Washington state Republicans show courage, vote to impeach Trump. Are we surprised?
On a closely watched national stage when it mattered most, Washington state’s outnumbered Republicans in Congress displayed no small amount of honor and backbone by voting to impeach President Trump.
Two out of three of them did, anyway. Reps. Jaime Herrera Beutler of Southwest Washington and Dan Newhouse of Central Washington both voted “yes” Wednesday on the resolution to impeach Trump for “incitement of insurrection,” unwilling to excuse the reckless rhetoric that preceded last week’s appalling mob attack on the US Capitol.
Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers of Spokane held to form and voted “no,” alone among the 10 representatives from our state.
Perhaps we shouldn’t be surprised that Washington had the largest number of renegade Republicans as this historic moment unfolded — tied with Michigan, which also produced two of the 10 GOP “yes” votes in the decisive roll call.
Our state has a uniquely purple brand of blue-state Republicanism, which gave us stalwart leaders like Dan Evans and Slade Gorton and paved the way for today’s generation of moderates, including Pierce County Executive Bruce Dammeier.
Herrera Beutler, who represents a swing district across the Columbia River from Portland, fits that profile quite well. Many of her constituents no doubt nodded their heads appreciatively as the Battle Ground Republican, recently elected to her sixth term, delivered a rousing speech on the House floor.
“My vote to impeach our sitting president is not a fear-based decision,”she said. “I am not choosing a side. I’m choosing truth. It’s the only way to defeat fear.”
Amen to that.
What’s more surprising (and pleasantly so) is how Newhouse broke ranks when he’s not known as a moderate and has so much to lose.
The Sunnyside Republican, starting his fifth term after serving as state agriculture director, represents a deep-red district where voters gave Trump 59-percent support in November. For Newhouse, voting to impeach was clearly an act of conscience rather than a political calculation.
But if you think this was some kind of 180-degree turnaround after a Democratic altar call, think again. Newhouse called the impeachment process “flawed.” He gave a floor speech that was unabashedly critical of the majority party. “My colleagues are responsible for not condemning rioters this past year, like those who barricaded the doors of the Seattle Police Department and attempted to murder the officers inside,” he said.
In the end, however, Newhouse fixed blame squarely on himself and other Trump apologists for giving oxygen to last week’s uprising; he said they’re “responsible for not speaking out sooner, before the president misinformed and inflamed a violent mob who tore down the American flag and brutally beat Capitol Police officers.”
Newhouse’s vote offers some redemption just a month after he joined McMorris Rodgers in backing a failed Texas lawsuit that tried to overturn election results for Joe Biden in four states. Not complete redemption, however. That shameful assault on election legitimacy and states rights should haunt him.
After Wednesday’s vote, Washington Democratic Rep. Kim Schrier reportedly pulled Newhouse aside and commended his courage. Schrier told the Spokesman Review newspaper that she’s proud of Newhouse and Hererra Beutler for bucking their party and their president.
Indeed, that can’t be an easy thing to do. And to display honor and backbone belatedly is certainly better than not at all.
This story was originally published January 14, 2021 at 3:40 PM.