President Trump claimed “more due process was afforded to those accused in the Salem Witch Trials” than has been afforded to him throughout impeachment proceedings in a letter sent to House Speaker
Nancy Pelosi on Tuesday, just one day before the full House will vote on articles of impeachment.“The Articles of Impeachment introduced by the House Judiciary Committee are not recognizable under any standard of Constitutional theory, interpretation, or jurisprudence,” Trump wrote. “They include no crimes, no misdemeanors, and no offenses whatsoever. You have cheapened the importance of the very ugly word, impeachment!”In the six-page letter, the president tackles both articles of impeachment — “abuse of power” and “obstruction of Congress” — and claims that Pelosi is obsessed with overturning the result of the 2016 election.“You have developed a full-fledged case of what many in the media call Trump Derangement Syndrome and sadly, you will never get over it!” Trump declares. “ . . . You have spent three straight years attempting to overturn the will of the
American people and nullify their votes. You view democracy as your enemy!”The president spends a large portion of the letter touting the economic gains made under his administration and contrasting his record with
Democratic appeals for “extreme policies.”“There is nothing I would rather do than stop referring to your party as the Do-Nothing Democrats,” Trump writes. “Unfortunately, I don’t know that you will ever give me a chance to do so.”Trump also mentions “the
Russian Witch Hunt” and the subsequent Mueller Report, which found no evidence of collusion between the 2016
Trump campaign and
Russia, as well as recent revelations of FISA court abuses by the
FBI described in the IG report.“This is nothing more than an illegal, partisan attempted coup that will, based on recent sentiment, badly fail at the voting booth,” Trump states. “You are not just after me, as President, you are after the entire
Republican Party. But because of this colossal injustice, our party is more united than it has ever been before. History will judge you harshly as you proceed with this impeachment charade.”Democrats also appear largely united in their pursuit of impeachment. Several moderate
Democrats from 2016-Trump districts are coming out in favor of impeachment as the House vote nears. Jeff Van Drew, one of two Democrats who voted against formalizing the impeachment inquiry, is expected to switch parties over his opposition.