Following news of President Trump’s latest and most blatant attempt to undermine our democracy, I had to say something.

As a middle school principal, one of the lessons I try to instill in my students is the difference between right and wrong, and how to stand up for what is right. There has never been a more clear cut example of this than right now.

We have a criminal in the White House, breaking the law and violating our Constitution in plain sight. This is not a time for political calculations. We must begin impeachment proceedings against this president -- immediately.

Our leaders in Congress can’t afford to waste any more time worrying about the optics of impeachment, or whether or not it’s going to poll well. It’s time to take immediate action, and impeach this president before he does any more damage to our democracy. 

When I launched my bid for Congress, one of the first things I called for was the long-overdue impeachment of President Trump. I was glad to see that, weeks later, my opponent followed my lead, but this is something that should have been done long ago. Rep. Eliot Engel should have used his position of power to persuade Speaker Nancy Pelosi to do the right thing. Rep. Engel should have used the power of his congressional seat to fight for the people and serve as their voice, not to wait and follow others. 

President Trump needs to be held accountable and our democracy and the Constitution need to be protected. When I’m elected to Congress, I won’t wait to act until I no longer have a choice. I will do what’s right, and stand up to President Trump or any president who thinks they are above the law, and serve as a voice for our district.