Washington, DC, USA —(Map)
Yesterday, the US House of Representatives voted to impeach President Donald Trump for his part in encouraging the rioters who attacked the US Capitol last Wednesday. It’s the first time a president has been impeached twice.
Impeachment is a special process that allows Congress to charge the president with a crime. In this case, the House is charging Mr. Trump with “incitement of insurrection“.
(Source: Nancy Pelosi [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons.)
What Happened?
Last Wednesday Congress met to officially count the election results of the Electoral College, which Mr. Biden won 306-232. Mr. Trump didn’t accept that he lost the election, and encouraged Republican lawmakers to protest the results. He also put pressure on Vice President Mike Pence to throw out the results – something Mr. Pence didn’t have the power to do. Mr. Pence made it clear he wouldn’t challenge the results.
As Congress was meeting, Mr. Trump spoke to a rally of his supporters. He repeated his claim that the election was stolen, and encouraged them to march on the Capitol. The mob of rioters, many carrying weapons, broke violently into the US Capitol building, forcing lawmakers to run for safety. In the violence, five people were killed and dozens were injured.
After many hours, the rioters were cleared, and members of Congress continued their count, finally approving the Electoral College result.
(Source: Tyler Merbler [CC BY 2.0], via Wikimedia Commons.)
The move comes just one week after lawmakers were forced to run for safety as Mr. Trump’s supporters pushed past police and broke into the Capitol building. Many of the rioters were armed.
Before considering impeachment, the House asked Vice President Mike Pence to use the 25th Amendment to remove Mr. Trump. When Mr. Pence refused, Democrats began the effort to impeach Mr. Trump.
After several hours of discussion, members of the House voted 232-197 to impeach Mr. Trump. Ten Republicans joined the Democrats in voting for impeachment. The process was quick. Most House members were given a minute or less to speak.
(Source: US House of Representatives [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons.)
Democrats said Mr. Trump’s lies about the election and his refusal to accept the results created a dangerous environment among his supporters. They criticized the language he used before sending his supporters to the Capitol, such as: “If you don’t fight…you’re not going to have a country anymore.”
Several Republicans complained that the impeachment vote was happening too quickly. Many Republicans continue to say that Mr. Trump has done nothing wrong, especially those who voted against accepting the results of the Electoral College last week.
Still, many Republicans expressed concern over Mr. Trump’s actions, even if they didn’t vote to impeach him. Kevin McCarthy, leader of the House Republicans, voted against impeachment, but said, “The president bears responsibility for Wednesday’s attack on Congress by mob rioters.”
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Kevin McCarthy, leader of the House Republicans, voted against impeachment, but said, “The president bears responsibility for Wednesday’s attack on Congress by mob rioters.” Mr. McCarthy is shown speaking here after last week’s attack.
The next step in the process is a trial in the Senate. Republican Senate leader Mitch McConnell says the Senate won’t meet again until January 19.
That means a Senate trial of Mr. Trump is unlikely to begin until after Mr. Biden has been sworn in as president on January 20. The trial could be delayed even longer so that the Senate can first approve Mr. Biden’s choices for his Cabinet.
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A Senate trial of Mr. Trump is unlikely to begin until after Mr. Biden (above) has been sworn in as president on January 20. The trial could be delayed even longer so that the Senate can first approve Mr. Biden’s choices for his Cabinet.
To convict Mr. Trump, two-thirds of the Senate must find him guilty. That means at least 17 Republicans would need to join the Democrats in voting guilty.
Though that seems unlikely, many Republicans feel very differently now than they did when Mr. Trump was first impeached in 2019. At that time, many senators promised to find him innocent even before the trial began. This time, even Mr. McConnell is reported to believe that Mr. Trump’s actions were “impeachable”.
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To convict Mr. Trump, two-thirds of the Senate must find him guilty. That would require 17 Republicans to vote guilty. Republican Senate leader Mitch McConnell (above) is reported to believe that Mr. Trump’s actions were “impeachable”.
It may seem pointless to impeach a president who has already left office. But many Democrats believe that impeaching Mr. Trump is important, as a warning to any politicians in the future who might try to imitate him.
It could also affect Mr. Trump directly. If he’s found guilty, the Senate is allowed to hold a second vote that could prevent Mr. Trump from running for public office again.
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