Speaker Johnson calls impeachment inquiry necessary ahead of vote: ‘White House is impeding that investigation’

House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) said an impeachment inquiry into President Joe Biden was necessary due to the White House impeding the current investigation.

Speaking with reporters on Tuesday, Johnson attempted to contrast the Democrats’ “sham” impeachments of former President Donald Trump with that against Biden, saying that Republicans were committed to the rule of law.

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“We have no choice but to fulfill our constitutional responsibility. We have to take the next step. We’re not making a political decision. It’s not. It’s a legal decision,” Johnson said at the House Republican Conference press conference, per Fox News.

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“So, people have feelings about it one way or the other. We can’t prejudge the outcome. The Constitution does not permit us to do so. We have to follow the truth where it takes us, and that is exactly what we’re going to do,” he said.

He stressed that the Wednesday vote on formalizing the impeachment inquiry is different than voting on an impeachment. Anticipating criticism that the move was excessive, he defended it as necessary to follow the rule of law.

“There shouldn’t be any such thing as a snap impeachment, a sham impeachment like the Democrats did against President Trump. This is the opposite of that,” Johnson said. “And that’s why people are getting restless — because they want things to happen quickly. If you follow the Constitution and you do the right thing, you cannot rush it. You have to follow the facts.”

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The speaker also pledged not to prejudge the outcome of the inquiry, saying it could go either way.

“We’re not going to prejudge the outcome of this,” he said. “We can’t because, again, it’s not a political calculation. We’re following the law, and we are the rule of law team. And I’m going to hold to that as my commitment.”