Bipartisan Calls Grow to Impeach Alabama Gov. Robert Bentley After Allegations of Infidelity

— -- Alabama's Republican governor is feeling the heat to step down and it's no longer just coming from across the aisle.

State lawmakers are making a bipartisan push for Gov. Robert Bentley to leave on his own accord, or they'll try to do it for him.

"Never had to impeach a governor. The process starts today," Alabama State Rep. Ed Henry, a fellow Republican, said at a news conference Tuesday.

Lawmakers have filed a resolution accusing Bentley of corruption. It accuses him of firing his top law enforcement officer, "based, in part, upon his [the officer’s] discovery of the inappropriate relationship between Governor Bentley and his political advisor.”

"If he truly loves the people of this state, he will step down and relieve us of this pressure and this burden that he's placed on us," Henry said.

Bentley admitted last month to making sexually charged remarks to a female aide, and nothing more. Despite his repeated apologies, however, lawmakers say the public has lost confidence in the Republican governor.

"Have I made mistakes? Yes, I have," Bentley said, addressing a gaggle of reporters outside the courthouse last month.

During a jail tour Monday, the governor said, "First, I have asked God to forgive me because that is the most important thing. And I have truly asked the people of this state that are the most loving and the best people in the world, I have asked them to forgive me."

His critics point to campaign finance records showing he spent more than $1,700 of voter money on disposable cellphones to hide proof of the alleged affair. His spokesperson argues it's legal to use campaign funds to buy the cellphones in question. The governor, 73, has also denied having an affair.

The fired law enforcement director who alleges the governor hid the affair says Bentley didn't like email, preferred texting and would change phones often.

The governor, who was married for 50 years before his divorce was finalized seven months ago amid the allegations, has denied any cover-up and in a statement said there were "no grounds for impeachment."

It's unclear whether there's even enough support to impeach the governor. A vote next week could trigger a trial in the state Senate to remove him.