Washington, D.C. – Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-San Jose) issued the following statement in response to recent questions about impeachment of the President and Vice-President. Also included below are several links to valuable resources on impeachment that you may find useful.

1974 Judiciary Committee Report on the Constitutional Grounds for Impeachment (pdf)

Letter from Rep. Lofgren to Judiciary Chairman Conyers on Impeachment -- January 2008 (pdf)

I share the view that the President’s polices are making our country less safe, less prosperous, less free and less fair. However, pursuing the impeachment of a federal official demands meeting the requirements of the Constitution.  While politically I think that President Bush and Vice-President Cheney may be the worst in our nation’s history, it is not yet clear that the President’s or Vice-President’s behavior meets the Constitutional standard for removal from office.

I have been involved in two impeachments while working in Washington D.C.  The first was as a staff member to my predecessor Don Edwards during the Nixon impeachment and the second was as a member on the House Judiciary Committee during the Clinton impeachment.  An impeachment inquiry must be firmly rooted in the Constitution, which requires removal from office for “treason, bribery, or other high crimes and misdemeanors.”  I am not hesitant to pursue the remedy of impeachment if a President’s or Vice-President’s conduct reaches this high standard, but I am not willing to proceed without clear and convincing evidence that the standard has been met.

Congresswoman Zoe Lofgren is serving her seventh term in Congress representing most of the City of San Jose and Santa Clara County.  She serves as Chair of the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Immigration, Citizenship, Refugees, Border Security, and International Law. She also Chairs the House Administration Subcommittee on Elections and serves on the House Homeland Security Committee.  Congresswoman Lofgren is Chair of the California Democratic Congressional Delegation consisting of 34 Democratic members of the U.S. House of Representatives from California.