As the president rages, Democrats in the House get ready to vote against him
No volume of howling by Donald Trump could prevent the shadow of history from falling over his White House on Wednesday, as the House of Representatives prepared to approve articles of impeachment against a president for only the third time.
Related: More than 700 historians call for Trump to be impeached as key vote looms
Continue reading...Demonstrators gather in New York, Colorado and California to call for US president Donald Trump's removal from office on the eve of the House of Representatives' expected vote to impeach him. Demonstrators who were gathered in Times Square chanted slogans like 'impeach Trump' and held signs that read: 'Impeach & Remove' and 'Traitor Criminal Lock Him Up!' The House will vote on Wednesday on two articles of impeachment against the president, which if approved, will send the matter to the Senate to hold a trial on whether to remove him from office. The Republican-led Senate is unlikely to vote to convict the president
President sends six-page letter to House speaker Nancy Pelosi condemning inquiry as ‘unprecedented and unconstitutional abuse of power’
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Here’s a recap of today:
Related: Trump impeachment inquiry: a timeline of key events so far
Continue reading...Speaking to reporters at the White House during an Oval Office meeting with Guatemalan president Jimmy Morales, US president Donald Trump said he's not planning on watching tomorrow's impeachment vote in the House of Representatives. He reiterated his claim that the process is a hoax and said he accepts 'zero' responsibility for the fact that he is undergoing the impeachment process, insisting that impeaching the president of the United States for a 'perfect' phone call was a 'disgrace'
Continue reading...Trump claims in his missive – which he says historians will study one day – he’s been treated worse than those accused of witchcraft
On Tuesday, Donald Trump showed that it is not only through the spoken word or his Twitter account that he is able to raise eyebrows, when he sent an angry and frequently bizarre letter to House speaker Nancy Pelosi.
The six-page missive was remarkable for a number of reasons, not least for Trump’s claim he has been subjected to worse treatment than that endured by people accused of witchcraft in the 17th century.
Continue reading...Letter is a thinly veiled attempt to redirect back impeachment inquiry’s findings he abused power and obstructed Congress
Donald Trump has accused Democratic leaders in the House of declaring “open war on American democracy”, on the eve of a historic vote that is likely to make him only the third president in US history to be impeached.
Trump issued the incendiary accusation in an intemperately-worded letter sent to the speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi, on Tuesday.
Continue reading...More than 700 American historians have called for the impeachment and removal of Donald Trump.
Related: 'I guess that's revealing': David Rubenstein on Trump and the weight of history
Continue reading...Senate minority leader criticized the White House for its handling of the impeachment inquiry, saying ‘trials have witnesses’
Speaking to reporters in the cabinet room at the White House, Trump said Rudy Giuliani, his personal lawyer, had not shared “too much” with him after returning from Ukraine.
Hmm...Asked what Giuliani shared with him upon his return from Ukraine, Trump says, "Not too much. But he’s a very great crime fighter…He’s a great person who loves our country. And he does this out of love, believe me. " Giuliani told WSJ he had more than Trump could imagine.
According to a newly released poll, Trump’s approval rating has edged up a bit and opposition to impeachment has slightly decreased since the start of the public impeachment hearings.
The Quinnipiac poll found 43 percent of registered voters approve of Trump’s job performance, compared to 38 percent in an Oct. 23 poll.
Continue reading...Senate minority leader Chuck Schumer criticized the White House for its handling of the impeachment inquiry, arguing a Senate trial without witnesses would be the equivalent of a 'cover-up' during a press conference before Congress recessed for Christmas.
'Trials have witnesses,' Schumer told reporters. 'To conduct a trial without the facts is to engage in a cover-up.'
Continue reading...Judiciary committee approved two articles on party lines, setting up vote for full House next week
There’s a workers’ strike at Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles, the location of next week’s Democratic debate - which has prompted, at this point, six of the seven candidates who’ve qualified to participate, to threaten to boycott the event.
They say they’ll refuse to cross the picket line. Out of Joe Biden, Elizabeth Warren, Bernie Sanders, Pete Buttigieg, Tom Steyer, Andrew Yang and Amy Klobuchar, who are the seven who’ve qualified for the debate, all but Klobuchar are saying this afternoon that they stand in solidarity with the workers and won’t cross their picket line. Warren was first to announce her decision.
.@UniteHere11 is fighting for better wages and benefits—and I stand with them. The DNC should find a solution that lives up to our party's commitment to fight for working people. I will not cross the union's picket line even if it means missing the debate.
I take the debate stage to stand up for workers’ rights, not to undermine them.
I stand in solidarity with the workers of @UNITEHERE11 at Loyola Marymount University and I will not cross their picket line.
Representative Ilhan Omar is out campaigning with Bernie Sanders in New Hampshire today, per her Twitter account. They’re doing a town hall together.
In New Hampshire today with the one and only @BernieSanders!
Follow along on my Instagram story (@ilhanmn). pic.twitter.com/JsglilSDWn
A Green New Deal is the only plan bold enough to confront the climate crisis.
The political establishment may not understand that, but the young people of the @sunrisemvmt do.
Their leadership is going to save the planet. pic.twitter.com/88RJxxBDiB
The US House judiciary committee chairman, Jerry Nadler, said the vote to approve two articles of impeachment against Donald Trump marked ‘a solemn and sad day’.
The vote was swift with 23 for, 17 against. The ranking Republican Doug Collins displayed anger on 12 December when Nadler suddenly gaveled the marathon hearing closed after 11pm without the crucial vote
Continue reading...Judiciary committee voted on Friday morning to approve two articles on a straight party-line vote
On a straight party-line vote, the House judiciary committee voted on Friday morning to move two articles of impeachment against Donald Trump to the House floor, in a crucial final stage before impeachment itself.
A full House vote on whether to impeach the president was expected to be taken as early as Wednesday. Trump would be the third president in American history to be impeached.
Continue reading...Lawmakers spend hours sparring over proposed amendments to the two counts against Donald Trump
The House judiciary committee prepared to advance articles of impeachment against Donald Trump on Thursday, following a marathon and at times meandering debate that stretched late into the night.
Democratic and Republican members had spent the day sparring over several proposed amendments to the two articles, which charge the president with abuse of power and obstruction of Congress. Following their expected approval, the articles will be delivered to the House floor, where the full chamber could vote on whether to impeach Trump next week.
Fury erupts over Republican naming the alleged whistleblower who triggered the congressional investigation into Trump and Ukraine
Today’s markup has gone on for 12 hours at this point.
Related: Trump impeachment vote nears as Democrats prepare to deliver articles to House floor
Speaking on Fox News, Senate leader Mitch McConnell said he’s “going to coordinate with the president’s lawyers”.
Continue reading...Inspector general Michael Horowitz defends report that found FBI investigation into 2016 Trump campaign was justified – follow live
Two sources told CNN that the whistleblower whose account led to the impeachment inquiry is prepping for a potential subpoena from the Senate to testify. Donald Trump and his allies have made thinly veiled threats to the whistleblower, who is still anonymous, making some question the safety of revealing the whistleblower’s identity. Here’s more from CNN:
A subpoena would put the whistleblower in uncharted territory, and raise the risk that his or her identity could come out in the course of the trial in the Senate -- where, unlike in the Democrat-led House, some Republicans have expressed a desire to hear from the whistleblower. ...
Depending on how senators structure their likely trial, a subpoena could compel the whistleblower to cooperate with anything from written questions to a closed-door interview in a secure location to a public hearing that would expose the whistleblower’s identity.
Friendly reminder that the House judiciary committee’s debate on the two articles of impeachment will begin tonight at 7pm. Reports say that House Democrats plan to vote on each article separately.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and House Judiciary Chairman Jerry Nadler said there will be separate House votes on each article of impeachment when they go to the floor next week, even though the articles are written into a single resolution, per @jeremyherb
Continue reading...Two articles of impeachment charge the president with abuse of power and obstruction of Congress
Democrats announced Tuesday that they are weighing two articles of impeachment, charging Donald Trump with abuse of power and obstruction of Congress.
Here are five key takeaways:
Continue reading...Democratic congressional leaders have unveiled articles of impeachment against Donald Trump, a historic move set in motion by a whistleblower complaint warning the president was using the power of his office to solicit foreign interference in a US election.
Related: Democrats unveil articles of impeachment against Trump – live
Continue reading...House Democrats have introduced two articles of impeachment against Donald Trump for high crimes and misdemeanours. At a press conference announcing the move, the House judiciary committee chair Jerry Nadler accused the president of betraying public trust and endangering US national security to benefit himself
Report concludes FBI had a legal ‘authorized purpose’ in monitoring communications of Trump election campaign adviser Carter Page
House Democrats have reached a tentative agreement with labor leaders and the White House over a rewrite of the US-Mexico-Canada trade deal that has been a top priority for Donald Trump, the AP writes.
“I’m hearing very good things, including from unions and others that it’s looking good. I hope they put it up to a vote, and if they put it up to a vote, it’s going to pass,” Trump said this afternoon. “I’m hearing a lot of strides have been made over the last 24 hours, with unions and others.”
The United Nations Security Council will meet publicly on Wednesday over North Korea’s nuclear and missile programs, diplomats said today.
The meeting has been requested by the United States. A US State Department official earlier said Washington wanted the 15-member council to discuss North Korea’s missile launches and the possibility of an “escalatory” provocation by Pyongyang.
Related: The Guardian view on North Korea: a brewing nuclear crisis | Editorial
Continue reading...Monday saw Congress begin arguments on what the witness testimony on Trump meant – and it did not go smoothly
Having heard all the witness testimony in the impeachment case against Donald Trump, Congress began arguments on Monday on what that testimony meant. It did not go smoothly.
Jerry Nadler, the Democratic chair of the House judiciary committee, had barely begun introducing the session when a bearded young man got up from the public seats at the back of the chamber and started yelling.
Continue reading...