Massachusetts Democrat Rep. Seth Moulton is calling on his fellow U.S. Representatives to impeach President Donald Trump if Vice President Mike Pence and the cabinent refuse to remove him from office. This comes after the insurrection of the Capitol building in Washington, D.C. by pro-Trump extremists on Wednesday.
Moulton told Boston Public Radio on Friday that he feels many Republican lawmakers lack the courage to do what they know is right.
"[Republicans] are having epiphanies right now, but the problem is what they need is not an epiphany, they need to find some courage to do the right thing," he said. "Some of them have told me this in private. I had a colleague who happened to be a fellow veteran from the other side of the aisle, who is one of the people essentially inciting what was going on, and yet even he said that this had gone too far, that [Trump] needs to be relieved of command."
The number one responsibility that Trump has as commander in chief is to keep Americans safe, Moulton said.
"Not only did he fail to keep us safe, he actually incited violence against us," he added. "So I think Republicans are realizing this, but the question is whether they'll have the courage to say it in person, because what’s lacking in Congress isn’t intelligence, it’s courage."
Trump may only have 12 days left in office, but that doesn't mean he shouldn't be impeached, Moulton noted.
“It’s always worth it to do the right thing, it’s never too late to uphold the law," he said. "The reason it's especially important here is because the world is watching, future generations of Americans are watching at what we will do today, and the president needs to be held accountable.”
Moulton was in his office on Wednesday when Captiol police escorted him to a secure location with hundreds of members of the House of Representatives during the insurrection. He saw dozens of freshman Republican members of Congress in the same room as him not wearing masks. After watching these "Trump acolytes" refuse masks from his colleagues, Moulton decided to walk over himself.
"I took out my phone and started taking pictures of them standing there not wearing masks, and they flipped out," he said. "This Trumpite Mary Miller from Illinois comes and jumps right in my face and starts screaming at me, of course, with her mask off."
Moulton questioned what the problem was of him taking photos of them. "What're they scared of? They're in this room trying to make a political point, and then you take out a camera and they don't even have the courage to continue making their stupid point."
