WASHINGTON — House lawmakers, still shocked and angry after a mob of President Trump’s supporters stormed the Capitol last week, are poised to impeach him for a second time in a little over a year on Wednesday.
The move would make Trump the first president in US history to be impeached twice, but the House vote alone would not result in removing him from office before his term ends next week.
...The article of impeachment unveiled Monday accuses Trump of “engaging in high Crimes and Misdemeanors by inciting violence against the Government of the United States,” and highlights his incendiary comments to the crowd before they assaulted the Capitol, resulting in five deaths.
Democrats are pursuing multiple avenues to investigate and punish Trump and others involved in the attack, including impeachment, a separate resolution expected to pass Tuesday calling upon Vice President Mike Pence to invoke the 25th Amendment to remove Trump from office, and an investigation into how the security breach happened. Another Democratic member has introduced a bill that would investigate and expel lawmakers who also helped incite the riot.
If Pence does not act within 24 hours to remove Trump, Democrats say, they will go ahead with an impeachment vote on Wednesday, which is expected to easily pass.
Assistant House Speaker Katherine Clark said many members were traumatized after they were trapped on the House floor last week, fearing for their lives and the lives of their staff. That experience has strengthened their resolve to demand accountability, she said.
“What has emerged out of that is a caucus that is determined to use every tool we have to remove this dangerous president from the Oval Office,” said Clark, a Melrose Democrat.
...very few Republicans have connected the mob violence on Wednesday to the president at all, much less embraced his impeachment. Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky told McClatchy an impeachment trial will “further divide us” and Democrats should focus on a positive agenda instead. Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, who said he was “done” with Trump after the riot, tweeted on Monday that impeachment was not necessary because Trump finally said in a video message that he would participate in a peaceful transfer of power last week.
“I do not understand how they look in the mirror and live with themselves,” Clark said of many of her GOP colleagues’ refusal to demand accountability after the attack.
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Original story here.