Democratic Rep. Dan Kildee (Mich.) on Monday played down talk of Democrats moving to impeach President Donald Trump if they regain a majority in Congress in 2018, saying that lawmakers should focus on "getting things done" rather than ousting Trump from office.
CNN host John Berman noted to Kildee that some congressional Republicans fear Democrats may try to impeach Trump if they take control of the majority in Congress after the 2018 midterm elections, before asking if Democrats would launch such an effort.
"You know, I think that's an easy argument for them to make. The only way the president is impeached is if he does something that rises to the level of a high crime or misdemeanor," Kildee said. "I think Mr. [Robert] Mueller's probe is going forward. We should let that complete itself. But it's pretty—I think it's a fairly transparent political ploy to try to engage the president's base vote by saying that Democrats who simply want to offer an alternative to what the president is offering would impeach him."
"What we would like to do is work with him; we would like to actually get things done," Kildee added.
Berman then asked Kildee if he has supported any of the impeachment measures that some Democrats have floated or formally proposed. Kildee said he has not, arguing that it is more important for Democrats to work with Trump to pass legislation.
"No, and I don't discount the possibility that it could happen, but I think we have to be really careful to keep in mind that the system of government that we have in place is one that has to be followed, and the law has to govern, and we have to wait and get the facts," Kildee said. "If there are facts that say that the president has risen to that standard, then, of course, we have an obligation to take steps, but right now we really should be focusing on actually trying to get things done."