Friends,

I remain in disbelief that just three days after I stood in the Capitol and swore an oath to the Constitution of the United States as the Congresswoman for Illinois’ Third District, my staff and I were forced to shelter in place as that very same building was broken into, vandalized, and desecrated.

This was not just a violent mob. These were domestic terrorists incited to insurrection by our president’s repeated efforts to overturn the results of a legitimate election and betray the will of the American people.

We do not have the luxury of waiting another week for Trump to leave office -- for the safety of this country, he must be immediately removed from office through the invocation of the 25th Amendment and impeached by the House of Representatives.

I am committed to upholding my sworn oath to support and defend the Constitution against all enemies, foreign and domestic. Our government must take swift and forceful action to ensure he cannot perpetrate further harm -- sign on to join me in demanding Trump’s immediate removal from office.

Our nation needs to heal -- but healing will not happen until President Trump and his Republican allies in Washington are held accountable for their betrayal of our democracy.

We will not back down,

Marie Newman