A Pennsylvania Republican congressman said Monday that the House could “probably” impeach President Barack Obama.
Rep. Lou Barletta’s comment came during a discussion about immigration on the talk radio program “The Gary Sutton Show.”
“He’s just absolutely ignoring the Constitution, and ignoring the laws, and ignoring the checks and balances,” Barletta said of Obama, according to audio captured by BuzzFeed’s Andrew Kaczynski. “For those that say impeach him for breaking the laws or bypassing the laws — could that pass in the House? It probably could. Is the majority of the American people in favor of impeaching the president? I’m not sure.”
Barletta, a member of the House Homeland Security Committee, belongs to a group of Republicans who spoke out last year against the bipartisan overhaul of immigration laws that includes creating a path to citizenship for undocumented immigrants.
But Barletta is not the only member of Congress to talk Obama impeachment. Just two weeks ago, fellow GOP Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina raised the possibility of impeachment for Obama if he released more prisoners from Guantanamo Bay without congressional approval. Graham’s comments came in the wake of Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl’s recent release from captivity in Afghanistan in exchange for five Taliban prisoners from Gitmo to Qatar.
Related: GOP skepticism of Obama’s executive power is all too convenient Other Republican lawmakers who have floated impeachment include Sens. Ted Cruz of Texas, and Tom Coburn and James Inhofe, both of Oklahoma. House Republicans held a hearing on the subject in December. A simple majority of the House must first pass a vote for impeachment. Then, the Senate would hold hearings. If the person in question is the president, the chief justice of the Supreme Court presides over the proceedings.
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