Donald Trump Impeachment Is ‘An Open And Shut Case,’ Says Former Justice Department Official
In an interview with MSNBC broadcast Saturday, former acting Solicitor General Neal Katyal said that the impeachment of President Donald Trump is “an open and shut case,” Raw Story reports.
Trump is being accused of using the power of his office to effectively invite foreign election meddling, in an effort to damage a political opponent’s campaign.
According to Katyal, the evidence against Trump is out in the open, and it should be “very simple” to build a solid case.
“The president abused the nation’s trust. He put his interests above those of the American people with respect to our foreign policy with the Ukraine,” the former Department of Justice (DOJ) official said, explaining that Trump’s actions in regards to Ukraine are enough to introduce two different articles of impeachment.
The first article of impeachment, Katyal said, would be based on the fact that Trump had withheld money appropriated by the United States Congress for “his own personal benefit.”
The second article of impeachment would involve obstruction of justice by the president. Katyal, he said, would base the second article of impeachment on the fact that Trump is obstructing investigations, ordering his allies to defy subpoenas issued by Congress, and refusing to turn over relevant information.
The Trump administration ambassadors who testified before Congress, according to the former DOJ official, did so because they believe the American people deserve to “have the truth.”
Much like former President Richard Nixon, Trump could be brought down with articles of impeachment pertaining to obstruction of justice, according to Katyal.
“I think it applies here. It’s just those two articles. It’s straightforward and simple,” the former acting solicitor general said.
Katyal concluded his conversation with MSNBC by stating that impeachment appears to be an “open and shut case.”
“It’s an open and shut case and honestly,” the former Justice Department official said, adding that Trump has “tried four different stories, all of them have fallen completely apart.”
Trump’s allegedly impeachable conduct was revealed by an anonymous whistleblower who claims that the president used the power of his office to damage Democratic front-runner Joe Biden’s presidential campaign.
According to the whistleblower, Trump pressured Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to investigate former vice president son Hunter’s business dealings in the country, threatening to cut military aid unless his request is fulfilled.
The transcript of Trump’s conversation with Zelensky confirms these allegations, according to impeachment advocates.
Polls have shown that a majority of Americans believe the White House should cooperate with impeachment probes, but the president and his allies have routinely defied subpoenas issued by the House of Representatives.
