U.S. Rep. Shri Thanedar, D-Detroit, holds a re-election sign as he stands on the sidewalk in the rain near a polling place at Maire Elementary School in Grosse Pointe on Tuesday, Aug. 6, 2024.
Washington D.C. – Rep. Shri Thanedar (D-Mich.) moved Tuesday to force a vote on impeaching President Donald Trump, blindsiding Democratic leadership and prompting sharp criticism from within his own party. Under House rules, the vote on Thanedar’s resolution—which includes seven articles of impeachment—must take place by Thursday.
Thanedar’s move, which comes as he faces a competitive primary challenge in Michigan, caught Democratic leadership off guard. According to several people familiar with internal conversations, Thanedar had previously assured party leaders he would not pursue the vote. But on Tuesday, he reversed course and introduced the measure anyway.
The resolution stands little chance in the GOP-controlled House, and Democrats have widely panned the ordeal as a political distraction. “This is the dumbest f***ing thing. Utterly selfish behavior,” one House Democrat told Axios. Another called it “a waste of f***ing time.”
Thanedar first introduced the articles of impeachment in April, accusing Trump of undermining democracy by defying the Constitution, Congress, and the courts. Trump mocked the effort at a recent Michigan rally, saying, “Some guy I’ve never heard of … is he a congressman? … What the hell did I do? Here we go again.”
The backlash within the Democratic caucus was swift. In a closed-door meeting Wednesday morning, lawmakers expressed frustration that the forced impeachment vote would interrupt their coordinated push against a Republican tax and spending bill. Rep. Jerry Nadler (D-N.Y.), who led the 2019 impeachment of Trump, reportedly called Thanedar’s effort “idiotic.”
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries and his team are particularly frustrated, encouraging vulnerable Democrats to confront Thanedar directly about the disruption. Some Democrats still hope Thanedar will simply not show up to trigger the vote, allowing them to avoid the issue altogether.
Rep. Greg Stanton (D-Ariz.), head of the centrist New Democrat Coalition’s political arm, told CNN, “Any Democrat not focused on getting us to 218 is either wasting our time or helping Republicans.”
Thanedar defended his actions to CNN, saying, “We’re not only going to fight the winning fights, we’re going to do it because it’s the right thing to do.” Asked whether it was a political stunt ahead of his primary, Thanedar dismissed the idea, saying, “Nobody remembers what happened 15 months ago.”
