Long Island Rep. Tom Suozzi (D-NY) is warning Democrats not to blow their new political momentum by rushing to impeach President Trump, calling the prospect a “waste of time” that would turn off voters.
“Democrats have got to not squander this opportunity. They won. Now what?” the newly reelected Democrat said during an appearance on radio’s “Cats Roundtable.”
Democrats are expected to use their new majorities to launch sweeping investigations into the Trump administration, including over its handling of the Jeffrey Epstein files, the president’s family business dealings, the White House ballroom project and the administration’s policies surrounding the war with Iran.
Democrats will have expanded subpoena powers and the ability to hold hearings examining alleged abuses of power and corruption, potentially laying the groundwork for a third impeachment of Trump.
Suozzi urged his party to prioritize kitchen-table issues like affordability and the economy rather than make impeachment a central focus of their newly gained congressional power.
“You’ve got to spend 75% of your time on affordability and fixing the problems we face, and 25% of your time on your constitutional mandate to do oversight,” he said.
“But it would be stupid to rush into … impeachment,” Suozzi added. “That would be a waste of time. It would turn everybody off. Focus on solving problems that affect real people’s lives.”
The moderate Dem also implored his fellow party members to pursue bipartisan solutions and resist pressure from the party’s progressive wing to move further left.
“We are capitalists, not socialists. We’re for safety, not lawlessness. We’re mainstream, not extreme. We’re proud, not ashamed, of America,” Suozzi said.
Suozzi argued his party needs to return its traditional working-class roots and focus on rebuilding the middle class, saying Americans should be able to afford a home, raise a family, maintain health insurance and retire comfortably after years of hard work.
“I’m a new kind of old-fashioned Democrat,” he said, adding that the party needs to get back to “rewarding hard work.”
Suozzi also backed House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries for speaker, warning that efforts by progressive Democrats to deny the New Yorker the position would be “a big mistake.”
“Hakeem Jeffries is a very competent, capable, talented leader. I support him,” Suozzi said, arguing that having Jeffries, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, and Trump all with ties to New York presented a “great opportunity for New York to get things done.”
Suozzi also noted that Trump had contributed to his campaign when he was Nassau County executive.
“It’s not red versus blue. It’s red, white, and blue,” Suozzi added, making the case for Democrats to put governing ahead of partisan fights.
Trump previously warned Republicans in January that losing the midterms could put him in trouble, saying “they’ll find a reason to impeach me. I’ll get impeached.”
Following the Democratic victories, Trump told the Washington Examiner that he was “not even a little bit” concerned about impeachment efforts, stating the move would “destroy the Democrat Party.”
