MANCHESTER, N.H. — Joe Biden on Wednesday called for President Trump’s impeachment, saying the president has “already convicted himself” in a pair of fiery speeches that left New Hampshire voters struck by the former vice president’s sudden fervor after weeks of avoiding the issue.
“With his words and actions, President Trump has indicted himself by obstructing justice, refusing to comply with the congressional inquiry. He’s already convicted himself in the full view of the world and the American people. Donald Trump has violated his oath of office, betrayed his nation and committed impeachable acts,” Biden said in Rochester. He said the president was “shooting holes in the Constitution” and “should be impeached.”
The House opened an impeachment inquiry into Trump after a whistleblower report claimed the president pressured Ukraine’s leader to investigate presidential rival Biden and his son Hunter during a summer phone call. Trump since publicly called on China to do the same, citing claims Biden threatened to withhold $1 billion in foreign aid unless Ukraine got rid of a prosecutor allegedly investigating the energy company that Hunter Biden was associated with.
“Folks, he’s targeted me and my family with lies and distortions and smears,” Biden said. “And that’s all they are, because he thinks he will undermine my candidacy for the nomination as well as the presidency if I am the nominee.”
Biden sought to differentiate his and Trump’s dealings with Ukraine, saying, “What I did was seek to replace a weak prosecutor with one who we hoped would go after corruption, corruption that was holding Ukraine back. … What Trump did was hold hostage the political support and hundreds of millions of dollars in desperately needed aid to a country at war to advance his own political demands.”
Trump responded on Twitter: “So pathetic to see Sleepy Joe Biden, who with his son, Hunter, and to the detriment of the American Taxpayer, has ripped off at least two countries for millions of dollars, calling for my impeachment – and I did nothing wrong.” The Republican National Committee staged a protest outside Biden’s evening event at the McIntyre Ski Area in Manchester.
But Manchester Democrat Elaine D’Alessandro was glad to hear Biden take a stand regardless of his family’s involvement in Ukraine, saying, “I understand why he didn’t speak out initially, because all of the news about him and his son. And he was waiting for Trump to implode on his own.”
Kathy Hoey, an undecided Manchester Democrat, said, “Finally, he’s found his voice.”
Some voters said Trump’s attacks on Biden were the president’s latest attempt to divert attention from the scandals looming over his administration.
Dylan Carney, a Dover independent, said the Biden family’s involvement in Ukraine was symptomatic of a larger issue in national politics and needs “to be dealt with, but it shouldn’t counteract Trump being impeached.”
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