Pennsylvania lawmaker tells governor to resign or face impeachment
Pennsylvania Rep. Daryl Metcalfe, R-Butler
(The Center Square) – Butler County Republican Rep. Daryl Metcalfe asked Gov. Tom Wolf to step down on Thursday before the Legislature pursues impeachment.
This, after Wolf and the Department of Health tightened restrictions on bars and restaurants amid a surge in COVID-19 cases.
“Following the shame and struggles you have placed upon the state, we ask that you save us further strife by resigning on your own accord,” Metcalfe said in a letter to the administration. “Your further authoritarian dictates, as of yesterday, have only strengthened our resolve.”
Metcalfe, one of the most outspoken GOP members against Wolf’s handling of the coronavirus pandemic, said the administration’s heavy-handed shutdowns and continued mitigation efforts have strengthened support for the articles of impeachment he introduced via House Resolution 915 last month.
“Through your executive actions you have endangered the lives and livelihoods of Pennsylvanians from all walks of life,” he said. “Had you followed the rule of law, conferred with the co-equal branches of government, respected the Constitution, and acknowledged the need for the consent of the governed, the confusing Orwellian predicament we currently face could have been avoided.”
Some 25 lawmakers signed onto the resolution, though it has languished in the House Judiciary Committee since June 23.
The Center Square reached out to the administration for comment on the letter, but received no response. Lyndsay Kensinger, Wolf’s spokesperson, dismissed the impeachment articles as a political stunt in a media statement last month.
“In the last weeks, House Republicans have continued their efforts to divide the commonwealth and score cheap political points instead of taking the challenge before them seriously,” she said. “This is just the latest example of the House Republicans wasting time instead of helping to protect Pennsylvanians during this public health crisis.”
It’s not the first articles of impeachment to be filed against Wolf during his six years in office. None have ever come up for a vote, despite a persistent and strong conservative majority in the House of Representatives.
