Illinois Republican Rep. Adam Kinzinger has asked President Donald Trump to resign on ABC’s This Week ‘on Sunday, while rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez said in a separate interview that an accusation should be scheduled ‘absolutely’ and that it should go as far as the bar. Trump can run again because of the term.
“I think the best thing for the country to heal is for him to resign. The next best thing is the 25th amendment,” Kinzinger, George Stephanopoulos’ chief anchor at ABC News, said.
“That is why I call on Vice President Pence to do so,” he added. “That’s the thing we’re just getting out of the debate in Congress, it’s not making Donald Trump a victim, it makes him look as bad as he was here.”
Kinzinger also said he does not think accusation is currently ‘the smart move’.
“I think it makes Donald Trump a victim again and I think there’s a moment in which we are right now, where Donald Trump looks really bad,” Kinzinger said. “I’ll vote the right way if you know it’s proposed. I think it’s probably not the smartest move at the moment, but I think it’s going to be out of my hands.”
Kinzinger did add that he believes accusations would be the right move if “we have more than basically ten days left in government.”
“Yes, he will be charged a second time, but will also be acquitted a second time in theory, depending on how the trial goes, or they can do it if he does not have his office,” Kinzinger said. ‘I think there are a lot of ideas with censorship – to prevent him from running again. You know the reality is that we just do not have much time left in this government, which is a good thing at the moment. ‘
Ocasio-Cortez said she supported the accusation.
“Our top priority is to remove Donald Trump as President of the United States,” Ocasio-Cortez told Stephanopoulos on Sunday. “Every minute and every hour he is in office represents a clear and present danger, not just to the US Congress, but honestly to the country.”
“We are also talking about the president – or rather Donald Trump – never having to be re-elected,” she added. “And besides, the possible ability to prevent him from forgiving himself of the charges he was charged with.”
Stephanopoulos pushed Ocasio-Cortez and brought a letter from the Republicans from the House saying it would further divide the country.
“What happened Wednesday was an uprising against the United States. Donald J. Trump took part in it, and that’s what those who stormed the Capitol were involved in,” she said. “And so when we talk about healing, then the process of healing is separate and actually requires accountability. And so if we allow unpunished rebellion against the United States, without being held accountable, we invite it to happen again.”
She then criticized her colleagues for underestimating the seriousness of what happened at the Capitol.
“Maybe my colleagues were not fully present for the events on Wednesday, but half of – we came to almost half of the House on Wednesday,” she said.
Kinzinger said he agrees that the lives of congressmen are in danger Wednesday.
“I think we were very close to having members of Congress killed,” he said. “On the one hand, we were blessed not to lose any members of Congress, but we have lost five people and that is disgusting.”
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has asked members to be prepared to return in a letter in Washington this week, a sign that the House can take up the indictment and pass it on to the Senate after it was formally introduced Monday. A draft article of accusation circulating among House Democrats would accuse Trump of “inciting insurgency.”
Stephanopoulos put Ocasio-Cortez on the timing of the indictment on Sunday, expressing concern that it could hinder legislation and confirmations at the start of President Joe Biden’s election. She said addressing what happened took precedence over the Senate acting on Biden’s nominees.
“I think we need to review what really happened Wednesday,” Ocasio-Cortez said. “The National Guard has been requested by the DC council and has been rejected. We are talking about this and we are hearing of a total and utter lack of preparation. The head of the DC Capitol police has lied to the chairman of the home administration Zoe Lofgren about the preparations for what happened. “
“If we do not take corrective action now, we are talking about the same elements that may be at stake, which are in charge of the president’s security during the inauguration,” she added. “With deep respect, I believe in the President’s safety and the safety of the US Congress and the safety of our country.”
“It takes precedence over the timing of nominations and the timing of potential confirmations,” she said. “It’s an immediate danger right now.”
Ocasio-Cortez also said she does not think accusation is the only remedy.
“We’re looking at several roads. And I do not – I do not believe the roads are mutually exclusive,” she said, referring to the 25th and 14th Amendments.
“I do not believe any of these paths are competitive with each other. They all honestly offer their own form of relief and their own forms of accountability, and therefore I do not believe it is a matter of decision or debate. “which ways we should follow. I believe we need to take an overall approach,” she added.
On Sunday, Stephanopoulos Kinzinger pressed on why so few Republicans spoke out against the president.
“I think a lot of it is fear,” he said. “You know that there are currently so many sides of the debate infected.”
“We have Vice President Pence, one of Donald Trump’s most trusted guys, is now a number one public enemy in the Trump world,” he added. “I think that’s what it’s about, but if you’ll be scared – just my humble opinion – if you’ll be scared in this job. It may not be the right job for you here. Moment in time.
Pennsylvania Republican Sen. Pat Toomey told Fox News on Saturday that he believed the president had “committed impeccable offenses.”
And later on “This Week,” Trump ally and former New Jersey Republican Gov. Chris Christie said he believes the president is committing impeccable transgressions.
“If incitement to rebellion is not, I do not know what it is,” the ABC News contributor said.