History Made: Donald Trump Impeached
Donald J. Trump becomes just the third president in U.S. history to be impeached. Following a six-hour-long floor debate in the House of Representatives, Trump was impeached on an approval vote of both articles charged.
Article I charged, which charged Trump with Abuse of Power, passed by a vote of 230-197-1 (Tulsi Gabbard, D-Hawaii voted present). The second article charged Trump with Obstruction of Congress and passed by a margin of 229-198-1 (Gabbard voted present).
Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi opened the debate claiming, ‘Trump brought this on himself.’ She solemnly delivered her remarks and expressed the seriousness of the charges. Pelosi, in recent days, acknowledged her understanding of the divisive nature of impeachment inquiries. However, Pelosi and House Democrats have warned that despite their [politically motivated] reluctance to pursue impeachment, their oath to preserve and protect the constitution must prevail.
The cowardice of Democratic presidential candidate Tulsi Gabbard was on full display as she refused to vote yea or nay on both articles. The other Democratic defectors to vote no on one or two articles were Jeff Van Drew of New Jersey (rumored to be switching parties by the new year), Jared Golden of Maine, and Collin Peterson of Minnesota.
To pressure Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell to conduct a fair proceeding, Speaker Pelosi hinted that she might delay transmission of the approved articles. McConnell and other Republicans in the Senate have openly admitted they either lack partiality or are unwilling to consider hearing testimony from fact witnesses with direct knowledge of Trump’s infamous July phone call with Ukraine.
Critics believe the Democratic-led impeachment effort was a fruitless waste of time considering the matter will not result in Trump’s removal by the Republican-controlled Senate. Remember, Congress has a responsibility to conduct oversight on the executive. James Madison explained in Federalist 51 that each branch of the government was designed to check and balance the power of the other branches. On December 18, 2019, the U.S. House of Representatives performed the ultimate check on the presidency.
