A Republican congressman from Texas recently told a gathering of tea party supporters that the impeachment of President Barack Obama "needs to happen," but when queried as to why, he could not say.

The comment comes from Rep. Michael Burgess (R-TX), a women's doctor who took office in 2003, stepping into the seat held by former House Majority Leader Dick Armey (R). Amid a recent grilling over his vote to extend the U.S. debt ceiling, Burgess rebuffed tea party members, insisting that allowing the nation to default would have been much worse than a credit ratings downgrade, according to The Fort Worth Star Telegram.

"I didn't want the country to go through what it is going through right now," Burgess reportedly said. "It's not the president's downgrade. The downgrade affected the whole country."