Local police say they are confident they are prepared for impeachment rallies planned across the region Tuesday evening.
Activists calling for the impeachment and removal of President Trump have scheduled five rallies at locations across the region at 5:30 p.m. on the eve of the U.S. House of Representatives’ historic vote. As of late Monday, about 2,000 people had RSVP’ed to attend rallies in Greensburg, Pittsburgh, Mt. Lebanon, Beaver and Washington, Pa.
The “Nobody Is Above the Law” rallies are among hundreds being planned at various sites across the nation by a coalition of about a dozen organizations including Public Citizen, the Women’s March and the Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington.
“This rally is not about partisan politics. It is about the Constitution and the rule of law. We’re planning a peaceful, family-friendly rally. It is important that we stand up for the rule of law. And, if people disagree with us, we hope they will respect our right to speak out,” Westmoreland County organizer Clare Dooley said.
About 200 people have registered at impeach.org to attend the Greensburg rally in the square outside of the Westmoreland County Courthouse..
Captain Jeffrey Shearer of the county Park Police said his department “will have a sufficient number of officers on duty Tuesday evening.”
In Pittsburgh, where more than 800 people say they will attend the rally at the City-County Building, a spokesman for the city’s Public Safety Department said “steps have been taken to ensure the event is properly staffed.”
In Mt. Lebanon, activists plan to rally front of U.S. Rep. Conor Lamb’s Mt. Lebanon office in support of his announcement that he will vote in favor of impeachment. As of late Monday, nearly 600 people had registered to attend that rally.
Mt. Lebanon Deputy Chief of Police Jason Haberman said his office has been in touch with organizers and is prepared.
Other rally sites include the Washington and Beaver county courthouses.
Similar events are being held in all 50 states and the District of Columbia. Representatives are expected to vote along party lines to approve two articles of impeachment.
The articles charge Trump with abuse of power for his alleged actions in asking Ukraine to investigate political rival Joe Biden in return for military aid, and obstruction of Congress for refusing to respond to subpoenas for records and testimony. Once approved by the full House, the charges go before the Senate for trial.
Activists across the country held similar rallies in November 2018 to protest the ouster of U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions and attacks on Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation of foreign tampering in the 2016 election.
