Democrats aren’t focused on Trump impeachment ‘at this moment’

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries said Tuesday that Democrats are not focused on impeaching President Donald Trump if they regain the majority in the next Congress, at least “at this time.”

jeffries, CNBC CEO Council MeetingHe told CNBC’s Emily Wilkins in Washington that Democrats will continue to increase affordability domestically as they hope to flip the House of Representatives in November’s midterm elections. Jeffries said the Trump administration was “completely out of control” but remained neutral when asked about the possibility of an impeachment inquiry starting next year.

“We haven’t ruled anything out; we haven’t ruled anything out,” the New York Democrat said.

Trump, who was impeached twice in his first term, has repeatedly warned that Democrats would impeach him if they took back the House of Representatives. But for Democrats, impeachment could be a futile exercise unless they can also win a healthy majority in the Senate, where Republicans are expected to maintain their insularity.

Instead, Democrats have talked broadly about reining in what they see as corruption within the Trump administration; Jeffries said it’s a sign that the GOP “isn’t really focused on solving the problems of the American people.”

“From an accountability standpoint, I think it’s fair to say that it will be largely focused on creating the type of government that focuses on improving the quality of life for the American people as opposed to the self-interest that we’re seeing happening right now,” Jeffries said.

Jeffries predicted confidence in the midterm elections, citing a series of wins in special elections over the past year and a half. He said the House Democratic majority would prioritize rooting out corruption in all branches of government, including potentially imposing a stock-trading ban on members of Congress and a home rule banning members and staff from betting on prediction markets. The Senators banned themselves from prediction markets in April.

“I think the House will do the same thing,” Jeffries said of the prediction market ban. “The House should also ban members of Congress from trading stocks, and we have made that clear as part of the anti-corruption agenda.”