People Post is a space for opinion pieces, letters to the editor and guest submissions from members of the Long Beach community. The following is an op-ed submitted by Congressman Alan Lowenthal, who represents the cities of Long Beach, Lakewood, Signal Hill, Avalon, Los Alamitos, Rossmoor, Cypress, Westminster, Garden Grove, Buena Park, Anaheim, Midway City and Stanton in California’s 47th Congressional District., and does not necessarily reflect the views of the Long Beach Post.

As a member of Congress, I have taken an oath to defend and protect the Constitution.

I believe that I, along with my colleagues in the House, upheld our oaths in voting to impeach President Donald Trump.

The facts in this case are as simple as they are tragic. Witness after witness—non-partisan government employees, a respected military member, even the president’s handpicked ambassador—attested to these facts. No one has credibly refuted them.

The facts are that President Trump in his call to Ukraine President Zelensky tried to coerce Ukraine to interfere in the 2020 U.S. presidential election. President Trump—in direct violation of the law and his own oath of office—used the power of the presidency for his own personal political gain.

What was the bribe he attempted to use to get cooperation from President Zelensky? It was nearly $400 million in military aid already approved by Congress and signed off on by the Pentagon and State Department. By withholding this desperately needed aid, the president undermined our ally Ukraine in the midst of their ongoing struggle with Russia.

In aiding Russia and weakening Ukraine, the president also undermined our own national security. And when President Trump got caught, the president attempted to cover up the crime and shut down any investigation by obstructing Congress, a coequal branch of government. He directly ordered White House and federal agency officers to ignore lawful subpoenas from Congress. He refused—and ordered others to refuse—to turn over documents legally requested by Congress.

At every turn, the president’s response to the House’s use of its Constitutional powers of oversight was to obstruct.  The most concerning thing is that the president, despite being caught, despite being shown to violate the law, despite being impeached, continues with the scheme of convincing Ukrainian officials to smear the president’s political opponents. The crime continues.

There is overwhelming evidence that this president poses an urgent and ongoing threat to our elections, national security, and the rule of law.

In order for House Members to uphold their oaths to the Constitution, we had no alternative but to impeach the president. Our constitutional republic and democratic form of government are at stake.