Democrats plan impeachment tomorrow
WASHINGTON, DC: Democrats in the United States House of Representatives plan to impeach Donald Trump tomorrow unless he steps down or is removed before then, after drawing up charges accusing him of inciting insurrection ahead of last week’s siege of the Capitol.
House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer told his fellow Democrats the chamber would take up impeachment tomorrow if Vicepresident Mike Pence did not invoke the US Constitution’s neverbeforeused 25th Amendment to remove Trump from office, a House aide said.
An impeachment would prompt the Senate to hold a trial to decide whether to convict and remove him from office, although it is unlikely that would be completed before Trump’s term expires in eight days.
A Senate conviction could also lead to Trump being barred from holding public office, ending his possible 2024 presidential bid before it begins.
Thousands of Trump supporters stormed the seat of Congress last Wednesday, forcing representatives certifying Presidentelect Joe Biden’s election victory into hiding in a harrowing assault on the heart of US democracy that left five dead.
The violence occurred shortly after Trump urged supporters to march on the Capitol.
Democrats formally introduced an impeachment charge yesterday, accusing Trump of ‘‘incitement of insurrection’’.
‘‘The President represents an imminent threat to our constitution, our country and the American people, and he must be removed from office immediately,’’ House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said. — Reuters