Democrats set to impeach Trump again
Accused of ‘incitement of insurrection’
• Democrats in the House of Representatives introduced a single ar ticle of impeachment against Donald Trump yesterday, kick- starting a process that could make him the first U. S. president to be impeached twice.
The article accused him of “incitement of insurrection” for his role encouraging the mob that stormed the U. S. Capitol last Wednesday, leaving five dead, including a police officer.
The article was signed by 214 Democratic congressmen — almost all the party’s House members — meaning it was all but guaranteed to pass. A vote could come as soon as Wednesday, with some Republican support possible.
The remarkable speed with which the impeachment process began, just five days after pro-trump supporters broke into the Capitol, was a reflection of the anger felt by many congressmen over what took place.
Should Trump be impeached, focus would turn to the next step in the process: the trial in the Senate over whether to convict Trump and remove him from office.
Holding a trial before Trump leaves office at the Jan. 20 inauguration is not expected. The earliest such a trial could be considered is effectively Jan. 19, given the Senate is in recess.
More likely would be a trial after the inauguration. While Trump would already have left the White House, conviction on the article of impeachment would be a warning to future presidents.
Critically, given Trump expressed interest in running in the 2024 election, it could result in him being barred from becoming president again. Such a vote could be taken after conviction, needing just a Senate majority to pass.
President- elect Joe Biden said he is consulting with Senate leaders and the chamber’s parliamentarian about whether the Senate can “bifurcate” its schedule, so it can move forward simultaneously with impeaching Trump and enacting Biden’s agenda, including a multitrillion-dollar coronavirus relief plan.
“Can we go half- day on dealing with the impeachment and half- day getting my people nominated and confirmed in the Senate?” he said.
Trump Tuesday visits the U. S.- Mexico border after days of avoiding the cameras and making few public comments, in part a reflection of his permanent ban from Twitter and Facebook. The visit to Alamo, Texas, is part of a series of events this week highlighting what are seen as his accomplishments in office.
It will focus on the construction of hundreds of kilometres of border fencing since he took office in 2017. However, critics noted much of it simply replaced existing barriers and that the U.S. Defence budget paid for much of it, not Mexico. But the visit also doubles as a reminder that Trump is holding events as president rather than staying in the White House, sending a message of defiance that he will see out his final days in office.
It is unprecedented for impeachment — the mechanism granted to the Congress in the U.S. Constitution to remove a sitting president — to begin so late into a president’s term.
Only two other presidents have been impeached: Bill Clinton and Andrew Johnson. Richard Nixon resigned just before he was impeached, as it became clear he would be removed from office.
Trump was first impeached in December 2019, after he attempted to get the Ukrainian president to investigate Biden, then his likely Democratic presidential rival. The Senate acquitted him, leaving him in office.
Impeachment is warranted, according to the U. S. Constitution, if a president has committed “treason, bribery, or other high crimes and misdemeanors.”
The four- page article of impeachment introduced
Monday was drafted by Democratic congressmen David Cicilline of Rhode Island, Jamie Raskin of Maryland and Ted Lieu of California.
It accuses Trump of “repeatedly” issuing false statements by claiming he was the real victor in the November presidential election. It also alleges he encouraged “lawless actions” in his speech to the thousands of supporters who then marched on the Capitol.
The article states: “In all this, President Trump gravely endangered the security of the U. S. and its institutions of Government. He threatened the integrity of the democratic system, interfered with the peaceful transfer of power, and imperilled a coequal branch of Government. He thereby betrayed his trust as president, to the manifest injury of the people of the United States.”
Democrats also Monday attempted to pass a resolution calling on Mike Pence, the vice-president, to invoke the 25th Amendment to remove Trump, allowing him and a majority of Trump’s cabinet to remove him if it was deemed he could not fulfil his duties.
The Republicans objected
and a vote is expected Tuesday. They called on Pence to respond within 24 hours after passage of the resolution.
Even if it passes it is not binding and Pence has shown no indication he will go down that path.
Na n cy Pe l o s i , the Democratic House Speaker, criticized the Republican opposition, saying it allowed Trump’s “unhinged, unstable and deranged acts of sedition” to continue.
Muriel Bowser, the Washington, D.C., mayor, Monday urged people to avoid the inauguration ceremony amid concerns that pro-trump supporters could again cause disruption.
Biden Monday insisted that he was not concerned about taking his oath of office in the open on inauguration day. Trump has said that he will not be in attendance.
The National Guard was authorized on Monday to send in up to 15,000 troops to protect the inauguration, and tourists were barred from visiting the Washington Monument due to threats of more violence from Trump supporters.
The FBI has warned that armed protests are being planned in the U. S. capital and in the 50 U. S. state capitals ahead of the inauguration, according to a federal law-enforcement official.