Washington, D.C. – House Judiciary Committee Chairman-Elect Lamar Smith (R-Texas) today applauded the Senate vote to convict Judge G. Thomas Porteous, Jr. on four articles of impeachment.
Chairman-Elect Smith: “After two and half years, I am pleased that justice has finally been served for Judge G. Thomas Porteous, Jr. The Senate has convicted Porteous on all four articles of impeachment. Today’s vote is in part due to the tireless efforts of the House Judiciary Committee’s Impeachment Task Force, which led a thorough and bipartisan investigation into allegations against Porteous.
“Though judges rule on the law, they are not above the law. To preserve equality and fairness in our constitutional democracy, we must protect the integrity of the courts. It is clear that Judge Porteous’s actions violated the American people’s trust and threatened the integrity of the federal bench.
“The American people deserve better from their federal judges. And today, Congress sent a clear message that we will protect the federal judiciary from those who seek abuse its power.
“Today’s vote should send a message of encouragement to the great majority of judges who serve our nation with distinction. We will not let a few bad actors mar the reputation of others on the federal bench.”
The Constitution grants the House of Representatives the sole power to impeach a sitting federal judge. Only 14 Federal judges have been impeached by the House in our entire Nation’s history, with four of these occurring in the past 24 years.
Congressmen Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) and Bob Goodlatte (R-Va.) led the Committee’s Impeachment Task Force.
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