Debbie Wasserman Schultz: Lawbreaker Or Law-Abiding?

Debbie Wasserman Schultz is an American politician who has served in the Florida House of Representatives, the Florida Senate, and as the U.S. representative for Florida's 25th congressional district. She is a member of the Democratic Party and was the former chair of the Democratic National Committee. While her career has been marked by numerous achievements, there have also been questions and controversies surrounding her actions and decisions. This raises the question: has Debbie Wasserman Schultz broken any laws?

Gun control

Debbie Wasserman Schultz is a proponent of gun control legislation. She has co-sponsored and voted for several bills aimed at reducing gun violence, including the Bipartisan Background Checks Act, the Enhanced Background Checks Act, the Protecting Our Kids Act, the Federal Extreme Risk Protection Order Act, and the Assault Weapons Ban of 2022. She has also introduced two bills herself: Jaime's Law, which requires background checks for ammunition purchases, and the School Shooting Safety and Preparedness Act, which aims to prevent school shootings by collecting data and building effective strategies.

Wasserman Schultz has been critical of Republicans for standing in the way of gun control reforms and has emphasised the need to get weapons of war off the streets and keep guns out of the hands of dangerous people. She has also participated in a sit-in with other congressional Democrats to push for a vote on gun control legislation, even after it was defeated in the Senate.

In terms of her voting record, Wasserman Schultz voted against prohibiting product misuse lawsuits on gun manufacturers. She also voted in favour of the Bipartisan Background Checks Act, which establishes new background check requirements for firearm transfers between private parties.

Support for Israel

Debbie Wasserman Schultz is a vocal supporter of Israel. She is the first female Jewish member of Congress from Florida and has been a key figure in strengthening the relationship between the United States and Israel.

Wasserman Schultz has taken a centrist approach to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, supporting a two-state solution and defending Israel's military actions in the Gaza Strip. She has criticised media outlets, such as MSNBC, for their biased coverage of the conflict, arguing that they fail to highlight the threats faced by Israeli citizens from rocket attacks.

In 2014, she supported Israel in the Israel-Gaza conflict and defended the country's military action, despite widespread condemnation and tens of thousands of Palestinian deaths. She also supported former President Trump's decision to recognise Jerusalem as Israel's capital, emphasising her commitment to safeguarding Israel's future as a Jewish and democratic state.

Wasserman Schultz has worked to foster dialogue and cooperation between the United States and Israel. She led a delegation of Congressional colleagues on a trip to the Middle East, aiming to increase understanding of the importance of the Jewish state and the threats it faces. She also emphasised the need for continued communication and strong ties between the two nations, pointing to the recent approval of additional military aid to Israel as evidence of their enduring relationship.

Wasserman Schultz has been a strong advocate for combating antisemitism and was instrumental in passing a resolution to declare May as Jewish American Heritage Month. This resolution, which passed unanimously in both houses of Congress, aimed to reduce bigotry and hate while recognising the significant contributions of American Jews to the nation.

In addition, she has disputed claims that the Democratic Party is anti-Israel, arguing that the House Democratic Caucus is more supportive of Israel than its Republican counterparts. She has also questioned the motivations of those claiming that the Democratic Party is anti-Israel.

Impeachment of Trump

Debbie Wasserman Schultz is an American politician who has served as the U.S. representative for Florida's 25th congressional district since 2005. Wasserman Schultz is a member of the Democratic Party and previously served as the chair of the Democratic National Committee.

Now, onto the impeachment of Donald Trump.

First Impeachment

Donald Trump, the 45th president of the United States, was impeached for the first time on December 18, 2019. The House of Representatives adopted two articles of impeachment against Trump: abuse of power and obstruction of Congress. The impeachment came after a formal House inquiry found that Trump had solicited foreign interference in the 2020 U.S. presidential election and had obstructed the inquiry itself by telling his administration officials to ignore subpoenas for documents and testimony.

The inquiry specifically reported that Trump withheld military aid and an invitation to the White House from Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy to influence Ukraine to announce an investigation into Trump's political opponent, Joe Biden, and to promote a conspiracy theory that Ukraine, not Russia, interfered in the 2016 presidential election.

On February 5, 2020, the Senate voted to acquit Trump on both articles of impeachment. Trump remained in office and went on to be impeached for a second time in 2021.

Second Impeachment

Trump was impeached for the second time on January 13, 2021, one week before his term expired. The House of Representatives adopted one article of impeachment against Trump: incitement of insurrection. This impeachment was in response to the January 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol, in which Trump supporters stormed the Capitol in an attempt to prevent the tabulation of electoral votes and protest Joe Biden's win.

On February 13, 2021, the Senate voted to acquit Trump on the article of impeachment, and he was subsequently replaced by Biden as president.

IT staff accused

In 2017, five IT staffers who worked for over 30 House Democrats, including Debbie Wasserman Schultz, were accused of trying to steal House computer equipment and violating House security policies. As of February 6, 2017, Wasserman Schultz was one of several House members who did not terminate the suspected staffers after the criminal complaints.

In July 2017, one of the accused staffers, Imran Awan, was arrested for making a false statement on a bank loan application. Wasserman Schultz's office fired Awan after his arrest. She later defended her decision not to fire Awan earlier, saying, "I believe that I did the right thing, and I would do it again."

In 2018, federal prosecutors concluded an 18-month investigation into the case. They publicly debunked allegations promoted by conservative media and President Trump, which suggested Awan was a Pakistani operative who stole government secrets with cover from House Democrats. Awan pleaded guilty to making a false statement on a bank loan application, an offence unrelated to his work on Capitol Hill.

According to the New York Times, federal prosecutors found no evidence that Awan had engaged in illegal conduct involving House computer systems.

Mail bomb attempt

In October 2018, a mail bomb was sent to former US Attorney General Eric Holder but delivered to the Florida office of Debbie Wasserman Schultz, whose name and address were on the return labels of all the packages. Similar devices were sent to other influential Democratic politicians at the time. The packages containing the devices, as well as envelopes containing mysterious white powder, also had Schultz's office in Sunrise, Florida, as the sender, but the sender misspelled her name as "Shultz". A similar device was found at Wasserman Schultz's office in Aventura, Florida, on the same day.

The suspect was identified as Florida resident and right-wing conspiracist Cesar Sayoc, who was arrested in Plantation, Florida, on 26 October 2018.

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