How Indiana's congressional members reacted to Trump phone call, impeachment inquiry

A summary released by the White House Wednesday of a phone call between President Donald Trump and Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky has some congressional leaders calling foul while others ask, "what's the big deal?" 

In the summary of the 30-minute phone call on July 25, Trump presses Zelensky to look into Hunter Biden, former Vice President Joe Biden's son, who served on the board of directors for Burisma Group, a Ukrainian energy company, from 2014 to April 2019. Trump offers up his personal attorney, Rudy Giuliani, and Attorney General William Barr to help to do so. 

Trump and Giuliani have previously alleged that as vice president, Joe Biden sought the ouster of Ukraine’s then-prosecutor general Viktor Shokin to stop an investigation into the energy company, with Giuliani saying on an episode of Fox News Sunday that the former VP "knew that they were zeroing in on Hunter and he went over there and got [Shokin] fired.”

Trump alluded to those allegations in the July call with Zelensky.

“There’s a lot of talk about Biden’s son – that Biden stopped the prosecution and a lot of people want to find out about that so whatever you can do with the attorney general would be great,” Trump said, according to the summary. 

Read the summary: President Trump's call with Ukraine president about Biden

Ukraine's current prosecutor told Bloomberg News Service in May that he had no evidence of wrongdoing by Biden or his son.

The summary, which is a non-verbatim recounting of the call by people tasked to memorialize it, was released the day after House Speaker Nancy Pelosi announced an impeachment inquiry

The House needs 218 votes to approve impeachment charges. According to a New York Times infographic, 210 representatives had voiced support for impeachment as of 3:15 p.m. Wednesday. If impeached, the Senate would then be tasked with holding a trial and deciding whether to convict the President and remove him from office. 

Pelosi said Wednesday that the summary confirms the need for an impeachment inquiry, but Republicans say it's just another ploy to impede the President. 

Here's what Indiana's members of Congress have said about the situation, either in response to questions from IndyStar or via social media statements. This story will be updated if remaining members respond IndyStar's request. 

Rep. Peter Visclosky

Democrat, 1st Congressional District  

A Visclosky spokesperson did not respond to an emailed request for comment, though he did tweet his support for impeachment proceedings in a series of Wednesday afternoon tweets. 

"As Chairman of the House Defense Appropriations Subcommittee, I am greatly concerned that the conduct of the President continues to threaten the safety and security of our nation and our allies," Visclosky said in a tweet, never directly mentioning the Trump-Zelensky phone call. 

"Given the seriousness of the President’s actions, I believe that the Speaker’s announcement is warranted. I await the details of the information gleaned from the current Committee investigations."

Rep. Jackie Walorski

Republican, 2nd Congressional District 

Walorski tweeted Tuesday, before the summary was released, that "this impeachment obsession" is a "disservice" to the American people. 

"I’m going to keep my focus entirely on growing our economy, expanding jobs and opportunity for Hoosiers, and finding commonsense solutions to the challenges working families face," she tweeted.

Walorski did not respond to a request for comment from IndyStar regarding the summary by the time of publication. 

Rep. Jim Banks

Republican, 3rd Congressional District

Banks told IndyStar by phone that the summary shows no indication of an impeachable offense, and that he's left scratching his head over what the fuss is all about. 

"It's very confusing," he said.

Like other Republicans, Banks said the outrage over the Trump-Zelensky summary is just another attempt by Democrats to "overturn the election of 2016."

"Democrats fear that this president is going to be re-elected, which is looking more and more likely every day, which is why the Democrats are playing games like this impeachment circus," he said. 

When asked whether he had any concerns over the President asking a foreign power to look into Biden, Banks said his concern is why the former VP's son, who had no background in energy, was paid to sit on the board of a Ukrainian energy company. 

Rep. James Baird 

Republican, 4th Congressional District 

Baird said in an emailed statement that while Republicans are "helping improve the lives of Americans, Democrats are playing politics and avoiding issues of substance."

"Taxpayers deserve better," he wrote. "Congress needs to work on legitimate issues impacting the State of Indiana and our nation. Let’s get to the task at hand and deliver results, like USMCA which continue to wait for a vote.”

Rep. Susan Brooks

Republican, 5th Congressional District 

In an emailed statement, Brooks commended Trump for releasing the summary. After reading it, Brooks determined "there is clearly nothing illegal, let alone impeachable.” She also addressed accusations that Trump implied on the phone call that he would provide aid for Ukraine in exchange for an investigation into Hunter Biden. 

“After reading the transcript of the call between President Trump and the Ukrainian President, there does not appear to be any quid pro quo for Ukraine to receive military aid in exchange for an investigation," Brooks wrote. 

"It is now apparent to me that congressional Democrats are laser focused on impeaching the President because they chose to begin impeachment proceedings without a hearing to gather tangible facts and are instead relying on the rumors of the day."

Rep. Greg Pence 

Republican, 6th Congressional District 

A Pence spokesperson referred IndyStar to a Wednesday tweet when asked about the Trump summary. In the tweet, Pence said an impeachment inquiry "puts a partisan power grab above the American people." 

Rep. André Carson

Democrat, 7th Congressional District

Carson spoke on the House floor Wednesday in support of a resolution demanding Trump release a Aug. 12 whistleblower complaint reportedly related to the July phone call with Ukraine. 

"Every American ought to be extremely concerned by circumstances surrounding this urgent complaint," Carson said on the floor, saying the Trump administration is "hiding" the complaint from the public.  

"This isn't about partisan politics. This is about protecting our democracy and its people." 

Rep. Larry Bucshon 

Republican, 8th Congressional District 

Buschon said in an emailed statement that Democrats have been looking "for a smoking gun to justify their impeachment agenda" since the 2016 election. The Mueller report didn't "produce what they needed to fit their narrative... and neither did this phone call with the President of Ukraine," he wrote.  

"This blatant attempt to pander to the farthest left voters clearly demonstrates to the American people that it is the extreme voices of the socialist wing of the Democrat party who are really in charge of House Democrats.” 

Rep. Trey Hollingsworth 

Republican, 9th Congressional District 

In an emailed statement, Hollingsworth said Democrats "consistently" put "false claims and endless impeachment drama ahead of real solutions for American families." 

"This transcript is another example that they will stop at nothing to seek revenge on the 62 million Americans who voted for President Trump and who are relying on him and Congress to focus on real, day-to-day issues for American families and businesses."

Sen. Todd Young 

Republican 

Young has not yet responded to IndyStar's request for comment. He did not issue any public statements online by the time this story was published. 

Sen. Mike Braun

Republican 

Braun has not yet responded to IndyStar's request for comment. He did not issue any public statements online by the time this story was published. 

Curtis Hill

Indiana Attorney General

Hill joined the impeachment conversation by sending out a statement Wednesday in which he called the inquiry "an embarrassment." 

"Speaker Nancy Pelosi's decision to open an impeachment inquiry into President Trump is a blatant disservice to the American people and a desperate attempt to overturn the 2016 election," Hill said in the statement.

"Rather than our representatives in Congress addressing real issues of concern such as the ever growing crisis at our border, the rapid increase in violent crime, and defending the rights of freedom seeking Americans, the American people may now be forced to watch their Congress waste the next several months with yet another investigation — the modern equivalent of a circus side show."

USA TODAY contributed to this story. 

Contact IndyStar reporter Elizabeth DePompei at 317-444-6196 or edepompei@indystar.com. Follow her on Twitter: @edepompei.