Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid warned in a fundraising pitch Wednesday that Republicans could try to impeach and remove President Obama from office if the GOP wins control of the Senate in next week’s elections.
“Frankly, a Republican House and Senate could go beyond shutting down the government — they could waste months of our lives on impeachment,” Mr. Reid said in a fundraising email sent by the Progressive Change Campaign Committee, which is an outside group whose goal is to bolster liberal Democrats.
The email appeal asks for support for three Democrats in particular: Sen. Mark Begich in Alaska, Sen. Mark Udall in Colorado, and Rep. Bruce Braley, Democrats’ nominee in Iowa.
All three are trailing in their races in the RealClearPolitics.com average of polls, but they are within striking distance.
Mr. Reid said Democratic victories on election night would “shock Karl Rove, the Koch brothers and many pundits like we did on election night 2012.” Democrats gained two Senate seats in 2012, defying predictions that Republicans would be able to hold and possibly expand their 47-seat minority.
The PCCC says it’s previously raised more than $83,000 for Mr. Braley and $29,000 for Mr. Udall.
For Mr. Reid, meanwhile, his job depends on keeping a majority. If the GOP takes control, Sen. Mitch McConnell would likely become majority leader, controlling the floor and deciding which bills and amendments to debate.
Republicans could already vote for articles of impeachment in the House, where they have held control since 2011, but GOP leaders have said it wasn’t an option. The Constitution gives the House the power of impeachment, and gives the Senate the duty to hold a trial to determine whether to remove high officials from office.
• Stephen Dinan can be reached at sdinan@washingtontimes.com.
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