Top Dem Donor Calls On Lawmakers To Take Up Trump Impeachment

One of the Democratic Party’s top donors is urging lawmakers to begin impeachment proceedings for President Donald Trump.

Tom Steyer, the wealthy environmentalist turned super PAC funder, has penned a letter laying out the case that Trump has met the definition of obstruction of justice, and compelling lawmakers to act accordingly.

"The clear and undisputed facts about Mr. Trump’s attempt to impede an FBI investigation demand an immediate impeachment inquiry by the House of Representatives,” Steyer writes. "The facts that we know already exceed standards for presidential impeachment for obstruction of justice set in 1974 and 1998.”

Written as a plea to Republicans, Steyer’s letter is likely to fall on deaf ears. GOP lawmakers tend not to take directives from major Democratic funders. But within Democratic circles, it represents an important legitimization of the impeachment push.  

To date, Democratic leadership has left impeachment talk to the far corners of the party, fearful that anything more would risk turning off voters. Indeed, operatives tasked with regaining seats in Congress have openly stated that they prefer that discussion be on health care reform rather than removing the president from office.

Steyer isn’t part of the party fringe. He is a major player within the moneyed ranks. And in stating forcefully that he believes Trump has met the standards of impeachment, he is signaling to lawmakers that there is support for the idea not just among their grassroots supporters but among the donor class too.