Trump Impeachment Again? Ocasio-Cortez Wants It, But Democrats Say 'No'

Democratic Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York on Sunday called for President Donald Trump's impeachment after an audio recording of his call with Georgia's secretary of state was leaked, but not all Democrats agree.

On Saturday, The Washington Post revealed the recording of a phone call between Trump and Brad Raffensperger, in which Trump can be heard demanding that the election official "find" him enough votes to defeat President-elect Joe Biden. The recording drew ire among various lawmakers, prompting some to call for the president's second impeachment.

But some Democrats have downplayed that idea. Texas Rep. Henry Cuellar told Axios that there isn't enough time to conduct an impeachment hearing before Biden is inaugurated.

And while high-ranking House Democrat Rep. Hakeem Jeffries of New York said he is looking forward to Biden’s inauguration on Jan. 20, he also expressed his belief that historians will evaluate Trump’s actions “at a particular point in time.”

“There were a series of steps that were taken by Donald Trump and his team that resulted in him being impeached for his corrupt abuse of power,” Jeffries said. “With respect [to] what has currently taken place, I have not viewed the transcript. We're not looking backward, we're looking forward to the inauguration of Joe Biden on Jan. 20.”

As a new session of Congress began on Sunday, Ocasio-Cortez told reporters that while she had yet to listen to the hour-long recording, she believes the recorded phone call is grounds for impeachment

"I absolutely think it's an impeachable offense, and if it was up to me, there would be articles on the floor quite quickly, but he, I mean, he is trying to — he is attacking our very election. He's attacking our very election," Ocasio-Cortez said.

Several progressives, including Rep. Ilhan Omar of Minnesota, echoed Ocasio-Cortez’s statement. Omar said she believes the president and his supporters must be held accountable for their actions.

“The President’s effort to openly overturn our election results by putting pressure on the Republican Secretary of State of Georgia is a crime, plain and simple. The constitutional remedy for a high crime and misdemeanor committed by the President of the United States is clear: impeachment,” Omar wrote in a statement published Monday.

“The constitution does not make exceptions for the amount of time the president has left in office, or the popular support they have,” she added. “And we cannot either. For the sake of our constitution and our republic, we must hold this president fully accountable for his efforts to overthrow our democracy.”