Donald Trump Acquitted on Two Articles of Impeachment
The US Senate has acquited President Donald Trump on the two articles of impeachment against him on Wednesday.
With this development, a four-month fractious trial and inquiry have been brought to a close. This was almost certain as Republican controls the majority in the upper chamber. It will only take a two-thirds majority to remove him from office.
After the trial, the president took to Twitter to and reuploaded a video from June of last year that showed him winning election after election, ending up as president forever, with the final slide in it reading: ‘‘Trump4Eva.’
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“I will be making a public statement tomorrow at 12:00 pm from the @WhiteHouse to discuss our Country’s VICTORY on the Impeachment Hoax!,’ he also tweeted.
I will be making a public statement tomorrow at 12:00pm from the @WhiteHouse to discuss our Country’s VICTORY on the Impeachment Hoax!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 5, 2020
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Slamming the impeachment, White House press secretary Stephanie Grisham in a statement described the process as ‘sham impeachment attempt concocted by Democrats.’
She added that it was another witch-hunt that deprived the president of his due process rights and was based on a series of lies.
“The president is pleased to put this latest chapter of shameful behavior by the Democrats in the past, and looks forward to continuing his work on behalf of the American people in 2020 and beyond,” she said.
Reacting to the outcome, Speaker Nancy Pelosi said the president remains a ‘threat’, adding that the House will continue to combat through its lawsuits against the administration and with the public.
“Sadly, because of the Republican Senate’s betrayal of the Constitution, the President remains an ongoing threat to American democracy, with his insistence that he is above the law and that he can corrupt the elections if he wants to. The House will continue to protect and defend the checks and balances in the Constitution that safeguard our Republic, both in the courts of law and in the court of public opinion,’ she said.
During the final portion of the trial, which the Chief Justice John Roberts presided over the two votes, there was proportionate silence during the votes; the only sound being heard was that of the clerk of the Senate calling the roll and the senator responding.
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On the first article, abuse of power, 48 senators voted guilty and 52 found the president not guilty. For the second vote, on obstruction of Congress, 47 senators voted guilty and 53 voted not guilty.
With the votes concluded, Roberts gave the final judgment: “The Senate having tried Donald J. Trump – president of the United States – upon two articles of impeachment exhibited against him by the House of Representatives and 2/3 of the senators present not having found him guilty of the charges contained therein, it is, therefore, order and judged that the said Donald John Trump be hereby acquitted of the charges in the said articles,’ Roberts pronounced.
