There could "very well be criminal charges" from state and local officials in Georgia if President Donald Trump's conversation with Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger was investigated, but it's too close to Inauguration Day to pursue another impeachment of the president, House Majority Whip Jim Clyburn said Tuesday.
"I do believe with only 14 or 15 days left in this presidency it would be a waste of our time here in the House to pursue impeachment," the South Carolina Democrat said on CNN's "New Day." "I suspect if all that I heard on this tape is to be investigated, there could very well be criminal charges brought by state and local governments down there in Georgia, both state and of course Atlanta, and I would hope that that would be pursued. That is something that can be pursued even after January 20."
Instead, he wants the House to concentrate on getting ready for President-elect Joe Biden's administration and on helping the United States get beyond the COVID-19 pandemic.
"We have got to do something within the first 90 to 100 days to get people vaccinated, to get people comfortable with the vaccine," Clyburn said. "That's where I think our energy ought to be."
Meanwhile, the congressional gathering Wednesday to count electoral votes will include Republicans objecting to the electoral slates from some states, and Clyburn said he hopes Democrats will respond in the "dignified way that we have been conducting ourselves so far and to allow the process to roll out."
The Republican objectors can "prolong the process, pontificate, do all the kinds of things that will keep us here hour upon hour, but in the final analysis, this has already been decided," said Clyburn. "These electoral votes have been cast, they have been boxed up, and they will only be opened during this process and the results will be read. We know what the results are. So there's not going to be any change in any of that and for the president to be calling upon the vice president to do something to unravel this is just beyond the pale."
He added that he hopes Vice President Mike Pence, if he has aspirations for the future, will "carry out his responsibilities in a way that's becoming of a vice presidency which would be a tremendous contrast to the way our president is carrying out his duties and responsibilities."
Sandy Fitzgerald ✉
Sandy Fitzgerald has more than three decades in journalism and serves as a general assignment writer for Newsmax covering news, media, and politics.
© 2025 Newsmax. All rights reserved.