Data for Progress, a left-learning think tank, is launching a project to raise money for Democrats from swing states who support impeaching President Donald Trump in an effort to protect their congressional seats in 2020.
The “Impeach The Motherfucker Already” fund will benefit House Democrats whose support for impeachment could result in an even tougher uphill battle to reelection since their districts aren’t staunchly Democratic and could swing red in 2020.
At least 16 Democratic campaigns are poised to benefit from the project, with DFP considering adding more as additional lawmakers back impeachment. Contributions will be evenly divided among the campaigns, or individuals can choose how to allocate their donations, according to the fund’s website.
“If swing seat Democrats lose after supporting impeachment, the establishment will say they should have stayed silent,” tweeted DFP co-founder Sean McElwee. “We have to make sure they have the resources to win.”
A handful of the freshman lawmakers listed on the fund, including Reps. Katie Porter (Calif.) and Debbie Mucarsel-Powell (Fla.), endorsed impeachment as early as June. Others voiced their support in July after Robert Mueller testified before Congress about his Russia investigation.
Several more came out in support amid recent reports that Trump repeatedly pressured Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky in July to investigate former Vice President Joe Biden, a Democratic front-runner in the race to challenge Trump’s reelection.
Reps. Elissa Slotkin (Mich.), Elaine Luria (Va.) and Abigail Spanberger (Va.) were part of a group of seven freshman House Democrats to pen an op-ed in The Washington Post on Monday urging Democratic leadership to open an impeachment inquiry in light of Trump’s dealings with Ukraine.
“If these allegations are true, we believe these actions represent an impeachable offense,” they wrote. “We must preserve the checks and balances envisioned by the Founders and restore the trust of the American people in our government.”
After months of resisting calls to purse impeachment, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (Calif.) will reportedly announce a formal impeachment inquiry against Trump on Tuesday.
DFP chose Democrats for the fund based on how strongly their districts supported Trump in 2016, which likely made them the most hesitant to endorse impeachment, McElwee told HuffPost.
“There’s been a lot of concern coming from the establishment of the party that [impeachment] is going to hurt our ability to win the House and I don’t think that’s true,” he said. “But I do think ... there would be a powerful narrative coming out of the establishment like, ’Ah, we never should have impeached’” if some of these Democrats lose reelection.
The project, which raised over $3,000 within three hours of launching, was named for Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-N.Y.) and her rousing if controversial speech in January, in which she vowed Democrats would “impeach the motherfucker.”
“It had a nice ring to it,” McElwee said of the project’s name. “We want this to be something that is data-driven but we also want to convey the moral relevance of the issue, which is we need to impeach the motherfucker.”