Let’s show Congress how it’s done.

Indivisible SF and Indivisible East Bay have staged a Model Impeachment Hearing, featuring streamlined presentations of some Articles that we think Congress should consider, to demonstrate to Congress the range of impeachable offenses that we want presidents to be accountable for.

Although we say in the introduction that this is “the full and complete case for impeaching President Donald John Trump,” we’ve actually only covered the tip of the iceberg of Trump’s high crimes and misdemeanors. We have other scripts that we have yet to film, and there’s likely other things we didn’t even think of.

The Model Impeachment Hearing is intended to be replicated by Congress, and also by you. Your Indivisible chapter, theater group, or other band of performers is invited to make your own Model Impeachment Hearing, whether you use our scripts as-is, alter them to expand the scope or refine the case, or come up with entirely new scripts for other facets of the Trump regime. Send those videos to your Members of Congress, and to us.

Below, you’ll find our scripts and our videos. If you stage a Model Impeachment Hearing of your own, send us the links to your videos and we’ll include them in our list (subject to our own discretion, of course).

Modules

Introduction

Racist bigotry

Anti-LGBTQ+ bigotry

Anti-LGBTQ+ bigotry draft Article by Indivisible SF and Indivisible East Bay

Corruption and graft

Threats to national security

Maladministration of our healthcare system

Healthcare script by Indivisible SF and Indivisible East Bay

Destruction of our climate and environment

Conclusion/call to action

Module 0: Introduction

Initial introduction

Chairperson/Presiding member

[Bangs gavel thrice] I hereby call the Indivisible San Francisco and Indivisible East Bay’s Model House Judiciary Committee to order, to hear the full and complete case for impeaching President Donald John Trump.

Representative 2

The goal of these model hearings and draft articles of impeachment is to show the real Congress and the American public that we need impeachment on the full range of Trump’s offenses against the nation, not only on the Ukraine extortion scandal but also on the other unconstitutional, unlawful, and abusive things that the Trump administration has done that harm the country. We need impeachment in the House on all of these counts as a way to protect the country, to seek justice for everyone, and to convince the public and the Senate to support conviction and removal from office, in order for us to rebuild our democracy.

Representative 3

These model impeachment hearings are a simplified, dramatized version of what we want Congress to do. In this presentation, we are disregarding having Democratic and Republican parties. For time and clarity, we are only presenting the case in favor of impeachment. We will present each article in a separate video of a hearing or presentation. The volunteer activists in these videos will portray the roles of congresspeople, staff, and witnesses.

Chairperson/Presiding member

Our videos include additional introductory presentations, model hearings on articles of impeachment, and article presentations. The introductory videos will explain what’s impeachable according to the Constitution and how that applies for today. The model hearing and article presentation videos will show you the charges and the evidence. Note that these videos only cover a few of the many potential articles of impeachment.

After watching this, we hope that you will support impeachment on the full range of counts, like we do. Maybe you’ll be inspired to create your own videos! At the very least, we encourage you to call your members of Congress to let them know that you support impeachment and removal from office. It’s worth it to help save democracy.

Constitutional basis for impeachment

Chairperson/Presiding member

In this video we will cover just the few parts of the Constitution that are about impeachment. The Constitution is what’s called a social contract. As the understanding that you and everyone in the United States takes part in, it’s what makes the government legitimate. It means that government officials can only exercise authority in ways that do not violate what the Constitution says, or else what they are doing is illegitimate.

The language is pretty short and easy to understand, and we’re only looking at the few parts about impeachment here. Let’s dive right into it with the preamble, which is the part that says what the point of having a government is meant to be. I’ll call on the clerk to read the preamble:

Clerk

We the people of the United States, in order to form a more perfect union, establish justice, insure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.

Chairperson/Presiding member

That’s all pretty clear for the overall goal of the government, which is supposed to work on our behalf.

Now let’s get into what government officials swear to do. I’ll call on the clerk to read the presidential oath of office:

Clerk

“I do solemnly swear that I will faithfully execute the office of President of the United States, and will to the best of my ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States.”

Chairperson/Presiding member

That means that the President has given us his word that he will abide by the Constitution and that he will carry out what it says with what he does.

Next I’ll ask the clerk to read a short part about presidential duties called the take care clause:

Clerk

He shall take care that the laws be faithfully executed.

Chairperson/Presiding member

That requires the president, as the head of the executive branch of the federal government, to carry out the laws that Congress has passed and that he and earlier presidents have signed. It is not optional; he has to do what the laws say to do, or else he is not fulfilling his sworn duties.

Let’s not leave out Congress and the rest of the government. I’ll ask the clerk to read about their oaths of office:

Clerk

The Senators and Representatives, and all executive and judicial officers, shall be bound by oath or affirmation to support this Constitution.

Chairperson/Presiding member

When it comes to Congress, that sworn duty isn’t just about what kinds of laws they pass. It also goes for holding other government officials to account, including by impeachment and removal.

Now let’s get to the specifics on impeachment. The clerk will read about the grounds for removal from office:

Clerk

The President, Vice President, and all civil officers of the United States, shall be removed from office on impeachment for, and conviction of, treason, bribery, or other high crimes and misdemeanors.

Chairperson/Presiding member

So there it is. Treason and bribery are pretty specific, but we’ll get back to high crimes and misdemeanors in a moment.

Next the clerk will read about the power of impeachment:

Clerk

The House of Representatives shall have the sole power of impeachment.

Chairperson/Presiding member

That’s really important. First of all, let’s be clear that what impeachment means is when the House brings charges against a government official. When that happens, that’s what it is for someone to be impeached, the filing of the charges. As we’ll see, the trial and conviction would happen after that, in the Senate.

Representative 2

But also, what it means for the House to have the sole power of impeachment is that the representatives are the ones who decide what is impeachable or not. They decide whether the president has done things that are serious enough for them to file charges against him. No one else gets to intervene, not the Department of Justice in the executive branch, not the courts, not even the Supreme Court. It’s up to the members of the House, on their own authority, unreviewable by anyone else.

Let’s be clear that high crimes and misdemeanors aren’t just about when the president breaks a regular law on the books with a criminal penalty attached to it, like if he assaults someone or if he violates a subpoena. That can be grounds for removal, if it’s serious enough, but there are many more things that are impeachable than that. It can also be for things like:

dereliction of duty during an emergency,
refusal to carry out duly passed laws,
defiance of a lawful court order to the administration,
or the misuse of government assets.

Just to name a few examples, in the past Congress has impeached judges for things like:

using their office for personal profit,
showing favoritism from the bench,
disclosing confidential information,
or being habitually drunk at work.

Of course you don’t want Congress to remove a president just because they disagree about policy preferences. That’s what elections, lawmaking, and politics are for.

But remember, Congress is the legislative branch, and the president is the head of the executive branch. Congress is supposed to write the laws, and the president is supposed to carry them out.

If the president acts against the law, or against the constitutional framework, or even directly against the country, then it’s up to the representatives to decide that that is what’s happening, and it’s up to them to pass articles of impeachment.

Chairperson/Presiding member

Now let’s get to what the Senate would do. The clerk will read about the trial:

Clerk

The Senate shall have the sole power to try all impeachments. When sitting for that purpose, they shall be on oath or affirmation. When the President of the United States is tried, the Chief Justice shall preside, and no person shall be convicted without the concurrence of two thirds of the members present.

Judgment in cases of impeachment shall not extend further than to removal from office and disqualification to hold and enjoy any office of honor, trust, or profit under the United States, but the party convicted shall nevertheless be liable and subject to indictment, trial, judgment and punishment, according to law.

Chairperson/Presiding member

Here’s where we see that impeachment and removal is about protecting the country, not about punishing the president. If the president is removed for ordinary crimes, those can still be tried separately in the regular justice system.

Finally, the clerk will read about how the president can’t undo it if Congress impeaches an official:

Clerk

The President shall have power to grant reprieves and pardons for offenses against the United States, except in cases of impeachment.

Chairperson/Presiding member

That wraps up what the Constitution says about impeachment. As you can see, the representatives have a lot of leeway to decide what is impeachable, but they also have the sworn duty to act to protect the country. The representatives can charge a president for offenses like constitutional violations, incompetence, negligence of duty, or abuse of power, and in turn the senators have a sworn duty to convict and remove a president who is doing these things.

Module 1: Racist bigotry

Chairperson

This is the Indivisible San Francisco/Indivisible East Bay model impeachment hearing on an article of impeachment for racism and bigotry. We are taking the roles of participants in a hearing by the House Judiciary Committee on one of the many articles of impeachment for President Trump. This is an abridged model hearing, without parties or opposition. Impeachment is not just for regular crimes but also for abuses of power and for failures of responsibility. We believe that the real Congress must impeach on all of the president’s offenses in order to protect the country, for justice for all, and to rebuild our democracy. Now, on to the model hearing.

Representative __________ will preside over the hearing of the Article of Impeachment on racist and bigoted policies and acts.

Presiding member

Thank you Chair _____ __________. The clerk will read the Article.

Clerk

In his conduct of the office of President of the United States, Donald John Trump, in violation of his constitutional oath to faithfully execute his office and to preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution of the United States, and in violation of his constitutional duty to take care that the laws be faithfully executed, has repeatedly and severely harmed the country, its people, and immigrants with a wide array of racist and bigoted statements and policies. He subverted democracy and justice for partisan and hateful ends as he deliberately sought to divide the American people by race, national origin, and religion. This abusive conduct included the following offenses:

The president made racist and bigoted public statements.
The president advocated racist and bigoted acts of illegal violence and abuse by government personnel and by the public, and he abused the pardon power.
The president falsely declared emergencies, misappropriated funds, used government resources for political purposes, and directed persecution against immigrants, refugees, and asylum seekers.
The president directed purposeful maladministration of the asylum and immigration process.
The president directed mistreatment and torture of immigrants in detention.
The president directed the purposeful separation of children from their families, including permanent separation.
The president withheld and corrupted hurricane emergency disaster relief to the US territory of Puerto Rico.
The president banned travel from Muslim-majority countries specifically.

These abuses of power are of sufficient gravity to merit Mr. Trump’s removal from office.

Presiding member

Thank you. The charges make up a frankly horrifying list of abuses. The president’s incredibly damaging pattern of racism and bigotry will become even clearer as the witnesses present evidence.

I call upon the first witness to testify about the president’s racist and anti-Semitic public statements.

Witness 1

At the president’s campaign announcement in 2015, he said of immigrants from Mexico, quote, “they're bringing drugs, they're bringing crime. They're rapists. And some, I assume, are good people.” He has repeatedly singled out people of color, including members of Congress, for demonization. He called Rep. Elijah Cummings, who has since passed away, a, quote, “brutal bully,” and he called Rep. Cumming’s majority African-American district in Baltimore, quote, “disgusting, rat and rodent infested." He also said of Representatives Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Ilhan Omar, Ayanna Pressley, and Rashida Tlaib, quote, “Why don’t they go back and help fix the totally broken and crime infested places from which they came.” Of note, Omar immigrated from Somalia as a refugee and is now a citizen, and Ocasio-Cortez, Pressley, and Tlaib were born in the US.

The president called El Salvador, Haiti, and African nations generally, quote, “shithole countries” while also saying, quote, “We should have more people from Norway.” He said that Democrats want, quote, “illegal immigrants to pour into and infest our Country,” and he repeatedly labeled a so-called “caravan” of immigrants from Latin America a, quote, “invasion.”

The president said that American Jews who vote for Democrats, which is a majority of them, show, quote, “either a total lack of knowledge or great disloyalty.” He said to a group of Jewish political donors, quote, "Is there anybody that doesn't renegotiate deals in this room? This room negotiates them, perhaps more than any other room I've ever spoken in." He also said, quote, "You're not going to support me because I don't want your money. Isn't it crazy?" These comments follow well-known anti-Semitic themes.

Presiding member

It is an understatement to say that those statements shock the conscience.

In what ways has the president advocated racist and bigoted violence and abuse by government personnel?

Witness 1

He asked the nation to study a false legend that General Pershing executed Muslim prisoners of war en masse using bullets dipped in pig’s blood. He meant it not as a cautionary tale but as an example to follow.

Joe Arpaio, who has a long history of abusive treatment and illegal detention mostly of Latino people, was pardoned by the president of criminal contempt of court. The president said that he issued the pardon because Arpaio was, quote, “convicted for doing his job,” and that, quote, “he kept Arizona safe.”

The president was reported to have promised federal border agents that he would pardon them if they committed illegal abuses. After the president left, in some cases the agents’ superiors told them not to break the law. Also, at a political rally, the president suggested that part of the border could become a free-fire zone against immigrants.

Presiding member

And how has the president incited racist and bigoted violence and abuse by the public?

Witness 1

After neo-Nazis and white supremacists rioted in Charlottesville in 2017, and after one of them killed Heather Heyer and seriously injured 28 people with a car, the president said, quote, “you had some very bad people in that group. But you also had people that were very fine people on both sides.”

While the president was not directly involved in violent racist and bigoted attacks by non-government actors, the pattern of his rhetoric likely has some effect, and violent attacks have increased sharply from the start of his campaign through today. One example was an attack on a synagogue in Pittsburgh in 2018 by an anti-Semitic, anti-immigrant terrorist. An immigrant rights group was meeting there, and the terrorist killed 11 people and injured 6. Also, the anti-immigrant terrorist who went to El Paso in 2019 to shoot dozens of people, killing 20, used the term “invasion” in his manifesto.

Presiding member

Thank you for presenting that deeply troubling evidence.

I now call upon the second witness to discuss more of the president’s policies. How has the president misused government power against immigrants?

Witness 2

Asylum seekers have the right to enter US territory to present themselves and start the application process. Customs and Border Patrol has unlawfully prevented many asylum seekers from entering. For some immigrants who entered without papers, the administration scheduled immigration court appointments at gratuitously remote locations and/or scheduled phantom appointments. In many cases, the administration has prevented lawyers from accessing immigrant clients. Also, for some documented immigrants in the US, even some who have lived here for years and have established careers and families, the administration has found petty and gratuitous grounds to revoke their legal status and to begin deportation procedures. The president has fostered a state of terror for immigrants in this country.

In addition, in order to build a taller border wall as well as to deploy the military to the southern border, the president falsely declared emergencies and then misappropriated funds. He shut down the government, causing widespread harm, in an attempt to get more wall funding. As for the military deployment, it was carried out in advance of the 2018 election, supposedly against the approach of a so-called caravan of Latin American immigrants, and then it was ended around the time of the election.

Presiding member

What do we know about the mistreatment and abuse of immigrants in detention?

Witness 2

CBP often confines newly-apprehended people in inhumane and torturous conditions. In some facilities the temperature is so cold that they are known as hieleras [ee-lair-ahs], or iceboxes. CBP often provides grossly inadequate medical care or flat-out refuses to provide it, leading to several deaths, including children. In many CBP facilities, the lights are on in the confinement areas all night. CBP regularly provides grossly inadequate resources for eating, drinking, bathing, sleeping, clothes washing, and other basic necessities of healthy life. The issue is not a matter of lack of resources, since CBP could simply not detain these people. In several instances the administration blocked members of Congress from seeing these facilities.

Meanwhile, CPB detains many children beyond the maximum time allowed by the court-ordered Flores Agreement and has also purposefully been separating them from their families. Often immigrant children arrive with relatives or guardians who are not their direct biological parents, and often CPB does not recognize such custodial relationships. In thousands of cases—thousands, even for infants—CPB did not keep records that would allow children and parents to be reunited, something that amounts to live orphaning. Those who are reunited still have suffered severe emotional trauma, and often their relationships with their parents are greatly damaged. Some of the immigrant children are given over to the custody of American foster parents. The issue is not out of a lack of logistical capacity, since, for example, in at least one facility female detainees’ menstrual cycles were systematically tracked, in order to interfere with their reproductive rights.

Presiding member

Those abuses should never occur in a moral, law-abiding administration. We can see horribly troubling echoes of the United States’s past, of things like the forcing of Native American children into adoption and the erasure of Native American culture.

Please now report on the second to last item, what happened with hurricane disaster relief for American citizens in Puerto Rico.

Witness 2

The president dithered on sending material support for Puerto Rico in the aftermath of Hurricane Maria, even though the landfall of the category 4 storm was anticipated well in advance. As the emergency resources available to the administration languished, thousands of people suffered without proper shelter or supplies and in difficult circumstances, and several hundred people died. Even after the president signed into law a bill that Congress passed with disaster relief funding, his administration illegally withheld some of the funds. The president falsely disparaged Puerto Rico as too corrupt to receive aid, an excuse that doesn’t end the legal obligation to send it. Meanwhile some of the funds have been wasted on contracts with political cronies of the administration.

Presiding member

Every preventable death is a tragic injustice. We must hold the administration to account.

Finally, how was the Muslim travel ban an abuse of power?

Witness 2

In his 2016 campaign, Mr. Trump called for a, quote, “total and complete shutdown of Muslims entering the United States.” Once in office, the president ordered an end to travel from 7 Muslim-majority countries, on false or exaggered security claims. Despite later dropping Iraq from the list and then adding travel restrictions on some other countries, and despite that the Supreme Court set aside the president’s bigoted statements to rule to uphold the Muslim travel ban on a 5-to-4 vote, it is indeed a plainly discriminatory practice. It harshly restricts many innocent people’s movements and upends their lives, out of religious and/or racial prejudice.

Presiding member

Thank you. The totality of this evidence is truly shocking. And in terms of discriminatory abuse, with this article we haven’t even covered misogyny toward women, personal sexual assault by the president, or discriminatory policies toward LGBTQ+ people. That is the subject of a whole other article.

Let me emphasize, as disturbing as this hearing has been, the events that we have discussed are real. They have happened and are still happening. These racist and bigoted abuses of power, on top of their clear immorality, also violate the First Amendment’s protection of the freedom of religion, the 5th and 14th Amendments’ guarantees of due process, the 14th Amendment’s guarantee of equal protection before the law, and many other provisions of laws and treaties. We cannot wait for the president to do any more grave harm for us to hold him accountable.

Regardless of all of the other high crimes and misdemeanors that the House of Representatives is investigating, this set of abuses is on its own more than enough to warrant the impeachment, conviction, and removal of Mr. Trump from the presidency.

Chairperson

Thank you Representative _________. We will now vote on the committee recommendation for the article of impeachment on the mistreatment of immigrants. All in favor, say “aye.”

Full committee

Aye.

Chairperson

All opposed, say “nay.”

Full committee

[Silence]

Chairperson

The clerk will record that the “ayes” have it. The Article of Impeachment on the mistreatment of immigrants is hereby referred to the floor of the House with a recommendation of “do pass.” [Bangs gavel]

Thanks for watching. We encourage you to call your US Representative and Senators today to let them know that you support the impeachment and removal of Mr. Trump from office. Please also participate in town halls and impeachment rallies near you. Our system of government only works with your engagement, and your calls really can make a difference.

Module 2: Anti-LGBTQ+ bigotry

Due to time constraints, we haven’t yet written a script for this. In lieu of one, here’s the draft Article that we wrote to start with. We encourage you to build this out into a full script based upon these and other charges, and the format of our scripts on other Articles.

Trump’s Administration has sought to divide the country against LGBTQ+ Americans, to legitimize discrimination against LGBTQ+ Americans on the false pretext of “religious liberty”, to withdraw protections of law and government from LGBTQ+ wherever a rationalization of any sort can be lashed together from the barest set of facts and stolen principles available.

HHS issued a proposed rule to legalize discrimination by adoption and foster agencies against LGBTQ+ Americans seeking to become parents: https://www.sfchronicle.com/nation/article/Proposed-rule-could-allow-adoption-groups-to-14806136.php
HHS issued a proposed rule to revoke anti-discrimination protections from the Affordable Care Act from protecting transgender Americans from discrimination by doctors: https://www.vice.com/en_us/article/qv7zax/doctors-may-soon-be-legally-able-to-refuse-to-treat-trans-people
Appointed Roger Severino, an attorney noted for advocacy in favor of discrimination against transgender people, to a position as a civil rights attorney in HHS: https://www.vice.com/en_us/article/9k9bza/lawyer-who-called-trans-women-biological-men-to-oversee-civil-rights-for-hhs
Banned transgender Americans from serving in the US military: Trump to reinstate US military ban on transgender people

Module 3: Corruption & graft

This script is to be read by two people—for example, two “Representatives”.

Person 1

This is the Indivisible San Francisco/Indivisible East Bay model impeachment hearing on an Article of Impeachment for corruption and graft. We are taking on the roles of participants in a hearing by the House Judiciary Committee on one of the many articles of impeachment for President Trump.

Rather than a full hearing, this is a presentation of a draft article.

Impeachment is not just for regular crimes but also for abuses of power and for failures of responsibility. We believe that the real Congress must impeach on all of the president’s offenses in order to protect the country, for justice for all, and to rebuild our democracy.

Now, on to the Article presentation.

Person 2

In his conduct as President of the United States, Donald John Trump, in violation of his constitutional oath to faithfully execute his office and, to the best of his ability, preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution of the United States; and in violation of his constitutional duty to take care that the laws be faithfully executed; has violated the two Emoluments clauses of the Constitution by using his high office for his own personal political and financial gain, and to enrich his family members and his political supporters.

Furthermore, Donald Trump has appointed to high office persons who are known to be both corrupt and encumbered by serious conflicts of interest and he has been derelict in his duty to oversee and supervise subordinate individuals and departments by failing to require and ensure that those appointees serve the American people rather than themselves, their cronies, and their political donors.

In particular, Donald Trump has:

Person 1

1. Consistently, deliberately, and flagrantly violated the Foreign Emoluments clause of the Constitution by personally profiting from foreign patronage of, investment in, and concessions to, his personal, corporate, and family business interests from the nations, and the leaders of, Russia, China, Turkey, the Philippines, India, Great Britain, Saudi Arabia, Dubai, Brazil, Bulgaria, and Vietnam, Dominican Republic, Panama, among others.

Person 2

2. Consistently, deliberately, and flagrantly violated the Domestic Emoluments clause of the Constitution by personally profiting from American government payments to, patronage of, and concessions to, his personal, corporate, and family business interests including, but not limited to, his real estate empire including Trump Tower, his chains of hotels, golf courses and resorts,

Person 1

3. Consistently and willfully distorted and corrupted American foreign policy with adversaries such as Russia, China, and North Korea, and allies such as Saudi Arabia and Turkey, to benefit his personal political interests and fortune and those of his family and cronies.

Person 2

4. Consistently appointed and retained in office corrupt officials, administrators, and advisers despite their past history of serious ethics violations, flagrant conflicts of interest, and numerous egregious instances of graft, peculation, and corruption.

Person 1

5. Evinced a clear pattern of systematically using interim and acting appointments to circumvent and evade the U.S. Senate's Constitutionally mandated “Advise and Consent” scrutiny of and confirmation of, appointments to high office.

Person 2

6. Endorsed, encouraged, and actively promoted regulatory malfeasance, misfeasance, and nonfeasance by administration officials for the financial benefit of himself, cronies, and Republican Party donors.

Person 1

7. Illegally fired without proper due process, or forced to resign, career administration, intelligence, and law enforcement officials and employees because of their political beliefs or their refusal to enable or countenance corrupt malfeasance and misfeasance.

Person 2

Even setting aside all of the other high crimes and misdemeanors that the House of Representatives is investigating, this set of abuses against the American people and crimes against humanity is on its own more than sufficient to warrant the impeachment, conviction, and removal of Mr. Trump from the presidency.

Therefore, be it RESOLVED that Donald John Trump, President of the United States, has committed high crimes and misdemeanors and that this Article of Impeachment be submitted to the House of Representatives for adoption.

Person 1

Module 4: Threats to national security

Chairperson

This is the Indivisible San Francisco/Indivisible East Bay model impeachment hearing on the Article of Impeachment for abuses of power in foreign policy and national security. We are taking the roles of participants in a hearing by the House Judiciary Committee on one of the many Articles of Impeachment for President Trump. This is a simplified hearing, without parties or opposition. Impeachment is not just for regular crimes but also for abuses of power and for failures of responsibility. We believe that the real Congress must impeach on all of the president’s offenses in order to protect the country, for justice for all, and to rebuild our democracy. Now, on to the model hearing.

Representative __________ will preside over the hearing of the Article of Impeachment on abusing the office of the presidency to conduct foreign policy toward personal benefit of the president’s re-election and against the national interests of the United States of America.

Presiding member

Thank you Chair_____ __________. The clerk will read the article.

Clerk

In his conduct of the office of President of the United States, Donald John Trump, in violation of his constitutional oath to faithfully execute his office and to preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution of the United States, and in violation of his constitutional duty to take care that the laws be faithfully executed, has repeatedly abused the office of the presidency by conducting foreign policy against the national security interests of the United States, against American sovereignty, contrary to law, against democracy and justice, and predominantly in service of his personal agenda, that of re-election and personal enrichment. This conduct included the following offenses:

The president obstructed the investigations and denied the findings of the 2017 Intelligence Community Assessment and Mueller Report that showed that Russian intelligence services engaged in a widespread and systematic attack on US elections in 2016 thereby colluding with the attackers instead of defending our country by supporting these investigations.
The president engaged in abrupt shifts of US foreign policy that put the interests of Putin’s Russia above U.S. national security by
- actively undermining the NATO alliance, contrary to 50 years of US foreign policy,
- subverting US policy of defending the strategically important democratic government of Ukraine against Russian aggression with a myriad of corrupt actions,
- and abruptly abandoning our Kurdish allies in Syria at the request of Turkish President Erdogan, without consulting U.S. military leaders, thus enabling the commission of war crimes and ethnic cleansing, and directly resulting in the expansion of Russian military control and influence in the region.
The president destroyed the US's steady, multilateral leadership role in nuclear arms control with erratic decisions made on his own.
The president repeatedly expressed wholesale public admiration for fascist and authoritarian leaders such as the heads of state of the Philippines, North Korea, Egypt, and Saudi Arabia’s Mohammed bin Salman, contrary to long-standing US foreign policy and values.
The president monetized U.S. foreign policy by not establishing a blind trust to conduct the president’s international business operations.
The president monetized and politicized the U.S. military
The president administered the armed forces in a reckless and incompetent manner, against long-standing international commitments and the interests of democracy, through abrupt and poorly-informed policy changes.
The president maintained the most careless security procedures of any modern administration.

Presiding Member

Thank you.

This is a sobering list of actions that are frightening in their scope and impact on US security, and indeed, on world security.

I’d like to call the first witness to give testimony regarding the actions related to our decreased security due to acquiescing to Russian influence and undermining our intelligence services.

When did national security officials first become alarmed about Mr. Trump’s fundamental misunderstanding of U.S. national security?

Witness 1

In January 2017, the Intelligence Community Assessment announced their unanimous view that Russia’s intelligence services had interfered in the 2016 election. National security professionals saw this as a grave threat to our democratic processes. America was under attack. But Mr. Trump repeatedly called the findings of the IC a hoax, and fired the FBI director after being informed of their investigations into his campaign, which triggered the appointment of Special Counsel Mueller. Rather than supporting Mueller’s work in protecting our country, Mr. Trump derided it as a witch hunt. Mr. Trump preferred to accept Putin’s denials. He engaged in a public and widespread attack on the FBI, firing our leading investigators of Russian organized crime and encouraging his party to demean them publicly. He obstructed the Mueller investigation many times, documented in the Mueller Report. He sent his personal attorney and the US Attorney General on investigations designed to exonerate Putin for his attack on our country.

Our National Security Council and intelligence community viewed Putin as overseeing an outlaw regime. In addition to interfering in U.S. elections, the Kremlin was attempting to kill dissidents abroad, fomenting unrest across the democracies of Europe, and pursuing a zero-sum policy when it comes to the United States, meaning anything that hurt the U.S. and its allies was good for Russia. Yet Mr. Trump ignored their warnings and pursued dramatic changes in US policy as if he were reporting directly to Vladimir Putin.

Presiding Member

What was the first abrupt shift in U.S. foreign policy demonstrated by Mr. Trump?

Witness 1

The NATO alliance has been a cornerstone of U.S. foreign policy for the past 50 years. Mr. Trump has undermined that alliance throughout his tenure, beginning with his first speech at NATO in which he did not affirm Article 5, our mutual defense commitment.

Presiding Member

The United States’ long standing policy has been to support the freedom and independence of Ukraine and its eventual membership in NATO was also changed dramatically, was it not?

Witness 1

Yes. Prior to Mr. Trump’s presidency, both the US House and Senate were committed to assisting Ukraine in defending itself from ongoing attacks by Russia, which included strong bipartisan endorsement of the imposition of sanctions on Russia after its invasion and annexation of Crimea, and providing billions of dollars in military assistance to Ukraine. This policy continued until around 2018, when Mr. Trump created a shadow foreign policy team to bribe and extort Ukraine, as detailed in the House Judiciary Committee’s Articles of Impeachment.

Presiding Member

Can you cite some other examples of Mr. Trump misunderstanding U.S. national security policy of treating Russia as an adversary, to be dealt with carefully and strategically?.

Witness 1

Mr. Trump has openly admired President Putin and promoted his interests to the G-7, going as far to suggest that Russia should be readmitted, even though it is still occupying Crimea. By getting Congress to partially lift sanctions on Oleg Deripaska, to build an aluminum plant in Kentucky, he has benefited Senator McConnell’s re-election efforts. He has defied decades of national security protocol by conducting numerous conversations with President Putin in secret, with no official record of their discussions. We know Mr. Trump has long been interested in building a Trump Tower in Moscow, but do not know the full extent of the leverage President Putin may have over him.

Presiding Member

Thank you.

I’d like to introduce the next Witness, who will testify on the actions concerning nuclear weapons proliferation as well as Mr. Trump supporting and enabling fascist and authoritarian dictators.

The U.S. had been leading the international community in making significant strides toward reducing nuclear weapons proliferation, but it seems as though Mr. Trump has reversed that progress.

Witness 2

Since taking office in 2016, Mr. Trump has dismantled many of the security guardrails that restrained nuclear dangers for decades. He walked away from a successful Iran deal, killed Reagan’s treaty on intermediate-range nuclear weapons and may yet destroy New START – the only remaining limit on American and Russian arsenals.

Mr. Trump switched from threatening Kim Jong Un with “fire and fury” to being “in love,” even though Pyongyang has continued to ignore every effort by the U.S. and its allies to deter it from building a nuclear arsenal. He has only responded mildly to continued missile tests designed to intimidate our allies, Japan and South Korea.

The Trump administration has quietly pursued a wider deal on sharing U.S. nuclear power technology with Saudi Arabia, which aims to build at least two nuclear power plants.

Presiding Member

The U.S. has tried to maintain a positive relationship with Saudi Arabia, but has spoken out when its leaders publicly engaged in brutal conduct. Has Mr. Trump done the same?

Witness 2

Unfortunately, Mr. Trump has continued friendly relations with Saudi Arabia in spite of Mohammed Bin Salman’s role in the assassination of Jamal Khashoggi. He sent thousands of U.S. troops to Saudi Arabia and plans to share sensitive nuclear technology with them in spite of Congress’ reservations due to the Khashoggi assasination. Mr. Trump’s businesses, and those of his son-in-law, have reaped substantial profits from Saudi Arabia.

Presiding Member

U.S. foreign policy has been to encourage democracy in Turkey, as a NATO ally. How has Mr. Trump responded to the installation of Mr. Erdogan, known to be an autocratic ruler?

Witness 2

He has praised and supported President Erdogan and congratulated him on winning a 2017 referendum that allowed him to rule by decree. In 2019, Mr. Trump abruptly ordered U.S. military troops to abandon our Kurdish allies in Syria, enabling the commission of war crimes and ethnic cleansing by Turkish troops, while U.S. troops were still on the ground. In spite of this, Trump recently invited Mr. Erdogan to the White House.

Presiding Member

Is this the extent of Mr. Trump’s enabling of fascist and authoritarian regimes?

Witness 2

No. He has expressed admiration for Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah El Sisi, who rose to power in a bloody coup and civil rights have since been severely and violently curtailed. He has praised Philippine President Duterte despite Duterte’s extrajudicial killings, seemingly compromised by the conflict of interest of the Trump Tower Manila. He has consistently been more friendly toward these and other autocrats than toward our traditional democratic allies.

Presiding Member

Thank you.

I’d like to return to Witness 1 ________ to discuss the President’s monetization, militarization and interference of the US military.

Witness _______, How has Mr. Trump monetized and politicized the U.S. military?

Witness 1

He has exhorted US troops to lobby on his behalf, used them as props for his political campaign videos, and intends to have the Lieutenant he pardoned, against the advice of the Secretary of the Navy, participate in his campaign rallies.

He also directed the US military to use the airport near his Scotland golf course to refuel, thus assisting his resort. He reallocated funding Congress had intended for repairs to US military housing and other military projects to build the wall which he believes will benefit his 2020 campaign.

Presiding Member

Has Mr. Trump also monetized U.S. foreign policy?

Witness 1

Our founding fathers were particularly concerned with the dangers of foreign influence on our government, leading to the inclusion of the Emoluments Clause in our Constitution. This concern has been respected by previous presidents through putting their business interests and property into blind trusts, and presenting their tax returns for review. Mr. Trump has defied that precedent, by staying in close contact with his sons and daughters who were tasked with running his companies. This has enabled foreign governments to seek favorable treatment by patronizing his properties, notably his hotel in Washington D.C. Foreign governments and foreign-government-linked individuals have made hundreds of visits to his properties, and his children have continued international business and won international contracts during his tenure.

Presiding Member

Has Mr. Trump respected the US Military’s chain of command and discipline?

Witness 1

He has pardoned US personnel convicted of military crimes, which undermined military discipline procedure, justice, and respect for the law. He fired the Secretary of the Navy for publicly opposing the pardon.

In addition, he has impulsively tweeted out military commands, leaving the Pentagon unprepared to competently execute the commands in an orderly fashion.

Presiding Member

Thank you.

And finally, I’d like to return to Witness (2)_________ to discuss national security procedures in this current administration.

Mr. Trump campaigned against Secretary Clinton by exaggerating critiques of her handling of personal email. Has the Trump administration carefully adhered to national security procedures during their tenure in the White House?

Witness 2

The Trump administration has been the most careless about national security procedures of any in recent memory, allowing White House officials, his cabinet and political appointees to conduct official business on cell phones, personal email and unofficial applications like WhatsApp.

He revealed top secret Israeli intelligence information to Ambassador Kislyak and Foreign Minister Lavrov, at a meeting in the Oval Office in March 2017, to which a Russian film crew was invited. He has conducted meetings and telephone calls with numerous heads of state that have not been witnessed and transcribed for official U.S.government records, but some of those sensitive conversations were made on cell phones subject to foreign surveillance.

He gave security clearances to Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump and others, overriding the Department of Defense security recommendations.

After meeting with President Putin in Helsinki in 2018, Mr. Trump directed Secretary of State Pompeo to meet with Russian officials to discuss cooperation on cyber-security issues, which was opposed by national security officials, but which appear to have recently resumed.

Presiding member

Thank you.

Our founders, ever concerned with the potential for tyranny posed by unchecked power, designed a governmental system requiring the president to work with Congress to pursue foreign policy and national security goals. The Constitution does not give the President exclusive control over foreign affairs and national security. Article II makes the President the commander-in-chief of the armed forces, but under Article I, Congress has the power to authorize conflicts, to raise and support our forces, to authorize spending on national security and, indeed, a host of other national security and foreign affairs-related matters.

Our Founders were particularly wary of foreign countries gaining leverage over our President and therefore, included bribery among high crimes and misdemeanors warranting impeachment.

The threat is ongoing. If he is not held accountable, Mr. Trump will continue to corrupt U.S. foreign relations and put the country’s national security interests at grave risk. Mr. Trump’s actions are inflicting lasting damage to American alliances, security partnerships, and standing in the world.

Chairperson

Thank you Representative _________. We will now vote on the committee recommendation for the article of impeachment on conducting foreign policy against the national security interests of the US . All in favor, say “aye.”

Committee

Aye.

Chairperson

All opposed, say “nay.”

 Committee:

[Silence]

Chairperson

The clerk will record that the “ayes” have it. The article of impeachment on conducting foreign policy against the national security interests of the US is hereby referred to the floor of the House with a recommendation of “do pass.” [Bangs gavel]

Chairperson

Module 5: Maladministration of our healthcare system

Chairperson

Representative _____ will now preside over the hearing of the article of impeachment on the intentional undermining of Americans’ health care access, affordability and quality.

Presiding member

Thank you Chair_____ __________. The clerk will read the article.

Clerk

In his conduct of the office of President of the United States, Donald Trump, in violation of his sworn oath to faithfully execute his office and to preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution of the United States, and in violation of his constitutional duty to take care that the laws be faithfully executed, has refused to properly administer the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act and has taken systematic measures against the goals for which it was passed, those of health care access, affordability, and quality. This conduct has included the following offenses:

Minutes after taking office, The President signed an Executive Order directing members of his administration to undermine the Affordable Care Act. The Trump Administration has complied with his Executive Order, while ignoring the fact that their actions need to be consistent with the law.
The Affordable Care Act’s intent was to “expand coverage in the individual health insurance market,” Trump and his administration have openly defied that goal and instead sought to limit healthcare coverage through the ACA exchanges.
The Trump administration may have violated the Impoundment Control Act by using funds Congress appropriated for ACA outreach efforts to produce and publicize 23 video testimonials “from people who said they had been ‘burdened by Obamacare,’ including families, health care professionals and small business owners.”
The ACA statute clearly states that the secretary of Health and Human Services may only grant a state waiver request if the state plan “‘will provide coverage that is at least as comprehensive as’ ACA-compliant coverage.” The Trump administration has repeatedly violated this basic restriction by granting state waivers that, for example, impose work requirements on adults seeking medicaid coverage.
The Trump administration has failed to address skyrocketing prices of lifesaving medicines, and blocks efforts from Congress to do so.
Mr. Trump betrays veterans by severely harming and attempting to privatize the Veterans’ Administration’s health system. After putting their bodies on the line for America, veterans are finding themselves without care and with unexpected medical bills.
Under Trump, the Department of Health and Human Services pursues efforts to limit Medicare and Medicaid access, leaving millions without care when they are most vulnerable.
Mr. Trump has attempted to allow medical discrimination based on religious beliefs in violation of separation of church and state.

These instances of maladministration are of sufficient gravity to merit Mr. Trump’s removal from office.

Presiding member

Thank you. As the chief executive of the nation, it is a moral obligation on the President to ensure that Americans have adequate access to healthcare services. Mr. Trump has not only failed in this, but he has failed in his Constitutional obligation to be sure that our laws are faithfully executed by systematically undermining the Affordable Care Act to further his personal ambitions as the leader of the Republican party. Regarding the dismantling of the Affordable Care Act, I call upon the first witness, [Witness 1], to present evidence.

Witness 1

Mere hours after taking office, the president signed an executive order directing members of his administration to undermine the Affordable Care Act. Since then, they have happily complied with that order’s underlying intent while conveniently ignoring the demand that their actions be “consistent with law.” And while the courts have repeatedly affirmed that the president has wide discretionary latitude to decide how to enforce the law, they have not recognized a president’s right to effectively repeal laws through executive action. And that’s essentially what Mr. Trump is doing.

While the ACA’s intent was to “expand coverage in the individual health insurance market,” Trump and his administration have openly defied that goal and instead sought to limit healthcare coverage through the ACA exchanges. As former senior White House staffer Steve Bannon bragged, Trump ended payments to health insurance companies subsidizing health care for the poorest Obamacare customers in order to “blow” up the Affordable Care Act.

The Trump administration also decided to cut the ACA’s marketing budget by 90%, despite robust evidence from a Center for Medicare Services (CMS) study showing “that paid outreach was responsible for 40 percent of all enrollments.” In addition to cutting down on outreach, the administration made it harder for people to find accurate, comprehensive information about the law and its guarantees. No amount of obfuscation could possibly make a convincing case that these actions were undertaken with any goal except to undermine enrollment.

Then there’s the administration’s use of state waivers. While Obamacare made room for state-level innovation through waivers, it set clear parameters. The statute clearly states that the secretary of Health and Human Services may only grant a state waiver request if the state plan “‘will provide coverage that is at least as comprehensive as’ ACA-compliant coverage.” The Trump administration has repeatedly violated this basic restriction by granting state waivers that, for example, impose work requirements on adults seeking medicaid coverage.

Furthermore, the 2017 Republican tax cuts effectively eliminated a penalty that people would have to pay if they did not enroll in health insurance, which has led to a series of court cases aimed at invalidating the entire ACA. Known as the individual mandate, this part of the Affordable Care Act was intended to push people to purchase insurance in order to more evenly distribute health care costs and make covering Americans with chronic illnesses more economically feasible for insurance companies. While the tax law did not undo the individual mandate itself, it made the penalty $0. In doing so, it provided some opponents of the ACA fodder to levy a legal challenge. ((More: https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2019/7/9/20686224/affordable-care-act-constitutional-lawsuit-fifth-circuit-court-texas-district-court)

Under President Trump, the Affordable Care Act is being dismantled. The White House supported the failed repeal effort in Congress in 2017, and retaliated against Sen. McCain when he played a crucial role in stopping the repeal. Under Trump, the DOJ has asked the courts to fully strike down the existing ACA. Such a move would leave millions of people, especially those with pre-existing conditions, uninsured. Mr. Trump has also systematically loosened and rolled back Obama-era restrictions on short-term healthcare plans that don’t meet the Affordable Care Act’s standards. These poorly-regulated plans effectively defraud patients and do not provide adequate coverage. The Trump administration has continued pursuing various avenues of eroding ACA coverage and raising premiums.

Presiding member

Thank you, [Witness 1]. Regarding the failure to address rising drug prices, I call upon the next witness, [Witness 2].

Witness 2

Despite Mr. Trump’s promising to address the price gouging of many drugs, including insulin, the prices are still increasing. Americans continue to spend more than anyone else in the world on medicines. Mr. Trump has not introduced or supported any meaningful policy around decreasing drug prices. The White House has rejected a bill by Speaker Pelosi which would allow Medicare to negotiate drug prices. All the while, Americans are dying from rationing lifesaving medicines which they cannot afford.

The ACA prohibits insurers from imposing lifetime caps on coverage, which were often in the $1 million range -- a relevant consideration when a single drug might now cost that much. The ACA contains these and many other pharmaceutical policy-related provisions. A ruling striking it down would mean that all Americans, not just those in the individual market, would feel the effects.

Presiding member

Thank you, [Witness 2]. Regarding the harm to the Veterans Affairs healthcare system, I call upon the next witness, [Witness 3].

Witness 3

The Trump administration is intentionally harming the Veterans Affairs healthcare system, and betraying veterans in the process, leaving them without care or with surprise bills. In 2017, Mr. Trump mulled an executive order that would close VA hospitals, even stating that he could declare a national emergency to do so. A whistleblower alleged this year that under Trump, the VA abandoned more than 200,000 benefits applications without adequately notifying the veterans who filed them. The VA has also attempted to conceal its extensive privatization efforts under Trump’s leadership. Worse still, it appears that the VA Department policy has been under inappropriate influence from 3 Mar-A-Lago members.

Veterans’ healthcare has also been affected by the Trump Administration undermining the Affordable Care Act. As of 2015, roughly 260,000 nonelderly veterans were enrolled in marketplace plans. At a time when one-third of returning service members from Iraq and Afghanistan are experiencing mental health or cognitive issues, the last thing veterans need is the Trump Administration gutting access to important mental health coverage. But that’s exactly what they’re doing, and they’re doing it while simultaneously attempting to privatize, chronically understaff, and dismantle the VA.

Presiding member

Thank you, [Witness 3]. Regarding the efforts to limit access to Medicaid and Medicare, I call upon the next witness, [Witness 4].

Witness 4

The HHS issued guidance in 2018 to impose work requirements on people getting coverage through the Medicaid expansion. This cruel decision would leave people with physical limitations, or who are unable to find work, unable to get healthcare. In 2019, the OMB issued a proposal lowering the poverty line, which would disqualify millions of people from health coverage among other benefits. Mr. Trump also issued an executive order which could raise Medicare prices.

Presiding member

Thank you, [Witness 4]. Regarding the efforts to allow discrimination in healthcare for religious reasons, I call upon the next witness, [Witness 5].

Witness 5

During his term, HHS issued a proposed rule to revoke anti-discrimination protections from the Affordable Care Act from protecting transgender Americans from discrimination by doctors. Allowing doctors to choose to refuse treatment for patients is extremely dangerous, violates the Hippocratic Oath, and serves as a denial of reliable medical care to vulnerable community. It is also a violation of the Constitutional separation of church and state. Mr. Trump has also allowed employers to deny their workers coverage for contraception for religious reasons.

Chairperson

Thank you Representative _________. It is clear that Mr. Trump and his administration are intentionally preventing millions of Americans from getting the healthcare they need. When it comes to healthcare, the majority of American families find themselves at risk of bankruptcy when they can’t afford healthcare. In the worst cases, they find themselves at the risk of death.

The President’s attacks on the Affordable Care Act are among his most severe and broadly salient offenses, and his actions are arguably impeachable. Specifically, look to Article II, which states that the president must “take care that the laws be faithfully executed.” How to determine what is faithful execution is a matter of ongoing debate, but it is pretty clear that Trump isn’t faithfully administrating the ACA.

As a candidate, Mr. Trump promised Americans affordable, accessible healthcare, and has not only reneged on that promise, but is also allowing and indeed causing healthcare to be further and further out of reach. This demonstrates unacceptable dishonesty and misgovernance. We will now vote on the committee recommendation for the article of impeachment on [subject]. All in favor, say “aye.”

Committee

Aye.

Chairperson

All opposed, say “nay.”

 Committee

[Silence]

Chairperson

The clerk will record that the “ayes” have it. The article of impeachment on the mistreatment of immigrants is hereby referred to the floor of the House with a recommendation of “do pass.” [Bangs gavel]

Module 6: Destruction of our climate and environment

This script is to be read by two people—for example, two “Representatives”.

Person 1

This is the Indivisible San Francisco/Indivisible East Bay model impeachment hearing on an article of impeachment for dereliction of duty in the face of a global climate crisis. We are taking on the roles of participants in a hearing by the House Judiciary Committee on one of the many articles of impeachment for President Trump. Rather than a full hearing, this is a presentation of a draft article.

Now, on to the article presentation.

Person 2

In his conduct as President of the United States, Donald John Trump, in violation of his constitutional oath to faithfully execute his office and, to the best of his ability, preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution of the United States; and in violation of his constitutional duty to take care that the laws be faithfully executed; has in the face of a global climate crisis that presents a clear and present danger to the people of America and humanity in general, been derelict in his duty and violated his oath of office. In particular, in return for political support, campaign contributions, and other forms of bribery, Donald Trump and his administration have:

Person 1

Unilaterally moved to withdraw the United States from the international Paris Agreement to combat global warming and to withdraw from or sabotage other international agreements all of which are needed to defend us from drought, floods, storms, fires, crop failures, and lethal heat waves caused by the climate crisis.

Person 2

Endangered our health and that of our children by weakening, sabotaging, and rolling back more than 85 environmental regulations and protection standards on pollution, toxins, land use, and wetlands protection. Actions that will lead to thousands of premature deaths, hundreds of thousands of additional asthma attacks, greatly increased emergency room visits, hundreds of thousands of missed school and workdays.

Person 1

Refused to adequately investigate, prosecute, or punish scofflaw corporations – many of which are political supporters and campaign donors – that illegally poison our air, water, and soil.

Person 2

Ignored, subverted, sabotaged, corrupted, and politicized, scientific research and research agencies; and suppressed science and health data and information necessary to our common defense against environmental pollution and climate catastrophe.

Person 1

Appointed to regulatory positions clearly corrupt industry-insiders with the obvious intent of enhancing corporate profits over public health and safety.

Person 2

Sold off public lands, minerals, and grazing rights at far below fair-market value to favored cronies and political campaign contributors.

Person 1

Violated previous federal-state agreements, congressional legislative intent, and the traditional rights of state governments by unilaterally and illegally repudiating the right of California and other states to set environmental standards and regulations that are higher or stronger than corresponding federal rules.

Person 2

Failed to adequately prepare for, immediately respond to, and provide relief after, climate emergency disasters, such as hurricanes like Maria that struck Puerto Rico in 2017, the midwest floods of 2018 and 2019, and the deadly California wildfires.

Person 1

Person 2

Module 99: Conclusion/call to action

This appears at the end of each of the Article scripts, as you can see on our examples. If you make any Article scripts of your own, we recommend including this or something like it at the end, to close out the presentation.