Trump Complains of ‘Sham’ and ‘Hoax’: Impeachment Update
Judiciary Sets Vote on Articles for Friday: Impeachment Update
(Bloomberg) -- The House Judiciary Committee approved two articles of impeachment against President Donald Trump on Friday. The impeachment resolution is H.Res. 755. The full House is tentatively set to vote on impeachment next week.
Here are the latest developments:
Trump Complains of ‘Sham’ and ‘Hoax’ (11:55 a.m.)
Asked for his reaction to the House vote, Trump repeated his criticism of the Democrats’ impeachment effort: “It’s a witch hunt, it’s a sham, it’s a hoax.”
The president, speaking to reporters while meeting with Paraguay President Mario Abdo Benitez, accused Democrats of “trivializing impeachment.”
Trump said impeachment is good for him politically, citing polls showing increasing support. He said he wouldn’t mind a short or a long impeachment process.
White House Calls Inquiry a ‘Charade’ (10:50 a.m.)
White House Press Secretary Stephanie Grisham dismissed the House impeachment process and said Trump is already looking ahead to a Senate trial.
“This desperate charade of an impeachment inquiry in the House Judiciary Committee has reached its shameful end,” Grisham said in a statement. “The president looks forward to receiving in the Senate the fair treatment and due process which continues to be disgracefully denied to him by the House.”
GOP’s Collins Says Democrats Abused Power (10:42 a.m.)
Representative Doug Collins, the Judiciary Committee’s ranking Republican, said Democrats undermined the integrity of the House of Representatives by voting on articles of impeachment he described as “folly.”
“What will become more obvious in the coming days and years is that Democrats gravely abused their power,” Collins said. -- Billy House
Panel Sends Trump Articles to House Floor (10:09 a.m.)
The House Judiciary Committee approved two impeachment articles against Trump, which if adopted by the full House would make him the third president impeached in U.S. history.
The committee approved both articles by 23-17 party-line votes. The first article accuses Trump of abusing his office by pressuring Ukraine to investigate his political rival, and the second one states that he obstructed Congress’s investigation.
The full House is tentatively planning to vote next Wednesday, according to a Democratic aide.
Panel Approves Trump Abuse of Power Article (10:07 a.m.)
The House Judiciary Committee voted 23-17 to impeach Trump for abusing his office by pressuring Ukraine to investigate his political rival.
If the full House adopts the measure next week, Trump would become only the third U.S. president to be impeached. The Judiciary Committee will vote shortly on the second article, accusing Trump of obstructing Congress’s investigation of the Ukraine matter.
Panel Begins Vote on First Trump Article (10:04 a.m.)
The House Judiciary Committee began voting on the first impeachment article, which accuses Trump of abusing his office by pressuring Ukraine to investigate his political rival.
Judiciary Panel Convenes to Vote on Articles (10:03 a.m.)
The Judiciary Committee opened its meeting Friday for votes on the two impeachment articles against Trump.
Judiciary Sets Vote on Articles for Friday (7:00 a.m.)
The House Judiciary Committee is scheduled to return at 10 a.m. Friday to vote on recommending two articles of impeachment to the full House. Chairman Jerrold Nadler recessed the panel late Thursday night following a marathon day-long hearing.
“I want the members on both sides of the aisle to think about what has happened over these last few days and to search their conscience before we cast our final votes,” Nadler said amid objections from GOP lawmakers.
During Thursday’s hearing, the panel’s Democratic majority rejected five amendments from Republicans to change the articles, which charge Trump with abuse of power and obstruction of Congress.
Catch Up on Impeachment Coverage
GOP Senators Leaning Toward Quick Impeachment Trial for Trump
Democrats Map Trump Impeachment Path on Power Abuse, Obstruction
Trump, Pelosi Both See Benefits in Swift House Impeachment
Key Events
- The House impeachment resolution is H.Res. 755. The Intelligence Committee Democrats’ impeachment report is here.
- Gordon Sondland’s transcript is here and here; Kurt Volker’s transcript is here and here. Former U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine Marie Yovanovitch’s transcript is here and here; the transcript of Michael McKinley, former senior adviser to the secretary of State, is here. The transcript of Holmes, a Foreign Service officer in Kyiv, is here.
- The transcript of William Taylor, the top U.S. envoy to Ukraine, is here and here. State Department official George Kent’s testimony is here and here. Testimony by Alexander Vindman can be found here, and the Fiona Hill transcript is here. Laura Cooper’s transcript is here; Christopher Anderson’s is here and Catherine Croft’s is here. Jennifer Williams’ transcript is here and Timothy Morrison’s is here. The Philip Reeker transcript is here. Mark Sandy’s is here.
--With assistance from Billy House.
To contact the reporter on this story: Josh Wingrove in Washington at jwingrove4@bloomberg.net
To contact the editors responsible for this story: Joe Sobczyk at jsobczyk@bloomberg.net, Justin Blum, Joshua Gallu
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