WASHINGTON — Rep. Shri Thanedar, D-Mich., backed off his threat to force a vote Wednesday on his resolution to impeach President Donald Trump, acceding to Democratic leaders who had warned the effort served as a distraction.

Thanedar said he still believed that Trump has committed impeachable offenses, including planning to accept a $400 million luxury jet from Qatar.

But in a statement, he added: “[A]fter talking with many colleagues, I have decided not to force a vote on impeachment today. Instead, I will add to my articles of impeachment and continue to rally the support of both Democrats and Republicans to defend the Constitution with me.”

“This is not about any one person or party; it is about defending America, our Constitution, and Rule of Law,” Thanedar continued. “I will continue to pursue all avenues to put this President on notice and hold him accountable for his many impeachable crimes.”

Hours earlier, Thanedar, who is facing a tough primary challenge from the left, had vowed to press forward and force the impeachment vote, even in the face of vocal opposition from fellow Democrats.

Privately, Democratic leaders were offering him a way out. House GOP leaders gave Thanedar a window where he needed to appear on the House floor and call up his resolution. Democratic leaders urged Thanedar to simply not show up at that time, a Democratic leadership source said.

That’s precisely what Thanedar did. He missed the window, ensuring that no vote on impeachment would happen this week.

Democratic leaders believe an impeachment vote — destined to fail in the GOP-led House — would take focus away from issues like the cuts to Medicaid that are included in Republicans’ sweeping bill for Trump’s agenda.

Thanedar introduced seven articles of impeachment against Trump last month, accusing the president of obstructing justice, abusing executive power and corruption, among other charges.

Earlier in the week, Thanedar had asked for his resolution to be considered “privileged,” which forces leaders in the Republican-led House to bring the measure to the floor within two legislative days.

“So those who are asking me, is this the right time to do it? I say it’s never the wrong time to do the right thing,” Thanedar said at a press conference outside the Capitol Wednesday morning.

The House voted twice to impeach Trump during his first term when Democrats controlled the chamber.

House Republicans were expected to call up the resolution Wednesday evening and then hold a vote to table or kill the resolution. House Democratic leaders were urging their rank-and-file members to vote to table the resolution.

“I have said before from this podium that this is not the right approach we should be taking,” Rep. Pete Aguilar D-Calif., the chair of the House Democratic caucus, told reporters. “I will join members of the leadership team and vote to table that motion.”

Aguilar said Democrats’ focus “is on health care being stripped away from the American people.”

“That is the most urgent and dire thing that we could be talking about this week,” he said. “Everything else is a distraction.”

Even Democrats’ most outspoken Trump critics had been dismissive of Thanedar’s move.

“[R]ight now, I think our central focus is the fact that Republicans are currently working on cutting 13.7 million Americans from health insurance,” said progressive Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y.

On Wednesday afternoon, Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., slammed what he called the Democrats’ “sham impeachment charade.”

“While Democrats are throwing fits, impeding law enforcement, playing political games, and demonstrating how far out of touch they are — Republicans are working to deliver lower taxes for families, restore American energy dominance, strengthen border security, restore peace through strength, and make government work more efficiently and effectively,” Johnson said in a statement. “The contrast has never been more clear.”

NEW You can now listen to Fox News articles!

The House of Representatives voted along bipartisan lines to quash a lone progressive lawmaker’s bid to impeach President Donald Trump Tuesday afternoon.

Lawmakers agreed to table the measure in a 344–79 vote. A vote to table is a procedural mechanism allowing House members to vote against consideration of a bill without having to vote on the bill itself.

The resolution was offered by Rep. Al Green, D-Texas, who was infamously ejected from Trump’s address to a joint session of Congress earlier this year for repeatedly interrupting the president.

A majority of House Democrats joined Republican lawmakers to kill Green’s resolution, a sign of how politically caustic the effort appears to be. Just 79 Democrats voted to proceed with the impeachment vote, while 128 voted to halt it in its tracks.

‘BIG, BEAUTIFUL BILL’ CRACKS DOWN ON BIDEN’S STUDENT LOAN ‘SCHEME,’ TOP REPUBLICAN SAYS

Green, who has threatened to impeach Trump before, said his latest bid is aimed at the president’s strikes on Iran from over the weekend.

“I did not come to Congress to be a bystander while a president abuses power and devolves American democracy into authoritarianism with himself as an authoritarian president,” Green said in a statement Tuesday morning.

“President Trump’s unauthorized bombing of Iran constitutes a de facto declaration of war. No president has the right to drag this nation into war without the authorization of the people’s representatives.”

Other progressives, including Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., called for Trump’s impeachment over the strikes in Iran.

Trump mocked those progressives in a lengthy Truth Social post Tuesday, taunting them to “make my day.”

“She better start worrying about her own Primary, before she thinks about beating our Great Palestinian Senator, Cryin’ Chuck Schumer, whose career is definitely on very thin ice!” Trump wrote. “She and her Democrat friends have just hit the Lowest Poll Numbers in Congressional History, so go ahead and try Impeaching me,” he posted.

The push has put House Democratic leaders in a difficult spot as well. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., sidestepped questions on progressives calling to oust Trump during a press conference Monday.

REPUBLICANS CHALLENGE ‘IRRELEVANT’ BUDGET OFFICE AS IT CRITIQUES TRUMP’S ‘BEAUTIFUL BILL’

“A tool that’s on the table right now is to continue to demand that the administration present itself before the United States Congress and make the case to the American people as to why this extraordinary step has been taken. That’s step one,” Jeffries said.

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

“Step two is for the War Powers Resolution, whether that’s the one that has already been introduced or others that may subsequently be introduced, for those resolutions to be debated on the House floor, as should have occurred already. And then we’ll see where we’re at thereafter.”

Pressed again on whether he was taking calls for Trump’s impeachment seriously, Jeffries said, “This is a dangerous moment that we’re in, and we’ve got to get through what’s in front of us. And what’s in front of us right now is the Trump administration has a responsibility to come to Congress, justify actions for which we’ve seen no evidence to justify its offensive strength in Iran.”

A Michigan Democratic congressman opted not to force a vote on a resolution to impeach President Trump Wednesday in the face of certain defeat and objections from his own colleagues.

Rep. Shri Thanedar (D-Mich.) had until the end of Wednesday’s business to force a vote on his so-called privileged resolution, which contained seven articles of impeachment for alleged crimes including abuse of trade powers, bribery and corruption, obstruction of justice and tyranny.

“After talking with many colleagues, I have decided not to force a vote on impeachment today,” Thanedar, 70, told Politico in a text message. “Instead, I will add to my articles of impeachment and continue to rally the support of both Democrats and Republicans to defend the Constitution with me.”

Had Thanedar called up his resolution, Republicans would have immediately put forward a motion to table — tanking the measure without a direct up-or-down vote — and dozens of Democrats would have gleefully supported it.

3 Rep. Shri Thanedar is facing stiff primary competition in his home district. Getty Images

Thanedar, whose district includes parts of Detroit and its suburbs, announced plans to charge ahead with impeachment articles late last month, shortly after Michigan legislator Donavan McKinney launched a primary challenge against him.

Justice Democrats, a far-left group supportive of socialist Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), has pushed for McKinney, while “Squad” Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.) has also endorsed him.

After announcing his impeachment plans, Thanedar then used taxpayer dollars to plaster a billboard in his district highlighting the effort and held multiple town halls bragging to constituents about his bid to drive Trump out of office.

Democrats fumed at him for putting them on the spot, with caucus chairman Pete Aguilar (D-Calif) grousing to reporters that “this is not the right approach we should be taking.”

3 Democratic leaders did not approve of the effort to impeach President Trump. Getty Images

“Right now, our focus is on health care being stripped away from the American people,” he added. “Everything else is a distraction.”

Thanedar’s colleagues were even more harsh when granted anonymity to speak freely, with House Democrats venting to Axios Tuesday: “This is the dumbest f—ing thing. Utterly selfish behavior,” What a dumbs—,” and “waste of f—ing time.”

Trump was impeached by the House of Representatives twice during his first term: once in December 2019 for abuse of power and obstruction of Congress in connection with his request that Ukraine investigate the Biden family, and again in 2021 for incitement of insurrection in connection with the Jan. 6 Capitol riot.

3 President Trump has survived two impeachments. REUTERS

Trump became the third president in US history to be impeached, joining Andrew Johnson and Bill Clinton, but was acquitted both times by the Senate.

Republicans roundly scoffed at Thanedar’s impeachment push.

“Rep. Shri Thanedar, who abused beagles and abandoned them to die when his testing lab shut down, is going to force an impeachment vote on President Trump,” Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) chided on X Tuesday.

“The Democrats should be so proud to be led by a guy who killed beagles, so fitting. It’s DOA,” she added, using an acronym for “dead on arrival.”

Washington ― Michigan U.S. Rep. Shri Thanedar on Wednesday dropped his push to force a vote on his resolution seeking to impeach President Donald Trump, following intense backlash by lawmakers of both parties.

The Detroit Democrat said in statement shortly before the scheduled 5 p.m. vote that he made the decision after talking with “many colleagues.” Instead he said he plans to add to the articles of impeachment he filed and “continue to rally the support of both Democrats and Republicans to defend the Constitution with me.”

“This is not about any one person or party; it is about defending America, our Constitution, and Rule of Law,” Thanedar said. “I will continue to pursue all avenues to put this President on notice and hold him accountable for his many impeachable crimes.”

The move came after House Democratic leaders in a rebuke to Thanedar told rank-and-file members earlier Wednesday that they would vote to block his effort on the floor ― an announcement that was met by applause by other members of the Democratic caucus, according to two lawmakers in the room.

But the vote to table the measure never happened, as Thanedar didn’t show up on the floor in time to call up the resolution. The motion to table, which was expected to pass, would have effectively killed the resolution in the Republican-controlled House just over two weeks after Thanedar introduced it.

Democratic lawmakers have been furious with Thanedar’s timing as a distraction from their counter-messaging on House Republicans’ efforts to cut spending on Medicaid and federal food assistance programs. It also would have forced several Democrats in districts won by Trump last fall to take a tough vote, knowing that the measure doesn’t have the support to pass.

“I don’t understand what he’s doing. I wouldn’t be putting it up now ― that’s for sure,” said Rep. Gregory Meeks of New York, the top Democrat on the House Foreign Affairs Committee who planned to vote to table Thanedar’s resolution.

“I’m focused on the economy, tariffs, making sure that we are bringing down inflation. … Those are the issues that we should be talking about, not anything else.”

Rep. Kristen McDonald Rivet, D-Bay City, stressed that Democrats should be focused on fighting the GOP’s tax bill.

“Right now, what we are trying to do is to preserve food benefits and health care for people,” she said. “It’s just not the time.”

California Rep. Ro Khanna correctly predicted that Thanedar wouldn’t end up bringing the impeachment resolution to the floor. “I think we have to defer to the leadership on this kind of thing,” he said.

At a Wednesday morning news conference, Thanedar had shrugged off criticism from his colleagues and “pressure” from both sides of the aisle to get him to stand down or not show up to the vote. Now is “absolutely” the right time to send a message to Trump, he said.

“Will I succeed this week? Maybe not, but we’ll continue to do this until we have a victory. We’ll continue to fight until we have a victory, until we remove this president from office for his unconstitutional, illegal, impeachable misconduct. … We’re not going to give up for any kind of pressure to do that,” Thanedar told reporters outside the U.S. Capitol.

“I’m going to ask and appeal to my colleagues on the Democratic side to stand behind me in supporting this. I have not heard a single member of Congress from the Democratic side tell me that this president has not done impeachable conduct. Not one person.”

Thanedar was flanked by about a dozen supporters holding signs calling to impeach and remove Trump from office. Most were from a group called the MayDay Movement. “Congress do your job,” one sign said in bold red.

In response to Thanedar’s bid to remove him from office, Trump has called the Detroit congressman “a lunatic” and called on House GOP leaders to “start to think about expelling” him from Congress.

Trump, who was twice impeached in his first term, said on social media that Democrats had “got two ‘No Name,’ little respected Congressmen, total Whackjobs both, throwing the ‘Impeachment’ of DONALD J. TRUMP around, for about the 20th time, even though they have no idea for what I would be Impeached.”

Trump continued: “The Republicans should start to think about expelling them from Congress for all of the crimes that they have committed, especially around Election time(s). These are very dishonest people that won’t let our Country heal! Why do we allow them to continuously use Impeachment as a weapon against the President of the United States who, by all accounts, is working hard to SAVE OUR COUNTRY.”

Thanedar, who is serving his second term, had moved Tuesday on the House floor to force a vote on the seven articles of impeachment that he filed in late April. It set off a two-day period during which House Republican leaders had to bring up the resolution. The vote had been set for 5 p.m. Wednesday.

Thanedar said he was prompted to push for a vote this week after Trump defended plans to accept a luxury Boeing 747-8 jumbo jet as a gift from the ruling family of Qatar during his trip to the Middle East.

“Why are they doing that? Does anybody wonder? … They’re just generous people, or they want something in return,” Thanedar said Wednesday. “Mr. President, this is not normal.”

Critics of the jumbo jet gift have pointed to the Constitution’s Emoluments Clause, which bars anyone holding government office from accepting any present, emolument, office or title from any “King, Prince, or foreign State” without congressional consent. White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said the plane is being donated to the U.S. Air Force and not the president.

Thanedar’s seven impeachment articles accuse Trump of obstruction of justice, abuse of executive power and trade powers, usurpation of appropriations powers, bribery and corruption, creation of an unlawful office, violating First Amendment rights and “tyrannical overreach.”

Thanedar has gained one co-sponsor for the resolution, Rep. Al Green of Texas, who made multiple attempts to impeach Trump during his first term. In previous sessions of Congress when the chamber was led by Republicans, members voted to table Green’s other impeachment resolutions.

Four other Democrats previously withdrew their names as co-sponsors of Thanedar’s measure after learning that neither Democratic leadership nor the Judiciary Committee had vetted the resolution.

House Speaker Mike Johnson of Louisiana on Wednesday called Thanedar’s impeachment effort an “embarrassing political stunt” that House Republicans would move promptly to discard.

“House Democrats have demonstrated once again they are willing to abuse the Constitution in their effort to impede the agenda of the American people,” Johnson said in a statement.

Republican Rep. John James of Shelby Township said Thanedar’s gesture is a “desperate” effort to gain relevance both in Washington and back home.

“He doesn’t have the votes, and even his own party is backing away from him,” James said.

“The fact of the matter is, President Trump is performing. He’s keeping his promises. Prices are coming down. Inflation has come down for the third month in a row, negotiating everything from trade to peace deals.”

Thanedar was seen just off the House floor on Wednesday afternoon huddling with Rep. Jamie Raskin of Maryland, the top Democrat on the Judiciary Committee and the lead impeachment manager for Trump’s second impeachment trial.

Raskin later told reporters that an impeachment process requires both a deliberate strategy and a consensus within the caucus.

“I don’t believe the Democratic caucus is there on the question of consensus to move impeachment at this point,” Raskin said.

“Look, there’s great consternation in the country about what Donald Trump is doing to our government. There’s great anxiety about the daily attacks on the Constitution, and all of us have reason to be very concerned and focused about defending the Constitution. But that requires concerted collective action.”

One Democratic lawmaker, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said Thanedar is perceived by some colleagues as trying to take attention off his Democratic primary opponents, and it is causing some colleagues to consider endorsing one of his challengers in the primary.

“Let’s face it, if he’s concerned about his reelect, maybe that’s part of his strategy. If he has chosen this to be, as we say in the military, the hill to die on?” said Rep. Jack Bergman, a Watersmeet Republican.

“I don’t understand it. What is the political gain of doing this? I haven’t put that piece of the puzzle together yet. But obviously it’s not going to happen.”

Thanedar has denied that his impeachment push has anything to do with his primary challengers, noting that the effort was well underway before his latest challenger, state Rep. Donavan McKinney, declared his campaign, and that the primary election is over a year away.

The congressman on Wednesday also had dismissed concerns about forcing vulnerable House Democrats to take a tough vote.

“We gotta take a stand. Look, as a member of Congress, we take hard votes every day,” he said. “That’s our job to take a hard vote, and they just need to look into not what plays well politically, not what the polls are saying ― we got to do the right thing. That’s what you sent us to. … And we can’t worry about that.”

mburke@detroitnews.com

A long-shot effort by Democratic Rep. Shri Thanedar to force an impeachment vote against President Donald Trump was abruptly pulled Wednesday evening after a group of Democrats signaled they would vote with Republicans to block the move.

Moments before a planned vote on a motion to table Thanedar’s impeachment resolution — a procedure that would have effectively killed it for the time being — the Michigan Democrat reversed course and opted not to call up the resolution for floor consideration.

“After talking with many colleagues, I have decided not to force a vote on impeachment today, “ he wrote on social media while accusing Trump of committing “more impeachable offenses” since he introduced his seven articles of impeachment.

But Thanedar left open the possibility of forcing a vote on a new resolution at a later date.

“Instead, I will add to my articles of impeachment and continue to rally the support of both Democrats and Republicans to defend the Constitution with me,” he said.

Several House Democrats, including North Carolina Rep. Deborah K. Ross, could be seen shaking Thanedar’s hand on the House floor after his reversal.

The 29-page impeachment resolution accuses the president of a host of impeachable offenses, including obstruction of justice, violating due process protections, abuse of power, bribery and corruption and tyranny.

Thanedar, who is currently in his second term representing Michigan’s 13th District, took to the House floor Tuesday afternoon to give notice of his intention to bring the articles of impeachment as a privileged resolution, a move that under House rules forced the chamber to vote on the measure within two legislative days. He held the floor for nearly an hour to read aloud the full text of the resolution.

But his efforts did not appear to have the support of House Democratic leaders. CNN reported Wednesday that Thanedar’s move “blindsided” party leadership and his colleagues after he had previously signaled that he would not offer his articles of impeachment against Trump.

And several lawmakers who had originally signed on to the resolution later withdrew as co-sponsors.

As reported by Axios, some of Thanedar’s colleagues have called his impeachment push a futile one given GOP control of both chambers, while others worried that impeachment was a distraction from the party’s messaging this week against Republicans’ massive budget reconciliation bill.

Despite the pushback, Thanedar was defiant heading into Wednesday as he defended his resolution while addressing reporters outside the Capitol.

“I’ve heard it loud and clear. People see this president has conducted impeachable misconduct,” he said. “The honor of serving in the U.S. Congress is that we make tough decisions … and we cannot shy away from that.”

Democrats brought two impeachment inquiries against Trump during his first stint in the White House — in 2019, over alleged abuses of power and obstruction of Congress, and in 2021, after Democrats accused him of inciting an insurrection at the Capitol on Jan. 6. While the Democratic-controlled House voted to impeach Trump in both instances, neither inquiry resulted in a conviction in the Senate, which requires a two-thirds majority vote.

This time around, Trump has suggested that House Republicans consider expelling members who file articles of impeachment against him.

“These Radical Left Lunatics are into the ‘Impeachment thing’ again,” he wrote on social media two days after Thanedar introduced his impeachment articles in the House. “Perhaps we should start playing this game on them, and expel Democrats for the many crimes that they have committed.”

Troubled timing

Critics have accused Thanedar of introducing his impeachment resolution with an eye on his 2026 reelection campaign in his safely blue Detroit-area district. Several billboards advertising the impeachment effort and paid for by Thanedar’s congressional office have already gone up in his district.

Thanedar was first elected to the House in 2022 after prevailing in a crowded Democratic primary with 28 percent of the vote; he won renomination two years later with an underwhelming 55 percent of the primary vote.

Thanedar has already drawn two primary challengers for 2026 as he seeks a third term. Former state Sen. Adam Hollier, who finished second to Thanedar in the 2022 primary and then was disqualified from the ballot two years later, entered the race last month.

And in late April, state Rep. Donavan McKinney launched a challenge to Thanedar on the same day the congressman formally introduced his impeachment resolution. McKinney has the support of progressive group Justice Democrats, as well as Michigan Rep. Rashida Tlaib of the neighboring 12th District.

“I’m proud to support my friend Donavan McKinney for Congress for the Mighty 13th. I need a real partner in Congress who will join me in the fight for our Wayne County communities,” Tlaib said Monday on social media.

Daniel Hillburn contributed to this report.