'An Astonishing Breach Of Precedent . . . Invalid'

This evening, the White House sent an eight-page letter to Speaker Nancy Pelosi and other House Democrat leaders, responding to the unprecedented, unconstitutional “impeachment inquiry” launched against President Donald J. Trump. The letter, written by White House Counsel Pat Cipollone, lays out how Democrat leaders designed a politically motivated inquiry that violates the constitutionally mandated due process protections:      You have denied the President the right to cross-examine witnesses, to call witnesses, to receive transcripts of testimony, to have access to evidence, to have counsel present, and many other basic rights guaranteed to all Americans. You have conducted your proceedings in secret. You have violated civil liberties and the separation of powers by threatening Executive Branch officials, claiming that you will seek to punish those who exercise fundamental constitutional rights and prerogatives. All of this violates the Constitution, the rule of law, and every past precedent. Never before in our history has the House of Representatives—under the control of either political party—taken the American people down the dangerous path you seem determined to pursue.   The facts are clear. The House Democrats’ “impeachment inquiry,” undertaken without a single vote of authorization by the full House—an astonishing breach of precedent—is constitutionally invalid and violates both basic due process rights and the separation of powers. By the admission of its own advocates in Congress, it plainly seeks to reverse the election of 2016 and to influence the election of 2020. Not only is there no legitimate basis for the inquiry, but the committees’ actions in pursuing it themselves raise serious questions that demand full transparency with the American people.   Read the White House’s full response to Speaker Pelosi and Democrat leaders.

How President Trump is securing our border—without Congress’ help  At a White House briefing today, Acting Commissioner of U.S. Customs and Border Protection Mark Morgan announced the fourth straight month of a sharp decline in illegal immigrant apprehensions along America’s southwest border. In September, just over 52,000 apprehensions occurred—a stunning improvement from the 144,000 in May.  Acting Commissioner Morgan: The President’s actions are working. How did this happen? It’s not because Congress finally stepped up after decades of broken promises and inaction. Instead, President Trump combined stricter enforcement of long-neglected laws with tough negotiations between the United States and its neighbors to the south. Today, for example, Mexico is helping to address the flow of illegal caravans that had been marching unimpeded through Mexico to the U.S. border.  Part of this renewed enforcement, of course, includes building the wall. The work is far from finished, however. The underlying cause of our country’s immigration crisis—incentives in our laws to circumvent America’s safe, legal, and fair immigration system—are still there. If Congressional Democrats continue to insist on outsourcing control of our borders to criminal smugglers and cartels, both American citizens and migrant families will suffer. “The bottom line: We still need Congress to pass meaningful legislation to address our broken legal framework when it comes to immigration,” Acting Commissioner Morgan said. “And while Congress has failed to bring a single piece of meaningful legislation to the floor, this President and this Administration is doing exactly what he promised to the American people.” Watch: The media won’t report it, but our Border Patrol officers are saving lives!  Mile by mile: We are building the border wall.

Photo of the Day

Official White House Photo by Joyce N. Boghosian

President Trump returns to the White House following his trip to Walter Reed National Military Medical Center | October 4, 2019