Sophomore Mischa Trainor, Pro:

I believe that Congress should pursue the impeachment of President Donald J. Trump because our government is responsible for pursuing justice and upholding the values of democracy.

An anonymous government worker (whistleblower) accused President Donald Trump of withholding almost $400 million in aid in order to pressure the President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky into investigating democratic candidate former Vice President Joe Biden and his son Hunter Biden. Following this accusation, House Democrats began an impeachment inquiry against Trump.

If this accusation is accurate and fact-based, then that means that Trump abused his powers as president and threatened our democracy. Therefore, we must look into it.

In order to be a democracy, our elections must remain free and fair and should not involve influence from foreign powers. By using government resources and asking Ukraine to help himself, Trump has destroyed the credibility of our upcoming election.

Some people argue that the impeachment inquiry is not worth the risk because it will be difficult to get a two-thirds person majority in a Republican-held Senate, and it will cause tension between the two parties. However, our elected officials must take this risk in order to make sure that they are doing their job of bettering our country. Our country was built on the value of democracy, and it is key that we maintain it.

Additionally, some argue that Trump is doing a good job as president or that Vice President Mike Pence might be a worse president than Trump. This impeachment inquiry is about making sure that President Trump is obeying the law and respecting our democracy; it is not about picking the president with whom we agree most.

While we do not know for sure whether the accusation of the whistleblower is correct, Congress has the obligation to further investigate the claim in order to maintain our democracy.

Senior Ava Fradlin Ryan, Con:

Since his election, the Democratic Party has been searching for a reason, any reason, to impeach President Trump, despite him being duly elected by the American people. First, it was a two-year investigation into the Russia collusion hoax, where the Mueller report (investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 Presidential Election) did not yield the results for which they had hoped. 

Now, the Democratic Party, headed by the Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), has once again claimed “collusion,” this time launching an official impeachment inquiry. 

Pelosi, along with the left-leaning House of Representatives, claims that during a phone call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, President Trump committed an impeachable offense. Article II, Section 4 of the Constitution defines the basis for impeachment as an act of “treason, bribery or other high crimes and misdemeanors.” President Trump’s request for Ukraine’s assistance is neither illegal nor unusual. According to the 1998 Ukrainian Treaty on Mutual Legal Assistance in Legal Matters, the United States may request cooperation from Ukraine on relevant matters. 

Back in May, President Trump announced that Attorney General Barr was investigating the origins of the Russia collusion hoax, and was working with Australia, Great Britain, and Ukraine on this matter. There is nothing unusual or sordid about our working relationship with other countries on help with foreign matters. In fact, the Criminal Division of the Justice Department has already examined the Trump-Zelensky call and concluded that there was no crime. 

This impeachment probe, which was announced by Pelosi before she even received a transcript of the call, is nothing more than a desperate and a last-ditch effort to undermine the President in the midst of his re-election campaign.