Rep. Peterson 1 of 2 Democrats to vote against House moving forward with impeachment probe

WASHINGTON (FOX 9) A split U.S. House of Representatives voted almost entirely on party lines Thursday to move forward with the impeachment investigation against President Donald Trump.

The resolution passed, 232-196, paving the way for public hearings on Trump’s actions with Ukraine. Two Democrats, including U.S. Rep. Collin Peterson of Minnesota, joined Republicans in voting no.

“This impeachment process continues to be hopelessly partisan. I have been hearing from my constituents on both sides of this matter for months, and the escalation of calls this past week just shows me how divided our country really is right now. I have some serious concerns with the way the closed-door depositions were run, and am skeptical that we will have a process that is open, transparent and fair. Without support from Senate Republicans, going down this path is a mistake. Today’s vote is both unnecessary, and widely misrepresented in the media and by Republicans as a vote on impeachment. I will not make a decision on impeachment until all the facts have been presented,” Rep. Peterson said in a statement.

Peterson represents a western Minnesota district that voted for Trump by 31 points in 2016. The congressman narrowly won his re-election bid in 2018.

Republican Rep. Kelly Armstrong of North Dakota voted against moving forward with impeachment.

“For only the fourth time in our country’s history, the House has initiated impeachment proceedings against a duly elected President. – There is no transparency – There is no accountability – There is no due process – This is not about finding the facts. Simply put, this isn’t fair. I oppose this resolution, this ‘process,’ & I oppose impeaching President Trump. The WH released the call transcript. It’s time for Pelosi to release the depo transcripts and it’s time for Schiff to come clean about coordination w/ the Whistleblower,” Rep. Armstrong tweeted.

House Democratic leaders are drawing the closed-door portion of the impeachment inquiry to an end. The investigation will transition to open hearings, where witnesses will testify in public and Trump’s lawyers will be allowed to cross-examine them.

House committees have been conducting closed-door depositions of key witnesses for weeks. Democrats and Republicans on those committees are allowed to sit in on the depositions, but Republicans have complained that the process has been secretive and unfair.

Last week, the top U.S. diplomat in Ukraine said in his deposition that Trump had pressured Ukraine for political favors in exchange for a White House meeting and U.S. military aid. On Tuesday, the National Security Council’s Ukraine expert told lawmakers that the White House had altered parts of a rough transcript of Trump’s July phone call with Ukraine’s leader.

Democrats want the transition to open hearings to happen quickly, because they are trying to hold a final vote on impeachment before the 2020 campaign gets into full swing.