Donald Trump has become the first American President to be impeached twice in his tenure by the House of Representatives.President Donald Trump was impeached in a 232-197 vote with 10 Republicans joining Democrats in voting against the president for his role in inciting protesters who stormed the Capitol Hill.The Republicans who backed the impeachment motion included Representative Liz Cheney of Wyoming, the party's third-ranking leader in the House.
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House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who officially signed the article of impeachment, said, "President Trump has proven he is a clear and present danger to our American democracy. We know that the President of the United States incited this insurrection – this armed rebellion – against our American democracy. He must go.""We know that we faced enemies of the Constitution... and we know that the president of the United States incited this insurrection, this armed rebellion against our common country," she said.
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Trump will face a Senate trial next. But that would coincide with an extremely busy period for the Senate as it would also have to deal with confirmation hearings for Biden's Cabinet nominees.In a statement, Senate Majority Leader McConnell said, "Given the rules, procedures, and Senate precedents that govern presidential impeachment trials, there is simply no chance that a fair or serious trial could conclude before President-elect Biden is sworn in next week."
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And because it is unlikely that the Senate impeachment proceedings will be completed in a day, the senators may end up voting on impeaching a former President.According to CNN, a Senate impeachment could result in Trump losing out a chance to run for President in 2024 and his six-figure pension and other post-presidential perks.
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Reacting to the House impeachment, President-elect Joe Biden said, "This nation also remains in the grip of a deadly virus and a reeling economy. I hope that the Senate leadership will find a way to deal with their Constitutional responsibilities on impeachment while also working on the other urgent business of this nation.""From confirmations to key posts such as Secretaries for Homeland Security, State, Defence, Treasury, and Director of National Intelligence, to getting our vaccine program on track, and to get our economy going again. Too many of our fellow Americans have suffered for too long over the past year to delay this urgent work," he added.
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