President Trump impeached for abuse of power, obstruction of Congress

WASHINGTON — The House of Representatives voted almost perfectly along party lines Wednesday to impeach President Donald Trump for abuse of power and obstruction of Congress, making him the third president in U.S. history to face such indictment.

Trump angrily denied any wrongdoing. He appeared at a political rally in Michigan and told supporters that “crazy Nancy Pelosi’s House Democrats have branded themselves with an eternal mark of shame.” Minority Republicans charged majority Democrats with a conducting a political “subversion of democracy.”

There was little drama surrounding the outcome of the vote. Democrats announced earlier in the week they had the votes to impeach the president over united Republican opposition. Just five Democratic votes were cast against the two articles. All Republicans voted against both articles of impeachment.

Similar partisanship — and lack of suspense — is expected at a trial in the GOP-controlled Senate. Two-thirds support is required to convict the president and remove him from office, a margin majority Republicans have made clear is impossible.

Democrats charged that Trump sought foreign interference by Ukraine in the upcoming election through an investigation into a political rival and then tried to block a congressional investigation.

“If we do not act now, we would be derelict in our duty,” House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., told colleagues in a speech that opened a full day of debate.

“It is tragic that the president’s reckless actions make impeachment necessary,” Pelosi said. “He gave us no choice.”

House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., called it “the thinnest, fastest, weakest impeachment in American history.”

“Donald J. Trump is the president of the United States. He is the president today, and he will be the president tomorrow,” McCarthy told the House.

The House voted 230-197 on the first article of impeachment charging abuse of office. Democratic presidential candidate Tulsi Gabbard of Hawaii voted present. On the obstruction of Congress article, the House voted 229-198, with Gabbard again voting present.

The next step would be for the Senate to weigh the charges in a trial. However, minutes after the House finished voting, Pelosi threw the process into confusion by refusing to say when or whether she would send the articles of impeachment to the Senate for a trial.

At a news conference held immediately after the vote, Pelosi said “we’ll see what happens” when asked if she would send the articles to the Senate. She said that House Democrats could not name impeachment managers — House prosecutors who make the case in a Senate trial — until they know more about how the Senate will conduct a trial.

Trump defiant

Trump, who has fumed over the House impeachment process, defiantly accused the Democrats before the vote of leading a partisan crusade that undermines democracy.

“I DID NOTHING WRONG!,” Trump tweeted.

“This should never happen to another President again. Say a PRAYER!” he tweeted.

Like the full House, the Nevada congressional delegation voted along party lines on the divisive issue.

Nevada’s three Democrats, Dina Titus, Steven Horsford and Susie Lee, voted to impeach the president on both articles.

The state’s lone Republican, Mark Amodei, voted against the articles of impeachment.

Moderate Democrats were pressured by the White House and Republicans to vote against impeachment or face the political consequences at the polls.

But in the end, impeachment galvanized political division and almost all lawmakers in competitive districts, including Lee, voted with the Democratic majority.

Two Democrats, Jeff Van Drew of New Jersey and Collin Peterson of Minnesota, joined Republicans in voting no on both articles.

Rep. Jared Golden, D-Maine, voted to impeach on the abuse of power charge but voted against impeachment on the obstruction charge.

Rep. Justin Amash, a former Michigan Republican who switched to an independent, voted with Democrats.

The impeachment stems from a July 25 phone call between Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy.

During that call Trump asked Zelenskiy for “a favor” and to announce investigations into political rival Joe Biden, his son Hunter Biden, and a debunked theory that Ukraine, not Russia, meddled in the past presidential election.

The request was made while the Trump administration withheld $400 million in military aid for Ukraine to fight Russian separatists.

After a whistleblower reported the phone call and the conversation, the White House released a transcript that formed the basis of the House investigation. Trump ordered administration officials to disobey subpoenas to testify or produce documents.

Heated exchanges

During Wednesday’s debate, heated exchanges erupted as Democrats, like Intelligence Chairman Adam Schiff, D-Calif., said Trump sought the political investigations “in an effort to cheat in the next election” to win re-election.

Republicans accused Democrats of politics of destruction and attempting to overturn the result of the 2016 election.

“They want to take away my vote and throw it in the trash,” said Rep. Chris Stewart, R-Utah.

Schiff questioned indirectly Trump’s strong-arm tactics in Ukraine and his relationship with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

“We used to stand up to Putin, we used to stand up to Russia,” Schiff said to Democratic applause.

Earlier, Georgia Republican Barry Loudermilk made a Christian biblical reference, drawing parallels between impeachment and the Romans ordering the death of Christ.

“Pontius Pilate afforded more rights to Jesus than the Democrats have afforded the president,” Loudermilk said.

Judiciary Chairman Jerry Nadler, D-N.Y., jumped up when Rep. Louie Gohmert, R-Texas, repeated claims by Trump and allies that Ukraine interfered in the last election.

Nadler accused Gohmert of spreading “Russian propaganda.” Gohmert shouted that Nadler’s words should be “taken down” and Gohmert refused to leave the speaker’s well until he was gaveled to quit.

GOP lawmakers repeatedly said Democrats disliked the president and were motivated by personal animus.

But Rules Chairman Jim McGovern, D-Mass., told reporters that “the politics of mutual destruction began when Newt Gingrich was speaker.” Gingrich was speaker when President Bill Clinton was impeached by a Republican-led House.

Historical gravity

The historical gravity of the day was not lost on anyone. The visitor’s gallery above the floor of the House was full of people of all ages who watched intently as lawmakers below made their speeches.

Trump is just the third president to be impeached by the House. Clinton was impeached in 1998 and Andrew Johnson in 1868. Both impeachments were considered highly partisan in their day, and both presidents were acquitted by the Senate.

Richard Nixon resigned in 1974 after the House Judiciary Committee voted along party lines to send articles of impeachment to the full House. Nixon left before the House voted.

On Wednesday, small groups of protesters were scattered outside the Capitol, with some holding placards that objected to removal of the president and attacking Democrats while others urged that the commander-in-chief be thrown out of office.

Mark Kampf of Pahrump held a sign near the Capitol that said “We (heart) Trump.” On the back it read: “Impeach Pelosi.”

Inside the ornate House, lawmakers argued for six hours after Democrats defeated a request for 12 hours of debate.

Most of the speeches were merely party talking points as lawmakers took the lectern to explain their historic vote, for or against, impeachment.

If the outcome of the vote was a foregone conclusion, lawmakers made the strongest political arguments possible before they head home to constituents at the end of the week for the religious holidays.

Contact Gary Martin at gmartin@reviewjournal.com or 202-662-7390. Follow @garymartindc on Twitter. The Associated Press contributed to this report.