has persistently denied allegations of talks with Russian officials, while also referring to the probe as a “witch hunt.”

Jackie Speier isn’t the first notable person in recent weeks to suggest that Donald Trump might resign before he can even be impeached. According to the Inquisitr, Columbia University law professor Philip Bobbitt said that resignation might be the best course of action for the President if he wants to ensure that his children don’t go to prison, and that he avoids any potential prosecution.

[Featured Image by Chris Kleponis – Pool/Getty Images]