Pelosi: Trump Impeachment Worth Losing House in 2020

Pelosi’s latest remarks come days after she announced the launch of a formal impeachment inquiry into the president. Nearly all House Democrats have publicly backed the inquiry, though about a dozen have yet to endorse it.

Speaking in an interview at Tribune Fest, hosted by the Texas Tribune, the California Democrat suggested that complying with Congress’ mandate to hold the president answerable is more important than politics.

When asked by Tribune CEO Evan Smith whether “any of the stuff we’re talking about” would impact her “ability to hold control of the House in 2020,” she said, “It doesn’t matter.”

“Our first responsibility is to protect and defend the Constitution of the United States.”

“People say you have to take a political risk doing that. That doesn’t matter. That doesn’t matter. Because we cannot have a president of the United States undermining his oath of office, his loyalty to his oath of office, undermining our national security, and undermining the integrity of our elections.”

She also said more Americans now favor the impeachment inquiry against Trump.

“In the public, the tide has completely changed; it could change now – who knows – but right now after seeing the complaint and the IG (Inspector General) report and the cavalier attitude the administration had towards it, the American people are coming to a different decision,” Pelosi said at the journalism event.