Michigan Tea Party freshman: Impeaching Obama 'would be a dream come true'

Freshman Tea Party Rep. Kerry Bentivolio (R-MI) told a constituent on Monday that filing articles of impeachment against President Barack Obama "would be a dream come true," while warning constituents he needed the right evidence to do so.

Think Progress reported on Wednesday that video of a town hall meeting hosted by Bentivolio shows him responding to a woman's request that he and Congress "stop Obama from everything that he's doing against our Constitution." The woman also told Benivolio that the "runaway train" in the White House was making her nervous.

"If I could write that bill and submit it, it would be a dream come true," Bentivolio said in response. "I feel your pain. I stood 12 feet away from the guy and listened to him. I couldn't stand being there, but because he is president I have to respect the office. That's my job, as a Congressman. I respect the office."

Bentivolio also said he has directly asked lawyers and "PhDs in history" what he can do to begin the impeachment process against Obama, only to be told he needs evidence. He specifically mentioned a scenario in which he could obtain an email from Obama's chief of staff, Denis McDonough, to former Internal Revenue Service official Lois Lerner ordering the IRS to target conservative political groups, revisiting a Republican talking point that has been regularlydebunked.

"Until we have evidence, you're gonna become a laughingstock if you [submit] a bill to impeach the President," Bentivolio explained. "Because, number one, you've gotta convince the press. And there are some people our there, no matter what Obama does, he's still the greatest president they've ever had."

Watch the encounter between the "nervous" constiuent and Bentivolio at the 27:40 mark of this video, posted on YouTube by user "John Irvine" on August 20, 2013, below.