ATTORNEY Anthony H. Aguon, who is representing Republican Gov. Ralph DLG Torres in the impeachment proceedings, on Tuesday urged the Senate to dismiss the House articles of impeachment given Rep. Tina Sablan’s conflict of interest, among many other things.
Aguon said Sablan’s involvement in the impeachment process directly violates the CNMI Constitution, the Ethics Act, and the House rules which all state that an elected official must state a conflict of interest.
He said Sablan stands to gain financially and personally from the governor’s impeachment.
Sablan is the NMI Democratic Party’s gubernatorial candidate.
Aguon said Sablan has garnered free media attention to promote her campaign platform, resulting in direct savings to her campaign.
He said if elected governor, Sablan stands to receive $120,000 a year compared to her current annual $32,000 salary as a lawmaker.
Aguon said Sablan failed to disclose any conflict of interest in the impeachment proceedings, including the House Committee on Judiciary and Governmental Operations hearings, the House Special Investigation Committee on Impeachment, and the vote on the articles of impeachment.
Aguon said every action in the impeachment process after Sablan’s declaration of candidacy on Nov. 1, 2021 was unconstitutional.
He noted that Governor Torres was elected by 62% of voters in 2018, the only elected official to win in every precinct throughout the CNMI.
“The election of a public official is a direct reflection of the will of the people,” he said, adding that the impeachment process is “extraordinary” because it could “undo the will of the people.”
“Although impeachment is a political process, it cannot be a lawless one. It still has to comply with the law. If ever the House violates those laws, then any of their acts should be declared null and void, otherwise the House could recklessly use the impeachment process and completely disregard the will of our people…. That is exactly what the House has done here” he said.
Aguon said that all of the articles of impeachment lodged against the governor break the law.
“Any one of the violations — and to be clear, they are not technicalities, they are direct violations of the law…justifies dismissal of the articles in their entirety…. With this motion to dismiss, the issue before you is not about whether Governor Torres should be impeached. We’re not even there yet. Rather, it’s about the fact that it must be done correctly and constitutionally and follow due process,” he said.
“We are a nation of laws and not men, and the rule of law must be followed. To be totally clear, only the Senate has the authority to rule on this. Under the Constitution, the House charges an official with impeachment and the Senate acts as the court and tries the official on those charges. So, the Senate is our only gatekeeper to ensure that the impeachment process follows the law. When an impeachment violates the law, only the Senate has the authority to strike it down.”
Aguon said if convicted, the only sanction available against an impeached official is removal from office.
He said it is illegal for the House to seek anything more.
But the House is seeking to remove the governor from office as well as impose a greater penalty: that he be disqualified from holding any position of honor and trust in the CNMI.
Aguon said that this would effectively eliminate Governor Torres from running in this year’s gubernatorial election or ever again.
He noted that the Senate cannot amend the articles of impeachment, as that would encroach on the House’s constitutional authority.
However, even if the Senate could make amendments, the articles do not have a severability clause, which would allow lawful provisions and disregard unlawful ones.
Aguon said the House chose not to include such a clause.
“That means that the House meant for these articles to operate altogether or none at all,” he said.
He said the House repeatedly violated due process laws throughout the impeachment process, “rushing to judgment to get these articles passed, regardless of whether or not they were breaking the law.”
On Dec. 20, 2021, the articles were pre-filed in the House.
The very next day, House Speaker Edmund S. Villagomez created a special committee.
On Jan. 4, 2022, the special committee held its only meeting and voted to prepare the report to refer the articles to the full House.
“And that was the end of their entire investigation,” said Aguon.
He noted that under the House rules, the special committee had a duty to make a diligent and careful inquiry and investigation into all of the facts and circumstances that are connected to the impeachment matter, as well as to report its record on impeachment to the full House.
Aguon said the special committee failed to investigate, issue subpoenas, call any witnesses, take testimony, require production of evidence, adopt any House Judiciary and Governmental Operations Committee testimony or evidence, and comply with the House’s notice requirements.
Moreover, he said the special committee’s report failed to state findings of fact, state conclusions, and make a specific recommendation.
“This is all proof of the House’s rush to judgment, sidestepping the law to pass the articles, apparently in response to the lawsuit that rightfully challenges the JGO’s subpoena [served] on Governor Torres. It was also apparently to eliminate the governor as a candidate in the 2022 gubernatorial election. This substantial failure to follow the rules in and of itself warrants dismissal of all of the articles of impeachment,” Aguon said.
He said the JGO illegally overstepped its jurisdiction by conducting an impeachment investigation, illegally usurping the jurisdiction of other standing committees.
He also noted that the House failed to make an appearance, file an impeachment record, submit evidence in support of the articles, and oppose the motion to dismiss the articles.
He said the 15 House members who are “recklessly trying to undo the will of the people” only represent 0.1% of the CNMI voter population.
“Based on all of this evidence that I presented today — undisputed, unopposed evidence, it is abundantly clear that the House’s repeated violations of the law are not mistakes; they are a pattern, all in support of their quest to impeach Governor Torres and remove him from the 2022 election,” Aguon said.
The House, he added, has “carelessly wasted” government time and resources in this “quest.”
“As the CNMI’s only gatekeepers in the impeachment process, it is the Senate’s duty to ensure that the impeachment process follows the law. When the House conducts an impeachment that repeatedly violates the law, only the Senate has the authority and the responsibility to call them out on it and strike them down. The House should not and cannot be allowed to use this impeachment process carelessly and recklessly. Accordingly, I ask this honorable body to do what is right and just and send a clear message to our people that no person is above the law,” he said.
The Senate will reconvene at 10 a.m. on Friday, April 22, in the Senate chamber to address the motion to dismiss the articles of impeachment.
Senate President Jude U. Hofschneider in an interview Tuesday said that this will require a 2/3 vote of the full Senate, or all nine of its members.
If the proceedings lead to an impeachment hearing, Hofschneider said that this will still require a 2/3 vote of all nine members of the Senate.
Attorney Anthony H. Aguon, who represents Gov. Ralph DLG Torres in the impeachment proceedings, argues his case before the Senate on Tuesday in the Senate chamber.
