(SAN FRANCISCO, December 21, 2017)—The following is a statement by Need to Impeach Founder Tom Steyer after at least 171 members of Congress announced their support for Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 Presidential election:

“For months, the American people have been calling on Congress to take a stand in defense of democracy and the bedrock principles on which this country was founded. Today’s announcement is a hopeful sign that members of Congress are starting to understand the urgency of our message.

But let’s be clear: Donald Trump has already passed the threshold for impeachment. You know it, we know it, and so do members of Congress. Up to this point, the people we elected to represent us in Washington D.C. have offered countless excuses for not backing impeachment. There is no time left for continued ambivalence. Trump has committed multiple impeachable offenses, including obstruction of justice—which he admitted to on TV and in a tweet.

Members of Congress have a duty to each of us to stop this recklessly unfit president. Continuing to delay on impeachment leaves the foundational pillars of our country and American lives in jeopardy. If Republican and Democratic leaders will not rise to the occasion and hold the president accountable, the people will rise up to replace them with representatives who will.”