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A4 U.S. NEWS
Friday 18 OctOber 2019

Cummings, powerful congressman leading Trump probe, has died

By BRIAN WITTE and REGINA said that with Cummings'
GARCIA CANO death, Americans "have
Associated Press lost a great leader at a time
BALTIMORE (AP) — Mary- of crisis in our democracy."
land Rep. Elijah E. Cum- "When this nation needed
mings, a sharecropper's him most, he became a
son who rose to become moral voice 'crying in the
a civil rights champion and wilderness,' and his words
the chairman of one of and actions called a reluc-
the U.S. House committees tant nation to conscience,"
leading an impeachment the Georgia Democrat said
inquiry of President Donald in a statement.
Trump, died Thursday of Cummings' career spanned
complications from long- decades in Maryland poli-
standing health problems. tics. He rose through the
He was 68. ranks of the Maryland
Cummings was a formida- House of Delegates be-
ble orator who advocated fore winning his congres-
for the poor in his black- sional seat in a 1996 special
majority district , which en- election to replace Kweisi
compasses a large portion Mfume, who left to lead
of Baltimore and more well- the NAACP.
to-do suburbs. In this April 2, 2109 file photo, House Oversight and Reform Committee Chair Elijah Cummings, By 2016, Cummings was
D-Md., leads a meeting to call for subpoenas after a career official in the White House security
As chairman of the House office says dozens of people in President Donald Trump's administration were granted security the senior Democrat on
Oversight and Reform clearances despite "disqualifying issues" in their backgrounds, on Capitol Hill in Washington. the House Benghazi Com-
Committee, Cummings Associated Press mittee, which he said
led investigations of the was "nothing more than a
president's government drew bipartisan condem- real problems, including House, military bases and taxpayer-funded effort to
dealings, including probes nation following his calls mass shootings and white other federal buildings bring harm to Hillary Clin-
in 2019 relating to Trump's for Democratic congress- supremacy. to be flown at half-staff ton's campaign."
family members serving in women of color to go back "Those in the highest levels through Friday to honor Throughout his career,
the White House. to their "broken and crime- of the government must Cummings. He also tweet- Cummings used his fiery
Trump criticized the Demo- infested countries." stop invoking fear, using ed his "condolences to the voice to highlight the strug-
crat's district as a "rodent- Cummings replied that racist language and en- family and many friends of gles and needs of inner-city
infested mess" where "no government officials must couraging reprehensible Congressman Elijah Cum- residents. He believed in
human being would want stop making "hateful, in- behavior," Cummings said. mings. I got to see firsthand much-debated approach-
to live." The comments cendiary comments" that On Thursday, Trump or- the strength, passion and es to help the poor and
came weeks after Trump distract the nation from its dered flags at the White wisdom of this highly re- addicted, such as needle
spected political leader." exchange programs to re-
The tweet made no refer- duce the spread of AIDS.
ence to past feuds. A key figure in the Trump
Former President Barack impeachment inquiry ,
Obama, whose 2008 presi- Cummings had hoped to
dential bid counted Cum- return to Congress within
mings as an early support- about a week after a med-
er, said he and his wife, Mi- ical procedure for which
chelle, were "heartbroken" he didn't offer details. He'd
by the loss of their friend. previously been treated for
"As Chairman of the House heart and knee issues.
Oversight Committee, he Cummings' committee, au-
showed us all not only the thorized to investigate virtu-
importance of checks ally any part of the federal
and balances within our government, is one of three
democracy, but also the conducting the House
necessity of good people impeachment probe of
stewarding it," Obama said Trump. Cummings was
in a statement, describing among the three chairmen
Cummings as "steely yet to sign a letter seeking doc-
compassionate, principled uments into whether Trump
yet open to new perspec- pressured Ukraine to inves-
tives." In a joint statement, tigate the family of Demo-
former President Bill Clinton cratic presidential rival
and his wife, former Secre- Joe Biden, the former vice
tary of State Hillary Clinton, president. The committees
also praised Cummings' have issued subpoenas of
leadership of the commit- witnesses after the Trump
tee "in finding facts, expos- administration's refusal to
ing fictions, and demand- cooperate with the im-
ing that our government peachment probe and
be accountable." have jointly been meet-
Congressman and civil ing behind closed doors to
rights leader John Lewis hear testimony.q