Impeachment inquiry into Donald Trump: Difference between revisions
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An '''impeachment inquiry against Donald Trump''' was initiated on September 24, 2019, when [[Nancy Pelosi]], the [[Speaker of the United States House of Representatives]], announced in a televised speech the beginning of a formal [[Impeachment in the United States|impeachment inquiry]] into [[Donald Trump]], the [[List of presidents of the United States|45th]] [[president of the United States]].<ref name="WashPo 2019-09-24">{{Cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/powerpost/pelosi-top-democrats-privately-discuss-creation-of-select-committee-for-impeachment/2019/09/24/af6f735a-dedf-11e9-b199-f638bf2c340f_story.html|title=Pelosi announces impeachment inquiry, says Trump’s courting of foreign political help is a ‘betrayal of national security’|last=Bade|first=Rachael|date=September 24, 2019|work=The Washington Post|access-date=September 24, 2019|last2=DeBonis|first2=Mike|language=en-US}}</ref><ref name="nytimes2019-09-24">{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2019/09/24/us/politics/democrats-impeachment-trump.html|title=Nancy Pelosi Announces Formal Impeachment Inquiry of Trump|last=Fandos|first=Nicholas|date=September 24, 2019|work=The New York Times|access-date=September 24, 2019|language=en-US|issn=0362-4331}}</ref><ref name="NBC News n1058251">{{Cite web|url=https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/trump-impeachment-inquiry/pelosi-announce-formal-impeachment-inquiry-trump-n1058251|title=Nancy Pelosi announces formal impeachment inquiry of Trump|last=Przybyla|first=Heidi|last2=Edelman|first2=Adam|date=September 24, 2019|website=NBC News|language=en|url-status=live|access-date=September 24, 2019}}</ref> It begun after President Trump and his personal attorney [[Rudy Giuliani]] pressed the [[Government of Ukraine|Ukrainian government]] to investigate [[Hunter Biden]], the son of former vice president and 2020 presidential candidate [[Joe Biden]],<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2019/09/20/us/politics/trump-whistle-blower-ukraine.html|title=Trump Pressed Ukraine’s Leader on Inquiry Into Biden’s Son|last=Barnes|first=Julian E.|date=September 20, 2019|work=The New York Times|access-date=September 25, 2019|last2=Schmidt|first2=Michael S.|language=en-US|issn=0362-4331|last3=Vogel|first3=Kenneth P.|last4=Goldman|first4=Adam|last5=Haberman|first5=Maggie}}</ref> in what was seen as an attempt to hurt [[Joe Biden 2020 presidential campaign|Biden's bid for the presidency.]] Trump |
An '''impeachment inquiry against Donald Trump''' was initiated on September 24, 2019, when [[Nancy Pelosi]], the [[Speaker of the United States House of Representatives]], announced in a televised speech the beginning of a formal [[Impeachment in the United States|impeachment inquiry]] into [[Donald Trump]], the [[List of presidents of the United States|45th]] [[president of the United States]].<ref name="WashPo 2019-09-24">{{Cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/powerpost/pelosi-top-democrats-privately-discuss-creation-of-select-committee-for-impeachment/2019/09/24/af6f735a-dedf-11e9-b199-f638bf2c340f_story.html|title=Pelosi announces impeachment inquiry, says Trump’s courting of foreign political help is a ‘betrayal of national security’|last=Bade|first=Rachael|date=September 24, 2019|work=The Washington Post|access-date=September 24, 2019|last2=DeBonis|first2=Mike|language=en-US}}</ref><ref name="nytimes2019-09-24">{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2019/09/24/us/politics/democrats-impeachment-trump.html|title=Nancy Pelosi Announces Formal Impeachment Inquiry of Trump|last=Fandos|first=Nicholas|date=September 24, 2019|work=The New York Times|access-date=September 24, 2019|language=en-US|issn=0362-4331}}</ref><ref name="NBC News n1058251">{{Cite web|url=https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/trump-impeachment-inquiry/pelosi-announce-formal-impeachment-inquiry-trump-n1058251|title=Nancy Pelosi announces formal impeachment inquiry of Trump|last=Przybyla|first=Heidi|last2=Edelman|first2=Adam|date=September 24, 2019|website=NBC News|language=en|url-status=live|access-date=September 24, 2019}}</ref> It begun after President Trump and his personal attorney [[Rudy Giuliani]] pressed the [[Government of Ukraine|Ukrainian government]] to investigate [[Hunter Biden]], the son of former vice president and 2020 presidential candidate [[Joe Biden]],<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2019/09/20/us/politics/trump-whistle-blower-ukraine.html|title=Trump Pressed Ukraine’s Leader on Inquiry Into Biden’s Son|last=Barnes|first=Julian E.|date=September 20, 2019|work=The New York Times|access-date=September 25, 2019|last2=Schmidt|first2=Michael S.|language=en-US|issn=0362-4331|last3=Vogel|first3=Kenneth P.|last4=Goldman|first4=Adam|last5=Haberman|first5=Maggie}}</ref> in what was seen as an attempt to hurt [[Joe Biden 2020 presidential campaign|Biden's bid for the presidency.]] A week earlier, Trump had placed a hold on military aid to Ukraine.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/trump-ordered-hold-on-military-aid-days-before-calling-ukrainian-president-officials-say/2019/09/23/df93a6ca-de38-11e9-8dc8-498eabc129a0_story.html|title=Trump ordered hold on military aid days before calling Ukrainian president, officials say|last=|first=|date=|website=The Washington Post|url-status=live|archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=25 September 2019}}</ref> |
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== Background == |
== Background == |
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Revision as of 05:11, 25 September 2019
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An impeachment inquiry against Donald Trump was initiated on September 24, 2019, when Nancy Pelosi, the Speaker of the United States House of Representatives, announced in a televised speech the beginning of a formal impeachment inquiry into Donald Trump, the 45th president of the United States.[1][2][3] It begun after President Trump and his personal attorney Rudy Giuliani pressed the Ukrainian government to investigate Hunter Biden, the son of former vice president and 2020 presidential candidate Joe Biden,[4] in what was seen as an attempt to hurt Biden's bid for the presidency. A week earlier, Trump had placed a hold on military aid to Ukraine.[5]
Background
Efforts to impeach Donald Trump have been made by various people and groups who assert that U.S. president Donald Trump has engaged in impeachable activity both before and during his presidency.[6][7] Talk of impeachment began before Trump took office.[8][9] Formal efforts were initiated by representatives Al Green and Brad Sherman, both Democrats (D), in 2017, the first year of his presidency.[10][11]
A December 2017 resolution of impeachment failed in the House by a 58–364 margin.[12] The Democrats gained control of the House in 2019 and launched multiple investigations into Trump's actions and finances.[13][14] Speaker Nancy Pelosi initially resisted calls for impeachment.[15] In May 2019, she indicated that Trump's continued actions, which she characterized as obstruction of justice and refusal to honor congressional subpoenas, might make an impeachment inquiry necessary.[16][17] An increasing number of House Democrats and one Republican were requesting such an inquiry.[18]
On January 17, 2019, new accusations involving Trump surfaced, claiming he instructed his long-time lawyer, Michael Cohen, to lie under oath surrounding Trump's involvement with the Russian government to erect a Trump Tower in Moscow.[19] This also sparked calls for an investigation and for the president to "resign or be impeached" should such claims be proven genuine.[20] The Mueller Report was released on April 18, 2019, and Robert Mueller himself made follow-up comments on May 29. The report reached no conclusion about whether Trump had committed criminal obstruction of justice.[21] Mueller strongly hinted that it was up to Congress to make such a determination. Congressional support for an impeachment inquiry increased as a result.[22]
Congressional resolutions
As of September 2019, the following resolutions had been introduced in the 116th Congress:
- H. Res.13 introduced on January 3, 2019 by Representative Brad Sherman (D-California)[23]—immediately referred to the Judiciary Committee and to Subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights, and Civil Liberties on February 4, 2019.[24]
- H.Res. 257 introduced on March 27, 2019 by Representative Rashida Tlaib (D-Michigan)[25]—referred to the Rules Committee[26]
- H.Res. 396 introduced on May 22, 2019 by Representative Sheila Jackson Lee (D-Texas)[27]—referred to the Rules Committee[28]
- H.Res. 498 introduced on July 17, 2019 by Representative Al Green (D-Texas)[29]—a privileged resolution that was tabled by a vote of 332–95.[30][31][32]
As of September 24, 2019, 196 Democrats in the House support the initiation of an impeachment inquiry against the president.[1]
Trump–Ukraine controversy
From May to August 2019, President Trump and his personal attorney Rudy Giuliani repeatedly pressed the Ukrainian government to investigate Hunter Biden, the son of 2020 presidential candidate Joe Biden.[33][34][35][36][37] At the same time, Trump placed a hold on military aid to Ukraine, which he later released.[38] A whistleblower complaint from someone within the intelligence community is believed to be related to this situation, but the complaint has not been forwarded to Congress as the law requires, because it has been blocked by the White House and the Department of Justice.[39]
On September 22, Trump acknowledged that he had discussed Joe Biden during a call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on July 25, and that he had said, "we don't want our people like Vice President Biden and his son creating to the corruption already in the Ukraine [sic]".[40] On September 24, the president said he would have an unredacted transcript of his conversation with Zelensky released to the public the next day.[41]
Inquiry
On September 24, 2019, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi announced that six committees would undertake formal impeachment proceedings because of reports about controversial interactions between Trump and the country of Ukraine.[1][2][3] The six committees charged with the task are the Committee on Financial Services, the Committee on the Judiciary, the Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, the Committee on Foreign Affairs, the Committee on Oversight and Reform, and the Committee on Ways and Means.[42]
Joseph Maguire, the acting director of national intelligence who blocked the whistleblower complaint from reaching Congress, is due to testify in front of the House Intelligence Committee on September 26, 2019.[1]
See also
- Impeachment of Andrew Johnson
- Impeachment process against Richard Nixon
- Impeachment of Bill Clinton
- List of federal political scandals in the United States
References
- ^ a b c d Bade, Rachael; DeBonis, Mike (September 24, 2019). "Pelosi announces impeachment inquiry, says Trump's courting of foreign political help is a 'betrayal of national security'". The Washington Post. Retrieved September 24, 2019.
- ^ a b Fandos, Nicholas (September 24, 2019). "Nancy Pelosi Announces Formal Impeachment Inquiry of Trump". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved September 24, 2019.
- ^ a b Przybyla, Heidi; Edelman, Adam (September 24, 2019). "Nancy Pelosi announces formal impeachment inquiry of Trump". NBC News. Retrieved September 24, 2019.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ Barnes, Julian E.; Schmidt, Michael S.; Vogel, Kenneth P.; Goldman, Adam; Haberman, Maggie (September 20, 2019). "Trump Pressed Ukraine's Leader on Inquiry Into Biden's Son". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved September 25, 2019.
- ^ "Trump ordered hold on military aid days before calling Ukrainian president, officials say". The Washington Post. Retrieved September 25, 2019.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ Revesz, Rachael (January 20, 2017). "Website aiming to impeach Donald Trump so popular it crashed". The Independent. Archived from the original on January 20, 2017. Retrieved January 20, 2017.
- ^ Gold, Matea (January 20, 2017). "The campaign to impeach President Trump has begun". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on January 22, 2017. Retrieved January 20, 2017.
- ^ Fox, Emily Jane (December 15, 2016). "Democrats Are Paving the Way to Impeach Donald Trump". Vanity Fair. Archived from the original on February 2, 2015. Retrieved December 15, 2016.
- ^ Teachout, Zephyr (November 17, 2016). "Trump's Foreign Business Ties May Violate the Constitution". The New York Times. Archived from the original on January 27, 2017. Retrieved November 17, 2016.
- ^ See:
- Singman, Brooke (June 7, 2017). "Reps. Green and Sherman announce plan to file articles of impeachment". Fox News. Archived from the original on June 7, 2017. Retrieved June 7, 2017.
- For the draft resolutions, see: Sherman, Brad (June 12, 2017). "Impeaching Donald John Trump, President of the United States, for high crimes and misdemeanors" (PDF). United States House of Representatives. Archived (PDF) from the original on June 12, 2017. Retrieved June 12, 2017. and Green, Al (May 17, 2017). "Calling for Impeachment of the President" (PDF). Congressional Record. Vol. 63, no. 85. United States House of Representatives. pp. H4227–H4228. Retrieved May 17, 2017. (video at YouTube Archived June 9, 2017, at the Wayback Machine)
- ^ McPherson, Lindsey (June 12, 2017). "Democratic Rep. Sherman Drafts Article of Impeachment Against Trump". Roll Call. Archived from the original on July 1, 2017. Retrieved June 12, 2017.
- ^ Mike DeBonis (December 6, 2017). "House votes to kill Texas lawmaker's Trump impeachment effort". The Washington Post. Retrieved December 6, 2017.
- ^ Werner, Erica; DeBonis, Mike (November 7, 2018). "Democrats take House, breaking up GOP's total control of government". The Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved September 24, 2019.
- ^ Fandos, Nicholas (March 4, 2019). "With Sweeping Document Request, Democrats Launch Broad Trump Corruption Inquiry". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved September 24, 2019.
- ^ Jalonick, Mary Clare; Mascaro, Lisa (March 11, 2019). "Pelosi waves off impeachment, says it would divide country". The Seattle Times. The Associated Press. Retrieved September 24, 2019.
{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ Breuninger, Kevin; Wilkie, Christina (May 7, 2019). "Nancy Pelosi: Trump is 'goading' Democrats to impeach him to solidify his base". CNBC. Archived from the original on May 20, 2019. Retrieved May 23, 2019.
- ^ Foran, Clare; Serfaty, Sunlen; Killough, Ashley (May 9, 2019). "Pelosi: Trump 'is almost self-impeaching because he is every day demonstrating more obstruction of justice'". CNN. Archived from the original on May 23, 2019. Retrieved May 23, 2019.
- ^ Watkins, Eli; Bohn, Kevin (May 19, 2019). "GOP Rep. Amash becomes first Republican to say Trump 'engaged in impeachable conduct'". CNN. Retrieved September 24, 2019.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ Leopold, Jason; Cormier, Anthony (January 17, 2019). "President Trump Directed His Attorney Michael Cohen To Lie To Congress About The Moscow Tower Project". Buzzfeed News. Retrieved January 18, 2019.
{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ Barnes, Tom (January 18, 2019). "Trump told to 'resign or be impeached' if reports he instructed attorney Cohen to lie to congress are proven". The Independent. Retrieved January 18, 2019.
{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ Morgan, David; Wolfe, Jan (July 24, 2019). "Mueller says Trump was not exonerated; Trump declares victory". Reuters. Retrieved July 27, 2019.
- ^ Hayes, Christal (May 29, 2019). "Democratic calls for Donald Trump impeachment grow after Mueller's first public remarks". USA Today. Retrieved June 5, 2019.
- ^ Connolly, Griffin (January 3, 2019). "Brad Sherman to introduce impeachment articles against Trump on first day of Democratic Congress". Roll Call. Retrieved September 24, 2019.
- ^ "Actions – H.Res.13 – 116th Congress (2019–2020): Impeaching Donald John Trump, President of the United States, for high crimes and misdemeanors". Congress.gov. United States House of Representatives. February 4, 2019. Retrieved September 24, 2019.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ Serfaty, Sunlen; Killough, Ashley (March 27, 2019). "Tlaib formally submits impeachment resolution". CNN. Retrieved September 24, 2019.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ "Actions – H.Res.257 – 116th Congress (2019–2020): Inquiring whether the House of Representatives should impeach Donald John Trump, President of the United States of America". Congress.gov. United States House of Representatives. March 27, 2019. Retrieved September 24, 2019.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ Mathis-Lilley, Ben (May 21, 2019). "House Democrat Announces Plan to (Deep Breath) Introduce Inquiry Into Investigating Whether to Consider Impeachment". Slate Magazine. Retrieved September 24, 2019.
- ^ "Actions – H.Res.396 – 116th Congress (2019–2020): Authorizing and directing the Committee on the Judiciary to investigate whether sufficient grounds exist for the House of Representatives to exercise the power vested by article 1, section 2, clause 5 of the Constitution in respect to acts of misconduct by Donald John Trump, President of the United States". Congress.gov. May 23, 2019. Retrieved September 24, 2019.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ Herb, Jeremy; Killough, Ashley (July 16, 2019). "Democratic lawmaker introduces articles of impeachment against Trump". CNN. Retrieved September 24, 2019.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ "Actions – H.Res.498 – 116th Congress (2019–2020): Impeaching Donald John Trump, President of the United States, of high misdemeanors". Congress.gov. July 17, 2019. Retrieved September 24, 2019.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ McPherson, Lindsey (July 17, 2019). "House blocks Al Green articles of impeachment of Trump". Roll Call. Retrieved September 24, 2019.
- ^ Segers, Grace; Kaplan, Rebecca; Brown, Kimberly (July 17, 2019). "House votes down rogue effort to impeach Trump". CBS News. Retrieved September 24, 2019.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ Cullison, Alan; Ballhaus, Rebecca; Volz, Dustin (September 21, 2019). "Trump Repeatedly Pressed Ukraine President to Investigate Biden's Son". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved September 24, 2019.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ Zapotosky, Matt; Miller, Greg; Nakashima, Ellen; Leonnig, Carol D. (September 20, 2019). "Trump pressed Ukrainian leader to investigate Biden's son, according to people familiar with the matter". The Washington Post. Retrieved September 24, 2019.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ Barnes, Julian E.; Schmidt, Michael S.; Vogel, Kenneth P.; Goldman, Adam; Haberman, Maggie (September 20, 2019). "Trump Pressed Ukraine's Leader on Inquiry Into Biden's Son". The New York Times. Retrieved September 24, 2019.
- ^ Lemire, Jonathan; Balsamo, Michael; Mascaro, Lisa (September 21, 2019). "Trump, in call, urged Ukraine to investigate Biden's son". The Associated Press. Retrieved September 24, 2019.
- ^ Vogel, Kenneth P. (May 9, 2019). "Rudy Giuliani Plans Ukraine Trip to Push for Inquiries That Could Help Trump". The New York Times. Retrieved September 24, 2019.
- ^ Zengerle, Patricia; Brice, Makini (September 12, 2019). Osterman, Cynthia; Maler, Sandra (eds.). "Trump administration reinstates military aid for Ukraine". Reuters. Retrieved September 24, 2019.
- ^ Bowden, John (September 21, 2019). "Timeline: The Trump whistleblower complaint". The Hill. Retrieved September 23, 2019.
- ^ Baker, Peter (September 22, 2019). "Trump Acknowledges Discussing Biden in Call With Ukrainian Leader". New York Times.
- ^ "Trump says he will release a transcript of call with Ukraine president". Nbcnews.com. Retrieved September 24, 2019.
- ^ McPherson, Lindsey (September 24, 2019). "Pelosi announces formal impeachment inquiry, but leaves some questions". Roll Call. Retrieved September 25, 2019.