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 a majority next Congress, at least “at this moment.”

Jeffries, at the CNBC CEO Council Summit in Washington, told CNBC’s Emily Wilkins that Democrats will continue to hammer home affordability as they hope to flip the House in November’s midterm elections. Jeffries said the Trump administration has been “completely and totally out of control,” but was noncommittal when asked about the prospect of starting impeachment proceedings next year.

“We haven’t ruled anything in; 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 retake the House. But for Democrats, impeachment could be an exercise in futility if they don’t also win a healthy majority in the Senate, where Republicans are expected to retain their narrow edge.

Instead, Democrats have spoken broadly about reining in what they view as corruption within the Trump administration, which Jeffries said is a sign that the GOP is “not focused on actually solving problems for the American people.”

“A lot of the focus from an accountability standpoint, I think it’s fair to say, will be centered around delivering the type of government that’s actually focused on improving the quality of life of the American people, as opposed to the self-dealing that we’re seeing occur right now,” Jeffries said.

Jeffries projected confidence in the midterms, citing a string of wins in special elections in the past year and a half. He said a Democratic House majority would prioritize rooting out corruption in all branches of government, including potentially adopting a ban on members of Congress stock trading and an internal rule barring members and staff from placing bets on prediction markets. Senators already banned themselves from prediction markets in April.

“I think the House will do the same thing,” Jeffries said of the prediction market prohibition. “The House should also prohibit members of Congress from being able to trade stocks, and we’ve clearly expressed that as part of an anti-corruption agenda.”