There are now 65 members of the House of Representatives who are calling for an impeachment inquiry against President Donald Trump—five of those are Michigan representatives.
A list of where lawmakers stand on impeachment has been compiled by the New York Times.
Saturday, U.S. Rep. Andy Levin (D-Berkley) became the fifth representative from Michigan to officially support starting an impeachment inquiry. He joins U.S. Reps. Rashida Tlaib (D-Detroit), Brenda Lawrence (D-Detroit), Dan Kildee (D-Flint) and Justin Amash (R-Grand Rapids).
In the United States, impeachment proceedings can only be brought against someone at the federal level if they may have committed "treason, bribery, or other high crimes and misdemeanors."
An impeachment inquiry, some argue, would give lawmakers access to more information about the activities of the Trump administration. The inquiry is the first step in the impeachment process, but it is not a guarantee that the president will be impeached. Rather it allows the House Judiciary Committee to hold hearings to investigate whether impeachment is warranted.
Here is what all of five of those Michigan lawmakers have said about an impeachment inquiry:
Rep. Rashida Tlaib
Tlaib has been vocal about starting impeaching proceedings against Trump since she took office in January. In fact, the day Tlaib took the oath of office, she published a op-ed with the Detroit Free Press titled "Now is the time to begin impeachment proceedings against President Trump."
In the piece Tlaib, and attorney John Bonifaz, said "In the face of this constitutional crisis, we must rise. We must rise to defend our Constitution, to defend our democracy, and to defend that bedrock principle that no one is above the law, not even the President of the United States."
Since becoming a Congresswoman, Tlaib has continued to push for the impeachment process, even submitting the resolution in March with only one other Democrat's support. On Saturday, she held a rally in Detroit asking for Trump to be impeached.
Rep. Justin Amash
Amash is the only Republican in the House who has raised the topic of impeachment. Since tweeting multiple threads about the Mueller report and impeachment, Amash continues to say the president engaged in "impeachable conduct."
At a Grand Rapids town hall, Amash answered a question about what the next steps were regarding the impeachment process.
"I do think it's appropriate for the speaker to proceed with an inquiry, to proceed with hearings and other things," he said, implying that it is up to Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi to get the ball rolling on impeachment.
"To me it was obvious the conduct was impeachable. The question is: do you then move forward with impeachment proceedings...I am concerned that we've gotten to the point where impeachment may never be used in any circumstance. And I think that is a greater risk than it will be used too often."
Rep. Brenda Lawrence
Lawrence voted in favor of impeachment during a roll call vote on Rep. Al Green's house resolution for impeaching Trump.
The Congresswoman also shared her stance on CNN saying, "We've been talking about impeachment. Few people understand that if we impeach him—and I feel that we should begin that process—if we impeach him, he is still sitting in the White House because the Senate has to act."
She emphasized, "We need to act."
Rep. Dan Kildee
Kildee joined his congressional colleagues in calling for an impeachment inquiry on Friday. He issued a statement that detailed his opinion.
In the press release, Kildee said, "The President’s actions have taken us to a moment where I believe Congress must open an impeachment inquiry to defend the rule of law."
The Democrat congressman said he didn't come to that conclusion easily, but the Mueller report showed "serious crimes."
"An impeachment inquiry is about protecting the rule of law and defending the U.S. Constitution, not punishing the President for his misdeeds. I believe opening an impeachment inquiry will focus the efforts of Congress to get answers about the President’s conduct," Kildee continued in the statement.
Rep. Andy Levin
Levin became the latest Michigan lawmaker to support launching an impeachment inquiry. He issued a statement and tweeted about this on Saturday.
"Today, I announce that I have concluded that the House has a duty to open an impeachment inquiry into the conduct of President Donald J. Trump," Levin said.
The congressman pointed to Trump's business dealings, saying that Trump is profiting off the office of the president. He also pointed to the president's "refusal" to share his tax information, the evidence of obstruction of justice in the Mueller report and the president's "attitude" toward foreign interference in elections.
"Until today, I have maintained the position that we should neither rush to impeach President Trump nor take impeachment off the table," said Levin. "However, I have watched the Trump administration’s stonewalling of our oversight activities with growing frustration."
Levin said he will now work with the House Democratic Caucus to start the process.
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