PALM BEACH COUNTY, Fla. — With the U.S. House of Representatives voting today on two articles of impeachment against President Trump, WPTV NewsChannel 5 anchor Michael Williams talked to two local members of Congress, a Democrat and a Republican, about their votes.
U.S. Rep. Brian Mast (R) of Stuart explained why he was voting against the impeachment measures.
“The simple straightforward answer is there’s no abuse of power, there’s no obstruction of Congress that's going on here.”
When asked why she was voting for impeachment, U.S. Rep. Lois Frankel (D) of West Palm Beach said it came down to what she thought is abuse of presidential power.
“He's abused his power. He's used his office for his own personal gain. He has told witnesses not to talk, so I will vote to impeach,”
The impeachment has highlighted the fractures in the country politically, and Williams asked Mast how Democrats and Republicans in Congress could have the same facts, read the same transcripts and hear the same witnesses but come to drastically different conclusions.
“I think it goes to the interpretation of everything we've heard and everything we've seen,” said Mast. “It starts at the very beginning of this process where you saw members of the Democratic Party going out there and supporting impeachment before they even ever read a transcript of a phone call,” he said.
Williams asked Frankel what she would say to the Republicans’ argument that this is an effort to overturn the will of the voters in 2016 and that it’s motivated by political hatred.
“If we don't hold this president accountable, if we don't say no person is above the law, what will he do next,” she replied. “So today I’m going to stand up for the Republic. I don't know what the political consequences will be but one day I will tell my grandson that I stood up for the democracy of the United States of America,” said Frankel.
