Rep. Maxine Waters (D., Calif.) predicted Tuesday the American people would pressure House Democrats into impeaching President Donald Trump, adding she wished it would happen sooner rather than later.
Waters has called for Trump's impeachment since almost the moment he took office, but Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D., Calif.) has taken a more cautious approach, even in the wake of the Robert Mueller report's findings that some Democrats argue is a roadmap to impeaching Trump for obstruction. Pelosi said Tuesday "we're not there yet."
Agitated with the White House for resisting Democratic subpoenas and calls for Trump's tax returns, MSNBC Hardball host Chris Matthews asked Waters when Democratic leaders like Pelosi and Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D., Md.) would agree Trump was acting like a "king" and had to be impeached.
"I don't know when they will come to that conclusion," Waters said. "This is what I know. I know that as leaders, they have the responsibility to try and hold our caucus together and to try and lead in the best way that they think will help us to be successful. They're going to try and do everything that they can. If they believe that now is not the time for impeachment, they'll keep trying and they'll go down that road. The American people in the final analysis is going to push on the Congress to do the impeachment."
Waters said her office was being flooded with calls for impeachment and she even got shouted at on the street to pursue the measure.
"I think as the level of interest and the level of not putting up with this president any longer comes to the forefront and lays on and leans on and pressures the Congress of the United States, we're going have to do it," she said. "We are going to have to impeach. I just wish it was sooner than later."
Waters tweeted Tuesday "what more do we need," adding the hashtag #impeach45. She said for two years that Mueller would connect the dots to show Trump had conspired with the Russians in their 2016 election meddling efforts. At one point, she said she could "guarantee" Trump was "in collusion with the Russians," but the report concluded otherwise.
Mueller kicked the impeachment ball to the Congress. The Constitution gives the responsibility to Congress to impeach an unfit president - "high crimes and misdemeanors." What more do we need? #impeach45
— Maxine Waters (@RepMaxineWaters) April 23, 2019
Putin & the Kremlin are even now interfering w/ our election systems. They were proven to have undermined our 2016 elections & evidence shows they will do the same in 2020 --ALL in support of Trump. Trump won't criticize or stop them. Congress must stop them & #ImpeachTrump!
— Maxine Waters (@RepMaxineWaters) April 23, 2019