Kendra Horn represents Oklahoma’s fifth congressional district, and she is one of a small group of Democrats in the U.S. House of Representatives who does not support the impeachment inquiry into President Trump’s relations with Ukraine.
Horn says she believes the allegations against President Trump--that he used his position to solicit election interference from Ukraine’s President Zelensky--should be investigated, but it could have been done through some other process.
“While I didn't support an impeachment inquiry, I certainly know that these are serious allegations that have to be investigated,” Horn said.
Like the other Democratic holdouts, Horn is in a tough political position. She won her seat, which had been held by Republicans for four decades, by less than 1.5 percentage points in 2018. A growing number Republicans have already launched campaigns to unseat Horn in 2020.
The Details So Far
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi called for the impeachment inquiry on Sept. 24, following reports about a phone call between Trump and Zelensky that happened about two months earlier.
“The president has admitted to asking the president of Ukraine to take actions which would benefit him politically,” Pelosi said.
Since Pelosi's announcement, two documents have emerged at the center of the impeachment inquiry.
A whistleblower complaint about a call between Trump and Zelensky that was initially withheld from Congress and a White House memo documenting the call, which had been stored in a computer system meant to lock down top secret security information, were made public in the days following Pelosi’s announcement. According to the memo, Trump asked Zelensky to do him a “favor” by looking into alleged corruption by Democratic Presidential candidate Joe Biden and his son. Prior to the call military aid that Ukraine depends on to defend against Russian invasion was frozen.
The House Intelligence Committee, which has been tasked with carrying out the impeachment inquiry, is now collecting more evidence about Trump’s actions. Horn declined to say what would convince her the President’s actions warrant removal from office, and she called questions about impeachment “premature.”
“We'll see what they come out with, and I'll make decisions at that point.”
What Are Oklahoma’s Other U.S. Representatives Saying?
Horn’s wait-and-see approach is a similar message to her Republican counterpart Rep. Tom Cole, who represents the state’s fourth district.
In a video posted to Twitter Sept. 27, Cole urged viewers “not to rush to any judgments.”
“Let the hearings proceed. Let the information come out. And then make a considered judgment.” Cole said. “But I do think at some point the House probably will vote before the end of the calendar year on whether or not to proceed to actually impeach the president of the United States.”
Two other Republicans in Oklahoma’s Congressional delegation, Rep. Markwayne Mullin and Rep. Kevin Hern, have voiced strong opposition to the impeachment inquiry.
“Nancy Pelosi has brought the House to a new low with the impeachment inquiry,” tweeted Mullin.
Rep. Hern told KFAQ, “This is all about the election next year.” He predicts the effort to impeach the president will fail.
Rep. Frank Lucas has not commented on the impeachment inquiry since calling for the Trump administration to release the memo and whistleblower complaint.
